Australia District News

In this issue: Combined service in Perth Confirmation service in SydneyDistrict Youth ConventionsSilver Jubilee in Morayfield

Edition 29/2 -Winter 2014

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In the recent Pentecost Service our Chief Apostle conducted in Munich, Germany he made reference to Apostle Paul quoting the Lord Jesus “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). This statement nicely supports both the theme our Chief Apostle gave us all at the beginning of this year “Labour in Love” and the theme in our Australia District “The Year of Charity”.

“Giving” is often related to material goods being handed over in order to assist someone else. This is a very narrow view of “giving”. There are so many things that we can give each day that actually make a difference, often to both the giver and the receiver. A smile, a word of thanks or encouragement, a thoughtful gesture; these are all part of “giving” and they make

the receiver feel good as well as bringing a positive sense of achievement to the giver.

Genuine “giving” is a selfless matter where the interests of others are placed above one’s self-interest. This is not the domain of the wealthy or of those who want to be recognised for their philanthropy; this is something everyone can do. It has only one limiting factor and that is the individual’s own sincerity towards “giving”.

As children of God, we understand the value of God’s love very well. We understand the meaning of “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16) clearly and we

From the Desk of District Apostle AndersenDear Brothers and Sisters,

Apostles & District Ministers from Australia & New Zealand

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From the Desk of District Apostle Andersenlive under this great love every day; it is termed “grace”. That Christ then, out of love, gave His own life for us just adds to the magnitude of what we have received. Then to labour in love, that is to work for the Lord with love and gratitude, is to put the gifts which we have been given to good use. I hope we can always practice this in our home, in our congregation and in every part of our life. I encourage you to never hesitate in giving generously and with love.

The visit of our Chief Apostle to Sydney, Australia draws closer and I am happy to inform you that all arrangements and plans are “on track”, thanks to the many brothers and sisters who are working together to ensure all details are cared for. I again ask

for your prayers and support in ensuring that this visit of our Chief Apostle is not an event but rather a great blessing for our district.

I wish you much joy and satisfaction in giving to others in this Year of Charity and encourage you to always do this with love for your neighbour.

With loving greetings,

Andrew H. Andersen

The District Apostle Andrew Andersen visited Perth on 16 March 2014 to retire District Evangelist Jock Farrell who had served faithfully for 44 years in the ministry. To this joyful occasion he invited Apostle Desmond Lodewick, District Elder Geoff Barker and District Evangelist Ralph Gosewinkel.

The weekend commenced with a festive concert on Saturday 15 March 2014 which featured presentations by the WA Project Choir, the Youth Choir and the Sunday School Children’s choir. One of the highlights of the concert occurred early on when all visiting ministers were invited to participate in one of the District Evangelist Jock’s favourite male choir anthems, ”Like men that wait”.

The concert was followed by a dinner with ministers and wives where even a fire emergency could not put a damper on the joy and enthusiasm shown by all. It was a time for reflection and appreciation with many ministers giving thanks on behalf of the district to a man of God who had

so selflessly and tirelessly served the Lord in South Africa, Western Australia and Vanuatu.

On Sunday morning, the District Apostle conducted a divine service in the South Perth Community Centre which was attended by 335 believing souls. During this divine service, the District Evangelist Farrell was placed into a well-deserved retirement.

The District Apostle then proceeded to ordain a District Elder, two District Evangelists and two Evangelists into the ministry for the Western Australia and Northern Territory districts. Furthermore, he also commissioned three rectors for the congregations of Beckenham, Mandurah and Rockingham to ensure that the district is sufficiently resourced for growth into the future.

Another highlight of the divine service was Holy Sealing, with five souls receiving this sacrament.

Visit to Perth, WA

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Ordination in Mackay, QldOn Saturday 5 April the ministers and wives from Q6 & Q7 congregations come together in Mackay for a Ministers and Wives service conducted by District Apostle Andersen. The choir earlier that day had completed the recording of the song as their contribution for the CD project.

On Sunday 6 April the District Apostle conducted a combined service in Mackay for the members from Q6 & Q7. He was accompanied on this occasion by Apostle Williams and District Elders Friedbert Kohler and Uwe Hoffmann. During this service District Evangelist Peter Schulte was ordained into the district elder ministry for Northern Queensland.

Before the commencement of the service the electricity went off and when the technician arrived he found a wire had come out of the pole fuse in the street. The power was restored a few minutes before the start of the service which was a great relief due to quite warm temperatures experienced on that day.

The service was complimented by the combined Q6/7 orchestra, the sunday school children and the choir. After this special service the members enjoyed time in fellowship and lunch together.

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District Apostle Andrew Andersen visited Sydney on the last weekend in April to conduct a divine service in the Great Hall at Knox Grammar School.

The serving of the District Apostle was based on a passage from 2 Timothy 3:14-15 “But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus”. Bishop John Green and District Evangelist Samuel Muller were called to assist. The high point of the service was the confirmation blessing for eight youth. In his address to the confirmands District Apostle Andersen

emphasised among other things that if the confirmands are going to make time for the Lord, then the Lord will bless their remaining time. The District Apostle then asked the four young sisters and the four young brothers to give and not merely recite their confirmation vow.

Before the service closed, Priest Ralph Davids was retired after more than 30 years in the ministry, including serving as rector of the Leumeah congregation. District Evangelist Samuel Muller was commissioned as rector for Leumeah and District Elder Deon van der Mescht, formerly of Johannesburg, South Africa, was confirmed in his ministry and tasked with caring for the members in special circumstances throughout the Australia District.

Confirmation Service in Sydney, NSW

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Silver Jubilee in Morayfield

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The first members to live in the Caboolture Shire were Sister Emma Hildebrandt and her family, who resided in Woodford from 1956.

For some time these and other members in the area were served by brothers from the Windsor congregation. From 1971 services were conducted by brothers from the Redcliffe congregation.

In 1985 District Apostle Rosentreter asked for a congregation to be established in Caboolture. By now a number of members who attended the Redcliffe congregation, including Evangelist Ian Gerke and his family, had also moved to the area.

After some time approval was given to conduct divine services in the music room at a local high school. The first service was conducted there on 22nd September 1985 and the room was filled to capacity with forty-two members in attendance. With such a large attendance at the services it was soon necessary to find a bigger room.

In 1987 attempts were made to acquire land on which to build our own church.

After many setbacks, a block of land was finally purchased. Appropriately, the location of this block is in Devine Crescent.Work commenced on the foundations and, despite some challenges with the availability of materials and tradespeople, the dedication of the church was held on Saturday 18 March 1989 to coincide with the visit of District Apostle EH Graf from South Africa.

Many members from both Caboolture and surrounding congregations spent numerous hours working to get the church completed. The construction company supervisor called it a miracle when he returned to work one Monday to find that the majority of the gardens were planted and filled with bark, the grass in the yard was laid, the painting in the foyer, toilets and kitchen was finished and the electrical installation was nearly completed, all after one day’s work.

From 1995 to 2003 the congregation also cared for members in Nanango with monthly services being held by a priest and deacon.

In May 2011 District Apostle Andersen

advised that the congregation would in future be referred to as the Morayfield congregation, as the suburb had since become an established area of the Caboolture Shire.

A number of rectors have faithfully served the congregation over the last 25 years; Evangelist (now retired District Elder) Ian Gerke, Priest (now District Elder) Uwe Hoffmann, Priest Graham Dietz and Evangelist Graham Wolff.

On Sunday 9 March District Apostle Andersen conducted a divine service to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of the church. Already on Saturday 8th March the congregation hosted a Children’s Fun Day for all children in the local community. This was followed by a barbeque dinner and an evening concert and walk down memory lane.The Sunday divine service contained extra blessings for two couples; Br Phillip & Sis Alma Wolff celebrated 65 years of marriage and Pr (ret) Anthony & Sis Annelies Stephenson celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. The weekend was concluded with lunch for the congregation and an opportunity for fellowship together.

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Confirmands weekend in Paihia, NZGreat excitement could be felt by all when leaving Auckland to travel to Paihia for our Confirmands 2014 Weekend Orientation Camp held over the weekend of 21st to 23rd February 2014.

All through the journey our confirmands were laughing, joking and just having fun being together and having fellowship with each other! Upon arriving at our destination we were greeted by our District Elder Ernst Graf and District Evangelist Shaun Van Wyngaard who had assisted our BBQ crew in preparing dinner. The young ones were allowed to have unending fun through the night inside their rooms and building relationships in having long chats and pulling pranks on each other just for fun!

Saturday greeted us with a beautiful day and a wonderful breakfast prepared by our most efficient team who left no stone unturned making sure our young ones were well fed! The confirmands left for an early morning tour of the Waitangi Park where the treaty of Waitangi was signed, followed by kayaking with a couple of the confirmands trying to master the art of staying in the kayak…a real challenge. The afternoon was spent in fellowship by the poolside and soaking up the afternoon sun.

On Saturday evening District Elder Graf and District Evangelist Van Wyngaard held discussions with our confirmands. It was amazing to hear amidst all the fun and games our confirmands could still recite the Confirmation Vow, explore the Creed and the Ten Commandments and joyfully participate in answering questions from our District Elder. Our confirmands were also prepared by our Leaders for their upcoming District Confirmation Service with our Apostle.

Sunday morning was an early rise to attend the divine service at Paihia congregation, followed by fellowship. Soon it was time to head on back to Auckland. The weekend saw friendships deepen and bonds strengthen. What a privilege through grace to be a child of God!

Youth Convention in South Australia

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On 8th March 2014 youth from both Victoria and South Australia came together to share in the experience of the Adelaide Youth Convention.

After a long trip by the Melbourne youth, everyone met at the Woodhouse Activity Centre in the Adelaide Hills. There, a team based challenge took place – “Conquer Challenge Hill”. All teams worked together to complete the course and based on communication, encouragement and teamwork, teams were scored across the course.

Once complete we were off to Ascot Park church where ”burgers with the lot” were prepared by members of the Adelaide congregations, ready for the hungry youth to devour.

After recharging a choir practice took place in preparation for the Sunday divine service with Apostle Lodewick and the combined Adelaide congregations.

The final activity for the evening was the youth workshop “The future is OURS to make! Let’s do this!” led by Priest Brad Hearns. Divided into groups once more youth were asked to reflect on the address from our Chief Apostle on his last visit to Brisbane, ”Designing the Church of the Future”.

With smoothies and sweets to get us all through, many thoughts and discussions were had amongst the different groups with our Apostle Lodewick involved in the in depth discussions.

The next day Apostle Lodewick conducted the divine service. Prior to the service the youth opened with a special concert, with items from both states and concluding together with H 401 “When I’m with Him”. The opportunity to sing together was a truly blessed experience.After lunch it was time for the youth to travel on to their next activity – Barefoot @ the Bay! Here was an opportunity to take off our shoes and have some fun playing bowls. A nice relaxing time was had by all, and it was topped off with a pizza dinner at the nearby reserve.

With the convention coming to an end, Monday saw the youth of both Adelaide and Melbourne travel to the Keith Stephenson Reserve in Mount Barker and spend the final few hours together over a BBQ lunch and a game of cricket.

It was sad to say goodbye to those we had shared many blessed experiences with across the weekend, though exciting to have had the opportunity to develop a stronger bond and as well as a deeper commitment to our faith and the journey we as youth are all on together.

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Youth Convention in New South WalesThe NSW Youth Convention took place over the weekend of 14-16 March 2014 at the Lutanda Toukley Camp, Central Coast NSW. The weekend commenced with youth arriving on Friday evening and enjoying fellowship.

The Saturday morning began with a hearty breakfast and the youth relating experiences of faith where they have practiced being a Christian and working in love or confessing Christ.

This was followed by two presentations. The first presentation was “Working with Love”. The presenter had been in a live transmission New Year’s Divine Service with our Chief Apostle and related the contents of that service which was thought provoking. The main points centred on solidarity with our neighbour. The youth were then asked to apply two points in their lives; working with love in our daily activities, and involving

ourselves in the Lord’s work. The take home message to work with love was take time to listen, forgive, and show compassion.

The second presentation was “Take Jesus in your ship of life”. The main points were:

• We are the captain of our ship, but we can hand over the captaincy to Christ. We then become the first mate, unconditionally obeying the captain.• The Holy Spirit is the navigator. We have the option of adhering to the proposed direction or not.• The rudder is our prayers• God created this ship, we are thus safe even in storms of life• In storms we need to get rid of unnecessary items on our ship such as impatience, lack of faith, lovelessness etc.• After a storm we need to do damage assessment on our ship. How did my patience, love, trust, faith, hope etc. hold

up to the storm?

Luke 8:22-25 was used to support Christ being in our ship and that we need to have faith and trust in Him. The group activity asked the youth to relate “storms” they have encountered and how can they apply the theme of working with love to these storms.

Lunch was followed by team building activities where the youth played touch rugby and soccer in which the Apostle and District Ministers joined in. After dinner the evening was enjoyed with marshmallows cooked in the fire and wonderful fellowship.

The highlight of the weekend was the youth service in Newcastle congregation followed by fellowship lunch with the youth and the congregation.

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1. Sunday School children in Werribee (Vic)2. Ordination of Br Emery Mutela into the

Deacon ministry in Albury (Vic)3. Ev William Reimers of Albany (NZ) was

confirmed in his ministry4. Mothers Day in Braybrook (Vic)5. Easter in Caloundra (Qld) congregation6. Dcn Charl Miles of Christchurch (NZ)

was confirmed in his ministry7. Croydon (Vic) mothers on Mother’s Day8. Mother’s Day in Gosford (NSW)9. Ordination of Priest Gary Scholl in

Buranda (Qld)10. Mother’s Day in Ascot Park (SA)11. Ordination of Priest Gerald Adams of

Scoresby (Vic)12. Ordination of Br Timothy Sickinger in

Coffs Harbour (NSW)13. Maryborough (Qld) took part in the

Relay for Life14. Geelong (Vic) mothers on Mother’s day15. Mother’s Day in Seven Hills (NSW)

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Around the Congregations

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Celebrations:1. Br George & Sis Sonia Clark received 25th

Wedding blessings in Ascot Park (SA) 2. Engagement blessing of Dcn Darryl Vogler

and Sis Alica Hess in Mackay (Qld) 3. Sis Florence De Lisen of Scoresby (Vic)

celebrated her 94th birthday 4. Ev (ret) Henry de Lisen of Bundaberg (Qld)

celebrated his 75th birthday 5. Holy Baptism of Sophie Tadgell in Caloundra

(Qld) 6. Br Ross Smith of Ascot Park (SA) celebrated

his 90th birthday 7. Pr (ret) Vernon Bowers of Hope Valley (SA)

celebrated his 80th birthday 8. Sis Dolly Dietz of North Ipswich (Qld)

celebrated her 100th Birthday 9. Br Jacob Sickinger and Sis Debra Schmal

received Wedding blessings in Braybrook (Vic)

10. Br & Sis Gavin & Cleo Milne received Wedding blessings in Ascot Park (SA)

11. Holy Baptism of Stedler Davis in Kingston (Qld)

12. Ev (ret) Ken Cunningham of Maryborough (Qld) celebrated his 80th birthday

13. Holy Baptism of Aleera Teale in Redcliffe (Qld)

14. Br Bernie Eggerling of Bundaberg (Qld) celebrated his 75th Birthday

15. Sis Marianna Zurek of Albury (Vic) celebrated her 85th birthday

16. Sis Gerda Sadowski of Asmore (Qld) celebrated her 85th birthday

17. Sis Nickki Kolak & Br Daylan Carstens received Engagement blessings in Braybrook (Vic)

18. Adoption in Labasa (Fiji) 19. Holy Baptism of William Kogler in Croydon

(Vic) 20. Br Ray & Sis Kerry Bebendorf of Kingston

(Qld) celebrated their Silver Wedding anniversary

21. Holy Baptism of Cooper Hall in Caloundra (Qld)

22. Pr Darryl & Sis Birgit Dargusch of Windsor (Qld) celebrated their Ruby Wedding anniversary

23. Br Fred Finger of Redcliffe (Qld) celebrated his 80th birthday

24. Sis Anneliese Operacz of Wollongong (NSW) celebrated her 90th birthday

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For your Information

Contact Details:New Apostolic Church

Office address Postal address1A 3 Deakin Street, PO Box 5903, Brendale, Qld. AUSTRALIA Brendale BC. Qld 4500, AUSTRALIA

Phone: +617 3480 0400 EmailFax: +617 3480 0444 Photos: adn@newapostolic.org.au Admin: nacho@newapostolic.org.au

In Memoriam:Priest (ir) Hans (Jackie) Splett of Elizabeth, SA 11 Mar 2014 Sis Lenore Gardner of Maryborough, Qld 22 Mar 2014 Sis Faylene Schulte of North Ipswich, Qld 25 Mar 2014Br Basil Young of Beckenham, WA 3 Apr 2014Br Mervyn Zumbansen of Riverleigh, Qld 9 Apr 2014Sis Ursula Bronowski of Ascot Park, SA 23 Apr 2014Sis Doris Bell of Kingston, Qld 25 Apr 2014Sis Jane (JC) Schad of Geelong, Vic 29 Apr 2014Br Arthur Maloney from Gosford, NSW 23 May 2014

Jul 2014 Aug 2014 Sept 2014

6: Bucharest, Romania 3: Ndola, Zambia 21: Sydney, Australia

13: Plauen, Germany 17: Valencia, Venezuela

20: Ruanda

Upcoming Events:

Jul 2014 Aug 2014 Sept 2014

6: Auckland, NZ 3: Beenleigh, Qld 14: Mackay, Qld

13: Ashmore, Qld 17: Bundaberg, Qld 21: Sydney, NSW

20: Karratha, WA 24: Canberra, ACT

27: North Ipswich, Qld 31: Christchurch, NZ

Jul 2014 Aug 2014 Sept 2014

4-6: NACYAC, Auckland 16-17: Youth Convention, AM Samoa 7: Father’s Day

6: Service for Departed 23-24: Youth Convention, Fiji

21: Chief Apostle Service, Sydney

21: International Day of Prayer for Peace

Chief Apostle Schneider’s schedule

District Apostle Andersen’s schedule:

Front Cover Photo: Bill Shupp (Flickr) Rear Cover Photo: Thomas (Flickr). All other photos used by permission

Ordinations / Retirements:

• D/Ev Jock Farrell was placed into retirement in Perth (WA)• Pr Francois Witbooi was ordained district elder for Western Australia

district in Perth (WA)• Ev Malcolm Rose & Ev Stephen Stellenberg were ordained district

evangelists to assist in this vast district• Pr Matthew Bell & Pr Donovan Farrell were ordained evangelists• Ev Matthew Bell was commissioned rector of Beckenham (WA)• Pr Johan van Baalen was commissioned rector of Rockingham (WA)• Pr Patrick O’Connor was commissioned rector of Mandurah (WA)• Br Emergy Mutela was ordained as deacon in Albury (Vic)• Dcn Charl Miles of Christchurch (NZ) was confirmed in his ministry• Br Gary Scholl was ordained as priest for Buranda (Qld)• Br Timothy Sickinger was ordained into the deacon ministry for

Coffs Harbour (NSW)• Pr Michael Fisher was confirmed in the priest ministry for Leumeah

(NSW)• D/Ev Peter Schulte was ordained district elder for the North

Queensland district in Mackay (Qld)• Br Gerald Adams was ordained as priest for Scoresby (Vic)• In Madang, Papua New Guinea the following ordinations took place: • D/Ev Alex Kairab to district elder (for Karkar District)• Shep Kaluka Jodik & Shep Lapun Tun to district evangelist• Ev Banao Madol to shepherd• Pr Mark Kaisom to shepherd• Pr Ronny Kabal, Pr Jackson Abb, Pr Daniel Sirai & Pr Raymond

Namalu to evangelist• In Port Moresby, PNG the following brothers were ordained: • D/Ev Henry Hojavo to district elder (for Lake Murray District) and

Dcn John Kundi to priest• D/E Deon van der Mescht, formerly of Johannesburg, South Africa,

was confirmed in his ministry (in Sydney) and tasked with caring for the members in special circumstances throughout our district

• Pr Ralph Davids of the Leumeah (NSW) congregation was placed into retirement

• D/Ev Samuel Muller was commissioned as rector for Leumeah (NSW)

• Dcn Noel Johnson & Dcn Michael Williams were ordained priests for South Auckland (NZ)

• Ev Colin Schulte from the Caloundra (Qld) congregation was placed into retirement

• Pr Walter Reimers was confirmed as evangelist for Albany (NZ)• Br Saul McLeod was confirmed as deacon for Mackay (Qld)• Dcn Revon Richen was ordained as priest for Beckenham (WA)• Br Terrence Botha was ordained as deacon for Mandurah (WA)