“If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” Matthew 7:11  Given Sunday is Father’s Day, consider how brave you are in approaching your dad with a significant request? I heard of a son struggling with finances and sending the request to his father, “No Mon, no Fun, your Son!” The … Read More

Over the years I have learnt how vital it is to work well with other churches, especially when serving in the community. Firstly, those outside the church do not understand the differences between churches, as far as they are concerned, we are all the same. Secondly, unity is a key witness as those outside the church think we are divided. Finally, when we fail to work well with others, … Read More

Our church is surrounded by Primary and High schools, public and private. I wonder how we could best contribute to our local schools?  Our local Unley Ministers Fellowship (UMF) takes a shared responsibility for our local public schools. Our focus is on the Chaplaincy program run in schools with ‘Schools Ministry Group’ (SMG). SMG have around 300 Christian chaplains in public schools across our state. They administer the employment of chaplains and coordinate the ministry with local … Read More

Christians know they are serving Jesus when they serve people who are disadvantaged or vulnerable. As Jesus describes in Matthew 25, when we serve the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned, Matthew 25:40 ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for … Read More

Life is too hard to do it alone. We will do much better when we help one another. This is true in ministry. The mission is too large for our church to soldier through alone.  This week our Pastoral staff have been at the Baptist Churches Pastors conference. This has been a refreshing time. It turns out our church and her people are … Read More

Kids copy what they see and hear. They are great at imitation. Some of those familiar trait’s parents see in their children could be genetic. Many are learnt through nurture. What are our children learning through watching?  I learnt what it meant to spend time with Jesus, not through lessons but by watching. I saw my mother on her bed reading her bible and in prayer. I saw my father on a couch, bible in hand, reading and … Read More

Have you wandered an art gallery and attempted to ‘read’ the art? Recently I enjoyed Nigerian art at the house of a congregational member. We discussed together the ‘message’ of the paintings. None of these paintings were simply aesthetic. The artist had something to say. Given my scant knowledge of Africa, I had some insight into its meaning. My friend … Read More

Joshua son of Nun stood at the edge of Canaan charged with leading Israel’s army to conquer multiple cities. What was the instruction given by God to ensure his success? Joshua 1:7,8 “Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep … Read More

It is important for us to remember that no community transmission of COVID19 is key. There is a sense of trepidation as we watch the quick escalation of infections in Victoria. We enjoy increasing freedoms here. In Victoria, my sister who is a teacher, expressed her weariness with the immense work and creativity required to complete her day job. Victorian parents have schooled their children at home for 10 … Read More