David Herbert @dherbert - Bluesky Profile

The stolen blessing: giving the word back to the poor In today’s world, “feeling blessed” too often means “doing well.” But when Jesus speaks of blessing, he gives the word to the poor, the hungry, the grieving, and the excluded. This sermon asks what happens when blessing is stolen by privilege — and how we might give the word back to those through whom the kingdom of God still comes.

The stolen blessing: giving the word back to the poor

In today’s world, “feeling blessed” too often means “doing well.” But when Jesus speaks of blessing, he gives the word to the poor, the hungry, the grieving, and the excluded. This sermon asks what happens when blessing is stolen by privilege —…

02.11.2025 10:37 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Today For one day only - my poem Today Here is a play on words,a fundamental question. Is the I a number that marks a beginning,or, is that I me with rather less feeling,as in number with a silent b?Is this a play on words,or, a play on numbers with words,a play for today, November 1st?

Today

For one day only - my poem Today Here is a play on words,a fundamental question. Is the I a number that marks a beginning,or, is that I me with rather less feeling,as in number with a silent b?Is this a play on words,or, a play on numbers with words,a play for today, November 1st?

01.11.2025 14:34 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

This is where mercy takes her stand: far off, in the distance Readings: Luke 18:9–14; Ecclesiasticus 35:12–17 The clocks have changed. The weather’s changed.And we stand now on the bridge between seasons. Today is the last Sunday after Trinity.Next Sunday is the first in the new Kingdom season -when we see the darkness of the kingdoms of this world,and pray again for the world to be turned the right way up…

This is where mercy takes her stand: far off, in the distance

Readings: Luke 18:9–14; Ecclesiasticus 35:12–17 The clocks have changed. The weather’s changed.And we stand now on the bridge between seasons. Today is the last Sunday after Trinity.Next Sunday is the first in the new Kingdom season…

26.10.2025 10:31 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

LimpLight This one’s for all who wrestle in the dark and rise, blessed but limping, inspired by reading Genesis 32:22-31 and Luke 18:1-8 – the Revised Common Lectionary readings for October 19th …

It couldn't have been planned but the scriptures this morning at Napton were read by someone with a limp (like Jacob) and a widow who fights for justice (like the widow confronting the unjust judge). I'm glad I called this LampLight
#preachingtoday
davidherbert.me/2025/10/19/l...

19.10.2025 12:06 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

LimpLight This one's for all who wrestle in the dark and rise, blessed but limping, inspired by reading Genesis 32:22-31 and Luke 18:1-8 - the Revised Common Lectionary readings for October 19th 2025. How shall we describe the state of Israel today? The state of Israel today begins with both our readings —from Genesis 32, the story of Jacob whose name means…

LimpLight

This one's for all who wrestle in the dark and rise, blessed but limping, inspired by reading Genesis 32:22-31 and Luke 18:1-8 - the Revised Common Lectionary readings for October 19th 2025. How shall we describe the state of Israel today? The state of Israel today begins with both our…

19.10.2025 10:20 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Border Crossing: the dangerous way of grace Our politics, like our hearts, are haunted by borders and fear. But Luke’s gospel shows Jesus walking the edge — not to keep people out, but to draw them in. Preached in a week when fragile talk of a ceasefire in Gaza flickers across the news, this reflection on Luke 17:11–19 and 2 Timothy 2:8–15 explores what happens when the unchained word of God crosses the lines we draw, healing what fear divides.

Border Crossing: the dangerous way of grace

Our politics, like our hearts, are haunted by borders and fear. But Luke’s gospel shows Jesus walking the edge — not to keep people out, but to draw them in. Preached in a week when fragile talk of a ceasefire in Gaza flickers across the news, this…

12.10.2025 06:47 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Excellent film. Just back from seeing it. What a story.

10.10.2025 21:52 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Wisdom from Pádraig Ó Tuama for #WorldMentalHealthDay

10.10.2025 12:44 — 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

From the Riverbank – Sister Itchen and the River of LifeA sermon for Harvest Festival at St Lawrence’s Napton, inspired by St Francis’s Canticle of the Creatures, the Warwickshire River Itchen, artist Ste…

What happens when we stop calling the river it?
When the earth becomes our mother, and the trees our kin?
A Harvest reflection on creation as family — From the Riverbank
davidherbert.me/2025/10/05/f...

05.10.2025 12:02 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

From the Riverbank – Sister Itchen and the River of LifeA sermon for Harvest Festival at St Lawrence's Napton, inspired by St Francis's Canticle of the Creatures, the Warwickshire River Itchen, artist Stephen Broadbent's River of Life sculpture in Warrington, the writing of Robert Macfarlane and the indigenous wisdom represented by Robin Wall Kimmerer. It's a thanksgiving for the quiet grace that still flows through creation, and a reminder that we are family with all that lives.

From the Riverbank

– Sister Itchen and the River of LifeA sermon for Harvest Festival at St Lawrence's Napton, inspired by St Francis's Canticle of the Creatures, the Warwickshire River Itchen, artist Stephen Broadbent's River of Life sculpture in Warrington, the writing of Robert Macfarlane and…

05.10.2025 10:21 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

All are welcome here 🤍

Credit: The Book Wrangler

01.10.2025 23:25 — 👍 144 🔁 32 💬 1 📌 2

Are the rich fit for the kingdom of God? Here’s the test. A sermon for September 28th 2025 - the 15th Sunday after Trinity (Proper 21C) All three readings, (Amos 6:1a, 4-7, 1 Timothy 6:6-19, Luke 16: 19-end) address the issue of wealth. (There is far more in the Bible about wealth and riches than about sexual morality, though that is hard to believe when we listen to the politics of the church).

Are the rich fit for the kingdom of God? Here’s the test.

A sermon for September 28th 2025 - the 15th Sunday after Trinity (Proper 21C) All three readings, (Amos 6:1a, 4-7, 1 Timothy 6:6-19, Luke 16: 19-end) address the issue of wealth. (There is far more in the Bible about wealth and riches than…

28.09.2025 10:15 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Safeguarding is the Mission of God I had thought that this Sunday was Safeguarding Sunday. It’s not.That’s November 16th.But shouldn’t every Sunday be Safeguarding Sunday?When we look at our readings for the day, (Amos 8:4-7 & Luke 16:1-13), they are all about safeguarding,and they expose our current safeguarding focus as hopelessly inadequate. Safeguarding isn’t just reacting to scandals of abuse,but is the mission of the church.

Safeguarding is the Mission of God

I had thought that this Sunday was Safeguarding Sunday. It’s not.That’s November 16th.But shouldn’t every Sunday be Safeguarding Sunday?When we look at our readings for the day, (Amos 8:4-7 & Luke 16:1-13), they are all about safeguarding,and they expose our…

21.09.2025 10:14 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Here, where the lost are found A reflection for a small church on Luke 15:1-10 and 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Why are we here?We are here to hear Jesus. Our gospel reading introduces us to a gathering to hear Jesus:“The tax collectors and sinners were all gathering round to hear him.”That is the gathering we join,and we do that alongside Paul,who in our first reading names himself the worst of all sinners,

Here, where the lost are found

A reflection for a small church on Luke 15:1-10 and 1 Timothy 1:12-17 Why are we here?We are here to hear Jesus. Our gospel reading introduces us to a gathering to hear Jesus:“The tax collectors and sinners were all gathering round to hear him.”That is the gathering…

14.09.2025 10:15 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Match of the Day a poem marking the 80th anniversary of the ending of World War 2 Match of the Day camerasfocus their lenses onyoung boys and their disappointmentsin the closing minutesin the dashing of hope.The fingers on their handsgo to the boneof the sockets of eyesto prevent their tearsstaining their faces. After the match, so we’ve heard,

Match of the Day

a poem marking the 80th anniversary of the ending of World War 2 Match of the Day camerasfocus their lenses onyoung boys and their disappointmentsin the closing minutesin the dashing of hope.The fingers on their handsgo to the boneof the sockets of eyesto prevent their…

02.09.2025 07:38 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The Flag of St George & the Cross of Christ “Britain's better than this.” That was the headline on the front page of The Mirror last week, after Nigel Farage promised mass deportations in the name of “protecting British citizens.” When the flag of St George is waved as a weapon of fear, Christians must remember another banner — the cross of Christ, where pride is humbled and strangers are welcomed as honoured guests.

The Flag of St George & the Cross of Christ

“Britain's better than this.” That was the headline on the front page of The Mirror last week, after Nigel Farage promised mass deportations in the name of “protecting British citizens.” When the flag of St George is waved as a weapon of fear, Christians…

31.08.2025 11:27 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The Healing of the Bent Woman (Luke 13:10–17) This Sunday’s gospel introduces us to a woman bent low for eighteen years (Luke 13:10-17), unseen by her neighbours but seen by Jesus. Her story is a story about visibility — about who gets noticed, who is ignored, and how Christ restores dignity to those the world overlooks. In a week when asylum seekers have once again been targeted and made invisible, her story feels all the more urgent.

The Healing of the Bent Woman (Luke 13:10–17)

This Sunday’s gospel introduces us to a woman bent low for eighteen years (Luke 13:10-17), unseen by her neighbours but seen by Jesus. Her story is a story about visibility — about who gets noticed, who is ignored, and how Christ restores dignity to…

24.08.2025 11:47 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

A motley crew of cheerleaders Sometimes one sermon leads to another. The focus here is Hebrews 11:29-12:2, very much picking up from last week's sermon commending those who never give up and never settle for the way things are, always hoping for justice and love. Here we join the author of Hebrews in looking more closely at who these people are because they really are our cheerleaders.

A motley crew of cheerleaders

Sometimes one sermon leads to another. The focus here is Hebrews 11:29-12:2, very much picking up from last week's sermon commending those who never give up and never settle for the way things are, always hoping for justice and love. Here we join the author of Hebrews…

17.08.2025 10:36 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

What Have We Settled For? The scriptures we read this Sunday are not the comfortable writings of a comfortable people. They are the testimony of the beaten, the displaced, the silenced, and the overlooked. Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham — each bears the marks of suffering and hope. They lived by faith in what they could not yet see, refusing to settle for the way things were.

What Have We Settled For?

The scriptures we read this Sunday are not the comfortable writings of a comfortable people. They are the testimony of the beaten, the displaced, the silenced, and the overlooked. Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham — each bears the marks of suffering and hope. They lived by faith…

10.08.2025 10:38 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

When prayer gets risky: what Abraham and Jesus teach us There are lessons to be learned about how to pray in both readings appointed for the 6th Sunday after Trinity (Proper 12C). This sermon explores what it means to pray like Abraham and Jesus. The readings are Genesis 18:20-32 and Luke 11:1-13. I want to begin, as I so often do, by saying how much I love preaching that brings the scriptures back to life.

When prayer gets risky: what Abraham and Jesus teach us

There are lessons to be learned about how to pray in both readings appointed for the 6th Sunday after Trinity (Proper 12C). This sermon explores what it means to pray like Abraham and Jesus. The readings are Genesis 18:20-32 and Luke 11:1-13.…

27.07.2025 11:00 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Stressed? Just one thing’s needed This sermon explores why Luke tell us the story of Martha and Mary. Why did he think it was important for his readers? I always begin my sermon these days by saying how I love preaching that brings scripture back to life, and that I assume those who are listening do too. The gospel for the day is Luke 10:38-42: it's about Martha's resentment (and, maybe, our resentments too).

Stressed? Just one thing’s needed

This sermon explores why Luke tell us the story of Martha and Mary. Why did he think it was important for his readers? I always begin my sermon these days by saying how I love preaching that brings scripture back to life, and that I assume those who are listening…

20.07.2025 10:21 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The Samaritan, the wounded, and the question that won’t go away What if being a neighbour means crossing every line we’ve drawn between “us” and “them”?

The Samaritan, the wounded, and the question that won’t go away

What if being a neighbour means crossing every line we’ve drawn between “us” and “them”?

13.07.2025 10:13 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Crossing the Lines of Division Every generation lives with conflict. Sometimes it shocks us; other times, it simply exhausts us. We ask, again and again, “Why can’t people just get on?” But our scriptures don’t hide the truth: division runs deep — in history, in systems, in souls. This sermon explores how Paul names those divisions, how Jesus crosses them, and what happens when grace refuses to stay on its side of the line. In a world chained by difference, Christ brings the freedom of unity — not by erasing our stories, but by re-membering us into something new.

Crossing the Lines of Division

Every generation lives with conflict. Sometimes it shocks us; other times, it simply exhausts us. We ask, again and again, “Why can’t people just get on?” But our scriptures don’t hide the truth: division runs deep — in history, in systems, in souls. This sermon…

22.06.2025 11:31 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

A Call to Worship and Defiance A sermon for Trinity Sunday. I love preaching that brings Scripture to life and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you do too. I begin this way as a reminder that when we open scripture together we are not just reading words from the past; we are bringing it back to life. What matters today is what happens to us when we worship God.

A Call to Worship and Defiance

A sermon for Trinity Sunday. I love preaching that brings Scripture to life and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you do too. I begin this way as a reminder that when we open scripture together we are not just reading words from the past; we are bringing…

15.06.2025 11:51 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The miracle of hearing at Pentecost This is a sermon prepared for a small congregation in a small Warwickshire village. The reading for the day is Acts 2:1-21. We’ve been watching the ITV drama Code of Silence. It is a vivid demonstration that all of us hear differently.Rose Ayling-Ellis plays the part of a deaf catering worker who has the gift of being able to read lips.

The miracle of hearing at Pentecost

This is a sermon prepared for a small congregation in a small Warwickshire village. The reading for the day is Acts 2:1-21. We’ve been watching the ITV drama Code of Silence. It is a vivid demonstration that all of us hear differently.Rose Ayling-Ellis plays…

08.06.2025 06:29 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 1

Love comes home – picking up Lydia’s purple thread A reflection for the 6th Sunday of Easter based on the readings for the day, Acts 16:9-15 and John 14:23-29. I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you do too. I say this every time as a reminder that when we open scripture together we are bringing it back to life.

I've been seeing purple this week and have followed Lydia's thread to reflect on what happens when love comes home and turns our homes inside out - as happened at Lydia's house.

25.05.2025 10:25 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

The Sound of Jesus: hearing his voice, following his call Using scripture appointed for the 4th Sunday of Easter (YrC), Psalm 23 and John 10.22-30, here's a reflection on what it means to hear the voice of Jesus in a noisy world. I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you do too. That’s a reminder that every time we open scripture together we are bringing it back to life.

This reflection is a reminder of how far reaching Jesus's calling is, begging the question of how we hear Jesus' voice in our noisy world.

11.05.2025 10:15 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Nostalgia never wins the day: there’s fights to fight and victories still to win A reflection for VE Day for the 3rd Sunday of Easter. Readings for the day: Acts 9:1-6, Psalm 30 and John 21:1-19 I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you do too. That’s a reminder that every time we open scripture together we are bringing it back to life. Our readings today are those appointed for the 3rd Sunday of Easter (year C) - and they’re a perfect fit for this week when we celebrate the 80th anniversary of VE Day on Thursday, May 8th.

Nostalgia never wins the day: there’s fights to fight and victories still to win

A reflection for VE Day for the 3rd Sunday of Easter. Readings for the day: Acts 9:1-6, Psalm 30 and John 21:1-19 I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and that brings Scripture back to life, and I hope you…

04.05.2025 10:38 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Seeing the wounds Jesus shows us A sermon for the 2nd Sunday of Easter - Year C for two small churches. The gospel for the day is John 20:19-end. The Incredulity of St Thomas by Caravaggio - or should it be called Jesus showing Thomas his wounds? I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and that brings Scripture back to life. That’s a line I’m going to repeat each week to remind us that every time we open Scripture together we are bringing it back to life…

Seeing the wounds Jesus shows us

A sermon for the 2nd Sunday of Easter - Year C for two small churches. The gospel for the day is John 20:19-end. The Incredulity of St Thomas by Caravaggio - or should it be called Jesus showing Thomas his wounds? I love preaching that brings Scripture to life—and…

27.04.2025 10:02 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Using AI in sermon preparation This is for preachers. For the last few weeks I have been experimenting with my sermon preparation by using the artificial intelligence of ChatGPT.com. I am impressed with the help it has given me and am posting this as an encouragement to not shy away from AI in ministry. I’m curious to see how others are experimenting. Let me know if you’ve used AI in sermon prep.

Using AI in sermon preparation

This is for preachers. For the last few weeks I have been experimenting with my sermon preparation by using the artificial intelligence of ChatGPT.com. I am impressed with the help it has given me and am posting this as an encouragement to not shy away from AI in…

21.04.2025 08:05 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

David Herbert

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