On 9 April, the St Vincent La Soufrière volcano erupted, covering most of the once-idyllic island with a thick grey blanket of ash (up to 42 centimetres in some places). In addition, the neighbouring islands of St Lucia and Barbados have also been affected, with ‘homes, crops and water supplies . . . also destroyed […]
Combating loneliness, isolation and exclusion – together
The Post-Quarantine Church: Six Urgent Challenges and Opportunities That Will Determine the Future of Your Congregation By Thom S. Rainer, Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale Momentum, 2020. Book Review by Joanne Cortes – associate pastor at Beltsville Seventh-day Adventist Church, Beltsville, Maryland, United States. COVID-19 has impacted practically every church around the world. In […]
The Call of God Written by Pastor Marcel Ghioalda, Senior Pastor, Newbold Church The past twelve months have forced us as a Church, a community, and possibly even you as a prospective ministry or mission student, to wrestle with questions about the form and function of what God calls us to be. From my perspective, […]
Church is . . . A retirement reflection – or is it a doodle? Having served South England Conference members east, west and in-between, Pastor Jonathan Barrett has recently retired from pastoral ministry. I have always appreciated Jonathan’s careful use of words, thoughtful and intentional – the hallmark of an excellent […]
Rhythms of Grace ‘He stopped taking my calls . . .’ From the father’s perspective, the son asks the impossible. For The Firm to work like a smooth-running engine, this is how things are. ‘But,’ the son persists, ‘I need to do this for my family.’ Faced with two conflicting needs – royal convention and […]
Enhancing health Ovarian cancer by Sharon Platt-McDonald The seven National Health Service periods of health focus for March include: 1-31 – Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month 1-7 – Eating Disorders Awareness Week 10 – No Smoking Day 11 – World Kidney Day 11 – 18 – Nutrition and Hydration Week 19 – World Sleep Day 20 […]
The cross – and the printed page! Last Sabbath we were eager to step out into the brilliant sunshine without being bundled up in the usual winter woollies. It was a perfect spring day; there was so much loveliness awaiting us as we walked up the hill towards Great Gonerby. Spring flowers seemed to have appeared overnight […]
Cold outside but warm inside Welcome to Messenger Extra Dear Friends, Welcome to the February edition of Messenger Extra. ‘I want the judges to know who I’m singing to’ Man, gorillas and God ‘COVID-19 and the wilding of the Church’ – what sort of leaders do we need? The Sunday Times op-ed and the Adventist […]