Old conversation, new direction?

I’ve taken some time out for reflection and study this week and have been very encouraged in the process. It is always true that the greatest learning happens in interaction, and I have been grateful this week for a series of thought-provoking interactions with a number of people. The holiness/mission question won’t go away in [...]

Employment Plus

Yesterday saw the launch of our new Employment Plus initiative, which received some good publicity in our local press, as well as benefiting from some great publicity by local Councillors Martin and Barker. The day didn’t get off to a good start as one of the three new laptops we are using in the cafe [...]

Power and Poverty

I have been reading Dewi Hughes’ book, “Power and Poverty: Divine and Human Rule in a World of Need”. Hughes is the theological advisor for Tearfund. Hughes spends a lot of the book unpacking stuff that lots of other writers already cover well, with a whole section on what the Old Testament says about God’s [...]

Family Fun Day

We have been blessed with a really helpful Holy Week this week, with evening meditations Monday to Thursday and our Good Friday service yesterday. Although the day before Easter Day is still a reflective day in the Christian calendar, we had a change of mood today with our first Easter Family Fun Day. Lynley had [...]

Eli

Last Sunday, Lynley was preaching on the call of Samuel and asked me to deliver a monologue. The opening line, “I’m Eli,” raised a laugh but Lynley still made her point effectively. During this week’s mission studies seminars the same passage of Scripture was referred to (1 Samuel chapters 2 and 3) and the tutor’s [...]

Anthropology

I have made a start on my MA in mission and theology at Nazarene Theological College, and am most thankful to Lynley, The Salvation Army, and our congregation (in that order!) for allowing me to do so. My first task, thankfully completed today, was to prepare and deliver a seminar on Anthropology and its contribution [...]

The Forgotten Ways

“Alan Hirsch’s seminal work, “The Forgotten Ways,” is a book that demands to be read by anyone trying to make sense of mission in the post Christendom world.” I wrote that first paragraph some months ago, filed the post away in the draft folder, and forgot about it. Having now completed the book and come [...]