Life's Journey

  Following the recent death of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, here are a few quotes from the man who made his stand against apartheid in South Africa.  Quotes from Archbishop Desmond Tutu “Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument.” It is not the volume of our words but the veracity that determines our outcomes. I have always considered that once you raise your voice you have lost the argument. The story is told of the preacher who wrote in his notes "Argument weak, speak louder" “I am not interested in picking up crumbs of compassion thrown from the table of someone who considers himself my master. I want the full menu of rights.” All human beings deserve to be equality and compassion. Love should shine forth irrespective of the person one is with. “Without forgiveness, there’s no future.” Forgiveness has the power to heal the world, but without it we are headed towards darkness. This must be the best quote. It is with the forgiveness of God comes the hope of an eternal futur...

  He is coming! Something special is happening. Surely that must be true as the decorations are set up. Lights are lit up, Trees are erected Who is it that is being expected? For some you would be forgiven if you thought it was a chubby man in a red suit flying around the world on a sleigh pulled by reindeer. However, could the real answer lie with a clue in the name of the event Christmas? CHRIST mas does seem to emphasise the name of Jesus Christ, and the full name literally means the "feast of Christ". To celebrate Christmas and ignore the central character seems to be a strange aspect of modern life.  Certainly there is much debate on the date, 25th December, but I can understand that because no one knows the precise date of the birth of the babe in the stall. Yet as Christians we do not claim this is his precise date of birth, but rather this is the date we specifically remember the birth of Jesus as it is recorded in the bible. Over the net couple of weeks many of us wi...

Seeing the smiling pictures of the Bee Gees it seems ironic that the word that comes to mind is tragedy! It is that song that they sung in which "tragedy" is continually repeated that seems so appropriate today The big news today is the funeral of a much loved Member of Parliament.  Southend will say goodbye to much-loved MP Sir David Amess with a procession through his constituency and funeral service today. Conservative MP Sir David Amess died after being stabbed several times at his constituency surgery, almost 40 years after entering parliament. It is a tragedy, irrespective of where we stand politically. Indeed in the past decade a number of MP's of different political positions have been tragically killed, the last one being Jo Cox who was a Labour MP. In a world that seems to often to be a harsh place where everyone tries to bring others down, but on this occasion all political persuasions in Westminster came together to speak well of this man loved across the poli...

  "Lest we forget...." It is that time of year, and how can we forget that through out the centuries young people, both men and women, have gone to war and given their lives for others. Many of us will take up the poppy and pin it to our clothing. Our red poppy is a symbol of both Remembrance and hope for a peaceful future. Poppies are worn as a show of support for the Armed Forces community.  The poppy is a well-known and well-established symbol, one that carries a wealth of history and meaning with it. Wearing a poppy is still a very personal choice, reflecting individual experiences and personal memories. It is never compulsory but is greatly appreciated by those who it is intended to support. During WW1, much of the fighting took place in Western Europe. The countryside was blasted, bombed and fought over repeatedly. Previously beautiful landscapes turned to mud; bleak and barren scenes where little or nothing could grow. And so the poppy emerged as a symbol of hope as th...

an interview on radio  November is certainly a month for remembrance. In a few days, the 5th November, many in the UK will be recalling the poem "Remember, remember, the 5th of November" which continues to detail the story from history of Guy Fawkes and the failed gun powder plot over 400 years ago. The 11th November is also known in the UK as "Remembrance day", remembering the day that peace came to the world in 1914, with the hope that we might have seen the war to end all wars. That hope was so disappointing, wars continue to this very day but we continue with that memory seeking to find lasting peace. Today, the 1st of November, is also a day to remember, "All Saints day". It is a day to be reminded that there is something personal in all of this, for the bible indicates that saints are the people who have trusted Jesus as Saviour. On the day of that commitment God has set us apart for him, not about being perfect for none of us has gained perfection b...

  History plays a role in so much of life today, but who would have thought that sufferings of one man 110 years ago would have played a part in what has become an important part of caring for folks today. In 1911, a young man named Douglas Macmillan watched his father die of cancer. His father's pain and suffering moved Douglas so much, he founded the Society for the Prevention and Relief of Cancer.  Douglas wanted advice and information to be provided to all people with cancer, homes for patients at low or no cost, and voluntary nurses to attend to patients in their own homes. So how does that affect us today? Many of us know someone who has suffered from cancer. My own father died of cancer in 1977. He died one month from the diagnosis. Where do people seek support? For many its in those circumstances that the role of MacMillan nurses is discovered. Today much of Douglas's legacy lives on. They have continually adapted the support offered to ensure it’s right for peopl...

 "Hart to Hart" was a TV series that many of us enjoyed watching between 1979 to 1984. The series majored on a married couple by the name of Hart who travelled the world as amateur detectives solving crimes wherever they went. However, the topic that comes to my mind this week is not about a RV series, nor anything fictional, but something that we all carry with us wherever we go. The heart! It is a major item that keeps our lives running as it pumps the blood around our body. What happens, however, when the heart runs into trouble? Who has the heart to prepare to meet the needs of another persons heart at such a time as this? Restart a Heart is held every October, where thousands of people across the UK, and many more worldwide, come together to increase public awareness of cardiac arrests and increase the number of people trained in life saving CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and defibrillator use.   The initiative is led by  Resuscitation Council UK ...