Do you need space?

Okay, I have to admit that the space in yesterday's post really annoyed me. Blogger just simply doesn't behave when I use it. Everyone else seems to have perfected blog layout except me. No matter how I changed and re-posted my blog yesterday, that space appeared under the title. And what was worse, every time I changed it, it grew!

But it was a timely reminder, though, of one of things that most of us need most in our daily lives - SPACE. So it's great to be reminded of it visually. I once heard performance poet Jude Simpson say, "The space between the letters is spelt GRACE." And she is right. We need God's grace to live our lives at his pace and that requires that we put an extra letter in front of that word PACE and become more aware of our need for SPACE. Jesus took time and space to be with his dad, so how much more do we need time with our heavenly Father. 


A friend of mine calls her time out with God her 'cave time' after the prophet Elijah. During her 'cave time' she finds a way to have some 'alone time' away from work and a busy family life. Often she has to leave the house and go for a walk to get that 'cave time', but once she's had it, she's able to face life again.

Do you need some SPACE or 'cave-time'? 


Click to hear my 20 second poem SoulSpace

Celtic Morning Prayer

The Celtic scholar, Alexander Carmichael, spent his life collecting prayers, songs and poetry of the Celts, which resulted in the 6 volume Carmina Gadelica - a treasury of Celtic spirituality.

I love the simplicity of this Morning Prayer and so thought I'd share it with you. In fact, I'm planning on personalising it and writing my own version. You might like to do the same adding particular activities or names of family members etc. Maybe we could share our prayers with each other.

God's Aid

God to enfold me, 

God to surround me,

God in my speaking,

God in my thinking.

God in my sleeping,

God in my waking,

God in my watching, 
God in my hoping.

God in my life,

God in my lips,

God in my soul,

God in my heart.

God in my sufficing,

God in my slumber,

God in mine ever-living soul,

God in mine eternity.

(Carmina Gadelica III, 53)

O Christ, will You help me on the wild waves?

I've been meditating on various scriptures relating to water recently, including Noah building the Arc and Peter walking on water. Trusting God can sometimes seem as scary as walking on water or sailing across the ocean in a flimsy coracle! Saint Brendan the Navigator is famous for his courage at sea - his trust, determination and obedience were so strong, that he is said to have been the first person to sail across the Atlantic! I love the faith and humility expressed in this emotive prayer which is attributed to St Brendan:


Shall I abandon, O King of mysteries, the soft comforts of home? 
Shall I turn my back on my native land, and turn my face towards the sea?
Shall I put myself wholly at your mercy, without silver, without a horse, without fame, without honor? 
Shall I throw myself wholly upon You, without sword and shield, without food and drink, without a bed to lie on? 
Shall I say farewell to my beautiful land, placing myself under Your yoke?
Shall I pour out my heart to You, confessing my manifold sins and begging forgiveness, tears streaming down my cheeks? 
Shall I leave the prints of my knees on the sandy beach, a record of my final prayer in my native land?
Shall I then suffer every kind of wound that the sea can inflict? 
Shall I take my tiny boat across the wide sparkling ocean? 
O King of the Glorious Heaven, shall I go of my own choice upon the sea? 
O Christ, will You help me on the wild waves?
(Ascribed to Saint Brendan the Navigator before sailing across the Atlantic.)

A prayer for these uncertain times.

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. (Deuteronomy 33:27)

I love this beautiful Celtic encircling prayer from Iona. It reminds me of the prayer for protection and safety in Ephesians 6 - The Armour of God. It's a really moving one to pray during these uncertain times.

My Christ, 

My shield,

My encircler,

each day,

each night,

each light,

each dark,

be near me,

uphold me,

my treasure,

my triumph.

Should St Aidan be new patron saint of UK?

Today is Saint George's Day and I'm reminded of leading theologian Ian Bradley's suggestion that St Aidan would make a better patron saint of the UK than St Goerge. What are your thoughts? Here are some of his reasons:

"St George had nothing to do with Britain and his legend was brought back here with the Crusades. St Andrew similarly had no links with Scotland and St Patrick was born in Scotland or England and put into slavery by the Irish. On the other hand, St Aidan unites three of the countries by having lived there and is, I believe, a better symbol for Britishness.

"Aidan was the sort of hybrid Briton that sums up the overlapping spiritual identities of Britain.

"He also makes a good patron saint of Britain because of his character. He was particularly humble and believed in talking directly to people. When he was given a horse by King Oswald of Northumbria, he immediately gave it away because he was worried that he would not be able to communicate properly.

"He was also not shy of reprimanding the mighty and powerful about their failings. He saw it as part of his job to remind secular rulers not to get above themselves.... he had a sense of openness and diversity for his time that I think makes him a good candidate as the patron saint of Britain."

Ashes to ashes

 The Celts were great storytellers and poets. We need our contemporary storytellers to help us understand the times. 

Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy, has written a poem called 'Silver Linings' inspired by the volcanic eruption in Iceland.

You an hear Carol reading this poem by clicking on the link 

Carol Ann Duffy video

Five miles up the hush and shush of ash,
Yet the sky is as clean as a white slate -
I could write my childhood there.
Selfish to sit in this garden, listening to the past
(A gentleman bee wooing its flower, a lawnmower)
When the grounded planes mean ruined plans,
Holidays on hold, sore absences at weddings, funerals ... wingless commerce.
But Britain's birds sing in this spring
From Inverness to Liverpool, from Crieff to Cardiff,
Oxford, Londontown, Land's End to John O' Groats.
The music's silent summons,
That Shakespeare heard and Edward Thomas and, briefly, us.

Carol Ann Duffy

He is risen!

Today on this Easter Sunday, and after a wonderful week of fasting from Internet communication, I want to share with you a very personal message that I've written as love poem to God:

Stone upon stone

upon river 

upon stream

my Lover is calling

He is beckoning to me.

A love consummated on a cross

and sealed in a tomb.

we rise to new life

                                  Bride and Bridegroom.

                                   (Liz Babbs)