About the author

A friend in Carlsbad California (Luke Bricker) suggested this blog was missing an “about me” page, so here it is…

Hi, I’m Nathan Schofield, I live in Hertfordshire in the UK, with my wife Emma, who’s originally from New Zealand.

Between us we’ve six children ranging from 17 to 24, a snoodle dog and bengal cat. For now, only our youngest, not even the pets, live with us, due to their studies or work!

I work in cyber security for an American company based in California which I seem to visit more than the London office, which isn’t very much. I mainly work from home with Emma. Emma’s a pharmacist in education, a Ceroc dance teacher (I’m her weekly “demo” on stage), and she’s doing a doctorate in naturopathy, holistic health and wellbeing.

We’re an active bunch, regularly skiing/snowboarding at an indoor slope and occasionally in the alps, taking Samaritans calls, skating by the beach, going to the gym and sauna, walking, running, and talking theology and union in the trinity. I play at DJing and am often to be found tinkering with PCs, home cinema and audio, or thinking about my mechanical watches; which I’ll keep and what the next one might be! I’ve done Tae Kwon Do for 30 years but seem to be on a break from that for now.

I'm a minimalist and Em is definitely not.

Em and I have attended and been involved, in traditional Churches most of our lives and currently remain so but are considering what our next steps might be together.

As you’ll read here, we’ve become dissatisfied with traditional western theology, and think the good news is far better than is presented in most churches.

My journey (of blogging) started with a very deep dive on the creation story, and how it is supported by Science, rather than undermined. It was a good foundation. I moved from that to books and lectures by Chuck Missler, hundreds of hours of videos! I became versed in the online blueletter bible and how to navigate strongs to understand the Hebrew and Greek. As well as our regular church services (Soul Survivor Watford), we would (and still do) listen to sermons from Bethel church in California, and Dallas Upper room. We were in a church small group and had a separate whatsapp group to nut out theological ideas, iron sharpens iron etc.

I find writing up my ideas and research helps me better understand and remember precepts. Helps make them clearer in my mind than books or sermons leave them. At some point I started putting what I’d written here. Mostly for me to easily recall and access, but also so I could more easily share ideas or things I felt God telling me, with others.

A few years ago, Matthew in that group shared a link to a short video by Tommy Miller of Legacy Church in New Philadelphia. I was sceptical of his provocative claim in that video and so “kicked the tyres” in my usual strong’s and web research way. It stood up, as did many more of his sermons, and books, which led to a journey of awakening to the true gospel, that is actually good news! What God is really like, how he sees us and how we’re in union. Em and I later signed up to be remote small group leaders under legacy church, and I’ve become on-line buddies with Tommy who shares my love of watches. Tommy has a unique ability to provide outlines for “deconstruction” and not leave a gap but go straight to a better bible based structure. Some may need to take a beat before replacing the old, and I’m considering it, but it’s quite compelling when you have a vision of what “church” and union should be like.

Along the way I’ve been encouraged and challenged by Jason Clark and Baxter Krugger of the rethinking God with Tacos YouTube channel and their books, and had a chance to meet them at conference in Bristol (UK) at Hope Church. There we heard from Paul Golf, another inspirational teacher on this journey. That contact and a chance email with a link to another online interview video, as I was about to go to California for work, led me to have the pleasure to meet Luke Bricker of Current Collective Church in Carlsbad. He has a unique take on how to do “church” which we’re now considering.

So, my understanding has changed over the past few years. I hope it will continue to! There’s several post here I’ve had to re-write along the way. A while ago, Emma and I led several sessions in our old small group bible study, as we worked our way through the book of Revelation. We would both not now draw and share the same conclusions as we did then. Very cringe worthy! Probably won’t be the last time.

We have a passion for building community and healing and health (in all its forms). We’ve had the pleasure to do that with a weekly dance venue and are considering how we might do some form of ministry together, not that dance isn't ministry, but you know what I mean.