Faith Reflections

Matt Garvin’s ongoing wrestle with faith and life

  • About Me
  • Subjects
    • Marriage
    • Parenting and Family
    • Relationships
    • Relationship with God
    • Politics
    • Values
    • Leadership and Faith
    • Community
    • mission
    • Church
    • Work
    • Calling and Vocation
  • Subscribe to Faith Reflections
  • About Me
  • Subjects
    • Marriage
    • Parenting and Family
    • Relationships
    • Relationship with God
    • Politics
    • Values
    • Leadership and Faith
    • Community
    • mission
    • Church
    • Work
    • Calling and Vocation
  • Subscribe to Faith Reflections
Relationship with God, Relationships

What reality are you living from?

We don’t see the world as it is—we see it as we are. Unless Jesus interrupts our story, we live from beliefs shaped by fear, comfort, or culture. He invites…

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July 13, 2025
Church, Relationship with God, Values

The only kind of church that will actually work here is a Fair Dinkum one.

We’ve been back in Australia for one month. We’ve been surprised at how big the adjustment has been, however it does feel like we are starting to find our bearings. Part…

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August 4, 2017
Calling and Vocation

I miss my mate, Phil.

My mate Phil passed away in the early hours of Sunday the 29th of December. I miss him. I don't know why some people are healed and others are not.…

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January 11, 2020
Citywide Baptist Church
Citywide Baptist Church
What is a Christian?
What is a Christian?
You need a Kingdom Cell
You need a Kingdom Cell
  • Calling and Vocation,  Work

    Work as Love Made Visible: A Biblical View of Work

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    Work is more than a way to earn money, but it was never meant to become our identity. Beginning with the Garden of Eden, this article explores how work reflects the image of God, why Sabbath matters and how our calling continues beyond paid employment.

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    0 Comments

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    Rethinking the “Great Commission”: 5 Surprising Truths Christians Overlook

    October 12, 2025

    Is the church the moral compass for the world? I hope not.

    March 10, 2017

    Do you have a dream like Martin Luther King Jr.?

    February 15, 2020
  • Community,  Marriage,  U2

    Find Real Friends: How to Build Friendship in a Lonely World

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    We have never had more ways to connect, yet many of us feel increasingly alone. Real friendship begins when we stop waiting to be noticed and take the brave first step of noticing someone else.

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    2 Comments

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    Self Sufficiency is the great lie of Alberta (and the Western World).

    February 18, 2017

    Eat With People — But Don’t Hide at the Table

    March 1, 2026

    The Awkward Truth about Churches in North America: lots of bonding, not so much bridging.

    April 8, 2017
  • Church,  Marriage,  Relationships,  Values

    Build Your Imperfect Family: Five Practices for Healthier Relationships

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    Family is one of God’s greatest gifts—and one of life’s greatest challenges. There is no perfect family, but through prayer, forgiveness, honesty and grace, we can help build healthier families and churches.

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    0 Comments

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    The WRONG Gospel and the WRONG Mission

    September 28, 2023

    Why Following Your Feelings Isn’t Working (and What to Do Instead)

    April 26, 2026

    Our Appetites are leading us towards destruction.

    October 19, 2018
  • Bible,  Church,  Culture

    The Church as a Community of Truth: Learning to Discern Together

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    Many Christians know the Bible well but still struggle to recognise God’s wisdom in everyday life. This article explores why the church exists not simply to teach truth, but to become a community where believers learn to discern, embody, and live God’s truth together.

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    2 Comments

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    It’s Not About You: Living the True Story of Jesus

    April 6, 2025

    How the Cross Changes Your Life

    September 21, 2025

    What Does It REALLY Mean to Live With Hope?

    May 24, 2026
  • Books,  Calling and Vocation,  Values

    You Are Not Your Feelings: Finding Emotional Maturity

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    Our culture encourages us to trust our feelings above almost everything else. But what if our feelings aren’t telling us the whole truth? Drawing on Scripture, Viktor Frankl, Arthur C. Brooks and the example of Jesus, this article explores what emotional maturity looks like and why followers of Jesus can acknowledge every feeling honestly without allowing those feelings to become their master.

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    2 Comments

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    Getting the Life You Want: Why Happiness Isn’t the Goal

    June 28, 2026

    Why Nations Rise and Fall

    December 17, 2024

    Lets stop settling for desires far below what we were created for.

    January 6, 2017
  • Books,  Calling and Vocation,  Values

    Getting the Life You Want: Why Happiness Isn’t the Goal

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    Most of us want to be happy, but what if we’ve been aiming at the wrong target? Drawing on our everyday experience, the timeless wisdom of Scripture, and insights from Arthur C. Brooks’ Getting the Life You Want, this article explores why happiness is not simply the absence of sadness, pain, or struggle. Instead, it points us towards something richer—a life marked by enjoyment, purpose, satisfaction, and hope. If Jesus really came so that we might “have life, and have it to the full,” perhaps it’s time to stop chasing happiness and start discovering the whole life he offers.

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    1 Comment

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    Six Ways We Structure Time — And Why It Matters.

    March 4, 2026

    Faith is the key to your willpower.

    January 8, 2020

    Lets stop settling for desires far below what we were created for.

    January 6, 2017
  • Bible

    Why Your Suffering Matters: What 1 Peter Teaches About Pain, Growth and Love

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    A return to Broken Hill after 35 years prompted a reflection on how quickly life passes. Drawing on 1 Peter 4, this article explores why suffering is not something to fear, but something God can use to shape us into people who love Him and others more deeply.

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    1 Comment

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    Why Following Your Feelings Isn’t Working (and What to Do Instead)

    April 26, 2026

    The Confronting Message of Christmas: Justice, Truth, and an Invitation to Life

    December 22, 2024

    Following Jesus: More Than Willpower, Knowledge, or a Miracle

    February 16, 2025
  • Bible,  Church

    What Does It REALLY Mean to Live With Hope?

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    We live in a world that tells us to trust ourselves, follow our feelings, and create our own truth. Peter offers a very different vision. Real hope begins with repentance, grows through the work of the Holy Spirit, and becomes visible through lives that love and suffer differently. What if hope is not simply something we believe, but something we live?

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    0 Comments

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    Unveiling the Beast: Power, Corruption, and the Call for Faithfulness in Today’s World

    October 2, 2024

    What Faith Really Looks Like in the Real World

    April 12, 2026

    The Great Commandment is only possible if we allow ourselves to see.

    April 15, 2016
  • Bible,  Politics

    How Should Christians Engage With Politics? A Christian Response to Division and Power

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    Politics can easily shape us more than Jesus does. In a divided world filled with outrage, fear and tribalism, 1 Peter offers a different vision. Followers of Jesus are called to engage politically with truth, humility, justice, mercy and compassion — without placing their hope in power or political tribes.

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    1 Comment

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    The Defeated Dragon: A Reflection on Revelation Chapter 12

    September 30, 2024
    Photo by Kristina Flour on Unsplash

    The cover-up that has robbed you of precious truth.

    November 14, 2023

    Why Following Your Feelings Isn’t Working (and What to Do Instead)

    April 26, 2026
  • Bible,  Jesus

    The Answer to Your Biggest Problem (It’s Not What You Think)

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    What if the biggest problem in your life isn’t actually your biggest problem? Beneath every struggle is a deeper story shaping how you see yourself, others, and God. This post explores how that story works—and how Jesus invites you into a better one that leads to real life.

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    Sabbath: More Important and Less Religious Than You Think

    February 23, 2025

    Heaven on Earth, we need it now. I’m sick of all of this, hanging around.

    April 29, 2016

    The Grand Design of Revelation—Judgment, Redemption, and New Creation

    October 7, 2024
  • Bible,  Church,  Values

    Why Following Your Feelings Isn’t Working (and What to Do Instead)

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    We’re often told to follow our feelings, but the Bible suggests something more complex. Our inner world is shaped by many influences—some healthy, some not—and real life is found not in following every feeling, but in anchoring our hope in God.

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    0 Comments

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    The Glory of God is missing in your Christianity.

    February 22, 2020

    What the church is meant to be…

    September 28, 2025

    Seven Signs You Are Living in Babylon

    September 28, 2024
  • Church

    The Church as a Community of Truth: How We Learn to See Together

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    We’ve never had more access to truth—and yet less clarity about what is true. What if the issue isn’t just what we believe, but how we learn to see? This post explores why the church must become a community of truth, discerning and following Jesus together.

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    1 Comment

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    A healthy church doesn’t fit into business as usual… it sets an agenda that changes every aspect of life.

    October 28, 2016

    Have we forgotten the three questions of friendship?

    November 16, 2018

    There is no question that women have not been seen or valued by the church in the way that Jesus saw or valued them. #ThingsOnlyChristianWomenHear

    April 21, 2017
  • Bible

    What Faith Really Looks Like in the Real World

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    Faith is not about strong feelings or certainty. It’s about what you trust when life gets hard. This explores what faith really looks like in the real world.

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    0 Comments

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    The Confronting Message of Christmas: Justice, Truth, and an Invitation to Life

    December 22, 2024

    Why do we commemorate the execution of this one man?

    April 14, 2022

    The Defeated Dragon: A Reflection on Revelation Chapter 12

    September 30, 2024
  • Bible,  Jesus

    Why Your Greatest Failure Isn’t the End of Your Story (Lessons from Peter)

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    Peter failed in his worst moment—but his story didn’t end there. Discover how Jesus meets him in his failure and asks the question that changes everything: “Do you love me?”

    read more
    1 Comment

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    What Does It REALLY Mean to Live With Hope?

    May 24, 2026

    Choosing the Right Reality in a World of Illusions

    October 27, 2024

    Faithful Witnesses in a World of Deception—The Role of the Church in Revelation

    October 5, 2024
  • Jesus

    Why Is Good Friday Good? (And Why It Matters for Your Life)

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    Why is Good Friday good? Good Friday is called “good” because it reveals how Jesus dealt with the gap between who we are and who we’re meant to be. Through His death, forgiveness and grace are offered—not based on our performance, but on what He has done.

    read more
    1 Comment

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    Why Your Greatest Failure Isn’t the End of Your Story (Lessons from Peter)

    April 5, 2026

    The Answer to Your Biggest Problem (It’s Not What You Think)

    May 3, 2026
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Sites worth seeing

  • Citywide Baptist Church
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  • Elizabeth Campbell's blog
  • Fusion Canada
  • Where are we in God's Story? (Eric Kregel's blog)
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