spirituality
Over the years of writing this blog I have avoided posting links to sermons I’ve preached. It doesn’t suit the genre to which I have been committed – namely, ‘nice chatting’. This blog is about chatting away to myself about things I am ‘unpacking’ around me. I do this for my own benefit, helping to…
READ MOREFrom my childhood these words of Jesus remain with me. They come from the very first chapter of his ministry. The words of the older translations still roll easily off the tongue. “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” And yet last week, on the lips of my Nigerian colleague (Femi)…
READ MOREIt has been a conspiracy. This week Dr Seuss and my grandchildren, Micah and Amaliya, have gathered forces to remind me once again of my affection for the letter V. Many years ago I did a series of mission-themed talks over a weekend. On the Saturday morning, over a breakfast, I thought I’d be a…
READ MOREIt had been a long trip. Two overnight flights, including one in United’s impossible economy class. I did arrive, finally, at Bogota’s flash airport at 5am, to be greeted by my friend and colleague, Jorge. It was a quick trip to his home – and a bed – only to be greeted by this confronting…
READ MOREIt took a little while for me to see it. But one quarter of the way through the 24 hour retreat, it dawned on me. The small gathering included a number of my inspirations down through the years. All in one room. About 15 people in total. A Murray here and a Merrilyn there. Two…
READ MOREThe other day I did something I don’t often do. I purchased a rugby magazine. The cover had themes you might expect for a NZ rugby magazine: ‘world domination … secrets of the All Blacks’ success … why are the All Blacks so good?’ But it was an article tucked inside the back cover that…
READ MORE“Are you saying that Assad is NOT the biggest problem in Syria?” “Yes, I am.” “WOW.” So I took up her book and read. I’m still thinking about it! The book almost needs to carry a ‘WARNING: READERS’ ADVISORY’. It is not for the weak-minded (or the faint-hearted). I heard Elizabeth Kendal speak at a…
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This book shifted me. Maybe I should say that in theory, it is shifting me – but whether anything happens in practice, time will tell. Lets start with a few appetizers: “We are oriented by our longings, directed by our desires” (11). “You are what you love because you live toward what you want” (13). “Our…
READ MOREThe other day I sat behind an older man clutching his ear with his hand during the singing. I picked what was going on. The music was too loud, but he desperately wanted to remain among the worshipping people of God. He wasn’t making a fuss, and clutching his ear seemed to be his best…
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It is becoming one of my favourite teaching sessions. The goal is to shed light on a critical word in the character of a preacher and then to open a window on the places in the preaching ministry where this word has relevance. We start by splitting people into pairs. “I am going to put…
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.