11Jul 2024 by Nigel Ring

Tis Mercy All – Book recommendation

Books, News
[caption id="attachment_8671" align="alignright" width="216"]       [/caption] Tis Mercy All is a timely book. As we are bombarded by the often-vindictive negativity broadcast through the media and witness the verbal abuse promulgated on social media we need to be reminded of God’s standards for displaying mercy. In Tis Mercy All Natalie, through whom ‘Mercy’ runs like ‘Brighton’ through Brighton rock, achieves this with an appropriate mixture of humour, self-revelation and Biblical truth. Natalie starts by giving a God-perspective of mercy, contrasting his attitude to mercy with our commonly held belief that justice should prevail - until we realise that while we may want justice as it applies to others we enjoy being the recipients of his mercy for ourselves. That determination to be merciful to us took Jesus to the cross.…
Read More
23Nov 2020 by Nigel Ring

Books for Christmas: ‘Overpowering Nemo’ and ‘A House Built on Love’

Books
I am breaking into my '40 years on...' series as Christmas is coming and I would like to recommend two (or three) books. Overpowering Nemo Who is Ginny? Ginny Burgin is well-known to many in the Newfrontiers family for her beautiful and accurate prophetic gift which God has used to shape us on several occasions, or as someone who has been gentle and accessible as she has prayed for them to be healed physically or emotionally. But few of us will be aware of her background that brought her to this place of giving herself selflessly to serving others and to seeing people brought out of darkness, such as she herself experienced for decades. The book Recently released, ‘Overpowering Nemo’ is one of the most disarming and helpful books I…
Read More
06Jun 2018 by Nigel Ring

Global Humility – Book Recommendation

Books, Cross-culture, Equipping
Global Humility is a ‘must read’ book for anyone who is involved in or has an interest in cross-cultural matters. It will particularly help equip those who are church-planting or who live in an ethnically diverse environment. But it is so well researched and written that you will enjoy it even if you do not fall into the above categories. My own failings... I have travelled quite widely, and have visited and stayed in the homes of people in widely differing cultures from my own. I thought I had some grasp of cross-cultural matters – until I read this book! Now I have discovered how ignorant I really am – and how many cultural mistakes I have made. ...and Andy's credentials For much of his life Andy McCullough has lived…
Read More
10Jan 2018 by Nigel Ring

Africa Study Bible – Book Recommendation

Africa, Books, Equipping, News
This is a remarkable Study Bible, a ‘must’ for every African or anyone who loves Africa. Goal The goal of the African Leaders who produced this study Bible was to ‘help us grow strong in Jesus Christ and to give us insight about God’s word to the continent and to the world as God’s word through African eyes’. Why ‘African’? As a study Bible this one is full of illustrations and teachings to apply the scripture culturally to everyday life in Africa. It includes excellent articles and ‘learn notes’ interwoven with the biblical text to help the reader apply what he or she has been reading to their own cultural situation. There are 130 of these. Articles include topics such as ‘Caring for God’s Creation’ (following Genesis), ‘African Traditional Beliefs…
Read More
24Oct 2017 by Nigel Ring

A Church for the Poor

Books, Church culture, News, Poor
How 'accessible' is your church? If someone from a local run-down housing complex in your area walked into your church would they come a second time? Many churches have become so ‘middle class’ that they represent an unwelcoming environment for those from different socio-economic levels of society. The authors of ‘A Church for the Poor’ come themselves from very different backgrounds. Martin Charlesworth was educated at a private boarding school whereas Natalie received free school meals. In their very disparate backgrounds lies their authenticity and credibility in joint-authoring such a book as this, a book that fills a unique place in the plethora of books about how to build church in our generation. Analysis Presented in two distinct parts this book first analyses the causes of poverty and gives a…
Read More
15Jun 2017 by Nigel Ring

Freedom Movement – book recommendation

Books, Equipping, News, Reformation
Are you radical? Radical is a word that gets a bad press these days yet taken back to its origin it is a good word – roots (Latin - radix). Do you know your roots? 500 years on On October 31st we will be celebrating 500 years since Martin Luther posted 95 theses for debate on the church door in Wittenberg. This was the root of the Reformation. Following his striving to please a righteous God, whom he saw with increasing dislike and as a god of anger and hatred, he discovered in the Bible that God does not wait for us to be attractive in order to love us but loves us first! Others were discovering the same truth. One, William Tyndale, was burdened that people could not easily…
Read More