Although wobbly headstones are the health and safety nightmare of many unfortunate vicars, I’ll admit that I rather like the eerie romanticism of Victorian graveyards. So I was interested by this photo of the graves of a Catholic woman and her Protestant husband from Roermond, Holland in 1888. Unable to be buried in the same graveyard due to sectarian segregation, the two monuments reach across the wall separating them.
This photo not only speaks of the confessional chasm between Protestants and Catholics in nineteenth century Holland, but also reflects the sad reality that death is a chasm we are all staring into. It’s a dividing line that brings separation. And like the brick wall in the photo looming up in front of us, we are hopeless faced against it.
How wonderful then that Jesus reaches out to us with the offer of eternal life:
“[Grace] has now been revealed through the appearing of our Saviour, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” 2 Timothy 1 v 10
Most of us fear something – something physical, something more abstract. If we’re honest I suspect most of us would run from a fight rather than stand and face it. We do it at home, at work and elsewhere – it’s human nature, isn’t it?
The Courageous Men’s Conference in Cwmbran, South Wales last weekend looked at what courage in the face of fear might just look and feel like. Focused around wonderfully powerful talks by Dai Hankey, Mez McConnell and Gavin Peacock, the conference looked at Courageous Faith through the eyes of Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. Courageous Vision came through Caleb the spy in Joshua 14 and Courageous Mission through Isaiah 6.... continue reading
It hasn't escaped my notice that a lot of people are struggling at the moment. I don't think it's just my friends, I think it's just what life is like in this fallen world.
There are those who are struggling in the wake of illness or grief; those whose relationships are crumbling around their ears; those who are finding it hard to make ends meet or muster the energy to care for those around them; there are those who see no hope for the future. A brief look around our world - our local church - leaves us in no doubt that there is a lot of crying going on.
God is not taken aback by our tears, he knows they are going to flow. After all, he encourages us to weep with those who weep in our congregation (Romans 12:15). But he does have an opinion about how we cry...... continue reading
It’s Halloween today (it’s also Reformation Day, but our local shops don’t seem to be stocking too many Martin Luther outfits). Whether you think the festival is horrendous, harmless, or somewhere in between, why not make sure you’re praying about it… here are five pointers from Colossians:
1. Thank God for a kingdom that is not dark. Satan is real, and he’s not a six-year-old wearing a red hairband with horns on and carrying a pointy fork. He’s the opposite of God; he’s dark, and there is no light, no good, no joy in him. And it’s his power from which God has liberated us: “he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves” (Colossians 1 v 13). Thank God that you have a King who loves you, having been rescued from one who hates you.... continue reading
On the surface of it, it's not something that seems to ooze with great gospel potential. It's a room - four walls, with a carpet (or possibly a spot of laminate with a nice rug), a few things to sit on and probably a TV, a plant or two and varying degrees of clutter. But your living room has more than a little potential to be used for the glory of God and the encouragement of a close walk with the Lord. This week, why not take a moment to ask yourselves these 3 questions and get your family room set up for gospel-work:... continue reading
“Why do you come to church?” I asked one Sunday a few years ago. They may not have been particularly old but I felt sure each child would have their reasons and I was intrigued to hear what they might be. Each of them had made a profession of faith, appropriate to their age – they certainly weren’t on the fringes – so I was curious to discover what they thought being part of church was all about.
And so it went on …... continue reading
One of my favourite titles for God is The Promise Keeper. I use it often when writing for children, and The Promise Maker too. Because the Lord both makes and keeps promises.
The Old Testament is infused with God's promises to send the Christ, the anointed one, His chosen King. And in the New Testament we meet those faithful believers who are waiting for that promise to be kept. One of them is Simeon.
Simeon trusted God to send His Christ, and was faithfully awaiting that day. But the Lord, in His grace, also made an extra promise, just for Simeon - that Simeon himself would see this Christ with his own eyes. God didn't have to make this promise. It was a loving, generous gift to an old man.... continue reading
It's been a great service. Matthew 28:18-20 has been read. The preacher has reminded the congregation of the awesome gift of grace that Christ has lavished on his people. Forgiven people have praised God for the fact they have been cleansed, washed whiter than snow. It's a truth more powerful than any fairy story. It's a wonderful narrative that has the ultimate happy ending for those who are in Christ. And then it comes. The call to action. The call to get out there and tell others of God's wonderful mercy.
Instantly, the congregation divides into 7 camps. There's...... continue reading
We got around to 1 Timothy 2 v 8-15 at homegroup recently, and it was an educating experience for me as a leader. The passage has been a battleground for alternative interpretations over the last 30 years, so I was interested to discover how influenced my group members have been by these views, when our church's preaching and practice has been uncompromisingly complementarian (women and men are equal, but have different roles) for the last 30 years.
We had a great time talking about how men should pray, not fight. We had a good discussion about the particular issues the women in the group faced on the clothing v godliness issue. I spent a long time on these two questions, secretly hoping that the discussion over verses 11-15 would be squeezed a little shorter.
We had 20 minutes of slightly confusing discussion, which raised more questions than it was able to answer, but my issue as a leader was: how do I land the study in an encouraging and substantial place, rather than leave group members going home with their heads reeling in confusion. Three big points occurred to me:... continue reading
Her hands trembled as she typed the words. She took a breath and paused before pressing "enter". But soon her question was visible to all ..."Do you like me?"
She had been bullied at school that day. She had been bullied the night before over social media. And within minutes the barrage of abuse began again. "As if". "I hate you". "No-one will ever like you". The comments came thick and fast. Some in English, some in the new text speak that those of us in our 40s are largely too old to comprehend, but all laced with hate. Soon she was in tears. Soon she was curled up on her bed repeating the words of torment to herself: no-one will ever like me.
It's not new for teenagers to be cruel to one another. It's not new for human beings to be mean. That has been going on since the fall of Genesis 3. It's moderately new for that cruelty to take place in cyberspace - a medium that never sleeps, never leaves space for respite. But what's really new is the way a small number of young people are using cyberspace to induce a context for virtual self-harm.... continue reading
