Hello, or is it Hallo? Or could it even be Hullo? This most common of English words has a variety of spellings and even more pronunciations and intonations. But what does it mean?
Greetings!
Author: derrickjohnphillips
An ordinary bloke. More than that - an ordinary Christian bloke.
That counts. It means that I live in hope. Not the wishful-thinking kind of hope, but an active hope built on faith and fueled by experience. Becoming old just takes time but, my years have been full of challenges overcome, joys experienced, trials that became valuable lessons, and constant contact with God. When I was young I had a future; now I'm older, I have a past; but I still have a future to look forward to, and there's no end to it.
My career is now in the past. I was once a member of a nationally known Christian rock group and my music hasn't quite gone away (I still play acoustic guitar) but it's no longer at the core of my life. Writing and prayer are now my main occupations - and being a grandfather. The primary passions that are reflected in my writing are Church, Bible, and Prayer.
Sixty years on
planned to go to Bible College; I’d passed the interview and been offered a place. However, I didn’t go, which was the right outcome, because my plan to become a pastor was an ambition rather than a calling. The year was 1961, I still wanted to serve God in a special way, but I took a job in an insurance office in the City of London. It wasn’t what I expected, but it all made sense when a friend had the idea to form a rock group and invited me to join.
Casting bread
“Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days”.(Ecclesiastes 11:1 KJV) Have you tried throwing bread into a river or lake? Did it come back? I doubt it! It’s more likely that a duck snapped it up[1] or that it drifted away and out of sight. So, what are we to take away … Continue reading Casting bread
Still Digging
Who needs another book about prayer when there’s already so many? But this one’s got a chapter called, “Yellow Card”, and others called, “Lord, I can’t find you”, “Not about duty”, and “Let it all out”, so there’s something different about it. This book doesn’t tell you the right way to pray. Rather it describes lots of different ways, and deals with awkward questions
If I can’t be a tree
This tree has attitude. It won’t let disaster defeat it. Whatever storm blew it down couldn’t suppress its will to survive. It said, If I can’t be a tree any more, then I’ll be a forest!
Prayer Language
What language does God speak? If it’s ancient Hebrew, I’m stumped and can’t pray! God isn't bound by language and doesn't judge our grammar and vocabulary.
We walk
“walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work”[1] Walking. It’s a human thing. On the day we start walking we stop being defined as babies. As a species we are unique in the way we walk. We stand tall, looking forward, looking far and near, and noticing things. We … Continue reading We walk
Screwtape
Who, in these days, believes in devils?I do! But, even if I didn’t, experience tells me that temptation is real. We can ignore temptation, or we can resist it, but we can never avoid it. That’s what makes C. S. Lewis's classic masterpiece as relevant today as the time when he wrote it. He wrote … Continue reading Screwtape
The Sky Voice
These three occasions, when a voice spoke to Jesus from the sky, mark stages in the Gospel story when Jesus understood and accepted the destination of his ministry. He wasn’t was born knowing the full script for his life. He was born as a normal, human baby lying helpless in a cattle trough – then he learned his destiny by stages.
Prayer in hopelessness
When people turn to prayer as a last resource, they are being logical. It’s as reasonable as gasping in a quick breath and swimming along a flooded passageway to find an uncertain escape route. It’s better than giving up. Prayer in hopelessness contains an improbable grain of hope.
