I’m delighted to to announce that my next book will be out in the summer. IVP will be publishing it, under the title: ‘Cutting to the Heart: Applying the Bible in Preaching and Teaching.’ The basic argument is that God uses his Word to change us to be like Jesus, and when we preach we should
This Sunday, we’re heading into a couple of big evangelistic opportunities and we intend to harvest. We are gently evangelistic all the time, of course, and there are plenty of opportunities to respond to the gospel. But once in a while it’s good to shake the tree. And this time we’ve put together a collection
here are book groups, writing groups, and Novel Writing Months – so I’ve been trying to relate all the greatest stories we tell to the even greater story of Jesus.
It’s true that we get used to things, and don’t notice them after a relatively short period. We get used to the odd way you have to turn the handle on that door, the way that sign is unreadable. The stain on the carpet. Once, to focus our thinking, I unleashed a photographer on our
Half term, the boys off school, and we headed to the zoo. Not one of the really big names, but big enough to have lions, zebras, snow leopards, cheetahs, and fabulous café that allows you sit and watch the tigers really close-up. This is a place where the tigers do come for tea. And I
Did you enjoy Easter? I’m sure the music was great, the church was full and looked brilliant, the sermons were ones you put your heart into – and there were loads of visitors. But did you enjoy Easter? I mean, did you enjoy the gospel itself, for yourself, to God’s glory? Did you delight in
You cannot read my mind. You might misunderstand me, mishear me, hear what you prefer to hear, or hear what you’ve think I’ve said. So I must speak with unmistakable clarity. I cannot read your mind. I can guess, follow false trails, be preoccupied with my own ideas, or be thinking of what I’m going
We had a really encouraging and enthusiastic afternoon with Matt Chandler. Here are my top takeaways:- Parents – We need to keep articulating the gospel, otherwise our kids will believe that either legalism or licence is the way to go. The gospel must NOT be assumed Otherwise we, and they, will continually want to get
I don’t think anyone became a Christian that night, and it’s not that surprising. The passage was unusual, certainly, and I doubt if more than a handful of people there were familiar with it. But that shouldn’t really have been an issue because a good biblical theology would have been able to travel from there
As Christmas comes round and carol services appearing the diary, I’m always reminded of one particular conversation, and of the reasons I’m a preacher, and a passionate evangelist. The church I was brought up was always packed for its Christmas services, and it did them well. There was a big choir, properly trained, and it
Out of the best of motives, at the end of my evangelistic talk, I invited the young people who prayed the prayer of commitment, to raise their hands as they did so. I wanted them to make some definite movement to show that they had given their lives to Christ. Why? To encourage them. But
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, it’s said. (Actually, I’ve failed to teach our dog any tricks, but that’s a different story) I was mulling this over while preparing a talk once for our Ladies Fellowship, a delightful group of saints, most of whom were in their seventies and many in their eighties.
‘They’re watching’ Not in a creepy sense, I hope, but every Sunday, every meeting, every conversation, you are being watched. Why? Because you are supposed to be a model of being a mature Christian. People learn from you how they are supposed to be Christians. Paul told Titus, ‘Show yourself in all respects to be
There’s a little flurry of atheist ‘churches’ at the moment. Meetings of like-minded secularists who listen to some music, hear a talk, reaffirm their views, have a collection, and then afterwards have a cup of coffee and some home-made cake. It’s very earnest (and therefore very funny), but they are deliberately trying to put into
So you come to the end of your evangelistic course, and you make it clear that there’s a decision to be make. Yes or no, life or death, Christ or an idol. It’s a clear choice. To the people who want to decide for Christ you have a warm welcome, some books to recommend, maybe
Jesus doesn’t say, “I know you’re and harassed and helpless, but that’s a distraction – you need me.” He says, “I know you’re harassed and helpless – that’s because you don’t know me.”
“It’s everybody, I mean. Everything everybody does is so — I don’t know — not wrong, or even mean, or even stupid necessarily. But just so tiny and meaningless and — sad-making. And the worst part is, if you go bohemian or something crazy like that, you’re conforming just as much only in a different
So we (me and a team of students) were in Kent, to work with a church in an evangelistic push before Easter. Tons of prep. Lots of nervousness. But there is really only one thing to remember, and it is from Psalm 51:12-13 – Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me
Next year will see a second “Passion for Life”, as evangelical churches across the UK co-ordinate their evangelism for one intense week. If youd like to find out more, and perhaps get your church involved in the events, there’s a promotional vimeo clip here (requires Flash). And 10ofthose.com is already offering the training DVDs for small groups.
Thanks for stopping my my blog since August – I’ve enjoyed starting it up. The top three posts for the year were: Go away, said the welcome team What prayer and ministry of the Word can never do It’s not a sin Actually that’s a lie – the top post was the free e-book version
