“If you cut me in half you’ll find ‘Baptist’ written through me.” What a silly statement! I think if you cut me in half you’ll find a mess! However, if I was a stick of rock, I hope that you would find ‘mission’ written inside me. It’s important to know what your...

I don’t know if you do this in your church, but when I was baptised, they gave me a Bible verse to encourage me.  I have often wondered why the minister who baptised me was led to this verse.  Maybe because he recognised in me a questioning and inquisitive mind – the...

I had been invited to speak at a men’s supper in a village close to where I was living in Milton Keynes.  Linked to the local parish church, it included people from church and the wider community, some of whom worked in farming around the village.  A small gathering...

If you're standing, perhaps you had better sit down.  Take a deep breath!  This may come as a bit of a shock. I am an addict. Not an easy thing for a Christian leader to say.  We are meant to be “hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright,...

What would you say to your younger self about some of the challenges and delights of ministry? In his latest book 'Letters to a Young Pastor' Ian Stackhouse returns to the art of letter writing, to capture and share something of what God has shown him over the last...

‘Don’t jump the gun’. When someone acts before the proper or appropriate time. To act too soon when we’re not ready or before the time is right.  ‘You’re jumping the gun!’ –‘ hang on a minute, not so fast, hold back, wait!’ The phrase is derived from athletics of...

‘My name is Nigel and I’m a follower of Jesus’. Even on first meeting, I’d love it if this introduction told someone all that they needed to know about me and my response towards them as a human being. Needless to say, it’s simply where I aspire to be – I remain a...

As I stepped down from giving a testimony one Sunday, Pam and Ken grabbed my hand and with wide eyes and an urgency to their voices they told me ‘whatever happens Alex, never lose your fire!’. With the nonchalance of a recently born believer I freed my hand and smiled...

If you ask a group of people how they respond to the two words ‘disciple’ and ‘learner’, you’ll note a marked difference in their responses. My generalised summary is ‘we like disciple, we don't like learner’. I don't know whether this will be good news or bad news...

'Come, follow me’ - the first words heard on the lips of Jesus in Mark’s gospel. They demand a response, they demand action, they demand change, they demand movement. If we stick at only listening to Jesus, we may develop an intellectual awareness of who he is and...