by David Tensen | 6 Sep, 2023 | All, Transformation
On this day, 28 years ago in ’95, I sat in the lounge room of a youth pastor’s humble home and said a prayer commonly known as The Sinner’s Prayer. That day felt like a remarkable moment, and the 10 other teens in that little Bible study on Bribie...
by David Tensen | 20 Oct, 2022 | All, Transformation
Late last year I started attending yoga sessions at a local studio. I’ve done about 150 classes in their various forms (gentle, yin, vinyasa). It’s been incredibly beneficial for my body, nervous system, breathing and mental health. The fact that I...
by David Tensen | 24 Apr, 2022 | All, Church -, leadership, masculinity, parenting, Resource, Transformation
This was the alarming start of a recent conversation.”Is it just me, or are older guys willing to be mentors really hard to find?””Yep.” I replied, “At this age and stage of life, they are harder to find.” Let’s call this...
by David Tensen | 9 Apr, 2022 | All, Church -, leadership, Shame, Transformation
It is almost a decade since I went into voluntary bankruptcy. In 2006 Natalie and I had sold up and sold out to do missions work in Japan. We returned in 2008 with our second child due . As it happened, we landed back in Australia on the doorstep of the Global...
by David Tensen | 15 Feb, 2021 | All, Resource, Shame, Transformation
The deconstruction of a person’s faith seems to have gained popularity over the past few years. From my view, increasingly more podcasts, books, courses and articles seem to be made and released every year. Heck, I’ve mentioned it a few times....
by David Tensen | 29 Jul, 2020 | All, Church -, leadership, SHIPS, Transformation
It’s hard to know where to start on a topic like this because it is so complicated and multifaceted. When people move away from prominent positions in a church community and do something outside ‘church ministry’, there is often a storm of emotions and responses that...
by David Tensen | 18 Jun, 2020 | All, Transformation
If you’ve been through a breaking-down season, you will know that ‘rock bottom’ can be a lonely and exposing place. When we are driven out to the metaphorical desert, through no fault or power of our own, we are most often faced with three questions....
by David Tensen | 14 Jun, 2020 | All, Transformation
A couple of years ago, a friend put me onto this new local cafe. They simply sold awesome coffee along with a couple of snack options. I always got a car spot and a table. I got to the know the owners. They happened to be Christians. I told a number of friends about...
by David Tensen | 2 Apr, 2020 | All, Transformation
Perhaps it is time to recover the lost art of lament. The amount of anxiety and grief in the world right now is palpable. The relational, emotional and financial fallout from this crisis will echo for years to come. For most, there is no Plan B play-book for most. So...
by David Tensen | 25 Mar, 2020 | All, leadership, original thoughts, Resource, Social Media, Transformation
See the spike on that graph? It’s labeled Mt. Stupid. Right now, that’s pretty much where most of our COVID-19 related posts are situated. The Dunning-Kruger Effect illustrates how most of us approach knowledge. It starts with knowing nothing. Next minute,...
by David Tensen | 22 Mar, 2020 | All, Audio, Children, family, General News, Prayer, Resource, Transformation
From 2013 to 2017, Natalie and I created six spoken word, prayer and blessing albums. The albums have made a difference in thousands of lives around the world. We thought, at this hour, with many people stuck at home, some of you might appreciated them....
by David Tensen | 15 Mar, 2020 | All, Australia, General News, Transformation
Imagine for a moment a virus. A virus which begins claiming the lives of the frail and vulnerable across the world. It is a communicable disease that spreads like previous strains. But it catches the medical community off-guard and its presence is met with...
by David Tensen | 3 Sep, 2019 | All, family, leadership, SHIPS, Transformation
(4-minute read) “I don’t get it, I thought we were friends! I leave the team, and boom, I’m cut off and no one contacts me anymore.” Sound familiar? In working with leaders across organisations, you come across many cases of ‘disappointment’ stemming...
by David Tensen | 1 Sep, 2019 | All, leadership, Transformation
It’s a confronting, tough and frustrating time. It’s filled with new energy and a different type of the drive to what we experienced in our teens and twenties. Guys between 28 and 32 (roughly) who hit their thirties tend to make major, life-altering...
by David Tensen | 25 Aug, 2019 | All, original thoughts, Resource, Transformation
BECAUSE IT’S FATHERS DAY IN AUS 1ST SEPT – I’VE MADE THIS A FREE COURSE. Have you ever been asked to bless another person only to discover you didn’t have much to say? I mean we bless our food at meal times but when it comes to others so many...
by David Tensen | 23 Aug, 2019 | All, Inner Healing, Resource, Transformation
On the 23rd of August I livestreamed a 20 minute teaching to explain the stages of a healthy faith journey – with all it’s ups, downs, breakthroughs and breakdowns. https://youtu.be/7jAZdrpEfrU
by David Tensen | 17 Aug, 2019 | All, Poetry, Transformation
THE WRESTLE I found you beyond the ‘why’. Far from the ‘why not’. Worlds from the ‘why me’. You held a space for me beyond answers to questions my pain had as if you knew information was never going to heal or resolve or fix my suffering. Instead, you agreed to...
by David Tensen | 14 Jun, 2019 | All, Children, parenting, Transformation
I’m not sure what your child’s tantrum trigger is. Perhaps it’s a NO to your toddler’s request to watch Frozen for the 100th time just before bedtime. Maybe it’s a NO to your 8-year-olds request for lollies at the grocery store, again. It could be the 3rd NO to...
by David Tensen | 23 Apr, 2019 | All, General News, Transformation
A few months ago, I’ve had a few people come to me, in kindness and concern (I think), asking me to give an account for things that I’ve written around theological theories and topics. Some of these people claim to represent a number of concerned/worried people. One...
by David Tensen | 14 Apr, 2019 | All, Resource, Transformation
If eternal life is an intimate and ongoing relationship with a triune God (Jn17:3), is it possible we short-change ourselves with misplaced relationships? Something less threatening that may look similar? For example: 1. Could we have a relationship with a concept of...
