Since The Pastor with a thorn in his side was published back during the pandemic, we’ve had lots of feedback, most of it positive. At times though, the feedback was “we were looking for more.” I don’t think that’s necessarily bad, providing we understand it to be a recognition of the limits of a book… Continue reading The limits of Testimony
Category: pastoral-care
Desire, temptation and depression
There are a few strands of thinking that I’ve pursued and engaged with over time on faithroots. You may pick up particularly that I’ve written extensively on concupiscence and also on depression. One of my concerns about the concupiscence (desire, temptation and sin) debate was that it seemed heavily focused on questions around gender and… Continue reading Desire, temptation and depression
The Church and the issue of suicide
Here are some reflections on how we might go about addressing the issue of suicide in church
Fire and flood
A month back, Sarah had a message to say that serious wildfires had broken out near her school. These had caused havoc leading to a number of people losing their homes to the fire and others being treated in hospital. Then a few weeks later our neighborhood was battered by a terrific thunderstorm with torrential… Continue reading Fire and flood
When tragedy hits
The news from the Big Church Festival is devastating. On Friday afternoon a large sign collapsed possibly due to strong winds. The festival was paused as news emerged of at least six injuries. Then later in the evening police sadly confirmed that a 41 year old man had been killed. The story was reported on… Continue reading When tragedy hits
Wedding anniversary reflections
Today is our wedding anniversary. So, I wanted to start my post by saying a couple of thank yous. First to my wife, Sarah, it’s a joy to be your husband and I am grateful not just for the 19 years of married life but for the 22 years it has been a privilege to… Continue reading Wedding anniversary reflections
Is pastoral counselling homework helping or hurting?
Casey McCall has picked up on and adapted the title of Stephen Corbett and Brian Fikkert’s book “When Helping Hurts” to talk about “When Helping hurts in pastoral counselling.” His main point is that pastoral counselling does more harm than good when those seeking it confuse it with therapy. To some extent I want to… Continue reading Is pastoral counselling homework helping or hurting?
What are the issues facing pastors right now?
If we are going to apply Scripture well to our congregations, then as well as being able to read God’s word and interpret it well, we also need to be “reading the room.” We need to have a good understanding of what it is that our congregations are facing. We need to be exegeting them… Continue reading What are the issues facing pastors right now?
Marriage for Christ
Here’s a talk from a little while back on Ephesians 5:21-33 and marriage. There are two parts. At the start I run through a brief exposition of the passage and then Sarah and I have a discussion on the practical application.
Is Doug Wilson right to say that women who refuse to marry, bear children and carry out domestic chores are turning after Satan?
The short and simply answer to what might be considered a silly question is “No.” But obviously for us to end up with such a silly question, Doug Wilson has been saying something silly. It’s worth having a look at what he has been saying as it gives us an insight into the kind of… Continue reading Is Doug Wilson right to say that women who refuse to marry, bear children and carry out domestic chores are turning after Satan?
