I prayed one morning, “Lord, open my eyes that I might see new wonders in your creation.” A few hours later, I came across a bit of bark and a fallen leaf and couldn’t help but marvel at the beauty found in bits of decaying matter. Do you see the knuckles in the bark? Note the subtle shade of the green leaf.
What came to mind immediately were the colours of autumn on display in the northern hemisphere. In October 2012, we went to Mont-Tremblant in Canada to see the brilliant exhibition of ‘dying and decaying leaves’.
On reading novels
After years of having no time for fiction, I am making amends – listening to and reading classic and current literature. One who is guiding my choices is Karen Swallow Prior via her books: On Reading Well and Booked – Literature in the soul of me. In the latter, she tells her life story in books and how they influenced her development as a person. So captivating is her writing that you feel compelled to follow in her steps.
One she didn’t suggest was Utopia Avenue – the story of a British band of the 1960s. The author David Mitchell mixes fact with fiction as he has his characters interacting with real musicians of that era – like John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, Janis Joplin, and Leonard Cohen.
It’s not a book I would recommend, but what I got from it was an insight into the mind of a schizophrenic or perhaps a demoniac. That’s the secret struggle of Jasper, the lead guitarist. I grieved for him and cheered when he received a measure of healing and knew to walk away from stardom and seek a ‘normal’ life.
503 years ago
Last Saturday was the anniversary of the day when Martin Luther lit the fire that became the Protestant Reformation. As a result, the Bible became the ultimate authority for the church; not the bishop of Rome. Right now, on YouTube, there’s an hour-long documentary that will fill you in one what happened. https://youtu.be/6VK0p-tuuao.
Mr Jones on Netflix
COVID-19 has driven moviegoers away from cinemas to Netflix. I have access via my daughter’s account. One worth watching is Mr Jones – the true story of a Welsh correspondent who makes his way to investigate conditions in the Soviet Union under Stalin. The awful truth: people are starving and dying in Ukraine.
What on earth is God doing?
We may not know what God is doing, but we do know what he has done.
Kevin Twit
Faith?
Faith is not a gift we bring to God in our hands to win his favour; faith is the empty hand of the beggar reaching out for divine charity.
Joel Beeke
Way, way back – salad dressing
Years ago, when I was unemployed for a while, I took to making and selling salad dressing to supplement the dole. It was not exactly a roaring success, but those who liked it loved it.
Here’s what to do. Add to equal amounts of apple cider vinegar, oil, and honey, a mixture, fresh herbs, garlic, and salt and pepper. Blend the lot so that every drop contains all the flavour. You can use sunflower or olive oil – or a blend of both. Ease up on the honey, if you prefer. Add a little Dijon mustard top spice it up.
In My Life 
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