Isn’t it time you came back to church?

At 5pm this Saturday 21st May we’re hosting a FREE chops, chips and chocolate night at the church. Join us for a free BBQ meal, with salads, hot chips, and a chocolate fountain with marshmallows and fruit, followed by free espresso coffee. It’s a great contemporary church service for people of all ages, and includes a special kids’ program.

If you’d prefer a more traditional service then come along at 8am on Sunday morning for a prayer book service with great hymns and time for reflection.

This weekend at both services we’re welcoming a group of young trainee ministers who will share with us the heart of the Christian faith.

This is the perfect weekend to come back to church. We’d love you to join us!

For many years our church youth group has been known by the name ‘CHAOS’, which stands for ‘Christ Honoured and Others Served’.

As a tagline or mission statement, it’s a terrific summary of what we want to happen in our youth group.

The problem is that the idea of ‘chaos’ in the Bible is generally a bad thing.

After all, God’s work in the world generally brings order where there used to be chaos, especially in the lives of those who have been filled with the Holy Spirit.

Now it’s true that youth often find a grungy, anti-establishment kind of identity to be one that is strangely attractive as they navigate the challenging journey from childhood to adulthood.

But, the problem with the name ‘CHAOS’ is that it doesn’t really communicate that we long for our youth group to attract people by the delight that comes from knowing Jesus and being transformed by his Holy Spirit.

So that’s why we’ve switched our name to ‘Refuge’, which seeks to sum up the security that comes from knowing God, and the safety we can experience as we gather together for youth group in the name of Jesus.

For as we know from the Bible, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46 verse 1).

Jodie.

PS: Refuge is for high-school aged people and it meets at Oak Flats Anglican each Friday from 7pm to 9.30pm during school terms.

As we come to Anzac Day, it’s impossible to avoid speaking of death.

As we remember the heroism of those who served, we never forget the many who gave their lives to protect our way of life.

Yet even as we honour their sacrifice, we must never glorify death.

Death is our greatest enemy, no matter how much we try to conquer it ourselves.

It brings us sadness and pain, even when it comes with valour.

Even Jesus wept as he stood at the grave of his friend.

And this is why Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice by giving his life in order to conquer death.

And because of Jesus’ death for us, the Bible cries out,  “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1Corinthians 15:55)

As we remember those who gave their life for our nation, let us pray to the man who gave his life for the world. 

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13)

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

Lest we forget.

This week a major leak of documents in Panama showed how much effort people can make to try and pay less tax.

Whether it’s tax avoidance, tax evasion, or even downright money laundering, it’s clear that everyone involved in these schemes has been keen to reduce the amount of money they pay to the government so that they can increase the amount of money they keep for themselves.

Some would say that this kind of behaviour is acceptable because it is legal. Yet, there are many activities that are also legal yet are not morally desirable (such as prostitution).

The Bible is clear that we should pay to the Government the amount for which we are legally obliged. We should obey the tax laws as much as we should obey any other laws of our land.

Yet, is there a place to volunteer to pay more taxes than we owe? Should we try to maximise our tax rather than minimise it?

Well, given that a reasonable amount of our taxation goes towards providing universal access to healthcare, education and welfare, it might be a good thing for us all to volunteer to pay a bit more to help those valuable causes.

Or alternatively, maybe we Christians might consider paying come of the tax we ‘save’ in our refund directly into a charity that provides additional care for the more needy in our world, such as Anglicare and Anglican Aid?

Imagine if the money that was saved by the Panama tax avoiders was invested in helping support the resettling of Syrian refugees, or providing relief for those affected by the Ethiopian Famine?