I’m sure that all Christians have heard glib, basic conclusions in Bible teaching in churches. Maybe you’ve heard a preacher tell you that God is love or God is in control. Or a Bible study leader tell you that you should love God and not money, or that you should tell other people about Jesus. …
Too many sermons are more complicated than they need to be. Like any specialty, the Christian world has its own special vocabulary. Words like holy, justification and glorification do turn up in the Bible, yet they rarely if ever turn up in everyday conversation. On top of this, there are all kinds of theological terms …
It is that time of year when I need to plan what I want to do around the weather forecast. For the past few weeks, it has rained a little on most days and a lot on others. Outdoor activities have needed to be cancelled or moved around at times. Plans to do the washing …
Have you noticed how many Bible passages draw conclusions from looking at the natural world? Here’s only a small sample: 3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the …
We live in a world which values extroverts very highly. School children are marked on contributions in class. Job interview processes always include evidence of teamwork. TV shows and movies portray typical social lives as being dominated by attending parties and large social gatherings. We all love someone who loves people and is in their …
A few weeks ago, our family went through the usual seasonal cold and flu time. All of us were sniffing, tired, and had sore throats. Nothing too extreme, nothing that even needed a doctor’s visit, just the common cold. Yet this relatively minor ailment led to some missed work and school days and our usual …
Sometimes the right words, said at the right time, can change someone’s life. Encouragement has the power to really make a difference to people, yet it is a rarer thing than it should be. Christians live in a world that is not our home, a world full of discouragement. We feel the pressure of our …
While I was on Sabbatical, I had the opportunity to visit other churches in my city that I usually am not able to visit. Usually, I attended by myself, as my family had rostered commitments at our home church, and mostly I went to churches where I did not know many people. Some of them …
I am the father of three boys. We have a family tradition to measure every child’s height on their birthday. The fast-growing teenagers always look forward to the confirmation that they have grown a lot, especially if it means passing the height of one of their parents! There is much banter about who is taller, …
By the time you read this, I will be on a Sabbatical from my usual ministry. I have been pastoring now for almost 18 years, and ironically after a time of significant growth and encouragement in the church, I am feeling a bit run down and tired. My denomination allows pastors to have a Sabbatical …