faith and life
How can we avoid an evangelical celebrity culture?
Joshua Hussain
Date posted: 27 Sep 2026
I’m good friends with Tim Hughes. Not that one, not the Christian songwriter who wrote Here I Am to Worship; no, another bloke. But they do share a name.
My mate Tim lives in Milton Keynes and plays the guitar in worship bands. This once led to an unfortunate case of mistaken identity when a youth worship night that was billed as “A Worship Night with Tim Hughes” ended with some of the youth leaving early, because it was not the Tim Hughes onstage – it was my mate!
How do we navigate religious diversity in our country today?
Dr Iain McGee
Date posted: 27 Sep 2026
If you live in the UK you don’t need me to tell you that we are living in a multi-cultural and multi-linguistic society.
Some of you embody this diversity, others may feel somewhat remote from it – perhaps even threatened by it, and still others might appreciate the potential opportunities and enrichment that result from it – whether relationally or culturally, in a variety of ways (clothing, food, sport, etc.).
Is this the gap in children’s ministry today?
Rory Bell
Date posted: 25 Sep 2026
Rory Bell, Director of Training at TnT Ministries, which publishes resources for teaching the Bible to children and young people, shares some reflections arising from Ed Drew’s article, “Why do teenagers drop out of church?”
The challenge of helping young people move from childhood faith to lifelong discipleship is not new. For decades, churches have recognised that many young people who are active in church during their teenage years do not remain connected into adulthood.
everyday theology
How should we fear God?
Michael Reeves
Date posted: 21 Sep 2026
The apostle Peter addresses his first epistle to the “elect exiles of the Dispersion” (1 Peter 1v1). By calling them “exiles” he reminds them who they are: people moving toward their heavenly home, but not there yet. And so he writes to encourage them: “Gird up the loins of your mind.” Don’t be confused. Don’t be forgetful. Fix your eyes on that day when Jesus Christ appears, for His appearing will set everything in its proper light.
Peter knew how easy it is, in the thick air of this world, for us to get drawn into living for this world. To live for a career. To live for glory in the here and now. To live for comfort. And so, at the very beginning of his epistle, he reminds us that we are not just exiles from our home. We are exiles who are children of the Father (vv14,17).
Evangelism in a sceptical age: Don't lose heart
Alistair Chalmers
Date posted: 19 Sep 2026
There was a time when evangelism in Britain often began with a degree of shared understanding. People might not have believed the gospel, but many knew roughly what Christians believed. They had some familiarity with the Bible, the church, sin, Jesus, and salvation.
That world is disappearing. Increasingly, we are not simply sharing the gospel with people who do not believe it; we are sharing the gospel with people who may distrust Christianity, misunderstand it, regard it as irrelevant, or simply have no desire whatsoever to discuss spiritual things.
From guns and gangs to gospel initiative
Naomi Watts
Date posted: 16 Sep 2026
It was another busy night in Kingston Town, Jamaica.
Guns were firing, gangs were fighting, more lives were taken. At the turn of the century, Jamaica had the second highest levels of murder, after Colombia. Across the country there were on average 35 murders a day, and most of these troubles were concentrated in Kingston.
School kids on the frontlines of evangelism
Anna Shaw
Date posted: 15 Sep 2026
It is well documented that Generation Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) and Generation Alpha (2013–2024) are showing growing spiritual curiosity and openness. Happily, many Christian young people are finding natural, winsome ways to share their faith in their school communities.
These stories offer a snapshot of what is happening and, hopefully, encouragement for you.
pastoral care
Why we shouldn’t assume
Steve Midgley
Date posted: 15 Sep 2026
“Do not assume” is a rule that can serve us well in pastoral care. It is an exhortation not to jump to conclusions. That we should not let prior assumptions determine the view we take of the person or situation before us.
There is, of course, a counter balance. Gaining experience in pastoral ministry is valuable. The more people we have met who struggle with anxiety or addictions, or anything else really, the better we will understand those struggles and the wiser we will be in giving support.
Worried by ‘discrepancies’ between the Gospels? Don’t be! Here’s why...
Ian Reilly
Date posted: 12 Sep 2026
I didn’t keep a daily diary or record every conversation, but 35 years later I can still reconstruct the people, places, conversations, tragedies and turning points of a two-year period that shaped my early life.
But what does this have to do with the Gospels? Forty years ago I was troubled by differing accounts of the same Gospel event. In Luke 6v20 Jesus is “down” on “a level place” when He tells them “blessed are you who are poor”. But in Matthew 5v3 He is on a mountain and says “blessed are the poor in spirit”. If we believe Scripture is God’s inspired Word then why are they different? Critics also claim the gospel writers made stuff up because people could not possibly have remembered details when Luke wrote his Gospel 30 years after the events.
Why listening is an act of grace
Duncan Williams
Date posted: 10 Sep 2026
Over the years, through my work in journalism and in helping to develop trauma recovery materials, I have come to appreciate something both simple and profound: the power of listening.
Time and again I have seen how giving someone space to speak – without interruption or judgement – can bring comfort, understanding and, at times, healing. We all long to be heard. When that happens, something within us often begins to mend.
'In Christ, you are loaded' – ten questions with Adam Ramsey
en staff
Date posted: 10 Sep 2026
Adam Ramsey pastors Liberti Church in Australia; serves as the director for Acts 29 Asia Pacific; is the author of several books – including Truth on Fire and Faithfully Present; is in the final stages of writing his PhD dissertation on theological convergence in the ministry of Martyn Lloyd-Jones; and is very serious about joy.
How did you become a Christian?
history
Roman travel and Christian hospitality
Michael Haykin
Date posted: 9 Sep 2026
One of the earthly glories of the Roman Empire was its vast network of roads that criss-crossed the empire, built so as to facilitate the campaigns of their legions and to maximise trade.
In fact, so good were these roads that not only soldiers and merchants, but ordinary travellers were able to travel faster during the days of imperial Rome than under any later European state until the early 19th century. As a result the Roman world was a highly mobile one.
everyday evangelism
E-vangelism: Sharing the gospel online
Gavin Matthews
Date posted: 8 Sep 2026
According to a recent survey amongst new Christians, one of the first places they had gone to find information about the Christian faith was the internet and social media.
This is unsurprising! As statistica.com reports, the UK has 55.5m internet users and 92% social media penetration overall, rising to over 98% amongst GenZ. Ofcom says that the average UK adult spends around 4.5 hours online every day.
defending our faith
Bayeux and the Bible
Chris Sinkinson
Date posted: 8 Sep 2026
The Bayeux Tapestry has come home. We know that the embroidery was created somewhere in England nearly 1,000 years ago, following the Norman conquest.
It disappeared into obscurity for many centuries in France. Once a year it was displayed in Bayeux Cathedral before being folded away again. It only really came to prominence in the 18th century, when scholars took interest and published engravings bringing it to a wider public. Napoleon, with his own imperial French ambitions for conquest, used it for his own propaganda purposes. Since then, the 70-metre-long embroidery has continued to capture the popular imagination.
The antidote to abusive power
Graeme Shanks
Date posted: 7 Sep 2026
A few months ago it was my turn to pick the film for date night. I opted for the most recent Mission Impossible film which, as it turned out, was the last Mission Impossible film: The Final Reckoning (say it in a deep voice).
With a title like that, you’re expecting big things.
Wearing our metaphorical ‘majesty specs’ each day
Jonathan Soman
Date posted: 7 Sep 2026
I’ve never really “got” poetry. Some people love poetry, savouring the subtlety and splendour of the careful concoctions of words which paint pictures and express emotions far beyond themselves. Sadly, I’m not one of these people. Perhaps I’m always in too much of a rush to really “get it”.
Recently, though, I’ve taken an interest in the work of the American poet Sara Teasdale, not through reading her poetry – her Collected Poems, which my wife kindly bought me for Christmas, remain largely unopened, spine unbroken, on the bookshelf – but through its lush and evocative settings for choir by the Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds.
Footballer on Songs of Praise: 'Faith is the key'
Charles Gardner
Date posted: 4 Sep 2026
Golden girl of women’s football, Michelle Agyemang, has taken another opportunity to share her faith with the world.
Though her two crucial goals may have helped England win last year’s UEFA Euros, it is Jesus Christ who plays the central role in her life, and she is so grateful for the platform the game has given her to spread the gospel.
