christian mind
20/20 has always been associated with a clarity of vision, one that enables a certainty of purpose and a strength of step. But when 2020 finally arrived among us, it has brought confusion, uncertainty – and sickness. The irony is that those of us who have trumpeted our ‘wisdom, wealth and power’ down the decades,…
READ MOREWhen it comes to TV dramas, nobody does it better than the Brits. Nobody. This is a law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be altered. And so it came to pass, with a nudge from our daughter and a shared Netflix account to help welcome us home, that Barby and I discovered Shetland. It…
READ MOREEighteen days in self-isolation at Little Huia. What a gift from God to us through our friends, Jan & Murray. We rested, with such a comfy bed and a hot, wet shower. We watched, with the pandemic spreading so rapidly. We worked, with zooms starting to dictate our days and nights. We walked, with…
READ MORE‘An explosion of protest, a howl of rage’ was the headline catching my eye this week, especially when in concert with this photo. The Guardian, through word and image, was capturing what is happening in the world today. Hong Kong may well have been the ignition, but the protests have been spreading to Iraq and…
READ MOREWith movies, I like to think my own thoughts… Whether it be the gross takings from the box-office, or those percentages on Rotten Tomatoes – neither one is going to influence me one whit. They are not going to tell me what to think. No way 😀. I’ll like what I like for the reasons I choose, thank-you…
READ MORE“One in six people in the world is Chinese, while one in six languages in the world is Melanesian.” This statement has always intrigued me. While it may not be strictly accurate, it certainly infers something surprising about Melanesia. It is a place that gathers an astonishing number of mother-tongue, or vernacular, languages. With this…
READ MOREIn the week before we left New Zealand, an issue grabbed the headlines. Thousands of people occupied land in a place called Ihumātao, near the Auckland airport. It is land that is precious to our indigenous Māori people. Sadly, New Zealand has a history of stealing land and dishonouring treaties and so people gathered in…
READ MORE[Added, 23/05/23: a Parihaka update—see below] I picked it up from someone else. I don’t remember who it was, but I am so grateful. It is now one of the most frequent pieces of advice that I pass on to others willing to listen. With the view that opposes your own, always paint it in…
READ MOREHearing Lamin Sanneh speak at a conference in 2006 became a pivotal moment in my life. This Professor of World Christianity – originally from The Gambia in West Africa, but finishing up at Yale University – was used by God to draw me into a fresh awareness and commitment to the global church which contributed to…
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The generation that came after me tends to impress me more than the babyboomer one that went before me. Speaking very generally, and yet observing it repeatedly, their hearts seem to be turned towards the world more radically. For me it started when we hosted a young adults’ home group for almost a decade. Their questions. Their…
READ MOREAbout Me
the art of unpacking
After a childhood in India, a theological training in the USA and a pastoral ministry in Southland (New Zealand), I spent twenty years in theological education in New Zealand — first at Laidlaw College and then at Carey Baptist College, where I served as principal. In 2009 I began working with Langham Partnership and since 2013 I have been the Programme Director (Langham Preaching). Through it all I've cherished the experience of the 'gracious hand of God upon me' and I've relished the opportunity to 'unpack', or exegete, all that I encounter in my walk through life with Jesus.