Before we BLESS
The world we live in is desperate for hope
- The prevalence of mental ill-health in young people (aged 16–24) has increased by 50% since 2007, rising from 26% to 39% in 2022.
- The “sense of belonging” in Australia has fallen to its lowest level since 2007, with a 27% drop over the last 15 years.
- 40% of Australians experienced loneliness at least some of the time in April 2025. For young people aged 18-24, 41% reported long-term loneliness
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- Roughly half of Australians (47%) believe that Australian society is “broken” or “in decline”.
- 41% of Australians in 2024 described themselves as “poor or struggling to pay bills,” which is linked to lower levels of trust and happiness.
- The number of people worried about becoming a victim of crime increased, with the proportion of women feeling safe walking alone at night declining from 54% in 2022 to 46% in 2024.
Many of these things have been getting worse at the same time as the number of people identifying as Christian is dramatically reducing
While Correlation is not causation… Christianity is objectively a source of hope
- Weekly churchgoers in Australia have a 3% risk of divorce, compared to 9% for those who never attend. Regular church attendance is considered a leading predictor of marital stability and happiness.
- Regular religious practice is instrumental in helping individuals, especially young people in inner-city environments, escape poverty.
- Consistent religious practice is linked to lower rates of suicide, drug abuse, and out-of-wedlock births
- Frequent church attendance is one of the three strongest predictors of high volunteering levels. One study found that people involved in religious volunteering are 3.6 times more likely to volunteer for non-religious causes.
- Attending services at least once a week is associated with a 26% to 33% lower risk of all-cause mortality.
- Active religious participation is linked to a 68% lower risk of “deaths from despair” (suicide, drugs, or alcohol) and lower rates of depression and anxiety.
- The presence of religious congregations, specifically Mainline Protestant and Catholic ones, is associated with lower local crime rates, especially in areas with high income inequality or socioeconomic disadvantage.
- Church attendance among youth is inversely related to drug use, fighting, and both violent and non-violent crime.
How do we help people find the hope they are looking for?
1 Peter 3:15
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
The four assumptions behind this verse:
- Jesus is meant to be the most important thing in your life
- The hope that produces should be visible in the way Christians behave
- We will have relationships with people outside the church
- We need to be able to explain that hope in a way that makes sense to people outside the church
How do you think we are doing?
We will spend this year seeking to understand what it would take to be people whose lives produce questions about the source of their hope.
The Bible says there are three things actively working to stop this from happening:
- World – The system that wants to tell you what you need in order to be “ok”
- Flesh – The human drive to minimise pain and maximise pleasure
- Devil – The father of lies, seeking to distort the truth.
These three things are conspiring to force you into a pattern of life that doesn’t give hope… we are called to resist.
Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Our Job as your church is to support you in this
When the church is what it is meant to be, it is helping you:
Make Jesus the center of your whole life (Worship)
Live differently to the rest of the world (Community)
Connect with people outside the church (Mission)
Know how to share Hope with people outside the church (Worship, Community + Mission)
Ephesians 3:10
His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
What does it mean to live the kind of life where your trust in Jesus produces hope for people around you?
Ongoing and conscious choosing to make Jesus the most important thing in your life, and repenting when you find other things have taken over. WORSHIP
Ongoing conscious choosing to be part of a community of Jesus followers who will remind you of what matters COMMUNITY
Ongoing conscious choosing to bring the hope of Jesus to the world MISSION
What’s the problem with this?
Sometimes you can’t choose… Sometimes willpower is not enough.
Thats where training comes in…
Practices work beneath the level of conscious choice.
Under pressure, we do not default to our ideals;
We return to what we have rehearsed/practised.
We are always being formed. The question is never whether we have practices, but which practices are shaping us.
Sow a thought and you reap an action;
sow an act and you reap a habit;
sow a habit and you reap a character;
sow a character and you reap a destiny
What does it take to be worshipping, sharing and blessing people?
PRACTICE!
1 Corinthians 9:25-27
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
1 Timothy 4:7-8
Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Hebrews 5:13-14
Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
We have reviewed the practises at the heart of each focus and will be introducing new banners this year:
Fasting Prayer
Openness
Listening Prayer
Learn the Bible
Offer Yourself
Willingness to Follow
Speak the Truth in Love
Hold Space
Actively Listen.
Reflect Grace
Encourage
Begin in Prayer
Listen and Learn
Eat Together
Serve Needs
Share Hope
Each of these things is a training practise to enable us to FOLLOW, BLESS and SHARE.
FOLLOW names the practices through which our lives are slowly re-formed around Jesus. These practices shape our hearts before they shape our behaviour. They are not about intensity, but attentiveness.
SHARE names the practices through which the church moves from being a service to being a family. These practises bind us together as the people of God across our differences
BLESS names the practices through which a Jesus-formed life is lived publicly. These practices shape us as people who live hope in a way that other people are impacted by it.
This year, we are particularly going to be focusing on what it means to BLESS.
How can we bless those who don’t like us?
Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
Followers of Jesus are meant to make the world a better place
How can we be salt and light
Matthew 5:13-16
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Each one of us has work to do
What work should you be doing?
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
This year, we are going to keep coming back to ask what it means to be 1 Peter 3:15 people…
1 Peter 3:15
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,
Thats why we have BLESS on the card … why we will be looking at the books including 1 Peter
We will be talking this year about:
– The specific practises of BLESS
– Beginning in Prayer
– 1 Peter and what it means to BLESS
– What a WHOLE, Hope Filled life actually looks like
– What it actually means to love our neighbours
– What it means to Forgive
Why we have this sentence
2026 at Citywide is all about how we make a difference for people
Small Group Questions:
1)The sermon named how desperate our world is for hope.
When you look at your own life honestly, where do you feel that same pressure or weariness most strongly — and how do you usually try to manage it?
2) Christianity was described as an objective source of hope — not just a belief, but a way of life that actually changes outcomes.
What do you think people around you would say Christianity is doing (or not doing) for your life right now?
3) 1 Peter 3:15 assumes that hope should be visible enough to provoke questions.
What parts of your current pattern of life do point to Jesus — and what parts might be muting that hope rather than revealing it?
4) The sermon named three forces that work against hope: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Which of these do you most easily recognise shaping your habits, decisions, or imagination at the moment — and how does it show up practically?
5) We heard that under pressure we don’t fall back on our intentions, but on what we’ve practiced.
What practices are actually forming you right now — whether you chose them or not?
6)As we focus on BLESS this year, the call is not to try harder but to train differently. Which one practice do you sense God inviting you to rehearse this week — and what would make it sustainable rather than idealistic?