Date: 2nd March ’25 Venue: Bath Forum A truly inspirational evening with the star of the hit TV show Gladiators. Warren Furman’s meteoric rise took him to the top of the celebrity world. With big muscles, fame, a page 3 girlfriend and stacks of cash – he had everything a guy could ever want, right? But he found out life wasn’t quite that simple. Join us for a fantastic evening, packed with laughs, games – maybe even a chance to let out your inner gladiator! Warren will share his story of the fame, fortune and faith, but also the futility […]
Category: Simon Blog
Many tears, few words in Burundi…
I got this email from Chantal*, a ministry leader GLO supports. Sometimes words aren’t enough… “Greetings from Bujumbura, Burundi! I am writing this email with tears in my eyes and a wounded heart as I see the struggle of my people, especially my staff. I wish I could go into a big hall or a valley and shout: Why all this Lord?! Yet I know he sees everything and He will change the situation at the right time! Simon, things are no longer as they used to be!!! There’s no fuel, no sufficient water, no electricity. People have forgotten what […]
Nobody came down…
In 1964, Kitty Genovese returned to her apartment block late one night after her shift working in a bar had ended. She was brutally attacked before she could get beyond the downstairs carpark, and her screams were heard by many people, who came out to peer down from above to see what was happening. They looked down from their various patios and windows, but nobody apparently actually did anything about it. At one stage her attacker ran off, thinking the police were coming. But then he returned and continued violating and stabbing her to death. It was later established that […]
Suffering for Christ
1 Peter 4:12-19 I was preaching at my local church last Sunday, and the passage in the series was 1 Peter 4:12-19 with the title ’Suffering for Christ’. They are very challenging verses. Most of us aren’t suffering for Christ in the West, though maybe more of us will as freedom of speech is steadily eroded. So we cannot take these verses and apply them directly to us. But we can learn from the persecuted church, that’s for sure. So I shared a number of stories of persecution. Here’s one, which this week’s mind-blowing podcast with Nik Ripken touches on […]
Content in Christ!
This talk is the fourth in a series I gave on the book of Philippians this past summer. To listen to it, click Below: Content in Christ – 3 Promises – Peace, Power, Provision Have you ever been through something really grim and been ‘comforted’ by someone who clearly hasn’t got a clue what they’re talking about? They haven’t been through what you’re experiencing, so it rings hollow and you actually just want to tell them where to go! But when someone listens deeply and you know they ‘get’ it, you really listen to them. I listen to Paul because […]
Mind-blowing, Sobering Stories for a Day of Darkness…
Halloween is here again, and it feels like each year the celebration of all things dark gains more and more traction in our culture. How should we engage with this day on the calendar as followers of Jesus? Can there be an element of innocent fun? Should I let my kids take part? Is there a Gospel opportunity somewhere under all the fake cobwebs and skeletons? Whenever we grapple with these questions, I can’t help but think of some of the stories of people who have been involved in the real world of witchcraft and spiritualism. My latest guest on […]
Journeying with Jesus
This talk is the third in a series I gave on the book of Philippians this past summer. To listen to it, Click Below: This chapter starts with faith, continues with resurrection power, and ends with glory! I’ll share some of the illustrations I used, and finish with some useful questions for reflection. A new convert approached Watchman Nee in deep anguish of soul, saying, “No matter how much I pray, no matter how hard I try, I simply cannot seem to be faithful to my Lord. I think I’m losing my salvation.” Watchman Nee replied, “Do you see this […]
Christ Likeness
This talk is the second in the series I gave on the book of Philippians this past summer. To listen to it, click the Audio Link below: I love to illustrate and quote people, and this is just one of the stunning stories I use of God’s Sovereign purposes coming to fruition in this message… and there’s some reflection questions to help focus our thinking. In Uvira, Democratic Republic of Congo, just across the lake from us in Burundi, I’ve preached there and seen the missionary graves. In 1921, David and Svea Flood went with their two-year-old son from Sweden […]
WHAT A WOMAN!
Sometimes you hear a story and you get to be a part of totally changing someone’s life. That’s my invitation to you right now! Clementine has no legs and actually walks on her hands. My colleague Eloge drove past her this week, and felt prompted in his spirit a few minutes later to turn around and go back to talk to her. He asked her what her story was. Here goes: Clementine is an only child, and aged 4 she was struck with poliomyelitis and became disabled. Her father abandoned the whole family because of her, and she’s never seen […]
The Win/Win of Being All-in
Recently I preached this series of talks on the book of Philippians, so below is the first of four talks. Some thoughts / quotes / illustrations from the talk: The key takeaway for me is that Paul is totally out of control (in prison), and yet totally confident of God being in control! And so it is for me and you, whatever you’re going through, that’s the case. I need to hear that. Here are some of the juicy quotes I used, plus at the end some questions to reflect on: Eldredge talks along these lines: “Choosing to see life […]
Tears and Bullets in Burundi
As I stood up to preach, I burst into tears in the pulpit. It was July 2003 and I had flown back from Burundi and on to the USA for my first preaching tour there. I was with a wonderful church called St Andrew’s in Mt Pleasant, South Carolina. Memories of this moment came flooding back a few days ago when I visited my old office on the outskirts of Bujumbura. It was a time of reminiscing and rejoicing. Back in 2003, I was distraught because at the very moment I was preaching at the midweek service, in Burundi rebels had attacked […]
All Good Things Come to An End…
Or Do they? Nothing has brought me more joy and pain in 25 years of ministry in Burundi. Maybe that’s a little overstated, but building what is considered the best dedicated conference centre in the country certainly caused many sleepless nights, stressful days, frustrating weeks and more. Phase 1 launched in 2009, Phase 2 in 2021. It’s been a looooong journey, through the upheaval of renewed violence in 2015 when the country imploded, through Covid shutdown… but King’s Conference Centre as a social enterprise has more than survived… it has thrived! And the key person coordinating and leading several dozen […]
Tears Falling in Your Stomach…
This morning was holy ground. I’m back out in Burundi with a team of supporters for a week of introducing them to our various wonderful partners. As I knew would happen, the team members are blown away at the calibre, integrity and commitment of these Kingdom warriors. As Justin noted, the repeated story is that almost all of them had the chance to take the easier option and leave for whichever affluent peaceful country, but they chose to stay and make a costly difference here, in beautiful but broken Burundi. Ephraim shared how he’d fled to the Congo during the […]
Brave Boldness and Damned Demons in Burundi!
Greetings from Burundi! There is so much good to report from my short visit (49 meetings and counting so far after seven days), but I thought I’d just share a couple of beautiful encounters to stir your faith. GLO’s motto is ‘Transforming Burundi and Beyond’, and I love how stories from Burundi encourage you in the ‘Beyond’ around the world, wherever you are as you read this. Here goes, as posted on facebook: I met with Abdoul today. He’s a brave man. He used to be in charge of 15 mosques, and prided himself in zealously winning Christians over to […]
Come and See!
Today’s talk is the fifth in a series given recently at Lee Abbey. Come to me Weary! Come to me Dirty! Come to me Hungry! Come to me Thirsty! Come and See, then Go and Be! Here are a few juicy bits if you haven’t the time to listen: You won’t have heard of Edward Kimball. This man was becoming increasingly active in church and wanted to make an impact with the youth. His constant refrain was ‘come and see’. There was one lad he saw great potential in but just wasn’t able get through to. In the end, Kimball just decided to […]
Thirsty!
Today’s talk is the fourth in a series given recently at Lee Abbey. Come to me Weary! Come to me Dirty! Come to me Hungry! Come to me Thirsty! Here are a few juicy bits if you haven’t the time to listen: “Lord, please put salt on my lips that I might thirst more after you.” Augustine The revival on Lewis (1949-1952) was steeped in prayer. Seven men and two old ladies had decided to pray and not stop until God visited them in a powerful way. One night, at a prayer meeting held in a barn, one of them said, […]
Hungry!
Today’s talk is the third in a series given recently at Lee Abbey. Come to me Weary! Come to me Dirty! Come to me Hungry! Here are a few juicy bits if you haven’t the time to listen: George Orwell described a wasp that “was sucking jam on my plate and I cut him in half. He paid no attention, merely went on with his meal, while a tiny stream of jam trickled out of his severed oesophagus. Only when he tried to fly away did he grasp the dreadful thing that had happened to him.” The wasp and people without […]
Worthy or Unworthy? Dog or Heir?
Do you feel worthy of God’s love, or unworthy? It’s an important question. Lots of people live under guilt and shame, which is no way to do life. You see, we may be undeserving of God’s grace but we are certainly not unworthy. Because our worth is defined or measured by what Someone is willing to pay for us. And Jesus showed us just how valuable we are on the cross, didn’t he? He settled the matter there. Below is the second in a series of talks given a few weeks ago at Lee Abbey. The first was ‘Come to […]
Choosing Between Your Children
The new school year is big business in the West, with supermarket aisles crammed full of uniforms, pencil cases, notepads, and more. I asked my daughter Grace to film me as I recounted one of the most moving encounters I ever experienced with a mother desperate for her children’s future: Even a hard-working family with a modest income will struggle to shoe, clothe and supply stationery to all their children. Often, they’ll only be able to equip one or two of their children with the bare minimum. I can’t imagine having to choose between which of my kids get to […]
Turning Down the Queen’s Invitation
Back in 2017, I received an invitation from the Queen to join her at Buckingham Palace. I turned her down. Why? Because I’d already heard her on the radio. I’d read her written messages. I’d seen her on TV plenty of times. That was enough for me. Seriously? Of course not! Lizzie and I went there with a great sense of privilege, anticipation and honour, and had a wonderful time. Now, what is on offer today, to all of us, is not a personal invitation from the Sovereign of a nation, rather one from the Sovereign of the Universe, the […]