This Sunday I had fun chatting with my old mate Simon Holt at Collins Street Baptist Church. Watch it here, or read a rough transcript of my part below. Simon introduced the story of Jonah, with context and commentary, then moved onto these questions …
Continue reading “Jonah| #blessed when life is unfair”What is the whale?
It’s the fish god of Assyria and Babylon and empire; no one escapes its appetite.
It’s dark and acidic and stinking and grinding; it’s the abyss; it’s vulnerability.
It’s the site of desperate prayers and promises, and a life given over to God.
It’s the thing you have crossed the oceans to find, when you realise it’s been cradling you all along.
It’s the tomb, it’s the womb, it’s the site of rebirth, it’s the convulsion which spews you to shore.
John | Farewell Sanctuary, my beautiful beloveds
Words for the closing of a church. (Listen.)
Once upon a time, nearly eight years ago, some of us did something very foolish. A bunch of people who had mostly drifted away from church or were burned by church or had been rejected by church bumped into a quirky minister on holiday, and wondered if they might try again. Continue reading “John | Farewell Sanctuary, my beautiful beloveds”
Matthew | The billionaire, the stockbroker and the storyteller
Maybe God isn’t an angry absentee landlord, and maybe the wicked, lazy, worthless bloke isn’t the slave at all. A provocative retelling of the parable of the talents. (Listen.)
Who profits? Who pays? For many years, these words were daubed in bright yellow paint on a wall near my old house; I read them every time I walked past. Gradually they sunk in, until they became the fundamental questions I bring to everything. The news. A sermon. A theological position. A decision. And, of course, any reading of the Bible. Continue reading “Matthew | The billionaire, the stockbroker and the storyteller”
Psalms | Writing a psalm of thanksgiving
God’s steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136:1b)
When a church closes, there is much to grieve yet also much to celebrate. It is usual for some of this to be done in a formal way at the final service, through two or three people chosen to tell that community’s story. Typically, they would be minister and deacons, but of course this preferences a particular type of person and power. However, I think it would be more appropriate to make space for many different voices. Continue reading “Psalms | Writing a psalm of thanksgiving”
Matthew | Five foolish bridesmaids, embraced
We will find Christ among foolish bridesmaids and other outcasts. (Listen.)
Come on, girls, you’ve been working since dawn and it’s only midnight—how dare you sleep? Wake up! Be alert, bright as a button; anticipate your master’s every need. You have more oil? Don’t you dare share, you know it’s a limited good. And stop fretting about your foolish sisters turned away from the banquet. Continue reading “Matthew | Five foolish bridesmaids, embraced”
Matthew | First thoughts, second thoughts, and action
Go, work in the vineyard! (Matthew 21:28)
On Sunday I spoke about being filled with Christ and giving our lives away. As invariably happens when I speak of self-giving love and service, the immediate response was hedging, qualifications and pushback. Continue reading “Matthew | First thoughts, second thoughts, and action”
Matthew | Authority in the church
In communities of faith, integrity, service and love are the hallmarks of legitimate authority. (Listen.)
‘The greatest among you will be your servant,’ says Jesus. He’s just identified the greatest commandments, that is, to love God and neighbour. Now, he’s identifying the greatest person: and it’s the one who loves. That is, they set aside their own interests, roll up their sleeves, and serve. Continue reading “Matthew | Authority in the church”
Trusting in the foolishness of death, Sanctuary will close
Not one stone will be left … (Matthew 24:2)
Holy God,
whose presence is known
in the structures we build
and also in their collapse:
establish in us a desire
not to contain your mystery,
but to be led beyond security
into your sacred space,
through Jesus Christ: Amen. Continue reading “Trusting in the foolishness of death, Sanctuary will close”
Matthew | The demands of love
Love is not a warm smooshy feeling, but a decision, an action, and an orientation. (Listen.)
Perhaps you’ve seen About a Boy, which is really about two boys, or maybe more. One is twelve-year-old Marcus, growing up in precarious circumstances. The other is the beautifully named Will Freeman. Will is a man-child whose wealth has insulated him from other people, and from life itself. Yet through one of his most selfish decisions, he’s thrown into the path of young Marcus; and Marcus begins to make demands on him. Continue reading “Matthew | The demands of love”
Alison and the whale 