Chalmers' Blog

Authentic Ministry

There are countless books on ministry that fill bookshops and online-bookshops all over the world. Many of them focusing on the role of a person in church leadership, particularly their actions. For example, there are plenty of books on preaching, pastoral care, discipleship, etc. Those books are good and necessary, but they assume something – that the leader is taking care of themselves.

Saturday Snippets (March 12)

As well as reading a lot of books, I also read a ton of articles every week. Here are some of the articles that I’ve read recently and have found interesting, helpful, challenging and encouraging. I hope that they will be the same for you, my dear readers…

Saturday Snippets (March 5)

Sexism Wrapped in Theological Jargon

I am a firm believer in complementarianism. I believe that God created men and women with different roles within the family and the church. My position is not unusual but, I would argue, is biblical. I seem to spend a lot of time talking about it, but not in the way you might think. I actually spend just as much, if not more, arguing against a hyper view of complementarity than I do with my egalitarian friends (who hold the view that they is no distinction of roles between men and women).

Depression, Gaming and Justification

I’ll be honest, I don’t really know who these books are for. They will be appropriate for high school kids and for those who consider themselves more mature (16-20). My issue is that these books tackle some massive topics in very short chapters, but they are good. So let’s take them in turn…

Saturday Snippets (February 26)

A Lethargic Faith?

You know the feeling; life is hard, work is busy, the kids annoy you, church feels ‘weird’ and your Bible goes unopened for weeks on end. Faith, like other ‘journeys’ in life, can become a bit stale at times. We can loose enthusiasm, we feel depleted of joy. Maybe we get bogged down in the controversies and downfalls of others and it feels like we’re wading through a bog of thick mud. In those moments you feel alone, but you’re not. Countless Christians have been there, and are there, with you. But you’re also not helpless in it.

Be Still and Be Certain

It feels like just yesterday that I was wiring reviews for Easter books in 2021, but somehow it’s that time of year again. Finding new and good material for you devotional life at Easter isn’t always easy. Many Easter devotionals just cover the same ground and don’t necessarily bring anything new. But, I am excited to tell you about 3 books that I have really enjoyed over the last wee while. I haven’t read them intentionally in preparation for Easter, obviously as you’re reading this blog in February, but I have read them in advance so that you an buy and read them for yourself 🙂

Easter, and Lent, gives you the opportunity to be still, to press pause and to be reminded of what Jesus has done and be certain of who He is and how that changes lives today. Here are three books that will help.

Rich Wounds by David Mathis

So many Easter devotionals focus in sole on the death and resurrection, that’s not a bad thing but it is a well trodden path. I really like what Mathis does in this book. He takes you on a 30 day journey through different parts of the life of Christ, taking it slow with a focus on His glory. The order of the chapters is a bit unusual, but it causes you to stop and slow down which is always good when we approach Easter.

The book is split into four parts. Part one of the book focuses on eight glimpses of Jesus’ glory in his life and ministry as they lead up to the cross. Part two hones in on the cross itself and how significant it is for the world and for the Lord’s people. Part three takes you to the resurrection and makes you really think about it, rather than just a quick “He is risen!”. Finally, part four then takes you back over the ‘passion week’. The order might seem a bit strange, but going through the cross and resurrection slowly in parts two and three, mean that you really think about the significance of both the cross and the resurrection. It’s too easy to just skim over the Easter story without taking the time to pause, this book will help with that.

David’s writing style is very relaxed, he brings out key information but he also drives it home in application and in a relatable way. This would be a great companion for your Bible reading in the run up to Easter in 2022.

Forgiven by Tim Chester

In this new devotional Tim Chester takes you to the book of Hebrews so that you can have confidence as you live in a world that is uncertain and kind of scary at times. This devotional is a follow on from Chester’s Fixated which is his advent devotional that help you focus on the identity of Jesus.

Chester takes you to the second half of Hebrews, chapters 6-13, and helps you think about the work of Jesus. These devotionals are super short, less than two full pages, but full of biblical truth that will help you see the amazing things that Jesus has done. Each day ends with a reflection statement or verse that will help you ponder Jesus more. These reflection sections are great because you can read the devotional in the morning and mull over the reflection throughout the day.

We can look to the future with certainty because of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done, this book will help you see that. Even when everything in this life is changing and leaving us clueless sometimes, we can have confidence in Jesus! This book is designed to be read from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, well worth getting if your looking for shorter devotionals over Lent.

A Jesus Easter by Barbara Reaoch

I’m always on the look out for good family devotional material. Parents need to have good resources at their fingertips to teach children the truth about Easter and the good news about Jesus. Over 30 days you will journey with the whole family through some parts of Jesus life, His teaching, His death and His resurrection. Each devotional has four key elements; explore (Bible passage and questions), explain (brief reading unpacking the Bible passage a bit), engage (more questions) and enter in (prayer).

The thing that I like about this devotional is that it doesn’t give you all the answers, which means that the whole family need to learn together and discuss the significance of the passages they’re discussing on that given day. Each day also ends with a journaling page to help the family write down or draw their thoughts in response to the truths they’ve been considering.

Reaoch says that the devotions have been written for children of all ages, and I’m sure that could be true. However, I think that they are better suited for smaller children. To go through them with older kids would require parents to take more time and unpack the truths in a more age appropriate way bringing out more depth at points. This is a good addition to the family devotions, especially if you have wee ones 🙂

*** I received these books from the publishers in exchange for an honest review. This does not change the way I rate the books. My views are my own. ***

Saturday Snippets (February 19)

The Truth, The Whole Truth and Nothing But The Truth

Imagine every Christian is standing before a judge. They’re then ordered to tell the gospel, but before the begin they must promise to say the truth. How many Christians would be able to do so? I’m not just talking about lay-members, how many pastors, theologians, mature and new Christians would be able to share the whole truth of the gospel?