Bruce Chant

Margaret Court is best known for her deeds on the Tennis Court, where she holds the record for the number of women's grand slam titles. In a nation that holds an incredibly high view of sporting achievements, by any measure, she is a national champion, a world-beater, a sporting heavyweight.

But Margaret Court, in her post tennis existence, is also known as the Senior Pastor of Victory Life Church in Perth. It is in this role that she continues to excel in life and has influence in our city.

One of the attributes I deeply admire about Margaret Court is that she fearlessly speaks up for the truth. In a day when too few will take a stand for truth, and the risk of becoming unpopular or offending others, in this regard she stands out as an example to the church in this city.

However, there can be a price to pay for speaking the truth. Read the rest of this entry »

A week ago, a video upload went viral of octogenarian former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke, skolling a beer at the behest of the SCG crowd ("One for the country, Robert") he was a part of for the Australia vs. India cricket test match.

To me, this suddenly infamous event, provides a glimpse into the type of nation Australia is. Want to know what Aussie's are like? Here it is, in one short mobile phone video recording.

First of all we have the cricket test at the SCG. To understand Australians you first need to understand cricket, or more accurately, you need to understand the place that cricket has in Australia. Read the rest of this entry »

2012 is well and truly upon us now

The year year brings new hope and new excitement. And rightly so.

The bible tells us God controls the time and seasons (Daniel 2:21) and so when the calendar changes it can signal more than a change in the date. So in 2012 we can expect something NEW.

What are you expecting for 2012?

To have expectation is to eagerly look to the Lord for Him to work and speak in ways that only He can.

Without expectation, we can easily miss God. But with expectation, we are Spiritually aware and awake to the things of the Spirit and are more likely to see, hear and agree with the movings and workings of God - in the earth, but also in our own situations.

There are a few themes I believe God is speaking to me about for 2012. Read the rest of this entry »

I was talking to the girl cutting my hair this week and, in the midst of the shopping mall madness in the week before Christmas, she bemoaned that she wished we didn't have Christmas at all. She's not alone, I'm sure. Whether it is the pressures of the season - financial, family, time - that produce a jadedness to the it all, I'm sure others think the same way.

But, if we didn't have Christmas, what would life be like? What would the world look like without Christmas?

Of course, no Christmas would mean no presents, no tree, no suburban Christmas lights to light up our streets. There would also be no carols to sing and no candlelight on community ovals to sing them by. There would be no joy and no high point in the last week of December, it would just be another week in the year.

There would also be no memories around the "modern" traditions of Christmas day; no crackers, no silly hats and no bad jokes, no turkey and ham, and (importantly) no leftovers to enjoy watching the cricket on Boxing Day.

They are the obvious losses we would suffer if Christmas was no more. And still there are some who would say that is no great loss. But is that really the extent of the impact of Christmas? I think there is more, much more. Read the rest of this entry »

People are more precious to God than you or I could possibly conceive. His love for humanity extends well beyond any earthly notion we may hold, yet we can catch a glimpse of what it looks like in the rescue mission of Jesus, an act that cost Him His life in exchange for ours.

What I wish to say here, I wish to convey with compassion knowing that this is territory that is highly emotionally charged. And yet, I wish to be faithful to what I believe is right and true.

I believe the move to change legislation in order to allow same-sex marriage, through the redefinition of marriage, to be the wrong one.
Read the rest of this entry »

I have been reflecting in recent days on the events of September 11th 2001, 10 years ago today. In that past 10 years the world has witnessed accelerated change in many ways and in many ways because of what happened on that date.

For me September 11 was a defining event. I sat transfixed to my small 48cm CRT television and watched the seemingly unreal footage roll in and unfold before my eyes. The next day I stayed home from work sick and watched more and more of this horrible, unimaginable drama unfold.

The truth is, the enormity of the event didn’t hit until later. Even today I get a knot in my stomach when I see footage or hear audio of those attacks. The emotion is palpable. The mental transportation back to that place almost immediate.

The question I have been pondering is why? Why has this attack, unlike any other act of terrorism, so lodged itself in my psyche? Why am I so moved by its scenes, its sounds and its stories? Read the rest of this entry »

I have been watching the Tour de France these last few nights. And each stage I find myself drawn to cheering for the brave handful that break from the safety of the pelaton and streak away up ahead. I watch the distance between the break-away and the chasing pack and as the line draws closer, invariably it seems, the gap between them lessens and lessens until they get swallowed up by the masses of bikes again.

It's no fun leading the way. There is just a lot of hard work, sweat, tears and even some blood, but little reward. Or so it seems.

Psalm 126:5-6

Those who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.

In each generation, God appoints some ministries to go ahead of the pack, to break away from the safety of the pelaton. It is often for a variety of reasons, but primarily those that run ahead carry a burden to seek to restore and reform the church to become more like the bride that Jesus Christ is soon returning for.

Unavoidably, if you are one of these forerunners you will know (or find) that you will be accompanied regularly by tears. Swimming against the tide is no easy endeavour.

There is graft, there is heart-break, there is pain, and there is tears of toil that goes with plowing a previously unplowed ground. Eschewing the seemingly easier fields and well worn pastures, the tears of forerunning are unavoidable.

But there is a pay-off. We also are given a promise that those tears are not wasted. Those tears sown will reap great joy. The joy of serving Him, the joy of being satisfied in Him, the joy of finding out He is more than enough. And yes the joy of the harvest.

In the kingdom of God, great pain magnifies the joy of great reward.