firefighters bunker down · are on my heart. these are things that i give my time to, things that i...
TRANSCRIPT
Living lives that are fully dependent on God in obedience to Christ and the Bible.
JANUARY 2016theadvocate.tv
BAPTIST CHURCHES
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
3 Reworking classics New band All the King’s Men release debut album >>
5 National honourMandurah Baptist College student receives award >>
8 TerrorismA Christian response to terrorism >>
Firefighters from the Department
of Fire and Emergency Services
(DFES) from Margaret River,
Dunsborough and Busselton,
State Emergency Service (SES)
from Albany, and Department
of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW)
from Ravensthorpe, arrived at
the School on the evening of
Thursday 19 November 2015.
The firefighters battled the
blazes during the day, taking
up residence at the School for
a week.
The bushfire was believed to
have been sparked by lightning
at Salmon Gums and Grass Patch.
Homes came under threat after
the fire jumped containment
lines on the western edge of
Charlie Abbott, son of boarding house parents Nathan and Mandie, enjoyed having the firefighters on-site.
the blaze near Mullet Lakes and
winds pushed it north-west
towards Esperance.
Tragically, four people died,
including local farmer Kym
Curnow, 45, who saved several
people from driving into the
inferno before becoming trapped
himself. Norwegian national
Anna Sashohova Winther, 29,
British man Thomas Leslie
Butcher, 31, and German woman
Julia Kohrs-Lichte, 19, also died
trying to outrun the fire.
An evacuation centre was
established at the Esperance
Civic Centre on Council
Place. It was here, amidst a
community meeting that
Principal of Esperance Anglican
Community School, Kerr
Fulton-Peebles, offered the
School’s boarding facilities to
accommodate firefighters.
Student Niwaa Patrick, 14,
was eager to contribute.
“I really liked helping out by
cooking and making beds while
the ‘firies’ were here,” he stated.
“I liked being able to give
something back to the people
who gave up their time to come
and help us.”
Established in 2008
and located in the heart of
Esperance, the School has
grown rapidly to become a
valued contributor to the local
regional community and
strives to demonstrate the
values of Christian faith which
binds the School community,
a term Kerr describes as
‘Muscular Christianity’.
Boarding was introduced
for the first time in 2015, so that
the School can continue to grow
and better serve the needs of the
surrounding areas.
The School provided
beds, linen, refreshments and
snacks for the firefighters who
reportedly appreciated the
comfortable facilities and beds
rather than sleeping in swags or
camp beds.
Kerr has witnessed how
the fires have affected the
Esperance community.
“There have been very
sad stories of loss of life
and property,” he said.
“The father of a former
student was one of the
fatalities and her friends and
friends of the family have
been traumatised.”
“Others have lost crops
and buildings … The real test
is probably yet to come as
we attempt to restore hope
and rebuild.”
“Overall, however, the
impression is one of care,
resilience and pragmatism
with so many tangible
demonstrations of support
and help.”
Firefighters bunker down
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Melinda Hack
Esperance Anglican Community School opened their boarding facility to host 19 firefighters who were battling the devastating bushfires in Esperance recently.
In Conversation Freedom City Church Pastor Arastoo Yazdani talks about his
experience of being a refugee. PAGE 12 >>
“How do we receive a blessed life?”PHIL PRINGLE PAGE 13>>
2 JANUARY 2016
Courage to listen
This is where my study skills
came into being – ‘when
you’re stuck, read the question’.
‘Whatever is on your heart.’
The silence was deafening as
I strained to listen ... Have you
ever tried so hard to listen to
something that the muscles
around your ears ache, and your
neck feels that it is about to break
from the strain?
Now whilst those around
me probably enjoyed a few
minutes peace (except for the
rhythmic thump of my heart),
I wasn’t completely enjoying
the stillness. Listening to my
heart seemed anything but
calming. Rather, it was almost
overwhelming. As I got closer
to the deadline, the faster my
heart raced, and sitting became
almost impossible. It is what
Bill Hybels describes as ‘Holy
Discontent’.
The exercise of stopping and
listening was both exhausting
and invigorating, so I decided
that it was time to reflect and
resolve the topic later.
In the meantime, three
days at the National Safe
as Churches? Conference
(yes, the question mark is
intentional) reinforced the
discomfort of the things that
are on my heart. These are
things that I give my time
to, things that I wrestle with,
things that I grieve over.
Then I hear Jesus speak:
‘Don’t let your hearts be
troubled. Trust in God, and
trust also in me.’ (John
14:1 NLT)
I was asked to write about – ‘whatever is on your heart’. So I compiled a list; eliminated the more controversial subjects, as well as those things that would be of little interest to anyone else; and began reviewing what was left.
my view
When phones don’t ring …
I hadn’t even known there was
such a function on my phone,
though I had been perplexed
by the quarter moon emblem
that had mysteriously appeared
on the screen. My conclusion
that this was some inaccurate
update on the latest phase of
the moon turned out to be
invalid. Apparently it means
that even though my ring tone
said it was on and set to the
highest possible volume, it was
actually off.
Not that I am complaining.
Ignorance has been bliss. I
haven’t had to explain to my
wine club that I really don’t want
to make use of their incredibly
good two for one, three for
one or even four for one deal.
Nor have I been cajoled into
purchasing a prepaid funeral.
And I won’t be flying to Peru
with some interesting new
airline whose planes just might
arrive in spite of the incredibly
low fare they charge.
In spite of my missed calls,
the sun has continued to rise
day after day. But it has left me
pondering. Could it be that I
unwittingly have other ‘do not
disturb’ signs written over my
life. Perhaps the glance at the
time when someone’s story is
proving a little long. Or not really
paying attention when someone
is speaking. Perhaps it’s a cue I
even give off to God. Priorities so
easily get muddled.
Better go – the prepaid
funeral lady is on the line.
I’ve just had a mystery solved. After weeks of asking people why my mobile phone wasn’t ringing, it turns out I had inadvertently switched on a ‘do not disturb’ button.
True, some calls of greater
gravity have been missed. It was
a pity not to know that a meeting
I was rushing to was cancelled.
And it would have been nice to
receive the call alerting me that
I was down to lead the opening
devotions at a board meeting.
(My trusty line, “we live in such
a noisy world, so rather than
my adding more words to the
thousands you have already
heard, let’s start with silent
prayer” rescued me yet again.)
Dr Brian Harris is the
Principal of Vose Seminary
and Pastor at Large for the
Carey Group.
Dr Brian Harris
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Discouragement – the enemy
The three great temptations of
life that were most likely to lead
pastors astray and thereby see
them removed from pastoral
leadership roles in churches.
Some 25 years down the track
I have discovered that an even
stronger threat, an even greater
enemy has entered the playing
field: discouragement!
According to Keith
Farmer, who mentors over 100
pastors around the nation,
discouragement is singularly the
greatest reason why pastors will
leave the ministry. Diminishing
attendance at Sunday services,
shrinking offerings, and conflict
within church leadership bodies
can all too easily lead to a place
of deep discouragement and an
overwhelming urge to throw in
the towel.
This then highlights the great
need for encouragement within
the Body of Christ. And not just
for pastors, but for everyone. We all
need encouragement!
The writer to the Hebrews
understood this, which is why he
urged his readers to encourage
one another – and all the more as
we see the Day approaching. It is
as we encourage people that we
literally put courage into them.
We plant seeds of courage into
the lives of others, seeds that will
in time produce the fruit of faith,
hope and love.
To adopt the role of
encourager is a high calling
indeed. It’s easy to mock other
people’s ideas. It’s easy to pour
cold water on their enthusiasm,
or to be negative and cynical. The
world is full of discouragers, and
their words and attitudes quickly
become weapons in the hands of
Satan. When Paul wrote a letter to
his dear friend Philemon, he said,
‘Your love has given me great joy
and encouragement, because you,
brother, have refreshed the hearts
of the saints.’ [Philemon 7] May
the Lord send to his church more
people like Philemon, people who
are encouragers, who will refresh
the hearts of others.
Nick Scott is the Senior
Pastor at Mount Pleasant
Baptist Church.
Nick Scott
Money, sex and power are themes close to the heart of God. In the late 1980s when I first attended theological college, a book of the same title by Richard Foster had been published. As Bible College students and prospective pastors we were sternly warned that these were the big three.
Jackie Smoker is a Senior
Pastor at Como Baptist Church
and BCWA Accreditation
Registrar/Safe Church
Education Officer.
Jackie Smoker
I know what’s on my heart,
and it probably isn’t the same
as what is on yours. I know
that I need not be troubled, but
rather trust in Jesus to help me
act upon what He has placed
on my heart – complete with
the discomfort.
So, let me challenge you with
the question that was asked of
me ‘whatever is on your heart?’
Do you know what the Holy
Spirit has placed there? Are
you prepared to live with the
discomfort between the trouble
and the trust?
May we find the courage to
listen to the heart of Christ in us,
to endure the discomfort and to
trust in Him!
3newsJANUARY 2016
New band reworks classics
All the King’s Men members Nikki Cunningham, Callum Bint, Joel Waddell, Carolyn Thomas, David Chidgzey,
Mia Formentin, Alanah Quartermaine, Caitlin du Toit, James Collins and Caleb Quartermaine.
“After some of my early
attempts during our church
services were well received, and
seemed to be genuinely helpful
for us as a people, I decided to
do more and enlisted the help
of fellow music team members
Nikki Cunningham and Callum
Bint before establishing the full
group,” James said.
All the King’s Men have taken
the unusual step of making
the CD, digital tracks, lyrics
and music lead sheets freely
available on their website as
a way to share their work as
widely as possible. A number of
tutorial videos are also available
to assist other church music
teams to play the songs in their
own congregations.
“We believe we are
announcing the good news, so
there was never any question of
charging money for it.”
“We want the gospel to reach
as far and wide as possible,
and if the music we record can
contribute to that in some way,
then we want to make it as widely
and freely available as we can,”
James said.
The musical talent within
the group is diverse and lead
to an eclectic mix of voices
and instruments featuring
on the recordings, including
drums, a variety of guitars,
bass, mandolin, banjo, violin,
The ten-piece band, creatively
named All the King’s Men, has
given new life to a number of well
known existing poems and songs
by arranging and recording them
with a contemporary sound.
In November 2015 the
band was officially launched,
coinciding with the release of
seven professionally recorded
songs on their debut album Let
Us Adore Him, available digitally
and on CD.
The idea for the band and
putting together modern
arrangements of classic works
stemmed from the desire of
Mount Pleasant Baptist Church
(MPBC) Musical Director and
All the King’s Men founder,
James Collins, to broaden the
repertoire of songs sung at weekly
MPBC gatherings.
“There is a depth of spiritual
understanding, not to mention
poetic skill, in the writing of
people like Wesley that is simply
unmatched,” James said.
“All of the texts that feature
in the songs were chosen
because they state sublime truth
clearly and also describe with
clarity, real Christian exercises
and experiences.”
In 2014, James began
setting some of these poems to
new music and existing tunes,
drawing significantly on the folk
musical tradition.
keyboard, to the more unusual
spoons and glockenspiel.
The band is keen to perform
and share their music, with
a genuine desire to help
spread the gospel as opposed to
seeking fame and fortune.
“The whole idea of this band
is to produce songs that will
help the Lord’s people grow in
faith,” James said.
“We definitely aren’t aiming
to establish ourselves as a brand
or anything like that, and we’re
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just going to try and keep our
minds and hearts open and go
wherever the Holy Spirit leads.”
To download the album, view
resources or make a donation,
visit www.allthekingsmen.band
Former factory transformed into church Terry Hicks
A former factory has undergone a major transformation and is now the new home for Inglewood Community Church.
The new community facility
was officially opened with a
time of celebration and praise on
6 December 2015.
Baptist Churches Western
Australia Director of Ministries
Mark Wilson acknowledged
the work and energy required
to make the transformation
with those gathered at the
event. Mark also reminded the
congregation that they weren’t
just celebrating the opening of
a building, because church is
not just about the building, but
about the people.
There was a time of
enthusiastic singing and
recognition of the time and
effort many had contributed to
transform the building into a
suitable church venue.
Senior Pastor Mark Edwards
cut a red ribbon to mark the
occasion. Holding the ribbon
were three people ranging
from very young to the elderly,
signifying the prayer that the
church would remain there for a
long time.
Mark Edwards then
challenged everyone to consider
the claims of Jesus Christ as
we all have to make a choice: to
follow Him or not.
Inglewood Community Church Senior Pastor Mark Edwards with BCWA Director of Ministries Mark Wilson
signify the beginning of a new era for the Church.
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A new folk rock band has been birthed from some members of the music team at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church with one goal – to share the gospel and help Christians grow in their faith.
4 newsJANUARY 2016
Terry Hicks
A dusty paddock transformed into an entertainment zone heralded the start of Leavers 2015. Medical facilities were prepared, rides were ready, music tents and the silent disco set up and toilets and water available.
Green Team make a difference
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The many volunteers in the Leavers Green Team 2015.
digital church
incredible. I knew from the first
night, as I stood in the crowded
confines of the Zone amongst
6,000 plus teenagers intent on
pushing many of the social
boundaries as far as they dared,
that God would use me and all the
other volunteers there that week,
and He did.
For instance, there was this
young man who I had taken
to find medical assistance on
came from many different walks
of life. Each volunteer receives
training to assist them in the role
and display enthusiasm and care,
and actually enjoy their time at
the event. The reward is seeing
the Leavers safe and protected
whilst they are in The Zone, as
well as being able to have a good
time. Many of the Leavers thanked
the team for caring for them and
helping them when they needed it.
The positive effect of The Zone
on the Dunsborough and Busselton
communities was reflected in a
significant reduction in problems
and antisocial behaviour.
When volunteers are asked
why they do it, especially as
they pay $90 to be involved, the
response often refers to Jesus’s
words in Matthew 25: 40-45, and
that they care about the young
people and want to help create a
positive image of Christians and
the church.
The Zone Coordinator Michelle
Smoker and her team were
thanked by the WA Police and
other support agencies for their
contribution to Leavers 2015.
If you are interested in being
involved in the 2017 Green Team,
contact the BCWA on 6313 6300.
Keith Hall
The desire to be a volunteer with the Leavers Green Team had always been with me but it was only this year, being for the first time a Pastor without a church, that I found myself available.
So I signed up with great
anticipation only to discover
at the training session that
the majority of Green Teamers
were somewhere under 30
years old — a milestone that I
had passed more than 30 years
earlier — and that the whole
project was vastly different
to what I had assumed it
would be.
That’s when the doubts
crept in. Would I, as an old guy,
fit into the very youth based
culture of the Zone and be at all
effective there?
God soon showed me that
he had all things in hand.
The acceptance I felt from all
the other team members and
especially from the Leavers
was amazing. The way God
steered me into the areas that
He wanted me to work in was
Keith Hall had his first experience of volunteering with the
Green Team in 2015.
This year saw Baptist Churches
Western Australia (BCWA) again
managing the entertainment zone
at Dunsborough, in conjunction
with the Western Australia Police
and other agencies from 22 to 26
November 2015.
The Zone is a part of the WA
Government’s Harm Minimisation
Policy which was introduced
to protect Leavers from harm
and reduce negative impacts on
local communities.
Baptist Churches Western
Australia were invited to participate
eight years ago and has continued
to be involved in this government
funded activity.
One hundred and forty five
volunteers form the BCWA Green
Team and work in The Zone
helping to keep toilets clean,
manage the crowds, help in the
medical area and interact with the
17 and 18 year old Leavers. Each
night, by the busload, an average
of 6,500 Leavers converged on The
Zone. In The Zone they enjoyed
four hours of entertainment and
activities in an alcohol and drug
free area, protected from ‘toolies’
and others who want to take
advantage of them.
The Green Team volunteers
ranged in age from 18 to 68 and
A green experience
29/11/15Kyle Idlemantwitter.com/KyleIdleman
There’s a big difference between
sharing struggles out of
vulnerability and humility, and
the sin of complaining. One
helps, the other hurts.
30/11/15Louie Gigliotwitter.com/LouieGiglio
Focus less on your wounds, and
more on the wounds Jesus bore
for you. Both are real, but His
can heal.
the first night. Absolutely
inebriated, before he even
entered the Zone, he spent that
whole night in the first aid tent.
On the final evening he saw
me as he was leaving, thanked
me profusely for helping him,
and told me that since his initial
over consumption he had not
touched any alcohol.
In my heart I praised God
for His faithfulness.
30/11/15Max Lucadotwitter.com/MaxLucado
Though you failed, God’s love
does not. Face your failures with
faith in God’s goodness.
01/12/15Jason Helopoulosthegospelcoalition.org
Ministry is hard work, but it is
glorious work. Something every
Christian is given the
responsibility and privilege of
enjoying. Let’s not allow
discouragement to steal the
delight from us.
01/12/15Victoria Osteenjoelosteen.com
Are you facing something that
seems impossible in your life –
in your relationships, finances,
or on your job? When we don’t
know what to do or how to do it,
remember this: God does.
01/12/15Rick Warrenrickwarren.org/devotional
You’re not God. You don’t
have all the answers. You
can’t do everything. If you’re
struggling to find balance in
your life, that one admission can
transform everything.
02/12/15Eugene Chotwitter.com/EugeneCho
Sermons aren’t just from
pulpits. They’re preached
around kitchen tables, on
streets, in boardrooms … even
on a bus.
02/12/15CS Lewistwitter.com/CSLewisDaily
It is when I turn to Christ,
when I give up myself to His
personality, that I first begin
to have a real personality of
my own.
02/12/15David Murphytwitter.com/InLifeOnPurpose
Turned ‘If I Ain’t Got You’ by
Alicia Keys into part of my
prayer this morning: “I don’t
want nothing at all if it ain’t
You Lord.”
02/12/15Gavin Ortlunddesiringgod.org
If we know the medicine will
work, we don’t so much mind
the bitter taste. In the gospel, the
medicine works.
5newsJANUARY 2016
Mandurah Baptist College student Courtney Cummins has been crowned the 2015 Young Australian Artist of the Year.
National honour for student
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though the market has slowed
down, Anthon believes God has
carried the business.
“We surrender the business
to God – every time before we
open a shop we have a blessing
of the shop,” Athon said.
“We believe God will always
lead us.”
“There are down times and
difficult times, but we rise
through – we rely on Him.”
Staffing is usually one
of the hardest issues in the
hospitality industry and Anthon
has witnessed God at work here
as well.
“If a few staff leave a good
replacement is found in the
right timing – God’s timing,”
he said.
of Arts, Robyn McCormick, and
her mother accompanying her
for the ceremony.
“Mandurah Baptist College
have always jumped at the
opportunity to showcase the
amazing talents of their students,
whether they be volleyball stars,
gifted drama students, or even
aspiring artists,” Robyn said.
“We invest a great deal of
energy and care into nurturing
our students’ natural abilities.”
“As a school we are
extremely proud of Courtney’s
achievement and the
acknowledgement it has allowed
for Mandurah Baptist College on
a national level.”
Courtney plans to study
fine arts, graphic design and
commerce at Curtin University
in 2016.
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V Burger Chef Abel Gonzalez and Proprietor Anthon enjoy serving the
local community.
The award-winning self-portrait by Mandurah Baptist College 2015 Year 12 graduate, Courtney Cummins.
The talented artist was a
member of the 2015 Year 12
cohort, with Courtney’s self-
portrait being one of 2,500
entries to be selected for the
prestigious award.
“I’ve always loved art,
and especially portraiture,”
Courtney said.
“I drew it [the self-portrait]
on a piece of paper and then
projected it on to a canvas, I
traced it to a basic outline and
then used base colours for the
skin, then I just did layers and
layers until I was happy with it,”
she said.
“Everyone’s technique is
different and it’s hard to explain
how I do it.”
Courtney received the award
in Melbourne in late 2015, with
Mandurah Baptist College Head
Serving more than burgersAnthon has found that his
Christian beliefs and values
impact the way he conducts
business. In dealing with
people and staff, Anthon
believes it has given him
more grace and hope in
making decisions.
“Sometimes a decision we
make may appear to the world
(that) it is a loss, but for us it is
a gain, for example, a difficult
staff member, rather than
terminate them, I try to dig
into the base of the problem.”
“There could be a personal
or family issue.”
“We try and change people
around by fixing the inside
and sometimes they say they
might start going to church.”
Celebration at youth night
Brad Patterson, formerly a pastor
at Mukinbudin Church of Christ,
spoke at the event. His message
of hope and finding power when
believers plug into God was a
timely message for the young
people present.
One of the organisers reported
that God clearly spoke through
Brad with over 30 people making
first time decisions to say ‘yes’
to Jesus and more than
50 responses.
The team at Inglewood
arranged a variety of games
and entertainment for the
youth, such as human
bowling, a spooky corner and
giant buzzer, bouncy castle,
silly string and Nerf gun area.
Jess Magowan lead a
young worship team with
Andrew Binns
Youth groups from across Perth gathered at Inglewood Community Church for the final combined Baptist youth event of 2015, on 27 November.
Giuliana Inga, a year 11
student from Inglewood,
opened the night singing
‘Energy’ by Hillsong Young
and Free.
Church youth groups
represented at the event included
Bentley, Ellenbrook, Girrawheen,
Morley, Parkerville and Woodvale.
Four of the combined events
are held each year, with a
different church hosting each
one. Inglewood Community
Church hosted the event in its
new building.
A strong response to the gospel message was experienced at the final Perth combined youth event for 2015.
Just over six years ago Anthon was a chef in a restaurant, but felt he wanted to do more with people and serve their needs. He is now one of six Perth Christians who are the proprietors of V Burger Bar, with outlets located in Victoria Park and Floreat.
Through their business,
Anthon has seen how God has
helped the owners daily. Even
Anthon feels God is leading
him to keep the business
growing so they can be more
of a blessing to staff and
the community.
Elizabeth Quay will
be the next location for
another V Burger Bar,
with a store due to open
by early February.
6 newsJANUARY 2016
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Leavers enjoying the end of school in true style.
The gospel midst surf and sand
Teenagers, young adults, families
and some older folk from
numerous churches are involved
in programs in eight different
locations around Western
Australia. This summer there are
programs being held in Bremer
Bay, Brookton, Cervantes,
Cheynes Beach, Denmark,
Jurien Bay, and two in Augusta,
one at the Turner Caravan Park
and one at the Flinders Bay
Caravan Park.
Teams run an exciting and
energetic program for children
and teenagers, during which
they open the Bible in a way that
is engaging and appropriate for
their age. It’s a fun time where
leaders build relationships
with the children and young
people and where they get an
opportunity to share the gospel
with those who come.
A few of the many children who enjoy hearing the gospel while on summer holidays.
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Many teams also have coffee
available for parents and other
adults providing the opportunity to
build relationships with them, often
having the chance to support these
people, and share about the hope
that they have in Jesus in the midst
of that.
During the day and at night,
the teams run fun community
events for those in the caravan
park or the town. These events
include games of cricket,
movie nights, quiz nights,
amazing race events, mum and
daughter pamper nights, fishing
competitions, slippery slides
and paella evenings in a market
style atmosphere. The events are
gifts to the community, as well as
providing further opportunity for
building relationships and sharing
the gospel with campers and
community members.
Barb Totterdell
As has happened each January for over 50 years, this month more than 200 volunteers are out sharing the good news of Jesus with children, young people and families on Scripture Union WA Family Mission programs.
Those on team benefit
in a range of ways too as the
experience develops members’
leadership skills, and inspires
them for mission and gospel
ministry through the year.
There are many people who
point to their experience on a
Scripture Union (SU) WA Family
Mission as a key point in their
been the really big point where
we’ve all had our faith centred at
and sourced from.”
SU WA are always looking for
people of all ages to be on their
teams, for more information,
contact Community Missions
Coordinator Jane Duff on
9371 9100.
leadership development for
Christian ministry.
“The biggest area where my
faith has really come into my life
was at mission,” volunteer Ash
Hotchkin said.
“That’s where I found
my faith, and it’s just gotten
stronger and stronger.”
“For our family, mission has
Doing Leavers differently
Joyce Arnott
What better way to celebrate finishing school than swimming with turtles at pristine beaches, snorkelling coral reefs, sand-boarding white sand dunes, shopping, chilling out at cafés and meeting new people.
Leavers SU programs
reportedly assist in building
lifelong friendships with
peers and leaders, with
many leavers becoming
leaders or kitchen helpers
the following year as well
as volunteers on other
SU programs.
All programs invite a
space for exploring faith in a
variety of ways.
Leavers Ningaloo set up
a gospel tent where leaders
served the campers in a café
style space while a leader
shared their testimony.
Each day the gospel tent
was packed while a leader
shared wisdom on the truth
of Jesus and the Bible.
beginnings whilst celebrating
the end of an era.
The program is structured
to combine freedom, a great
Christian leadership team
and fun activities with
the aim to create a great
week of celebration of the
end of school in a safe and
nurturing environment.
“This is the best way to do
Leavers!” one Leaver’s mum said.
Scripture Union (SU)
WA 2015 leavers have
just celebrated like this
on their three Leavers
programs; Leavers Ningaloo,
Leavers Esperance/Albany
(diverted to Albany due to
the Esperance fires) and
Leavers Melbourne.
SU WA Leavers offers
a mixture of relaxation,
adventure and new
Proclaiming God’s grace
Vale Ross Norling
Victor Owuor
The Romanian Baptist Church in Bayswater celebrated two baptisms and one infant dedication on 15 November 2015. Naomi Bughiu and Lucian Cușai made a public proclamation of their salvation when they were baptised.
Naomi and Lucian also both
testified about their journey of
faith and declared their lifetime
devotion to God through their
baptism.
In the same worship service,
Jonathan and Alexandra Khoo
dedicated their son, Noah
Alexander Khoo to God. Both
parents prayed that Christ
would dwell in their child’s heart
through faith.
Organisers felt that it
was fitting to celebrate both
Ross Norling, Pastor Hedland
Baptist Church, passed away
peacefully in his sleep on 9
December 2015 after a long
battle with cancer. He is
survived by his wife, Jenny,
and children.
ceremonies in one worship
service because both were a
proclamation of God’s grace.
Infant dedication is the way
parents make a personal
pledge toward God to pass
their heritage of Christ’s saving
grace to their child, while
through believers’ baptism,
the candidates proclaim God’s
saving grace that they have
experienced through their
personal faith in Christ.
7newsJANUARY 2016
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: Ji
ll B
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: M
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Mc
Cu
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Food security for workers
Using aquaponics they
produce fish in a tank then
circulate the water, including
the waste products, to a series
of containers where they grow
a variety of vegetables.
A simple solar powered
pump keeps the plants
supplied with nutrients
and the water fresh for the
growing fish.
A community development
worker in central India, uses
this system for his own family,
designating a section of their
backyard to produce fresh
organically grown vegetables
for his family.
“We’re still experimenting
and fine-tuning things, but we
see this is an answer to the daily
needs of Christian workers in
India where finances are often
tight,” he said.
When workers come in for
their regular training sessions,
he explains the benefits of the
system and how the aquaponics
process is set up.
“There is not much that can
go wrong with this simple system,
but the benefits are huge,” he said.
India has thousands of
workers leading networks of
simple house churches across
the country. As workers become
In India a backyard aquaponics set-up is helping workers in
disciple-making movements provide their families with fresh fish
and vegetables.
Five men at Thailand’s Khao Bin Prison were baptised during an Australian team’s visit in November 2015.
Jill Birt
Disciple-making movements in India are helping workers become self-sufficient in providing food for their families.
Ph
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ind
say
Volunteers help to rebuild Nepal
Through their partner,
International Nepal Fellowship
(INF), they have been replacing
infrastructure, particularly
schools and some shelters for
individuals.
Prior to construction, INF
chose a simple but resilient
structure, called in some
volunteers to Pokhara and
taught them how to erect the
Temporary Learning Centres.
These volunteers then travelled
with the INF teams and after
some supervision, were able to
construct the shelters themselves.
Jill Birt
TEAR Australia raised $1.1 million for relief aid to Nepal following the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the country in April 2015.
The shelters are basically
free-standing tin tunnels.
They are constructed in a way
that uses no nails so the tin
can be recycled and used for
the roof of new permanent
school buildings when they
are built.
They are insulated with
foam and plywood which
keeps down the sound of the
rain on the tin roof, and also
prevents condensation.
Each shelter weights 360
kilograms and is designed to
be used for five to ten years.
Children do early morning exercises outside their Temporary
Learning Centres in Talajung, Nepal.
Pen pals’ hope in Thai jails Jill Birt
Claremont Baptist Church members Ellen Broerse and Marilyn McCutcheon recently led a team of volunteers from Hope Behind Bars to visit prisoners in Thai jails who write to Australian pen pals.
The group of Christians from
Perth and Melbourne visited
six prisons, including their
first visit to the Central Youth
Prison. Teamed with pastors
from Thai churches, there
were times of rejoicing as 17
men were baptised at Klong Pai
Central Prison and five at the
high security Khao Bin Prison.
Many of the team members
met their pen pals who are
serving medium and long-term
prison sentences.
During their visit to the
women’s prison, the team
worshipped with 30 women
who are following Jesus. The
women come from around the
world. They met in an upper
storey classroom where they
heard stories from the women
about how God is working in
their lives. The prisoners’ choir
of rich African voices and sweet
harmonies from the Philippinas
added to the worship experience
for everyone.
Many of these women
have been in jail for 16 to 19
years, missing out on seeing
their children grow up, but
several testified that it was
only because of their prison
sentence that they met Jesus,
giving them a different
perspective to their suffering.
“We shared the Prayer of
Saint Francis of Assisi with the
prisoners and found this to be
a guide for our team, to be used
by God as an instrument of
His peace on our visits,”
Marilyn said.
Hope Behind Bars started
in 1994 when Ellen Broerse
was living with her husband
in Thailand and a local church
leader asked her to become a pen
pal with a Thai prisoner. Twenty-
one years later the movement
has three of its five branches in
Australia where people write to
hundreds of needy prisoners.
At Klong Pai Central Prison
the team met many of those
listed as pen pals, but not all.
They took gifts of small towels,
eyeshades, toothbrushes,
highlighters, reading glasses
and some guitar strings for the
musicians. At the prison shop
they bought soap, toothpaste
and shampoo for each of the 51
men on the pen pal list.
At the Bangkok Immigration
Detention Centre four of the
team visited four individuals.
Some detainees from Africa
came to Thailand with the
established in an area, a suitable
version of the sustainable
kitchen garden can be
developed. Excess vegetables
and fish could be a source of
cash for the worker.
promise of work, but found
none and have now been in the
Detention Centre from nine
months to years.
Mental health issues appear
to impact many detainees.
The team was able to
provide the majority of the
money needed for an air
ticket to return home for a
Congolese lady, Betty. She
had been detained with
no hope of returning home
because of the airline ticket
cost. She recently spent time
in hospital with depression
but is now well enough to
leave Thailand.
8 JANUARY 2016
feature
for us to repent of co-opting
Jesus for our own ends and
be reconverted to the biblical
Jesus who is one with the poor
and broken.
The only way to see through
our own culture is to connect
ourselves with the God of
the suffering, the poor and
marginalised. The Bible has a
bias towards these people. To
be Spirit filled and evangelical
means to bring good news to
them [Luke 4:17-18]. We need
to ‘weep with those that weep’
and ‘mourn with those that
mourn’ [Romans 12:15] and see
things from their perspective
regardless of which race or
creed they adhere to.
I am appalled at the recent
terrorism in Paris, but I’m not
surprised. This is a response
by an oppressed minority of
Muslim extremists who have
been subjected to the greed and
violence of the ‘Christian’ West
for a long time and are using
any means of revenge they can.
Professor Noam Chomsky said,
“The best way to stop terrorism
is to stop participating in it”.
A Christian response
Terrorism has a mix of
economic, political and religious
motivations. It is difficult to say
where one stops and the other
begins, however I am far surer
of what a Christian response
should be.
Grace is the Christian
distinctive. We have grown up
on the cycle of violence and
the revenge motive operates
in a majority of most movies.
Einstein said that a problem can
never be solved by the same
consciousness that created
it. War can’t bring peace.
Steve McKinnon
If we want revenge and
spread hate then we are fuelling
their fire and not trusting God
or His Word. We need to ‘bring
good news to the poor’ in word
and deed. We need to work for
justice and peace alleviating
poverty, the conditions that
breed terrorism in the first place
while pointing to Jesus the
source of grace and peace.
The context
The recent spate of terrorism
hasn’t come from out of
nowhere. The ISIS [Islamic State
of Iraq and Syria] terrorists are a
relatively small group of Muslim
extremists who are using their
religion as a means of hitting
back at the ‘Christian’ West after
years of the ‘Christian’ West
invading their land taking their
oil. George Bush Sr was quite
clear why they invaded Iraq in
1991, he said “We are defending
our way of life”, which in fact is
dependent on oil. When George
Bush Jr invaded Iraq in 2003
with Australia’s support he said,
“I am driven with a mission
from God”. God would tell me,
“George, go and fight these
terrorists in Afghanistan”. And
I did. And then God would tell
me “George, go and end the
tyranny in Iraq”. And I did.” [The
Guardian, 7 October 2005] Is it
any wonder why Muslims might
stereotype our God as a God
of violence? Our response to
them needs to be qualitatively
different to theirs.
Christians in the West are
beneficiaries of this system that
relies heavily on oil to maintain
our standard of living. Most
Australians are in the top five
percent of the richest people in
the world and we have never
been richer. Those who are
victims of that global system,
including those in the Middle
East, can only see that the Jesus
to whom we point to is part of
the same oppressing system;
even sanctioning it. To quote
Brian McClaren, “Christianity
has become the hood ornament
on the Hummer of Western
society”. God created us in His
image and we have decided
to return the favour. We have
created a god in our image and
called him ‘Jesus’. This ‘Jesus’ is
white, male, middle-class, votes
liberal and wants retribution.
This is a long way from
celebrating the Prince of Peace
who didn’t come in power and
force but came into the world
in a humble cattle trough, in a
cow shed, as a Jew under the
boot of the Roman Empire. He
was an asylum seeker in Egypt,
mixed with those despised and
rejected, preached on loving
your enemies and died naked on
a cross at midday for the whole
world to see at the hands of the
Empire. Perhaps this point in
history presents an opportunity
Regardless of who is perpetrating evil or how much evil is being
perpetrated the Christ-like response is clear. ‘Love your enemies.’
‘Blessed are you who are persecuted for righteousness sake.’
‘Vengeance is mine – do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil
with good.’
Forgiveness is the only way to
bring peace. “Darkness cannot
drive out darkness, only light
can do this. Hate cannot drive
out hate, only love can do this.”
(Martin Luther King)
This does not mean being
a door mat. When Jesus says,
“Love your enemies” He doesn’t
dilute truth. He clearly states,
you will have enemies. Neither
does He dilute love, suggesting
we tolerate them. Rather love
rises above and beyond truth.
This means standing up against
evil in love; in non-violent
resistance. ‘They will know that
you are my followers by your
… love.’ ‘Greater love has no
man that this; that he lay down
his life for his friends.’ [John
15:13] Forgiveness is letting go
or giving up your right to take
revenge to pay back. (By the fact
you have abused or wronged
9JANUARY 2016
feature
are crucifying him in the
most painful way said, ‘Father
forgive them’ and He also said
‘forgive one another as God
forgave you’”. We may not
always reach this but this is the
standard we aim for.
We need also to positively
work for justice and peace.
TEAR Australia works with
the poorest communities
empowering them to break
the shackles of poverty and
the preconditions for violence
and retribution. Locally, our
small Christian community in
Lockridge decided to engage
with and accommodate
Muslim asylum seekers from
Iraq. We have found a great
deal in common. They find
it difficult to get their heads
around God being three in one,
but then who can? Many of
their stereotypes of Christians
have been blown away. They
have called us their family and
report to their family back in
Iraq, “The only people who have
loved us are Christians”.
The Greek word for devil
is ‘diablos’ which means to
separate and divide. ISIS’s plan
is to separate and divide the
world into two groups those
with faith and infidels. If we
hate and divide then we are just
as bad as ISIS. Jesus came to
bring peace and wholeness.
Lastly, I wonder whether
our abhorrence and anger
at what ISIS is doing is tied
in with our own personal
unresolved wounds. If we
have truly been marinated in
God’s unconditional love and
forgiveness and accepted this,
it would be far easier to show
grace to others, especially those
who don’t deserve it.
So in 2016, may God grant
you grace and peace in your
inner most being so that you
reflect this into the world. May
you join the winning side of
the real Prince of Peace that
overcomes evil with good
that fights hate with love that
absorbs violence with peace and
divisiveness with wholeness.
Ph
oto
Te
rry
Hic
ks
Steve McKinnon is the TEAR
Australia Assistant State
Coordinator for Western
Australia and Chaplain at
Ellenbrook Christian College.
me – you have given me a right
to retribution. When I forgive I
abandon that right and I open
the door of opportunity for you
to make a new beginning. I don’t
think you can get rid of the pain
but you can say I am not going
to let you victimise me.)
The late M Scott Peck, the
American psychiatrist writes,
‘The healing of evil can be
accomplished only by the love
of individuals. If one takes the
evil itself into one’s heart, like a
spear into one’s side, it can be
absorbed and it goes no further.
… Whenever this happens there
is a slight shift in the balance of
power in the world.”
Desmond Tutu was asked,
”Is there anything that is
unforgiveable? Genocide,
torture, rape, affairs, terrorism?”
He responded, “We follow Jesus
who at the point when they
10 JANUARY 2016
feature
Anina Findling
A few weeks ago a friend had a persistent and somewhat ominous pain in her abdomen area. She tried to ignore the pain for a while, but as it worsened she realised she would have to go to the hospital to try and get an assessment, diagnosis and treatment for this potentially serious issue.
Being healthy for the sake of others
After days of tests and scans it
was determined the problem was
a swollen gall bladder, for which
there was no remedy other than
immediate removal. As it turned
out, this was clearly a correct
diagnosis as she felt incredible
relief after the pain of the
operation wore off.
When we experience physical
problems we are sometimes
forced to take stock of our health
and lifestyle, and make whatever
healthy changes we can. But to be
fair, we can only work on factors
that are within our control.
Tragedy, disability and death
are aspects of this life that will
inevitably affect us at one point or
another, and sometimes our only
option is to rely on God’s grace in
making the best of situations and
limitations beyond our control.
When it comes to other
aspects of our health, the
symptoms of problems are
not always as obvious. Issues
affecting our emotions,
personality and character can
sometimes lie well beneath
the surface. We may live what
we consider to be ‘emotionally
healthy’ lives, but then unexpected
events can suddenly trigger
something within us that
threatens to overwhelm us, derail
career paths, sabotage ministries
and relationships, etc. So again,
it seems prudent to be proactive
in gauging our emotional health
periodically so that we can try to
get on top of issues before they
get on top of us.
The uncomfortable truth is
that every one of us has blind
spots and weaknesses, some of
which are minor while others
are huge and crippling. We
can carry ‘emotional baggage’
with us for years, our whole
lifetime sometimes, and these
issues have the potential to
limit our emotional, spiritual,
mental and relational capacity
for growth. The really sad fact
is that dysfunctional patterns
are sometimes no different in
a Christian’s life than for those
who have not heard of Jesus.
Some of these problems can be
due to ‘family of origin’ issues;
like the young man who had an
angry, explosive mother who
dominated the home and made
everyone walk on eggshells,
a destructive behaviour he
promised himself never to
imitate. But then later in life he
finds himself caught in fits of
rage where he seems to just lose
control, and the unpredictable
power of it scares him and those
around him.
Or, the gifted young
woman who had a father for
whom nothing was ever good
enough, who never praised her
accomplishments as a child,
who is then set on a life long
pursuit of success by an internal
drivenness to perform. But
it seems that no matter what
accolades she receives, it’s
almost as if she can’t hear others’
praises as she is subconsciously
working for the approval of the
one man who may never speak
the words she is aching to hear.
We all have work to do. But
how do we work on these issues,
where do we begin?
For the last 13 years I have
been involved with a ministry
at our church (Mount Hawthorn
Baptist Church) called ‘Prayer
ministry’. This is different to
other professional interventions
which can also be beneficial
(like counselling, psychology,
psychiatry, social work, etc), and
ideally a combination of caring
interventions in conjunction
with spiritual growth can
help us develop and grow
most holistically.
The differentiating aspect of
prayer ministry is that it is a way
by which Christians appropriate
the healing and victory Jesus
has won for every one of us on
the cross, through a process
of prayer and discerning root
issues by the guidance of the
Holy Spirit. After years of helping
lead a team in this ministry,
I found that we were coming
against certain barriers in this
ministry again and again. Firstly,
a lack of training, and secondly
a lack of confidence in people
who had received training to
then lead ministry sessions. A
lot of the training we received
was from Ellel Ministries, who
have some of the most respected
leaders and teachers in this field.
But after years of studying and
implementing their insightful
principles, I found their course
notes to be very in-depth and not
always easily accessible to lay
Christians working full-time who
did not have time to attend their
intensive seminars. It seemed
to me that Ellel represented the
‘SAS’ of this ministry but the
‘general army’ needed resources
to equip them for the basics of the
ministry. From there we could
then refer more intensive needs
for further ministry to others
more specialised in the field
if needed.
In 2010 I first felt prompted
to start writing a prayer ministry
manual to address this need,
and the years of training and
ministry experience just flowed
out of me as I had a passion
to create a resource that was
biblically based, simple, practical
and accessible for all Christians.
As I had never written anything
before I naively thought this
manual could be completed
within the year and that many
would then excitedly engage
with this new resource …
Three years later I finished
writing the manual and then the
agonising process of scrutiny
and editing started, which took
another two years. I emailed
a soft copy to many respected
Christian leaders I knew,
including the Director of Ellel
Ministries here in Australia. I
received a lot of helpful feedback
which was then incorporated, but
I have to admit it felt incredibly
hard, like giving birth again and
again, and if hadn’t been for key
people God brought into my life
at the right times I would often
have rather just abandoned the
project altogether.
11JANUARY 2016
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The manual outlines some
of what I believe to be God’s
biblical plan for redemption
and emotional health, and gives
practical ways we can start
to prayerfully work through
issues like trauma, generational
strongholds, addictions,
damaging lingering soul ties to
influential people from our past,
etc. It ties in teachings from not
only Ellel Ministries but also
other respected Christian leaders
like Neil Anderson, Joyce Meyers
and Dr Henry Cloud. My desire
is that it would be as helpful to
as many people in Christian
ministry as possible, so I would
be happy to email a soft copy to
anyone requesting one:
To close, I believe the
highest calling anyone can
have on this earth is to do
something on behalf of others.
Jesus demonstrated this most
powerfully in giving up His
life in order to free us from
the consequences of sin and
death. As we walk in increased
healing and victory, God’s
life-transforming power is best
displayed; as we are ‘cleaned-
up conduits’ we are less likely
to affect others negatively by
unredeemed aspects of our
life and character that do not
yet reflect the character of our
righteous and holy God. When
we are as healthy as we can be
on every level, not only do we
experience greater blessing,
but so do our families and
ministries, thereby bringing
greater glory to our loving
Creator and Redeemer.
Anina Findling is the
Relationship Manager WA for
Baptist Financial Services.
12 JANUARY 2016
in conversation
Tell us a little about how and why
your family came to Australia.
My family came to Australia
from Iran in 1984. Once the
Ayatollah Khomeini took control
of the country, things went
downhill very quickly. My father
was a teacher and my mother a
nurse, however as my parents
associated with the Bahá’í faith,
they were labelled second class
citizens virtually overnight. My
mother and father decided this
was no longer a country they
could raise their children in. My
sister was five years old and I was
only a newborn. We fled over the
border to neighbouring Pakistan,
and shortly thereafter Australia
granted us visas and flew us over
for the opportunity of a new life.
What was it like for you
at school?
School was smooth sailing
for me. I fitted in well with the
other kids, and was generally
accepted. I had my occasional
bout with discrimination and
racism, however it was very rare.
As most teenagers do, I had my
season of rebellion, however
when I found Jesus I found my
path. I did well in my studies and
graduated from Curtin University
with my Accounting and Taxation
double degree.
has attempted to segregate you,
label you, control you and push
you down, a person becomes very
open-minded to the alternatives.
Therefore, having this positive
experience with the church in
Australia, left my parents with an
optimistic point of view about
Christianity as a whole. Again, this
point of view flowed down, and
when my time came to find God
for myself, I found Him in Jesus.
Fremantle Dockers, is he teaches
his team that no one player is any
more important than the others.
He looks down on what is called
being a ‘ball hog’ – someone who
doesn’t share the ball with others.
For those of us blessed enough
to taste the freedom, opportunity
and standard of living we have in
Australia, I say let’s not be ‘hogs’
about it. Let’s share what we have.
What about to the
Christian community?
As a pastor of a church I
have the privilege of doing life
with many Kingdom-minded
people. In the same way we
already do so well at loving our
literal neighbours – our family,
friends, workmates, and the
needy of our nation – Jesus calls
us to love all of our neighbours.
When quizzed on who exactly
our neighbour is, Jesus gives us
the Good Samaritan. A man who
cared for and helped someone of
a different ethnicity and religion
to his own. “Go and do likewise”
Jesus says to the people after
explaining the parable.
These Syrian refugees are
human beings created by God,
in the image of God, who Jesus
considered worthy to die for.
That sounds to me like someone
I’m called to love. We’re not all
called to focus on policies etc,
however we are all called to love
the individual.
There seems to be a fear
response by some areas of our
society to people of the Muslim
faith. How do you respond
to that?
I have noticed a rapid rise
in the fear response. I think we
Refugee challenges church
How did your family embrace
Australian culture?
As far as my parents were
concerned, the Australian way of
life resonated with what already
lay in their hearts and they began
to contribute to this great new
country of ours straight away. They
learnt the language and began
their careers. I believe the fact we
were well accepted helped this
process along. Even though they
missed their family and friends,
they soon made new friends.
They have always been grateful
to the Australian Government for
extending a helpful hand in their
time of crisis, and have passed
this attitude down to my sister and
I. They have never taken a dollar
from Centrelink, have always paid
their taxes, and I still remember
my father marching me back to
the local deli to pay the 50 cents
the store clerk had undercharged
me. In my eyes, they are model
Australian citizens, and this nation
is better off because of them.
What made it easy for you?
A Catholic organisation
had a lot to do with us when we
first arrived. This displayed a
significant contrast to the system
my parents had fled from, which
helped with the transition. When
an overzealous religious system
Arastoo (Ari) Yazdani is the pastor of Freedom City Church in Fremantle. He came to Australia as a refugee more than three decades ago. He has a degree in Accounting and Taxation and was the Youth and Young Adults Pastor at Perth Christian Life Centre before moving to Freedom City Church.
Arastoo Yazdani and his wife Megan lead Freedom City Church in Fremantle.
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ain
all expected a bit of that after
the Paris attacks. However, to
be honest I have been quite
surprised by the level and ferocity
of it.
Personally, I believe the
media has had a field day with
this topic. I try not to subscribe
too much to what mainstream
media feeds me. I rely more on
my experiences with people
I’ve actually met from different
ethnicities and religions, as well
as concrete information and
knowledge. Unfortunately, I’ve
found a lack of education about
people of the Muslim faith has led
to some of the mass hysteria.
My goal is to try to see
people as individuals – not in
classes or groups. According to
my understanding, at the end
of the day every human being
is similar deep down. We’ve all
been created in God’s image and
likeness. We are all unique, with
our own personality, talents,
dreams and destiny. No two
people are the same.
My heart breaks for the
innocent, well-meaning, model
citizen, who is labelled as a villain
for something they had nothing
to do with.
I hope never to make an
enemy out of the very people I
am called to love.
Can you describe some
ways Christians can engage
with Muslim people to
build community?
I think it all starts with our
attitude. If we can find love in our
hearts for people of the Muslim
faith, when God brings one along
our path, we will be ready to love
them practically.
Australia is accepting 12,000
refugees from Syria – what
advice would you give to the
Australian community at large?
My advice is always this: let’s
attempt to place ourselves in the
shoes of these refugees. Imagine
all of the plans and dreams you
had for your family were one day
suddenly stripped away. Would
you not do all you could to find a
better life for them? I believe we
all would.
We are so very fortunate to
live in a country like Australia.
In turn, the truth is, not one of
us chose what family to be born
into, often to our dismay. Neither
did we choose what country to be
born into.
One of the things I love about
Ross Lyon’s leadership of the
My advice is always this: let’s attempt to place ourselves in the shoes of these refugees.
13JANUARY 2016
leadership
A blessed house
His worn out Bible“I asked him how often he had
to get a new Bible – thinking that
the Bible in my lap was at least 20
years old. He replied, ‘About every
two years!’ At 70 years of age,
wearing out a Bible every two years
by studying it!”
“I knew what his answer would
be to my original question. He
simply said, ‘You must get to know
the author of this book and put
into practice everything He tells
you to do.’ As a college student he
established his priorities and down
through the years his first priority
has been to begin each day alone
with God and His Word.”
“As we travelled and lived
together I saw that Dr Malik never
began his day with men and their
problems until after he came out
from the presence of God.”
Used with permission from
Dave Kraft, www.davekraft.org
Phil Pringle
As humans, we have a tendency to drift out of God’s standard of what He has set out for us as His children. How do we receive a blessed life?
‘Therefore we know that only
those who are of faith are sons
of Abraham. And the Scripture,
foreseeing that God would
justify the Gentiles, by faith,
preached the gospel to Abraham
beforehand, saying “In you all
the nations shall be blessed.”
So then those who are of faith
are blessed
with believing Abraham.’
[Galatians 3:7-9]
‘For the promise that he
would be the heir of the world
was not to Abraham or to his
seed through the law, but
through the righteousness of
faith.’ [Romans 4:13]
We receive the promise not
through our lineage but through
our faith and acceptance of Jesus
as our Saviour.
‘But as many as received
Him, to them He gave the right
to become children of God,
to those who believe in His
name.’ [John 1:12]
The last thing Jesus did
before He ascended to Heaven
was lift His hands and bless the
disciples. Because of this, we can
now receive Christ so He can
show us a new way of living, a
way that inherits the blessing of
God. Under the New Testament,
God has made it absolutely
foolproof for us to be blessed; if
we receive Christ we are called
blessed. It’s that simple!
So how do we live it out?
Dave Kraft
For years, I was coached by Warren Myers. Warren, who passed away in 2001, coached many young leaders. One of those men had the experience of travelling with Dr Charles Malik* one summer as his personal assistant and sent the following to our mutual friend and coach, Warren.
“We spent hours discussing
the atmosphere in a crises, the
immense demands on a leader’s
time, the pressures from all sides,
the growing threat and danger of
nuclear war, the degeneration of
Western civilisation. And I asked,
‘How, in the midst of all this chaos,
do you maintain your own sense
of values and priorities, of what
is right and wrong – how do you
find meaningful solutions for the
chaotic times in which we live?’”
“I will never forget his answer.
Going over to his still unpacked
suitcase, he ever so carefully took
out a book. The pages were loose,
some fell out, it was beat-up,
worn, and looked terrible. Yet he
handled it so carefully and carried
it like it was the greatest of all
treasures. As he sat down, I could
tell that the beat-up old book was
his Bible. I asked him if I could
hold it, and as I turned to page
after page – in the Old and New
Testaments – there was hardly
any more room on any page for
more writing. Every page was
well-worn and obviously well-
read and studied.”
Wisdom is not just knowing
what to do, but actually living it
out daily. We need to understand
how to appropriate Christ and
blessing into our lives.
Practically, wisdom looks
like this:
• Fear God = make God your
first priority
‘Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ who has
blessed us with every spiritual
blessing in the heavenly places
in Christ.’ [Ephesians 1:3]
Blessed – ‘To invoke divine
favour upon. To confer wellbeing
and abundance upon.’
We can define blessing in our
lives by these factors:
• Happiness/Contentment
• Peace
• Wholeness (spiritual
richness, emotional and
mental health)
• Healthy relationships
• Fruitfulness (success in work,
increase and fullness)
From the beginning of
humanity with Adam and Eve,
God has wanted to bless His
people, giving them fruitfulness
and authority. God gave a
promise of blessing of Abraham
that continues to be fulfilled in
all who receive Christ.
‘I will make you a great
nation; I will bless you and make
your name great; and you shall
be a blessing. I will bless those
who bless you, and I will curse
him who curses you; and in you
all the families of the earth shall
be blessed.’ [Genesis 12:2-3]
Righteousness was imputed
to Abraham and because we are
children of His promise as well
as having the righteousness of
Jesus, we are blessed with the
same blessing as Abraham.
• We can honour and please
God by serving Him first
and out of love
• Honour the Lord with
your possessions =
acknowledge what you
have came from God and
return it to Him in tithes
and offerings
• Arrange your time, money
and lifestyle so that God is
respected in your life
Live out your blessed life and
you will be a blessing to others!
Used with permission
from Phil Pringle,
www.philpringle.com
*The late Dr. Charles Malik of Lebanon, 1906-1987.
Dr Malik:
• Received his PhD from
Harvard University where
he also taught
• Was appointed as the
Lebanese Ambassador to
the United States and the
United Nations
• Was President and Chair
of the United Nations
Commission on Human
Rights
• Was President of the 13th
Session of the United
Nations General Assembly
14 JANUARY 2016
98five Music Director Chela Williams
Recorded live from their Myaree campus Nations Church’s Seek and Nations Youth’s Break Free EP are loaded with original songs and fresh sound. Written and produced by the Nations Creative the projects were conceived in late 2014 when core members began writing and experimenting with original material. Led by project manager Chris Burke, it was recorded live in July 2015.
Sarah Parks
Lakeside Kidz and parents were excited to welcome back Christian children’s songwriter Sean W Smith at Lakeside Baptist Church on 1 November. After sharing a song in ‘big church’ with adults, which had everyone dancing in the aisles, Sean led the kids into the hall for their special Lakeside Kidz concert.
news
Editor: Terry HicksManaging Editor: Andrew SculthorpeSubeditor: Maclain BruceProduction: Vanessa Klomp Creative: Peter Ion Hayley Emmett Catherine BartlettAdvertising: Sally PhuDistribution: Sally PhuEditorial deadline: 5th of each month
EDITORIAL AND ADVERTISING:Email: [email protected] [email protected]: Baptist Churches Western Australia PO Box 57, Burswood WA 6100Tel: (08) 6313 6300Fax: (08) 9470 1713
PUBLISHERS GENERAL DISCLAIMERAll the articles, comments, advice and other material contained in this publication are by way of general comment or advice only and are not intended, nor do they purport to be the correct advice on any particular matter of subject referred to. No reader or any other person who obtains this publication should act on the basis of any matter, comment or advice contained in this publication without first considering and if necessary taking appropriate professional advice upon the applicability of any matter, advice or comment herein to their own particular circumstances. Accordingly, no responsibility is accepted or taken by the authors, editors or publishers of this publication for any loss or damage suffered by any party acting in reliance on any matter, comment or advice contained herein.
The Advocate is published on behalf of Baptist Churches Western Australia by imageseven. Tel: (08) 9221 9777 Email: [email protected]
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Nations Church’s double release
“Prior to this, we had never
really written for our church,”
Chris said.
“It was pretty much a case of
dedicating time to prayer, seeking
God for what He wanted to say
through the music and then
putting pen to paper.”
Nations Church’s Seek and Nations Youth’s Break Free EP are available now on iTunes.
Lakeside dance in the aisles
always be okay – as long
as we remember to pull
the ripcord!
Sean also entertained
children at Morley Baptist
Church and enthralled them
as the exuberant and talented
kids’ entertainer, which he is
renowned for, who has a heart
to see kids come to Christ.
Sean W Smith in the ‘groove’ with children at Lakeside Baptist Church
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Sean immediately grabbed the
children’s attention by appearing,
on stage, wearing his ‘grandma’s’
knickers over his jeans.
Toddlers through to teenagers,
and a few stray parents, got right
into the concert mood, singing
and performing actions to a mix
of familiar songs and songs from
Sean’s new album, Groove.
There was a sense of
excitement as the kids were
so engaged in singing,
but also to see them sit
and quietly listen as Sean
reminded them that being
different because we love
Jesus can be tough, but if
we remember that we have
Jesus as our parachute we’ll
“Songs were written out
of what we believe has been
divinely inspired moments in
the life our songwriters.”
Ken is also featured on the
Seek album performing ‘How
Great Thou Art’ and ‘I Exalt Thee’.
“I just had the privilege of
leading our congregation in a
couple of classics,” Ken said.
“I’m probably showing you
my age by telling you I love those
songs, but I think sometimes
as much as I think praise and
worship resources should be
cutting edge and fresh there is
much room in our churches
for that which is timeless and
multigenerational.”
“We as songwriters
essentially get to place spiritual
declarations into the mouths of
our congregations,” Chris said.
“That’s why we put a lot of
time and energy into refining
our lyrics.”
Seek and Break Free EP are
available for purchase on iTunes.
“Definitely a great growing
process for our team.”
Aimed to create a trigger for
the presence of God for both
Nations Church and the church
abroad Lead Pastor Ken Lee
explains Seek has been 11 years
in the making since planting the
church in 2003.
“The album is basically
an overflow of what has been
happening here at Nations
Church,” Ken said.
Songs were written out of what we believe has been divinely inspired moments in the life our songwriters.
15JANUARY 2016
intermission
This voucher entitles you to 15% off your next purchase in store at Mount Lawley
The Advocate – January 2016
Reviews by Koorong Mount Lawley
Assistant Manager
Dorothy Waddingham
Website: www.koorong.com
Address: 434 Lord Street, Mount Lawley
Phone: 08 9427 9777
readwatch
FerventPriscilla Shirer
Fervent is a practical guide to a prayer-filled
battle plan against the very real enemy.
Priscilla Shirer is a powerful speaker, author
and most recently main actress in the
popular film War Room. Priscilla has brought
her movie role into real life through Fervent.
She takes readers step-by-step through
many areas of their life, such as passions,
identity, family and fears. She uses strategies
inspired by the movie and personalises them
into prayers for the readers own life. These
strategies can be applied to ask God for
help in taking back what was lost, standing
ground, strengthing relationships and living
a prayerful life. She reveals key situations,
intentions, how real the enemy is and
encourages believers to stand up against him
the only way they can, by prayer.
The Me I Want to BeJohn Ortberg
The Me I Want to Be is a five week study,
with short video sessions and a study
book of group questions. In the videos
John Ortberg discusses how believers can
flourish the way God has created them.
Viewers learn to assess their spiritual life
and deepen their relationship with God.
Becoming the best version of ‘yourself’
is a focus of this study and viewers learn
through it that life is God’s project, not
theirs. John Ortberg’s way of teaching is
easy to relate to for any believer, whether
a new or experienced Christian. Through
the sessions focusing on mind, time,
relationships and experiences viewers can
become not only who they want to be, but
who God intended them to be. This title is
available as a book as well as a study.
Down the left side of this page are some books of the Bible, and down the right
side are some people’s names. Draw a line between the book and the name of the
person (who is a main character in it.)
The InvestigatorGabriel’s Messenger Films
What do you do when your world caves in
around you? Who if your identity is in your
job and you are forced to retire? Is there a
God who loves us when tragedy strikes us? In
The Investigator, Sergeant James Buanacore
must answer these questions, leading him
on a journey of discovery of who he is and
who God is. A moving story based on real life
events of the love of a family to bring one of
their own through a traumatic and potentially
devastating series of circumstances. Sergeant
Buanacore changes careers to find himself
and the God who he turned away from.
For anyone who has struggled with these
questions, viewers will find this journey has
laughs and tears, drama and joy, just like
many people’s own journeys to find out who
God is and His place in their lives.
Answers for the Christmas Word Scramble in the December 2015 issue of The Advocate.1. Herod2. Shepherd3. Married4. Stable5. Manger6. Jesus
7. Christmas8. Egypt9. Joseph10. Mary11. Star12. Wise Men13. King14. Flocks15. Angel
Jonah didn’t want to go to Ninevah when God told him to. So God had a big fish
swallow him and take him there. [Jonah 1-3]
16 JANUARY 2016
news
Sharing through surfing
Matthew Gordon catches a wave at Bowes River Mouth, Horrocks.
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Matthew Gordon has loved surfing since his early teens when his family moved close to the beach at Wembley Downs. Today his passion for clean waves has not abated and he leads Christian Surfers Scarborough.
About 100 people are
part of Christian Surfers (CS)
Scarborough providing a
surfing environment with
positive and encouraging role
models for young surfers to
look to.
A fortnightly Bible study
and barbecue is held with 15 to
25 members attending.
“CS is for all ages,” Matt said.
“It’s about reaching out
and showing the surfing
community who Jesus is.”
Good waves and the camaraderie
of surfing with mates are not the
only things that Matt thrives on. He
is a committed follower of Jesus
and is a member of the worship
team at C3 Church Scarborough
that meets in the Rendezvous Hotel
on Scarborough Beach.
Christian Surfers Scarborough
is one of more than 40 Christian
Surfers groups around Australia
that engage surfers of all ages and
build bridges between the beach
and local churches.
The group is committed
to helping novices get the
hang of riding waves as well as
providing a surfing community
that is a little bit different. They
run a ‘learn to surf’ session on
Sunday mornings.
“We are here to be something
different in the community, we
need to be different and noticed,”
Matt said.
“Surfing is a very selfish
sport and everyone is after the
best wave for themselves.”
“At CS we try to share and
give up the best waves for
others even if we are in the
best spot.”
From grommets (young
surfers just learning the art
of riding waves) to veterans,
Christian Surfers offers far
more than surfing skills.
Leader Chris Kearney
takes novices he meets at
Scarborough out on the
group’s soft top ‘foamies’ for
an introductory lesson.
Recently he met three
Brazilian men from the
Groundswell Surf Festival
run by Be The Church (C3
Church Scarborough). The
Festival was a free event on
Scarborough Beach with
open surfing and open
bodyboarding competitions,
and a beginners’ event.
Chris had the pleasure
of baptising the three new
followers of Jesus late
November 2015.
Members of CS
Scarborough take regular trips
to the South West searching
for waves.
A crew of eight male
leaders recently made a trip to
Lombok and Bali, Indonesia
in November 2015 to look at
potential surfing trips for 2016.
The Christian Surfers
Scarborough Facebook page
posts information about the
group and coming events.
For more information,
email Matt Gordon at
It’s about reaching out and showing the surfing community who Jesus is.