Coach House Talks and Beacons

“What are you grateful for today?” I often ask my husband and he often asks me this question at the end of the day. When I ask him this question I think about what happened on that day that blessed me, something that made me smile or made me glad. Basically a good thing that happened over the day that just ended. We started this little game

Perhaps it feels strange to hear this coming out of the Bible. Ecclesiastes is a weird book. To put it bluntly, it is very ‘earth centred’. If you’ve ever heard someone say that Christianity is a ‘pie in the sky’ religion that only cares about stuff that happens after you die, then Ecclesiastes busts the myth.

The phrase often used when businesses close is “Gone to the wall”. We have heard this many times recently but where does this rather odd phrase come from? Well before a business goes to the wall, and it can be seen beforehand that this is going to happen we say that “The writing is on the wall” for that business.

Doing right is a personal matter. doing what is right lies squarely on the shoulder of us, as individuals. No matter what others do, you know what you have to do. If you know the difference between right and wrong, then you know what you need to do to please God. And God makes this personal; the Bible says, And as for you, brothers, (or sisters), never tire of doing what is right. He puts it firml...

People are more worried because they can’t spend time with friends and family. We can’t share our concerns or be heard which means we bottle it all up, making us feel worse. We are worried about catching the virus, or passing on the virus. We are worried about having the vaccine and not having the vaccine.

Before God, who is always wise and aware of our inner intentions, what good is cultivating an image of righteousness at any point in our lives when actually carrying out the deed? Absolutely nothing. The skills we are told that are worth at least twice the salary of minimum wage are not worth mentioning before God.

I suppose the ramble at the beginning is because…. Well, here is my confession (and/or excuse if you like?) … I completely forgot about getting this in on time, because, and I know that this is not good reason, I had done my preaching notes early and deposited them in the same way as I would a beacon transcript – and then convinced myself that the beacon was therefore done! All well and good until...

In my normal working week, I would spend an afternoon in an audiology clinic, supporting the clinical audiologist. I would sometimes be the tester and sometimes lead the play activity- putting the man in the boat or the peg in the board while the pupil was being tested, supporting them to maintain their attention so they could respond consistently to the quiet beeps they were listening to through...

I miss standing on the top of a mountain or a hill! I miss being able to look far and wide to houses, roads and people. From above, majestic buildings and big structures lose their towering height, somehow when you look at them, they don’t seem so intimidating or frightening; they seem more approachable and not so overwhelming.

Do you start things enthusiastically and then get bored and bogged down with the details? I’m a great project starter, or even better, a project ‘imaginer’. It’s all so great in my mind but when I get down to doing it, indifference sets in because the project never lives up to the ideal. Shelves on the wall, artwork on my desk and stories on the bookshelf have all met the same fate.

As I sit down to write this beacon I feel replete having just polished off this years substantial helping of pancakes. I expect that I am not alone in this, although I know that by the time you hear this Beacon we will already be 3 days into the lent period.

It’s good to listen to yourself think. I try to regularly. Separate yourself from your own reasoning and ask yourself, why am I thinking this way? Is it really the right way to be thinking? My name is Jamie and welcome to this Coach House Beacon.

Have you ever been with someone in absolute quiet and started to breathe in the same way, the same depth and length of breaths? Or have you ever been walking with someone and noticed that you are taking steps at the same time in the same pace? This happens with me and Jamie quite often.

The game was always great fun and sometimes you were on it, almost being able to sense which hole the mole would appear in and be ready to bring the hammer down and then get ready for the next one.

When you listen to current discussions or reports on the news or social media, you may have heard the term resilience used. The situation over the past year has brought this term to the fore and the importance of being resilient, emotionally, mentally and physically. And I would add, for a Christian, to be spiritually resilient

A sad piece of news I heard this week was that the singer Mary Wilson had passed away on Monday. Mary was the cofounder of a band called The Supremes together with Diana Ross and Florence Ballard back in the 60s.

We all love a well-chosen gift. For my 18th birthday my brother got me surreal, rubber horse mask. On another occasion he got me a mug with a Monsters Inc. meme printed on the front of it. My housemate, Daniel, got me a basic Casio watch that I’ve worn almost every day for the past two years, and it survived plenty of punishment as I took it into school with me every day.

If there is one household chore that really seems to divide opinions it is ironing. I quite like it, albeit in small doses, my wife however hates it and would rather I do all of it. Ironing comes at the end of the laundry process. First the clothes have to be washed, made clean, with all the stains removed. Then they have to be dried, carefully, to avoid too many creases. And lastly the ironing, f...

No one lives in isolation. All of us have and need relationships. They determine to a great extent how successful and joyful we are. Our relationships make it possible for us to pursue various goals and engage in various activities. And they play a key role in helping us overcome adversities and hardships

Many of us that are in churches have found passions within the church. We have found roles that we are really good at and we have built ministries for ourselves within church. This is a really good thing, but what happens when God moves us on or something happens to us that means we can’t serve in the same way.

We adapted, but I missed the camaraderie and fellowship and I also missed getting out and about in the beauty of the Lakes and mountains. Me and Mel made up for it with the odd walk from home, but it wasn’t quite the same grandeur.

A rocky table is annoying and sometimes no matter how much trouble you go to to even out the wobble, folding up cardboard and pushing it under one of the legs, it still doesn’t seem to be secure and stable, spilling your coffee atthe slightest nudge.

Until the New Jerusalem comes and we live in perfect harmony with our Creator, what part of His shalom can we really expect to experience in our daily lives?

Do you remember that feeling, when you expect guests for dinner? It seems like a life time ago since we last had people in the house gathered around food or since we were able to chat with new acquaintances or catch up with friends in person.

Am I healthy and fit? It’s a bit of a horrible question isn’t it? And to be honest, it’s a bit irrelevant. I could say ‘yes’ and show 10000 steps I did on a smart watch and I’d nod my head and say it’s good going. Without context it doesn’t mean much. I can do a decent 5K,