Author: Sharon Holland
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Celebrating Uniqueness
This week is Neurodiversity Celebration Week, which in essence, is a celebration of uniqueness. I started working with neurodivergent people in 1986. Of course, that was several decades before the term Neurodiversity existed. In fact, at that time there wasn’t even the notion of an autistic spectrum. To be diagnosed as autistic, you had to…
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Pancakes and Chocolate
In our school Christian Union, we have been exploring the question, ‘What is the link between Pancakes and Chocolate?’ All of the students who I spoke with knew about Pancake Day, which was on 17th February while they were on their half term break. Many of the students had also enjoyed eating pancakes on that…
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The Narrow Path
Being a Christian isn’t the easy option. It’s not the opt out. It’s not choosing the easy life. Often it’s exactly the opposite. Jesus actually tells us that we are going to have trouble. Fortunately he then immediately tells us, ‘But take heart! I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33). Troubles are definitely going to…
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Valentine Thoughts
Love. That’s what it’s all about isn’t it? Of course, having been married for nearly 35 years, my husband and I don’t really ‘do’ Valentine’s Day anymore. But we do still do love one another. In fact, we love each other more today than we did on the day we said “I do.” I’m not…
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A Time for Everything
I was given this cross-stitch as a gift some 20+ years ago. Whilst I appreciated the fact that someone had taken the time to create this and put it in a lovely frame, I didn’t like it. So I said, Thank you very much, then put it in a box in the spare room, which…
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Does Willpower Exist?
With the New Year now well under way, I’m wondering how everyone’s getting along with their New Year’s Resolutions. We’re going to get fitter, go to the gym five times a week, stop smoking, eat more healthy food, quit scrolling social media etc, etc, bla, bla, bla. Unfortunately, statistics indicate that almost half of New…
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Not Everything New for a New Year
These are my thoughts that I shared this morning at church before we shared communion this morning. There’s a popular Bible verse often quoted at the start of the year. You might have already read it on YouVersion, on some other Bible app or in your daily devotion. It’s Isaiah 43:18 ‘Forget the former things;…
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Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
🎶 “Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow”🎶Christmas really doesn’t have to be chocolate box perfect or resemble the fake world that social media portrays. All that matters is being with someone you love who loves you in return.🎶”So have yourself a merry little Christmas now”🎶Sharon 🎄xx
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Paratoi – Prepare: Advent
I am writing this on Sunday 30th November, the first day of Advent 2025. For billions of people across the planet, whether having faith or no faith, Advent is a season of preparation. Where will we be for Christmas? What will we eat? What will we buy for the Christmas presents? When are we going…
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Should Christians Celebrate Halloween?
As a Christian, I have always been cautious about having anything to do with Halloween, other than handing out a few sweets to cute, dressed-up children knocking on our door at teatime on the 31st of October. In recent years, we have been away on holiday at the end of October, so I haven’t even…