Barna Report: In the aftermath of the Boston marathon bombings, the attention of the media and the American public quickly turned toward the faith and political background of Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. Reporters honed in on Tamerlan’s apparently deep Muslim faith, especially analyzing if that faith had become radicalized in the last few years. Fair or not, pundits, experts, and the American public wondered—did the faith of the two alleged bombers have anything to do with the atrocity that occurred? If so, what did that mean? It was yet another instance of American ideals and radical Islam clashing with one... Read more →

Tommorrw is ANZAC Day here in Australia. ANZAC Day is commemorated in Australia and New Zealand on April 25th every year to remember members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who landed at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. ANZAC Day is one of the most important days on the Australian calendar as we take time as a nation to honour those who courageously gave their lives for the freedom of others. As Christians, ANZAC Day reminds us of Jesus Christ, who left the comforts of heaven to come to earth and give his life for... Read more →

The 23 millionth Australian, due to arrive this week, could be a baby called Jack or even a young Pom. The Australian Bureau of Statistics says the nation's population is set to hit 23 million people on April 23 at 9.57pm (AEST), but there's only a 40 per cent chance he or she will be home grown. Migrants make up 60 per cent of Australia's population growth and the UK accounts for one in five arrivals. If number 23,000,000 is born locally, there's a slightly better chance of it being a boy, with 105 males born for every 100 females,... Read more →

Many times it’s difficult to find practical ways to be a blessing in your workplace. Rapid pace, mounting deadlines, or co-worker conflict can often derail even the best of intentions to say and show the love of Jesus at work. Yet, it is important for us to know what it looks like to bring gospel intentionality to our jobs. Recently, Josh Reeves posted some very practical ideas for blessing others in the workplace. Hopefully this will help spark a few ideas for connecting with and blessing your coworkers. 1. Instead of eating lunch alone, intentionally eat with other co-workers and... Read more →

I love the story about the Harvard MBA who was in Mexico for his company. He saw a small Mexican fishing boat pulling up the dock and one solitary fisherman got out and held four huge fish on a stringer. The Harvard guy was amazed at the quality of the fish. He asked the fisherman, “How long did it take you to catch those?” He said, “About three hours.” “What are you going to do with them?” The fisherman said, “They’re going to feed my family.” The Harvard guy was intrigued and said, “What do you do with the rest... Read more →

Workaholism is probably the only addiction that is rewarded, affirmed & admired. It can be so easily masked as 'diligence'. Yet, without doubt, overwork leads to spiritual dryness and often to eventual relational breakdown. Being a workaholic is not just about working hard, which is a good thing. It's about working with a powerful underlying drive for approval and/or success. Are you a workaholic? 1. Are you always in a hurry? 2. Does your ‘to do’ list always have more on it than you could possibly accomplish in a single day? 3. Does doing nothing drive you up the wall?... Read more →

In a previous post, we talked about God as a worker and the sacredness of work, as well as God’s purpose for our work or business. Today we want to share a few reflections on the integration of our work and our faith as followers of Christ. How You Work Matters It's one thing to have a job and know God’s purpose for our work. It’s another thing to consider how we go about our work. God desires that we work with diligence, honesty and an excellent attitude. This attracts God’s favour and makes the Gospel attractive to a watching... Read more →

One of my favourite songs is You Raise Me Up as sung by Josh Groban. Here are the lyrics. YOU RAISE ME UP Vs.1 When I am down and, oh my soul, so weary; When troubles come and my heart burdened be; Then, I am still and wait here in the silence, Until you come and sit awhile with me. Chorus You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains; You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas; I am strong, when I am on your shoulders; You raise me up... To more than I can be. Vs.2... Read more →

For the first 30 years of his life, Jesus was boring. He was an unknown carpenter who wasn’t doing “big” things for God. He worked alongside his dad, using his hands to shape, shave and tack together pieces of wood. He quietly studied the scriptures, and grew in stature with God and men. He didn’t have a public ministry. He didn’t write any books, go on a conference tour, adopt an orphan, give away 75 percent of his income, or go on multiple missions trips. He loved the Lord with all his heart, honored his mother and father, and quietly... Read more →

This week we've been talking about Your Work, God's Work. Did you know that the average person today has 5-7 complete career changes in their life time? That's an average of 10 different jobs with an average of 4.1 years at each workplace. I sure help the average, having worked as a builder's renovator, a book binder, a printer, a music director, a youth pastor, a church administrator and now as a pastor for the last 18 years. Maybe you've had lots of changes in career too or maybe you're one of those people who stick at something for a... Read more →

The following news report details the recent death of Pastor Rick Warren's son, Matthew. May our prayers go out to the entire family for God's grace and comfort to be there during this time of tragedy and grief. Mark Conner CNN NEWS The weekend's sermon at Saddleback Church was "Surviving Tough Times," a theme Pastor Rick Warren planned before his youngest son killed himself with a gun Friday. Matthew Warren, 27, committed suicide "in a momentary wave of despair" at the end of a lifetime struggle "with mental illness, dark holes of depression and even suicidal thoughts," the pastor wrote... Read more →

Did you know that the average person spends about a third of their life working, a third of their life sleeping, and the other third with family or friends (when they are not working or sleeping … or on the internet!). That mean’s that over half of our waking hours are spent in the workplace. Have you ever asked yourself what God's purpose for your work is? And how we can find more meaning and fulfillment in our work? These are some of the questions we’ll be discussing in this series. God as Worker In the beginning, God worked. Genesis... Read more →

I like to start each day with some time alone ... with God. I read and reflect on the Scriptures (check out the CityLife Bible reading schedule for 2013) as a means of connecting with God. I also like to write my thoughts out in a journal. Sometimes I'll just record what has been happening and what's coming up in the day ahead. I also like to make use of questions. Here are my favourite three: 1. How do I feel? We often live at such a fast pace that we are not even aware of what is happening inside... Read more →