Anzac Day is celebrated to commemorate the landing of Australian and New Zealand troops at Gallipoli, Turkey, on April 25, 1915, as part of the Allied invasion during World War I.
Having been at Gallipoli and seen first-hand what those Anzacs had to do to get up from the beach, it is remarkable that anyone survived. It was truly a heroic event.
Anzac Day also commemorates the service and sacrifice of all Australians and New Zealanders who have served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. 
So, it is right to pay tribute to all who sacrificed for their country, some people see it as their religious duty to honour all veterans on Anzac Day.
Having just celebrated Easter, the idea of sacrifice is not unfamiliar. In fact, Jesus takes it to another level. Jesus just didn’t die for his friends, his compassion takes him to die for his enemies too.
Romans 5:10 “While we were God’s enemies, we were
reconciled to him through the death of his Son”
Yes, we thank God for all who sacrificed for Australia, but how much more should our thanks and praise be overflowing for Jesus dying for our world, for us, who were once his enemies.
Psalm 103:8 “The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.”

PS. Thank you to everyone who was involved in making the Easter Services a great event.

Tony Galea

Jesus demonstrated compassion through acts of healing, teaching, and sacrifice, ultimately laying down his life for humanity. His compassion was not just empathy, but a powerful force that drove him to act on behalf of others, particularly those marginalized or suffering. 
It’s always hard to show compassion. It doesn’t come naturally, and it is even harder to show compassion on those who have hurt us.
Nevertheless, we are still called to be compassionate:
Eph 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
We can only show compassion to others through prayer (asking God to help us be compassionate) and keeping our eyes on Jesus, the one who has shown compassion on us.

Tony Galea

God wants you to have both a ministry in the Body of Christ (Church family) & a mission in the world. Your ministry is your service to believers & your mission is your service to unbelievers.

Our Mission is a continuation of Jesus’ mission on earth. We are not only called to ‘Come to Him’, but we are also called to ‘Go for Him’. We are to Go to all the nations (See Matthew 28:19,20, John 17:18 & Acts 1:8) but we are to start in our own backyard with our neighbours & friends.

Your mission is a wonderful privilege. Telling others or inviting others to hear how they can have eternal life is the greatest thing you can ever do for them. It has eternal significance but it also gives your life meaning & purpose.

How many people will be in heaven because of YOU?

We are not all evangelists, we are not all good in giving answers to our unbelieving friends questions, but we can all invite someone to Church & especially our Easter Services next week.

So come on Church family, don’t let another opportunity pass you by to invite someone to hear the good news of our Lord Jesus. It might be just the time that people will say ‘Yes’ to your invitation. Nothing matters more to God than for lost people to be found. The cross of Jesus proves that! Let’s care about what God cares about! – The salvation of your friend & family.

Good Friday Communion 9am

Alive Sunday (Easter) 9am for brekkie & 10am service

Tony Galea

Who doesn’t love a good series! In a distant time and a galaxy far, far away, I had to wait a week before the next episode. Streaming? What was that? some kind of fishing strategy? Now we can binge all we want, and I do! 

Mark’s Gospel runs like a fast-paced series, with each chapter a collection of first-hand accounts of the unfolding power and purpose of the Messiah, God’s King over all. King of his kingdom, his creation and his followers. Mark puts these episodes into an order and flow that is guided by the great Author, God himself. 

And in chapter 6 we find a rolling set of scenes where the expectations people had of Jesus were tipped on their head. Familiar family and friends tripped up on his claims and miracles. The political top dogs were intrigued and a little bit threatened, but would have no frame of reference for a King to give up his life willingly.

A crowd of thousands were fed, which was mind blowing in itself, but the deeper message of spiritual food completely missed even by his closest followers. And to top off the episode, a storm, a ghost and a bunch of fishermen who were out of their depth in more ways than one.

Just in case we think it was only a first century kind of confusion, think about our own temptation to put God in a box, to have him look after us when it’s convenient for us, and to have our minds closed and ears blocked to his true identity – King of his kingdom, his creation and us. And our response, humble repentance, praise and devotion. Now that’s a great final episode for a series!

Andy McPhail

How has the Hope For The Illawarra event left you feeling about God and how he works in the world?

Maybe you went along on Saturday night and are feeling really encouraged, because the people you invited came, were interested in knowing more about Jesus, and are keen to come to church with you.

Maybe you brought a friend or two, but there really wasn’t a whole lot of good conversation with them following the event, and they still seem to be apathetic towards Jesus.

Maybe everyone you invited said no to coming. And you’re wondering if you said something wrong, or whether God has other priorities than making himself known to your friends.

Regardless of your experience in the lead up to and at the HFTI event, there is one next step everyone in our church should be taking right now: pray.

It might seem obvious. It might seem useless, particularly if your friends weren’t enthusiastic to follow Jesus.

If your friend made a commitment to Jesus, it might even be tempting to ‘leave it to God’ and not pray about it.

But the command from 1 Thessalonians 5 is to ‘pray unceasingly, giving thanks in all circumstances.’

Why? Certainly not because God needs us to. He’s capable of saving people without our prayers. Indeed he has done all throughout history.

The reason why we pray persistently is because God invites us to be a part of his mission.

It shapes our hearts to be like God, and to want what he wants – namely that everyone would find life in Jesus’ name.

Please keep persistently praying for your unbelieving friends. Pray for opportunities to lead them to Jesus, and take them. We don’t know God’s timing, but we do know his heart – that no one should perish, but come to repentance (2 Pet 3:9). May our prayers and our lives reflect that.

Strong Families.

A Christian family recognizes the significance of a healthy and thriving marriage. The husband and wife strive to love and serve each other selflessly, creating a stable and nurturing environment for their children. They work together to resolve conflicts and grow in their relationship together and with Jesus.

Parental leadership involves the responsibility of leading and guiding their children spiritually. They teach biblical truths, help children develop a personal relationship with Jesus, which encourages their spiritual growth.

They also set appropriate boundaries, discipline with love, provide a nurturing environment for their children to flourish and pray for them to grow in the Lord.