Preacher Man...first sunday in Lent

Within the Uniting Church in Australia is a network of normal everyday believers who with some study and training can be considered to help share the load of preaching and leading church services. I am going through the preparation phase for this at the moment...its called accreditation for Lay Preacher. Last night was my second time being assessed as I lead the worship service which I had put together and preached. I really enjoy delving into scripture and seeing what comes through study and inspiration. So I have posted below my sermon which focuses on Mark 1: 9-15..the revised common lectionary reading for Year B first sunday in Lent.
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In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was
baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out
of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit
descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven,
"You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."
And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He
was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was
with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming
the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the
kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good
news."

The Season of Lent

There's a lot of talk about Lent at this time of year. Giving something up for Lent, Lenten studies, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Day, Ash Wednesday. Amongst Australian churches, many of the "traditional" churches like the Anglican Church, Roman Catholic, Lutheran and Uniting Church recognise this as a liturgical season and an important time of preparation for the season of Easter. Not so in the Baptist and Pentecostal movements, where anything that is remotely linked to the Roman Catholic tradition is looked upon with suspicion.

As part of my work as a radio broadcaster, I did an interview about "Lent Event" which is a Uniting Church event run over the 40 days of Lent focusing on the areas where relief and development agency UnitingWorld are working. Due to the non-denomational nature of the organisation where I work, I couldn't share this interview on air, so have decided to post it here for you to listen to and discover more about an aspect of the season of Lent.

This is the event founder and co-ordinator Sarah White.

Sarah White Lent Event