This will probably be the last post responding to comments on my much-read Ricky Gervais post. The first explored why it is actually ok for people to challenge Christians, and the second presented a gospel which is not just a threat of hell. Now I come to probably the most common question: Why do I […]
When is the last time you started to believe something new? When is the last time you changed your mind? When is the last time you had a debate or discussion with someone you knew you disagreed with and actually – actually – entered into it open to being persuaded you were wrong? When did […]
On Sunday night, I introduced a room full of people to the imaginary world of Lie Land. Lie Land is full of liars. Everything is built on lies. It is impossible to tell the truth in Lie Land. The residents are unable to be or think or say truth. I then asked them to imagine […]
I was asked a question recently as part of a staff retreat day: When was the last time you changed your beliefs? It’s not an easy question, but a good one. Why I don’t like changing my mind Changing my mind about what I believe is true has a lot of drawbacks. It means accepting […]
A few weeks ago I missed an opportunity, I think. I was preaching, and the sermon was on Jesus as our ‘great high priest’ from the book of Hebrews (4:14–5:10 if you must know). As part of it, I said this: “Jesus is the perfect high priest because he entered into the grittiness and the […]
I’ve sailed a number of times now, and each time I’ve been struck by how good an illustration sailing is for all kinds of aspects of the Christian life. So this will be the first of a bunch of posts about sailing! (I need to admit the ideas behind this first one aren’t my own […]
I was talking with someone I look up to and admire deeply a while back, discussing some of my frustrations in a particular situation. As if I needed to excuse my feelings, I said “but maybe it’s just because I’m too young and idealistic.” He challenged me quite strongly. I was told, “Don’t apologise for […]
My friend Matt has a blog. It’s good. His latest post is about questions. How, why and what do we question? The post is mostly questions. As my blog exists mostly because of the whole idea of questioning and wrestling, I am very interested in the discussion going on over there, and would be interested […]
On Sunday, The Independent newspaper published an article by Amber Dillon entitled ‘Christianity is not the problem. The Bible is.’ (The full article can be found here) On Sunday, I also preached a sermon which – in part – was about boldly standing for truth even where it is unpopular. I struggled a lot with […]
Why do I choose the image of limping to describe the walk and the journey I am committing to? Wrestling with God The simple answer is that it refers to a story from Genesis (32:22-32) where Jacob physically wrestles all night long with God and leaves the encounter with a limp. I myself have never […]