The People You’d Rather Not Invite to Christmas

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The People You’d Rather Not Invite to Christmas

It won’t be long and the table will be set for Christmas. Yippee, but … well, there’s always one person we’d rather not invite, right?

I’m betting that you can picture that person’s face right now!

They’re difficult or awkward. They rub you the wrong way. And there’s every chance they’ll cause friction on what’s supposed to be a perfect, happy, relaxed family day – Christmas day after all.

So here’s the question – what would God have you do with that person, hmm?

How to Get More Out of Your Parents

Most kids spend most of their time trying to squeeze as much out of their parents as possible. Especially teenagers. But did you know that God has a plan for them to get much, much more blessing from their parents than they ever imagined possible? It’s true!!

So if you have kids, share this blog post with them. Tell ’em – it’ll work every time!

Let the Games Begin

In a few weeks, all the hoopla that once was the London Olympics will be but a dim, distant memory. It’s back to the grind for all of us after a welcome distraction. We may give the stunning gold-medal performances of some, a passing thought from time to time, but … you know how it goes.

So would it surprise you to know that for anyone who calls themselves a Christ-follower, there is a call in God’s Word to be, in effect, a “gold medal Christian”?

Is Same Sex-Marriage Inevitable?

Well the hot topic around Australia at the moment is that of same-sex marriage which is due to be debated in the Federal Parliament at the behest of the Green party. So is it an inevitability? And how well is the church handling the debate?

Here’s my take …

Back from the Brink of Suicide

I think that sometimes we’re prone to trivialising the Word of God. By that I mean, we don’t take it seriously enough.

We skim over it and yet somehow we fail to take it heart. We don’t really grasp that it’s meant for us, for our lives. We completely miss the fact that God’s Word is filled with the power – His power – to radically transform our lives.

So … here’s a story to remind us of the awesome power of God’s Word.

In the week leading up to Easter, I received an email from a woman in Europe (let’s call her ‘Margaret’) who was literally at the point of taking her own life, when a Christianityworks radio progam started to go to air on her local radio station.

This is what she wrote to me (her name and some minor details have been changed to preserve her anonymity):

How a Gideon Bible Literally Saved My Life

It’s early Saturday morning as I peck away here at my keyboard. I’m about to head off to the NSW State Conference of the Gideon’s to share my testimony with the delegates. It’s something that I just am so delighted to do … because back in February 1995, it was a Gideon Bible that God used to save my life.

Quite literally.

I was standing on the 8th floor balcony of a Brisbane hotel, wondering whether to jump, and …

Nailing Easter – Warning: “Confronting Message”

Do you know what really scares me about Easter?

It’s that we’ve sanitised it. Cleaned it up. Turned it into a nice little religious celebration … and in doing so, I wonder whether we’re not completely missing the point.

I struggled as to whether I should use this confronting image on this blog post to depict what happened on ‘Good Friday’. I struggled with it because I thought I might offend someone. I struggled with it because I thought it might be hard for you to look at.

But then … Easter is offensive. Easter is difficult to look at. That’s what it is.

A Birthday Celebration: The Incredible Blessing of Just Being Alive

I’m not much into my own birthday. But today I turn 53. Amazing!

Where have the years gone?

As I woke up early again this morning – around 3:30 am (something I’ve been doing my mother tells me since I was born – lucky mum!!) I just realised again – afresh and anew – what an incredible blessing it is just to draw breath; what an awesome blessing it is just to be alive. (I wonder whether amidst the hustle and bustle of life, that’s not something that you and I forget all too often!)

And – as it always does when I read it – this passage of Scripture warmed my heart. May it remind you too, what an awesome blessing it is today, just to be alive:

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