Reflections- Article Preview from our Autumn MAC Magazine

REFLECTION AND PRAYER GATHERING- 2PM SUN 6 APRIL AT CHURCH

Recently I’ve been reflecting on the noise of life. 

It can take over our headspace, squeezing out other things.

What sparked this reflection was a sermon I heard in January at my brother’s church. The sermon was on James 1. It helped me think more clearly about an issue I have been tossing around for a while. 

From James 1:18 – 21, and 25:

The Father . . . ‘chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all he created.  My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. . . . The man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.’  

                                                                                                                              

The preacher suggested that, since the passage is about the centrality of God’s word, and the response to it we need to make so that the ‘righteous life that God desires’ grows in us, it is to God and his word that we should be quick to listen, and be slow to speak with him about our concerns – the noise of our lives.

That noise is powerful. 

It is the accumulation of all that is on our mind and in our hearts.

We have probably all had the experience of listening to a great sermon – the word being taught – and suddenly finding that our attention has been pulled away by life’s noise. We may have had a good look at a Bible passage in our growth group, but the prayer time that follows may have little to do with praying the passage into our lives, and have barely any focus on God himself, and how we are developing in our relationship with him. How easy it is for the noise of our lives to take over our time with God.

Not that it is wrong to bring our concerns to God. Far from it. We are encouraged, if not commanded, to do so (Psalm 62:8, Phil 4:6). It underlines our dependency on God.

But if the noise of life is the focal point of our relationship with God, that relationship is out of balance and we will struggle to grow. It is a bit like the husband who adores his wife and takes her to a fabulous getaway, to spend some quality time together and to give them both, but her especially, a break from the demands of caring for their young children. But the children are her ‘noise’. They are all she talks about. They are on her mind the whole time. She can’t step beyond her role as a mother and throw herself into her role as wife and lover, even for a short time. Her relationship with her husband is the foundation of her family. But she is giving it - giving him – very little attention, even when the opportunity is provided. Yes, she is a caring mother, but the relationship with her husband will shrivel if she does not nurture it, however hard that may be for her while the children are little.

How can we get to a place where loving God, and caring about what he cares about, drives us at least as much as the concerns of our own lives, if not more so?

We know James wrote a letter about action, so doing is important. But the preacher I heard referred to a step James mentions that it is easy to skip over.

James says we must ‘humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you’.  

God has already saved us from remaining dead in our sins and given us ‘birth through the word of truth’. The word is already ‘planted’ in us.

So what, then, does it mean when James says we are to ‘accept’ it? The preacher said that it means to take it into ourselves, to sit under its authority, humbly, and without anger – rebellion, resistance, impatience. We need to ‘look intently into the perfect law’, to work it into our lives. This is similar to the Old Testament concept of meditation – being still in God’s presence, taking time pondering his word, chewing it over, wrestling with it, taking it on board.

If we are quiet before God and quick to listen, the Holy Spirit has more opportunity to grow within us the righteousness of Jesus - to grow in us his life, which was planted in us when we were given new birth (2 Peter 1: 3-4). Nurturing this life is not something we can do on our own. What we need to do is to make ourselves available for the Spirit to grow the word in us.          

If you’ve ever tried being still before God, letting the Holy Spirit remind you of things the word says, letting the things of God ‘gel’ within you, just spending time loving God, then you will know that it can be a time when the words of the two disciples who met the risen Jesus on the road to Emmaus, can be true for us. ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us . . . and opened the Scriptures to us? ’Luke 24:32.

You will also know that, despite our best efforts to spend quality time with God, with every intention of being quick to listen and slow to speak, the noise of our life can take over so very quickly.

It can be easier to be quiet before God in the company of others, even if we are communing with him privately, in our own hearts. Guided reflection can help us set aside our noise. It can help us stay focussed.

Some of us are getting together for Reflection and Prayer, for about an hour, in the church, on Sunday afternoon 6 April at 2pm. The focus of our reflection will be Easter. We are planning for it to be a gentle, non-threatening time. We will read God’s word, sing, there will be a time of guided reflection, and a time to be still before God on our own with a suggested focus.

Whether you are an old hand at this, or whether it is something new to you, everyone is welcome, from the young to the not-so-young. No RSVP needed. Just turn up.

We are looking forward to sharing with you as together we wait on God to do his work in us. As the joy of sharing in Jesus’ life grows within us, individually and as a community of God’s people, so we will grow in the freedom to delight in our relationship with God, and to be more keenly attuned to his agenda.

By keeping on looking ‘intently’ into the word of life, the mind-boggling benefits of being ‘in Jesus’ will become more real to us. James says we will ‘be blessed’ in what we do.

- Jenny Kennedy

READ THE FULL ARTICLE and more in the Autumn Church Magazine due out next weekend. 

Comments and discussion on this article are welcome and encouraged. 

Whose Job Is It To Welcome New People?

For someone new to walk into a church takes an immense amount of courage – it really does.  Not everyone is a massive extrovert who assumes people want to talk to them!  For most people it takes a lot of strength to just walk in the door of a new church.
 
Now, suppose you are new and you make it in the front door  – what do you see?

 Heaps of people looking at you, probably!   Which can be a little unnerving.
 
Then you sit down – and church might be pretty good.  Decent sermon, decent music - you feel like you might want to come back.  But that’s all going to depend on the next 5-10 minutes.

 The people who are already part of the church – this is where YOU come in.

Your job – ALL OF YOU – though not all at once (that would be too much) – all of you need to be on the look-out for new people.

Walk over – this is your turf – so you’re safe.  Walk over and say g’day.  Ask how they’re going.  What they thought of church?  Where they’re from?  Are they working, studying, or doing an arts degree (come on, that was funny).

 Then ask them to join your group of friends for dinner or wherever you’re going.
 
Now, they might say ‘No’ this week.  But they’ll say yes the week after – because they want to know if you were fair dinkum.
 
All churches have cliques – when I was a young bloke we had them (well, we just had one – it was a small church).  But cliques are a good thing – if we harness their power…
 
Have an open clique – and invite new people into it.  Think like a Christian on mission – how can you serve the people who come into you church – be over the top welcoming!

You might just be the link in the chain that keeps a brother or sister in a solid church so they are able to reach their full potential for their Lord.

 Blessings folks,

 Steve Wakeford, Associate Minister

Engage in Peoples Lives through Growth Groups

 












I had a great night at my growth group this week. 

It’s a group of men who are looking at the Bible together and who are engaged in each others lives in a way that men don’t normally get a chance to do. 

It’s been really heart-warming and encouraging to be a part of it – as one of the men said this week, “it’s a privilege to be part of it.” It’s a little glimpse of heaven.  There’s lots of talk and toing and froing, some great supper, some laughter, some deep discussion and a serious determination to not just skate over the surface of life. 

There has been the chance to input into each other’s lives and an expectation that God is going to do some real work among us. Already we’ve seen some answer to our prayers and we’re looking forward to meeting next week to see what God has done.  We’re becoming a band of brothers.

If you’re not in a group like this then you are missing out.

Ours is a new group and that might have something to do with it.  I think that sometimes groups can be together too long and they can get into an unhelpful rut where they just go through the motions. 

That’s not always the case with long term groups but it might be a good thing to ask the question of your group “Are we helping each other become disciple making disciples? Are we growing in love and obedience to Christ? Is there progress?”

Thanks to the men in my group for your involvement.


Bruce Dingwall
Senior Minister
 

40 Hours A Year

40 hours a year...

This is all the time that our Kids Space Team (10am Children’s Ministry) get to spend with the children in their groups over one year.

So imagine what can be accomplished if we were able to have an extra 48 hours with our Kids Spacers in the one year; we would be doubly blessed! Double the fun, double the relating, double the faith building, double the eating… you get the drift.

So rather than extending the hours of Kids Space, the Kids Space team have decided to have a weekend away for children in years 3-6 at school who come to Kids Space and Saturday Night Church.

It is important for this to be at the start of the year to ‘launch’ our year and establish relationships. Having the children come away with the Kids Space Leaders for a weekend will literally double our time spent together. The implications are huge: our Kids Space Leaders will get to know the children in their small groups, our children would get to know each other better, our Leaders will get be able to work alongside other Leaders, and we can all have a bit of a holiday together by the beach (of course we will need to find cooks as I am devoid of all giftedness in this area).

One of our core values in Children’s Ministry at Menai Anglican is to be a ‘community of friends’ and this is difficult when the children attend different schools, live in different suburbs and have only one hour a week together. A weekend away will make a huge difference in how we all relate to each other with shared experiences, funny stories and with a substantial amount of time in God’s word away from Facebook, computers and other screens.

The team of leaders are excited and all we need now are the children to join us February 28^th-March 2^nd at Austinmer Anglican Church. Mums can make the most of this quiet weekend as this is also the weekend away for the men at the Katoomba Men’s convention!

We are really looking forward to seeing what God has in store for us and your children over this weekend away.  

Mary Pickford - Children's Minister,  Yvette Maloney and the Kids Space team

A Church of Action - Not Just Words

 

Every year Anglicare's Emergency Relief programme provides financial and food assistance to an estimated 20,000 socially excluded families and individuals who struggle to get by on low income.

Now in its 10th year, Anglicare's Toys ‘n’ Tucker programme is a way in which communities can actively provide gifts of toys and food to be distributed to the families who come to the service for support. 

Nigel Beckman attends Menai Anglican Church.  He and his Growth Group became involved in the Scheme 5 years ago because they wanted to help those less fortunate at Christmas time. 

Nigel and his team have also discovered many other benefits from being involved in the scheme.  Nigel says, “It has been a wonderful out-reach opportunity and shown the local community that Menai Anglican is a church of action not just words”. The collection area covers Barden Ridge, Menai Road and over to the Woodlands Estate – so our church makes contact with approximately 2,200 homes.

In addition, it provides a great opportunity for absolutely anyone in the church community to get involved and serve God no matter their age, ability or which service they attend.

The scheme also provides Menai Anglican Church with a way to identify and help those in the local area who are themselves struggling.

This year, there were almost 180 people involved in the collection.  Between them, they collected over 300 boxes plus miscellaneous toys.  The best collection year so far for the church.

 

There is a lot of work involved in organizing the food drive.  Initially fliers are prepared and these are delivered by the congregation.  The actual collection takes place from Monday 4^th to Monday 11^th November. Because of the fliers many people are prepared with food by their door. It is heart warming when people have been shopping specifically for Anglicare and have a box or bag all ready. It also offers a great opportunity to hand over information brochures about Playtime groups at church and the Christmas service times.

One little girl donated her own tricycle because she wanted someone less fortunate than her to have a bike for Christmas.

All the donated items are boxed up at church and then Anglicare collect them and take the boxes to the Anglicare Mt. Druitt warehouse.  The items are then made into Christmas hampers and toy parcels for families in Sydney and Wollongong who would otherwise go without.

The Menai Anglican Church / Anglicare Food Drive is a wonderful example of how a small idea from a Growth Group can make a huge difference to the local community and beyond.  Thank you to everyone involved in this year’s scheme.  Please pray for Nigel and his group – may they be a guiding light to the rest of the church community.  Please also pray for the Anglicare teams – may they bring a little joy and support to those in need this Christmastime.

 

How Much Did Your T Shirt Cost?

 















Aussies wear T-shirts.  We wear them at the beach, or around the house, or under a shirt when we go out. We like to have something funny written on the front, or an arty design. Or just plain white.

So we buy lots of them. And we like to pick up a bargain. 

So how much did your last T-shirt cost?

To save money, most of our clothes are made overseas, where labour is much cheaper than in Australia. That helps make them cheap.

But did you know that, over the past 8 years, more than 1,800 garment workers in Bangladesh have died in building collapses, in factory fires, or other "preventable circumstances"?

It turns out that shoddy practices and unsafe working conditions are another reason why our T-shirts are so cheap. We get cheap clothes and garment workers pay with their lives.

But there is an alternative.

There is now an international accord, "a multinational stakeholder agreement where companies commit to extensive and systematic assessment of worker safety and conditions within the Bangladesh garment industry".

Rather than boycott clothing made in Bangladesh, which will only increase poverty, this accord means companies will work together to support positive change.

Katies, Target and Cotton On have all signed the accord. K-Mart is offering compensation for families affected by the most recent fire.

Woolworths, which owns Big W, had deferred action to sign the accord, but in latest news, has finally signed up.

Change won't be instant, but if you think unsafe and unfair working conditions are too high a price to pay for cheap clothing, then keep your eyes open for more news on which clothing companies are supporting positive change.

The Justice and Mercy Team at our church will be doing more research to give you the best information we can. And if you would like to help with some internet research on this matter, please let us know.

Eric & Carolyn Hatfield from the Justice and Mercy Team at Menai Anglican Church

Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly. Micah 6:8

Information from Canberra Times (http://www.canberratimes.com.au/comment/where-life-is-cheap-what-cost-a- tshirt-20131014-2vikj.html) and Sydney Morning Herald (http://www.smh.com.au/national/woolworths-signs-up-to-bangladesh-safety- accord-20131017-2vq3l.html). Photo: MorgueFile (http://www.morguefile.com/archive/display/661931).

How Are We Tracking? - Survey Results

Somebody once wisely said, “If you aim at nothing that’s exactly what you’ll hit.”

A year or so ago now our staff and parish council put together a number of goals for us to work towards over the next few years to keep us focussed on the main game.

We knew that we had 2 major priorities in line with our vision to “Introduce Jesus and Change Lives”- that of helping our members to grow in their faith and to reach out with the good news that Jesus is our rescuer. 

To that end we came up with some goals based around the results of the National Church Life Survey (NCLS) that we took part in back in 2011.

The good news is that we’ve been making some progress and we ought to give thanks to God for it.

One of the most encouraging areas is in the growth of the percentage of people who say that they have “experienced much growth through our church in the past 12 months.”  There has been a significant 9% increase over the NCLS back in 2011.  Furthermore 98% of all those surveyed said that they had grown spiritually in the past 12 months. Praise God!

We’ve also seen growth in the number of our members who are inviting people to church [4% increase] and growth in the numbers of those involved with some sort of ministry leadership [7-8% increase]. 

We have maintained our level of growth group membership and this is the only area of the survey where we haven’t moved forward. 

Another pleasing aspect is that of those who have joined us in the past 2 years 28% weren’t attending another church before they joined. Although we are happy to welcome people who are transferring from another church - maybe out of our area - the real kingdom growth is with those who are coming to church for the first time or after a long gap. There is much rejoicing in heaven over that!

In the past two and half years we have grown by 25% and now average 677 people in church each week. As to our finances we have now had a couple of months of reaching our budget and although we still have a shortfall to make up things are looking much better.

All in all this is all great cause for thanksgiving to God for answering our prayers and honouring our commitment to Him. We are getting on with our mission together.

Bruce Dingwall

Senior Minister