(A version of this blog first appeared on Candour) Allow me several lead-ins to the one topic. I am still collecting my thoughts on the subject and so to help clarify my thoughts, I need to meander through some doorways. The first is from Jeremiah 4:16: This is what the Lord says: ‘Stand at the […]
In my experience and discussion with other pastors in Auckland there are two types of churches in the city, those who treat tithing in a legalistic or pagan (read, prosperity gospel) way and those who avoid the subject for fear of being associated with the first kind. Especially among some ethnic minority churches, but also […]
Our church community pays some attention to a few seasons within the traditional liturgical calendar. We’ve done Lent for many years and tend to do Epiphany as well with a New Year’s twist – a sort of mash up of religious and cultural “festivals”. Oh and then there’s Easter and Christmas the high point for […]
One of the most humbling experiences I have had as a preacher is when someone will come up to me at the end of the service and say something along the lines of: “thank you for that sermon, it was like you knew exactly what was going on in my life and what words I […]
I remember as a new Christian returning to my provincial NZ home town, and finding a church where the Minister was [what seemed to me at the time] an excellent expository preacher – of course, I had never heard that term yet – good biblical explanation, relevant applications, engaging illustrations. But I was confused by […]
Nearly two years ago I was reading a book by John Wright, Telling God’s Story. One of the book’s valuable observations is that as preachers we tend towards comic rather than tragic sermons. This has nothing to do with being funny or not, but is rather the tendency to resolve our sermons on good notes rather […]
