Rev Shirley Murphy
The thoughts, reflections, faith stories and meanderings of an 
Anglican Priest

It has been said, "Be contented with what you have, but never too contented with what you are." There is a story that comes out of Asia...

o Remember that your presence is a present to the world. o Remember that you are a unique and unrepeatable creation. o Remember...

“Rejoice in the Lord always!” Paul says to us today. Is it possible to rejoice even when you’re having a bad day? Can you really rejoice...

It stopped me in my tracks, made me chuckle a little, and then made me think a little more deeply. The principle is repeated often and...

A friend of mine often says, “Sometimes the good news is bad news before it is good news.” That sure fits the reading from Mark 9:38-50....

The call committee responsible for seeking pastors for the congregation was having difficulty making a decision. One member of the...

Interruptions can be annoying. You are watching a movie on TV and just when the story is getting exciting an advertisement comes on...

Fear is a human response that is part of every person. One day at a busy airport, the passengers on a commercial airliner are seated,...

Tomb by Ann Lewin The place of remembering: whereas the work of grief is done, memory recovers its perspective. Letting the dead one go,...

For a moment, I want you to think of things that at the time were very important to you but have long since gone or perhaps have been...

Isn’t it great to get something new? Perhaps it’s something that you had saved for. You could hardly wait for it to be delivered. Maybe...

“Do you want to be something, or do you want to do something?” That’s the question a friend of mine was asked by his spiritual director...

A middle-aged woman joined a pastor's class. She said that she had a religious up-bringing back in her youth but wanted to "get in touch...

There is a story about a congregation that was plagued with conflict. The two sides could never agree on anything. It so happened that...

On 11th Sep 2001 we woke up to the news that thousands of people had lost their lives in a terrorist attack on New York and Washington....

As you well know, we are getting closer to my birthday. Every year there is a celebration in my honour, and I think that this year the...

I showered and shaved, I adjusted my tie. I got there and sat in a pew just in time. Bowing my head in prayer, as I closed my eyes, I saw...

Dear Lord, Every single evening As I'm lying here in bed This tiny little prayer Keeps running through my head. God bless all my family...

Please watch this video from Julian's new YOU TUBE CHANNEL called THE AWAKENING. Are you afraid of Dying? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v...

I Am Thankful for... The messes to clean after a party because it means friends have surrounded me. The taxes I pay because it means that...