This week’s thought came to mind whilst I was out with the Active Project on Saturday’s mine exploration, so it seemed appropriate to post along with some of the great photos we took that day.

Anyone who knows me will also know that I am not a big fan of caving (as in my opinion it is cold, wet, miserable and would be more suited to trolls and other mythical creatures), however I do enjoy mine exploring. The reason I prefer mines to caves is that I enjoy the historical aspect of walking through places that are today more or less exactly as they were when the last miner walked out of them all those years ago.

Down the lead mines at Nenthead (where we were on Saturday’s trip) you can still see examples of the trucks and rails used to transport the lead or galena, tool marks in the rock and even horse prints perfectly preserved in the dust for over one hundred years.

It is a humbling experience to walk in the footsteps of people who have long since passed away and see things as they would have done all that time ago.

It was quite fitting that the passage we heard preached this Sunday at our local church included 1 Peter 1:24  which quotes from Isaiah 40:6-8 “ All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.”

It is hard enough to put yourself in the place of someone who lived a mere one hundred years ago, but to think that these people are, in historical terms, pretty recent puts into perspective just how long ago these words were written. Since then how many things have happened? How many empires have conquered and fallen? How many wars have started and finished? How many people have come and gone? Words written more than two thousand years ago, before these mines had even been started were relevant to be quoted in 1 Peter and are as relevant today as they were back then.

If the teachings of the Bible are important enough to still be around today surely we should do what we can to help bring these words to others.

Active Project – mine exploration trip

As I mentioned, the thought for this week came to mind whilst out and about on the Active Project mine exploration.

This was the first event for this project and I am very happy to say that it was a great day and a very encouraging first event. Here are a few photos from the day, which I hope is the start of a successful project building a close community within the Carlisle area and beyond, enabling a comfortable environment in which to explore sport, the outdoors and faith.

– Graham