Articles from our weekly newsletter
I was once given a book called ‘101 things to do during a boring sermon’. If one of the things you regularly do is preaching it is hard to know how to take such a gift. I could take it as a subtle hint that I needed to lift my game or I could take it as a compliment since the person…
A British scientist claimed that if every known star was reduced to a grain of sand we could cover the British Isles with a layer of sand 12 feet deep. Among those tiny grains of sand would be one tiny Planet Earth. Populate that tiny grain of sand with billions of people and one of them would be you. Travelling at 299,000km…
As I was doing some preparation for the International Day of the Persecuted church I was struck by the reality that persecution for Western Christians is on the rise. Below is an extract from a 2009 blog Bill Muehlenberg from Christian Today Australia wrote on this subject. To watch Western culture is increasingly to watch case after case of Christian persecution. On…
A book I have been reading through lately is all about how the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ transforms the way we live and think as his people. What we value and pursue. Since we have chosen to identify with Jesus (if you like a more traditional way of putting this read “were converted or became a follower of Jesus”) Jesus…
After a service at St Paul’s Cathedral, Queen Victoria asked a clergyman whether a person could be sure and certain that they had eternal life here and now. The minister replied: ‘Your majesty, such assurance is not possible’. When this conversation was published in the Court News it caused a lot of discussion and some concern. Finally John Townsend, a humble minister…
Despite the fact that we often think we need something urgently from God, he is not stingy; generosity is one of his characteristics. The Bible refers to the generosity of God with the term grace, his gracious and generous nature. So where is the generosity of God displayed? We see his generosity in things like his creation and in life itself. But…
The church is the gathering of God’s people in the name of Christ. Each week there are many such gatherings and central to these gatherings is our fellowship with one another. Most of what we do in church we could do at home alone. In fact it has become common for some to no longer gather together. But there is one thing…
Is there a method in the madness of our kids and youth ministry? Absolutely. It’s called Build – Reach – Flow. This is part of the strategy that lies behind our youth and kids ministry. So, what does it mean you ask? Well, let me explain. Build – Our primary aim when it comes to the kids and youth we have in…
I was reading about a New York bus driver who had driven his bus along the same route for years. One day he made a radical decision. He was fed up with running along the same route year after year, stopping at the same stops and so one morning he collected his empty bus and drove out of New York City heading…
My mum must have been an impressive woman when I was born. I reckon she gave birth to me as she ran because I find it hard to slow down. As I recovered from my throat surgery last month I felt that there was too much to do to stop. But the more I look at life I realise I did not…
