Living lives that are fully dependent on God in obedience to Christ and the Bible.

JANUARY 2016theadvocate.tv

BAPTIST CHURCHES

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

3 Reworking classics New band All the King’s Men release debut album >>

5 National honourMandurah Baptist College student receives award >>

8 TerrorismA Christian response to terrorism >>

Firefighters from the Department

of Fire and Emergency Services

(DFES) from Margaret River,

Dunsborough and Busselton,

State Emergency Service (SES)

from Albany, and Department

of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW)

from Ravensthorpe, arrived at

the School on the evening of

Thursday 19 November 2015.

The firefighters battled the

blazes during the day, taking

up residence at the School for

a week.

The bushfire was believed to

have been sparked by lightning

at Salmon Gums and Grass Patch.

Homes came under threat after

the fire jumped containment

lines on the western edge of

Charlie Abbott, son of boarding house parents Nathan and Mandie, enjoyed having the firefighters on-site.

the blaze near Mullet Lakes and

winds pushed it north-west

towards Esperance.

Tragically, four people died,

including local farmer Kym

Curnow, 45, who saved several

people from driving into the

inferno before becoming trapped

himself. Norwegian national

Anna Sashohova Winther, 29,

British man Thomas Leslie

Butcher, 31, and German woman

Julia Kohrs-Lichte, 19, also died

trying to outrun the fire.

An evacuation centre was

established at the Esperance

Civic Centre on Council

Place. It was here, amidst a

community meeting that

Principal of Esperance Anglican

Community School, Kerr

Fulton-Peebles, offered the

School’s boarding facilities to

accommodate firefighters.

Student Niwaa Patrick, 14,

was eager to contribute.

“I really liked helping out by

cooking and making beds while

the ‘firies’ were here,” he stated.

“I liked being able to give

something back to the people

who gave up their time to come

and help us.”

Established in 2008

and located in the heart of

Esperance, the School has

grown rapidly to become a

valued contributor to the local

regional community and

strives to demonstrate the

values of Christian faith which

binds the School community,

a term Kerr describes as

‘Muscular Christianity’.

Boarding was introduced

for the first time in 2015, so that

the School can continue to grow

and better serve the needs of the

surrounding areas.

The School provided

beds, linen, refreshments and

snacks for the firefighters who

reportedly appreciated the

comfortable facilities and beds

rather than sleeping in swags or

camp beds.

Kerr has witnessed how

the fires have affected the

Esperance community.

“There have been very

sad stories of loss of life

and property,” he said.

“The father of a former

student was one of the

fatalities and her friends and

friends of the family have

been traumatised.”

“Others have lost crops

and buildings … The real test

is probably yet to come as

we attempt to restore hope

and rebuild.”

“Overall, however, the

impression is one of care,

resilience and pragmatism

with so many tangible

demonstrations of support

and help.”

Firefighters bunker down

Ph

oto

: N

ath

an

Ab

bo

tt

Melinda Hack

Esperance Anglican Community School opened their boarding facility to host 19 firefighters who were battling the devastating bushfires in Esperance recently.

In Conversation Freedom City Church Pastor Arastoo Yazdani talks about his

experience of being a refugee. PAGE 12 >>

“How do we receive a blessed life?”PHIL PRINGLE PAGE 13>>

2 JANUARY 2016

Courage to listen

This is where my study skills

came into being – ‘when

you’re stuck, read the question’.

‘Whatever is on your heart.’

The silence was deafening as

I strained to listen ... Have you

ever tried so hard to listen to

something that the muscles

around your ears ache, and your

neck feels that it is about to break

from the strain?

Now whilst those around

me probably enjoyed a few

minutes peace (except for the

rhythmic thump of my heart),

I wasn’t completely enjoying

the stillness. Listening to my

heart seemed anything but

calming. Rather, it was almost

overwhelming. As I got closer

to the deadline, the faster my

heart raced, and sitting became

almost impossible. It is what

Bill Hybels describes as ‘Holy

Discontent’.

The exercise of stopping and

listening was both exhausting

and invigorating, so I decided

that it was time to reflect and

resolve the topic later.

In the meantime, three

days at the National Safe

as Churches? Conference

(yes, the question mark is

intentional) reinforced the

discomfort of the things that

are on my heart. These are

things that I give my time

to, things that I wrestle with,

things that I grieve over.

Then I hear Jesus speak:

‘Don’t let your hearts be

troubled. Trust in God, and

trust also in me.’ (John

14:1 NLT)

I was asked to write about – ‘whatever is on your heart’. So I compiled a list; eliminated the more controversial subjects, as well as those things that would be of little interest to anyone else; and began reviewing what was left.

my view

When phones don’t ring …

I hadn’t even known there was

such a function on my phone,

though I had been perplexed

by the quarter moon emblem

that had mysteriously appeared

on the screen. My conclusion

that this was some inaccurate

update on the latest phase of

the moon turned out to be

invalid. Apparently it means

that even though my ring tone

said it was on and set to the

highest possible volume, it was

actually off.

Not that I am complaining.

Ignorance has been bliss. I

haven’t had to explain to my

wine club that I really don’t want

to make use of their incredibly

good two for one, three for

one or even four for one deal.

Nor have I been cajoled into

purchasing a prepaid funeral.

And I won’t be flying to Peru

with some interesting new

airline whose planes just might

arrive in spite of the incredibly

low fare they charge.

In spite of my missed calls,

the sun has continued to rise

day after day. But it has left me

pondering. Could it be that I

unwittingly have other ‘do not

disturb’ signs written over my

life. Perhaps the glance at the

time when someone’s story is

proving a little long. Or not really

paying attention when someone

is speaking. Perhaps it’s a cue I

even give off to God. Priorities so

easily get muddled.

Better go – the prepaid

funeral lady is on the line.

I’ve just had a mystery solved. After weeks of asking people why my mobile phone wasn’t ringing, it turns out I had inadvertently switched on a ‘do not disturb’ button.

True, some calls of greater

gravity have been missed. It was

a pity not to know that a meeting

I was rushing to was cancelled.

And it would have been nice to

receive the call alerting me that

I was down to lead the opening

devotions at a board meeting.

(My trusty line, “we live in such

a noisy world, so rather than

my adding more words to the

thousands you have already

heard, let’s start with silent

prayer” rescued me yet again.)

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.

Discouragement – the enemy

The three great temptations of

life that were most likely to lead

pastors astray and thereby see

them removed from pastoral

leadership roles in churches.

Some 25 years down the track

I have discovered that an even

stronger threat, an even greater

enemy has entered the playing

field: discouragement!

According to Keith

Farmer, who mentors over 100

pastors around the nation,

discouragement is singularly the

greatest reason why pastors will

leave the ministry. Diminishing

attendance at Sunday services,

shrinking offerings, and conflict

within church leadership bodies

can all too easily lead to a place

of deep discouragement and an

overwhelming urge to throw in

the towel.

This then highlights the great

need for encouragement within

the Body of Christ. And not just

for pastors, but for everyone. We all

need encouragement!

The writer to the Hebrews

understood this, which is why he

urged his readers to encourage

one another – and all the more as

we see the Day approaching. It is

as we encourage people that we

literally put courage into them.

We plant seeds of courage into

the lives of others, seeds that will

in time produce the fruit of faith,

hope and love.

To adopt the role of

encourager is a high calling

indeed. It’s easy to mock other

people’s ideas. It’s easy to pour

cold water on their enthusiasm,

or to be negative and cynical. The

world is full of discouragers, and

their words and attitudes quickly

become weapons in the hands of

Satan. When Paul wrote a letter to

his dear friend Philemon, he said,

‘Your love has given me great joy

and encouragement, because you,

brother, have refreshed the hearts

of the saints.’ [Philemon 7] May

the Lord send to his church more

people like Philemon, people who

are encouragers, who will refresh

the hearts of others.

Nick Scott is the Senior

Pastor at Mount Pleasant

Baptist Church.

Nick Scott

Money, sex and power are themes close to the heart of God. In the late 1980s when I first attended theological college, a book of the same title by Richard Foster had been published. As Bible College students and prospective pastors we were sternly warned that these were the big three.

Jackie Smoker is a Senior

Pastor at Como Baptist Church

and BCWA Accreditation

Registrar/Safe Church

Education Officer.

Jackie Smoker

I know what’s on my heart,

and it probably isn’t the same

as what is on yours. I know

that I need not be troubled, but

rather trust in Jesus to help me

act upon what He has placed

on my heart – complete with

the discomfort.

So, let me challenge you with

the question that was asked of

me ‘whatever is on your heart?’

Do you know what the Holy

Spirit has placed there? Are

you prepared to live with the

discomfort between the trouble

and the trust?

May we find the courage to

listen to the heart of Christ in us,

to endure the discomfort and to

trust in Him!

3newsJANUARY 2016

New band reworks classics

All the King’s Men members Nikki Cunningham, Callum Bint, Joel Waddell, Carolyn Thomas, David Chidgzey,

Mia Formentin, Alanah Quartermaine, Caitlin du Toit, James Collins and Caleb Quartermaine.

“After some of my early

attempts during our church

services were well received, and

seemed to be genuinely helpful

for us as a people, I decided to

do more and enlisted the help

of fellow music team members

Nikki Cunningham and Callum

Bint before establishing the full

group,” James said.

All the King’s Men have taken

the unusual step of making

the CD, digital tracks, lyrics

and music lead sheets freely

available on their website as

a way to share their work as

widely as possible. A number of

tutorial videos are also available

to assist other church music

teams to play the songs in their

own congregations.

“We believe we are

announcing the good news, so

there was never any question of

charging money for it.”

“We want the gospel to reach

as far and wide as possible,

and if the music we record can

contribute to that in some way,

then we want to make it as widely

and freely available as we can,”

James said.

The musical talent within

the group is diverse and lead

to an eclectic mix of voices

and instruments featuring

on the recordings, including

drums, a variety of guitars,

bass, mandolin, banjo, violin,

The ten-piece band, creatively

named All the King’s Men, has

given new life to a number of well

known existing poems and songs

by arranging and recording them

with a contemporary sound.

In November 2015 the

band was officially launched,

coinciding with the release of

seven professionally recorded

songs on their debut album Let

Us Adore Him, available digitally

and on CD.

The idea for the band and

putting together modern

arrangements of classic works

stemmed from the desire of

Mount Pleasant Baptist Church

(MPBC) Musical Director and

All the King’s Men founder,

James Collins, to broaden the

repertoire of songs sung at weekly

MPBC gatherings.

“There is a depth of spiritual

understanding, not to mention

poetic skill, in the writing of

people like Wesley that is simply

unmatched,” James said.

“All of the texts that feature

in the songs were chosen

because they state sublime truth

clearly and also describe with

clarity, real Christian exercises

and experiences.”

In 2014, James began

setting some of these poems to

new music and existing tunes,

drawing significantly on the folk

musical tradition.

keyboard, to the more unusual

spoons and glockenspiel.

The band is keen to perform

and share their music, with

a genuine desire to help

spread the gospel as opposed to

seeking fame and fortune.

“The whole idea of this band

is to produce songs that will

help the Lord’s people grow in

faith,” James said.

“We definitely aren’t aiming

to establish ourselves as a brand

or anything like that, and we’re

Ph

oto

: Ele

na

Ah

ma

d

just going to try and keep our

minds and hearts open and go

wherever the Holy Spirit leads.”

To download the album, view

resources or make a donation,

visit www.allthekingsmen.band

Former factory transformed into church Terry Hicks

A former factory has undergone a major transformation and is now the new home for Inglewood Community Church.

The new community facility

was officially opened with a

time of celebration and praise on

6 December 2015.

Baptist Churches Western

Australia Director of Ministries

Mark Wilson acknowledged

the work and energy required

to make the transformation

with those gathered at the

event. Mark also reminded the

congregation that they weren’t

just celebrating the opening of

a building, because church is

not just about the building, but

about the people.

There was a time of

enthusiastic singing and

recognition of the time and

effort many had contributed to

transform the building into a

suitable church venue.

Senior Pastor Mark Edwards

cut a red ribbon to mark the

occasion. Holding the ribbon

were three people ranging

from very young to the elderly,

signifying the prayer that the

church would remain there for a

long time.

Mark Edwards then

challenged everyone to consider

the claims of Jesus Christ as

we all have to make a choice: to

follow Him or not.

Inglewood Community Church Senior Pastor Mark Edwards with BCWA Director of Ministries Mark Wilson

signify the beginning of a new era for the Church.

Ph

oto

: Te

rry

Hic

ks

A new folk rock band has been birthed from some members of the music team at Mount Pleasant Baptist Church with one goal – to share the gospel and help Christians grow in their faith.

4 newsJANUARY 2016

Terry Hicks

A dusty paddock transformed into an entertainment zone heralded the start of Leavers 2015. Medical facilities were prepared, rides were ready, music tents and the silent disco set up and toilets and water available.

Green Team make a difference

Ph

oto

: Te

rry

Hic

ks

Ph

oto

: Te

rry

Hic

ks

The many volunteers in the Leavers Green Team 2015.

digital church

incredible. I knew from the first

night, as I stood in the crowded

confines of the Zone amongst

6,000 plus teenagers intent on

pushing many of the social

boundaries as far as they dared,

that God would use me and all the

other volunteers there that week,

and He did.

For instance, there was this

young man who I had taken

to find medical assistance on

came from many different walks

of life. Each volunteer receives

training to assist them in the role

and display enthusiasm and care,

and actually enjoy their time at

the event. The reward is seeing

the Leavers safe and protected

whilst they are in The Zone, as

well as being able to have a good

time. Many of the Leavers thanked

the team for caring for them and

helping them when they needed it.

The positive effect of The Zone

on the Dunsborough and Busselton

communities was reflected in a

significant reduction in problems

and antisocial behaviour.

When volunteers are asked

why they do it, especially as

they pay $90 to be involved, the

response often refers to Jesus’s

words in Matthew 25: 40-45, and

that they care about the young

people and want to help create a

positive image of Christians and

the church.

The Zone Coordinator Michelle

Smoker and her team were

thanked by the WA Police and

other support agencies for their

contribution to Leavers 2015.

If you are interested in being

involved in the 2017 Green Team,

contact the BCWA on 6313 6300.

Keith Hall

The desire to be a volunteer with the Leavers Green Team had always been with me but it was only this year, being for the first time a Pastor without a church, that I found myself available.

So I signed up with great

anticipation only to discover

at the training session that

the majority of Green Teamers

were somewhere under 30

years old — a milestone that I

had passed more than 30 years

earlier — and that the whole

project was vastly different

to what I had assumed it

would be.

That’s when the doubts

crept in. Would I, as an old guy,

fit into the very youth based

culture of the Zone and be at all

effective there?

God soon showed me that

he had all things in hand.

The acceptance I felt from all

the other team members and

especially from the Leavers

was amazing. The way God

steered me into the areas that

He wanted me to work in was

Keith Hall had his first experience of volunteering with the

Green Team in 2015.

This year saw Baptist Churches

Western Australia (BCWA) again

managing the entertainment zone

at Dunsborough, in conjunction

with the Western Australia Police

and other agencies from 22 to 26

November 2015.

The Zone is a part of the WA

Government’s Harm Minimisation

Policy which was introduced

to protect Leavers from harm

and reduce negative impacts on

local communities.

Baptist Churches Western

Australia were invited to participate

eight years ago and has continued

to be involved in this government

funded activity.

One hundred and forty five

volunteers form the BCWA Green

Team and work in The Zone

helping to keep toilets clean,

manage the crowds, help in the

medical area and interact with the

17 and 18 year old Leavers. Each

night, by the busload, an average

of 6,500 Leavers converged on The

Zone. In The Zone they enjoyed

four hours of entertainment and

activities in an alcohol and drug

free area, protected from ‘toolies’

and others who want to take

advantage of them.

The Green Team volunteers

ranged in age from 18 to 68 and

A green experience

29/11/15Kyle Idlemantwitter.com/KyleIdleman

There’s a big difference between

sharing struggles out of

vulnerability and humility, and

the sin of complaining. One

helps, the other hurts.

30/11/15Louie Gigliotwitter.com/LouieGiglio

Focus less on your wounds, and

more on the wounds Jesus bore

for you. Both are real, but His

can heal.

the first night. Absolutely

inebriated, before he even

entered the Zone, he spent that

whole night in the first aid tent.

On the final evening he saw

me as he was leaving, thanked

me profusely for helping him,

and told me that since his initial

over consumption he had not

touched any alcohol.

In my heart I praised God

for His faithfulness.

30/11/15Max Lucadotwitter.com/MaxLucado

Though you failed, God’s love

does not. Face your failures with

faith in God’s goodness.

01/12/15Jason Helopoulosthegospelcoalition.org

Ministry is hard work, but it is

glorious work. Something every

Christian is given the

responsibility and privilege of

enjoying. Let’s not allow

discouragement to steal the

delight from us.

01/12/15Victoria Osteenjoelosteen.com

Are you facing something that

seems impossible in your life –

in your relationships, finances,

or on your job? When we don’t

know what to do or how to do it,

remember this: God does.

01/12/15Rick Warrenrickwarren.org/devotional

You’re not God. You don’t

have all the answers. You

can’t do everything. If you’re

struggling to find balance in

your life, that one admission can

transform everything.

02/12/15Eugene Chotwitter.com/EugeneCho

Sermons aren’t just from

pulpits. They’re preached

around kitchen tables, on

streets, in boardrooms … even

on a bus.

02/12/15CS Lewistwitter.com/CSLewisDaily

It is when I turn to Christ,

when I give up myself to His

personality, that I first begin

to have a real personality of

my own.

02/12/15David Murphytwitter.com/InLifeOnPurpose

Turned ‘If I Ain’t Got You’ by

Alicia Keys into part of my

prayer this morning: “I don’t

want nothing at all if it ain’t

You Lord.”

02/12/15Gavin Ortlunddesiringgod.org

If we know the medicine will

work, we don’t so much mind

the bitter taste. In the gospel, the

medicine works.

5newsJANUARY 2016

Mandurah Baptist College student Courtney Cummins has been crowned the 2015 Young Australian Artist of the Year.

National honour for student

Ph

oto

: im

ag

ese

ve

n

though the market has slowed

down, Anthon believes God has

carried the business.

“We surrender the business

to God – every time before we

open a shop we have a blessing

of the shop,” Athon said.

“We believe God will always

lead us.”

“There are down times and

difficult times, but we rise

through – we rely on Him.”

Staffing is usually one

of the hardest issues in the

hospitality industry and Anthon

has witnessed God at work here

as well.

“If a few staff leave a good

replacement is found in the

right timing – God’s timing,”

he said.

of Arts, Robyn McCormick, and

her mother accompanying her

for the ceremony.

“Mandurah Baptist College

have always jumped at the

opportunity to showcase the

amazing talents of their students,

whether they be volleyball stars,

gifted drama students, or even

aspiring artists,” Robyn said.

“We invest a great deal of

energy and care into nurturing

our students’ natural abilities.”

“As a school we are

extremely proud of Courtney’s

achievement and the

acknowledgement it has allowed

for Mandurah Baptist College on

a national level.”

Courtney plans to study

fine arts, graphic design and

commerce at Curtin University

in 2016.

Ph

oto

: Ro

by

n M

cC

orm

ick

Ph

oto

: Jo

sh T

ho

ma

s

V Burger Chef Abel Gonzalez and Proprietor Anthon enjoy serving the

local community.

The award-winning self-portrait by Mandurah Baptist College 2015 Year 12 graduate, Courtney Cummins.

The talented artist was a

member of the 2015 Year 12

cohort, with Courtney’s self-

portrait being one of 2,500

entries to be selected for the

prestigious award.

“I’ve always loved art,

and especially portraiture,”

Courtney said.

“I drew it [the self-portrait]

on a piece of paper and then

projected it on to a canvas, I

traced it to a basic outline and

then used base colours for the

skin, then I just did layers and

layers until I was happy with it,”

she said.

“Everyone’s technique is

different and it’s hard to explain

how I do it.”

Courtney received the award

in Melbourne in late 2015, with

Mandurah Baptist College Head

Serving more than burgersAnthon has found that his

Christian beliefs and values

impact the way he conducts

business. In dealing with

people and staff, Anthon

believes it has given him

more grace and hope in

making decisions.

“Sometimes a decision we

make may appear to the world

(that) it is a loss, but for us it is

a gain, for example, a difficult

staff member, rather than

terminate them, I try to dig

into the base of the problem.”

“There could be a personal

or family issue.”

“We try and change people

around by fixing the inside

and sometimes they say they

might start going to church.”

Celebration at youth night

Brad Patterson, formerly a pastor

at Mukinbudin Church of Christ,

spoke at the event. His message

of hope and finding power when

believers plug into God was a

timely message for the young

people present.

One of the organisers reported

that God clearly spoke through

Brad with over 30 people making

first time decisions to say ‘yes’

to Jesus and more than

50 responses.

The team at Inglewood

arranged a variety of games

and entertainment for the

youth, such as human

bowling, a spooky corner and

giant buzzer, bouncy castle,

silly string and Nerf gun area.

Jess Magowan lead a

young worship team with

Andrew Binns

Youth groups from across Perth gathered at Inglewood Community Church for the final combined Baptist youth event of 2015, on 27 November.

Giuliana Inga, a year 11

student from Inglewood,

opened the night singing

‘Energy’ by Hillsong Young

and Free.

Church youth groups

represented at the event included

Bentley, Ellenbrook, Girrawheen,

Morley, Parkerville and Woodvale.

Four of the combined events

are held each year, with a

different church hosting each

one. Inglewood Community

Church hosted the event in its

new building.

A strong response to the gospel message was experienced at the final Perth combined youth event for 2015.

Just over six years ago Anthon was a chef in a restaurant, but felt he wanted to do more with people and serve their needs. He is now one of six Perth Christians who are the proprietors of V Burger Bar, with outlets located in Victoria Park and Floreat.

Through their business,

Anthon has seen how God has

helped the owners daily. Even

Anthon feels God is leading

him to keep the business

growing so they can be more

of a blessing to staff and

the community.

Elizabeth Quay will

be the next location for

another V Burger Bar,

with a store due to open

by early February.

6 newsJANUARY 2016

Ph

oto

: Sc

rip

ture

Un

ion

WA

Ph

oto

: BC

WA

Leavers enjoying the end of school in true style.

The gospel midst surf and sand

Teenagers, young adults, families

and some older folk from

numerous churches are involved

in programs in eight different

locations around Western

Australia. This summer there are

programs being held in Bremer

Bay, Brookton, Cervantes,

Cheynes Beach, Denmark,

Jurien Bay, and two in Augusta,

one at the Turner Caravan Park

and one at the Flinders Bay

Caravan Park.

Teams run an exciting and

energetic program for children

and teenagers, during which

they open the Bible in a way that

is engaging and appropriate for

their age. It’s a fun time where

leaders build relationships

with the children and young

people and where they get an

opportunity to share the gospel

with those who come.

A few of the many children who enjoy hearing the gospel while on summer holidays.

Ph

oto

: Sc

rip

ture

Un

ion

WA

Many teams also have coffee

available for parents and other

adults providing the opportunity to

build relationships with them, often

having the chance to support these

people, and share about the hope

that they have in Jesus in the midst

of that.

During the day and at night,

the teams run fun community

events for those in the caravan

park or the town. These events

include games of cricket,

movie nights, quiz nights,

amazing race events, mum and

daughter pamper nights, fishing

competitions, slippery slides

and paella evenings in a market

style atmosphere. The events are

gifts to the community, as well as

providing further opportunity for

building relationships and sharing

the gospel with campers and

community members.

Barb Totterdell

As has happened each January for over 50 years, this month more than 200 volunteers are out sharing the good news of Jesus with children, young people and families on Scripture Union WA Family Mission programs.

Those on team benefit

in a range of ways too as the

experience develops members’

leadership skills, and inspires

them for mission and gospel

ministry through the year.

There are many people who

point to their experience on a

Scripture Union (SU) WA Family

Mission as a key point in their

been the really big point where

we’ve all had our faith centred at

and sourced from.”

SU WA are always looking for

people of all ages to be on their

teams, for more information,

contact Community Missions

Coordinator Jane Duff on

9371 9100.

leadership development for

Christian ministry.

“The biggest area where my

faith has really come into my life

was at mission,” volunteer Ash

Hotchkin said.

“That’s where I found

my faith, and it’s just gotten

stronger and stronger.”

“For our family, mission has

Doing Leavers differently

Joyce Arnott

What better way to celebrate finishing school than swimming with turtles at pristine beaches, snorkelling coral reefs, sand-boarding white sand dunes, shopping, chilling out at cafés and meeting new people.

Leavers SU programs

reportedly assist in building

lifelong friendships with

peers and leaders, with

many leavers becoming

leaders or kitchen helpers

the following year as well

as volunteers on other

SU programs.

All programs invite a

space for exploring faith in a

variety of ways.

Leavers Ningaloo set up

a gospel tent where leaders

served the campers in a café

style space while a leader

shared their testimony.

Each day the gospel tent

was packed while a leader

shared wisdom on the truth

of Jesus and the Bible.

beginnings whilst celebrating

the end of an era.

The program is structured

to combine freedom, a great

Christian leadership team

and fun activities with

the aim to create a great

week of celebration of the

end of school in a safe and

nurturing environment.

“This is the best way to do

Leavers!” one Leaver’s mum said.

Scripture Union (SU)

WA 2015 leavers have

just celebrated like this

on their three Leavers

programs; Leavers Ningaloo,

Leavers Esperance/Albany

(diverted to Albany due to

the Esperance fires) and

Leavers Melbourne.

SU WA Leavers offers

a mixture of relaxation,

adventure and new

Proclaiming God’s grace

Vale Ross Norling

Victor Owuor

The Romanian Baptist Church in Bayswater celebrated two baptisms and one infant dedication on 15 November 2015. Naomi Bughiu and Lucian Cușai made a public proclamation of their salvation when they were baptised.

Naomi and Lucian also both

testified about their journey of

faith and declared their lifetime

devotion to God through their

baptism.

In the same worship service,

Jonathan and Alexandra Khoo

dedicated their son, Noah

Alexander Khoo to God. Both

parents prayed that Christ

would dwell in their child’s heart

through faith.

Organisers felt that it

was fitting to celebrate both

Ross Norling, Pastor Hedland

Baptist Church, passed away

peacefully in his sleep on 9

December 2015 after a long

battle with cancer. He is

survived by his wife, Jenny,

and children.

ceremonies in one worship

service because both were a

proclamation of God’s grace.

Infant dedication is the way

parents make a personal

pledge toward God to pass

their heritage of Christ’s saving

grace to their child, while

through believers’ baptism,

the candidates proclaim God’s

saving grace that they have

experienced through their

personal faith in Christ.

7newsJANUARY 2016

Ph

oto

: Ji

ll B

irt

Ph

oto

: M

ari

lyn

Mc

Cu

tch

eo

n

Food security for workers

Using aquaponics they

produce fish in a tank then

circulate the water, including

the waste products, to a series

of containers where they grow

a variety of vegetables.

A simple solar powered

pump keeps the plants

supplied with nutrients

and the water fresh for the

growing fish.

A community development

worker in central India, uses

this system for his own family,

designating a section of their

backyard to produce fresh

organically grown vegetables

for his family.

“We’re still experimenting

and fine-tuning things, but we

see this is an answer to the daily

needs of Christian workers in

India where finances are often

tight,” he said.

When workers come in for

their regular training sessions,

he explains the benefits of the

system and how the aquaponics

process is set up.

“There is not much that can

go wrong with this simple system,

but the benefits are huge,” he said.

India has thousands of

workers leading networks of

simple house churches across

the country. As workers become

In India a backyard aquaponics set-up is helping workers in

disciple-making movements provide their families with fresh fish

and vegetables.

Five men at Thailand’s Khao Bin Prison were baptised during an Australian team’s visit in November 2015.

Jill Birt

Disciple-making movements in India are helping workers become self-sufficient in providing food for their families.

Ph

oto

: Ph

il L

ind

say

Volunteers help to rebuild Nepal

Through their partner,

International Nepal Fellowship

(INF), they have been replacing

infrastructure, particularly

schools and some shelters for

individuals.

Prior to construction, INF

chose a simple but resilient

structure, called in some

volunteers to Pokhara and

taught them how to erect the

Temporary Learning Centres.

These volunteers then travelled

with the INF teams and after

some supervision, were able to

construct the shelters themselves.

Jill Birt

TEAR Australia raised $1.1 million for relief aid to Nepal following the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the country in April 2015.

The shelters are basically

free-standing tin tunnels.

They are constructed in a way

that uses no nails so the tin

can be recycled and used for

the roof of new permanent

school buildings when they

are built.

They are insulated with

foam and plywood which

keeps down the sound of the

rain on the tin roof, and also

prevents condensation.

Each shelter weights 360

kilograms and is designed to

be used for five to ten years.

Children do early morning exercises outside their Temporary

Learning Centres in Talajung, Nepal.

Pen pals’ hope in Thai jails Jill Birt

Claremont Baptist Church members Ellen Broerse and Marilyn McCutcheon recently led a team of volunteers from Hope Behind Bars to visit prisoners in Thai jails who write to Australian pen pals.

The group of Christians from

Perth and Melbourne visited

six prisons, including their

first visit to the Central Youth

Prison. Teamed with pastors

from Thai churches, there

were times of rejoicing as 17

men were baptised at Klong Pai

Central Prison and five at the

high security Khao Bin Prison.

Many of the team members

met their pen pals who are

serving medium and long-term

prison sentences.

During their visit to the

women’s prison, the team

worshipped with 30 women

who are following Jesus. The

women come from around the

world. They met in an upper

storey classroom where they

heard stories from the women

about how God is working in

their lives. The prisoners’ choir

of rich African voices and sweet

harmonies from the Philippinas

added to the worship experience

for everyone.

Many of these women

have been in jail for 16 to 19

years, missing out on seeing

their children grow up, but

several testified that it was

only because of their prison

sentence that they met Jesus,

giving them a different

perspective to their suffering.

“We shared the Prayer of

Saint Francis of Assisi with the

prisoners and found this to be

a guide for our team, to be used

by God as an instrument of

His peace on our visits,”

Marilyn said.

Hope Behind Bars started

in 1994 when Ellen Broerse

was living with her husband

in Thailand and a local church

leader asked her to become a pen

pal with a Thai prisoner. Twenty-

one years later the movement

has three of its five branches in

Australia where people write to

hundreds of needy prisoners.

At Klong Pai Central Prison

the team met many of those

listed as pen pals, but not all.

They took gifts of small towels,

eyeshades, toothbrushes,

highlighters, reading glasses

and some guitar strings for the

musicians. At the prison shop

they bought soap, toothpaste

and shampoo for each of the 51

men on the pen pal list.

At the Bangkok Immigration

Detention Centre four of the

team visited four individuals.

Some detainees from Africa

came to Thailand with the

established in an area, a suitable

version of the sustainable

kitchen garden can be

developed. Excess vegetables

and fish could be a source of

cash for the worker.

promise of work, but found

none and have now been in the

Detention Centre from nine

months to years.

Mental health issues appear

to impact many detainees.

The team was able to

provide the majority of the

money needed for an air

ticket to return home for a

Congolese lady, Betty. She

had been detained with

no hope of returning home

because of the airline ticket

cost. She recently spent time

in hospital with depression

but is now well enough to

leave Thailand.

8 JANUARY 2016

feature

for us to repent of co-opting

Jesus for our own ends and

be reconverted to the biblical

Jesus who is one with the poor

and broken.

The only way to see through

our own culture is to connect

ourselves with the God of

the suffering, the poor and

marginalised. The Bible has a

bias towards these people. To

be Spirit filled and evangelical

means to bring good news to

them [Luke 4:17-18]. We need

to ‘weep with those that weep’

and ‘mourn with those that

mourn’ [Romans 12:15] and see

things from their perspective

regardless of which race or

creed they adhere to.

I am appalled at the recent

terrorism in Paris, but I’m not

surprised. This is a response

by an oppressed minority of

Muslim extremists who have

been subjected to the greed and

violence of the ‘Christian’ West

for a long time and are using

any means of revenge they can.

Professor Noam Chomsky said,

“The best way to stop terrorism

is to stop participating in it”.

A Christian response

Terrorism has a mix of

economic, political and religious

motivations. It is difficult to say

where one stops and the other

begins, however I am far surer

of what a Christian response

should be.

Grace is the Christian

distinctive. We have grown up

on the cycle of violence and

the revenge motive operates

in a majority of most movies.

Einstein said that a problem can

never be solved by the same

consciousness that created

it. War can’t bring peace.

Steve McKinnon

If we want revenge and

spread hate then we are fuelling

their fire and not trusting God

or His Word. We need to ‘bring

good news to the poor’ in word

and deed. We need to work for

justice and peace alleviating

poverty, the conditions that

breed terrorism in the first place

while pointing to Jesus the

source of grace and peace.

The context

The recent spate of terrorism

hasn’t come from out of

nowhere. The ISIS [Islamic State

of Iraq and Syria] terrorists are a

relatively small group of Muslim

extremists who are using their

religion as a means of hitting

back at the ‘Christian’ West after

years of the ‘Christian’ West

invading their land taking their

oil. George Bush Sr was quite

clear why they invaded Iraq in

1991, he said “We are defending

our way of life”, which in fact is

dependent on oil. When George

Bush Jr invaded Iraq in 2003

with Australia’s support he said,

“I am driven with a mission

from God”. God would tell me,

“George, go and fight these

terrorists in Afghanistan”. And

I did. And then God would tell

me “George, go and end the

tyranny in Iraq”. And I did.” [The

Guardian, 7 October 2005] Is it

any wonder why Muslims might

stereotype our God as a God

of violence? Our response to

them needs to be qualitatively

different to theirs.

Christians in the West are

beneficiaries of this system that

relies heavily on oil to maintain

our standard of living. Most

Australians are in the top five

percent of the richest people in

the world and we have never

been richer. Those who are

victims of that global system,

including those in the Middle

East, can only see that the Jesus

to whom we point to is part of

the same oppressing system;

even sanctioning it. To quote

Brian McClaren, “Christianity

has become the hood ornament

on the Hummer of Western

society”. God created us in His

image and we have decided

to return the favour. We have

created a god in our image and

called him ‘Jesus’. This ‘Jesus’ is

white, male, middle-class, votes

liberal and wants retribution.

This is a long way from

celebrating the Prince of Peace

who didn’t come in power and

force but came into the world

in a humble cattle trough, in a

cow shed, as a Jew under the

boot of the Roman Empire. He

was an asylum seeker in Egypt,

mixed with those despised and

rejected, preached on loving

your enemies and died naked on

a cross at midday for the whole

world to see at the hands of the

Empire. Perhaps this point in

history presents an opportunity

Regardless of who is perpetrating evil or how much evil is being

perpetrated the Christ-like response is clear. ‘Love your enemies.’

‘Blessed are you who are persecuted for righteousness sake.’

‘Vengeance is mine – do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil

with good.’

Forgiveness is the only way to

bring peace. “Darkness cannot

drive out darkness, only light

can do this. Hate cannot drive

out hate, only love can do this.”

(Martin Luther King)

This does not mean being

a door mat. When Jesus says,

“Love your enemies” He doesn’t

dilute truth. He clearly states,

you will have enemies. Neither

does He dilute love, suggesting

we tolerate them. Rather love

rises above and beyond truth.

This means standing up against

evil in love; in non-violent

resistance. ‘They will know that

you are my followers by your

… love.’ ‘Greater love has no

man that this; that he lay down

his life for his friends.’ [John

15:13] Forgiveness is letting go

or giving up your right to take

revenge to pay back. (By the fact

you have abused or wronged

9JANUARY 2016

feature

are crucifying him in the

most painful way said, ‘Father

forgive them’ and He also said

‘forgive one another as God

forgave you’”. We may not

always reach this but this is the

standard we aim for.

We need also to positively

work for justice and peace.

TEAR Australia works with

the poorest communities

empowering them to break

the shackles of poverty and

the preconditions for violence

and retribution. Locally, our

small Christian community in

Lockridge decided to engage

with and accommodate

Muslim asylum seekers from

Iraq. We have found a great

deal in common. They find

it difficult to get their heads

around God being three in one,

but then who can? Many of

their stereotypes of Christians

have been blown away. They

have called us their family and

report to their family back in

Iraq, “The only people who have

loved us are Christians”.

The Greek word for devil

is ‘diablos’ which means to

separate and divide. ISIS’s plan

is to separate and divide the

world into two groups those

with faith and infidels. If we

hate and divide then we are just

as bad as ISIS. Jesus came to

bring peace and wholeness.

Lastly, I wonder whether

our abhorrence and anger

at what ISIS is doing is tied

in with our own personal

unresolved wounds. If we

have truly been marinated in

God’s unconditional love and

forgiveness and accepted this,

it would be far easier to show

grace to others, especially those

who don’t deserve it.

So in 2016, may God grant

you grace and peace in your

inner most being so that you

reflect this into the world. May

you join the winning side of

the real Prince of Peace that

overcomes evil with good

that fights hate with love that

absorbs violence with peace and

divisiveness with wholeness.

Ph

oto

Te

rry

Hic

ks

Steve McKinnon is the TEAR

Australia Assistant State

Coordinator for Western

Australia and Chaplain at

Ellenbrook Christian College.

me – you have given me a right

to retribution. When I forgive I

abandon that right and I open

the door of opportunity for you

to make a new beginning. I don’t

think you can get rid of the pain

but you can say I am not going

to let you victimise me.)

The late M Scott Peck, the

American psychiatrist writes,

‘The healing of evil can be

accomplished only by the love

of individuals. If one takes the

evil itself into one’s heart, like a

spear into one’s side, it can be

absorbed and it goes no further.

… Whenever this happens there

is a slight shift in the balance of

power in the world.”

Desmond Tutu was asked,

”Is there anything that is

unforgiveable? Genocide,

torture, rape, affairs, terrorism?”

He responded, “We follow Jesus

who at the point when they

10 JANUARY 2016

feature

Anina Findling

A few weeks ago a friend had a persistent and somewhat ominous pain in her abdomen area. She tried to ignore the pain for a while, but as it worsened she realised she would have to go to the hospital to try and get an assessment, diagnosis and treatment for this potentially serious issue.

Being healthy for the sake of others

After days of tests and scans it

was determined the problem was

a swollen gall bladder, for which

there was no remedy other than

immediate removal. As it turned

out, this was clearly a correct

diagnosis as she felt incredible

relief after the pain of the

operation wore off.

When we experience physical

problems we are sometimes

forced to take stock of our health

and lifestyle, and make whatever

healthy changes we can. But to be

fair, we can only work on factors

that are within our control.

Tragedy, disability and death

are aspects of this life that will

inevitably affect us at one point or

another, and sometimes our only

option is to rely on God’s grace in

making the best of situations and

limitations beyond our control.

When it comes to other

aspects of our health, the

symptoms of problems are

not always as obvious. Issues

affecting our emotions,

personality and character can

sometimes lie well beneath

the surface. We may live what

we consider to be ‘emotionally

healthy’ lives, but then unexpected

events can suddenly trigger

something within us that

threatens to overwhelm us, derail

career paths, sabotage ministries

and relationships, etc. So again,

it seems prudent to be proactive

in gauging our emotional health

periodically so that we can try to

get on top of issues before they

get on top of us.

The uncomfortable truth is

that every one of us has blind

spots and weaknesses, some of

which are minor while others

are huge and crippling. We

can carry ‘emotional baggage’

with us for years, our whole

lifetime sometimes, and these

issues have the potential to

limit our emotional, spiritual,

mental and relational capacity

for growth. The really sad fact

is that dysfunctional patterns

are sometimes no different in

a Christian’s life than for those

who have not heard of Jesus.

Some of these problems can be

due to ‘family of origin’ issues;

like the young man who had an

angry, explosive mother who

dominated the home and made

everyone walk on eggshells,

a destructive behaviour he

promised himself never to

imitate. But then later in life he

finds himself caught in fits of

rage where he seems to just lose

control, and the unpredictable

power of it scares him and those

around him.

Or, the gifted young

woman who had a father for

whom nothing was ever good

enough, who never praised her

accomplishments as a child,

who is then set on a life long

pursuit of success by an internal

drivenness to perform. But

it seems that no matter what

accolades she receives, it’s

almost as if she can’t hear others’

praises as she is subconsciously

working for the approval of the

one man who may never speak

the words she is aching to hear.

We all have work to do. But

how do we work on these issues,

where do we begin?

For the last 13 years I have

been involved with a ministry

at our church (Mount Hawthorn

Baptist Church) called ‘Prayer

ministry’. This is different to

other professional interventions

which can also be beneficial

(like counselling, psychology,

psychiatry, social work, etc), and

ideally a combination of caring

interventions in conjunction

with spiritual growth can

help us develop and grow

most holistically.

The differentiating aspect of

prayer ministry is that it is a way

by which Christians appropriate

the healing and victory Jesus

has won for every one of us on

the cross, through a process

of prayer and discerning root

issues by the guidance of the

Holy Spirit. After years of helping

lead a team in this ministry,

I found that we were coming

against certain barriers in this

ministry again and again. Firstly,

a lack of training, and secondly

a lack of confidence in people

who had received training to

then lead ministry sessions. A

lot of the training we received

was from Ellel Ministries, who

have some of the most respected

leaders and teachers in this field.

But after years of studying and

implementing their insightful

principles, I found their course

notes to be very in-depth and not

always easily accessible to lay

Christians working full-time who

did not have time to attend their

intensive seminars. It seemed

to me that Ellel represented the

‘SAS’ of this ministry but the

‘general army’ needed resources

to equip them for the basics of the

ministry. From there we could

then refer more intensive needs

for further ministry to others

more specialised in the field

if needed.

In 2010 I first felt prompted

to start writing a prayer ministry

manual to address this need,

and the years of training and

ministry experience just flowed

out of me as I had a passion

to create a resource that was

biblically based, simple, practical

and accessible for all Christians.

As I had never written anything

before I naively thought this

manual could be completed

within the year and that many

would then excitedly engage

with this new resource …

Three years later I finished

writing the manual and then the

agonising process of scrutiny

and editing started, which took

another two years. I emailed

a soft copy to many respected

Christian leaders I knew,

including the Director of Ellel

Ministries here in Australia. I

received a lot of helpful feedback

which was then incorporated, but

I have to admit it felt incredibly

hard, like giving birth again and

again, and if hadn’t been for key

people God brought into my life

at the right times I would often

have rather just abandoned the

project altogether.

11JANUARY 2016

feature

The manual outlines some

of what I believe to be God’s

biblical plan for redemption

and emotional health, and gives

practical ways we can start

to prayerfully work through

issues like trauma, generational

strongholds, addictions,

damaging lingering soul ties to

influential people from our past,

etc. It ties in teachings from not

only Ellel Ministries but also

other respected Christian leaders

like Neil Anderson, Joyce Meyers

and Dr Henry Cloud. My desire

is that it would be as helpful to

as many people in Christian

ministry as possible, so I would

be happy to email a soft copy to

anyone requesting one:

anina4@icloud.com.

To close, I believe the

highest calling anyone can

have on this earth is to do

something on behalf of others.

Jesus demonstrated this most

powerfully in giving up His

life in order to free us from

the consequences of sin and

death. As we walk in increased

healing and victory, God’s

life-transforming power is best

displayed; as we are ‘cleaned-

up conduits’ we are less likely

to affect others negatively by

unredeemed aspects of our

life and character that do not

yet reflect the character of our

righteous and holy God. When

we are as healthy as we can be

on every level, not only do we

experience greater blessing,

but so do our families and

ministries, thereby bringing

greater glory to our loving

Creator and Redeemer.

Anina Findling is the

Relationship Manager WA for

Baptist Financial Services.

12 JANUARY 2016

in conversation

Tell us a little about how and why

your family came to Australia.

My family came to Australia

from Iran in 1984. Once the

Ayatollah Khomeini took control

of the country, things went

downhill very quickly. My father

was a teacher and my mother a

nurse, however as my parents

associated with the Bahá’í faith,

they were labelled second class

citizens virtually overnight. My

mother and father decided this

was no longer a country they

could raise their children in. My

sister was five years old and I was

only a newborn. We fled over the

border to neighbouring Pakistan,

and shortly thereafter Australia

granted us visas and flew us over

for the opportunity of a new life.

What was it like for you

at school?

School was smooth sailing

for me. I fitted in well with the

other kids, and was generally

accepted. I had my occasional

bout with discrimination and

racism, however it was very rare.

As most teenagers do, I had my

season of rebellion, however

when I found Jesus I found my

path. I did well in my studies and

graduated from Curtin University

with my Accounting and Taxation

double degree.

has attempted to segregate you,

label you, control you and push

you down, a person becomes very

open-minded to the alternatives.

Therefore, having this positive

experience with the church in

Australia, left my parents with an

optimistic point of view about

Christianity as a whole. Again, this

point of view flowed down, and

when my time came to find God

for myself, I found Him in Jesus.

Fremantle Dockers, is he teaches

his team that no one player is any

more important than the others.

He looks down on what is called

being a ‘ball hog’ – someone who

doesn’t share the ball with others.

For those of us blessed enough

to taste the freedom, opportunity

and standard of living we have in

Australia, I say let’s not be ‘hogs’

about it. Let’s share what we have.

What about to the

Christian community? 

As a pastor of a church I

have the privilege of doing life

with many Kingdom-minded

people. In the same way we

already do so well at loving our

literal neighbours – our family,

friends, workmates, and the

needy of our nation – Jesus calls

us to love all of our neighbours.

When quizzed on who exactly

our neighbour is, Jesus gives us

the Good Samaritan. A man who

cared for and helped someone of

a different ethnicity and religion

to his own. “Go and do likewise”

Jesus says to the people after

explaining the parable.

These Syrian refugees are

human beings created by God,

in the image of God, who Jesus

considered worthy to die for.

That sounds to me like someone

I’m called to love. We’re not all

called to focus on policies etc,

however we are all called to love

the individual.

There seems to be a fear

response by some areas of our

society to people of the Muslim

faith. How do you respond

to that?

I have noticed a rapid rise

in the fear response. I think we

Refugee challenges church

How did your family embrace

Australian culture?

As far as my parents were

concerned, the Australian way of

life resonated with what already

lay in their hearts and they began

to contribute to this great new

country of ours straight away. They

learnt the language and began

their careers. I believe the fact we

were well accepted helped this

process along. Even though they

missed their family and friends,

they soon made new friends.

They have always been grateful

to the Australian Government for

extending a helpful hand in their

time of crisis, and have passed

this attitude down to my sister and

I. They have never taken a dollar

from Centrelink, have always paid

their taxes, and I still remember

my father marching me back to

the local deli to pay the 50 cents

the store clerk had undercharged

me. In my eyes, they are model

Australian citizens, and this nation

is better off because of them.

What made it easy for you?  

A Catholic organisation

had a lot to do with us when we

first arrived. This displayed a

significant contrast to the system

my parents had fled from, which

helped with the transition. When

an overzealous religious system

Arastoo (Ari) Yazdani is the pastor of Freedom City Church in Fremantle. He came to Australia as a refugee more than three decades ago. He has a degree in Accounting and Taxation and was the Youth and Young Adults Pastor at Perth Christian Life Centre before moving to Freedom City Church.

Arastoo Yazdani and his wife Megan lead Freedom City Church in Fremantle.

Ph

oto

: Pu

bli

c d

om

ain

all expected a bit of that after

the Paris attacks. However, to

be honest I have been quite

surprised by the level and ferocity

of it.

Personally, I believe the

media has had a field day with

this topic. I try not to subscribe

too much to what mainstream

media feeds me. I rely more on

my experiences with people

I’ve actually met from different

ethnicities and religions, as well

as concrete information and

knowledge. Unfortunately, I’ve

found a lack of education about

people of the Muslim faith has led

to some of the mass hysteria.

My goal is to try to see

people as individuals – not in

classes or groups. According to

my understanding, at the end

of the day every human being

is similar deep down. We’ve all

been created in God’s image and

likeness. We are all unique, with

our own personality, talents,

dreams and destiny. No two

people are the same.

My heart breaks for the

innocent, well-meaning, model

citizen, who is labelled as a villain

for something they had nothing

to do with.

I hope never to make an

enemy out of the very people I

am called to love.

Can you describe some

ways Christians can engage

with Muslim people to

build community?

I think it all starts with our

attitude. If we can find love in our

hearts for people of the Muslim

faith, when God brings one along

our path, we will be ready to love

them practically.

Australia is accepting 12,000

refugees from Syria – what

advice would you give to the

Australian community at large?

My advice is always this: let’s

attempt to place ourselves in the

shoes of these refugees. Imagine

all of the plans and dreams you

had for your family were one day

suddenly stripped away. Would

you not do all you could to find a

better life for them? I believe we

all would.

We are so very fortunate to

live in a country like Australia.

In turn, the truth is, not one of

us chose what family to be born

into, often to our dismay. Neither

did we choose what country to be

born into.

One of the things I love about

Ross Lyon’s leadership of the

My advice is always this: let’s attempt to place ourselves in the shoes of these refugees.

13JANUARY 2016

leadership

A blessed house

His worn out Bible“I asked him how often he had

to get a new Bible – thinking that

the Bible in my lap was at least 20

years old. He replied, ‘About every

two years!’ At 70 years of age,

wearing out a Bible every two years

by studying it!”

“I knew what his answer would

be to my original question. He

simply said, ‘You must get to know

the author of this book and put

into practice everything He tells

you to do.’ As a college student he

established his priorities and down

through the years his first priority

has been to begin each day alone

with God and His Word.”

“As we travelled and lived

together I saw that Dr Malik never

began his day with men and their

problems until after he came out

from the presence of God.”

Used with permission from

Dave Kraft, www.davekraft.org

Phil Pringle

As humans, we have a tendency to drift out of God’s standard of what He has set out for us as His children. How do we receive a blessed life?

‘Therefore we know that only

those who are of faith are sons

of Abraham. And the Scripture,

foreseeing that God would

justify the Gentiles, by faith,

preached the gospel to Abraham

beforehand, saying “In you all

the nations shall be blessed.”

So then those who are of faith

are blessed

with believing Abraham.’

[Galatians 3:7-9]

‘For the promise that he

would be the heir of the world

was not to Abraham or to his

seed through the law, but

through the righteousness of

faith.’ [Romans 4:13]

We receive the promise not

through our lineage but through

our faith and acceptance of Jesus

as our Saviour.

‘But as many as received

Him, to them He gave the right

to become children of God,

to those who believe in His

name.’ [John 1:12]

The last thing Jesus did

before He ascended to Heaven

was lift His hands and bless the

disciples. Because of this, we can

now receive Christ so He can

show us a new way of living, a

way that inherits the blessing of

God. Under the New Testament,

God has made it absolutely

foolproof for us to be blessed; if

we receive Christ we are called

blessed. It’s that simple!

So how do we live it out?

Dave Kraft

For years, I was coached by Warren Myers. Warren, who passed away in 2001, coached many young leaders. One of those men had the experience of travelling with Dr Charles Malik* one summer as his personal assistant and sent the following to our mutual friend and coach, Warren.

“We spent hours discussing

the atmosphere in a crises, the

immense demands on a leader’s

time, the pressures from all sides,

the growing threat and danger of

nuclear war, the degeneration of

Western civilisation. And I asked,

‘How, in the midst of all this chaos,

do you maintain your own sense

of values and priorities, of what

is right and wrong – how do you

find meaningful solutions for the

chaotic times in which we live?’”

“I will never forget his answer.

Going over to his still unpacked

suitcase, he ever so carefully took

out a book. The pages were loose,

some fell out, it was beat-up,

worn, and looked terrible. Yet he

handled it so carefully and carried

it like it was the greatest of all

treasures. As he sat down, I could

tell that the beat-up old book was

his Bible. I asked him if I could

hold it, and as I turned to page

after page – in the Old and New

Testaments – there was hardly

any more room on any page for

more writing. Every page was

well-worn and obviously well-

read and studied.”

Wisdom is not just knowing

what to do, but actually living it

out daily. We need to understand

how to appropriate Christ and

blessing into our lives.

Practically, wisdom looks

like this:

• Fear God = make God your

first priority

‘Blessed be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ who has

blessed us with every spiritual

blessing in the heavenly places

in Christ.’ [Ephesians 1:3]

Blessed – ‘To invoke divine

favour upon. To confer wellbeing

and abundance upon.’

We can define blessing in our

lives by these factors:

• Happiness/Contentment

• Peace

• Wholeness (spiritual

richness, emotional and

mental health)

• Healthy relationships

• Fruitfulness (success in work,

increase and fullness)

From the beginning of

humanity with Adam and Eve,

God has wanted to bless His

people, giving them fruitfulness

and authority. God gave a

promise of blessing of Abraham

that continues to be fulfilled in

all who receive Christ.

‘I will make you a great

nation; I will bless you and make

your name great; and you shall

be a blessing. I will bless those

who bless you, and I will curse

him who curses you; and in you

all the families of the earth shall

be blessed.’ [Genesis 12:2-3]

Righteousness was imputed

to Abraham and because we are

children of His promise as well

as having the righteousness of

Jesus, we are blessed with the

same blessing as Abraham.

• We can honour and please

God by serving Him first

and out of love

• Honour the Lord with

your possessions =

acknowledge what you

have came from God and

return it to Him in tithes

and offerings

• Arrange your time, money

and lifestyle so that God is

respected in your life

Live out your blessed life and

you will be a blessing to others!

Used with permission

from Phil Pringle,

www.philpringle.com

*The late Dr. Charles Malik of Lebanon, 1906-1987.

Dr Malik:

• Received his PhD from

Harvard University where

he also taught

• Was appointed as the

Lebanese Ambassador to

the United States and the

United Nations

• Was President and Chair

of the United Nations

Commission on Human

Rights

• Was President of the 13th

Session of the United

Nations General Assembly

14 JANUARY 2016

98five Music Director Chela Williams

Recorded live from their Myaree campus Nations Church’s Seek and Nations Youth’s Break Free EP are loaded with original songs and fresh sound. Written and produced by the Nations Creative the projects were conceived in late 2014 when core members began writing and experimenting with original material. Led by project manager Chris Burke, it was recorded live in July 2015.

Sarah Parks

Lakeside Kidz and parents were excited to welcome back Christian children’s songwriter Sean W Smith at Lakeside Baptist Church on 1 November. After sharing a song in ‘big church’ with adults, which had everyone dancing in the aisles, Sean led the kids into the hall for their special Lakeside Kidz concert.

news

Editor: Terry HicksManaging Editor: Andrew SculthorpeSubeditor: Maclain BruceProduction: Vanessa Klomp Creative: Peter Ion Hayley Emmett Catherine BartlettAdvertising: 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

ima

ge

sev

en

bc

w J

22

57

Nations Church’s double release

“Prior to this, we had never

really written for our church,”

Chris said.

“It was pretty much a case of

dedicating time to prayer, seeking

God for what He wanted to say

through the music and then

putting pen to paper.”

Nations Church’s Seek and Nations Youth’s Break Free EP are available now on iTunes.

Lakeside dance in the aisles

always be okay – as long

as we remember to pull

the ripcord!

Sean also entertained

children at Morley Baptist

Church and enthralled them

as the exuberant and talented

kids’ entertainer, which he is

renowned for, who has a heart

to see kids come to Christ.

Sean W Smith in the ‘groove’ with children at Lakeside Baptist Church

Ph

oto

s: N

atio

ns

Ch

urc

hP

ho

to: S

ara

h P

ark

s

Sean immediately grabbed the

children’s attention by appearing,

on stage, wearing his ‘grandma’s’

knickers over his jeans.

Toddlers through to teenagers,

and a few stray parents, got right

into the concert mood, singing

and performing actions to a mix

of familiar songs and songs from

Sean’s new album, Groove.

There was a sense of

excitement as the kids were

so engaged in singing,

but also to see them sit

and quietly listen as Sean

reminded them that being

different because we love

Jesus can be tough, but if

we remember that we have

Jesus as our parachute we’ll

“Songs were written out

of what we believe has been

divinely inspired moments in

the life our songwriters.”

Ken is also featured on the

Seek album performing ‘How

Great Thou Art’ and ‘I Exalt Thee’.

“I just had the privilege of

leading our congregation in a

couple of classics,” Ken said.

“I’m probably showing you

my age by telling you I love those

songs, but I think sometimes

as much as I think praise and

worship resources should be

cutting edge and fresh there is

much room in our churches

for that which is timeless and

multigenerational.”

“We as songwriters

essentially get to place spiritual

declarations into the mouths of

our congregations,” Chris said.

“That’s why we put a lot of

time and energy into refining

our lyrics.”

Seek and Break Free EP are

available for purchase on iTunes.

“Definitely a great growing

process for our team.”

Aimed to create a trigger for

the presence of God for both

Nations Church and the church

abroad Lead Pastor Ken Lee

explains Seek has been 11 years

in the making since planting the

church in 2003.

“The album is basically

an overflow of what has been

happening here at Nations

Church,” Ken said.

Songs were written out of what we believe has been divinely inspired moments in the life our songwriters.

15JANUARY 2016

intermission

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

The Advocate – January 2016

Reviews by Koorong Mount Lawley

Assistant Manager

Dorothy Waddingham

Website: www.koorong.com

Address: 434 Lord Street, Mount Lawley

Phone: 08 9427 9777

readwatch

FerventPriscilla Shirer

Fervent is a practical guide to a prayer-filled

battle plan against the very real enemy.

Priscilla Shirer is a powerful speaker, author

and most recently main actress in the

popular film War Room. Priscilla has brought

her movie role into real life through Fervent.

She takes readers step-by-step through

many areas of their life, such as passions,

identity, family and fears. She uses strategies

inspired by the movie and personalises them

into prayers for the readers own life. These

strategies can be applied to ask God for

help in taking back what was lost, standing

ground, strengthing relationships and living

a prayerful life. She reveals key situations,

intentions, how real the enemy is and

encourages believers to stand up against him

the only way they can, by prayer.

The Me I Want to BeJohn Ortberg

The Me I Want to Be is a five week study,

with short video sessions and a study

book of group questions. In the videos

John Ortberg discusses how believers can

flourish the way God has created them.

Viewers learn to assess their spiritual life

and deepen their relationship with God.

Becoming the best version of ‘yourself’

is a focus of this study and viewers learn

through it that life is God’s project, not

theirs. John Ortberg’s way of teaching is

easy to relate to for any believer, whether

a new or experienced Christian. Through

the sessions focusing on mind, time,

relationships and experiences viewers can

become not only who they want to be, but

who God intended them to be. This title is

available as a book as well as a study.

Down the left side of this page are some books of the Bible, and down the right

side are some people’s names. Draw a line between the book and the name of the

person (who is a main character in it.)

The InvestigatorGabriel’s Messenger Films

What do you do when your world caves in

around you? Who if your identity is in your

job and you are forced to retire? Is there a

God who loves us when tragedy strikes us? In

The Investigator, Sergeant James Buanacore

must answer these questions, leading him

on a journey of discovery of who he is and

who God is. A moving story based on real life

events of the love of a family to bring one of

their own through a traumatic and potentially

devastating series of circumstances. Sergeant

Buanacore changes careers to find himself

and the God who he turned away from.

For anyone who has struggled with these

questions, viewers will find this journey has

laughs and tears, drama and joy, just like

many people’s own journeys to find out who

God is and His place in their lives.

Answers for the Christmas Word Scramble in the December 2015 issue of The Advocate.1. Herod2. Shepherd3. Married4. Stable5. Manger6. Jesus

7. Christmas8. Egypt9. Joseph10. Mary11. Star12. Wise Men13. King14. Flocks15. Angel

Jonah didn’t want to go to Ninevah when God told him to. So God had a big fish

swallow him and take him there. [Jonah 1-3]

16 JANUARY 2016

news

Sharing through surfing

Matthew Gordon catches a wave at Bowes River Mouth, Horrocks.

Ph

oto

: Tia

go

Me

lo

Jill Birt

Matthew Gordon has loved surfing since his early teens when his family moved close to the beach at Wembley Downs. Today his passion for clean waves has not abated and he leads Christian Surfers Scarborough.

About 100 people are

part of Christian Surfers (CS)

Scarborough providing a

surfing environment with

positive and encouraging role

models for young surfers to

look to.

A fortnightly Bible study

and barbecue is held with 15 to

25 members attending.

“CS is for all ages,” Matt said.

“It’s about reaching out

and showing the surfing

community who Jesus is.”

Good waves and the camaraderie

of surfing with mates are not the

only things that Matt thrives on. He

is a committed follower of Jesus

and is a member of the worship

team at C3 Church Scarborough

that meets in the Rendezvous Hotel

on Scarborough Beach.

Christian Surfers Scarborough

is one of more than 40 Christian

Surfers groups around Australia

that engage surfers of all ages and

build bridges between the beach

and local churches.

The group is committed

to helping novices get the

hang of riding waves as well as

providing a surfing community

that is a little bit different. They

run a ‘learn to surf’ session on

Sunday mornings.

“We are here to be something

different in the community, we

need to be different and noticed,”

Matt said.

“Surfing is a very selfish

sport and everyone is after the

best wave for themselves.”

“At CS we try to share and

give up the best waves for

others even if we are in the

best spot.”

From grommets (young

surfers just learning the art

of riding waves) to veterans,

Christian Surfers offers far

more than surfing skills.

Leader Chris Kearney

takes novices he meets at

Scarborough out on the

group’s soft top ‘foamies’ for

an introductory lesson.

Recently he met three

Brazilian men from the

Groundswell Surf Festival

run by Be The Church (C3

Church Scarborough). The

Festival was a free event on

Scarborough Beach with

open surfing and open

bodyboarding competitions,

and a beginners’ event.

Chris had the pleasure

of baptising the three new

followers of Jesus late

November 2015.

Members of CS

Scarborough take regular trips

to the South West searching

for waves.

A crew of eight male

leaders recently made a trip to

Lombok and Bali, Indonesia

in November 2015 to look at

potential surfing trips for 2016.

The Christian Surfers

Scarborough Facebook page

posts information about the

group and coming events.

For more information,

email Matt Gordon at

gathmordon@gmail.com

It’s about reaching out and showing the surfing community who Jesus is.