Seven up…

1) Covid pandemic brings British churches back to life – Fascinating but not necessarily surprising research from YourNeighbour.

2) Matt Redman: We need more worship songs about the holiness of God – Matt Redman’s music has a significant part of the Christian soundtrack to the last 20 years. Really interesting to hear him speak into where he sees the current Christian song-writing culture.

3) I’m a philosopher. We can’t think our way out of this mess. – Interesting and long-form reflective piece from James K. A. Smith: “I used to imagine my calling was to defend the Truth. Now I’m just trying to figure out how to love.” Worth knowing that the print edition of this had a different title: “The intelligence of love.”

4) What Can We Learn from the Ravi Zacharias Scandals? – You may be sick of this as a topic, and it’s certainly a horrifying topic – and yet we must learn and reflect on how such abuse occurs under the guise of Christianity, and how to respond to it. This interview with Sam Allberry, who worked for Zacharias’s RZIM organisation, is a sobering listen. I’m also hoping to listen to this conversation with Dr Diane Langberg, a specialist in trauma abuse with a hugely prophetic voice on where we find ourselves. She particularly speaks here on how we safeguard against more scandals in the future, support victims, ensure accountability, and the problem with pedestals.

5) Everyday Dadding: Dadding with Depression – I’ve just started listening to this podcast on being a Dad and have heard a heap of positive things about this latest episode on living with depression and how that affects his life as a Dad.

6) 3 Steps To Culture Change In A Small Church – I think this has a lot of wisdom in it.

7) Keep Your Eyes on the Trees: An Essay on 1917, the Most Profound Film Since Tree of Life – For something a little bit different, my brother-in-law recently told me that 1917 was the biggest box-office success of 2020 (obviously a surreal year for cinema takings). This is a staggering review that opens up the heart of the film. Keep your eyes on the trees…

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Seven up…

1) Ravi Zacharias is Amnon – Who Are You In The Story? – This ‘sermon’ from Glen Scrivener, recorded for the Speak Life UK channel, is absolutely worth watching in full as the scandal around Zacharias’ life has unravelled over the last week. Glen opens up 2 Samuel 13 with prophetic punch and asks ‘all of us’ to consider who we are in this horrendous state of affairs.

2) Love Stories – Love this simple reflection from Emma Scrivener on six myths we hear and can fall for about love – including within the Church.

3) Dr Bex Lewis: The much-loved Christian author who made the internet a better place – Bex Lewis, who was a regular commentator and contributor on how Christians can and should engage with social media, sadly died of cancer on Thursday. Accordingly, #BeMoreBex was trending on Twitter. More tributes can be found here.

4) Podcast: Practicing Hospitality in a Pandemic (Rosaria Butterfield) – So much helpful stuff here from Rosaria Butterfield, including how we keep reaching out in lockdown, fighting fear, and making repentance a daily rhythm.

5) Ministry Morning, Noon, and Night – There’s probably a risk that pastors/ministers read this and instantly feel guilt that their days don’t resemble this, but I think Benjamin probably captures the ‘juggling a thousand balls’ feel of pastoral ministry, plus we’re all in different seasons of life and in different churches. But I love how matter of fact and honest he is: joys, tears, and fun.

6) The Death of Judas: If you’re on Twitter, go follow James Bejon for some incredible threads on biblical studies. This is a great example as he explores the well known tensions between the ways that Matthew and Luke provide different accounts of Judas’ death.

7) Don’t Be Like This Icelandic Game Show Contestant – For something a bit different, this has blown pretty much every stereotype I have of Iceland out of the water…

For a bonus, here’s a little video I made for Ash Wednesday in my purpose-built studio…

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Seven up…

1) Cancel Valentines – Whatever you make of Valentines Day, this will give you a chuckle and pause for thought from the Speak Life team.

2) Homegroups.org.uk – This looks very interesting: a library of Bible studies and topical discussions to “breathe fresh life into your home group in this testing time”. It’s free to use, with unlimited access on free registration, and PDF downloads for easy sharing. Run by SPCK, with resources from a range of publishers and theological perspectives (including IVP, the Bible Society and St Ebbe’s Church, Oxford), the mailing I received about it encouraged browsing “with adventurous discernment”.

3) Broken Hearts and Valentines – Hannah Rich considers the way we use the language and imagery of the heart, as well as reflecting on her own heart story.

4) Ravi Zacharias Hid Hundreds of Pictures of Women, Abuse During Massages, and a Rape Allegation – I don’t really want to try and add any of my own words to this at this stage, not least after this important Twitter thread from Rachael Denhollander which is absolutely worth reading. Come Lord Jesus.

5) Lovingkindness – I’m loving this new modern hymn from Matt Redman, Matt Boswell, and Matt Papa, and Keith & Kristyn Getty.

6) Excavating Life with The Dig – This is an engaging reflection on this month’s most-viewed Netflix film.

7) Baseball, You Confuse Me – For something a bit different, what could be better than a German trying to understand the American sport of baseball?!

Oh and for a bonus, come work with us ‘where the Lakes meet the sea’, and where the horizons are as vast as community roots go deep… check this unique ministry role out or get in touch if you want to chat.

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