Cross the ball - don't score the goal!

It’s a familiar scene to anyone who knows football. The soccer player who tries to “go it alone” runs at the defence, takes a wild shot, and completely misses - while his team-mates, completely unmarked, stand by helpless. The furious team coach is yelling from the touchline: “Pass the ball, don’t score the goal!”

One of the most important lessons I learned early on in my unusual career as a home group leader is contained in this pithy potted proverb.

Everybody knows that Discovery is the best kind of education. I will always learn something more thoroughly if I’m put in the position where I discover it for myself, rather than if someone just tells me. But it's remarkable how many of us fail to work it out in practice.... continue reading

Christianity in the News

The vicar spreading the word, one tweet at a time

Secularists using Christianity as 'surrogate' for Islamic radicals, says bullish Rowan Williams

Church of England schools to be "rebranded"

More Americans say too much religion in politics

Missionaries try to bring Christianity back to Britain on BBC tonight

Jeremy Clarkson's blasphemy is just 'everyday language', says BBC

Home groups: watch the watch!

The study is flowing, the conversation is sharp, funny and moving by turn.

Someone raises an interesting question that everyone wants to comment on. Someone shares a deeply moving need that everyone wants to pray for.

You look at your watch, and it's 10.45.

"Whoa!" you cry, "time these little piggies were all tucked up in bed for the night." Some members shoot out of their seats and head straight for the door. Others linger in the hallway talking by the open door. You stifle a yawn, close the door and switch on the TV to wind down before you go to bed. The light doesn't go off until 12.45.

Sound familiar?... continue reading

Respectable Sins: Confronting the sins we tolerate

“Respectable what? Respectable sins?” exclaims the worried-looking customer on our church bookstall, which I run. It’s fun to watch their bemused reaction when they spot this book!

As the sub-title indicates, Respectable Sins is about tackling the sins we tolerate - the ‘subtle’ sins which, as Jerry points out, we in reality consider ‘refined’ or ‘acceptable’. What honest Christian doesn’t sometimes convince himself a certain sin is ‘OK’?

Jerry has had a long, valuable ministry among students and in the community, and what he writes is relevant to all Christians. He is one of my favourite authors and his books have stood the test of time. His first book, ‘The Pursuit of Holiness” (1978), has sold over one million copies. You are always spiritually the better for reading one of his books.

In the first five chapters, Jerry looks at how the concept of sin is disappearing, it’s awful power, the remedy for sin, and the Holy Spirit’s power to combat it. There is then a helpful chapter with guidance on dealing with specific sins, followed by the core of the book, fourteen chapters examining in turn individual sins that we tend to consider ‘acceptable’. Finally, there is a practical chapter - Where do we go from here?

The core chapters cover some of the more obvious ‘respectable’ sins - e.g. pride, selfishness and anger, but also sins that we often rationalize as ‘OK’ - e.g. frustration, envy, lack of self-control, irritability and ingratitude. The style is easy to read, but the content is challenging and thought-provoking. I found that every single core chapter exposed my hidden sinfulness and made me wince. There is a great balance between the ‘negative’ and the ‘positive’. Assured that God no longer counts our sin against us, and extremely thankful for that, as Jerry says, ‘This twofold effect of encouragement and gratitude together produces in us a desire to deal with our sin’.

Respectable Sins is a book that can be used in many ways. I have recommended it at church; our Ladies’ Reading Group are currently reading it together and using it one-to one; and it could also form the basis for a sermon series, midweek prayer meetings and home group studies.

If we are serious about seeking to be more Christlike personally and towards others, then this book’s wise, biblical, practical and positive teaching is an excellent aid. It’s a book that you won’t regret reading.

Potted Proverbs: apply as you go

The conversation had been brisk and lively. We'd laughed, puzzled and provoked each other in our discussion. The leader glances at his watch, and bursts out:

"Oh Goodness, look at the time – just before we pray, how are we going to apply all this?"

I've already posted about my hatred of "The Big Bang" at the end of Home groups - when we disconnect what we have heard God say from how we pray to him. But the scene above is just as common in many groups and is just as damaging. (And yes - I was guilty of this for years, and am only just learning to repent of it!)

The problem is that we get so involved in understanding and pinning down the big ideas in the passage, or the theology or the doctrine that's contained in it, that we leave very little time to the application, so that it all happens in a rush at the end. Or to put it another way - it doesn't happen at all!... continue reading

On to a Good Thing

Found something that you think should make it on to the On to a Good Thing weekly round-up? Send it to: ontoagoodthing@thegoodbook.co.uk

The main thing is the main thing

What kind of home group leader are you? A hippy, an engineer, a gardener or a schoolmaster?

Giving some thought to your style of leadership, and how you relate to others and just "be" with a group of people, can be very instructive to working out your blind spots in making your home group go with a zing.

I asked the same question in a parenting seminar I ran with a friend a couple of years ago, and it opened my eyes to some stark truths about myself, and how I influence others.

Let me be up front. I pretty much default to Hippy mode when I'm with groups of people. I just love the journey so much, that I'm tempted to forget the destination. I think people in my homegroup have a great and memorable time, but I need to make sure that I have planned, prepared and have firmly fixed in my mind where we need to get to as we open God's word together.... continue reading

Potted Proverbs: We don't believe in the Big Bang!

I'm not talking about the dawn of time and all that bewildering Cosmology stuff that lots of clever people like to think about with their calculators at hand.

I'm talking about what so often happens at the end of home groups:

We've finished reading and thinking about the Bible together. We've been amazed at how brilliant / surprising / strange / terrifying God is. We've been challenged deep down to think about how we can serve Christ better. And then the leaders says: "Right, what shall we pray for?" And then comes the Big Bang! The sound of Bibles closing around the room.... continue reading