To the Cross

Through a friend of my wife - it has been brought to my notice that there are Christians who think that celebrating Christmas is an abomination in God's eyes. There are those who hold to Arthur Pink's views on Christmas Pink's main arguments as far as I understand them are: (1) There is not a word in Scripture which tells us to celebrate Jesus' birth (2) That the date of Christmas is a pagan festival and most people who celebrate Christmas - do so without any thought for Jesus (3) That Christmas (Christ Mass) is a Roman Catholic celebration and therefore an abomination (4) That Christmas cards are an abomination to God (even if they have a verse of God's word inside) because God's word forbids unholy mixtures I am not sure if the argument belongs to Pink, but there are people also arguing that Christmas trees are an abomination to God - because "when we are kneeling down to put presents under the tree - what do we think we are kneeling down to?" Discus

This is a photo of a 10 year old little girl called Nayak from Orissa in India. Her home was bombed by Hindu extremists because she was from a Christian family. But this ordeal has not shaken her faith, indeed she is thankful to God for saving her life. "Christmas" she says, " is a time to thank the baby Jesus who saved me from the fire and saved my face which was disfigured and wounded." This is a traumatic time for Christians in this part of India. "Hindus have offered money, food and alcohol to anyone who murders Christians and destroys their homes – especially pastors. Thousands of homes and churches have been destroyed, and Christians have been forced to flee the violence. Many have been doused with kerosene and torched after refusing to renounce their Christian faith." ( World Net Daily ). Nayak said: "[W]e forgive the Hindu radicals who attacked us, who burned our homes," she told Asia News. "They were out of their minds, they do not

On Monday evening The United Church and St John's Kirkheaton had a fantastic night as we had a life size 'Posada', taking the message of Christmas to the people of Kirkheaton. Starting with craft and games and dressing up as Mary and Joseph and wise men, shepherds and angels we set off through the village of Kirkheaton led by a real live donkey. Posada is Spanish for 'Inn' and is a Mexican custom of remembering the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. The Church Army have adopted this idea by encouraging churches to pass round a figures of Mary, Joseph and the donkey around the homes of the parishes. We decided to go one further and make it life size and hopefully took out a strong message of what Christmas was all about. On the way we called at people's homes and a local 'inn' to sing carols. Through drama at the journey end we discovered that Angels had declared Jesus to be: 'The Christ', 'the Lord', 'the Son of God' and 

I have come up with 10 questions to ask Mormons and JWs: (1) What does one of Jesus’ names ‘Emanuel’ mean? Answer: God with us! (2) Complete the Bible passage from Isaiah: He (Jesus) will be called, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty G.., Everlasting F….., Prince of Peace. Answer: Mighty God! and Everlasting Father! (Isaiah 9:6) (3) Why did the Jews try to stone Jesus in John 10? Answer: For alleged ‘blasphemy’, because Jesus claimed to be God! (4) God’s 10 commandments include “You shall have no other gods before me” and elsewhere we are commanded not to worship any other God’s. Given that God is the same yesterday, today and forever, why then in Daniel does He give Jesus authority, glory and sovereign power and in His presence allow ‘all people’s, nations and men of every language’ to worship Jesus? (Daniel 7:14) Answer: can only be because Jesus is God! (5) If God is the only one who can give life – why did Jesus claim ‘I am THE way, THE truth and THE LIFE’ Answer: see (4) above. (6) Ca

"More Down's syndrome babies are being born than before pre-natal screening became widespread, figures show. The UK saw 749 Down's births in 2006, up from 717 in 1989 when tests came in. The Down's Syndrome Association surveyed 1,000 parents to find out why they had pressed ahead with a pregnancy despite a positive test result. A fifth said they had known somebody with Down's, a third cited religious or anti-abortion beliefs and 30% felt life had improved for people with Down's." So writes the BBC. In one sense this is encouraging, but isn't it about time that abortion of downs babies is made illegal? My nephew has Downs and has been a constant inspiration to me and our whole family. He is now at college training to be an actor and has already been involved in film and a number of theatre productions. This week he celebrated his engagement. His life is not without struggles but whose is?

Above is a video of Church Army's Captain Rob Barker's bus ministry. I have so much respect for this guy - and all that he is doing at Ellesmere Port. As regular visitors to this blog will know I am presently raising monies for a bus ministry. If anyone or any church has a burning desire to support my work in prayer or sponsor my work and particularly a bus ministry, please contact me through my e-mail address (on profile). God bless Neil

If you have questions about life, the universe and everything and live in Huddersfield, why not contact me (see my profile for e-mail address) and we can set up an Alpha course .

We are busy preparing for three 'Laughter and Light' parties as an alternative to children getting dressed up for Halloween and causing havoc in the neighbourhood: One will take place at Kirkheaton, one at Grange Moor and a third at Rawhtorpe. Involvement in new age and occult activities is rife in our area and we hope to teach our children to follow the Light of Christ rather than be drawn into following the darkness of the devil and his cohorts. There is plenty of opposition, so I would welcome your prayers

The British Humanist Assosiation are apparently going to do an Alpha (not literally). Supported by Richard Dawkins, they are going to publicise their 'good news' on buses in London. But the liberals have had their way again! (I mean the liberal humanists - as opposed to the conservative humanists). The advert will not deny God outright, but their message will state 'There's probably no God'. Mmmm I thought this was an agnositc view? Never mind I believe that although the idea of this advertising comes from the devil, it will be counter productive. It will probably enhance the number of those going on th e Alpha course who ask: "Is there more to life than this?". If you want to research the answers to these question click here to find out where your nearest Alpha Course is. Alternatively if you live in Huddersfield, why not e-mail me (see my profile for details) and we will set up an Alpha course near you.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasures for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life which is truly life. 1 Timothy6: 17 - 20 Surely this is a word in season. Many people will have read this from the Common Lectionary readings this morning.

In these days of market crashes there is one and only one rock solid investment. There is one Trust that you can trust! That is the investment that will provide life long security, total peace of mind, and a better return then you can ever imagine: Of course the investment and Trust that I am talking about is the trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. Repenting of your sins and walking with him in these uncertain times, will bring eternal life - a quality of life that can not be bettered. Everything else will at some stage let you down - but Jesus - never will! Putting your trust in anything else is akin to worshiping a false god: I waited patiently for the Lord he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who makes the Lord

Evangelical Alliance have come up with Ten Blogging Commandments: What do you think? 1. You shall not put your blog before your integrity. 2. You shall not make an idol of your blog. 3. You shall not misuse your screen name by using your anonymity to sin. 4. Remember the Sabbath day by taking one day off a week from your blog. 5. Honour your fellow-bloggers above yourselves and do not give undue significance to their mistakes. 6. You shall not murder someone else’s honour, reputation or feelings. 7. You shall not use the web to commit or permit adultery in your mind. 8. You shall not steal another person’s content. 9. You shall not give false testimony against your fellow-blogger. 10.You shall not covet your neighbour's blog ranking. Be content with your own content. PS in view of 8 above I better at least reveal my source: Ruth Gledhill of The Times

4. The Law is Good for Us! So many people regard the Law as a burden. It is not surprising in one sense because the Pharisees used the Law to burden people. This clearly was not the purpose of the Law and indeed contrary to the Law burdening people, it was seen by many who received it as freeing. In Deuteronomy The Law is repeatedly said to be given "for your own good" . Chris Wright points out that the Psalms are filled with ecstatic praise for God's Law: The Law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. (19:7) And then of course in Psalm 119 the Psalmist is constantly expressing his love for the Law: Oh how I love your Law I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches (14) I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold (127) You see the Law is here valued even more than winning the lottery! It is so highly valued because it leads to all truth: I have chosen the way of tr

3. The Law is Based on the Character of God : By obeying the Law the people of Israel were reflecting the character of God.: This is implicit in Deuteronomy 10: 12-13: "And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and to observe the Lord's commands and decrees ..." In Leviticus 19 (v2) the Law states: "You shall be holy, for I the Lord am holy." It is my observation that any striving to be holy and to "walk in his ways" is very much scorned upon in much of the church. In Deuteronomy 10: 16 we receive the command: "circumcise your hearts" Without preaching the Law there is no sense in which we as a church are striving to be like Him, without the Law being written on our hearts there is no sense in which we can claim to be born again.

2: The Law was Founded on Grace Chris Wright points out the significance that it isn't until the 19th chapter of Exodus that the first law is written. "There are eighteen chapters of salvation and God's grace and faithfulness before there is a single chapter of law." Indeed in chapter 19 before God speaks about the Law He says: "You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all the nations you will be my treasured possession." (Exodus 19:4-5) Here God places the giving of the Law in the context of what He has already done for the nation of Israel. The Law is given in order to enable Israel to live appropriately in response to God's love. This is reinforced in Deuteronomy 6:20 "In the future, when your son asks you, 'what is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the Lord our God has commanded you?' tell

I have read a wonderful article by Chris Wright, a man who I have great respect for after hearing him preach on Psalm 119. The subject of the article was 'Why preach the Law. In the next few days I hope to summarise what he has to say on this. Why Preach the Law? 1. Because all Scripture is God Breathed When Paul wrote the words of 2 Timothy 3:16-17, most of the New Testament had not been written. He was referring to the Old Testament Scriptures and since he specifically says "All Scripture", this must include the Torah and the Pentateuch. It is therefore important that we preach the Old Testament Law as part of God's Word, and not simply to abandon it or ignore it. For any Bible believing Christian this is a simple truth to grasp. Chris Wright is simply saying that we preach the Old Testament Law because it is part of God's Word. Hopefully, not too many people would disagree with that. More tomorrow

The other day I saw a young girl (about 6 yrs old) wearing a t-shirt that proclaimed: "It's all about me ME ME!" This young girl is a hedonist in the making. Little does she know of the prison she is building for herself. Little does she know of Satan and his cohorts who are all too willing to help her. The basic idea behind hedonistic thought is that pleasure is the only thing that is good for a person. Hedonism can be conjoined with psychological egoism - where people are motivated only by their self interest. Isaiah observed this attitude in Israel: "Let us eat drink (and be merry)" you say, "for tomorrow we die!" How sad that there is a real potential for this child to finish up like this:- All this only reinforces the importance (and high calling!) of children's outreach in the church. It was Bill Wilson of Metro Ministries and founder of Kidz Klub that said: "It iseasier to build boys and girls then to repair men and women" . How

The four fundamental questions of every world view are: * what is the nature of the universe? * what does it mean to be human? * what has gone wrong with the world? * what is the solution to our problem? "The question that we as preachers need to ask is, whether it is the Bible that is giving them their fundamental understanding of the nature of the world, the identity of humanity, the reality of sin, and the solution that God offers through the cross and resurrection and the new creation that he will bring, or whether it is some other world view. We need to preach the Bible so that people have a coherent understanding of the world and where they fit in the great scheme of things" (Chris Wright in Preach the Word)

"God's always with us - at our Big Top!" The masked man kidnaps grandma

Just had an amazing week at Riding Lights Theatre Co 'Summer School', where in one week under amazing direction and incite from Play Directors Peter Hutchinson and Bridget Foreman we put on a play called "Cloud Street". Adapted from an award winning novel by Tim Winton, the play is about two Australian families who come together to share a huge run down house in Perth in the 1940s. Sam Pickles (played by myself and later a friend - Trevor) was a gamblerholic, married to an alcoholic with 2 children. His world view (god) was based very much around the 'Shifty Shadow' of fate. In contrast to this the other family (the Lambs, with 6 children) find meaning in work and God's grace. The lambs never the less suffer tragedy when their son 'Fish' gets drowned in a a fishing accident. He is ('like Lazarus') 'brought back to life' but suffers brain damage in the event. Despite the tragedy and Fish's eventual return to the water to commit

Wot no Posts? The reason for not posting for a while is that I have just had an amazingly busy three weeks - the first a holiday club, then a much needed holiday and this last week a very busy week in which I took part in a play production by Riding Lights Theatre Company (more on the play later). The holiday club (with a circus theme) took place between Tuesday and Friday followed by a service and BBQ on the Sunday. The huge hall of Kirkheaton Parish Church's 'Old School' was done out with striped drapes hanging down from the ceiling and striped canvass all round the room to give the image of The Big top. Two 'ringmasters' did the work of emcees, clowns performed to set the theme for the day, an act from a play (written by one of the church members) about an 'evil' masked man who wanted to close down the circus was performed daily, Bible stories were told in creative ways and we had times of worship and craft throughout. My favourite Bible story was '

What can wash away our sins? What can make us whole again? Nothing but the blood Nothing but the blood of Jesus What can wash us pure as snow? Welcomed as the friends of God Nothing but Your blood Nothing but Your blood King Jesus Paul Colman here sings two beautiful songs beautifully. Enjoy!

Jesus said: Come unto me you who are weary and heavy burdened and I will give you rest. I thought I would repost this - it might speak to somebody!

I have recently been making occasional comments on a blog that declares its hate for Jesus and for Christians. I wonder if we Christians are sometimes partly responsible for their hate. I wonder if sometimes we might be like a resounding gong and clashing cymbal. I'm afraid I have to hold my hand up to this big time! Some of these 'Jesus haters' have been hunting me down and sending the most crudest of messages about Jesus not to mention messages announcing my death. The latter doesn't bother me - I feel well protected by God. The former, doesn't shock me - I have worked with and served people who try to shock and seen them come into God's Kingdom as they repented and gave their lives to Jesus. Saul of course was a great hater (even murderer) of those that followed Jesus, he used to hunt Christians like a pack of hounds after the fox! Until of course, his Damascus Road experience. Christians need to pray for the Sauls of this world, that they will meet and come

Like much of the Old Testament the account of Abraham's (non!) sacrifice of Isaac foretells the coming of Christ: In fact the account so coincides with Jesus' death and resurrection that the word "uncanny" becomes a massive understatement. (You might want to follow the reading in Genesis 22): (1) v 2 (God said) "Take your son your only son, whom you love" : Abraham had one son (who he had waited 100 years for - but that's by the by)whom he loved: God had one son ... "whom I love, with him I am well pleased" (2) v3 Isaac was traveling to his death with the donkey: reminds us of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem as he travels towards crucifixion. (3)The sacrifice was to take place v 4 "On the third day": So Abraham had counted him dead until the third day - the same length of time that Jesus was known to be dead. (4) v 6 "Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac"

Last night I had a dream: I had passed away and had arrived outside Heaven's city walls, where I met Peter. I asked him which way I had to go to enter. Peter said that before I could enter I had to write down every single sin that I had committed on the black board behind me. I turned round and saw the largest black board you ever did see - the height and length of Wembley Stadium. Then Peter came up to me with a piece of chalk 30 feet long and six feet thick. He told me that when I had finished I had to walk down to my left and enter the pearly gates. Well I didn't know where to start and overwhelmed at the task ahead of me, you could imagine how down I felt at this stage. I was in absolute despair. Until that is I looked to my left and saw someone walking towards me. It was .... YOU - YES YOU!!! "Did Peter give you the same instructions as me?" I enquired "Yes" came your reply. "Aren't you heading in the wrong direction?" I asked - "t

"Like a rose trampled to the ground, you took the fall and thought of me above all."

John Sentamu is a Bible believing Arch-Bishop with tremendous gifts in evangelism. From past experience I know that he preaches the need for repentance and I was pleased to read that last week hundreds of people committed their lives to Jesus Christ following an invitation by the Archbishop of York at the Church Without Walls National Gathering in Scotland. John Sentamu said, "The National Gathering was a tremendous event. I was thrilled and excited to see so many people come forward and commit their lives to Jesus Christ." We need to pray for him and his work. When John came into office a couple of years ago now, he said that his mission was to give the church the confidence back to evangelize this nation. He is doing a good job!

The utube - scene from ER - below - brings out the danger of poor teaching in much of the church - in that it doesn't give the answers that people need for salvation. People are lost because much of the church has stopped preaching the message of: Jesus as the atonement for our sins! The result? Well just look at the mess of the world we live in!

" I need someone who will look me in the eye and tell me how to find forgiveness because I am running out of time!" This video reminded me of a man called David: I used to work for an outreach to the homeless and less privileged. One day, we got a message that David – one of our regulars was in hospital and had only hours to live. He was a drug addict and spent much of his adult life in and out of prison. When I visited him in hospital he told me that he was going to give all the mess of his life to Jesus and ask for forgiveness. And so there on his death bed, he repented of his sins and entered into a relationship with Jesus as Lord and Saviour. The next morning a colleague of mine visited David and in tears was absolutely distraught having seen the state of David's once fit body. But this is thing that I want to tell you:- David turned round and prayed for her that she might have peace! You see overnight the fruit of the promised Holy Spirit had started to grow

When Darwin proposed his theory of evolution pushing 200 years ago he was convinced that future fossil discoveries would prove his theory to be true. Darwin himself wrote: "The number of intermediate varieties, which have formerly existed, [must] be truly enormous," he wrote. "Why then is not every geological formation and every stratum full of such intermediate links? Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely graduated organic chain; and this, perhaps, is the most obvious and serious objection which can be urged against the theory" (Darwin, pp. 260-261). Given that there is in excess of over a million species today, we should be able to find hundreds of millions of examples of fossil evidence of ‘intermediate forms’ gradually evolving into other species. To date despite a comprehensive world wide search by geologists, the total evidence of intermediate forms is … zero. There can be no surprise that more and more top scientists believe

'For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth.' These words are from the Ten Commandments. They are spoken by no other than: GOD HIMSELF! Some people argue that when the claim that God made the earth in six days appears in the Genesis account of creation that part of the Bible is poetry or myth. But when God uttered these words was he telling the literal truth or simply being poetic? If the latter we must conclude that God either had a mix up of genre or we must also accept that the Ten Commandments are also nothing but poetry. For me this certainly suggests evidence for any Bible believing Christian to believe that God does not believe in the theory of (ape becoming man) evolution!

I found this on Ray Comfort's website. I have been accused by atheists of having a blind faith. I believe there is no more blind a faith than those who put their faith and trust in the theory of evolution. This (now dying!? world view) that humans have evolved from another species of animal has been followed by millions of people without a shred of evidence for many years. I wouldn't want to put anybody down but (light heartedly) I like Ray suggest that the title of the book just about gets it about right!

I am part of a developing team who have a growing vision for Bus Ministry in our town. We would like to raise money for a bus to see it used for example, as a Christian centre/drop in for mums and dads taking their children to school in the morning, for Christian activity for children after school and youth work in the evening. I am convinced that God will use it to save souls for Christ and it will help to bring the crime rates down in some of our more difficult estates. How wonderful it will be when we see whole families realise their need to turn away from their sin and turn to Christ Jesus!; when whole families come to know the joy of their salvation! I really do believe God is saying that this work will have a huge impact in our area. Please pray and watch this space!

'But among you there should not even be a hint of sexual imorality ... nor should there be obsenity, foolish talk or coarse joking which are out of place' Ephesians 5: 3-4 (This is an edited version of my original post) The Bible makes it clear that it is wrong for Christians, especially leaders in the church to swear and get involved in obscene talk and sexual innuendo. Unfortunately it is my (recent and past) experience that this too often happens. I would even go as far as saying that in the Church of England this is endemic and I would call for Priests to repent of this! I have known people to walk away from church because there was no fruit in the lives of the leaders. I have also known people who have been very hurt by sexual comments of leaders in the church.

One thing that gets my goat is the typical post modern attitude of ' What's true for you is fine - its true to you - but it is not necessarily true to me.' This of course is utter nonsense. Truth is truth is truth! Some time ago there was an article in the Metro paper about 'Indigo children' Apparently Indigo Children: * Have an indigo aura around them * Can read your thoughts * Can see the future * Know when you are lying * Have heightened senses * Are the next step in the evolution of mankind * Tend to be disobedient and are often misdiagnosed as having ADHD *'The special powers of indigo children make them 'older' than the adults around them. They have come to us at this time because we need old souls to help with the survival of the planet.' * In short are here to save the planet I do not know whether this looks like true teaching to you? Apart from the

A few days ago my wife and I were visited by two friends whom we were involved in seeing make a strong commitment of their lives to Jesus after some mission work that I did in Sheffield last year. It was lovely to see how they are on fire for God, to hear how they are enjoying some serious Bible study and that God has started to use them in (and out!) of their local church. I remember during that mission that God was telling us that through it He was going to have an eternal impact on people's lives. He certainly wasn't wrong and our friends June and Julian are a testimony to that! But that is what is happening when we step out of the church and evangelise the community. We are having eternal impact on peoples lives! Think about it!

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces, he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We, all like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was lead like a lamb to the slaughter, and as sheep before his shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression an

Found this on Sermonillustrations.com There is a tale told of that great English actor Macready. An eminent preacher once said to him: "I wish you would explain to me something." "Well, what is it? I don't know that I can explain anything to a preacher." "What is the reason for the difference between you and me? You are appearing before crowds night after night with fiction, and the crowds come wherever you go. I am preaching the essential and unchangeable truth, and I am not getting any crowd at all." Macready's answer was this: "This is quite simple. I can tell you the difference between us. I present my fiction as though it were truth; you present your truth as though it were fiction. Don't think I need to say more!!

Many of us are very familiar with the story of the last few days of Jesus. But how might our understanding of the cross be enhanced if we literally engaged our senses to think about what Christ has done for us at the cross - 'The Greatest Expression of Love that the world has ever seen!' On Friday 21st of March (Good Friday) we are holding an event called 'Sensing the Passion of Christ' at Dalton Baptist Church, which will enable us to do exactly that. When I put this event together a few years ago, I was very wary of the need not to have just a 'touchy feely' service and even though we are using our senses - the event gives a direct explanation of the reason that Jesus had to die and makes it clear that a response (repentance and trust and belief in Jesus) is necessary for the forgiveness of our sins. God has used this event to bring a number of people into a living relationship with him through Jesus Christ. Sensing the Passion of Christ was took place last y

I am busy putting together an Easter children's holiday club based on CS Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia. Building on the work and connections we have made at Upper Whitley Infant and Junior school, in Grange Moor Huddersfield, we hope that a good number of children will come to know the deep meaning and good news of Easter as we think about Aslan, but also about the real King who came to set us free from the consequence of our sin. The two day event will have two themes: (1) Slave to Turkish Delight (2) Freed by the King. We will have games, craft and teaching based on these themes. We are very encouraged about the the school's involvement, in that they are allowing us to watch the whole of the film in class, allowing a promotional colouring competition, and an Aslan themed assembly. I for one am getting really excited about this and believe great things can happen through the message we give and the connections we make. I would value your prayers!!!

I had a conversation with a friend today who told me of a relation who is suffering from mental health issues. He believes that a major reason for this is because she has earlier in her life had an abortion. I do not wish to condemn anyone who for what ever reason has had an abortion, the guilt and suffering that those people go through must be horrendous and certainly healing can take place only through Jesus Christ (see video on my blog dated January 4th below). We in Britain can however condemn the system that allows abortion so freely! As I understand, according to British Law, the legal grounds for abortion are: (1) A risk of the pregnant woman loosing their life (2) A risk of permanent 'grave' physical harm to the pregnant woman (3) A risk of mental health to the pregnant woman if the pregnancy goes to full term (4) A risk of serious handicap (mental or physical) to the baby Never the less, the Christian Medical Fellowship report 'Higher rates of major depression

'The vision for Hope 08 is that the whole church goes to the whole nation for a year and beyond and that we tell our country about Jesus, with our words, because we believe in preaching the gospel of the cross of Jesus Christ, but with our lives, because we want to say that believing in Jesus changes our lives - we can't if our lives don't look different!' (Mike Pilavachi: founder of Soul Survivor)

I know many wouldn't believe I am old enough, but on Saturday evening I became a grandfather for the second time. Yesterday I went to hospital to see Sophie. It was a God moment and I confess that as I held her in my arms I shed a couple of tears at the emotion of it all - she is absolutely beautiful! How can anyone look at a new born baby (her complex design, her amazing form, her her staggering beauty) and deny that God exists or not want to praise him? Oh yes, you shaped me first inside and then out; you formed me in my mother's womb, I thank you, High God - you're breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration - what a creation! You know me inside out, you know every bone in my body; you know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculptured from nothing into something. Like an open book you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, The days of my life all prepared before I'

Well what do you think? Try and put aside the fact that the evangelist is American. What (if anything) is good? what (if anything) is not so good about this evangelist's style? How is the student reacting to what is going on here? What do you think the outcome of this conversation will be?

I’ve been thinking today about the people in the Old Testament. There are many people in our churches today who question the inerrancy or infallibility of the Bible. We are too often told that the great people of the Bible such as Adam and Eve, Noah, Jonah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, the Prophets etc are not people of history. This certainly wasn’t the view of Jesus. His use of language when referring to Scripture can only conclude that Jesus believed that Scripture was the authoritative Word of God and that these people were historical figures. Jesus points out that it was the Holy Spirit that spoke the word of God through the writers of the Old Testament. Quoting Psalm 110:1 in Matthew 22.43 for example, Jesus said ‘‘How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls (Jesus) ‘Lord’? ’’ Abraham: Jesus said about Abraham: ‘ Before Abraham was born I am’ (John 8:56 -58) The crowd wanted to kill Jesus for saying these words – if Abraham was thought to be imaginary

An MP will this week seek to bring an end to Britain's controversial blasphemy laws - as a broad cross- section of believers, humanists and civil rights campaigners continue to argue that they are unnecessary, repressive and outdated. Today British Humanist Association (BHA) and the comedian Stewart Lee urged MPs to vote for the abolition of the offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel when it is considered by the Commons at the instigation of Liberal Democrat MP Dr Evan Harris. Report from Ekklesia: http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/ Question: To abolish or not to abolish? (please feel free to comment (and or vote in the poll at the bottom of this we

This video is part of 'Hope 08's ' initiative. If you never view anything else on this blog I urge you to watch this!