Back in 2014, Nicole and I had the opportunity to be part of a tour of Turkey and Greece. It was a fascinating experience and we loved exploring the history of these iconic places. One of the highlights was a visit to Cappadocia in central Turkey. Cappadocia is an ancient name which means 'land of … Continue reading A Hot Air Ballooning Adventure
To Russia With Love
As I teenager I loved to play RISK, a board game similar to Monopoly, but in RISK the goal is to conquer the world, not just own the houses in the neighbourhood. Each player is dealt a certain number of countries and armies to placer on them. Then through the roll of the dice they … Continue reading To Russia With Love
Top Tips for Travellers
Thinking of travelling any time soon? My first overseas trip was when I was 9 years old and my family visited the USA. I love travel and enjoy the whole experience (well, most of it!) - airports, airplanes, visiting other countries, and meeting new people. As an experienced traveller, here are a few tips … Continue reading Top Tips for Travellers
How’s Your Cultural Intelligence?
The apostle Paul worked hard to relate to a wide variety of people. Have a read of this from his letter to the church at Corinth in the first century: 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all … Continue reading How’s Your Cultural Intelligence?
Travel
I admire the many Christian mission workers around the world. Many of them work in some of the poorest, least evangelised and most persecuted countries in the world. Personally, I believe everyone should have a passport. We encourage everyone in our church to go on a short-term team to another nation sometime in their life … Continue reading Travel
Melbourne – Our City
I love our city of Melbourne, recent winner (again!) of the world's most livable city. Recently, the Herald Sun newspaper published a list of 50 things you will never hear a Melbournian say. Here are my favourite 10 from the list: 1. I might have instant coffee today. It all sort of tastes the same … Continue reading Melbourne – Our City
Word of Life Europe Conference 2013
I was privileged to participate in the recent Word of Life Europe Conference in Upssala, Sweden. This event is hosted by Ulf Ekman, the founder of Word of Life, a thriving network of churches based in Europe. The conference draws thousands of people from all over Europe, include over 300 Russians. Translation of the messages … Continue reading Word of Life Europe Conference 2013
Up up and away …
Ever since I was kid, I have loved to travel. I remember as a 9 year old taking my first flight from Australia to America with my parents. I remember the feeling of looking down from the airplane and seeing the city looking smaller and smaller - like a model of tiny roads, cars and … Continue reading Up up and away …
Masada
Another place we visited on our tour of Israel earlier this year was Masada. It is a stunning section of isolated rock plateau on the eastern edge of the Judean desert overlooking the Dead Sea.The cliffs on the steepest side are over 400 metres high. However, the top of the site is easily reached today via … Continue reading Masada
The Dead Sea
During our tour of Israel earlier this year, we visited the Dead Sea. It is an amazing body of water. It is 67 x 18 kilometres in size at it widest points, and it is over 400 metres below sea level. The reason it is called 'dead' is because there is inflow but no outflow. As a result, … Continue reading The Dead Sea
Reflections on Israel (Pt.2)
A few more thoughts on my recent trip to Israel ... Jerusalem would have to be the most fought over city in the history of the world. It has been controlled by so many different civilizations throughout the centuries – the Egyptians, the Jebusites (who King David captured it from), the Israelites, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, … Continue reading Reflections on Israel (Pt.2)
Reflections on Israel
I have just spent ten days touring the land of Israel - my first trip. It was a very enjoyable and insightful time. We based in Jerusalem for half the time, visiting many sites around the city and also venturing out to visit Masada, En Gedi, the Valley of Elah (where David fought Goliath) and … Continue reading Reflections on Israel