A-Z INDEX of Writings
A- B- C- D- E- F- G- H- I- J- K- L- M- N- O- P- Q- R- S- T- U- V- W- X- Y- Z

A- Abraham haggled - a poem about prayer
Adam and Evolution - Evolution or Genesis - do we have to make a choice?
Achan and Ai - A commentary on Joshua chapter 7
A church like Bethany - The most intimate model for 'church' was founded by Jesus himself
A Fruitful Life - Remembering a lady whose influence was far greater than she ever realised
A hell of a question - How fundamental to Christian doctrine is the teaching about Hell?
A mother's view of God's love - a review of "Revelations of Divine Love" by Julian of Norwich
A Pommie Relents - My "True Brit" prejudices melted away as I sampled the Australian scene in a week's touring tagged on to a business trip
Angry Nations - A reflection on Psalm 2
Abraham haggled - A poem about the diverse nature of prayer
Abraham Lincoln - innocent hero - a review of the biography by David Herbert Donald
Adventure in the smog - During London's "Great Smog" a child walks the streets enjoying it as an adventure. Based on the author's true recollections
A method for prayer - or not - How to use, or misuse, a well-known aid to prayer (a poem)
As I am - The only way I can be (a prayer)
As I lay in the mud - a meditation on Psalm 40:1-3 (poem)
A special place - a place where I can be myself and be with God (a poem)
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B-Banking on prayer - I wrote this poem following a family emergency that almost became a tragedy.
Beating upon the Cloud of Unknowing A personal response to the unique medieval treatise on contemplative prayer (Poem)
Behind the mirror A meditation on the nature of God (poem)
Being Ananias A reflection on a lesser-known character in a well-known New Testament story(Poem)
Best intentions (A short poem about the nature of "Truth")
Bat walk (An enjoyable social experience combined with techology to engage with a hidden world of sound)
Bethany - Ordinary Superstars - the complete script and scores for the musical, "Bethany"
Bible in a Year - tips and encouragement for those who would like to know the Bible better
Bible Reading Record - download page for printing a useful aid for reading the Bible in a Year
Body in the desert - Caught short on a long drive, a motorist discovers a body. That's his first worry.
BOOKS by Derrick Phillips - five published books by the author of this website
Born of a woman - Oh wow! - a review of the book "Born of a Woman" by Bishop John Shelby Spong
Burning bush - a poem based on Moses' story in chapter 3 of the book of Exodus.
Bye bye QT - Prayer is a journey - sometimes with testing twist and turns along the way. I wrote this poem when it all seemed to be going wrong.

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C- Calling God by a new name - Childhood experiences and negative associations sometimes spoil the very best in life. LM solved the problem by changing the associations.
Casting bread - comments on the strange text in Ecclesiastes ("cast thy bread upon the waters")
Captain of controversy - a review of a biography of Oliver Cromwell.
Challenges The key thing about facing challenges is how we respond (Poems)
Chiefs and Indians - an insightful story about leadership, written by Alan Halden.
Choosing Again Following Jesus is not just a one-time choice (a poem inspired by John 6:66-68)
Contemplation A brief reflection on the nature of a classic spiritual excercise(Poem)
Christian mysticism A correspondent asked me to comment on an entry in Microsoft's "Encarta" encyclopedia on the subject of "Christian Mysticism" and this was my reply
Churching in a green age - The Holy Spirit planted the seed of spiritual life in us and he can maintain it. This plea for 'green' Christianity was first published in "Insights" magazine.
Clear Ahead - Grace is free, but that doesn't mean we sign up for an easy life when we commit to faith.
Code talkers - The Navaho contribution to the Second World War remained secret for almost 25 years, but a fast food restaurant lets the secret out.
Creative evolution - Evolution is OK, but it implies an uncaused cause. Is that scientific?
Creativity Creativity is all one with Prayer (Poem)
Crop circles on my lawn - An unusual view of a familiar creature.
Cyber abduction - Abducted by aliens without ever leaving his own room, Tim discovers something special about Chinese food!
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D-Danger of Truth (The) - This was a reply I sent to a Pakistani army officer with Islamic fundamentalist sympathies who wrote expressing a concern for truth.
Dark encounter - A summer evening walk on the South Downs turns into a wildlife encounter in the dark.
Deliver us from Evil - What does this phrase of the Lord's Prayer really mean?
Delusional faith Call it a delusion, but faith is my strength (Poem)
Death - a reason to fear? - Death may seem a dangerous subject to write about! This article arose from correspondence circulating between members of ACWG.
Divine sculptor (The) - The expert sculptor knows his material intimately and forms it out of that knowledge. But who is the Sculptor? And who is the stone? (Poem)
Don't speak to me again - The prophet's dilemma as experienced by Elijah, Jeremiah & Jonah. (Poem)
Don't stop praying A poem - also featured in my book "Still Digging" - Scratching the surface and plumbing the depths of prayer"
Dreams with meaning - Dreams feature strongly in the Bible and they can still speak today. (PDF file)
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E-Evangelical Blood (written in response to a lady who asked, "Isn't it out-of-date and 'yucky' for Christians to use expressions like 'washed in the blood'?")
End Times (To many people Judgement seems like a worrying doctrine and a fearful prospect, but what about those who are waiting for justice?) (POEM) (PDF)
Encounter of the fourth kind - A wildlife enthusiast finds himself involved in a close encounter that beats all his preconceptions.
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F- Faith is... A reflection on Hebrews 11:1 and 6 (Poem)
Fanciful reflections on God and a butterfly - God is like a butterfly? This reflective article borrows ideas from chaos theory to speculate on what God is like.
Fit to Fight? - Preparation for spiritual warfare
Five questions about the Transfiguration - a commentary on one of the strangest stories in the New Testament
Footprints - It's OK to leave footprints that people may choose to follow, but it's not OK to leave holes that people will feel obliged to fill
Fox on the Fosse - A moment of rural delight during a walk near the source of the River Thames.
Fundamental relief - An introduction to Derrick Phillips' book, "SOS - Stumbling Over Scripture"
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G-Glimpses of truth - Truth is not a fact, but an experience, a personal expression, a life. (a book, written by Maurice Smith) (PDF file)
God in a box - Religious people keep trying to confine God to special places... but he always breaks out! (written by Alan Halden)
God's Church The vital truth of the Church is not who belongs to it, but who it belongs to. (A Poem)
Grace to melt your heart - review of a book by Maurice Smith.
Growing up Challenging reflections about my image of God... (This poem appears in my book SOS (Stumbling Over Scripture): a journey from fundamentalism to faith)
Guilt Complex (The) - a series of lively exchanges between members of "Adullum's Cave Writers' Group" (PDF file)
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H-Haikus - a selection of poems in Haiku format PDF FILE
Head hunt - A businessman's journey ends in a frightening kidnap (True story) (pdf file)
Heartfelt Prayer - The way we'd like our prayer to be
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Highest Mountain (The) - This 1984 book (revised 2000) explores the reasons why church unity has not been attained, restates the ideal, and says why it still matters. PDF file
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I-Identity Crisis - a heart cry from a man who was trying to find himself. (POEM) (PDF)
I didn't see that coming - Often we find that the peak we are aiming for isn't really the summit (Poem)
Intelligent life - On the first discovery of intelligent beings on another planet the landing party finds their preconceptions shattered. (pdf file)
I read and I wait - A brief reflection on the mediation procss called "Lectio Divina" (Poem - also featured in my book about Prayer - "Still Digging")
It all depends how you see it - Four people go stargazing and get caught up in a remarkable encounter, reported differently based on their beliefs.
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J-{J}
Joseph and Nicodemus Imagining the thoughts of the two men who buried Jesus. (Poem - PDF file)
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K-{K}
Kerith and Carmel Consider how these contrasting experiences worked together in Ejijah's journey of faith. (Poem - PDF file)
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L- Last watch - The inspiration for this fictional story will be obvious to anyone who has visited the pretty Devon seaside town of Lynmouth.
Let it all out - A comment on Psalm 55:22, "Cast your cares on the Lord..." (Poem)
Life after meetings - Meetings do not define the Christian life. Maurice Smith urges believers to ensure that their 'light' is internal.
Life Lines - tales of hope from Capernaum - Four delightful stories that build biographies for familiar New Testament characters. (by Don Gee)
Listen and Speak - A word of advice for those who have a prophetic gift. (Poem)
Live a miracle - Christians can bemoan the divided state of the church - or they can do something about it.
Look before you lead - A look at varying models of leadership.

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M- Maths and prayer - If you find prayer difficult - so what? (Poem)
Metamorphosis - A meditation on the Christian hope of resurrection. (Poem)
Meteor Strike - Paul and Ruth were prepared for the normal risks of a country walk, but not for the emergency they witnessed from their downland vantage point.
Moor lonely - Mike's mood reflected the dismal weather as he lay in a hole waiting for rescue.
Mother Tongue
- Review of the book by Bill Bryson
Mystic risks - Christianity, has often been wary about prophets and mystics - but the risks are worth taking.
Mystics for pleasure - A Protestant Evangelical discovers the Mystics.
Murmuration - One of nature's greatest visual displays is created by one of our most common birds (Poem)
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N- Naboth's Vineyard - based on the story in 1 Kings chapter 21
Nebulous Church (The) - a widely circulated article about being church
Night hike - A true story about a hike that turned into a farce.
No Beginning - A poem exploring thoughts about Creation and the Big Bang. (PDF FILE)
No Objective - Writing this sorrowful poem helped me get some bad feelings out of my system.
No strings - A true re-enactment of the eternal battle between hoarders and tidiers.
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O- Overcoming Temptation - Maintaining the Breastplate of Righteousness

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P- Pain - a compassionate science - A review of the book by the late Professor Wall
Pie lessons - As a former senior manager and business owner I gained new insights when I was forced to go 'back to the floor'.
Pilgrims Rock! - The true story of the first Christian rock group - An illustrated history of the time when the music changed.
Plucky little man - A quiet, little man foils a daylight attack on his grocery store.
Pooh is for adults - The Winnie the Pooh stories are classed as childrens' books but, to appreciate them properly, you need an adult mind.
Prayer changes things - Each verse of this poem is a Haiku. Together they describe a journey.
Prayer Language - What language does God speak?
Prophetic paradox - Prophecy is a privileged gift but a dangerous burden
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Q-{Q}
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R- Reasonable faith - A review of the book "Reason, Science & Faith" by Roger Forster.
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S- Scotland's secret counties - An area of awesome beauty, the northern region of Scotland is seldom advertised. Are the Scots keeping it secret?
Small Gods - A review of Terry Pratchett's masterpiece about religion gone wrong.
Snake on the path - On my first day in Australia I hoped to see wildlife - but not like this!
South West USA in ten days - Memories of a hurried tour around Arizona, Nevada, and eastern California.(pdf)
Splendid Rebellion - A Poem by Phil Streeter. (PDF)
Suffering with joy - A review of the Journal of George Fox.
SOS (Stumbling Over Scripture): a journey from fundamentalism to faith
- A book by Derrick Phillips (click title to view on Amazon)
Still Digging - Scratching the surface and plumbing the depths of prayer - A book by Derrick Phillips
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T Thank You Lord - Notation for a worship song (originally a rock song by The Pilgrims)- pdf file
Thank You Lord - Lyrics and Guitar Chords for a worship song (originally a rock song by The Pilgrims)- pdf file
The Comradeship Agenda - People talk about battling in prayer, but who are they fighting?
The greatest whodunnit ever told - A review of the book, "Who Moved the Stone?"
The river flows backwards - A visit to see the Severn Bore.
The other side of Shadowlands - A review of the C S Lewis biography by Brian Sibley.
Top gun - Unwilling to share the limelight with his rival, a crime-writer attempts to end the rivalry.
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U- Unknowing and forgetting - A review of the spiritual classic "The Cloud of Unknowing".
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V- Victor's flight of fancy - Science teacher, Victor Brown, has his scepticism dented by a bizarre experience.)
Vigo visions - 25 years after sharing the experience of creating a church in Vigo Village, Derrick wrote this retrospective article for the "Culverstone Village News"
Volume of Silence (The) - An introduction to my book, "Still Digging - scratching the surface and plumbing the depths of prayer"
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W- What comfort Job? - Comments on the book of Job. (PDF)
What do you do when you just don't have the energy to seek God? - A reply to a lady who asked what to do when spiritual life seems weak and nothing seems worth the effort.
What is the local church? - Church is a simple concept if we strip away the complexities that tradition has heaped on it. (An article by the late Maurice Fullard Smith.
What would a united church look like? - History shows no example of a united Church so how do we know what unity might look like?
Who believes in me? A moan - answered by Hosea 10:12. (Poem)
Why does prayer live now? A poem and an optimistic reflection on personal prayer life.
Why is Leviticus so bloody? - Leviticus is often seen as a 'problem' book. But there's another way to look at this. (PDF)

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Y- Your Kingdom Come - Another way to look at this familiar phrase from "The Lord's Prayer" (Poem)

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