Opening and closing the door on grief

Life

Ken Churchward | 1 July, 2002

A little girl always asked her mother to leave the hall light on and bedroom door open when she was put to bed at night. Her mother asked her one evening, “Is it to let the light in?”

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Whatever happened to sacrifice?

Life

Andrew Reid | 1 September, 2001

Not within cloistered walls,
Not in the peaceful glade,
Not in the sheltered home
‘Neath the trees’ spreading shade.
But on the mountain side,
Wind swept;
Crossing the desert bare,
Sun scorched;
Braving the torrent stream.
Flooded;
Out on the battlefield,
Bloody;
Unsheathed His sword.
Here I find my Lord.

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Ten tips for frustrated servants

Life

Peter Blowes | 1 August, 2001

One of the most common experiences in the life of Christian service is not love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, or any other fruit of the Spirit; it’s frustration. Sometimes this arises from ungodliness in the servant; sometimes it is a genuine response to a situation that makes you feel like crying out, “God, what are you doing here?”

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Diary of an urban parson

Everyday Ministry

Simon Manchester | 1 June, 2001

In which one such pilgrim records a month’s worth of the blessings and travails of daily Christian service, and in which he demonstrates for us his theology in action.

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The blessing of infertility

Life

Darren Yates | 7 December, 2000

I’m surprised that in this world of political correctness, the word ‘infertility’ still exists. I would have thought by now that my wife and I would have been classed among the ‘reproductively challenged’, or some other ghastly term. ‘Infertility’ is certainly a word we have both come to know and accept over the last three years—more as an embarrassing out-of-town relative than as a dearly loved member of the family.

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The very practical doctrine of the Trinity

Thought

Michael Jensen | 19 July, 2000

What practical difference does the doctrine of the Trinity make? We defend the Trinity—we declare it in the creeds and assent to it in our denominational confessions—but does this peculiarly Christian teaching about God make any practical difference to the way we live our lives?

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The view from here: How the resurrection changes your life

Thought

Peter Bolt | 11 November, 1999

In an article in the previous Briefing, we considered how the resurrection of Jesus confirmed his Lordship over all creation and changed the eternal fortunes of those who believe in him. In this second article, we look at how the resurrection changes the lives of Christ’s followers here and now. What impact does our belief in ‘the death of death’ have on the way we think and act?

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Factotum #3: One-to-one prayer and Bible reading

Everyday Ministry

Col Marshall | 20 September, 1994

Factotum is designed to equip us as slaves of our Lord Jesus Christ. Each edition provides a new piece of ‘equipment’ for ministry to others. This time we look at one-to-one Bible reading and prayer.

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Helpers and trainers

Life

Phyllis Mercer | 16 December, 1993

An older woman writes about honouring the Lord.

When we first married, my husband kept telling his young single friends that a man was only half a man until he married. Shortly after tying the knot, we left for our duties as the only missionaries on an isolated Aboriginal mission settlement in the Northern Territory. The starry-eyed approach to marriage faded and we became the persons we really were in our relationships. Falling in love was not a sufficient resource to meet the demands of our new life together. Now we were to show that we were ‘one flesh’.

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Inspired aspirations

Thought

Greg Clarke | Phillip Jensen | 9 June, 1992

Have you ever felt sorry for Nicodemus? He ventured out in the dark to talk with Jesus in the hope that the man he called ‘Rabbi’ could answer a few pressing religious questions. He found Jesus, who guessed the perplexed man’s questions before they were asked and then left him more confused than ever. We can imagine Nicodemus trudging home, shaking his head, muttering to himself: “Re-born? Born of the Spirit? And what’s the wind got to do with it?”

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Experiencing God

Thought

John Woodhouse | 3 March, 1992

In the first of these articles, we looked at the current confusion surrounding the topic of Christian experience. We noted that there is confusion about what counts as Christian experience; about what authority experience should possess; and about the place of the Holy Spirit in Christian experience (and vice versa). We concluded that there is even confusion about how the very subject of theology and experience should relate. So if you finished the first of these articles feeling somewhat confused, then I can only claim to have been successful thus far.

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Experiencing confusion

Thought

John Woodhouse | 18 February, 1992

There is something of a crisis among many Christians today over the question of ‘experience’. If not a crisis, there is at least much confusion and uncertainty—a fascination and a longing—perhaps even a vacuum. This goes back some time.

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The relationship between the testaments: Law and Sabbath

Thought

Anonymous | 20 November, 1990

So far, we have looked at the relationship between the testaments in general and as it applies to church. As a further case study, we will look briefly at how the relationship between the testaments affects our view of the law and, in particular, the Sabbath.

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Loving your neighbour