In this sermon from Isaiah 1 we see failure upon failure. We see the failure of God’s people to love God. We see the failure of God’s people to love one another. And we even see what seems to be failure of God, himself.

Yet, despite this apparent failure, there is hope.

Listen to this sermon originally preached on 1st May 2011 at Sylvania Anglican Church where I highlight the hope found in the fulfilled promises of God.

And so this is why we pray that it won’t happen. We ask our Father to “Lead us not into temptation, but (to) deliver us from evil.”

Listen to this deeply-personal sermon on this phrase in The Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6:13 where I talk about a number of temptations that affect us, and discuss practical ways to survive them. Preached at Sylvania Anglican Church on 28th November 2010.

In the second talk from a series on The Lord’s Prayer, we look at what this phrase means, and why it’s so dangerous. And hopefully, by the end of the talk, you’ll see why it’s such a great thing for us to pray to God.

Listen to this sermon on Matthew 6:10, the second phrase from The Lord’s Prayer, as preached 6pm on 31st October 2010 at Sylvania Anglican Church.

What will that day be like? Should we fear it? How can we prepare for it?

Listen to this sermon on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 preached 6pm 26th September 2010 at Sylvania Anglican Church.

As they waited, they asked a question that showed they didn’t really understand what the Kingdom of God was to be like.

Jesus gently corrects them, and in turn us, about just where the Kingdom is, what people will be in that kingdom, and when it will come.

Listen to this sermon on Acts 1:1-11 preached 9am 24th January 2010 at Sylvania Anglican Church.

It was clear that Pontius Pilate was convinced of the innocence of Jesus, and yet he willingly sent him to be crucified.

Listen to this Bible talk on the crucifixion of Jesus, as preached on 22nd November 2009 at Sylvania Anglican Church.

I spoke on Matthew 2:1-12 and invited the congregation to consider the two reactions to the birth of Jesus. Some followed the star to him and worshipped him (i.e. the star gazers) but others followed the star to try and kill him (i.e. Herod).

Near the end of the talk you’ll hear a badly-distorted recording of an original song I performed. Please adjust your headphones accordingly!

Please let me know if you have any technical difficulties with this, as it’s my first attempt at a podcast!

“In normal situations, we listen to the Bible read before the preacher explains and expands the text. Wouldn’t it be better to hear the Bible expounded, and then hear it read? The text would gain even greater clarity, and the meaning would be amplified by the exposition just presented by the preacher.”

Well, it might shock you to know that before I had written the article, I had never seen this done in real life. It was simply an exercise in kite-flying, so to speak.

Anyway, when I put together the runsheet on Sunday for the gathering I was leading, I gave it a try, and it worked a treat. Not only did the Bible reader read with more clarity (since she had just been given a twenty-minute preparation for her task), but the whole congregation also benefited from hearing the word of God, after it was explained.

What’s more, it made the reading of the Word appear to have a centrality in the gathering that I’ve not experienced before. It was as if the reading of the sermon passage was the peak of the word ministry.

Have you ever tried this retrospective reading? Have you ever witnessed it first-hand?

The beauty of WordPress is that I can give all the leaders passwords, and they can help me keep the site up to date. I think one of the great advantages to using a CMS (Content Management System) is this ease of entry and editing. I remember in the not-so-old-days that to update a website required major HTML editing, with FTP and all other primitive nasties. Now, those days are behind us.

We’re also planning in time to convert our website to use the upcoming www.cyiada.com platform. Check out that blog to find out what is being planned!

I have just got back from a great weekend away with Slice, the junior youth group at Sylvania Anglican. And I can confidently say that it has been an amazing weekend.

Part of the challenge of the youth ministry at this church has been getting the kids from church families to connect with kids outside the church. Despite our plans, the Friday afternoon timeslot didn’t work well for our junior high group, as, amongst other reasons, many of our church kids couldn’t make it. So we ended up with two mainly distinct groups. So, we have decided to merge the two groups and run Slice at 10am on Sundays.

This weekend was the first time we brought the two groups together, and it was a real success. Because no one group dominated the weekend, we were able, in the power of the Spirit of God, to create a new identity for the group. God has done a great work in our midst, and we now have a great year 5 to 8 group with a healthy mix of boys and girls, and kids from church and non-church backgrounds. The 12 kids on the weekend, plus our great team of 5 leaders, forms something new and very exciting.

Stay tuned to find out how the first group goes when we get back in February!