Reflecting Light.

Yesterday the autumn sun was blinding and sun glasses needed for me to see anything. We had a drive by Coniston Water. The lake was smooth, with gentle ripples made by one or two canoes. Reflections of the opposite bank heightened the experience of joyous delight. Unfortunately we were not able to stop on the narrow twisting road to take photographs where the views were outstanding but this one gives an idea. It seems the sun blinded the camera too in part!
It reminded me of St Paul's saying about reflections in a mirror 'but then we shall see face to face, and know as we are known'
All we see now may pass away, but to believers what remains is eternal.

Stepping Stones

Stepping Stones

Walking in Nottingham University Park, we crossed the lower end of the lake by walking over the stepping stones. It is a beautiful spot with waterfall and rocks, surrounded by mature trees — a mini-paradise. This is a place we visited when I was a young child up to my adulthood. So many steps taken along that road to where I am now. Never did I think I would write books, or train to be a teacher or designer. But I did think about God, even if I never imagined serving Him through the Church. I may have since trained for the Ministry, studied theology at degree level, practised my faith through Church duties (including services, funerals, pastoral care, preaching) but I doubt that my faith has changed little over all those years. It is simple and enduring. God IS and in Him I live and have my being. As a young child of seven I gave my heart to Jesus. Did I understand what I was doing? Maybe not, but as then, I believe that when we give, we never take back. Has all my theology and training been of worth? Yes, indeed. It has answered questions about inconsistency within the Bible, shown up what tragedies occur when religion takes up ‘weapons’ and strays beyond the WAY of simplicity.

We crossed those stepping stones and ended up the other side of the lake and back to where we started. Just like my faith — enriched.

For We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray

Sometimes we have to sit back and ask ourselves where we are going.
It is easy to get into a rut. Or find ourselves at a dead end with no sense of direction.
We had a visit by five Herdwick Sheep a couple of weeks ago. Evidently they had been loose around the immediate area for a few days. They are lovely creatures and I had no objection to their visit as long as they didn't stay long. (We made sure of that) It was the tup's fault. A handsome male, that tup. Those ewes wouldn't let him out of their sight — where he went the ewes were sure to go. Too often humans can be just like those sheep.
But we don't need another person to send us astray. We can follow an ideal, an ambition, a desire, an obsession. Then maybe stop and realise somewhere along the road we have lost 'our way'.
I have done that more than once. I have been sitting and doing a bit of thinking today. New patterns for a way forward have come to mind.
However, at the moment I'm more concerned for a group of people (who consider themselves Christian) that could, through the preaching of one man, cause the death of very many (if not thousands) of people. What are they trying to prove by burning the holy book of another religion? The only destruction our stray sheep could do would be to ruin a patch of garden. Let's hope these zealots will see the light before setting fire to a bonfire which could sweep across continents leaving nothing but hatred and death in its wake.