I love listening to the news!   I want to know what is happening in the world.   But more and more I question whether or not we can trust the news.   There is so much talk about 'fake news'.   Every newspaper, radio, and/or TV program have their own slant to the news.   Is there news you can trust?  What is news? Some people claim that the English word NEWS is derived from an acronym formed from the words north, east, west, and south.  Hence the word NEWS.   Most likely, however, the orginal sense of the word...

How can we reach the lost for Christ?   The unchurched people in our neighbourhoods.  Our missional vision asks that each congregation consider how they can reach out to unchurched groups in their community.   Is your church thinking about this?   Suggestions are given of the kinds of people we could be reaching:  "unbelieving spouses of church members and the unchurched among single people, professional people, high rise or gated communities, ethnic communities, sports clubs, young people in shopping centres, workers in the hospitality industries, shift workers, the illiterate, young mothers, retired people, and the like;"  So how do we...

Be holy!  The Bible calls us to be holy as God is holy.The Apostle Peter commanded us to be “like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior” (1 Pet 1:15).  This might sound far fetched.   But think about it!   God wouldn’t command us to do something if it were not possible.   On that basis, it must be possible to become holy as God is holy. I grew up in a religious home.   We attended church every Sunday.   We prayed and read the Bible at meal times.   But yet...

Our biggest opportunity for growth in the CRCA is "equipping parents to disciple their own children."   This is what a recent survey* among CRCA youth ministries revealed.   While "Bible teaching" scored as our greatest strength, the priority of family scored lowest.   Most churches do not teach or train parents how to disciple their own children. As churches we have agreed that our key task is "to equip our church members to be disciples of Christ."   We are also committed to align everything we do as a denomination and as churches to "encourage and enable the fulfillment of...

Every mighty oak tree was once a little nut!   Every time I see an oak tree with its massive trunk and thick limbs I am amazed how all of this came from a single acorn seed.  Some years ago a farmer told me I could have the four metre long trunk of an oak tree that had been cut down in the middle of his grain field.  It was over two metres in diameter.  Together with a friend we cut up that tree trunk into furniture grade lumber.   My office desk is one of many pieces of furniture that...

Where you stand determines what you see!   This was the challenge given at the recent Church Summit I attended hosted by McCrindle Research and NCLS (National Church Life Survey).   Both these organizations have done extensive research on church life and culture in Australia, and by listening to them one has lots to learn.  This challenge is really asking you and I to stand in the shoes of the typical Australian.   When we stand in their shoes we begin to see the Christian church from their perspective.   And they have lots to tell us how we can best...

I love using crock-pots!  These slow-cookers are ingenious.  In the morning you pile it full of whatever you want to have for dinner at night.  And slowly but surely after many hours the dinner is ready to be enjoyed.  The food is always delicious, tender, and full of flavour.  But that is not all.  Throughout the entire day the kitchen and surrounds are full of the aroma of the pending meal. I mention crock-pots to highlight a principle about prayer.  One of our goals in the CRCA is to develop a culture of prayer in our churches. In the book City...

I was listening to a Geneva Push podcast earlier this week from their recent Multiply conference. It was a brief interview with Andrew Reid and his wife about their experiences in church planting. Andrew and his wife moved from WA to Melbourne to plant a church many years ago. He shared two challenges he and his wife have experienced in church planting. Firstly, while Melbourne is the fastest growing city in Australia, particular through Chinese immigration, the church is ‘thoroughly unprepared.’ He says, ‘[the church] has not touched the sub-cultures of Melbourne very well for the gospel at all. The challenge is...

Vision never really becomes a reality until there is alignment.   And the key to alignment is the hub.   I know that from the number of motorcycle rebuilds I have done.  We all know about the importance of the rubber tyres.  When the rubber hits the road we are moving along.  And the rim to which the rubber is attached keeps the tyre inflated.  But inflated tyres do not get a pedal bike, motorcycle, or vehicle rolling along!   You need the hub, the centre piece of the wheel.  When the hub functions properly, the entire wheel begins to get...

Sometimes in life you just got to do a rethink!  I did a rethink when I was studied for the ordained ministry.   My course of training was headed toward a study steeped in biblical exegesis.   My goal was set!  I wanted to know the Bible inside and out so I could teach people in the churches I would serve.   It was a great goal.   But midway through my studies I came to understand the gospel in a rich new way!   What it meant to be forgiven.  What it meant to be a disciple of Jesus.  ...

I was pleased to read recently that a retired colleague and his wife have just finished three months of ministry in a ‘vacant’ church in New Zealand. From all reports they enjoyed their time in Kiwi-land and their ministry there was a blessing. Opportunities for ongoing ministry are there not only for those of us who are ordained pastors. When my father retired from his trade work he and Mum led a Bible study for many years and virtually became pastoral carers for the group they led. Here in Narrabri where I now live with my family there have also arisen...

Many people try to climb the ladder of success.   But what about the ladder of prayer?   This is a model of praying that I learned from Alvin Vander Griend in his book Love to Pray.    As churches we are committed to PRAY that there will be such an outpouring of the Holy Spirit that people will manifest a godly life!  In my life, in your life, in the life of our churches, and in our community around us.  So what is this prayer ladder? Well, the prayer ladder is based on one of the apostle Paul's prayers as...

Scripture: Colossians 4:3-4, ‘At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.’ Observations: Paul commands the Christians in Colossae to continue steadfastly in prayer (v2), and he adds, ‘at the same time, pray also for us.’ If they’re going to be praying regularly, he asks that they also pray for Paul and his team (who he lists in v7-17). And he asks them to...

Success is more than a suburb in Western Australia. It is something that everybody wants to achieve!  People measure success in terms of accomplishing specific results. It might be wealth, prestige, happiness, or power.  When I think of the pastors I coach and the churches I partner with, I want them to be successful. But how do you measure success? What are the results we are looking for in a successful church? “But wait a minute,” you might say. “Is success really our goal?”   It is true, “immediately, when the word ‘success’ is used . . . many modern Christians...

I have a rule when using an axe:  never chop a piece of wood on a rock.   My grandson Jack knows this rule.  And now he knows why.   He admitted to me after a recent camping trip that he did something he knew he should not do.   He used grandpa's small axe to chop some kindling wood.  And he did it on a rock. The sharp steel edge on the axe was no match for the stone.   A piece of iron chipped off and left a blunt edge.   A lesson well learned!   Jack now knew...

I have learned the importance of consultation.   Getting expert advice!   In our recent annual leave in Canada we had ongoing issues with our Jeep.  The engine light kept going on alerting us of some serious problem.  A couple of mechanics that looked at the vehicle could not figure out what caused the engine alert.  I eventually followed the advice of my mechanic son and brought the Jeep to a Jeep dealer.   With their expert knowledge of Jeeps, within an hour they advised me they had the problem sussed out and no more engine warning light! Whether it vehicles...

Prayer, we say, is our number one task!   As churches we desire to be a church reforming to reach the lost for Christ, and we know this missional outcome must be begun and undergirded by prayerful dependence upon God.   For this reason we make it our priority "to call upon God for such an outpouring of his Spirit that his people will be assured of his love through his Word, seek to please the Saviour in all things, manifest the godly life and be filled with prayerful and sacrificial compassion for the lost in all the world."    The...

I went back to where it all began.   Full-time ministry, that is!    I just returned from my annual leave in Canada, and while we were there on a Sunday we gathered for worship with the people from my first congregation.   Things have sure changed.   Not just the church, but the whole community.   The country town had become an urban sprawl.   The church building had been recently remodelled and updated.   Everyone looked a whole lot older, and so did we.   It was no wonder;  we left that church 33 years ago to plant a...

Our vision as a denomination is to be a Church reforming to reach the lost for Christ. This was adopted as our vision by Synod 2006. It’s underneath our name on our official website, and it even has it’s own page on our website: https://crca.org.au/about-the-crca/vision But what does it mean to be a church reforming to reach the lost for Christ? The basic meaning of the word ‘reform’ is to make changes to something in order to improve it. When we use the word ‘reform’ in relation to the church, we aren’t just talking about making our churches run better, but...

I thought this week I'd share with you my devotion from this morning. I've been going through the New Testament and reflecting on every mention of prayer, as well as the prayers of Jesus and his disciples. I'm currently in the letter to the Hebrews, where it talks about the prayer life of Jesus. I hope you find it encouraging as you bring the lost before God in prayer. Scripture: Hebrews 5:7, ‘In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he...