"Darker, Closer, I Shall Not Be In Want..." Willowburn's first Covid sermon from 22 March 2020 (when it all got real). Plus some rocks in our shoe (LAMTs - Light and Momentary Troubles), some WB conversational cameos, some prayers (which you can enter into), relief versus restoration, some cool quotes from ancient Christianity (eg when the shadow gets darker the Lord gets closer...) and even communion that you can share.... Readings: Psalm 23, I shall not be in want. John 15: Dwell... And, 2 Corinthians 4: Light and Momentary Troubles...

The world is a troubled place. The story of the road to Emmaus forms a framework we can work within as Christians; who are called to to be a passage of hope to those we walk beside in this hope-less world.

How do we see the true Jesus when our vision of him is corrupted by so many cultural lenses? Come for a journey along the road to Emmaus as Jesus helps two of his followers through the same difficulty in the days after the Resurrection.

Well Lit. That's the call for 2020. The 'unhide the light' call. But what is light in the spiritual sense from Jesus teaching? Find out why it matters and why it matters to you and yours in this session. Hope it brings light to your life :)

In the 2020's it's time to unhide the light. Especially now. More than ever now...

The last sermon of the decade and one thing is necessary... 'Stay a while'

Christmas: God's Timing by Willowburn Church

Teen Challenge PNG: Peter & Freda by Willowburn Church

In the fifth part of the journey to understand the Kingdom through Matthew 13, Ben looks at the growth of a one off exquisite pearl worth giving up everything to have.

In the fourth instalment of the Matthew 13 kingdom parables, Ben take's a look at the man who buys a whole field to secure the treasure hidden within it. What is the treasure?

"Faithful. Hyphen Faith-full. Faith-fullness: Allegiance, dependence, trust…” We wondered this morning what “every act prompted by our faith” might look like as we enter our new circles rhythm… Have a listen and help us find out... This is part 4. You might also like to listen to parts 1-3 to give you the back story. Hope it encourages you. A

In this session seven words that summarise the faith-fullness of a church of nobodies from nowhere 2000 years ago. Seven words that take faith-minus to faith-plus. Seven words that beg for connectedness to Jesus and to each other. And from these seven words we ask (actually God asks) what is lacking in our own faith? The answers are in these seven faith-full words that summarise the embodied faith-fullness of the church of nobodies from nowhere: work, word, worth, wound, warmth, want and wonder. And it's these words that set a new rhythm and rule for Willowburn in our new circles vocational pattern. Hope it encourages your own faith-fullness.

Sometimes it's just the simplest phrase in the bible that gets your attention (and your heart): 'Was With Us'. That got my attention (and my heart). This phrase 'was with us' described a nobody from nowhere who, whenever Paul the apostle turned around, 'was with us'. Beatings, plots, prison, shipwrecks, traumas, terrors... Yep, everytime Paul turned around there was a wingman, a companion, a coworker and his name was [nobody from nowhere]. Have a listen to this rethink session and see if you can guess who it was. You will be underwhelmed and yet it was nobodies from nowhere like this that saw the church thrive. Rethink what it means to be a faithful 'nobody from nowhere' in today's 'Rethinking Willowburn' session (Session 2)

Time to rethink our church. Rethink (reconsider, reassess. Re- ‘again, anew’). Rethinking Commitment. Rethinking Willowburn so we can transition to a completely new rule and rhythm for our little church. Using the lessons of Apollo 13 and Philippians 2 we hold up 'church' to scripture and ask: Can we rethink our commitment? Session 1 in our Rethink Series. Hope it encourages you to think (rethink) deeply how we see our little church.

Starting out through snot and tears because of an anxiety attack suffered by his wife Camille five minutes earlier, Ben explores the mystery of great kingdom growth coming out of small things in hidden places. This is the third part of the Matthew 13 parables of the kingdom.

I preached this sermon on mental health after many years of reflection and with at least two of those years hanging out with my Psychologist friends who I have come to love and appreciate so much. I hope this encourages, strengthens and brings hope as the Christian story often does when it is at its best and we are not. During the church service we were also blessed with a song of lament from Tim B and a little share from Kat about flying - awesome segues as you will see. If you would like prayer please contact us via our email at willowburnchurch@gmail.com. For those who are prompted to seek professional help Beyond Blue is an awesome place to start at https://www.beyondblue.org.au

In this special session Luke reminds us of the main thing and asks whether we will make it the main thing.

Pastor Fidele (and his daughter) bring a distinctly fresh perspective from the scriptures on stress, worry and our commitment to Jesus.

Why is there evil in this place where Jesus says his kingdom is? Discover Jesus' teaching on this and how are we as Jesus' followers are to live in light of the coming weeding and wheat harvest.

A look at the four soil types of Matthew 13 and how they relate to our lives and expose our hearing posture of whether we are willing to lean in and listen to Jesus' teaching.