Heart2Heart

A DVD designed to start spiritual conversations. Made in Singapore, it’s in English with some chinese and subtitles in english, Traditional Chinese and simplified. A film is a story of heart. Stories inspire us, challenge us, make us cry and makes us laugh. Stories help us understand this world we live in. They also raise questions in us;  who am I? why am I here? Is there a God? Stories help us to make sense of this journey we find ourselves in. Heart 2 Heart is a collection of seven short films – seven stories of the heart. Inside is a film guide with discussion for each film, Watch a film, have a look at the questions. do it on…

All the places you’ll go

Very rarely in the Bible does God command someone to “Stay”. He opens a door, and then he invites us to walk through it — into the unknown. And how we choose to respond will ultimately determine the life we will lead and the person we will become. In fact, to fail to embrace the open door is to miss the work God has made for us to do. In All the Places To Go… How Will You Know?, bestselling author John Ortberg opens our eyes to the countless doors God places before us every day, teaches us how to recognize them, and gives us the encouragement to step out in faith and embrace all of the extraordinary opportunities that…

Pentecost

This is a different kind of message. It’s more a set of mini-messages and biblical background to help us stay earthed in our discussions of the spirit. Biblical Pictures of the SpiritDove – (Matt 3:16) – Noahs Ark – (Peace) Fire   – (Isaiah 4:4) – Judgement and cleansing (Repentance) Wind – (John 3:8) – air in movement, breath, a certain ‘hard to contain-ness’, more felt than seen. Oil    –  (Luke 4:18-19, Acts 10:39) Linked to anointing, to smell, to holiness. Water- (Isaiah 44:3) Linked to life and renewal. We can’t live without it. Questions for Discussion : What picture stands out to you and why ? Are there other links you can see ? Thumbnail sketches of the Spirit in…

Mark 2:1-12 Carrier

Mark 2: 1-12 I was planning a completely different message, but part way through something unexpected happened.  Read the Passage and see if you can figure out what is unexpected? (Spoiler alert… if you read below here you know my answer – yours might be different). What did you expect Jesus to say to the man ? “You are healed” “Get up take your stretcher and walk” “Can’t you see I’m busy ? “ “Are you going to pay for repairing my roof ?” Jesus seems to elbowing forgiveness into front and centre.  He wants us to know that this new kingdom is not just about healing on the outside but about healing on the inside. The good news is…

Making your small group work

This is Small group material aimed helping leaders and groups create healthy small groups. There are four main sessions and bunch of clips that help address things like active listening, prayer, giving and receiving feedback, calling out the best in others and more. Session One: Getting Connected—God’s Purpose for Small Groups. Provides a foundational experience that helps group members get excited about the adventure and life-changing power of small group life. Session Two: Five Habits of Life-Changing Groups. Provides training on the five most important habits of any small group–Care, Safety, Authenticity, Growth and Help. These five habits are essential to a great small group. Session Three: Setting Ground Rules.  This session unpacks each of the five key values through…

Visit us

Kia Ora  There is a mix of people at Parklands and we seek to make people feel welcome and comfortable and included in what we do.   We pretty passionate about knowing God’s love and expressing that in how we live. Our main Service is at 10:30 on Sunday Mornings.  We’re just in the process of fixing our earthquake damaged building, so we have begun meeting at 222 Queenspark Drive (Queenspark Primary School).   The rest of the week we have offices at 180 Queenspark Drive and run some events in either our community hall, or in a local sports club.  The Church Office is open: Tuesday – Friday 9 am – Midday Phone: (03) 383-1356 Fax: (03) 383-1349 Email:office@parklands.org.nz 180…

Whole – Mark 1:21-45

Q : What do you want ? Q : What do you think God wants ? There were a variety of responses to what God wants in Jesus’ time. Many greeks and romans believed in a great variety of Gods. They were always fighting and wanted some sacrifice. To a large extent people didn’t want to be noticed by a roman God. The Jews fiercely believed in One God who wanted them to be ‘clean’ or holy. Another Roman/Greek belief system was one by a guy called Epicurus. They believed that if there was a God, then that God was so remote that everything humans did was irrelevant to them. “At a stroke, this philosophy offered liberation from any fear…

Signs

Signs : Earth : Was Solomon right ? As the poet Solomon said, “There is nothing new under the sun.” McManus once resonated with the loneliness of Solomon’s words. He wondered what good could come from the emptiness of the world. Then he looked more closely. He saw sprouts cracking dirt. He saw God breathing warmth into dust. And he saw earth transform from darkness to a source of life. Earth explores the contrast between spiritual barrenness and God’s promise that He is doing a new thing for His creation. Signs : Wind Is there anything more mysterious than wind? We can’t see it, and yet we feel it brush our faces every day. In the Scriptures when “God’s Spirit…

Ed’s Story

A seven-part film series about hope, featuring Ed Dobson. This DVD includes all seven films: It Ain’t Over, Consider the Birds, Be There, My Garden, Ask Forgiveness, Grateful, and Healing . It Ain’t Over – Ed reminds us that life isn’t over yet and that we don’t have to feel overwhelmed by the struggles we’re facing today. Difficult news can sometimes make us feel like our lives are over. Ed shows us that we don’t know the future, and that things may turn out quite differently from what we expect. Ed has Motor Neuron Disease (ALS) and this can be a tough watch if you have friends on this difficult journey. I couldn’t watch it while my friend was dying of this.

BASIC

Trends come and go in our culture and the church seems to follow. BASIC is a seven-part series of short films that challenges us to reclaim the church as Scripture describes it to be. Francis Chan put this 7 session DVD together for  those who have questions about the church and to those who may have lost interest in the church.  He does tend to gush forth ideas and you may not agree with his assumptions, but he will get you thinking and talking about what Church is. (Hint: We are church).