North New Zealand Conference
North New Zealand Conference
Prayer and the personal life
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In college—and in God
We don’t take our parents with us when we go off to college or university—we leave them at home. We’re thankful for their support and prayers, but in most cases we’re eager to be off by ourselves as newly established adults. -
Prayer—good for your health
“Dear friend,” writes John to Gaius, “I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” 3 John 2. -
God of the darkness
I’ll never forget a visit I made years ago to a home in darkness. At midday, blinds were shut. Lights were out. A candle burned. The woman inside was trapped in never-ending grief from the death of her daughter 13 years before. -
I’m blessed—so why am I guilty
Believe it or not, there are some people who have few significant trials and who see themselves as so blessed by God that it makes them feel guilty! These people have worked hard and made good decisions; now they enjoy the rewards. They are healthy, th -
The miracle of praise in trial
Several years ago I received a year-end letter from some friends in California, USA. There were details about children, events and so on. Then there was a sentence that jumped out from the page: "God has richly blessed us this year with many trials." I -
Transforming the tight spots
"I'm in a tight spot." It's a familiar phrase, and a familiar plight. Tightness. It denotes confinement and tension. Walls of adversity closing in. Problems pressing. Little space to breathe. Hemmed in. No freedom to run. A prison cell is a tight spot. -
How to pray “without ceasing”
"We can't really pray all the time, can we? We can't take that text literally." That text, of course, is 1 Thessalonians 5:17—"Pray without ceasing." The original word for "without ceasing" means "uninterruptedly", or "without omission". Modern version -
The urgency of secret prayer
Here's a good question: Was there ever a time when Jesus refused to meet with people who wanted to be with him? Was there ever a time when he turned others away and put his own needs above the needs of others? The answer, actually, is Yes! Here's the s -
Must we be holy to pray?
We need not be anything to pray—that's the beauty of God's gift of prayer. Prayer is one of the few activities on Earth that is completely non-discriminatory. Skin colour, gender, nationality, age, financial status, education, social standing, church r