Vision Sunday is an opportunity to tell stories of all that God has done over the last 6 months, and hear some exciting plans for the next 6 months. Hear from Tom as he shares his sense of God's vision for St Matthias - and also two of our youth talking about how coming to know God has changed their lives.

In this talk, we explore how fasting is less about getting God to respond and more about helping us to hear, see, and desire God more clearly. Drawing on personal experience, theology, and Scripture, Clark Buys unpacks how fasting disrupts distraction, breaks through numbness, and reawakens our longing for God’s presence.Through the lens of Joel 2:12, we reflect on how fasting is a way of rending our hearts before God—clearing the fog of busyness, comfort, and consumption so that we can return with renewed hunger. How does fasting sharpen our attention in prayer? How does it expose our deeper dependence on God? And how does it train us to seek what truly satisfies?If you’ve ever felt disconnected from God or distant from your own spiritual hunger, this talk is an invitation to rediscover desire, awaken prayer, and step into fasting as a way of pulling back the fog.

Fasting has been an instinctive human practice across centuries and religious traditions. But in our modern day culture it has become so complex, muddled as it is with other reasons to fast that are far from spiritual. So what is the spiritual purpose of fasting and how does that sit along the cultural motivations we might hear or see modelled around us? Kate explores how Paul inspires us to bring our whole selves holistically in worship through fasting, and contrasts that to three reasons the world might tell us to fast as we all explore and reflect on what God is calling us to this lent as our own act of worship.

In this talk, we explore the ancient practice of fasting and its power to reorder our desires. Drawing from Scripture, theology, and church history, we consider why fasting isn’t just about self-discipline but about training our hearts to hunger for God. We reflect on Paul’s struggle with desire in Romans 7, Jesus’ own practice of fasting, and the wisdom of Christian thinkers like John Mark Comer, Dallas Willard and Tish Harrison Warren.Why is fasting from food so central to spiritual formation? What happens in us when we voluntarily embrace hunger? How does fasting shape us in a way other forms of abstinence don’t? Whether you’re new to fasting or have practiced it for years, this talk unpacks its deeper purpose—not as an obligation, but as an invitation to transformation.Join us as we step into this ancient rhythm, seeking God with our whole selves.

As we head towards lent we're preparing ourselves for a month of focus on the Lord. But why does Jesus sometimes call us to step back and retreat into prayer and his presence? Hear Tom share three purposes for those periods of retreat, stepping back, and ultimately of preparation.

This is the final part of our series considering how to read and understand Scripture. But if we're honest many of us find reading the Bible really challenging. And recent debates, disputes and disagreements have also affected people's confidence as they consider the inspiration and wisdom in these ancient texts. Join Kate as she considers what underlies our fears and frustrations and asks - how then SHOULD we read the Bible?

**please note the very beginning of this recording was lost - when Kate started by considering how we often seek and prefer clarity and certainty as we read the Bible. Apologies for the abrupt start!**

Join Kate and her panel of local people sharing their personal and professional perspective on the challenges of managing anxiety alongside the demands of everyday 21st century life.

Join Kate as she hosts and introduces our evening thinking about anxiety. What is the point of anxiety? How is it designed to work in the healthy functioning human mind and when and why does it sometimes become so dysfunctional - or even make us ill?

We know the Bible is a significant source of wisdom and direction - but how do we read and apply its teaching wisely? As we see examples of people debating and disagreeing over interpretation, what does it look like for us as ordinary people, not academics or professional theologians, to read and understand the Bible.?This week Helen Garratt, Associate Vicar at St Peters, Brighton, shares her thoughts and takes us through an example of how we might be inspired by scripture.

Join Tom as he explores how we read the bible, and talks through some meditative approaches including Lectio Divina and Ignatian Imaginative Reading.