To those who never clap in church, I ask, do you ever clap anywhere else? Do you clap at the end of a good play, or maybe even at the cinema as audiences were reported to be doing after Avatar? If so, why do you do that? Surely because the actors are worth it. Isn’t Jesus worthy of at least as much applause? To those who never shout out with excitement in church, I ask again, do you ever shout... Read more
The Billy Graham Center in Wheaton has an interesting section on certain aspects of evangelical history. One part that stood out to me when I was there was a series of pictures of a “frontier camp meeting” that took place around 1814. Most of my long-term readers will know that I am part of a reformed charismatic group called Newfrontiers. Hence it was somewhat amusing to me to see the name, and rather nice to see further evidence that raising... Read more
Over at Adrian’s blog it’s Support your Christian bookshop weekend. You will see a list of UK stores known to be stocking Raised With Christ. Let us know if you know of any more. Read more
I still dare to believe in Christian bookshops. Oh, they need to evolve all right. It seems like the new “Living Oasis” chain might have some of the right ideas in some places. Making the bookshop also serve as a coffee shop and meeting point seems like a great idea. Getting people into the shop is the challenge. Once there, if the bookshop is well laid out and with helpful staff, the customer may well be encouraged to buy more... Read more
I really thought that no one would even care about my recent decision to “go British” on a minor style issue. So I was pleased that someone has taken notice, and very amused by the following quote, which came from Andy Lowe. With tongue firmly placed in cheek, he put some imaginary words into my mouth: So what did Adrian have to say? “I decided that it would be best to emulate one of my favourite bloggers, Andy Lowe, who... Read more
Ever since the launch of Raised With Christ, Amazon.co.uk has been struggling to keep it in stock due to higher sales than they predicted. The good news is that they have now taken a new delivery and are able to send copies immediately. If you are waiting for a copy from them it should be dispatched today, and if you have yet to order you can do so now by clicking here. Elsewhere Amazon.com, Amazon.fr, and Amazon.de have good stock.... Read more
The Evangelical Ministry Assembly 2010 will focus on the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the preacher, with John Piper as the headline speaker and Terry Virgo also involved. Those of you who know British Church life, and particularly the history of the last few decades, will be amazed at this. To be clear, the leadership team behind the Proclamation Trust have not suddenly all become card-carrying tongues-speaking charismatics. Rather, as I read the information about this exciting... Read more
Whenever I hear about a book that deals with resurrection in some form, I get excited. As I’ve been teaching the Bible in a local church context for a few years, I’ve encountered few people with much knowledge regarding the Bible’s teaching on resurrection. Christians believe that Jesus rose from the dead, but that’s about it. When I ask what the implications are of Christ’s resurrection, I’m answered with confused looks and blank stares . . . So naturally I’d... Read more
Being a British blogger who has by God’s grace been given an audience, the majority of which lives in the USA, I feel a bit like I’m floating in some kind of “mid-Atlantic” space. What do I mean? Well, just as one example, I cannot easily speak about the vehicle I would call a lorry, HGV, or juggernaut. I would just get blank looks from my American friends. Equally, though, I find that I cannot use some of the American... Read more
Sometimes those we love turn on us. This is never more true than in any form of church leadership. It never ceases to amaze me how some members of Christ’s flock are quick to accuse their pastors. I do not work for a church, but I have an immense amount of respect for those who do so. Why? Because I know some of the pain that is their lot, being involved as I am in our church’s leadership team. These... Read more
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