In his autobiography, the legendary footballer Bobby Charlton wrote about the material poverty he grew up in a North East of England mining community in 1940s. He records how everyone in his neighbourhood would be hungry the two days before pay-day because everyone was surviving on just bread and margarine. Charlton describes the insecurity and… Continue reading The contemporary nature of poverty. And why it matters.
Category: Recommended books & reviews
Fully Alive: tending to the soul in turbulent times [review]
Fully Alive: tending to the soul in turbulent times by Elizabeth Oldfield (Hodder & Stoughton, 2024) Fully Alive is a fresh, thoughtful and extremely honest attempt to build a bridge between the Christian faith and those outside the church bubble. It had me hooked from the first page. Like all the best books, this book… Continue reading Fully Alive: tending to the soul in turbulent times [review]
Christianity: what is real and what is fake?
Photo by Johannes Plenio on Pexels.com I have just read Philip Yancey’s memoir Where the Light Fell. Its an account of his life growing up in poverty and fundamentalism in Atlanta, Georgia with his widowed mother and older brother. Yancey’s father was a Baptist Minister who was just 23 when he died from polio: ‘Dozens,… Continue reading Christianity: what is real and what is fake?
The denial & reality of trauma: a tale of two books
A few months ago, Keith Hebden wrote a G+T guest article titled Complicity or challenge? Responding to self-limiting excuses in which he shared insights from the psychologist Alfred Adler. He wrote: “For Adler it is our goals that determine our limitations and not our past. He argued that it can be tempting to take comfort in the… Continue reading The denial & reality of trauma: a tale of two books
Following Jesus; seeking justice
This week saw the London launch of a new book from the Red Letter Christians UK. Each chapter is a story of how following Jesus has led people into activism for justice. My story recalls the start of the pandemic in March 2020. Below I share two excerpts which connect my role as a volunteer… Continue reading Following Jesus; seeking justice
The superficiality of success
Andre Agassi’s autobiography Open is a brutally honest book about what was going on in Agassi’s mind as he became a globally famous tennis player. As he continually repeats throughout the book, despite the wealth and fame it gave him, Agassi hated playing tennis. It is the best sports biography I have ever read Agassi… Continue reading The superficiality of success
A modern Ecclesiastes: Matthew Perry & the Big Terrible reality of addiction
Matthew Perry’s memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is a poignant and moving book which is rendered tragic by the author’s death last year aged just 54. Matthew Perry had just about everything most men could dream of. He had ‘the best job in the world’ starring in the world's most popular TV… Continue reading A modern Ecclesiastes: Matthew Perry & the Big Terrible reality of addiction
Henri Nouwen on leadership – by Ed Walker
‘Leadership requires deep spiritual formation involving the whole person – body, mind and heart.’ In the Name of Jesus: reflections on Chistian Leadership is a great little book. As with all Henri Nouwen's writing – it is best read slowly. You need to allow its wisdom to sink deep. Many of us have read leadership… Continue reading Henri Nouwen on leadership – by Ed Walker
Comfortable beliefs or a shipwrecked faith?
St Paul's Islands, Malta This summer I went on holiday with the Apostle Paul. Well, sort of. I went to the Mediterranean island of Malta where Paul in AD59, under arrest, was shipwrecked on his way to a trial before Caesar in Rome. The traumatic voyage is recorded in dramatic detail by Luke in Acts… Continue reading Comfortable beliefs or a shipwrecked faith?
The power of personal conviction
I have just read For the Glory, a biography of Eric Liddell by the brilliant sports writer, Duncan Hamilton. Eric Liddell was the Scottish sprinter who famously refused to run in the 100m in the 1924 Olympics because the heats were on a Sunday. Liddell was subject to severe ridicule for his stance from some… Continue reading The power of personal conviction
Grace + Truth 