The Gift of Grace 25 December 2022 Christmas Eve midnight and Christmas Day 2022 Preacher: Ven. Nick Mountfort – Vicar Reading: John 1:1-14 God of grace, On this day You give us the gift of Jesus. Help us to receive all you have to give. In Jesus’ name we ask it… […]
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Actions Speak Louder than Words 11 December 2022 St Peter’s Readings: Isaiah 35:1-10, Matthew 11:2-11 Open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name we ask it. A very warm welcome to those that have come today particularly to remember loved ones who have died. I wrote […]
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Getting our Hearts Ready to Receive Jesus 27 November 2022 Sermon Advent 1 Readings: Matthew 24:37-44 and Isaiah 2:1-5 At College, they said never start a sermon with an apology, but I do have to apologize that Gillian Southey from Christian World Service is not the preacher today. She was going to launch […]
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A New Kind of King 20 November 2022 St Luke’s Reading: Luke 23:33-43 Loving Jesus you hung on the cross in a new kind of kingship. Help us to learn from your example. Amen The dying Vicar asked that her lawyer and her accountant be present at her bedside as she died. […]
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Queen’s Thanksgiving Service 18 September 2022 Reading: Luke 6:46-49 We come today with heavy hearts as we are forced to say goodbye to our beloved Queen. The new Prime Minister of Britain, announcing her death, described the Queen as a rock on which the nation of Britain, and the Commonwealth, was built. A […]
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Leaving the Place Better Than You Found It 18 September 2022 Reading: Luke 16:1-13 Loving God, open the scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen The rich man turns to the manager, “What is this I hear about you? Give me an account for your management.” […]
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Risking All for the Lost 11 September 2022 St Peter’s Reading: Luke 15:1-10 Faithful God Open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way In Jesus name we ask it Amen Have you ever risked everything to go after one lost thing? Today Jesus tells us of two people doing […]
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Breaking Down the Barriers that Divide 22 August 2022 Reading: Luke 13:10-17 Ever present God, open the meaning of Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Recently a company in the States has begun to develop sound barrier breaking passenger planes again. The nickname for the plane […]
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Being Encouraged and Encouraging 14 August 2022 St Peter’s Readings: Hebrews 11:29-12:2, Luke 12:49-56 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us. In terms of medals, Birmingham has been the most successful Commonwealth Games ever for […]
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The Lord’s Prayer: an invitation to intimacy 24 July 2022 Reading: Luke 11:1-13 St Peter’s Translated into over 500 languages, used by millions of people every day, said when we have just died, at our baptism, at weddings and funerals, sung and chanted, I refer of course to the Lord’s Prayer or the […]
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A Life-giving Relationship with Jesus 17 July 2022 Reading: Luke 10:38-42 St Luke’s Jesus wants a life-giving relationship with you and me. He gives our life direction and purpose. Our Gospel has Jesus going into Martha’s Home. She has a sister named Mary who is sitting at Jesus feet listening to him. […]
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Travelling Light to Show Compassion 3 July 2022 Nurse Maude Sunday Reading: Luke 10:1-11,16-20 You can soon tell a real tramper from a novice. A real tramper packs light. When Mike Baker and I tramped Mount Somers we carefully shared out the stuff. Mike had the gas stove, cans of fruit, rice pudding, […]
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Being Grateful Changes Us 19 June 2022 St Peter’s Reading: Luke 17:11-19 Open the Gospel to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen Two men walking across a paddock turned to see an enormous bull charging towards them. Fearing for their lives they began to run. Pretty soon […]
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Trinity Sunday 12 June 2022 Reading: Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31 Are you happy? You might have been too busy to ask yourself this question. It’s an important question. Can I invite you to think of a time when you were happy? It might have been last week, or maybe it was last year. I […]
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Praying with Jesus 22 May 2022 St Peter’s Reading: John 17:20-26 Loving God, open the meaning of the Gospel to us in a new and fresh way today. Amen The story is told of an old man who was very ill, and the family called for the vicar. As she entered the […]
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Service St Peter’s/Talk to Rotary 15 May 2022 Readings: John 13:31-35; Acts 11:1-18 And Jesus said, “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” I read that the mission of Rotary is to provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the fellowship of business, […]
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The Power of Pastoral Care Done Together 1 May 2022 Easter 3 Reading: John 21:1-19 Never underestimate the power of a caring community. This last week I received a lovely email from Bill Germin. Bill and his wife Jane spent just 6 months with us before they moved to Central Otago. […]
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Easter Changes Everything 17 April 2022 Easter Day Sermon Reading: John 20:1-18 Loving Jesus at Easter you rose from death and changed the world, change us too. In your name we ask it. Amen A small change can make a big difference. A man wanted to send an email to his wife […]
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Palm Sunday: Choosing Jesus’ Way 10 April 2022 Reading: Luke 19:28-40 I used to have a little bronze badge with the letters W W J D inscribed on it. It was given to me by a kind parishioner. Does anyone know what the letters W W J D stand for? Yes, that’s […]
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Keeping Focus 6 March 2021 Lent 1 Reading: Luke 4:1-13 They call them focus groups. These panels of carefully chosen people represent different sections of society and they are brought together to give feedback. It might be new washing powder, or a political party. I must have one of those faces, or maybe […]
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The Grace to Forgive 20 February, 2021 St Luke’s Reading: Luke 6:27-38 God wants you to have a fulfilling, happy and abundant life. I say that because the attitude we have when approaching today’s reading is important. Jesus says (in the Message version): “Here’s what I propose. Don’t hit back. If someone wants […]
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Know the Healing Touch of Jesus 13 February 2022 Reading: Luke 6:17-26 Loving God open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus’ name we ask it. Amen. I was very touched by the musical tribute that Bob, one of our musical directors, had organized for his grandad, […]
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The Baptism of Jesus – knowing we are the beloved of God 9 January 2022 Reading: Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 Loving God, Open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus’ name. Amen And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the beloved with whom I am […]
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God’s Gift to You – the Epiphany January 2021 Reading: Matthew 2:1-12 We have come to the beginning of another year, and it is timely that we are celebrating the arrival of the wise men. They are following their hearts’ desire. Their longing is to find the Saviour, the Christ of all […]
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Christmas 25 December 2021 God’s Message of Love Readings: John 1:1-14, Luke 2:1-14 Open the Bible to us, Loving God, in a new and exciting way. In Jesus name we ask it. Amen Communication is important at the best of times but most especially at Christmas. The very first Silent Night […]
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Advent 4 Joseph: A Role Model 19 December 2021 Reading: Matthew 1:18-25 Loving God Open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name we ask it. Amen The unsung hero of Christmas is Joseph. There are carols about Mary, the shepherds, the wise men, the baby, […]
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The Lord Coming to His Temple 5 December 2021 Getting Ready for Jesus St Luke’s Reading: Malachi 3:1-4 It’s really lovely to welcome Freyja into the family of God through her baptism this morning. It wasn’t that long ago that we baptised Olaf, her brother, also. I wonder what you had to do […]
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The Presence of the Risen Lord Sustains Us 4 December 2021 The ordination of Margaret Neate, St Peter’s Readings: 2 Samuel 2:14-22, John 21:15-19 Thank you, Margaret, for asking me to preach on this very special occasion. We here at St Peter’s feel very privileged to have you as our curate. I wonder if […]
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Finding Peace in the Midst of Chaos 28 November 2021 Reading: Luke 21: 25-36 When our family was young, grandad gave the girls a video of Dad’s Army. As a result, the girls, before they could even talk properly, would do impersonations of Sergeant Jones. “Don’t panic Captain Mannering. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.” they […]
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Jesus the Approachable King 21 November, 2021 Reading: John 18:33-37 One of the things I really like about New Zealand is how approachable our leaders are. It is not so in other countries. In 2003 I was in Malaysia staying in a church house. A young couple in the congregation were getting married. The word […]
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Compassion – the Mark of the Saints 7 November 2021 All Saints Sunday Reading: John 11:32-44 It’s wonderful to be able to welcome William into the family of God today. It’s repeat business because not all that long ago we welcomed Matthew in baptism as well. I know both William and Matthew have been born […]
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Living in Love 31 October 2021 Reading: Mark 12:28-34 The story is told about John the Evangelist (author of John’s Gospel and the book of Revelation) sometimes called the apostle of love, who was preaching at Ephesus into his nineties. At that age, John was so feeble that he had to be carried into […]
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Following Jesus, a Journey from Darkness to Light 24 October 2021 Reading: Mark 10:46-52 Faithful God Open the meaning of Scripture to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen I have one of the best jobs. Every day I meet people with enormous faith and courage. This day was […]
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Knowing We are Loved by God – the Journey of a Lifetime 3 October 2021 St Peters 8 & 9:30am and live streamed Reading: Mark 10:2-16 It’s wonderful to be welcoming Alaska and Wolf into the family of God through their baptism today. It’s also Margaret’s first baptism. I didn’t want to […]
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Who do you say that I am? 12 September 2021 St Peter’s Lockdown Service Reading: Mark 8:27-38 Loving God, open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus’ name. Amen. Knowing who someone is, is very important. I saw a cartoon of a couple in lockdown. “It’s so good Susan,” says […]
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Coping with Change Widens the Circle of God’s Love 5 September 2021 St Peter’s Lockdown Service Reading: Mark 7:24-37 One of the hard things about lockdown and life in general is the pace of change. Who would have thought 18 months ago that we would be locking down and that I would be […]
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How Does God’s Love Come to Us? 29 August 2021 St Peter’s during Lockdown. Reading: Song of Songs 2:8-13. Let us pray… Faithful God please open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Well-done everyone for making it this far through lockdown. If you haven’t joined the dog in […]
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We Are What We Eat 22 August 2021 St Peter’s Lockdown service Reading: John 6:56-69 There’s a saying “We are what we eat.” The idea is that if we eat healthy, then we become healthy. At this time of lockdown, it becomes even more important that we eat well. I was hugely helped […]
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God’s Upside-Down Kingdom 15 August 2021 St Luke’s Reading: Luke 1:47-55 I was on a zoom meeting with people in Fiji on Thursday. I was struck by just how difficult things are for them. Their archbishop has just died, and they explained that they have been in lockdown for four months. Four […]
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The Bread that Really Satisfies 1 August 2021 St Peter’s, 8am and 9:30am Reading: John 6:24-35 What’s your favourite meal? If you had a last meal before going to the guillotine, what would it be? It’s hard to imagine why you are going to the guillotine but bear with me. What is it […]
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The Miracle of Gratitude 25 July 2021 St Peter’s 8 and 9:30am Reading: John 6:1-13 Estimates vary as to the size of the crowd. Most think it was about 5,000. That morning we had crossed over to the other side on the Interislander. It was a smooth sailing and a beautiful day. From […]
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Enlarging our Hearts like Jesus Heart 18 July 2021 St Peter’s 8am, St Luke’s 9:30am Reading: Mark 6:30-34,53-56 Open the Gospel to us in fresh and encouraging way. In Jesus name we ask this. Last weekend I had the pleasure of taking my daughter’s wedding. Not everyone can say they married their […]
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Relying on God’s Grace Alone 4 July, 2021 Reading: Mark 6:7-13 Jesus ordered them to take nothing for the journey: no bread, no bag, no money in their belts, and they were not to put on two tunics. It’s great to be back from my Sabbatical. I was worried you might have forgotten […]
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We Are Symbols of God’s Faithfulness 21 February 2021 First Sunday in Lent Reading: Genesis 9:8-17 The legend is that the unicorn was late for the Ark and so perished in the flood. I have actually seen not one unicorn but two of them. I was a uni student living at College House […]
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Discovering Our True Direction 16 February 2021 Ash Wednesday Reading: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 A friend of mine was scuba diving for the first time. Everything was going fine, until he entered an area which was especially deep and dark. There was so much silt and mud that he couldn’t see his hand in […]
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Healing Touch 14 February 2021 Reading: Mark 1:40-45 Faithful God open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus’ name we ask it. Amen Verse 41 “… Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him…” It would be easy to let this simple action of Jesus pass […]
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Evangelism, a Pandemic of Love 24 January 2020 Reading: Mark 1:14-20 And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” I wonder if Simon and Andrew had any idea what they were agreeing to that day beside the lake. Mark records for us that they immediately […]
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Intergenerational Mentoring/Openness to God 17 January 2021 Reading: 1 Samuel 3:1-10 I don’t know what you are like when you first get woken up. My problem is I have no filter on what I say. The other Sunday afternoon I was having a wee nap after the morning services and a man walked […]
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The Baptism of Jesus 10 January 2021 Reading: Mark 1:4-11 Open our hearts and minds to hear your message of love. In Jesus’ name we ask it. Amen It is wonderful to be welcoming Beau into the family of God through baptism today. In his baptism he is named as the beloved of God. […]
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Seeing the Signs of God’s Presence in a Difficult Year 24 December 2020 Reading: Luke 2:1-14 Faithful God, on this holy night fill my words and our hearts with your love. In Jesus name. Amen Verse 12 of our reading says “This will be a sign to you: You will find a […]
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Christ the King Sunday 22 November 2020 Compassionate Service the New Measure. Reading: Matthew 25:31-46 Today’s Sunday goes by the name of Christ the King. I grew up with a […]
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Cold Calling with the Warmth of Peace 18 October 2020 St Luke’s Sunday Reading: Luke 10:1-9 They call it cold calling. Knocking on someone’s door without an appointment. I heard of a young life insurance salesman. He was given a street to cold call on to try and sell life insurance. The first door was […]
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Talk on St Francis 4 October 2020 If ever there was a saint for our times it must be St Francis of Assisi, whose day we keep today. He was born in Italy in 1181 and he is often misunderstood to be something to do with animals or bird-baths or maybe the prayer of […]
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Actions Speak Louder Than Words 27 September 2020 Reading: Matthew 21:28-32 There is a well-known saying “Actions speak louder than words.” And to this we can add St Francis of Assisi’s advice, “Preach the gospel always, if necessary, use words.” Jesus, just like a COVID test, is really getting up the noses […]
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God is Good Beyond Measure 20 September 2020 Reading: Matthew 20:1-16 Verse15: The landowner turns to the worker. Are you jealous because I am generous? Voted 53rd best movie of all time, Amadeus tells the story of Antonio Salieri (a contemporary of Mozart) and his confession of being overwhelmed with jealousy by all […]
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Becoming a Sign of God’s Love 13 September 2020 Spring Celebration Reading: Matthew 6:25-34 Signs are very important. The driver in front came to a sudden stop to let the children go across the crossing. The driver behind was enraged. He tooted his horn, waved his middle finger at the driver, and […]
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Coping with Conflict 6 September 2020 Reading: Matthew 18:15-20 Loving Jesus you have so much to teach me, teach me a little more today. In your name I pray. Amen People respond differently in conflict. A woman ran a red traffic light and crashed into a man’s car. Both of […]
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A Colony of Heaven 30 August 2020 Romans 12:9-21 Recently our own Rocket Lab was given the contract to fly to Venus. Imagine if we have to set up a New Zealand colony on Venus. What would we need? I once asked the question of a youth group as an icebreaker. Except it was […]
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On This Faith I Will Build My Church 23 August 2020 Reading: Matthew 16:13-20 I often record programmes from the History Channel to watch later. Last Monday I watched one I had recorded last Christmas. It was about St Peter. It followed the archaeological evidence that bones found in the crypt of St Peter’s […]
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It Always Pays to Keep Our Options Open 16 August 2020 Reading: Matthew 15:21-28 The vicar received a call. “I’d like you to baptise my cat,” went the voice on the other end of the phone. “I’m sorry. It’s not our practice to baptise cats.” “Oh, that’s a shame,” continued the caller, “I […]
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Being Searched For in Love 26 July, 2020 Reading: Matthew 13:44-52 I wonder if you have ever searched for something with all your heart. For twelve years we lived in Timaru. And a great outing for the kids was going to the dump. I used to bribe the kids. “Help me at the […]
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Come to Me 5 July 2020 Reading: Matthew 11:25-30 And Jesus said, “Come to me all who labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” If anyone could use a break it’s Dr Ashley Bloomfield. Having lived and breathed COVID 19 for months he announced at a press conference […]
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A New Name 28 June 2020 St Peter’ s Patronal Festival Reading: Matthew 16:13-19 Open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus Name. Names are very important. Bruce Williams, a member of our congregation, was telling me how, when he was presented as a child to be baptised, the priest […]
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An Invitation to Intimacy and Mission 7 June 2020 Reading: Matthew 28:16-20 One of the TV programmes that reappeared recently was “The Waltons”.I must confess that during lock down I watched an episode. Something I never noticed about it as a kid was that every time they sit down to eat there is always an […]
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I am the Church: the democratizing power of the Spirit 31 May 2020 Pentecost Readings: Numbers 11:24-30; Acts 2:1-21; John 20:19-23 Today we find the disciples in lock down. Like us they are locked down because they are fearful. Like us they have been in lock down for 50 days. And, like us, […]
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Unknown Anxiety 17 May 2020 Over these last few weeks, while in many ways our activities have been severely restricted, if you’re like me you may well have extended aspects of your life, for better or for worse. For example, I haven’t done so much walking on a regular basis for absolute ages. Every day […]
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Jesus Goes Ahead of Us 10 May, 2020 Reading: John 14:1-14 Peter is a great friend. When he tramped the Abel Tasman with us he would catch the water taxi and go ahead because he had shin splints. This way he would arrive before us at each hut and he would put on the fire, […]
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The Call to an Intimate Life with Jesus 3 May, 2020 Reading: John 10:1-10 Open the words of Scripture to us O God. I’m a little bit qualified to talk about today’s reading. After all, I had a job on a sheep and gorse farm behind Pleasant Point. It was my job […]
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Peace in Facing our Woundedness 19 April 2020 Second Sunday of Easter Reading: John 20:19-31 It was great to see Boris Johnson the Prime Minister of Britain getting better from Covid 19 with the care of nurse Jenny from Invercargill. As it turns out this is not the first British Prime Minister to […]
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Love is the Essential Worker 12 April 2020 Easter Day Reading: Matthew 28:1-10 Faithful God open the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. Amen. As we endure lockdown there has been a lot of debate about to who is actually an essential worker. I was deeply relieved when the […]
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By His Wounds We Are Healed 10 April 2020 Good Friday Reading: Isaiah 52:13-53:12 Little Johnny wasn’t doing very well at school, especially when it came to maths. He went to a state school, but his parents thought he might do better at St Michael’s and All Angels School here in Christchurch, […]
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Having the Same Mind as Christ Jesus 5 April 2020 Palm Sunday Reading: Philippians 2:5-11 In a weak moment I said I would help the vicar of Akaroa walk around his parish. He had a special name for it, “beating the bounds,” I think it was. Anyway, he was to walk all the […]
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The Blind Can See: trusting and putting our hand in the hand of Jesus brings us to the light 22 March 2020 Lent 4 Reading: John 9:1-41 Open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way In Jesus name Amen Patrick lived in a remote village in Ireland. His brother Seamus […]
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Breaking Barriers with Kindness 15 March 2020 Lent 3 Reading: John 4:5-42 I meet some really interesting people in my job. One such person was an older man in a rest home in Hornby. He was telling me his life story and it included being an engineer working on the Concorde. He was part […]
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A Unique Path to Faith 8 March, 2020 Lent 2 Reading: John 3:1-8 We all have a unique path to faith. Jesus starts where we are, and we grow from there. Open the Bible to us O God in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name we ask it. Amen It […]
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The Grace to Forgive 23 February 2020 Reading: Matthew 5:38-48 On Monday I found myself adviser to a friend with his Sky TV. It was only getting one channel and that channel was Duke which is pretty lame. When I say adviser, I saw myself as responsible for drinking the cups […]
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Choosing Life Inside Our Hearts 16 February 2020 Reading: Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Matthew 5:21-37 It was St Augustine some 1,600 years ago who said, “Love God and do as you like.” When the girls were much younger, I thought I would […]
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The Light of Christ Makes All the Difference and We are its Bearers Candlemas 2 February 2020 Reading: Luke 2:22-40 Some places desperately need light. Rosemary and I did the rail trail in Central Otago. There was this one tunnel, beautifully constructed in brick, which unbeknownst to me gently curved toward the light […]
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Called by Jesus: the only qualification needed is openness to Jesus 26 January 2020 Reading: Matthew 4:12-25 Applying for a job is always a stressful time. There’s massaging your CV. Then there’s getting the referees and making sure they will say nice things about you. Then there’s the worst part, the interview. I […]
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The Baptism of Jesus 12 January 2020 Being the Beloved of God, Filling that Donut Reading: Matthew 3:13-17 Some of you, like me, will have seen over the holidays the interview with Sir Elton John about his life. It was a remarkable interview for his honesty about his struggles and his heartache […]
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Following Your Heart’s Desire – the Epiphany 5 January 2020 Reading: Matthew 2:1-12 The year was 1970 and the little girl climbed onto her grandmother’s bed. She couldn’t wait for grandma to open her mahogany jewellery box for grandma had promised the little girl that she could choose one piece of jewellery for […]
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Don’t be Afraid, God is with You 25 December 2019 The Baby Still Alive Giving us Courage Reading: Luke 2:8-14 Today/tonight we gather to celebrate a birth. But why gather to celebrate a birth? After all it’s a birth a long time ago in an animal feeding trough. It is a birth to a poor […]
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Advent 2 –Room for Us All 8 December 2019 Readings: Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12 Loving God open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way, in Jesus name we ask it. Amen Two weeks ago we enjoyed the preschool and good news club nativity play. They have become world famous […]
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Advent Sunday 2019 One of the great treasures of our church is our prayer book. On this advent Sunday 30 years ago A New Zealand Prayer Book: He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa was launched. I was asked to write a hymn to celebrate this occasion. So I want to introduce each verse, get you […]
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Affirming Eternal Life 17 November 2019 Reading: Luke 20:27-38 Open the Bible to us in fresh way O God. In Jesus name we ask it. The story is told of the great physicist Albert Einstein travelling on a train. The conductor came around to punch his ticket. “I’m sorry,” said Einstein […]
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Longing to See Jesus 10 November 2019 Reading: Luke 19:1-10 A young friend of mine has English grandparents. He had never meant them but he had […]
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Seeing Others as God Sees Them 3 November 2019 St Luke’s, Yaldhurst Readings: 1 Samuel 16:6-12; Luke 6:20-31 The way we see people can get us into a lot of trouble. A bit like the man who walked into the produce section of his local Tesco’s supermarket to buy a half a head […]
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Learning to Listen 20 October 2019 Reading: Luke 18:1-18 Open the meaning of the Scriptures to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name we ask it. The old man rang me with his request. “I would like you to bring me communion on Easter Day.” I said okay […]
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“If your riches increase set not your heart on them.” 29 September 2019 Reading: Luke 16:19-31; 1 Timothy 6:6-19 Faithful God Open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and exciting ways. Amen. If you don’t think you need a new car then you haven’t, like me, driven a Tesla […]
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Baptism at St Luke’s 15 September 2019 Reading: Luke 15:1-10 Faithful God, please open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way, in Jesus name. It is wonderful to welcome Nathaniel into the family of God through his baptism. Today was made even more special for me when […]
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Spring and the Goodness of Creation /Father’s Day 1 September 2019 Reading: Genesis 1 Today we have two things to celebrate: Father’s Day and Spring. I heard of one father talking with his accountant, “In order to fill out your tax form,” said the accountant, “I need to know how many dependents you have?” “Nine,” […]
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Finding Courage to Face Our Conflicts 18 August 2019 Reading: Luke12:49-56 It’s wonderful to be welcoming Olaf into the family of God this morning. I have done a little research and it turns out Olaf is the Patron Saint of Norway. He was their first king and once he converted to Christianity, he was […]
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Discovering a Father who Delights in Us 11 August 2019 Reading: Luke 12:32-40 Loving God please open the Scriptures to us in a new and exciting way, In Jesus name we ask it. At the end of my first year at university I got a job on a farm in the back-blocks of South Canterbury. […]
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Finding the Delight of Hospitality 21 July 2019 Reading: Luke 10:38-42 The Celtic tradition has these words… I met a stranger yest’re’een; I put food in the eating-place, Drink in the drinking place. Music in the listening place; And, in the sacred name of the Trinity, He blessed myself and my house. […]
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Showing Mercy and Gracefully Allowing Mercy to be Shown to Us 14 July 2019 Reading: Luke 10:25-37 A small orphaned boy lived with his grandmother. One night their house caught fire. The grandmother was old and fragile. She perished in the flames trying to get to the boy. A crowd gathered around the […]
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Freedom to Travel Light 7 July 2019 Nurse Maude Sunday Reading: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 You can soon tell a real tramper from a novice. A real tramper packs light. When I was tramping the St James, we did share out the stuff. Ben my godson had the water, cans of fruit, rice pudding, […]
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Unconditional Love 5 May, 2019 St Luke’s Reading: John 21:1-19 It’s very exciting today to be welcoming Matthew into the church through his baptism. I know it’s a special day for his whole family and us here at St Luke’s too. I know that Matthew has a loving and a caring family especially […]
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While it was Still Dark 21 April, 2019 Easter Morning Reading: John 20:1-9 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary came to the tomb. While it was still dark. The most fun you can have at Youth Group is playing Spotlight. The rules are pretty simple. You wait […]
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Good Friday Reflection 19 April, 2019 I heard of a high powered CEO of a large multinational. How do you cope with all the stress she was asked? […]
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Finding Joy in Being Like Jesus and Serving Others 14 April, 2019 Palm Sunday Readings: John 12:12-19, Philippians 2:5-11 In a raid on the Comanchero Motorcycle Gang this week police seized among other things several gold-plated motorcycles, a couple of late-model Range Rovers, and one white Rolls-Royce Wraith – worth at least $500,000. The reason […]
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Prodigal Son 31 March 2019 Reading: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 There are hugs and then there’s hugs. As far as hugs go, this one has to be right up there. Five-year-old Ayaan Naeem stood quietly with his family after the burial of his father and brother who were both victims of the mosque shooter. […]
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Ash Wednesday 6 March 2019 Reading: Matthew 6:1-6,16-21; Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 Between the years 1854 and 1929 over 200,000 orphans and abandoned children in cities in the east of the United States were put on trains in search of families. Many of the children had lost their parents in epidemics, some where from […]
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Giving up Judging Others for Lent 3 March 2018 Sunday before Lent, St Luke’s Reading: Luke 6:37-45 I heard of a very successful executive driving down a suburban street in his brand new silver Jaguar. Suddenly a brick was thrown from the footpath thumping dangerously into the side of the car. Stopping […]
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Life Changing Encounters 10 February 2019 Readings: Isaiah 6:1-8; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11; Luke 5:1-11 I wonder if you have ever had a life changing encounter. Life changing encounters can and do happen all the time. I got friendly with a nun and she told me her story. She felt very strongly that God was calling […]
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Generational Warmth 2 February 2019 – Candlemas Reading: Luke 2:22-40 When we were co-vicars of Burwood parish, I was really shocked. The New Life pastor came to me one day. The New Life congregation met in the school hall. “I want to know your secret,” he said. I didn’t know I had a secret so […]
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Getting What’s on the Box: Living Lives of Integrity 27 January 2019 St Peter’s Church Reading: Luke 4:14-21 Faithful God, open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen. It’s always good when you get a product that does what it says on the box. I don’t usually do […]
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God’s Love Doesn’t Run Out 20 January 2019 Reading: John 2:1-11 Dear God Open the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way. Through Jesus we ask this. We read today, “There was a wedding and Jesus and his disciples were invited and the wine ran out.” It would be difficult to be invited to […]
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New Year, New Gifts – Us! 6 January, 2019 Feast of the Epiphany Reading: Matthew 12:1-12 Today we recall the arrival of mysterious visitors from the East to the Christ child. Sages who study the stars and bring really odd gifts. If you still have your nativity scene up today you can bring […]
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Christmas Midnight and Day 2018 25 December 2018 Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Luke 2:1-14 “It’s like a smile all over my body.” That’s how one grandma described the birth of her grandchild. Dr Susan Crowther, a senior lecturer at Auckland university with 20 years experience as a midwife, came to […]
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Seeing Through a Glass Darkly 9 December 2018 Sermon for Remembrance Service Reading: 1 Corinthians 13:12 When our daughter Rebecca was growing up she came to me with a very sensible question. “When you were young Dad was the world in black and white?” She had seen old films and old news items […]
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A Ministry of Loving Hospitality 2 December 2018 St Saviours, Lyttelton Reading: John 21:1-15 Faithful God, open Scripture to us in a new and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen. Today is a milestone moment in the life of this parish. As you welcome your new Vicar, John and his family Yaekco, […]
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A New Kind of King… 25 November, 2018 Reading: John 18:33-37 Loving Jesus you show a new kind of king. Help us to learn from your example. Amen It’s really lovely to be baptising Lucy today and welcoming her into the family of God. Many of us remember Shirley Rhodes with great affection […]
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In Times of Great Anxiety, We Need to Know that Someone Cares 18 November, 2018 Reading: Mark 13:1-8 Last week’s Remembrance Sunday called to mind the story of a bombing raid over Germany. Suddenly the first thud rocked the plane, a shell from the antiaircraft guns below had hit the fuselage. Some quick […]
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Remembrance Sunday 11 November, 2018 No greater can we have than to lay down our life for our friends. Today our service has a special focus, Remembrance Sunday. Remembrance Sunday is big thing in Europe but here it is overshadowed by ANZAC Day. This year is different because it is 100 years since […]
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Reading: Mark 10:46-52 The good news is that Jesus is always ready to listen to our requests, whatever they might be. I heard of one woman whose deepest desire was to win Lotto. Every week she got down on her knees and prayed hard especially on a Wednesday and a Saturday night. Expressing her […]
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Knowing Christ, the Pathway to Life 16 September, 2018 St Peter’s, Kaikoura Reading: Mark 8:27-38 Loving God, open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen Thank you very much for inviting me to preach on this occasion. Those of us from St Peter’s, Upper Riccarton in […]
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The Grace Not to Give in to Fear 15 July, 2018 Reading: Mark 6:14-29 It was wonderful on Thursday afternoon to be able to go into St Peter’s Church building. It still has a wonderful prayerful atmosphere and beautiful stained glass in the sanctuary. To be honest I have hardly ever been in there. […]
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Signs of Hope 17 June 2018 Reading: Mark 4:26-34 It’s winter. Winter can be hard on us. It’s getting colder and I can’t remember seeing the sun for two weeks. The cunning scientists tell us that vitamin D deficiency from lack of sun is a real thing. It wouldn’t happen at St Peter’s but sometimes […]
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Rules aren’t Rules 3 June 2018 Readings: Deuteronomy 5:12-15; Mark 2:23-3:6 Every 7 years clergy get what is called a sabbatical. It is 3 months to take time off from active ministry to reflect, recharge and renew. Back in 1999 Rosemary and I undertook a summer course at Boston College, a Jesuit University in Boston. […]
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Tony Kippax’ Induction, Geraldine 27 May 2018 Readings: Philippians 4:4-9; Matthew 28:16-20 Loving God, open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way, in Jesus name. Amen Thank you very much Tony for inviting me to preach on this occasion, an exciting new chapter in the life […]
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Pentecost 20 May, 2018 Reading: John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15 I will send an Advocate. Open the Bible to us in a new and exciting way… A very exciting thing happened to me this week. On Wednesday I ordered my first Uber. We were in Wellington for our daughter’s graduation and I had had enough of shopping. […]
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Trust of the Heavenly Father 29 April, 2018 Reading: John 15:9-17 Open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way through Jesus Christ. Amen. Being a man, as a general rule, I don’t read instruction manuals. I often have to explain to my family why it is far […]
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May the words spoken help us see Jesus. In His name, Amen. It was a Monday morning. I was having the day off. Unshaven and more than a little bleary eyed, I staggered down to Countdown for the shopping. Gazing at the Edam cheese trying to work out which one is cheaper, it happens. […]
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Easter 4: Shepherd Image of Intimacy with God 22 April, 2018 Reading: John 10;11-18, Psalm 23 Open the meaning of the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen. He was old, really old. The family asked me to go and visit him so that when I took […]
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God’s Love is Stronger than Death Sermon Easter 2018 Reading: The gospel John 20:1 to 18 May the words spoken bring us the hope and light of Easter. In Jesus name, Amen. The first Easter begins in darkness. Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb. The day is still dark and so is she; […]
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Lent 5 New life from Old 18 March, 2018 Reading: John 12:20-33 And Jesus said, “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies it produces much fruit.” (John 12:20-33) We are always on the scrounge for […]
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Lent 4 11 March, 2018 Reading: John 3:14-21 In our modern world signs are very important and I like the one outside of the Cafe Royal Bar: ‘Every loaf of bread is a tragic story of grains that didn’t become beer.’ Or the washing instructions on a jersey: ‘Give it to your […]
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Hearing the Voice of God: Lent 1 18 February, 2018 Reading: Mark 1:9-15 You have good news for us God. Help us to hear it. In Jesus name. Amen When it came time to teach the girls to drive this was a job for dad. Rebecca and I started off okay but after a while […]
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Christ the World’s Light and We Share that Hope 28 January, 2018 Reading: Luke 2:22-40 Faithful God, today you give us good news. Help us hear it in Jesus name I don’t know who invented the game but they had no regard for health or, as it turned out, safety. It was so much fun. It […]
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Jesus Calls Us As We Are 21 January, 2018 Reading: Mark 1:14-20 Loving God You have good news for us, Help us hear it. In Jesus name. Amen One of the many things I’ll really enjoy about St Peter’s is the way everyone has a sense of ministry. It’s a way of […]
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Christmas 1: Being Present for Others 31 December, 2017 Reading: Luke 2:15-21 The Vicar, the Roman Catholic Priest and the Retailer where comparing notes about Christmas. “What do you do at Christmas?” they asked each other. “When I have finished my last service I go home and my family all sit around the […]
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The Gift of Grace Christmas Day 2017 Reading: John 1:1-14 God of grace, On this day You give us the gift of Jesus. Help us to receive all He has to give us. In His name we ask it… I wonder what gifts you have been given this Christmas. I wonder how much trouble you […]
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Finding the Peace of the Prince of Peace – Midnight, 25 December, 2017 Readings: Isaiah 9:2-7 and Luke 2:1-14 Much to the delight of the Woman’s Weekly and to the disappointment of my sister-in-law, Prince Harry is getting married. One night when I couldn’t sleep, I worked out that I’m only 2543 in line to […]
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To the greater glory of God: building others up and giving the glory to God Advent 3 17 December, 2017 Reading: John 1:6-8,19-28 One of my first jobs was working at Housing NZ. I was a loans officer and had the job of helping people get into their first home. At the […]
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Finding the Peace of God 10 December, 2017 Advent 2 Year B: Comfort my People Reading: Isaiah 40, 1-5 Isaiah writes so beautifully today, “Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.” When we think of comfort we think of Sleepyhead pillows and woolrests. But this is not what God is saying through Isaiah […]
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Christ the King November 26, 2017 Reading: Matthew 25:31-46 Allowing others to minister to us. The brothers were confused. Try as they might, they couldn’t tell their two horses apart. They tried calling them and they both responded equally to the others name. They tried measuring them and they were exactly the same height. It […]
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What Keeps Your Lamp Burning? 12 November, 2017 Reading: Matthew 25:1-12 I wonder if you are good at getting prepared. A friend of a friend of mine thought he was prepared. He was chaplain to a chapel royal in England. He got notification that none other than Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth herself was coming to […]
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Claiming Our Inheritance 5 November, 2017 All Saints Reading: Ephesians 1:11-23 Open our hearts and minds to your message through Christ Our Lord The old woman leaned back in the armchair, gratefully allowing the back of the chair to support her tired body. “Have a rest Gran, while I put the kettle on, and we’ll […]
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The Law of Love… 29 October, 2017 Reading: Matthew 22:34-46 It was St Augustine some 1600 years ago who said, “Love God and do as you like.” When our girls were young I thought I would have one of those encouraging chats with my children. “You know,” I said, “you are both intelligent and hard […]
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The Gospe l of Peace 15 October, 2017 St Lukes celebration St Lukes 9:30am and St Peter’s 8am Reading: Matthew 10:1-9 They call it cold calling: going to someone’s door totally unannounced. When I was a naive young curate, the vicar of Hornby use to send me cold calling around the neighbourhood. It had very […]
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The True Meaning of Forgiveness 17 September 2017 Reading: Matthew 18:21-35 St Peters A woman bought a parrot for a pet. All the parrot did was treat her badly. It insulted her and every time she tried to pick it up, it would peck at her arm. One day she got fed up with the […]
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A Most Secret Agent 27 August, 2017 Reading: Matthew 16:1320 Being agents of grace. When I was little, my favourite programme on TV was Joe 90. Joe was a young boy who, even though he was just very ordinary, was in fact a MOST SECRET AGENT. At the beginning of the programme they would put […]
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Jesus Love Reaches All People – help us not to stand in the way. 20 August 2017 Reading: Matthew 15:21-28 Today it’s wonderful to welcome Amalie into the family of […]
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Reading: Matthew 14:1321 It’s great today to welcome representatives from the local community, and from the racing industry in particular, for our annual grand national service. It’s our tradition to have this service to pray for the safety of all in the industry, to bless the colours and to mark the traditional beginning of the […]
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Growing in Grace 21 June 2017 Reading: Romans 5 1-8 little reading, big impact The Bishop had been invited for dinner and the parents were anxious to impress. So after they had all sat down and it was time for grace, the mother turned to little Susie. “Please say grace Susie.” “But I don’t […]
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Trinity Sunday 11 June 2017 Matthew 28:16-20 I know it’s hard to imagine but as a teenager I was tall and uncoordinated. But it wasn’t all bad, having unnaturally long legs I could run like the wind. It came then as no big surprise when the headmaster asked me to coach the wee boys […]
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Reading: Matthew 28:1-10 Like so many I was the happy recipient of a Cadbury great Easter bunny – one made of a glass and a half of ‘pure cream milk’. However, I was more than a little shocked to read on the box the story of the great bunny. Cadbury writes the reason we came […]
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Sermon 26 March 2017 (Lent 4) John 9:1-41 Being healed from the blindness of thinking God is a God of punishment. Open our eyes Jesus to who you really are, in his name we ask it. Amen The old Irishmen got the call he had long expected but hoped would never come. Your brother is […]
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I don’t always like going to parties. When they discover what I do, I either get harangued about the Cathedral in the Square or someone wants to plan their funeral. But this person was different. She had a story to share. She had been about to die and then unexpectedly a total stranger had given […]
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Reading: Matthew 6:1-6 and 16-21 Today begins the season of the Church’s year called Lent. It’s a season when we re-examine our priorities. The majority of Christians do it and we follow the example of Jesus who spent 40 days in the wilderness. During that time Jesus was tempted to lose his focus. Famously, the Devil […]
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Loving God, your Son prayed that we might be one, so that world might believe. Open our hearts and minds. In Jesus name. Amen Thank you Father Michael for offering me the opportunity to offer a reflection at this service. I tried to get him to do it and he said, “It’s your place. You […]
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Money messes with your head. Generosity, the way to break its hold. A programme we have been enjoying on telly is Nigel Latta’s Mind over Money. Nigel has done lots of things on TV, some of them better than others. One series seemed to involve him blowing things up – fun for him, but not […]
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Reading: Matthew 5:21-37 Open the Bible to us in fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen. Jesus said, “First be reconciled with your sister or brother and then come and offer your gift.” It was a Sunday evening and I was just about to receive a call that would change my life. Many years […]
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Readings: Acts 9:1-22, Matthew 19:27-30 Complete turnaround… Growing in discipleship On this Conversion-of-St-Paul day, help us to have the courage that he did to turn our lives around. In Jesus name. Amen. I really admire people who are open to change and to seeing things in a new way. I remember a man in my […]
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Loving God, Open the Bible in a new and exciting way. In Jesus name. Amen. My experience of fishing is so different from that of our Gospel. I once spent a summer sea-fishing with a friend off the Moeraki Peninsula. I watched very carefully everything he did so that I could imitate him in his […]
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Open the meaning of the Bible to us in fresh and new way. In Jesus’ name. Amen The first few words said by someone are very important. I heard of a bishop visiting a congregation. He rose into the pulpit to greet the faithful. The congregation was well versed in Anglican responses. His first words […]
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By any measure, the first Christmas was a public relations disaster. It couldn’t have been managed much worse. None of the important people where there. There was no Roman emperor or Greek philosopher, not even an oracle. Instead there were a bunch of shepherds, a carpenter and his fiancée. To top it off, Jesus wasn’t […]
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Fill my words and this night with the light of your love. In Jesus’ name. Tonight we heard again those majestic words from John’s Gospel: The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has never overcome it. At 5pm today we had our wonderful children’s service. I’ve have been involved in putting together lots […]
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There are those who are good with directions and then there are those that aren’t. I’m one of the latter group. I have been known to lose my way at night when looking for the convenience, but this has as much to do with not having my glasses on as with my directionality. What always […]
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You may have heard of the two walking through a paddock unaware that a huge and very angry bull was watching them. Suddenly it started running toward them. So they began to take flight. It wasn’t long into the chase that they realised that the massive bull was gaining on them. “What are we going […]
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Holy Cross Day 14 September, 2016 Reading: John 3:13-17 Open the Bible to us in fresh way, O God. In Jesus name we ask it. Whether in counselling rooms, on helplines or in agony aunt columns, the plea is always the same. If only I had someone who understood the pain I am going through […]
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Father’s Day 4 September, 2016 Reading: Jeremiah 18:1-11 The year was 1973 and Dad got a new car. I thought it was so cool. It was a Mark III Ford Cortina. It had all the whistles and bells. We had never seen a car with a radio. The car had little jets of water that […]
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Inverse Hospitality: Welcoming the Stranger in Ourselves 28 August, 2016 Reading: Luke 14:1,7-14 Open the Bible to us, O God, in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus’ name. Amen It was a routine British Airways flight between London and Johannesburg. The passengers were just beginning to settle in for the long flight. “Excuse me,” […]
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Breaking Down the Barriers that Divide 21 August, 2016 Reading: Luke 13:10-17 Ever present God, open the meaning of Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way. In Jesus name One of my most enthusiastic parishioners was a man who had worked on the Concorde. As a young Englishman he had had a lot […]
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God’s Superabundant Love 17 August, 2016 Reading: Matthew 20:1-16 There is inside of us all a sense of justice. It is at its strongest when we feel we have been hard done by. Today’s text is only found in Matthew and it plays out against this sense of justice, but as we will discover, it […]
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Racing Service 7 August, 2016 Reading: Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 It’s wonderful today to be able to welcome many from the racing industry and the Riccarton Racecourse in particular. This parish has a long link with racing. In fact I am reliably told there are no fewer than 32 jockeys buried in the cemetery. This would […]
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Enduring the Race 1 August, 2016 Reading: Hebrews 11:29-12:3 There you are, standing on the start line at the Olympics. You are wearing the black singlet of your country. You have been chosen by the people to represent your nation. You have trained so hard: every day for months and months, rain or shine. You […]
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Access to the Father 13 July, 2016 Reading: Matthew 11:25-27 “And no one knows the Father except the Son” The true story is told of a soldier in the civil war in America who had fallen on hard times. A well to do gentleman was visiting the hospital and the soldier started complaining about the […]
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Reading: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 3 July, 2016 Loving God, open the meaning of Scripture to us in a fresh and exciting way today. In Jesus name Amen Jesus said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few.” My experience of the harvest is that it is a time for focus. Everything […]
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Compassion: the Life Giver 5 June, 2016 Reading: Luke 7:11-17 To help celebrate my wife Rosemary’s birthday recently, I thought I would make her a cake. There was quite a deal of pressure because our daughters reckon they can’t remember dad ever making a cake. So I was out to impress. Carrot cake is my […]
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Tricky Questions Lead to New Life 1 June, 2016 Reading: Mark 12:18-27 In 1216 quite suddenly, the Pope died. No one and nothing can stop death: not popes and princes, not wealth and status. The mournful and hauntingly beautiful sounds of Gregorian chant filled the cathedral as the body of Pope Innocent III lay in […]
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Trinity Sunday 22 May, 2016 Reading: John 16:12-15 Open us to fresh meaning for our lives, O God. Have you ever been caught up in a moment that seems to carry you beyond yourself? A moment where all the dross of everyday life seems to be transformed; where life in that moment seems to take […]
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Learning to Speak the Language of Love 15 May, 2016 Reading: Acts 2:1-21, Genesis 11:19 Holy Spirit move in my words and in our hearts. In Christ’s name. Amen One of my favourite TV programmes is Star Trek. I don’t want to sound like a nerd, but I love it in all its forms – […]
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Being Where Jesus Is 8 May, 2016 Reading: John 17:20-26 Rebecca, our youngest, was just beginning to think about what she wanted to do when she grew up. Trying to be a good father, I took her to one side and gave her the talk. “You know, Rebecca, you are intelligent and able. You can […]
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The Spirit Will Lead You Into All Truth Reading: John 16:12-15 One of the hard things about the earthquakes has been that it has forced a number of us to give up our homes. Even if you haven’t been affected, you will know someone who has. In the same way, as people get older, the […]
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Thinking Big 1 May, 2016 Open the Bible to us in a fresh and exciting way, in Jesus Name. Elephants have very good memories. Once, a visitor to the circus was being shown around the animal enclosure. He was amazed to see a huge elephant tethered to the ground by a tiny thin piece of […]
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AAW Talk at St Peters 20 April, 2016 Reading: John 12:44-50 In a parish a long way from here, my wife Rosemary and I thought it would be a good idea if the vicarage had new lights in the lounge. We were having trouble seeing. Vestry seemed reluctant to pay the expense so I had […]
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Living in Love Readings: John 13: 31-35, Revelation 21:16 The story is told about how John the Evangelist, author of our Gospel and the book of Revelation, sometimes called the apostle of love, was preaching at Ephesus into his 90’s. At that age, John was so feeble that he had to be carried into church […]
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