A Revolutionary ‘Hail Mary’

Given the sort of physical risk the Bible implies Mary had to survive in order to have a baby, I’ve always thought that these images of revolutionary women might be more appropriate for the mother of Christ rather than the domesticated, insipidly pale faced, blue veiled, watery eyed portraits we’re used to. If you consider …

‘That Was The Worst Christmas Ever’ Confession

PoC (Prayer of Confession) based on 'Who is my Family...?' in the Mark 3 Lectionary reading  (Ordinary 10B)We reflected on the good and bad parts of our experience of family and the ways that we had succeeded and failed to be the 'Family of God' to each other.For reflection we listened to the song "That was the Worst …

Sufjan Stevens Transfiguration

Benediction ‘Light & Life’

May you... be light and life (John 1) May you... choose the good over the evil. May you... know your esteemed place in the Economy of God May you... buy in, sell out, and learn how to be ‘not Egypt’ May you... be honest and courageous and at least a little bit wild So that …

Waters Edge at Tear Gathering 2011

Six years after my first attempt I reworked 'The Waters Edge', a series of reflective stations upon the Call to Discipleship and the Economy of God for the Tear Victorian Gathering at Phillip Island.  This time I laminated the station instructions on big paper fish... an abundant catch!

Mark Pierson @ Light Hearts in Winter

Nice to catch up with Mark Pierson at Fed. Square last week for The Light in Winter Light Hearts installation that no doubt has his thought prints all over it! He was over to observe its construction with his mate, the amazing Bruce Ramus.  (Nice write up on it and pix at The Agehere.) It was …

The Questions of Jesus

I have been working on a prayer response to a session on 'Questioning' by Peter Chapman for young people at this coming weekend's Common Rule Retreat .  This theme is one close to my heart as one of the queries we embrace as part of the Seeds Covenant  is: "How do the questions from the …

House Blessing: Epiphany

As part of the response for our Seeds 2011 Consecration Service I created this Epiphany motif for Seeds Covenant Households to place on the lintels of their doors during our Seeds Covenant year as a reminder of;   Christ's Blessing: upon our households and the importance they play in locating our spiritual struggle to 'Grow …

A ‘Social Media’ Nativity: Call to Worship

I used this as a prelude for our Family Nativity Service at Footscray Baptist Church this morning.  Assuming that I had made a AV mistake, one person came up to me to say that I had left my computer on-screen and that everyone in the congregation could see it.  I told him to have a …

The Resonance and Otherness of Wild: Temple Worship for a Wilderness People

Oxford Terrace Baptist Church Sunday June 6, 2010 Ancient fossilized Indigenous Footprints, Lake Mungo, New South Wales The natural forces that so threaten us are the same forces that preserve and renew us… When they forbid their prophets to go into the wilderness they lose the possibility of renewal. Wendell Berry Call to Worship: “The …