Journey of a Thousand Steps

Why Do We Sing Songs in Church?

Are you someone who loves singing and dancing in church, or are you more likely to arrive fifteen minutes late so you can miss the opening worship? Music in church is often one of the greatest sources of conflict in church communities. This is no surprise, since it matters, and is so much more than the icing on the cake of Christian life. Today we considered the lyrics in Psalm 96, which tell us about why worshipping God in song is important. We learned that though there are many reasons why music aids our faith journey, its primary purpose is to make the weightiness of God's power and love (His kavod) felt, tangible and declared. 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 2 November 2025

A Light Has Dawned

What if it were possible that we will see a revivial of faith across the nations in our lifetime? This week we welcomed Cameron Healey, the Senior Pastor of Albert Park Baptist Church, to share with us from Isaiah 9.1-7. Cameron spoke about God's promise that light will shine in the darkness, as he shared from his experience of praying in the area of Port Melbourne and setting up a 24/7 Prayer Room. He said, "God is working, doing a new thing in this area."
Podcast by Cameron Healey, 26 October 2025 

Do Not Harden Your Heart

This Sunday we launched a new, five week teaching series called 'Christian Worship', exploring the meaning of prayer and worship in our lives. We hosted a guest preacher, David Jones, who shared with us from Psalm 95, about his own experience of inviting God to soften his heart. 
Podcast by David Jones, 19 October 2025

Walk On: How to Keep Walking with Jesus After Encountering Sexual or Financial Abuse in the Church

What credibility rating woud you give Christianity as a source of wisdom about sexuality or finance? Do you feel the Bible holds wisdom the world needs, or are you inclined to think of biblical teachings about money and sex as outdated? It is a common and understandable response to the moral failings of Church leaders, to throw out the credibility of the whole tradition. However, Paul, in his letter to the early Church across Asia Minor, provides very specific counsel about how we are to respond to sexual and financial immorality by Christians, especially leaders. In Ephesians 5.1-20 he outlines why God does not want or expect us to partner with people who are unsafe to be with romatically or financially. He then provides a vision for cutting unhealthy relationship ties and continuing to walk with Jesus, step by step. 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 12 October 2025
This week's sermon ends with a song for reflection by U2 - 'Walk On' - https://open.spotify.com/track/3pUWV5hvXsI9diJ9TeNeCh 

Equal Parts Truth, Equal Parts Love

Some churches seem to care more about truth, standards and biblical orthodoxy than compassion and kindness. Other churches can kindess and inclusion above truth. But in truth, love rejoices in facing hard things, having hard conversations. For this reason Paul urges the Church to "grow up", to "mature", and to find the balance between speaking the truth and showing love. Today at Holy Trinity, we considered Paul's words to the early Church in Ephesians 4:1-16, where he provides a pathway to spiritual maturity. He describes a need to nurture all of the gifts that God gives to the Body. To guide us into truth, God raises up teachers, prophets and evangelists. To mature us in our ability to love, He raises up pastors and apostles. Join us on our journey to strengthening all gifts and learning to speak the truth in love. 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 5 October 2025

Christianity: The Faith That Has No National, Political or Cultural Identity

How do you feel about the way Christianity is represented in the media today? One of the earliest marks of Christian faith, from its infancy, when it was still considered a small, Jewish sect that was likely to phase out, was its multi-ethnic, multicultural framework. No longer did followers of this faith need to share the same national, political or cultural identity. Gentiles were welcome, and they weren't expected to convert to the Jewish way of life to join. This wasn't a development that anyone was expecting, least of which the Apostle Paul, who pioneered the mission of the early Church to non-Jewish nations. The early Church wrestled with the change that the death and resurrection of Jesus was bringing to history. The movement was now meant to honour the Jewish nation, reject antisemitism, but also allow a multi-national identity to emerge. Ephesians 3.1-13 reminds us that, today, if we are going to share the Good News of Jesus, it cannot be exclusively tied to political allegiance, cultural preferences or language. 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 28 September 2025
 

What Armour Do You Wear?

Do you ever feel as though you are fighting a battle that you never chose? Perhaps it is with your teenager or colleagues, or your line manager at work? Perhaps there is an internal battle you observe, with unhelpful thoughts or temptations? This week we welcomed guest preacher Campbell Brice, who spoke to us about the armour we are encouraged to "put on" in Ephesians 6.10-18. Campbell started by describing some of the daily battles we face with evil; that the battles are real and, therefore, we do need armour. But so often, we create our own "do it yourself" armour, that works for a time, but ultimately lets us down. The armour of Christ is better, stronger, and made to fit. 
Podcast by Campbell Brice, 21 September 2025

Vital Signs of Life (Vision Sunday II)

"Once we were dead," says Paul to the early church across Asia Minor. Once we were dead, but now we are alive together with Christ. We can sow into the things that lead to life, or that which leads to death. These are our choices, says Paul in Ephesians 2.1-10. 
This final Vision Sunday for 2025, we considered where the signs of life have been in our past and present at Holy Trinity, and where there have been symptoms of death. The signs of life are always warmth, growth and activity. Signs of death are coldness, hardness, inactivity. As we looked at the things we naturally excel at, the ways God has used Holy Trinity to lead people to life, against that which has held us back, we thought about what it would be like to scale our capacity, making our church open and accessible every day of the week: a 24/7 House of Prayer for all. 
Watch this space. Our new vision and Mission Action Plan is beginning to take shape!
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 14 September 2025

How to Touch Heaven (Every Day)

Do you ever wish you had a portal, so you could travel back and forth from different parts of the world in seconds? Imagine if you could literally move back and forth from Heaven in seconds, as easily as walking through a wardrobe. C. S. Lewis depicted this concept so beautifully in the Narnia Chronicles. The real life version is, however, even better.
Today, we began our six weeks series exploring Paul's letter to the Ephesians (or the early church in Asia Minor). The letter gives us a profound and beautiful exposition of the ways in which we have something even better than a portal: adoption into the family of Christ. Ephesians 1.1-14 reminds us that we belong to Heaven, with a promised inheritance that we begin to experience, now, on earth. Because of this, we can't travel back and forth from earth to Heaven, but we can live in the overlap. Guided by the Holy Spirit, we can be confident in our ability to be hear God's counsel and walk in His presence right now. 
 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 7 September 2025 

Two Ways Vision Goes Wrong (Vision Sunday)

Have you ever been in a church that had big plans and exciting projects, but these collapsed as soon as the leadership changed? Or have you ever been in a church that built stability on keeping everything the same as it's always been? This Sunday, we considered Jesus' teaching about humility from Luke 14.1, 7-14, which highlights two temptations that church leaders, in particular, must avoid:
The temptation to exhalt themselves, by using a congregation to advance their own following, style and branding.
The temptation to prioritise the preferences and opinions of people who give time and money to the church, against those who have little or nothing to give.
Please pray for us at Holy Trinity, as we discern our vision moving forward, that we will submit our own ideas, preference and desires to Jesus, and our lives to one another.
 
Podcast by Heather Cetrangolo, 31 August 2025