Augmenting the preacher’s diet

I have now been a Pastor for nearly 24 years, and those who have shared that calling will know quite what a privilege that is. It would need many blog posts to capture all the lessons I think I have learned, and many more to describe the ones I ought to have done! However, here is one of them: the truly radical people in the church are not the ones who say they are. Rather, the truly radical ones are the champions of love.  These champions of love have learned to love others with no regard to poverty, awkwardness, need or personality. Susie Howe, founder and director of the Bethany Children’s Trust, is just such a champion.

This is one of the reasons I was thrilled to write a commendation for her book, Resistance Fighter, which is published next Friday, March 18th. As you can tell from the commendation below, I found it to be an uplifting and heart-warming read.

‘To turn the pages of this book is to feel the hot African sun on your back and to hear the shrillsound of children’s voices in the background … Susie’s tale is told with a rare blend of searing passion and realistic humility.’

Richard Littledale, Pastor, Teddington Baptist Church

As preachers it is so important, I believe, to feed the soul as well as the mind. A preacher who reads only Bible commentaries would be like a novelist who reads only dictionaries.  When I first read the proofs of Susie’s book I was sitting in the spartan surroundings of a room in the officers’ mess on a rather grim army base. With winter darkness and fog outside the window I was transported to the heat and dust of Africa, and before long I found tears in my eyes at these tales of hope and compassion.

Not surprisingly, I commend the book to you. For your sake, and for the sake of those who listen to you – make sure you are not a preacher on a subsistence diet!