Posts by Tim Johnson
St John’s Extra: Taking God out of the Equation
In these episodes of St John’s Extra we are wrestling with the problem of suffering. Last week we acknowledged that suffering is a real problem but not everyone would agree with this. For an atheist suffering is not a problem at all because it is just the way things are in a materialistic universe and there is no point trying to grapple with it and explain it. This is the way that the prominent atheist Richard Dawkins puts it: ‘In…
St John’s Extra: The Problem of Suffering
We need only look at a news feed or social media to see that the world is full of suffering. Around the world there are wars, violence, sickness, and starvation. There are natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and tsunamis. Closer to home, we experience serious sickness and disability, relationship breakdown, and the death of people we love. Suffering is very real. The challenge for us as Christian people is how we respond to this suffering. Let’s be honest, it’s…
St John’s and COVID-19
Dear Friends, With the increasing impact in Australia of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) our church has implemented a number of hygiene measures at our gatherings. These have been done to try and ensure the safety and health of the majority of our people and undertaken based on advice from the Diocese of Melbourne. For now, services are still running. We have hand sanitiser at the entrances to each of our three church buildings which we encourage people to use as…
Lent: A Time to Prepare Our Hearts
Lent is the six–week period leading up to Easter. It starts on Ash Wednesday (26th February this year) which is always 46 days before Easter Sunday. This allows for 40 days of fasting and 6 Sundays. Since every Sunday is a celebration that Jesus is risen from the dead, Sundays are always feast days for Christians! Lent is one of the most important times of the year for many Christians around the world. It is seen as a time of reflection and preparation for the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus at…
Giving Thanks to God
There is so much to give thanks to God for each and every day. He is the one who provides our daily needs and sustains our lives. He gives us relationships, with himself and with each other. He is with us in the midst of challenges and hardships, providing comfort, peace and hope. It is good for us to regularly come before God and celebrate his goodness. This should be a daily and weekly discipline but it is also good…
Trusting God with Everything
Trust is vital to any relationship. If we don’t know and trust a person then we are unlikely to rely on them and make ourselves vulnerable in the relationship. This is no less true in a relationship with God. Understanding who God is, his character, his power and his reliability, fosters trust and should make us more willing to rely on him, to step out in faith. Of course, it is one thing to say that we trust God, but…
150th Thanksgiving Appeal
We’re reaching big, and asking for $150,000 to reduce our debt. Every year at St John’s we hold a Thanksgiving Appeal as an expression of thankfulness and love to God for his faithfulness and goodness to us. It is an opportunity to show generosity in giving over and above our regular gifts. It is a powerful expression of our dependence on God, our love for him, and our thankfulness for all he has provided. This year we are giving thanks…
New Volunteer Leadership Team
Thanks to everyone who came along to the AGM on Wednesday night. It was great to reflect on the past year and to thank God for providing for us. It was also good to think about the year ahead, to make plans about how we will resource our ministry, and to elect leaders for our church. The following people will lead us over the coming year: Parish Council The highest decision-making body within the church, they are responsible for overseeing…