Marching Forth!

" He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19   And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20   For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed ." John 3:18-20 At Teen Camp this week I used an illustration of what it means to "come to the light."  I told the kids to imagine we had a party at an abandoned home with music pumping, people were drinking, dancing, and increasingly rowdy.  People at the party started vandalising the house by smashing bottles, breaking furniture, and punching holes in walls. Suddenly a guy runs into the party, shuts down the music, and informs us of approaching police cars.  The lights are quickly turned off and a hush falls over the crowd....

I have the privilege of being the speaker at Camp Kedron this week, a Christian camp which has shared the Gospel with young people for over 50 years.  Holiday camps attract youth from diverse backgrounds and beliefs and it is a joy to share the truth of God’s Word with them, to answer questions, and tackle issues which confront people today.  Centred on Jesus Christ and the Gospel, leaders from various Christian denominations and groups unite as one to demonstrate the love and grace of God. I was admiring the artistic skills of campers who chose the ceramic elective today, and I came across a plate with a message and scripture reference. As a student of scripture (hopefully not one who could be described as ever learning but never coming to the truth) I was instantly curious what passage in scripture could possibly support the idea presented.  Love and judgment are never placed in opposition to one another in the Bible, as if righteous judgment cannot spring from ...

I have been reading through Mere Christianity, a classic penned by C.S. Lewis.  It is really a terrific resource which deals with a lot of complex aspects of Christianity which he explains exceptionally well.  As an intellectual who once was an atheist, his insights are the product of wisdom from being born again and part of his own personal journey in knowing God. One consequence of  coming to faith in Christ is a more sharpened sense of our own sinfulness.  Maturity in faith brings a greater sense of our need for Christ to transform us from within.  C.S. Lewis wrote: When I come to evening prayers and try to reckon up the sins of the day, nine times out of ten the most obvious one is some sin against charity; I have sulked or snapped or sneered or snubbed or stormed.  And the excuse that immediately springs to my mind is that the provocation was so sudden and unexpected; I was caught off my guard, I had not time to collect myself.  Now that may ...

Part of the culture shock for me in immigrating to Australia has been adjusting to the amount of annual leave people receive.  The base amount for full-time employees is 4 weeks paid--with 10 sick days a year and something called "long-service leave" which is two additional months off.  If you happened to be sick in the same year long-service leave was taken, this would be almost 4 months off work paid. Whilst some people's eyes light up at the possibility of that much time off work, something inside of me shudders at the prospect.  Holidays, in my mind, have the connotation "going to work" has for others.  Now I have been blessed and benefited greatly by holiday experiences I have enjoyed with family, but they aren't something I pine for.  Holidays are not a dangling carrot which help me push through the daily grind.  I am satisfied and pleased with my daily work routine, and I love what I do.  Why would I want to create extra hassle and expense to...