Growing with the Bible in the New Year

A sermon I gave yesterday at Agape Chinese Baptist Church. 
New Year’s resolutions
A New Year feels like a fresh start. We have a whole year ahead of us, not yet spoilt by mistakes or our old ways of doing things. Of course, Chinese New Year isn’t until February 7th, so you have a little longer to make up New [...]

Getting up early to pray

At lunch time today I got to this line from Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline:

David’s desire for God broke the self-indulgent chains of sleep: ‘Early will I seek Thee’ (Ps 63:1). (p. 44)
While reading a book, when I agree with something already, I tend to tick it.  If it challenges what I think, but it [...]

The baptist vision blog / meetings for a house church

James McClendon’s work is so important, and I feel ignorant for only having read some of it years ago summarily. I think his idea of a ‘baptist vision’ is good for Anabaptists, as it puts us in touch with our brothers and sisters in similar traditions like the Baptists (capital B!) and the Churches of Christ.
Recently, [...]

Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline #1: meditation

Starting with meditation has always been a stumbling block for me reading Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline. It’s a toss up between that and fasting for what’s more difficult for me. I guess these are two that require a lot of discipline.
The reason I find meditation so hard is that I don’t like silence much. [...]

Richard Foster’s Celebration of discipline

Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline is one of the most important books I’ve read. I keep going back to it, and each time it changes my life.
Its subtitle is instructive : ’the path to spiritual growth’. I completely agree. The spiritual disciplines are the way to grow in Christian faith, to know God more intimately.  They are such a key part [...]