Talks

GOD DOES NOT CHANGE!
Matt started 2026 by looking at what changes and what doesn’t change! (He even sang a song from Frozen 2!) In a world that’s constantly changing it’s re-assuring to know that God does not change.  (“I am the Lord and I do not change.” Malachi 3:6)
As Anna says in Frozen: “That’s why I rely on certain certainties”.

Here’s 5 certainties we can rely on in 2026:
1) The World Changes - God does not!
“Long ago you laid the foundation of the earth and made the heavens (skies) with your hands. They will perish, but you remain forever; they will wear out like old clothing. You will change them like a garment and discard them. But you are always the same; you will live forever.” Psalm 102:25-27.
2) God’s Love does not change
“The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23
3) God’s Promises do not change
“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘YES’ in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 1:20
What are God’s promises for 2026?
- His Presence (Hebrews 13:5)
- His Peace (John 14:27)
- His Strength (Philippians 4:13)
- His Forgiveness (1 John 1:9)
- His Guidance (Proverbs 3:5-6)
- His Faithful Work in Us (Philippians 1:6)
- Eternal Life (1 John 2:25)
4) God’s Purposes do not change
They are:
- To redeem
- To restore
- To heal
- To renew
5) Simply Jesus - He does not change
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” Hebrews 13:8

What does this mean for a new year?
1. Rest in His Stability
2. Build your Identity in Jesus
3. Live with Courage and Hope

Matt ended the service with a blessing for 2026: receive this blessing today!
May the God who called you keep you.
May the oil on your life never run dry.
May your homes be places of rest and laughter.
May your hearts remain soft, even when the road is hard.
May wisdom guard you, joy strengthen you, and grace surround you.
May you start this year grateful and enter it with expectancy.
Amen

Christmas Day Service 2025

Christmas Carol Service 2025

Family Nativity Service

Our “Earthshakers” took us back to the first Christmas and acted out beautifully!  (We especially loved the grumpy inn-keeper!)

Thank you to Rich and all the Earthshaker leaders not just for Sunday but throughout the year for investing into the lives of all our amazing children!

We focused on the star that led the wise men to Bethlehem. Abby shared five meaningful points we can remember when looking at the five-pointed star that was given out as a gift by the children:

Guidance: The wise men followed the star and found Jesus. In the same way, Jesus is our light who guides us through every difficulty.
Illuminate: The star illuminates the darkness, just as Jesus reveals our sins so that we can turn from them and live in a way that honours God.
Hope: The star encourages us to look up to the light. Jesus is that light who shines into the darkness of this world, giving us hope and the assurance of a brighter future.
Promise: The coming of Jesus was promised long ago, and on that first Christmas, He arrived. God always keeps His promises.
Shine: The star shines for Jesus. When we give Him all the glory, we can shine for Him too.

Bec spoke on the last part in our series “The Real Jesus,” exploring Jesus’ true character beyond religious assumptions and focusing on Intimate Jesus—a Saviour who desires deep, personal closeness with His followers. She highlighted how Jesus serves intimately, Jesus calls us friends, Jesus walks with us in our struggles, as seen on the road to Emmaus and continually invites us to truly know Him rather than just know about Him. She urged us to move beyond “religious fog” into genuine relationship, to let Jesus be Himself with us, to practice loving Him daily, and to allow His life to fill ours.

THE REAL JESUS – PART 6 - The Honest Jesus

In part 6 of our “Uncovering the Real Jesus”, Matt explored “Honest Jesus”.

Matt asked the question:  Is it possible to be TOO honest?  Throughout the Gospel accounts Jesus often makes some strong and direct statements in conversation with the many people He interacted with.  He said this message was potentially dangerous!

In Luke 11:37-39, Jesus speaks very strongly when talking to a pharisee, and then still firm when in the home of Mary and Martha. John Eldredge says: “His (Jesus) honesty and severity are measured out precisely, according to the amount of delusion and self-deception encasing the listener”. Hardened hearts need a harder message. Jesus’ honesty with Martha in Luke 10:38-42 is much softer but still disrupts her thinking, to help her to see a different perspective. 
John Eldredge says: “Why aren’t we more honest?” He suggest to reasons: a) Because it will cost us and b) because we’re cowards!  Ouch!

The beauty of Jesus’ disruptive honesty is that you can count on Jesus to tell you the truth in the best possible way for you to hear it. Why? Jesus is full of grace AND truth.
Being offensive is not the same as saying something that offends: “A foghorn is offensive at a dinner party, but it’s the sweetest sound in the world for a ship in the storm!”

As well as being full of Grace and Truth, the author of revelation tell us that Jesus is also Faithful and True (Revelation 19 verse 11) Not just speaking truth (brutally honest sometimes) He is actually TRUE Himself.  Never under a fear of people around Him, not swelled by success or intimidated by circumstances like we can be.  He is simply being True to Himself.  His brilliant, kind, compassionate, disruptive, honest self.  Doesn’t it make you love Him!?

Do we need to allow Jesus to be honest with us today? What might He want to say to us?  And, are there people in our lives, we need to sensitively speak with more honesty, for their sake?  Plenty to think about.

Gill Isterling brought a powerful message in our series “The Real Jesus”—this week looking at Jesus the Human.
We often say He was 100% God and 100% human, but sometimes we struggle to really grasp that. Yet Jesus was one of us.

He lived real life.
He had family and friends.
He ate meals, laughed, celebrated, and felt deep grief.
He experienced loneliness. He felt anger.
He loved people fiercely and compassionately.

Isaiah 53 asks, “Who would have thought God’s saving power would look like this?”
God Himself choosing to step into our world and into our humanity.

John 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
Jesus didn’t stay distant—He moved into our neighbourhood.

If you missed it, or need to hear it again, go back and listen.
Let it remind you that Jesus understands you — fully.
He is God, and He gets what it’s like to be human.

Our amazing guest speaker Sim Dendy showed us a side of Jesus we don’t often think about: The cunning Jesus!  Jesus is the most cunning man you will ever meet - brilliant, clever, and uncatchable. (John Eldredge)
Sim’s first question to us was: What are you hungry for?
He then gave us three options / qualities of Jesus we should/could be hungry for:
1) No compromise! Based on the story in Matthew 22 verses 15-22 where the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus, Sim explained how cleverly Jesus answered questions without compromise yet avoided the pharisees trap.
2) Radical Justice! Sim’s example of Jesus’ radical justice was taken from John 8 verse 1-11, where Jesus invites any accusers of the woman without sin to throw the first stone. Jesus is brilliant! “Shrewd like a serpent, yet gentle as a dove”.  Jesus protects the woman, without condoning what she had done. Jesus died for people, not for principles!
3) Divine Wisdom! Again, the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus in Luke 20 verses 1-8 asking him in what authority He was preaching. Jesus doesn’t answer their question, but instead responds with a question of His own.  When the Pharisees can’t answer his question he tells them He won’t answer theirs either!  Brilliant! They didn’t really want to know the answer, they just wanted to trap him.

Jesus is Playful, fierce, extravagant and also cunning!  Don’t you just love Him!  Join us this Sunday to think about another important quality…..

Bob shared an inspiring message carrying on our Real Jesus series exploring ‘extravagant Jesus’ reminding us that Jesus never does the bare minimum. From turning water into around 900 bottles of wine at a wedding, to feeding thousands with food left over. Bob painted a picture of a Saviour whose joy, grace, and generosity overflow beyond measure. Jesus doesn’t ration love or forgiveness, He pours them out lavishly.

The challenge was clear: if Jesus is extravagant, His followers should be too. Bob encouraged us to reflect that same abundance in our lives, through open-handed generosity, heartfelt forgiveness, and joy that spills over into our communities. Extravagant love, he reminded us, isn’t about excess but it’s about the overflow of a heart shaped by Jesus.

THE REAL JESUS – PART 2
In the second part of our series “The Real Jesus”, Zoe introduced us to a FIERCE Jesus.
In Revelation 19;11-16 we read words like “judge”, “waging war”, “iron sceptres”, “swords” and the “fury of the wrath of God”, which don’t sound like the Jesus we
know.
If we think of “Aslan”, the Lion in Narnia, he is both gentle and loving, but at the same time, he’s wild. Beaver says about him: “Safe? Who said anything about safe?
Of course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you!” Similarly, Jesus is good but also fierce!
We can see that:
  - Fierce Jesus fights injustice on behalf of the oppressed. (Turning over tables, John 2:13-17)
  - Fierce Jesus doesn’t mince his words when challenging authorities (Luke 18)
  - Fierce Jesus is tough on his friends (Matthew 16:23)
  - Fierce Jesus fights the demonic (eg Luke 4: 31-36)
What can we learn?
  - fighting corruption and injustice are at the heart of Jesus’ mission. Justice should be at the heart of us too. We don’t need to be aggressive, but we do need to NOT be passive.
  - There are times to speak out. Against injustice, wrongdoing. Times to not join in with the crowd, to not be popular.
  - Whatever God has asked us to do, we should do it with zeal, and a determined fierceness.
  - We have the same authority as Jesus to confront evil
  - Jesus’ ferocity is always motivated by LOVE