Hope For Today

Dear Friends, My friend and I had arranged to meet up for a coffee one morning this week. We chose the cafe which is attached to a local hospice where patients receive palliative care. The cafe is open to anyone and the profits go directly to the care of the patients. My friend and I enjoy meeting up there. It has a lovely atmosphere, it's bright, relaxing and peaceful. We had planned to catch up on each others' lives and also to share what we had been learning from our personal study on the book of James. Usually we sit towards the back of the cafe area, but today we had chosen to sit near the entrance and enjoy the warm sunny day. We had not been seated for long when a lady, who we hadn't seen for a very long time, walked in. I assumed she was there to meet someone. But she stopped near us and asked if she could join us. Naturally, we said she was very welcome to. As we chatted together, this lady shared that she was just having a coffee before going

Dear Friends, Next month my son, Josh, turns nineteen and a few months after that my daughter, Jess, turns sixteen. Where does the time go?  Being a Mum can be one of the most rewarding things in life, but it's also one of the hardest too. So I'd like today to offer you mums some encouragement. The kind of encouragement I know I'm also in need of. God has called you to be a mother to the child/children he has placed in your care. He knew exactly who they would need and he chose you. We are told in Psalm 127:3 that " Children are a gift from the  Lord ;" (NLT). Remember that God never calls us to something without equipping us for it. The writer to the Hebrews says " may he [God] equip you with all you need  for doing his will.  May he produce in you,  through the power of Jesus Christ,  every good thing that is pleasing to him.  All glory to him forever and ever! Amen." Hebrews 13:21 (NLT). When I ask God for his help in raising my childr

Dear Friends, (Today’s blog is based on a message I preached on Sunday 26 th February, if you are interested in listening to the whole message then please click on the following link: http://www.gatewaychristianchurch.org.uk/podcasts.htm During the last few months of 2016 and into this new year I’d been feeling really overwhelmed. I was struggling. The thought of having to do anything – whether at home or with church - was just too much. I felt like I was drowning under the too heavy weight I was trying to carry. I felt inundated with “stuff” and unable to cope. I felt much like that camel in the story “The Straw that Broke the Camel’s Back”. That poor camel was overloaded with straw which his owner had placed on him. But, the owner, not satisfied, decided to add one last piece of straw. It was just too much for the camel and he collapsed with a broken back. Of course, it wasn’t just one piece of straw that broke the camel’s back, but that last piec