Generous hearts committed to building the Kingdom of God.

MAY 2017theadvocate.tv

BAPTIST CHURCHES

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

4 Is God relevant?Youth seek answers to deep faith questions at Mount Pleasant event >>

8 Leaving wellHow to manage leaving well – jobs, relationships or commitments >>

6 Playgroup for allIntergenerational playgroup launched at Mundaring residential care facility >>

IN CONVERSATION Mark Wilson talks about ten years as the Director of Ministries with Baptist Churches Western Australia. PAGE 12 >>

“What I feel Jesus is teaching me in my spiritual walk.”

SIMONE FIELD PAGE 13>>

Whitsunday Baptist Church have

witnessed the devastation in the

community and have been active

in assisting with clean-up, support

and repair.

“People are still coming

to terms with the damage.

While everything is tidy now,

there are still reminders of

the cyclone everywhere,”

Whitsunday Baptist Church

Pastor Craig Yeomans said.

“We live in an idyllic

tropical environment, which

has been stripped bare and

feels like a landscape more

akin to land destroyed by

fire, but without the charred

blackness,” Craig explained.

Home of Whitsunday Baptist

Church’s services, the PCYC,

Cyclone Debbie ripped through communities in south-eastern Queensland and northern NSW in April.

requires reroofing and extensive

interior renovations due to

significant damage caused by

water pouring into the building.

“We expect repairs to the PCYC

will take at least six months.”

“In the meantime, we are

looking for an alternative location

to worship, but the damages to

civic buildings has also placed

a premium on large meeting

spaces and commercial sites,”

Craig said.

Churches, community

groups and individuals have

come together to clean-up

and support local families

and businesses. The cyclone

has left mixed feelings in the

community, however many are

optimistic about the future.

Debbie’s devastation

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“God remains sovereign

and we live in the wake of His

providence,” he said.

“Whatever happens to us in

the midst of a cyclone, whether we

suffer material loss, injury or even

death, nothing can separate us

from the love of God. His presence

remains with us always.”

“I am sensing that the people

of our congregation are grateful

God has spared all the lives of the

people in our community.”

“We have experienced hardship,

but not tragedy. He has sustained us

and we are looking forward to what

He will bring out of this.”

Whitsunday Baptist Church

launched a hamper project

immediately after the cyclone

hit. Truckloads of donated food,

other necessities and gift cards

have been distributed through

organisations, such as Australian

Red Cross and The Salvation

Army. This met an immediate

need, but there is concern that

the abundance of resources has

started to wind down.

“The real needs are starting

to surface. There are people who

have lost work and possessions.

They will need help to get back on

track,” Craig said.

“We anticipate that this need

will become quite large in the

near future.”

“We need people to

stand with us in prayer. The

Whitsunday Region is a

spiritually oppressed region and

a natural disaster exacerbates

human need.”

“We are praying for spiritual

breakthrough in the lives of

many people.”

Whitsunday Baptist Church

are aiming to raise $10,000

towards ongoing and strategic

ministry to the community by

providing for genuine needs and

support to individuals.

“We long to bring people to a

place in which they discover the

real, living Jesus.”

For more information, visit

www.wbc.org.au/debbie

Caitlin du Toit

Communities continue to clean-up across south-eastern Queensland and northern NSW after the chaos left behind by Cyclone Debbie in April.

2 MAY 2017

Could this be God?

In a series of pithy, poignant and

profound readings, this book

explores the intersection of faith

and life. Spotting parables in the

everyday, Brian’s aim is to equip

readers to explore whether they

might be bumping into God

without realising it. Heartening

and often humorous, it applies

biblical truth in a way that both

fascinates and liberates.

Sheridan Voysey, speaker,

broadcaster and author

commented that “Brian Harris

shows us that life’s seemingly

insignificant moments really do

matter. Why? Because God can

be found in them. Written with

grace, cheer and deep reflection,

Could this be God? is a delightful

read that will bring inspiration

each day.”

Derek Tidball, former

Principal of London Bible College,

and current visiting Scholar

at Spurgeon’s College, London

said, “I couldn’t stop smiling as I

read this wonderful book. Don’t

mistake its light touch, practical

stance and humorous style for

shallowness. It conveys great

spiritual wisdom.”

Brian has served as the

Principal of Vose Seminary since

the start of 2004. ‘A period during

which the seminary has seen

rapid growth and development’

according to Baptist Churches

Western Australia Council

Chairman Bruce Watkins.

Brian is also the Pastor at

Large for Carey Baptist Church

and its associated ministries. He

is well known for his preaching,

teaching and writing ability,

as well as for his insightful

understanding of the Christian

church, an insight which sees

Dr Brian Harris, regular contributor to The Advocate newspaper for over a decade with his monthly My View column has recently combined his column pieces into a new publication – Could this be God?

my view

On 10 years of Advocate articles

Naturally I’m delighted this

column is now being read by a

global audience. Okay – I’m not

going to pretend that J K Rowling

or Stephen King are trembling

that my book will outsell theirs,

but the publishers assure me it is

doing well, and have asked me to

write another.

So what thoughts do I have on

writing Advocate articles for over

ten years?

Observation 1: A decade ago

each column was 500 words.

Now it’s 350. People simply

read less, and in a Twitter age,

you’ve got to get your message

across fast. It’s disappointing

for those who love adjectives

and adverbs, but there it is. The

word count forbids elaboration,

pithy points being the order of

the day.

Point 2: While some

remember what I say in the

column, it’s my photograph

that attracts the attention of

others. When visiting a church

are never sure what that word

will be. While I try to write with

a light and humorous touch

(lest you hadn’t noticed), the

underlying themes are serious.

Abraham Lincoln once wrote:

‘With the fearful strain that is

on me night and day, if I did not

laugh I should die.’ A smile can

open us up to new possibilities

and hopefulness.

If that’s why I write, why

do you read? For a decade I’ve

been writing with the hope that

once in a while this column

will cause you to pause and

ask “Could this be God?” For

God sometimes speaks at

unexpected times …

I don’t know if it’s come across your radar, but recently British publisher The Bible Reading Fellowship collated my last ten years of The Advocate articles in a book Could this be God? Bumping into God in the Everyday.

I won’t name, one elderly and

presumably senile saint said,

“Goodness, you’re even uglier

than your picture!”

Comment 3: Sometimes

words make a difference. If you

ask why I write, it is because

readers have shared that the

column has touched their

lives. Some stories have been

hauntingly poignant. The writer

of Proverbs 15:23 enthuses, ‘A

word spoken in due season,

how good it is.’ Indeed. And you

Dr Brian Harris is the Principal

of Vose Seminary and Pastor at

Large for the Carey Group.

Dr Brian Harris

letters to the editor

send us your letters

The Advocate welcomes your letters to the editor on topics of concern to you and the community. Send your letters of no more than 100 words to editor@theadvocate.tv by the 10th of each month.

Praying with simplicity

Before praying, I’ll have done

a considerable amount of

pondering, thinking and

considering. I bring so much

cognition into the process, that by

the time I get to God, I’ve usually

got it all sorted. By the time my

prayer gets to God I have no

urgency for Him to respond, as

I’ve already got it all figured out.

For the children I work

alongside, things are so simple.

When I meet with a child, they

never bring a perfect list of points

that they’d like to share. They

just bring their true selves, full of

honesty and raw emotion.

When it comes to a child’s

development, they are still learning

how to process and rationalise.

At work, students are sent to me

because they don’t have the tools

needed to regulate their emotions,

which have resulted in them

making negative choices. I had

once considered their inability

to cognitively process things as

a limitation until one day I heard

a child’s prayer: “Dear God, I’m

feeling sad. Please help.”

How could a prayer this simple

be so utterly profound? It’s natural,

instinctive and instantaneous.

The child didn’t stop to ponder

the way they felt. They simply felt

an emotion and turned to God in

prayer.

What would it look like to

simply feel something and

immediately look to God? What

could be benefited by offering

Him our most raw and unrefined

selves? I’m not saying cognition

is negative. I merely wonder how

much more prayer could be if God

was brought into the emotion

first, and was then invited into the

processing journey.

It can be all too easy to become

dismissive of our children, and

feel frustrated with what we may

consider to be their limitations.

However, I’m discovering that if

we opened ourselves more to the

possibility – there is a lot to learn

from children. After all, a student

did just teach her school chaplain

how to pray.

Shelby O’Reilly is a Chaplain

with YouthCARE and Carey

Baptist College.

Shelby O’Reilly

I like to process. I’ll never go into a meeting without well thought-out dot points ready for discussion and I’ll never approach a conflict without a well-rationalised argument prepared. I’ve recently come to the realisation that I approach prayer in the same way.

him serve on the boards of

numerous church, educational

and mission organisations

throughout Perth and Australia.

He has written several books,

including one on leadership, The

Tortoise Usually Wins: Biblical

Reflections on Quiet Leadership

for Reluctant Leaders, another

on Christian worldview The Big

Picture: Building Blocks for a

Christian World View, and in April

2016 Paternoster released, When

Faith Turns Ugly: Understanding

Toxic Faith and How to Avoid It.

For more information and to

purchase, Could This be God? and

Brian’s other publications, visit

www.brianharrisauthor.com

3newsMAY 2017

Please contact us to find out more.baptistcare.com.au/volunteering

Choose from a wide range of activities that match your interests and availability, including:• Baptistcare Music Connection Program• Group activities – arts and craft,

men’s group etc.• Intergenerational playgroups• Sharing a hobby you enjoy – music,

gardening etc.• Visiting with a pet• Chatting over a cup of tea.

Baptistcare volunteers provide valuable community interaction to ensure elderly members of our community stay connected to others.Looking for a way to make a difference and get involved in the community? Why not become a Baptistcare volunteer and help us enrich the lives of our aged care residents?

A big thank you to all our wonderful volunteers!

National Volunteer Week 8-14 May 2017

Youth ask “Is God relevant?”

(addressing creation), ‘Damaged by

Evil’ (addressing sin), ‘Restored Us

for Better’ (addressing salvation),

‘Sent to Heal’ (addressing purpose)

and ‘Everything Set Right’

(addressing eternity).

“Through great storytelling

and brilliantly constructed

phrases, Dan fully engaged with

the ‘digital generation’s’ mindset

and delivered the truth of the

gospel in a non-judgemental

yet uncompromisingly biblical

way,” BCWA Next Generations

Consultant Ed Devine said.

“One could see the many youth

pastors present scribbling notes for

use in their ministries.”

Dan’s message finished with

him holding up a first century

denarius coin. He recounted Jesus’

discussion with the Pharisees in

Mark 12:17 in which Jesus said,

‘Give to Caesar what belongs to

Caesar, and give to God what

belongs to God.’ Dan’s follow-up

Ravi Zacharias International Ministries Apologist and Fellow of the

Oxford Centre for Christian Apologetics Dan Paterson shares why he

believes God is relevant.

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On Friday 17 March, 575 youth seeking answers to deep faith questions gathered at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church.

Youth Pastor Michael Yoo and his

Amp Youth team coordinated a

festival with plenty of variety to

begin the night. Various inflatable

obstacles, sports, video games,

food vans and more had the youth

meeting new people and having

great fun together.

“We kicked off the celebration

with a great time of praise and

worship, where barriers were

broken down and hearts were

opened and fixed on Christ”

Michael said.

Presenting answers

to the faith questions was

Queenslander Dan Paterson,

a Ravi Zacharias International

Ministries Apologist and

Fellow of the Oxford Centre

for Christian Apologetics. Dan

presented five ‘cut scenes’ of the

Christian faith, each building a

strong case for God’s relevance

in a person’s life. The scenes

included ‘Made in His Image’

Stories shared

Pam said there was a ‘buzz’

around the room as the

participants listened to the

speakers at the recent Friends of

Global Interaction morning tea.

Bunbury Baptist Church

member Jeanette Cross was one

of the participants that travelled

a few hours to attend.

“It was so great to hear all the

wonderful information from our

fields. God is surely great and

amazing,” she said.

Closer to home, Morley

Baptist Church Gillian Walker

also attended.

“I came because it is totally

inspiring and relevant and it is

what we need to hear,” she said.

question was “Whose mark is

upon you?”

“There were responses to the

powerful question from youth all

around the room, some deciding

for the first time to follow Jesus,”

Ed shared.

When asked earlier in the

evening about the goal of his

message, Dan responded that he

will try to convince the youth that

the story of Jesus is true.

“In current culture many young

people wouldn’t care if Jesus was

real because they are confused

about what it would mean for their

lives if He was.”

“To deal with their arguments

and help them step into the

Christian story to ‘taste and see that

the Lord is good’ is tonight’s goal,”

Dan said.

The conversation was carried

into Saturday’s ‘Reboot’ session

for leaders, which provided the

opportunity for in-depth and

thought-provoking discussion.

“‘Is God Relevant’ was a

wonderful weekend that brought

unity, stretched the mind,

encouraged the soul and brought

clarity to faith for many young

people,” Ed concluded.

Over 80 friends of Global Interaction came to hear various speakers, including Baptist Churches Western Australia Director of Ministries Pastor Mark Wilson and Global Interaction State Administrator Pam Gallagher, share details of their recent trips to Mozambique and Malawi in Africa, and Assam in India.

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Ian and Anne Howard enjoying the Global Interaction morning tea.

4 newsMAY 2017

12/04/17Richard Clarkthinkchristian.reframemedia.

com

As Scripture teaches older

generations to pass the faith

on to the next generation

[Psalm 145:4; Eph. 6:4], youth

leaders, parents, and educators

will have to study the sea

changes their children take

for granted.

12/04/17Kyle Idlemantwitter.com/KyleIdleman

No matter what you’ve done

or who you’ve become, God’s

grace has not given up on you.

13/04/17Karl Faasetwitter.com/karlfaase

Good Friday is a reminder

that our greatest victory is

not a life free of darkness

but a life lived knowing the

darkness will not win.

13/04/17Greg Morsedesiringgod.org

He willingly stepped

forward in love and

authority to manifest

his excellencies, that we

might declare them in this

life, and experience them

perfectly in the next.

14/04/17Andrew Hamiltonbackyardmissionary.com

So what does a ‘win’ look like

when you don’t want to play the

game like those who are abusing

you? … For Jesus it meant death.

It meant allowing Himself to be

killed by those who didn’t get

Him and who felt threatened by

Him. He gave His life literally.

15/04/17Craig Groescheltwitter.com/craiggroeschel

The Saturday between Good

Friday and Resurrection Sunday

is a true reminder that God’s

delays are not God’s denials.

15/04/17Stephen McAlpinestephenmcalpine.com

And here’s the truly amazing

hope. What if the world

we see right now in all

its blazing colour is but a

pale, anaemic, washed out

version of the world that

is coming?

17/04/17JD Greearjdgreear.com

I was drowning in a sea of

my sin, and Jesus came by

in a boat and threw the life

vest out to me and pulled me

onboard and saved me.

18/04/17Melissa Krugerthegospelcoalition.org

When we live a life focused

on temporary pleasures, we

can only expect temporary

happiness. In contrast, by living

for that which is eternal, we find

purpose and joy in our daily life.

18/04/17CS Lewistwitter.com/CSLewisDaily

I know now, Lord, why you

utter no answer … You are

yourself the answer. Before

your face questions die

away. What other answer

would suffice?

digital church

Lakeside’s 25 year journey

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Original Lakeside Building Committee member Murray Elliot (centre) shares memories of the vision of Lakeside

becoming a reality with Senior Pastor Anthony Palmieri (right) and those attending the 25th anniversary service.a week participating in programs

and sporting competitions and the

team is passionate about seeing

people say ‘Yes’ to Jesus.

“Lakeside has never been

about just being a recreation

centre, there has always been

a larger purpose. From the

beginning, the larger purpose

that bound the church together

was the deep desire to reach out

to the community and Lakeside

is a church that still has that deep

desire, that larger purpose, that

bigger focus,” Anthony explained.

“Throughout the Old

Testament, we see the people of

God constantly building altars

or memorials, after they saw

God move.”

“The anniversary celebration

was a time to build a ‘pile of rocks’.

It was a ‘memorial’, that reminds

us of all the incredible things

God has done in and through the

people of Lakeside.”

“We were reminded that

God is bigger than anyone of us,

that He is faithful and we can

have courage to go where He

leads. Even if it means building a

recreation centre.”

Senior Pastor Anthony Palmieri

said the service was an

opportunity to acknowledge and

thank everyone who had played a

role in the Lakeside story.

“The story of Lakeside is one

of pioneering and stepping out in

faith. It was encouraging to hear

stories of changed lives, stories

of people saying ‘yes’ to Jesus,”

Anthony said.

“Moreover, while it was a day

to thank the many people who

have been involved, it was a day

to reflect and thank God. It was

a reminder of God’s faithfulness,

how great our God is.”

In the late 1980s, Leeming

Baptist Church met in a local

community hall and was a

church that had a desire to reach

its community with the life-

changing message of Jesus.

The church grew and soon was

looking for land to build a facility

that could meet all its growing

needs, as well as being a place for

community outreach.

A 20 acre site in North Lake

that looked perfect was located,

however, it was zoned ‘recreation’.

Senior Pastor at the time,

David Snell, along with others saw

this as an opportunity to step out

in faith and build a facility that

would be used Monday to Sunday,

and to use sport as a platform to

reach the community for Christ.

On 26 February 1992, at a

cost of around $2 million dollars

and considerable volunteer

time, Lakeside held its very first

church service on Court One,

with Lakeside Recreation Centre

officially being launched with

an Open Day on Saturday

14 March 1992.

Today, Lakeside is a vibrant

facility with around 8,000 people

Vose graduates inspire

The annual Vose event has the

dual task of farewelling successful

Vose graduates and welcoming

the many new students.

Mount Pleasant Baptist

Church Pastor to the Community

Graham Mabury delivered

the keynote message to

approximately 500 people

gathered at the event, which was

held at Mount Pleasant Baptist

Church on Monday 13 March.

Prize-winners included

Andrew Binns, Brooke Bourdon,

Geoffrey Carslake, Noel de Boulay,

Braden Fildes, Rohan Nelson,

Jason Park, Katharine Steven

and Kirsty Wager. Ray Forlin,

who graduated with a Master of

Divinity degree, won the Dux

award and special mention was

made of his externally examined

project, which was awarded a

mark of 95 percent.

“This is almost unheard

of for projects of this kind,”

Vose Seminary Principal

Dr Brian Harris said.

Robert Bathurst won the Oliver

Heyward Prize from the Australian

College of Theology as the top

graduating student in the country.

His grade point average of four is

the highest that can be awarded,

meaning he obtained a High

Distinction for every paper he

completed at Vose.

“We are proud of our students,

both past and present, and are

confident they will go on to

contribute to the work of building

the Kingdom of God no matter

where they find themselves,”

stated Brian after the event.

Graduating student, Sally Pim,

spoke of her call to serve God in

Mozambique and has since left

Australia to fulfil her mission.

She is amongst the many Vose

graduates who serve God on all

continents across the world.

Sunday 26 February was a significant day for Lakeside Baptist Church members as they celebrated 25 years of ministry in the local community with a special service.

Moreover, while it was a day to thank the many people who have been involved, it was a day to reflect and thank God.

Cate Vose

The theme for this year’s Commencement and Conferral held by Vose Seminary was ‘Inspire’.

5newsMAY 2017

A rocket was launched at the Atlantis Beach Baptist College Open Day on Wednesday 1 February. The rocket represented a dynamic ‘take off’ for the new College located in Two Rocks, one of Perth’s northern most suburbs.

College rocketing to the future

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“I have had the joy

of seeing lives changed,

marriages restored, families

reconciled and the power of

the Word of God manifest in

people’s lives. What a joy and

privilege!” Colin said.

Special guests included

Joondalup City Mayor Troy

Pickard, Former Member for

Kingsley Andrea Mitchell and

Woodvale Baptist Church’s first

youth pastor, Travis Johnson,

who travelled from Adelaide for

the celebration.

Colin said he was most

surprised to find his ‘mini-me’

standing at the pulpit when

he arrived.

A key aim of the College is

to equip students with the skills,

knowledge and wisdom to be

successful learners, confident

individuals and informed citizens

with hearts for service, social

responsibility and an awareness

of God.

As part of recognising the need

for environmental awareness and

stewardship, the College which

is located near Yanchep National

Park is in the process of developing

a site-wide environmental

management plan which will

provide an integrated systems

approach for the environmental

wellbeing of the College. It will also

provide the opportunity to raise

student awareness of the issues

of environmental and sustainable

development in the context

of acting locally and thinking

globally.

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Pastor Colin Lituri had the unique experience of preaching alongside

a look-alike cake made in honour of his 23 years of ministry at

Woodvale Baptist Church.

The Atlantis Beach Baptist College community celebrating the launch of their new College.

“The aim is for each child to reach

their best potential and to shoot

for the stars,” College Principal

Gary Harris said.

“The rocket launch helped to

symbolise this for the wonderful

students we’ve been blessed with.”

The mission of Atlantis Beach

Baptist College is to empower all

students to achieve and celebrate

their personal best within a

culture of high expectations and

to articulate, demonstrate and

value knowledge and skills that

will support them, as life-long

learners, to establish a lifestyle

that honours God and serves

others.

“In support of Atlantis’

mission, we believe the Atlantis

Beach Baptist community will

bring glory to God and build a

legacy for generations to come,”

Gary said.

Colin’s 23 years of ministry“I later discovered that it

was a cake (yes, a cake!), and it

soon became apparent one of

us was not going to get out of

there in one piece. Fortunately,

it was ‘mini-me’ who made the

sacrifice!”, he joked.

Colin will be undertaking

some work with Baptist

Churches Western Australia

until the end of the year.

Thereafter Colin and Sharyn

will return to the Queensland

Sunshine Coast for Colin to

begin a new ministry that will

take him to churches all over the

country and overseas.

Parkerville experience Easter with art

Jenelle Taylor

A special art exhibition to celebrate Easter was launched at Parkerville Baptist Church on Friday 24 March.

Local artists worked together

to create the exhibition and

ten works capturing the story

of Easter and Jesus’ journey

to the cross were on display in

the auditorium of Parkerville

Baptist Church.

Curator Yvonne Wadley said

the exhibition was a moving

experience.

“We have a concentration

of artists living in the hills and

Parkerville Baptist has its fair

share of these – over 100 people

attend craft groups each week,”

Yvonne said.

“More than 25 local artists,

crafts men and women,

teens and children linked to

the church have created the

artworks, which range from

clay work, quilting and fibre

art to paintings and digital

photography.”

Yvonne said the exhibition

captures the Easter story in a way

that would appeal to all age groups.

“Alongside each artwork hangs

a meditation which includes an

artist’s statement and reflections

to help the viewer visualise

the various stages of Jesus’s

journey on His last day before His

crucifixion,” she said.

The exhibition had been over

a year in the making and was

open to the public on Sunday

mornings after the regular

morning Church service, as

well as Tuesdays and Thursdays

through to Easter Sunday.

Potter Gwen Brennan and curator Yvonne Wadley with some of the artwork

that was on show at Parkerville Baptist Church.

Maryanne Adams

After 23 years as Senior Pastor, Sunday 26 February was Pastor Colin Lituri and his wife Sharyn’s last official day at Woodvale Baptist Church.

At Colin and Sharyn’s final

service, many testimonies

were shared of the impact their

ministry has had in the lives of

individuals and families over

the past 23 years.

Atlantis Beach Baptist College

has included in its building and

development plans a commitment

to collect and store stormwater in

rainwater tanks and use this water

for grounds watering. The use of

solar energy and new technology

in battery storage is also planned

so the College can reduce its

reliance on mains electricity.

The College has made a

commitment to be ‘off-the-

grid’ with its energy provision

as much as is possible, with a

vision for solar, battery and wind

turbine power in the future.

“The College foundation

students, families and staff are

excited to make history and give

glory to God for the journey thus

far and are looking forward to

what the future will bring,”

Gary commented.

The College currently offers

Pre-Kindergarten to Year 9,

progressing to Year 12 by 2020.

For further information, visit

www.abbc.wa.edu.au

6 newsMAY 2017

Playgroup for the young at heart

Baptistcare employee Larissa

Clark. Larissa put out a call for

expressions of interest on the

Perth Hills chat forum and

Facebook, and said she was

encouraged by the level of

support they have received.

“We encourage anyone to

come along and be a part of it.”

“If you have any talents,

piano playing or dancing with

kids, anything like that would be

an amazing help.”

“Donations will never go

astray, we can always get new

and better things for the kids and

residents,” said Larissa.

For more information, phone

9295 1511.

The playgroup brings elderly

people at the residential care

facility, parents and young

children together for quality

interaction through activities

and playtime for a few hours

each week. Children and

residents have the opportunity

to enjoy activities together,

including movement activities

for exercise, story time,

singalongs and indoor and

outdoor playtime.

Baptistcare Yallambee Facility

Manager James Townley said the

playgroup is a good opportunity

for people of all ages to enjoy

meaningful interaction and there

has been a fantastic response

from the Mundaring community

and local businesses.

“It’s great for the residents as it

helps keep them connected with

the community.”

“A big thank you to Larissa

Clark, Baptistcare nurse and local

mum, for her inspiration to get

the playgroup started and for

volunteering her time,” he said.

One of the residents at

Baptistcare Yallambee, June,

said she enjoyed the regular

interaction with the children.

“I like having the children

here and watching them play,”

June said.

Ashleigh, mother to a two

year old son and three month

old daughter, said the playgroup

provides a positive and valuable

learning environment for her

children to socialise with older

members of the community.

“We don’t have grandparents

close by and we thought it would

be nice for my son, to teach him

patience and things like that,”

she said.

Local community partners

have lent their support, with

Mundaring Community

Bank awarding a community

grant to go towards sourcing

toys and equipment for the

children and residents.

Mundaring Community

Bank Executive Officer, Karen

Beale, said the playgroup was

a great initiative for members

of the local community which

Mundaring Community Bank

is excited to support through its

grants program.

“It’s a win-win situation and

ticks all the boxes,” Karen said.

“There’s a lot of research

about intergenerational

playgroups. It’s good for the

young ones and engages the

elderly residents as well.”

Starting up the

intergenerational playgroup

was the idea of local mum and

Colin Barnett and Mark McGowan being questioned about school chaplaincy at a recent event.

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Funding for public school chaplaincy beyond 2018 is now secure following a commitment from the Western Australian Premier and the Opposition Leader.

This news has been welcomed by

YouthCARE.

At a question and answer

session at a major event in

Perth, former Premier Colin

Barnett and the then Opposition

Leader Mark McGowan

responded to a question from

YouthCARE CEO Stanley Jeyaraj,

Chaplaincy secured beyond 2018

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Baptistcare Yallambee resident June and one of the playgroup children share a morning tea snack.

about their commitment to

school chaplaincy services in

public schools beyond 2018

– when the current funding

agreement ends.

Mr Barnett said the school

chaplaincy service was a great

support to children and families

and took a lot pressure off schools.

Linda Lee

A new intergenerational playgroup for the Mundaring community, Playgroup at Baptistcare Yallambee, was recently launched at Baptistcare Yallambee residential care.

“We want to guarantee that

any school that wants a chaplain

can have a chaplain … the

funding will just go on – as the

population grows, the number of

chaplains will grow,” he said.

Mr McGowan also agreed

school chaplaincy was a vital

service in the school community.

“I’ve had considerable

involvement with chaplains in

my electorate of Rockingham,

they do a brilliant job,” he said.

“Yes, I agree that the program

should continue. It is a very good

program and the funding should

roll on.”

Stanley said he was pleased

that both parties expressed strong

support for school chaplaincy.

“We welcome and thank Mr

Barnett and Mr McGowan for

their support and confirmation

of ongoing funding for school

chaplaincy beyond the current

period,” he said.

“It is very reassuring that their

commitment ensures school

chaplaincy in public schools is

secured well into the future.”

7newsMAY 2017

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May Mission Month gives people the opportunity to explore Jesus’

encounter with the woman at the well and how to cross cultural boundaries.

Pastoral and church changesHoly Ark of God International

Church became a recognised

church plant with the Baptist

Churches Western Australia

at the beginning of April.

The families that make up

the congregation are from

Burundi and settled in Australia

as refugees. Pastor Zakaria

Nyangara is the pastor of this

congregation.

Pastor Chris Hawkins has been

appointed as a new Associate

Pastor at Bentley Baptist Church.

briefs

WA Baptists changing the world

It was during a prayer led by

a cross-cultural worker at a

global mission focused service

at Riverton Baptist Community

Church that God set Glenn and

Liz’s life on a path that would

lead them to an unreached

people group in a remote part

of Thailand. It is a journey that

has brought Glenn and Liz into

partnership with thousands

of Australian Baptists working

together in response to the call

of God.

Each year, Global Interaction

conduct May Mission Month as a

celebration of God’s faithfulness

and a call for His church to

recommit itself to His mission.

“It is a reminder that in

our efforts to reach our local

neighbours, God does not want us

to forget our global neighbours,

especially those who live in least-

reached communities where

there are little, if any, believers,”

said Global Interaction State

Administrator Pam Gallagher.

This month, churches

around the state are invited

to mobilise for mission in

response to Jesus’ encounter

with the Samaritan woman at

Jacob’s well. Global Interaction

has provided resources to

support churches, small groups

and individuals of all ages to

consider their part in God’s

mission to share His gift of

Jesus with the world regardless

of what cultural, religious, social

and geographical obstacles

must be overcome.

Eaton Baptist Church is one

of the many churches involved in

May Mission Month.

“May Mission Month is a

great time to learn and discern

our responsibility in global

mission. Mission is everyone’s

responsibility,” Eaton Baptist

Church member Ayla Elliott said.

Esperance Baptist Church

mission convenor, Debbie

Broughton, sees May as an

opportunity to remind everyone

that even smaller and older church

communities can be active

partners in global mission.

“We love standing side by

side with our Western Australian

cross-cultural workers, getting to

know more about them and what

they do,” Debbie said.

“We know we have a greater

impact by partnering with the

wider Baptist family and through

our prayers and giving can enable

the gospel to be shared with

communities across Africa, Asia

and outback Australia.”

The Hungry Hippo makes an

appearance at Maida Vale Baptist

Church during May Mission

Month. The church has identified

a Global Interaction mission

project and each week they will

be encouraged to give generously

by placing their contributions

in the Hungry Hippo money

box. Global mission is an

important part of their church

Winter campsRegistrations are now open

for the Winter Camps being

held at Serpentine Camping

Centre. Baptist camps have been

running at Serpentine for over

30 years. Over that time, they

have been significant in the

lives of many people by helping

shape and grow their faith

while connecting them with

like-minded people, with whom

many form lifelong friendships.

For more information, visit

www.baptistwa.asn.au

Today Glenn and Liz Black and their boys are waking up in Thailand ready to serve among a community of people where Jesus is almost entirely unknown. They arrived from Western Australia in March to join the Global Interaction Ethnic Thai Team. They are part of a movement that has witnessed people experience the freedom that comes from a life-transforming encounter with Jesus Christ.

life throughout the year but May

gives them a special opportunity

to focus, hear directly from a

Global Interaction worker and

recommit to partnering with

Australian Baptists in reaching

the least-reached.

Global Interaction challenge

believers to consider how they

and their church celebrate Global

Interaction’s May Mission Month

this year.

“Perhaps there’s a Glenn and

Liz Black in your congregation just

waiting to hear God’s call to go?”,

Pam said.

“Or perhaps God is calling

you to be a prayer and financial

partner in His mission to share the

life-giving gift of Jesus to all the

people of the world?”

Global Interaction have

several resources to assist

churches with May Mission

Month, including Bible studies,

children’s activities, project

information and video updates

from the cross-cultural teams.

To download May Mission

Month resources, visit www.

globalinteraction.org.au/MMM

For more information, phone

6313 6300.

8 MAY 2017

feature

Anina Findling

I have read a lot about the need for change and

letting go, the healthy aspects of the ‘seasons

of life’, et cetera, but I have not heard a lot of

advice about how to manage the actual leaving

process well. I do know that I have personally

experienced, and also witnessed others, leaving

jobs, relationships or commitments badly;

sometimes in an explosion of unresolved

conflict and negative emotion. At those times,

it may have felt like quitting was the only way

forward, and giving in to the need for self-

justification or emotional venting was the only

authentic way of processing the situation.

Many of us know the country tune ‘take

this job and ...’; celebrating the mysterious

deliciousness of being able to tell the ex-boss or

ex-partner what you really think of them. Letting

it all out seems so therapeutic, and feels so good

at the time! But then the long-term consequences

of this ‘crash and burn’ approach start to sink

in; bridges are burned, people are deeply hurt,

relationships are damaged beyond repair and

our Christian testimony becomes negatively

affected as we eventually realise in the wisdom

of hindsight that we may not have handled the

situation as well as we could have. The short-term

satisfaction of doing what felt so good at the time

may now have led to long-term damage, and

some of us have left a wake of badly managed

decisions and broken relationships behind us.

The loneliest existence I can imagine, and

have sadly seen too often, is of someone who

has reached a point where they truly have no

one, and nothing of significance left to hold on

to in life – they have burned every bridge and

now find themselves utterly alone. Even just this

haunting image should be enough to motivate us

to make amends where possible, and do what we

can to leave a clean slate behind us. The Message

paraphrase has a very down-to-earth version of

Romans 12:17-19: ‘ Don’t hit back; discover beauty

in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with

everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not

for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll

take care of it.”’

Last month as I was considering this topic,

a friend was sharing with me how she had

just finished a job contract, and felt incredibly

unvalued and let down by her previous manager,

wanting to tell them how badly they handled

the communication process at the end of her

contract. She felt ‘wrongly done-by’ and wanted

to let them know that in no uncertain terms. But

a few days later, fortunately before she had taken

the opportunity to do that, that same manager

emailed and asked her if she wanted to consider

taking on a new contract with the same company,

an offer she gladly accepted. She mentioned to

me that she was so glad that she had not burned

that bridge, and was grateful to be able to cross

back over it for a job that was perfect for her family

rhythms and financial needs.

Around that same time another Christian

leader I spoke with was also processing

the ending of their job, one that they had

passionately invested into, that had ended

quite suddenly and painfully. They also felt

that the communication process in that

situation had not been handled well, but had

resolved to rise above it and seek to leave the

situation behind with as much blessing as

possible. “Even though it cost me at a deep

level, I was determined to only speak and act

in ways that would build the Kingdom,” they

said. I personally have never witnessed such a

painful job situation being handled in such a

godly manner.

In the last six months, I have found myself in ‘a state of leaving’; leaving the busier role of hands-on parenting to head out into the unchartered waters of empty nest syndrome, as my 19 and soon-to-be 18 year old teenagers spend more and more time away from home rather than in it. And moving on from commitments and ministries that I have been involved in for many years as I sense God leading me into new ones. I have felt somewhat lost as I tried to make sense of the mixture of grief and loss combined with the feeling of relief and anticipation for what is to come.

Leaving well

9MAY 2017

feature

Both of these life examples were a great

inspiration to me, giving me a practical example

of what leaving well looked like. In addition to

the above passage from Romans 12, several

other Scriptures have also given me wisdom

for navigating these often-turbulent waters,

like James 3:13, 17 and 18: ‘Who is wise and

understanding among you? Let them show it

by their good life, by deeds done in the humility

that comes from wisdom ... [for] the wisdom that

comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-

loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and

good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers

who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.’

Many of us know the popular verse ‘Most

important of all, continue to show deep love

for each other, for love covers a multitude of

sins’ [1 Peter 4:8, New Living Translation]. This

is a verse that has often helped me extend

grace (at times through gritted teeth, I might

add!) in times of emotional strain and conflict

in family relationships.

Have you had a current or previous boss

treat you wrongly? Peter encourages us: ‘Submit

yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human

authority ... Slaves, in reverent fear of God

submit yourselves to your masters, not only to

those who are good and considerate, but also

to those who are harsh. For it is commendable

if someone bears up under the pain of unjust

suffering because they are conscious of God’

[1 Peter 2: 13a, 18 and 19].

Do you feel a need to defend or justify

yourself? When I have been sacrificially

obedient to God’s Word, allowing Him to

fulfil His biblical promises about defending

righteousness and vindicating a just cause, I

have experienced such peace and a far better

long-term outcome than any solution I could

have tried to work out for myself.

As I look back on my most recent process of

leaving, one that I have tried to manage with as

much blessing as possible, I have found it helpful

to make note of a few questions for the next

time I find myself trying to navigate these more

familiar waters:

• Will I regret burning the bridge to this

relationship, ministry or job in case I might

want to cross back over it, or resume it again,

in the future?

• If I give in to the short-term desire for self-

justified venting in this current conflict, what

kind of long-term damage might I be causing

in the process?

• Am I prepared to sacrifice what might feel

good for me, for the sake of being more of a

blessing to others?

• What is the best way to build the Kingdom of

God through the challenging situation I am

currently trying to navigate?

May the God of wisdom, peace and comfort

guide us through every season, and help us to

manage life’s transitions well.

Anina Findling is the Relationship Manager

for Baptist Financial Services.

Leaving well

10 newsMAY 2017

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Robert Bosch (far right) with employees and apprentices in front of their car repair garage in Essen, Germany.

Mechanics for God

While there is certainly

no shortage of applicants, the

garage cannot take on everyone.

Currently, eight people work

in the project: two master auto

mechanics, two administrators

and four apprentices.

“We are a small company,”

Robert explained.

“We can’t offer an

apprenticeship to as many people

as we would like to.”

The garage is financially

dependent on private and

corporate sponsors due to the

costs created by taking on more

apprentices than the garage

can employ after they finish the

apprenticeship; on average 10,000

euros per apprentice per year.

Self-sufficiency remains a goal for

the future.

The award-winning project

has shown good fruit elsewhere

in Germany and inspired the

establishment of another car

repair garage with a mission.

This garage has achieved

financial independency by

encouraging members of the local

church to support the initiative.

Church goers specifically choose

to service their car at this garage

to show their support of the

idea of giving a helping hand to

disadvantaged, but willing and

motivated, young people.

Ramona Ötting

Young people with potential and drive are offered a helping hand at a Christian-led car repair garage in Germany. By taking on apprentices who have been turned down elsewhere, garage owner and master mechanic Robert Bosch wants to “pass on God’s love”.

The mechanic’s motto is printed

onto a banner for everyone to see:

“We want to pass on God’s love” it

says in large letters on a wall next

to the car hoists. The mechanic’s

mission is not to evangelise his

apprentices, but to help them

become part of the workforce

despite their performance at

school in the past.

In Germany, good grades, a

spotless resume and a secondary

school certificate are generally

essential in order to secure an

apprenticeship. At Robert’s

garage, the focus is instead put on

personal drive and potential ability

to succeed as an apprentice

auto mechanic.

Since the start of the project

in 2003, the garage has helped 13

young people successfully finish

their apprenticeships and enter

the workforce – something which

Robert thinks would probably

not have been possible for these

young people previously.

“One of our former apprentices

even went on to become a master

auto mechanic and founded his

own company,” Robert recounted

with pride in an interview with the

online magazine Pro.

So far, only three apprentices

had to leave the garage

prematurely, because of

behavioural issues.

Persians renew church in UK

Governor pleads for Christian valuesIn an interview with the

NBC, Californian Governor

Jerry Brown pleaded with

President Donald Trump and

his government to reconsider

building a wall between the

United States and Mexico.

The Governor said that

California “will do the right

human – and I would even

say Christian – thing” by

fighting the plans. “Trump’s

supposed to be ‘Mr Religious

Fellow,’ and I thought we’ve

got to treat ‘the least of

these’ as we would treat the

Lord. So I hope he would

reconnect with some of these

conservative evangelicals,

and they’ll tell him that these

[undocumented migrants]

are human beings, they’re

children of God,“

Governor Brown added.

Missionary loses final appeal in RussiaDon Ossewaarde, the

missionary who was among

the first to be charged under

Russia’s ‘anti-terrorism’

laws introduced in July

2016 has taken his case

to the European Court of

Human Rights after losing

his final appeal in Russia.

Mr Ossewaarde was charged

with conducting missionary

activities in violation of the

new set of laws in August

2016 (The Advocate reported

in December 2016). The

missionary and his wife Ruth

have ministered to people in

Oryol, Russia for 14 years.

Mr Ossewaarde had said from

the beginning of the court

case that he would take the

case to the European Court of

Human Rights if necessary.

international briefs

Ramona Ötting

Churches in the United Kingdom have joined ongoing reports of asylum seekers across Europe converting to Christianity. Some report of new communities coming to life, renewing church congregations.

In Stoke-on-Trent, 70 kilometres

south of Manchester, Rev. Sally

Smith has seen her congregation

be transformed over the course

of just four years: from 18 people

attending on a regular Sunday

to having baptised 75 former

Muslims and running bilingual

services. Her church is located

in a low socio-economic area

where asylum seekers are often

placed while their application is

processed, many of them coming

from a Persian background.

As Rev. Smith reported

in an interview with Premier

Christianity, she reacted to rising

refugees numbers in town by

initiating a support charity for

asylum seekers. The support

provided includes helping

with bureaucracy, providing

emergency accommodation

and assisting in all areas of life.

The support group operates on

church premises, but is strictly

non-evangelistic.

“Still, it drew many who were

looking for a sense of belonging to

a family towards the church”, said

Rev. Smith.

Embracing the new

community, Rev. Smith initiated

controversial changes to the

traditional service structure such

as readings in both Farsi and

English. She remains optimistic

even though all previous

attendees have now joined

another church.

“I think that it’s an

opportunity for the Church to be

renewed,” she said.

“The ministry gifts that people

are bringing from all around

the world is something that we

desperately need.”

“My church was like a stale

pond, getting stagnant; we needed

them coming in, creating more of

a river,” Rev. Smith concluded.

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Persian asylum seekers are bringing cultural diversity to a post-industrial community near Manchester.

11MAY 2017

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Crisis in South Sudan Ramona Ötting

The South Sudan Council of Churches has called upon the international community to take action and advocate for humanitarian aid to be delivered to majority-Christian South Sudan.

‘We appeal to the international

community and friends of the

people of South Sudan to provide

immediate and large-scale

assistance,’ read a statement

released by the South Sudan

Council of Churches.

The young country which

gained independence from Sudan

in 2011 has been in a state of civil

war for three years, claiming the

lives of thousands and strongly

affecting villagers’ ability to

operate farms and provide food.

The United Nations (UN)

has officially declared that a

famine has struck the country,

estimating that 100,000 people

are currently on the verge of

starvation and another 4.9 million

need lifesaving food assistance.

The man-made famine has

caused severe instabilities in the

East African region. In 2017 alone,

172,000 South Sudanese have

fled to neighbouring Uganda

with an average of 2,800 arrivals

per day in the month of March.

According to the United Nations

High Commissioner for Refugees,

South Sudanese refugees in

Uganda will surpass a million by

mid-2017, based on present rates

of arrival.

Humanitarian aid attempts

have been complicated by

aggression towards aid workers

from both sides of the South

Sudanese civil war. According

to the UN, 100 humanitarian

Thousands of South Sudanese live in refugee camps such as this one in Juba, South Sudan.

aid attempts were blocked in

November 2016, with violence

against aid workers and supplies

used in 67 of these incidents. In

March, eight Samaritan’s Purse

staff workers were kidnapped

by armed rebels who demanded

aid deliveries as ransom.

The staff members were later

released unharmed.

UN Under-Secretary-General

for Humanitarian Affairs

Stephen O’Brien has called the

crisis in East Africa the largest

humanitarian crisis since the

UN was founded in 1945, as more

than 20 million people across

Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia

and north-east Nigeria “face

starvation and famine”.

According to a 2010 study

by the Pew Research Center,

more than 60 percent of people

in South Sudan are Christian. In

2017, the Australian Government

has allocated $34 million in

response to the worsening crises

in the region.

Christians in Kathmandu, Nepal have no choice but to bury their dead in a remote mountainous area.

Ramona Ötting

Christians in Nepal face struggles when seeking land to bury their dead. In Kathmandu, they must hike up a mountain to find a place of rest for their loved ones.

According to a World Watch

Monitor report, Christians in

Kathmandu previously buried

their dead on a piece of land inside

the complex of a Hindu temple

until this area was blocked off for

Christian burials in 2011. Without

an alternative, believers started to

bury the dead on their own private

land, meeting strong opposition

from neighbouring residents who

demanded that the bodies would

be dug out and buried elsewhere.

In absence of a better solution,

churches in Kathmandu and

surrounding areas united to buy a

piece of land for a cemetery on a

secluded mountain, far from the

city. The land can only be accessed

by four-wheel drive vehicles,

which few have. Believers are

forced to hike up the mountain for

No place for Christian burials in Nepal

one and a half hours, carrying the

body of the deceased.

The churches could not see

another option but to buy this

land in order to avoid further

conflict with neighbouring

residents, and land closer to the

city was too expensive.

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Believers are forced to hike up the mountain for one and a half hours ...

12 MAY 2017

How did you become a Christian

and develop a faith in Christ?

I had the privilege of growing

up in a Christian family. My

parents were missionaries on an

Aboriginal mission at Roelands,

where I grew up as a child. A

man came and talked to the kids

about the wide road that leads to

destruction and the hard skinny

road that leads to everlasting life.

It is the parable that Jesus told.

At that point, he asked if anyone

wanted to make a commitment

to become a follower of Christ.

As a young child I did that and

this began my relationship with

Jesus Christ. Three to four years

later I went through water baptism

and over the years I am thankful

for the people that poured into

my life as a young person, from

a discipleship point of view, and

mentoring and helping me grow

in my faith.

You have a family who have

strongly supported you in this

role. Briefly tell us about them.

I am married to Karen. We

have two adult children. Our son,

Daniel, married Julia 15 months

ago and our daughter Katherine

is dating a Christian young man.

From when I first started this

role in 2007, Karen stepped in

as a volunteer to do the Baptist

women’s ministry. She has been

doing this for ten years. Out of

this grew the Fresh Conference.

In the first year we had about

100 women. Last year, ten years

later, we had Fresh Leadership

for women on the Friday with

400 to 500 women attending and

then on the Saturday we had the

Conference at Curtin Stadium.

It was booked out and there was

approximately 1,200 women who

attended and over $300,000 was

donated last year for projects

for children and women caught

in slavery. Karen has also been

involved in running the Pastors’

Retreat and other things as well.

What led you to apply for the

Director of Ministries role?

I was approached for the role.

I didn’t apply initially. I had been

in local church ministry for 19

years and I was in my 14th year

at Whitford Church (now called

True North Church) and a group

of Baptists came and asked if I

would consider doing the Director

of Ministries role. At this point I

declined and during the following

in conversation

as many pastors as we can to be

involved in them. Our desire is

that every pastor will be in some

sort of pastor small group. A lot of

our churches now have multiple

staff so that’s [built] around

relationships as well.

You also commented that “your

hope for the future is to see

Baptist churches that reach

out to their local community

and make an impact on the

community”. As you reflect

on this statement, how do you

believe Baptists are performing

in this area?

It’s a key part of who we are

and what we do. Some churches

are doing it better than others but

the majority are good news stories

about how they are reaching out.

Schools, community centres,

sporting facilities, aged care and

early childhood are all areas where

we are impacting within the

community. There is no ‘cookie-

cut’ – what works in Broome won’t

work in Claremont. They need to

work out what’s the best way for

them in their local community

to reach out to the people in their

community. It’s a continuous

process and it comes back to

inspiring and influence.

What does your role as Director

of Ministries involve? What do

you do day-to-day?

My role is quite diverse

with responsibility for over 120

churches. I meet with pastors and

church leaders and try and help

them in their circumstances and

situations. I have between 50 and

60 staff, which includes the camp

sites, special projects and events,

and buildings – that is one major

area. Two other major areas are

Vose Seminary, and business and

finances. The final big area, which

all the previous areas exist for,

is church and pastors. We have

different people employed in that

area, such as children, youth,

young adults, cross-cultural, Safe

Church, accreditation of pastors

and marriage licenses.

I’m often invited to churches

and preach in a different church

almost every Sunday.

I’m also a member of a number

of boards. I sit on the board of

Baptistcare, which is a 120 million

dollar not-for-profit and that has

a lot of complexity. I’m also on

the national Australian Baptist

Ministries board. I’m a part of the

Baptist World Alliance which is

Baptist unions and conventions

worldwide and has about 120

million people.

The other part of my role is

vision and setting vision. People

represent me on different school

boards and national boards. I meet

with the school principals every

term. We have approximately 15

Baptist schools.

I have a specific role to take

care of all the remote churches

and pastors. I Skype call with

them every month due to their

remoteness.

What part of this job do you

personally find most satisfying?

And, the most challenging?

The most satisfying is when

I meet with pastors or leaders

and then out of that they take

on things you say and then you

see them ‘kicking goals’. I get

a lot of pleasure empowering

and helping others to fulfil their

potential. This is one of the most

encouraging aspects, along

with seeing churches making

an impact in the community for

good, and people finding faith in

Jesus Christ and getting baptised.

The most challenging is dealing

with mistakes from the past or

major conflicts.

Are you optimistic about

the future of the Baptist

denomination in Western

Australia? What challenges do

you believe it will face in the

coming years?

I am optimistic about the

future and I will not let up on the

whole philosophy of relationship,

trust and influence to change the

movement. We’ve had multiple

strategic plans which we have

achieved. One of the big things

Reflections on 10 years of ministry

two year period they approached

me again. Eighteen months into

the process, my wife and I started

to really think [about the role] and

we felt God leading and guiding us

to have a conversation with them

again, so we had that conversation

which led to us going through the

process to apply.

After Scripture and people

encouraging us, I felt God possibly

calling us into this. I went to

the elder board at the Whitford

Church and told them the whole

story and I said to them, “I want

you to go away for the next two

weeks and pray, and if you believe

before God we should apply for

this job, we’ll do it. If you believe

before God we shouldn’t, and we

should stay, we’ll stay.” Two weeks

later we met together and they

said we don’t want you to go, but

we know it’s the right thing. So

that’s when I officially applied,

had interviews and the Assembly

voted on it. A vote is conducted

every five years to determine

whether I continue in the role.

In 2007, you shared with The

Advocate that you wanted

to build strong relationships

between churches and yourself.

Why was this important to you

and how has this progressed

over the last ten years?

First of all, I absolutely believe

in healthy pastors leading healthy

churches. In the first year of my

role, I met every single senior

or sole pastor for the purpose

of building relationships. I have

continued to do this, with some

years better than others. It’s not

just me, it’s a whole team of us

trying to build these relationships

and continue to build them as

it’s not based around one person.

The whole process for me is to

build relationships with pastors

and then out of that comes

trust and out of trust you can

have influence, and that’s how

you change the movement. It’s

the same with churches. The

pastors are accountable, but they

are the leaders of our churches

and so they are a key part of the

relationship building.

For anyone who is a pastor, it’s

not just teaching and preaching

on Sunday, but it’s either working

a system for pastoral care or doing

pastoral care. We have tried to

set up systems for pastoral care

so we have created ‘pastor small

groups’ and we are trying to get

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for the future is doing church

planting and seeing churches

revitalised. We plan to meet with

some key stakeholders and staff,

and the Baptist Council, and have

a ‘Blue Sky Day’ and vision cast

the big goals we would like to see

happen in the next five to ten

years. This provides optimism

about the future. We aim to keep

pastors healthy – physically,

emotionally, spiritually and

mentally in their roles.

Your role would have its stressful

moments, large amounts of travel

and constant output of energy,

what do you do to maintain your

own personal health, spirituality

and wellbeing?

I have a mentor who I have

been seeing for over 12 years and

he is the person who supports

me personally and emotionally,

by asking about my faith, family

and relationships. He keeps me

accountable and this is important.

Also, I am in a pastor small group

myself and we have been together

for over 20 years. They have been

an incredible support.

The other thing is keeping

my personal relationship with

Jesus Christ healthy, through daily

reading of Scripture and prayer.

I try to have a Sabbath day every

week. I enjoy catching up with

friends – I have lots of friends

that aren’t Christ followers as well

as friends that are followers. I’ve

been a member of the West Coast

Eagles Football Club for 12 years. I

love hiking, so I try and walk every

day with one or two hikes a year. I

have hiked most of the Bibbulmun

Track with another pastor. I have

an incredibly supportive wife who

is my ‘rock’. We love sharing our

days off together and finding that

life balance.

In February 2007, Pastor Mark Wilson commenced as the Director of Ministries for Baptist Churches Western Australia. In this, his 10th year of ministry with Baptist Churches Western Australia, Vanessa Klomp caught up with him to discuss this season of ministry.

13MAY 2017

growth

Something about realignment

Something about editing

too deep for words.’

[Romans 8:26]

Intercedes. Do not know.

Groanings. Too deep for words …

Feels like heavy editing language

to me. Not in order to remove

content (though sometimes that’s

necessary), and not to highlight

the error, but to bring clarity.

Holy Spirit interprets, purifies,

sanctifies, discerns, convicts,

and, emphatically, reveals Jesus.

Holy Spirit reveals truth.

‘When the Spirit of truth

comes, he will guide you into all

normal gait and movement, in

comfort instead of discomfort.

I was thinking about the

obvious parallels, as I lay with a

heat pack on some sore muscles,

between what’s going on with

my physical muscles, and what I

feel Jesus is teaching me in my

spiritual walk.

When I am corrected, be it

pride or learning to trust Him

more, it kind of hurts. It brings

about discomfort, and it hurts my

‘feelings’. If I’m not careful, this

can lead to me taking offence and

thereby not taking that gentle lead

of the Holy Spirit into a place of

realignment and correction.

Unlike with my physio (who

I really do like), the pain and

struggle is in my soul and it’s not

expensive to fix. How do I work

through it? There’s a few steps

involved for me. First, I need to

acknowledge that my ways are not

necessarily the best ways.

‘I have considered my ways

and have turned my steps to your

statutes.’ [Psalm 119:59]

Goodbye pride.

When I say goodbye to pride,

I can step back and look at the

big picture. I can consider that

while this may hurt for a little

while, or may not appear to be

the easiest route in front of me or

the route that others are needing

to take right now, my hope is that

the result will be God’s glory. For

because you’ve lost me” and

together we’ll figure a better

way to express the thought.

Interestingly, I’ve found that I can

see errors I’ve previously missed

while reading along over her

shoulder as she edits.

When I have to put my

editor’s hat on for others, I read

differently. I’m not reading

something I wrote; I’m doing for

others’ writing what Fi does for

mine. In those moments, I find

the same errors that I’m inclined

to gloss over in my work. I don’t

think this is because I’m soft on

myself – sometimes I think it’s

because I read what it’s supposed

to say rather than what’s

necessarily written.

Paul writes to the Romans:

‘Likewise, the Spirit helps

us in our weakness. For we do

not know what to pray for as

we ought, but the Spirit himself

intercedes for us with groanings

Simone Field

I’ve been seeing a physiotherapist. She is great. I think she’s a nice person.

This opinion continues from the

moment I walk into the studio

until she starts treating me. When

the treatment begins, I start to

think less charitably of her.

I’m having some muscle

issues. A particular few are not

behaving as they ought, leaving

a greater strain on some other

muscles in the neighbourhood,

resulting in overload and

restricted movement. I do not like

the process for fixing this while

it’s happening. It hurts, and it

costs money. It takes time away

from the other productive things

that I should be doing.

For the week or so after the

treatment, though, things improve

a little. I can move more easily and

do the exercises for strengthening

that will lead to ultimate

realignment and success. This,

in turn, will lead to me being able

to resume the forms of exercise

that energise and recharge me.

It will help me to move without

hindrance through daily life and

trust this body, this jar of clay,

to obey commands involving

I miss grammatical errors, typos

and clumsy sentence construction

more than I’d like because, well,

it made sense at the time. Some

of these errors are uncovered

through self-examination, others

are glossed over several times

without me realising my feeble

grasp of the language.

It’s not as though they’re

intentional. Ideally, everything I

write would be 100 percent error-

free. It wouldn’t be a guarantee for

it being interesting or readable,

but it would be squeaky clean.

My wife, Fiona, is the chief

editor of my words. Most of what

I write, on Write Something

at least, is read and edited by

her. Sometimes she’s willing,

sometimes coerced and half

asleep, but she’ll read through and

correct grammar and syntax so

that it says what I meant it to say.

Sometimes she’ll ask “what

are you trying to say here

what other purpose can I truly

hope to live?

‘Therefore in the east give

glory to the Lord; exalt the name of

the Lord, the God of Israel, in the

islands of the sea.’ [Isaiah 24:15]

Hello, humility.

Then, if I am honest, I may still

struggle, but eventually, I will turn

to prayer and praise, for I know that

they are my finest weapons and the

healing tools that God has given to

the truth, for he will not speak on

his own authority, but whatever

he hears he will speak, and he will

declare to you the things that are

to come. He will glorify me, for he

will take what is mine and declare

it to you.’ [John 16:13-14]

There’s a partnership that goes

on with the Holy Spirit that doesn’t

edit us from the story; it develops

our character to its fullest.

I want to be edited by the Holy

Spirit. More than this, I want a

heart that’s being transformed

by Jesus. Left to my own devices,

Simon Elliot

I need editors. And I need to edit. There’s something about my writing brain that, more often than I’d like, overlooks error.

all of us. The posture of kneeling,

of weeping, of raising hands while

my head is bowed, does deep

realignment within my soul.

‘I will exalt you, Lord, for you

lifted me out of the depths and did

not let my enemies gloat over me.’

[Psalm 30:1]

I don’t have this completely

figured out yet. I do have the

biblical pattern, though, for

realignment and seeking God’s

glory. I do have the gentle

voice of the Holy Spirit who

can calm even the stormiest

battles that wage within my

soul. And I do have the secure

knowledge that I belong to

Jesus, struggles and all, and He

is not done with me yet.

Used with permission

from Simone Field,

writesomething.org.au

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even the best editing work will

leave my heart a scarlet shade of

dirt but, in Jesus, there’s ongoing

reformation. New stories are

being written, further editing is

taking place and, brick by brick, a

different house is being built.

That’s the slowest editing

work of all, but thankfully, it’s

crafted by the unforced rhythms

of grace.

Used with permission

from Simon Elliott,

writesomething.org.au

14 MAY 2017

news

Bright City plan to continue to take over their town of Brighton once a month with worship nights.

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98five Music Director Chela Williams

Described as a ‘family of artists’ from UK’s Brighton, Bright City is not your usual church worship band. Debuting on radio stations around the world with their single ‘Colour’, songwriter Elle Smith spoke to 98five’s afternoons host Tim Bain and shared Bright City’s passion for exploring every avenue of artistry God has created.

Editor: Matt ChapmanManaging Editor: Andrew SculthorpeSubeditor: Caitlin du ToitProduction: Vanessa Klomp Creative: Peter IonAdvertising: Sally PhuDistribution: Sally PhuEditorial deadline: 5th of each month

EDITORIAL AND ADVERTISING:Email: editor@theadvocate.tv advertising@theadvocate.tvMail: Baptist Churches Western Australia PO Box 57, Burswood WA 6100Tel: (08) 6313 6300Fax: (08) 9470 1713

PUBLISHERS GENERAL DISCLAIMERAll the articles, comments, advice and other material contained in this publication are by way of general comment or advice only and are not intended, nor do they purport to be the correct advice on any particular matter of subject referred to. No reader or any other person who obtains this publication should act on the basis of any matter, comment or advice contained in this publication without first considering and if necessary taking appropriate professional advice upon the applicability of any matter, advice or comment herein to their own particular circumstances. Accordingly, no responsibility is accepted or taken by the authors, editors or publishers of this publication for any loss or damage suffered by any party acting in reliance on any matter, comment or advice contained herein.

The Advocate is published on behalf of Baptist Churches Western Australia by imageseven. Tel: (08) 9221 9777 Email: info@imageseven.com.au

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Bright City sing over their city

“We have a music stream and

that’s where the albums are

written from, within that group of

people,” Elle explained.

“Then we have dancers

in Bright City dance, Bright

City visual arts and Bright

City production. The whole

group is Bright City and we

all go to St Peter’s [Church] in

Brighton. That’s our sort of

ground really and we all get

inspired and it’s amazing.”

Named after their own town,

Bright City set out a plan to take

over Brighton once a month with

worship and music.

“All of last year really, every

month we did a Bright City

worship night in the city of

[at a] sticky club floor where

all the kids are going to on the

weekends and we would fill this

space with our non-Christian

friends [and] our friends from

church,” Elle laughed.

“We kind of cram everyone

in, about 300 people on a Sunday

evening at a grotty venue and

we’d play this music. Our songs

are just worship songs in general.”

Being in the centre of

Brighton is at the core of Bright

City’s vision which it serves at

such a crucial time for the UK

in light of the recent London

terrorist attacks.

“It’s so easy to be wrapped

around in fear [but] actually as

a Christian I really believe that

God’s in control,” Elle said.

“Even though this is a

terrible and awful incident that

happened, things happen every

single day that we don’t know

about in this world and it breaks

my heart.”

“We can’t do it all but I just

believe that God can and He

can conquer the bad things and

[we] need to stand together as

people of faith, rise up and pray

for these people, our brothers

and sisters.”

For more information, visit

www.98five.com/latest-music

The road to redemption

Starring Kaitlyn Griggs and Rose Sengenberger, Redemption Way is scheduled to arrive on screens this August.

Caitlin du Toit

Due to be released this August, Redemption Way is a drama with faith-based themes.

Jenny Paine, a hospice nurse,

feels it is her mission to safely

deliver souls into the next

life, however when Jenny’s

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childhood friend is placed

in hospice her attempts to

share her Christian faith are

unsuccessful.

Throughout the movie,

Jenny experiences a feeling

of helplessness in other areas

of her life as she longs to be

a mother and experiences

a challenging road to a

promotion at work.

In an interview with

Daily Southtown, Producer

Brad Podowski said it is not

about ‘the Christian is right

and the atheist is wrong’.

“It’s about opening up a

conversation about faith. It’s

really about friendship and

forgiveness and sacrifice,”

he said.

The movie will be available

on DVD and digital download

platforms.

... it serves at such a crucial time for the UK in light of the recent London terrorist attacks.

15MAY 2017

intermission

This voucher entitles you to 15% off your next purchase in store at Mount Lawley

The Advocate – May 2017

readA minute with ...

Colin Meadows – Riverton Baptist Community Church Associate Pastor, focusing on pastoral care.

What is a feature of your church or ministry you’d like to share?

Our journey towards being a church of all ages and many cultures excites my heart.

We have seen a strong inflow of people from a wide range of cultural backgrounds as a

result of our openness to welcome such people.

What do you think God has been trying to say to you lately?

Seek to look out for younger people whom I can mentor and encourage.

Did anyone put you through an intentional plan for leadership development? What

was the plan?

I have not been part of a leadership development strategy and so I had to find my

own way through by trial and error. I was blessed by my studies at Vose Seminary

in more recent days. It is exciting today that there is far more focus on intentional

discipleship and coaching. Therefore, I have sought to be available to younger leaders to

encourage them.

What would you like to go back and change?

To be far more intentional in preparing myself for ministry, marriage and life in

general. Especially to overcome my tendency to procrastinate, even over the writing of

this article!

What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the

first time?

Find a good mentor and give them permission to speak into your life. Ask God to

give you a teachable spirit.

A final thought …

Try to slow down a little in this fast paced world, allowing God to speak to you in the

whispers of your quieter moments. He has much to tell us, if we would just slow down.

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Reviews by Koorong Mount Lawley staffWebsite: www.koorong.com

Address: 434 Lord Street, Mount Lawley

Phone: 08 9427 9777

watch

Take this CupBodie and Brock Thoene

I reviewed the first book in this series –

Jerusalem Chronicles – some time ago but

Take this Cup has taken me on a different

journey than When Jesus Wept. How do we

know the one known as Jesus of Nazareth

is really the Messiah prophesied about

in what we know as the Old Testament

especially when the story is unfolding

before our eyes and everyone has a different

opinion? This is the dilemma of 10 year

old Nehemiah charged by his beloved and

trusted rabbi to take a gift to Jesus across

many miles and in the face of great danger.

Through Nehemiah’s eyes, the reader

sees how scary and uncertain following a

calling really is, but if a person steps out in

faith God will meet them and their needs,

practically and supernaturally. – Dorothy

Hacksaw RidgeHacksaw Ridge is a touching movie based

on the true story of the remarkable life of

war hero Desmond Doss, a World War II

American army medic, who served during

the Battle of Okinawa. Well told and directed

by Mel Gibson, this graphic, yet realistic,

movie retells the life and experiences of an

incredible man who stood by his belief to an

extravagant length by refusing to touch a

gun while still fulfilling his desire to serve his

country. Incredibly, Desmond becomes the

first man in Amercian history to receive the

Medal of Honor without firing a shot. With

his dertermination and strong reliance on

God he was able to accomplish extraordinary

things on the front line of war. Hacksaw

Ridge gives the viewer a glimpse into his

gruesome situation, however it not only

leaves them emotional but inspired to put

their trust in God wholeheartedly just like

Desmond. – Alison

Here I am Send MeDarlene Zschech

Darlene Zschech is just as passionate as

ever after fighting for her life against breast

cancer and this translates into amazing

and inspiring lyrics and music in Here I Am

Send Me. The title track has a challenging

lyric – ‘Send me; to the nations, Send me;

to the neighbours’ – no one is exempt from

the Great Commission and that means

everyone should do something and not

just leave it to others. This is immediately

backed up by the next and last song on the

album ‘Go’. The deluxe edition includes a

great DVD which shows the live recording

and how intimate the setting was. Although

Darlene was amazing she also brought

out and encouraged the best in the others

within the team. – Dorothy

listen

16 MAY 2017

sport

Dockers train Carey students

Carey Baptist College Forrestdale Year 5 teacher, Huntz Thieme, delighted with the recent visit from Fremantle Dockers: Michael Walters, Taylin Duman, Sam Collins, Ethan Hughes and Nat Fyfe.

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“The players caused a bit of a

stir down at the front office, as

they arrived when mums were

dropping the kids off. Bit of

excitement – and lots of photos

taken as well!” Huntz said.

When Huntz organised for

some Fremantle players to visit

his class at Carey’s Forrestdale

campus, he assumed only one or

two players would come. He was

amazed to see the club had sent

five players – including Captain

Nat Fyfe – to chat and play with

the Year 5 class.

“The guys were great. They

spoke to the kids, and the kids

asked lots of great questions,

which was wonderful,” Huntz said.

“We kicked goals, did

handballing, kicking, had a

Q&A. It was fun,” Year 5 student

Rylee Gentry said.

As well as valuable ball skills,

Huntz said the players gave

students an inside look at what

being an elite sportsperson is

like. The students asked players

about their diet and nutrition,

fitness levels, and what a typical

day of training may include.

They also wanted to know what

it is like to be famous.

Ten year old Halle Selepe

said it was exciting to meet the

players and learn some new

tricks with the ball.

“It was really cool and

fun. They were really nice to

everyone. And sometimes

when people were asking them

questions they would ask us

questions, to know more about

us,” Halle said.

While there are no

immediate plans, Huntz said

he would welcome visits from

any sports club to the school,

as it was a real thrill for the

students.

“The kids get a real buzz out

of it,” he said.

Carey Baptist College Forrestdale Year 5 teacher Huntz Thieme was not sure whether it was the students or the parents who were more excited to see five Dockers players visit the school recently.

American football players are often seen kneeling in prayer before

the big game.

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“The biggest under-covered

story in the NFL every year

is how huge a factor faith in

God and Jesus Christ is in the

playing and coaching of the

sport,” Salguero said.

“Every day, in season and out

of season, coaches and players

(and women on staff) pray before

they begin their duties and often

ask God through Jesus Christ

for guidance and health in the

carrying out of their functions.

Yes, they get paid and rewarded,

but for many, everything they do

is unto God.”

“It is their motivator and at

the centre of who they are.”

Despite the personal

importance to many players,

this part of the NFL often gets

overlooked, he added.

“They turn to their faith

for answers, strength and

encouragement.”

“That touchdown celebration

you see every weekend, where

guys point to the sky? That’s not

the first or only time these men

address God, Christ, and heaven,

but rather that is the public view

of a deep and daily walk and

relationship these people have

with their Lord,” he described.

“And yet, their stories – their

testimonies – go unreported

because the media is largely

secular and the NFL wants

to keep the game largely

secular, despite the fact a large

percentage of its employees are

believers,” Salguero concluded.

Ramona Ötting

In a round-table discussion among American sports journalists, NFL columnist Armando Salguero highlighted the place of faith in the NFL when asked about stories in American football that do not receive enough attention by the media.

Faith a big factor in NFL