Blog

Anna and I have been reading through the book of Job. It can be tough. From Chapters 3 to 31, after intense personal suffering, Job sits in mourning with three of his friends. How do you make sense life, and hope, and God when your world has completely disintegrated around you? Job's friends offer advice. They encourage, they reason, and they rebuke. Job kicks back. He ca...

On our recent holiday Anna and I stayed in a house at North Arm Cove. You could look out (despite the bush fire smoke) and see, dotted below, yachts and motorboats sitting at their moorings. From a distance they looked luxurious even decadent. I could imagine myself standing at the till, sails unfurled, sunglasses on, wind in my face, drink in hand, Anna preparing a fea...

Have you ever considered that God is the initiator of all that we do? Theologian and author, Eugene H. Peterson perhaps said it best when he said that God has always been the initiator and man the responder. Recently I have learned that true prayer is initiated by God. If I am seeking God's purpose, then I will be open to responding to Him, when He prompts me to pray. T...

How are you at packing? I hate it! I put everything on the spare bed, and I dither. How hot will it be or cold? I need to pack for all weather! My heart is always in my mouth at the airport check-in. Even though I've weighed my case at home, I'm still nervous. The rules are rigid! If your bag is overweight, the scrutiny awaits of unpacking and discarding in front of comp...

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...