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The recently completed Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has recommended 10 child safe standards that every organisation working with children should adhere to. The NSW government has indicated that compliance with these Child Safe Standards will soon become mandatory for all organisations that provide services to children, including churc...

The following devotion was written by my neighbour, Colin Noble, who is Chaplain at William Clarke College in Kellyville. Can you identify the characters maybe even yourself? I set out for a morning walk with my dog, Tara. She's a rescue dog a mongrel who tips the scales at about 35 kilos. To her, dogs under 10 kilos have always been annoying rodents viewable only as p...

Anyone can keep a pool clean in winter, but as summer approaches you need to be on your game. Nobody likes green water, so out to the pool I go. I notice a few things not right. First, the skimmer box inflow is very low. Debris remains on the water surface after the filtration cycle is finished. Perhaps something's wrong with my filtration pump that could be expensive. S...

Expressions of Interest If you have prayed aboutbeing part of the new church at Eastwood and would like to express an interest in going to Eastwood or to find out more, please email or speak with Pastor John, Pastor Jonny, or Winnie. We would like to hear from you so that an Elder can formally sit down with you to go through the process and pray with you. ...

In 1727 an ailing King George I introduced an Act of Parliament to allow German born composer, George Frederick Handel, to become a naturalised British citizen. Handel's first commission was to write the music for the coronation of George's son, who later that year was crowned King George II. Handel's four coronation anthems have been used in British coronations ever sinc...

Right in the middle of Paul's oft quoted exhortation to 'Rejoice in the Lord always', and 'Be not anxious about anything' but rather pray with thanksgiving so that 'the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus', is a frequently overlooked phrase. Right in the middle of this wonderful passage Paul says, 'Let your gentleness be evident to all' (Phil 4:5...

I found an anecdote about a visit Abraham Lincoln once made to a slave auction. I doubt it's true, but it makes for a good story. Lincoln's heart was drawn to a young woman on the block. She looked with hatred and contempt on everyone around her. She had been used and abused all her life, and this time was but one more cruel humiliation. The bidding began, and Lincoln off...

One thing I've had the pleasure of observing over recent years is many of our young couples becoming parents for the first time. Their lives are transformed, literally, overnight. This transformation seems especially powerful for the new mums. Young women who previously seemed so distracted - busy with career, social life, coping with their husband, church ministries, o...

Psalms 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth", has always been my favorite verse. But just over a week ago, when I was taken to a private room by an ICU doctor who asked "have you had an end of life conversation with your dad as he may not make it out of the hospital due to his current condition" sudde...

I had an unexpected encouragement this week I'd like to share with you. I was searching for a Bible study on Jeremiah amongst the collection of notes amassed on top of my bookcase. I didn't find the book I wanted but bumped into another study from Jeremiah on the topic of endurance. Like many Bible studies, it starts with a general question to facilitate discussion: Comp...