By Not Known Our morning congregation is working through the Old Testament book of Lamentations this month. The book is well named, for it is a series of poetic laments for Jerusalem after its sacking by the Babylonians army in 587BC. The details are gruesome and the poetry is heart-wrenching. Lamentations 2 is an especially…

By Not Known Despair is a common human condition. Sometimes we feel miserable for no apparent reason. At other times we are troubled by internal or external problems. Whatever the cause, dispare can rob us of joy, sap our energy and leave us even less able to cope with life’s problems. left untreated, despair can…

By Not Known We are doing something strange today. In our two church services, we hope to persuade people who are presently non-Christians to become Christians, or at least to consider seriously the Christian message. This is a remarkable goal. It is remarkable because it is unusual. Most religions in the world are identified with…

By Not Known Being single can be hard. Everyone else seems to be happily married and aunties and uncles keep asking the over 30s when they are getting married. Singles can feel out of place in a church that is mostly programmed around family activities. Against this background it is refreshing to read 1 Cor…

By Not Known No one wants their marriage to be troubled. But, it is a reality that all marriages will have troubles at one time or another. Several factors may combine to trouble a marriage including: financial problems, long working hours, physical separation, ill-health, infertility, difficulties with children and wider family, personal incompatibilities, unrealistic expectations,…

By Not Known One of the favourite childhood games before the game-boy era is perhaps hide and seek. In this game, only the craftier ones who could conceal themselves from their seeker until the play-out time win. Many of us have outlived the age of playing this game, but the business of hiding remains very…

By Not Known The Church at Thessalonica had been an eye-witness to Paul’s sufferings. He and Silas had arrived at the city from Philippi where they had been mobbed by the crowds, stripped naked, flogged in public, thrown into prison and their feet fasten in the stocks. The Philippians magistrates had not even bother to…

By Not Known The government’s decision to allow two mega-resorts incorporating casinos raise serious issues for Christian people. All Singaporeans will be affected by the economic opportunism, social impacts of a ‘get-rich-quick’ mentality and the moral sleaze that accompanies casinos worldwide. It is a pity to see these invited into Singapore At first glance, the…

By Not Known Car divers tend to have a street directory in the car glove box. It is often a battered and well-thumbed book, with post-it notes and other pieces of paper tucked in and pages scribbled on. That’s how it should be, for a street directory is a working book, It’s there to guide…

By Not Known Last Sunday the Roman Catholic community lost one of its most important leaders for many years. As well, Pope John Paul II reminded the wider world of the spiritual and moral realities at a time when materialism and pragmatism seemed to rule. In these respects, he was a force for good. What…