This weekend we’re moving our Saturday night service to the all-new time of 4pm Sunday.

As we’ve been saying for months, the only thing we’re changing is the day and the time… but everything else stays the same.

We’ll start church at 4pm, then around half an hour into the service, the children will head out to their special kids’ programs in the hall.

Then after 5:30pm it’s dinner time in the hall and on our lawn, which will be followed by lots of informal games and hanging out with people of all ages and stages, together.

Saturday night is often when celebrations, events and social occasions occur, so our members have often needed to choose between church or meeting with family, friends and community contacts.

As we seek to connect with the people in our village, valley and region, it makes sense to free up Saturday nights to enjoy hospitality with others not yet in our church, as Christ’s ambassadors.

I’m really looking forward to spending extra time with friends, family and people in my neighbourhood as we all now have an extra spot in our diaries to enjoy meals with special guests in our home… and I’m sure you’ll be able to take up the same opportunity, too.

There are many other good reasons for moving from Saturday night to Sunday, such as helping those who attend two services on a weekend, creating a day’s gap between youth group and church, and enabling people to attend church when they’re away for a weekend.

We’re praying that this change will be a great step forward as we pray that each person in our village, valley and region will know how to follow Jesus and why it matters.

See you at 9am or 4pm this Sunday… or why not both!

JODIE McNEILL

Sullivan, our English Settler, is our most effective pre-evangelistic tool, for as we walk him, he brings people to us.

They talk to us about him, ask about the breed, notice our accent, tell us they have a relative in Perth and ask if we’ve met them, then ask, “What are you doing here?”

In Sydney that would be an open door, wouldn’t it?

We’d say, “I’m planting a new church,” or, “I’m starting a new congregation,” or even, “I’m a minister of a church.”

It would be an open door everywhere else we’ve lived, from Southern England and the midlands, to Northern Ireland… but not in Dublin.

Those words mean different things in Ireland.

Grace doesn’t mean, “God’s undeserved favour to us, primarily in Jesus Christ,” and church doesn’t mean, “A gathering of believers in Jesus Christ.”

Tomas, a Dubliner born and bred, and one of our dog-walking contacts, said,“Cam, you’ve got to understand, the Irish have suffered under two oppressors: the English and the Catholic Church.”

To Tomas and to our other neighbours, the words I use to speak about the wonderful message of reconciliation of God to us by the death of Jesus on the cross represent oppression and abuse.

If we say, “we’re planting a new church,” many hear, “we’re starting a new agency of tyranny.”

I also walk Sully in the Silicon Docks, where companies have pet-friendly offices.

Two older men told me much the same as Tomas: “The English tried to crush our culture, and the church tried to crush our spirit.”

We’re working out how to speak about God’s love when the words, ‘Jesus’ and ‘Church’ are associated with abuse, coverup and abduction.

That’s why we’re so thankful for our partnership with Jamberoo Anglican, and we praise God that you are with us as we work to plant a new church in Dublin… and as we try and help people understand why that’s actually a really good thing!.

CAMERON JONES

Some of the most spectacular moments in sport have come from a reflex reaction by a player, when they have kicked, passed, caught or hit a ball without pausing to think.

This week we witnessed a different kind of sporting reflex reaction when the Essendon AFL Club appointed a new CEO, only to pressure him to resign within a day of the announcement.

It was discovered that their brand-new CEO was also the leader of the board of a ‘controversial’ church that held ‘divisive’ views on abortion and homosexuality.

Yet, ‘City on a Hill’ church is Anglican, and the views it teaches are the same that have been held by mainstream Christian churches for thousands of years.

Most concerning was that Essendon’s reflex reaction was not because of anything the former-CEO said publicly: it was solely due to his affiliation with a church.

It should come as no surprise that we Christians will be persecuted for our faith, for Jesus said:

“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.” (John 15:18-19)

Nonetheless, we should pray that the sporting, political and intellectual leaders of our land might have the courage to listen to ‘dangerous’ views that are no-longer aligned to the ever-changing views of our progressive society.

At the same time, let’s pray that these kinds of ‘free kicks’ and ‘own goals’ of those who attack the teachings of Jesus might lead to increased opportunities to share the message of the love of Jesus with people whose main exposure to the Bible is via the talking heads of the media.

JODIE McNEILL

(photo credit: Mark Ehr via Flickr.com)

Three years ago I had an oesophageal cancer removed.

I had hoped that was the end of it, but last Friday I was informed that my cancer has returned, and it’s spreading.

Initially I was in shock, but then shock gave way to sadness, and after sadness I found thankfulness.

I’m sad to have to say farewell sooner than I expected: to my family, to my Christian family, and to God’s beautiful world.

But I’m thankful that when I was 20 years old, and heedless and ignorant of God, he laid his hand on me.

I am foreknown, predestined, called and justified by God (Romans 8:29), and I will be glorified.

I’m thankful he gave me Lesley, and for the privilege of many years of ordained ministry, amongst a multitude of many other things.

In the imagery of Psalm 23, the Lord who is the shepherd walks with his sheep through the valley of the shadow of death.

The Christian meaning of this psalm is that Jesus, who is revealed as the good shepherd, walks us through death, as the one who died for our sins.

Then the psalm moves to the imagery of a banqueting table set up by God, which is surely a picture of table fellowship with him in heaven.

How do people face death without God?

There’s euthanasia, of course, which is a tragic attempt to try and stay in control and chose when to exit.

Then, there’s the ‘Thanksgiving Memorial Service,’ where a lineup of family and friends praise your achievements.

But one of the wonderful things about our late queen’s funeral was that she was the one person of whom an endless list of celebrities could have truthfully praised her.

But instead, she chose for us to have a simple service in the Abbey of hymns, Bible readings, prayers, and a sermon.

When the time comes, that’s what I want… minus the pomp and ceremony, of course!

It’s hard to be told the cancer is back, but we’ll keep praying and seeking treatment, as we give thanks to God for your love, support and prayers through this difficult time.

GRAHAM ERRINGTON

(Photo credit: brewbooks via Flickr)

As we woke to hear of the passing of the Queen, we were reminded afresh that our greatly-loved, longest-serving monarch was mortal.

Most of us have only ever handled coins that were graced with her image, and her longevity has brought us unparalleled stability.

But now she has departed this life, and her crown will be worn by King Charles III.

Throughout her reign, she made it known that she gladly submitted to the gracious rule of King Jesus.

Unlike most monarchs, she heeded the word of the Lord, who warned all the rulers of the earth to serve him with reverent fear and to rejoice with trembling (Psalm 2:10-11.)

For, though she ruled great nations, she submitted to God’s royal son (verse 12a.)

And because of her wisdom, she now truly knows the joy that is for all who take refuge in King Jesus (verse 12b.)

We know of her faith because she chose to publicly share her personal trust in Jesus when the opportunity arose.

In her final Christmas broadcast last year, she said that Jesus was, “a man whose teachings have been handed down from generation to generation, and have been the bedrock of my faith.”

And in her life, she demonstrated that even the most powerful woman in the Commonwealth understood the heart of true leadership.

For, as she shared in her 2012 Christmas broadcast:

“God sent his only son ‘to serve, not to be served’. He restored love and service to the centre of our lives in the person of Jesus Christ. It is my prayer… that his example and teaching will continue to bring people together to give the best of themselves in the service of others.”

Our Queen gladly served the King of the Universe, and though she has now breathed her last breath, she is with Christ Jesus, the one who gave his life for her, so that she might have the eternal life she now enjoys.

JODIE McNEILL