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Lessons from the nihilist penguin
What does a viral penguin teach us about life, faith and our longing for more?
‘This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.”’ — Isaiah 30:15
‘Even if he caught him and brought him back to the colony, he would immediately head right back for the mountains—but why?’ — Werner Herzog, ‘Encounters at the End of the World’
Over the past couple of weeks, a penguin has taken the internet by storm—and not for the reasons you might think.
If you missed it, this particular penguin—an Adélie penguin, apparently—is the unexpected hero of a viral clip from Werner Herzog’s 2007 documentary, ‘Encounters at the End of the World’, shot in Antarctica (take a look here).
In the video, we watch on as the penguin breaks away from the colony, turns its back on its mates, and begins marching inland towards the distant mountains—away from its source of food, away from the protection of the group, and towards certain death.
In his narration of the scene, Werner Herzog voices the obvious question: ‘But why?’
What a penguin teaches us about our longing for more
Of course, it’s just a penguin. It’s not really that deep. I’m sure there are good scientific reasons for why it acted the way it did.
But what interested me is how this viral moment put a finger on something deeper—our longing for purpose and meaning.
The penguin’s lonely march to the mountains resonated with a desire so many of us feel—to escape the grind of modern life that often leaves us feeling burnt out, anxious and restless.
Even if they can’t quite articulate it, so many people sense that modern life and its idols—success, status, money, pleasure—haven’t delivered on their promises.
Instead of providing the satisfaction and freedom we’re looking for, the pursuit of these things only leaves us empty, exhausted and lost.
Disappointed and disillusioned, escape begins to feel like the answer.
Is escaping courageous, or is it cowardice? Either way, it can seem like the only way to satisfy our longing for more.
Hand in your notice. Book your ticket. Pack your bags. Start again somewhere new—the way to peace and freedom is found on the other side of escape, isn’t it?
Less dramatically, maybe you could just reinvent yourself by taking up new interests, new hobbies and new relationships—surely that will fill the emptiness?
Where are we to run?
Not escaping, but returning
God’s Word points us towards a much better, more glorious answer.
The purpose and peace we’re looking for doesn’t ultimately come from escaping our circumstances and creating a new life for ourselves—it comes from returning to and resting in Jesus.
Reflect, for a moment, on the verse that opened this email:
‘This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Only in returning to me and resting in me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength. But you would have none of it.”’ — Isaiah 30:15
Surrounded by enemies and facing the Lord’s punishment, the people of Israel were facing an existential crisis—the future of their nation and their lives were under threat from the Assyrian empire.
The Lord, speaking through Isaiah, says something surprising—something that probably sounded absurd to a people facing imminent destruction.
The way to salvation was neither through escaping nor through fighting in their own power. It was only through returning and resting in Him that they would be delivered. Strength was to be found not in themselves, but in quiet confidence in the Lord.
And here’s where the penguin comes back in.
Like the people Isaiah was addressing, so many of us today feel surrounded and without a way out. We feel overwhelmed, anxious, and boxed in—not by physical enemies, but by the pressures, burdens and expectations of modern life.
Sometimes, like the penguin, escape feels like the way to salvation:
‘I’ll finally feel free when I get out of that workplace, that situation, that relationship.’
‘I’ll finally be at peace when I stop living for other people’s approval.’
‘Life will make sense when I just live “my truth” and forge my own path.’
God’s Word points us in an entirely different direction. The salvation we’re looking for isn’t from escaping our circumstances, but in returning to the One who made us.
We were made for Him—to know and be known by Him, to love and be loved by Him, and to live for His glory.
He alone saves us from our greatest need—not just the pressures and anxieties of the world around us, but the ultimate problem of the sin within us—by sending His Son to bear our guilt, carry our shame and share with us His righteousness.
He died a criminal’s death outside the city walls—alone, rejected and abandoned—so that we could be brought into relationship with His Father and experience the joy, love and peace He has enjoyed for all eternity.
He walked the loneliest road any human being has ever travelled so that we wouldn’t have to. He endured the oblivion of Calvary so that we could experience the bliss of restored relationship with His Father.
This is what we were made for.
This is what we were saved for.
This is the truth that our world is crying out for.
Not the vague hope of freedom symbolised by some viral penguin’s march to the mountains, but the real, substantial, satisfying hope that comes when we surrender everything to Jesus and receive the life that is in Him.
True life—the life we’re looking for—doesn’t come from escaping, but from returning: to the One who made us, loves us and provides for our every need.
Freedom comes neither from struggling on in our own strength nor running away from our circumstances—it comes from falling once again into His arms, embracing His purpose for our lives, and trusting that His ways are the best ways.
So, today, don’t follow the nihilist penguin towards the mountains.
Instead, run back to Jesus. Anchor yourself in Him and His promises. And be the one who tells others where true life is to be found—not by escaping, but by returning to and resting in Him.
He alone is ‘the way, the truth, and the life’ (John 14:6).
With love,
Mike
Re-learning how to pray
…‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ — Luke 18:13
‘Prayer is not a place to be good, it is a place to be honest. Prayer is not a place to perform, it is a place to be present. Prayer is not a place to be right, it is a place to be known.’ — Kyle Strobel
What’s the prayer you find yourself praying most?
Recently, I’ve found myself praying just three words over and over again throughout the day:
God, help me.
When I feel overwhelmed by things that I can’t control—God, help me.
When I’m faced with decisions and I don’t know what to do—God, help me.
When I’m confronted with temptation or shame—God, help me.
There’s nothing special about these three words other than the fact that they’re honest. I really mean it when I ask God for help, because I know I desperately need Him.
I’ve also found that short prayers like this also help me avoid performance or pretence in my relationship with God.
Often without realising it, we so often end up treating prayer as something we need to get right in front of God and other people.
That’s why we can end up praying with a lot of words and trying to say them in the correct way—convincing ourselves that the longer and more eloquent we are, the more God will take notice and listen to us, and the more people will approve of us.
We can often feel this pressure to perform when we’re praying, because deep down, we’re worried about praying in a way that’s acceptable to God and others.
But praying as a performance—either to get God’s attention or gain people’s approval—is missing the whole point of it.
Jesus knows this. That’s why He spoke directly to this problem:
“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them” (Matthew 6:5).
“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again” (Matthew 6:7).
Elsewhere, He tells the story of how a Pharisee and a tax collector chose to pray in the Temple: the Pharisee publicly thanked God that He was not like other sinners, while the tax collector sorrowfully cried out to God to have mercy on him (Luke 18:9–14).
Both were there to confess their sin before God. But while the Pharisee performed self-righteously, the tax collector simply prayed honestly.
And it was the tax collector, not the Pharisee, was the one who was made right in God’s sight.
God doesn’t want me to perform or pretend when I pray. He’s not interested in me putting on a show or hiding behind a facade.
He wants me. He wants me as I am. Whatever I’m doing, however I’m feeling, wherever I’m going, He wants me to be with Him and to talk with Him honestly.
That’s what all good fathers want for their children—and our God is the perfect Father, who knows what we need before we even ask Him (Matthew 6:8), and who loves to give Himself to us (Luke 11:13).
So, with His help, I’m trying to re-learn how to pray.
To speak honestly with my Father.
To tell Him simply that I need Him and that I love Him.
To know Him better and enjoy Him more every day.
If you want to join me on this journey, let me know—I’d love to hear from you and pray for you, too!
Love,
Theo
The longest way round is the shortest way home
The long way round may not be the easy way. But it is better, because it is along this narrow, hard way that God is making you into the person He has created you to be.
‘We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.’ — Romans 5:3–5
‘Longest way round is the shortest way home’ — James Joyce, Ulysses
The things that matter most in life are often the things that take most time.
Or—as Joyce memorably puts it in Ulysses—the longest way round is the shortest way home.
The same, I believe, is true of the Christian life. There are no quick-fixes, cheat-codes or shortcuts in our journey of discipleship.
Sanctification is the slow work of the Spirit across years and decades—not just hours and days. The race of faith really is a marathon, not a sprint.
The ‘longest way round’, you could say, is the way God has chosen for us to experience the fullness of life He made us for—a life of ever-increasing holiness, obedience and communion with Him.
Of course, having made us right with Himself through Christ, God could have chosen to also complete His work of making us like Christ in an instant.
We might think that the ‘shortest way home’—the most convenient way—would have been for God to pick us up and pluck us from our trials, temptations and setbacks. Having saved us, He could have immediately taken us up to be with Him in eternity, where sin, suffering and death trouble us no longer.
But that wasn’t His purpose for us. Instead, mysteriously, gloriously, He chose that we would remain in this fallen world—full of disappointment, struggle and pain—for a short time until we dwell with Him in eternal perfection, peace and delight.
This reality contains both a profound challenge and an incredible encouragement for us as we step into 2026—let me explain why.
The challenge—rejoice in suffering
Consider how Paul describes the Christian life in the passage that opened this email.
Problems and trials, says Paul, shouldn’t surprise us—in fact, they are a certainty. But our response to difficult circumstances isn’t to despair as though God has abandoned us—it is to rejoice because God is working in us (Romans 5:3).
Why should we do that?
It’s not because these trials are pleasant or enjoyable. Paul himself had experienced first-hand the pain of persecution, ill-health, relational breakdown, imprisonment, poverty and disappointment.
He isn’t dismissing or brushing away the reality of our suffering. He isn’t pretending that it doesn’t hurt. Instead, he challenges us to see our suffering as the mysterious means through which God sanctifies those whom He has justified.
In a world that does everything it can to run at the first signs of inconvenience and difficulty, this exhortation to ‘rejoice’ in the midst of our problems and trials seems entirely counter-intuitive.
But Paul lifts our eyes to see the sovereign purposes of God in the midst of our troubles: ‘…for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment’ (Romans 5:3b–5a).
Can you see Paul’s argument? Through our troubles, God’s Spirit works in us to produce endurance, which produces character, which strengthens our confident hope in God. We rejoice, because through it all God is making us into people fit to dwell with Him in endless perfection and peace.
That’s Paul’s challenge—to rejoice in our suffering. But here’s the wonderful encouragement—the promise of sanctification.
The promise—sanctification
This year will likely bring its share of heartbreak and hurt—this is the reality of living in this broken world. But these things do not mean that God has abandoned you, rejected you or stopped working in you.
In fact, the opposite is true. These things are the very means through which He delights to work in you—teaching you to trust in Him, to rely on Him, to surrender every part of your life to Him in love and dependence.
If you are experiencing the storms of life right now, it doesn’t mean that God has forsaken or forgotten you. These may be the very waves and winds He is using to plunge you into the sure and steadfast rock of His merciful power.
Through suffering, He is sanctifying you—loosening your grip on the things of this world that can’t give you life, and drawing you more closely to Himself, the One who is Life Himself.
The long way round may not be the easy way. But it is better, because it is along this narrow, hard way that God is making you into the person He has created you to be—conforming you to the image of His beloved Son and producing a glory that outweighs our temporary troubles (2 Corinthians 4:17).
Through it all, we can be confident of ‘…how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love’ (Romans 5:5).
He loves you, He is with you in your suffering, and by His Spirit He is completing the work He began in you.
Rejoice, because this long road is preparing you for your eternal home.
With love,
Mike
You can become all flame
“Remember, the fire must be kept burning on the altar at all times. It must never go out.” — Leviticus 6:13
‘If you will, you can become all flame.’ — Abba Joseph, Sayings of the Desert Fathers
At the moment, I’m studying theology part time—and recently, I wrote an essay on the desert fathers and mothers.
If you haven’t heard of them before, well, you’re in for a treat.
As a bit of context, they were ordinary Christians who—after seeing the Church become increasingly distracted from the gospel as it became more institutionalised under the Roman Empire—fled to the deserts in the Near East, so that they might become like Jesus and enter fully into His Kingdom.
Some of their stories are pretty wild—but there’s one that has stuck with me ever since I first came across it.
Abba Lot went to see Abba Joseph and said to him, 'Abba, as far as I can I say my little office, I fast a little, I pray and meditate, I live in peace and as far as I can, I purify my thoughts. What else can I do?' Then the old man stood up and stretched his hands towards heaven. His fingers became like ten lamps of fire and he said to him, 'If you will, you can become all flame.'
Wow.
If you will, you can become all flame.
That’s what I want more than anything: to become all flame for God.
Around a thousand years before the desert fathers and mothers were around, the Israelites were travelling through the same desert on their way to the Promised Land.
God gave them instructions so that they could live safely in His presence while He personally led them through the wilderness—and one of them was to keep the fire on the altar burning in the Tabernacle at all times.
Leviticus 9 tells us how this fire started, when it blazed forth from God’s presence and consumed the first burnt offering on the altar. After that, the Israelite priests would have kept this fire burning day and night for 40 years.
If you believe in Jesus, He has lit a fire in you by His Spirit. Only He can start the fire.
But, empowered by His grace, it’s our responsibility to keep it burning.
To fuel it through spending time with God in His Word, prayer and worship.
To grow it by surrendering ourselves to Him every day.
To build it by committing ourselves to a loving community of believers.
To let others see its light by showing them Jesus in everything we say and do.
I know that when I don’t do these things—when I settle by doing the bare minimum in following Jesus—I feel the flame within me diminishing.
Whenever that happens, I always go back to Romans 12, where Paul urges us to ‘…offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to the Lord…’ (Romans 12:1), and to ’never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord’ (Romans 12:11).
I don’t want to settle for a distracted, disinterested faith. I don’t want to let the fire of my faith flicker into embers.
I want to become all flame for Jesus.
I want to keep the fire burning on the altar of my life at all times.
I want to carry the light and heat of His holy presence wherever I go and to whoever I meet.
Keep us ablaze for you, Lord.
Love,
Theo
Moving forwards by looking backwards
'For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.' — Ephesians 2:8–10
'The gospel is not just the ABCs but the A to Z of the Christian life. The gospel is not the minimum required doctrine necessary to enter the kingdom but the way we make all progress in the kingdom.' — Tim Keller
Resolutions.
Maybe you’re smashing yours (just 363 more days to go).
Maybe you think they’re pointless.
Maybe you’ve already given up—it’s okay.
Whether you love them or hate them, I believe the very act of setting resolutions is an expression of a deeper desire shared by every human being:
The desire to change.
All of us want things to be better than they currently are—whether that's in our lives, in our relationships, in the world around us.
We pour vast amounts of time, money and energy into improving our health, our lifestyle, our circumstances, our work and our relationships. We read the latest self-help books, listen to the trending podcasts and adopt new habits—all in an effort to transcend our present reality and transform our lives for the better.
As followers of Jesus, the desire for change runs even deeper—we long to be free from sin, to grow in holiness, and to experience more of the life of joy, purpose and peace that God made us for.
While our pursuit of change can be positive and constructive, when we rely on our own power and effort it can leave us feeling frustrated, exhausted and demoralised.
Despite our best efforts, things sometimes seem to get worse before they get better. The storms of life come, derailing our best-laid plans. The pressures and worries of life crowd out our well-meaning intentions.
Our problem isn’t that we desire change. It’s that our desire for change is often directed to the wrong end, and pursued by the wrong means.
Let me explain why—and how the gospel gives us a better, more beautiful and ultimately more glorious vision for change.
The way in is the way on
God’s purpose for our lives isn’t just that we’d become ‘better versions of ourselves’. It isn’t that we’d be a bit happier, a bit nicer, a bit more fulfilled.
God’s purpose for our lives, in the words of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, is to ‘glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever’.
It is that we would know Him more deeply, love Him more wholeheartedly, and delight in Him more fully each and every day of our lives.
It is that we would be ‘conformed to the image of His Son’ (Romans 8:29)—putting to death our sin and living in ever-increasing love and obedience, in union with Christ and empowered by His Spirit.
It is that we would bring glory and honour to Him as we bear fruit and ‘do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do’ (Ephesians 2:10).
This is what true change looks like—and the good news is that the power to bring it about isn’t something we find in ourselves.
It is all by grace.
‘For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.’ — Ephesians 2:8–9
If the goal of the Christian life is ever-increasing knowledge, love, obedience and worship of God, the means by which we grow is grace alone, through faith alone.
Grace was your way in to life with God, and grace is your way on. The way forwards in the Christian life comes by looking backwards—by resting in all that Christ has already done for you. Real change happens ‘in view of God’s mercy’ (Romans 12:1—rooted in His grace and enabled by His Spirit.
If you are looking for change in your life in 2026, don’t just rely on setting resolutions or making some new habits. These might be helpful things, but they can never deliver the lasting transformation you're looking for.
Instead, move forwards by looking backwards. Rejoice in all that Jesus has done on your behalf—dying in your place on the cross, bearing the punishment for your sin, clothing you with His righteousness, and sharing with you His eternal life—all so that you can know and enjoy His Father forever.
Grace was your way in.
Grace is your way on.
Rest in this amazing grace today, and every day of the year to come.
With love,
Mike
The best gift God has ever given
‘But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.’ — Ecclesiastes 2:11
‘Man’s maker was made man, that He, Ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother’s breast; that the Bread might hunger, the Fountain thirst, the Light sleep, the Way be tired on its journey; that the Truth might be accused of false witness, the Teacher be beaten with whips, the Foundation be suspended on wood; that Strength might grow weak; that the Healer might be wounded; that Life might die.’ — Augustine
I hope you had a joyful time on Christmas Day yesterday!
Family and friends, food and drink, gifts and games, time to rest, reflect and celebrate—Christmas is full of good things for us to enjoy.
All good things come from God, and He generously gives them so that we would worship Him in gratitude. At Christmas, these good things are meant to enhance our celebration of Christ’s arrival here on earth.
But, as always, sin spoils it. So many people have ended up pushing Christ out of Christmas and, ultimately, out of their lives. They try to enjoy His blessings without enjoying Him.
In one way or another, we’ve all done this. We’ve all fallen into the temptation of elevating the gifts above the Giver—of wanting the benefits of living in the Kingdom without having to serve the King. We push the glorious Creator away and instead grab at His created glories.
The Teacher in Ecclesiastes tries everything in the world that people look to for ultimate satisfaction, fulfilment, and meaning. Pleasure, success, power, wealth, fame—he tries it all, he gains it all, but he discovers that having it all doesn’t mean anything.
God’s gifts can’t ever fulfil us like God Himself can, because they were never meant to. Every good thing we have is from Him and is meant to be enjoyed for His glory, and every attempt to bypass this reality eventually leaves us empty, disappointed and in despair.
Jesus came into this world to save us from these sinful, silly attempts to find life outside of Him. He came to take the punishment we deserved for our rebellion against God, so that we could be made right with Him forever. He came to show us that the full life we want is the Spirit-empowered life that’s lived wholly for God and not for ourselves.
In Jesus, we can find everything we’ve been looking for, and we can enjoy the good things He gives us rightly: for our good and His glory.
Christ alone gives us the only life worth living. Christ alone makes Christmas worth celebrating.
Whatever our experience has been this Christmas, may we always look to Him to find our full satisfaction.
Love,
Theo
P.S. This week’s Journal is an adaptation from our One Year Devotional: 365 Days of Looking to Jesus. I’m unashamedly a bit biased, but the team and I agree that this really is the best thing we’ve ever made. You can find out more about it and grab a late Christmas gift for yourself or someone else here!
Don’t lose your wonder this Christmas
‘So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.’ — John 1:14
‘He became what we are so that he might make us what he is.’ — Athanasius
Ho ho ho-my goodness, Christmas is next week!
But I’ll admit, I’m fighting hard to stay enthusiastic about it.
The truth is, after seeing the same Morrisons great-value turkey deal TV ad and heard dear Mariah blaring in the shops for the 100th time, I can start to feel more and more un-Christmassy.
Now, before you roll your eyes at my Grinchy Scroogeness and bin this email alongside your most recent wrapping paper disaster, stay with me.
I promise you I don’t hate Christmas.
What I do hate is how, by the time Christmas Day arrives, I’ve often lost my wonder of the reason why we even celebrate it.
Because, honestly, the glory of Jesus—the infinite, eternal, perfect Son of God—being born as a tiny human baby should overwhelm us with awe.
It is indescribably amazing.
The infinite Son of God became an infant child.
The Word couldn’t utter a single syllable.
The Creator chose to enter His creation.
The King of the universe arrived on Earth without anyone really knowing about it—born not in a royal palace to great fanfare, but in an ordinary Bethlehem inn surrounded by his parents, some shepherds and a host of wise men.
He came, knowing that this would be His entrance. He came, knowing that, except for sin, He would endure the full human experience with all its highs and lows.
He came, knowing that He would have no home to call His own. He came, knowing that He would be constantly misunderstood, shunned, harassed, rejected—even by His own family and friends. He came, knowing that He would be the lowest of the low.
He came, knowing that He would ultimately suffer one of the worst deaths the people He made had come up with.
He came, knowing that He had to go through the horror of the cross to defeat the devil, sin and death, before coming triumphantly out of an empty grave.
He came knowing all of this, because He loves us.
It is absolutely breathtaking. We simply can’t fully grasp the glory of it.
But what we can do is let the glory of the incarnation grasp us.
We can reflect on it with wonder. We can sing about it with joy. We can feast on it in our hearts with gratitude. We can tell our family and friends about it with confidence.
All I want for Christmas is to be in wonder of Jesus.
I’m praying that more than anything else, we find ourselves captivated by the glory of His arrival here on earth—becoming one of us, so that we might become one with Him, forever.
Have a wonderful time celebrating Him this Christmas!
Love,
Theo
The Prince of Shalom
‘For a child is born to us,
a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’ — Isaiah 9:6
‘Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King:
peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”’ — Charles Wesley
Last week, Donald Trump received the inaugural ‘Fifa Peace Prize’ at the draw for the 2026 World Cup.
How... interesting.
But regardless of your opinions on Trump, Fifa, and the legitimacy of this shiny new ‘prize’—it begs the question: what is true peace?
We tend to think of peace as the absence of something—of conflict, war and hostility.
Peace is a good night’s sleep free from anxiety and worry. It’s people getting along without insulting and hurting each other. It’s nations agreeing to stop fighting and killing one another.
But the Bible gives us a much fuller, comprehensive and ultimately more glorious definition of peace.
Shalom.
Shalom isn’t merely the absence of conflict, but the presence of something greater. Shalom is completeness, wholeness, well-being.
Shalom is life as God created it to be—people living in harmony with themselves, each other and God. Shalom is the fullness and blessing that comes when our whole lives are aligned with God’s pattern and design.
Shalom was what Adam and Eve enjoyed in the Garden of Eden, where they dwelt in perfect communion and blessing with God and one another.
Shalom is what was shattered when Adam and Eve set themselves up in rebellion against God and rejected His created order by eating from the tree (Genesis 3).
Since that tragic day, humanity has lived in a state of enmity with ourselves, God and one another. In this fallen, sin-ravaged world, we feel restless, unsettled and anxious, striving for a sense of inner peace and completeness that no thing in this world can ever deliver.
Driven by fear and envy, we compete and war against and kill our fellow image-bearers for resources, land and prestige.
Worst of all, we curse and reject the God we were made for communion with.
We long for shalom—and yet it always seems to evade us.
So, where is shalom to be found?
Shalom is a Person
The good news is that shalom isn’t just a limited commodity that we need to compete and strive for.
Shalom is a person—Jesus Christ.
As Isaiah 9:6 majestically declares, He is the ‘Prince of Peace’—the Prince of Shalom.
The Son has existed for all eternity in shalom—a state of wholeness, completeness and blessing in communion with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
In a stunning act of divine love and grace, He stepped into our fallen world so that we, too, could enjoy His shalom. By shedding His blood on the cross, He made peace between us and God, taking on Himself the Father’s wrath against sin so that all who trust in Him could be reconciled to God:
‘For God in all his fullness
was pleased to live in Christ,
and through him God reconciled
everything to himself.
He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth
by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.’ — Colossians 1:19–20
At the heart of the Christmas story—at the heart of the gospel— is the promise of shalom. It is the hope that all who put their trust in this infant King, this ‘Prince of Peace’, can live in peace, blessing and unbroken communion with God the Father now and for all eternity.
True shalom is to know that our sin is forgiven, that our future is secure, and that we are beloved sons and daughters of God. Through our union with Christ, we now share the same status before the Father as Christ does—we can approach Him in freedom and confidence, without fear of judgement or punishment (1 John 4:7–19).
This shalom isn’t just something we enjoy ourselves. The work of restoration, reconciliation and renewal that Christ is bringing about in us, He is also bringing about in the whole of creation.
World peace won’t ultimately be achieved by the Fifa-Peace-Prize-winning politicians of this world. It is the work of Christ, who ‘made peace with everything in heaven and on earth’ (Colossians 1:20) and will one day return to make all things new—ushering in a new creation free from war, strife, violence and death (see Revelation 21).
Until then, we are called to be people of peace—to show others the same forgiveness that has been shown us, to bring reconciliation where there is division, and to build communities of shalom in a world full of division.
Now we have peace with God, we are called to invite others to enjoy that same peace for themselves by putting their trust in Jesus: “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9).
If, today, you feel anxious, unsettled and fearful about the state of the world, look to Jesus. The shalom you’re looking for can only be found in Him—and He delights to give it to His beloved people: “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27).
May you know the depths of His shalom during this Advent season!
With love,
Mike
The narrow way of obedience
“If you love me, obey my commandments.” — John 14:15
‘The highest freedom is found in obedience to God.’ — Thomas Merton
It’s safe to say that ‘obedience’ isn’t trending right now.
In fact, in our hyper-individualistic culture, it’s widely viewed with suspicion. Many would go as far as viewing obedience as oppressive, a removal of our rights as autonomous beings.
In this context, Jesus’ call to obey him is radical.
Many people might see this call to obedience as domineering—that Jesus wants nothing more than to dominate us and punish us when we step out of line.
But that’s not what the Bible tells us.
When we let God teach us through His Word, we discover that disobedience to Jesus only ever leads to death, and that obedience to Him only ever leads to the full, lasting life that we were made for and long to live.
Here’s how:
Obedience is love
“If you love me, obey my commandments.” — John 14:15
Notice the words that Jesus uses here: He doesn’t say, “If you trust me” or “If you honour me”, or even “If you believe in me”, although all those would still be applicable and true.
He says, “If you love me”.
Obeying Jesus is something that flows from our hearts. As His disciples, we should want and eagerly desire to obey Him, because we love Him.
Love is crucial to obedience, because to love someone means to trust them. So, when we obey Jesus, it means that we trust Him. We have confidence that He is who He says He is, that He loves us, and that He only ever wants to lead us into a life of flourishing in His Kingdom.
We obey Jesus, because we love Him—we trust Him and we want to glorify Him with our whole lives.
Obedience is dependence
“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.” — John 14:16
Obey Jesus.
It sounds so simple, doesn’t it? In the words of Nike’s slogan, we need to “just do it”.
But we all know that the reality of “just doing it” is actually really hard. It’s not about simply trying harder or mustering up more willpower, because that will always fail. We are still sinful, and we need help to obey Jesus.
That’s why He promises His disciples that the Father will send the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit leads us along the way of Jesus, grounds us in the truth of Jesus, and fills us with the life of Jesus.
Paul describes our reliance on the Spirit as ‘walking in step with the Spirit’ (Galatians 5:25). That gives us a beautiful image of what being Jesus’ disciple is like: as we follow after Him, we are accompanied, directed, strengthened and comforted by the Spirit walking alongside us.
Obedience is freedom
‘And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.’ — 1 John 5:3–4
Jesus’ commands are not burdensome. They are not meant to crush us into submission, but to free us into life. Jesus says that “the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10)
So often, people think it’s the opposite—that Jesus has come to steal our fun, kill our joy and even destroy our lives. But that’s a lie from the enemy, straight out of Genesis 3 when he first tempted Eve to distrust God’s goodness.
Jesus only ever wants to lead us into the fullest life in His Kingdom, where, as Paul describes in Romans 14:27, we experience ‘righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.’
Obeying God is so freeing. It frees us from sin, and it frees us to live a life full of eternal purpose, hope and joy! It frees us from constantly worrying about ourselves and our lives, and it frees us to have complete confidence in who we are in Jesus.
It’s a narrow path, but it’s the only one that leads to life.
I’m committed to walking with you along it.
Love,
Theo
Analogue wisdom in a digital age
‘How much better to get wisdom than gold, and good judgment than silver!’ — Proverbs 16:16
'Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom.' –— C.H. Spurgeon
Where do you look for answers?
The internet, social media and AI have put a world of knowledge at our fingertips. In an instant we can find answers to any and every kind of question:
What’s the weather today?
How do I cook a Christmas roast?
What should I watch on Netflix tonight?
What's happening in America right now?
And… What on earth does 6-7 mean?
These tools can be invaluable for acquiring information and expanding our understanding. They can and should be received as gifts from God.
The problem is when we search for wisdom in places that can only ever provide us with knowledge.
While digital technologies like the internet, social media and AI can give us quick answers and instant access to a sea of information, they can’t help us navigate life’s biggest questions, decisions and dilemmas.
For that, we need to get offline.
We need godly wisdom.
We need to go analogue.
The habits of analogue wisdom
Proverbs 9:10 says: ‘Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.’
Christian wisdom begins with reverence and awe of God. It is the application of knowledge to lead a godly and righteous life. It’s the slow, reflective, lifelong process of getting to know God and learning to live rightly in His world.
Another way to put it is that Christian wisdom is about living a life that corresponds to reality. Wisdom comes ultimately from looking to and abiding in Christ, the eternal Logos who is Wisdom itself.
I also believe that Christian wisdom is deeply analogue, because the spiritual disciplines that correspond to wisdom are offline, embodied, and communal.
If you’re thinking about your next steps in life, ChatGPT might be able to suggest some helpful career ideas—but it can’t replicate the slow, prayerful process of discerning God’s call on your life alongside others.
If you’re thinking about who you should marry, a Christian influencer on Instagram might give you some useful dating advice—but they can’t replace the counsel of wise mentors and friends who know you deeply and are committed to what's best for you.
If you’re wrestling with sin and temptation, the internet might point you to some helpful teaching and resources—but it can’t replace coming before Jesus in surrender, falling on His grace, filling your mind with the truth of His Word, and seeking accountability with your church community.
Christian wisdom isn’t a matter of instant answers and quick solutions. Wisdom flourishes in the quiet place of prayer and meditation. It comes from wrestling with God’s Word over months and years as you learn to live in light of His reality.
Christian wisdom dwells in your church family, in the lives of wise friends and mentors and leaders who can speak into your life with Biblical truth, love and real-life experience.
If you want knowledge, by all means use the digital tools at your disposal.
But if you want wisdom?
First, ‘ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.’ (James 1:5). Pray that God's Spirit would renew your mind. And then get offline and engage in the analogue disciplines of prayer, worship, the Word and community.
May we be a community of people who love God's truth, who seek to live in light of His reality, and who root ourselves in Christ who is Wisdom itself.
With love,
Mike
Why you can be confident in Jesus
‘But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.’ — Hebrews 10:12
‘Let us look steadfastly to the blood of Christ, and see how precious that blood is to God, which, having been shed for our salvation, has set the grace of repentance before the whole world.’ — Clement of Rome
Recently, I had the joy of preaching at my church as part of our current series, where we’re looking at the different ways Jesus fulfils the Old Testament.
My theme was ‘sacrifice’ and ‘communion’. I know, pretty simple themes to explain in a 20-minute sermon, right?
But as I was preparing and even as I was speaking, I was so struck again by the sheer magnitude of who Jesus is and what He has done for us as our perfect High Priest and our perfect sacrifice.
The writer of Hebrews looks back to the Old Testament in the light of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and here are five things they want us to understand:
1. Jesus’ priesthood lasts forever
‘There were many priests under the old system, but death prevented them from remaining in office. But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.’ — Hebrews 7:23–25
In the old system, there was a constant turnover of high priests who came and passed away.
But Jesus is eternal, and so His role as the perfect High Priest is also eternal – meaning that He can save forever those who trust Him.
2. Jesus enters the true Most Holy Place: the throne room of Heaven
‘With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.’ — Hebrews 9:12
Jesus perfectly performed all the roles of Israel’s sacrificial system Himself—as the perfect High Priest, He brought His own blood into the Father’s holy presence in Heaven as the perfect sacrifice.
3. His sacrifice is once for all
‘Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.’ — Hebrews 10:11–12
Unlike the Levitical priests, Jesus’ work is finished and sufficient. There is nothing more to be done. Our sin is atoned for, forever.
Jesus giving up His life on the cross was the ultimate sacrifice for all people, for all time.
4. His blood truly cleanses our hearts
‘Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.’ — Hebrews 9:13–14
Whereas the animal sacrifices under the Law could only ever cleanse people ceremonially, Jesus’ sacrifice actually reaches the inner person, fully cleansing our hearts from sin and making us right with God forever.
5. He mediates a new covenant
‘…he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.’ — Hebrews 9:15
As the perfect High Priest who carried out the perfect sacrifice, Jesus hasn’t just temporarily covered our sin—He has removed it completely and opened up direct access to God!
Under this new covenant, God has put His laws in our minds and written them on our hearts. He has become our God, and we have become His people. Everyone from every tribe, tongue and nation can know Him. He has forgiven our wickedness and will never again remember our sins (Jeremiah 31:31–34).
Because of what Jesus has done by willingly shedding his blood and dying on the cross, we can be fully forgiven, forever.
We can be completely cleansed from our sin, forever.
We can be part of God’s covenant family and enjoy being in relationship with him and with one another, forever.
And as Hebrews 13:15 says, we can offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name, forever.
All we need to do is to put our trust in Him. To believe in Him, and to receive all that He has done for us.
This is the gospel: Jesus is Lord, and He has done everything that was needed to save us.
Let’s believe it, and let’s go and tell everyone about it.
Love,
Theo
The end of the world as we know it
‘The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.’ — 1 Peter 4:7
‘It's the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine)’ — R.E.M.
There are days when reading the news feels a bit like flicking the pages of a dystopian novel.
A few minutes of scrolling could lead you to the conclusion that…
Artificial intelligence is coming for your job.
World War Three is about to begin.
The government is watching you.
You’re going to be cancelled.
The economy is about to collapse.
And that’s not to mention the microplastics.
Of course, all these things are serious. Many of them are likely. Some of them are probably already happening.
And when we spend too much time dwelling on them—they can lead us to live our lives under a cloud of fear, anxiety and existential dread.
But here’s the thing—our media and politics thrives on fear.
Fear sells newspapers, drives clicks and grabs attention.
Fear is the cultural air we breathe—and it’s anti-gospel.
Combatting fear with the truth
Consider, for a moment, Peter’s words that opened this email:
‘The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.’ — 1 Peter 4:7
Peter isn’t scaremongering here. He isn’t trying to be an alarmist, a doomsayer, or a first-century conspiracy theorist.
On the contrary, these words assure us of three truths that combat our fears and comfort our hearts:
1. God is sovereign over the end of all things
To non-believers, Peter’s claim that the ‘the end of the world is coming soon’ is a source of dread and anxiety—confirming the verdict in wider culture that society is collapsing and the end of the world is on its way.
However, to believers, these words should cause our hearts to sing—reassuring us that God is sovereign over all things and has already written the end of the story—a story which culminates in a new heavens and a new earth, where His chosen people will dwell with Him in safety and enjoyment forever (Revelation 21).
So, when we read the news or scroll through our social media feeds—when we ‘hear of wars and threats of wars’ (Matthew 24:6)—we need not panic or fear. God is in all things, over all things, and is directing His creation to a glorious destiny.
2. We have confidence in the day of judgment
Secondly, Peter reminds us that, in Christ, God has already saved us from an even more terrifying day than the end of the created world—the day of judgment.
A few verses later, he encourages early Christians facing persecution:
‘For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News?’ — 1 Peter 4:17
Peter is saying that our temporary suffering now is preparing us for the final day when all people stand before the throne in judgment.
On that day, God’s chosen people—those who have obeyed the Good News by putting their trust in Jesus Christ—will receive the promised prize of eternal life with Him, while all who oppose Him will enter His eternal judgment.
So, if you are in Him, you have no reason to fear the end of the world—because your eternal destiny is already secure. The judgment you deserve for your sin has been absorbed by Christ, and you will live with Him forevermore.
3. He will preserve His people now and forever:
Peter concludes the chapter with these words: ‘keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you’ (1 Peter 4:19).
As long as we live in this world—no matter how dark and desperate things seem to get—we can trust that the God who created us and saved us will also preserve us until the end.
Nothing can separate you from His love. Nothing will overcome His Church. He will never fail you.
So, today, when your mind is overwhelmed by everyday anxieties or overcome by fear of the world’s impending destruction—rest in these truths again.
Whatever you read, hear and think about—hold it up in the light of these glorious words from Jesus:
“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” — John 14:27
With love,
Mike
The relentless fight for your heart
‘Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.’ — 1 John 5:21
‘An idol is whatever you look at and say in your heart of hearts: ‘If I have that, then I’ll feel my life has meaning, then I’ll know I have value, then I’ll feel significant and secure.’’ — Timothy Keller
Ever since I was around five years old, I’ve rushed from one interest to the next.
Sports, music, fitness, technology—over the years, I’ve given a lot of my time and money to these things, and in general, they’ve all brought me a lot of happiness.
But at times, they’ve become my idols. There have been points when these things have come to dominate my thoughts, desires and spending, so much so that my relationship with God has been compromised.
I’m sure you’ve experienced the same temptation.
Every day, so many things are fighting for our hearts. It’s a relentless struggle, because our hearts are the most important part of us. They define who we are and direct how we live. Proverbs 4:23 urges us: ‘Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.’
Whatever our hearts long for, we live for. Whatever they want, we worship.
Falling into idolatry
God made us out of His infinite love, and He made us to worship Him—to direct our desires towards Him and to spend our lives enjoying His presence and reigning over the world He gave us.
But when we gave in to the enemy’s tempting deception, our desires became misdirected. We became naturally inclined to worship the things God made instead of God Himself.
Our hearts became idolatrous.
Mercifully, despite all the destruction our idolatry had caused to our relationship with Him and His world, God didn’t give up on us. He promised to give us new hearts that would love Him and obey His Word (Ezekiel 36:26–27)—and He fulfilled this promise by sending His Son Jesus to free us from our sin and His Spirit to renew our hearts, so that we can truly worship Him.
The Spirit has begun a miraculous transformation in us. But His work is ongoing, and won’t be complete until Jesus returns. So, for now, we must fight against our old idolatrous nature and put it to death in the power of the Spirit (see Romans 8).
Fighting against idolatry
What makes idols so dangerous is how harmless they can seem. That’s because they are good things—gifts that God delights to give us—but they’re good things that we treat wrongly by looking to them as our ultimate sources of life instead of God.
Most of the time, they aren’t big or obvious. They can be as small as the six-inch screen in your hand, or as subtle as the hobby you spend all your free time pursuing, or as secretive as that thing you can’t stop thinking about buying, experiencing or achieving.
We can only recognise our idols by humbly asking the Holy Spirit to show them to us.
So, I’d encourage you to take some time and reflect on these three questions:
How much do I think about God compared with other things?
What am I spending most of my time and money on at the moment?
Am I prioritising my relationship with God above everything else in my life right now?
One of the best prayers to help us is David’s at the end of Psalm 139:
‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.’
Let’s commit to praying this daily, keeping in step with the Spirit, and staying away from anything that threatens to take God’s place in our hearts.
Love,
Theo
Reclaiming the joy of normality
‘So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.’ — 1 Corinthians 10:31
‘…too often we look for the Spirit in the extraordinary when God has promised to be present in the ordinary.’ — James K.A. Smith
When we’re younger, we spend much of our time chasing novelty:
New experiences.
New relationships.
New ideas.
New things.
Novelty isn’t necessarily a bad thing—it can fuel our curiosity, expand our knowledge and deepen our appreciation of God’s good world.
But, as I’ve grown older, I’ve come to appreciate the much more ordinary and unremarkable rhythms of normality:
Sipping morning coffee in the quiet before work.
Enjoying a slow lunchtime walk.
Laughing with friends around the kitchen table.
You see, most of our lives aren’t lived on the extraordinary mountaintops of novelty, but along the slow, winding, ordinary path of normality.
I’ve come to learn that God dwells as much in these ordinary moments—the daily liturgies of waking, working, eating, exercising, playing and resting—as He does in the extraordinary ones.
We simply need eyes to see and ears to hear.
Reclaiming the joy of the ordinary
How can we learn to see and enjoy God in the everyday, seemingly mundane moments of our lives?
We must remember why God created us, and why God saved us.
Consider these words from Paul: “For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever!” (Romans 11:36).
You were made by Him.
You are held by Him.
You are intended for His glory.
And, in His great mercy, He redeemed you for Himself through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Our lives—both now and for eternity—are a gift from Him, and they are all for His glory.
In view of this reality, our so-called ordinary lives take on an extraordinary meaning, purpose and value. It is for this reason that Paul says elsewhere: “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
What would our lives look like if we slowed down and learnt to really see these everyday mercies as they really are: as gracious gifts from our good and loving Father, intended to bring glory to Him?
The meals we eat.
The wine we drink.
The ordinary rhythms of rising, our working, our resting, our playing.
Not only would we go through our days with a deeper awareness of God's presence, but we would see every moment as an opportunity to worship and glorify Him.
So, today, stop for a moment.
Receive 'normality' as a gift.
And, with Paul, give God the praise He deserves: “All glory to him forever!”
With love,
Mike
Power through powerlessness
‘I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.’ — Ephesians 1:19–20
‘The movement from power through strength to power through powerlessness is our call…’ — Henri Nouwen
I’ll be honest with you: since I became a Christian, I’ve often felt really weak.
Weak at fighting my sin.
Weak at loving people well.
Weak at sharing the gospel.
Weak in all sorts of ways.
When you’re constantly faced with your weaknesses, it’s easy to end up settling. To start believing that this is just the way things will always be.
I’ll always struggle with this specific sin.
I’ll never be able to love people the way God loves them.
This is just the way I am.
We can even start to believe that this is what God wants for us—to keep us humble, meek, and dependent on Him.
And there’s some truth in that. God wants to open our eyes to our need, to our powerlessness.
But He doesn’t call us to stay there.
As Jesus’ followers, we’re not just meant simply to believe the right things, struggle with the same sins our whole lives, and then die and finally go to somewhere better. We have been made and saved for so much more than that.
If you trust in Jesus, you are a new creation. You have been filled with the power of the Holy Spirit—the same power that filled Jesus throughout His life, sustained Him during His death, and raised him back to life.
And, because you are united to Jesus by faith, that same Spirit lives in you and fills you with power.
Power to be transformed from the inside out (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Power to kill our sin (Romans 8:13).
Power to live in freedom (Galatians 5:16).
Power to understand, obey and delight in what Jesus says (John 14:26).
Power to pray (Romans 8:26–27).
Power to see and serve those around us (Galatians 5:13–14).
Power to tell people the good news about Jesus (Acts 1:8).
Power to endure through our suffering (Romans 15:13).
Power to love radically (Romans 5:5).
Power to become like Jesus.
Unlike so many examples of power we see around us, this power isn’t selfish, greedy or violent. It doesn’t strive to build our own kingdoms at the expense of others.
This power is the kind that only God has and can give: power that enables us to live for Him and His everlasting Kingdom by carrying our crosses and dying to our old selves.
It’s the power both to recognise our powerlessness and to believe God when He says:
‘Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.’ — 2 Corinthians 12:9
I love how Henri Nouwen writes about this:
‘But insofar as we dare to be baptized in powerlessness, always moving toward the poor who do not have such power, we are plunged right into the heart of God’s endless mercy. We are free to reenter our world with the same divine power with which Jesus came, and we are able to walk in the valley of darkness and tears, unceasingly in communion with God…confidently standing under the cross of our life…It is this divine power that makes us saints—fearless—who can make all things new.’
Yes, we are weak—but God doesn’t want us to make our weakness our core identity, but rather to see it as the means by which He makes us strong.
As we keep humbly admitting our powerlessness and surrendering ourselves completely to Him, we find that we have all the power we need to live for Him and join Him in redeeming, restoring and reigning over the world.
And by living this way, our lives will amount to far more than we could ever have dreamed of. (Ephesians 3:20).
Friends, I’m praying with Paul that ‘…you will be strengthened with all his glorious power so you will have all the endurance and patience you need...’ (Colossians 1:11).
Love,
Theo
You are what you scroll
‘Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.’ — Romans 12:2
‘Technology is neither good nor bad, nor is it neutral.’ — Melvin Kranzberg
Whether you like it or not, the device you are reading this email on is changing you.
Here’s the thing: your smartphone isn’t just a tool that you use. It’s a technology that’s forming you to be a certain kind of person.
And not just you—it’s changing the fabric of civilisation itself.
Sounds scary, right?
Before you decide to throw your smartphone in a ditch (or just delete this email), let’s unpack this a bit more—and then consider how we can engage faithfully and wisely with digital technology for God’s glory.
Your smartphone is changing you
All digital technology is designed with certain values—assumptions about what is good, what is desirable, what is efficient, what is profitable.
And the more we use this technology, the more we absorb those values ourselves.
That means that digital technology is never neutral, because it produces in us habits that form us to be a certain kind of person:
It forms the way we think: how we access, read, consume, analyse and evaluate information.
It forms the way we behave: how we live in, interact with and inhabit the world around us.
It forms the way we communicate: how we speak to, engage with and relate to others both online and in real life.
And, most of all, it forms our spiritual life: how attentive and open we are to God’s voice and the work of His Spirit within us.
If that all sounds a bit abstract, let’s consider a few examples:
Search engines are built for speed and efficiency—training us to skim, scan and switch our attention constantly.
Our social media feeds are built to ‘stop the scroll’ and keep us coming back for more—training us to value novelty, entertainment and outrage over nuance and deep understanding.
Our smartphones are built to keep us within constant reach and always accessible—training us to treat every interruption as urgent, fragmenting our attention and making us less present.
Yes—your smartphone is changing you. But does that mean it’s time to throw it away?
Maybe. But not necessarily.
Practising godly wisdom in a digital age
Christian wisdom isn’t just about asking, ‘Can I use this tool for good?’ Instead, we need to ask: ‘What kind of person is this tool making me?’
We need to consider whether our smartphones are helping or harming our growth in our knowledge, love and obedience to God.
We need to ask whether they are contributing to or hindering our formation into the people God wants us to be—people of peace, love, truth, justice and mercy who delight in His ways and live obediently for His Kingdom.
Digital technology is no less than a spiritual battleground—directing your attention, shaping your affections and forming your loves. We must submit instead to the directing, shaping and forming influence of God's Spirit—and fight in His power and strength.
So, today, if you find yourself addicted to your phone, distracted, anxious, distant from people and from God—bring it to Him.
Confess your struggles to the Lord. Ask for His grace in this crucial area. Work to establish healthy boundaries.
It might not mean throwing away your phone altogether—but you may have to take some radical, sacrificial steps to align yourself with God’s good will for your life.
I’m praying that all of us would learn to walk with wisdom and discernment in this crucial area of our discipleship. Let me know how you get on!
Love,
Mike
Are you feeling dehydrated?
“But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” — John 4:14
“The Spirit is the divine empowering presence, without whom there is no real experience of life in Christ.” — Gordon Fee
Have you ever found yourself feeling lethargic, unable to focus, battling anxiety, and you have no idea why—until you suddenly realise that you haven’t drunk a single glass of water all day?
And as soon as you down a couple of glasses, you instantly feel 1,000% better?
Yeah, me too.
If our bodies need water every day, how much more our souls need to drink in the Holy Spirit through every moment of every day.
The Spirit gives life (Romans 8:11), fills us with power (Acts 1:8), teaches us the truth (John 16:13), prays for us in our weakness (Romans 8:26), pours God’s love into our hearts (Romans 5:5) and makes us flourish with all the aspects of God’s character (Galatians 5:22–23).
And yet, so often I forget to ask Him to fill me.
I so easily end up falling into the age-old trap of trying to live like Jesus in my own strength and wisdom, without relying on the Holy Spirit:
Hurtling out of the house in the mornings without spending time with Him in my Bible and in prayer.
Forgetting to ask Him to help me when I’m at work.
Scrolling on my phone during my spare moments instead of bringing myself into His presence.
Going through my days as if He wasn’t even there.
No wonder I can feel so spiritually dehydrated.
If you trust in Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9)—that can never change. But what can is whether the Holy Spirit has all of you (Romans 12:1).
Every day, we are tempted to sin against God in our self-reliance and distraction—and so every day, we must surrender every part of ourselves to Him, and ask Him to fill us afresh.
We simply can’t live for Jesus without the Holy Spirit constantly filling us and flowing out of us in all we say and do. As a river ceases to be life-giving if its constant flow of water dries up, so we cease to be fruitful for Jesus without His Spirit influencing us—literally ‘flowing into’ us—every day.
So, how do we allow the Spirit to do this?
1. Ask
“So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him” (Luke 11:13).
Every day, we need to recognise our need for the Holy Spirit, and humbly ask the Father to fill us afresh. When we wake up each morning, let’s make this our first prayer of the day: “Lord, fill me with your Spirit again today.”
2. Pray
‘Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere’ (Ephesians 6:18).
Prayer is the way we spend our lives with God. In this verse, Paul urges us to pray ‘in the Spirit’ all the time—and elsewhere, he tells us to ‘pray unceasingly’ (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Keep your conversation with the Holy Spirit open throughout your day: thank Him, worship Him, ask Him to help you.
We’re meant to not just live for Jesus, but with Him by His Spirit—and prayer is absolutely central to this.
3. Obey
‘Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit's leading in every part of our lives’ (Galatians 5:25).
While we can’t follow Jesus as the first disciples did when He lived on Earth, we follow His Spirit. That means immersing ourselves in God’s Word so that we can hear Him speak and know what He has called us to do, asking Him to give us the power we need to obey Him, and following His promptings to share Jesus with those around us.
Friends, let’s not allow our souls to become dehydrated.
Instead, let’s seek to be filled by the Holy Spirit and to follow His leading in every part of our lives.
Love,
Theo
The 7 habits of highly effective pray-ers
Devote yourselves to prayer…’ — Colossians 4:2
‘Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work.’ — Oswald Chambers
A while ago, I started Stephen Covey’s classic book ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’—hoping that, well, it would make me a more effective person.
If you haven’t read it, the book includes such wisdom as ‘be proactive’ and ‘begin with the end in mind’ and ‘think win–win.’
Well, I’m clearly not a very effective reader, because I barely got past chapter 2.
But it did get me thinking: what would my life look like if I wasn’t just seeking to be a highly effective person, but a highly effective pray-er?
What if I was like those fiery old Christians who devoted their lives to worship and intercession?
What if ‘being an effective person’ was never the point anyway?
Because I’ll wager that a praying life is much more valuable, in God’s eyes, than an effective life.
With that, here’s my attempt at 7 habits of highly effective pray-ers:
1. Let God’s voice be first: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)
2. Begin with worship: ‘Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name.’ (Psalm 100:4)
3. Make God's priorities your priorities: ‘Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you.’ (Psalm 86:11)
4. Repent regularly: ‘But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.’ (1 John 1:9)
5. Practise gratitude over grumbling: ‘Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.’ (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
6. Make prayer a constant conversation (not just a morning meeting): ‘Never stop praying.’ (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
7. Intercede bigger than yourself: ‘I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.’ (1 Timothy 2:1)
I don’t just want to be an effective person. I want to be effective for God’s Kingdom—and that begins with prayer.
Have I missed anything? Let me know!
Love,
Mike
The calling God has given you
‘Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.’ — Ephesians 5:1
“There are very few who realise what God would make of them if they abandoned themselves entirely to His hands, and let themselves be formed by His grace.” — St Ignatius of Loyola
At this point in the year—when the darker evenings are already returning and you’re digging out your beloved knitwear—we can often find ourselves reflecting about our lives and what we’re doing with them.
‘Calling’ is the big word that we like to throw around a lot as Christians. What’s my calling? What does God want me to do with my life? What’s my thing?
There’s nothing wrong with asking these questions. God made us to have purpose, to draw deep meaning and satisfaction from our work in the world.
But the truth is, discovering our ‘calling’ can easily unravel into a confusing and even paralysing experience that locks our focus on ourselves and away from the truth.
Because, if you trust in Jesus, you already have your calling.
“This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.” — John 6:29
“Students are not greater than their teacher. But the student who is fully trained will become like the teacher.” — Luke 6:40
“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” — Matthew 28:19
Believe in Him. Become like Him. Bring others into His Kingdom.
That’s it. That’s why you’re alive. That’s what God wants you to give your life to.
Jesus has called us to follow Him. That means learning to love what He loves, hate what He hates, prioritise what He prioritises, see people how He sees to them, and suffer for the sake of others like He did.
And when you make becoming like Jesus your all-consuming goal, every other part of your life falls into its right place. Your time, your skills, your studies, your work, your relationships—everything will be directed towards living like Jesus, being transformed by His grace, and bringing Him glory wherever He has placed you.
Seek first His Kingdom, and let Him sort out the rest. Make Him your one necessary thing, and the joyful satisfaction you’ll gain will never be taken from you.
So, at the start of this new(ish) year, let’s commit to the calling that Jesus has given us:
To believe in Him.
To become like Him.
To bring others into His Kingdom.
I’m praying for you as we follow Jesus together this year.
Love,
Theo