Guest blogger's blog

In his bestselling autobiography, Life and Laughing, the British comedian Michael McIntyre reveals something of his heritage. He amusingly calls himself a ‘Canary’ because his Father is from Montreal, Canada and his Mother from Hungary.  I too am part Canadian, having lived and worked there for nearly twenty years, initially in Vancouver and latterly as a Senior Pastor in Calgary. Whilst serving there I fell in love with the Canadian sporting scene, especially Ice Hockey.  As a spectacle this sport is fast, exciting and very combative. I loved to watch my local NHL teams, The Vancouver Canucks and The Calgary Flames. So you can imagine that a hockey analogy would particularly resonate with me. It was said of the late Steve Jobs of Apple that he, ‘could see a pass even before the puck left the stick’. In other words, Steve Jobs had the gift of seeing the direction of future marketing trends before anybody else. That is what made him the phenomena he was!

Dr Alan Palmer explores more than just discipleship .... read on!

A young man was late for church. After the service the vicar greeted him and enquired as to why he had been late for worship. With a little hesitation the young man said that he was going to go fishing until his dad told him no. Although disappointed that that the young lad would even consider going fishing instead of coming to church, the vicar affirmed his father’s wise choice. Then asked, “Where’s dad?” the young man answered quickly, “Dad said that there wasn’t enough bait for us both to go fishing – so he went alone!”

Dr Alan Palmer explains why church can be a 'man-free zone' ...

Watching a live to air Q&A (ABC TV) recently reaffirmed my growing belief that politicians should be very circumspect when commenting on religion; even more so Christian theology.

Alas, the former Premier of NSW, Kristina Keneally just couldn't help herself! Reminding us, yet again, that she has qualifications in theology; Kristina lectured the viewers on how the Bible actually could be used to support 'homosexuality'.

I just shook my head at 'Keneally's revisionist theology' but Mrs Roslyn Phillips of FamilyVoice Australia did more than that. She is willing to express her views publicly on this website. Read on ...

How many times have you heard these questions asked?

Probably many, many times no doubt and guess what? They will never stop being asked!

We need to look at the subject of God’s alleged ‘beginnings’; ponder about the validity of the actual questions and search for a solution to these age old questions.

Russell Tasker, our guest blogger, has agreed to contribute some interesting thoughts for us … read on.

You must remember this
A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh just a sigh.
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by. (1)
(Herman Hupfeld)

Everyone waited for it for hours – the Royal kiss that marked the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Lots of attention was paid to the dress, some to the vows, and some to many other aspects of the wedding celebrations, but the kiss seized the imagination of the crowd. It stole the show.

Why? What did it mean? Perhaps it was a case of what Hupfeld wrote in another verse of his song: “the world will always welcome lovers/As times go by”. Actually, this line from his song proves that Hupfeld is both right and wrong in the verse cited above. He is right: a kiss belongs to the fundamental things, and it does apply as a permanent part of life.

Here is a hard saying: "Do not judge, or you too will be judged."

Well, what about these?

“Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.” (James 4:11)

“There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbour?” (James 4:12)

Some people take these statements by Jesus, and with Him state unequivocally:

"Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” (Matthew 7:1)
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged…” (Luke 6:37)

What are we to do? Should we judge or not judge? Paul Edwards looks at this thorny issue.

A caller recently rang a radio station to discuss the lessons of the Japanese earthquake, and said he knew why there had been a seismic event measuring 8.9.

It was because man was forever drilling for oil, and our planet was angry at the intrusion! Is that right? Is that what prompted the earthquake in Japan? What about the earthquake in Christchurch or the floods in Queensland, NSW & Victoria?

 (Dr) Bruce Watts explains what he understands about the Bible's answer(s) to tragedy ... read on ...

Look what I found when I started really checking out Christian Faith dot com dot AU! I found: Christian Message and Statement of Faith.
 
Out of everything that I read in this very helpful and clear statement of faith, and all of which I believe with my whole heart, there was one thing that I have never heard explained the way this writer did. 

Our guest blogger, Ali, explains what this is ... 

"THE BIBLE UNPACKED" is a wonderful set of resources that Paul Mallison has developed over the past 16 years, for use in ministry or developing one’s own knowledge of scripture.

It is comprised of a number of booklets and books, which can be used independently of each other. These can be downloaded for free and used electronically or printed.

Paul shares with us his fantastic labour of love ...

One the best loved books in the Old Testament would have to be the book of Nehemiah.

It’s a great read.

It’s also an inspiring story, the way Nehemiah manages to get together a disheartened and dispirited group of people and lead them in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.

Jamie Newans shares his insights into this remarkable man.

It’s amazing the T shirts you see these days states our guest blogger, Bruce Winter. Emblazoned sometimes with witty words, they send a message to the world. And they send a message as well about the person who’s brave enough (or sometimes stupid enough) to wear it.

There’s the one that says in bold letters: “He who dies with the most toys, wins!” When you see that, you know the wearer isn’t the reflective type. They don’t go to many funerals. Much better is the one that says: “He who dies with the most toys … dies.” At least that’s starkly realistic! Even Biblical.

"MENTORING". What is it and what does it mean to us? Recently, Debbie White spoke about 'mentoring' to a group of women in Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia. It was warmly received, and Debbie has agreed to share her thoughts on the subject with us. Firstly, a definition:

men•tor
–noun
1. a wise and trusted counselor or teacher.
–verb (used without object)
2. to act as a mentor: She spent years mentoring younger women in her church.

Bruce Colman and Ashlie Stevenson have had medical operations. They both remember their experiences. Both have chosen to share their experiences with us. For Bruce, the experience was far from joyful but he was prepared for the experience. Ashlie’s experience was also negative, especially in light of a lack of information about her procedures.

So, are there any real intrinsic differences between the experiences of both people? Peter Barnes explains …

Lately, Bruce Winter has been working on a theory that people like to make things more complex than they really need to be.

Now he's not suggesting some things aren’t tricky. Nuclear physics for example. It looks pretty hard; or learning Swahili; the finer workings of the human eye. Things like these are inherently complex and the natural forte of brainwave types.

But what about the gospel? Is it inherently complex? Bruce doesn't think it is!

You have had an abortion.

You believed that in the circumstances it was the best thing. They told you that it was just a bunch of cells in your body. They never used the word 'baby' - it was the 'product of conception', a 'foetus', or even just 'body tissue' or a 'blob'. You were not counselled; you were shovelled along in a predetermined direction. It had more to do with sales techniques than with counselling.