Lord, I’m amazed at the ingenuity of people I saw a man throw saucepans out of a bag He was in the middle of the street Pots and pans make a fair old din The noise cause people to stop and stare Soon he drew a crowd around him Then he began to tell his story He was like a man playing an instrument He was playing the crowd. Like the old time entertainers. He knew the buttons to press  the notes to play - the right noises. Pots and pans in ‘tin pan alley’ And not a piano...
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The phonographs below  show the ground being prepared for the final 100 yards to refloatJubilee Hope.. This will require some precise engineering and maths. The ship will be required to enter the water at the right speed and also at the right angle,  if not the danger is that the huge hull could capsize. Once in the water the  huge job   begins to reassemble the ship. We’re grateful for the support of the Wood Group who have committed themselves to delivering the ship...
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When we feel drained and have nothing to say and nothing to give. When there is nothing we want; because we've lost all that meant anything to us We shouldn't give up. We need to keep waiting. Start looking. Hope will return! Why you ask? "Because the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases" God's love for us doesn't come to an end  when our love for Him comes to an end. He renews us. Often with the simple things The smile of a grandchild The smell of a favourite...
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I spent most of the morning on my knees picking weeds out of the gravel in my driveway.  I always feel there is something therapeutic about weeding. Its like the prayers of confession. IWe ask God to pick the weeds  of sin out of your life.   And often in prayer God  forces us metaphorically and sometime physically to be on our knees sorting out the mess we've made on the path of life.  Of course you have to get yourself into the frame of mind to do it the weeding and...
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Yesterday I made my way into Edinburgh to attend the Alistair Rutherford play  entitled  “An Island Between Heaven and Earth”  It’s about the vision of George MacLeod to restore the Abbey at Iona and how he  used this project to grow a new breed of minister whose training was not simply found in books but through handling bricks and mortar and committing to a life of daily prayer and reflection. Macleod wanted to raise up a generation of ministers who not only would...
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FAITH IN THE FESTIVAL Streets are busy shoes on ground sandals on feet running late feeling well grounded. Hoping to meet the unexpected in a new idea in a different mood in a familiar place while reading an unfamiliar face  Hands hold drinks glasses clink sun glasses reflect the sky food is cooked stories are told songs are sung dancers turn and spin pictures are painted art displayed stretches the truth Everyone is telling a story in different ways. Its festival...
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It seems a long time since Jubilee Hope left the Clyde on the 22nd January 2014  to set sail on the first leg of her journey to Mombasa in Kenya.  A lot of hard work and preparation has gone into making the ship ready for its long voyage of over 8,500 miles.  I remember going to look at the ship  before we bought it when it was the Dunster I think it was at Goole in 2010. I was commissioned to take pictures. I remember rowing around the ship in a rubber dingy taking...
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