The Decline and Fall of the BBC

I love the BBC. It’s all I was allowed to watch as a child- ITV had adverts and that was frowned upon in our house!

But the BBC today is a shadow of its former glory. Partly this is to do with competition but partly it’s to do with an extreme liberal agenda.

I need to qualify my blog at this point…. Those that know me will know that I am generally left wing, regularly vote Labour and have never voted Tory.

There. That’s got that out of the way. Important to say though as I may be judged to be a right wing Trump supporter in what I’m about to say.

The Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer commissioned a survey carried out by pollsters Savanta ComRes. This identified that 49% of the younger generation are praying regularly.

The BBC reported on this and then interviewed Muslims and Hindus. Despite the fact that in covering a representative slice of the population, the report mainly interviewed those leaning towards a Christian faith or no-faith.

But no mention of Christianity from the BBC. None at all. [The link to the article is here- the on camera report was worse still!] No interviews with church goers. Just Muslims and Hindus. The Muslim population in the UK is around 6%. The Hindu population is around 2%. So, BBC, where are the other 92%? Why did you ignore them?

The answer is not hard to find. The BBC is no longer the unbiased bastion of broadcasting it once was. Did they invent ‘Woke’? Probably.

I love some of their left wing slant. I love their inclusiveness. But to deliberately exclude Christianity on a poll that was commissioned by Christians and shows that church going and prayer (in person and online) is growing is appalling.

I laughed at their super inclusive Doctor Who stories at first. Until it became so invasive, the plots no longer mattered.

But this is far more serious. This does matter. A good news story about Christians has been buried. And the BBC appears to have done it deliberately.

Maybe that licence fee I have defended for so long should no longer be defended. Shame on you BBC.

Hope To Inspire

 My thanks to the Eternal Wall for inviting me to speak as part of their Hope To Inspire series. 

I hope you enjoy the talk and that you will be inspired to keep on with the small things that so affect the big picture.

Stories

Stories are powerful.

Yesterday I interviewed a lady for a new book. Incredible stories of lives changed in Kenya and Pakistan, all because she stepped out in faith that God would meet her needs as she met the needs of others.

Today I read stories from the Mission24 team that has just come back from Uganda and Rwanda. Stories of healing and of lives transformed.

I serve as a trustee, helping an organisation to change lives in Eswatini. In one location, over 400 children have been rescued and given a hope and a future. My youngest daughter worked there and tells stories of horror changed to stories of hope.

I work with friends in India, helping rescue girls from prostitution and human trafficking. Every smile tells a story of a life changed.

I'm in awe of the wonderful people at The Wall, compiling a million stories of answered prayer.

And as Chair of the Leprosy Mission, I see incredible stories of people who overcome the most severe discrimination, with love and forgiveness for those who shunned them.

Jesus told stories all the time. The ultimate storyteller, He wove them into his teaching – and lives were changed as a result.

How about your story? If you’re reading this as someone with a Christian faith, do you tell your own story to your friends and family? It’s the most effective way of sharing your faith. People can argue over theology but they can’t contradict your personal narrative.

Why not prepare your own story? Put it on paper. Read it back to yourself; see how it sounds. Rehearse it so that it’s there when you need it, and you can share it at a moment’s notice. Have a long version and a short version. Be ready to tell someone how Jesus has changed your life and what He has done. Put in illustrations from your own life – whatever your story, whether it is dramatic or seemingly ordinary, it will tell others in a compelling way that Jesus is alive today.