The Pastor's Heart with Dominic Steele

We send out missionaries. But sometimes it doesn’t work out. There’s a forced return home. Dashed hopes. And all sorts of understanding and support - from the mission agency, supporter churches, pastor friends and others.

Stan and Clare Lie were serving with the Church Missionary Society, lecturing in theology in the middle east, and serving with a church in Alexandria, before being called home during COVID.

Jenni Woodhouse is pastoral care consultant with the Church Missionary Society.

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Social Justice is a fiercely contested concept among Christians. Often discussions about caring for the poor have not been grounded in a biblical vision for gospel ministry..

Evangelicals have been criticized for appearing to be weak on social justice.

The charge is that we have been so focused on gospel ministry that the poor and disadvantaged have been neglected. How does caring for the poor fit with the mission of Jesus church?

Tim Swan is the CEO of Sydney’s Anglican Aid, which hosted an important conference last weekend ‘Reframing Social Justice.’

Ed Loane is Warden at St Paul’s College in Sydney and lectures in Church History part time at Moore Theological College.

Berthier Lainirina is Principal of St Patrick’s Theological College Madagascar

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Archie Poulos has given us a list of books that he’s read in the last 12 months that have stimulated him to think about different ministry areas.

Archie’s recommendations include:

Explore by the Book. 90 days guided Bible reading.

• The Coming of the Holy Spirit, Phillip Jensen
• The Moon is Always Round, Johnny Gibson
• Biblical Critical Theory, Chris Watkin
• The Tower and the Square, Niall Ferguson.
• Mere Sexuality, Tod Wilson
• The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self, Carl Trueman
• The Congregation in a secular age, Andrew Root
• Embracing Complementarianism, Graham Beynon and Jane Tooher
• Decisive , Heath Brothers
• The Definitive Book of Body Language, Allan and Barbara Pease

Archie Poulos heads the ministry department at Sydney’s Moore Theological College and is just finishing a PhD on how we can work better together in ministry.

Order online from The Wandering Bookseller

http://www.wanderingbookseller.com.au/archiehttp://www.thepastorsheart.com/podcast/archie-poulos-good-books-to-read

The Church Co
http://www.thechurchco.com is an excellent website and app platform built specifically for churches.

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What can we learn from recent secular literature about the practice of Christian pastoral leadership?

Head of Ministry at Sydney’s Moore Theological College Archie Poulos looks at how the 'The Infinite Game' concept, popularized by Simon Sinek, can be applied to ministry.
Sinek explores the consequences of short and long term thinking in business and life. Long term success is more likely when an infinite perspective is taken.
Then we examine Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal’s book ‘The Human Element: Overcoming the resistance that awaits new ideas.'
Archie considers the emotional and psychological hurdles (inertia, effort, emotion, and reactance) that congregations face when change is suggested.
We look back to ‘After the Ball’ by Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen, a 1989 secular play book for effecting LGBTI societal acceptance. Archie suggests there are lessons from aspects of that strategy for Christian mission.
Plus Archie talks about what impressed him about Andrew Heard’s soon to be released book ‘Growth and Change - The danger and necessity of a passion for church growth.
Purchase/download links to the books discussed this week:

• Growth and Change - by Andrew Heard - The danger and necessity of a passion for church growth
• The Infinite Game - by Simon Sinek - exploring the consequences of short and long term thinking in business and life
• The Human Element: Overcoming the resistance that awaits new ideas - by Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal
• After the Ball - by Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen
• Human Sexuality and the Same-Sex Marriage Debate - by Mark Thompson (Editor)

The Church Co
http://www.thechurchco.com is an excellent website and app platform built specifically for churches.

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“It may be that God is destroying the Church of England and who am I to stand in his way?

“The real tragedy would be if, in this traumatic, confusing time, if all of the evangelicals and the broader Orthodox group fall out with each other... if we can bear with each other in our different strategies, then that will be what we need (in whatever the future in England is going to be), whether that's within the Church of England or outside.

Charlie Skrine, the senior minister of All Souls Langham Place London, says his church (and other evangelical churches in the UK) are in a world of pain at the moment over the growing split in the Church of England.

Mr Skrine, who is speaking at the Evangelical Fellowship in the Anglican Communion Conference in Sydney, says All Souls is united in it’s commitment to biblical teaching on sexual ethics, but divided on what the best response should be.

He says a third of All Souls members are wanting to leave the Church of England now, a third want to stay and fight (never leave), and a further third are confused, and this diversity of opinion is reflected in the staff team.

Former All Souls evangelist Rico Tice has distanced himself from the Church of England, attends a Presbyterian Church, but retains Church of England Permission to Officiate. Rico said on the Gafcon 2018 livestream, of the gospel promoted by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Evangelism Team, “It's a different religion... and it’s around whether scripture is authoritative in terms of human sexuality... I think it’s a great wickedness to tell people who are on the road to destruction that they're not... if we have church leaders who are putting people on that road to destruction it’s a salvation issue.. That's why we have to distance ourselves..." (https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1482677891837392)

Mr Skrine says in Revelation 2 Jesus says that his people must not tolerate sexual immorality.

Mr Skrine says the bishops don’t get it, but there are tiny glimmers of hope of a settlement, with bishops moving slowly reluctantly towards the conclusion that they need to give up authority and come to a settlement.

He says the actions of the Bishop of London have united evangelical leaders within the London Church in a highly significant way with groups like All Souls, St Helens, Holy Trinity Brompton and Soma all standing side by side.

The Church Co
http://www.thechurchco.com is an excellent website and app platform built specifically for churches.

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