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How to Stick Close to Jesus in the Daily Grind
Years ago, a friend and I were sharing our frustrations with each other about losing our sense of God’s presence… losing contact with God throughout the busyness of the day. We wondered whether we just sucked at staying close to God… or whether this was just normal? We talked about what we could do to fix this… perhaps we just needed to focus on Jesus more? But how? It’s hard to focus on Jesus when you’re taking a phone call and writing an email and engaging in a meeting. Maybe you’ve had similar thoughts? Maybe you long to be close to Jesus throughout the day but you’re not really sure how, or what that looks like when you’re in the grind? I’d like to offer you a tool to
Support a Chappie
Within Bray Park and the surrounding suburbs, there are at least two state high schools and six state primary schools, including Pine Rivers Special School. All up, that’s over 5,000 students and approximately 2,500 families, plus hundreds of staff and their families. Perhaps you might even know families or individuals in those school communities. Can you imagine the spiritual and emotional needs within these communities? Scripture Union Australia (SUA) trains and sends out chaplains to be able to help provide the support that students, teachers, and families need. However, most schools only have one chaplain who is often not even there full-time. Bray Park State High School, one of the largest state schools in the area, has over 1,500 students and over 200 staff, and yet the sole chaplain
Finding a Good God in Hard Times
I received my cancer diagnosis on a Monday. My unfinished theology essay on the topic of God’s sovereignty was due on the Friday. In that moment, everything I had been reading and writing about became very personal. It’s one thing to believe in the sovereignty of God when life is easy. It’s another thing entirely to believe it when life is not. The fact that I had spent the two months prior to my diagnosis reading and reflecting on the absolute control of God over all things was itself the perfect demonstration of God’s sovereignty and His goodness. My heavenly Father had gone ahead and prepared me. And while the news was still very difficult to hear and comprehend, God repeatedly brought to mind the many Scriptures I had
We Lack No Good Thing
God spoke to me very clearly recently. It was a Fatherly word, a necessary rebuke, a loving reminder. I was day two into my annual summer holiday and I was feeling sorry for myself. I was unhappy because a foot injury was keeping me from doing of my favourite pastimes: running. I wouldn’t be able to run the usual tracks I do when I’m away. I wouldn’t be able to run with my sisters each morning. I wouldn’t be able to “blah, blah, blah”, the thoughts continued. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy to be on holidays with my family and spend time away from the business of normal life. But in my heart of hearts, I was down in the dumps. The second morning of the holiday
Jesse’s Reflections on His Year at Oasis
It’s been a great joy and privilege to serve as Ministry Apprentice at Oasis Church for the last 12 months. I’ve been shaped in many profound ways and I have learned many valuable lessons. As I draw closer to the end of my time at Oasis, I wanted to share some of those lessons with you. Before I do, let me tell you how I ended up here at Oasis. Through my involvement in our denomination over the last few years, I got to know both Ben and Adam. Each time I engaged with them I was impressed with their love for the Lord, and their preparedness for ministry. I was also blown away by the spiritual growth that had been occuring in the life of a good friend
Spiritual Health Check
Spiritual Health Check Check-ups are a regular part of our lives. We have regular check-ups of our bodies, regular servicing of our cars, even annual performance reviews at work. But what about our souls? When was the last time you conducted a spiritual check-up? 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, ‘Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.’ Peter writes in 2 Peter 1:10, ‘Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election.’ It is healthy and good for us to consider the question, ‘How am I going in my faith? Am I growing? Have I stagnated spiritually?’ And there is perhaps no better time to consider this question than at the start of a new year. I would encourage you to take
Nourishing Minds: A Podcast Guide for Thoughtful Listening
Nourishing Minds: A Podcast Guide for Thoughtful Listening Have you ever heard the age-old saying: “You are what you eat”? I remember my Mum invoking this wisdom when faced with our abandoned, cold vegetables at the dinner table. It was a simple lesson, teaching us that failing to eat the nutritious choices would leave us lacking in energy and strength. It’s a basic principle – what we consume impacts our physical well-being. What about our minds? Just as the food we eat nourishes our bodies, what we listen to shapes our minds. Philippians 4:8 says to fill our minds with things that are pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy. This includes the music we listen to, the shows we watch, and yes, today more than ever, the podcasts we
How Psalm 46 Helped Me to Face Chemotherapy
How Psalm 46 Helped Me to Face Chemotherapy Selina Fyfe My stomach churns and clenches, my heart races and I take deep breaths, trying to stay calm. The only way to stop cancer from killing me is to go through some of the hardest treatments available. Fear assaults me each day as I get ready for round after round of chemotherapy, for scans and tests, for surgeries and blood transfusions. To live, I must almost die. It takes a great deal of courage to get ready and face the treatment that I know will cause agonising pain, that knocks my blood cells and bone marrow so hard I struggle to breathe, that makes my heart race, my hair fall out and my nails lift. The chemotherapy kills the cancer
