Deep Dives
Deep Dives are free, optional workshop-style sessions where you can explore topics in greater depth with experienced Christian presenters.
Whether you choose to attend one session or stay for both, you’ll have the opportunity to learn, ask questions, and be equipped in your Christian walk beyond Spark.
About Deep Dives
Free
Included with your Spark ticket
Optional
Optional to attend
Sign-up
Sign-up is essential (places are limited)
Buying Your Spark Ticket?
Buy TicketYou’ll be able to choose your Deep Dive sessions during the booking process.
Already have a Ticket?
Download InstructionsDownload instructions to edit your booking and add your Deep Dive sessions.
Program
Saturday 29 August
Session 1
3.30pm–4.30pm
Break
4.30pm–4.45pm
Session 2
4.45pm–5.45pm
Explore the Sessions
Browse the sessions below and sign up for the ones that interest you.
You can attend one session or stay for both time slots — it’s completely up to you.
Session 1
3.30pm–4.30pm
Work that Works on You: Discovering God at Work
Presenter: Mish Koh
Every day, we work to get things done. But have you ever wondered who you’re becoming?
In this practical Deep Dive, we’ll explore how our everyday work can become a place where we discover God and become more aware of His presence in the midst of everyday life. Through reflection and simple practices you can take into the week ahead, you’ll be invited to slow down, notice what your work reveals about you — and discover that the God who loves you has been with you all along.
Watch Mish explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Mish
Mish Koh is the founder of being formed, an unfolding vision for helping people become more aware of God’s presence in everyday life. She designs gentle, intentional practices, resources and spaces that help people deepen their friendship with Him and respond to His invitations.
Originally trained as an electrical engineer, Mish’s work has included the corporate world, Christian organisations, churches, entrepreneurship and lecturing. Across these settings, she has become curious about how our rhythms of work and rest shape who we are becoming.
Mish is a teacher, facilitator and developer of people who helps others integrate what they are discovering into the way they live. Known for her thoughtful, creative and relational approach, she creates safe, collaborative spaces where people can engage Scripture, attend honestly to their inner lives and recognise the God who is already present — even in the frustrating or seemingly meaningless parts of life.
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Why should we care? Discovering the Hidden Stories of the Persecuted Church
Presenter: Milad Shamaan
Have you ever wondered what it means to follow Jesus when faith comes with a cost? In this session, you will hear a first-hand account of what it means to follow Jesus in the face of challenges and persecution. Through Milad’s personal experiences, we will explore what the persecuted Church is facing today and why these experiences should matter to us. This is an opportunity to open our eyes, grow in compassion, and recognise that we are connected as one global family of faith.
Watch Milad explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Milad
Milad is a worship leader passionate about serving God, glorifying His name, and sharing the hope of Christ with others. She is committed to encouraging children, youth, and young adults to grow in their faith through worship, and the teaching of God’s Word.
Born and raised in Iraq, Milad endured years of persecution because of her Christian faith and was forced to flee her homeland three times. She lived through the violence and uncertainty of the rise of ISIS in 2014. These experiences strengthened her faith and shaped her calling to share God’s faithfulness, hope, and love.
Having personally experienced the support of Christian ministries, Milad is dedicated to raising awareness of the suffering Church and inspiring believers to respond with informed, purposeful prayer. Through powerful stories of faith, courage, and resilience, she reminds audiences that God remains faithful in every circumstance and continues to bring hope, healing, transformation.
Why Believe the Bible?
Presenter: Dan Paterson
With a wave of objections to the Bible, especially across social media, Christians can naturally feel some anxiety about why they believe Scripture’s teaching. In this Deep Dive you will get a case for why we can trust the Bible has been preserved across history, traces to reliable sources, and has God’s fingerprints all over the story.
Watch Dan explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Dan
Dan Paterson is a theologian and snake catcher from Australia. After decades as a pastor, seminary teacher, and public speaker, and having studied theology and apologetics in Australia and at Oxford, Dan leads Questioning Christianity to help you connect the Christian story to life’s deepest questions. Dan currently lives in Brisbane QLD with his wife, Erin, and their favourite job is raising three wonderful boys.
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Real Faith in Hard Places – How the psalms of lament help us to respond to suffering and harm
Presenter: Kit Barker
In this Deep Dive we’ll explore how God wants us to respond to suffering and harm. We’ll spend time in the Book of Psalms which offers examples of faithful responses to all of life’s circumstances. In particular, we’ll look at the psalms of lament which cry out to God in life’s darkest seasons. We’ll consider how these psalms of lament should be used both privately and in Christian worship. We’ll also reflect on the problems created by the absence of lament in much of contemporary Christian culture.
Watch Kit explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Kit
Kit is the Director of Teaching and Learning and Lecturer in Old Testament at SMBC (Sydney Missionary and Bible College). He loves helping students explore the harder parts of the Bible and understand how God is speaking through them today. His research and writing interests include The Psalms, Biblical Interpretation, Violence in the Bible, and Interpersonal Forgiveness. Kit and his family live on the Northern Beaches of Sydney and attend Narrabeen Baptist Church where Kit serves as an elder. Some say he has too many hobbies, but that’s not possible. He regularly enjoys surfing, fishing, camping, reading books, roasting coffee, cooking Texas style BBQ, and watching all kinds of sport.
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Chasing Meaning in Politics
Presenter: Dan Anderson
Maybe you’ve noticed it in yourself. Maybe it’s a friend or a family member who’s always up for a political discussion. Politics can get under our skin in a way that theology rarely does.
In this Deep Dive we’ll:
* Open the Bible on what our politics is for, and what it was never built to carry
* Look at why politics is such an effective meaning-maker, and when that becomes a problem
* Think through how gathering with your church can be the most politically formative thing you do all week
Politics is a poor place to find meaning. It’s a good place to live one out.
Watch Dan explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Dan
Dan Anderson is the Director (CEO) of the Lachlan Macquarie Institute (LMI) based in Canberra, Australia. LMI’s mission is to train wise Christian leaders for politics, culture, and public life. Prior to LMI, Dan worked in Christian ministry with university students in Sydney as the Pastor/Chaplain at Robert Menzies College, Trinity Chapel, and Macquarie University, and as a campus staff worker with Christian Union in Sydney and Canberra. Dan has served on a range of Boards including as the Chair of the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students (AFES) and as Chair of Emmaus Christian School in Canberra. Dan holds a B.A. (Hons) from the ANU; B.Div from Moore College and a PhD from Macquarie University.
Dan is married to Emma, and they have two children (Nat and Evie).
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Session 2
4.45pm–5.45pm
Jesus and the Environment
Presenter: Donna Toulmin
In this Deep Dive we’ll wrestle with questions like:
What does the Bible say about the environment?
What is the point of looking after the environment when things like climate change and biodiversity loss seem to be getting worse?
Did Jesus care about the environment?
We’ll see what it means to follow Jesus in a time of ecological crisis and also see how we can preach the Good News to our friends that don’t know Jesus but really care about the environment – because the gospel is good news for the earth too! We’ll also hear stories of people who are caring for the earth, and as they do so opportunities for evangelism and mission emerge organically.
You will leave encouraged to care for the earth, and encouraged by the depth and breadth and power of the Good News.
Watch Donna explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Donna
Donna is a Blue Mountains dweller who has a background in linguistics, psychology, theology and creation care. She loves languages and spent many years living in Asia doing Bible Translation consulting. She was also a founding member of the Creation Care Taskforce, an international organisation. She’s now an Honorary Research Fellow at Mary Andrews College in Sydney, writing a book about following Jesus through times of eco-crisis. She writes occasionally on substack at Good News for the Earth.
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Why should we act? From Spectators to Changemakers
Presenter: Milad Shamaan
Knowing the story is only the beginning, the question is, what will we do with it? In this session, we will explore how we can move from simply being aware to becoming people who make a difference. Through prayer, sharing stories, raising awareness, and practical actions, we will discover how every person can play a role in standing with the persecuted Church. Together, we will learn that even small actions can bring hope, encouragement, and lasting impact.
Watch Milad explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Milad
Milad is a worship leader passionate about serving God, glorifying His name, and sharing the hope of Christ with others. She is committed to encouraging children, youth, and young adults to grow in their faith through worship, and the teaching of God’s Word.
Born and raised in Iraq, Milad endured years of persecution because of her Christian faith and was forced to flee her homeland three times. She lived through the violence and uncertainty of the rise of ISIS in 2014. These experiences strengthened her faith and shaped her calling to share God’s faithfulness, hope, and love.
Having personally experienced the support of Christian ministries, Milad is dedicated to raising awareness of the suffering Church and inspiring believers to respond with informed, purposeful prayer. Through powerful stories of faith, courage, and resilience, she reminds audiences that God remains faithful in every circumstance and continues to bring hope, healing, transformation.
Why Believe in Jesus?
Presenter: Dan Paterson
Our prodigal culture is undergoing something of a spiritual awakening, searching for something more than the secular story has to offer. With so many entertaining Christianity, come and hear how the longings of our culture are met in Jesus, and how you can point people everywhere to the beauty, goodness, and truth of the Gospel.
Watch Dan explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Dan
Dan Paterson is a theologian and snake catcher from Australia. After decades as a pastor, seminary teacher, and public speaker, and having studied theology and apologetics in Australia and at Oxford, Dan leads Questioning Christianity to help you connect the Christian story to life’s deepest questions. Dan currently lives in Brisbane QLD with his wife, Erin, and their favourite job is raising three wonderful boys.
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Loving God with All of Our Mind
Presenter: Mark Stephens
Does being a disciple mean becoming a good thinker?
Jesus told us we should love God with all of our mind, but we rarely talk about how to do that well. This isn’t about academic thinking, or even just theological thinking. It’s about how we think in all of our life. This Deep Dive will help you make decisions, be a better friend, and bring honour to God, through making your mind part of your discipleship to Jesus.
Watch Mark explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Mark
Mark lectures in New Testament at Sydney Missionary and Bible College. He has written books and articles on the book of Revelation, humour in the Bible, as well as a book on how to think with humility and hospitality. Mark lives in the north-western suburbs of Sydney with his wife Linda, a children’s pastor, and their three children. They attend St Paul’s Anglican Church, Castle Hill where Mark serves as a preacher. Mark has also been an avid Parramatta Eels fan for the last 40 years.
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The 15 Minute Habit That Can Bring Lasting Change
Presenter: Felicity Carswell
As Christians, it makes sense that books that point to Jesus can change lives. The book can be short or long; it can take us months or just one sitting; or even be one that we have read before. To read books that point to Jesus is to open ourselves up to lasting impact and change, and it can happen with just 15 minutes a day. Come and explore why reading Christian books is valuable, get some great recommendations and just maybe begin to adopt the habit.
Watch Felicity explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Felicity
Felicity Carswell is from England but currently lives near Chicago with her book-selling husband, Jonathan, along with their two young sons, Rufus and Billy. She loves to teach the Bible in her local church, disciple women on a one-to-one basis and is involved with serving the wider church through speaking at The Gospel Coalition conference and other women’s retreats. She hosts a podcast with her sister called Two Sisters And A Cup Of Tea that seeks to chat through the Bible and drive it to the heart. Safe to say, she loves reading and is passionate for good books that point to Jesus to get into the hands of as many people as possible.
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Your Plan to Change Politics and Culture
Presenter: Dan Anderson
You already have a default stance towards politics and culture. It feels like common sense, the ‘Christian way’, and it’s hard to see how anyone could sensibly think otherwise. This Deep Dive walks through four classic models for cultural and political engagement. We’ll look at the biblical convictions driving each, and the places each one comes unstuck. The aim isn’t to hand you the right one. It’s to recognise your own, understand why the person beside you at church landed somewhere else, and learn to move between them.
Watch Felicity explain what you’ll learn in this Deep Dive.
About Dan
Dan Anderson is the Director (CEO) of the Lachlan Macquarie Institute (LMI) based in Canberra, Australia. LMI’s mission is to train wise Christian leaders for politics, culture, and public life. Prior to LMI, Dan worked in Christian ministry with University students in Sydney as the Pastor/Chaplain at Robert Menzies College, Trinity Chapel, and Macquarie University, and as a campus staff worker with Christian Union in Sydney and Canberra. Dan has served on a range of Boards including as the Chair of the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students (AFES) and as Chair of Emmaus Christian School in Canberra. Dan holds a B.A. (Hons) from the ANU; B.Div from Moore College and a PhD from Macquarie University.
Dan is married to Emma and they have two children (Nat and Evie).
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Deep Dives included in my ticket?
Yes! They’re completely free for all Spark attendees.
Do I need to sign up?
Yes. Sign up is required because each Deep Dive session has limited capacity.
How do I sign up if I’ve already purchased a ticket?
Already got your Spark ticket? No worries! You can still sign up for your preferred Deep Dive(s).
We’ve emailed all ticket holders with instructions and a personal link to update their booking. Search your inbox for “Spark 2026” or your Brushfire order confirmation email if you can’t find it.
Need a hand or can’t find the email? Download our step-by-step guide below to walk you through the process.
Once you’ve updated your booking, your Deep Dive selections will be saved. We’ll send you everything you need to know, including workshop locations and any final details, closer to Spark.
Can I change my selections later?
Yes, if places are still available.
Can I attend more than two sessions?
You’ll be able to attend one session in each time slot, so a maximum of two Deep Dives.
What if my preferred session is full?
You’ll be able to choose from any sessions with remaining availability.
Do I have to attend?
No. Deep Dives are completely optional, but we’d love you to join one.