Honest approach

A self-limited life

2009-03-14T12:16:00.003+11:00

The platitude, “God helps those who help themselves” has little with God and a lot to do with us. God does help us when we ask him and we do achieve things by putting in effort but effort does not lead to God’s help. Instead, the bible says, “God helps those who seek first his kingdom and his righteousness”. Jesus said: “So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?'

Striking rock

2008-11-12T21:39:00.001+11:00

It usually starts well. Full of eagerness I plunge into some new worthwhile commitment and see it confirmed in my heart with a sense of fulfilment and gush of purposefulness. As time marches on what began as a childlike response to God’s prompting becomes an uncomfortable burden. I have been wondering why. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:30) Should I avoid the

Choosing a rod for my own back

2008-10-26T10:23:00.004+11:00

“And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Genesis 2:9 Notice that there were two trees in the garden of Eden. We think mostly about the one that was chosen; the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But there was

Tipping point

2008-09-13T15:12:00.002+10:00

You hear all about a climatic tipping point where greenhouse gases, having reached some critical volume, crash the weather system and dramatically change the face of the planet. I think there is also a tipping point in our spiritual life. Having being transformed sufficiently into Christ’s likeness, God’s power is released through us and despite us and by us. Up until this point, faith

Hollow men

2008-09-06T10:38:00.005+10:00

“Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart” God told Samuel when choosing the first king of Israel. This is an important theme in the bible. God values more highly the internal than the external and we should value the same. It is easy to be seduced by the external and it is easy for the external to seduce. But it’s the internal that has real lasting power and it’s the

The thousand right choices

2008-08-03T08:12:00.002+10:00

Imagine a train full of peak-hour passengers traveling to work on a still and sunny morning. The carriage is silent except for the rustle of turning newspapers and the occasional respectful mummer of traveling friends. There is the background rhythm of clickety-clack as some look sleepily out of windows watching the due-laden world wiz by.Now imagine at the next

The deconstructed church

2008-06-01T22:31:00.002+10:00

The postmodern church is a term I’ve heard bandied about for a while now but like the idea of postmodernism itself, it’s hard to lock down a definition. A Linux software engineer once explained to me that his chosen operating system was the product of a bustling Bizarre transfigured with Microsoft’s colossal and internally consistent Cathedral. By Bizarre he was referring to the sprawling

Weaving meaning on-the-fly

2008-05-18T19:54:00.001+10:00

I’ve been giving thought lately to what special relevance the idea of Jesus has for emerging generations. It seems to me that his life speaks uniquely to each generation; his words somehow resonate for each at a different frequency. If you think about it, it’s remarkable that a poor man in roman-occupied Palestine could so indelibly impact two thousand years of human history. That his

Recipes for keeping belief honest

2008-05-11T17:24:00.004+10:00

The earth is clearly not flat (thanks Christopher) and time, far from being constant, ticks relative to the observer (thanks Albert). These relatively new beliefs stack up well against observational data, so much so that we call them fact. But they’re really just beliefs like anything else. That the sun rolled around the stationary earth was universally held for millennia until Copernicus

Immoral righteousness

2008-04-15T19:35:00.001+10:00

There is a woman in the bible that has always both surprised and impressed me. Her name is Rahab. Do you recall who Rahab was and what she did? In the Bible in the New Testament we see her used as an example of how righteousness is produced by faith. Hebrews 11: 31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. James 2:25In

A clay jar is made of clay

2008-01-27T16:45:00.001+11:00

Do you, like me, have a severe dislike of hypocrisy? Are you highly suspicious of those who present as perfect suspecting that you might not be getting the whole truth? Those of us who belong to a religious tradition often feel like we need to compensate for out private flaws by denying to others (and to ourselves) that they exist. We cling to an erroneous idea about ourselves and actively

Stoking the fires of faith

2008-01-08T23:41:00.000+11:00

I facilitate a small bible study group of about 5 guys each in their early 20s. Over the last year we've trekked through James and allowed ourselves to get side-tracked on topics that engage us or where I feel there would be some benefit. The fact that the group has actually grown throughout the year is encouraging. That one of the guys has decided on bible college for this year and another can't

Run the race to win

2007-12-28T21:57:00.000+11:00

Godly ambition Our life is a journey. In a well-lived life, there is a sense of progression; moving from one thing to the next. There is visible personal growth and the deepening of character. But the extent to which we grow is (or indeed whether we grow at all) is up to us. What will our attitude be? Consider that the journey is in fact a race.Spectator, athlete or championWill we be spectators

Ask, Seek, Knock

2007-11-11T23:06:00.000+11:00

Ask, Seek, KnockBecause of his boundless mercy, his generous grace and his unfailing love; God has made you promises that are sound and dependable. His nature is to keep his word and his power is such that his will will always be accomplished. We benefit from these promises not the least of which is that he will always hear us and respond when we reach out to him.Matthew 7:7-8 "Ask and it will be

Hearsay is inadmissible for good reason

2007-11-04T22:55:00.000+11:00

Hearsay is inadmissible for good reasonMost of us a supremely interested in self-preservation; it’s an instinct that runs animal deep. Once we feel mortally secure (roof over our head, food in our belly) our attention turns eternal. It is entirely natural to wonder about the great-beyond and whether there might be a way to reach it. And with this in mind religions spring up like weeds at the

Freelance intercession

2007-08-26T22:31:00.001+10:00

Freelance intercessionIntercession is the act of praying to God on behalf of another person.I don’t think any of us have any problems with praying for things we want. It’s very natural to care exquisitely about our own small world interests. All you need is a little faith and a few wants and powerful motivations develop to nag God until he eventually relents. After all; even the unjust judge gave

Practical religion

2007-08-05T20:00:00.000+10:00

Practical religionWilliam Wilberforce was born on 24 August 1759 in Hull, the son of a wealthy merchant. He studied at Cambridge University where he began a lasting friendship with the future prime minister, William Pitt the Younger. In 1780,

Wisdom belongs to the aged

2007-07-21T20:00:00.000+10:00

Wisdom belongs to the aged"Wisdom belongs to the aged and understanding to the old" Job 12:12What do we learn as we travel through life?When we reflect on the past what really counts, what really matters?What is this wisdom and understanding

Suffering Pt2

2007-06-17T20:00:00.000+10:00

More sufferingTo recap from last week: Suffering is part and parcel of living with free will. Going back to Genesis; the cost of freedom was the abuse of freedom (sin) which had moral and physical consequences…man was sent from the garden (to be apart from God) and the land itself was cursed (Gen 3;16-19) (to be apart from God). The world in which we live then, in as much as we don't claim it

Suffering Pt1

2007-06-11T22:55:00.000+10:00

Moral interpretationSuffering is part of the human condition and can be witnessed operating at all levels:Global – war, earthquake, tsunami, famine etc.Community – plane crash, building fire, bomb etc.Individual – sickness, unemployment, unrequited loveOur problem with suffering begins when we attempt to attach meaning,

Carpe Diem – seize the day

2007-05-28T20:00:00.000+10:00

Carpe Diem – seize the dayThere is a school of thought that I heard growing up that one should wait on God until such time as you receive a clear directive from Him. While there is merit in this idea one gets the sense from the scriptures that many of the great protagonists were men and women of action rather than those

Living in the moment

2007-05-20T20:00:00.000+10:00

Living in the momentDo you get through the week so that you can enjoy the weekend only to feel a sense of loss/disappointment on Sunday night because the weekend failed to deliver? Do you put up with the drudgery of the everyday for the sake of the overseas trip coming up later in the year? Do you half-think that if only

Get in the boat

2007-05-02T22:05:00.000+10:00

Get in the boatParable: Parable is a short, descriptive story that illustrates a moral attitude or religious idea.Jesus used many Parables to communicate truths about the kingdom of God. Why do you think he did this?The disciples once asked

Righteousness by faith

2007-04-30T20:00:00.000+10:00

Righteousness by faithWorking definition of faith…Hebrews 11: 1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for.From here Hebrews 11 expands on the meaning of "faith" using many examples.Faith, we are told, allows us to believe that the universe

Prunning the vine

2007-04-23T20:00:00.000+10:00

Pruning the vineToday we're going to look at one passage attributed to Jesus and found in the Gospel according to John.You may remember that John was probably a cousin of Jesus (his mother and Mary being sisters) and was certainly the brother of James. Before meeting Jesus, John and James were in the fishing business with

Those Jesus chose

2007-04-16T20:00:00.000+10:00

Those Jesus choseOf all those disciples who followed Jesus, he chose just 12 to be his "apostles".Mark 3:13-19Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to

Brotherly unity

2007-04-02T22:13:00.000+10:00

Brotherly unity…how far do we take it?Psalm 133How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron's beard, down upon the collar of his robes. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on

Man did not land on the moon in 1969?

2007-04-02T21:37:00.000+10:00

On what evidence is your faith in Jesus based?On what evidence is your faith in Jesus based? Indeed, how do we know there is a God? Subjective evidenceFaith: Personal conviction/revelation/faith in God/faith in the BibleBelief: Personal experience/faith-feedback/trusted testimony/ miracle/answers to prayerObjective

March to beat of your own drum

2007-04-02T20:00:00.000+10:00

March to beat of your own drumTo what extent to you test and question what it is you believe? Can you take ownership of them or are they borrowed? Where do your values (those held and those seen in practice) originate? Did you inherit them from family or church or friends or TV? Were they somehow absorbed through your

Esse quam videri - to be rather than to seem to be

2007-01-29T21:47:00.000+11:00

Esse quam videriEsse quam videri – to be rather than to seem. Latin. Found in Plato's Republic (361BCE). The motto for the state of Carolina USA and of many school/university mottos around the world.The nature of God (who is always

Consider the pattern of you life

2007-01-22T20:00:00.000+11:00

Consider the pattern of you lifeWhat is your primary fantasy? If you could have or do anything at the moment what would it be?What do you plan to do over the next 6 months? Where do you want to be in 10 years time?What are your ambitions? What are you working towards?What do you spend most of your time doing?It is

God's economy

2006-12-02T22:01:00.000+11:00

God's economyThe problems of the world seem overwhelming… WarAbout 15 major conflicts around the world are currently underway. War not only results in harm to the combatants but devastates the civilian population.PovertyOne third of deaths - some 18 million people a year or 50,000 per day - are due to poverty-related