I felt a touch of history repeating itself today as I read in the news about the world’s tallest building being opened today. It stands at 828 metres and has cost 1.5 billion dollars to build. So what makes us wish to build higher and higher. I guess there is a human desire to stretch the boundries of technology and to go one better than our neighbours.

The sad thing is that the whole Dubai economy has collapsed and one wonders if this building should be hailed as a great achievement or a sad reflection on an extravagent and greedy world that continues” to fiddle while Rome burns.” Anyway the papers tell me that tower has been named Burj Khalifa after the president of the United Arab Emirates and the ruler of the neighbouring emirate of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan.

In the Bible there is a story told about how the tower of Babel was built s an expression of mankind’s egotism and confidence. Early mankind was reaching for the stars while at the same time killing his neighbours. Nothing much seems to have changed. What a diifferent place the world would be if we started promoting our energy to bring about peace and justice. I’m reminded of these words in the Book of James.

“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” James 4:13-17 I think this verse is a great reminder to us all of our human fraity and our dependence on God.

When the snow falls even familiar things in the landscape look entirely different. I’ve taken to photographing a few objects at different times during the year, just to remind myself how different they can look. If a bench can change with the difference in climate surely a human being can find their perspective changing because of the circumstances and climate change that we find ourselves in. Taking time to reflect is often more difficult that we night want to admit. However i’d like to suggest that it is an essential part of preparation before we all head back to work this week.

Yet, by the end of the week we’ll have forgotten about the holidays. Instead we’ll all be back at work getting on with all the usual things that demand our time. However I do think that it is important while many are still on holiday, to use this time to reflect on the past and look forward with anticipation to the future.

This coming year has all the potential to be memorable for all of us and especially those of us who have been involved with the Vine Trust. It will be 25 years ago in December 1985 when we first launched the Vine Trust. We opened the Branches Store on the Market Square. I can hardly believe that it was 25 years since Alistair MacDonald came as our celebrity guest and opened the shop. We are looking for various ways to celebrate this anniversary so if you have any thoughts please let me know.

Another area I’m excited about is the work we’re pioneering with Sanctuary First. I believe we have a wonderful opportunity with this project to develop a ministry that has the potential to be far reaching. Once again please keep in touch with the web site and keep us informed of your thoughts and how e can improve upon what we’ve been doing to date.

One final announcement – look out for the change of format and look of the italker blog. We hope to give this site a make over so look out for the change and once again lets have your opinions. And finally finally. Please keep jenn and laura in your prayers as they start out on their first leg of their Mission engaging the Soultouch vision. We’re having a farewell do for them at the church on Thursday evening, so get yourselves down for the fun and farewell wiahes.