I’m on the mainland this week combining some personal enjoyment (singing with friends), personal retreat in my usual Holy Island (Northumberland) location, and now on a bit of a work-related conference/retreat – the Scottish Baptist Ministers Conference here in St Andrews. A bit of travel and moving from pillar to post, but at a rather … More Refresh : Retreat : Replenish
Dreher spends a good bit of his time in ‘The Benedict Option’ speaking about education – often the battle ground of the ‘progressive agenda’ and the place where most Christians have trouble in the responsibility of parenting, or in the case of teachers, at work. He recommends that Christian communities look, at the very least, … More City on a Hill: Educating a Generation
Our island has no cities and no towns – only villages. Small, relatively close-knit communities. Within two years here, I know many islanders and even more by sight. People work hard to make the island community work in spite of the challenges we face (none of which overwhelms the sheer privilege of living in such … More City on a Hill: …the village of God
Tracy and I had opportunity to visit Rome for two weeks during our early twenties. Tracy had a paid bursary to go as part of her University studies. We were also Salvation Army workers, so managed to get a very cheap Salvation Army apartment at the top of a homeless hostel for our stay. The … More City on a Hill: Prayer, Work and Stability
I don’t exactly know when my accent changed. All I know is that it has. I sound nothing like the lad that grew up in a wee Ayrshire village…in fact, I’m actually at the stage where speaking Ayrshire Scots, my original tongue, requires a conscious effort. I know why my accent changed. On one hand, … More City on a Hill: Culture Creep
Community is not something that happens by a week on Tuesday. It is something which is forged in the fire, hammered into shape, and made strong! In other words, it is intentional; it takes time; and often involves a bit of stress and pressure! Why? It’s hard to step out of the rampant individualism of … More City on a Hill: Building Community
I’m a firm believer in missional living. What I mean by that is each disciple knowing and acting upon the call to live out our Christian life and message in the context of the world. Christianity, by nature, is shaped by mission. We always have our eyes on the horizon of how God is working … More City on a Hill: Out and In
I guess one of my jobs as a pastor is to be looking down the line and prayerfully exploring how we need to shape up to meet the challenges that are coming in the context of mission. Two things converged recently – one by mistake, and one through prayer. The mistake was announcing that, ‘from … More City on a Hill
I’ve done lots of things today, but the gospel has been on my mind. In particular, the doctrine of regeneration. Regeneration is kind of a lost doctrine, and in some ways, evangelicalism has led to its weakening. Sometimes the gospel has been preached just to collect ‘decisions’ for Christ. The truth is that you can … More Renovation of the Heart
If you spent your life living out Romans 12: 9 – 21 you’d be doing a good thing. Here we have 13 verses of instruction on living the Christian life which stands on its own, but is supported by all of Paul’s other writings, and also bears true in his own story. The key principle … More Weapons of Our Warfare
Andrew S M Clark 