Outthere

The Last Post

2011-04-29T17:32:00.002+01:00

I think it is time to write my final Outthere post.

I've had a lot of fun writing about anything and everything for almost two years. But unfortunately a mixture of time pressure and topics that sometimes seemed not to serve any great purpose, has led me to conclude that it is time to draw a line under Outthere.

I wanted to make it official and formal.

Thank you to all who have read, commented and encouraged.

James

Convivial Housing

2011-04-15T09:33:00.004+01:00

A recent news item on Radio 4 revealed that there has been a rise of 30% in people their late 40s-60s living alone.

Apparently this is beginning to concern those in government. Although many have profited from the boom years and - despite straitened times - are much better off financially, their social wealth has diminished. They have become more isolated and consequently lonelier. "Resilience" would be a social issue government would have to tackle, according to the reporter; people needed help in bouncing back from adversity. A rethink of housing was also on the cards. There is a need for more "convivial housing" shared services and resources if not shared accommodation.

It seems as though we are struggling to live with each other and without each other. Western culture, perhaps more than any other, challenges the church to be the community that Jesus called it to be. It is crying out for relationship but can't figure out how to develop successful relationships - partly because it doesn't know what successful relationships look like. And partly because, more than any other culture in the world, it has elevated selfishness from a vice to a value - and a controlling value at that.

Just before his betrayal, John tells us that Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; ⁴ so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. ⁵ After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.(John 13.3-5)

The authority that Jesus has given to us provides us with the security to serve in a way that builds relationships and cultivates the kind of community that answers the cry of the isolated and atomised world around us.

You can find an associated article here

Cities of God

2010-10-18T08:21:00.004+01:00

Rodney Stark is probably not going to be top billing at the next mission and renewal conference. Though I'd love to see him somewhere in the line up.

I recently read his book Cities of God and what an enlightening and provocative little book it was.

Stark is a sociologist by trade, so his approach is quite theoretical at times. However, you can skip most of that (like I did) and find some really thought provoking conclusions.

Here are some of them:

In the early church the gospel was spread and the church grew through social networks - not mass conversion
The gospel was not just effective at the margins of society - some pretty influential people turned to Christ - eg Erastus, the city treasurer at Corinth (Romans 16.23)
Gentiles who were sympathetic to Judaism found Christianity attractive because of the lack of rules
The gospel often flourished in large cities where the ties to traditional religion were loose.

The above is just a snapshot of Stark's conclusions, but I think they merit some reflection.

If he's right, religious diversity is an opportunity not a threat. Religious diversity indicates a breakdown in old patterns of thinking that are sometimes resistant to the gospel.

Christianity should be preached as a liberation from the rules and strictures of religion. It's worth reminding ourselves that legalism has more than one expression. See this thoughtful post.

The gospel can touch people in the mainstream and upper strata of society as well as those on the fringes. I think this is something that those of us in the Pentecostal /Charismatic world need to learn.

Finally, networks. If Stark is correct, the recent concept of social networking is the best news for those who want to spread the gospel in a long time. That might mean that effective evangelism in the 21st century will partly entail building social networks. So parties, Starbucks, Facebook et al. could be big keys to evangelism in our time. Your leisure time can be transformed into something effective for the kingdom! Whatever next?!

See the review at Google Books here

Young fogeys and the future shape of the church

2010-10-04T08:49:00.005+01:00

fo·gey/ˈfōgē/
Noun: A person, typically an old one, who is considered to be old-fashioned or conservative in attitude or tastes.

I first heard the term from my grandmother. She was frustrated by a generation of young Christian men with shoulder length hair and guitars (and probably beards). Any physical resemblance to the Lord, she did not recognise. "They'd just dismiss us all as old fogeys" was how she interpreted their attitude to her generation. A "fogey"! What a great word!

Fast forward about ten years...I encountered a whole new phenomenon: the young fogey.

There were certain differences between the young fogey and the old fogey. The old fogey was not self-consciously a fogey. He or she was just being himself or herself and found that he/she was out of step with the times. The older person might well have been offended if you had called him a "fogey" and the term might even have been considered a put down. It must be said that whether the older person could have accurately been described as a fogey or not, their fogeyism was often endearing and was only a symptom of them being true to themselves and their values. Of course, many who dismissed my grandmother's generation as "old fogeys" might well now be "old fogeys" themselves, or worse still they might be retro cool in an embarrassing kind of way or worst of all just "outdated groovers" whose hearts are forever stuck in 1973. Potential fogeyism awaits us all.

The young fogeys were entirely different. They wanted to be fogeys. They dressed in such a way that people would consider them "young fogeys" and spoke in a way that made them seem like upper-middle class Edwardians. They were very conscious of the image they were projecting and sometimes, perhaps more often than not, the image bore very little connection to who they really were, serving only to betray their own insecurities. Young fogeyism is sometimes more "wannabee" than substance.

So why, you might ask, am I writing about fogeyism on a Monday morning? Because I believe the fogeys are after the soul of the church! Not my church - the church at large!

And it's not old fogeyism that concerns me - after all give me a few years and people might think I'm an old fogey. It's....young fogeyism! Or perhaps young-ish fogeyism.

If you read around a bit in the Christian world, you might well be aware of the renaissance in Reformed theology. Calvin, it seems, is cool again. Got any questions? Calvin and his mates Augustine and Luther have most of the answers. Calvin's offspring have lots of answers as well. And if you have got some "problems" - especially ones that aren't conveniently theological - consult "the Doctor" - the late Martyn Lloyd-Jones, that is (Through his books of course, not through a seance). I have to add that I think the Dr. is very good indeed.

In all seriousness, I am concerned.

(i) I am concerned that like fogeyism in the truest sense of the word, that some of this is just a reaction to the fuzzy theology or lack of theology of the emerging church. There's no doubt that much of what goes under that label is heading in the direction of theological liberalism. Calvinism presents a good bulwark against such a trend. However, the price might well be a new exclusivism and an intolerance of anything that doesn't fit squarely into the reformed theological box.

I have tried to keep up to date with the reformed blogosphere for a couple of years. John Wesley hardly gets a mention in any appraisal of church history or revival, despite the fact that he is undoubtedly the single most influential Christian leader of the last three hundred years. At worst there is a revisionist tendency within some reformed circles. The Sally Army, the Brethren and, of course, the Pentecostals, et al. - even in the charismatic wing of the reformed world, have effectively been airbrushed out of church history, certainly in terms of making any positive contribution.

Calvinism tends to be bookish and ruthlessly critical of any challenge to its central tenets. One of the dangers is that it will kill off any charismatic impulses.

(ii) My second concern, is that the desire to define the faith and defend the faith against liberalism is actually going to destroy evangelicalism. If it doesn't destroy it, it will make "evangelical" equal "calvinist". Anyone who wants revival and wants to win back the West, should consider all the great revival movements. Thank God for great Presbyterian and Baptist preachers. And thank God also for the Methodists and the Salvation Army and the Brethren. And for the Pentecostals. By all means preach sin and grace. And repentance and justification. But don't forget that what fired evangelism in the early twentieth century was preaching on the return of Christ. The church is bigger and more diverse than its reformed expression.

(iii) Finally, I do find much of the output that parades one's reformed credentials incredibly inward looking and tedious. Why trot out terminology and phraseology that is well past its sell by date? Sorry, but some of it does smack of young fogeyism, and I don't think the world is waiting for the young fogeys!

I write the above observations as someone sympathetic to the reformed outlook, but also as one who has discovered that the world is a bigger place and the gospel a bigger message than the playground of any particular theological school, however worthwhile it might be.

This will give you an insight into cool Calvinism.

This is a brief introduction to young fogeyism. Get the handbook here . The hardback will cost you £256.74.

Illegal Inspiration

2010-09-27T16:05:00.004+01:00

Over the summer I succumbed to an irresistable offer to take out a year's subscription to National Geographic for £15 a year. Too good to resist.

In the September edition there was an article about Madagascar. The reporter decided to track down those involved in the illegal rosewood trade. It seems that many are deserting traditional occupations to go in search of a fortune harvesting and selling rosewood.

As is usually the case, the trade is dominated by gangs and corruption. Even so, those who want to be involved go to enormous lengths to get even the chance to be a part of what is happening. The report described a thirteen hour journey down dirt roads and through forests, a journey to the heart of the wilderness. And what awaited those who made it was a life of hard work and danger.

It's amazing what people will do when driven by need or even the desire to get rich.

These kinds of stories almost always challenge me. It's so easy for us in the relative comfort of the West to shake our heads in disapproval of those who risk life and limb to do something illegal and something that is ecologically bad for Madagascar and the world.

However, I find that it challenges my passion and commitment to Christ.

To what lengths am I prepared to go to further the cause of Christ? What risks am I willing to take for Him? Does it match the illegal loggers of Madagascar? Does it, for that matter, match the business guys who'll work long hours and make huge sacrifices for the sake of filthy lucre?

It might sound as though I have written this post from a spiritual Tardis that has taken me back into the church culture of 1950's Britain. Let me put your mind at rest, I am firmly in 2010.

Unfortunately, we find ourselves in an era in which the kind of commitment I'm talking about can very quickly be written off as "works", "legalism" or "duty". It might be that we have discovered all the rights and privileges of being spiritual sons and daughters without understanding the responsibilities. There was a time that having a "servant heart" was considered crucial to authentic Christianity. I'm not sure that that is still the case in contemporary Christian culture.

I had a dream recently. I was dreaming that I was preparing a sermon on Timothy, Paul's spiritual son and fellow-worker. I only got two points of it before I woke up. I kept trying to recall the third point - but it just wasn't there. The two points were: (i) Timothy's Call; (ii)Timothy's Commitment. The first point was straightforward; God called Timothy to serve Him.

Point two was more surprising. It was from Acts 16.2-3 "The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of [Timothy]. 3Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek."

For the sake of church unity and cross-cultural evangelism, Timothy submitted himself to circumcision. That was the price of his calling. It wasn't something he had to do. It wasn't necessary for salvation. It was the price of joining Paul's team. Of course, there were issues involved that were due to the culture of that day. That's the point. That was the level of commitment that was needed to spread the gospel at that time.

Relax. I'm not suggesting it's time to get the knives out! However, it does challenge our thinking about the kind of commitment that preaching the gospel effectively entails. I think I'd opt for a few long journeys down dirt tracks and forests myself!

Promoting doubt

2010-09-20T15:04:00.005+01:00

Richard Nixon is hardly someone you would think might be able to provide us with some good advice about how the church should face the challenges of what the Pope on his recent visit to Britain referred to as aggressive secularism . Forever tarnished because of Watergate, he's an unlikely inspiration for a post on a Christian blog.

Nixon wrote a book in the mid-80's called No More Vietnams. Although Nixon tried to justify the way he handled the Vietnam conflict, he came to see that the future demanded a different approach. If Western values were to triumph in the developing world, Western nations needed to use their prosperity to feed the poor rather than simply trying to gain the upper hand militarily.

Although much of his analysis applies to the Cold War and is perhaps rendered obsolete by recent history, he makes an important point: ideological battles are not won by the strength of arguments or even by military superiority. Ideology is worth squat if it doesn't actually change people's lives for the better.

Which brings me back to the Pope's statement about aggressive secularism. In the last decade or so I have heard the cry go up for a more aggressive Christian response to secularism. The subtext is that there is an ideological battle going on and we are not winning it because we are not shouting loud enough and condemning stridently enough those who oppose us. The cry is usually for more protest and utlimately points in the direction of Christian intolerance. However, there is a danger that if we meet those who oppose our faith in the same spirit we will become more like them and less like Jesus.

Fortunately, there are many capable and able Christian apologists - for example, John Lennox , Alister McGrath, to name a couple - out there who, in my opinion, are putting together robust answers to Dawkins, Hitchens, et al. It is good to have people who can clearly and publicly articulate the Christian faith.

It is important that Christians are able to give a reason for the hope within them, however, I have the feeling that the impact of Christian apologetics on secular society will be minimal. I say that not because of the quality of the apologists or their work, but because there is in general an unwillingness to even consider the possibility of an alternative to the secular worldview. Having said that, if any apologist is reading, please keep up the good work - we still need to be able to answer our opponents!

Which is where Nixon can help us. We might not be able to win the ideological battles in the ways in which ideological battles in the past have been won, but I think we can operate in ways that disarm those who want to marginalise the Christian faith. We can invest in our communities. We can spend ourselves and our money on behalf of those in need. Our era is one in which people expect both little and much from the church. It sometimes feels as if society expects the church to do nothing of practical relevance but at the same time expects the church to do much. We must act in a way that causes our communities to doubt their prejudices against the church. We might find that promoting this kind of doubt is necessary if we are to effectively promote faith.

Please don't think I'm suggesting that this will result in mass conversions. It might and it might not. That isn't really the important thing. What's important is whether or not the church is seen to be acting in a way that faithfully reflects the heart of Christ for this world. Is the Christian community functioning in a way that is consistent with it's identity as Christian? That's the question.

How Sky+ could have saved the Church of Scotland (or not)

2010-09-13T09:17:00.004+01:00

I must admit that even though my friend was a man of good character and unimpeachable integrity, I did have to question a statement he made over lunch.

I asked him why he thought the Church of Scotland had gone into decline. (Just for the record, the decline of the decline of the Church of Scotland is not hearsay. See here and here).

I was totally unprepared for his response: The Forsyte Saga.

This classy drama from the golden age of the BBC drew the faithful away from the kirk on a Sunday evening and seriously weakened the church of Knox and the reformation. If you think I'm kidding: "Many people preferred to watch the Forsyte Saga on television to attending evening services at their local kirk." Read the whole thing here.

Now it would be comforting for those outside the C.o.S. to think it was a specifically Scottish and Presbyterian problem. However - behold - the Methodists way down in the deep south of England were under attack from the same Beeb drama!

Read the history of Teignmouth Methodist. Teignmouth is in South Devon! Auntie has obviously no ethnic prejudice when it comes to distracting the faithful! Here's the killer line:

"By 1961 there were only 23 left in the Sunday School and Evening Services were very poorly attended. The BBC's production of the Forsyth (sic) Saga caused Leaders' Meetings to discuss the timing of their evening services. This affected all the churches and in 1967 the galleries were removed from our church."

This is a church with a history: General Booth had even preached here.

Of course, it would be inaccurate and superficial to blame Sunday night tv for the decline of the historic churches in Britain. There were many other factors that ranged from theology to urban planning and development.

And we'd be foolish to think that because we are free in the Spirit and not dead and traditional like some established churches that we are somehow immune to the cultural forces of our day. In fact, describing historic churches as dead and boring might reveal more about our own perceived self-importance than the reality of what is happening in at least some historic churches.

The question is not just "What can we learn from the challenges Christians faced in the past?" Though that is a very good question. The question is "What has got hold of our hearts?"

It might be tempting to think that the C.o.S. and the Methodists were unfortunate to face their great challenges in an era before recording tv programmes was possible. Or that if some prophet had stood up and urged "Keep coming to the Sunday evening sevrice, saith the Lord, for the day will come when you shall be able to see it all again on UKGold, and the glory of the latter remake of The Forsyte Saga with Damian Lewis will far exceed the glory of what you now see," all would have been well.

For all it's benefits, Sky+ is unlikely to help us squarely face the challenges to the church the enemy will pose in our day - and by "enemy", I mean the enemy, not the BBC.

Edward the Confessor and 21st Century Christianity

2010-08-23T19:55:00.003+01:00

I caught up with the BBC's The Normans on iPlayer. I hadn't realised that the Normans were descendants of the Vikings. Nor had I realised that the invasion of England was due to a dispute about who was England's rightful king in the wake of Edward the Confessor dying without children.

Edward the Confessor's reign was very successful. A flourishing economy and a very organised, efficient system of government (and taxation) made England a leader in Europe. Hard to believe that it had all fallen into enemy hands within twenty-five years.

Edward also had a reputation for godliness; the Catholic Church eventually beatified him. Unfortunately, his childlessness, was it seems, a direct consequence of the spirituality that made him a candidate for sainthood. Rumour had it, that, though married, he remained a virgin. His spirituality, which undoubtedly at least partially accounts for his success as a ruler, robbed him of a successor. Ultimately, the lack of a natural successor not only undermined the achievements of his reign, but was central to the fall of England into the hands of the Normans. Edward the Confessor, to the detriment of Anglo-Saxon England, didn't have an Edward the Successor.(For our Scottish readers, the Scots decided to partner with the Normans, with the result that Scotland became a cosmopolitan economic powerhouse in the 11th century).

And my point? Well, it's quite simple: the church can enjoy success and have a reputation for being deeply spiritual, but completely forget that unless we have a "next generation" we're only a few decades away from decline and possibly even oblivion.

I do get concerned when I attend conferences or meetings that are considered "cutting edge" and there are only a handful of teens and twenty-somethings present - and sometimes none at all. I worry about the impact of time heavy, programme dependant discipleship approaches and approaches to spirituality and how this impacts young parents with young children. I have to ask myself continually "Are we presenting discipleship and Christian commitment in a way that is setting people up for failure?" Is it possible to be so caught up with our revelation of what we think the Holy Spirit is doing that we don't even notice that most of the people at the party - like me - are mid-life plus?

I know that there are lot of good things happening amongst younger people today. However, I do have this feeling that if we don't frequently remind ourselves of the need for a next generation, the topic could easily drift of the agenda.

So there you have it. Edward the Confessor made me think on my day off. Perhaps his celibacy within marriage will be of some profit after all.

Letting down the drawbridge of our heart

2010-08-11T07:17:00.001+01:00

Some stories are real life tragedies that have all the ingredients of a morality tale and really do need to be told.

There was a tragic story about the deaths of an elderly mother and her severely disabled daughter in the media a few days ago.

A person delivering leaflets noticed that when he pushed his flyers through the letter box of one home, he was met with flies escaping through the open letter box. He called the police and they discovered that both mother and daughter were dead. It is more than likely that the mother died and her daughter had no way of calling for help and starved to death.

This tragedy had its roots in decisions that were taken many years back. In the late 1990's the mother refused further help from the local authorities after wheelchair ramps and rails had been fitted.

Consequently, no panic alarm was fitted. No-one was keeping an eye on this family. And the neighbours were kept at arm's length. This lady had pulled up the drawbridge of her heart, not realising that what appeared to make her secure in her own castle exposed her to a danger she might never have imagined.

"We don't need your help" can seem like a very courageous, stoical approach to life and the difficulties it sometimes brings. However, the pride and determination that it produces can leave those that we love - as well as ourselves - very vulnerable.

It might be argued that those who knew about this mother and daughter should have been more intrusive, but that is unfair. It is unfair to lay blame at the door of those who have a lesser duty of care, especially in such instances when the primary carer has the moral and mental capacity and legal right to make decisions that affect the future of those in their charge.

When people isolate themselves they are in no position to blame others for not trying to get in touch or for not looking out for them.

Tragically, this elderly lady actually had placed a banner on her roof about three years ago with "Help" written on it. We don't know if anyone took any notice.

Unfortunately, even our cries for help can be overlooked or unheard if we have insisted for so long that we don't need help from others.

Jesus didn't just come to save individuals. He came to form a community of redeemed people who would serve each other in love. We do need each other! Why not let down the drawbridge of your heart and allow some traffic across?

How we receive a person God sends affects what we receive from God

2010-08-05T22:04:00.004+01:00

If you're a regular follower of this blog, my apologies for the lack of posts for a month or so now. Work and holidays and not having anything "fresh" to say have kept me silent.

On reflecting on the last few weeks, however, I've a few things to share that I think are worthwhile. The posts might not be as long as the last few, but hopefully they'll help to give you a flavour of how the Holy Spirit has been leading me.

John Bevere's ministry isn't one I've followed closely in years gone by, though he is very highly spoken of in charismatic circles.

I happened to turn on God TV just recently, and John Bevere was speaking at the Audacious conference in Manchester. He was speaking about honour and the four main areas where we are to extend honour - church, family, government and work. It was a thorough Bible study. He pointed out that Jesus' ministry was restricted in His home town because people saw Him as "just the carpenter's boy". He then went on to explain that how we receive the people that God sends or sets over us in authority in any of the four areas mentioned above, effectively determines what we receive from God.

This is, as he pointed out, a hard saying for people brought up in a democracy. And it is a hard saying for me. However it is something I have been cheweing over for a long time. My difficulty is not so much to do with the authority figures in my life; it's to do with me being an authority figure.

Let me explain. My personality make-up is such that I don't like too much structure and, if truth be told, have a bit of an aversion to a "top down" style of leadership. I like discussion. I want you to feel I am your friend. However, if Bevere is right - and I think he is -people are going to receive more from me if they receive me as someone sent by God than if they manage to become my friend. Why? Because the spiritual dynamic at work in honouring the gifting and anointing of God is more powerful and produces more godly results than becoming more intimately acquainted with and connected to me as a person.

For me, that doesn't mean that I cease to be personable! Nor does it give me the right to demand blind obedience from my congregation. But it does deliver me from any illusions about where the real spiritual connection takes place with people.

The KGB, the Incarnation and Christian Mission - and why we need Victorian preachers to tell the story

2010-07-09T22:09:00.004+01:00

Spy stories aren't what they used to be. They used to be some of the hottest action of the cold war. But those days are gone and ten Russian spies exposed in the U.S. is more of an embarrassment than anything else.

The Russians, it appears, however, do take their spying more seriously than western nations. "Sleepers" is what they call people who are planted deep into the society for the purpose of gathering information.

The story of one such sleeper I found quite amazing. He was a talented young Russian. A brilliant linguist and a gifted musician. Somehow he ended up being recruited by the KGB and embarked on a mission to spy on America.

It is quite remarkable what he did. He moved to East Germany to enable him to become more like a German. He then pretended to be a refugee who had come to the West.

His next move was to develop a career as a piano tuner and move to America. Having moved across the Atlantic, he managed to land the job of piano tuner to Nelson Rockefeller, then Governor of New York.

Such a story demands the kind of rhetorical flourish that would have been second nature to one of the great Victorian preachers: "Consider what lengths this man went to in service of his country. Should not the zeal of the Christian exceed that of the communistic (I know that would be anachronistic for a Victorian preacher - but I am sure the -ic suffix would have been stuck on at the end) type of man in service of his Lord and Master? Consider the self abnegation of one so graced with such gifts and of such a sensible temper, who loved the cause of his motherland more than his own life. Should not the servants of Christ esteem the loss of all that is theirs by grace and nature a small thing, perchance one should advance the cause of Christ's kingdom?

Or indeed, "Consider Him who emptied Himself of the splendours of a life greater than that of the Bolshevist for the sake of poor lost sinners."

I am sure that if anyone ever does read this post, they will be tempted to think that I am flippantly sending up a stereotyped Christianity which we love to poke fun.

Well I'm not. There are a couple of serious points here.

Firstly, this is some illustration of both the incarnation and what singleminded discipleship might look like.

Phillippians 2 has been a bit of a hot potato for theologians for a while. What does it mean that Christ emptied Himself? Did he lose His divine attributes when he took on flesh? Or were they merely veiled, hidden for a while? Perhaps our KGB man can help us. He didn't lose his gifts in becoming a German refugee and then a piano tuner. He simply, for the sake of the Soviet Union, chose not to utilise them - at least not to the extent that he could have used them. They were hidden in the guise of a refugee turned piano tuner.

In this same chapter in Phillippians, Paul presents Christ in His becoming a servant as a kind of template for Christian servanthood. If you've ever heard anyone talking about "having a servant heart" your hearing about something rooted in this passage of scripture.

Christian growth and Christian ministry is about becoming. Becoming more like Christ. And to begin to minister like Jesus ministered we have to leave our worlds and enter into the worlds of those whom God has called us to serve. It might not be a geographical movement. And it certainly won't be anything as dramatic as the movement of Christ from heaven to earth. But it will challenge our thinking and affect our will and emotions.

So why not just say all this in plain, 21st century English? Why the faux Victorian speak? Perhaps, because these things deserve better than the blandness of much contemporary speech. Misguided communist or not, you can't help but admire and be challenged by such commitment to a cause. And to simply present it as "If we were as committed as some of those commies were, the world would be a better place" has limited emotional punch. We need something that at least tries to make us feel the grandeur of the gospel and the sheer romance of serving the King.

The KGB illustrating the incarnation and inspiring to Christian mission. Marx and Lenin must be spinning in their graves.

Winter in June

2010-06-21T10:15:00.000+01:00

Apparently contemporary art really has lost its way. It's in its death throes, according to one commentator .

For some of us, the question is more likely one of "Did contemporary art ever look like anything other than something in death throes?" However, setting aside our cultural prejudices and preferences for a moment, there is something worth noting here: people with a more secular outlook are - perhaps - beginning to realise the signs that we live in an age of decline.

I suppose I was intrigued by the above article because of a talk I had heard at the conference referred to in the previous post. Sy Rogers, in one of his talks, gave us some very thought provoking reasons as to why we as a society are now in a winter season. Societies, he argued, go through seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter. Winter was a season, sent by God, to purge us and set us up for a new springtime. I had never heard this idea before, but it actually made a lot of sense. We're in a winter season and even our most celebrated artists' productions have the marks of winter.

What was also intriguing was how societies came out of winter seasons. Sy talked about a "hero generation" rather like the generation that fought WW2. Those born in the 80's and 90's are potentially that generation. (It was a little hard to accept that one is just a hardened old Gen x-er child of the 60's).

So we listened to Sy's talk on the Friday and headed off home the next day to raise up the "hero generation".

Unfortunately, most of the hero generation isn't in church or even close to it, or at least that's what the latest British Church Growth stats indicate. There is a relative absence of teenagers in the British church. 80% of under 15s and 75% of 15-29s are not church members and 59% of British churches have no-one in the congregation under 19.

The obvious answer would seem to be found in building strong youth works and making youth evangelism a priority.

I am sure that is part of the answer, but I don't think it is the whole story.

A few weeks before conference, I was given a book which had some real insights and presented some compelling research about youth and family ministry.

For a start, it argued that a strong youth ministry can be a very positive thing, but in the long run function as an orphaning structure. What was meant was that once the young person had left the youth group they didn't naturally fit into church life because the only relationships they had built were within the youth group. Now I would never have thought of that!

On that basis, therefore, it would appear that it is equally important to embed teenagers into the general life of the church.

It's one thing to recognise what teenagers have to offer and give them opportunity, but how do we help them become "successful" Christians and "successful" in life? In a Christian home a rhythm of life that includes eating together and praying together helps in the process. But what about those who don't come from a Christian background. They need a cloud of witnesses people who'll cheer them on, encourage them, believe in them.

If you're older than 29 and reading this blog, why not find a teenager or twenty-something to cheer on? You might just be playing your part in helping us through the winter season.

Special post: Elim Bible Week

2010-06-09T00:35:00.003+01:00

I was asked on Facebook how the conference I am attending is going...so here's some - very abbreviated - notes from one of the main speakers, Dary Northrop. I tried to put it on my wall as my status, but it was too long!

A sermon on Luke 19 about reaching out to people

1. It is often difficult for people to find Jesus (1-4)

"Everyone needs a moment to see who Jesus is for himself"

2. It's never difficult for Jesus to find you (5)

Zac had a story. Everyone has a story - listen to the story

Jesus doesn't look down on people - He looks up at people

3. Jesus loves the person more than the crowd (6-7)

Jesus didn't please the crowd "if you want to end up miserable, try pleasing the crowd"

The story of Jesus is a story of ministering to one.

Jesus was fully present in the conversation he was having with Zac - the power of being "fully present" in a conversation

Jesus had the time and He took the time

4.Only Jesus can change the heart (8-9)

Jesus didn't say to Zac "You did cheat on your taxes"

We have to give the Spirit of God space to work in people's lives

"Going towards the role of a god"

2010-05-29T07:10:00.003+01:00

Well now that we're firmly into life in "Coalition Britain" I thought it was time to pick up the digital quill again, so to speak.

I suppose the nature of a blog like this one necessarily picks up on things controversial. I trust that I don't treat such topics for the sake of it. My intention is more to draw attention to trends and developments that have the potential to shape our society and think about how we the church might respond.

From a Christian perspective, one of the most serious and controversial developments in recent days was the Marie-Stopes advert on Channel Four on Monday evening. Although the advert didn't directly encourage abortion, the implications were all there. Airing such an advert at any time, but especially at that time of the evening has the effect of "normalising" abortion - if such ever really can be normalised. Unfortunately "Are you late? Marie-Stopes can help" becomes as normal as "You should have gone to SpecSavers". By "normalising" something so serious in this way - and what young women like those in the advert are feeling when they unexpectedly fall pregnant should never be reduced to a soundbite and an offer to contact an abortion agency all in the space of a 32 second advert - you can end up trivialising it.

To claim that the advert didn't actually promote abortion is rather empty. After all, the only reason anyone advertises anything is to persuade them to take a particular course of action - to promote a service or product. "Promotion" is a very fitting term for what was happening here and it reveals a sea change that has taken place in the way various ethical issues are now presented. There was a time when, it was claimed, people merely sought permission to live a certain lifestyle or to practise certain things - hence the term permissive society. However, we're a long way from the permissive society now. Permission has given way to promotion. And "normalising" seems to me to be the launch pad for promotion. You can see similar developments with the way in which euthanasia is presented. One can only hope that promotion does not eventually become prescription.

One of the heartening things about the abortion ad issue was that one could hear similarly critical voices coming from both the right and left.

Bonnie Leander Johnson's piece in The Guardian was thoughtful and to my mind very perceptive. She raised some of the real issues surrounding the subject; some Christians who lean more to the right could learn a lot from the way she articulates her views and concerns. Some good links here to articles from a secular perspective questioning what has now become a seemingly out of control industry.

Ed West in The Telegraph had a good discussion about what it tells us about the land we live in, pointing out the hideousness of the advert being shown during a game show: "Make a fortune and have an abortion". It's the stuff not worthy even of a bad taste black comedy.

How ironic that at a time when we're promoting the destruction of unborn life, we are also celebrating the creation of synthetic life.

According to Julian Savulescu, a professor of ethics at Oxford University, the brains behind the creation, Craig Venter, " is creaking open the most profound door in humanity's history, potentially peeking into its destiny. He is not merely copying life artificially ... or modifying it radically by genetic engineering. He is going towards the role of a god: creating artificial life that could never have existed naturally."

What a strange world. So creative yet at the same time so destructive. I've just finished watching a family movie Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs. It's a little morality tale about a boy who is told he'll never amount to anything yet longs to be a scientist. He succeeds with an invention which brings about a kind of food paradise. But the paradise quickly turns into a kind of hell. In the end he has to destroy the monster he created and save the world.

That really is the story of the world. And it's one worth reminding ourselves of at such a strange time in history. One man thought he could become like God and create an even greater paradise. In the event, he unleashed the forces of hell. And One Man came from heaven into that hell to redeem the race from destruction. Whatever way things go in our society, we can be sure that One Man from heaven will prevail in the end.

You can view the Marie-Stopes advert here and Venter's talk at TED here .

CareConfidential is a helpful resource for anyone who is struggling to face up to an unplanned pregnancy or is trying to deal with post abortion issues.

Awkwardness, Anger, Grumpiness - and the call to leadership

2010-05-03T14:34:00.003+01:00

By this time next week we might well have a new government or at least the haggling between the parties in the event of a hung parliament will be well under way.

The efforts of Christians who want to mobilise their faith community to influence national affairs has been admirable; I was one of tens of thousands who signed the Westminster Declaration.

I think, however, that as we enter the final phases and then the aftermath of the election campaign we should reflect on what sorts of things we should be doing if we really want to have an impact on our communities.

One thing that I believe is important is that we think again about the whole concept of leadership, especially in the political sphere - though what I say here applies to other apsects of life as well.

When you read the cvs and backgrounds of the leaders of the main parties, one of the first things to strike you is how incredibly clever they all are. And they often come from well-connected backgrounds. It can leave you with the impression that you have to be a high flyer at university or in business to be an effective leader. I would suggest that this is reinforced in Christian circles because we add to the mix an undefined but intense sense of calling and destiny. For most people that sets the bar way above anything they could ever aspire to, and therefore they disqualify themselves from taking an active part in the affairs of their community.

Perhaps we need to think about leadership in terms of a determination to get things done for the good of the people amongst whom we live. That is why I have posted the above video. Councillor Jenkins might not ever become leader of the Liberal Democrats. He might not hold high office in national politics. But it's peple like him who actually get things done in local communities. And to my mind he has highlighted some of the qualities needed to get those things done. Awakardness, anger and gumpiness aren't the most attractive qualities in the world, but sometimes they belie a real concern about the bread and butter issues of every day life. A career in local politics might just be a way to redeem them!

Sometimes as Christians we take on huge issues - sometimes in a very confrontational way - and whilst we might bring a prophetic dimension into the politics of the nation, our influence is often minimal and ultimately we change very little. Certainly, some people are called to that kind of role and I for one would not try to dissuade them. However, if we were to encourage people to become involved in local politics in the mainline parties and begin to build a reputation for getting things done, maybe, just maybe, we would position ourselves better to discuss some of the bigger issues that concern us. It is often the case that what really does concern people are things like the state of the pavements, or the lack of children's play facilities in the local park, or drug dealing taking place in the local church car park after hours (not by the church members, one hopes). Dealing with such matters certainly helps create an environment in which we can live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness (1 Timothy 2.1).

So if you've been feeling a bit negative about the whole political process, why not at least consider what you could do to translate your frustration into something positive. You never know, what you thought were a clutch of negative emotions might be a call to local politics.

"The nutbags...had it right the whole time"

2010-04-19T14:31:00.006+01:00

I'm not a film buff, so it should come as no surprise that I never saw 2012 in the cinema and only managed to watch the dvd version with my teenage son on Friday evening.

It's a good yarn in the disaster movie tradition. It does go on; it morphed from a kind of The Late Great Planet Earth meets 24 to Indiana Jones meets Evan Almighty. (For our younger readers The Late Great Planet Earth was a 1970's end-times biblical blockbuster. Although one might question some of its conclusions, it was absolutely compulsive reading - even for a teenager. You can purchase a used copy at Amazon for 36p! I hadn't realised until writing up this post that it was turned into a film starring Orson Welles.).

Mayan prophecies, conspiracy theorists, good guys and bad guys and the triumph of the human spirit - you can find it all in 2012.

It really has very little to do with what the Bible teaches about the last days. And the church comes over as quite anemic and helpless. The only people who seems to have any clue about what's happening are the scientists, an eccentric talk show host, a little known author and - wait for it - according to Carl Anheuser, the bad guy in the White House "the nutbags with cardboard signs" who " had it right the whole time."

It was the nutbags with cardboard signs line that got me. It raised a few questions. Like "Who defines reality?" and "How willing are we to talk about the reality of the future with our lost friends?"

The quote recalled a discussion I had had earlier in the day. It concerned whether we should preach about the end of the world and the themes associated with it at guest services. Do we really want to bring our friends to church and then talk about the end of the world?! (Would love your thoughts on that one.)

About two years ago, I decided to read through Acts to try and learn how to preach the gospel like the apostles - Peter and Paul in particular. I had a few surprises. One was the focus that there seemed to be on the world to come and how history was heading towards the day when God would judge the world. See Acts 2.40, 3.21-23, 17.31, 24.25, for example.

What struck me about this emphasis was not that the apostles were preaching a happy heaven v. a hot hell. It was different to that. I think that they set out to present the gospel not only as a means of personal salvation, but as a means of personal salvation that required you to completely change your outlook on the whole of human history and the destiny of the world. And in this story of God, humanity and the world, Christ was bang in the centre.

If we can't find some way of communicating the full story of the gospel, two things are likely to happen:

Firstly, the gospel might - just might - be received and understood as a kind of self-help message, a formula for a happier life;

Secondly, we will allow secular people, Islam and Christian cults / sects (e.g. JWs, Mormons) to shape how people think about the future of the world. And believe me, no-one from these sectors of the religious market is shy about how they see the future;

Finally, there is a real danger that the church will lose its cutting edge as it tries to conform itself to this world rather than being conformed to the values of the world to come: "Everyone who has this hope in him, purifies himself" says the apostle John, speaking of the return of the Lord (1 John 3.3).

I'm not really suggesting that we take to the streets with cardboard signs. I am advocating that we do present the whole of the gospel story, which includes the return of Christ and the final establishment of his kingdom. God forbid that anyone ever ask "Why didn't you tell us?" And we can only reply "I was afraid you might think I was a nutbag".

Heads and hearts

2010-04-05T11:33:00.006+01:00

Giving away Easter eggs at Easter - along with invites to the Easter services - in the centre of one of the great cities of the world is hardly the most radical approach to evangelism ever invented.

First and foremost it is an attempt to make a positive connection with a society from which I think the church has become increasingly disconnected. Oddly enough it seems that as we have grown ever more like the world we are trying to reach, we seem to have become more distant from it. Now that is odd.

These sorties into the heart of places where Mammon has his throne are actually very enlightening as well as enjoyable.

Time and again the feedback is of people who have never been told before that God loves them. Of people disarmed by Christians who smile and give something away gratis.

My most interesting moment came when I had a conversation with a couple of late 20 perhaps early 30 somethings. They were giving away a flyer entitled "Sex Sells". It was all a gimmick to promote a brand of designer jeans.

We had a little chat about church and religion. They didn't attend church because they were very busy and he was an agnostic to boot. But they did have a great respect for the church and what it does for young people. This busy agnostic really did surprise me when he said that he was shocked by the lack of manners in society today. Things just weren't what they used to be.

What he didn't seem to realise, or at least if he did, it had no bearing on his actions, was that the kind of unmannerly behaviour that so upset him was the result of the same kind of outlook that promoted jeans by using fairly obvious sexual imagery.

It reminded me of what David Baddiel said in an interview. When asked about his Jewishness he explained that he was “an atheist in my head but a Jew in my heart”.

I wonder how many people live with a head that is uninformed by the heart? They have accepted the storyline of secularism - no God, here by chance, make up your own meaning of life, and everything is okay so long as it does no-one any harm - but deep in their hearts they long for the kind of society that has its roots in Christianity and its Jewish mother.

What is it like to live with a heart and head that don't match? Who knows. Perhaps a gnawing sense that something is not right. A sense of disappointment with the world. A deep frustration in not having any way to make sense of it all. And there you have the condition of the Western world.

For sure this doesn't compare with the suffering of many millions in the developing world whose lives are blighted with war, famine and pestilence. But that is the society we are trying to reach. And the man of sorrows who is familiar with suffering died to save the disconnected peoples of the West as much as He died for anyone else. Western people are alienated from God and consequently have become alienated from themselves as well.

The conversation ended with an "If you ever want to talk..." and they both took a flyer with our church details. It wasn't quite Philip meeting the Ethiopian and explaining Isaiah 53, but at least it gave someone the chance to talk about what was really going on in his heart.

A few links

2010-03-24T07:20:00.001Z

This post is just a bit of a round-up of some things I've been reading / listening to for the past few weeks.

Very impressed with Word & Spirit . Extended interviews with Craig Keener and Peter Davids can be found if you type their respective names into the search engine.

I've been reading The Storm by Vince Cable. I was looking for something to help me understand the present financial crisis. Cable's book does that and much more. It is very informative, but in an accessible way. And it's not heavy with banking jargon and number crunching. I picked it up from The Book People for £4.99. A real bargain.

Cookiesdays is one of my favourite blogs. It points you in so many fruitful directions.

My good friend Paul Sinclair has written a book Now Open Sundays . Great book to give to your not yet Christian friends. Very humorous but with a clear message.

This article was an eye-opener about world population; the problem the world faces is not one of too many people, but one of too much greed. Now there's a thought.

Change without decay

2010-03-22T10:05:00.004Z

Well the bee has been busily buzzing in my bonnet since that Dispatches programme. But it has made my brain tick in a way that I hadn't quite expected.

My point for so far is that Britain is changing in ways that pose a challenge to the church and that neither fight - attacking our perceived or real ideological opponents - or flight - retreating into "safety behaviours" is an adequate way to respond.

Change in any area of life can hit us at an emotional level in a way that we sometimes find hard to articulate. I think that to some extent explains the sometimes fearful and angry reactions of Christians to what is happening in Britain today. But as the apostle James says anger does not produce righteousness (James 1.20) and we all know that the apostles Paul and John saw no place for a spirit of fear within Christians and as something that was driven out by love.

The truth is that the changes we are experiencing in the makeup of our society are not going to go away. Immigration and emigration are part of life. And immigrants and emigres bring / take their cultural values with them. Islamic mullahs in full Middle Eastern garb who have some very politically incorrect ideas are at home in London or Blackburn or many another town or city in the UK. At the same time, expat Brits have made a life for themsleves in France or Spain, sometimes creating a corner of some foreign field that is, at least for the time being, England.

Something that we don't always factor into our discussions of the future of the church in Britain is the fact that population in Europe is in decline. The result is that the indigenous population is greying - the number of elderly people is increasing whilst the number of younger people is declining. This, obviously has far reaching consequences that are both economic and social. In the long run, it can be argued, Europe needs people from other countries and cultures across the world to come and settle in Europe.

We can either recognise and embrace this change and see it as an opportunity from God. Or we can pretend that it is not happening or can be stopped and find ourselves lost in a soup of emotions that are fuelled by values that really are not those of the kingdom of God.

It does have some real implications for the church. We will have to give reasons for our faith. We will have to think more carefully about how we reach out to people whose values and beliefs are sometimes hostile to Christianity (But hasn't that been the case from the earliest days of the church?)

And it might also mean more churches like KICC and Jesus House. And perhaps we will have to learn some evangelistic strategies from the church in places like China or Iran. Perhaps Christians should have more children! One way to increase the faith.

What an exciting time to be alive!

For more on Europe's declining population:

A BBC report. A couple of articles from the Washington Post after The New York Times. And some research from the UN .

Safety Behaviours

2010-03-15T09:57:00.003Z

I read an article today on whether Aspirin really is the kind of talismanic pill it is sometimes thought to be. A psychologist commented that when people are frightened they sometimes resort to "safety behaviours". In other words they do things that might not reduce the real threat in any way, but their actions will make them feel safer.

Sometimes the church resorts to "safety behaviours". This post is really another follow up to Uneasy Vision.

One of our "saftey behaviours", in my opinion, is that of conspiracy theories.

I think our culture loves conspiracy theories. The Da Vinci Code, The Bourne Series, 24. And so do some Christinas. Speculation about the antichrist: I can remember the excitement of reading a book and discovering on page one hundred and something that Anwar Sadat was the antichrist. (He wasn't.). The existence of giant Nephilim like creatures hiding in the earth waiting to be revealed in the end times. Multinational companies whose Satanic control is revealed by their New Age logo. And the many scare stories about what the U.S. federal government is about to do to Christians.

I want to suggest that even if there is a grain of truth in some conspiracy theories, we risk indulging in "safety behaviours" because we are missing the real threats to our faith.

In a sermon yesterday I referred to a book by Oliver James Affluenza. Although I disagreed profoundly with some of James' solutions, his analysis of where western society is at was, I thought, very accurate. What I kept thinking was "Why wasn't this written by a Christian?" The answer? I don't know. But I do sometimes feel as though we get sidetracked into things that produce very little that is in any way helpful.

The psychologist in the article I referred to above, advised that instead of resorting to the safety behaviour of taking a pill people should "choose something healthy that [they] can do on a daily basis such as eating a good breakfast or taking the stairs instead of the lift when [they] get to work..."

Praying, sharing our faith, being kind, showing love and concern, having a servant heart. Not perhaps as exciting as conspiracy theories. Possibly not even as comforting. In the long run, however, it's this sort of Christianity, practised by followers of Jesus up and down the country that has the real potential to change the nation.

See you on the stairs.

Switching the focus back to Jesus

2010-03-08T16:00:00.007Z

In many ways last Monday's post was one that I didn't want to write. However, the issues I raised are issues that concern many Christians throughout the UK.

Unfortunately, I think the way that we have sometimes responded to the growth of secularism and of other religions hasn't been entirely helpful. We have adopted a "Christendom" stance. We have protested, quoted scripture to show everyone why and where they are wrong and presented Britain as a modern day Israel with a special relationship with God.

Now, it has to be said that Britain has known incredible blessing from God throughout its history. However, that in itself does not mean that God has any special obligation to Britain or that the British Church has any special claim on God's blessing.

So what about a way forward? I did promise to share a few thoughts.

For me finding a workable solution begins with asking some good questions.

One good question for me is "How does the church relate to a culture that has values that are unsympathetic and sometimes down right opposed to its values and mission?

There are some biblical examples that might help us. For example, the Jews in exile in Babylon. A study of the book of Daniel shows how a follower of the true God not only survived but thrived in an environment that was pregnant with hostility.

Turning over to the New Testament, the witness of the apostles, especially in the Graeco-Roman world is very helpful.

Acts 19 records how Paul saw an amazing move of God in Ephesus. Not surprisingly the locals got upset when the revival began to affect the local economy. The city clerk (35-41) addresses a rioting mob and in v.37 comments "You have brought these men here though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess."

I think we have in this verse an indication of one way forward: we promote Christ rather than attacking other religions or ideologies that compete with him for the hearts and minds of our communities. In other words, let's switch the focus back to Jesus.

Ancient Wisdom

2010-03-06T12:42:00.001Z

"After I'm dead I'd rather have people ask why I have no monument than why I have one." Cato the Elder

Uneasy vision

2010-03-03T07:00:00.000Z

In the midst of all the excitement and challenge of pastoring a great church with a great heritage in one of the world's great cities, I occasionally find the time to be uneasy. This occasional unease has been a feature of my ministry right from my first days as an assistant pastor.

The state of Britain and Europe has been the source of my unease. It used to be the slide into secularism which seemed to gnaw away at me. Things might have been going well in the particular church I was serving at the time, but deep down there was and is this disturbing feeling that we're losing ground in our communities and market places.

Uneasiness flared up again just recently.

This article alleging that Islamic radicals had infiltrated the Labour Party and Channel 4's Dispatches were unwelcome reminders of the battle going on for the soul of our nation, a battle that many, especially politicians, are afraid to acknowledge is going on.

Islamisation is happening in parts of the UK. And in part it is because society has turned its back on Christianity. This coverage of an interview with the retiring Archbishop of Prague has too loud a ring of truth for comfort; there is a religious vacuum in Europe and Islam is well placed to fill it.

I didn't want to come back after a lengthy absence from the blogosphere with something that might seem discouraging. But this is part of the reality we face as we witness for Christ in 21st century Britain and Europe.

Nor do I intend to leave it there. I plan to post later in the week or at the beginning of next week some things we can do to rise to one of the challenges of our era. And I hope that your comments will help me to tackle my unease.

You can find out more about the Islamic Forum Europe at their website

"A touch of Puritanism today"

2010-02-08T14:33:00.004Z

I've just watched The Bible A History - Moses and the Law. It was presented by Anne Widdecombe (A.W.). This is really good television. I have to hand it to Channel 4, they are prepared to let people have their say - even when their views aren't mainstream.

A.W. tackled some big issues and interacted with people who violently disagree with traditional Christianity and Judaism. But she managed to put her case and, in my opinion, put it in a way that both revealed the moral bankruptcy of modern Britain and offered direction and hope for the future.

The quote about Puritanism came from a section of the documentary in which A.W. recounted how a brand of radical Puritanism had brought positive social change in the town of Dorchester.

It brought to mind some comments made by an internationally renowned (Christian) futurologist at a recent conference. He suggested that one possible future scenario in Britain is that there will be a radical swing back to traditional moral values; desperate times require desperate measures.

Perhaps A.W. and our conference speaker are right. Perhaps that uncomfortable future that we sometimes look ahead to isn't one in the grip of secularism, but one equally unfamiliar because it has been touched by Puritanism.

You can read the story of what happened when Puritanism got hold of Dorchester here

Lifelong learning resources

2010-02-01T07:11:00.000Z

I found this resource whilst looking for a free language course on the net. The whole website will guide you to educational podcasts, free courses and free educational video resources online. Definitely worth exploring if you want something a bit more demanding than the weekend newspapers.

Mega church is still church

2010-01-31T07:45:00.000Z

I didn't think charismatic mega churches did this sort of thing any more. Refreshing.

Rewarding what is important

2010-01-30T09:06:00.003Z

‘Do you think a man or woman who chooses to stay at home to look after their children is doing a less viable job than someone on an assembly line?’ When a worker goes out to build a car, the Government gives him a tax exemption, if she or he stays at home you double tax that family by not allowing that tax exemption to exist.” Iain Duncan Smith, from an interview in The Times

The short interview is well worth a read. His comments on family, the state of Britain and being a Christian in public life deserve reflection - whatever your politics.

Unstraightforward living

2010-01-28T07:00:00.000Z

I use McCheyne's Bible reading plan to read through the Bible every year. Highly recommend it.

I have noticed recently that in each of the four chapters I am reading that the different characters - all from different times in biblical history - are continually facing problems and difficulties like barrenness, critical and malicious leaders, tyrannical kings. And that's because they are doing God's will! This Christian life was never meant to be straightforward!

You can get McCheyne's plan here

Some progress in the swim against the tide

2010-01-27T07:00:00.003Z

On Monday evening the House of Lords rejected the government's equality bill. The implications of the bill in its original form would have left churches open to prosecution if they refused to employ a person on the basis of their sexuality. You can read more here .

However, it seems that the tide of public opinion is drifting further away from traditional views on sexuality. The Guardian reports that the most recent British Social Attitudes Survey reveals that 36% of people think of homosexual relationships as "always or mostly" wrong, compared to 62% in 1983. This is just one item of data that indiciates that Britain has become much more socially liberal over the past two decades.

Faux reassurance

2010-01-26T07:00:00.000Z

Seth Godin's blog really is must reading. The following is a quote from a post entitled No, everything is not going to be okay:

"Finding the bravery to shun faux reassurance is a critical step in producing important change. Once you free yourself from the need for perfect acceptance, it's a lot easier to launch work that matters."

Looking for your Egyptian

2010-01-25T15:47:00.003Z

Kevin Peat spoke at our Sunday evening service. He brought a very challenging word. He preached from 1 Samuel 30 about how David turned defeat into victory. He drew attention to the Egyptian, who had been abandoned by his master, that David and his men met as they pursued those who had raided Ziklag. The intel they gathered from the Egyptian was the key to their success.

Sometimes the most unlikely person can be a major determining factor in living in victory. I'm looking for my Egyptian.

Live on air

2010-01-23T07:40:00.000Z

I did my first ever radio work on Thusday evening. Lorna Grady at Revival FM invited me to be part of her show - The Late Show. She asked me all sorts of questions, including, if I could invite six people (three from the bible and three from non-biblical history) to a dinner party, who they would be.

I enjoyed the whole thing. Lorna did an excellent job in the way she asked her questions. Her ability to blend humour and serious issues was very effective.

You can hear Lorna at 9.30 on Thursday evenings on 100.8 FM.

Spreadsheet vision

2010-01-22T18:37:00.000Z

"In my experience, data crowds out faith. And without faith, it's hard to believe in the data enough to make a leap. Big mergers, big VC investments, big political movements, large congregations... they don't usually turn out for a spreadsheet. " Seth Godin. Read the whole post here

Friends and Family

2010-01-21T07:15:00.000Z

"We can see this in Jesus’ ministry; he is recruiting disciples who bring their friends or their family, their workmates. Whenever you see the gospel expanding exponentially it’s expanding along networks of pre-existing relationships." An excerpt from an interview with Steve Addison posted on his blog. This quote is taken from part 4

Making friends with your opponents

2010-01-19T07:00:00.000Z

The story of how a Christian campaigner against the mega mosque made friends with some of his Islamic opponents. Read it here.

Plans for the Mega Mosque shelved

2010-01-18T15:33:00.002Z

I've just learnt that plans for the mega mosque in the East End of London have been shelved. A petition with 48000 signatures was submitted at one stage opposing the development. Read the latest here and here

Keller on creation and evolution

2010-01-06T11:07:00.002Z

This from Tim Keller on creation and evolution is worth a read. Thoughtful piece.

Any title but "pastor"

2010-01-04T19:49:00.001Z

This from Mark Driscoll is just so funny.

Boris at his Christmas best

2009-12-28T14:52:00.002Z

Whatever you might think of Boris Johnson his anarchic streak must bring a smile to your face .

Where did all those people go?

2009-12-26T07:34:00.000Z

Just before Christmas our band did an event in a Church of Scotland church building. In conversation with the minister of the church, I remarked at how impressive the building was. I enthused at how wonderful his Christmas services must be in a building that was so suited to the traditonal type carol service. He replied that only a few people turned up because most of his congregation were elderly and struggled to turn out to evening events.

He then told me that at one time the church seated 980 people. On Sundays when communion was served they had to have two services. Amazing!

No doubt this was the case throughout Scotland - and the rest of the UK. Where did all those people go? What happened?

Jesus - the One who lives up to His Name

2009-12-25T07:26:00.001Z

He was to be called Jesus, because He would save His people from their sins. The name and the explanation trip of the tongue in a way that can sometimes bypass our hearts and minds.

This Christmas I was thinking, "How can I at least make people think about the Name and its meaning?" Here's what I came up with:

"Jesus, the One who lives up to His Name".

We are used to people living up to their name in a negative way - "Bernard Madoff - he made off with other people's money", for example.

Jesus is the one who really does live up to His Name. He saves people from the eternal consequences of their sins - judgment and hell. And He saves them from the present consequnces of their sins - guilt and shame. He really is the one who lives up to His Name.

May you know the reality and power of the Name of Jesus during this Christmas season.

Christmas Eve once again

2009-12-24T11:41:00.001Z

Wonderful music from John Rutter. Hope you'll feel the real wonder of Christmas.

Light, Life, Love - in the bunker

2009-12-23T07:05:00.001Z

Kurt Reuber was a doctor in the German army at Stalingrad. He was also a protestant minister. In December 1942 on the back of a Russian map, he sketched a picture of the baby Jesus being held by his mother. On the left of the picture the German translates as "1942 - Christmas in the cauldron". In smaller letters at the bottom "Festung Stalingrad" - "Fortress Stalingrad". And on the right, "Light, life and love".

At the time the German army was surrounded and faced annihilation.

Reuber hung the sketch in his bunker. He commented that when his unit came to his bunker for a Christmas celebration everyone was spellbound by the drawing.

You can read more about this amazing work on Wiki

"Thirst knows no season"

2009-12-22T07:01:00.000Z

Christmas is one of those times preachers have to work a little bit harder to make sure that their sermons retain some bite, even though most people are familiar with the passages from which they preach. You're always on the look out for a good story that will illustrate in a fresh way the great truths of the Chritstmas story. And you're also on the hunt for evangelistic hooks.

One that I came across recently might help some of you preachers preparing for Christmas Eve carol services.

According to the Coca-Cola archives, our current image of Santa Claus is largely shaped by the Coca-Cola Santa (well they would say that, wouldn't they?), who first appeared in the 1930s. The image was part of an advertising campaign that began in 1922. Coca-Cola executives were concerned that Coke was seen as a seasonal beverage - something that you drank in the summer.

To counter this they came up with the slogan "Thirst knows no season." How true that is. Hearts are perhaps more aware of their spiritual thirst at Christmas than at any other time of the year.

You can read the official version here

Monday Fun: Christmas Capers

2009-12-21T16:43:00.001Z

There was nothing quite like the Some Mothers Do 'Av 'Em Christmas special.

Stopping off at the spiritual travel lodge

2009-12-19T10:54:00.004Z

I had an interesting conversation with an elderly Englishman who had converted to Buddhism. We exchanged notes on how we had come to believe what we did. He told me how he'd gone into a Buddhist centre and just felt Buddhism was for him. I explained that I'd grown up in a Christian family, and how even though the beliefs that had been handed down to me looked, in my teenage years, a bit like a piece of obsolete furniture, on closer inspection I found that they were more like a priceless antique.

He was quite taken by this description. I then asked him if his beliefs were now fixed or if he was still on a journey. People are always on a journey, he said (meaning he was!) and then he said something that I didn't expect him to say "You never know, you might convince me to convert to your faith."

Christmas is a good time to invite people to church, whatever their faith background. For like my Buddhist friend their current faith position is more like a stop at a spiritual travel lodge than arrival at their final, settled belief.

Dinner with Jesus? For everyone?

2009-12-18T07:21:00.000Z

This and this over at Euangelion are worth a read. Perhaps hospitality and the practice of the Lord's Supper (or "dinner" as Dunn would have us call it) played a major part in the spread of the gospel. Something the contemporary church could learn from Dunn's studies and the practice of the N.T. church?

Oral Roberts

2009-12-17T07:22:00.000Z

Just found out last night that Oral Roberts has gone to be with the Lord. He was a legend.

From naivety to complexity...and back to naivety again

2009-12-16T07:21:00.001Z

I was able to attend the "Big IF" day conference hosted by Alpha Scotland. Made some new friends and had the chance to listen to Peter Greig for the first time. He said a lot of very helpful things about prayer.

One of the challenges from the day was to become naive again. Let me explain. PG said that we begin the Christian life being naive about God. We just expect Him to answer prayer. We expect Him to make things work for us. Often He does! And life can seem a breeze. Then it gets complicated. We get tired - perhaps even confused. The challenge was to allow God to lead us out of complexity and attendant pain, disappointment, confusion, etc., and back into a second naivety.

There's a challenge for you!

Doors and People

2009-12-14T07:10:00.000Z

I was at a meeting recently the objective of which was to bring different faiths together to present their take on God and the world. Good to see some evangelicals presenting the case for Christ - Free Church of Scotland in this case.

One of the most arresting statements however, came from a JW. If an evangelical had said 90% of what this man said we would have loudly amened him.

The statement that stuck out was "People say we love doors. We don't love doors - we love people." I have to admit I felt really convicted. Here was a man with whom I could find much to disagree on, but because he and his organisation loved people and wanted them to find their faith they were prepared to be dismissed as door-lovers. Something there I need to reflect on.

Christianity in the raw

2009-12-07T07:00:00.000Z

This is the kind of little story that - well, it just makes you think. It makes you think about whether we have as much as we think we have. The kind of little story that unintentionally but urgently and acutely raises questions about the health of Western Christianity.

Last 80's post: Shine Jesus Shine - the song of a generation

2009-12-05T02:15:00.001Z

I can't remember if it was the late 80's or early 90's when I visited my old school. It was a fairly traditional church school and its religious ethos tended towards liberal Anglicanism. You can imagine my amazement when I discovered that Shine, Jesus Shine had been included in the new school hymn book. That alone was enough to convince me that the Holy Spirit had taken the church into a revolution in the 80's, and we are stil feeling the impact of that revolution today.

John Wimber - one of the most influential leaders of the 80's

2009-12-04T12:09:00.001Z

This clip of John Wimber leading a congregation in worship is like a little cameo of the 80's. Singing in the Spirit was for many the high point of worship. The haunting "Spirit of the Living God" was one of those real heart cry songs. And John Wimber had enormous influence on the church, especially in Britain. Quite moved when I first watched this video

John Wimber - one of the most influential leaders of the 80's

2009-12-04T09:35:00.002Z

MIssion England: Reaching the lost in the 80's

2009-12-03T13:43:00.001Z

This video was made to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Mission England. If you forward to about 26 seconds you will hear from Gavin Reid, one of the main leaders who organised the event. And then there are a couple of other stories, with clips from the celebration at Norwich cathedral between. Have a watch and, if you're not into mass evangelism, you might be tempted to revise your opinion.

CFNI - Great and Mighty Army / Trees of the Field

2009-12-02T20:45:00.001Z

This was the more heartfelt version of "There's a great and mighty army" that I was looking for. Just feel the confidence! Never really got into " The Trees of the Fields"

80's Week - Derek Prince and baptism in the Spirit

2009-12-02T17:09:00.001Z

Derek Prince wasn't your average Pentecostal pastor with his public school and Cambridge background. His teaching ministry was known throughout the world. Here he is teaching on a doctrine which had a massive impact on the church in the 80's.

The 80's - A Great and Mighty Army

2009-12-01T08:47:00.001Z

Classic 80's praise

Triumphant 80's praise

2009-12-01T07:04:00.005Z

"Praise brings the victory". Our younger readers might have never heard such a statement. Back in the day - the 80's - that almost summed up charismatic doctrine on praise and worship.

Along with it was a triumphant - some would say triumphalist - outlook on the world.

Consider these lines from some of our songs of praise:

"We'll take the nations for Jesus as Satan's kingdom falls
Righteousness and truth will prevail through our God"

or

"There's a great and mighty army
In the earth today,
Dressed in splendid armour,
They're in full array.
The hosts of darkness tremble
As they walk their way,
There's a great and mighty army in the earth today.

"So I'll shout, I'll shout the victory,
The enemy is under my feet.
So I'll shout I'll shout the victory,
For great is our King, great is our King, great is the King of Kings!"

Then the next verse went "I am in that mighty army in the earth today..." etc.

There were loads of "victory" songs like this.

And we had teaching on praise. Remember all those Hebrew word studies? And how Paul and Silas got the victory in jail because they were praising?

Is this still the outlook in the charismatic world? Have we forgotten this dimension of praise? Or is it so embedded in the charismatic psyche and liturgy that we just don't notice it any more?

Have we lost the note of triumph? Or have we just got over our triumphalism? I'd love to know what you think.

And for our younger readers. Please feel free to try this at home. You don't need your parents' permission.

Above is a tame version of one of the above songs.

Monday Fun from the 80's

2009-11-30T09:06:00.001Z

Thought it was time we had some Monday Fun again. This one is from the 80's. Perhaps a good launch pad for an 80's week on Outthere?

Latte and Lord's Supper

2009-11-28T06:39:00.000Z

Thought provoking article on replacing the Lord's Table with coffee bars. The question of the formative value of the Lord's Table as opposed to a coffee bar is one worth pondering.

Atheist humour

2009-11-27T20:19:00.003Z

This is funny. The British Humanist Association's advertising campaign Please Don't Label Me features a picture of two children. What they didn't realise was that the two children are from an evangelical family! Read more here and here

Grudem on Grudem

2009-11-24T07:06:00.000Z

Some of you are just going to love this. It looks like Wayne Grudem lecturing on all the topics of his Systematic Theology on MP3. And its all free!

Hardcore shock

2009-11-23T08:55:00.004Z

This article alerted me to a piece by Oliver James which shocked me with the stat that 93% of boys and 62% of girls will have viewed hardcore pornography by age 18. That is truly shocking!

James' article is a very informative piece on the impact pornography can have on families.

Planning and Preparing

2009-11-19T13:11:00.001Z

This video made me think.

A month's a long time in ministry

2009-11-16T15:30:00.002Z

It's almost a month since I have posted anything. And a lot has changed! I'm now living in Scotland and pastoring Glasgow Elim.

The transition has been fairly smooth. We have been made to feel very welcome by the people of Glasgow Elim. It feels as though we have been there for a lot longer than three weeks! I am surprised at how "at home" we feel already.

Glasgow Elim has a very different profile to Elim Church Crawley. It is a church that is well known nationally and internationally and has hosted some very well known Christian leaders; we've just finished a week of ministry with John and Carol Arnott and Sharon Stone. And then I'm preaching next Sunday. No pressure, just privilege.

The children are getting used to new schools. God has been very gracious in the way in which he has made a way for them.

I don't often share personal stuff on this blog, but I think I should share this.

We were a little apprehensive about Jonny moving to a new secondary school - and he was too.

We encouraged him to see it as an opportunity to prove God. I felt that God was speaking to us through the story of Jehoash visiting the dying Elisha. It's that story about him striking the ground with the arrows three times, when he should have struck it six times (2 Kings 13.14-18). Anyway, he got three victories over Aram and was publicly successful. However, he could have had so much more (2 Kings 13.25). I encouraged Jonny to believe God for real success and favour at his new school instead of just hoping to make it through. And he has risen to the challenge and is finding that the Lord is really helping him.

Thanks for all your prayers - but do keep praying!

Evaporating vision

2009-10-15T09:55:00.002+01:00

Some very challenging words from John Piper, taken from a talk he gave on the life of Jonathan Edwards:

"I think that what happens for many pastors is that the ministry does not flourish with as much power and joy as they had hoped and just to survive emotionally they start to give way to amusements and diversions and hobbies. The ministry becomes a 40-hour-a-week job that you do like any other, and then the evenings and days off are filled up with harmless, enjoyable diversions. And the whole feel changes. The radical urgency fades. The wartime mentality shifts to a peacetime mentality. The lifestyle starts to get cushy. The all-consuming singleness of vision evaporates.

"Let me say it again. Our people need a God-besotted man. Even if they criticize the fact that you are not available at the dinner on Saturday night because you must be with God, they need at least one man in their life who is radically and totally focused on God and the pursuit of the knowledge of God, and the ministry of the word of God."

Read the whole thing here

The Prayer Art

2009-10-13T08:43:00.000+01:00

I've just read this book on prayer by my good friend Dan Chesney. Some really inspirational stuff undergirded by sound biblical teaching on our union with Christ. What's so special about this book is not just that it is written by a serious practitioner of the prayer art, but that Dan allows us into his own prayer world.

You can purchase it at Dan's website.

Must read / watch - honest

2009-10-11T07:47:00.000+01:00

This is just brilliant.

A tribute to the volunteers, Crawley campaign 1998-2009

2009-10-10T13:28:00.001+01:00

I have to honour in some way the volunteers who I served with during my Crawley years. The Magnificent Seven motif is fitting. Optimistic. Gung-ho. Can do. Never say die. Hold the line. Dig in. And every other time honoured positive cliche you can think of. Not just seven who fought like seven hundred. More like a hundred who fought like a hundred thousand. Hitch up the wagons again gang! Head west! There's gold in the hills! Make today's frontiers obsolete. Break open some new territory. And above all, keep the faith.

Farewell

2009-10-10T11:39:00.001+01:00

Well, after eleven and a half years my time as pastor of Elim Church Crawley has come to an end.

Last weekend we had a farewell banquet. What a feast that was! And some very kind people brought some very gracious tributes. It was a bit like being present at your own funeral...I don't actually think my funeral will be as good as the farewell do - not that I'll have much to do with it!

Beryl and the children and I really do appreciate Elim Church Crawley for fantastic support and patience during our time with this wonderful church. We have learnt so much, grown so much and we are leaving with a greater vision of God and deeper love and respect for His peeople. Well done ECC. You are going on to greater things.

Worth a look

2009-10-09T07:09:00.000+01:00

A few interesting articles from the blogosphere

This on wasting time and how not to.

Some good stuff on vision and change from Mark Driscoll .

Thoughtful piece on the complexities of the second world war at the timesonline .

And you just have to watch Paxo v. Boris . Thanks to David Cooke over at cookiesdays for the heads up on this one.

The Importance of Urgency

2009-10-08T07:14:00.001+01:00

I watched this interview with John Kotter from Harvard Businiess School recently. I am sure some of the things he is saying are relevant in church life.

Not always sure that the church is as urgent in spirit as its meesage suggests it should be. What do you think?

The promise is for your children as well (Acts 2.39)

2009-10-07T07:15:00.001+01:00

If you are a children's worker - or a parent for that matter - this post over at the help I work with children blog is must reading. Children are far more spiritually open and aware than we sometimes think. They are also able to grasp spiritual truth in ways that would surprise at least some of us. Lynn's post is a timely reminder and a real encouragement to build expectation into our children and perhaps a stimulus to our own expectations when working with children.

Generation A

2009-10-06T07:04:00.001+01:00

The following is taken from a review of Douglas Coupland's latest novel Generation A:

"Meanwhile, at the heart of the novel, he makes a serious point about how the bombardment of media content has eroded our ability to tell satisfying stories about ourselves. 'To survive,’ says one character, 'people need to become self-branding charisma robots.’ But despite this bleak diagnosis, Generation A is Coupland’s most hopeful novel yet. The 'A’ indicates that we are at the beginning of something new, ready to build fresh narratives from the consumer rubble. " Read the whole thing here

The reviewer's last sentence I find more than a little intriguing.

The partly Jewish president of Iran

2009-10-04T11:19:00.002+01:00

The Telegraph yesterday carried a story claiming that President Ahmadinejad of Iran has Jewish roots. How bizzarre! I suppose in some circles that will strengthen his candidature for Antichrist. And if that were so, I suppose we could thank the Telegraph for helping to reveal the Antichrist! Which in turn might mean that the Telegraph is right up there with Hal Lindsay when it comes to end-times teaching.

Tim Keller Blog

2009-10-03T09:41:00.003+01:00

Check out Tim Keller's new blog. I'm looking forward to reading his posts. Keller has been a favourite for a while.

Life Goals

2009-10-01T07:15:00.000+01:00

Follow the links at this post for some thought provoking advice on goals and goalsetting over at Cookiesdays .

Worship like children hear it

2009-09-30T07:32:00.001+01:00

Here are a few things I've heard children sing:

"Henry's bible! Henry's bible!" (Send revival! Send revival!)

"Faith, I can move a mountain, I have got a big surprise" (Faith I can move a mountain, I can do all things through Christ)

"You are a bubble king" (You are above all kings)

Any of your own to add?

Afterthought: do we make songs too complicated for kids or is it a case of the words just not fitting particularly well with the music?

When Benedict met Darlene

2009-09-29T07:14:00.000+01:00

I was channel hopping through the religious channels yesterday and in truth, it all seemed a bit dull. A bit predictable. Until I got to EWTN - the catholic channel.

I could never have predicted what I was going to see and hear. There was Benedict preparing to celebrate mass in the Czech republic with "This is my desire, to honour you..."(in Czech) belting out in the background.

What's happening? Is the catholic church becoming more open to the Spirit? Is it an attempt to hold on to their young people? Or is it all a Roman ruse to lure away weak evangelicals?

I don't know, but it certainly wasn't what I expected!

Here is water...

2009-09-28T12:47:00.002+01:00

Last night I baptised a new believer for the last time as pastor of Elim Church Crawley. It is always an enormous privilege to baptise new believers and last night was no exception.

One thing that made it a little different though, was what happened at the end. Instead of just singing a song after the last baptism, we left it open for anyone who wanted to be baptised. And Laura responded. I thought she might really want to be baptised, but she was feeling a little apprehensive.

Once the appeal was made she came to the front and read her testimony from a little piece of paper she had in her pocket. One of our elders immediately volunteered to help me, and we performed our unexpected baptism.

As the Ethiopian said "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptised?" (Acts 8.36)

Volunteers

2009-09-23T07:10:00.002+01:00

I was discussing volunteering with a relatively new Christian. I loved his take on it.

"It's not such much the church asking me to do something as God asking me through the church." Now there's a thought. What about that for an ecclesiology?

A church like heaven

2009-09-22T11:52:00.003+01:00

I spent some time with a friend the other day who is a little older than me.

He told me of his experiences in the early days of what was known as the renewal movement.

His church was opposed to the gifts of the Spirit and those who wanted to know more were forced to meet in secret and discuss such things.

Eventually people began to leave their evangelical churches and form new charismatic churches. He was involved in one locally, almost from its inception.

What was it like? "Like being in heaven". That's what he felt.

I guess sometimes we take our Pentecostal / Charismatic heritage just a little bit for granted.

Monday Fun

2009-09-21T16:59:00.001+01:00

The things that used to make us laugh...

Thursday Thoughts

2009-09-17T07:52:00.000+01:00

"The goal is not a solution to a problem but a sign of hope". This is the way Jean Vanier's L'Arche communities have been described. Is this the essence of true ministry? That we are not here so much to fix a problem as to be bringers of signs of the coming kingdom - and the coming King?

What do you think? Would love to know your thoughts.

Men, women and story: some interviews with Eugene Peterson

2009-09-16T07:56:00.000+01:00

I came across a couple of interviews with Eugene Peterson from a few years back. You can find them here and here . They're quite short, but plenty of content to chew on.

Blog plug

2009-09-15T08:10:00.000+01:00

I keep my eye on a few blogs. One of my favourites is Cookies Days It is managed by David Cooke a minister in Richmond, London. It's very informative and draws information from a wide variety of sources. Well worth reading. Look out for the blog sweeps in particular.

Monday Fun

2009-09-14T08:08:00.001+01:00

Sometimes you just have to get out and push...

Bluetree "God of this City" Story

2009-09-12T08:53:00.001+01:00

You've probably heard or sung "God of this City". I didn't know the background to the song. Very powerful.

So Bono's a Calvinist, eh?

2009-09-11T07:36:00.001+01:00

"And U2's 2009 album, No Line on the Horizon, chimes in with, "I was born to ring for you / I didn't have a choice but to lift you up," with the refrain, "Justified until we die / you and I will magnify / the Magnificent." Who knew that Bono was at least a three-point Calvinist?"

Read the whole thing here

New book by an old friend

2009-09-10T06:52:00.000+01:00

My good friend Paul Sinclair a.k.a Faster Pastor, has finally got himself into print.

I've know Paul for nearly 25 years and have watched - sometimes speechless - as he has used his enormous creative talent to engage the public with the good news.

His book, Now Open Sundays: A Celebration of Faith From A Church With A Message, promises to be humorous, inspiring and challenging, in other words just like one of Paul's sermons.

You can find out more here. Click here to find out more about Paul's Motorcycle Funeral business and here for the Fasterpastor website.

Who was the Strict Baptist who prophesied?

2009-09-09T07:49:00.000+01:00

No, it's not a question from Charismatic Trivial Pursuit.

I was having a clear out on Monday and discovered some notes from a Randy Clark talk c.1996. He said some very interesting things. One was that in 1954 a Strict Baptist pastor had prophesied 20 years of God restoring grace to the church, 20 years of God restoring New Testament church life and then 20 years of revival.

Has anyone else heard of this prophecy? Anyone know who this brother is?

New blog

2009-09-08T08:56:00.003+01:00

My good friend Magdalene Meduoye has set up a personal development blog. Magdalene is a member of Elim Crawley and she is someone who practises what she preaches. Check out her site here for some sound practical advice about making the most of every situation in life.

Rebuilding the Family Altar

2009-09-07T07:00:00.002+01:00

My sister attends St. Aldates Church in Oxford. Before our summer holidays she gave me a book called The Discipline of Intimacy written by the Rector, Charlie Cleverly.

Somehow this book touched my heart. It is very informative, very biblical in its approach, but it has what I can only describe as drawing power. It drew me. It made we want to read. More than that, it made me want to pray. It made me want to seek God.

However, it went even further. One chapter in particular might prove to be the most important chapter that I've read in any book for a long, long time.

You see the chapter in question, chapter 9, is about rebuilding the family altar. The author was challenged about the importance of this by an African pastor. This pastor, John Mulinde, told him that he was surprised that having visited many Christian homes in the West, prayer was not part of the warp and woof of the lives of these families. He then went on to explain that in Uganda Christian families prayed together for about an hour daily.

The author told of his own experience of rebuilding the family altar in his home and gave ten practical steps for anyone who wanted to set out on this journey.

Can you imagine how it would affect the prayer life of the church if every Christian family was committed to family prayer? Can you imagine the potential for impacting the world?

You can find out more about the church Charlie Cleverly leads here

Safely within the premil fold

2009-09-05T21:10:00.003+01:00

Premillenialism. I know it might sound like a disease for which there is no known cure. And maybe it is, kind of. The belief that Christ will return and then set up an earthly kingdom for a thousand years has thrown a great shadow over my life - sometimes protective, sometimes restrictive.

Despite the appeal of amillenialism and the triumphalism of postmillennialism - will I ever forget the excitement on reading Iain Murray's The Puritan Hope - I am now safely within the premillennial fold.

Listening to Tom Schreiner's sermon on Revelation 20 confirmed me in the faith. His points that (i) Satan is not presented as "bound" in the rest of the NT and (ii) "Resurection" is physical everywhere else in the N.T. (he cites the work of N.T. Wright to strengthen his case), I think are very strong arguments for the premil position.

So I am going to bed tonight a happy premillennialist.

Now if Ephrem the Syrian really did hold the pretrib position, I might have to consider that as well...life can get so complicated.

Wake up call

2009-08-28T09:48:00.001+01:00

Now to that Irish preacher story.

This preacher apparently is known for his preaching props that make an impact.

Well, on this occasion he put a bed on the platform and got into it. When everyone arrived at church they were understandably bemused at what was going on. He then jumped out of bed, and began to preach about the church being asleep!

Thursday Thoughts

2009-08-27T09:46:00.001+01:00

I wondered what you'd make of this clip from a David Wilkerson sermon. A couple of people have sent it to me. Love to hear your thoughts.

A voice says "Yawp" And I said "What shall I yawp?" Isaiah 40v6 (JGV)

2009-08-26T10:00:00.001+01:00

I spent some time yesterday talking to a young preacher. We discussed various aspects of the art. One of the elements that I think makes for great preaching is when the preacher finds his own voice. That is key. I used the above to illustrate my point.
It's a great clip and in many ways it illustrates how the preacher begins to find his own voice and also the preacher's task of unlocking what God has put in other people.

A travelling angel?

2009-08-25T22:15:00.004+01:00

Something a bit unusual happened today. I was sitting at my desk busy changing the world by e-mail when I saw a guy come up to the front door of the church. I opened the door and asked if I could help.

He wanted to know if the church was a Pentecostal church. Then he asked if all Pentecostal churches were the same. When I said that there were some differences. He asked why there were differences. I thought it was too complicated to talk about church government, initial evidence, etc., so I said that there were often different Pentecostal churches because people are human beings and they sometimes fall out with each other.

I was amazed at his response. He said that he had never heard anyone admit that before!

I invited him into the church office and it turned out he was a traveller from Ireland. It so happened that he knew of William Lee and had heard him preach and he told me some fantastic stories of what God is doing amongst the travelling community. Unfortunately, he himself had lost his way a bit.

After a few minutes his brother called him on his mobile and he was gone. What a great interruption to a Tuesday afternoon. (I'll tell you a great story he told me about a preacher in Ireland another day)

Beating our ploughshares into golf clubs

2009-08-22T18:08:00.000+01:00

Opposite the primary school I attended lay a huge estate owned by the government. It was enclosed by a stone wall and out of bounds to everyone, but those who worked there or did business there.

It was used for commercial farming and agricultural experiments. No doubt the aim was to develop approaches to farming that increased yields and efficiency. In other words, it was all about food production.

Now it is mainly devoted to leisure and tourism, and the farming element is greatly reduced. Some of the land has even been turned into a golf course. We had a walk around the lake and our children played in the park.

I wonder what that says about us as a society? Does it say anything? Can I really conclude that we are now more concerned with leisure than we are with food production? I wonder how someone from the developing world would interpret this. Perhaps I just need to be a bit less serious and enjoy an angst free holiday.