A Year of Renewal and Discovery in Faith

What a great year it has been! I have thoroughly enjoyed it all.

I was apprehensive about starting the Programme. Due to the pressures of work, I got out of the habit of reading new Christian material and am a slow reader. The reading has turned out to be a surprising joy and there has also been great joy in the learning itself.

This is down to the superb material and the structure of the Programme. In truth, had there not been the accountability of meeting with my mentor and the need to produce a response paper I’m not sure I would have got through it all.

There has been so much in the material that has impacted me that it is hard to prioritise specific elements. I loved reading Tozer, and Bonhoeffer for the first time and re-reading Lloyd Jones and Mere Christianity. I found Tim Keller’s talks on the Lord’s prayer hugely helpful and it has changed my prayers. I was not looking forward to the apologetics modules but they were great, especially Gareth Black’s helpful workshop and Rebecca Mclaughlin’s book on 12 hard questions for Christians. Both were practical and kept coming back to the person of Christ.

Overall, the Programme has changed how I think about God, my faith, humility, and living that faith out. I am grateful to my mentor Peter for his wise promptings and challenges. They have been very important to me and have made a real impact. I have enjoyed the great conversations with my triplet and also with the guys on Saturday mornings. A big thank you to you Stuart for both what you have done and how you have done it - to make this all happen.