As you probably all know, I came to Christ in a Salvation Army setting, in a proper, good old ‘Blood and Fire’ Salvation Army context, with a vital Holy Spirit, Jesus-centred spirituality, the expectation of winning the world for Jesus and being holy warriors for Christ. I learned to preach in the Army – you … More Salvation Army Altars
To be perfectly honest, I was really sick at Altars Scotland. I dragged my exhausted body to Edinburgh in my wee camper van, Cuthbert. My legs and feet were agony, my blood pressure was sky-high, I had little energy to stand longer than a few minutes, and in the main, I worshipped, listened and prayed … More Altars Scotland – 2
It was so good to be able to attend the Altars Scotland leaders’ prayer conference in Edinburgh at the end of October. Having been to the Hebrides Revival Conference again back in the early part of the year, the event was launched there, and I signed up for a ticket straight away. There seems to … More Altars Scotland 2026
We have warm fellowship with the Free Church of Scotland here on Arran. It is a kind of unity built on Christ an the gospel. We have several folks from Free Church backgrounds who join us for worship on Sundays, at midweek ministry, and we have use of a Free Church building for our midweek … More A Healthy Gospel Church in Every Community
There is a kind of ‘unity’ which is a unity that comes at the cost of truth and the witness of the gospel. Our context in the West, in particular, is full of it. It is where the faith of the gospel, and the claims and teaching of our Lord and the Scriptures are reduced … More Unity?
Celtic spirituality and Eastern Orthodoxy: It isn’t unusual to meet people who are drawn to both traditions and wonder whether they are essentially the same thing. Some even suggest that the Celtic Church was simply “Orthodox before the Great Schism.” There is some truth behind that idea—but it also needs a little nuance. The great … More Celtic Spirituality and the Orthodox Tradition: Are They Connected?
During my doctoral studies I played with an illuminating metaphor for understanding the gathered church that is not found in a theological textbook but in a distinctly Scottish tradition: the ceilidh. A traditional ceilidh (as opposed to its modern dance-centred versions) was a participatory gathering. It was not a performance put on by a few … More The Ceilidh and the Church
In my recent reflections on David Lim’s concept of kingdomization, I have found myself asking a question that reaches into current day politics and populist moments both in the UK and US in these days. But before we turn directly to that, and before we can discuss disciple-making, multiplication, church renewal, or social transformation, we … More Christendom, Christianisation, Christian Nationalism, and Kingdomization: What Exactly Are We Seeking?
In my previous blog article I reflected on David Lim’s idea of kingdomization: the spread of God’s reign through multiplying disciples who influence households, workplaces, communities, and society. What drew me to his vision was not primarily house churches or disciple multiplication movements, but its breadth. Lim looks beyond church renewal and asks what it would … More From Christendom to Kingdomization: What Transitions Must the Scottish Church Make?
(Lim uses an Americanised Z in Kingdomization, so I will do that here in that word and others to avoid flipping all the z and s appearances!) Recently I read David Lim’s chapter, A Biblical Missiology of Kingdomization through Disciple Multiplication Movements of House Church Networks, in Motus Dei, edited by Warwick Farrah, and found … More From Missional Discipleship to Kingdomization: Reflections on Reading David Lim
