Exodus

Just thinking…Over the Easter period, twelve campers and leaders went down to Lake Karapiro for the annual eCamp. There we joined with a thousand others for three and a half days of camp revelry, fun activities, great messages … and yes, a bit of rain too! It was a wonderful time away, and there were…

Just thinking…One of my favourite films of all time is James Cameron’s Avatar. The themes of this movie parallel numerous historical events which I find compelling. For example, it is distressing how the brutality of the humans to the Na’vi people connect to the displacement of indigenous people and colonisation that occurs in our world….

Just thinking…The Notre Dame Cathedral in France has been mortally wounded in a blaze that tore through the 850 year-old building on Tuesday, our time. A historian who commented on the tragedy called it a “symbol of Paris, a symbol of peace, togetherness and concord.” It reminds me of the devastation of the Christchurch cathedral…

Just thinking…The Mainland Cheese ads used to tell us that ‘good things take time’, and sometimes I come across stories that reinforce that. This is a true story told by a man called Jean Giono. In 1913 he met a shepherd called Elzeard Bouffier in the French Alps. Giono writes: At that time, because of careless deforestation, the mountains around Provence, France,…

Just thinking…There is a story about one of the greatest theologians of the 20th century, Karl Barth.  When asked in 1962 on a visit to America how he would summarize the essence of the millions of words he had published, he replied, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” This…

Just thinking…The preacher of Hebrews gives us the amazing news that Jesus helps us! John Piper, an American pastor, adds an interesting observation to this – it is not just the ‘what’ of help … it is also the ‘when’ of his help that Jesus controls. One translation of Hebrews 4:16 says, ‘Let us approach…

Just thinking…John tells us that Jesus came full of grace and truth (John 1:14). John didn’t choose these two words at random – he chose them very carefully. They are two opposite ends of a pendulum swing that, as people, we struggle to avoid. We tend to move, both as people and as a society,…

Just thinking…One of my boys is currently doing a music theory test, and one of the questions  in the test concerns a little piece of musical notation called a ‘rest’. In musical notation, the ‘rest’ is called the symbol of silence. ‘Rests’ tell the musician is to play nothing. They are very very important little squiggles on…

Just thinking…My sister went to a class reunion a while ago, where people she had gone to school with got together to compare memories and histories. For many present, this was the first time they had seen each other in over three decades. These kind of events fascinate me. I guess it’s my science background…

Just thinking…I believe that God has a unique purpose for each local church. What’s ours? Our conviction is summed up in three words: we believe God has purposed us to Glow, Grow and Go. We glow – by our words and actions displaying the character and love of God to this world. We grow – we…