Weekly Update – 13th July, 2010
Hello again! It’s been a few weeks since I posted an update blog, so I thought I’d better get onto it! I realise that the last few weeks have been stressful and difficult as we have dealt with the departure of our Youth Pastor, but I am also very conscious of God’s ongoing provision and His amazing work among us. To begin this blog I want to share a few highlights from the past few weeks.
Highlights
There have been a significant number of people who have been impacted and challenged by God during our worship gatherings recently. I have had some amazing feedback from last Sunday’s message where God challenged us to seek after the treasure of the kingdom, that is – Jesus, and to have our hearts so captured by him that we are willing to “joyfully abandon” our own desires and agendas to follow Him.
I have spoken to people who are discovering their call to mission or ministry – some for the first time! God is opening some amazing doors for his people, and we need to acknowledge and celebrate him!
Many people are using the “tea-bag” provided by the Pastoral Care Team as a chance to make some great new connections. Don’t forget to make that call if you haven’t already! We are in this journey together and we need each others’ support as we pursue God together. Why not find someone to bless this week!
Our Sunday Night Prayer gatherings have been a very special time of late, with God revealing his heart for our church family in very clear ways. These are a great time to hear him together so I encourage you to come along.
The Vision Information Sessions we have been holding have been a great time for people to meet with the Elders to discuss our future directions. If you haven’t been to one yet, I strongly encourage you to come and interact with us as we seek God’s future together.
I am also very encouraged that we can present five nominations for eldership this year. These people all feel God is calling them to serve in this important role of leadership in our church family. Please pray for them, and for the voting process that concludes this Sunday. If you haven’t handed back your voting form, please do so this week.
Ministry Opportunities
There’s a few exciting opportunities we are exploring at the moment, the most significant of these is the idea of a Breakfast Program at one of our local High Schools. We have had some great discussions with the school and they are very excited about partnering with us to provide such a service. We are looking for volunteers who can participate in this strategic ministry opportunity one morning per week. If you are interested, please speak to me ASAP.
More Changes
You will probably notice some more changes happening around the building in the next couple of weeks. New signs will be going up out the front to show our partnership with BaptistCare. The upstairs toilets will be worked on too so that they will soon be fully functional. There’s always something that needs doing around our property, so if you want to help please speak to Rick or Susan.
Theological Thoughts
Here are a couple of quotes that might be a thought-starter for you.
“Traditionally, the kingdom of God has been packaged as a one-time gift that, once received, is done. But the Bible describes a process. We are all in a journey from glory to glory… I believe our churches will be much healthier once we are no longer concerned only with decisions to accept Christ but rather with the process of becoming like him.” Neil Cole, Church 3.0
“An inclusive church will not be made up only of people who have life sorted. Instead it will almost certainly include drug users, alcoholics, people with mental health problems, the homeless, the unemployed, single mothers, ex-convicts, prostitutes and so on. It will be a church where the imperfect are perfectly welcome. It will strive to ensure that it is accessible to those who can’t walk, or hear, or see or speak. In short, it will be a home for those who need one.” Steve Chalke, Intelligent Church
“Jesus’ primary family is not composed of those who share his genetic makeup, but those who share his obedient spirit.” Rodney Clapp: Quoted by Tom Sine in The New Conspirators
Prayer
If you’ve been around at WBC for any length of time, you’ll know how important prayer is to us. I just wanted to give you advanced notice of our next 24 hour prayer gathering, which will begin at 7pm on Friday 3rd September.
While you think about prayer, could I ask you to pray this week for the selection process of a new CEO for BaptistCare SA? Applications are about to close and our family of churches need to make the right appointment to lead our community services ministries into the future. Pray for wisdom and discernment for the Board as they begin the interview process.
Well, that’s about all this week. I trust you will have a blessed week, and will find ways to pursue God in all you do. See you Sunday – its gonna be another great worship gathering and message. Want a heads up? Read Matthew 14!!!
Steve
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