Because regret should be a signpost, not a home…
Some of you have asked how my 30 Proverbs Challenge is going. Others have asked what my next book will be. The answer overlaps in that I hope the 30 Proverbs Challenge (a proverb a day for a month providing wisdom for faith, flourishing, family, fortune and the future) will be my next book. I’m working on several key sayings at the moment, some of which readers of this blog have sent me, so my thanks to them. Today’s proverb gives a little taster of what I’m thinking about. Proverb: Regret should be a signpost, not a home. Most of us live with some regrets. There are challenges we backed out...
Read MoreOur Broken World: A Week in my Australia
Occasionally I invite some of our readers to write up their thoughts and experiences. Mal W Good describes himself as a pastor, intercultural worker and working class theologian. His experiences of working with Fourth World peoples are sobering and important to think about. In this post he talks about a week in my Australia – a very different week to the ones most of us enjoy. I am grateful to him for recording his experiences. If you would like to get in touch with Mal you can email him using the format malgood at gmail dot com (written like that lest you are hacking computer!) Here...
Read MoreRefresh: Arguing for the Sake of Heaven – Why we need Curious Conversations
Today’s Refresh was originally posted in May 2021, and if anything is more relevant today than when it first appeared. I especially love the Jonathan Sacks insight that it is better to lose an argument, for when we do, we gain new knowledge, whereas when we win an argument, we simply have an established view reinforced. It’s a refreshing take. Roll on the losses! Arguing for the Sake of Heaven: Why we need Curious Conversations I wonder if you, like me, are finding the polarising conversations taking place in the public square shrill, tiresome and destructive. We have lost the art of...
Read MoreFour things I’m Happy to be Accused of…
It’s a fractious age. Politics has always been divisive, but oh my, that has gone to new levels. Religion has been our second great divide, but even here, the arguments have sharpened and tolerance levels are low. While denominational divides are no longer seen as important, defining the kind of Christian you are is starting to matter, as versions of the Christian faith are becoming widely divergent. This is especially so when religion and politics bubble together in the same pot. A toxic mix of self interest gets God’s name attached to it, even though it is screamingly obvious...
Read MoreRefresh: Option B – When Life Doesn’t Run to Plan
Resentfully lamenting that our life dream has not come true can blind us to the new opportunities setbacks sometimes birth. Though rarely chosen, Option B can turn out to be better than option A. This post originally appeared in Feb 2022, and I am struck by how relevant it remains… Option B: When Life Doesn’t Run to Plan In their very readable book, Option B, Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant explore how to build resilience and find joy when option A for our life is no longer available. For Sheryl Sandberg it started when she discovered her husband Dave collapsed on the gym floor...
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