I thought I’d share some quick suggestions for reading that I’d recommend to anyone just going into church leadership. So if you are new to church leadership I’d encourage you to pick these up. If you are not, then you might want to see if your pastor/elders have them and if not perhaps consider getting… Continue reading New leaders-recommended reading
Posts
COVID update 28/01/2022
Here’s the latest COVID data update. First of all cases: As you can see, following a little bump, cases are once again on a downward trajectory, albeit at a slower pace. Remember that this means that COVID has been sitting at a much higher community prevalence since Omicron and this remains the case. However, we… Continue reading COVID update 28/01/2022
Me and my idol
Tom Wood writes in Gospelling Life Together: We admit our own striving for wholeness through approval, comfort or security from others, from self-accomplishment, from this world’s offers of life or even our religious successes, as if they are life. Wood, Dr. Tom. Gospelling Life Together: How Gospel Discipleship Can Change Your Life (p. 69). Sandals… Continue reading Me and my idol
COVID-19 update”after plan B”
Today sees the lifting of the additional COVID measures brought in for England in response to Omicron. Scotland has also seen some restrictions around events and gatherings lifted this week. The big change in England is the removal of the face mask requirement for indoor venues. Last week I updated my risk management assessment and… Continue reading COVID-19 update”after plan B”
Safe?
What does it mean to be a man in Christ, made and redeemed in God’s image? We hear a lot about Biblical manhood, about taking the lead, about not being weak, about being distinctive in terms of body build, clothes and length of hair. Recently some US pastors have felt it important to pronounce judgement… Continue reading Safe?
Discriminating home sellers
You may have picked up on the story of the home-owners who refused to sell their house to a same-sex couple. The story is I guess of personal interest to me because we are in the process of attempting to move home. Fascinatingly, something has come up repeatedly in conversations with estate agents, both when… Continue reading Discriminating home sellers
Pastors and PTSD
From time to time I write specifically about the impact of mental health issues on pastors and church leaders. I’ve recently returned to the subject again writing about depression here and here. I wanted to follow up these articles by writing a little about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is described on the MIND… Continue reading Pastors and PTSD
Discerning a calling – transition and grieving
The other week, I shared some articles looking at how we discern a calling into Gospel ministry. My particular concern is to encourage people to look into urban gospel mission. I’m keen to seek out people who would be willing to work with us to see churches planted and revitalised on estates and in inner… Continue reading Discerning a calling – transition and grieving
Tell us your story
One of the things I like to do on Faithroots is share the stories of what God is doing in other places. One of my priorities is to encourage church planting into less reached areas. So, by sharing stories about church planting, whether a revitalisation in multi-cultural inner city Smethwick, or rural Tanzania, I hope… Continue reading Tell us your story
The advanced training every pastor needs
I’ve just been on a training course for three days up in Manchester. It’s quite a bit of a sacrifice for a proud Yorkshireman to be that side of the Pennines but also to be spending time away from home. The course was to do with providing coaching for church planters. So, on the one… Continue reading The advanced training every pastor needs