Latest Ideas

How do you tell if someone is growing?

  • Richard Sweatman
  • 26 February 2016

Do you ever feel like group attendance each week is an informal opinion poll on your leadership? You know what I mean: “This week 55% of Richard’s group members felt his group was worth attending. This is the third consecutive poll below 75%, and experts are concerned at this worrying trend.”

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Down-under round-up: 24 February 2016

  • Sandy Grant
  • 24 February 2016

Links to good reads on Christianity and politics, gender issues, Satan's strategies, the qualities of 'sheep', online theological study, good habits for pastors, and 2nd century Christians.

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A walk with Moses

  • Jean Williams
  • 23 February 2016

It all gets swept away. Or perhaps it’s that we are swept away, like pieces of bark on a river, unable to turn back, pressed against snags and stones. The banks slide by; one glimpse, and the things we pass are gone.

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The art of biblical interpretation: A history of what God does

  • John McClean
  • 22 February 2016

In the ancient world, when a great king made a covenant with his people, the document included an account of history (scholars call it the historical prologue). The king underlined what he had done for his subjects, how he protected them, and so reminded them why they owed him loyalty.

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Why evangelistic courses are like a good joke

  • Stephen Liggins
  • 19 February 2016

I have a theory—admittedly it’s a little controversial, but I still think it holds good. It concerns jokes. In my opinion, jokes have a life-cycle of three stages. Stage 1 covers the first few times you tell it; it’s extremely funny, and you’re the life of the party. Stage 2 covers those situations where you continue to tell that same joke, and it all starts to get a bit boring.

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Down-under round-up: 17 February 2016

  • Sandy Grant
  • 17 February 2016

Sandy Grant's links of the weeks include discussion on anti-bullying schemes in schools, quiet time with God on loud days, the passing of a Christian Aboriginal, death and the prosperity gospel, Jesus and women, and praying for Richard Dawkins.

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One-to-one Bible reading evangelism

  • Jess Sheely
  • 16 February 2016

A fantastic result of doing a ministry apprenticeship has been the time spent reading the Bible with interested non-Christians. This has been a humbling experience, as I’ve faced the seemingly obvious fact that I am unable to change someone’s heart and their opinion about Jesus. However, we serve a powerful God who loves to save and has given us his Word, which is able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus (2 Tim 3:15).

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A cinematic evangelistic opportunity

  • Stephen George
  • 15 February 2016

Last week I saw the pre-release of the movie Risen, and as I walked out of the cinema I thought to myself, “I can’t believe we are about to let a massive evangelistic opportunity pass us by unnoticed”.

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Why are we valuable or useful?

  • Sandy Grant
  • 12 February 2016

Not long ago an older retired ministry colleague of mine apologized for not responding sooner to a letter I'd sent him many months prior. He explained that he'd had major physical and mental health issues, and recently a bit of improvement, just a bit.

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Down-under round-up: 10 February 2016

  • Sandy Grant
  • 10 February 2016

Sandy Grant's links on busyness, sermon preparation, witnessing to Muslims, the "liar, Lord or lunatic" argument, evangelism, and evangelicalism.

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