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/
What was your first impression when you walked into church for the first time? Were you greeted at the front door with a smile or was there some confusion as to where you should sit and where everything was? Did anyone come up to you after the service and have a chat? Were you followed up later on in the week with a message or phone call?
Welcoming new people into our church is a vital ministry not just for those who are the designated welcomers for that day, but for all of us who attend a service. Sarie King, the writer of a research paper into welcoming and integrating newcomers, described welcoming as “…not about greeting people, it’s about churches and congregation members practicing a ministry of hospitality and inclusion to believers and unbelievers alike, it’s about connecting them in relationship with other believers, and engaging them fully in the life, growth and ministry of a congregation.”
Our welcoming is much more than the hour or two we spend with newcomers on a Sunday. It is also the time we spend during the week reaching out to those who have come for the first time. The effectiveness of this follow up can be seen in the following quote:
“The basic finding is summed up in the ’36-hour principle’:
When lay- persons (aka not ministers) visit the home of a first- time worshipper within 36 hours, 85% of them will return to worship next Sunday. When the visit is delayed for 72 hours, only 60% return; when delayed five to seven days, 15% return… if the minister makes the first visit percentages were then cut in half.”
Last year we ran some training events over a few weekends and one of those was focused on Welcoming and Newcomers Integration. Over the following months we will be running follow up training, looking at what we have been doing well, what could be improved and any changes people may have in mind. The first training session is for Wilton 5pm congregation and will be Sunday 15th September 3:30-4:30. If you are interested in attending please let me know ASAP. We will send out more information for those who are interested for Picton 9am and Wilton 10am later.
Yours in Christ,
Jake
Happy Fathers Day for this weekend. While Father’s day won’t be the focus of our Sunday Church services, I hope you can join us this Sunday. Let me encourage you to read this excellent article by Sandy Grant on Positive Masculinity. https://sydneycathedral.com/news-blog/positive-masculinity
God’s incredible plan is to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ! (Ephesians 1:10).
We are part of something so much bigger than just Picton and Wilton (although Picton and Wilton are part of God’s great plan too). Our partnership with the Church Missionary Society (CMS) is one way we take part in God’s universal plan for his creation – as CMS strives for a ‘world that knows Jesus’.
The Church Missionary Society (CMS) is a fellowship of Christian people and churches committed to global mission. CMS works with churches to set apart godly people as long-term cross-cultural gospel workers.
Our Churches partner with CMS in supporting Craig and Lisse in the Middle-East – you can sign up to their newsletter and/or support them financially here: https://cms.org.au/missionaries/clvn/
On Saturday 7th September I’ll be attending the CMS Southern Highlands Mission Expo at Moss Vale in the afternoon. I’d love you to join me – you need to register by 4th September to attend and then let me know so I can give you a lift in our van. At the expo, we’ll hear from CMS Executive Director, John Lovell aswell as from missionaries going to Taiwan and returning from South East Asia.
Register here: https://www.cms.org.au/event/cms-southern-highlands-mission-expo-2024/.
Then on Sunday 8th September we’ll be hearing from guest speaker Graeme, from CMS in our regular Church services.
Yours in Christ,
Ben
There are many faces serving faithfully behind-the-scenes at our Picton and Wilton congregations and Sandy Chad, member of Wilton 5pm, is one of them. Sandy has been committed to serving families of Playtime on Thursday mornings at Wilton Church as its lead coordinator since it started up in 2022, but last Wednesday, myself and the other co-leaders of Playtime gathered and said our grateful goodbyes as Sandy is stepping down from her role. “Working alongside other Christian women to bring God and happiness into the lives of the children and their parents and carers has been rewarding,” Sandy says. Equally rewarding was witnessing the development of the preschool-aged children who attend regularly, especially those who started Playtime as bouncy babies! Sandy’s husband, Frank, has also been a mainstay of Playtime setting up and packing up each week, and sometimes providing the morning tea.
In the time it has been operating, Playtime has grown rather large. Starting as a small group of mostly local families, it now has families attending from various suburbs of the Wollondilly; a mix of those from Christian and church backgrounds and not. Sandy tells me that it could sometimes be tricky to get the balance right between providing enough Christian activities for the families who wanted them and not too much so as to turn non-Christian families away from coming back. (I’m sure my co-leaders will agree with me that Sandy’s warmth, and the personal attention and care she devoted to each child and carer, is undoubtedly a big reason why families keep returning each week.) However, it was always heart-warming to see children and carers of different backgrounds, ages and stages enjoying songs and stories in a circle together as Sandy led the children in making a joyful noise unto the Lord!
Something you might not know about Sandy: she is a retired teacher and says that she found fulfilment in putting her teaching skills to good use as a Playtime leader. I can attest to Sandy’s excellent organisation and planning skills – she put great thought into planning programmes, activities, excursions and even gifts for annual holidays that the children could take home. Sandy was also brilliant at remembering birthday gifts for our Playtime children, including the newborns! “She makes everyone feel welcome and valued,” a mother at Playtime expressed to me in praise of Sandy one Thursday morning.
So what is next for Sandy, and for the future of Playtime, you might be wondering? “I already miss Playtime but I’m going to concentrate on more rehabilitation, which has taken a great deal longer than I expected,” Sandy says, speaking on her personal health challenges. “I’m also trying hard to read my Bible again as my stroke in November has adversely affected reading. I do listen to the Bible but it’s a real gift to be able to read it!”
As for Playtime, I am delighted to introduce its new lead coordinator, Abbey Stephens. For those who don’t know Abbey, she currently attends at Wilton’s 10am congregation and serves as a creche (and occasionally King’s Kids) leader. Abbey is fun, creative, and does everything effortlessly, and with infectious enthusiasm. She loves Jesus and is passionate about children’s ministries. (Abbey also has a pretty cool collection of pop culture earrings, I have to say.)
Abbey is looking forward to “getting to know the other leaders more and hanging out with the different kids, which is a super joyful time.”
Please pray for Sandy, for Abbey and the other leaders as we minister to families at Playtime this term and beyond!
Yours in Christ,
Rachel Winn (W10 Church member and part of the Playtime team)
