e-holiness

inspiration

since hearing shane claiborne at greenbelt a few years ago i have loved his 'simple way', for those who haven't heard or seen shane then please follow this link to this youtube sermon that is well worth a listen....man if you aren't touched by the video clip towards the end of the sermon then i don't know what will move us to take Jesus into the world!

...shane is part of a community in philadelphia and has written an amazing book called irresistible revolution which is a must read.....

i know for some this will be old news, books etc, but we must continue to remember that we are called out to help those less fortunate than us, so have a listen and get inspired by this guy.

tom spells it out

i was gutted to have missed tom davis at the recent 'run' conference, i have been following tom's blog for a year or so and resonate with him and his way of thinking, tom is the author of 'red letters', see my post here about that book, and i love his recent internet article entitled 'why christains suck'....have a read , have a think and then let God's word change you from a passive pew filler to a compassionate lover of the poor and needy....

you might like to take a look at the 10 ways which tom suggests that you start loving your neighbour, great suggestions, we just need to start doing the stuff.

goal4africa

yesterday i posted about the opportunity that thousands of disadvantaged people were given to share their lives through photography, today another of my passions is captured by the vision of goal4africa, as we build up the the first world cup to be held on the african continent in south africa in 2010 there are many organisations that are involved which are trying to provide education through the means of football, either by raising funds to help those on the ground or by providing skills to people who are working with the children in africa.

goal4africa is such an organisation and we at thembalitshauk and thembalitsha are hoping that we will benefit from this charity, we are already working with children in the townships around somerset west, via the work that andy hawkins in doing and when we move out in october we are looking to extend this into the town of grabouw and surrounding areas.

if you would like to donate to the work of thembalitsha please do so via this link to our justgiving site, please mark your donation 'for the football outreach' or some such wording and we will ensure that it is used to bring joy to those children who we are looking to educate via the means of football.

don't listen to the crows!

i can't believe that the charlie robinson events in aylesbury are over, we have had the most amazing time with God over the last three nights and i thank Him that he uses people like charlie, not only to challenge us in our religious spirit but also in to bring His word into our lives. we can spend time praying and fasting but sometimes it takes just one word to confirm that thought or dream and i thank God that He does that in so many different ways.

as you will know, if you have been journeying with us here at e-holiness, we embrace the whole realm of Christianity, from punks and monks, to dreams and visions, fasting and feasting, labyrinths and prophetic speakers, grunge rock worship to simple indian sitar, God speaks to us in so many ways, how can any of us claim to have the right tool, style or method to reach His heart?, i thank Him that he speaks to each of us in so many ways and would challenge you to listen to last sundays 'service' and talk that charlie gave, please listen with an open heart and mind to hear what God is saying through him, take the good and test what you might perceive as the bad!....

being frank

i am off to portugal for a couple of days with work so hopefully might have time to finish that book that i promised to share with you yesterday as i spend time on the plane and waiting around at airports, so as i finish that off i would recommend a visit to pastor frank Christie's blog, aptly called 'being frank', frank was the guy who set up thembalitsha and will be our pastor when we move over to south africa in october.

i see that i have a link from his site to this blog, which is nice!

stories of hope (imatter)

it was good to spend sometime wandering around aylesbury last friday (good friday) to look at ways in which the local churches had come together to put on the first 'hope '08' event of the year. i am sure that many other towns and villages around the country will be getting involved in this outreach as we seek to show the world that there is a God who loves them.

the reason for this post is to highlight the hope '08 web site which is a great resource to those looking to run and 'event' and as part of that i would point you to the imatter film, that our good friend trefor was involved in putting together. the film seeks to show 'normal people' sharing their day to day stories with the hope that people will start to look deeper into why we are here on earth....

have a look and share this with those that you know who are looking for something more in their lives...and that's not more duties, more meetings, more stress when they become members of organised church' i mean more to the meaning of life!

prodigals

yesterday i was able fit a business appointment around a visit into st pauls church in hammersmith, this church sits within the hammersmith one way system it cannot be missed, it is also undergoing some amazing restoration works both within the building and to the stone work outside. the scaffolding surrounding the building is clad with huge sheets which depicts the stone work that sit beneath them which is a wonderful idea.

the main reason for my visit was to see the work of charlie mackesy, my friend who works for the organisation 'run' had told me about this artist and his work, once inside i wasn't disappointed, charlie is undertaking the huge task of painting the walls within the three arches at the front of the church and he is almost there with the first, which is a picture of the father embracing the prodigal, the middle section will be filled with a painting of the crucification with the third to be decided.

the prodigal theme runs through charlies work and is one of Jesus most well known parables, charlie captures that feeling of returning to the father so well, words cannot explain how far i have been from my heavenly father at points in my life but to know that he is there ready to accept me back, put on a party and fit me with his ring is one of the most amazing feelings i have ever experienced.

if you have chance to visit then i would recommend that to you, however if you are feeling like a lost and lonely son then take time today to return to your Heavenly Father, he is there waiting for you.

thank you Father God for accepting me as i am, a lost and wayward son......tim

it's pretzel wednesday

we just wanted to remind you that today sees the start of this years lent season, reading through a couple of web sites last night i found this little fact about the humble pretzel, see link for info, isn't it amazing where some of our traditions come from, this was one that i wasn't familiar with.....so today please make sure you enjoy your pretzel/s and maybe make a point of giving one to a friend or someone in need, it's the tradition!

sacred space have a lent web site which might be worth a visit during the next 6 weeks or so, once again please comment below if you find anything of interest, be that web sites or even services etc so we can all have a look.   

the selfish giant

i often post about books i am reading but today is a little differnet as i remind you of the wonderful oscar wilde story the selfish giant, i remember reading this when i was young and then again to our boys when they were small, but had forgotten what an amazing little story it is. please take a couple of minutes, well perhaps five to refresh your memory of it and then take a few moments to reflect on the poignant ending.

God in creation

i am looking forward to watching the bbc2 programme natural world tomorrow evening at 8pm, the programme is called earth pilgrim and follows satish kumar, a former jain monk, as he explores and meditates on the landscape of dartmoor.

now i don't claim to know much about satish or the jain order, other than they don't believe that the world was created, it has always been, but after hearing satish speak about his simple way of life and of how i travels around with no possessions and seeing good in all of the natural world on the radio 4 midweek programme yesterday, i will be interested to see earth pilgrim and his take on all he sees....perhaps i will post about my thoughts about the show next week.