Advent gives us the time to reflect and prepare ourselves to receive anew the gifts of hope, peace and joy that we celebrate at Christmas. The good news of Jesus is for all, and from the very start, the upside-down nature of His kingdom is made very clear to us. The first to be invited to meet th...

Jesus accepts us as we are, but He loves us enough to help us change who we are. This process of sanctification differs from person to person, but it all happens in the church. That’s why it’s vital to join a church and become active in it. We make the most of church life when we grab a paddle an...

When reading about the first churches in the book of Acts, it’s easy to get carried away by romanticized ideas about how the church should function and what it should do for us as Christians in the modern world. Yet the church's central purpose has stayed constant for over 2000 years; making Jesu...

What does it mean to be the church? We live in a society characterized by unfaithfulness and broken and discarded relationships. God wants to use the church as a living parable. We can change lives if we show deep, intense, faithful love to each other regardless of what others are doing. Forgivin...

The Church has the tremendous privilege of declaring the manifold wisdom of God to the heavenly realms. The way we as Christians live here on earth becomes a declaration to the world around us that God is still God, He is enthroned on high, and all the promises in Him are still yes and amen. Toge...

Over the last couple of Sundays, we have learned a lot about the Psalms. From helping us to find the right words when expressing grief, frustration or celebrations to helping us understand that whatever we might be facing, we are not the first, and God’s grace can help us through as it helped all...

When reading through the Psalms, a common thread emerges. Many of the Psalmists longed for a place where they could experience the presence of God, where they could dwell in His midst and find strength and rest during hard times. We live in a blessed time and place today. God will make His dwelli...

We all experience sadness and hurt. How do we deal with it? The world tells us to suppress it and get over it. Sometimes getting over it is not that easy and the suppressed sadness and pain find other ways to bubble to the surface. Taking these disorientating feelings to God and being honest abou...

What is justice? It’s tricky to define, but we are all too familiar with the frustrations of suffering injustice. How do we vent these frustrations? Feelings are real, and if not vented, they will consume us or those around us. The book of Psalms is full of great examples of how to cuss without c...

The Psalms are a treasure trove of prayers, laments, songs, meditations, worship, liturgy, prophecy, and theology. However, the Psalms differ from the other books of the Bible. Where the rest of scripture speaks to us, Psalms speak for us. In Psalms, you’ll find the words to help you express joy,...

Are there times we should get offended? How do we deal with offence wisely and maturely? Follow along with the last part of our “No Offence” series.

Can we be offended by God? Sometimes things don't turn out how we hoped, planned, and prayed they would. We can't help doubting when we are disappointed by circumstances that we believed should have worked out better for us. How could God have let this happen? Why did He not answer my prayer? How...

"Refusing to respond in kind, as difficult as it is, as tempting as it is, just might be the most Christlike thing we ever do as Jesus followers." It's easy to say we should ignore it or remain neutral when we are offended, but sometimes we end up going "Boom." When that happens, having an Abigai...

When we are offended, we are given the option of growing or going. When confronted by a relative of Saul who was pelting him with rocks and dirt while slandering him, King David was forced to own his truth. How did David get to that point? It would have been simple to kill the man; David's men we...

The success of others can sometimes be a stumbling block. King Saul was intensely jealous of a rising David. His offence grew by the day until his unchecked aggression transformed him into a "spear chucker". People like this still exist today, and they can go from a "silent" response to offence t...

Getting wound up, a moment of annoyance or a simple ‘slight’ can only lead to one thing…offence. These days it seems like there are plenty of opportunities to be offended. From the latest headline to social media comments, saying the wrong thing to a friend or a simple difference of opinion all l...

God wants to speak to and lead His people. Throughout the Bible and history, we have examples of where God intervened in people’s lives and communicated directly with them. What do we need to do to be able to hear God’s voice? How do we know that whatever we are hearing or perceiving is from God?...

Who is my neighbour? Just like the expert in the law that asked Jesus this question, we tend to use definitions and loopholes to justify our actions or lack thereof. That is the human response, but the heaven response is entirely different. To answer this question, Jesus told the parable of the g...

"Look, there's the last-minute guy!" The parable of the workers in the vineyard seems so unfair. Aren't we supposed to be rewarded according to our efforts? Why should the workers that joined during the last hour get the same as those who toiled the whole day? When we realize that Jesus was talki...

When is enough really enough? In the end, it all goes back into the box. The parable of the rich fool challenges us to stop and think about what we do with wealth. Are we storing it up just for ourselves or are we striving to be rich in God? Wealth is a blessing from God, but Jesus warns us that ...