Be Still and Know

Psalm 120:1-2 I love the psalms because they span the full range of human experience. Some are full of praise and worship, but others burst out with anger and disappointment. However you are feeling, there are psalms that will be just right for you,...

Luke 2:37-38 In this part of Luke’s Gospel, our eyes are focused on Jesus and his young parents. A new day had dawned, full of hope for the future. But it is important that it was two old people, Simeon and Anna, who recognised the significance of hi...

Luke 2:28-31 Simeon took the child in his arms and praised God, saying, “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised. I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people.” Simeon was an old man who h...

Luke 2:21 'Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived.' Three ceremonies took place after the birth of Jesus, just as they did for every Jewish baby boy. F...

Luke 2:21 'Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived.' My wife Sue and I have three children and I well recall the long conversations about names which to...

Luke 2:18-19 'All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.' The birth of Jesus was greeted by people in very different ways. The shepherds were thrilled that the...

Luke 2:10-11 “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Saviour—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!” The news of the birth of Jesus would have been...

Luke 2:6-7 'And while they were there in Bethlehem, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them....

Luke 2:4 'Because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home.' Jesus was born in the little town of Bethlehem. Even today, it’s not a particularly large town. With a population of around 28,0...

Luke 2:1-3 'At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to regi...

Luke 1:78-79 “Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.” There is something very ex...

Luke 11:76-77 “And you, my little son, will be called the prophet of the Most High, because you will prepare the way for the Lord. You will tell his people how to find salvation through forgiveness of their sins.” In his song of praise, Zecha...

Luke 1:74-75 'We have been rescued from our enemies so we can serve God without fear, in holiness and righteousness for as long as we live.' The whole Bible speaks about salvation, and that comes to a climax in the life, death and resurrecti...

Luke 1:72-73 “He has been merciful to our ancestors by remembering his sacred covenant— the covenant he swore with an oath to our ancestor Abraham.” Zechariah’s beautiful song of worship after the birth of his son, John the Baptist, celebrate...

Luke 1:67-70 Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and gave this prophecy: “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited and redeemed his people. He has sent us a mighty Saviour from the royal line of his servant David, just...