Category Archives: Blog

Unbounded Love, Bound Up

March 28, 2024 danbalsdon Leave a comment

“So the soldiers, their officer, and the Jewish police arrested Jesus and bound him.”

“Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.”
John 18:14 & 24

Over the season of Lent 2024 I’ve been journeying with the theme ‘Unbounded Love’, a phrase that appears within Charles Wesley’s Hymn ‘Love Divine’, and the title of the 2024 lent resources from The Methodist Church.

So as I began to prepare worship for Holy Week, I have been struck by the way John 18 refers to how Jesus was bound by those who arrested him, leading me to write this meditative reflection.

It could be used on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday, as a tool to reflect on the arrest of Jesus, and the uncertainty this would have left his followers with.

Unbounded Love, Bound Up

They bound him,
After they arrested him,
After the betrayer had kissed him,
After he had told Judas to do what he had to do.
What now?

They bound him.
The one who said come to me and I will give you rest.
The one who said he had come to give us life in all its fulness.
The one who said he would quench our thirst.
What now?

They bound him.
The one who showed compassion to the marginalised.
The one who offered release to those bound by evil.
The one who healed the sick and brought hope to so many.
What now?

Jesus – the one who came and showed us what real love looks like,
Compassionate, caring, nurturing, welcoming,
Love unconditional,
Love unlimited,
Love unbounded,

And his unbounded love angered them.

And so they bound him.
Unbounded love, bound up.
What now?

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Letting go of jumble on the jumble sale

March 6, 2024 danbalsdon Leave a comment

After my wife and I married, we spent 6 happy years as part of Mount Charles Methodist Church, St Austell, Cornwall.

Among the congregation was a wonderful lady named June. She played the church organ and, she was also the proud and seemingly life-long custodian of one of the brik-a-brak stalls at every church fayre. if my memory serves me correctly, it was jewellery, broaches and necklaces and earrings and other shiny things.

As every church fayre approached, the boxes of goods would come out of wherever June stored them, she would lovingly unpack and display the goods on the table ready for sale.

Then at the end of each event, she would equally as lovingly box the remaining items up, and take custody of them until the next church fayre.

The problem was, that bar the odd item, the same items went back into the boxes that had come out. Much of what I would lovingly call ‘jumble’ never got sold, but was kept hold of.

I’ve been thinking about June and her stall this week following last Sundays lectionary reading of John 2:13-25. It is the episode in the gospel story when Jesus upturns the tables in the temple, and lets the animals go free declaring ‘Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a market-place!’

In a dramatic story, Jesus declares the temple had become a marketplace, challenging the unjust trading, and the way was distracting people from God.

The passage goes to to share how Jesus talked of his own body as a temple (verse 19 & 21). The physical temple in Jerusalem was the place God dwelt with Gods people, but Jesus suggests he himself, his body, is a temple, and points us to see that Jesus was a person in whom God dwelt.

Elsewhere in the bible, we read a further reflection on ‘temple’ places where God dwells. In the book of 1 Corinthians 6, we read “do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?”.

Which brings me back to June and her brick-a-brak. If we are temples of the Holy Spirit – people in whom God dwells – is there jumble on the jumble sale of our lives that needs upturning and taking out? Is there stuff in our lives that distracts us from God?

Sometimes we know there are things in our lives we need to let go of, but we hold on because they are familiar, comfortable, certain, while also knowing they distract us. Perhaps there may even be times when we hold onto the jumble because it is a distraction, and we’re fearful and what God will say when we remove them.

‘Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a market-place!’

Are we ready and willing to allow Jesus to help us remove the distraction inducing jumble, to make space in our lives and our hearts, for Jesus?

Are we ready to allow ourselves to experience the depth & breadth of his love?

May we be willing to allow Jesus to upturn that which needs upturning, that we might turn to be more fully who God calls us to be.

Blog, Poetry

Farewell 2023

January 2, 2024 danbalsdon 2 Comments

And so we come,
To say farewell,
To 2023.
Through twists and turns,
And ups and downs,
An adventure we did see.

When the year began,
Home was still,
By sea in Bognor Regis.
Sea winds gusting,
Sea gulls squawking,
And lots that now we miss.

The months preparing,
To say goodbye
Were hard to say the least.
Letting go of what’s known,
And beginning the new,
Can be a scary beast.

Amidst it all,
Life threw some punches,
With Lydia unexpectedly under the knife.
One appendix less,
And now she’s better,
And back to being full of life.

Louise kept on crafting,
Wool, fabric and stiches
Stashed in every available corner.
Rebekah keeps writing,
And singing and dancing,
And Dan, well he just got a bit bolder.

The country saw a coronation,
And more u-turns than we want to remember,
Though at least Rwanda is paused for the mo,
And yet again
we didn’t win Eurovision,
But at least it Sam gave a good show.

And so we said
our fond goodbyes,
To work, to school, to friends.
Our lives packed up,
Into boxes on vans,
Our time in Bognor now ends.

And then we landed
In a new place,
Leatherhead was to become home.
It took some time,
But it’s become exciting
to have new spaces to roam.

We’ve felt loved, accepted,
And touched by the welcome
We’ve received from new neighbours and friends.
It’s made it much easier,
To let go of what was,
Though we still miss the people we’ve left.

So thanks to all those
Who’ve been part of our year,
Whether you’re near or far.
In the year that’s to come,
We pray you will know,
just how loved and appreciated you are.

Blog, Published Talks, Worship Resources

Advent: A time of Wanting

December 7, 2023 danbalsdon Leave a comment

The 3rd in a 3 part series for the start of Advent

Advent.
A time of wanting.

What do you want for Christmas?
A new bike, a new microwave,
A box of chocolates, but not one with the minty ones in…

This world is filled with wants.

Adverts, telling us what we want.
Watching the news and desperately wanting peace where there is conflict.
Business Enticing us with wants.
Hearing of friends suffering, and longing for them to be freed of their pain.
Supermarkets tempting us with treats and tantalizing tastes.
Wanting to live in a world where the most basic of human needs are met by all in this world.

But how do we distinguish our desires between selfishness and selflessness.
How do we keep our wanting in check with God’s wanting for us?

And in that moment,
advent connects with the climax of the story.
Christs words in Gethsemane echo in our ears:
“Father, not what I want, but what you want.”

Advent.
A time of wanting.

Wanting as Jonah did, inside the belly of a fish, for 3 nights praying, re-orientating himself from his own wants and desires.
Not what I want, but what you want Lord.

Wanting as Mary did, as she accepted the angel’s word: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Luke 1:38
Not what I want, but what you want Lord.

Advent.
A time of wanting.
Yet – what are we wanting?

A time of watching.
Yet – what are we watching for?

A time of waiting.
Yet – What are we waiting for?

Blog, Published Talks, Worship Resources

Advent: A time of Watching

December 5, 2023 danbalsdon 1 Comment

The 2nd of a 3 part series for the start of advent.

Advent.
A time of watching.

Watching the news.
Watching the world go by
Watching children, and grandchildren play.
Watching the sun rise and set,
Watching the seas roll and break on the shore,
Watching the trees bend under the weight of the wind

Yes watching, it seems, is not merely seeing.
Watching goes deeper than simply observing and acknowledging what we see.
Watching involves interpreting, it involves foreseeing,
Looking at both the now, and the not yet,
The present and the yet to be.

Advent.
A time of watching.

Watching, as Noah did, for the waters to recede.

Watching as All Israel did,
watching for the Messiah,
But when messiah came, they rejected, ignored, dismissed.
The Messiah that came was not what they had been watching for.

Advent.
A time of watching.

What are we watching for?
Watching for what we want God to do?
Or watching for God’s voice, God’s action in this world?

Advent.
A time of watching.
A time of waiting.

Blog, Published Talks, Worship Resources

Advent: A time of waiting

December 3, 2023 danbalsdon Leave a comment

The first of a 3 part reflection for Advent.

Advent.
A time of waiting.

Waiting for the bus,
the TV programme to start,
waiting for test results,
for an appointment,
for a child to be born,
for dinner to cook
still waiting for the bus.

Waiting inhabits most areas of our lives, in one way or another.
Sometimes waiting passes by unnoticed.
At others, waiting is a heavy millstone around our necks.

Sometimes waiting can be a joyous and uplifting time,
At others, it can be draining of life.

Advent.
A time of waiting.

Waiting as Abraham and Sarah did, waiting for God’s unexpected and seemingly impossible promise to come true, that in their old age, they would bear a child.

Waiting as Joseph did, rejected by his brothers, imprisoned for years, yet when all hope seemed lost, his liberation comes as he interprets dreams, and finds purpose.

Waiting as the Israelites did, time and time again, for 40 years, to reach the promised land. Waiting for God’s promise to be fulfilled.

Waiting as Mary did, having been visited by an angel, and told she would conceive, waiting for this Christ-child to be born.

Advent.
A time of waiting.

Blog, Book Recomendations

Where I want to live.

November 11, 2023 danbalsdon 1 Comment

I want to live in a world which cares for the lost and the lonely.
Which gives company to the isolated.
That gives hope to the displaced.
That gives welcome to the marginalised.

I want to live in a world that looks after creation.
A world that cares for the planet,
With people who are attentive to how waste is disposed of,
In community which thinks about what world it is leaving for the next generation.

I want to live in a world where people live in peace,
Not just striving for it, not just hoping for it,
Not just holding peace as a golden, yet unattainable aspiration
But wholeheartedly embracing the challenge of living in peace.
Living it out within their communities,
with friends and enemies,
Family and neighbours,
Those we love, and those we struggle to love.

I want to live in a community of love.
Where grace and forgiveness are present in abundance,
A society where sacrificial hospitality and costly generosity are always practiced.
A community which lives in perpetual gratitude and thankfulness.
A community which lives in equality and equity.
Where all human beings are given the dignity and worth that they deserve.

What sort of world do you want to live in?
What sort of society do you want to be part of?
What values do you hope it would live by?

I want to live in a God-soaked community.
A community of love. Of truth. Of hope. Of peace.

An extract from a beginning of sermon for Sunday 12th November 2023, Remembrance Sunday.

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A home to belong

October 2, 2023 danbalsdon 2 Comments

The last couple months have been a bit of a whirlwind for me and the family.

In July 2023 we completed the final ‘lasts’ in West Sussex – saying goodbye to churches, colleagues and friends. A painful and difficult experience!

then through August we finished packing, saw all our worldly possessions loaded – and then unloaded – and we began to unpack everything again.

In September our girls started a new school, and I began serving in my new appointment, serving in the Dorking and Horsham Methodist circuit two-thirds time, and serving one-third time as an assistant chair in the South East District of the Methodist Church.

Threaded throughout that whirlwind of a journey has been a rumbling question I’ve been pondering and praying about – where do I belong?

This week someone ended an email to me with the following words:

Hope Leatherhead is beginning to feel like home!

And actually, I can say it has – but it’s been a bit of a journey!

Coming to terms with God’s calling me to move on from my ministry in West Sussex was a challenge to come to terms with. Even as I made the decision in May 2022 and told congregations, it wasn’t really what I personally wanted. I was 100% sure it was what God was calling of me, and I was willing to follow God’s lead – but it took a long time to come to terms with this myself.

West Sussex, and particualrly the communities of Bognor Regis, Westergate and Felpham, had become family to me. We’d journeyed through so much together, and coming to the decision to say I would be moving on felt like I was severing the ties that bind us. The decision to move on began to impact my own sense of belonging… and I began to feel adrift at sea, not sure what my heading was.

It wasn’t until November 2023 when I was invited to visit Dorking and Horsham circuit that I began to feel a heading, and re-finding my ships anchor! Despite the unexpectedness of the match – the role was not exactly what I’d been expecting, and the geography wasn’t exactly what we’d have intially desired either – we felt such a strong sense of God’s hand on us, that we knew it was where God was calling us to be.

Cue 10 months of preparation, lasts and endings, and comnig to terms with letting go on all that was in West Sussex, in readiness to take up ministry in the communities of Leatherhead, Cobham and Effingham, as well as the wider South East Methodist District.

By the end of July, I would say that despite the pain of goodbyes, I felt I’d ended well. I felt I had left the appointment in as strong a place as I could, and held felt such a strong presence of God holding me in those last months. I’d been able to spend 10 months encouraging, thanking and building up the amazing people I had belonged with, which had been a privilege. But letting go and moving on means belonging

Then, an interlude to all the moving – a week serving on team at Satellites, a youth camp and festival that was entering it’s second year. One might think going away for a week, just a few days before you move house is a foolish thing to do – but for me it was absolutely the best thing.

It took me out of all the letting go for a few days, and I got immerse myself serving with am amazing team of people to whom, despite never meeting many of them before, within hours felt to be a family. A family to whom, for a week of the year, we serve together and belong.

Driving home afterwards, felt weird. The move was a few days away, and I’d loved the week serving on team – and belonging to the Satellite family. As I drove into Bognor Regis, I felt weird. I can only describe it as feeling like I was driving through somewhere you used to live. There is a sameness, but yet a differentness to it. As i drove into Bognor, I felt like this wasn’t home any more.

It was as if, I’d sort of already moved mentally, emotionally, spiritually – and for me it was just the physical move left to do.

On the one hand that was really hard because I felt out of place. On the other, it felt like a gift, because through all the endings and lasts, God was helping me prepare to move on.

And then as I entered the front door – what greeted me but tear-inducing posters from my girls!

WELCOME HOME DAD

You love us and care for us and look after us. You are so kind.

You tell us what is going on whatever it is.

You don’t let us down at all.

You cheer us up when we are sad!

Dad, we love you loads.

As I walked through the door with the complex feelings of belonging driving in to Bognor Regis had brought – God immediately gave me the answer.

Where do I belong? Among the people God places me among. For a time it had been in West Sussex, now it was to be among people in Surrey, but always it is among the family which God has gifted me.

I don’t think my girls will ever know just how powerfully God worked through them that day. Louise, my wife, had had nothing to do with it aside from taking the photo’s. She wasn’t allowed in the room which they did their secret project! God is amazing, my girls are amazing. My family is such a special gift, to whom I can belong.

So is Leatherhead beginning to feel like home?

Definitely! We’ve been so wonderfully welcomed, and the month of firsts has been another whirlwind – but a whirlwind of joy, affirmation, encouragement and anticipation for the journey with God that is ahead of us.

But more than that, home is among the people – the people God has called me to serve, and the among the family God has gifted me. And I commit to cherish both.

All the while – being constantly assured that God is always with me, and will never leave me.

NB – header image is of our first homecooked meal in our new home.

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Compost for the vegetable patch

February 8, 2023 danbalsdon Leave a comment

You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
Matthew 5:13

Developed from a sermon preached at Felpham Methodist Church, West Sussex, on 5th February for their Vision Sunday. The full audio recording of the sermon is available below.

Audio recording

Compost for the vegetable patch

When we moved into our home, the garden was a mess. the bushes and weeds hadn’t been pruned regularly, and so it had all become rather overgrown. but one day, as we cut back some of the overgrown bushes, I was delighted to find a compost bin.

That compost bin now sits proudly on the corner of the vegetable patch, and in it we collect the grass cuttings, vegetable peelings and the occasional mouldy orange – and over time the worms do their thing and it all becomes compost, which has helped to boost the soil and grow great plants and crops on our veggie patch.

In the last weeks, all the autumn’s offerings have meant the compost bin has been overflowing, and I recently had to dig out some from out of the bottom to make space for more to be added.

Compost is great for the garden, but only when it is used. My compost will never serve its purpose if I leave it in the compost bin. it needs working into the soil to fulfil its purpose.

Jesus’ words ‘you are the salt of the earth’ in Matthew 5 are often understood as calling us, as salt, to flavour the earth, the world, will God’s goodness. But sometimes this can also lead to seeing the world as other than ‘us’, and something to not be directly engaged in, for fear of being tarnished by an unsalted world.

But, while the idea of being people who bring the flavour of God to the world can be a helpful metaphor – I find another interpretaiton equally helpful, if not more so.

Because in Jesus day, I don’t think they had table salt as we do today. So the word we read as ‘salt’ might have meant something slightly different to Jesus first hearers.

In the dead sea area of Palestine, minerals we now know as phosphate were plentiful, and used to fertilize the ground and were spread and dug into the land.

So when we read Jesus saying you are the salt of the earth, could Jesus actually have been saying you are the minerals of the soil? The compost for the vegetable patch?

In many ways I find that a comfort and encouragement. That might seem odd… why would I find encouragement in being told I am a mouldy orange or pile of potato peelings?

But for me, I find that an encouragement because it reminds me that despite my own self-doubt, my imperfections, my brokenness, my humanity, my own feelings that I can never live up to what God wants for me – God says you have great potential.

Even in the mess of my life,
there is goodness and fruitfulness to be discovered.

Jesus doesn’t want perfect human specimens, stored up in a salt cellar of equally human specimens, looking out on the world.

Jesus wants us to be real. Human.
Jesus wants us, calls us, loves us, warts and all…
And invites us to be salt of the earth,
the mineral for the soil,
potato skins, banana peels and grass cuttings – compost for the veggie patch, with great worth, purpose, potential and goodness.

So Jesus invites us to get out and live on the earth, dug into the soil of the world. Getting stuck in and living as people of God.

Rev Dan Balsdon's Blog

Category Archives: Blog

Unbounded Love, Bound Up

Unbounded Love, Bound Up

Letting go of jumble on the jumble sale

Farewell 2023

Advent: A time of Wanting

Advent: A time of Watching

Advent: A time of waiting

Recommended Read: God Soaked Life

Where I want to live.

A home to belong

Compost for the vegetable patch

Audio recording

Compost for the vegetable patch