Portal (Issue 01) by BotanyLife Community Church

PORTAL

Issue 01 | July - September 2011

THE FIRST ISSUE {Taking Church to the Community} Mel Palmer / Easter Camp / Mainly Music / Chickzone / Snowboarder Creations Greg Laurie / Engage / Cameron Roots / The Archibaldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Contents {ON THE COVER}

{REGULARS}

Feature Article Taking Church to the Community - Community Project ‘11

Leadership Spotlight Meet Mel Palmer, our new Children’s Pastor

Easter Camp 5 reasons we’ll be going to BYM Easter Camp again!

Mainly Music

Lively music and movement session with a light morning tea

How To Step by step instructions on making awesome snowboarders

Who’s That Get to know some of our fellow members in the church: in this issue it’s Cameron Roots and the Archibald Family

Chickzone If you like long walks on the beach, great food and entertainment, come along to this (only for the chicks, sorry guys)

Greg Laurie Auckland Harvest A review on the Auckland Harvest seminar at Vector Arena with speaker Greg Laurie

Engage Crouch, touch, pause... pause a bit more... some more pausing...

11 12 15

26 30

Pastors Column A word from the Pastor Sweet Spots Growing the outward focus of our community groups and meet Rob Hallows, our new intern Musings ‘Take a walk with Jesus’ by Rowland Forman Children’s Ministry Youth Ministry Kid’s Portal Pull out pages full of activities to amuse the kids for a while Creative Space A place for you to be creative and show everyone Reviews - CD’s / DVD’s / Books Marriage & Parenting Advice from Andy and Nikki Bray of Family Life What’s On at BotanyLife? Get your pens out and mark these dates on your calendar

THE PORTAL TEAM {EDITOR} Brad Carr {WRITERS} Charlotte Woodfield / Melissa Guyan / Mel Palmer / Andrew Mackereth / Mel Thorburn / Mark van Wijk / Al Ronberg {ART} Art Director/Designer - Amanda Crane / Photographer - Al Ronberg {CONTRIBUTORS} Rowland Forman, Andy and Nikki Bray, Nicola Mountfort

welcome to the...

Pastors Column

Brad Carr

Welcome to the first issue of Portal, our new magazine at BotanyLife! What you have in your hands represents the hard work and creativity of a fantastic team of people that we have pulled together to produce this new publication for our church. Why a church magazine? In late 2008, as part of the process that produced the “Flourishing” three year vision, our wider leadership team met and brainstormed what we wanted BotanyLife to look like by the end of 2011. We ended up with five categories in our Flourishing vision, and one of those was that over the next three years (2009-2011) the people of BotanyLife would grow closer to one another through connection and care. One of the objectives we set under that category was the publication of a church magazine that helped our congregation get to know one another and keep up with what was happening in the life of our church. So what you’re holding is the fulfilment of one aspect of our Flourishing vision. In terms of our overall mission statement and the three focus points that flow out of that (focusing upward, inward and outward), Portal is an inward ministry. As such, its primary audience is people within our church, and its primary goal is to help us stay connected with the church and with one another. Therefore, while we will advertise upcoming outreach events and produce articles that encourage your walk with God, what we’re mainly focusing on is what’s happening inside our church and its various ministries. We plan on publishing Portal three times a year, around the school holidays in April, July and October. This will enable us to look back on the events and activities in the term that has gone, and to look forward to things coming up in the life of our church in the next few months. In this first edition you will find a number of features that will reappear in further issues. In each edition, for example, we will be profiling someone in the leadership of our church such as the staff and elders. This time around we’re introducing Mel Palmer, who was appointed this year to be our new part-time Children’s Pastor. We will also regularly introduce others within the congregation, such as Cameron Roots and the Archibald family, who you can get to know this time around. We have also asked Rowland Forman to contribute a regular column on his musings on God’s Word, and Andy and Nikki Bray will be offering regular advice on marriage and parenting. And for the children, we are planning on having special kids’ pages in the middle of each magazine for them to tear out and get on with their own activities. In addition to these regular features, there will be an assortment of other articles each time. In this first issue, you can read Charlotte Woodfield’s article on the Community Project at Point View School, and some other profiles of our children, youth and outreach ministries. I have also written a review of a new controversial book by well-known pastor Rob Bell, called Love Wins. So welcome to Portal! Let me invite you to brew a cuppa or pour a glass, find a comfy spot somewhere warm, and enjoy the read.

BRAD CARR / LEAD PASTOR

BOTANY LIFE COMMUNITY CHURCH {STAFF} Lead Pastor/Elder - Brad (and Rochelle) Carr / Community Pastor - Mark (and Steph) van Wijk / Children’s Pastor - Mel (and Drew) Palmer Church Administrator - Mel (and Julian) Thorburn / Youth Intern - Andrew Mackereth / Pastoral Intern - Rob (and Glenys) Hallows {ELDERS} Cliff (and Cassy) Hand, Todd (and Sheree) Hughes, Harataki (and Shona) Manihera, Steve (and Robyn) Young 3

Taking Church TO THE COMMUNITY

“We came…we saw(ed)…we wheelbarrowed,” announces the video, before leading the viewer on a jauntily jerky step-by-step photo slideshow tour through the grounds of a small Auckland school. Hedge maze to the left, new benches to the right. And all about, clusterings of people working, clothes marked with sweat and dirt. Text by Charlotte Woodfield. Photography by Al Ronberg.

FEATURE ARTICLE

his is Point View School during BotanyLife Community Project, once described as “like church camp, but better”.

talked about a small local church that “did up” a school over a weekend. “And we were like, wow, we could do that. What a great way to make an impact.”

Almost every year since the church started in 2004, the BotanyLife congregation has taken a weekend out to make a difference to a school in the community. Building playgrounds, sewing curtains, making pathways; doing maintenance and building work that would cost the school thousands.

“THEY LIKED THE SOUND OF THE VISION AND THAT WE WERE DOING IT FOR SOMEONE ELSE - THAT SPOKE VOLUMES.”

Lead Pastor Brad Carr says the idea was there from the beginning. The year before BotanyLife started, the initial leadership team of five couples had meetings every three to four weeks. “Our name, mission and values all came out of that year.” Among the many books read that year was a book called The Church of Irresistible Influence, by Rob Lewis. In the book, Lewis

BotanyLife was barely three months old when the first community project got underway. That, says Brad, was deliberate; to ensure it became part of the character of the church. “The church was small at that point, so to plan our first community project was a lot easier!” For that first project, the church leaders settled on helping out Riverina School, 5

in whose hall they met every Sunday. “It seemed obvious,” Brad told a local community newspaper at the time. Riverina School principal Doreen Martin, called the decision “lovely”. “The church had been here and they were giving in return.” But where does a young church planning maintenance start? “Basically,” says Brad, “we cold called.” And it was surprising, he says, to see how many businesses got on board; the local Placemakers and Palmers Garden Centre to name just two. “They liked the sound of the vision and that we were doing it for someone else - that spoke volumes”. Ms Martin says the whole school was thrilled after that first project. “For the kids, it was like, suddenly they came back to school and this had happened over a weekend.” It was, she agreed, a little like magic.

PAST COMMUNITY PROJECTS 2004 - Riverina School 2005 - Pakuranga Intermediate 2006 - Riverhills Primary 2007 - Riverina, Pakuranga Intermediate and Riverhills 2008 - Botany Downs Primary 2009 - Elm Park Primary 2011 - Point View School

FEATURE ARTICLE

“It would have been beyond us to do, really, especially all over one weekend.” Point View school principal Judy Parr, says the cost of their planned landscaping - a tenth of what the church eventually accomplished had made it a five to ten year project for the school. It had even been delayed two years while money went to maintenance elsewhere. By a contractor’s estimate, just one of the tasks accomplished at Botany Downs Primary in 2007 would have cost $70,000. Though the tagline is “meeting a need for free”, the projects do come at a cost. Community Pastor Mark van Wijk, whose first community project at Riverhills Primary came at the end of his first week with the church, says business and council assistance have been a big help. “[The church] spend[s] in the region of $10,000 to $15,000 on the project, but the value of discounts, donated product and that kind of thing would easily be double that.” For the past few years, HirePool has provided the church with equipment hire-free, for the entire weekend. “That’s thousands of dollars.” At one council meeting, Mark was given $800 more than he’d asked for. “I was like, ‘sweet’.” This year’s project, at Point View School, was a big step up: a workforce of around 250; more tasks; even more health and safety (a 44 page plan, reportedly).

On the phone, Ms Parr recalls the pre-project meeting with Mark and other members of the BotanyLife team. Thinking they were one of several schools being considered, she spent the first 45 minutes of the meeting trying to “sell” the school as a candidate. “Then I realised we’d already got the tick. I just about fell off my chair.” She says there had been some astonishment among the school community that a church would work so hard on a project that had no perceived return for them. “A number of our school parents and staff were quite puzzled about that.”

“WE HAVE AN ENVIRONMENT TO BE PROUD OF.”

Mark explains it simply: “God has met our greatest need for free. So we want to meet the needs of others. We want to show the community around us what grace looks like in action.” Both Brad and Mark say it’s impossible to measure the precise impact the community projects have had - and even less possible to tell how news of them might travel. Brad grins as he recounts how, after one community project, the local Palmers Garden 7

Centre boss showed his staff the wrap-up DVD from the weekend - which included a “30 second sermon”. Brad says, half-joking, that he’d love to say 34 people have joined the church. Mark agrees, saying it would be great if they did. “But our motivation is not to have all the people turning up to church next week.” Brad says the perspective is really more long-term, “building a long term positive relationship with the church and the community.” Mark says he hopes the project changes people’s minds about Christians; just a little. “What I would love is for people who we’re working alongside, people who hear about it or see it, that they know that this group of Christians has come in and done this [and] they’ve done it well, not just willingly but enthusiastically.” It certainly affected one school principal, who was - according to a staff member - quite antagonistic towards Christians. Post-project, she was “completely blown away”, and her attitude changed considerably. “Thanks for all your hard work at Point View School,” says the card from Room 4, in neat teacher handwriting. Below, children’s coloured pencils have sketched out a landscape; clouds above, wooden arches beneath, and two children playing amongst the trees. “We have an environment to be proud of.”

OUTWARD FOCUS

GROWING THE OUTWARD FOCUS OF OUR COMMUNITY GROUPS

Sweet Spots

Text by Rob Hallows and Mark van Wijk

Our annual Community Project (such as this year’s project at Point View School) is a brilliant way for us to serve the community together as a whole church body. Imagine if rather than just once a year, we started to run multiple smaller projects or events right across the calendar, or began serving alongside other community organisations, what an impact that would have in our area, what a picture of God’s grace we would begin to paint.

ver the past few years, some of our community groups at BotanyLife have done exactly this, by completing small projects or by serving in our community. A great example of this is the original young adults group, (led by Drew and Mel Palmer), who completed an impressive mural project in the hallway of the Pakuranga Plunket offices. Over a series of evenings they completely transformed the space and made it fun and inviting (see photos above).

Moving ‘out of the lounge’ and into the community also brings the benefit of strengthened relationships within the group. By serving in the community together we get the opportunity to learn more about, and encourage, each other.

us learn about the needs and dreams of our community, and are a fantastic source of real service opportunities. Over the next few months Rob and Mark will be meeting with community group leaders and champions, working with them to develop simple resources that will help to make the opportunity to grow their outward focus exciting, rewarding and simple. As groups engage in service opportunities in our community we look forward to sharing their stories in future issues of Portal.

In the outstanding book The Externally Focused Church by Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson, the authors discuss the idea of a ‘Sweet Spot’ of service - where the dreams of our community, the desires of Joanne Rosieur, Clinical Leader, Plunket God for all people, and the shape of those Pakuranga was who are serving amazed by the result, “WE HAVE HAD LOTS OF all meet together “We are grateful that ROB HA VERY POSITIVE COMMENTS to bring about LLOWS you have been so AND WE ARE DELIGHTED real community With a generous with your transformation. WITH THE RESULT.” backgro und skills and time to in audio For some time complete this… We enginee now, through our ring now have a bright and cheerful mural which and gove community projects and other rnment is friendly and welcoming”, the benefit advisory , Rob initiatives, BotanyLife has been is curren extends to the wider community too, “We tly building a reputation as a ‘Go and studying have had lots of very positive comments Do’ organisation. We are viewed Pa storal and we are delighted with the result. It is a as a church that is great to work Leadersh ip pleasure to see parents and children stop to through with, that genuinely cares and Pathways look and point at the new characters along and Carey C that consistently delivers. Mark in olle the wall with big smiles on their faces.” a Pastora ges, as well as se his role as Community Pastor has l Intern a rving as t Botany wife Gle Life. Rob nys, and We would love to see each community been developing key community , his their thre Jordan (1 e childre 0), group ‘Go and Do’ one thing in the relationships with the Auckland n; Pakurang Anna (8) and Ka yla a, community each year - making use of their Council, the Howick Local Board, part of th and have quickly (6) live in e Botany unique assortment of abilities, personalites the NZ Police and a number of Life famil become a y. and rhythms, and we would love to see that other local organisations and reflected in the way they choose to serve. networks. These relationships help 8

IN THE WORD

Musings

...with Rowland Forman

Take a walk with Jesus... What would you do if you had the chance to have an intimate talk with the kindest, wisest and most powerful person in the universe every single day? What if that person was vitally interested in your joys and sorrows and would gladly walk and talk with you? In chapter 24 of his gospel, Luke tells us about two people who were given that opportunity. In a somewhat humourous account, Luke tells us about two friends (possibly husband and wife) who were stewing over the tragic events surrounding Jesus’ crucifixion. The risen Lord Jesus walked alongside them as they were on the Emmaus Road. They didn’t recognise him and they treated him as if he was ignorant of all that had happened! Before you judge them (Luke

says that they were prevented from knowing him). I wonder how often Jesus is right alongside you and you don’t refer to him? I’m convinced that the main purpose of Luke’s account of this journey with Christ is to demonstrate that he was alive and intimately involved in the lives of his followers, but I also believe that this story, (take a few minutes to read Luke 24:13-35), has lessons that could revolutionise the way we live. At the most basic level this story reminds me to process life with fellow Christ followers. Jonathan Lamb describes the Christian life as “the pursuit of God in the company of friends.” I like that. Don’t bottle things up, share them. But the Emmaus Road account tells us to do more than find someone to talk to. It reminds us that the Risen Lord Jesus is right there with us - that he is more real than the chair that you may be sitting on. Notice that it was Jesus that drew alongside them, not the other way round. Based on this narrative we could call the Christian life - God’s pursuit of us as we company with friends.

Notice how Jesus revealed himself to his confused disciples. He allowed them to process life. He pointed them to the Scriptures, and then as he was sharing a meal with them, they suddenly woke up to who this Stranger was. Psalm 139 reminds me that God is more intimately aware of my every thought and move than I realise. As you fold into each day, how about a prayer like this: “LORD JESUS, THANK YOU THAT YOU ARE WITH ME TODAY. I WANT TO BE AWARE OF YOU. AND AS I READ YOUR WORD AND PROCESS LIFE WITH FRIENDS, REVEAL YOURSELF TO ME.” The wisest, kindest, most powerful person in the universe is right there with you. Take a walk with him today. He knows how broken and often confused you are. Tell him about everything. And do this in the company of good and godly friends.

Rowland Forman serves as the National Director of Living Stones Leadership Ministries, which helps local churches in New Zealand to develop servant-hearted leaders. He has been in full-time Christian ministry almost 40 years, serving as a Bible College Principal, Teaching Pastor, Church-Planter, Curriculum Writer, Author and Mentor. Rowland and Elaine are foundation members of BotanyLife, being part of the initial core group that started the church, and they both lead separate men’s and women’s community groups. They have three adult children, seven wonderful grandchildren, and a fantastic son-in-law.

LEADERSHIP SPOTLIGHT

meet...

Mel Palmer Children’s Pastor

Mel Palmer, married to Drew and the mother of Mack (5), Ben (3) and Jedd (11 months) accepted the job of Children’s Pastor in February this year after leading BK as a volunteer for three years. Her relaxed manner and passionate enthusiasm for this ministry makes her perfect for the job. As Drew took the two older boys rock climbing and Jedd had his morning nap, I sat down with Mel to chat about her new role and find out a little more about this new member of the pastoral staff. Text by Melissa Guyan. Photography by Peter Stormer.

ongratulations on your new role. You’ve been employed for 10 hours a week, how do you fill up these hours? Basically I make sure the Sunday morning programmes are running smoothly. I’m in charge of small group leaders, training and equipping them for teaching the children. I also choose and organise the curriculum and provide pastoral care to the kids as needed. What experience do you bring to the job? I taught years 1-4 for six years before becoming a full time mum. I find it has helped me communicate with the kids. The experience makes me able to control the kids when they are en masse and understand their different developmental needs… what the younger ones are capable of. Any favourite aspects? Hanging out with the kids. I love going to the socials and seeing them have a good time. I also love the singing times with BK and the chats you get into with the children. I like seeing the kids developing relationships with the leaders. They seem excited to spend time with them and with their small groups.

What do you want the kids to walk away with after a Sunday session? Ultimately I want to see all the children in a relationship with God, learning to trust and grow with Him. Also that they will make wise choices in regards to the way they treat other people and the friends they choose.

Any exciting plans for the future of children’s ministries? We have some very cool things lined up, but you’ll just have to wait and see. Let’s end with a few personal “getting to know you” questions. What’s your favourite flavour of icecream?

What do you think the biggest challenge is with reaching kids in today’s society?

I quite like Rush Munro Feijoa icecream.

Busyness for both parents and kids. Life seems so full of other activities that church can sometimes feel like just another thing they fit into their week. Media can also be a challenge. The messages are often wholesome, but they are lacking a God factor.

If you ever get free time, what do you like to do with it?

Any tips for parents? Things they can do at home to build on what BotanyLife is trying to achieve?

I know for a fact you’re a wonderful mother, what is your favourite aspect of parenting?

Our family devotionals inform the parents on what the children are learning and gives them activities they can do at home to reinforce the learning. You can pick up the devotionals at the start of each term at church and also on the website. I really encourage the parents to use the devotionals as the kids seem to respond well to further input at home.

Those warm fuzzy feelings you get when they give you cuddles and tell you they love you. With Jedd, it’s the way that he gazes at me, like I am the most important person in his life. I love seeing the boys conquer something new. The joy that comes from recognising they can do something they didn’t think they could do is awesome.

What’s free time? [She laughs] No, if I ever get the chance, I like to stay in bed with a good book… no interruptions except for my husband bringing me breakfast (hint, hint, Drew!).

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY

KIDS… A BIG DEAL? AT BOTANYLIFE…

Absolutely! O

ne thing there is no shortage of in our church family is kids! We now have over 70 primary school aged kids and at least 40 pre-schoolers. We have 52(!) people serving in our kids ministries... it is most definitely a big deal! So for those of you who haven’t had the honour of being part of this ministry, either as a parent or from the volunteer side, here is some information to bring you up to speed. CRECHE is the place for the tiniest members of our church. We know that these 0-2s are special to God and we want them to know that too. In crèche the kids participate in a short programme, which repeats each week. This teaches them that God loves them, that God’s word is the Bible, and that they should listen to Mummy and Daddy! They have lots of time to play and they share morning tea together. Creche currently operates out of the school staffroom and is now available from 10am so parents can have time to settle their littlies before the sermon starts if they wish to. Our 3 to 5 year olds head straight to PROMISELAND at 10am and when they arrive it is all set up ready for a free

playtime. Children are encouraged to work together with the three teachers on hand to assist. After about 20 minutes they have a welcome time on the mat where birthdays are celebrated, they pray and talk about our sponsor child - Cezalyn. The teacher then introduces the key point for the lesson. This is shared throughout the rest of the morning through various video clips, a Bible story, games and craft. A break is taken from their learning for morning tea where the children come together to have fruit, a biscuit and a drink. As pre-school age kids love routine and predictability, the Promiseland programme is run with a very similar routine each week. BK is where our Year 1 to 6’s worship, learn and play. A typical BK session begins with some upbeat worship songs... the kids favourite - SPIN - makes us all quite dizzy, but is lots of fun! Following this we split into our small groups for a quick chat and catch up on the week just been. The bulk of the learning occurs in a large group setting before breaking again into our small groups for some games or activities to help the kids connect the learning we have done with their everyday lives. We currently have seven small groups in BK, which are age split.

Outside of our Sunday morning programme, something the BK kids look forward to, are small group socials. These happen twice a year, normally in terms two and three. Here, the kids and leaders get together outside of a normal BK session to have some fun (see some photos of our latest socials on the kids pages in the middle of this mag). The cross over between Promiseland and BK is slightly vague…this is intentional. Once children are in Year 1 at school they are welcome to join BK at the beginning of any new term. When they join it is at the parent’s discretion. We have found that while some children are very keen to move up once they hit Year 1, others still love Promiseland so they are most welcome to stay there for a while longer. The curriculum we use for both Promiseland and BK is from Elevate. We use ElevateKids in BK and ElevateJnr in Promiseland. Samples of our curriculum can be viewed at www.elevatepastors.com.

NOW, SOME REMINDERS, AN INVITATION AND AN OPPORTUNITY…. • In Creche and Promiseland we ask parents to sign their kids in AND out. We want to ensure these kids are kept super safe! We have a sign in system in BK too and we love to see parents in BK, but here kids can also sign themselves in if their parents aren’t able to come over. • While our programmes are for the kids we absolutely welcome any parents who want to come and check us out. You may even learn something too! • We are always on the lookout for people who love our kids and want to serve God in our kids’ ministry. At the moment we’d love more people to help us launch an eighth small group in BK! If this is something you’d consider or would like to know more about please chat to Mel Palmer on (537 5994).

YOUTH MINISTRY

Youth Ministry

Text by Andrew Mackereth

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.” - Romans 12:1-2.

At BotanyLife Community Church, our youth ministries have struck a concordance in mission. This has occurred by sheer coincidence. Both our intermediate ministry Xchange and high school ministry ALTR have drawn our mission out of Romans 12:1-2. Each ministry purposes to transform youth with the knowledge of the gospel and challenge them to live in a way that challenges the world, so that they might seek to know and follow God’s will.

As youth enter young

ALTR is BotanyLife’s

adulthood, BotanyLife’s

ministry for high school

intermediate youth

aged youth. ALTR wants

ministry Xchange

to grow youth who

kick starts a process

will place their lives

by which they might be transformed. As these intermediate youth

on the altar (as living

approach high school, Xchange aims to foster enduring friendships,

sacrifices); ALTR wants

challenge youth to think for themselves, and encourage youth to

to encourage youth to alter their lives, so that they might be known

own their faith and choices. All of this is part of “bridging the gap”;

for practicing what they profess to believe. This is the mission ALTR

the process by which youth are prepared to follow Christ through

has drawn out of Romans 12:1-2.

high school and beyond. Led by Mike and Rachael Read, with help from Jonathan Anderson, KK Leong, Paul Knight and Randall Britten,

Meeting most Monday evenings for studies and at diverse times

Xchange meets Sunday mornings during the school term for studies,

for social events, ALTR is led by Andrew Mackereth, with help from

and twice a term for socials.

Zachary Culpan, Megan Bryer, Aimee Gray, and Phil and Tania Sproul. ALTR get together and study the scriptures together. An

Past social events include speed gaming, roaming gnome, king of

emphasis is placed upon relationship building in small groups,

the kitchen, rock climbing and many more besides. Xchange’s study

and on praying for, and with, one another. At times ALTR tracks

curriculum has three focae: faith, relationships and choices, each explored in rotation. This year they have completed a relationship

alongside the church in the Journals, whilst for the sake of diversity,

series entitled “Why can’t I sleep in?” and a faith series entitled

it will do its own thing at other times. Next term ALTR will be doing

“What’s the big deal about sin?”. They are presently in the midst of

a special and thorough study of the Gospel of Luke. Ultimately

a series on choices entitled “What really matters?”. Our high school

ALTR is about discipleship. Its leaders recognise the importance of

leaders have noted that the youth who come out of Xchange are, for

getting alongside youth and encouraging them to seek to know

the most part, remarkably sharp young Christians.

God better. They always appreciate your prayers.

BYM EASTER CAMP AGAIN!! Text by Andrew Mackereth. Photography by Megan Bryer

ALTR has attended the Baptist Youth Ministries Easter Camp at Mystery Creek for the past three years. Here are five reasons weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be going again next year:

Passion... BYM have a passion for sharing the gospel with young people. Their

passion for reaching and challenging youth is palpable. Infectious even. They set almost inconceivable goals and chase them with everything they have. We love being part of that environment.

Community... We meet many new people. We are made aware of the larger

community of churches of which we are part. Most importantly however, we grow closer as a small community through time together in devotions, prayer, eating meals and simply hanging out.

Uncomfortable... The scale and experience of camp takes our youth out of their comfort zones. Exposure to new and different theologies and ideas is inevitable and sometimes uncomfortable. We want to make ALTR youth as uncomfortable as possible at different times. We want to teach them to ask questions and learn to articulate why they believe what they believe. We want them to learn to respect and love those who believe otherwise.

Convicting... The Holy Spirit moves in youth at camp. We observe changes.

We see them challenged; convicted of the need to repent, to take ownership of their faith, to take action. Our leadership delight in the opportunity to journey with youth in this; to counsel and pray with and encourage them.

Food... The food is fantastic!! 13

EASTER CAMP

reasons weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be going to

MAINLY MUSIC

BotanyLife mainly music

Held on Wednesday mornings, 10am, at Te Tuhi Centre for the Arts Text by Nicola Mountfort and Mel Thorburn.

TEAM MEMBERS - Nicola Mountfort (team leader) - Rachael Read - Carolyn van Gemst - Melanie Thorburn - Merilyn Griffiths - Elaine Forman - Susan Leong - May Albrecht

meet...

May Albrecht

ne of the volunteers, May Albrecht, fills us in on her involvement in this ministry. I realise you don’t have grandchildren involved in mainly music, so how did you get involved? I was asked by Shellene (founding leader), as they needed help in the kitchen.

he mainly music programme is a lively 30 minute music and movement session followed by a light morning tea for both the children and parents/caregivers, then a craft/colouring activity until 11am. The children participate in action songs that can involve the use of scarves, shakers and parachutes. We focus on having fun to the music, and emphasise the interaction between adults and their children. For many mainly music families this is a highlight of their week, as it is a special time to spend with their child(ren).

What influenced your decision to join the team? I hadn’t thought about it until I was asked, but I thought I could do the job in the kitchen as it was a role I felt comfortable with.

Each week the parents are encouraged in their parenting journey via the ‘Think Spot’, a short segment presented by Elaine Forman, Brad or Mark. We also actively promote BotanyLife activities and events, as well as the childrens’ ministries during the ‘notices’.

What is your role in the team? I help to get the morning tea ready for the kids and mums. It involves putting the cups and saucers out, making the tea/coffee, putting out biscuits and working with the team to have everything ready to go at 10.30am.

Our dedicated team of both mums and “grandmas” give their Wednesday mornings (and more!) to serve the community in this ministry. Each week between 80 and 100 children/adults attend (including the team).

What do you enjoy most about being in this team? I enjoy being a help in a small way. I am happy to do my bit in the background - it is no big deal to do the morning tea. It is a link in the team to enable the girls out front to do the music session.

This is an amazing opportunity to be involved with many unchurched families who willingly gather to enjoy time with their children, each other and the BotanyLife mainly music team members.

What do you like about being involved in this ministry? It is a great outreach ministry that I am more than happy to help out in a small way. I like that I can be involved out the back to provide a balance between the up front and out the back roles.

How BotanyLifer’s can help mainly music... Please pray for energy for the team members, for the smooth running of Wednesday sessions, and for meaningful interactions with our mainly music families. Any additional helpers or attenders would be warmly welcomed.

What are the benefits you think the families get from coming along? Meeting other mums, and of, course, us. How do you think they view Christianity through their contact with us? That we are available to them and when the opportunity arises we can speak about our faith. It is a good tool for Christian mothers to witness and have contact with other mothers. 14

KID’S PORTAL

Hey Kids... Welcome to the first Kids Portal! This section is just for you... pull it out, read it and complete the activities inside. If you need more copies go to www.botanylife.org.nz and print some more off. We’d love some funny jokes for future editions of this magazine. We’d also love to feature some of your writing like we have done with Adam in this issue. Please give any ideas/jokes you have to Mel. BOTANYLIFE THINKS YOU GUYS ROCK AND HOPE YOU ENJOY KIDSPORTAL! w School! ever for Point Vie best weekends e ke an th ma of to e in on s of April wa unity pitched has done. the school comm The 9th and 10th d ch an ur ch ch ur my ch at r from ou oud of wh A lot of people ome. I’m really pr e even more awes ol ho sc e om ening around th es aw everything happ e d se an to t ve go Hi I e r, th e weekend nt photographe View By the end of th int Being an assista s! Po ao e ch th d on se ni ks like orga rprised loo school. It looked ed seeing the su s involved. gnificent! I enjoy eryone who wa ma ev re to we u s yo en k rd an ga Th y. da on M faces on School children’s By Adam Young

KID’S PORTAL

COLOUR ME...

TEST YOUR MEMORY... Look up the verses to help you remember. Find the missing words in the word search below. 1. I Will ..... God - Deuturonemy 11:22 2. I Will Tell the ..... - Colossians 3:9a 3. I Will Put ..... First - 1 Corinthians 10:24 4. I Will ..... Others in Need - Romans 12:13 5. I Will ..... Back to God - 1 Chronicles 29:14b 6. I Will ..... God’s Promises - Romans 4:20 7. I Will ..... for Others - 1 Timothy 2:1

O W

W O

8. I Can Be ..... With God! - Galatians 3:9 ANSWERS: 1. Follow, 2. Truth, 3. Others, 4. Help, 5. Give, 6. Believe, 7. Pray, 8. Friends

SUDOKU FOR KIDS

Each box and each row (down and across) needs to include the numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4

ACROSS

1. 2. 5. 6. 7. 9. 10.

2 3 4 5

Abram pretended Sarai was his ____________ in Egypt? To which country did Abraham go to escape the famine in Canaan? What was Abraham’s wife’s new name? What was the name of Abraham and Sarah’s son? God gave Abram a new name... what was it? Who was Abram’s father? What did God provide as a sacrifice to replace Isaac?

DOWN

1. 3. 4. 6. 8.

8 9

God promised Abram that his descendants would be as numerous as the ____________ in the sky? What relation was Abram to Lot? Which land did the Lord promise to Abram? What was the name of Hagar’s son? Who did Abram marry?

ANSWERS: Across - 1. Sister, 2. Egypt, 5. Sarah, 6. Issac, 7. Abraham, 9. Terah, 10. Ram. Down - 1. Stars, 3. Uncle, 4. Canaan, 6. Ishmael, 8. Sarai

KID’S PORTAL

What were the main points from City Streets?

KID’S PORTAL

Snowboarder create a

... from the Community Project

The legs will be made from the lower part. Put a couple of bends to form the knees and bend the ends out to create the feet. 2.

To create the arms get a slightly

shorter pipe cleaner and twist it around his body a few times until the arms are the right size. 3.

Bend the arms to make hands

and then glue his feet onto the board. FIRST - THE SNOWBOARD 1.

Take an ice block stick. Cut two little pieces (5mm each) off one end and then glue them on top. The small rounded end needs to be glued to the other rounded end. The straight edged piece goes about 1cm in from the end you cut.

2. Glue a washer next to each of these pieces. 3.

To complete the snowboard glue a second ice block stick on top. Match the rounded ends so they all line up. (You should have a little notch under the back of your board which will be hooked onto the rubber band of your ramp for launching).

SECOND – THE SNOWBOARDER 1.

Take one long pipe cleaner and bend it in half. Give it a little twist to make a head shape and keep twisting down to form the body.

The snowborder has to be quite

flexible and springy so when he falls

over his arms can push him back up

again. To get the perfect boarding

position bend him at the knees, twist

the arms around and bend them back

down so they can help flip him

back up.

THIRD – THE RAMP 1. Take a cereal box and cut it into the

shape of a ramp

2. Take two pieces of card. Use one for

the ramp and glue the other piece

underneath to reinforce your structure.

3. At the bottom end of the ramp

(underneath) glue two ice block

sticks so that a bit sticks out

either side. Put a rubber band

across the ramp surface and

around these ends.

LAUNCH! HOW FAR CAN YOUR SNOWBOARDER GO? WHATEVER THE DISTANCE HE SHOULD LAND ON HIS FEET! Craft idea sourced from ‘The Big Bang’, CITV 2008. For further step by step guide visit www.citv.co.uk/static/thebigbang/snowboardinggame.html. 18

getting to know part of...

the BotanyLife Family Text by Charlotte Woodfield.

The Archibalds have been coming to Botany Life since it started in 2004. “We were a test market,” deadpans Grant. Some friends invited them along to the first service, explains Sarah, to support the fledgling church. “So we went along to that service, and there we stayed.”

f you can’t see the worship words on a Sunday morning, chances are you might be standing behind Grant Archibald. Try looking over his wife’s shoulder instead. Grant, now running his own franchising business with his slightly shorter wife Sarah, reckons opposites attract. Grant and Sarah were both born in Rotorua, meeting and marrying there before they came to Auckland about 14 years ago. Grant has worked as a chartered accountant; Sarah in sales, marketing and PR for two hotel chains. Now they run two franchise systems together: Speedy Signs, and EmbroidMe. They had a hand in that BotanyLife sign that directs you down Millen Avenue every Sunday morning. They have three sons; the oldest, Joshua “our basketball star” is almost 14, Nathan “he’s our rugby forward star” is almost 12, and James “our rugby back star” has just turned 10.

BotanyLife didn’t start, Mars Hill Church style, with 12 people in a living room. Sarah says there were about 40 at that first service. “That’s lots,” says James. The Archibalds were involved in the first community project, too.

“They like their sports,” says Grant, laughingly describing himself as “musically illiterate”. Sarah adds that the boys all learn piano. “And guitar!” interjects James, who has just bought one with his birthday money. He’s only learnt one song so far, but - as his dad points out you’ve got to start somewhere.

So what’s made them stick around, then? The people, and the teaching, say Grant and Sarah. As for the boys: Josh likes the songs, and Nathan likes the humour at the start of the sermons. And James? Though he’s in BK most mornings, he likes the sermon powerpoints, “and how [Brad] says and explains all the stuff”.

As far as family traditions go, the boys are all keen on their birthday week, when they’re let off their chores. For Grant and Sarah, the simple tradition of sitting down to dinner as a family phone and TV-free - is something they think is pretty important. At their parents’ suggestion, the boys have also started setting goals for themselves: some as simple as doing their chores, others more ambitious like academic achievements.

On a Sunday morning, Grant sometimes heads out to BK to teach the Year 5 boys. And you’ll see Sarah and the Welcome Team as soon as you walk in the door.

Cameron Roots

Text by Andrew Mackareth.

He aspires to one day have a family, go bungee jumping, cook a roast chicken and kayak out to Rangitoto.

ameron John Roots. Intensity. Courage. A real go getter. For those of you who have noticed Cameron around, here’s (almost) everything you need to know... Cameron was born in Hastings. He was raised in Hawera and then in Hamilton. His age is unknown. His parents are Mike and Sue; his brother is Simon; his sister is Julia. Born into a Christian home, Cameron became a Jesus disciple in his teens.

Recently Cameron spent some time in Vietnam and Thailand, where he enjoyed amazing meals for $2.50 and noted the disparity between the material wealth (or lack thereof) and happiness of the people there.

Cameron is an electrical and software engineer with a Masters in Engineering from Waikato University. He’s currently employed by Fisher and Paykel Healthcare as a process development engineer, but has a rich and variegated employment history. Previous jobs included working at an electronics repair company, labouring in an aluminium anodising and powder coating factory, and bag-packing. In his spare time Cameron enjoys music, sea kayaking (and fishing), and doing handstands. Somewhat more than a proficient guitar and bass player, Cameron has recently begun vocal training. He has been part of numerous musical collaborations, the most recent of which (his friend Brij says) is set to land him on iTunes. Formerly a gymnast of some standing, Cameron is poised and graceful by nature.

Cameron started coming to BotanyLife in September 2009 and stuck around because of the quality teaching, the community and Mark’s amazing smile. Having played some bass guitar on stage Cameron currently helps lead a small group at BK. Much more might be said. If you have any more questions, you should just go talk to him. 19

WHO’S THAT?

The Archibalds

CHICKZONE

whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been happening at...

Chickzone

Text by Mel Thorburn. Photography by Steph van Wijk and Mel Thorburn

Beach Walk... Our Chickzone events for women are always well attended, but none more so than our first event for 2011 held earlier this year. The team held their Beach Walk on Eastern Beach bright and early on Saturday 19th March, which saw the largest numbers weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had for this particular event show up for a spectacular sunrise. After a week of dismal weather leading up to the Saturday morning, there was a sense of divine blessing on the day, as smiling faces arrived ready to stroll, walk briskly or run along the beach. After this strenuous start to the day, there was a ready appetite

for the beautifully presented muesli, yoghurt, muffins and juice. As if this feast was not enough, Bear Espresso (AKA Bear Ihaka) was on hand to fulfil the chocolate/caffeine fix for both young and old. Some thought they may miss out on his services after a council representative showed up to usher him along, but thankfully Cathy Downey-Parish sent him on his way after revealing that the necessary permit had been obtained and we were in fact legit in serving coffee to those in need! The contented hum of chatter, babies gurgling and the occasional shriek of laughter could easily have carried on till lunchtime, had it not been for the star attraction of the morning; Chef Shellene

SPANISH EGGS - 2 tablespoon olive oil - 1 red onion - 2 garlic cloves - 1 can Mexican tomatoes - 1 can whole tomatoes - 6 eggs - Chopped parsley Heat oil, add red onion and garlic and soften. Add Mexican and chopped tomatoes, season, bring to boil then turn down to simmer. Make small wells into the tomato mix and crack eggs into wells. Cover and cook until eggs are cooked. Take off heat, add chopped parsley on top. Serve with grilled ciabata. Garofalakis. Shellene whipped up her culinary delight of Spanish eggs with ease as she improvised in her beach-side kitchen. Catherine Furness and friends were then invited to a gourmet setting for four to enjoy the final product (ignoring those drooling hangers on!). It is safe to say that with appetites sated and the sun still shining, a great time was had by one and all.

CHICKZONE

Mid-Winter Christmas with Gilded Lily... Friday 10th June was a miserably cold and rainy night as the Chickzone team busily prepared for the onslaught of 120 women attending the Gilded Lily Mid-Winter Christmas event. And boy do they know how to warm up a cold winter’s night! As we came in from the rain to the room at Te Tuhi, our senses were roused with the scent of mulled wine, subtle Christmas music playing and stunningly dressed tables of food. Obviously these girls had been paying attention at previous Gilded Lily events! As we settled in to enjoy the presentation from Susan Elijas and Sarah James (who are Gilded Lily), it was obvious that they had a natural rapport, no doubt a result of being friends since they were teenagers. This allowed them to seamlessly bounce off one another with funny anecdotes and quips as they went about their work of creating beauty.

Their philosophy is simple; you don’t have to spend a lot of money to create an inviting and warm atmosphere. Re-purposing old items was a key feature of many of their styling tips, with old glass medicine bottles being dressed up with red carnations and hung from tree branches, and an old wooden crate being filled with a bunch of bright red berries and green leaves as a centrepiece. It is the little things you can do with existing items in your house, combined with some thought around colouring, textures and maybe a special piece that can create a memorable setting for gatherings with friends. The opportunity for one lucky guest to get up front and create a ‘sushi flower’ alongside Sarah was a testament to how easily their ideas could be accomplished without practice or stress. Notes were taken; recipes and laughter shared, and before we knew it Gilded Lily had finished their repertoire. Now was our chance to get up close to examine, photograph and marvel at all the details Sarah and Susan had effortlessly put together for us. WOW! The results were a rustic table setting of silver plates and bowls mixed 21

with modern white china and red corduroy napkin ties. A collection of cut glass trinkets presented on a sliver tray tied in beautifully with the addition of some pohutukawa flowers. Hurricane lamps decorated with ivy; vases stuffed with cellophane and white roses with the added touch of glass beads; different height glass bottles and candelabra... the options seemed endless! The most popular item to buy on the night, from the selection of new products displayed, appeared to be the strand of LED lights that have limitless uses in creating an instant transformation from blah to tadah! The fruits of Gilded Lily’s labour were equally matched and complimented by those of the chefs responsible for the scrumptious chocolate log, Louise cake and numerous sinful delights on offer for supper. You couldn’t help but feel spoilt after an evening of lively entertainment, inspiring information, decadent dessert and great company! Another great success for the Chickzone team - well done and thankyou so much for the superb effort that is always in abundance at these occasions.

REACHING OUT

life beyond the bumper sticker...

GREG LAURIE

AUCKLANDHARVEST Text by Al Ronberg

remember as a teenager lining up with a bunch of youth group and church friends in a vacant parkland not far from The Square in Palmerston North. In my hot little hand I held a song-sheet with such classic ditties as “Shine, Jesus Shine”, “Let the Flame Burn Brighter” and the equally epic “Hail Jesus, You’re My King” (in all its echoey, chanty goodness). The event that many of you may remember was of course ‘March for Jesus’ and it was quite possibly a teenager’s WORST nightmare. The idea of marching around the CBD of what is apparently New Zealand’s most boring town, singing songs that make you cringe when you AREN’T out in public, is like walking into the Colosseum dressed in a Rump-steak suit with a sign around your neck saying “Gladiators and Lions are soft!”. Well it must have seemed like that at the time, because I am almost certain that I hid somewhere behind a big banner or something. If I am honest however, there was something powerful about the

Churches of Palmerston North united in a common purpose. By the time that you read this article, Auckland will have just hosted the Greg Laurie Harvest events and hopefully, many people will have had opportunity to hear a message that introduces them to a life of following Jesus.

“MY HOPE IS THAT THE CHURCH IN AUCKLAND WILL NOT DROP THE BALL ONCE THE ‘NOISE’ HAS DIED DOWN.” I have to say that whilst the methodology of large-scale crusades like Harvest may be worthy of some debate in today’s post-modern world, what cannot be argued against, is the merit in around 200 churches from across our city, working together on a project like this. Graeme Lee, former MP and a big part of the team driving the Harvest event, mentions the obvious benefit of unity within the Auckland Church, but he also 22

talks of the benefit to churches that are finding it difficult to ‘harvest’ the resources that form the core of the Harvest event. This event is also critical in connecting churches across a broad spectrum of denominations and cultures. Graeme is particularly excited about the involvement of a bunch of Korean churches that has seen the need to have the event translated live into Korean with a follow-up area set aside for native Korean speakers. I left our meeting with a confidence that the message this event sends is clear. Irrespective of what may come about from this event, we need to be prayerfully considering how we can reach out to our friends and family! My hope as I write this (before the event) is that the Church in Auckland will not drop the ball once the ‘noise’ has died down. That we will be active in following up after the event... in fact I have to be honest and say that my hope is that it isn’t even about the event, but about building top-notch, sacrificial and enduring relationships with our workmates, our neighbours and our families!

sPORTAL: Crouch, touch, pause... pause a bit more... some more pausing...

have always found it kind of interesting how when the Blues, Hurricanes, Chiefs or Crusaders run around a rugby pitch in the Super 15, that I can happily yell accusations of cheating, foul play and “C’mon Ref!”... then all of a sudden, those same players put on black jumpers and I am suddenly their number one fan! As a keen Otago lad, rugby is a part of my life as foundational as breathing... so I am VERY excited about all that lies ahead with the World Cup on our very own doorstep. Sport brings with it an almost UNPARALLELED opportunity to make connections with our friends and neighbours. It is a large part of our national identity and our status as the most consistently AWESOME team in world rugby fuels our sense of pride in “punching above our weight” as a country. Engage (www.engagenz.org) is an organisation that has been set up to act as an ideas

bank for churches wanting to harness the opportunities that the Rugby World Cup brings to us. They have a tonne of ideas and suggestions that will hopefully help the Church in New Zealand make a significant impact at a time when we are flooded with people from all over the world.

“I AM VERY EXCITED ABOUT ALL THAT LIES AHEAD WITH THE WORLD CUP ON OUR VERY OWN DOORSTEP.” I spoke with Grant Harris who is the Chaplain for the Breakers basketball team and also on the Advisory Board of Engage. Grant reflects on the benefits of being an influence in the Breaker’s world and mentions how surprised they are that he would want to be in their world, and how they find it refreshing that when he is with them, that he doesn’t expect anything from them. It has to be said that there is an incredible power in our simple presence in people’s lives.

I play on a cricket team that is the dictionary definition of social. After games, as we sit in the clubrooms, it is amazing the conversations that come up about God. I don’t sit there and say “Now let me tell you about Jesus...” we simply sit and speak the language of sport (which for our team sounds remarkably similar to the conversation of a tribe of cavemen discussing which part of the stone to chip away to make their new-fangled ‘wheels’ for their Holdens). As we sit and talk about our latest loss, or laugh about some silly part of the match, sometimes that leads to real honest and meaningful questions. Sport opens up doors that other areas of life never seem to do. The language of sport is heavily written into NZ culture. We have an opportunity to be extremely creative with how we harness the Rugby World Cup as a mechanism to connect with our friends and family. We would encourage you to tackle this opportunity by jumping on the Engage website, and finding some creative ways you can engage!

REACHING OUT

Text by Al Ronberg

CREATIVE SPACE

REVIEWS

grab a comfy seat, turn the volume up, grab some popcorn, it’s...

Review Time

Music

Reviewed by Mark van Wijk

Rend Collective Experiment / Organic Family Hymnal | SURVIVOR RECORDS Released January 2010 $17.99 on iTunes / AU$21.99 at koorong.com.au

In contrast with our worship music ‘cupboard’ that is chock full of canned products, Organic Family Hymnal feels more like the self-seeded tomato plant that has recently sprung up out of the compost heap in my backyard. Rend Collective Experiment, a 15-strong group of ’20 somethings’ from Northern Ireland, have managed to create

something truly fresh. In keeping with their collective spirit, and their conviction that “we are not special people on a stage” you’ll find it downright impossible to learn much at all about the people who make up RCE, or find photos of individuals, which I kinda love. Unlike a couple of my other recent purchases, when OFH is playing in my car, I rarely find myself reaching for the track skip - the volume up button does however, get plenty of use.

find myself caught up in the story of the songs time and again. From the opening invitational ‘Come On My Soul’ to the light-hearted closing song ‘Find Your Kindness’, you’re treated to tracks like ‘You Bled’ (could it be any more triumphant?), ‘Movements’ (google this, the video is so much fun!), the energetic ‘Above Everything Else’, and the poetically reflective ‘You Are Love’.

With a musical variety wider than my bowling and intelligent, inspiring lyrics, I

In case you’re still wondering - I really like this album. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tomato soup, but I can’t get enough.

Pre-school | DESPICABLE ME

Family | THE PRINCESS BRIDE

Date Night | THE KING’S SPEECH

This is a great movie for the little ones. It is a funny, fast paced cartoon with a good moral. Be warned, there are some weapons in this movie - missiles and a few guns including a freeze ray gun and believe it or not a gun that fires squids, but they are used with comical effect. When I watched this with a group of kids ranging from 3 to 12 years old, I found them all laughing at varying points in the movie and at no point were the little ones cowering away from a scary scene. A relatively safe option if you have preschoolers.

I know this is old school, but I couldn’t resist. If you want to check out a movie that will cater for a majority of preferences, this one is pretty good. There is sword fighting for the fellas, romance for the girls and high, swashbuckling adventure for everyone. The storyline is peppered with comedy and very quotable lines to keep the tenser moments light. Most people seem to fall in love with at least one of the varied characters. It’s an excellent choice for a family movie night.

Colin Firth deserved the Oscar for his role as the stuttering King George VI. Thrown onto the throne when his brother abdicated, this is the struggle of a man who had to overcome his inner demons in order to lead a nation into war. Geoffrey Rush stars along side Firth as the man who helps him find his voice. This is an inspiring true story of friendship and determination.

Movies

Reviewed by Melissa Guyan

Length: 1hr 35mins NZ Rating: PG - contains low level violence Age: My personal opinion - three years plus

Length: 1 hr 58 mins NZ Rating: M - contains offensive language

Length: 1hr 35mins NZ Rating: PG - contains some violence and offensive language Age: My personal opinion - ten years plus

DISCLAIMER: These reviews contain personal opinions of the reviewers and do not necessarily reflect the views of BotanyLife Community Church. For more specific information on movies and music, check out www.pluggedin.com.

Love Wins Every now and then a book is released in Christian circles that causes lots of controversy and debate. It seems that the book to do that in 2011 has arrived. Entitled Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived, it is written by Rob Bell, one of the best known Christian communicators around. Review by Brad Carr

insist that history is not tragic, hell is not forever, and love, in the end, wins and all will be reconciled to God” (p.109).

His teaching on heaven. While I didn’t agree

a great deal of what he wrote. Rob argues

I have followed Rob Bell’s ministry and teaching from early on, when he launched Mars Hill Bible Church in 1999 by preaching through Leviticus for the first year - awesome! I have also used and enjoyed a number of the Nooma short films, and was impacted by Rob’s preaching when he came to New Zealand a number of years ago, and spoke at a pastor’s conference in Rotorua.

Essentially what Rob argues in Love Wins, is that heaven and hell are present realities all around us that we can experience now, as well as in the future. But hell will not be forever, and those who have rejected God’s invitation to life now will have opportunities in the next life to respond to God’s love and become part of his restored creation (heaven). There is hope that all will finally respond, because God’s love ultimately wins. Starting off positively, what did I appreciate about the book? There’s a number of things:

Greek word aion (age, eternal) were confusing

ell is the pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan, the author of some best-selling books, and the presenter of the Nooma series of short films.

It’s important to say all that, because this review will critique this book quite strongly, and I don’t want people to assume that I have it in for Rob Bell personally. I don’t. But I have grave concerns about where his theology is going, and part of my job as a pastor is to protect people from false teaching (see Acts 20:28-31; 1 Timothy 4; Galatians 1:6-10). So what is Love Wins all about? Here’s a quote that I think sums up the message of the book in a nutshell: “At the center of the Christian tradition, since the first church, have been a number who

Rob Bell’s courage. I like the fact that he has raised the questions that I think lots of Christians actually contemplate but are afraid to ask. I like it when someone is willing to confront the tough questions (even if I don’t always like their answers). Good on him. His writing style. In both his speaking and his writing, Rob is a master communicator. His style is vivid and creative, almost poetic, and he carries the reader effortlessly at times. His humour is fun too. 27

with everything in the chapter on heaven (chapter 2), I appreciated and agreed with against a concept of heaven that means sitting on clouds, wearing white robes and playing harps forever (“Can you play sports in a white robe?” p.24). He does a good job of arguing that the new heaven and the new earth will be a redeemed and restored creation; this world made new again. He also rightly argues that eternal life and a relationship with God starts now, although his word studies around the and at times misleading. The prodigal sons. I also liked some of his comments in chapter 7 around how the two sons viewed their father and had a different view of life than him. Much of what was solid seemed to have been taken from Timothy Keller’s book The Prodigal God, a book that I would highly recommend, although some of Rob’s own insights were way out there (such as the suggestion that hell is basically experiencing heaven and not enjoying it?!?).

REVIEWS

BY ROB BELL

However... having pointed out a few things that I enjoyed, on the whole I found this book really disturbing and sad, and quite unbiblical in many places. Before dealing with some specific biblical and theological issues, however, let me point out some basic problems I have with Love Wins.

So often he would argue strongly against a traditional view, only to then essentially endorse it again. Perhaps the most obvious example of that is when he argues strongly in chapter 4 that God will ultimately get what he wants (everyone to be saved), but then admits later that people could keep rebelling forever.

Omissions. Perhaps my greatest frustration, outside of theological differences, is the way Rob fails to deal with parts of Scripture that clearly differ from what he’s teaching. He simply ignores key verses or passages that contradict his view, which is really frustrating. For example:

Historical accuracy. Many of his statements about church history are just wrong, eg. that a large number through history have held his view (p.107), that Martin Luther believed in a second chance after death (p.106), and most especially that his view has been “at the center of the Christian tradition since the first church” (p.109). That’s simply not the case.

• He lists multiple OT passages on God’s love (pp.86-87), but ignores corresponding passages about God’s wrath and judgment. • He lists occurrences of words like hell, Sheol, etc, but ignores what those verses are saying (eg. Matthew 5:29; 10:28; etc) and ignores all other references to the

HE DOES A GOOD JOB OF ARGUING THAT THE NEW HEAVENS AND THE NEW EARTH WILL BE A REDEEMED AND RESTORED CREATION; THIS WORLD MADE NEW AGAIN.

lake of fire (eg. Rev 20). • He argues strongly that hell isn’t forever and more chances will be given, but doesn’t even attempt to interpret passages like Matthew 25 and Hebrews 9:27 that suggest otherwise. Inconsistencies. Having said I appreciate his writing style, this is where he annoyed me!

Weird interpretations. Sometimes Rob suggests interpretations from passages that had no support in the text concerned, which I’ve never heard before and that just seemed bizarre. Examples would include the idea that the chasm between heaven and hell was the rich man’s heart in Luke 16, or that Paul’s comment in 1 Corinthians 10 about Jesus being 28

the rock in the desert in the Exodus meant Jesus is everywhere in all cultures and belief systems (in fact Paul is teaching the opposite in 1 Corinthians 10 - that when people falsely worship in idolatry God judges them for their sin). Hypocrisy. I hesitate to write this so strongly, but I really think Rob is guilty of this. On one hand he says (in relation to his view) “to shun, censor or ostracize someone for holding this belief is to fail to extend grace to each other” (p.111). But then he uses words like “hijacked”, “toxic”, “cheap” and “shrivelled” to describe those who hold different views to his. I think that’s sad. Having said all that, however, my biggest issue with Love Wins is with its theology. Time and time again I found myself shaking my head in sadness at what he was suggesting or overtly teaching. For the sake of space, let me list just a few of the biggest theological headaches in the book. Sin. As I have already shared in a recent sermon, I think a lot of Rob’s problems stem from a poor view of human sin. Rob definitely believes and teaches sin, but all his examples deal with sins against one another without any reference to how sin affects our relationship with a holy God. There’s no vertical dimension to sin; no understanding of sin as rebellion against God. That in turn impacts Rob’s views on judgement, hell, the cross, the gospel and God.

The cross. In chapter 5 Rob rightly notes that the Bible uses a number of pictures to describe the effectiveness of Jesus’ death on the cross sacrifice, reconciliation, justification, victory, etc. But in the same chapter Rob dismisses blood sacrifices as barbaric, without saying that they were central to the worship of God in the Old Testament and that Jesus has perfectly fulfilled them (not just abolished them), which is what Hebrews teaches. Then later he essentially rejects “substitutionary atonement”, the idea that Jesus died to rescue us from God’s wrath (p.182), which I believe Scripture clearly teaches (eg. Isaiah 53; Mark 10:45; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 4:10). The cross seems to end up simply as an example of God’s love, which while true (eg. 1 Peter 2:21), seems quite weak by itself. The character of God. However, my strongest feelings were aroused by Rob’s caricatures about God, especially the doctrine of God as judge. For example, he writes about God’s judgement,

He is never inconsistent, never unfair or changeable he is always perfectly loving and just and wrathful and gracious and merciful all at the same time. We may see one aspect of his character more at any particular moment or in a particular act of God, but he does not change the way that Rob is suggesting. The love of God. Rob’s problem is that he has made one attribute of God - his love - the controlling characteristic over all the others. It

THE BIBLE DOESN’T SAY THAT GOD IS LOVING ONE MINUTE AND WRATHFUL THE NEXT, JUST ONE DAY AND MERCIFUL THE NEXT. GOD IS ALWAYS FULLY AND BEAUTIFULLY GOD, COMPLETELY TRUE TO HIMSELF EVERY MOMENT.

is certainly true that God is love - the Bible clearly affirms that (eg. 1 John 4:8). But God is not only love; he is also omniscient, gracious, holy, unchanging. To make one attribute of God “trump” the rest the way that Rob has done is ultimately to obscure the full-orbed beauty of God’s character. So, would I recommend the book? No. In fact if asked, I would probably encourage people to leave it alone. However, I know that there are

That kind of statement really annoys me, both because it misrepresents what the Bible teaches about God’s attributes, but it also comes perilously close to blasphemy. The Bible doesn’t say that God is loving one minute and wrathful the next, just one day and merciful the next. God is always fully and beautifully God, completely true to himself every moment.

DED BOOKS: RECOMMEN s lous: The Cros rson, Scanda ay Ca w A ss D ro (C s * ection of Jesu and Resurr ) Books, 2010 of cult Doctrine rson, The Diffi Ca s, A ok D Bo ay * God (Crossw the Love of ) 1999 ars, Garry Breshe Driscoll and ) 08 20 , ay w * Mark ve (Cross Death By Lo ars, Garry Breshe Driscoll and k ld ar M ou Sh * hat Christians Doctrine: W ssway, 2010) ro (C Believe od: e Prodigal G hy Keller, Th ot ristian m Ti Ch e th * the Heart of ng ri ve co 20 Re ghton, 09) der and Stou Faith (Hod

a number around, including at BotanyLife, who like me, have loved and appreciated Rob Bell’s ministry and will want to read it. My hope and prayer is that you would use discernment as you read (as you should with any book), and like the ancient Bereans you would “examine the Scriptures every day” to see if what Rob has said is true (Acts 17:11).

REVIEWS

“God would, in essence, become a fundamentally different being to them in that moment of death, a different being to them forever. A loving heavenly father who will go to extraordinary lengths to have a relationship with them would, in the blink of an eye, become a cruel, mean, vicious tormenter … If God can switch gears like that, switch entire modes of being that quickly, that raises a thousand questions about whether a being like this could ever be trusted, let alone be good. Loving one moment, vicious the next. Kind and compassionate, only to become cruel and relentless in the blink of an eye. That kind of God is simply devastating” (pp.173-4).

Judgement and wrath. Rob does talk about God’s judgement of sin, and even a final judgement, but it’s a very passive view where God simply doesn’t allow sinful actions into his kingdom. There’s no room for God’s active, wrathful judgement of sin, and yet the Bible clearly speaks about that. Ephesians 2:3 says we were “objects of wrath”; John 3:36 says that God’s wrath remains on those who do not believe in Jesus; and Revelation pictures God’s wrath being poured out on sinful humanity at the final judgement. Jesus is even described at his second coming as the one who “treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty” (19:15).

MARRIAGE / PARENTING

No No’s For Husbands

Text by Nikki Bray

SO OFTEN ONE OF THE DIFFICULTIES WE HAVE IN MARRIAGE IS UNDERSTANDING ONE ANOTHER. YOU HUSBANDS OUT THERE, IF YOU’LL LEARN TO UNDERSTAND YOUR WIFE AND LOVE HER THE WAY GOD INTENDED, THE REWARDS FOR YOU ARE WORTH IT.

help?” And try not to interrupt... listen all the way through.

To help you in the process here are six ‘no-no’s’ to avoid if you want to enjoy a great marriage: 1. Never stop courting your wife... Before marriage, you found it so easy to be romantic, to go out of your way to do special romantic things to woo your bride. But after marriage... Men, A and B does not equal C. In other words a bunch of flowers and a box of chocolates does not equal romance. It may have worked once but your wife wants you to keep getting to know her, to court her, to woo her. Saying “I love you” is not enough... she needs to feel the reassurance of your love often.

Andy and Nikki Bray are foundation members of BotanyLife, being part of the original leadership team that started the church in 2004. Together the Bray’s lead Familylife, a ministry which is dedicated to showing couples God’s plan for marriage and family. Through one day seminars and inspiring weekend conferences, Familylife presents biblical proven principles to help people stay happily committed and continually growing for a life-time of oneness.

4. Never use your biblical position as leader of the family to bully and control... Men, you’re called to be a servant-leader which means sacrificially loving your wife. She needs to be encouraged, nurtured and cherished, and given the freedom to pursue her God-given talents. She will blossom under Godly servant leadership. 5. Don’t take it personally if she says “No” to sex... Generally speaking women are not designed with the same sex drive as men. Therefore, when you initiate and she says ‘No’, don’t take it personally. She is not necessarily saying No to you - it’s probably that there are too many other distractions. Help her by building emotional closeness outside the bedroom, focus on giving her pleasure rather than just having sex, and things will run much smoother.

2. Never treat your career with more value than you do your wife... You’ve slain the dragon, won the heart of your bride and carried her off to your castle. Many men blow it by thinking the battle is won and now all they have to do is “provide for her.” Often well-meaning husbands will dedicate hours at work providing for his wife and family at home. If they only knew that what she wants most is time with her man, and often would sacrifice lifestyle if it meant more special time with her man. For your wife, closeness and emotional security is often more important than financial security.

6. Don’t stop telling her that she’s beautiful... A woman has a deep need to know her husband still finds her attractive. When she comes to you before going out and asks, “How do I look?” don’t just reply “Fine.” Inside is a little girl, putting on a new party dress, and dying to be noticed. Remember, as her husband you are the one person in her world that can legitimately tell her how beautiful she is. You really wouldn’t want her getting those cues from anybody else, would you?

3. Never stop listening to your wife... There’s nothing that makes a wife feel more unloved than when she tries to have a meaningful conversation with her husband and he either just grunts, or offers his three-point solution, or walks out of the room! Husbands, I know learning to listen comes hard for you but you will demonstrate great love and honour to your wife by listening to her with her best interests in mind. Often she just needs you to say “I understand how that affects you” or ask “Is there anything you’d like me to do to

NEXT ISSUE OF PORTAL: 6 NO NO’S FOR WIVES. 30

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