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12th August 2026
12th August 2026 Keep Praying! from Travis “Pray continually.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:17 As we come to the end of our six-week series on prayer, 1 Thessalonians 5:17 remind us that prayer was never intended to be something we simply study and then move on from. Prayer is an invitation to a life continually turned towards God. It is a blessed practice that we are continually learning, putting into practice and growing in across our lives as disciples. My encouragement at the end

NVBC
2 days ago4 min read


5th August 2026
5th August 2026 Sunday Follow Up from Travis Many years ago I heard another pastor use a phrase that has become part of my own vocab... "Sundays come around with alarming regularity." Don't I know it! Barely seems like we've had time to blink and catch our breath before another Sunday is upon us. What a joy right?! Yet there is also an inherent danger that we move far too quickly on from what God had for us. Last Sunday, I believe held two significant things for our church th

NVBC
Aug 54 min read


29th July 2026
29th July 2026 Prayer as Formation from Ps. Johnny Last Sunday, Travis preached about prayer as formation, and encouraged us to seek God Himself in prayer, to be changed as we encounter him. This process takes time - not treating prayer like a vending machine, where we simply make requests for things, but to be more like a slow-cooker, letting our hearts and minds be softened and changed over time. One ancient prayer practice that has helped me to pray transformational prayer

NVBC
Jul 294 min read


22nd July 2026
22nd July 2026 Resources from Sunday Last Sunday Johnny spoke into the Biblical model of prayer called lament. Lament is a deeply personal, vulnerable and transformational form of prayer that arises in response to our disappointments and heartbreaks. Across a lifetime we each will experience and carry all sorts of hurts, griefs, disappointments and injustices. We will, at times, perhaps even have cause to question God or be angered by what we perceive is unanswered prayers. W

NVBC
Jul 224 min read


15th July 2026
15th July 2026 Organised to Intercede! from Travis How often have you responding to becoming aware of a friend's need by saying "I'll be praying for you"? For most of us, I'd imagine the answer is: quite often! In that moment that commitment to pray is a genuine intention, an expression of our care for the person and an outworking of our belief in the power of prayer... ... and yet, skip forward in time and how easy is it to suddenly realise that we neglected to do so?! Not b

NVBC
Jul 155 min read


8th July 2026
8th July 2026 Prayer as First Response from Travis How are your prayer reflexes going this week since Sunday?? On Sunday I encouraged us to be a "prayer first" people, the type of believer who builds an instinctive response of going to God in prayer. As Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said, always respond to every impulse to pray. For most of us, such responsive prayer-reflexes will develop over time as we intentionally seek to grow in them. Below are some "When-->Then" triggers to he

NVBC
Jul 83 min read


1st July 2026
1st July 2026 The 'Prince of Preachers' on Prayer from Travis As someone who preaches regularly, I find myself feeling in awe of the preaching ministry of Charles Spurgeon. In 1854, at just 19 years of age he became pastor of the New Park Street Chapel and his preaching was immediately so powerful that a new, much (much!) bigger church building had to be constructed! Thousands upon thousands were drawn to hear God speak through Spurgeon each week, with those sermons then tran

NVBC
Jul 14 min read


24th June 2026
24th June 2026 Space for God to Speak "Be still, and know that I am God" - Psalm 46:10 "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him" - Psalm 37:7 "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me" - Jesus (John 10:27) We love hearing stories of how people are meaningfully engaging with God in prayer and making space to hear his voice. Recently, Sue Solomons shared a great story from one of our connect groups and we thought it too good not to share! Have a

NVBC
Jun 245 min read


17th June 2026
17th June 2026 Have you considered... Last Sunday, many of us took the opportunity to fill out a "Have You Considered...?" card, naming gifts, strengths, and possibilities we see in someone else. This was more than a simple response after a sermon, it was the chance to live into our values as the people of God. In a world that can be quick to overlook, criticise or compare, we are the church - a place where people are seen, encouraged, affirmed, and called forward. Throughout

NVBC
Jun 173 min read


10th June 2026
10th June 2026 Have you ever thought about...? From Johnny When I was a young adult, I had a group of Christian friends who were really passionate about serving God. They all dreamed of one day becoming pastors and ministry leaders. They even joked about one day writing their memoir, and remembering our little group where these dreams all began. I was the odd one out in that group. I didn't think I could be a leader, and I had no idea that I would be a pastor one day... but G

NVBC
Jun 105 min read


3rd June 2026
3rd June 2026 They devoted themselves... to eating? From Travis I'm back in the office today fresh from the National Baptist Senior Pastors Gathering. It was my second year being part of this annual peer-to-peer learning community that places a high value on the importance of relationship. Unsurprisingly then, the gathering did not take place in rows of chairs facing forward - it took place around tables. Nor did the agenda for each day finish at 5pm or 6pm - it ended with a

NVBC
Jun 33 min read


27th May 2026
27th May 2026 Reflection: LeadUp Conference Johnny, Zach & Rachel On Monday and Tuesday Johnny, Zach and Rachel attended LeadUp Conference, a Baptist leadership conference at Kiah Ridge in the Southern Highlands. It was a great opportunity to learn about discipleship - for ourselves in our own spiritual formation as leaders, and for those we lead, that they too may grow and lead others to faith and in faith. It was also a great opportunity to meet with other associate pastors

NVBC
May 274 min read


20th May 2026
20th May 2026 They Devoted Themselves... to Prayer from Travis Like most, I am so inspired by the description of the early church Luke records for us in Acts 2:42-47. I find myself captivated each time I read through Acts by what seems to be such an alive, vibrant, exciting, Spirit-filled community on mission together. Unsurprisingly, one of the defining characteristics of their shared life is a commitment, what Luke describes as "a devotion to" prayer. Their example issues a

NVBC
May 205 min read


13th May 2026
13th May 2026 Forget not... from Johnny Over the past couple of months, we have had the privilege of witnessing a series of baptisms: (22nd of March, 3rd of May, and a few more are happening this coming Sunday!). If, like me, you've been a Christian for a while, witnessing baptisms and hearing testimonies might bring back memories of your own baptism or your own coming to faith in Jesus. Hopefully, these celebrations help you to return your focus to the simple, foundational G

NVBC
May 134 min read


6th May 2026
6th May 2026 Cut to the Heart from Travis There are moments when God’s truth moves beyond something we simply hear, read, sing of or remember. In those moments we feel the weight of the Holy Spirit's voice, instinctively knowing that God is at work within us. Over the course of my Christian life it is an experience I have become very familiar with and couldn't imagine living without - I welcome God the Holy Spirit breathing correction, affirmation, rebuke, calling or confirma

NVBC
May 64 min read


29th April 2026
29th April 2026 More Than History Throughout the book of Acts we read of the beautiful and impactful movement of the Holy Spirit in the life of the early church. The life and example of these first believers to receive the Holy Spirit continues to be an inspiring (sometimes challenging!) one for us today. Across this term we will celebrate their courage, admire their faith, be thankful for their faithfulness and praise God for their impact. Yet this is more than a history le

NVBC
Apr 293 min read


22nd April 2026
22nd April 2026 Alpha starts THIS SUNDAY! Our Alpha team are prayed up, ready and beyond excited for the launch of our Term 2 Alpha Course from this Sunday night!! Our 2026 Alpha Host Team The Alpha Course is a warm, non-threatening opportunity to ask the big questions about life, faith and meaning in community together. All around the world, many have found Alpha Course to be deeply encouraging and helpful. You can watch the below trailer to get more of an idea of what is in

NVBC
Apr 223 min read


15th April 2026
15th April 2026 Try Alpha with us Have you ever asked yourself the question "is there more to life than this?" Starting April 26, we are hosting an Alpha course where you can ask and wrestle with this and many more questions about life, faith and meaning. Our Alpha course will be a warm, friendly and open space to connect and explore the big questions of life, faith and meaning together. There is no pressure to speak or to commit to the whole course, first we encourage you

NVBC
Apr 154 min read


8th April 2026
8th April 2026 Thank you Lord! Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. 1 Peter 1:3-4 We are continuing to give great thanks and praise to God for his love expressed through the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus! And we are continuing to praise God for a fabulous Easter Weekend at N

NVBC
Apr 84 min read


Holy Week 2026
25th March 2026 Generous Worship from Johnny Today we are halfway through 'Holy Week' - the week leading up to the Easter weekend. We read in John 12:1-11 that Jesus shared dinner that Wednesday night with Lazarus, Martha and Mary. Lazarus was the man Jesus raised from the dead, and perhaps partly in response to this, his sister Mary stooped down in the middle of the party and anointed Jesus' feet with expensive perfume, wiping his feet with her hair. Judas is appalled, sayin

NVBC
Apr 15 min read
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