David Turner Blog

This Christmas I was struck by two aspects of the visitors in the nativity story. The shepherds and the wise men. Both were presented with an opportunity, to be a part of something bigger than they would ever know. But with the opportunity came risk. The wise men had to leave their home, their country and travel to a foreign land. The shepherds were asked to leave their flocks, probably not their own flocks but the flocks of their master. They were asked to trust God with their livelihood, their lives. But if they were obedient they are given an opportunity. An opportunity to see the king. And so it is with us. If we are obedient, if we are willing to take a risk, to trust in God, he promises us that we will see the king. The second aspect that struck me was how encouraging it must have been to have these visitors for Joseph and Mary. Sure scary at first, these are strangers at the most vulnerable time. But for Mary and Joseph this must have been a time of doubt. For Joseph wonder...

I suppose that we all know that hard work pays. If we have a messy house, and sit watching TV all day, then nothing will get done. But there are some things that just shouldn't be hard work right? Like friendships, and love, and diets (I wish). And what about faith? This is meant to be easy right? Faith in God is based on his love and grace, and so we often have this ideal in our minds, where we become a follower of Jesus and everything falls into place. I mean Jesus said his yoke is easy and his burden is light, so this believing, following, being a Christian business should be dead easy. But the reality often hits us hard in the spiritual face, when things don't go as we planned. God doesn't answer, we don't get what we asked for, illness hits, death rears its ugly head, and all we hear is the clock ticking in the silence. Then when we fail to comprehend the complexity of this reality, that pain and faith can co-exist, we stumble and grind to a halt. No more mov...

I have always loved going to the zoo, the chance to see these amazing animals close up that you would rarely get the chance to see anywhere else. In January, Beth and I got 'gold passes' to colchester zoo, meaning we can have free entry to the zoo for a year. It's been awesome going with Reuben, feeding the giraffes with him and riding the train. The funny thing is that Reuben loves the whole experience, not just the star attractions. At the minute there are loads of ducklings about, just your standard mallard ducklings. We was at the tiger enclosure and the tiger was going mental right by the window that we were standing at, because of some cat nip in a box. But Reuben was too enamoured with the ducks to want to watch the Tiger, so we had to go and sit on the floor with the ducks. It was the same at another zoo in Kent recently where you can go on a 'safari ride', we got on and in a field of zebra, and giraffe and other exotic animals, the animal that Reuben ...

I went away recently for a week to a conference. It was only the second time I had left my son for a prolonged period of time. When I'm away I find I really miss him, and worry that something might happen to him while I'm away. I know this is because I love him and he brings me such joy. Of course these things are all natural and I'm sure things all parents can relate too. As a follower of Jesus we are called to put Jesus above all else. I struggle to understand why this has to be the case and how it could ever be when I love my son so much. While I was away I was thinking about this and I remembered why we named Reuben what we did - yes because we liked the name, but more because of the meaning - 'God has blessed me with a son.' The moment I remembered this, I recognised that while Reuben may be an object of my joy, God is the joy giver. The true context in which I can enjoy Reuben, and indeed any gift is in relationship with the one who gave the gift. The on...