No situation in life is without its opportunities. Not all circumstances are good but they can be used for good in the hands of our loving creator. So what good can come out of unemployment? You may well be able to add your own ideas but here are a few of mine:
Unemployment helps us understand Christ’s suffering better
All suffering gives us a glimpse into what Jesus endured. He was tempted in every way, he knew rejection, poverty, sacrifice, lack of physical security. And while our sacrifice can never come close to the ultimate sacrifice he made, it can give us a glimpse - it can help us understand just a little bit more of what our Saviour endured, and endured so sinlessly and silently, for us.... continue reading
1. The Gospel Partnerships
A new website aiming to serve churches by providing excellent resources for evangelism, training and church planting.
2. Napkin Theology
A collection of simplistic images from GCM Collective.
3. A New Kind of Librarian
A very interesting article from Aimee Byrd about a new kind of librarian.
4. Science and Christianity
A selection of short videos from St. Helen's Bishopsgate on the topic of Science and Christianity.
5. And finally…
Our video of the week, 'Graffiti Bridge to Life':
Found something that you think should make it on to the On to a Good Thing round-up? Send it to: ontoagoodthing@thegoodbook.co.uk
Humans were designed to work. It’s part of the creation mandate. The call to tend the earth, rule over the created order is at the very core of what it means to be a person in God’s image (Genesis 1:26). And most of us know that. It feels ‘right’ deep within us to be active and productive in meaningful labour. When work is absent part of our raison d’etre disappears.
Unemployment hurts because it takes away part of our purpose.
But it’s more than that. Unemployment hurts because everything to do with work hurts – to a greater or lesser extent. The world of work is not easy. Not at the moment anyway. It may have been a joy for Adam to be set free in the Garden of Eden but we live post-fall. We have to live with the effects of God’s curse on his rebellious creation. And that means living in a world where work hurts. Just as Adam’s work moved from joy to thorns, pain and sweat (Genesis 3:17-19) so all aspects of work – its presence or absence – are inevitably difficult, broken and tainted.... continue reading
8%. Or thereabouts. That’s the percentage of people who are unemployed in the UK and US. In other countries it’s significantly worse – closer to 15% in Ireland and 25% in Greece and Spain. And so it’s likely, if not inevitable, that we all know someone who is struggling to find a job.
Being unemployed can be a dismal experience. There’s the waste of talents, the stigma of being ‘let go’, the social isolation of being away from colleagues, the worry that in some way you’re ‘not good enough’, the relentless application form filling, the repeated rejection letters and, of course, the ever present question of how to pay the bills, make ends meet. And it’s not just a personal experience, the whole family is affected – marriages feel the strain as couples get under each other’s feet, struggle to understand the pressures of looking for work, become snappy over money and live in fear of having to move somewhere smaller, somewhere cheaper, somewhere away from the people they get on with best.
But it is not an experience that is unusual in this fallen world. It is not a problem about which God is unaware. It is not something about which he does not care. And it is something in which our brothers and sisters can support us. So, over the next few days we are going to take a look at why being unemployed hurts. And encourage each other by reflecting on the opportunities it provides for growth – both within the individuals who are job-hunting and within the wider church.
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.
1 John 3 v 1-3
Incredible. All Christians are children of God! He lavishes His love on them. It’s the greatest privilege in the universe. Through His Holy Spirit, Jesus is transforming us to become more like Him, even before He returns and completes the job. We are God’s children so we should start living like it.
At the Bible Centred Youthwork Conference this week some of the delegates made a likeness of The Good Book Company Managing Director, Tim Thornborough.
Any captions? We'd love to hear your ideas!
Being religious doesn't help you love your neighbour
Is freedom of religion declining in the USA?
Pastor faces possible death sentence
Christian fundamentalists freak out over yoga in the military
Abortion in the USA
Disclaimer: The Good Book Company is not responsible for the content of external sites and does not necessarily agree with the content of articles listed.
In 1973, the law in America changed. The States legalised abortion. And it is estimated that in the region of 50 million abortions have been performed in the US since that time. But this week, 40 years on, the issue is being as hotly contended as it was when the decision was first taken. A poll recently indicated that 54% of Americans now believe abortion should be legal and 7 out of 10 of those surveyed said they did not want the law to be changed. But, in some places at least, the tide is turning back towards a pro-life stance.
Some individual States are taking a stand and making it next to impossible for abortion clinics to function. Mississippi has just one abortion clinic left and that is struggling to survive in the face of local laws requiring such organisations to have hospital-admitting privileges. Some Americans fear - others celebrate - the fact that 4 States are down to their last clinic and may soon have none.
But what, as Christians, are we to make of this hotly debated political issue, this desperately emotive pastoral crisis that impacts so many lives? How can we enact what the Bible teaches us about the value of life on a local and a national scene while at the same time supporting those women who are in crisis pregnancy? This time last year, we ran a series on Abortion on The Good Book Blog. Here are the links. We hope they will help fuel the discussions that we know many of our readers are having with Christian and non-Christian friends this week.
Precious child or potential child?
Caring for those who have had an abortion
Today on The Good Book Blog, Carl Laferton speaks to Mike McKinley about his new book, Passion.
Passion is a book about the last day of Jesus' life, leading up to the cross. There are A LOT of books about the cross! Why is this one different?
Well, Passion certainly doesn't break any startling new ground. I think that's probably a good thing! But there are three features of the book's approach that I hope make it particularly helpful: First, it’s expositional. The book is rooted in the text of Luke. I hope that by the time the reader is finished with the book, they have a fresh grasp of the what the Scriptures tell us about the suffering of our Lord. Second, it’s applicational (if that’s a word!). The writers of the New Testament saw the cross of Christ (alongside his resurrection) as one of the foundational realities of the Christian life. The cross applies to our lives right now; we are meant to live and love and believe in light of what Jesus did for us there. Third, it’s slow.There is a lot of action packed into Luke's account of that day. My goal in Passion was to slow down and look carefully at all of those events and what they mean to us.... continue reading
1. 10 Steps to Reading 50 Books in 2013
Josh Stringer looks at 10 ways to read 50 books in a year.
2. Lessons for a Young Preacher: Preach the Word
Dan Green shares 10 lessons he's learnt from the book 'Dear Timothy: Letters on Pastoral Ministry'.
3. Advice on Counselling Unbelievers
Mike McKinley highlights this advice from the Journal of Biblical Counselling.
4. 20 Directions for New Believers
Mike Leake shares these directions from Richard Baxter.
5. And finally...
Our video of the week, Mike McKinley introduces his new book, Passion:
