Author: Peter
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The Quiet Thread I Would Change
What is one thing you would change about yourself? Someone once told me that when I get up to preach, it’s like watching someone flick a switch. One moment I’m my usual quiet self, and the next I’m fully present—clear, confident, grounded. Here’s the funny thing: that version of me on the platform is the…
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The Ritual of Being a Morning Person
Are you more of a night or morning person? I am definitely a morning person now. It wasn’t always that way. There was a time when I pushed myself late into the night, convinced that productivity came after midnight and that mornings were an inconvenience to be conquered. I would stay up long past what…
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Honouring The Land That Feeds Us
What are your feelings about eating meat? I’ve eaten meat all my life.Not because I made a decision about it —simply because it was there,on the plate, part of the rhythm of childhood. Food was uncomplicated then.It appeared. I ate it.No ethical considerations. No questions.Just the comfort of routine and a full stomach. At some…
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A Leadership Podcast – 1 Peter 5:1-5
When you look across history,you see the pattern—good leaders steady the ground beneath us.Workplaces flourish under good bosses,families grow under gentle parents,whole nations rise when wise handsguide the wheel. And the opposite is also true:harsh, domineering, or careless leadersscatter harm in every direction. The church knows this too.We bear scars from shepherdswho forgot the flock,who…
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Two Items, Two Stories
What are your two favourite things to wear? If you asked me for my two favourite things to wear, the answer doesn’t come from my current wardrobe. It comes instead from two garments that hold stories — one formal and academic, the other casual and sun-faded — each stitched with memory. 1. The Graduation Gown…
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Independence as Headspace
What technology would you be better off without, why? When we talk about technology we could live without, many people think of screens or apps. But the technology I would be better off without is much more familiar. A car. I didn’t always think this way. Like most people, I inherited the assumption that a…
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A Decision That Wasn’t Really a Decision
What’s the hardest decision you’ve ever had to make? Why? Hard decisions come in all shapes. Some are true crossroads. Others pull good commitments in opposite directions. And some don’t feel like decisions at all—they’re simply heavy because of love. Eight years ago we rehomed a border collie named Dakota. Gentle, chocolate tri-colour, quiet as…
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A Light Australian Dessert
Do you or your family make any special dishes for the holidays? Christmas in Australia arrives in the middle of summer—long, hot days when the beaches are crowded, cicadas are loud, and markets overflow with seasonal fruit. While much of the world is roasting chestnuts, we’re trying not to roast ourselves. At times like this,…
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A City That Never Sleeps
If you didn’t need sleep, what would you do with all the extra time? If none of us needed sleep, the whole world would tilt on its axis.Cities would become genuinely twenty-four-hour places—not because of the nightlife, but because people simply had more life to live. We’d grab a coffee at midnight without thinking twice.We’d…
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Pet Peeves That Reveal What I Value
Name your top three pet peeves. I don’t get particularly irritated by these things, but I notice them—mainly because they hint at something larger. They remind us of how our shared life works, and how easily it frays when we forget that we live together, not alone. 1. Abandoned Shopping TrolleysI understand why people wheel…
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Postcards to the People Shaping My Life
Who are your current most favourite people? Sometimes the people influencing you most aren’t the ones you see every day, but the ones whose words you carry quietly in your pocket. If I could send postcards to the thinkers and voices grounding me right now, they might look like this. Postcard to Kate Bowler Dear…
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Remaining Faithful – 1 Peter 4:7-19
The end of all things is near,Peter says—words that fall heavy,like the first rumbleof a coming storm.Not simply the end of hardship,but the truth that this worldis winding toward its appointed finish.Jesus will return—suddenly, unmistakably—while life hums alongas though nothing is changing. So we kneel,as He knelt in Gethsemane,and let our To-Do Lists burn awayuntil…
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My Favourite Animals
What are your favourite animals? There are so many animals I love that it’s hard to know where to begin. But when I think about it, my favourites aren’t just species—they’re moments. Each animal carries a memory of a place, a glimpse of beauty. Dogs are the obvious starting point. They’re uncomplicated creatures—give them food,…
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Beach or mountains?
Beach or mountains? Which do you prefer? Why? On the surface, my answer should be simple. I’m Australian, and for over 30 years I’ve lived in beachside suburbs. The ocean has been the backdrop to my days—warm, lively, full of movement. There’s a sense of community at the beach that’s hard to replicate anywhere else.…
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Three Dishes for Three Moods
What are your family’s top 3 favourite meals? 1. Garlic Sesame Crumbed Chicken with Mango SaladYou always know summer is on its way when the roadside stalls start shouting the news before anyone else can: “Mangoes. $10 per tray”. In our family, that’s the signal. The starting gun. My wife will inevitably call out, “Mangoes…
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If I Could Meet a Historical Figure
If you could meet a historical figure, who would it be and why? If I had the chance to meet a historical figure—even for only a couple of minutes—I would choose Henry Lawson. Not because he is one of Australia’s most celebrated writers, though he is. Not because his poetry captures the hard, unvarnished truth…
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Do You Trust Your Instincts?
Do you trust your instincts? Yes, but I can’t fully explain how they work. I don’t always understand where they come from. But again and again, they show up—especially in the places where I seem to be wired to see clearly. When it comes to ideas or new ventures, something in me recognises them before…
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A Soft Beginning
What’s your favourite month of the year? Why? November arrives in colour.Jacarandas burst into violet clouds, and lawns disappear beneath a soft, uneven carpet of purple. Every footstep becomes a whisper through petals. The air shifts too—not yet heavy with summer, but warm enough to loosen the shoulders, warm enough to invite the day in.…
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My Favourite Place in Sydney
What is your favourite place to go in your city? When people ask about my favourite place in Sydney, it’s easy to list the obvious ones. The Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House, the Royal Botanical Garden—everything the postcards promise—are all within a short walk of each other. Add The Rocks, with its historic laneways…
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An Opportunity to Serve Him – 1 Peter 3:8–22
In some corners of the worldto follow You is to risk everything—a North Korean labour camp,a Somali beating,a Yemeni home where owning a Bibleis a dangerous act.One in seven of Your peopleknows this intimately. Even here,where streets are safeand speech is free,faith can still feel costly—misunderstood,dismissed,pushed to the edges.And when pressure rises,many of us bend,blend…
The Afterword 