Someone has approached you about getting baptised. You sit down to talk to them about why they want to get baptised, what it means and to get a sense of their profession of faith. As the conversation goes on, it becomes clear that they are not there yet in terms of clear profession. They have… Continue reading Unexpected twists and turns in the baptism conversation
Category: pastoral-care
Concupiscence, contraception and pastoral carelessness
In his chapter of Ruined Sinners to Reclaim, Stephen Wedgeworth outlines his understanding of a Protestant doctrine of concupiscence before landing on two areas of application, both are around sex and sexuality. The second is about same sex attraction but the first is about contraception. Whilst he doesn’t go so far as ruling out contraception… Continue reading Concupiscence, contraception and pastoral carelessness
The pastor’s thorn … Depression and suffering
I occasionally mention this little book which I contributed to. The pastor with a thorn in his side offers the stories of seven pastors who have suffered with depression. There are four reasons why/ four types of people I encourage people to buy it and all are rooted in the myth that this book blows… Continue reading The pastor’s thorn … Depression and suffering
Learning from mum
It’s two years today since mum went home to be with Jesus. Recently I attended a course where we were asked to talk about the messages that our parents had passed on to us through our upbringing. This might have been things they said but also things thy did and the values they lived when… Continue reading Learning from mum
Pastoring the Grieving – Give them context
I noticed that this Sunday, a few churches made assisted dying and the Christian response their sermon topic. I couldn’t help think that it was a little bit late for this. Yes, the Bill has still got further stages to go but the wheels are already serving motion. More than that though, now is too… Continue reading Pastoring the Grieving – Give them context
Missing the Gospel in a response to the dropping fertility rate
I was disappointed to read this article in Evangelicals Now about how Christians should respond to a drop in the fertility rate. Now, it certainly is the case that this has declined sharply over the years and that there are some reasons which we might be unhappy to hear. However, I don’t know whether that… Continue reading Missing the Gospel in a response to the dropping fertility rate
Grief … Two years in
I’ve been sharing a few posts recently on pastoring people through seasons of grief. We are just coming in to the second anniversary of what was a challenging time for our family. Today marks two years since my father in law died. A few weeks later my mum also died after going into hospital for… Continue reading Grief … Two years in
Facing depression
Every so often I try and point people in the direction of this video series I put together a little while back. I hope it will be useful to you or something you can share with others. Please fee free to get in touch if you would like to talk about anything in them
Does the Good Father really allow his children to suffer?
At one extreme during the COVID coronavirus was the claim that the pandemic was a judgement from God or at least a wake up call from him. I have responded to this claim frequently and in detail in the past. However at the other extreme is the argument that God cannot have sent the pandemic… Continue reading Does the Good Father really allow his children to suffer?
Pastoring the grieving: walking with a family when the decision comes to end treatment
I’ve been sharing a few articles about how we pastor people through bereavement. In a previous article, I wrote about walking with a family through a coroner’s investigation and inquest process. In that article, I alluded to the fact that the time leading up to death may not be straight forward. When it comes to… Continue reading Pastoring the grieving: walking with a family when the decision comes to end treatment
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