Today, in the final talk of this series, Mal Calladine looks at how we can stretch or be stretched into something more than we have and more than we are. But how does this work, and what is stretch?

Jesus points to the essential nature of stretch for us when he talks about new life as new wine, needing stretchy new wineskins. Could it be that God isn’t calling us to stretch to reach him, but promising that our lives will change when he fills us up with his goodness?

Today, Mal Calladine looks at pilgrimage, where we move from where we are to be closer to something want or need. There are lots of examples in this talk from February 2017, including festivals, changes of rhythm and perspective, inspiring destinations and inspirational people.

Today, Mal Calladine comes with a challenging message, given in the new year of 2017, about where we might need to stop or change things instead of doing what we’ve always done.

But as Mal explains, in our understanding of church, the challenge of change is always linked to the comfort and encouragement of possibility. What change do you think God can enable in your life?

Today, Mal Calladine takes a two part look at worship. His first talk looks at why we worship and the importance of asking that question ‘why’ whenever we are looking for our purpose and forming life-giving habits instead of just sticking boring or tiring routines. What is it about worship which is essential for life?

His second talk looks at how we worship, creatively moving way beyond singing in church and looking at how God's creativity meets ours in the world.

Today, Mal Calladine looks at how we deal with the Bible or, indeed, see how the Bible might be able to deal with us. What is the Bible, and how can we relate to it? They might sound like simple questions, but you might be surprised how many good questions pop up when we take a careful look at them.

Should we look at the Bible as a set of instructions for us, or more as a story in which we have a role?

What are the different kinds of ways we can become familiar with the Bible, not just the details which sound relevant when we hear them, but the big, whole picture which puts everything into context?

Is there a best way to feed on the Bible, or can we find a range of ideas here which might work well at different times in life?

Today, Mal Calladine looks at vulnerability - including the power of it, and Mal points to a TED talk by Brene Brown called “The Power of Vulnerability” as a recommended listen too.

Mal had a lot to share about this in April 2016, so it’s presented here over two talks.

The first is about what vulnerability is and why it's essential for trust and leadership, as well as a strengthener of relationships.

The second talk includes lots of practical advice, including the need to discern where we have relationships which can cope with different amounts of emotional openness and vulnerability. Where can we build relational bridges, and where do we need to be more guarded with gates setting boundaries and conditions on access to intimacy with us?

Today, Mal Calladine talks about fasting, something we probably know either as a spiritual discipline, like giving things up for Lent, or as a diet.

But do those things make a sustainable, long lasting difference to us? Are there better ways and better reasons to fast?

Mal looks at fasting as a way of surfacing and beating "resistors" in our lives. If we can do it well, fasting can help us to know what is in our hearts, and if we can also do it with humility, it can help us to build our reliance on God.

Today, Mal Calladine looks at prayer in a talk from November 2015, nine days after a series of terrorist attacks hit Paris and shocked the world.

In turbulent times, it’s easy to think about how things are going - even who we are - in terms of what is happening around us and what we are doing about it. But Mal draws back here to ask how our connections are working, especially our connections with God.

This isn't especially a call to "quiet times" - Mal has a surprising take on those - but it does include lots of examples of prayerful people and different kinds of prayers, pleas and questions to bring to God which can deepen and strengthen our connection with him.

Today, Owen Lynch has a talk which brings some big questions about what we can expect from life when we’ve made serious commitments to God in service. Can we carry on with our old feelings of entitlement, or do we now have a radically different source of life?

Today, Mal Calladine talks about rest. Are you the kind of person who finds this easy and natural, or are you too busy being busy? Whatever way you lean on this, do you do that all the time, or do you change and get into a bit of a rhythm of work and rest over time? 

What could happen if we grow to trust God more to lead us through rest and see all the life that emerges as we do?

Today, Rachel Roberts talks about secrecy, which might seem like a surprising choice for a life-giving habit - is secrecy something you always think about as good?

Rachel has a way of looking at this which is joyful, affirming and life-giving, freeing us from what happens when we feel we have to promote ourselves and look good to other people.

Today, Mal Calladine gets into celebration. If you don’t know him, it might help you to know that Mal is the kind of person who finds reasons and ways to celebrate so many things in life - he’s an absolute joy to be around. 

This is why you’ll hear an abundance of celebration ideas here, and it probably explains why Mal doesn’t start off thinking about parties and weddings, but something you’ll probably never guess…

Today, Dan Green is talking about generosity, something which can seem like a big ask in a religious context, like a duty or a chore.

But Dan was talking in 2015 when he’d just seem some examples of people whose whole lives had been shaped by generosity, and this made him wonder how we could go beyond just doing the best we think we can, and tap into much bigger sources of generosity and inspiration. 

What difference can it make to our generosity to see life not so much as a religious duty or a competition for limited resources, but an opportunity to share abundant resources from a generous God?

This talk by Mal Calladine from the start of 2015 is about reflection - looking at where we are in life, and not just looking but asking questions to help us explore how we’ve got here, what’s grabbing our attention or shaping our experiences, and why.

More at https://www.severnvineyard.org/life-giving-habits

Today, Mal Calladine is talking about thanksgiving. Why would this make a difference to our lives? What sort of thanksgiving becomes a life-giving habit, and how have we found this can work in practice?

Find more at https://www.severnvineyard.org/life-giving-habits

Lots of people know about, respect and admire Jesus. Some people say he was an amazing teacher, an inspirational leader, and an incredible example of how to live a loving, self-sacrificing life. 

Millions worship Jesus, which might make us think we could never live like him - but could this be possible, and is there life in this for us? 

In this series, we are going to look at practical habits we can build into our lives which are inspired by things Jesus did and things he encouraged people to do too. We'll share our experiences of the difference these habits have made to our lives so far, and how we are still looking to grow in them. 

Could they really help us to become more like Jesus? We hope you can join in and find out. Find more about this at https://www.severnvineyard.org/life-giving-habits