Pastoring – Some Advice
Things I Wish I Knew about Pastoring a Church When I was Young I was 28 when I started in full-time ministry as associate pastor in a large Presbyterian church. […]
“Out of Africa” with John Wilson
36 hours in transit (Melbourne – Hong Kong – Bangkok – Addis Ababa – Blantyre) seems at first to be an unreasonable and unbearable route to take just to connect […]
Christ at Work: Reflections on a visit to Kenya, August 2023
The Independent Presbyterian Church of Kenya (IPC) traces its beginnings back past independence in 1963, to 1948 when two missionaries from the USA came to Kenya, and even earlier, to the […]
Multi-Site Churches?
Multi-Service, Multi-Site, Multi-Church Some things become so common as to seem normal, even inevitable, when in reality they are innovations. For many churches, it’s normal to repeat the same worship […]
A Gospel Night at Tennant Creek
A Gospel Night in Tennant Creek By the time my wife and I had reached Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory of Australia the complaint that we had heard all […]
Aged Care Ministry: Challenges and Responses
I have been a Presbyterian pastor for twenty-five years, the last three of which I was privileged to serve as an aged-care chaplain. I ministered in three Presbyterian nursing homes […]
TIM KELLER AS A PREACHER
WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT PREACHING FROM TIM KELLER When I heard last week that Tim Keller had died, I had two responses. The first was sadness. I was sad because […]
A REFLECTION ON RECENT OVERSEAS MINISTRY
Despite thirty years of overseas ministry, regularly including India, teaching and attempting to demonstrate the principles of systematic Bible preaching, each journey leaves me wondering at God’s marvellous plan to […]
GIVING OURSELVES WITHOUT PREACHING OURSELVES
HOW TO GIVE OURSELVES WITHOUT PREACHING OURSELVES Ministering the gospel in a godly way is not just difficult but impossible. To the Thessalonian Christians, Paul spoke of himself as like a nursing mother (1 Thess.2:7) and also like a father (1 Thess.2:11). His language was very strong: ‘So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with […]
NEARLY THE LAST WORD FROM REVESBY
NEARLY THE LAST WORD As the Vandals threatened Hippo in 430, Augustine – who was close to the end of his own life – confessed to his congregation: ‘I […]
AN INDUCTION SERMON (Acts 10)
INDUCTION OF PENDETA GUNUNG MASTON HUTAURUK into the pastoral charge of HURSTVILLE INDONESIAN PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (29th October 2022) – Sermon on Acts 10:24-48 by Robert Benn Let us pray: May […]
TELLING THE STORY OF JESUS
A Tract in Every Language telling the Story of Jesus Have you ever been in a situation where you would love to leave a gospel message with someone but had […]
My First Night with Jesus Cares
My First Night with Jesus Cares I am currently filling in for a friend from Church as the Volunteer Co-ordinator for Jesus Cares Ministry, which is an interdenominational charity that […]
In it for the Long Haul with Paul McKendrick (Profiles in Christian Living, Season 2 Episode 16)
Reverend Paul McKendrick has served as a pastor in Evans Head, and now works with Ministry and Mission. In this episode of Profiles in Christian Living, Mark Powell talks to Paul about what we are to think of the coming minister drought.
Song: God’s Perfect Plan
(Tunes: All Saints or Joyful, Joyful) 1. God has made us in His image,In His likeness we were formed,Pinnacle of His creation,Known by Him before we’re born.In rebellion, we were […]
Are we shooting ourselves in the foot?
I’m retired, and I know I’m getting grumpy, but I’ve visited lots of churches this year (in person or online) and too many of our church services are just too […]