The Lighthouse at Lower Chapel

08/11/2025

Unfortunately due to ongoing gas work outside of the chapel which is making access and parking difficult we are going to have to postpone the 3rd out of 12 heritage events looking at Griffith Griffith next Sunday 16th November.

We look forward to holding our 18th Century Christmas service on Sunday 14th December.

19/10/2025

Well after another successful season, our books are officially open. We are not running a session tomorrow as we are giving the girls a much needed week off 😴

We return to practice on the 21st October. The first two weeks are free then it’s direct debit payments after that. Contact us for more information 🖤💚🤍🩷

14/10/2025

Please join us this Sunday when we take a look at the life and times of Charles Sagar.

We will be discussing:
The Civil war
Cromwell
Charles 2nd
James 2nd
William and Mary

Please share with family & friends. We would love to welcome as many people as possible

11/10/2025

Some pictures from Septembers Heritage service. These services will be happening once a month and look at the history and people that formed our wonderful chapel.

20/09/2025

Lovely to meet new faces and talk about the heritage of our Chapel and town today. Come along by tomorrow for our special service about Henry Townsend

07/09/2025

11/12/2023

Thankyou to everyone who joined us for such a lovely festive evening 🎄✨

26/11/2023

Please join us on Sunday 10th December at The Lighthouse at Lower Chapel Darwen for our community Christmas sing a long for Christmas carols & songs by Darwen Brass and Loosekoverz.

There will be refreshments served and Christmas craft activities for children.

All welcome, hope to see you there ✨

06/11/2023

27/10/2023

This Sunday at 2:30pm
Refreshments will be served, all are welcome

13/08/2023

Ramblings week 90

I have never finished looking at the Feeding of the 5000. And the readings for last Sunday included Ezekiel’s vision of the Dry Bones. I would like to explore how these two passages of scripture can enlighten our understanding of Renewal and Church Growth.
Methodism in the UK has been in decline for roughly 135 years – and the last 20 years has seen a rise in the rate of decline. Alarm bells should be going off all around us. Managing decline is not an option. Those saying we must close more churches are extracting the last of the few remaining teeth from a once dynamic movement of Grace.
What I love about the feeding of the 5000 is the dynamic – I have been watching on Darkest Hour on the BBC I-Player – the early days of Churchill’s premiership with Lord Halifax and Chamberlain plotting for a negotiated peace against Churchill’s resistance to Hi**er come what may. Both of these have the idea of the absurd – a few loaves and fishes for 5000 – the 300,000 men of the British Army plus all their equipment about to be wiped out – almost as mad as Ezekiel’s vision of the dry bones! Off their heads – As a believer in the laws of probability – and if I were a betting man – would I back any of these as being potential winners –
The Feeding of the 5000 – I believe that the example of sharing what each and everyone had, by the simple act of taking what one of the boats had brought with them – blessing it [that touch of the magic??], breaking and sharing – wow the miracles of changing from ‘Its mine’ to ‘Its for all of us’
Churchill – the scene in the Underground – he should have been in with the War Cabinet – following advice from the King, he sounded out the feelings of some passengers on the underground – do you want to make peace with Hi**er? – Never – He then doesn’t return to the war Cabinet but to the outer Cabinet and then to Parliament – Here he wins an overwhelming level of support – Halifax’s comment – It seems Churchill has mobilised the English Language against Hi**er
Ezekiel – born and brought up in Palestine – was he related to Jeremiah? – like all the prophets he knew how to write verse – use language to stimulate a response [Its Ezekiel 37]– What I really love about his vision is it has 3 parts – firstly an appreciation of the position – army all dead – many of the populace dead – time has gone on –bones now dry – BUT – the impossible – the bones come together, sinews and muscle grows – But stage 3 is the wind – the breathe – Genesis 1 verse 2 says “Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” The Hebrew goes ‘we-ruah elohim mə-ra-ḥe-p̄eṯ’ - the Spirit or wind or character of the ‘God of many characters’ [that is Elohim] grows softly over the waters or ‘relaxes’ over the waters. So it is this same Spirit that is breathed into these bodies so that they are truly alive
I will now return to the Feeding of the 5000 – Again 3 steps – assessment of the situation – looking at what there is available – getting on with things - This is all to do with the changing of attitude – changing the way people look, see and interpret the world about them – Now Churchill – in Halifax’s words. Churchill ‘mobilised the English language’ – What did Jesus do? He mobilised a change in outlook – What did Ezekiel do? He change the outlook of a defeated people.
Stage 1. Churchill assessed the situation – Peace with Hi**er was for him a no brainer – He needed the army back at all costs Stage 2 Churchill sacrificed the company of 4000 soldiers at Calais to create time for the 300,000 Army to firstly set up a perimeter – he then mobilised what nobody had seen – a fleet of small craft – all he needed was cloudy weather – which came in part – The King was right when he said to Churchill, that he, Churchill, as Prime Minister was what Hi**er feared most. Thirdly, make Dynamo work – Hi**er’s uncertainty and Herman Goring’s ego played into the Allies hands in a totally unexpected way, enabling – not zero – not 10% - but 300,000 to disembark -
This now brings me to where we – as Christians –are today – What do we fear most? I would suggest we fear ourselves - what do I mean by that? It is quite simply that we are fearful of what God invites us to be and to do – why? Because of the demands that this may make upon us. These demands may be time – it may be study – it may be emotion – it may be painful - it may be money or goods – it may be giving up something so as to be able to do something else – In Wesley’s Covenant prayer, we say “Set me to what you will...” – We sing [and after all hymns are prayers set to music] – Fill me with life anew, that I may love the way you do, and do what you would do ... I am no longer my own ... rank me with whom you will ... This is getting painful isn’t it? –
So I come back to our three readings – Assess where we are, and assess what we have – that is potential – Stage 1 – Now we are to see how we can utilise both what we see and what we don’t see – how do we value the God of Surprises? – How do we walk with a God who sees around corners? It is all too easy to say ‘Just trust God with everything’ – ‘God will provide’ – ‘Lets wait and see what God is doing’ – I think I have hear all these things so often – But we are in a Covenant Relationship – it means we are Co-Partners – yes we need trust – yes we need provision – no we don’t need to wait – indeed the clock is to near midnight for the death of too many churches and organisations.
We need, like Churchill, to use our English Language – how do we share our faith? As far as I can see we share our faith by – body language that says we love unconditionally – verbal language that explains Grace, faith, Agape – we example our faith by who we are and what we do. Time is perhaps the most precious gift we have – Being with a person for whom the gateway of death fast approaches, we are reminded just how great it is to have time – At the heart of Jesus’ message are the Greek words ‘Ego emi’ – I, I am – Paul expresses our relationship as being In Christ and Christ in us – It is all to do with the ultimate reality of life – I am the Way – the Truth – the Life – the Good shepherd – the Vine etc etc – entering into the spiritual life bring us into a much deeper sense of reality and living – and with it comes the ability to love deeply – unconditionally –
Churchill certainly has a way with words – so I will leave you with a few!!
'Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts'
'Continuous effort – not strength or intelligence – is the key to unlocking our potential'
'Every man/woman should ask him/herself each day whether he /she is not too readily accepting negative solutions'

13/08/2023

Ramblings week 89 – Mothers Day in Retrospect

I have to smile that here we are in the midst of Lent – doubtless giving up chocolates and unnecessary expense – and wow – all that confectionary piled high on the shelves, and all those higher priced flowers along with a whole range of cards -£2.50 plus – suggesting that Mothers everywhere do not know how they are valued unless they are showered with Cholesterol enhancing gifts or short-lived blossoms around the house. The cards of course will last a life time.
Mary, the mother of Jesus, has long been portrayed as the ‘pattern of motherhood’ – Canonised, statues, paintings and churches named after her. Maybe we should start with Luke 1 – the Magnificat – [My soul magnifies the Lord] – “Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed” (the Greek here is not ‘makarious’ (blessed are the poor...) but ‘eulogeo’ (to be spoken well of, to be envied) – So the prediction is that Mary will be well spoken of – respected – envied.
We meet Mary when Jesus is presented at the Temple – Luke 2 –
34Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
The word ‘falling’ may be understood as ‘ruin’ whilst ‘rising’ Strong’s Dictionary gives us
Definition: a standing up, a resurrection, a raising up, rising
Usage: a rising again, resurrection.
Interesting!!
Again we meet her when Jesus is 12 years old, and they (one presumes this is all the family) go to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival – Today there would be a Police Report and the involvement of the Social Services for neglect - ?abandonment – leaving a mi nor behind in that great city amongst so great a crowd of people for 3 days – AND then it is interesting that Mary says first of all “Why have you done this to us” – I take it to mean “Why have you disgraced us before the family” – She had forgotten that now 12, he is an adult – he is responsible for himself – he must be allowed to fly the nest, but she resists this.
Then again, she is at the wedding at Cana – John 2 – “1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding..... does this mean that Mary is a single Mum now?? No mention of Joseph which would be usual if he was alive and with the family. But it is interesting John doesn’t name her, yet clearly she takes the “boss” role – she is giving instructions to the “diakanos” –servants or those running the wedding arrangements –
And again, Mark 3
31Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” 33“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. 34Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”
This could be seen to reinforce the fact of Joseph’s demise – but it also presents Mary as the head of the household, sending in for Jesus to come out to her – she doesn’t go in. Jesus’ words are almost a rebuke to her – note he puts her last – brother – sister – mother. Again she is given no name.
So let us now go to the point where the mother loses her son – John 19
25Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.26When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, b here is your son,” 27and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
The four women – three called Mary! In this scene, Jesus, having been the head of the ‘Joseph’ household as clearly there is no Joseph any more, puts Mary his mother under the care of ‘the disciple Jesus loved’ – this was almost a last will and testimony – it would mean that all the ‘Joseph household’ along with its assets and responsibilities, now passed to ?John (we presume). I believe that Jesus delayed his ministry until the youngest male was 12 years old – that is had become an adult in his own right and so Jesus’ responsibilities really came down just to his mother.
Now in the garden. John tells the story of Mary Magdalene – Mary from Magdala – had she been a loose woman – a woman of deep psychiatric problems? But it her that goes to the tomb on that morning – not Jesus’ mother – we do not hear of her again except for Acts 1
14They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
Then – not by name – Paul says in Galatians 4 “4But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ...”
So what do we make of all this? Proverbs says “Who can find a virtuous woman for price is far above rubies” Proverbs 31 v10. My guess she was quite a woman – that she didn’t go to the tomb is very understandable – the future, whilst yes she would be part of John’s household – would be uncertain – she would no longer be the effective head of her household – But what of her as a mother? Like so many today, Palestine in the first century was far from sweetness, peace and light. Justice was very rough – debt was severe – slavery by virtue of being sold to repay debt – So much we don’t know, yet she managed – she did the requirements of the law with Joseph until Jesus was of age. How did Jesus feel about his mother? The scene given us by John is warm and tender – caring for his mother as he hung upon the cross. Acts shows us a mother who has kept the family together as pious lady supporting her group and community –
All that said, I can’t help feeling that a great deal has been ‘created’ around her story – legend or myth has come about long years after her demise – Her role has been almost as a beacon for the cause of women, but alas it has also be a means to contain women – and that she gets overtaken by the events unfolding in acts – the work of Paul really knows nothing of her at all – yet he – within his culture – upholds the value of women – As Paul says in Galatians 3
28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
On a personal note, I would love society to give more value to the virtues of women over and above child rearing, yet at the same time, give value to men in the rearing of children – we are too polarised, and fall short of allowing much greater freedom of all the gifts that both male and female have