Amazed at God and loving it!

Well no West Ham result to reminisce on this week - however I am still top of the fantasy league football that I play in, by some 170 points. Once again a week has flown past. I had intended on writing again sooner but preparing to preach takes all the writing abilities that I possess.

Preaching on Jonah really opens your eyes to how great God is and how much we need him. When you think about it, there's always something that we are running away from God with and we all need to turn to him and seek his forgiveness. The great thing for Christians being that he will not let us go and he will pursue us because of his love. As I have reflected on these things I am once again amazed by his grace and mercy which he has lavished upon me.

To that end I watched The Passion of the Christ again yesterday. It's not that I desperately wanted to watch it again, but I once again wanted to endure (if that is the right word) in some miniscule way what he did on my behalf. As I wept through most of the film I knew that there was nothing better to give my life to than the pursuit of knowing him more and serving his Kingom as best I can until he returns or death catches up with me.

It is only 4 days away until my 9th birthday as a Christian. The Lord has brought me so far since that time. I thank him so much for all he has done. If there is anyone reading this that does not know Jesus as their Lord and Saviour do not hesitate in finding out more about Him. It will change your life and it wont necessarily be easier - Jesus isn't a fix all cure for every problem, we still have to face them - but we face them knowing that the creator of the universe is in control and that ultimately we wll be with him. If you want to know more then leave someway of contact in the comments section of this post.

The week that was

A week on from my last post and a lot has happened. West Ham have been robbed of a win on Sunday against Man City by a terrible offside decision that gifted the City a goal. Tottenham have knocked Arsenal out of the cup. I have played badminton 4 times and have had varying degrees of success which includes no longer being reigning champ as mentioned last time. Barbie and I have also been back to the old home town of Dartford to celebrate the birthday of the nearest thing I have to a brother, my cousin Terry - top boy and top night!

The highlight of the past week has to be Sunday. The vision day for Reading Family Church. A busy day that saw us having lunch with Duke, Sitho and Miranda; watching the football at the Mdlalose's and then coming to the church office for the members meeting.

I felt a real sense of togetherness as Sean painted a glorious picture of the church that God intended in the morning. Many of the 193 that were there on the morning stepping out and saying they want to be part of what God is doing here in Reading through his church. Then the turn out for the evening meeting including a few students!!! Man it is so good to be a member of this church! Church rocks!

I love hearing the stuff about the church because it helps me see that there is so much more to life than West Ham, Badminton and my everyday disappointments. The Lord has made me and called me to be part of his Kingdom and to serve that Kingdom and give to that Kingdom with my life and all I have. I am part of God displaying his wisdom to the world and beyond. Thank you Lord for such a privilege!

What about this week - lots to do, preach to prepare, child protection seminars to lead, marriage preparation course to go through with a great couple: and at the centre of all of those things - JESUS.

Hopefully I shall be able to write again at some point in the next few days, I quite enjoy just thinking through things and getting it down.

From futility to sincerity!

I thought it might take a while but it's within a week so that's not too bad! Here's futility: A great result for the Hammers on Saturday over a team that we usually draw against was fantastic. It was whilst watching Match Of The Day on Saturday evening that I realised that I was going to be able to watch West Ham play Man City on BBc in the FA Cup replay tonight - this filled me with great joy!!!

So tonight is an FA Cup replay date with my good friends Simon and Kat Starling and of course my beautiful wife - although I cannot imagine for a second that Kat and Barbie will watch the game! Still it could be the first time that baby Ethan (Starling not Taylor!) wears his Hammers vest - heres hoping it fits him!

I also managed to be the champ for the second week running in my midweek badminton. I'm sure it will not continue but two weeks on the trot of winning 5 of the 6 games is quite an acheivement - well done me!!!

Now sincerity: Sean's message on Sunday was challenging as he spoke about Jesus and the Leper. He spoke of the faith that the leper had in coming to Christ. He also showed that sin is like leprosy. I would say it is well worth a listen.

I'm looking forward to the vision day this Sunday. As elders we believe God has so much for us in the coming year but there are some significant challenges. You can't help but think of some of the great characters in the Bible when looking out over this year.

Noah hadn't seen rain and had never built a boat, but he knew God was calling him to something and therefore he went ahead in faith although circumstance would hace called him a fool. Moses was an unlikely leader, a murderer and someone who shyed away from the public eye, but God sends him to Pharaoh and he responds with faith and the Israelites are set free! David goes against the giant with nothing more than a sling and 5 stones but he steps out not in his own strength but in faith and the giant falls - I could continue but then this blog will become too long.

I for one know that I want to be counted among these guys, who although they didn't know the exact mechanics of how the call of God on their lives was going to be fulfilled they stepped out in faith and trusted him. I also want to be part of a church that sees the problems but relies on God.

What does 2008 hold?

Reading blogs of good friends has lead me to this point. I have never thought to do this before and in fact am still wondering how long I will keep this up for. Not being the most reflective person in the world and not having an awful lot of time at my disposal, I almost think I am setting myself up to fail, but hey let's give it a go.


At the start of this year I do wonder what God has in store for the Taylors. We are contemplating extensions, kitchens and holidays at the moment. How expensive are all of these things?!? I'm sure I will look back on this blog in 12 months time and look back on what God has done and who knows if what He has in store is the same as what we think He has in store! The reality is we have to put our faith in Him and trust the He knows what is best as well as seeking wise counsel from our close friends.


On an individual note, these things I do know: I want to know the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit more in this coming year. I am hungry to know more of his word and thirsty for more of the Spirit. I want to be a better husband loving my wife in a way that reflects the way that Christ loved the church - his bride. I want to see West Ham achieve a reasonable position in the Premier league and I want to improve in my positional play in badminton, maybe even competing in a tournament or two!


Aside from the West Ham one these are all things that I think are achievable - watch this space as the year unfolds.