Reflections

You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.  “You did not choose me but I chose you”. As a very young adolescent I failed to grasp the...Continue reading→

For this morning's exercise I want you to imagine that there are three tea cups in a line on your kitchen bench. Two of the tea cups are very close to each other, in fact they are touching each other. The other is some 6 inches or more apart from the other two. Got it?...Continue reading→

Here is a photo of a dishevelled greying guy at Park run. This photo is not glamorous or sexy. You can see my countenance is contorted with the strain of trying really hard. I look as though I have all the problems of the Church of God on my shoulders. It is a curious quirk...Continue reading→

What I do know On the 25th of April 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula. These became known as Anzacs and the pride they took in that name continues to this day. On the morning of 25 April 1915, the Anzacs...Continue reading→

Now let’s just think this through… It all began early one morning when I had to rescue the banner pole out of a narrow box that measured 4 foot high, 18 inches across and 6 foot wide. You get the picture. I couldn’t reach the bottom of this container by simply bending over and reaching...Continue reading→

I’ll call her Florence. Florence is no one and yet she is everyone. She is not one living person or departed, but a collage of people who I have tried to minister to over the years. Tried, floundered, failed, but tried again that very same hour. Florence was badly crippled with arthritis, had a hammy...Continue reading→

In order to see today's mini fillet of fish story in its proper context I think we have to see it against the backdrop of the last supper on Holy Thursday night. The Last Supper, was a tragic farewell meal, heavy with talk of betrayals and a broken body. Judas nicks off to do what...Continue reading→

I thought that we might have a squint at the first reading from the book of Acts. Acts is the story of the early Church written by Luke as a sequel to his gospel. Those who decide what readings we have on a Sunday, put a chunk of Acts for the first reading in Eastertide to highlight...Continue reading→

Remember the ripping yarn about Adam and Eve and how they realised to their horror that they were naked? They came to this shocking understanding when they had done something they were expressly told not to do. So they hastily sew some fig leaves to cover the personal parts of their anatomy. Then they hide away, ashamed...Continue reading→

Jesus said to Mary, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ 16 Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in...Continue reading→

I was watching an elite sporting event the other day. It was an exhilarating competition and of course someone came first and someone else came second. The second place getter did not lose graciously and expressed their deep regret at coming second. I was a bit thunderstruck by this. At the running and swimming races...Continue reading→

Meet Derek the Donkey Today I wanted to reflect on one of the more significant characters in the Palm Sunday story. In fact some biblical commentators say that this person's role was absolutely vital. Meet Derek the donkey that carried Our Lord into Jerusalem. There are a few pertinent things about Derek. First, Derek was...Continue reading→

This lesson was learned the hard way on Cradle Mountain. The views were amazing and the path was long. We walked at a brisk pace for over two hours. It was an invigorating experience and we felt honoured to be on holidays in this amazing part of the world. Frequently steps found us. The longer...Continue reading→

“Sir we wish to see Jesus” In today's gospel the shadow of the cross looms ever closer  and darker. “Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” We are right to prickle and cringe...Continue reading→

I had the privilege of going to the Penshurst cemetery the other day. I was struck by the distance from the town centre to the cemetery itself. This is not in any way a criticism, but rather an observation. The phenomenon of ‘camouflaging’ death is evident in every parish I have served in. The cemetery...Continue reading→

So work has finished on one side of Christ Church roof. Hooray! That's exciting and a huge buzz.. but please remember... the only reason this has happened is because you were generous and supportive. It is your work just as much as the workers.

Jeanine and I were doing a little walk called ‘Venus baths’ at Halls Gap the other day. It is a small walk of about 1 kilometre. It is gentle and great exercise. You get to see how the weather and water has shaped the rocks into what they are today. There’s one of those nifty...Continue reading→

As the saving events of Holy Week and Easter draw closer, the Church gives us this marvellous little reprieve as we stop and enjoy Mothering Sunday. We often think of three mothers. Mother church, Mother Mary and our own Mothers. Today I want to reflect on Mother Mary and our own mothers. First Mother Mary....Continue reading→

A Transaction with God?  Once every 6 weeks or so on a Saturday night, the Tattslotto division one prize pool is an eye wateringly  significant amount of money. Jeanine and I usually have a ticket at about this time and we have never won this insane amount of cash… ever. We do not make an...Continue reading→

The idea for these words came from someone else a gent called Brandon Stanton in his book ‘Humans’. He writes. ‘Everyone has a story because every person has a struggle. The obstacle that has been faced and hopefully overcome.  Struggles are crucial because they’re transformative’. As I read those words they resounded clearly and loudly...Continue reading→