Tag: Christianity

‘Ministry In The Blood And The Mud.’ Patrick O’Connell, NewThing Global Director on the Future Church Podcast.

My friend Patrick O’Connell is the Global Director of NewThing, the network which I and Ivy Church are privileged to be part of, which exists to partner with movement makers and catalyse reproducing disciples, leaders, churches, networks, and movements.  Here he tells the story of how he came to faith, having met his wife in a punk rock mosh pit, joined the army, he went into business and while finally successful in worldly terms when he finally after 4 years accepted an invitation to go to church and everything changed!  He went from church goer to church planter, now serving thousands of church leaders and planters worldwide through NewThing’s dream – to see a church planted in every community around the world. We discuss, among other things –  How might we help connect people far from God so they don’t just learn to cope, but receive hope.  What army life taught him about teams and sacrifice, and how that applies to the army of God and ministry ‘in the blood and the mud.’  How do we collaborate and form networks that are all […]

We Don’t Need Another Welsh Revival, We Need To Change The Church. Julian Richards. New Podcast Episode on Future Church.

This podcast details a story of miraculous provision and remarkable spiritual openness in our culture but we hear how Julian is convinced the answer for Wales (and everywhere else) is NOT for ‘another Welsh Revival’ dropped down from above, but by disciples faithfully serving, loving and winning their neighbours and nation for Christ. 

New Podcast Episode: The Life, Deaths, And Resurrections Of A Pastor-Prophet. Chris Wickland Has a Word for the FUTURE Church.

I met Chris Wickland recently when he came as one of the guest speakers at a leader’s retreat. I’ll never forget his incredible story of how he went from witchcraft to Christ.  Having been aware of the supernatural realm and its realities more than most, Chris described seeing and hearing visions and dreams which have led to him publicly declaring major words regarding the church and the nations ahead of time.  These include the rise and fall of various political leaders, Church closures across the world (publicly declared April 2019) to humble the church, providing insight to governments re natural disasters, and predicting economic upheavals and collapse both present and to come;  However as a Pastor-Prophet Chris says in the podcast he always wants to bring hope not fear, so God’s people can be ready!  As we talk I learn more about his story, his life (and deaths), hearing about how he was saved from a suicide attempt when as a new Christian he drove his car off a cliff, and how he has died and been resurrected (not just […]

The Surprising Truth About What People Think About Jesus & The Church. Rachel Jordan-Wolf

EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE, KNOWING JESUS. Well talk about a big vision! Dr Rachel Jordan-Wolf will be joining us at this year’s LAUNCH to talk about how it can become a reality and I loved hearing from her in advance on the podcast. Rachel is executive director of HOPE Together in the UK, having worked closely with the initiative since 2010, when she was the Church of England’s National Mission and Evangelism Advisor. “I’m committed to evangelism being at the heart of the church,’ says Rachel, “Committed to mission and to the local church in villages, towns and cities, and committed to do this together across denominations and across ethnicities to make Jesus known with words and action. We are also committed to a new generation, engaging with Millennials and with digital culture as well.” LISTEN TO THE FUTURE CHURCH PODCAST where you’ll hear how as well as being an expert on the stats and demographics from surveys that she has commissioned so we can have a great deal of hope for the future church, Rachel as a passionate evangelist herself is seeing […]

How To Avoid The Most Costly Leadership Error

Getting the wrong people on your team (or leading it!) can be one of the most expensive and stressful issues you’ll ever face. I was thrilled to hear wisdom from my friend William Vanderbloemen on how we really can do so much better at this. He is an entrepreneur, pastor, speaker, author, and CEO and founder of Vanderbloemen Search Group, which has helped thousands of churches, ministries, and faith-based organisations create a great culture and find people who will consistently make it better to achieve their God given goals. We looked at many issues on the Future Church podcast here including:

‘Fighting The Good Fight’ – Or Just Fighting?

The Bible portrays many aspects of the Christian life and ministry as a ‘struggle’ or a ‘fight’. The apostle Paul wrote to tell the young leader he was mentoring, Timothy, to fight the good fight of faith. 

But how often do we end up in a bad fight? 

And how do you know the difference between the good fight you’re called to fight in life, the battles that God has called you into, and the bad fights you really should avoid? The fights that are just distracting, and could even be destroying your ability to really do what you’re made to do and meant to do?