Saturday Blog-sweep

Making this for supper....

A pal says The Virgin Monologues is the best thing she has read on Christian singleness.

Churches oppose three person baby plan

Famous workspaces via Jesus Creed

The biggest obstacle to spiritual formation

The Foremost

24 Free Ebooks on everything from C S Lewis to Spiritual leadership and Abortion (I read two great stories about Hudson Taylor and George Mueller in 'The Marks of a Spiritual Leader p 11-15)

Four ways to become a terrible pastor

Stephen Fry on God being a Maniac

I re-watched Jamie Oliver's TED talk with Mrs C

The Best jobs for all 16 Myers Briggs Types

Top 10 Christian albums of 2014

As Valentines day approaches here are some Stupid things to say to singles

I've pre-ordered 'Scary Close' after reading this post which really blessed me. Part of it has ended up in tomorrows sermon.

Do you believe God will save your kids? and 13 ways to waste your money

Archbishops of Canterbury and York warn of collapse and do make sure you read 21 things to do while you are not multiplying churches

A mobile phone contract for our daughter

Grace and friendship

Sometimes a post is so good it needs to be passed forward immediately. This is just such a post.

No longer slaves

This song that I happened upon this morning blessed me.

Two ditches

I found Darrin Patrick's observations on church and culture interesting:

There are really two ditches that churches fall into when it comes to entering into and challenging the political climate—and culture, generally:

Unrighteous Activism

Some churches are tempted to think, “Jesus is gone, it’s all on us.” It’s not that activism itself is wrong, but it becomes unrighteous when it’s done without God’s strength. It becomes unrighteous when sin is reduced to corporate injustice. Sometimes the theology of these churches is more like deism. God’s there, but he’s not real helpful. “Thanks for creating the world. We appreciate some of these inspirational verses, but we’ve got it.” These “liberal” churches are really good at entering into culture, but they can easily jump into the prevailing stream without considering how the Bible might offer some critique.

Unrighteous Passivity

“Conservative” churches fall into this. For the most part, the attitude is something like this: “Jesus is gone, but he’s coming back, so we just have to sit here and wait it out.” This is how the whole evangelical subculture happens with it’s own t-shirts and breath mints (Google “testamints”). “We’re going to do our own thing, and hide from the big bad world.” These churches can give the impression that sin is something “out there,” and as long as interaction with the world is limited, you’ll be safe.

These ditches are why the church has lost a lot of influence.

H/t Jesus Creed

For the pod: How to respond to divorce

In my 'Bible in one year' today we read Matt 19 on Divorce. The notes contained a link to an excellent sermon by Nicky Gumbel entitled 'How to respond to divorce'. It's well worth a listen and using as a springboard for prayer or to pass on to others.

Monday musing

I have started reading Jesus our destiny which a wise prophet recommended to me

I read 'Tithing' by R T Kendall in preparation for our vision and gift season which you can listen to his teaching on here (and will save you buying the book). You may find it beneficial.

A pal is preaching a series entitled 'Man up' inspired by James Emery White which is seemingly going down a storm.

Matt Chandler is powerful on the sanctity of life.

Some friends who came to stay were evangelistic about their new eating habits and kindly bought us Helmsley and Helmsley which we are now reading. Sugar and processed foods are by all accounts v v bad and we should all be drinking extremely green-looking drinks.....

Bishop Libby Lane, a Cartoon about Bishops and Who is ducking what in the C of E

Some new mental health resources for churches

I found Ten ways to grow your church in 2015 a real springboard to lots of thoughts and creativity that is currently in process and you might like to use it to MOT your own church.

All paths lead to God

I've bought The Equalizer on the basis of this review (be warned this a very violent film and is not for the faint hearted)

I had a cup of tea with Tom who runs a great charity called 'Surfers not street children'. Check it out.

Finally, an episode of The Undateables made Mrs C and I cry.

Paul's conversion

O God, who through the preaching of the blessed Apostle Saint Paul, hast caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world: Grant, we beseech thee, that we, having his wonderful conversion in remembrance, may shew forth our thankfulness unto thee for the same, by following the holy doctrine which he taught; through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

This is today's collect from the Book of Common Prayer which remembers the conversion of St Paul. It was a joy to read and pray as I discovered it this morning. 

Saturday blogsweep

How to teach your kids theology

5 Great habits for spiritual entrepreneurs

Nine things you need to know about widows

15 surprising secrets to waking up early

The 4th Musketeer

The 3 leadership lessons of Churchill

Nightclubs are hell

The likely cause of addiction and its not what you think

Reading the bible contextually

What Oxfam doesn't want you to know

The secret of strategic neglect

William Willimon 'The Culture is over-rated'

For the pod: Whitfield, 'The main thing' and what it means to be an influencer

Last week I spent time with 142 evangelists and these talks are worth putting on the pod and listening to on your next car journey.

The highlights were:

All three from R T Kendall particularly the first one on Romans 1. If you are unclear on the gospel this will probably straighten you out. His third on the Ten Virgins is a prophetic talk that I found both informative and v. challenging.

Dave Smith on Whitfield was superb (he spent 7 years doing a D Phil on him.) If you preach you should certainly listen to both these talks. J John advised if you are going to visit any church in the land then Kingsgate Peterborough which Dave Smith pastors is worth travelling to. They had 4500 through over Christmas….

I also really enjoyed Phil Cooke on being an influencer.

Saturday blogsweep

Stunning act of forgiveness

Go forth and multiply

A couple of good books on marriage to read out loud together 'The mingling of souls' and You and me forever

Love this story about people who decide to change their life for the good of the others

The remorse of abortion and the healing of the gospel

France's secular space not so neutral

Church announcements

16 ways to think like a leader

Ten books that have shaped me as a Christian inspired me to think about my own ten.

Stories in preaching

A map of the blizzard of C of E discussion papers

My pal suggested Appendix 1 of the Pilling report makes a compelling case for a traditional view of marriage and is worth reading. Appendix 2 is the case for inclusion which he found far less so. If you are in the C of E then you will not be able to ignore Pilling over the next year or two so we had all better crack on and read all about it.

A new pal, who is a tutor with OCCA, recommended I read two papers by Ranald McCauley called Being Human and The Great Commissions  which deeply impacted his theology and life.

Phil Cooke recommended Daily Rituals a book about the process of creativity

An extroverts paradise

"I believe it to be a grave mistake to present Christianity as something charming and popular with no offense in it. Seeing that Christ went about the world giving the most violent offense to all kinds of people, it would seem absurd to expect that the doctrine of His person can be so presented as to offend nobody. We cannot blink at the fact that gentle Jesus, meek and mild, was so stiff in His opinions and so inflammatory in His language and He was thrown out of church, stoned, hunted from place to place, and finally gibbeted as a firebrand and a public danger. Whatever His peace was, it was not the peace of an amiable indifference." --- Dorothy Sayers 

I am spending the next couple of days at the 'UK evangelists conference'. An extroverts paradise.  RT Kendall is teaching and he says he has spent more time working on these talks than any other in the last decade. He'd be happy for these to be his last word to the UK church. The first (of 4) was spellbinding and if they put them up on the Philo trust site I will link to them. We also have Michael Ramsden and Phil Cooke- a chappy from LA speaking. Tonight we have a talk on the life of George Whitfield. Can't wait. 

As an aside, David Keen's blog has a great post on the discussion papers for the next General Synod. 

The Archbishop really is giving the old girl C of E a makeover.  The subject matter is 'discipleship'- whoever would have believed it? One day, you never know, we might even hold an evangelists conference :)

Saturday blog-sweep

Heaven will never be boring

What we learned from a year of Bible movies

Why having peace about something is a terrible reason for making a decision (Part 1 and Part 2)

Five practice that are better than resolutions

In praise of the Green Report

The BMJ and Cancer being the 'best way to die'

Prophetology

Missional living resources you should know about

Debt and leadership

15 life giving habits to cultivate as a church planter/pastor

Much to reflect on having watched Billionaires Paradise

Tayloring Christianity

Why you should read Bavinck

Decency, pluralism and a Christian response to Charlie Hebdo

Ben Witherington on that Newsweek Bible story

And 35 more links for you.

The one thing necesary

Serve God love me and men

This is not the end

Live unbruised we are friends

And I'm sorry

I'm sorry

Sigh no more, no more

One foot in sea, one on shore

My heart was never pure

you know me

you know me

Sigh no more

Mumford and Sons

Every time I do a funeral, or indeed every time you attend one, each one of us connects afresh with our mortality. As the coffin lowers into the ground the thought that crossed my mind yet again is that this will be me one day. As the undertaker said to me as we drove to the cemetery 'No one likes to speak of death these days'. Of course, the reality is that for all of us our time is finite and as I prayed 'Give us the wisdom and grace to use aright the time that is left to us here on earth. (Common Worship Service and Prayer, p. 265) it's for me too. I quoted these lyrics in my talk, as I was speaking to a good number of musicians and rock and rollers, though I am not sure everyone entirely approved of my band choice as they more a more punk than folk crowd. The Eulogy given was very moving and heartfelt. 

Death cannot but lead us to reevaluate our priorities. 

I am personally still dwelling on the final chapter of Crazy busy that is entitled 'The one thing you must do' which references the story of Martha and Mary. 

It says of Mary that she did 'the one thing necessary (Luke 10:42). 

Here's the question I am asking myself (and the church I pastor) as January 2015 runs its course. 

What is my/our 'one thing necessary'?

'I am more a more convinced that what gives a ministry its motivations, perseverance, humility, joy, tenderness, passion, and grace is the devotional life of the one doing ministry. When I daily admit how needy I am, daily meditate on the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and daily feed on the restorative wisdom of his Word, I am propelled to share with others the grace that I am daily receiving at the hands of my Saviour'  (Crazy Love, p 116-117)

So writes Kevin de Young quoting Paul Tripp's 'Dangerous Calling'. He then follows it with this sentence

'Maybe devotion to Christ is really the one thing that is necessary.'

There's a challenge to my priorities and maybe it's a challenge to yours too?

Random Monday Musings

1. I'm loving listening to Needtobreathe

2. As a boy hearing about Robin Knox Johnson inspired my love of dingy sailing and adventure. I watched this and loved it. He's a proper tough old sea dog.

3. We have watched Newsroom Series 2 and I think Aaron Sorkin is a genius. Terrific, intelligent and gripping telly.

4. I read Keller's funeral sermon in this book and think I became a Christian again.

5. I discovered today that you can be buried in a painted coffin.

6. If you want a belting action movie that is Diehard remade then watch White House Down. Trust me- it really is Diehard remade and is never going to be classed as a great piece of moviemaking but we loved it.

7. I was rubbish at science but if I had read Bill Bryson's book it would have all made more sense.

8. Rick Warren preached the last sermon at Mars Hill.  Well worth a watch.

9. If Simon's sermon 'How far can you see?' (30.11.14) doesn't make you burn more for mission then you may be deaf. Loved the David Livingstone story.

10. The Green Report won the FT's Fallen Angel prize. Really made me smile :)

'… This year I’m awarding a special prize to an organisation that ought to have risen above jargon, but has been dragged down into it. Winner of the inaugural Fallen Angel award goes to the Church of England, which in a paper on training bishops talked of “a radical step change in our development of leaders who can shape and articulate a compelling vision and who are skilled and robust enough to create spaces of safe uncertainty in which the Kingdom grows”. Our Lord, looking down on a sentence in which His Kingdom was obliterated by a dozen dreary management clichés, must have found his genius for forgiveness sorely tested…'

Crazy busy

We are starting a new series today called 'Simplify'. In preparation, this week I read a great book called 'Crazy Busy by Kevin do Young. Reading 'Crazy Busy' during January will certainly set the sails for your year and get your priorities on track. How to find your priority? Here's a verse from my morning reading in BiOY:

'Start with God' (Proverbs 1:7 Msg).

There's no other place to go.

Saturday blog-sweep

My All-time favourite post h/t Dash House

The most important church trend in 2015

Disorganised Religion

New Years Resolutions (worth 11 minutes of your time) and the counter point Why they are not a good thing. You takes your choice :)

Mark Meynell on Ministry through the Dark Night

Jon Acuff on 4 ways to read more books in 2015

10 books that will help you keep your NY resolutions and The Secret to making resolutions that stick

Steve McCoy's Best Albums of 2014 and here's another Music I've enjoyed in 2014. I generally work a year in arrears on music and books so I am grabbing year end recommendations now for the season ahead.

33 Links to T-up your 2015 thinking

Exodus: The evidence for the Biblical story

The Law of Moses and the Christian: A Compromise

Lord Carey is wrong to support state sanctioned suicide

14 tips to makes 2015 your most productive year yet

Some advice on sitting via Jesus Creed

Tim Suttle on Peace (he wrote one of my books of 2014)

Best movie of 2014

Four ways to battle busyness

The many sins of Newsweeks expose of the Bible

The book of the decade and it's now on my 'To read' list for 2015.

Tozer on 'Power'

'We are turning out from the Bible schools of this country year after year young men and women who know the theory of the Spirit-filled life but do not enjoy the experience. These go out into the churches to create in turn a generation of Christians who have never felt the power of the Spirit and who know nothing personally about the inner fire....The only power God recognizes in His church is the power of His Spirit whereas the only power actually recognized today by the majority of evangelicals is the power of man. God does His work by the operation of the Spirit, while Christian leaders attempt to do theirs by the power of trained and devoted intellect. Bright personality has taken the place of the divine afflatus. Everything that men do in their own strength and by means of their own abilities is done for time alone; the quality of eternity is not in it. Only what is done through the Eternal Spirit will abide eternally; all else is wood, hay, stubble....We have the blessed Holy Spirit present, and we are treating Him as if He were not present at all. We resist Him, disobey Him, quench Him and compromise with our hearts. We hear a sermon about Him and determine to learn more and do something about it. Our conviction wears off, and soon we go back to the same old dead level we were in before. We resist the blessed Comforter. He has come to comfort. He has come to teach. He is the Spirit of instruction. He has come to bring light for He is the Spirit of light. He comes to bring purity for He is the Spirit of holiness. He comes to bring power for He is the Spirit of power...God Almighty is saying to us, “I am not wanting to wake up the power that lies in you. Ye shall receive the power of the Holy Spirit coming upon you!” That is a different thing altogether. If we had only to be awakened, the Lord would simply have gone around waking us up—but we need more than this. We need to be endued with power from on high...many Christians spend a lot of time and energy in making excuses, because they have never broken through into a real offensive for God by the unlimited power of the Holy Spirit!...Many persons preach and teach. Many take part in the music. Certain ones try to administer God’s work—but if the power of God’s Spirit does not have freedom to energize all they do, these workers might just as well have stayed home."

A W Tozer, The Root of the Righteous, 1955, p.88

Best Reads of 2014

1. Captive in Iran by Rostampour and Amirizamdeh: Mrs C and I saw the authors being interviewed at HTB and then took their book on holiday with us. Our copy is dog-eared and underlined and we discussed whole segments with each other as we sat in the sun. These women displayed such love for God and obedience to his ways as they suffered that it is truly astounding. Iran now has a special place in our prayer lives.

2. Proof: Finding freedom through the intoxicating joy of irresistible grace by Daniel Montgomery and Timothy Paul Jones: I discovered this book mid-year and it sat on my unread pile for a while. 'Proof' impacted me in all sorts of ways but it was the story about adoption (p.81-84) that Jones tells about his own family that moved me most deeply. I walked away from the pages of this book changed.

3. Prayer: Experiencing awe and intimacy with God by Timothy Keller: This is a very thorough work on prayer and ends up with Keller commending the BCP and the daily office which made me smile. The chapter on repentance is the one that really did me in and this is a book that will benefit from serial rereads down the years.

4. Fail by J R Briggs: I happened on J R Briggs through his blog which was a real blessing to me as I was planting our church. He has gone on to write a book about what happens when things go wrong in ministry and life and when they don't turn out like you planned. How do you cope personally and as a church when it all goes pear-shaped? No one is immune to failure and acknowledging this fact will help keep you humble- especially when you experience any measure of God's blessing on your ministry and life.

5. When love is not enough by Lois Wilson: My sister put me onto this read. If you are involved not just in church but in life you will soon enough come into contact with those who have battled addiction. AA is the most extraordinary movement and I have always wondered about its origins and history and this is a pretty good primer if you too are interested. It is told from the perspective of Wilson's wife Lois who describes so vividly the agony of living with an alcoholic.

6. Miracles by Eric Metaxas: Eric Metaxas takes on the subject of miracles and divides his book into two sections. The first is allotted to telling you what miracles are and making the case for their very real and tangible existence. The second half has about twenty case studies of miracles that Metaxas has personally researched and come into contact with and therefore he can attest to the authenticity of their sources. I can recall a few of these very vividly (especially one of a marriage being rescued and the other about Larry Crabb's son). This is a very good book to give away to others who perhaps are sceptical about the supernatural intervention of God in human circumstances.

7. Facing Leviathan by Mark Sayers:  I am always interested in books about leadership and this is a far from run of the mill one. It's starting point is failure and breakdown and unusually it doesn't try to offer neat solutions and take away principles and tips. Instead, Sayers uses story and history (a backdrop of Paris in the 19C) to work out what it means to lead and create in a culture that is not naturally disposed to God.

8. Shrink by Tim Suttle: Many of us who are involved in leading churches struggle to know if we are doing it right or doing it well. The primary measure used by many is whether or not the church is growing and this, suggests Shuttle, is not always the best indicator of health. As someone who spent years in the corporate world, I worry when I see churches that seem to be run like biscuit companies instead of communities of broken disciples. Of course there is much to be learnt from the marketplace but the great swathe of church history holds a much richer and more demanding treasure trove than simply setting a few SMART objectives. This was a helpful read for me.

9. The Dark Inside by Rupert Wallis: This is a book written by my sister's partner and is aimed at teenage boys (which I was once). I read it on holiday and particular scenes have stuck with me since reading it. A twist and turn saga about a young lad evading his adversaries and coping with/processing a complex family history. Dark, vivid, quirky and interesting.

10. The Walk, Steps for New and Renewed Followers of Jesus: I have been reading this book slowly with a new follower of Jesus in our church and we have been really blessed by it. If you are looking for a book to unpack the basics of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus with someone else then do check this out. Simple but deep and rich stuff which is accessible to all. Find someone to read it with in 2015.

Christmas musings

Apologies for the lack of blogging recently.

I enjoyed 'if politicians scripted nativity'

The Green Report is causing a stir in the C of E and apparently we are looking for talent. Ian Paul has some good thoughts but I recommend reading the report for yourself. I do also commend reading Shrink for a perspective on both sides of this discussion and always a take in a good dose of Eugene Peterson.

Hyatt has some apps that made a difference to his team.

Once upon a time a person was drowning

Libby Lane

Justin was on Desert Island Discs

The Everything Book

I've been mulling on the prosperity gospel and the level of my own generosity as I read 'The Blessed Life' 

We are going to be singing Hallelujah for Christmas at our late service on Christmas eve as we share communion. Do join us.

I watched this and felt encouraged and amazing. Not even a kiss.

Leadership Journal on the lessons of Mars Hill and Bob Hyatt on 5 lessons from Driscoll.

Book of the year lists: Tim Challies,  Michiko Kakutani, Justin Buzzard, Trevin Wax, Kevin de Young.  I will try and get my own out before the end of the year for anyone who is faintly interested.

This was fascinating on the mysterious disappearance of a celebrity preacher in 1926 (h/t Mark Meynell)

“We must realize that the Reformation world view leads in the direction of government freedom. But the humanist world view with inevitable certainty leads in the direction of statism. This is so because humanists, having no god, must put something at the center, and it is inevitably society, government, or the state.” 
― Francis A. Schaeffer