I started this blog in January 2012, and this is post 200. Thanks to Google analytics I am able to track which have been the most read. Here’s the top 5. 1. “Wives, submit to your husbands”. Why We Mistakenly Assume This is God’s Word to Us Today 2. Dancing with the Devil. Nestle, Chocolate...
Good to be alive
I’m on the train travelling from Sydney home to Newcastle. The sun is shining as we pass over a shimmering Hawkesbury river. The music of Mumford and Sons plays through my headphones. And I can’t help but feel it’s good to be alive. There are some significant challenges in my life...
Putting Sin in its Place in Proclaiming the Gospel
Yesterday’s post, Why We Need Less Preaching on Sin and More on Possibility, generated some comment about where preaching sin does come in. Here are some thoughts; There are three realities about human beings: 1) we are amazing creatures made in the image of God, capable of heroic acts of love...
The Retreat to Nationalism
If the first week of the Abbot government is anything to go by we are witnessing a retreat from internationalism to a fairly ugly nationalism. We have appointed a military commander to “protect our borders”, started sweeping changes to international aid that will include $4.5 billion in...
Selling Out the Poor for a Few Kilometres of Bitumen
Good on you Joe, you have traded the opportunity to end extreme poverty for millions for a few extra kilometres of bitumen.
Global Citizenship. Putting the National Interest in its Place
When it comes to sport I am an unabashed nationalist. There is something delicious about beating the English in cricket, the All Blacks at rugby and the US at anything- not that we’ve been doing much of that lately. But there lies the problem with nationalism. While it may be relatively...
Is the Cost of Living Really Increasing?
Listen to the media and our politicians and you’ll hear all kinds of talk about increases in the cost of living and the pressure it is putting on families. Problem is, it’s just not true. The chart below shows changes in the Consumer Price Index, which is the standard measure for...
Dear Kevin
Dear Kevin, The first time you were PM you inspired me. You ramped up foreign aid and focussed it on helping poorer countries achieve the Millennium Development Goals; gave us a more humane asylum seeker policy; delivered that spine-tingling apology to the Stolen Generation; and declared climate...
The Wisdom of Nelson Mandela
This week has seen the world preparing itself for the death of Nelson Mandela, one of the towering figures of our age. Thought I’d share some of my favourite Mandela quotes: I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a...
State of the World’s Children
Today is World Children’s Day. So how are kids faring across the globe? Here are some of the latest statistics from UNICEFs 2013 State of the World’s Children Report. [table width=”500″ colwidth=”400|25|25|25|25″...