How should we respond to the evil that ISIS represents?
What is the difference between knowing the love of God, and feeling loved by him? What is the difference between believing that God is a God who loves us, and really knowing that love?
On Sunday we were looking at the story that Jesus told about the ‘prodigal’ son. When Martin finished speaking he invited us to discuss the implications around the tables where we were sitting. I made a statement on the spur of the moment and without really thinking about it. I said,
“I have always known that God loves me, ever since I was 5 years old.”
Can we smash the cycle of poverty and prevent one generation trapped in poverty producing another poor generation? Returning from our visit to Jaffna recently we were overwhelmed by stories which emphasised the importance of education and the potential to radically change lives. In this article I present some anecdotal evidence that sponsoring really works. Ensuring that boys and girls receive a good education really changes the lives of young men and women.
I first visited Sri Lanka early in 1988, but have just returned from what must be about my 30th visit. The roots of the poverty relief charity, Kingscare/Karuna Action developed here, and the country has been central to it’s work and vision.
I remember well my first visit. I came with a burden and a dream along with a certain amount of idealism. I knew that God had called me to take some action to relieve poverty which I knew held so many in it’s grip of slavery. I had read every book I could find, both Christian and secular, on the subject of poverty and world problems. I was anxious to find ways that the Church of Jesus Christ could be a blessing to the whole world.
This is an excellent article by a blogging friend.
There is no getting away from the fact that I always want to be in control. But sometimes the Lord puts us in situations where I am not in control at all. Instead of being in a boat heading purposely out to sea I feel like a piece of drift wood at the mercy of the waves upon the beach.
Continue reading “Confessions of a control freak”
Well here we are in Jaffna. We have met so many people that our heads are spinning. We have had lots of rice and curry and are on our second bottle of industrial sized mineral water. Things have certainly changed. Out of a group of 10 people 6 may be on their iPhones at any one time. Photographs are taken by the score for posterity (?). Continue reading “Return to Jaffna”
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 12,000 times in 2014. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Compassion and Justice 