For the opening week of July each year, my family and some very dear friends attend and volunteer at a Scripture Union summer camp near our home in southeast Scotland. For one week volunteers play host to a bunch of high school age young people, while they learn to surf, go coasteering and paddleboarding, turn their hand to a multitude of creative and artistic craft, play games, eat food (SO much food!!!), and worship, and learn a wee bit about Jesus along the way. It’s alway

My heart sank. “Oh no, here we go again.” I had arrived at a pioneers' retreat and, there in the corner of the room, was an array of creative materials. As I sipped my coffee and introduced myself to the people around me, I couldn't ignore their presence. When would the dreaded moment come when we'd be encouraged to use them? Art has never come naturally to me, despite taking GCSE Art - a decision I still don't understand to this day. So, whenever I arrive somewhere, usua

I heard a great sermon the other Sunday on John 4. The preacher highlighted many things in the passage, including the shame the woman at the well experienced. She was a Samaritan, avoided by the Jews, and she came to draw water at midday, perhaps because she had been shamed by her community. She carried the weight of shame, and Jesus welcomed her. She was hiding, and Jesus saw her. She knew the judgement and condemnation of the community, and Jesus released her. She became th

A group of Christians with a prison ministry once enquired whether the inmates would like to send Mothers’ Day cards to their mums. There was a huge response and so the volunteers brought cards for them all to send. When Fathers’ Day came around, they offered the same thing. There wasn’t a single inmate who took them up on their offer to send a card to their dad. Many years ago, I worked in a residential setting with young men at risk of homelessness. Many were just out of

The Premier League season ended in May, giving football fans a month’s rest before the late-night viewing of the World Cup in North America. As the season drew to a close, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola announced his resignation after ten years at the club - a decade in which he reshaped English football. In several interviews reflecting on his time there, one comment particularly caught my attention: "Nothing is eternal." As a Christian, that is not a statement

The sending out of the disciples is a glorious moment in the Gospels. In Luke, we hear of the seventy-two being sent out, and it is incredibly encouraging. I would have loved to have been one of them: seeing demons cast out, people healed, and then returning to Jesus full of excitement. In one sense, I can relate to that. There have been moments in my journey with God that have felt a little like this: moments when God has moved, people have been healed, and yes, demons hav

Last week Sam reflected on an aspect of rural life that is sometimes hard to come by in the urban environments – stillness. If you haven’t read it, I suggest you hit pause on reading this and go and check it out here. It reinforced to me the need to ensure there is a practice of stillness in my weekly rhythm. It’s easy to forget being still, a practice of stillness or centring prayer could just be the perfect antidote to the rush of modernity and its attempt to enforce our pa

I was recently invited to a church in a large town to take part in a Q&A about my roles with RM and as a hospital chaplain. One question from the congregation particularly stood out: “What one thing from the rural church might help the urban church?” The truth is, I think there are many things, but I felt the Spirit prompting me to answer: “Stillness.” I grew up in the south-east, in a town near Watford. At the time, it was a small town surrounded by countryside, though

This is a bit of a personal reflection this week, I hope it can speak to you and encourage you where you are this week. I am having the great joy of beginning somewhere new, without a local title and with the expectation that I need to rest, for four days a week anyway. And, as I expected it would, it is reminding me what it is like to take things slowly and listen without a dog collar on. Although I rarely wore my collar, everyone knew who I was because I had been introduc

The small Christian community that I am part of regularly meets a few times a week in various forms. This past week, we gathered in the coziness of a friend’s house, shared some tea, and spoke about what it means to bring Jesus to the world; we discussed the concept of mission; we listened to, and prayed for, a young person who is about to leave on a short-term missions trip; and we laughed at their mischievous cats. Held within the conversation was a phrase that we’ve said

Since moving to West Norfolk, one of the roads I’ve come to travel regularly is the A10. Heading south, the next large conurbation is Ely, instantly recognisable by its cathedral. Perched on a slight rise and towering above the surrounding flat fenlands, it has been affectionately named the ‘Ship of the Fens’. Driving home from RM meetings and events, or after visiting family further south, reaching Ely and catching sight of the cathedral tells me I am nearly home - with arou

‘…if we believe in the missio Dei, then the only logical consequence is that it challenges the primacy of ecclesiology.’ (Mark Collinson) Let’s clarify two words first 1. The missio Dei The mission of God - The theological turn to mission about not being something the church does, but something that is part of God, belongs to God and we are invited join in with. 2. Ecclesiology The study of the church - How we gather and be church together. T

Leave me alone with God as much as may be. As the tide draws the waters close in upon the shore, make me an island, set apart, Alone with you, O God, holy to you. Then with the turning of the tide prepare me to carry Your presence to the busy world beyond, The world that rushes in on me, Till the waters come again and take me back to you. St Aidan liturgy, Celtic Daily Prayer Book 1, Northumbria Community. Walking the causeway over from the mainland to the Holy Island of

Do you like surprises? Some people love them; others, not so much. It often depends on what the surprise is. I’ve found that organising a surprise birthday celebration can go either way - apparently, not everyone wants to celebrate significant birthdays, even if I do! The Easter story is, at its heart, a story of surprise. Despite Jesus’ hints, everyone was caught off guard - Mary in the garden, the disciples, and the Jewish leaders. It’s a reminder of just how transformati

Dear Jesus, I wonder what it would have been like to be Mary, walking to the tomb with her friends, filled with grief. That deep loss of hope, That all those miracles were no more All those words you said gone, All the kindness you had lost from this world The way you looked at her, As though she mattered, That along with the men she could sit at your feet, And soak up your love. All gone. Then I wonder what it was like for you, to see someone you love in pain weeping

There are many parts to the role of Joint CEO of Rural Ministries. To be honest there are a few admin duties that definitely DO NOT light a fire in my soul. But there are moments that do. During this past 10 days I’ve had the privilege of walking alongside others in beautiful, natural surroundings as they discern the movements and invitations of God in the context of their own lives and calling, having space to simply share stories of outdoor church, or the pilgrim roads we f

Recently, I’ve begun reading The Patient Ferment of the Early Church by Alan Kreider. It is a well-researched and demanding book - one that resists being rushed. I find myself reading slowly, not only because of its depth, but because I want to savour what it is teaching me. What follows is not a full book review, but a reflection on the opening section (and there is so much more that the book explores!). Kreider focuses on the steady growth of the early church in deeply c

Our reflection last week briefly touched on endings, which are always a little awkward. Yet endings are woven into the fabric of our seasonal faith journey. Over recent weeks I have been living through one myself. I have left my post as a vicar and we have moved into our first own home. Ministry does not stop, I am still a Christian, I still want to love my neighbours and share Jesus, I am still ordained. It simply looks different as missional listening begins again, in a n

This week our reflection is brought to you by Sally Taylor and Lucy Bolster from Ember. Rural Ministries is partnering with Ember to help churches and communities talk openly about their future. As we move through Lent, many people discover an invitation to let go and surrender. This process brings freedom, but it is not without struggle and pain. Surrender means to give up or hand over to someone else. Jesus talks about surrender in Luke 9 v23-25. Even He found it hard

Since Lent began this year, I’ve been reflecting on the many practices I have taken up during this season in the past. They generally fall into two categories: things I will not do, and things I will do. On the “not-to-do” list, over the years (though not all at once!), I have given up chocolate, caffeine, and TV, to name a few. On the “to-do” list, I have taken up eco-friendly practices, random acts of kindness, and intentional rhythms of prayer. I have been blessed by b