Seeker

One of my favourite names for Jesus is from Isaiah, "Emmanuel" . This, as Matthew's Gospel explains (Matthew 1: 23) means "God with us" . I like the name Emmanuel because I find comfort in its meaning. I believe that in Jesus' coming, God comes to live among us. That is good news. It means that even when life is dreadful we are not alone. God is with us, God has come, is always coming and will come to save. I realise that I would not find the idea of 'God with us' comforting if I did not believe that 'God is love'. What if your concept of God is of an entirely vengeful, destructive being, always looking for ways to punish people? Or if that is your gut feeling about God, so that when something bad happens in your life you think, 'what have I done to deserve this?' During WW2 Nazi military uniform belt buckles had a design of an eagle symbol perched on a swastika. Over this was inscribed the words, 'Gott mit uns', the German

Advent begins today, the 1st Sunday of Advent. Much has been spoken and written about what Advent (4 week season before Christmas) is about. One of its aspects is preparation for an expected coming, the coming of Christ, past present and future. A few years ago, I attended an Advent retreat during which the retreat leader quoted these words from a prayer by a New Guinea Christian. "At Advent we should try the key to our heart's door. It may have gathered rust. If so, this is the time to oil it, in order that the heart's door may open more easily when the Lord Jesus wants to enter at Christmas time! Lord, oil the hinges of our heart's doors that they may swing gently and easily to welcome your coming." from The Lion Prayer Collection, Lion Books 1992, p. 321 Image Credit: Colinfoo, Pixabay Licence

  Because this is Remembrance (Armistice) Day, I revisited this photo which I took in 2014, the year that saw the 100th anniversary of the start of WW1. It was in the grounds of the  Hooge Crater Museum  in Flanders, Belgium. Ironmongery from WW1 left in the area of Hooge Crater near Ypres in Flanders is a poignant reminder of the waste of that war that was supposed to end all wars, but didn't. Waste of so many young men and boys, waste of horses, waste of material resources, waste of energy, destruction of farmland and woods. And what was that all for? What did WW1 achieve? And what did the Armistice and the Peace Treaty that followed achieve? The seeds of WW2 among other things. Maybe like me you struggle in the silence to make sense of it all and to crave and pray for true peace to prevail. It's always hard when it seems there are always new wars, bloodshed and violence somewhere in the world today.  I think that's way this poem speaks to me so powerfully today as it has