by James Webb
Recently, I’ve been slowly making my way through Galatians. It’s been a helpful way of following Paul’s train of thought and seeing the context and bigger argument in a book which is full of ubiquitous Christian soundbites.
Words have power. Words do things. When a marriage takes place, there are certain words that need to be said. “I now pronounce you man and wife” is just words, but these words change people. They bring about an actual change.
Dear Sister/Brother,
There is something that I want to say to you.
When I decided to follow Jesus as an awkward teenager (really, is there any other kind of teenager?) I had only one redeeming quality. It wasn’t that I was quite clever, or reasonably likeable, or that I had a glistening ball of potential creativity resting in me. Read more
For many years I’ve been haunted by the spectre of underachievement. I’ve been convinced that I should have got more done by now; made more of a difference; that I’ve fallen well short of my potential. I’ve spent large chunks of my life frustrated with myself. It’s a form of perfectionism that has, at times, both motivated me and made me miserable. Read more
On Monday God gave me some grace.
I squandered it on something. I don’t even remember what it was now.
On Tuesday God gave me some grace.
I put it in a cupboard somewhere and forgot about it. It’s probably still there.
On Wednesday God gave me some grace.
I told myself that it wasn’t such a big deal if I went off somewhere and did whatever I wanted, because Read more
1) The Bible contains poetry, exposition, theological analysis, parables, historical accounts, song and more. Valid styles of preaching are just as varied; a.k.a. The “More than one way to skin a cat” Principle. Read more
I am in favour of throwaway encouragements. A throwaway encouragement is a kind word that you slip into conversation, and then move on. A throwaway encouragement is not given in response to someone fishing for compliments. Part of its magic comes from it being unexpected. Furthermore, it must not be dwelt upon – it is given in passing and then the conversation moves on. The hearer is not given a chance to respond. Finally, it must also be true. Insisting that a tone-deaf person is actually a fantastic singer is an unkindness, both to the recipient of the lie and the victims of their newly encouraged talent.
Throwaway encouragements are one way of fulfilling Paul’s injunction to be kind to one another. They can be an unexpected lift to someone’s day; but more than that, they can actually be the catalyst for a significant change in someone’s thinking. Often, we are blind to the things that are obvious to everyone around us, or get stuck in a pattern of seeing things a certain way, and a throwaway encouragement may be the crowbar that springs open a new door.
If you know someone quite well, I’m sure that you can think of a smash and grab positive to dump into their lap while you’re on your way somewhere else. I believe that you have the potential to make a real difference to the people who cross your path. Now, let’s talk about something else, shall we?
I wrote this little verse a while ago. It’s inspired by Galatians 3:23 to 4:7. Read the passage first.
The law is done?
The pedagogue is agog. Read more
