Have you ever felt like an outsider?

“As someone who is visibly not from an Anglo-Celtic ethnic background, I am often asked where I am from and when I arrived in Australia.

I do not mind talking about this – I welcome seeing the bemused looks on people’s faces when I describe my first day at school in Australia. All the children with colourful hair coming and saying ‘Hi’ (which I could not respond to – I only knew three English words at that point: ‘Yes’, ‘No’ and ‘Hello’). Do not get me started on how disorienting it was to be in a carpeted classroom with everyone eating sandwiches for lunch!

From these experiences, being an outsider, or foreign, is a feeling that is very familiar to me.…”

– Susan An, Dean of Women at Moore College, writes of being an outsider, and reminds us of ultimate identity and belonging.

Photo: Moore College.

God’s Best Work Is Cross-Shaped

At The Gospel Coalition Australia, David Ould calls us back to the Cross of Christ –

“How are we meant to understand distressing, painful and complex moments, whether in our church life together or in our own personal stories? The most straightforward response is grief or sadness at what has happened. That is, of course, entirely appropriate. Alongside this might be anger directed at those we understand are in some way responsible. Yet it rarely stops there. After our initial reaction, we often start to try and find some meaning in the events. For the Christian, this leads quickly to questions about God: how has he allowed this to happen? Is he in charge of these things? If he is, then how can we reconcile his sovereign purpose with tragedy? …”

– Read it all here.

This is the Christ — new from Emu Music

“This is the Christ” is the latest release from Emu Music. It’s the second single from their forthcoming EP ‘Just As He Said’.

“We wanted something anthemic that the whole church could sing together, capturing Paul’s heart in Colossians 1. ‘He, Christ, is the one we proclaim’. That line became the anchor for the whole song. Whether we’re leading church, writing songs, or just talking with a friend, our message never changes. It’s all about Jesus.

Our hope is that this song helps people see and delight in his beauty and power. May we never grow tired of proclaiming him.’ – Liv Chapman & James McDonald.

– Watch here.

Audio file and sheet music is available at this link.

The Lord will Provide — Encouragement from Alistair Begg

Here’s a short and encouraging clip from Alistair Begg.

The Spiritual Discipline of Sleeping

Mark Powell at AP, the Australian Presbyterian journal, writes about sleep and the gospel –

“It should go without saying—but ironically, it needs to be said—that the reason we can sleep at all is because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Saviour’s great promise to all who are weary and burdened is to come to Him and He will give us rest (Matt. 11:28). Contrast this with the tragic, and indeed horrific, fate of unbelievers as described in Revelation 14:11, which says that there is ‘no rest for the wicked’ and ‘the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever.’…”

– Read it all here.

Shaped in Community

The Dean of Sydney Sandy Grant writes in the Cathedral newsletter –

“Dear Friends, today, I republish the first half of an excellent article by Cathedral Canon Dr Mark Thompson from the latest edition of Moore Matters, the newsletter magazine our Moore College, our ministry training theological college.

I asked for Mark’s permission, since what he says about why it is valuable to study theology face-to-face in community is equally true about why it is so important to keep coming to church.

We both acknowledge there are times when this is not possible, for example, my relative in aged care now watches the Cathedral service online, because she can no longer easily get to her local parish. But Mark shows why it is so important to pursue face-to-face community and learning, when he writes…”

– At the Cathedral website.

And see the full Moore Matters Winter 2026.

Have we preached the word richly, but failed to let the word dwell richly among us?

From The Pastor’s Heart this week –

“Have we preached the word richly, but failed to let the word dwell richly among us?

Tony Payne provocatively argues that while evangelicalism has successfully recovered expository preaching and every-member ministry, we have not adequately recovered every-member word ministry.

Tony argues that the Reformation remains unfinished, that we haven’t fully thought through the implications of the priesthood of all believers, and that passages like Ephesians 4, Hebrews and especially 1 Corinthians 11-14 may need to be read rather differently than many of us have assumed.

Tony asks, have we trained people to serve on teams, but not trained them to speak God’s word to one another?

It’s a challenge that reaches into some of our most fundamental assumptions about Christian ministry.

We discuss prophecy, the ministry of women, the role of the pastor-teacher, preaching and discipleship, and what it would actually look like for the word of Christ to reverberate through a congregation rather than stopping at the pulpit.”

– Watch or listen here.

Related:

Let the Word Dwell Richly — by Tony Payne – post 03 June 2026.

Let the Word Dwell Richly — by Tony Payne

“I doubt I’ll read a better book this year. Tony Payne has taken decades to study, reflect, practice and write this book.  …

Let the Word Dwell Richly is a gift to pastors and churches that I pray is widely read. May the Reformational recovery of the ministry of God’s word in our lives and churches continue, and may this book be used to help it.”

– Mark Dever, Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church.

This forthcoming book from Matthias Media – Let the Word Dwell Richly by Tony Payne, sounds well worth pre-ordering. Expected to be available in July.

Other commendations come from Peter Jensen and Lionel Windsor.

As an aside, Mark Dever does read a few books – see this Banner of Truth interview from 2024.

Christ’s victory amidst discouragement, criticism, suffering and sin

From The Pastor’s Heart this week –

“Christ’s victory amidst discouragement, criticism, exhaustion, disappointment and sin.

We preach Christ’s victory as pastors. But we battle discouragement, criticism, exhaustion, disappointment and sin.

What does the victory of Christ actually mean for pastors whose ministries feel painfully ordinary? What does it mean for leaders carrying the slow weight of imperfect churches, spiritual warfare, unanswered prayers and years of costly ministry?

We speak with Phil Colgan and Adam Ch’ng how suffering shapes faithful ministry, and why Christ’s victory does not remove weakness — but gives hope, endurance and courage.

We explore sanctification, spiritual battle, pastoral perseverance and the future glory.

Phil Colgan is senior minister of St George North Anglican on the Central Coast;
Adam Ch’ng is senior minister of Cross and Crown Melbourne.

They are speaking to around 1300 pastors and leaders at the Reach Australia National Conference on the Central Coast of New South Wales.”

– Watch here.

Preach the gospel to yourself

Dean of Sydney Sandy Grant writes in his Minister’s letter to the Cathedral congregations –

“Dear Friends, Jerry Bridges was an excellent Christian author from the United States, long involved with the Navigators, who died a decade ago this year.

You would benefit from reading any of his books if you can find them, from his 1976 classic, The Pursuit of Holiness, onwards through Transforming Grace: Living Confidently in God’s Unfailing Love, The Discipline of Grace, and The Joy of Fearing God.

He wrote thoughtfully, and very much for the ordinary Christian in the pews.

In a number of his books, he talks about the importance of a believer preaching the gospel to yourself every day. …”

– Encouragement here.

Photo: Jerry Bridges, courtesy Nav Press.

Moore Matters Autumn 2026

The Autumn 2026 issue of Moore College’s Moore Matters is now on their website – and printed copies will be in many churches.

Celebrating the college’s 170th birthday, this is a terrific issue – not just about history, but a number of encouraging stories about what the Lord is doing today in Sydney, and further afield.

– Download your copy here.

Are you a stalled learner?

At SydneyAnglicans.net, Russell Powell speaks with Col Marshall about his new book, Warriors of the Word –

“The premise of the book is that I observe in my own life, and in others – particularly through those mid-years of being Christian – a stalling that takes place, some stagnation. Having learned a lot as a younger Christian, possibly, been involved in church life, even led in various ways. But feeling like it’s all a bit dry and repetitive and not learning much more.

So I wanted to unpack what causes that stalling and then what to do about it around the theme of learning Christ, seeing that that’s the focus of who we are, knowing our Saviour, knowing our Lord. …”

– Read it all here.

And you can order the book from Matthias Media.

No Other Name

In his Minister’s Letter for 19 February 2026, Dean of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney, Sandy Grant, shares some thoughts on freedom of religion and a timely reminder of what  Christians believe –

“Dear Friends, religion has been much in the news lately. Australia is struggling to know how to accommodate freedom of religious expression, alongside those who don’t like some – or any – religions being expressed.

As Christians we believe in praying for our leaders so that they can provide and defend a society where ‘we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness’ (1 Timothy 2:1-2).

On another occasion, the Christian leader Paul the Apostle, writing by the ‘humility and gentleness of Christ’, reminds us that ‘the weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world’. That rules out deceit, media manipulation and name-calling, as much as it does abuse, threats and actual violence. …”

– Read it all here.

The Window of the Heart

Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. (Hebrews 12:3)

“One of the most remarkable capacities of the human mind is the capacity to direct its own attention to something it chooses.

We can pause and say to our minds, ‘Think about this, and not that.’ We can focus our attention on an idea or a picture or a problem or a hope. …”

– Encouragement from John Piper in his devotional for today.

A Change of Subject — Peter Jensen’s Global Anglican editorials

From Church Society: “Featuring a selection of editorials, articles and reviews from the 2024 issues of The Global Anglican, this digital digest is free to download.”

This Digital Digest includes a number of book reviews, several articles, and no less than four Editorials by former Archbishop of Sydney Peter Jensen. Here’s the start of one of them  –

“In the midst of a huge crisis for the Church of England and for the rest of the Anglican Communion, it may be thought that an editorial in The Global Anglican would address itself to the topic. But so much is being spoken and written about these matters, that I considered that a totally different subject may be refreshing, one that addresses the ordinary business of ministry wherever in the world it is conducted.

Thus, it will be an oddly personal editorial and I hope that readers will forgive me for it. I have been reflecting on my ordained ministry experience of fifty-five years and thought that it may interest some at least if I make some observations about what the Lord has taught me in that time. I make no claim to uniqueness or comprehensiveness or profundity, but for all that my thoughts may be helpful to some, whether in ministry or contemplating ministry, or gazing at ministry from the outside.

I offer ten aphorisms in no particular order, with an explanation for each one as I proceed.…”

– A generous gift from Church Society which, no doubt, will encourage you to think about subscribing to digital or print editions of The Global Anglican.

Image from The Pastor’s Heart.

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