Let’s be honest. Many of us have struggled to keep our faith as vibrant as it was before the Covid crisis, and this is in large part due to the restrictions placed on church life. Pastors have been floundering, parents have been frustrated and the rest have been flummoxed by the disruption to our usual ways of fellowship.... continue reading
Don’t you wish there was another way? Aren’t you exhausted by the constant arguing? Don’t you wish we’d all start listening, and that Christian spaces, be they physical or virtual, could feel more like heaven than hell? Does it concern you what tribalism is doing to our witness? Do you worry that the “others” may have a point and you’re missing out on something God is offering you, but you daren’t put your head over the parapet of your team’s trench and make that point?... continue reading
Miscarriage, like many types of loss and suffering, brings us face to face with our limits. Perhaps you’ve experienced your physical limitations as you suffer weakness from blood loss or the woozy effects of anesthesia. Maybe it’s been presented in the pain of cramping as your uterus shrinks back to normal size.... continue reading
Suffering, like miscarriage, finds us in that space of ungranted petitions, where cynicism tempts us to cease to pray altogether, whispering that God doesn’t care or that praying doesn’t make a difference. But in the example of our Savior we see that prayer is anything but pointless.... continue reading
The suffering of mental-health disorders presents a very particular challenge to anyone considering the question of suffering alongside questions of faith since, if we are afflicted personally with a mental-health condition, our very perceptions, thoughts and feelings are affected directly.... continue reading
I knew when I began this journey that I’d likely hear stories from other survivors too. What I didn’t expect was that over half of them would be male.... continue reading
Where is God? Does God have any relevance in the face of great mountains of human degradation and pain?... continue reading
And while homeschooling is a blessing – and I myself have chosen to homeschool my children – the privacy, the seclusion, and the isolation it afforded created a protective shield for my father.... continue reading
Books on suffering written by academic types rarely connect with people who are actually suffering. I work in Oxford, and I have had the opportunity of studying and teaching throughout my adult working life. In the course of that time, I have found myself drawn to thinking about and reflecting on some of the toughest questions of life. Through all of that, I have come to realise that if Christian faith is worth considering, it needs to be deep enough to cope with our most rigorous human scrutiny and our most heart-rending questions.... continue reading
In an effort to do all the things we’re supposed to make sure to do, we run our children from playgroups to practices, all the while somewhat confused and lost in the haze, wondering, “Am I doing everything I’m supposed to do?” ... continue reading
