Sure, kids donât belong everywhere. Theyâre not a symphony orchestraâs target audience (except when they are). The tense whispers of snooker commentators suggest that toddlers wouldnât be welcome at tournament finals. But babies and children are legally entitled to be all sorts of places that aren’t always built with them in mind, including, say, courthouses […]
In 2023, Lent begins Wednesday, 22 February We’re spoilt by the church calendar at this time of year! We’ve just had four weeks of candle-lighting at Advent, culminating, in our household, with this delightful moment on Christmas Day: Now we’re coming to the end of the two-week Christmas season, and then it’s only a month […]
One of my very favourite churches is Ponsonby Baptist in Auckland, where there is always much food for the mind and soul. The Sunday before last, I was lucky enough to visit once again, and several parts of the service were so profound and helpful that I wanted to share them with you too. The church […]
This is the final post from guest writer Chris Chamberlain. See the whole series list here. We must be careful how we read Scripture What I would call a âZionistâ reading of Scripture seems to take a verse with no regard for its context, and apply it to the modern State of Israel. This is […]
A friend of mine is preaching her first sermon tomorrow morning. Woo hoo! Tonight I wanted to wish her well, in words of encouragement that caught both the weight of responsibility that comes with this calling, and the lightness you can access when you remember you’re part of something so much bigger than your own […]
What is a Blue Christmas Service? Guest writer Melanie recently reflected on the process of putting together a Blue Christmas service at Frenchs Forest Baptist Church, where she is a pastor: The concept of a Blue Christmas Service was new for me this year. The idea behind the services is to provide a quiet, contemplative service […]
A warm welcome to guest poster, Melanie Carroll, who is writing today about the Blue Christmas service she ran on the weekend. Melanie is married to Sean and has two young adult children. She trained at Carey Baptist College in Auckland, New Zealand, but is currently living across the ditch in Sydney where she is […]
I know the title is a big call, but I’ll eat a suitcase of carrots if you can beat these đ As I said in a post last Christmas, partly about the differences between Southern and Northern Hemisphere Christmas celebrations: St Paul’s Anglican Church in central Auckland is blessed to have some very artistically and […]
From Rudolf and Santa to Slinky Malinki and the proverbial Pukeko in a Punga Tree, thereâs a Christmas picture book for everyone. In most bookshops, though, Baby Jesus is hidden behind Grinches, trains and elves. If youâre in the market for Christmas books for kids that tell the story of God coming into the world as […]
At the moment in my corner of the church world (I’m a Kiwi Baptist), the number of our 250-odd churches in New Zealand led by a woman (as the sole or senior pastor) is in single figures. Low single figures. It seems likely that by the end of the year there will be only two such churches […]