I really like this quote -
Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
Friday, 27 March 2009
Extreme Sheep LED Art
This has absolutely nothing to do with God except creativity and i appologise for the name they give themselves but I think it's great and shows what can be done with a bit of creative thought and determination and some friends!!
Thursday, 26 March 2009
Double Joy Children's Farm - Letters
Ashley supports Double Joy Children's Farm, an orphange in Kenya. We have just recieved two excellent letters from the children to Ashley.
Click here to read them.
Click here to read them.
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Heart , Head and Old Books
At our housegroup last night we had an excellent presentation from Mike Elliott on Frank Morison’s book ‘Who Moved the Stone’. It was good to hear the details of the Easter story again. The book was required reading in my early days as a Christian giving a logical defence of the resurrection of Jesus based mostly on the New Testament documents.
I think we all enjoyed the presentation but generally found it very much ‘in the head’ and of more use and encouragement to someone who is already a Christian on a journey. The beginning of the journey itself is more often stimulated by the ‘heart and soul’ and not ‘the head’. It is very much an appeal to the rational and I was struck by how much the experiential was left out.
It then occurred to me as I re-visited the book through the presentation that the book was really a faith journey diary of this particular man who needed this for himself. He was very much a ‘in the head’ man. I guess we all have a need to journey with our head and with our heart and in different proportions for different people and at different life stages. Maybe quite a few of us at Ashley are now in a more ‘heart’ and intuitive phase of our faith.
On reflection I found that it is interesting to visit old books that I have read before and see whether I relate to them in the same way – this time it certainly gave me a perspective on my journey now and where I am.
Any thoughts?
I think we all enjoyed the presentation but generally found it very much ‘in the head’ and of more use and encouragement to someone who is already a Christian on a journey. The beginning of the journey itself is more often stimulated by the ‘heart and soul’ and not ‘the head’. It is very much an appeal to the rational and I was struck by how much the experiential was left out.
It then occurred to me as I re-visited the book through the presentation that the book was really a faith journey diary of this particular man who needed this for himself. He was very much a ‘in the head’ man. I guess we all have a need to journey with our head and with our heart and in different proportions for different people and at different life stages. Maybe quite a few of us at Ashley are now in a more ‘heart’ and intuitive phase of our faith.
On reflection I found that it is interesting to visit old books that I have read before and see whether I relate to them in the same way – this time it certainly gave me a perspective on my journey now and where I am.
Any thoughts?
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
For the beauty of the Earth
"For the beauty of the earth
For the beauty of the skies
For the love, which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our joyful hymn of praise."
Folliot S. Pierpont, 1835-1917 and others
Monday, 16 March 2009
A Sunday Afternoon Stroll with Ashley
Nick and Gill led a Sunday afternoon stroll to Shenley and back for anyone from Ashley. Above Nick is seen leading the way over the M25 bridge after leaving the Marks and Spencer’s car park at London Colney. We will follow him anywhere!!
I was reminded that walking together can be a great way to get to know each other. There is no need to talk but there was always the changing country side to comment on. Somehow, the ease and the relaxed atmosphere makes for good communication and lots of interesting conversations open up.
Lots more walks to come on 19 April,10 May,14 June and 12 July. Click here for details.
Monday, 9 March 2009
The Ashley Limerick Bible!
No we are not re-writing the Bible but just trying all sorts of ways of making it fresh and alive. It can help to have a structure to write new things and we tried Limericks last Sunday in the Service. The two voted the most popular are below. These and the rest can be seen in the form of an ‘Ashley Limerick Bible’ spanning stories in both the Old and New Testament. Click here to see a copy:
If we all turn to Jesus as saviour
And change our outrageous behaviour
Then the message is clear;
The Spirit is here
And if you will let Him, He'll change ya!
When Abel thrust his offering on the burner,
It weren't long till Cain committed murder.
Cain thought, "Nah, not mince pies -
I'll do some French fries!"
But Abel done a whopping great burger!
(Nice one, son!)
(Genesis 4)
If we all turn to Jesus as saviour
And change our outrageous behaviour
Then the message is clear;
The Spirit is here
And if you will let Him, He'll change ya!
When Abel thrust his offering on the burner,
It weren't long till Cain committed murder.
Cain thought, "Nah, not mince pies -
I'll do some French fries!"
But Abel done a whopping great burger!
(Nice one, son!)
(Genesis 4)
Ship to shore conversation
Someone I know is sailing around the world. The crew of five, aims to complete the challenge non-stop in 80 days. Currently on day 60 they are looking (although apparently not smelling) good, despite some difficult weather and a couple of emergency repairs. One repair required a trip up the mast, the height of 6.5 double-decker buses, on a trimaran tossing around in the middle of the ocean! It is terrifying just to read about each day on their website, but also thought-provoking – they are sailing around the world and in this technological age we can read of their adventure, almost as it happens.
The great thing about being a part of a community of people trying to keep connected to God in our sometimes storm-tossed lives is the live-ness of it all. Even to those of us not engaged in high adrenaline activities, the daily stuff of our lives is where God is – even the bits that don’t seem very wonderful. This is where we have our highs and lows and this is where we need him and each other.
The sailors are really bolstered by messages they get from people at home – not that there is anything anyone can do, but the contact encourages them, and the same is true here at home – Sometimes we don’t know whether people around us are having storm-tossed moments or not, but we keep talking and hope that somehow it helps, and are grateful in turn for those conversations that keep us connected.
The great thing about being a part of a community of people trying to keep connected to God in our sometimes storm-tossed lives is the live-ness of it all. Even to those of us not engaged in high adrenaline activities, the daily stuff of our lives is where God is – even the bits that don’t seem very wonderful. This is where we have our highs and lows and this is where we need him and each other.
The sailors are really bolstered by messages they get from people at home – not that there is anything anyone can do, but the contact encourages them, and the same is true here at home – Sometimes we don’t know whether people around us are having storm-tossed moments or not, but we keep talking and hope that somehow it helps, and are grateful in turn for those conversations that keep us connected.
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
A Swimming Pool and Free Access to God
Ashley was started by people who would go out into the streets and villages and preach the Gospel and although I have done that in the past it really is not my thing. I have been wondering recently if there was anything that connected those early founders of the church I lead to me and my way of thinking about the Christian message. Then standing in the changing room at Hatfield Swimming the words Free Access to God suddenly came to me and they seemed to connect the past and the present at Ashley. I am always amused at the places when insights come.
I think I could offer anyone such a wonderful message. No other agenda than a relationship to God. No special things to do, prayers to prayer, ways to talk, behaviour to conform to, songs to sing, church to attend, etc, etc. Just God and you. I believe at Ashley we try to put some of that freedom into practice. I wonder how much we succeed and how much further we could go?
I think I could offer anyone such a wonderful message. No other agenda than a relationship to God. No special things to do, prayers to prayer, ways to talk, behaviour to conform to, songs to sing, church to attend, etc, etc. Just God and you. I believe at Ashley we try to put some of that freedom into practice. I wonder how much we succeed and how much further we could go?
Sunday, 1 March 2009
What could lent be about?
What could you do this lent to enhance your relationship with Jesus. We considered the encounters that three people had with Jesus and how that could help us this lent.
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