The One Thing

Reach Australia
  • 4.3 (9)
  • CHRISTIANITY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

One solid, practical tip for gospel-centred ministry every week. Reach Australia is a network of churches - working together to seeing thousands of healthy, evangelistic, multiplying churches across Australia.

  1. 1D AGO

    445 What your bookshelf says about your ministry: reading as leadership formation (Rory Shiner)

    You can usually tell what’s going on in a pastor’s ministry by what’s on their bedside table. Not the books they recommend, but the ones they are actually reading, half-reading, or quietly avoiding. Rory Shiner opens up his own reading habits and presses the question most of us avoid: are we still being shaped, or just repeating what we learned years ago? Are we still the kind of people who are learning, so that when we open the Bible we are not simply repeating ourselves, but speaking with fresh clarity shaped by a life still being formed by God’s word? In this episode: What your current reading habits reveal about your ministryWhy finishing books is often the wrong goalThe kind of reading that actually feeds preaching over timeWhy reading ahead matters more than scrambling each weekWhat poetry, fiction, and biography give you that ministry books cannotHow shallow reading shapes shallow instincts in people workWhy curiosity fades in ministry and why it is worth protecting Toolbox: Biblical Critical Theory by Christopher Watkin Collected Poems by Les Murray Poems Chosen by Paul Kelly The Discarded Image by C. S. Lewis One Forever by Rory Shiner Forgiven Forever by Rory Shiner Raised Forever by Rory Shiner The World Next Door by Rory Shiner Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Lending Hands Mortgage Brokers  The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    41 min

  2. MAR 24

    444 What last year's church launches are teaching the rest of us

    Church planting is often treated as something only large churches can do. The latest Growth and Change report suggests otherwise. Across the Reach Australia network, smaller churches and unlikely partnerships are launching new congregations and reaching people who were never going to walk into an existing church. This episode explores what last year’s church plants are teaching the rest of us. If most Australians still don’t know Jesus, the question isn’t whether churches feel ready to plant, but whether we are organising our ministry to reach the 95% who aren’t in church. In this episode: Why new churches continue to reach new peopleThe rise of partnerships between churches to plant togetherHow smaller churches are multiplying through intentional leadership pipelinesThe tension between filling staff roles and sending church plantersPractical first steps for churches wanting to move toward church planting Toolbox: Reach Australia’s Full Online Resources Library Growth and Change Report 2025 Church Planting Podcast Multiplication Partner financially with Reach Australia Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Exdia  The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    22 min

  3. MAR 17

    443 If you only preach on giving when you’re behind budget...

    When was the last time we preached on generosity — and it wasn’t because the budget was tight? Money is one of the clearest windows into our trust, our fears, and our worship. Yet many of us only speak about it at the AGM or when pressure rises. In this episode, we reflect on generosity not as fundraising, but as discipleship. We talk about: Why giving flows from the grace of the gospel, not guilt How to build a culture where generosity is normal and joyful The risk of only addressing money in crisis moments How leaders can model generosity with integrity Practical steps to start shaping generous hearts this month Toolbox: Jehovah Jireh My Provider Song  Giving Generously by Rod Irvine Neither Poverty Nor Riches (New Studies in Biblical Theology Series) by Craig L Blomberg Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki Gospel Patrons website The Journey of Generosity stories Partner financially with Reach Australia Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Safe Ministry Check The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    26 min

  4. MAR 10

    442 Beating burnout: why coaching matters

    What do you do when ministry starts to feel heavy and you cannot quite name why? Burnout is not always dramatic. Often it is a slow disconnect between your gospel convictions and your emotional capacity. In this episode, we explore why that drift happens and how coaching can provide a space to work through it. We talk about: What burnout actually looks like in ministry Why leaders often isolate themselves when they most need support The difference between coaching, mentoring, supervision, and counselling How good questions can uncover what is really going on beneath the surface Why leading yourself well is part of faithful gospel ministry Toolbox:  Zeal without Burnout by Christopher Ash Reach Australia’s Coaching Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Lending Hands Mortgage Brokers The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    30 min

  5. MAR 3

    441 From brownies to belonging: the hidden power of morning tea

    Morning tea after church can feel like a simple roster: bring a slice, pour the coffee, pack up and head home. But that space after the service is where newcomers decide if they’ll come back, where spiritual conversations begin, and where people take real steps toward Jesus. When we treat it as part of disciple-making, not just hospitality, it changes how we plan it, place it, and lead it. In this episode, we talk about how to move morning tea from obligation to opportunity, so that more people are known, prayed for, and helped to follow Christ. Toolbox:  People are the Mission by Danny Franks Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Reach Australia National Conference The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    19 min

  6. FEB 21

    440 Welcoming: organised but not warm (that’s the problem!)

    Over the last few years, churches have become very good at welcoming systems - name tags, check-in flows, connection cards, follow-up processes. But here’s the uncomfortable question: Have we become organised… but not warm? Today we’re talking about welcoming teams, and why relationships - not numbers - must be the hero. Scott Sanders sits down with Amber Edmonds (MBM Parramatta) to talk about follow-up - thinking deeply about how churches welcome people as individuals, not projects - and how training, theology, and culture shape that welcome across the whole church. Toolbox: ⁠Secret Shopper Evaluation⁠ - Reach Australia⁠People Are the Mission⁠: How Churches Can Welcome Guests Without Compromising the Gospel - Danny Franks⁠Welcoming In Action⁠ - Video Episode with Kellyville Anglican Credits:This episode was brought to you by ⁠Safe Ministry Check⁠ The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Support Reach Australia's online library

    20 min

  7. FEB 15

    439 The 48 hours that matter - from welcome to relationship

    The foundations you have for follow up at church matter more than you think - how do we move people from a welcome, to a relationship? Derek Hanna sits down with Dan Gorton (Cross & Crown Gold Coast) to talk about follow-up - not as admin, not as a system, but as love, names & relationships. As churches fill with visitors at the start of the year, this episode asks a deeper question: what does it look like to move from welcome to relationship? They explore why follow-up matters theologically, why timing shapes perception, how tone communicates care (or kills it), and who should actually own the process. Because people don’t remember polished systems - they remember whether someone genuinely cared. Follow-up isn’t about finishing a task. It’s about beginning shepherding. Toolbox: Welcoming In Action - Video Episode with Kellyville AnglicanGospel Growth and Christian Community Ebook by Tim ClemensBecoming a Welcoming Church by Thom Rainer Credits:This episode was brought to you by Safe Ministry Check The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠⁠ ⁠Support Reach Australia's online library

    18 min

  8. FEB 9

    438 You might be discipling a future planter

    There might be someone in your Bible study who keeps asking uncomfortable questions about church. - Why aren’t more people being reached?- Why do we keep doing church this way? And you might be tempted to shut them down. In this episode, Scott Sanders and Derek Hanna talk about the early signs of future church planters — including a holy dissatisfaction with church as usual and a deep conviction that the gospel should be reaching more people than it is. They’re often the ones who unsettle leaders, question systems, and refuse to be satisfied with maintenance ministry. They might be mistaken as difficult. They might be future planters. A sharp listen for pastors and leaders who want to discern the difference — for the sake of more people hearing about Jesus. Toolbox:  Church Planter Questionnaire  Serving Others Ebook Credits:  This episode was brought to you by Reach Australia National Conference The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠ To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠ For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠resources@reachaustralia.com.au⁠⁠ Support Reach Australia's online library

    20 min
See All (430)

Trailer

4.3
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

One solid, practical tip for gospel-centred ministry every week. Reach Australia is a network of churches - working together to seeing thousands of healthy, evangelistic, multiplying churches across Australia.

Information

  • Creator
    Reach Australia
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    430
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 350730
  • Show Website
    The One Thing

More From LifeWay Leadership Podcast Network

You Might Also Like