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workshop description: re-imagining worship in a traditional space
The Uniting Church in Tasmania is blessed with many fine old church buildings. They’re traditionally shaped, and often furnished accordingly. Long fixed pews, pipe organs, even old-school box pews are...
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LEGO church: for real!
A while back I pondered what it might be like if your church was made of LEGO. Now somebody has really done it. The life-sized LEGO style church called Abondantus Gigantus has been put up in the...
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the tulip: a metaphor?
The tulip is my favourite flower. I’m not all that big on flowers in general, but tulips are incredible. The shapes, the variety of colours I find astonishing. And so last weekend, with a day to spare...
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lessons from temptation
This message shared with the South Moreton Presbytery of the Uniting Church in Australia, Feb 2013. Relevant scripture reading is Luke 4:1-13. I’ve just recently returned to Queensland having spent a...
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leadership #1: dealing in hope
“A leader is a dealer in hope.” (Napoleon Bonaparte) I’ve just kicked off an 8 week block as a student again, joining in a course on religious leadership with Trinity Theological College. Each monday...
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confession: me and full liturgies…
I like words. I like reading other people’s words, diving deeply into books and stories that bring a whole new world to life inside my mind. Putting just the right combination of words together can...
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leadership 7: jesus as “the ultimate leader”?
In a course on religious leadership, run in a christian theological college, it’s inevitable that we would eventually confront this question: Is Jesus the ultimate leader? One through whose life we can...
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on anticipation, christmas and an unexpected jesus
On Sunday I had the opportunity to speak during the morning service at Toowong Uniting Church (our family hangs out with the TUC community regularly). It’s a rare thing for me, and aside from the...
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workshop description: the art gallery
I’ve had the pleasure of hanging out with ministers and leaders of Uniting Churches in a Queensland city in recent months as they work together to try and figure out what the future looks like. It’s...
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life is made of moments
NB: Before you read, it might help to know that this is the text of a message I shared at Toowong Uniting Church, August 9th 2015. It refers to a story from Acts 4:26-40. The context at Toowong is that...
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on birthdays with a zero…
My youngest is just days away from a very special birthday. The one in which she reaches the magical double-figure mark. She’s bounding around the house with barely contained excitement, the...
View Articleon meals, community, love and jesus
A message shared with Toowong Uniting Church in July 2017. Read John 13:31-35 first. Last week, June 29 was Eat Together day in Canada. A day when Canadians were invited to eat with neighbours,...
View ArticlePostcards from England: Fresh Expressions in Leicester Diocese
Over the next two weeks I have the very good fortune to be spending some time with key leaders in Methodist and Anglican Churches in parts of the United Kingdom, along with joining the Australian team...
View ArticlePostcards from England: Partnership for Missional Church
While in Leicester (see the previous story!), we took the opportunity to sit down with Nigel Rooms of the Anglican Church’s Church Missionary Society (CMS) to hear about a project they’re running...
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Postcards from England: ILC1 – FX around the world
We’ve just wrapped up four incredibly stimulating days at the Fresh Expressions International Learning Community that took place at the beautiful Ashburnam Place (Battle, England). Teams gathered for...
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Postcards from England: More from the ILC
It’s taking too long, and there are too many of these postcards racking up and at the current rate I’ll be sending postcards long after I return home…so today I’ll send three in one go, all from the...
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Postcards from the UK: St Mellitus College and the London Anglicans
Having completed the Fresh Expressions International Learning Community (which you can read about in my earlier postcards), I’ve moved to London for a few days meeting with interesting church leaders...
View ArticlePostcards from England: Training Pioneers
In the UK church the word pioneer is everywhere. I think there’s barely been a conversation I’ve been in on this trip that hasn’t included it. And like many words in common use, it’s not always clear...
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Postcards from England: Keeping it in the family
Today I had the privilege of visiting UK Methodist headquarters at Methodist Church House, and meeting with a bunch of people from their Discipleship & Ministries team (including Jude, Graham,...
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Postcards from England: HTB, Alpha & a church planting approach
Holy Trinity Brompton is arguably the best known contemporary British church. Part of the Anglican family, it shot to prominence through the Alpha course (an introduction to Christianity now conducted...
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