Blog
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Devotional of the week – Our Commission (6 in John 15-16 series)
And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning. John 15:27 When I was an editor at HarperCollins I commissioned the memoirs of Canon Michael Green. Sharing the good news of the gospel seems to pour out of him naturally, with his winsome words accompanied by a bright smile. I,…
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Review – memoir of life in Afghanistan
I came across this gripping memoir through a review in the Woman Alive Book Club, and was grateful for the recommendation. In the Land of the Blue Burqas tells the stories of an American woman who spent five years in Afghanistan, working for an NGO with the goal of helping Afghan women. She recounts her experiences in a…
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Devotional of the week – A Privileged Relationship (5 in John 15-16 series)
When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. John 15:26 Inspired by dramatized courtroom dramas, I decided when at university that I wanted to be a lawyer. (I’m embarrassed to admit that one of them…
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Review of a quirky memoir
A year or so ago I read nearly twenty books for a feature article in the Christian publishing trade magazine. That’s a lot of reading, even for a self-confessed bibliophile such as me. In the midst of all those words, the ones that stood out to me were those in Dallas and the Spitfire, the…
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Life in the UK – Cause for celebration?
Why does a nation so filled with great achievements and peoples not celebrate? Why is a national day off simply called a Bank Holiday? Though I’ve lived on this small island for many a year now, I’ve taken a long time to understand what is behind this reticence. But my opening sentence gives a hint,…
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Devotional of the week – Redemptive suffering (4 in John 15-16 series)
“They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me.” John 15:21 In the West we currently enjoy religious freedom, and take for granted the ability to meet with other believers to pray and worship together. This freedom is not enjoyed by many brothers and…
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A Holy Week Poem
Holy Week. I feel busy this week. Too busy. But I offer this poem that I wrote some years ago to remind myself to stop and consider the grand story of redemption being played out this week. O Jesus of Nazareth, Thorns we twisted and turned Upon your head we placed, Crowning you King of…
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Devotional of the week – The Royal Family (3 in John 15-16 series)
Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ John 15:20 My son has had a fascination with the British monarchy over the years, and I’ve learned much about kings and queens as we’ve visited royal palaces and read biographies. I simply cannot imagine one of these exalted persons lowering themselves…
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Review of Cross Roads, follow-up to The Shack
My review from the Woman Alive book club, originally published in February 2013, shortly after the release of the follow-up to the massive hit, The Shack. Many anticipated Cross Roads, Wm Paul Young’s novel following his huge success with The Shack. Me? Not so much. I reviewed The Shack in the Woman Alive book club in 2008,…
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Devotional of the week – Heavenly citizens (2 in John 15-16 series)
As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. John 15:19 I have two passports – one from America, the land of my birth, and one from Britain, my adopted country. I will always have divided loyalties, whether in which sports team to support or…
