The final of five sessions at Lee Abbey 2026 How would I score my life so far, out of ten? That’s the question I found myself asking as I prepared the last sermon in our Lee Abbey series, and it isn’t a fair one. Most of us didn’t get the version of our lives we planned as eighteen-year-olds. Illness, broken relationships, kids making spectacularly poor decisions, financial setbacks, that’s just what it means to live in the real world, and none of it is a verdict on your worth. I found the redemption of that question in a story I […]
Category: Simon Blog
Make The Most – 1 Peter 4
This is session 4 in 1 Peter from the Lee Abbey talks 2026 Every evening my phone tells me exactly how long I spent on it that day, and most days I don’t love the answer. An hour and forty-two minutes on Facebook. That’s the world we live in – brilliant minds in Silicon Valley working out how to keep us scrolling, while the things that actually matter wait for the leftovers of our attention. That’s roughly where I started when I gave this session on 1 Peter 4, a passage I find more prickly than most. Peter isn’t gentle: […]
Submission and the Triumph of Christ – 1 Peter 3
This is the third talk of five in 1 Peter from Lee Abbey 2026 Listen here: A New Zealander called Ivan Segedin hated seat belts. The police ticketed him thirty-two times in five years, and still he refused to buckle up. So he got creative and made a fake belt that hung over his shoulder to fool them. It worked brilliantly, right up until his head-on collision. He was thrown onto the steering wheel and killed. Sorry, Ivan, but you were a fool. Submission can be very good for you! 1 Peter 3 gets a bad press, I know. And […]
Building Blocks for Christ – 1 Peter 2
This is the second talk of five in 1 Peter at Lee Abbey 2026 Listen here: Peter hands us three building blocks in this chapter: a precious Saviour, a privileged position, and a practical commission. Get the first one wrong and the rest collapses. A precious Saviour. Jesus is the cornerstone, the one everything else in the house lines up against. In the ancient world the cornerstone had to be cut with total precision, because if it was even slightly off, the whole building went off with it. Sometimes it cost as much as the rest of the house put […]
Ripe for Harvest!
We had another staggeringly fruitful outreach campaign this August with Harvest Initiatives. We sent out over 1,700 evangelists across the country. They had meaningful interactions with an estimated 65,000 people, of whom just shy of 16,000 accepted Christ for the first time, with over 26,000 lapsed Christians strengthened in their faith. Burundi is certainly ripe for the gospel. Nadine had been suffering from fits, vomiting and rashes for two months. Medical tests and treatments were inconclusive. When the evangelists started praying in the name of Jesus, Nadine started to scream, shout and fight. Recognising the spiritual battle before them, they […]
Keep Your L-Plates On – 1 Peter 1
This is the first talk of five in 1 Peter at Lee Abbey 2026 Listen here: I’ve recently stuck L plates on our car for (hopefully) the last time as I’m teaching our third child to drive. We’ve had a few close shaves, but no prangs yet, and long may that continue. This milestone got me thinking about five phrases Peter uses in his first letter to describe what exiles like us are actually holding onto — a living hope, a locked-in inheritance, lasting joy, long-term perspective, and a living word. Simple enough to write but tough to live out. […]
Back to School?
“Simon, I’ve got four kids. I’ve got to choose which two will go to school. How can I possibly choose which two won’t be going this September?” Hi folks, The above is such a common scenario in Burundi. State education is free, but you have to buy your child’s uniform, pen, paper, etc. When you’re struggling to provide even one meal a day, those basic items are unaffordable. And that leads to the most horrendous of dilemmas… I’ve got three kids. I simply can’t imagine having to choose who gets to go to school. Thankfully, you and I have never had […]
Miracle over the Airwaves!
Sophie had lived with pain, fear, and uncertainty for an exhausting 3 years. She had been diagnosed with uterine cancer, suffering from heavy bleeding and long days confined to bed. All the doctors could do was advise her to seek treatment but this was impossible – the huge costs were far beyond her reach. From her bed in Kamenge, she listened to Ivyizigiro Radio every day – that means “Hope Radio”! Fanny and her team at World Outreach Initiatives work tirelessly to keep the show on the road, broadcasting hope over the airwaves. Through the daily encouragement of worship songs […]
Total Access
Last week I was preaching at Trinity Cheltenham in their sermon series on Mark’s gospel. My passage was Mark 15:33-41, and the focus was on the torn curtain (v38), and the centurion’s declaration (v39). Take a look here: or listen to the audio version here: The temple had so many barriers to entry: the Court of the Gentiles was as far as most of us could go; ritually purified Jewish woman could go a little further, but had to stop in the Court of Women; Jewish men could go into the Court of Israel; priests entered the Court of Priests; […]
Bonkers in Burundi!
It’s my favourite time of year again, when we embark on our spectacularly fruitful large-scale summer outreach with Harvest Initiatives! I’d love your prayer support, because it really makes a difference. Of all the years we’ve done this, there was only one I didn’t ask for intentional prayer, and that was the year with the most opposition and setbacks. Check out these stories from previous campaigns: Goretti had been paralysed for three years. The team visited and prayed for her. She was healed, and straightaway gave her life to Jesus. Six of her family members and five neighbours also came to Christ […]
From Slaves to Sons
Last week I was invited to preach at All Saints in Worcester on Galatians 3:23-4:7 as part of their series on Galatians, with the title ‘From Slaves to Sons’. You can watch it here: And listen to the audio version here: Here is a transcript if you prefer to read: From Slaves to Sons Slave, or son? That’s the choice sitting inside this passage. Galatians 4:4–7: “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are […]
Guard your First Love!
I was recently preaching at All Saints Peckham, as part of their series on Revelation. My text was Rev 2:1-7 The Letter to the Church at Ephesus. Listen/watch here Verse 7 says: “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” You can also listen to the Audio version here:
I AM… The True Vine
This weekend, I was in Life Church, Warrington, where they have been journeying through the “I AM’s” of Jesus, and I had the privilege of speaking on the last in their series – I AM… The True Vine. I invite you to listen and receive the challenge to abide fully in Jesus today. Click below:
Connecting to God’s Presence and Power
This is the sermon I gave last Sunday at St Andrew’s Church in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, looking at Exodus 40:34-38 and closing out their series on the book of Exodus. Their strapline is ‘connecting people to the presence and power of Jesus’, so the passage fitted well, and hence the title. Or you can listen to the Audio version here:
An Easy Way to Bring a Smile this Christmas…
Bernard¹ is a great buddy of mine. He used to be a child soldier. He had ten siblings, and he’s the only one still alive because of war and disease. He’s doing stunning work with us, a total legend! But he’s one of many wondering how to get through the festive season: Dear Simon, Thank you so much for your support to us throughout this hard year. I am so grateful to GLO, indeed your contributions have saved many lives. God bless you! As we approach Christmas, this is the hardest year I can remember since the genocidal years. Because […]
Freedom Behind Bars – Watch Tonight!
Jonathan Aitken and Shane Taylor came from the opposite ends of life’s spectrum – privilege and poverty. But both ended up in jail, where they had an encounter that brought them true freedom – even behind bars! We had an amazing evening together in front of a sell-out crowd at the Bath Forum for our second Inspired…Live event. At times we laughed, and at other points tears were shed. It was very powerful. I’m thrilled that a friend offered to get a quality recording of the event so I can share it here with you – it’s going live tonight […]
Against All Odds
Emile’s Extraordinary Journey Get ready for what I think will be a healthy challenge to how easy it is to feel we have it hard in life… Speaking personally, It’s so easy to grumble about minor inconveniences like slow Wi-Fi, traffic jams, or the wrong coffee order – while others around the world battle to survive, let alone thrive. Then someone like Emile comes along and reminds us what determination, faith, and perseverance really look like. Emile Ndayikengurukiye was born into deep poverty in rural Burundi, the youngest of seventeen children in a struggling family. His father had no job […]
Distant Compassion or Love in Proximity?
This week, if you’re driving in the car, doing some gardening, on a long walk or just taking it easy at home, can I encourage you to listen to my podcast with Shane Claiborne? It’s so good! Shane Claiborne’s deepest conviction is that we are meant to live ‘as if Jesus meant the things he said’. So for him that has meant living in community in inner-city Philadelphia for a few decades now, having picked up some lessons from a stint working under Mother Teresa in Calcutta. His activism has involved confronting various systemic injustices and speaking up for and […]
Saving my Assassin
The man pulls a gun from his jacket and says, “I’m not a client, I’m here to kill you. We have done everything possible to stop you, but you will not listen.” Across the desk is lawyer Virginia Prodan. She has already suffered beatings, interrogation and constant surveillance at the hands of Ceaușescu’s secret police, all for representing human rights cases against the government. Is this the end of the road for her…? But then she hears a still, small voice in her heart, ‘Share the gospel with him.’’ My latest podcast with Virginia was SO encouraging and inspiring (watch or […]
Inspired Live: Warren Furman – The Gladiator!
On the 2nd March 2025, ‘INSPIRED‘ went ‘LIVE’ for the first time! My special guest for this pioneering episode was none other than Warren Furman, one of the celebrated OG’s (Original Gladiators) from the 90’s TV Series that would capture multiple millions in front of their TV screens every Saturday night. Warren shared his journey from the heights of fame – and the dissolution it brought – through to his encounter with Jesus on an Alpha Course. Take a look at the video of this eventful night where, along with my usual probing questions, you’ll see some great audience participation […]