The Sign Of The Cross

West Lothian (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Back in 2004, 46 Labour MPs representing Scottish constituencies were pivotal in passing The Higher Education Bill through Parliament at Westminster. The final vote was 316 for and 311 against. What this meant was that both of my children when they came to enter university were saddled with astronomical debts. The passing of the Bill enabled top-up fees to be levied on English resident students going to English universities. However, Scottish students going to Scottish universities were exempt from fees as this has been decided by the Members of the Scottish devolved Parliament. So we ended up with Scottish Labour MPs voting to impose charges on English students when students in their own constituencies were exempt. Tim Yeo the Shadow Education Secretary at the time described the situation as an 'utter humiliation' for the Labour government. And there was a similar situation when it came to the creation of Foundation Hospital...

English: Early Morning Sunrise over Scarborough Castle (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) At our midweek church cell the Pastor asked if we had any testimonies, old or new. I have to admit I didn't have any new or recent testimonies that I could share. It got me thinking though, to have something as a testimony you have to firstly recognise it. A miracle could happen right in front of your eyes and yet you may not even notice it. There's a verse in Scripture about God's mercies being new every morning. It comes from the book of Lamentations: Lamentations 3:22-24 New Living Translation (NLT) 22 The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” Let's make a start in using our spiritual eyes and seeing the work of God, the creator of the heavens and the earth, in all that we see!

Seems that the education authorities still feel that feeding Christian and Sikh children food that has been sacrificed to idols is of no consequence. For a Christian we may eat meat that has been sacrificed in such a way as we are strong enough in our faith not to assign anything to that sacrifice. However, for those who are less set in the Christian faith there is always the danger that they could be led astray. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2575724/Parents-fury-pork-sausages-banned-school-menu-replaced-halal-meat.html We have guidance in the Bible for circumstances such as this and Paul sums it up nicely. 1 Corinthians 8:1-13New Living Translation (NLT) Food Sacrificed to Idols 8 Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that “we all have knowledge” about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church. 2 Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn’t really know very muc...

The tube web spider that is. Took these pics of one of them on my patio the other day. Authored by Chris Hall

Phillipa Hanna is a great artist and performer who tells the gospel story through her works. She has recently been supporting Lionel Ritchie and Wet Wet Wet on their tours. Phillipa will be performing at St John's church in Egham on the 27th June 2014 in support of Abba Father's House , a British charity supporting orphans and widows in Uganda. You can purchase tickets for this event at www.hope42morrow.co.uk Authored by Chris Hall

Holy Bible Title Page (Photo credit: mrbill ) The government remains determined to ignore the real reason behind the rise in food bank usage throughout the UK as they chip away at the welfare system so as to prop up the bankers and bondholders. Now the Department for Work and Pensions, which should remain neutral on political issues is trying to blame the Evangelical Christians. Apparently food banks are a God-given opportunity to evangelise and proselytize and the impetus is not to feed the poor and hungry but to indulge in a bit of Bible bashing. “For the Trussell Trust, food banks started as an evangelical device to get religious groups in touch with their local communities. As far as I know, the Government has no policy on evangelism.” See minutes of the Scottish Parliament Welfare Reform Committee, Section 1464. I'll let the Apostle St Matthew speak for me. Matthew 25:35-36 New Living Translation (NLT) 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you ...

Sorry, couldn't help it. Image purloined somewhere off Google+ Authored by Chris Hall

Crikey, got this email today. Dear Chris Hall, May the peace of the Lord be with you, as i was browsing through the internet i come across you name and email address, God gave me a revelation and directed me to you that you are a very good person, there is a breakthrough coming your way by end of June, but the enemies are trying to stop it because as at now, you are already facing problems in your life and they won't stop until they kill you, through slight illness and you are destined to be great but a lot of enemies and supernatural forces are trying to stop you from attaining the height God has planned for you. Do not be afraid beloved for the same God that revealed this to me will surely provide a solution, the Lord will see you through. Prayer without seizing Not quite sure how to take that! Authored by Chris Hall

If Loving God Was a Crime from Big Tent Revival. Remember seeing it shortly after coming to faith. Awesome. Authored by Chris Hall

In amongst all the faffing around choosing other templates I've realised that I've lost my blogroll. If I had linked to your blog and it's now disappeared then I do apologise. Please do contact me to get the link added back. Authored by Chris Hall

I'm not going to tell you how to integrate Disqus Commenting System into Blogger's Dynamic Views because it's far too difficult for me. But I know a blog where someone has done just that and provides a step-by-step guide to integrating it. Go see Subin's Blog . So check if it works by adding a comment to the Disqus section below! Authored by Chris Hall