One of my concerns during Coronavirus has been the speed with which some were quick to announce God’s discipline and judgement on various countries, communities and on the church in those places. As I have previously explained, it is correct to say that we continuously experience God’s loving discipline as believers and that this fallen… Continue reading Leaders Repent First
Category: pastoral-care
Messy Church in a Messy World
This morning I’m resharing the first ever article from the original faithroots blog. It helps explain some of the assumptions behind what I write. It is also the first chapter in “How do you know?” which is available from the publications page. A dirty word for a messy world This blog is for people living… Continue reading Messy Church in a Messy World
Living through a lengthy lockdown -facing the emotional challenges
Below is our latest Afternoon Tea conversation. The key points from the discussion were Our experience of lockdown may feel very similar to a grieving process The following 7 stages of grieving have been identified SHOCK & DENIAL- You will probably react to learning of the loss with numbed disbelief. … PAIN & GUILT- …… Continue reading Living through a lengthy lockdown -facing the emotional challenges
When Tragedy Comes
It was about quarter to five on Saturday 11th May and we had just switched on Grandstand to get the final scores. I wasn’t yet attending football games but I had followed my football team, Bradford City’s fortunes with pride that season as they had stormed to the old Division 3 title. It was the… Continue reading When Tragedy Comes
Coronavirus Interview with a Doctor
We had the opportunity to catch up with Dr Steve Sturman on Afternoon Tea today. Here are some of the things we talked about (watch the interview below) – What is it currently like to be working in hospital? – Is it safe to go into hospital if I’m unwell with another condition? – What… Continue reading Coronavirus Interview with a Doctor
What not to say when someone is suffering
Our latest Afternoon Discussion looked at how we support and care for those suffering chronic conditions including emotional health issues. What should I not say? I want to be helpful but I don’t want to put my foot in it either. You can watch the discussion below and here are some quick notes. Often the… Continue reading What not to say when someone is suffering
Praying for healing (Will God heal me? part 3)
How should we go about praying for healing? Do we need to go to a special healing service and follow a set process? Here’s some notes and then the #AfternoonTea conversation on praying for healing and also our response when the prayer is answered. Anyone can pray for healing for themselves and for others. The… Continue reading Praying for healing (Will God heal me? part 3)
When God doesn’t heal (Will God heal me part 2)
This is part two in our look at the question “Will God heal me?” You can find the first discussion here. What do we do when we long for healing, have prayed for healing and it doesn’t seem to happen? Here are some notes from the discussion which you can watch below. This can be… Continue reading When God doesn’t heal (Will God heal me part 2)
Marks of a healthy Church – Humility
I’ve also suggested that a number of other marks will flow out from this one. The first I want to look at is humility. 1 Corinthians 8:1 says that love builds up others whilst knowledge (without love) puffs up, in other words it leads to arrogance and complacency on the part of the speaker whilst… Continue reading Marks of a healthy Church – Humility
Love is not an excuse to tolerate and cover up abuse
Yesterday, I wrote about what love is not. This is because sometimes people use the concept of love to manipulate victims to continue living with abuse and without justice. I want to explore that a bit further today because one of the arguments used is that this is part of a wife’s responsibility to submit… Continue reading Love is not an excuse to tolerate and cover up abuse
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