Here's a link to the very thought-provoking Blog of Richard Wesley.  See below for a sample, in which he tells us news of a trip to Ethipoia, where he is now!   Read his latest entries to see what he is doing there! 

Richard Wesley's blog:

Other links of interest:

 Following  this link , you'll find the home page of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand.  There's a link there to the Book of Order, which can be downloaded as a PDF file.  There's also information on our Church's organization, its subcommittees and their work.

Follow this link, and you'll find a list of other Presbyterian Church websites in New Zealand. You can visit them, and see what they do. Maybe you'll get some new ideas for what we might do in our Church.

 Click on this link to go to the home page of a website that covers a whole range of Islamic beliefs, doctrines, and its relationship to other religions, from an Islamic point of view. Look in particular at the sub-topics concerning "women", and "Terrorism and Islam". You may be surprised.

Do you have any wise words or Christian insights to offer?  Send them in, and they'll appear on this page.

Reverend Roy gave a short, five minute devotional talk
 at the Navy end of year Service on the night of December 15.
This is what he said.

Have you every stood on the aft deck and watched the wake, as the propellers churn the waters, and upset to normal rhythm of the waves?

Have you noticed some of the old, more graceful yachts slide through the sea hardly disturbing the water at all?

I was out racing the other day and a tug went past, on its way to bring in a container ship. And its bow wave was a good meter to a meter and half high. And boy, those tugs can move some water when they get those big propellers going, Can't they!

And so I have noticed that some vessels create a huge wake, and others slip quietly along without much disturbance. But I have also noticed that the sea is calmer in the wake.

It doesn't make sense, but it is true, that somehow the pattern of the swell is disturbed and for a short time, in the wake of a large vessel, there is a calm spot. A short period in which the water is smooth before the regular forces of the waves and swell begin to have effect.

And as I reflect on this - and this is why I love my job so much, I time to think and reflect - I wonder if our lives are not the same? You know that some of us slip gracefully through life, hardly making a ripple, largely unnoticed. Yet others create a huge wake, setting into motion ripples that travel far and wide.

Have you ever been at a party and one of these people comes into the room? You can just feel their presence. Nothing is said, you just know that they are there.

Sir Edmund Hilary, Mother Theresa, Christopher Columbus, Buddha, Muhammad, Gandhi, and Jesus Christ, are all people who have left a huge wake, and there are others.

Now there are two points I want to pull out of this picture, one is that we all make a wake. For some of us, it is small, and for others, its larger. And our wake affects others.

How we live our lives can and does affect the lives around us. How I live greatly affects the way in which my wife and children life, and more than that it affects those I sail with, those I work with, and many more. How's your wake?

But more importantly, Just as a large vessel leaves a calm spot in the water, so to a person with a large wake can leave a calm spot in our lives. The forces of life can push us around, add stresses, strain relationships, and financial pressure. This all adds up to uncomfortable seas. But a large wake will leave a calm spot, a spot in which we can seek refuge.

Personally, I have found that the teachings of Jesus Christ are that calm spot for me. Because in the troubled waters of life, following the teachings of Christ provide rest and smooth sailing.

May you all find this spot, in the wake of a great leader, as you voyage this life.

Let us Pray.

We Give thanks for Life.

We give to you God, the voyage of this day.

You are the wind, fill up my sails, you are the water, run fast beneath my keel.

You are the light, guide me. You are the darkness, embrace me.

You are love; overflow me.

The storm of change are you, and the peace of tranquil waters

May I journey without fear through all your seasons, knowing I have you, and I have friends who encourage and challenge me, allowing me to live life to the full. Amen.