Here is the third part of my course preparing people for cross-cultural mission. (Here are parts one and two.) God is great What are the worries you have about doing mission in another culture? The refrain we kept repeating when I visited missionaries in the Middle-East was: ‘fallen...
We live in a time when nothing is worth living for and certainly nothing is worth dying for. Everything is relative. There are no absolutes, no great truths, no heroic causes. Part of the appeal of Lord of the Rings is that it contains a sense of moral purpose. It is a world of valour...
Here is the second part of my course preparing people for cross-cultural mission. God is glorious You are going to be very conscious of what other people think about you. Your fellow team members Do they think you are competent? What are they making of your progress? How do they...
I recently ran a short preparation course for people about to go out as cross-cultural missionaries. We looked at some standard material on culture and contextualization. But half the course was based on a conversation with a missionary we have sent to the Middle-East. As we talked about...
A review of Tim Keller, The Reason for God DVD and Workbook, Zondervan, 2010. The DVD is available here from amazon.com. The accompanying workbook is available here from amazon.com and amazon.co.uk. The DVD is not yet available from amazon.co.uk though when it is, it should be available...
When we first meet Aragon he is a stranger in the corner of an inn. He is anonymous, unknown – even sinister. It only gradually emerges that he is the king. There is a dramatic moment in the council of Elrond when Legolas the Elf tells Boromir that he should have more respect for...
At the heart of the story is the ring and it is the ring of power. Lord of the Rings is a story about power. And it is a story about the corrupting nature of power. The ring symbolises power. And the ring corrupts those who come into contact with it. It deceives and it ensnares. Above all...
In three separate polls to mark the year 2000 Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien was voted the UK’s favourite book. More recently the books have been adapted into films under the director Peter Jackson, each becoming one of the top ten earning films of all time. Tolkien was...
I gave this talk at the Total Church Conference in Sheffield, UK, 2010. Everyday Theology (A Theology of Washing Up) [audio http://www.thecrowdedhouse.org/mediafiles/friday-session-2.mp3]
The following is an adapted response to someone who asked whether I thought they could change. I’ve edited my response to remove any personal references including any allusions to the nature of the issue. I do think you can change. I can’t guarantee that. But change is always...