The problem with commenting on politics is that it moves too fast but this weekend is a fascinating one for UK politics as we wait to see what Nick Clegg will do. The options are clear enough but the realities behind them are fraught with difficulty. Nevertheless the real question is how do the... Continue Reading →
Preaching at big conferences
Following my post prior to the Baptist Assembly Steve posted some insightful thoughts about festival preaching which got me thinking. All preaching arises from the interrelationship of God, Scripture, preacher and congregation. Though the interweaving of these relationships isn’t entirely straightforward as can be seen by the way the Spirit inspired and guided the writing... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly video
For those who haven't been to the Baptist Assembly but who want a video taster of the event, here is one produced by the Assembly itself.
Baptist Assembly 2010
Back from the annual Baptist trip to the seaside which was an excellent weekend. Here are my highpoints. Three good things: Worship. This year was an enormous improvement. The range of resources from Taize, Northumbria Community, traditional hymns and mainstream worship songs were used in well planned acts of worship. Whilst I would change... Continue Reading →
Baptist Assembly
Off to Baptist assembly today. Since I’m not taking the laptop I doubt there will be updates whilst I’m there. Assembly takes an enormous amount of work to put on and folk have been working on the planning for months. Many people, BUGB and BMS staff as well as volunteers put in untold hours over... Continue Reading →
General Election – Questions
I don't get to decide the questions for the last leaders debate but these are the questions I would like to put: Given your reluctance to state how you would make the necessary reductions to the budget deficit can you explain: i) How you would ensure that the least well off are protected and that... Continue Reading →
General Election – Personality, character and honesty
Getting to eat lunch at home for a change I see the headlines are full of Gordon Brown’s nightmare moment here . Clearly there is no defence for his remarks, though one imagines that many party leaders let off steam behind closed doors and there was a moment the other day when Nick Clegg... Continue Reading →
shameless marketing
As previously mentioned I've some friends who are heavily involved in this music project. BeBe Vox's first single is released today and she stands a good chance of getting into the top 40, if enough people download it. In recent years Innervation trust have created a number of Christian bands (eg:the bandwithnoname) which have... Continue Reading →
General Election Thoughts 3 – aspiration, believability and connection
I expect that both Labour and Conservative strategy teams are scratching their heads at the unexpected rise in Lib Dem support. They have tapped into a reservoir of voter discontent with Labour, unease with the Conservatives but a desire to see change. In 1997 Blair’s victory carried the sense of a new dawn and Clegg... Continue Reading →
Baptists doing theology – northern theological consultation
I attended an excellent theological reflection day on Tuesday. Organised by Northern Baptist Learning Community and others it was great to have an opportunity to listen and talk together, something that we need to encourage among ministers. For me the highlight was a paper delivered by Richard Kidd developing the theme ‘the silence of... Continue Reading →
Distinct Reflections 