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Paul sat thinking about the Isthmian Games held close to Corinth, where he had repaired tents, and wrote to encourage the church to run their race, “Run in such a way that you may obtain it.” The track was roughly two hundred meters, and the runners ran with every weight removed. Only freemen of Greece could compete—not slaves or foreigners. This all pictures our Christian life as only freemen in Christ, not slaves of the world, can run this race. And all believers are in the race. As sinners, God offered us eternal life as His free gift: Yet once we believe and possess eternal life, scripture tells us we are running for a prize. A reward often talked about by Jesus, to be granted for faithfulness, diligence, endurance, and wholehearted devotion.

Paul declared that he ran this race with purpose, embracing suffering, thirst, and hardships because he saw the value of the prize. Paul’s strategy to fulfil his calling and win the prize was simple and instructive.   “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus”. Php 3:14 . The word Goal, often translated Mark, is the Greek word “skopos”. In the race, the “skopos” was the man at the finish line watching for the victor. The prize was given to the one who reached the mark (goal) first. That goal is Christ

Friends, to finish our race well, we too must press toward the “skopos”. Whether in a difficult patch or times of joy and releasing the kingdom, our pursuit is to close the gap between Him and us. Jesus is our mark—not ease or ministry success. Even revival and harvest are not the mark. To pursue anything above Him is to miss the goal entirely. Jesus is the One thing needed. He is the message, the mission, and the measure. Just seek Him, adore HIm, gaze on Him, listen to HIm, and obey HIm. When we live in intimacy with Him, other kingdom goals are secondary, but the fruitfulness of purpose and mission becomes inevitable.

We don’t know her name only her love. When Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him with an alabaster flask of costly fragrant oil and poured it on His head.  Set free from torment and now living with new hope, she came to pay her debt the best she could. But some disciples including Judas asked why the fragrant oil was “wasted?” GK Apoleia” Literally “ruined to perdition.” 

300 denarii was close to a year’s wage. That is extravagant worship. You can’t accurately ladle out worship, so she poured it out.  Worship is wasteful; it is always excessive, even over the top. You can only pour it out unmeasured. Extravagant worship always exposes the hard, pragmatic, selfish or merely natural mindset

Judas also asked why her passion and devotion were not used to help the poor. But worship is not about being helpful or alleviating need. Meeting a need is a good thing to do at any time but it is not worship.  Worship is given to the One who has no need - we worship because it is we who have the need to worship.

Tellingly, when Jesus was describing Judas later, as the “son of perdition”, he used the exact same word "wasted", meaning “ruined to perdition.”  When a man calls wasted a thing that God esteems, God who wishes to esteem every man's life, may call it wasted.

Friends, the extravagance of our worship and how we rejoice in extravagant worship by others, is a good indicator of our heart and our future.

When my daughter asked what I think about AI Christian music, I wasn’t entirely sure. William Booth, who said, “Why should the devil have all the good music?” took pub tunes and gave them Christian words, so perhaps the source of the melody matters less than the truth of the message. God has used even signs at the local gym to encourage me, so I’m sure He can use words written by AI to bless, especially when they’re rooted in Scripture. And when a Spirit-filled believer sings those words, the ministry comes from the Spirit within, not the software behind the song.

Preaching may be similar, but I think there is a catch! Preachers are called first to be with Jesus, to hear from God, and to speak for God. The direction of a message must come from Him. Once we know what God wants to accomplish, then research tools—including AI—may help us dig deeper. AI can tell you what Bernard of Clairvaux or Augustine thought about Colossians 3. But there are dangers.  Even after giving restrictive or directive prompts to avoid things like dispensationism etc, it cannot discern truth from error.

Christians receive illumination from the Holy Spirit on the revelation given by inspiration (Bible). When the Spirit illuminates something to a man or woman of God, He can use their explanation to bring growth and impartation. If the Word feeds you, it will feed them. AI cannot receive illumination. It can only provide information. If the Spirit didn’t illuminate it, the Spirit is not obligated to use it.

AI doesn’t know the congregation, so it is unable to be prophetic or hear the word of the Lord. We may preach what we have learned, not what is on God’s heart. The flock come hungry to be transformed, not informed. AI results are spiritless, but every word from Jesus is spirit and life.

AI can deceive us into thinking we’ve saved time, when in reality it robbed us of the hours of quiet listening, meditation, and walking with God. It offers knowledge but has no knowledge of God, like the Pharisees who knew the Scriptures but not the Author. AI can provide true words without the Spirit of truth, like the girl with the spirit of divination in Acts 16. It has no experience of God, unlike Christian authors and cannot operate faith, which alone pleases God.

Friend, AI gives artificial inspiration. God has built His church for 2,000 years through gifted men and women. Trust His gift within. Use AI as a concordance, dictionary and access to the ancients—but let’s hear from God. He began the Church by the power of the Spirit, and He is not going to complete it with AI.

The young Hebrew men refused to bow to the image and were tossed into a furnace so hot it killed their wardens. Nebuchadnezzar never said to stop believing in God; he simply asked them start bowing to something else. Daniel’s friends understood that today’s complacency becomes tomorrow’s captivity. The boys refused to bow to what culture worshipped, and that released their calling.  After the fire, they stepped into the authority God planned for them, but that authority wasn’t gained in the furnace. It was won long before.  Authority is built through a thousand small battles like resisting fear, immorality, and unforgiveness. (Some believers ignore these “lions and bears,” then wonder why they cannot stand when a giant appears). The fire wasn’t sent to destroy the men; it was sent to qualify them. The furnace only proved they were ready. Our strength of character is not created in the fire. It is revealed in the fire.

But when the men came out, the fire had not touched them. They walked out of the furnace smoke-free.  “When the officials crowded around them, they saw that not a hair on their heads was singed, and their clothing was not scorched. They didn’t even smell of smoke!” Dan 3:27 

Sure, to smell like heaven, we must refuse to bow to the gods of Babylon.  And when we do, we may face our own furnaces of betrayal, pressure, temptation, or disappointment. Seasons where everything feels like a furnace. Yet by the grace of God, what was true for the Hebrew boys can be true for us. We can come out not burnt or bound — but blessed because of the ONE who stands beside us. “I see four men, unbound, walking in the fire… and the fourth looks like a god!” Daniel 3:25

Friend, if you are in the fire, know that your dream is not dead and God has not finished. Your purpose is not cancelled. Like the boys, God is positioning you to occupy territory the enemy is trying to keep you out of. You are blessed not because of what you’re standing in, but because of who stands with you. Jesus, the Fourth Man, is with you to bring you out. Fire can burn ropes, but it won't burn your calling. Flames can test you, but it cannot consume God’s favour.  And that’s why you can say: “I may be going through hell, but I will still smell like heaven.”

Today should be a celebration of the gospel of Jesus. In all the tension around the treaty, we can forget the massive role that Christianity played. The missionaries were the strongest advocates for Māori. They pushed for British law to restrain lawless settlers. They defended Māori rights and land. They opposed the New Zealand Company’s aggressive colonisation. They urged the Crown to protect Māori from exploitation. They helped both sides understand one another, encouraging chiefs to sign because they genuinely believed it would safeguard Māori wellbeing. Missionaries were trusted by the chiefs more than the Crown itself. Hōne Heke and Tāmati Wāka Nene both cited their Christian faith as a reason for signing. After the signing, Hobson shook hands with the chiefs and said, “We are now one people,” echoing Galatians 3.28.

The Christian worldview of the missionaries shaped the framework of Te Tiriti. They believed people would value honesty and honour agreements because they feared God. The Treaty was signed by believers—Hobson, Busby, with Williams and Clarke present, and 500 Chiefs. At the time, almost half of Māori in NZ were following Christ. But things have changed. Many political leaders now reject God, refusing to honour Him or seek His help, and many Māori are returning to animism. It is unrealistic to reject God in parliament yet expect Him to hear prayers on the Treaty grounds, just as it is unrealistic to expect Maori to find peace without forgiving. The tension we feel today is that a document shaped by Christian thinking cannot be lived out by parties who no longer think Christianly. Covenant thinking requires faithfulness, honouring God, and honouring one another. When that is lost, relationships collapse into leverage and mistrust.

Obviously, what would help the Treaty to work as intended would be for all parties to return God. Reconciliation is not political and not another handout; it is relational. It looks like bowing together before Jesus, receiving God's mercy and grace, humility, listening, forgiving, and rebuilding trust. It means acknowledging pain and also the blessings that came from the arrival of Pakeha. The Treaty matters because people matter. In the meantime, believers can live as one people even when others do not. We can acknowledge progress, pursue justice without hostility, and remember that without the gospel, today’s debate is like arguing over who gets to be captain and who will have the biggest cabin, all while the boat is sinking.

When Israel faced the towering walls of Jericho, they believed God's words and acted boldly. It required something from them before God’s plans could continue to unfold.

Many years ago, when I was new in ministry, a minister asked me to sit in on a deliverance session. It was an education. The woman was a mature believer, with a solid marriage and a respected position in the church. She confessed to sexual activity with incubus demons. She was ashamed and exhausted, but she asked for help. That moment was one of the greatest demonstrations of courage and humility I have ever seen. She stepped into the light. And God met her there. She was wonderfully delivered, and of course, thankful.

The old hymn says, “The way of the cross leads home.” In my experience, the way of courage and humility isn’t just the way home — it’s the way forward in almost every area of the Christian life.

Successful relationships take bravery and humility. To bring up issues honestly with grace and for the other to respond without defensiveness.  If the issue isn’t resolved, it takes courage and humility to keep loving them until God brings a breakthrough.

To move into new levels of ministry takes courage and humility, because nobody gets it right the first time. To move in the gifts of the Spirit, whether on the street or in the church, also takes courage and humility. To grow and go forward, we all have to do the hard things, as did Jesus.  To fulfil His Father's purpose, He showed God-sized courage and unspeakable humility on the cross, for us.

Friends, as we step into 2025, I’m not predicting the annexation of Greenland, the rise of the Nephilim, the Ezekiel 38 war, or the removal of presidents or pastors.  But I will predict this:  We will need to grow in courage and humility, because every step forward in the Kingdom requires both. If you face a “wall”, be courageous, consider Jesus and take action because God's planned future for you is on the other side of your wall.

Be strong and courageous… for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9

In 2025, we visited Malta, specifically to see the Bay of St Paul, where Paul was swept ashore after his ship went down. We travelled for an hour to a mountain village, where the bus broke down. We waited in 40‑degree heat for the replacement, which came so late that we no longer had time to reach St Paul’s Bay. It wasn’t the day we imagined or planned!

Paul’s story carries the same shape. He thought he would sail all the way to Rome, but the ship broke apart. Acts 27–28.  Yet we know Paul still reached Rome, just not by the path he assumed. Sometimes what we think is necessary to reach our destination isn’t needed at all. God often takes us by a route we never expected to bring us His desired plan.

With rocks approaching, the sailors tried to escape in the lifeboat. Paul told them to stop and to cut the boat loose. Faith often looks like releasing the thing we were relying on and trusting God. When the ship finally shattered, the sailors reached Malta by clinging to broken planks of wood. In Scripture, wood often points us to the cross—Moses throws a tree into bitter waters, and they are healed. This time, wooden boards carry the endangered to safety. Clinging to the cross is still our strategy. It can bring us from shipwreck to shore if we hold on. Hold on and look to the One who was nailed there for you. The cross is the sure promise of His love and purpose for your life.

Friend, your life may not have unfolded the way you thought it would, but God can still bring you to His desired destination. In our shipwrecks, understanding God is optional, but trusting God is essential. Perhaps you feel like you are the broken thing? Being broken doesn’t deter Him. If you’ve failed, He can restore you. And if you are not right, you can call on the Name that is always right. The storm may rage, and the plans you thought would work may be sunk, but God’s promise stands. God fulfilled His plan for Paul, and He can do it for you.

The other night we saw the movie “What About Bob? a man trapped in unreality, plagued by compulsive behaviours who believed he had many illnesses despite no medical evidence. While Bob lives in unreality, he mirrors our spiritual state before we met Christ.

In Mark 5:15 Jesus met and delivered the insane man from the tombs, who then sat listening at Jesus' feet, clothed, and with a sane mind. He was free of demonic thoughts and ready to follow and witness for Jesus. That is sanity!  Scripture teaches that without Jesus, we are literally insane—our minds darkened, our perceptions distorted, our fears unchecked, but when we are born again, God gives us a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind.  (sōphroneō: saved and sane 2 Timothy 1:7)

Every person, including PhDs, politicians, parents and preachers who reject Christ, are biblically insane, believing things about the universe that are not real. Atheists who have no access to the spiritual realm brazenly claim that God does not exist. Marxists believe joy comes from the state controlling all things. Materialists believe happiness is owning more. Modernists trust only science or themselves.  Pantheists believe they can meet god by touching their hair to a branch of a tree. Woke believe that the “marginalised” are always right, and postmoderns tell themselves that deconstructed relationships are better than marriage, when even recent secular research says different: “Adults who are married report being far happier than those in any other relationship status, according to a Gallup Poll published Friday. 9 Feb 2024. Married couples report higher trust and satisfaction in their relationships compared to unmarried cohabitating partners, according to the Pew analysis. 21 Apr 2024. Couples who are merely cohabiting might be less willing to invest in their relationship and associated social networks as compared to couples with the relational stability that comes with marriage. Statistically, cohabiting men are four times more likely to cheat than husbands, and cohabiting women are eight times more likely to cheat than wives.” Blekesaune, 27 Mar 2021.

 Yet, people choose to live in unreality and self-selected echo chambers, education and media reinforce their delusions. Unbelievers live in a frightening world—without God, hope, or help. And sadly, for some people, it is literally traumatic. For them, denial can become a comforting defence, but it cannot deliver.

So, friend, how is your sanity? Are you seated at Jesus’ feet, clothed in His love, filled with gratitude, and ready to tell of His goodness? Yes? Great! People so need to meet Jesus, because until they do, they’re just nuts.

In 2016, we were running late and trying to get to the airport in Portugal. On the motorway, the GPS was slow to refresh and appeared to say to turn right. We did and ended up on one of the longest bridges in the world. We couldn't turn around for 20 kilometres! There are moments in life when it feels like you’ve taken a wrong turn and ended up on a bridge you never wanted to cross. Maybe it’s a financial burden, a health crisis, a broken relationship, or a spiritual dry spell. We didn’t plan it, but here we are.

David returned to Ziklag to find everything gone—his city burned, his family taken, and his men ready to stone him. David had every reason to collapse under the weight of grief, fear, and exhaustion. But in that moment, when no one stood with him, David did something powerful: “But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.” 1 Samuel 30:6. He didn’t have answers. He didn’t have support. But he had a history with God. Kings need to know how to stand alone. It was only a short time after that, that he was crowned King.

Encouraging yourself in God doesn’t mean pretending everything’s fine. It means remembering who He is, what He’s done, and what He’s promised. It means choosing to believe that God who blessed your going out is still with you in your coming in—even over a bridge you hate.

Friend, your bridge isn’t forever and God isn’t finished yet. So look up and go ahead. Encourage yourself that God is still good, still present, and still in control. Because crowns come to those who are faithful in trials. And by the way, we just made it to the check-in, and they opened the bag drop again, just for our bags!