As I’ve been thinking and talking with others about discipleship a number of subjects have come up as topics churches need to address. In fact I’ve started to create a list for a possible series of sermons. Which includes:Money and DebtMarriage and marriage breakdownSex:- Single people, including younger people and older people- Gay people- Sexualisation... Continue Reading →
Discipleship 1: How do we grow?
Reflecting on our church’s future direction and my part in it, I’ve spent some time recently thinking about discipleship; which has included at least one discussion in church. So whilst I’m on holiday over the next week I’ve set a couple of blog posts to appear which collate some of the thoughts so that others... Continue Reading →
Chaos creation control
One function of blogs is to share half-baked ideas. The weekend saw blogs by Richard Littledale (here) and Vicky Beeching (here) exploring issues of digital legacy. Does an excessive use of social media drown out the awareness of our own mortality and finitude? Is the presence of an on-line self after death helpful for people? What... Continue Reading →
God loves women and men
I’ve been involved in a couple of conversations about women in church leadership recently, which has reminded me not everyone agrees with things I take as basic. So I’ve set some of these basic points out in the hope others will find them useful.1. Men and women are together made in God’s image (Genesis 1v27).... Continue Reading →
Beyond 400 book
I've been involved for the last few months with the Beyond400 website, giving an opportunity for a spread of British Baptists to imagine what the future might look like. The web posts plus some of the comments have now been published as a book. Click here to buy a copy. Not only does the book give... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly responses
Following my blog on Monday about Baptist Assembly I’ve now read a number of other blogs; so to add to the conversation here is my take on some of the issues raised (the issues surround the Futures process BMS/BUGB I will return to in a future post).1. Quality of the Bookshop should be easy to... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly: a glimpse of the future
Baptist Assembly is packed away for another year, the participants have returned home and the activity of the weekend is fast becoming a fading memory; another example of how our denomination manages to be less than the sum of its parts. Or alternatively???What if Assembly were to be the moment we look back on and... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly and social media
So Baptist Assembly (BUGB / BMS) has begun with an afternoon of seminars and opening evening Celebration during which Chris Duffett started his year as BUGB president.I’ve blown hot and cold about the idea of a president over the years but one advantage is it helps us listen to people whose insights can get squeezed... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly 2012
Today sees Baptists gathering for their annual assembly (well the BUGB / BMS one anyway). But things will be a bit different this year:- We are gathering in London. This means it is commuting distance for a larger number of people but also that fewer people will attend the whole event.- The Saturday events follow... Continue Reading →
BUGB futures a quick guide
I’ve been meaning to write more about the Futures process for some weeks. But since Baptist Assembly meets this weekend I wondered if a short summary might be more helpful: What’s the issue? 1. Why are we talking about it? Because we (BUGB and Associations) are spending more money each year than we are getting... Continue Reading →
Distinct Reflections 