A Different Perspective Official Podcast Podcast By Berni Dymet cover art

A Different Perspective Official Podcast

A Different Perspective Official Podcast

By: Berni Dymet
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God has a habit of wanting to speak right into the circumstances that we're travelling through here and now; the very issues that we each face in our everyday lives. Everything from dealing with difficult people … to discovering how God speaks to us; from overcoming stress … to discovering your God-given gifts and walking in the calling that God has placed on your life And that's what these daily 10 minute A Different Perspective messages are all about.Christianityworks Christianity Ministry & Evangelism Spirituality
Episodes
  • Soar Like An Eagle // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 4

    Soar Like An Eagle // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 4
    Nov 20 2025
    Some days, it feels as though everybody around you is cruising, but somehow we're down in the trenches. Wouldn't it be great to soar like an eagle? Have you ever been through a time in your life where, I don't know, it seems like everyone around you is doing it easy and somehow you're down in the trenches doing it tough? I remember when I was training to be an officer in the Australian Army. We'd be on exercise digging trenches, fighting pretend wars, in the rain, and the snow, sometimes in the heat in the drought. And often, in an area quite close to an airport. I used to see these planes flying over. I was thirsty and hot, or cold and wet. And I'd think, what I wouldn't give to be sitting up in one of those planes, instead of digging a trench down here? Almost thirty years on, I fly in and out of that airport several times a year now. And every time I look down at where I used to dig the trenches it's such a good feeling. Life's not always like that. But some days, it does feel like trench warfare, doesn't it? I remember when we were out there on military exercises; often we had very little food and very little water. Hunger wasn't so bad for me; I mean ultimately hunger just becomes a dull pain. But thirst, thirst is always acute and I remember so often in the heat of the summer being so thirsty and not having enough water. And most of the time, we never had enough sleep. It was often broken. And when we were out on an exercise, we were fighting pretend wars. Every night you had to do gun duty for an hour or you'd be out on patrol fighting battles all day. And the moment you were able to settle down, the first thing you had to do was dig a trench just in case there was a mortar or artillery attack. And so we were sleeping on cold, hard ground. And amidst all these discomforts and the tiredness, when you're worn down and your emotions are down and you're under stress, it can be tough. Of course, the training was deliberately aimed at taking us to those places. And seeing how far we could go, and teaching us how to act under stress. But sometimes, we look around at other people and we feel like we're the ones doing the trench warfare and they're doing it easy. But actually, they're going through stuff as well, we just can't see it often. This week on A Different Perspective, we're looking at our need for times of refreshing. I don't know if you've been able to join us this week, but on Monday we talked about the fact that times of refreshing – I mean real refreshing – like when you've got a deep thirst and you drink that clean water. Those times of refreshing come from the presence of God. And then on Tuesday, we looked at the fact that God says, "Look even when everything seems to be falling down around you, be still, be still in the middle of all of that, and know that I'm your God." And yesterday we looked at what Jesus said, He said, "Look if you're carrying heavy burdens come to me and you'll find rest for you soul. Let me help you push, let me help you with your burden." Today, I'd like to share something else that God says about meeting us right where we're at, right in that place in life were the rubber hits the road. It was written a few thousand years ago by a man, a prophet called, Isaiah. He wrote this, he said: Even though youths will grow weary and faint, and the young will fall exhausted, those who wait on God will renew their strength. They will rise up with wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary, they'll walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40: 30-31) Man, I remember when were out on exercise with a pack, a rifle, a machine, gun tired and hungry and thirsty … having to run and falling over and grazing your elbow, it's such a real (I don't know), parallel metaphor for life. It's how we feel sometimes when we're carrying around things like packs on our back. And how is it how can you rise up in the middle of that like wings of an eagle, how can you soar? I remember once in the town where I grew up which is a place called Wollongong. There's a boat harbour. It's beautiful little harbour where the fishing fleet comes in and out and on the headland and there's a white lighthouse. And standing there on the headland is one my favourite places on planet earth. You look north up the coast and you see the beaches and it just goes on and mountains. And you look south and you see this big steel works belching out pollution. It's lovely to be there in the summer when the sun's shining. You see the little boats chugging in and out of this beautiful little blue harbour. But I actually like it in winter. I like going there when there's a storm blowing when the southerly winds are whipping up the ocean and there's the foam. There's something scary about an angry ocean. I was there once and I saw some pelicans flying, and a gale was blowing from the south. And it was really interesting to watch what they were doing. Now pelicans have these, I don't know big beaks, and they're ungainly birds ...
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    10 mins
  • Come to Me // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 3

    Come to Me // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 3
    Nov 19 2025
    Have you ever noticed that people are busy racing around looking after Number One? Very few of them ever stop to give us a hand. In fact, when someone does, it can be so refreshing. In this clamorous, competitive world that we live in (you know what I'm talking about), this world where everybody seems to be looking after number one as their priority one, two and three in life. In that kind of world, it seems so rare that we meet someone who, I don't know, who just comes out of the wood work out of nowhere to help us, to lighten our load, to open doors. Not because of what they can get out of it, but just because they see our need. In fact on the rare occasion that somebody just blesses us like that, out of the blue, it's almost startling. I don't know about you, but with me when someone these days just gives me a leg up – for no other reason than the fact that I need a leg up, well, that speaks so deeply to my heart. It motivates me, it encourages me. It's just so refreshing. I was in the UK recently at a conference, and I don't know how much time you've spent at conferences. This happened to be a radio conference, a Christian Radio conference. And conferences are not only about going and listening to the speakers and learning (I did that and it was great). But they're also about building relationships, networking, talking to people during the breaks, finding out about what other people are doing, making connections, meeting people and getting to know them. And actually three days at a conference is really hard work. It's great opportunity, but it's hard work. I met so many people at this conference, probably seventy or eighty different people (at some stage). But there were two that really stood out for me. One of them was called, Andrew; he is a New Zealander, a 'Kiwi' as we call them. The other one, Joseph, a young African man. Andrew was interesting. He works in the UK. He's a really senior guy with a radio network. And in the world's eye, in my eyes (well you know), he's an important person. He's an executive in a large radio network and yet somehow this Andrew made a point of connecting with me, of just encouraging me. We spent an hour and a half together. And he shared what was on his heart, what was his vision for his radio network, and he listened to me and after the meeting when we went our different ways. Andrew acted and because of him and because of what he did, one of our radio programs is now heard right across Europe just because Andrew was there and we connected. The other one was this young man, Joseph. Joseph heads up a radio school and a media organisation in South Africa. I was really keen to meet his boss while I was at the conference. I wanted to connect with her and discuss some things, but she was really busy. She was talking for most of the conference, she was leading the television sessions and so we just couldn't connect. One morning (the last morning of the conference), Joseph and I ended up sitting next to one another at the breakfast table. I shared with him what I wanted to share with his boss, and he was so encouraging, so enthusiastic. He went back home to Africa (in Cape Town where he lives) and he sent me an email saying, "I really loved what we where talking about, I'm here for you, I'm here to make connections in Africa for you." The guy follows me up; we talk regularly over the internet. I mean what wonderful people – Andrew and Joseph are. In contrast, so many of the other people that I met at the conference – everybody that I met, I got their business card and sent them an email and said, "It was great to catch up with you, nice to meet you." You know some of the people didn't even respond to that email! It's a dog-eat-dog world, and yet Andrew and Joseph were the sort of people that said, "Look, come to me. Let me listen to you, let me help you. I'll be there for you, I'll push with you." Wow! Those guys really stood out head and shoulders above the other people. That doesn't mean there weren't other people that where were just as clever or more talented than Andrew and Joseph. The point was that these two young men decided to connect with me and to help me, to serve me. Jesus, 2000 years ago said: If you're carrying a heavy load come to me and I'll give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, learn from me and you'll see I'm genuine. I'm humble of heart and with me you'll find rest for your souls, because my yoke's easy, my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30) This week on A Different Perspective we're looking at our need to have times of refreshing. It's fantastic to get away from the grind and go on holiday. As I said the other day, my wife, Jacqui and I are just about to go and do that. To have some time on a place called, Lord Howe Island, which is the most beautiful and idyllic setting. We need that. But we can't spend our lives trying to escape from reality, always wishing that we could run away. I believe we need times of refreshing right in the ...
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    10 mins
  • Be Still and Know // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 2

    Be Still and Know // A Time of Refreshing in My Life, Part 2
    Nov 18 2025
    The last thing that most of us suffer from is a lack of information – the whole world is screaming for our attention. Sometimes, the quiet assurance that comes from a bit of peace and quiet just eludes us. Sometimes, it feels like we live in our world where everything and everybody seems to be screaming for our attention. Take advertising – armies of creative people who think up new, (often), very clever ways of getting you and me to buy their client's products. The supermarket where Jacqui and I go shopping has large advertising stickers glued to the floor in some of the shopping aisles. So many people have the TV blaring every minute of every waking hour. So many people go to work, lurch from one meeting to another, without a break, without time to stop and reflect. Our senses are being bombarded with thousands of messages and signals and … ideas and requests and directions, EVERY DAY! And without knowing it, it ends up being a huge weight that we carry around. No wonder so many people are so exhausted. If only we can only put the weight down and take a break for a while. And then keep on going. It's true, isn't it? The more that technology – like phones and then mobile phones and PCs and internet, TVs, DVDs and radio, all that stuff has made entertainment and information so accessible – the more we become slaves to them. The more the cars replace public transport; we do this point to point rushing thing instead of, I don't know, standing waiting for a bus for 5 or ten minutes at the bus stop. There is some real upsides to all of those things. I mean I love the fact that I can watch T.V. and people can contact me on my mobile phone, it's so convenient. But we've lost something … we've lost the time. I don't know, just to stop and think, to rest the senses, to rest the mind, to rest the spirit, to reflect, to imagine, to dream. And the problem with so much of the stuff that we take in as entertainment or communication, a lot of it is really negative. You watch the news at night and 95% of the news is pretty negative. A lot of it is really frivolous (in sitcoms) on TV at night. Well, there's nothing wrong with one sitcom, but if 70% of our entertainment is a diet of sitcoms, is it any wonder that people feel empty? That there is shallowness, that there is something missing? Some of the stuff that comes across as fact or entertainment, to put it bluntly, is downright destructive. It's like eating bad food or sweets all the time. Now that's our condition, that's what's going on. But there's a flip side. So many people, so many of us believe in God. Surveys in the west say, 70+% believe in God. But I wonder whether it's a real relationship, a real thing in life. Or whether for a lot of people, it's a kind of, (I don't know), a pie in the sky, when I die type – of distant sort of faith thing. And we have this belief or this faith, on the one hand. And we have this whole need for rest and for peace and for joy and for wholeness, on the other. But a lot of people just never connect those two things. Never occurs to sometimes ask, to connect those two things in life. One of the things I love about the Hebrew culture is that they think and they speak in pictures. A few thousand years ago, there was a little passage written in book of Psalms in the Bible, Psalm 46. And the writer wrote something like this: Even when the earth is shaking and the mountains are falling into the sea. Even though the waters are roaring and foaming. Even though the nations are in uproar and the kingdoms are tottering. Even in the middle of all that, God has something to say. The beautiful picture, and the Hebrew nation, those people were not a sea fearing people. So the idea of mountains falling into the ocean and waters roaring and foaming, well, that was a real fear – turmoil thing. And the writer says, "In the middle of all the fear and turmoil that life brings, God has something to say with a voice that melts that all away." It is like a river of gladness running through a city, with a power that stops wars and calms oceans. God has something to say into that condition and it's this … "Be still and know that I am God." In that big cacophony of noise that we call life – where everyone is screaming at us and yelling at us. And things are happening and mountains are falling into the ocean, and people are criticising us and the entertainment is blaring at us, in the middle of all of that … a still, small, powerful voice, whispers into our hearts with unmistakable power ... "Be still and know that I am God. Just stop and pause for a minute. And in the depths of your soul, right, right, deep down where you live, know that despite all the turmoil that you see around you, I am God and I am in control. I am here. I am with you. And I have the power to bring you peace." With that one small statement, God connects one of our deepest needs – the need for peace, for quiet, for assurance – with the spiritual ...
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    10 mins
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