Saint Mary's Podcast

This week was Preach for the Stars, where we invite people from our church family to give short talks. At this 10.30 gathering, Ian preached on Acts 3 and the faith of Peter and John as they performed their first miracle, and Beth preached on Acts 4 and the disciples' prayer for more of the Holy Spirit.

On Pentecost Sunday, Katy unpacks Acts 2 and the miraculous encounter with the Holy Spirit. She encouraged us to be a spirit-filled community of participation, centred around Jesus.

Emily preached for the next part of our Acts: Kingdom Now series, looking at the powerful moment of Pentecost and its impact on us.

This week, we kick off our new teaching series through the book of Acts, Kingdom Now. In week one, Tom sets the course for the series, helping us see how the book is the true story of the outpouring of heaven and the renewal of the world, and how as the church we can climb inside it and live it out every day.

Misheck Manhanha speaks from Exodus on the glory of God. Misheck is the Church Planting Lead for Assemblies of God and we were delighted to have him preach for us on Sunday.

Jon speaks from 2 Corinthians and asks, what if the quiet revival we've been sensing is real—and already underway? Are you ready to open your life to a move of God?

Edgar speaks from John 21:1-14 and the value of remembering who we are because of who God is. That in our doubt or worry or default to comfort, it's Jesus who does the calling and provision on the Calling.

Abielle speaks from John 20:24-29 reminding us that doubt is not the opposite of faith but can be a pathway to a deeper encounter with Christ. Jesus' words, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed," encourage us to trust Him even when we cannot see.

Jon speaks on the the Hope and Life we have in the resurrection from John 20:1-20

Katy encourages us to become a community of prayerful Presence by imitating the very life of God: pursuing His presence and participating in His mission. She challenges us to eliminate distractions, overcome shame, and enter into honest, intimate relationship with God. As we behold and abide with God, we're also called to participate in His mission; uniting in prayer with others, contending for breakthrough, and witnessing lives transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Sam….

Juliet continues on the theme of community, speaking on the power and conviction of forgiveness, and how we are to treat each other in light of what Jesus has done for us.

Continuing our series on Community Sanjay Rajo talks to us about becoming peacemakers in a hostile environment.

Jon spoke on Luke 11 for Giving Sunday, encouraging us to set our perspective on the abundant generosity of God, as we sow into what God is doing in our church, our city and our world.

Guest Speaker, Bishop Philip the Bishop of Winchester spoke about the persecuted church.

Guest Speaker, Bishop Philip the Bishop of Winchester spoke about the persecuted church.

Jon shares on Vision Sunday how the aim of following Jesus is to get his view of reality into ours - we are invited to perceive His presence, be transformed by His Spirit, and step into our calling to bring about God's glory and the world's good as we following the way, playing our part in the renewal of our city and beyond.

What…

What is Jesus' vision for community? How do we embody what it means to be a Jesus-centred family together? over the next few weeks we are going to be looking at how we grow as a thick web of tight-knit relationships throughout our city, for God's glory and the worlds good.

Katy highlights the importance of wholehearted devotion to God, drawing from Matthew 6:19-24, where Jesus warns against storing up earthly treasures and being divided in heart. The sermon emphasises that true devotion requires aligning mind, body, and soul with God, and challenges listeners to evaluate their priorities, avoiding distractions like wealth and ambition. Ultimately, it calls for sacrificial love and a focus on eternal, kingdom-centered treasures rather than temporary worldly gains.

Continuing our series on living lives of wholehearted devotion, Jon explores a biblical narrative on what it means to be an embodied people, made in the image of God.

This week guest speaker Will Van Der Hart spoke on the area of our mind, our mental health and well being , giving us biblical insight into Jesus's encounters with his disciples, about how he developed resilience, committed to prayer and modelled freedom that is found in spending time with God.

This Sunday Katy talks on the theme of Wholehearted Trust – Looking particularly at the wisdom of Proverbs 3:5-6, that teaches us to let go of our self reliance, and lean more fully into God as we head into 2025.

This Sunday, Sam reflects on the growing spiritual curiosity in society, saying that while Christianity has seen a decline, a new spiritual renewal is emerging. Drawing from the story of Peter's denial and reinstatement by Jesus, the Sam encourages us to overcome fear and comfort in order to share our faith boldly. It highlights how crisis often precedes renewal, and urges us to not let fear or past mistakes block others from encountering Jesus and the spiritual awakening happening around them.

As we start the new year together, Tom kicks off our new teaching series - Wholehearted, a short series looking at what it means to love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. In week one, we look at what it might look like to live lives of unwavering devotion to Jesus as we seek to become more like him.

Following the Maji in Matthew 2:1-12; Katie compares the two Kingdoms portrayed in the passage, the Empire of Earth and the Kingdom of Heaven. How might we give our full allegiance to King Jesus, as we behold who he is and seek to become like him in our daily lives?

Abielle kicks off our Advent season by urging us to prepare our hearts for Christ's coming by reflecting on Mary's story of faith and fellowship, in a time of pain and shame, yet joy for what was to come. Looking at Luke 1:39-56, Mary's faithfulness, seen in her visit to Elizabeth and her song of praise, shows us the importance of trusting God's plan even in challenging circumstances.

This Sunday Katy shares on what it means to be a prophetic Church; a prophetic people, actively living out and enacting God's Kingdom now, as well as participating in the things of the Spirit, particularly prophecy (1 Corinthians 12-14).

From the verses in Philippians 3 : 17-20, Sam shares the invitation to walk and live out our faith in community with one another as a church of the way of Jesus Christ.

This Sunday, Tom concluded our short vision series looking at the relational spheres of Crowd, Company, Core, One, by showing us the centrality of a relationship with God - abiding with Jesus as he abides with us.

This Sunday, Tom concluded our short vision series looking at the relational spheres of Crowd, Company, Core, One, by showing us the centrality of a relationship with God - abiding with Jesus as he abides with us.

This week Katy follows Jon's talk about having a Kingdom vision through the calling to love our neighbour. This kind of love changes us. Are we willing to be sent as Jesus was sent? To be filled with His love and His compassion for others, which is far deeper and greater than anything we could ever feel.

This Sunday, Tom concluded our short vision series looking at the relational spheres of Crowd, Company, Core, One, by showing us the centrality of a relationship with God - abiding with Jesus as he abides with us.

From the verses in Philippians 3 : 17-20, Sam shares the invitation to walk and live out our faith in community with one another as a church of the way of Jesus Christ.

From the verses in Philippians 3 : 17-20, Sam shares the invitation to walk and live out our faith in community with one another as a church of the way of Jesus Christ.

Psalm 46 shows us who God is. He is present in everything in life, and he wants us to know that he loves us, and he wants to be involved in our lives. From this Psalm, Emily explores how we can be reignited, through certainty and surrender.

In John 17:20-26, Jesus prays for our unity and for us to see his glory. Tom shares how we can pursue unity and Jesus' glory, both as individuals and as a church.

In John 17:6-19 we read Jesus' prayer for us from a moment of intimacy. From this prayer, Emily unpacks revelation, belonging and intercession, and shares how we can pray for these to become more like Jesus.

In a world lacking in hope, how do we keep our hope in Jesus? From John 16:16-33, Sam shares how we can trust Jesus' promises, that are being fulfilled both now, and in the future.

From John 15, how do we abide in Jesus, allowing his tender care to transform us? Jon shares how we can read scripture and invite God's spirit to fill us afresh.

From John 15, how do we abide in Jesus, allowing his tender care to transform us? Jon shares how we can read scripture and invite God's spirit to fill us afresh.

From John 14:15-21, Juliet shares how being obedient to a good God, who loves us, leads us to freedom.

From John 14:5-14, Katie unpacks how Jesus is the Way to the Father, and what his claim, call and commission for us is.

Jesus demonstrated what true humility looks like, not coming to be served but to serve. Abielle shares how we can be more like Jesus in humility, lowering ourselves to glorify God, and showing his love to the world through it. The reading is John 13:1-17.

Followers of Jesus don't settle for how the world currently is, rather looking for how good it can be under God's rule and reign. From John 12:20-36, Tom Boulter shares how we can die to ourselves to live fulfilling lives, bringing God's kingdom to earth.

This week we were joined at Chapel Road by the incredible Sarah Jackson — long term friend of Saint Mary's and CEO of Revitalise Trust, the organisation responsible for church planting in the HTB Network, and more. She shared with us from the life of Ezekiel, encouraging us to step out into our context in the power of the Spirit, and see dry bones come to life.

God is good, evil is real, and there is a way to fight that everyone can engage with. Wrapping up our Can I Get A Witness series, Jon shares how, with God's help, we can stand and fight in the face of an enemy that wants to discourage and distance us from God. The passage is 1 Peter 5:6-11.