We were beguiled by the adverts and then worn down by the children. So we finally relented and upgraded to a Tivo box. You know â like a Sky+ box â but for Christians (not as much money, and not owned by Big Brother Rupert).
So we could record the shows and movies we like and watch them when we want to. We can pause and rewind programmes on the fly and access a whole new world of online content. TV heaven awaits.
Or does it?
Iâve noticed three nett effects in the 3 weeks since the Virgin Upgrade Geezer drove off:
1. Programmes now take longer to watch.
Because we can rewind â we do! Tracking back and re-watching bits that we thought were funny, or missed when someone went out of the room to brew a cuppa. Admittedly, it also allows us to fast forward through the interminable ad breaks, but still â we inevitably finish watching something after it has long stopped broadcasting.
2. We watch more TV, not less.
When previously I spotted a film I would like to see that was broadcast late at night â I just didnât bother and went to bed. Now, I record it, and start watching after the dayâs work is done, and the teenagers are snug beneath their duvets. Invariably, I am now later in bed than before, having ticked off another of my â1001 cinematic experiences to have before I dieâ
3. I feel an unhealthy sense of debt towards unwatched programmes.
Because we can now record whole seasons of shows, I donât have the opportunity to miss out on an episode â I can (and therefore should) watch them all in sequence.
In short, I have discovered what I should have guessed in the first place. That another promise from the world that I would have my life enhanced and be set free by the payment of a slightly bigger subscription, and a shiny new piece of technology in my home, so easily turns into the opposite. Something that diminishes and enslaves me. Turns out that entertainment requires just as much discipline as work to enjoy it in a godly wayâif not more.
So thereâs an elderly person in your congregation (Iâm guessing more than one). They donât seem to get out much. Few other than the professionals pop in. What, as a brother or sister in Christ, can you do to help? Here are 5 ideas:
1. Ask them what they need
Elderly people are people first and elderly second. Most are lucid and quite able to make decisions about their own life ... itâs putting those decisions into action that is hard. So the key to good support is finding out what care would be the most useful.
2. Be practical
I recently asked an elderly neighbour how I could help. âCould you come in regularly to straighten the cushions and seat covers please?â came the reply. I could hardly believe my ears! Could that be for real? But all day every day that lady sits and stares at empty armchairs in her living room and the fact that they looked messy bothered her. One simple act that takes just a few seconds of my time makes her view one of a pleasant living room rather than an unkempt one. Not every elderly person will ask for that â some may find it hard to ask for anything - but it may be that something small, simple and practical makes all the difference. Dusting, ironing, shopping or gardening can be invaluable.
3. Be spiritual
Being elderly can mean getting to church is tough. A lift may help but for some just leaving the house once a week is way too hard. But lots can be done to deliver notice-sheets, provide sermon or service recordings (on CD) and ensure that large-print Bible-reading notes are available each quarter. Home communions (where 4 or 5 members of the congregation not just the minister come to visit) can be great times of fellowship. And there is no reason why a housebound person canât host a Bible study group or prayer triplet as long as other members are willing to chip in making the coffee and tidying up afterwards.
4. Be family
Often what frail and elderly people want most is someone to talk to. The simple act of popping round for an hour â preferably with a couple of sticky buns - can lighten the most difficult day. Or a phonecall can do just as well ... what better way to use that half-hour commute?
5. Be fun
And finally, holiday clubs donât just need to be for the kids at church. Themed activity-weeks can be great for the elderly too. Trips to local places of interest can be put on. The church hall can be flung open for music afternoons, flower-arranging workshops, dances, talks by engaging speakers, home cooked meals, watching the footie and fun board-games all surrounding a great gospel message. Many housebound people will be able to manage to come for a âspecial morningâ â maybe bringing their elderly non-Christian neighbours with them (youâre never too old for a spot of evangelism) - but even if they canât, the fun can be taken to them by team members popping in with a meal to be reheated, a CD, a board game and a bunch of roses.
Are you single? Middle-aged or older? A follower of Jesus? Then there is a great call before you â and me. A call to be singularly attractive!
No, this is not an invitation to invest in some cosmetic surgery. Nor am I giving you a good excuse to purchase some great new clothes, make-up or anything else that makes you look 10 years younger. Itâs rather that there is an exciting invitation in the pages of Scripture encouraging us to show others how to live well for Christ as a single person.
You see, the Bible encourages older members of the congregation to be role models to others. Older women to younger women. Older men to younger men (Titus 2:1-8). And just as older married couples have an invaluable role in showing younger people what a privilege it is to be married. So older single people have an enormous role in showing others what a privilege it is to be single. Doing so is an essential part of equipping the next generation to grow up rejoicing in God whether He has given them the gift of marriage or the gift of singleness (1 Corinthians 7).
Now I donât wish to be glib. There are, of course, challenges associated with being an older single person. It is inevitable that we sometimes think about relationships past and wonder âwhat if âŚâ. There can be pain associated with not having the opportunity to have children. There are moments of loneliness. And in a relationship-obsessed culture it can be hard to refocus our minds on gospel truth rather than conventional wisdom (Romans 12:2). But there are joys and privileges too â not least the extra flexibility to be involved in a whole host of ministries. And if we genuinely believe God is sovereign and loving; if we truly accept that the Bible is correct when it says that singleness is good, then we need to show that in the way we live. And we need to deliberately flee from the temptation to become the next Bridget Jones (full of desperation for a partner), or Miss Havisham (full of the bitterness of relationship lost).
It isnât an easy call. But it is a clear call. A call to be singularly attractive for Christ in our churches today.
At Sorted last year, Andrew Cowan from St Helen's, Bishopsgate, gave some great hints on how to write Christian songs. So helpful, in fact, we thought weâd share them on our blog! Andrew writes âŚ
Colossians 3:16-17 tells us that our singing is meant to help the word of Christ dwell in us richly as we sing to each other as well as to God ⌠so how do we write songs to help us do that? Here are four big principles and a few random bonus tips that I am finding helpful at the moment. Songs need to be:
Here are a few more tips in no particular order:
So letâs get writing, and donât forget to pray⌠we need Godâs help both to understand his word and express it clearly!
âThe god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christâ (2 Corinthians 4 v 4).... continue reading
Just got off the phone with a minister in a small village in the north-west of England. He wanted to know what's coming up in future issues of Exploreâso he can take it into account in deciding his preaching series for next year.
Why? Because when he was an overseas missionary, he realised that the best way to encourage daily quiet times was for a church to do them together. By which he meant, fit the sermon series in with them. Encourage people to talk about them. Start eldership meetings with them. Get church workers to talk about what they found encouraging and challenging in them.
In other words: do quiet times, together.
I'd not thought of this before. It seems a great idea to me. Has anyone tried it in their church, or something similar? Can anyone think of drawbacks that I've not thought of? Why don't churches do it?
And if any church would like to know what's coming up in Explore, just let us know!
Just got back from a wonderful holiday with the family, which we have been planning for the last two years. It was a long road trip punctuated by several "mini-holidays" of a few days each - on a beach, in a city, by a lake.
We pondered how we might read the Bible together as a family, and came up with a cunning plan. Some older Christians I know are in the habit of reading a chapter of Proverbs every day - there are 31 chapters - one for each day of the month. So we took up this approach for our daily dose of God's Word.
We passed the Bible around the car (actually - the ESV on my iPhone) and looked at the chapter corresponding to the day of the month. Then each of us - me, my wife, my three daughters - chose the verse that particularly struck us. We encouraged each other to say why it was interesting, to illustrate it, and to apply it.
Result?
A refreshing change of approach to family Bible reading. Sometimes they chose a verse because the picture it painted was just funny:
"An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones." (12 v 4). (Prompting much hilarity and discussion about Mum and Dad's marriage - but also some insights for them about what to look for in a marriage partner).
Sometimes they chose a verse because it reflected a real situation they faced:
"Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." (16 v 18). Much talk of teachers at school that they thought fitted this category.
One thing I did need to keep doing, was to bring us back to the source of true wisdom from 1v7 - "the fear of the Lord is the beginning (or source) of true wisdom." Sometimes it is easy to read the proverbs out of this, the central context of the book as a whole. It is not just worldly wisdom, but describes how we should live under the loving rule of a sovereign God.
Benefits?
Sometimes it was a bust - particularly, when one of us got distracted into inventing an increasingly preposterous story to illustrate the verse. But mostly it was enjoyable, and turned into a good conversation. And it marked a change. Before, our Bible times had mostly been about Mum or Dad teaching and explaining - or answering questions that were posed. Now we were loving the fact that our girls were cutting their teeth on preaching God's word to us - explaining, illustrating, applying - rolling the words of God around in our minds as the miles of tarmac rolled under us.
So youâre moving house. Off to college or uni. The time has come to join a new church family. Youâve been on the ânet and printed out a list of congregations and got some recommendations from trusted friends. But what next? Once youâre in a strange church building how do you discern whether it will be a good place to settle?
Here are eight quick questions to help:
Of course, thereâs no such thing as a perfect local church and it is unrealistic to expect that every congregation will do everything well. But if you answer most of the above with a âyesâ then the church is definitely one to visit again!
My church is small. In our under-18s work we have 6 children aged 1 to 14. One has special needs. And with our current resources we have no choice but to teach them together. Itâs not an uncommon scenario. Many churches do it. And if youâre in one of them youâll know how frustrating it is not to be able to teach in age-specific groups and how hard it is to help groups like this grow.
We tend to fall into some common traps:
But on our good days, we remember that there are better ways to teach multi-age groups. And here are 4 tips to help us:
We all want our churches to be places where people feel at home. But in the busy-ness of the average Sunday morning itâs all too easy to let newcomers wander in and out without any meaningful interaction taking place. So here are our top 5 tips to help you welcome visitors to your congregation:
