Some of my best memories involve food. I grew up in a large family where it was common for major celebrations to include in excess of 40 people. Coming from an Egyptian background, celebrations involved tables groaning with food (you needed to have enough of every dish for each guest), loud music, laughter, and my grandfather sitting on the deck in the backyard smoking a Shisha. My summer's were filled with time on the beach or in the pool and I am definitely blessed to have

It's easy to say "I believe that", but in most situations we are talking about things that we agree with. Is that what the bible means by faith? Mental agreement with someone's argument or saying? I was talking to someone recently, and they raised something they believed about a church I know , based upon never actually going to that church, nor ever investigating the thing they were so confidently claiming to find out if it really was the case. This form of "belief" is preva

Being overwhelmed about anything is never fun! Sometimes its being overwhelmed about a situation at work, sometimes its about a situation at home, sometimes its personal within us, and sometimes its in relationships around us. It's the feeling of having no idea how to proceed, or of not feeling power to change the situation, or of just drowning in the decisions that have to be made. We tend to have a few different responses: avoidance; grit and determination; often, it is a c

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” [Luke 2:14] It's a good time of year to rest, right now. Add to this natural ebb in the year the restrictions we are currently observing because COVID-19 has flared up recently, and we can take a moment to stop. But how do we do that? How do we do rest, well? I'm certainly no expert I know how to switch off. But to rest... The angels are quoted above in Luke's Gospel record declaring th

Christmas is coming up. How can you and I prepare our hearts to freshly encounter Jesus this Christmas and help others in our world who have yet to for themselves? Prayer When it comes to preparing for anything, as believers, prayer is our essential starting place. This Christmas season, I want to encourage you to reserve some extra space in your week for prayer. I have been increasingly exercised by God to be growing in my prayer life. Which means carving out more time than