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One of the arguments that is much abused by both sides of the Christian debate is what Richard Dawkins would term “The argument from personal incredulity” – it usually starts with the phrase “I can’t believe that the true God would …” or something to that effect.

My usual response is “No, I don’t believe in your god either”. Frankly, the God I believe in isn’t so easily defined by human expectations and is certainly not constrained by human imagination!

So next time you find yourself saying “If God exists then He would never stand by while this tragedy happened” or “Everything in the bible must be true because God would never let His Word be corrupted by human hands” remember that God doesn’t need to measure up to your yardstick – He is His own ultimate measure of perfection, for which I am truly thankful.

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Tonight I am due to lead the prayers at Gospelaires, so I have reworked my reflection this morning:

With the beginning of a New Year I wanted to take the opportunity to think about New Beginnings.  Many people across the world will be yearning for a new start to some aspect of their life, making New Year’s resolutions – breaking New Year’s resolutions.  Many resolutions will be focused on self-improvement: eat less; drink less; exercise more – gym owners up and down the country will be rubbing their hands in glee at the prospect of new customers who will hand over their bank details and never set foot again in the gym.  Other resolutions will be focusing on relationships with others: spending more time with partners; family; mending fences with neighbours.

In thinking about new beginnings, I was reminded of a poem that really spoke to me a few years ago when I was in quite a difficult place: I had a young family; my wife had serious post-natal depression that was completely debilitating and one of the few pleasures we were able to share was reading poetry together.  Mary Oliver’s “The Journey” spoke to both of us very powerfully:

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