Posts by John Staiger (Page 41)

At the risk of giving some mothers a heart attack, I believe that young people must be encouraged to pick up their faith and travel into other cultures. Tourist destinations are a good start, but then they should venture into the lives of the citizens. However, if they really want an experience worth having, they should seek out a job and share the joys and frustrations of everyday life. Nothing bonds you with the locals faster than being jammed together…

We have all heard of parents who have used dishonest means to get their children into prestigious schools (maybe you know some). These parents put great stock in such marks of success—whether real or imagined. Wealth, education, and power are just a few of the ‘family virtues’ that they try to display in their self-righteousness. With a world swimming in sin since the days of Adam, it is natural for man to come up with new ways to excuse unrighteous…

Be assured, the worst of Satan’s demons are not sitting on the shoulders of complacent Christians debating the virtues of the latest Netflix series. Instead, the devil’s worst are fighting on two distinct battlefronts. Firstly, against those fighting to come to Christ, and secondly, against those fighting to bring those same people to Christ. If the apostle Paul had preached a sermon on “Being Better Believers,” everybody in the Synagogue in Thessalonica would have smiled and nodded agreeably. In fact,…

The Sower in Jesus’ famous parable cast many seeds on the ground before him. He did not take one single seed, plant it in the most fertile soil, and go home hoping for a harvest. Could you image a farmer ever saying to his family, “O well, I tried planting a seed once, and it didn’t work”? So, neither should we ever imagine saying, “O well, I tried to talk to someone about Jesus once, and it didn’t work” (I…

When we arrived in New Zealand, our first table was a wooden packing case, and we sat on old wooden nail boxes, and we had a knife, a fork and a spoon each.” These were the words of a Dutchman who had immigrated to New Zealand in the 1960s. I have heard similar stories from people who probably had grossly exaggerated their hardships, but I believed this man. Everything about him spoke of a man who understood that his family’s…

What chance does a lamb have amidst a pack of wolves? Obviously, under normal circumstances, none! But nothing about Jesus’ commands appears normal from the outside of the church looking in. Though the world might admit that churches are good for helping the vulnerable ‘lambs’ of society, they scoff at the thought that these pitiful souls be sent out to change the world. Jesus, however, did exactly that. He sent his disciples out to preach the coming of the Kingdom,…

I met a brother who said that he used to be an invisible worker in the Accounts Department of a very large firm. “But one day,” he said, “I noticed various government subsidies, that if packaged and utilised correctly, could increase profits exponentially.” When I asked him what happened next, he said, “I was immediately escorted to the general manager’s Lear jet where I became a consultant to his management team.” Surprised, I enquired as to why he gave up…

I was once invited to go on a hunting trip. Since there was equipment for at least half a dozen of us, the loading of the old Bedford Truck became a complex operation. When it became clear that we were not likely to be leaving until the early hours of the morning, I said, “Yes,” to go to a triple horror film screening at a local theatre. However, I was politely informed by our expedition leader that our expected time…

Three things were on the minds of everyone I spoke to today: Firstly, the global ramifications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, secondly, the ongoing effects and restrictions due to Covid, and thirdly, the forced removal of the Covid mandate protesters from the New Zealand parliament grounds. But good stories broke through too. One lady beamed over the coming marriage of her granddaughter, and one man proudly told me that the name tattooed on his cheek was that of his…

With the roll of a dice (or the first-century equivalent) the only thing worth anything that Jesus owned was gambled away at the foot of his cross (John 19:23-25). A London cab driver used to appear occasionally on a podcast I used to enjoy. He was full of interesting stories of the happenings around London and was always sure to include a section on the hardships caused by the powers-that-be. The last time I heard him speak everything had changed.…