church
On Sunday afternoon I spent a few hours with Robyn of Epuni. On Thursday afternoon I spent a few hours with Paul of Stoke. With Robyn I chatted with some young adults over lunch. With Paul I went visiting the elderly in the later afternoon. Robyn was a student in my final years at Carey.…
READ MOREAny close reader of this blog will notice that I consider one of the most encouraging signs of progress in the mission of God in New Zealand today is the growing momentum within the Tertiary Students Christian Fellowship (TSCF). I delight in being on the Board and this past weekend was the highlight for me…
READ MOREWhen it comes to naming the biggest influences on my life, the task is easy. No human beings are more responsible for the shaping of my convictions than John Stott and DA Carson. It is a dead heat – and I am forever grateful. In my impressionable early twenties these two men helped me build…
READ MOREI’ve been getting acquainted with the seventh edition of this “definitive prayer guide to every nation” which is now available as a book and a DVD. What a labour of love this is. And what a contribution to the task of global mission. It should be hanging out in the living rooms, burdening the coffee…
READ MOREPaul Holmes has grown on me over the years. I much prefer him in his current role as a weekly correspondent in the NZ Herald over the role from which he gained his fame and fortune – fronting a nightly current events TV show for decades (it seemed). His columns are powerful. Often laced with…
READ MOREThere is a lot to like about this new book from Chris Wright: The Mission of God’s People (Zondervan, 2010). The writing style and the format of the book makes it so accessible to home groups, for example. The ‘sermonic atmosphere’ hovering around the chapters is suggestive to preachers looking for ideas. It is the…
READ MOREThe Capetown Commitment is now available here. My initial impression is positive. I like the effort made to bring ‘unchanging gospel’ and ‘changing world’ together for this time in which we live. Neither text nor context seems compromised. The initial reading causes heart and mind to come alive to both word and world. I am…
READ MOREDuring a recent ‘tour of service’ with Langham Preaching in Vanuatu I was impacted by families – four families, to be precise. from england and germany to new zealand The Shudall family. I like to think of them as missionaries to New Zealand where Andy works as Head of Training for TSCF (the IFES-affiliate) –…
READ MOREThere were two earthquakes in Canterbury last week. One was the actual earthquake that has created such fear and anxiety throughout the region and headlines around the world. Every image and every sound-byte is still so compelling. The bill will press on beyond NZD2 billion. The great ‘act of God’ in this disaster is that…
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I live in NZ and listen to the sobered and scholarly voices on the challenge of the post-Christian West. I work in Asia and listen to the enthusiastic vibrancy of a post-Western Christianity. I live in NZ and listen to the church speaking “mission, mission, mission”. I work in Asia and listen to the church…
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.