Our deepest desires, our necessary plans…
It was a mentoring conversation, and while obviously with a specific person, I had the feeling I had heard it many times before. We were starting with the important Steven Covey insight, “begin with the end in mind”. If you know Covey’s work you will remember that he suggests we imagine we are at our funeral, and are listening in to the eulogies. Covey asks what we hope to hear. Do we long for a word from fellow workers about how smart we were and how cleverly we outwitted the opposition, or would we prefer words from our spouse, children and friends about the deep...
Read MorePurpose over Preference, and Noting the Difference…
Ever since the phenomenal success of Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life, conversations about the importance of purpose have abounded. Of course we are now a little less enthusiastic about being “driven” and are alert to the dangers of driven leaders and workplaces. Too often they birth burnout, and can subtly justify the abuse of individuals by claiming that the underlying cause is worthy. Much pain can result. However, most things have a potential shadow side, so while acknowledging the possible downside of being “purpose driven”, I thought it worth...
Read MoreThe Eternal Trio: Faith, Hope and Love
It’s an incredibly bold claim that Paul makes at the end of what is one of the most beautiful passages of Scripture. In it Paul confidently asserts: “These three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor 13:13). In many ways it’s a surprising statement, especially given the wider context of his first letter to the Corinthians. Prior to the stunning hymn about love found in chapter 13, Paul has been dealing with far less lofty matters – some were downright sordid. Let’s face it, in many ways 1 Corinthians is heavy going,...
Read MoreReflections from a cruise…
I’m writing this as I sit on my cabin balcony gazing out at the open ocean. Rosemary and I are in the middle of 25 days of unaccustomed ease and luxury as we celebrate her retirement some 20 months ago. We have cruised around Iceland and Norway and will soon be exploring Amsterdam and Belgium before docking in Southhampton when a second cruise will take us all the way around the United Kingdom. It’s been glorious. I can’t remember the last time our most pressing decision was which of the dozen plus dining options we will make use of tonight, or how many of the desserts we’ll attempt to...
Read MoreThe Thirty Proverbs Challenge: Formulating your Life Learnings.
Proverbs 22:20 reads, “I have written thirty sayings for you, filled with advice and knowledge.” What follows are a wide range of helpful insights from the noble “Do not rob the poor… for the Lord is their defender” (V22) to the controversial “Don’t fail to correct your children. They won’t die if you spank them” (Prov 23:13) and the pragmatic “If you are a big eater, put a knife to your throat, and don’t desire all the delicacies” (Prov 23:2). Each generation formulates its own wisdom. Often it is in agreement with what has gone before, but sometimes not. I decided to see if I could move...
Read MoreI will be second: Insights from an ancient friendship…
It’s an often overlooked statement that is strangely counter-cultural. You find it in 1 Samuel 23:17 when Jonathan says to his great friend David: “You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you.” Now that wouldn’t be too startling a sentiment if it wasn’t that everyone expected Jonathan to be king. After all, he was the oldest son of King Saul, and that’s how these things work in royal circles. The oldest son is heir to the throne – easy, straightforward, not controversial at all. So what is Jonathan doing promising the throne to David and suggesting he would be his...
Read MoreOn Turning 67: Numbering our Days…
Psalm 90:10 makes the sobering claim that “The length of our days is seventy years.” That’s mildly alarming if, like me, you’ve just turned 67. What – only 3 years to go? True, the Psalmist goes on to note that we might reach 80, but warns that “their span is but trouble and sorrow”, before advising us “to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” OK – so what does this have to say to those who, like me, are in striking distance of some of those numbers, and does it also have something for those who haven’t...
Read MoreOur Deepest Regrets: To the Judas within…
I get to preach on Judas Iscariot this week. Yup – I drew the short straw. Sure, someone has to do it, but how do you inspire a congregation with someone who is more infamous than Hitler? “With great difficulty”, I hear you reply – and fair enough. Jonathan Sacks has rightly noted that the Bible is unusual in ancient literature in that its heroes have flaws and its villains have virtues. That’s in stark contrast to the lazy triumphalism that was common for the time. But does it apply to Judas? There is no doubt he was a villain – his kiss of betrayal...
Read MoreOn Launching a Book: The Stirrers and Saints Story
There is a fair chance you already know that my latest book, “Stirrers and Saints: Forming Spiritual Leaders of Skill, Depth and Character” was recently launched. It’s my 7th, and I like to remind people that in the Bible 7 represents a complete or perfect number – so hopefully that says something about the book. People often ask me why I write, and what it takes to write a book, and what it feels like to launch one – so I thought I’d use this post to speak about that. Hopefully these thoughts will be helpful, and not simply self indulgent. So why do I...
Read MorePromise, Challenge and Task: Three Reminders…
I’m due to preach on Joshua as a one off message in a series exploring interesting Bible characters. It’s hard to condense such an important story into 25 minutes, and any lens selected will miss a lot, but I’ve opted to filter his story through three key ideas – what he was promised, what special challenges he faced and the tasks he had to do. I decided to steer the story in this direction because it struck me that these are three big categories that can be helpful for most people, and perhaps you are one of them. So what was Joshua promised? Primarily, God’s...
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