I’ve tried it.  It doesn’t work.  Living a ‘normal’ life that is, one a bit more conventional, a bit less close to the edge of things.  A life where one takes no creative risk, and where one seeks to quieten the passions of your life to make them more palatable to the onlooker. Nice house, … More Passion

15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behaviour in Christ may be ashamed … More Rooted and Grounded – 3

“What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.” – 1 Corinthians 14:26 The second essential of disciple and Kingdom life may … More Rooted and Grounded – 2

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” – Colossians 2: 6 – 7  What is the basic foundation of discipleship and Kingdom citizenship?  Maybe 3 things: 1) Learn … More Rooted and Grounded – 1

As I sum up this week’s reflections on church, I want to conclude by saying that the church, whether gathered together some place, or dispersed through out the wider community in the week, is something I love. It is something Jesus loves because we find our life in him. It is something the Father loves, … More Rethinking Church 7

Let’s talk about leadership.   I’ve been in full time church leadership for about 15 years in a variety of settings, which gives something of an insight from the inside ‘for better or for worse.’   I don’t proclaim to know all there is to know, by far, neither do I have any wish to … More Rethinking Church 6

Let me start again with Bonhoeffer, and with one of my favourite quotes of his: ‘The renewal of the church will come from a new type of monasticism which only has in common with the old an uncompromising allegiance to the Sermon on the Mount. It is high time men and women banded together to do … More Rethinking Church 5

Deitrich Bonnhoeffer, in his wee book, ‘Life Together,’ talks of how we should never let our ideas or ideals of community ruin the possibility of it.  In other words….any ideas we have of church, however lofty, theoretical, right or wrong, must always be subject to one reality: people are people, and people are messy.  If … More Rethinking Church 4

One of the areas of church life I’ve encountered most joy and pain, in equal measure, is over the ‘worship service’ – that thing churches do mainly on Sunday mornings. Times I’ve loved it is when the Word somehow seems to preach itself, when the worship seems to lead people to encounter God, and when … More Rethinking Church 3

Let me talk about tribes.  Having a wee bit of a Scottish background and a rough working knowledge of some of its history, I know a fair bit about clans.  I know my own, I know the tartans of some, the history of some, the politics of some. Clanned Scotland was a primitive feudal society … More Rethinking Church 2