Thought for the week

I sit and remember. In the middle of the night, I remember. I remember when I go for a walk. The journey of learning and submitting to the Holy Spirit is never static or confined to theological or academic terms. When I recently asked a group of primary school children who the Holy Spirit is, one of…

Welcome to our service today. We have the joy of hearing from Rev Martin Stewart, Alpine Presbytery Executive Officer, speaking on the topic: ‘We can’t do church in Timaru without our neighbours’. Martin is a wonderfully creative thinker, and I am sure he will give you much to ponder! I will be in Auckland attending…

Welcome to our service today and happy Mother’s Day to all the mums among us. Not everyone born is a mother, but everyone born has a mother. That statement sounds more profound than it is! Obviously not everyone born will be a mother. After all about half the population are male and incapable of giving…

Welcome to our service today. It is nice to be back with you after a very special weekend away with our extended family in Dunedin last weekend. We didn’t get to church last Sunday but we were staying in the Russell St Sunday School building which has been converted to accommodation (does that count?). This…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…