Jean Vanier on Welcoming the Humiliated
In this moving 7 minute film, Jean Vanier tells the story of Pauline, a woman who arrived at his L’Arch community suffering from epilepsy, paraplegia, and anger due to decades of humiliation. As Jean explains, Pauline needed more than professional help. She needed to be loved, listened to and helped to discover that ‘she is more beautiful than she dares believe.’ More…
Healing the Wounds of Sexual Abuse: Jenny’s Story
‘And then I began to realise just how broken I had been. I started to understand where my hurt and disappointment had come from—from emotionally and physically absent parents—and I began to understand that I am not condemned—by God or even the people I thought I needed to impress. I began to forgive all who I felt had failed me. It was the start of a brand new life.’ More…
Rethink Your Thinking on Suffering
We take pills to ease it, hold prayer meetings to heal it, develop strategies to avoid it and do research to remedy it. We may even doubt the existence of God because of it. But there is one aspect of pain that us moderns rarely consider: That suffering could be part of God’s purpose for our lives. More…
Our Little Submissions
Cameron Semmens is an Australian performance poet. When he asked me to contribute a chapter for his new book I heartily agreed. ‘I’d like you to address the theme of submission,’ he said. As it turned out, the topic was timely for me. Here is the chapter in full, including his poignant accompanying poem about… a donkey. All will be explained as you read. More…
A New Earth. A New You
Can changing your name change your life? Yes and no. The Christian vision offers something even deeper: a new earth and a new you with a new name thrown in too. Episode 7 in the Unseen Footprints article and podcast series. More…
Hearing the Whispers of God
God is calling us, trying to get our attention. But he rarely shouts to make himself heard. Instead, he whispers to us. Before we’ve even opened a Bible he has been drawing, beckoning, whispering. Will we stop to hear him? Will we even attempt to hear his voice? Here are four ways he whispers to us and how we can learn to listen. Episode 4 in the Unseen Footprints article and podcast series. More…
Becoming Attentive to God
If God’s unseen footprints walk in and out of our lives, how can we begin to discern and follow them? Here is Episode 1 in a special series of articles and podcasts on the themes of my book, Unseen Footprints: Encountering the Divine Along the Journey of Life. We’ll explore unseen realities and conclude with a guided reflection exercise on becoming attentive to God. More…
Who are Today’s Secular Priests?
In a secular age, who are our priests? When religion has been dismissed, who do we turn to to find guidance for our lives? Here is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, More Than This: Searching for God in a Secular Age. As it turns out, many of these new ‘holy’ men and women are right in our lounge rooms. More…
If the Beer is Talking, What’s it Saying?
Perhaps it was growing up as a city boy. Or perhaps it was not growing up in a mainstream Christian denomination. Whatever the reason, until recently I had never experienced a Harvest Festival. Then I went to one and was reminded how we are all dependent on God for what we eat, are responsibe for those who go hungry, and how a pint of beer offers a simple lesson on life. More…
Everyone Has a God. Here’s How to Discover Yours
Worship is a universal phenomenon. Anthropologists tell us it’s found in some form in every culture. It seems that we all have a longing to place something or someone as a supreme authority or meaning-giver in our lives. To put it simply, everyone has a God – even if we’re ‘not religious’. So who (or what) do you really worship? This article will help you find out.