It is reported that ‘the killers showed no mercy: They didn’t spare women and children, or even a 4-day-old baby, from their machetes. On Monday, women wailed in the streets as a dump truck carried dozens of bodies past burned-out homes toward a mass grave.’

More details of the attacks are in the press. And although many details are not known, the horrific and barbaric attacks appear to be well planned and co-ordinated.

The response of Nigerian Christian leaders has been impressive. One leader, though detesting the attacks, said he would be teaching people the importance of forgiveness at this time. There is no room for vengeance, nor retaliation. Faith in Jesus means that they must turn to the God of all comfort.

It is a response that is taken from Jesus, who even gave his life for our sake. And it reminds me of the attacks at St James church in Capetown a number of years ago. The world could not believe the response of Christians to forgive, and God worked to help many understand the forgiveness that Jesus offers as a result.

May I encourage you to pray for Christians in Nigeria at this time? Romans 12:17-18 says ’Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.’

They need our prayers for the strength to put this into practice, even the face of extreme attacks and terrible injustice. Please pray for them, rather, to turn to the God of all comfort. Similarly, so often God works through times of disaster to bring himself glory.

Now is also the time to pray that people around the world would once again sit up and take notice of the response of Christians to persecution, that it is so often so different to the world around us. In this way, may people turn to the forgiveness that only Jesus offers.

And lastly, can I suggest that we pray for ourselves to learn from the Bible and the model of our brothers and sisters on the other side of the world, as we think about how we relate to those around us?

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am) we continue our series in John’s Gospel. Read John 9:1-41.  What part did the alleged sinfulness of the man and his family play in what Jesus did?

Come Back!

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm) we continue in our sermon series from the book of Joel. The theme we are studying is: “The Day of the Lord”. This week we will be looking at “Come Back!”. You can read Joel 2:1-17 here. How is the LORD described as he calls his people to come back?

With nearly 6.8 billion people on the planet there are a lot of words being spoken. But do you ever feel sometimes that no one’s listening? That everyone’s so busy that friendships have been reduced to text messages, emails and diary entries?

Well, please know that, in amongst all the speaking, texting, twittering, emailing and junk mail… in amongst all the electronic buzz and crackle ... God still hears you. When you feel overwhelmed, or misheard, or not heard at all, God knows your needs. He loves you and when you come to him in frustration or desperation or just quiet despondency, he is there. He is listening.

If you’ve never spoken to God then God is ready to listen to you right now. And even if you do know God as a friend but have been out of touch for a while, God is still ready to listen. The Bible has this to say about the wonder of communing with God:

“In the same way, the (Holy Spirit) helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” (Romans 8:26)

Sometimes when things are really, really bad we just don’t know what to say to God. All we can do is groan in our inner being as we come to Him in prayer.

Jesus groaned too when he was crucified upon the cross - bearing the weight of all our sins on his shoulders. That’s an intensely loving and caring God who is personally affected by the troubles of this world. God is not distant and unmoved by your situation. He sent Jesus into the world to help you.

So you don’t need fancy words. You don’t need to wait until Sunday. You don’t need a prayer book. Instead, speak from the heart. Be honest. Take your troubles to Jesus, put them at His feet and trust that He is in control.

Prayer: Dear God, you know my troubles, they are too many to list. Please forgive me. Please help me. AMEN.

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am) we continue our series in John’s Gospel. Read John 6:16-21. How many miracles take place in this story? What does Jesus mean when he says ‘It is I?’

The Day the Locust Came

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm) we begin a new sermon series from the book of Joel. The theme we will be studying is: “The Day of the Lord”. This week we will be looking at “The Day the Locus Came”. You can read Joel 1:1-20 here. Something to think about is how do you react in a crisis?

One of the most important aspects of the meeting is the opportunity to elect people to various positions. Our Church wardens are responsible for the day to day operation of our finances and property. Jacqui Doran and Jon Flood were elected. John Hough was appointed as the ‘Senior Minister’s warden’.

Our Parish Council is responsible for setting the policy of our church finances and property. They also consult on ministry matters. Jerry Abraham, Simon Butler, Liz Harris, Martin Letherbarrow, Ian Neal, and Ray Stephens were elected. We are now also able to advise that David Francis and Dimity Prentice have accepted the invitation to be the ‘Senior Minister’s representatives’.

Our Nominators are responsible for the search and selection of a new Senior Minister. Though I am not anticipating this will be required in the year ahead, the AGM still elects people to this position. Lenore Adams, Jim Esdale, Jon Flood, Faye Hansen, and Ian Neal were elected.
Finally, Pete Neal was elected to fill a casual vacancy for ‘synod representative’. Jacqui Doran is our other representative, who is continuing in the three year term.

At the AGM, I also spoke about an idea that has emerged in order to help the many new people to our church. A common question that people have is to know how to ‘join’ us. People are looking for a way to express their commitment to TAC and become involved in our church life. Accordingly, the idea of introducing a loose membership system has been floating around, and we felt this is a discussion that would be good to open up to all at our church.

A handout is available at the back of church, which is designed to give some concrete expression to the concept, to facilitate the process of discussion. As the year goes on, our staff and Parish Council will be talking about the idea more, and we look forward to your feedback as part of the process.

Raj

Newsletter: Issue 13, February 2010

“Sarah and Pete are missionaries with the Church Missionary Society - Australia (CMS). They live in Monterrey, Mexico where they are spending a year or so learning Spanish language and culture. After that, Pete will be the Director of MOCLAM, an organisation that provides the correspondence Theological Certificate program from Moore Theological College, Sydney.”

Also follow their blog: The Sholl Family in Mexico.

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am) we continue our series in John’s Gospel. Read John 6:1-15. Why do you think that Jesus withdrew to the mountain? What is Jesus trying to teach us with this sign?

What is Good?

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm) we come to the end of our series in Titus looking at the theme of Leadership 101. This week we will be looking at What is Good? You can read Titus 3 here. Why should we do what is good?

Saturday 27th March, 10:30am.
Toongabbie Anglican Church Hall.
$5 donation.

All women welcome…

Please sign up at church or contact us.

Download a copy of the invitation:
Easter Brunch Invite (PDF 119KB)

Closer to home, I wonder if you see how God has blessed our church.

The way that the outgoing Parish Council worked through and resolved our seating capacity issue over the course of 2009 is a real testimony to their godly work. It is a demonstration of what we must continue to do: anticipate and remove barriers to growth before they impact us. The result, in this instance, is that our church has continued to welcome more people into our church community.

The irony is that, because we have continued to have empty seats, you may not have noticed the work that God has been doing under our noses (don’t miss our AGM for more about this – it really is overwhelming!). Behind every person is the story of their growing relationship with Jesus.

But there is another impressive work in our midst that I suspect many do not realise. It is the ministry that happens among our men and women. Almost every external contributor has commented about how remarkable our men’s and women’s ministries are. People from other churches have come along just to take back ideas to their own churches.

At Sunday Night Church we are currently working through Titus, where we learn the Biblical model for ministry is for the older to teach the younger. We have deliberately set up our men’s and women’s ministries teams to foster this kind of relational networking. Compared to most churches, we have an extremely high level of participation and I hope that even more will make the most of such an awesome opportunity.

Yes, work is put into making sure there is valuable content.  At a men’s breakfast last year, we asked the women of our church to make comments to the men about leadership. You could have heard a pin drop. However, the real value is the relational networking that happens on these occasions, as the older and younger are able to meet.

This year we will have similar opportunities – beginning with the Katoomba Men’s Convention day trip next week. Please make the most of them, and give thanks to God for what we have.

Raj

This Sunday at morning church (8am and 9:45am) we continue our series in John’s Gospel. Read John 5:1-15. What does Jesus’ healing of the man teach us? Is there any significance to this happening on the Sabbath?

Grace has implications

This week at Sunday Night Church (6pm) we continue through our series in Titus looking at the theme of Leadership 101. This week we will be looking at how grace has implications. You can read Titus 2:11-15 here. How does grace affect the way you live life?