Tag: worship

Malachi | Wholehearted worship, overflowing life

Who pays for a Big Build, and what does it really cost? Or, what you worship changes everything. (Listen to a very bad recording here, or watch here.)

I am delighted to be here at the invitation of your pastor. Trí tells me that you are a group of enthusiastic people who are strong in faith. He also tells me that you love to be with one another, and that you love to meet for worship and for Bible study. This is all wonderful for me to hear, because I am passionate about faith and the Bible and God’s promise of life to those who engage with it all wholeheartedly.

Continue reading “Malachi | Wholehearted worship, overflowing life” →

Church | Church, aka the gathering

Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the day approaching. (Hebrews 10:24-25).

Say the word church to many people and you’ll evoke cavernous spaces, pews, even steeples. I grew up in the church, and it’s true: I remember the buildings. But they did not call me into faith. Instead, it was the people, the songs, the prayers, the stories, the meals, the love, the shared commitment to those beyond the group, and Christ working through all of these, which gradually beckoned me into the Jesus-centred life. Continue reading “Church | Church, aka the gathering” →

Acts | The four devotions

Three key practices, no, four, shape a dynamic resurrection faith. (Listen.)

Whenever I hear this passage, I feel a cool, refreshing breeze blow through me. Imagine: the Holy Spirit roaring through town and creating hundreds of new disciples. Imagine: animated tables of friends and strangers sharing generous, joyful meals. Imagine: a passionate prayer life, a deep engagement with God, a trust in things beyond private wealth. Imagine: a world in which lives are shared, and everyone’s needs are met. Continue reading “Acts | The four devotions” →

Luke | The road to newness

Through stranger, scripture and a meal shared our hearts may be set on fire. (Listen.)

They were devastated. The one on whom they’d pinned all their hopes and dreams had been executed and their hopes had died with him; now, even the body was gone. There was a rumour going around that the women had seen him: but it seemed to them an idle tale. So they left. They walked out of the city, away from all the terror and confusion, and as they walked they talked through their grief and fear, scepticism, bewilderment, perhaps even their sense of betrayal. Continue reading “Luke | The road to newness” →

Proverbs | Wisdom for changing times

Divine wisdom is found in liminal spaces: and is confident, creative and relational. (Listen.)

I have a confession to make. For a pastor, it’s a biggie, and it’s this: I don’t know where the church is headed. When Sanctuary began, we had a pretty clear path: gather up hungry people and establish regular habits of all-age worship and meals so that they could be fed: a program described behind my back as ‘boot camp’. But then the pandemic hit and two years of lockdowns—a third of our life together—blew everything out of the water. Continue reading “Proverbs | Wisdom for changing times” →

Revelation | A vision for the church

Imagine a church like the holy city: full of light, open to all peoples, rooted in the gospel, and overflowing with love. (Listen.)

A few years ago, I went to the Southwest Roadshow. There, LGBTIQA+ folk, allies and agencies listened to and learned from one another about the needs, resources and gaps in the region. I was there as an observer, at the invitation of friends. But to my surprise, one of those friends then introduced me to the gathering and told everyone about Sanctuary. Continue reading “Revelation | A vision for the church” →

Revelation | A liturgical reading (My little finches)

A bleak day, a cosmic conversation, a liturgical identity – and consolation. (Listen.)

I was feeling despondent so I went for a walk when I came across a flock of red-browed finches. They were darting back and forth across the path, cheeping merrily at each other. And they said to me, ‘Learn from us! Look how happy we are in our little flock, flitting between sun and shade.’ And I said, ‘But where is my little flock? I don’t know anymore. And I seem to be stuck in the shadows.’ Continue reading “Revelation | A liturgical reading (My little finches)” →

Acts | How can we be fed by the body when the body as we know it has disappeared?

For churches grappling with the loss of physical gatherings and an uncertain future, the story of Jesus’ ascension provides a model for discernment. (Listen.)

Here at Sanctuary, yet again we have ‘gathered’ to worship via Zoom. It is wonderful that we are able to do this: To see each other’s faces and chat before and after the service; to lead each other through the liturgy; to hear the Word of God proclaimed; to pray together; and to be reminded that, through the power of the Holy Spirit which transcends time and space, we continue to be the church. Continue reading “Acts | How can we be fed by the body when the body as we know it has disappeared?” →

Brahminy’s prayer, and tips for welcoming children

Do you know the child who spends every service lolling on the floor, or chatting quietly to herself at the dolls house, or snipping paper into a thousand little triangles? The child who rarely speaks, never sings and shakes her head violently when invited to participate? The child whose back is to the congregation and who seems oblivious to everything that goes on around her? Continue reading “Brahminy’s prayer, and tips for welcoming children” →

Acts | A story of courage and freedom

The urgency and adventure in Acts can feel daunting to a small young church – so, where are we up to in our story? (Listen.)

The adventures of Paul and Silas are so very dramatic. Shipwrecks. Exorcisms. Courtrooms. Preaching. Beatings. Jails. Earthquakes. Freedom. And people turning to faith wherever they go. There’s such an urgency and a power in their activity that, when we hear their stories, we might be tempted to look around at our little congregation, so young, so busy, so distracted, so tired, and throw up our hands. Where is the urgency? Where is the power? Where are the conversions and the parties into the night? Continue reading “Acts | A story of courage and freedom” →

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