Expectations And Models Of Leadership
By Not Known Management philosophies and techniques have infiltrated the church. The pastor is now in danger of being seen as a CEO, visionary, strategist and manager instead of shepherd, spiritual teacher, preacher and discipler. What used to be his study has now become his office. Instead of studying the Bible, he studies reports. He is expected to be…
The “Greening” Of Christian Leadership
By Not Known I miss the seasons of Scotland. From winter to spring; from summer to autumn… life follows a climatic rhythm, like a piece of choral music with four parts – all in one, yet each part is distinctly unique. This is the way which God renews his natural creation. Every first visible change signals the dawn of the next season – the first…
Don’t Waste Your Life!
New Beginnings
By Not Known Today marks the 4th and last Sunday of Advent, representing joy that Jesus gives to the world. As the year-end approaches, perhaps it is a good time to reflect with thanksgiving on all that God has done for us in 2015. What can we be thankful for in this past year, not just for all the good, but dare we say, even for the bad things that have…
Black Friday Is Simply Black
By Not Known Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the US (the fourth Thursday of November). Since the 1930s, it has been regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, and most major retailers open very early (and more recently even through the night) offerring promotional sales. Sales in 2014 fell for the first time since 2008…
God’s Forgiveness And Ours (Part 2)
By Not Known Previously (22 Nov), I wrote that unforgiveness is a sin in the light of the Gospel. However, God forgives justly, and justice demands confession and repentance; restitution and punishment. How then does God exercise justice in forgiveness? In 2 Samuel 12:13b-23 David was confronted with the threats of two deaths: (1) His own (v13b); (2) His son borne…
Always Ahead Of Us
By Not Known Psalm 23.2-3: He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul: He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. There is a difference between a cowboy and a shepherd. How do cowboys move their cattle? They drive them along, they shout, they slap the cows and fire their guns in the air. …
God’s Forgiveness And Ours (Part 1)
By Not Known In his article “Real Danger of Unforgiveness”, Todd Morrison, a Christian writer and speaker wrote – “A life spent practicing unforgiveness toward those who have wounded us feeds that malignant growth in our soul, hinders our capacity for healthy relationships and binds us in the oppressive chains of anger, suspicion, resentment and fear.” …
Spiritual Growth
By Not Known Sin is powerful because it binds us to commit it again and again. The Israelites at the time of Judges clearly had to grapple with this. The grand summary of the records here is that “every man did that which was right in their own eyes” (Judges 21:25). There was this nonchalant attitude that says, “I do my own thing and it’s none of your…
A Statement On Homosexuality
By Not Known Prepared by the National Council of Churches of Singapore 29 July 2003 of which the Presbyterian denomination is a member. Preamble: There has recently been wide discussion in the press and the Internet on the issue of homosexuality with different views expressed. Christians, like other thoughtful citizens, are also concerned about this issue. We present our…