Rob Bell tells a story in his new book about how when he first became a pastor, a member of his church came up to him after a service said to him ‘If you want to see real church, go to an AA meeting’. So he went, and when it came to his turn, just said ‘pass’.

He said after a while he began to realise something.

It was a “bullshit free zone” (his phrasing).

No hiding. No being polite in front of people. No disguising your weaknesses. No protecting yourself.

Just owning who you really are. Being vulnerable. Making yourself naked before others. Admitting your dark side. No hiding.

As I began to reflect on this I realised this would be a great model for church.

We’ve all experienced or heard about churches where secrets are kept. Where people hide their weaknesses. Where fear of being exposed governs behaviour. It happens all too often in the modern church.

But this isn’t church. It’s a (more…)

For the last month  now I’ve participated in Lisa-Jo Baker’s “Five-Minute Friday”. The concept is simply writing for 5 minutes, straight from the heart, on a given subject – and then sharing it.

No edits, no marinading or reflecting – just write and share.

If you’re a writer or blogger of any kind, I’d definitely recommend it – it really pushes you and helps you grow as a writer.

And today I’m doing it again. Today the theme is “Jump”, and I struggled with this for two reasons. First, I’ve recently written a post called ‘Why we all Need to Jump‘ and second, I was initially feeling too tired to write.

However, I managed to write this on my i-phone on the way home:

Right now, as I write, I don’t feel like jumping. The energy in my body at this moment makes me feel like simply giving up.

I feel like I am jumping too much, diving headlong into commitments and risks without a second glance, I don’t stop to look before I leap.

Now looking before you leap can be a bad decision occasionally. It fills us with fear and we take a step back. But at others it can be wise.

Because jumping into too many commitments at once just isn’t healthy.

Why? Because (more…)

On Monday I was at Union Chapel in London, to hear Rob Bell (left) talk about his new book “What we talk about when we talk about God” (which, by the way, is awesome), and do a question and answer session.

As ever, Bell was top class, proving himself again as an exceptional speaker and communicator, and his message really resonated with me.

But one other element struck me whilst listening to him speak.

The energy he had sharing his message. The infectious enthusiasm for the topic. The heart behind his talk. As he drew towards the end, he was moved almost to tears sharing his heart with us.

The water welling up in his eyes crystallised just how much he cared about his message. How what he was sharing was not simply a speech prepared for an audience, as much as it was an outpouring of his heart.

You got the impression this was man who has no care (more…)

I have a confession to make. I am screwed up. I have bad habits which I’m ashamed of. I’ve made mistakes and still do. I can get annoyed at little things. I’ve been in a broken home and lost a parent young. I’ve seen alcoholism at first hand. I lack confidence and occasionally self-esteem. I can be lazy, make excuses and procrastinate.

In other words, I’m a mess.

I don’t have it all together.

My life isn’t perfect.

I don’t have all the answers.

However, I get encouragement from others about the kind of person they see. A wise, intelligent, insightful person with (more…)

For the last month  now I’ve participated in Lisa-Jo Baker’s “Five-Minute Friday”. The concept is simply writing for 5 minutes, straight from the heart, on a given subject – and then sharing it.

No edits, no marinading or reflecting – just write and share.

If you’re a writer or blogger of any kind, I’d recommend it – it really pushes you and helps you grow as a writer.

And today I’m doing it again.

So here’s today’s “5 Minute Friday” – the theme is “Here”.

Here. A place I have never been before and never will be again. We live and work in very familiar surroundings. I will go home again. I will sit at my desk again. And physically these are the same.

But this moment in time will never exist again. I will never be precisely as I am  (more…)

“Hold on tight.

When you receive the Gift of Purpose you are in for the ride of your life” 

- Teresa Shields Parker

Did you know a lot of times, the sun isn’t even awake at 6 a.m.? That’s right, today, April 10, 2013, in Sutton, near London, England, where I live, the sun stayed in bed until 6:16 a.m. Why should I get up first?

I’m not a morning person. I never have been. I wouldn’t say I’m someone who likes to lazily sleep in till 10 a.m., but I’m also not someone who naturally rises at 6 a.m., either. I get up early to go to work, but I never get properly awake until about 8 or 9 a.m.

I also have a medical condition, epilepsy, which in my case is linked to my tiredness and lack of sleep. So, I even have a legitimate excuse for sleeping in.

The final icing on this cake; this is my day off. I don’t have to be anywhere today.

Here I am, at 6.47 a.m. on my day off, sitting at my desk writing. And, yes, I got up at 6 a.m.

Why would I, or anyone, willingly sacrifice a nice lie-in on a day off or on any day, for that matter?  Read more….

The above is a little excerpt from a guest post I wrote which went live today over at Teresa Shields Parker’s blog. The link to the rest of the post is below, but first here’s some more about Teresa and (more…)

Today I’m delighted to welcome Tanya Marlow as guest poster on the blog. Tanya writes at Thorns and Gold, and I’ve gotten to know her through twitter as well as her blog.

Tanya always writes with such honesty and grace about her faith and struggle living with a chronic illness. It’s an honour to have Tanya posting here today and I’m certain you’re going to learn a lot from her: 

It is always easier to tear down than to build up.

I watch my little boy playing with his Lego.

“And then this goes on top of here,” he explains, “and this one, and this one.”

He carefully selects each brick: red on top of blue, two to match the other side, a bridge over the pillars – no, not a bridge- he’s changed his mind – a bright tower. Here a door, there a window; he creates his world with such care, and I pour over (more…)

For the last three weeks now I’ve participated in Lisa-Jo Baker’s “Five-Minute Friday”. The concept is simply writing for 5 minutes, straight from the heart, on a given subject – and then sharing it.

No edits, no marinading or reflecting – just write and share

So, here’s today’s “5 Minute Friday” – the theme is “After”.

After.

We don’t often talk about after.

We build up our desires don’t we?

The job. The husband or wife. The career. The book contract. Whatever it is we desire most, we have a habit of building it up. Placing impossible expectations on it.

And then we get it.

So what then?

What happens after? (more…)

Last weekend I blogged about how we need to feel the absence of God in order to have intimacy with God. It’s a major part of my journey right now – and today I want to take this discussion further.

I’ve been going through a season of doubt in my faith. Asking questions which have taken me to the very heart of my faith. But in many ways I felt closer to God then than I have done when things were good. When faith was certain.

It’s strange, but in the moment of doubt and despair I’ve actually felt an intimacy with God I don’t feel in the good times.

I have always suspected doubt is good for our relationship with God. Now, I’m even more certain.

To have an intimate relationship with the divine, we need doubt. We can’t live (more…)

Today is Holy Saturday. This day, in the Easter story, is a day when Jesus is dead. Gone. Absent. If people are sick, there’s no one to heal them. If people want words of wisdom or insight, He’s not there.

He’s dead. In the tomb.

Yesterday and today I’ve read a lot of tweets and Facebook updates, talking about how difficult Good Friday was…

…but we must remember Sunday.

How it’s all going to be okay because Jesus rises again.

We don’t have to get depressed about His death, because we know it’s all okay in the end.

Now there might be some truth in this. Jesus does rise again. Which is awesome.

But can we wait till tomorrow to remember it?

All this triumphalism disappoints me. It hurts. Because the truth is, things don’t always (more…)