Planted by Water

For any who enjoy some poetry from time to time, here’s one from R.S.Thomas, one of my favourite poets. He was a vicar in the Welsh hills and an active Welsh nationalist, and he is rather bleak in many of his poems. But some times he has an excellent insight into the fragility of life and the need to see things that God has ‘made beautiful in its time.’ This is one such poem. I am looking …

Still thinking about trees and water and came across this pasage from Isaiah:

For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. (Isaiah 44:3-4)

What a great promise. Our natural and spiritual children - those we lead to the Lord and/or disciple in …

As I am getting used to blogging and the time it can take (!) I haven’t got round to writing my thoughts today, and it’s almost gone. So I’m just posting a review of one of the books that I read over the summer. It was a review that I originally wrote for my own records (with a little bit of polishing up) so it may come across as a little strident at times.

 Whilst Jim Wallis certainly comes from the ‘left’ of the …

Continuing with some thoughts on trees planted by water and reading through Isaiah at the moment, I came across this great verse.

Once more a remnant of the house of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above. (Isaiah 37:31)

When you think of the remnant, think in terms of those who are not content to be a Christian in name alone, or be part of a particular tradition or culture, but those who are truly people of faith, true, …

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.
He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."  (Jeremiah 17:7-8)

Along with Psalm 1, these were the verses most in mind when I decided on the title …

I have been staggered as I have watched my TV screen over the last few says to see what is happening in New Orleans and other places in the Gulf Coast states of America. Obviously, it is with great horror and sadness at the suffering of the poor people caught up in the aftermath of possibly America’s worst natural disaster. But it is also with incredulity at the initial lack of response - only now, after five …