Pete Tong talks about how God has led him through a difficult time as a close brother walked away from the Lord.   Plus what surprised him about the women of Luke’s gospel?  

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Pete Tong talks about how God has led him through a difficult time as a close brother walked away from the Lord, how it helped him rely on God’s grace rather than himself and has driven him closer to God in prayer, and has soften his hear towards those caught in sin. 

He shares about what surprised him about the women of Luke’s gospel.  How he came to see how Luke portrays such a wide variety of women in the Gospel: Elizabeth (wife of priest), Mary (a nobody from Nazareth), Anna a prophetess etc.

Pete talks about the women who stood out: Mary the mother of Jesus, who said 'I am the Lord's servant' (despite public shame), Mary of Bethany, who we meet her in Chapter 10, but then her story is left hanging until in John 11 she reappears in her moment of crisis and displays  the fruit of 'sitting at Jesus' feet’ (in fact every time we meet her she is at the feet of Jesus), and the woman witnesses who are so brave, excited and yet (at least initially) fail in their task.

He also outlines how we can be helped in pastoral ministry by seeing the women in Luke as exemplars of the poor and lowly, as model disciples.  Peter says 'I can imagine reading the story of Mary with someone at church, or even my own children - and saying look at her response to Gabriel, 'I am the Lord's servant'; Martha, discipleship is listening to Jesus' words and sitting at his feet etc; the women disciples are brave as they seek to honour Jesus after his death etc.'