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Opinions/reflections - July - December 2019

How I went from patient to chaplain   
Baptist minister Ross Dilnot suffered life-changing injuries in 2016. He's now an Air Ambulance Service chaplain
Ezekiel and our postmodern generation
A book written some 550–600 years before Christ has much to say to the postmodern, post-truth times we live in today
Together: Re-imagining, Re-reading HERstory  
A reflection by Gale Richards on the recent Baptist International Conference on Theological Education
Women in Ministry: still a sticking point? 
Ali Taylor was invited to create a mosaic at the recent Baptist International Conference on Theological Education
Why I'm excited about tax justice   
The church can support some of the most vulnerable in society by joining the campaign for tax justice
Bad things in God’s word   
What are we, as followers of Jesus, to make of the horrible passages of the Bible? A reflection on Judges 19
Why I welcome the deconstruction process
Is deconstruction back sliding? My faith has been strengthened by questioning the assumptions I grew up with
Is chasing after stuff making you sick?
Faith offers some practical and ancient medications which help to treat the global outbreak of consumeritis
Understanding the teenage mind   
Former Christian counsellor and school nurse Mary Weeks Millard focuses on a troubled teenager in her latest novel
'A smouldering wick he will not snuff out'
Jesus is in the business of re-igniting the stuttering candle, not pressing his thumb on it. Are we?
A new year, new possibilities
September is a good time to consider the deeper change God longs for in our churches, writes Trevor Neill
The Parable of the French Teacher
One way a language teacher can serve God is by challenging the underlying consumerist messages in their text books
And Now for Something Completely Different 
Retired Baptist minister Joe Story explains why he's set up an alternative publishing house - with several books on baptism
Modern worship and fast food
Why I am cynical about the approach of modern worship, writes Baptist minister Michael Shaw
Why we still know so little about dementia 
Stigma has been reduced but the dread surrounding dementia is still high. The biggest hope, and the biggest myth-buster, is having accurate information and acting on it, writes Louise Morse
Captives in the shadows   
Social justice and deliverance ministry in the Baptist church. The need is growing, writes Jayne Irlam
The Mirror that Speaks Back 
Christians are not immune to the pressure of never being or having enough. How do we re-establish our identity in God’s love?
A Token Man 
Text of the address given by Andy Goodliff, the 'token man' at the 5 October event celebrating 100 years of ordaining women to Baptist ministry
Where have all the prophets gone? 
On climate change, the church should be the voice calling from the wilderness, writes Michael Shaw. We need to be bolder
You have been weighed
The desire to measure and value everything in monetary terms always tends to dehumanisation. As people of a gracious God surely we know that the most important things in life are free?
Have we lost our dissenting roots?
There were few Baptist voices at Extinction Rebellion. As Baptists, have we lost our non-conformist and dissenting roots, asks Michael Shaw?
Understanding today’s refugee children through the Kindertransport
Rescue brings its own culture and identity challenges, which are explored in a new novel set in post-war Britain
39 victims in Essex - a response
Across the world vulnerability is being exploited - with sometimes devastating consequences, writes Dan Pratt
Postcards from the land of grief  
Baptist minister Richard Littledale introduces his series of short, candid thoughts and reflections from his own experience of widowhood
A Modern Day Psalm Of Longing and Lament
Challenged to write a modern day psalm, Jonathan Brewer of South Wales Baptist College employed the language and ideas of a technological generation
“New every morning... one day at a time...”
The passage in the Book of Lamentations that every Christian should know. By Colin Sedgwick
Be baptised, live baptised 
A free video course to help prepare people for believers' baptism has been released. This reflection on living baptised for the long haul is taken from the course
A general election for persecuted Christians?
Newly-elected MPs need to arrive at Parliament knowing that their constituents care about people facing persecution, and alerted to the need for action
How to survive the election without losing your mind 
Look back, look forward and look around, writes Chris Goswami
Ambassadors for Christ and his kingdom
Even if we disagree on party politics, we find Scripture gives us a way to approach our political life, writes Beth Allison-Glenny
Why the Bible's going to the Chelsea Flower Show   
The Psalm 23 Garden is the product of deep thinking about the text, and offers the chance to stop, reflect, and feel refreshed. Mark Woods explains more
Why the best gift this Christmas can be a simple visit 
Visiting a person with dementia is an invisible gift that can be life-changing, writes Louise Morse
Advent and the general election 
The coming of Christ was political then and it's political today, writes Andy Goodliff
Advent – keeping expectation alive   
The present is changed by what the future holds: what does it mean to be a Community of Expectation? By John Rackley
When doing nothing is the right thing to do 
As Christmas approaches, let’s picture the pondering Mary, and allow ourselves time and space to stop and reflect on what God is doing in our life
'Providing space for our wider community to question candidates' 
Rich Blake-Lobb, pastor of Yiewsley Baptist Church, reflects on the hustings hosted by his church
Most read opinions/reflections 2019 
Two blogs that highlighted some longstanding questions about the Christian faith received the most attention in 2019
Faith is a four letter word!
This isn’t a survival ‘don’t rock the boat’ sort of mindset – but rather a reckless ‘nothing is impossible for God’ approach
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