Connecting with our Community

As we celebrate Australia Day, it’s a great reminder of how many people give up their time and energy to serve our community.

I’ve recently got to know a bunch of wonderful locals, who spend countless hours of their time to help protect life and property.

Jamberoo Rural Fire Brigade members are always on standby for a ‘fire call’, ready to drop everything to attend a blaze or an incident in our area.

Recently, some of the brigade members were risking their lives as they extinguished the petrol tanker in West Wollongong, and only this week some of us travelled to Tumut as part of a strike team to assist in a large blaze in Southern NSW.

Plus, this weekend, brigade members will be using fire for a different purpose… cooking sausages on the BBQ for breakfast on Australia Day in Reid Park.

I joined the Jamberoo RFB last year, as I wanted to connect more with our community as we seek to serve each other, especially in times of crisis.

This is everything that is great about our village: the willingness to sacrifice time, energy, and safety, to serve others.

This kind of service gives us a glimpse of what it is like for Jesus, the Son of Man, to serve us. We read in the Bible:

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The Bible, Mark chapter 10, sentence 45.

Jesus’ rescue mission was costly, because it meant he sacrificed his own life in order to save the people who came to him for help.

And this is the most courageous act of community service we’ll ever experience.

JODIE McNEILL