30th August
This morning Nigel spoke to us about Jonah and how God used him to bring salvation in spite of his seeming non-compliance. He noted that many figures in scripture are seen sitting under trees of various kinds, and it’s where God meets with them. Jonah had a “vine”. We’re not exactly sure what it was, but some indications point to it being a castor-bean plant, which is highly toxic.
23rd August
Sophia spoke to us this morning. Her title was “The Power of Testimony and a Heart of Gratitude.” She spoke about the importance of testimony, and shared something of her own journey over the past few years, as she has walked with the Lord.
16th August
This morning it was good to hear from Dan Fleet. Dan spoke from Matthew 14: 13-33, in particular about Jesus walking on the water. The four points he drew were:
- We need to be alone and to pray
- God provides all we need
- You never know what’s coming
- Jesus is God and has authority over death
2nd August
This morning Peter used a couple of examples of how scripture has been misconstrued over the years, and then spoke from Acts 10 about Peter and Cornelius. Cornelius was a good man, and God commended his morality—so much so that he arranged for Peter to come and tell him about Christ so that he could be saved
26th July
Today I spoke again on the Breaking of Bread, partly in response to what Nathanael said last week. We have a table that God has prepared for us “in the presence of our enemies”, and it’s from that place of rest and intimacy that we can go out and face the many trials of the world.
19th July
This morning it was good to hear from Nathanael again. He gave commentary on David’s victory against Goliath in 1 Samuel 17. There is always a tendency to be overwhelmed by circumstances, but David kept his eyes on the Lord, and only saw Goliath in the context of the Lord of Hosts.
12th July
This morning it was good to welcome Matt Wood from up the road at Love Stoke Church.
He shared his “faith story”, and he emphasised the importance of being present and being intentional in the practice of our faith.
5th July 2026
This morning is was good to welcome Steve Jackson back. He drew some lessons from the life of David, looking at his spiritual character in his anointing, his killing of Goliath and his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah. He concluded with a reading of Psalm 51.
28th June 2026
This morning, I stepped in for Lucy who is unwell.
My subject was Holy Communion, the first of two talks, I expect, and looked at the roots of the Communion in the Jewish Passover.
Luke 22: 7-22; Exodus 12: 1-11; Jeremiah 33: 31-33; Ezekiel 36: 25-27; John 14: 15-18
21st June 2026
This morning it was good to welcome back Mikk Campbell from Davenport Road in Derby. His theme was Jesus’ New Command to “love one another.” By illustration he talked of the way the Edomites despised God’s people in Jerusalem when they were taken captive by Babylon, from the book of Obadiah.
14th June 2026
It was really good to hear from Nathanael this morning. His subject was “Relying on God” and spoke from Proverbs 3 and Daniel 6. Daniel was bold to defy the king’s decree, and had to “trust in the Lord” and not lean on his own understanding, and God miraculously delivered him.
7th June 2027
This morning, Nigel reflected on a world “subjected to futility” and the hope that it will be “set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God,” in the words of Romans 8.
He also reflected with some personal testimony on the promises in Isaiah 11 and Revelation 21 and 22 about what the New Creation might be like.
31st May 2026
Today I gave the third of three talks on Baptism, speaking mainly from Romans 6: 1-4:
“Don’t you know that all of us who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”
When we are baptised we are declaring that we are ‘taking on’ the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, in much the same way as he ‘took on’ our sin on the cross when he “bore the sin of many” (Isaiah 53: 12)
24th May 2026
This morning Val spoke on “Whom do you say I am?” from Matthew 16: 13-16. She did a short survey of the various names for God in the Old Testament, emphasising that each of these descriptions comes out of a relationship.
17th May 2026
This morning we were very happy to welcome David Kim from the London City Mission. David is originally from Seoul in South Korea (from Gangnam, indeed!) and works predominantly among South East Asians and the Korean diaspora in South London.
He gave us an update on the work he does for the Mission and among the Korean churches, then he have a short message on John 2: 1-12 with the title “Our deepest despair has everything to do with Jesus.”
10th May 2026
Sophia spoke on “Traditions versus Truth”. It’s very easy to prioritise “the way we do things” above what the Lord is actually saying to us. We must keep soft hearts and listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying.
19th April 2026
This morning I continued the ongoing study of the Dove Church’s Statement of faith with a second look at baptism. Last time I spoke, we looked at John’s baptism for repentance and cleansing; today we looked at Christian baptism, mainly from Acts 2.
12th April 2026
This morning, Jeremy gave us an update of the work of Foundation Matters, including the work with children and young people at Pine Lake and also projects they are involved with in Uganda and Israel.
He concluded with a challenge from Matthew 28 and the Great Commission.
5th April 2026
This morning, Sam spoke from Hebrews 12: 1 and 2. He didn’t give it a title, but I’m calling it “Let us run with endurance”.
We live our lives in the presence of witnesses, not only the ‘heroes of faith’ in Hebrews 11, but our contemporaries in the community, to whom we are witnesses.
29th March
It was wonderful to welcome Rob Price this morning, with a group of friends from Love Stoke Church. He spoke from Romans 7 and 8, with reference to his own faith story. There is no hope of life or peace when we live according to the dictates of our “flesh”, but “to be spiritually minded is life and peace”.
22nd March
Today I started a series of talks on Baptism, part of the ongoing “Statement of Faith” series. In Matthew 3 we encounter John baptising people in the Jordan. This is the first time “baptism” is mentioned in the Bible, but everyone seemed to know what was happening, so I looked at some of the Old Testament precedents for baptism, and what we can learn from the baptism of John.
15th March
Nigel spoke this morning from Matthew 9: 1-8—Jesus and the paralysed man. The true authority of Christ is shown in his forgiveness of the man’s sins, and at first it seems that he won’t heal the man’s physical disability. But when the scribes become offended, “That’s blasphemy!”, Jesus demonstrates his power physically by healing his body.
8th March 2026
This morning Steve Jackson led us through a detailed account of “the Easter Story” , following the death, resurrection and glory of Jesus Christ, in Isaiah 52 and 53, Mark 14 and Revelation 5.
1st March 2026
This morning, Sophia spoke om “A New Creation” from 2 Corinthians 5, speaking about how Jesus Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice cleanses our sin and reconciles us to God.
22nd February 2026
This morning I looked at the next clause in the Dove Church’s Statement of Faith:
We believe in …
“The justification of sinners solely by the grace of God through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
We looked at Mark 2: 1-12, the healing of the paralysed man. On what basis did Jesus forgive the man’s sin?
15th February 2026
Today Lucy spoke about our identity in Christ as opposed to our perceived identity: “I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am”.
Lucy’s closing song: https://youtu.be/_f_HtsDNKuE?si=0jOIQ8MzAWHv9-Pd
8th February 2026
This morning Jordan shared a message drawn from his experience as the Uttoxeter Christian Schools Worker. He spoke from Luke 13 and patience and perseverance.
1st February 2026
This morning, Ginny talked about “Digging deep or bubbling over.” Sometimes we need to “dig with determination” wells into the water-table of God’s blessing; sometimes we “discover with delight” springs of living water bursting out of the ground.
