COVID19 and Omicron – what next?

I’ve been sharing regular updates about COVID-19 primarily to help church leaders plan. Occasionally I share my thoughts and opinions about what we should be doing, nationally and internationally. All of this comes with the qualifying caveat that I’m just a bloke sat on his sofa with his laptop -I’m no expert in Epidemiology or… Continue reading COVID19 and Omicron – what next?

Mary did you know?

Do you find that your faith is at times fragile? Is your knowledge about the Bible and doctrine seriously incomplete? Then today’s #DailyDose looking at another carol is just for you! Here’s the audio version of the talk And you can watch on YouTube here This is a beautiful version of the carol by Pentatonix… Continue reading Mary did you know?

Abuse, bullying and slander – a war of attrition

When it comes to concerns about abuse and bullying I think we can identify the following types of context Clear examples of coercive, cruel and manipulative behaviour Clear examples of false accusation One off but significant failures The reality that all of us are finite and fallen and consistently get things wrong in terms of… Continue reading Abuse, bullying and slander – a war of attrition

First Look 2 Who is this man?

Discussion Starters How would you define religion? Identify one religion or belief system from the list below and see if you can identify its core beliefs. Do you think the particular belief system you have described is liveable Islam Hinduism Sikhism Communism Humanism Buddhism Or alternatively…  If you could ask God one question what would… Continue reading First Look 2 Who is this man?

Preparing the Christmas Carol Service Sermon

Over the next few weeks we are going to be doing something that we’ve not had the opportunity to do for the past couple of years, inviting people to come along to a Christmas Carol service.  It’s one of the few times of year when it’s reasonably easy to invite people along to a traditional… Continue reading Preparing the Christmas Carol Service Sermon

Shepherding and heavy shepherding

Occasionally you hear rumours about a certain type of church. Perhaps you hear that they sit down with the church members and go through their accounts and payslips before telling the members how to tithe, or you hear about the two old ladies who go on a holiday together only to be met with a… Continue reading Shepherding and heavy shepherding

Christmas, hospitality and Muslims

A few years ago, a friend of ours invited us for an evening meal with their family. It was no ordinary dinner party, the clue was that we were going to be eating far later in the evening than I would normally. We were being invited to an Ifkar which is the meal Muslims eat… Continue reading Christmas, hospitality and Muslims

Joy to the World

Today in our “What the Carols Mean” series we are looking at Joy to the World. This one is often sung as a Christmas carol but the words aren’t really focused on Bethlehem and the Nativity. I enjoyed looking at this one. Today’s talk has everything including a bit of Revelation 21-22 and the New… Continue reading Joy to the World

The problem with church lad culture

I’ve not got round to listening to The Rise and fall of Mars Hill podcast. From what I’ve heard, it’s not easy listening.  The podcast tells the story of Mark Driscoll’s rise to prominence as an evangelical leader and subsequent fall from grace.  Driscoll became a bit of a poster boy for the neo-Calvinists and… Continue reading The problem with church lad culture