Thought for the week
Thought for the Week 26 April 2026
Welcome to our service today and a special welcome to Jason Shaw from St Andrews, Geraldine who will be preaching and administering Communion today. Below is a snippet of our National Moderator’s ANZAC message. The full version will be in the next LINK. They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 19 April 2026
Welcome to our service of worship today as we continue proclaiming the resurrection of the Christ, this time through the testimony of two unknown disciples who encounter Jesus on the first day of his resurrection as they walk home from Jerusalem to Emmaus, a journey of 11kms. This story is loaded with insights into the […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 12 April 2026
Welcome to our service today. I have been reflecting on Easter weekend and the build up to it through the season of Lent and how special and rich I found it this year. The special events created around this really added value for me; the Shrove Tuesday pancake, praise and prayer night that kicked it […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 5 April 2026
Moderator’s Easter message 2026 (redacted for space) Once, I thought humans were basically good and ethically responsible all the time. Some still put the case that human evolution and development will lead us into a new era of enlightenment when that will be true. That view was demolished once and for all for me by […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 29 March 2026
Welcome to our Palm Sunday service today. The scene of Jesus entering Jerusalem riding on a donkey is very evocative and rich in symbolism and meaning. It’s also enigmatic. All four gospels record this event but with subtle differences. Today we are reflecting on Matthew’s account which, strangely, has Jesus riding two animals! How is […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 22 March 2026
Kia Ora E Te Whanau This Sunday, in the fifth week of Lent, we hear three remarkable readings that draw us toward Holy Week: Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones, Paul’s promise of the Spirit’s life-giving power, and Jesus calling Lazarus from the tomb. Each passage asks the same searching question: “Can these bones live?” Ezekiel […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 15 March 2026
Welcome to our service today. We will be reflecting on an alternative lectionary reading from Luke 20 about the wicked tenants in God’s vineyard. It’s a provocative parable aimed at the leaders of Israel in Jesus day, and it got him into a lot of trouble. The main criticism is that the tenants acted as […]
Continue Reading
Thought for the Week 8 March 2026
Welcome to our service today on the third Sunday in Lent. Today we dive into the encounter Jesus has with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. Like the depth of that well, this story has much to explore and much to teach us about Jesus and what he offers us. It’s a fascinating and often […]
Continue Reading
Thought For the Week 1 March 2026
The Pharisees get a bad rap in the gospels. Often criticised by Jesus for their hypocrisy holding to tight standards in religious matters but ignoring the weightier things of the law like justice. They were strict Sabbatarians who were offended when remarkable healings were performed by Jesus on the Sabbath. But one Pharisee stands out, […]
Continue Reading
Thought For The Week 22 February 2026
Moderator’s Lent message 2026: 40 Days & 40 Nights For the first third of my 36 years in parish ministry ‘I didn’t do Lent’. I had my preaching plan; I didn’t use the lectionary either. I always took into account that Easter was a significant weekend with Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. But looking back, […]
Continue Reading