Church Planting (Page 18)
Let’s Talk About Sex!
Every pastor I know has a story to tell of somebody they know and/or knew in the ministry who has fallen foul of sexual infidelity or some sort of deep seated, habitual sexual sin. I have been a pastor for 13 years and I can tell you from personal experience that I am counselling more men than ever before on pornography issues. Many of us in ministry will read that last…
Our children in a ‘moral abyss’
A couple of weeks back, I wrote a post about our decision to invest more heavily in the children’s work at NCC. As a ‘youth’ worker, I’ve always been a bit reticent about doing children’s work – I don’t really enjoy it, though I recognise the need for it! Dr Helen Wright, head teacher of St Mary’s Calne, Wiltshire and President of the Girls’ School Association was quoted…
Why The Atonement matters For Church Planters (5)
Atonement’ edited by Gabriel Fluhrer (P&R Publishing 2010) This is a series of lectures about ‘blood’ according to the book’s sleeve and is a compilation of 8 essays on the topic by 7 evangelical theologians and pastors. Such is the importance of this subject for every Christian, whoever they…
How Far Should We Go in Discipleship Making?
Isaiah 58:10: ‘… if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.’ What does Isaiah mean when he uses the phrase, ‘spend yourself’ on behalf of the poor? In other versions it is translated as ‘pouring yourself…
Why Should We Take The Gospel To Housing Schemes Anyway?
Christians need to be seriously considering this question as, thankfully, more and more Christians seem to be taking notice of the dire gospel needs of many of our cities housing schemes/council estates. Personal experience has shown me that many ‘outsiders’ will come and help out at…
Is There Anybody Out There? Mez’s Updated Autobiography Available Now!
by Mike Stark “This is a compelling, gripping, heart-wrenching, you-can’t-put-it-down story of sin and grace. Read this and thank God that, as Psalm 136 says, ‘His love endures forever.’” (Mark Dever) ~ Senior Pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, DC The updated…
Why The Atonement Matters For Church Planters (4)
Atonement’ edited by Gabriel Fluhrer (P&R Publishing 2010) This is a series of lectures about ‘blood’ according to the book’s sleeve and is a compilation of 8 essays on the topic by 7 evangelical theologians and pastors. Such is the importance of this subject for every Christian, whoever they…
Understanding The Housing Scheme Mentality
There is lots of talk around at the moment about ‘cultural defeaters’ (a la Keller) and ‘common grace bridges’ when it comes to talk about the ‘Post-Christian‘ West. I recently spent the day with some ‘Crowded House’ Leaders in Sheffield and we were reflecting on what these terms mean in the context of a housing…
Please Worship Somewhere Else! (Why our church may not be for you)
Niddrie Community Church sits right in the centre of a housing scheme in the East of Edinburgh. We are too small and not ‘cool’ enough to be student friendly. The odd student type who does come along to our services is usually very focused and dedicated in the Christian faith. We are…
Children’s Work & Church Planting: Friends or Foes?
With independence on the horizon for NCC, we’ve been spending a lot of time as a Ministry Team thinking about our vision and direction for the future. If our church members are to be on board with our ideas, they need to know where we’re going. The leadership of the church has decided…