THEME: Following Jesus Children’s Sermon: Fishing for People (Matthew 4:18-23) Do you enjoy fishing? Have you ever caught a fish? Fishing is a great sport, and if you have ever been fishing and have caught a fish, you know that there’s a great feeling of excitement when you catch a fish. One of the things...
MESSAGE: 15 January 2023 THEME: See, hear and know Jesus Come and see – watch – look – listen up! Being witnesses – News always interviews people for the eyewitness account. How do we eyewitness to Jesus? John the Baptist witnessed beautifully in today’s Gospel. So can we. Answering the call to follow the Lamb...
MESSAGE: 4th Sunday of ADVENT A – 18th December 2022 THEME: God with us Two names of the child tells us about the nature of God: Jesus, meaning “God saves” Emmanuel, meaning “God is with us” Where has God been present in your life this week? The Gospel reading for this last Sunday before Christmas...
Joy is seldom recognised for the incredibly restorative, liberating force that it is. Unfortunately, even in faith communities, soberness, seriousness and even cynicism are often portrayed as the marks of true spirituality and maturity. The Lectionary this week would challenge that thinking, and would call us to consider joy as the mark of true faith,...
THEME: Prophecy, promises, and preparation This week we will explore what it means to allow God’s new world to take hold of us. Prophecy, promises, and preparation – all are part of the Advent tradition. They serve as reminders in this hectic season that there is more to prophecy than guessing what is in this...
Thanksgiving Theme with BCA Deputation (Maroochydore 2022) Slide 1 Thank you, Tania for the invitation to come and join you all today and for your welcome. It is a real privilege to be allowed to speak on the day after the joyous official Grand Opening blessing of your new buildings. And what I have to...
This is the last Sunday of the Church Year! Ordinary time gives way to Advent, but for one week we offer a prophetic salute to Christ’s reign: no plea, no mere hope or prediction, but rather a celebration that God certainly will sweep away the old. The days are surely coming, and they will be...
THEME: REMAINING FAITHFUL A new heaven and a new earth . . .wars and persecutions. . . they don’t seem to go together. What were the lectionary folks thinking? These seemingly contradictory passages speak of endings and beginnings—the vision of what can and will be—times of trial, times of peace. It was the best of...
This week we return to a central pillar of our faith, and one that must inform all that we do as we seek to follow Christ – the idea that life is eternal, that God saves, and that resurrection emerges from death. This is, of course, more than just an idea, but is a lived...
Once again the question of repentance and forgiveness is highlighted in the Lectionary. This time, there are two complimentary emphases in the readings. The first is the need to face our own darkness, greed, fear and empty worship, confess it and receive God’s forgiveness for ourselves. Habakkuk reflects God’s displeasure at lovelessness and faithlessness, and...
