Author: Ben (Page 7 of 35)

Some welcome it. Others resist it. Still others haven’t noticed. Let me tell you plain and clear: Our church is growing. In the mere 4 years I’ve been connected with Wilton Anglican Church I’ve seen so much growth.

The church has grown. The suburb has grown. The kids and youth ministry has grown. The petrol price has grown. Wilton Christmas Carols has grown. The traffic has grown. The roster has grown. But best of all, gospel ministry in and among us has grown as God has worked in us to glorify himself and grow his kingdom.

And so, with all this growth comes change. Good change. Soon, our Wilton Anglican Church will grow out of one and grow into two in 2023. It’s still early days but we thought it was a good time to share with you our plans for the launch of a Wilton morning service in 2023.

In some ways, growing from one Wilton congregation into two is the plan – not to cut ourselves in half, nor to be stretched twice as far and neither to be spread half as thin – but to healthily and faithfully grow from one into two. More foundationally than that, we’re aiming for every single one of us (whatever church service you call home) to grow up together in Christ to face the challenges ahead of us, and to faithfully bring the gospel to a world that desperately needs Jesus.

Here’s the nuts-and-bolts plan that we’re moving ahead with for a Wilton morning congregation in 2023:

• January to February – Gather a Wilton Mornings Team
• March to June – Meet as a team regularly to pray and plan
• July to September – Final preparations for launch
• October – Launch Wilton Mornings

So, what now? Please pray, dear reader. Prayer warriors, bible study groups, congregational pray-ers – please pray that we would healthily and faithfully grow out of one and into two. Pray for the gathering of a launch team. Pray that we might reach our neighbours with the gospel, and love our neighbours like Christ, and for many, many more to find life in Jesus.

Yours in Christ,

Scott

How do you prepare for Christmas?

For many of us its a mad scramble to finish off projects at work, buy the presents, arrange the food, plan the end of year parties. Sometimes the mad scramble distracts us from what Christmas is all about. We call this season Advent because it is a time of preparing to celebrate Christ’s birth, and also of putting life in perspective and being prepared for Christ’s second coming.

Lets make the most of this advent season by reflecting, reading, praying and giving thanks for our Saviour Christ and preparing our hearts for his return.

Here are a few resources that you might choose to use this advent:

– Youthworks are putting together some advent devotionals (https://youthworks.net/advent).

– Grab an Advent book, such as The One True Story, by Tim Chester (https://www.thegoodbook.com.au/the-one-true-story).

– Instead of Mariah Carey (or maybe as well as) – listen to a Christian Advent Playlist (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1LaIzZ2YCSbX6YlqMK9S0t).

– Pick a Christian Advent Calendar to use with your household (like this ‘Names of Jesus’ one – https://au.lacewingcreative.com/products/names-of-jesus-advent-calendar).

If you have used some other resources that you recommend, I’d love to hear about it.

I look forward to singing with you once again on Christmas Day:

‘Joy to the world, the Lord is come!’

Yours in Christ,

Ben

As we open up 1 Corinthians 14 this week at Church you might be surprised to hear Paul in verse 1 encouraging everyone to take up prophecy. Isn’t prophecy just for people with crystal balls and tarot cards? Or crazy guys from the Old Testament who did strange things like Ezekiel lying on his side and cooking his food over cow dung?

No – prophecy is speaking Gods word into a persons life. It’s taking the unchanging truths of God and applying them to the particular circumstances of our lives so that we can live it out. This is one of the greater gifts (1 Cor 12:31), this is something we should all eagerly desire to do (1 Cor 14:1) and it’s something we CAN all do, with practice.

Here’s a tip from me: this week as you read your Bible, find an interesting verse and think about how you could share it with someone else. In particular, think about how that verse helps you or challenges you to live for God in your daily life. If you share that with someone else on Sunday at Church, then you are a prophet.

And if we are sharing God’s Word with each other and encouraging each other to live it out in our daily lives, that’s when Paul says unbelievers will ‘fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’ (1 Cor 14:25).

And won’t that be exciting to be a part of!

Yours in Christ,

Ben

The Bible tells us that the Church is like a body. The body has many parts that work together to achieve a purpose. Right now, my brain is thinking of words to tell my fingers to type into the computer and send to you. Without my brain, I couldn’t come up with the words, without the fingers I couldn’t type them, and without eyes I couldn’t ‘chkec taht I wsa tpying tehm rgiht’.

Each part of our bodies plays a different function and all of them need to work together. In the same way each member of our Church family is different and unique, and we all work together to serve Jesus Christ our Lord, who is the ‘head’ of the body, which is the Church.

Church is not a consumer activity, its a working together with a common purpose activity. Some people in Church serve in up-front ways like preaching a sermon, or leading a service, or leading us in song. Some people serve in behind the scene ways like washing the dishes, or cleaning the toilets, or making sure the bills get paid. 1 Corinthians 12 tells us that the gifts and skills we have doesn’t matter nearly as much as how we choose to use the gifts and skills that we happen to have. This weekend we’re celebrating the many different ways that each person in our Church serves and loves each other.

I’m wondering if you could share who you are thankful for in our Church. It could be the person at Church who asks you how you’re going each week and really wants to know the answer. It could be the person who puts particular thought into the way they lead the prayers. It could be the person who takes a real interest in your children and takes the time to play with them. It could be the person who has faithfully taught Scripture and prayed for their Scripture class.

Whoever it is, why not go and tell that person just how thankful you are for them – they’ll be so encouraged.

Yours in Christ,

Ben

Are you ‘doin’ a shoey’ this year? And I don’t mean skulling a beer out of a shoe 🙂

Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse (https://occ.samaritanspurse.org.au/home/operation-christmas-child/). It is a hands-on way for you to bless children in need across the world by filling shoeboxes with toys, hygiene items, school supplies, and fun gifts. Samaritans Purse collect the boxes and distribute them in the name of Jesus Christ to children living in vulnerable situations.

The mission of Operation Christmas Child is to provide God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Collect a shoebox from Church this Sunday; follow the filling instructions on the brochure or at the website; and be sure to return it to Church by 13th November.

You might also like to invite a friend or neighbour to fill a shoebox too – this will give the opportunity to explain what you’re doing and why – and you can pray for an opportunity to share the good news of Jesus with them too.

Yours in Christ,

Ben

The Queen has finally met her King.
The whole world seems captivated at the passing of this woman of dignity, grace and service.  Perhaps the primary reason is that she did not live for herself and did not prize her own reputation and fame as most of us do.  Amidst the pomp and ceremony of her station we met a woman of humility and deep faith in Jesus Christ.
The Queen herself prepared us for a time like this in her Easter Message during the first wave of COVID19 in 2020. Her Majesty said at that time:
“The discovery of the risen Christ on the first Easter Day gave his followers new hope and fresh purpose, and we can all take heart from this… As dark as death can be – particularly for those suffering with grief – light and life are greater.”
So, in light of her passing, I must ask you the question: are you ready to meet your King?  And I certainly don’t mean King Charles III, I mean the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, before whom every knee will bow and every tongue confess – our King Jesus Christ!
Yours in Him,
Ben