The media event of last week was the airing of the final episode of the long running Australian soap opera Neighbours. “Thanks for loving us/we loved you too” was the final message that flashed on the screen. The show which has been finally axed after 37 years was a must…

One of the things I miss about being a regular church pastor is the sense of excitement and anticipation about preparing for a new sermon series. It is exciting to wrestle with a Bible book to tease out its meaning and significance for a congregation. I am grateful for some…

Presidential candidate George H. W. Bush received enthusiastic cheers by promising his party convention, “Read my lips, no new taxes.” Yet, when Bush became the US President, what did he do? He introduced a stealth budget that was full of new taxes. In a relatively light-hearted piece about political leadership…

Last week I was pleased to be part of the Dead Preachers Society Conference in Eastbourne. The idea arose from a visit to New Orleans Baptist Seminary, where every two weeks in term time a group of students meet at 6.30am to discuss a dead preacher. We gathered in Eastbourne…

I sometimes jokingly say that the epitaph on my gravestone is likely to be: “He could talk!” Of course, that is an obvious danger for anyone who dares to speak in God’s name. Merely having the gift of the gab does not qualify a person for being a preacher. Talkativeness…

Summer is often the time when preachers sketch out plans for the coming year’s sermons. One of the easiest ways to manage this process is to plan a preaching series. These can come in various forms: 1 Preaching a whole Bible book one chapter at a time The advantage: the…

Preaching is not intended to be a virtuoso solo performance. All sermons should be well populated. I was reminded of this last weekend as a took part in the graduation and 30th Anniversary celebrations at the Latvian Biblical Centre. …

Preachers operate at a number of levels in every sermon. We connect the following worlds: The world of unbelief or indifference. This is a climate of hostility, suspicion and boredom. Such a world, if it notices preachers at all, will dismiss them with a cruel putdown or an undisguised yawn. …

We live quite near to the Wiston Estate where the Big Church Day Out, renamed Big Church Festival, has become an annual fixture since 2009. Apart of course for 2020 and 2021. It was good to be there over the past weekend which was a combination of the Queen’s Platinum…