A.R.T. Antics

Isn't it funny the way we all simply take for granted the Christmas story without the bat of an eye lid. In fact apart from a a few exceptions much of the world celebrates Christmas. In some ways it is one celebration which unites the world. If one unpicks the parts of the story it is all quite extraordinary. Not what you would be a plan to take over the world. So let's think about it God comes as a Baby. It's an absolute genius idea God in disguise as a baby. Who would imagine that God would come as a Baby of all things no-one would guess that surely. You might think that the whole episode would go unnoticed. However it seems that God did not want this event to go totally unnoticed and so he left a trail of bread crumbs that would lead people to a baby. If that wasn't enough a few who knows hundred or thousand Angels come to announce to some local nobodies in the form of shepherds about this miraculous event. At the opposite end of the spectrum are the other group of p...

I wanted to put some thoughts down whilst they were milling around my head. I wanted to sow some ideas which will challenge many of us even myself. When talking about evangelism I know that word scares people off so lets call it loving people into the kingdom. I hear preaches all the time about reaching out to those people around us and of course I agree those people who are directly around us need to hear the gospel and about Jesus if they dont already know him. There are definitely people in our direct influence who we can reach out to who we work with in our family possibly even our neighbours. But lets face it many of us if were honest live in or choose to live in nice areas, and if we dont now if we had the money we would choose to. For some of us that are married and have kids we would argue that we want to give our children the best start in life and it matters which primary school they go to etc. You wouldn't want them getting in with the wrong crowd. These are all genuin...

THIS IS QUITE A WHILE A GO SO I THOUGHT I WOULD POST IT ANOTHER COMING REALLY SOON .........I have just returned from Pune, India where I had the honor to be invited to a wedding which was a week long. It was like my reward for working hard of late on my postgrad in Youth and community studies which I finished the tuesday before I flew out. As well as essays I had been working on a community Audit project which meant engaging with the local community finding out their views on the area which was both eye opening. It has made me excited about working with the local community on different projects in the near future. So India, twas amazing I pretty much partied for the time I got there to the time I left.  I was treated like a princess chauffeured everywhere I went, wined and dined, danced with what more could a girl ask for. I did not have to lift a finger everything was done for me, all I had to worry about was what I would wear and and the photos I would take. I probably did...

Last night I read a tweet that said a barrister had stated in an article that the age of consent should be lowered to 12 or 13.   http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22459815 She says that what the stars have been doing is not so serious and that they are just 'low misdemeanour's.'  That they are not as serious as gang rape or murder. I think we should ask the victims of child abuse this. Child abuse is an assault on a person and it is also an assassination of their emotional and sometimes physical development. It is not ok to use one's position of power to control and manipulate people especially not of a sexual nature. Today there is an outcry about what this barrister said but I think we need to be vigilant that there are paedophiles in high places who want the law to be changed so that they can carry on their deprave activities within the law. There was a time when other liberalism's were completely taboo but now there have been in recent years ...

It has been an amazing summer in many ways, it seems so long ago!  I had the awesome possibility to be involved in two missions the first was in Liverpool which was called JESUS LOVES, it was a great time of equipping and the times we had with Jesus were very special in deed there was a kind of glory hanging in that room which looked like a cabin.  We went onto the streets telling the people in Bootle in particular about Jesus, we set up in a park with a small tent and band handing out balloons and popcorn,flowers we also were doing face painting for the children as well as worshipping in the park.  A highlight for me was when I decided to clear the park where we were with of litter and a few young boys offered to help me I was so touched.  Then they proceeded to ask me where I was from so I explained that I was from Manchester and that God had sent me to Liverpool because he wanted to show them that he loved them so much!  They were both amused and a ...

I am now working for Trinity High School full time which came about in quite an amazing way! I started as a teaching assistant at Trinity High School in September after trying a string of admin jobs none of which my heart was in. I thought that going back to learning support having done YWAM was a step backwards but I was very wrong.  I always loved working in schools and in the long run this all might lead to a job in teaching! Back in October I applied for the job I am doing now and did not get it at that point however the deputy was very impressed with me and they wanted to try to offer me something. So they said if they could get the funding they would offer me a part-time position. That day I was quite disappointed but despite what I could see in the natural I felt that God was saying that I would be working there full time permanent before too long. In the meantime I worked at a few primary school which I didn't really enjoy the kids I deal with now have far more attitude bu...

I have been thinking about the true meaning of Christmas for the last few weeks.  I have especially been focusing on the part of the shepherds and the wise men. If you think about it God chooses some very unlikely people to witness and to announce the birth of a king and the Saviour of the world such as shepherds and some new age kings from the east. However they are not as strange guests as you might think at first. I believe that these two groups of royal guests were a prophetic look into the future... Shepherds are mentioned all the way through the Old testament many of the main players throughout history at some point were shepherds showing that Shepherds are people very close to God's heart.  Shepherds have incredible characteristics which are reminiscent of what Jesus says we should be like and later on in the letters from Paul. In my mind both shepherds and sheep depict a picture of humility and a kind of lowliness.  Shepherds were at the bottom of the socia...