Mid-faith Crisis

Nick’s been on a course. On an island. An island off the coast of Ireland. We talk about different kinds of spirituality, about the need to get out of your comfort zones and the importance of paying attention to others, to creation and to God.

We talk about work and its importance in our lives. How can we be a blessing in the workplace? What can it show us about our own stories? What’s the problem with the phrase ‘work-life balance’? And why does Nick think that it’s OK to record a podcast while eating a fish finger sandwich?

Yes it’s here! Like a thief in the night, the second coming episode has actually arrived. We talk all things apocalyptic. Don’t get left behind - listen to the episode! Also, you can now support the podcast by donating stuff. Well, money, technically, although we’re not averse to jewels, gold, exotic spices, etc.

• Nick Page, Revelation Roadon Amazon UK; on Amazon.com
• The Rapture Index
• Michael Gorman, Reading Revelation Responsibly
• J. Nelson Kraybill, Apocalypse and Allegiance
• Wes Howard-Brook, Unveiling Empire

Support the podcast. Donate now. Or sometime. Whenever.

What does Easter mean for people in mid-faith crisis? We look at how the most important Christian festival can help us explore our journey in a new way. There’s stuff on deconstructing faith, why victims of manflu need more help, the new Christian festivals of ‘Washing the Donkey Saturday’ and the Bifidus Digestum, Calvinist Kinder Eggs and the sheer joy of telling people to ‘bless off’. 

Nick has written an article. It’s about how psychology can help us not to sin quite so much. So Joe asks him questions about it. Oh and Joe is quite jet-lagged. That’s about it, really.

We’re joined again by Alexander Shaia who reflects on a 55-day pilgrimage along the Camino way. He talks to Joe about the challenges of coming home from these kind of life-changing experiences. With Joe recording some of this from his holiday in Mexico, this is an acoustically-challenged episode. And temporally-challenged as well, as bits were recorded at three different occasions in several different places. The podcast is usually all over the place, but this is ridiculous.

So, we’re in the mid-faith crisis. Do we still seek to make converts? And if so, what does conversion look like these days? The boys reminisce about their previous lives as evangelists and Ethel has an evangelistic thrust. Also, a crucial question: could you plough a field with chickens?

We’ve got follow up! Listeners send us great tips for being unhappy. Nick’s wife, Claire, sends in three pages of notes on his behaviour. Joe shares a Valentine’s Day poem. And we talk about the links between mid-faith crisis and depression. A  bit of a mixed bag, then.

We were going to do an episode on happiness, but then we realised we weren’t very good at that. So here are our top tips for being unhappy. From endlessly comparing yourself to others, to replaying all the bad things you’ve done, to simply reminding yourself what a horrible person you are – here are the key skills you need to take unhappiness to the next level. Anything we’ve missed? Send your top unhappiness tips to [email protected]. Enjoy!

And we’re back! After a brief New Year break, we have an interview with Trevor Hudson. Trevor takes us through the cycle of grace, how God’s love is actively involved in our lives, and how our lives should be rooted in ‘a profound sense of acceptance and self-acceptance.’ Terrific stuff. Apologies for those of you expecting the podcast on the second coming, but, you know, you just can’t predict these things.

All of Trevor’s books are worth a read, but those referred to in this podcast are: