Malvern Uniting Church

09/09/2026

07/09/2026

Kids Club registrations are now open: https://buff.ly/JlsnuFs.

Early Bird discount available until Friday 18 September.

03/09/2026

Join us this Sunday 10am as Tim shares on A New Family from Romans 8:14-17.

28/08/2026

Last week we Made Some Noise! We discovered that Sableye is really a keen DJ, vampires should not date zombies, and that sometimes our actions have consequences. We then heard from Max as he shared about how our actions don’t always align with what we believe.

This week we’ll be taking part in an action movie! Dress up as a scientist or a marine as we participate in an active game as you all will work together against an unknown threat…

I will then share a thought about how the Gospel talks about grief.

Also After School Hangout is running from 4:30pm to 6pm, if anybody is keen to relax with some tea or hot chocolate and board games beforehand!

27/08/2026

Malvern Community,

Here’s a thought exercise:

Imagine you had to be tried in court for something serious, and the evidence was genuinely open to interpretation: would you rather your fate be decided by one judge or by a jury of twelve ordinary people?

For the moment ignore the circumstances and ponder the choice: judge or jury?

Perhaps you might prefer a judge, thinking "a qualified expert will see through emotion and get to the facts". You might want to ensure this is more important than persuasion, making sure the case decided on what is legally relevant, not on who presents better. A judge also understands evidence, legal standards and burden of proof better than ordinary people.

Or perhaps you might prefer a jury, thinking “I'd rather take my chances with ordinary people. I think I can get them to understand me”. You might have confidence in your ability to persuade. Also, the power is dispersed, and so with twelve people it’s harder for one prejudice, bad mood or personal theory to dominate.

I wonder what things might factor into your thinking?

Whether you trust competence more than people. Or the common-sense of people more than institutions. Or have previous experience with an authority figure. Or confidence in your own ability to persuade.

What would be your choice?

Nobody liked to be judged. But do you think truth is more likely to emerge through expert analysis, or through collective human judgment? Do you want to be judged ‘from above’ or ‘from alongside’?

Most people instinctively prefer a jury over a judge because they believe a group of regular citizens is fairer, more sympathetic, and less biased than one single official. Interestingly, however, a 2024 NSW study of more than 5,800 trials found that a judge-alone trials were associated with a higher acquittal rate.

This Sunday, as we continue our series on Identity, I want to ask a related question: who gets to decide who you are?

Because most of us spend a surprising amount of our lives before an imaginary jury, wondering what other people think of us, trying to explain ourselves, win approval, or persuade people that we are worthwhile. And sometimes the harshest judge of all is the one inside our own head.

But the New Testament offers a very different place to locate our identity. Paul writes:

“For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3

That is a remarkable image. Your deepest identity is not up for a vote. It is not finally determined by the judgment of the crowd, the verdict of an authority figure, or even by your own assessment of yourself.

Your life is hidden with Christ in God.

What might it mean to live from an identity that secure?

Join us this Sunday 10am as I share on Resurrection Life from Colossians 2:20-23 and 3:1-4.

Tim

22/08/2026

It's Quiz Night tonight!

Please be sure to bring a friend, or a whole table, to this wonderful, fun night. It’s BYO drinks and platters for your table.

We would love the opportunity to meet your friends, and give them a taste of our church community in a relaxed evening!

You can get tickets at the door or at square.link/u/rCnanrPx

21/08/2026

Malvern Community,

Last week I had to pop to Sydney for a few days.

One thing struck me again about Sydneysiders: they’re fantastic drivers.

They cruise around their swirly, complex city with speed and efficiency. And they’re unfailingly polite. I only had to think about turning, and the car behind was pulling back, ready to let me in.

They’re funny terms really: Sydneysiders. Melburnians. Brisbanites.

I wonder if you think of yourself as primarily Adelaidian or South Australian? Perhaps it's swayed by whether you grew up rural or in the city?

(Why does the Riverland produce so many good footballers?)

When I was on Mitcham Council there was always a soft rivalry between the hills and plains residents. Adelaidians also tends to also think of ourselves as either North and South. Perhaps also proudly from the Western suburbs.

I’m interested in how cultural markers help form our identity. Sometimes we wear them proudly. Sometimes like baggage. And, sometimes, obliviously. But it’s interesting to consider what place we call home.

In this series, Identity in Christ, we’re exploring how we flourish when we more deeply step into the identity received from Jesus.

In John 15:4-5, Jesus says to his disciples, "Abide in me as I abide in you”.

Jesus is inviting us to make our home in him. To live in communion with, and continually receive your life from him.

To live from the security of his presence, love, and life.

Correspondingly, he makes his home in us. The indwelling presence of his Holy Spirit becoming the deepest reality of who we are.

Life is about increasingly embracing the liberating truth of our union with Jesus. Making our home in Jesus as he makes his home in us.

Tim

21/08/2026

Last week we learned that Hungry Hungry Hippos can be played with skateboards, memory games require you to have a good memory, and that we’re very good at doing things that we know we don’t want to do.

This week we’ll be playing Make Some Noise! This means short-form improv, shouting out absurd answers to absurd prompts, and just generally making some noise.

Hope to see you then!

Also After School Hangout is running from 4:30pm to 6pm, if anybody is keen to relax with some tea or hot chocolate and board games beforehand!