Phils focus

The Unexpected Gift   I just experienced something amazing.  An amazing friend just gave me the guitar of my dreams.   So earlier this year we launched a little church in our home called Oikos. It has a simple goal of providing a safe place for people of no faith, people who are done with faith, and people who remain believers but are just not sure what kind of church they want or need. The shorthand for these groups people are the ‘nons, the dones and the ums’  It’s a lovely, fun and informal group and it’s been a total privilege to spend time getting to know one another and experiencing trust and vulnerability deepen. We do hospitality and invite our people of peace and usually end up praying for one another - including any guests, which always goes down well.  It’s not rocket science, but then I don’t think church was ever meant to be rocket science.   In a recent gathering we got to sharing about how each of us are experiencing Gods restorativ...

This little statement,  ‘Ascend slowly from every dive’  is the mantra drilled into the skull of every scuba beginner. I recall my first PADI lesson in which they help you to don all the heavy gear, and then they wade you into the shallows and start talking.   I was like  ‘Really? Im paying good money to stand in one meter of water and be told taught how to float properly? Let me out into the blue, Im ready to dive those wrecks and find me some Spanish doubloons!’.   But once they get you through the basics of how to keep breathing and how to control your depth, they start with this mantra. ‘ Never come up quickly. Don’t panic and lose control of your ascent.. because thats what can kill you..’    Sorry.. what was that?    Coming up too fast can WHAT NOW!?  Scuba is really great fun and I have no desire to put anyone off, and of course neither do the scuba companies, but they will get you to sign indemnity documents making it clear ...

As a child I read ‘The Magicians Nephew’ by CS Lewis. For the uninitiated, the story tells of how Aslan, the Great Lion, the Son of the Emperor Over the Seas, created the land of Narnia. He does so by singing it into existence. He walks across a dark and barren landscape singing as he comes. Those who witness it realise that every beautiful note and chorus in someway corresponds to stars suddenly appearing in the black sky, grass springing up underfoot, trees and plants and birds and animals emerging from the ground, or rivers and waterfalls bursting forth. This scene was beautifully and forever burned into my imagination well before I read the creation story in Genesis, and so I simply overlaid these images as I read the relevant parts of scripture. Aslan then goes on to charge the talking animals with responsibility to take care of this beautiful new land that he has just created, warning them not to return to dumb and witless ways, or they would lose the power of speech become ordi...

Local Transformation Story You wouldn’t recognise our local park from 10 years ago as it had fallen into disrepair and suffered from neglect. Julie became a trustee back then and together with a host of brilliant local hero’s they have transformed it into a thriving hub of diversity and community celebration which thousands more people now access. It is such a joy to see life being enjoyed in each corner of this small but perfectly formed park; Brilliant children’s water park, an incredible edible greenhouse, the fabulous Cat Cafe (initially launched with help of the legend that is Rebecca Maddox), bee hives, bandstand live music and a farmers market most weekends, sports areas, tennis courts and so much more. It has been an amazing blessing to us to watch the park revive and flourish. During our sabbatical we spent much time just sitting here enjoying nature (Sir John Betjeman declare it ‘a strangely beautiful place’) listening to excellent live music, chatting to neighbours, frien...

On Friday I took a day out for silent retreat down at Ashburnham. I encountered the Lord in the car going down and experienced a rich fellowship with him throughout the day. I began the journey in the car by imagining the Lord in the passenger seat next to me. I was intent on paying attention to what he was doing, how he was sitting, where his focus was, etc. Initially he looked slouched and almost ready for a nap. He made some comment about taking the wheel whenever I was ready, which made me laugh. I told him of the tension I was carrying in my body and the fact that my thoughts were all over the place. He suggested we do some breathing together. I thought ‘ok, I’ll focus just on driving and following Jesus’ breathing, and think of nothing else for at least three minutes. Fail  I could barely go two breaths without slipping into thoughts of something else. I could not immerse in the process. So the Lord said. ‘Count to 100 breaths as we do this. ’  The adde...

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations... Matt 28:19 For over 40 years I have grappled with the call to discipleship and mission and in that time I have learned, forgotten, and had to relearn certain core truths. To have  possession  of a map of discipleship in its simplest forms is a treasure. What I find is that the principles carried in these few geometric shapes carry all of the main themes of discipleship.  My years of experience have underlined the value of having a few simple tools, proverbs and principles by which to travel and to hang ones experiences upon. Life-shapes are just such a set of tools. They serve to introduce us to the core themes of the discipleship journey. These shapes serve as 'icons' or windows into key themes of scripture, providing a simple language of discipleship that is easily retained and easy to teach others. An icon on a phone or computer opens up an application that serves to make some everyday task of life a bit...