Building on great Foundations |

As I take my place as ACC Tasmanian President, I am humbled by the overwhelming support within Tasmania and across the country.

At 2022’s State Conference, we honoured and celebrated Dave and Alix Morse. These consummate ambassadors served eight years as State Presidents, fearlessly carrying faith, hope and love in seasons of significant cultural transitions and societal upheaval. Through their leadership, Tasmania is a better place to minister and lead churches, and we have never been better placed to extend the vision of a state radically transformed by the Gospel.

Building on their servant leadership model, Karen and I are delighted to take our position as the next relay runners, seeing a generation of new leaders credentialed and churches planted.

Leadership

A genuinely brilliant team supports me:

Vice-President: David Morse

Secretary/ Treasurer: Martin Oravec

Executive member : Peter Shurley

Executive member: Jono Deal

Ex-officios: Mark Bates (Victoria), Laura Bain, Craig Guntrip

Training and Highlights

The last two years have seen great endeavours in supporting, training, and equipping our Pastors and leaders. Along with our State Conferences, we’ve held annual Pastors and Leaders retreats in the beautiful highlands of Tasmania. Each gathering has seen opportunities to engage relationally, refresh personally and be equipped professionally. Youth Alive continues to grow from strength to strength with regional and state meetings, inspiring and informing youth ministries on how to reach and lead locally. Along with a series of leaders’ breakfasts, we have also held a Ministry Essential training day equipping PMC and OMC Pastors for the next step in ministry.

Stats:

Number of Churches: 15

New Church Plants: 4

Number of OMCs & PMCs: 32

New Credentials: 4

Expectations

We believe we will build significantly on these foundations in the next two years. We are excited and expectant in Church Planting and raising leaders. We will host gatherings that bring relational engagement, and Holy Spirit encounters with further strategies to equip leaders and their teams. We are committed to championing the expansion and expression of women in leadership and have a renewed focus on growing our first nations and ethnic leaders and churches, developing a greater intelligence of each group’s gifts, and intentionally inviting collaboration and contribution to our collective story and strength. We aim to continue championing the next generation of leaders and pastors and to identify and resource our 5-fold gift carriers and leaders.

We are offering each Tasmanian church board and committee access to the Alphacrucis Directors training course. We will work collectively to bring organisational and cultural strength and health to and through the State Executive. We are passionate about seeing all of Tasmanian transformed by the love of Jesus.

To this end, we will champion evangelism and encourage churches to operate in signs and wonders alongside proactive community engagement projects demonstrating God’s love and the Pentecostal church’s authenticity. We will continue focusing on making disciples who can make disciples who are willing to plant churches and lead communities into freedom.

Matt Sharples Tasmanian State President