Earthquake in Japan

I got back in from a walk this afternoon to hear the news of the devastating earthquake in Japan and the terrible loss of life there.As I write I hear that the death toll will almost certainly reach thousands.
I can't begin to imagine what these people are going through and the feelings of sheer terror and grief they must be feeling. As the BBC says a truly awful day for the people of Japan.Indeed given the scale of the tragedy that is surely a large understatement.
These days the news travels fast,indeed almost instantly, around the world
A surprising number of Christian bloggers have already posted on this,they call us to pray and I will certainly do that and I pass on that call to prayer
 I found the penelopepiscopal's reflective blog very moving, helpful and a great  encouragement to identify and to pray with all those affected .
As she says -Lord have mercy!
http://penelopepiscopal.blogspot.com/

An interesting post on Rob Bells controversial new book

I will certainly get hold of the book, have a read and make my own mind up

http://www.gregboyd.org/blog/rob-bell-is-not-a-universalist-and-i-actually-read-love-wins/

Behind the hoardings

It seems a long time since our old town centre building was hidden behind billboards and superficially it can appear that not much is happening.The appearance is very  misleading
 The contractors are on site every working day & lots of meetings  with builders, architects  and others are taking place to ensure that, when the new building is open, we have  the attractive, accessible ,flexible building we need in order to serve the the community as God has called us to do.
We are very keen to get away from the idea that the space the church building occupies is uniquely sacrosanct.As far as we are concerned the great gospel challenge therefore  is not to build the building but to build the Kingdom. The church is not there to serve the building, the building is there to serve the church and The Kingdom .
I feel passionate about this!

The ongoing task that the church leaders and others have been engaged on for some time is discerning through prayer and discussion what kind of ministries will happen in our new building.We hope to partner with other Christians in this venture and already have loads of exciting possibilities! As for which ones we will embark on;  watch this space!
Meanwhile Reggie McNeals words ring true

So, how do we do it? How do we the Church reach a world that doesn’t care about Sunday? 
First, we must understand that Church is a who, not a what; an organism, not an organization; a 
celebration, not an institution. The purpose of the Church is to  be a movement of God that 
introduces people to the King and His Kingdom? He intentionally calls a people to partner with Him to reach the world with His love and blessing. 
This is the purpose of the Church. We are called to be a people of blessing in the community 
where we live and beyond. Like Jesus the church is here to serve, not rule or seek privilege. When we act out being the people of God we will be a blessing and be blessed and God  will receive the Glory. This is our calling and  our mission: to glorify God by introducing Him to others (Matthew 28:16-20)


Missional Renaissance

Ministry of Women- NT Wright

I do enjoy reading and listening to NT Wright!
and on this occasion I agree with him for what it is worth!

Effective mission

Then along came AJ -A study in mission

Interesting study in effective mission
I am sure the principles still hold true today

The Barbers chair

Great piece from Church of England Newspaper

Senior Citizens of The Kingdom

Photo from Age Concern website




I went to a large sheltered housing complex in town today
The group of Christians there had kindly asked me to speak at their monthly service.I spoke from Marks gospel to about 16 people for about 40 minutes (well they said I could!)
A few impressions follow
I was encouraged and delighted by their enthusiasm. Some had been Christians for a long time and still keep up their church connections.For others that was more difficult and this monthly meeting had in effect become their church all appeared to enjoy looking at the Bible and some asked questions afterwards
I was impressed by the pastoral care they showed to one another.Some people who used to be in the residential home and come to the service have moved on to nursing homes.They were still remembered, ,prayed for and cared for.One lady felt this was a very specific ministry God had given her.
I was surprised that the people who came were all women.I know they live longer but I thought there might have been one or two men

Leaving that meeting I went back to our church building where First Tuesday (a work we do for mostly senior citizens) was going on,there were about 30 people present (many more men here) I stayed for a short while chatting
There is quite a culture of youth today. Reflecting on this mornings events reminded me how much older people have to contribute to our churches and how involved they are in the work of the church and the Kingdom
As I myself get older I hope God will give me the grace and energy some of these people have.The ones I met today were not living in some nostalgic past but seeking to serve God today!

They were seeking to do what we should all seek to do: Finish Well!