About 6 months ago my ministry coach challenged me about the regularity of my Bible reading and prayer. I confessed to him that the urgency of the to do list often meant I skipped over reading my Bible and praying in the mornings. He asked me what I thought the consequences of that would be and helped me realise how much it mattered.
If I’m not regularly being refreshed by the Word of God, depending on him in prayer and growing in intimacy and love for my Lord Jesus, then I will over time dry out and become hollow. My ministry will be hypocritical and ineffective and I’ll burn out because my motivation will be all muddled. This will have a huge impact on our Church and on the lives of hundreds of you. It matters a lot that I keep up these healthy spiritual disciplines. I’ve enjoyed being more consistent in reading my bible and praying and the confidence and joy in Jesus that has given me.
I want to ask you: how are you going at reading your Bible and praying regularly? Have you stopped to think about how much it really matters and what the consequences will be if you don’t do something about it? What will be the consequences on your children if you can’t be their healthy spiritual leader? What will be the consequences on your friends and family if you aren’t encouraging them towards life in Christ.
It really matters – so what are you going to do about it?
Yours in Christ,
Ben
Recently I’ve had one song going around and around in my head – but it’s a good one! The chorus goes:
‘On that day, we will see you, shining brighter than the sun.
On that day, we will know you, as we lift our voice as one.
‘Til that day, we will praise you, for your never-ending grace.
And will keep on singing, on that glorious day.’
Many in our church family are facing sickness, death and sorrow, in their own lives or the lives of their loved ones. For all the weariness and feelings of hopelessness that can come upon us, this song declares:
‘What a blessed hope, though now tired and worn
We will spend eternity around our Saviour’s throne
Though we grieve our losses, we grieve not in vain
For we know our crown of glory waits beyond the grave’
Whenever I visit my family up north, I come away with a healthy dose of ‘eschatological awareness’! That is, in the face of their weariness, mental illness and the reality of impending death, they cry (often!!) ‘Come, Lord Jesus!’ or ‘Take me home, Lord Jesus!’ It’s not a cry I hear in many other places, or from my own lips. And yet they are on the right track.
In the opening sermon of the 2 Thessalonians series, Scott challenges us to consider our intimacy with God. Do we know him? Are we growing in our knowledge of him? We are called to grow in this intimacy with God together, as his family. The more we know him, the more we will long to be with him!
So, as we sing together this Sunday, let’s sing heartily and whole-heartedly of all God has done for us in Christ, to make us his people, and to give us a future hope, beyond this weary and worn life.
‘Hallelujah, what a day it will be!
For at home with You, my joy is complete
As I run into Your arms open wide, I will see
My Father who is waiting for me’
‘On that Day’ by City Alight https://youtu.be/pF4qFdxD4kM?feature=shared
Yours in Christ,
Sharon (Picton 9am Congregation Member)
Our Church is not a social club – we have a purpose. We are part of God’s great plan, helping people to find Life in Christ. This plan is urgent and vital. Without Christ we will face God’s judgement and condemnation. Jesus offers, not just forgiveness, but peace with God, hope and purpose.
Life in Christ comes primarily by the work of God’s Word and Spirit in our lives as we encourage each other to repent and trust in Christ. This is the heart of all of the activities and groups that we run.
Our core activity is the Sunday gathering of God’s people in our three Church congregations. But as these congregations grow, its hard to facilitate deep relationships of trust and accountability. Our mid-week Bible Study groups are a great way for these deep relationships to form and for deliberate discipleship and encouragement to take place.
At present, less than 50% of our Church members are in Bible study groups. Some people aren’t in groups because they don’t have time, some because they fear groups will be too academic and boring (they have ‘study’ in the name after all), and some for other reasons. We believe these groups can be really helpful and so we want to make a deliberate effort in term 1 2025 to invest in the leaders of our groups and to encourage more of our members to join a group.
The plan looks like this:
Rest of 2024 – PREPARE: Survey members to understand the barriers to joining a group and investigate how to make the groups the best they can be with the outcome of Christian growth, not just ‘bible study’.
February 2025 – TRAIN: a month dedicated to training current and potential group leaders, and encouraging everyone to consider joining a group.
March 2025 – RELAUNCH: We’ll relaunch our groups with more support for leaders and hopefully a greater participation rate.
Please pray that this plan to relaunch groups will help us in our purpose of people finding Life in Christ. We look forward to hearing your feedback on all this and working together as God’s people in Picton and Wilton.
Yours in Christ,
Ben
People are like lego blocks. Each person only has a limited number of connections that they can really sustain in their lives. A standard piece might have 6 close friendships in its life, but then there are those really long and skinny pieces that can maintain 10, or the short ones that only have space for 2.
Over time, our connections fill up and we simply don’t have room for any more friendships in our lives. When a new person joins our community they find a lot of friendly faces, but they might find it very difficult to make friends. It’s not our fault, all our connections are taken.
The hard fact is that for our Church to grow, newcomers need to make friends, not just find people ‘friendly’. This might require the multiplying of congregations or bible study groups, or even the easing of long-held friendships, to open up our connections to others. This is a painful but necessary process if we are truly intent on sharing the great gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and growing his Kingdom.
You might not have made a new friend for a while, so this might be a little scary, but start simple and invite them over for lunch – find out what interests them and see where it goes.
Most of all, think about how you can place Jesus at the centre, we’re not a social club – we’re God’s people. Why not offer to pray at the end of an evening meal discussion? Or read the Bible when you meet to catch up? Let’s not limit ourselves to being ‘friendly’, let’s be friends!
Being a welcoming Church is not just about who’s on the roster at the door – it’s about setting a culture of welcoming newcomers, seeking to build them up in Christ and incorporate them into our family. It’s our responsibility – all of us.
Yours in Christ,
Ben
A couple of weekends ago seven of our members headed up to Katoomba for MTS Recruit, which is a conference for people considering full time vocational ministry. We heard from Andrew Heard, who is the Lead Pastor at EV church on the Central Coast and also serves as the Chairman for Reach Australia which helps to plant new churches. His first talk made it abundantly clear the consequences of not following Jesus (hell!) and then questioned whether, as saved sinners, our true motivation for considering ministry work is so that people can be saved from this awful judgement. It was a challenging message to hear first up but his later talks were also very encouraging in the examples he used describing how God has worked through so many kinds of people.
The conference was also a great place to meet people from all over NSW in many different church contexts and share stories and experiences of Christ growing and moving through his church. Our members were challenged to think about if they might do full time ministry and if they were to do so then what that might look like. Have you ever considered part/full time ministry? What might the next step on that path be for you?
Yours in Christ,
Jake
Have you ever thought about the impact it makes when someone deliberately makes a decision to come and sit next to you?
Perhaps you can recall that time at the high school dance, where that special someone boldly strode across from the boys (or girls) side of the room to sit with you! Or perhaps you remember the friend who came to sit with you for the bus ride on the way to school. Sitting next to someone is more than just an act of physical proximity.
Where you sit at Church is also very important. Not just for a good view, or to feel comfortable about being in the same spot each week, but for the sake of others. Sitting next to someone lets them know you want to spend time with them and that they are important. It speaks volumes to both a newcomer and a regular at Church when somebody deliberately makes a choice to sit with them. Those of us who come to Church on our own will be especially helped by someone joining us, but at the same time we shouldn’t assume that a family grouping wants their ‘space’ more than our company.
When you arrive at Church each week, why not pray on the way in about who you might be able to sit next to and encourage or welcome. Share with them how you’ve been encouraged by God and his word and ask them how they are going. Of course there are plenty of opportunities to welcome and encourage one another after Church, but who you sit next to is an important decision. Sit with love.
Being a welcoming Church is not just about who’s on the roster at the door – it’s about setting a culture of welcoming newcomers, seeking to build them up in Christ and incorporate them into our family. It’s our responsibility – all of us.
Yours in Christ,
Ben.
‘Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.’ – Heb 10:25
This past weekend, Wilton Anglican Youth [WAY] went to up to Katoomba for the KYCK Christian youth convention. 40 of us – and over 1400 others in the shed gathered in Jesus’ name to hear from Genesis 1-3 and to sing praises to our God. In video interviews, here’s what the [WAY] teenagers had to say:
Highlights:
“Camping” – Lara (yr9)
“Lollies” – Ethan (yr7)
“The KYCK sessions” – Caleb (yr12)
“The Tigers winning” – Louis (yr7)
“The music.” – Indi (yr9)
“The music.” – Lara (yr9)
“The music.”- Mischa (yr9)
“KYCK is going good. The bacon’s warm, right off the grill. The bread’s a bit cold but that’s just because of the day today.”
Ethan (yr7)
“I’m freezing. Double jumpered currently. But in all seriousness, I ‘ve learnt that God made us with a purpose.”
Lillian (yr11)
“God made the world with intention and everything is done for a reason.”
Kiah (yr8)
“Our identity should be found in Christ because we were made in God’s image, by God.”
Jye (yr12)
Join us this Sunday to see the KYCK recap video,
– Scott Williams (Asst. Minister)
The meerkat is everyone’s favourite at the zoo. After busily foraging around for food (haven’t they noticed that the food mysteriously appears every day at 9am) they stand to attention bolt upright and check this way and that to see that there is no danger at hand. They’re looking out for one another, because they’re a team, because they’re family.
I want to suggest that might be a good habit for us to be in at Church. Not in order to notice any danger, but to notice anyone in danger: anyone who is standing by themselves; anyone looking lost or lonely; or anyone who has come to Church for the first time and will leave again promptly if nobody comes to speak with them. I estimate that it only takes 30-60 seconds of no-one speaking to a new person after Church for them to feel awkward and decide to leave. Then they possibly never come back.
I completely understand that there is always a friend at Church who you’re itching to catch up with, or to gloat about how you’re team beat their team in the football. But that conversation can wait. When the service finishes, just put that conversation on hold for a second and mimic a meerkat.
I also understand that talking to strangers is scary. Why not be a pair of meerkats? Try it with a friend, say ‘Hey, have you ever seen that person at Church before? Why don’t we go and say hello?’
Mimic a meerkat, and you just might find an opportunity to welcome somebody to our Church, listen to their story, show them around, describe how our ‘King’s Kids’ Sunday school or youth ministries or bible studies work, or even explain the good news of Jesus!
Being a welcoming Church is not just about who’s on the roster at the door – it’s about setting a culture of welcoming newcomers, seeking to build them up in Christ and incorporate them into our family. It’s our responsibility – all of us – and so over the next few weeks in this space, I want to explore this issue.
Yours in Christ,
Ben
This week I’ve been staying in the city for synod meetings of the Sydney Anglican Diocese. Synod is like a giant AGM meeting for our whole network of Anglican Churches – a meeting of 700 or so people with strict rules – if you’ve ever accidentally stumbled across the broadcast of federal or state parliament on TV, then you have a bit of an idea of what synod is like.
Our Archbishop Kanishka Raffel used his presidential address to challenge us to mission. In the context of the booming populations of North-West and South-West Sydney he said, ”Will you help the crowds see Jesus?’
“The great need of Sydney is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ,” he said. “I do not mean that Sydney does not have many other pressing and important needs. Our churches and agencies are constantly engaged in responding to the real-life impact of cost-of-living pressure, the housing crisis and the wickedness of violence against women. Motions and reports in our business paper range across these issues as well as the scourge of online gambling.
“Our churches, schools and agencies engage with the felt and physical needs of Sydneysiders throughout the Diocese, and I am very thankful for all the ways in which so many respond to the needs of others with practical and financial assistance, the truth and comfort of God’s word, in prayer, compassion and personal support.
“But Jesus said to the paralysed man who was brought to him by his four excellent friends, ‘son, your sins are forgiven’. In doing so, he taught that beyond our visible and felt needs are our deepest needs – our need for reconciliation with God, forgiveness, freedom from the chains of the world, the flesh and the devil, rescue from God’s just judgement on sin, and hope in this world and the next.”
This is our urgent challenge and opportunity in Picton and Wilton – will we help people see Jesus and find life in his name? I pray you will join me in meeting this challenge by sharing with our friends and family about our hope in Christ and inviting them to Church.
Yours in Christ,
Ben
Grandparents come in all shapes and sizes, ages and stages, and proximity and distance from their grandchildren. The 2024 Grandparents Conference covered all this variety. Nine folk from across all three PWAC congregations gathered together recently to attend a ‘live-stream’ of the conference. Liz and Peter appreciated hearing ‘practical ways that grandparents can help and pray for their grandchildren.’
Robyn and Barry took away the encouragements ‘to have positive (not negative) conversations with our grandchildren, and be models of love and care.
All of us went away with a greater awareness of the detrimental impact of smartphones, social media and digital technology on our grandchildren and their mental health. With that awareness we were also given practical ways to spend time with our grandchildren, being both present and engaged.
Many of us also appreciated the acknowledgement of the pain and sadness that many grandparents experience, being separated or kept from spending time with their grandchildren in situations of family and relational breakdown.
Myrtle said ‘I hope to speak to my grandchildren about some of what I have learned.’ She has already put the 2025 conference in her calendar!
All of us hope to attend again next year, and would encourage all grandparents to join us!
Yours in Christ,
Sharon Hall (52 year old Granny and Picton 9am Congregation Member)
More info: https://ngmlegacy.com.au/
