View from the Potting Shed

I came across this image of a calloused hand holding a small metal cross about eight years ago on the cover of the X-Fest official programme in Kerrang! magazine. It’s from a photograph of Bill Ward — the drummer from Black Sabbath — hand holding his Black Sabbath cross.
Father and Son
But there is something about […]

For some, Lent may feel like walking through a desert.
On Sunday I was presiding and preaching once again at the church of St Mary, Newport-on-Tay. I began the service by saying
During this week there has been a lot in the news about how dangerous it is to drive while using a mobile phone.
Well, […]

On Sunday 04 March I presided and preached at St Mary’s, Newport-on-Tay. Here is my sermon:
Year C - Lent 2 - Luke 13:31-35 “Trusting God”
Introduction
Lent is traditionally a time for self-examination and reflection, of taking stock, of examining your life in the light of Christ’s life. So I want this morning, if I may, to […]

On Sunday morning I preached at the Chapel of St Salvator’s College, University of St Andrews, for the first time. (What I mean is that was the first time that I preached there and not the first time I’ve ever preached, as someone thought I meant when I told them the other day.)
I really […]

Reading
The reading I chose was for the Third Sunday of Easter, Year C (next year!) in the Revised Common Lectionary: John 21:1-19.
Introduction
You know when you finish a really good book and you’ve made a connection with some of the characters. You want to know what happens next. You sometimes find yourself dragging the last few […]

John 20:1-10
Early in the morning on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone was moved away from the entrance. She ran at once to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, breathlessly panting, “They took the Master […]

I wrote the following meditation in 1997-98 for a New College (University of Edinburgh) preaching class assignment. I’ve since revised various parts of it. Please feel free to use any of it, if you wish.
Mark 16:1-4
When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so […]