Creative Belinda & Perry Bradley
Pair
issue 13: Summer 2013 We Stole the Sun: A Conversation with Sam & Emily
Sue Thomas: Still Deeper Into God
Bruce Pilbrow: In Transition
George Seber: Unsung Hero
Fay Edwards: The Time of My Life
Ellie Kim: From Seoul to God’s Own
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FROM THE EDITOR|JULIE BELDING
Remember the Lavender D
uring the silly season (like around now) it often does one a power of good to just take a long walk in the open air and smell the flowers. One of my favourite places to walk is along the cliff path between Mairangi Bay and Rothesay Bay, with well-kept gardens on one side and the ever-restless sea on the other. On a beautiful summers day it can wonderfully restore the soul. Among the flowers I love to encounter on this invigorating stroll are the clumps of lavender bushes. I’m sure you’ve seen them. Their brilliance is hard to miss. Actually they have no detectable aroma as you walk by. It’s only the rich purple colour that you notice. But I like to pluck off a few lavender heads as I pass, and squeeze them between my fingers. It’s then – and only then – that they release their unmistakeable scent. Obviously the poor flowers are demolished in the process – they make the ultimate sacrifice – but my hands are left with a pleasant smell as I continue my journey. The experience tends to make me a bit reflective as I stroll. It occurs to me that it’s not just the lavender which releases its fragrance when squeezed. We’ve all met people whom, for one reason or another, life has embittered. Perhaps they have been treated unjustly by others, faced a death in the family that shouldn’t have happened or been debilitated by accident or
GREAT GIFT! GREAT VALUE!
illness. For whatever reason, disappointment has caused their souls to shrivel and they become uncomfortable to be around. On the other hand there are also beautiful, gentle people – and I’m sure you know some of these too – for whom suffering has been a catalyst for character, people who have received beauty for ashes and the oil of joy for mourning. (Isaiah 61:3) Life has made them sweeter rather than sour. Some of these people you have read about in LIFT magazine over the months. In the words of the Austrian American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (1926-2004): “These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.” Like the lavender, they have a winsome aroma about them, an aroma all Christians ought to have, regardless of our circumstances. “For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” (2 Corinthians 2:15, NASB)
Are you sensing extraordinary pressures at the moment? Do you feel trampled upon? Ground down by disappointment? When it all weighs too heavily, remember the lavender – the plant that releases its perfume most fully when crushed.
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CONTENTS issue 13 : Summer 2013
COVER PHOTO BELINDA BRADLEY
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23 12
Features 07 We Stole the Sun: A Conversation with Sam & Emily 10 Sue Thomas: Still Deeper into God
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16 07
12 Bruce Pilbrow: In Transition 14 George Seber: Unsung Hero 16 Perry and Belinda Bradley: Creative Pair 20 Fay Edwards: The Time of My Life 23 Ellie Kim: From Seoul to God’s Own
Regulars 02 Editorial : Julie Belding 04 What’s happening at Windsor?
Senior Pastor Grant Harris Editor Julie Belding editor@liftmagazine.org Design & Production Lewis Hurst lewis@hcreative.co.nz
06 A quick word : Lewis Hurst
Advertising Bert Holl advertise.lift@gmail.com
19 Theosart 25 Myk Habets: My View
Writers Pam Bedwell, Hugh Collins, Grant Harris, David Knell, Iain Litterick, Lisa Michelle, Sophie Rice, Elliot Rice Photographers Belinda Bradley, Devin Hart, Asher Pilbrow, Brya Pilbrow, Dani Mackay
Lift (“Life Integrating Faith Together”) is the quarterly magazine of Windsor Park Baptist Church, PO Box 65385, Mairangi Bay, Auckland 0654. Its aim and vision is to reveal members of the church serving God in all their diversity. Ideas and articles for future issues are welcome. Contact the editor at editor@liftmagazine.org
26 Sam Burrows: Church Dropout 28 Christmas: a poem by Alicia Hindle
Lift is a member of the Australasian Religious Press Association.
ISSN 2230-2646
CONTENTS
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WE LIKE A GOOD STORY T
here’s truth in the line that everyone likes a good story. It can open our eyes to new ways of living and give us a bigger picture of the world. Many people have never thought of the Bible as being a good story, but it’s actually an amazing story; a story of God’s relationship with people over a long period of time. 2014 is a big year for Windsor Park as we read through God’s story over the whole year in a 32-week series called The Story. Many have never read the Bible in this way before, chrono-
logically from beginning to end. (Did you even know the Bible wasn’t written chronologically?). We’ll be spacing this series throughout the year to ensure we have time to digest everything that comes up, but we have a hunch this is going to be pretty significant for many people as we see God’s amazing big picture unfold for the world, and how we often struggle to live with that in our lives. This is a perfect year to include other people who might be interested in hearing more than a good story. Bring it on.
We’re Growing Up Windsor Park has changed a lot over the last few years. We’ve taken over the running of cafewindsor, launched a fantastic childcare centre (Small Fries), begun a small creative agency (WindsorCreative), begun a specialist Christian counselling centre, launched a residential respite centre (Koromiko House) as well as the Totara Club (day care for people affected by dementia); we’ve worked in significantly with three other churches and merged with one of them, and we’ve worked on a framework for spiritual formation in people at many different stages of life. On top of that we’ve rejigged many of our internal processes and sought to be the best we can be for the diverse range of people who are connected to us in one way or another. We feel like we’re growing up, responding positively to the world where we live. It’s exciting to see people getting hold of new initiatives, with a real desire for the church to be more than Sunday. ONE THING WE’RE ALWAYS KEEN FOR IS TO HEAR YOUR IDEAS – WE BELIEVE THE BEST IDEAS COME FROM THE GRASSROOTS. MAYBE YOU’VE GOT A DREAM OR A VISION THAT GOD HAS DROP US AN EMAIL AT INFO@WINDSORPARK.ORG.NZ AND WE’LL PUT YOU IN TOUCH WITH SOMEONE TO SHARE IT WITH.
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WHAT’S HAPPENING AT WINDSOR WITH GRANT HARRIS
© AFROBOOF/FLICKR.COM
PLACED IN YOUR HEART THAT JUST NEEDS SHARING.
JUMPER LEADS Have you ever had to use jumper leads to get your car going? Those awkward moments of making the leads stretch far enough between vehicles and then nervously clamping them to both batteries, hoping you don’t electrocute yourself in the process? It feels risky to connect sometimes! It’s the same with us. We often feel a little vulnerable as we connect to other people. It’s risky getting to know others, but it’s also a big part of what helps us grow. At Windsor Park we’re prepared to take risks to connect up, and we strongly encourage people to take the risk of connecting with others as that’s how we mature in so many different ways. We’ve recently worked hard to provide a tool that shows some great ways to connect up with others in the context of our community. GO TO OUR WEBSITE WWW.WINDSORPARK.ORG.NZ AND CLICK ON THE CONNECT TAB. UNDER GROUPS YOU’LL BE ABLE TO LINK TO AN INTERACTIVE GUIDE THAT DETAILS DOZENS OF WAYS TO
A NEW CHAPTER Recently Belmont Baptist Church merged into Windsor Park to become one bigger, happier family. Over the last few years the leadership of Windsor Park has had a strong desire to be more effective on the Shore, without reinventing the wheel. SYNC emerged out of that as four Baptist churches starting working together, and then the idea of merging came across the table for the people at Belmont. God was clearly in the middle of this process, because it’s almost unheard of for Baptist churches which by nature are fiercely independent! The official merger happened on 3 November 2013 and now the process of working this into our operations is unfolding. It’s a new chapter in the life of both churches, who are now one church on multiple sites, and a new story is being written that we believe in years to come will be fruitful and productive. WE’VE GOT PLENTY OF IDEAS ON HOW THIS MIGHT WORK OUT, BUT AS YOU READ THIS YOU MAY GET SOME IDEAS AND INSPIRATION TOO. MAKE SURE YOU PASS THEM ON TO US INFO@WINDSORPARK.ORG.NZ. YOUR INPUT IS GENUINELY APPRECIATED AS WE TRAVERSE UNCHARTERED WATERS. EXCITING!
CONNECT AT WINDSOR PARK.
Go on, take the initiative to take a look and open yourself up to the possibility of meeting some amazing people. The risk is worth it.
Financial Health Check If you sat in on our Keep Calm and Listen to James series (looking deeply at the letter that James wrote in the Bible of the early church) you’ll know James was writing about some significant themes. One of them was about the way we view and manage our wealth. It wasn’t a call to give more to the church, although this could be a natural outworking of changed attitudes (and the church does need everyone to be giving!) but it was a call to think carefully about how we manage and view that part of our lives. As part of this series we had several opportunities to work this out practically, including a seminar provided by Baptist Savings which included a free financial health check – something we should do regularly. Baptist Savings is part of the Baptist Churches of New Zealand, and they’re doing fantastic things around the country (including installing an ATM at cafewindsor!) CHECK THEM OUT AT WWW.BAPTISTSAVINGS.CO.NZ AND YOU CAN STILL REGISTER FOR A FREE FINANCIAL HEALTH CHECK. YOU’LL BE PLEASED YOU DID, PARTICULARLY IF YOU BECOME HEALTHIER AS A RESULT.
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT WINDSOR WITH GRANT HARRIS
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A QUICK WORD
LEWIS HURST
PHOTO DEVIN HART
“
My conversion happened gradually,” says Lewis Hurst. “I had fallen in love with a Christian girl and luckily, despite that I wasn’t a Christian, she agreed to marry me.” Lewis began attending church regularly and had a growing understanding of God. However, while he had begun to shed some past habits he was yet to understand the full implications of the life he had lead prior to meeting Cindy. “Though I had been working on my spirit, my mind and body hadn’t let go of the past. It blew up in my face, and the most precious person in the world to me
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A QUICK WORD
got very hurt. But we worked on it, and Cindy supported me.” Two years earlier Lewis had asked God to reveal himself. “I had a dream that night that made it very clear to me that God was the truth, and he gave me a message, Luke 15:10.”
Luke 15:10 NIV “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” But it was only now that Lewis sought God’s forgiveness and he started on a journey that would lead him to youth leadership and participation and facilitation in the Valiant Man program.
He now has a special interest in helping young men through issues similar to his own. “There are a lot of people getting hurt, men and women, from the ever increasing availability of porn, objectification of women and the desensitisation of sex in society. The mystery and intimacy of sex is removed and replaced with a horrible and often violent imitation. “A greater responsibility has to be taken up by all to educate their children, young adults and peers beyond the line of ‘save yourself for marriage’.” Lewis is a graphic designer. He lives and works in Stanmore Bay with his wife Cindy, their 2-year-old son Lachlan and baby girl Ava.
&
A Conversation with Sam Emily Sophie Rice talks with Sam Burrows and Emily Rice of We Stole the Sun
WE STOLE THE SUN
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“I like how music bypasses the brain,” says Sam, “and you’re entering into another’s soul in a way that words and explanations cannot do.”
STORY SOPHIE RICE PHOTOS ASHER PILBROW
I
offer the band-members of We Stole the Sun refreshments as they take a seat on the couch to answer a few questions on their recent musical achievements. Pre-interview nerves are absent, as it’s simply my sister Emily and family friend Sam telling me about the musical journey this folk duo are on. After a throwing around a few ideas about We Stole the Sun’s genre, (a K-pop, metal chore combination or “twerk-folk”) Sam and Emily conclude that We Stole the Sun is a funky folk pop duo that creates somber yet enjoyable music. Meeting four years ago, Sam and Emily both came from separate music duos that coincidentally needed new replacements. With a passion for music they began jamming together after church and built up a repertoire of covers music. Emily was doing a popular music degree at Auckland University and Sam had had previous experience with the band Shift. The pair started gigging around Auckland at places like Kingsland’s Roasted Addiqtion and The Wine Cellar, growing in performance practice and skill. “It took ages to start writing music,” says Sam, but with time the duo moved on from playing covers songs to writing original music. Thinking about music and artists that have inspired them, Emily notes that some of her greatest influences have been the likes of Sting for his “unusual rhythms and technical harmonies,” Jon Foreman who writes “lyrics you wish you’d written yourself” and the soulful sound of Lianna la Havas. For Sam, Amos Lee “manages to never re-invent the wheel but uses things like melody really well,” mastering the music niche of folk, rock and soul. And for the raw rocker within him, Sam aspires to the bands Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins. Emily and Sam explain that their co-writing abilities vary from days of “a lot of mucking around” to
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WE STOLE THE SUN
days when an entire song is finished in an afternoon. Sam talks about how their song Dig Your Heels In began with a conversation on the fragility of life and how easily it could be taken away. This led to a swift songwriting session on embracing the people around you. Others were created in the studio as they jammed with certain chords and layered on backing vocals with a hiphop beat. Both musicians clearly value each other’s particular songwriting skills. “Emily can hear things in chords and roots that melodies can go down that I couldn’t think of,” says Sam. For Emily, “Sam has the ability to be honest through his lyric writing.” They are both listening and learning how to blend their talents and sounds. Sam and Emily not only have a passion for music; they also appreciate it as a powerful tool that connects people together. “I like how music bypasses the brain,” says Sam, “and you’re entering into another’s soul in a way that words and explanations cannot do.” Emily adds that music “has the ability to make you feel a certain way, think thoughts you’d never had before, and take you on a journey.” You sense it’s an honour for Emily and Sam to share their music with others. Music not only offers engagement in an ongoing conversation between songwriter and audience; it also contributes to the musician’s personal growth. “Emily has taught me how to see life in different ways,” says Sam with a laugh. “It’s often Sam vs. Emily.” Emily retorts, “I bring the enjoyment and Sam brings a relatable sadness.” It is within these conversations generated by music that Emily and Sam find “you can see God on stage,” with and through them. “As well as our music it’s our relationship, our cool-as friendship, where you can see God,” says Emily. “We write about how we see the world and invite people into that conversation and God’s love.” The band isn’t striking out on their own. Rather they are joining in on what God is already doing within their community. Today I am realizing it is it fun to interview people who are close to you, but I am also understanding how music has taken Emily and Sam on a journey that neither anticipated. We Stole the Sun released their
first EP this year at a sold-out gig. The EPs themselves have also sold out, and with air time on multiple radio stations, juice TV and Air NZ flight entertainment, plus their music video clip, Never Again, with thousands of YouTube hits, 2013 has been a year of plentiful opportunities and achievements for the duo. “It’s the sort of stuff that heaps of musicians dream of getting,” says Sam. “Sometimes you have to take a step back and think, that’s actually pretty cool!” Next on the horizon is a new “napoleon dynamite-esque” music video release called, Hey Dear, a line-up of gigs for the summer and a serious dose of songwriting for their next album, to be released next year. Their immediate future looks exciting and new opportunities are already being offered to the pair. Where would Emily and Sam like their music to take them eventually? “The music bands I aspire to be like,” says Sam, “aren’t the bands who are around for a few
“As well as our music it’s our relationship, our cool-as friendship, where you can see God,” says Emily. “We write about how we see the world and invite people into that conversation and God’s love.” years then stop and become unheard of. Some still speak to me and impact me years later.” As Emily sees it, it’s about legacy rather than impact. She says, “Songs are like a piece of art. They are beauty to share. Songs that influence people for life is what makes it all worth it.”
CHECK OUT THE WE STOLE THE SUN EP:
westolethesun.com soundcloud.com/ we-stole-the-sun
WE STOLE THE SUN
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SUE THOMAS
STILL DEEPER INTO GOD INTERVIEW & PHOTO PAM BEDWELL
I
don’t know if poodles make good guard dogs, but if they do, Max fails miserably. As a welcoming committee of one, however, he is right up there with Graeme and Sue Thomas, who live in Waiake. Sue welcomes me with open arms and Max jumps around me in pure delight. Max’s story parallels Sue’s and is a picture of God’s great love. Max is a rescued dog. He came to a shelter unwanted and starving. The Thomases took him one Christmas – just days before he was slated to be put down. “Love can overcome a lot of stuff,” notes Sue. She knows. She’s been through a lot of stuff. But as with Max, now snowy clean, happy and bouncy, the past is behind and the now is beautiful. “Lord you need to sort this.” Sue believes he can. But how is another matter. “Part of my story is about what the Lord does though brokenness,” Sue tells me. She is so aware of the biblical truth that God is the Potter and she is the clay.
Difficulties Sue left home at sixteen, broken. She was so ill-prepared for the outside world that even cooking and washing clothes were foreign. Not knowing just what to do, she joined the New Zealand Air Force. But she hated it. It wasn’t her. She lived through difficult and scary times in Australia for a while before coming back to New Zealand where her daughter was born. For a single Mum in Devonport, those early years were tough. There was no government support or otherwise but as Sue looks back she realises she wasn’t totally alone. She began searching for God. Raised in an unchurched family, she had nevertheless been sent to Sunday School which laid a foundation. Her search led her to an Assemblies of God church, where she was baptised at the age of 27.
It is said that problems and trouble don’t miraculously disappear when one becomes a Christian. This was true for Sue and she knows it is true for others. But miracles do happen. She is adamant: “It’s not about me, it’s about him. He catches us when we fall.” When Graeme and Sue married they brought with them a stack of baggage. You’d need a porter to help carry it all. But for them the Porter didn’t just help – he took the weight of it all and as the marriage progressed, whatever came up he took that too. Sue experienced major illnesses. God met her and took away the cancer in both eye sockets. He walked with her through breast cancer, surgery and radiation, and he was there for a bad accident and then another cancer scare. Each time, “Lord you need to sort this,” came from Sue’s heart. But it came around to... “What if he’s not going to this time?”
Accident It was 1997. Like a repeat of being sixteen again, Sue was left unable, but more so. An accident on the road left her unable to read, write, make coffee or do dozens of other simple tasks – never mind anything complex like making a cake from a mix. She couldn’t speak and keep her eyes open at the same time; she couldn’t cope with stimulation, so there were no big colours in the house and the walls had to be swept clean of photos and pictures. People time was cut to a minimum. Her mum could visit for one hour once a week, her sister for two hours per week. Sue’s brain, close to shutting down, needed a drastic plan in place for the healing process to begin. But accidents create their own ripple effect. Graeme was also injured, family members suffered, and some days felt very dark. Little whirlpools surrounded each person involved for a long time. It was a journey that took Sue many years to slog through.
Relinquishing herself – reconciling what she’d been left with and moving forward, she said, “Lord, I am yours. Do what you will.” How beautifully God worked again. From hopelessness and helplessness to today’s vibrant daughter of the King; from a mind that said “I can” but a body that couldn’t, to today’s big hugs and huge smiles. “Out of our brokenness he rebuilds us. He restores us. We do not remain broken; neither do we remain the same.” I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined to me and heard my cry... He set my feet upon a rock, making my footsteps firm. And he put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Ps. 40: 1-3
“The beautiful part of the Christian life for all of us,” Sue continues, “is the opportunity to get close to God and be awash in his love.” “I see a pile of debris, dull and grey. It’s part of a trail left behind, but beside it is a path of bright glory that is Christ who walked through it all with me. Just like a parent leaning into you, he knows your suffering, he knows your pain and he says I am here.” “The beautiful part of the Christian life for all of us,” Sue continues, “is the opportunity to get close to God and be awash in his love.” Max’s story is Sue’s story, our story. He came broken and starving, and love overcame. Sue came broken to the cross, starving and thirsting for truth. Now she presses still deeper into God. The more she gets, the more she wants, and the more she wants everyone to come to him.
In
transition
STORY HUGH COLLINS
PHOTO BRYA PILBROW
T
he visual image of a successful CEO includes a pinstriped suit, a dominant personality and a slightly pretentious aura. Bruce Pilbrow is an exception to this stereotype. You only need to engage with him for a few moments to see that his down to earth nature is why he’s so loved and respected by those around him. Husband to Amanda and father to Asher, Eden and Brya, Bruce is a man beaming with charisma and optimism. These qualities have made him a successful CEO at the Parenting Place, a not-for profit organisation that aims to positively impact New Zealand families. Since he stepped into the role eight years ago, the organisation has grown by around 500 per cent and is now involved in 94 per cent of high schools around the country. In addition The Parenting Place brings programmes to more than 100,000 parents every year. The 45-year-old with the dark-rimmed glasses says the best part of his job is being able to help people and see the difference they make in people’s lives. “It’s what gets you up and going in the morning,” he says.
The Journey In the 90s Bruce began working in the oil industry as a commercial business manager. After seven years in that role, however, he decided the corporate world was never going to be a long-term game. “It was at the stage in my career when they were going to start moving us overseas, that Amanda and I felt we actually wanted to do something that was about heart rather than oil.” So in 2000 he began a Bachelor of Theology at Laidlaw College, intending to become a pastor. “I didn’t come from a Christian family, so for me it was a good way to get some depth and understanding of the Bible. It was more than just a career move; it was a personal thing too.” As he had good career prospects, it meant a huge change in terms of their finances. While he
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BRUCE PILBROW
Bruce Pilbrow on his past and future challenges
doesn’t deny it was scary, he and Amanda have never been ruled by money. “For us it’s not the driving factor. We want to live life as an adventure so that at the end of it we can say we tried everything we wanted to do.” By his third year at Laidlaw College, however, he decided that working as a pastor wasn’t for him, and that he wanted to get involved in the not-for profit sector. After an eighteen-month stint at Rhema Broadcasting, he was tapped on the shoulder by The Parenting Place to become their marketing director. From there he worked his way up to General Manager, before becoming CEO in 2005. Bruce says the challenge of working in not-for profits is to make something out of nothing. “Your budget is always zero but you’ve got to create.”
“I know I’m not as squeaky clean-looking as some people but what I do know is that my faith runs deep and it really is the driving thing for me.” Family man As the Parenting Place seeks to equip New Zealanders with the skills and resources to be good parents, the role certainly puts pressure on his own fatherhood – although he makes it clear that he and Amanda are just normal parents like everyone else. “We struggle with the same things every parent does,” he says, adding jokingly, “We got the back windows of our car tinted so when we yell at the kids no one can see us!” While Bruce may not be your textbook Christian with his tattoos and love of beer and Metallica, he emphasizes the vitality of his faith. “I know I’m not as squeaky clean-looking as some people but what I do know is that my faith
runs deep and it really is the driving thing for me.” He describes a defining moment in 1998 when where he was trying to come to grips with the existence of God. “I was sitting above a quarry, just thinking about life and really struggling with it at the time, and I really felt a connection with God,” he says. “For me it’s something so deep and so pure, it’s what I drive my life on. It’s not really about outward appearances and trying to act like a Christian. For me it’s about what the heart is.” While it’s clear that faith is the backbone of his life, he says that keeping it real is hugely important to him as a Christian. “You don’t want to be that guy whose religion so defines you that you actually lose the ability to connect with people. One of the things I love about Jesus is that he walked into any environment and he was just so insightful and available and connected.”
New challenge In October Bruce announced that early next year he’d be stepping down as the CEO of The Parenting Place. After a highly successful nine years with the organisation he says he feels strongly it’s time to open a new chapter. “I had some pretty big goals for The Parenting Place and felt like I had achieved all of them.” Now he’s keen to start a business alongside fellow Windsor Park member Perry Bradley. They aim to deal with companies’ brand strategies and help them tell their stories. “Perry is the one of the most brilliant guys I know when it comes to film, so we’re looking at what he does in the film space and what I do in the marketing space and then helping clients to go viral with what they do. We’re pretty excited about it.” He says the transition will have its risks as he leaves behind the comfort of his role and salary at the Parenting Place. However, he’s largely optimistic about the move. “Whilst it’s scary, I just keep putting Joshua 1:9 in my head,” he says with a grin. “It’s about being strong and courageous and stepping out in faith.”
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GEORGE SEBER
GEORGE SEBER
UNSUNG HERO WORDS LISA MICHELLE PHOTO PAM BEDWELL
N
o sooner had I made myself comfortable in the Seber conservatory than I was looking at two very large scars running down George’s knees, the victims of his latest surgical antics. It was not my first time in his conservatory. Eight years earlier, when George had just begun his counselling career – in his sixties no less – I’d been one of his first clients. His soft eyes, cheerful grin and compassionate words of wisdom are still very much present. George remains one of my unsung heroes. Born in Sydney, the only son of an only son, George had a happy childhood, spending his early years on Bondi Beach. He enjoyed school and did well. His Christian parents were pleased he was also interested in Sunday School. When George turned eight his parents returned to New Zealand where he eventually ended up at Mt Albert Grammar School, succeeding in sports as well as academically. George joined the YMCA when he was ten and remained there until he was eighteen, becoming a gym instructor and a junior leader for camps. He also became a Crusader when he was at school, and when on a ship to England, aged 21, he met a fellow member (they spotted each other’s badges) and the two decided to run a Sunday School class on board. George worked many holiday jobs while at school and started playing club table tennis, soccer at school, tennis at church and was on the swimming team. He also studied hard, completing his BSc in maths and physics followed by a masters degree in maths. Then he won a scholarship overseas to do a PhD in statistics. He finished his doctorate in two and a half years and became a professor at the ripe old age of thirty-three. George was not only a hero in the sporting, academic and musical fields. He spent time sharing Christ in Catholic and alcohol-laden Ireland
and “had a hilarious time.” He had met and married Pat, his first wife, in 1960. The two camped around Europe and went door-knocking to invite people to a Billy Graham crusade, before settling back in New Zealand where they adopted two boys, Evan and Ross. Sadly, Pat became ill with cancer and fought it for six years before becoming bed-ridden. During this time George cooked, cleaned and raised the boys, all the while working as a professor at Otago University and keeping up with church commitments. George met his current wife of 21 years, Jean, in 1992 through a Christian singles group. He says proudly, “Jean is a strong person in lots of ways and has been a tremendous support to me.” She has stood by his side as he has faced numerous surgeries to his heart, hips and knees. Five years ago he faced death yet again after contracting the super bug staphylococcus aureus. Jean knew early in the relationship that George, having been born with heart issues, was going to need a heart valve replacement. “You’re taking a risk marrying me,” he told her. “‘God has brought us together, so you’ll be okay!’” she replied. He was. After teaching for decades, George decided to study counselling in 2001. He has always enjoyed working with people, and while on the Academic Advisory Board of Laidlaw College (where he remains after eighteen years) he heard about their new counselling course. Despite the struggle of returning to tests and exams, and his teacher thinking he was “too cognitive and not person-centered enough,” George passed with As. “I think counselling is about just having somebody there to care,” he says, “to validate who we are and treat us as worthy people who have something to contribute.” Alongside his counselling work, George is concurrently writing two books, one on statistics (his sixteenth) and the other on Christian apologetics. He recently published a new book, Counselling Issues: A Handbook for Counsellors
“In the end you grasp the opportunity, do what you can, and leave the rest to God.”
and Psychotherapists. After finding it hard to locate resources for his counselling assignments, George says, “I started to read books. I made notes on subjects like sleep, stress, and anger. And after a while I thought, this is the beginning of a book, something down to earth and practical for everybody.” He was determined to include a biblical viewpoint, and so after each of the 22 chapter topics, including abuse, addictions, personality disorders and self-harm, George added relevant scriptures. There is also a chapter on earthquakes, after George was interviewed on Radio Rhema about the trauma experienced by Christchurch residents. Incidentally, George was working on this book while lying in hospital battling death. Any words of wisdom from our unsung hero? He’d prefer to call them life lessons: “God isn’t necessarily interested in our personal comfort...think of poor Jeremiah who could have died but didn’t. God looked after him, so God is more interested in getting his will done than in our being comfortable... But over and above that, there is a joy in doing God’s service.” The second lesson, he says, is that we don’t always know the impact we have on other people’s lives. He remembers counselling a couple for one session and thinking he hadn’t been any help to them, yet they promptly recommended him to others. “In the end you grasp the opportunity, do what you can, and leave the rest to God.” His final lesson? People are more important than any academic achievement. “It doesn’t matter if we are a gardener or a professor – we are all equal in God’s sight as valuable people, and it’s so important we treat people as such.” In summing up his life George says he wouldn’t change anything (although he’d prefer to have avoided the super bug). Despite the hard times he has received many blessings. He has loved his fellowship with Windsor Park Baptist, and played bass guitar on the worship team for seventeen years. He continues to bless us – with his new book, his wisdom, and his beautiful spirit. He’s still my hero.
GEORGE SEBER
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Tell us about your backgrounds
Creative
Pair
Julie Belding chats with Perry and Belinda Bradley INTERVIEW JULIE BELDING PHOTOS BELINDA BRADLEY
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BELINDA AND PERRY BRADLEY
Belinda: I was born in Matamata and grew up around the Waikato to the age of fourteen. I have a sister, Amanda, who is quite a bit younger than me, and a brother Jozsef a couple of years older. My dad was a substation operator and was moved around from place to place. During fourth form we moved to Auckland where Dad got a job as the head operator at the Henderson substation. So I finished my secondary education at Massey High. Perry: My parents were Kiwis living in Canada. I had two brothers and a sister and I was actually born in British Columbia. Eventually my parents decided we all needed to know something about the New Zealand way of life so we came back here when I was seven. My Dad really missed Canada though. He died a few years later after returning, and so I was brought up by my mother and older siblings. Like Belinda I went to Massey High School, although we didn’t know each other back then. Belinda: I do remember Perry. He was a couple of years older than me. He was one of those cheeky boys who used to hang around the school bus stop making trouble.
You were once a dancer? Belinda: I started ballet lessons when I was almost nine, I had this amazing teacher in Matamata who so inspired me that I wanted to dance all my life. I even quit school at sixteen, after School C, because I wanted to train as a professional ballet dancer. I’d heard about this little start-up ballet company and decided to audition for it. I loved performing, but quit after three years because the school couldn’t offer me the opportunities I was seeking.
Did you get to use your dancing skills later? Belinda: I did for a while. I was asked to choreograph dances for rallies. But in a broader sense my training taught me much about composition, line and depth of field, which helps me now with my photographic work. Perry: I think the discipline of dancing was important. Belinda was so strong, and she put so much work into it. Her calf muscles were like concrete! She still throws her heart into everything she does. Belinda: I don’t have any innate talents haha. I just work hard.
I do remember Perry. He was a couple of years older than me. He was one of those cheeky boys who used to hang around the school bus stop making trouble. What happened after the dancing? Belinda: I got a job at the scarf and hosiery counter at Smith and Caughey and spotted a creative team who used to walk around in overalls, doing these amazing window displays. I decided I’d like to do that too. So I spent a couple of years dressing windows at Smith and Caughey’s, training under Kevin Broadfoot one of the country’s best visual merchandisers.
How did you two meet each other? Belinda: I have a brother about the same age as Perry, who used to head down to CTC [Capital Teen Convention] and get all enthusiastic. He put this band together when I was about sixteen and I said I’d like to be the singer. They already had a singer but that didn’t deter me. Perry was the sax player in the brass section, it was an early 80s new wave type of band, and that’s how we met. Perry: We got married in 1985, and a couple of years later Belinda pointed out an ad for the
National Film Unit in Wellington. I applied for and got the job, and so we took off for the capital. We thought it would be for a couple of years but it ended up being ten. Belinda: Perry had this cool job but it was like a clean slate for me. I started freelancing as a window dresser, which grew quickly into my own little business Outloud Display. I then had a short stint as a TV producer and junior copywriter at McCann Erickson where I got involved in production and someone suggested I could be a wardrobe stylist for film makers. So I freelanced at that for six or seven years under the guise of Frockery.
Were you part of a band in those days? Belinda: We were in a reasonably successful band called The Spirals, it was the late 80s and grunge was the lure. I was the vocalist with the feather boa. We released an album and a subsequent single that got picked up by
BELINDA AND PERRY BRADLEY
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Is it tiring work?
BMG NZ/Australia. This received good airplay on Triple J, so we got to cross the ditch for a tour to support it. We were even approached by LA producer Steven Stewart Short to record the next album with him, but couldn’t quite convince our band of merry tune makers to leave their jobs and families for a rock ‘n roll adventure. At that stage we were the only ones without kids. Perry: I was the the sax player at first, and then moved onto keys and samples, and sometimes second guitar. I did whatever was needed.
Belinda: Yes. When I do a wedding, I basically don’t eat. Perry: Sometimes I pack a muesli bar or something and get her assistant to try to give it to her. But at the end of the day I look in the car and it hasn’t been touched.
Have you always been churchgoers? Belinda: We were both born into Christian families, so it was a strong heritage for us. In Wellington we went to an AOG-type church, along with our neighbors Mark and Chris de Jong.
Mark de Jong, of Parachute fame? Perry: Yes, Parachute turned out to be the longest running festival of any kind in New Zealand, and we were on the fringes of it from the beginning. In the late 1980s we’d all been involved in Mainstage [a small music festival held near Otaki] along with Mark Pierson and Kevin Schulz. And we were there when Mark Pierson said he was quitting his job, starting this new organisation and what should we call it?
What do you work at these days? Perry: I’m a film director. At the National Film Unit in Wellington I used to do documentaries, short films and dramas. It was basically government-funded film-making. I also worked at Television New Zealand for a while. Belinda was working as a wardrobe stylist, and one day one of the people she was working with called me to ask if I wanted to make commercials with them. That man ended up being my business partner for the next twenty years and we now own a film company. We’ve made TV commercials for a long time and I’ve had other film-making jobs too. Ad agencies are full of clever, creative people. But advertising has changed, and we’re having to change what we do as well. A lot of TV commercials these days are just price and product, and not particularly creative or interesting.
Belinda, how did you get into photography? Belinda: I didn’t pick up a camera until after our second baby was born. It was actually Perry who was the photographer. But I started taking photos of the kids, found I was quite good at it, took some short courses to improve my technique and became hooked. I began doing portraits for others, and now it’s my full-time job and my passion.
Any embarrassing memories? Belinda: When I first started one of my best friends asked me to shoot her wedding. It was a hot summer day and we took some shots on the side of Mt Eden. I put black and white film in the camera for the creative session, and I’m sure I must have told her what I was doing. But she evidently misunderstood. A few days later she said, “Oh I can’t wait to see those photos you took on Mount Eden. They must look amazing in
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BELINDA AND PERRY BRADLEY
Tell us about your children.
When she does a wedding shoot there’s this five-foot-two woman running the whole show and managing all the guests! She gets close to the bride and groom. And the next thing you know she’s being asked to photograph their children. colour!” I was like, O my goodness! There were absolutely no colour pictures at all! It was pretty gutting, but now I’m always well prepared. I try to do things creatively and non-traditionally, to capture people’s personalities. Most of the time you need to be invisible when you’re trying to document all the special moments at a wedding. But there are times when you have to be vocal and get people organised for group shots, or point unhelpful bridesmaids in the right direction. Perry: When she does a wedding shoot there’s this five-foot-two woman running the whole show and managing all the guests! She gets close to the bride and groom. And the next thing you know she’s being asked to photograph their children.
Belinda: Ferris is 18 and just finishing his first year at university, doing a conjoint Jazz Music/ BA degree and loving it. Our daughter McKenzie is 16, and just finishing Year 11 at Kristin school. She’s fully into the arts. They’re great kids and we really enjoying having adult-sized children in the house.
How did you get involved with Windsor Park Baptist? Perry: While Ferris was at Kristin he became good mates with Matt Burrows. Ferris told us Matt went to a good church and could we go and visit it? So it was all Matt Burrows’ fault!
Are you still involved in music? Belinda: Yes, we’ve still got a band going. It’s good to make music with a group of friends. This band Selon Recliner is probably the most creatively fulfilling of all our ventures, and has become very much a family.
How do you unwind at the end of a busy day? Belinda: I love to walk when I can. Perry and I also like to sit and just talk. We’ve always been big on talking. But there’s not a lot of down time because I’m still running a family and a house mixed in with my work. I can only really enjoy what I do when I feel my family’s under control, and I’ve done what I need to do as a mother. We’re really lucky that we have a detached studio at home, so all the long hours can be integrated with the kids and what they’re up to. So everything we try to do is “family first”, and hopefully all this work/ life/ music stuff will add just a little extra colour to their lives.
Theosart Gallery PAINTINGS YUE YUAN OF NORTHCROSS PHOTOS DANI MACKAY
THEOSART GALLERY
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WORDS FAY EDWARDS PHOTOS BELINDA BRADLEY
I
was born in Whangarei, the oldest of three children. My parents were dairy farmers and we lived in Springfield, about eighteen miles out of town. I went to a little country school and then Whangarei Girls High. My mother came from a strong Christian family and I attended Bible Class as a young person, committing my life to Jesus as a teenager, at Easter Camp.
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FAY EDWARDS
After high school I joined the Department of Health as a medical secretary, and worked there until I married five years later. My husband John and I had been part of the Whangarei Baptist youth group. In fact his family were founding members of that church. Actually there was a strong Christian tradition on both sides of the family that went back several generations. Many older readers will remember the Eade name – a family who served for many years with the Baptist Missionary Society in Tripura. John’s grandmother
was an Eade, and her brother was known as “Bun” Eade. For some fifteen years John and I owned an agricultural business, including a quarry and lime works. Since he needed another driver, John taught me to drive on a huge truck. I never did learn to drive a car. I just qualified for a heavy duty licence, and they threw in the car licence as well. At the church we were both involved in youth work, and John worked part time for Child Evangelism Fellowship. We worked together at camps, so had many
holidays on campsites while the children were growing up. We had three children, Derek, Colin and Sharyn, who all went to a little country school. But after fifteen years of rural living we moved into Whangarei to be nearer the high school. Eventually John was called to be a youth pastor at Murrays Bay Baptist, where Barry Denholm was the minister, and so we moved to the North Shore, living in a house next to the church. John was a good husband and father, and we had had some happy years. I think that’s why our kids
I always felt God had a “Plan A” for my life. But as I look back I realise it’s not been “Plan B” that I’ve lived. Rather, it’s been “Plan A-plus.” have done so well. It’s a joy to see them now replicating many things we used to do as a family.
A Dream Shattered In 1984, when we’d been married for twenty-four years and John had been at the church for three,
our marriage – and my world – fell apart. Family life as I had known it disintegrated before my eyes. John resigned from being a pastor and moved to Australia fairly quickly, where he remarried. In some ways that mitigated the awkwardness as we weren’t
constantly bumping into each other. For two years my life was on hold, but I had no choice but to rebuild it from scratch. I knew God was still there but I didn’t know where. It was a difficult time for us as a family and for the church family as well. But I couldn’t not go to church; the kids were part of it because their friends were there and I had support from John and Jacqui Wanhill’s home group. So God kept me in the fold, and I coped by taking life one day at a time. At least we had our home.
By now I was in my late forties, and I centred my life on our three children (Derek was now at Massey university and Colin was at Med School) and tried to keep us all on an even keel. The children were bewildered by the whole situation because we’d always seemed like a model church family. I’d tell anyone who was suddenly single: Hang on to your Christian faith. Give yourself time. It took me several years to feel “normal” again. Because I had been a youth pastor’s wife I felt deeply the shame of my broken marriage.
FAY EDWARDS
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But I was determined not to become bitter. Nor did I want to lose the wonderful Christian heritage that had come down through the generations through John’s family. I had been close to my in-laws and made a point of staying close. Sharyn said to me recently, “Mum, I’ve never heard you say a cross word about Dad.” Sadly John, still in Australia, died of cancer about ten years ago. God, in his grace, did not cease to use me. During David Marriott’s ministry at Murrays Bay, I was elected a deacon, and then an elder of the church. It was an exciting time. As elders during the purchase of the Windsor Park property we experienced God’s clear guidance. Each time I attend Windsor Park I am thankful for this wonderful provision of property, personnel, godly leadership and growth.
Financial provision Ever since moving to Murrays Bay I’d worked part-time in a retail store in Browns Bay, but I knew that wouldn’t support kids going to university. God was faithful, and I was able to get a full-time job in the military (medical side). I started out in administration at the navy hospital in Devonport, and when they saw my organisational skills they created a more responsible job for me and promoted me. After six years at Devonport I moved to the air force base at Hobsonville where I worked in personnel for the next fifteen years. There I was the first port of call for new people who were joining the army. As I look back I marvel at how God created a job for me that was so fulfilling. I worked beyond the normal retirement age because I wanted to buy a bach up north for our family holidays. (I don’t think the army quite knew how old I was!) Retirement finally came the day before
I always felt God had a “Plan A” for my life. But as I look back I realise it’s not been “Plan B” that I’ve lived. Rather, it’s been “Plan A-plus.” my 70th birthday. It seemed the right time to leave because Colin and Chris and their two sons had just left Bangladesh, where they’d been serving as missionaries, and they all came to New Zealand for six months. I wanted to be able to enjoy their company as much as possible.
Since then I’ve been able to visit them in England every year and spend a few months looking after the family in Gloucestershire. This has meant that Chris, an ob/gyn surgeon, has been able to travel to Bangaledesh for short-term relieving at the Lamb Hospital. I love to travel and I love to garden. Now I have three gardens, to look after, including one in England. Derek now lives in Timaru, so I sometimes go down to see him and his children. I have a new daughterin-law, but I also have a “daughter in love” – Derek’s first wife – to whom I remain close. I look back in amazement at God’s provision. He has blessed me in ways I couldn’t have imagined. Our tiny bach up north grew into a four-bedroomed beach house, and is the vacation hub for
our extended family. So our summer holidays are full of laughter, love and great barbecues. I live up north for about three months out of every year, and the grandchildren (now numbering seven!) never want to holiday anywhere else.
Plan A-Plus I always felt God had a “Plan A” for my life. But as I look back I realise it’s not been “Plan B” that I’ve lived. Rather, it’s been “Plan A-plus.” I feel like Job, for whom “the Lord blessed the last part of his life even more than he had blessed the first.” One of my favourite Bible verses is Philippians 1:6. “I am sure that God who began this good work in you will be faithful to complete it until it is finished on the day of Christ Jesus.”
From
Seoul to
God’s Own WORDS PAM BEDWELL
“
God’s Own” is a phrase to entice visitors to New Zealand, especially if they want to learn English. This is the story of Ellie (Soonbok) Kim who discovered she too was God’s Own. Ellie comes from Seoul – home to over half of all the South Koreans along with 632,000 international residents. With more than 10 million people, it is one of the largest cities in the developed world. Korean life is centred on tightly-knit families in which elders are highly esteemed. Though Korea has various religions, Ellie was raised in Confucianism, the hallmark of which is order and authority. “Fathers are responsible for their families and must be both obeyed and revered by everyone,” she says. “Even ancestral fathers are honoured.” Soonbok Kim (Ellie) married Jang-Hyuk Heo (Jack) and they had a daughter, Stella. and son, Wonje. In 2006 Ellie came to New Zealand to support her children who were doing a two-month English course. But she was terribly lonely. Her husband could not be there, and she had no friends. From a city full of people with an emphasis on family, Ellie now found herself alone in wide open spaces, with English as a second language. It was not easy settling in a foreign country, getting used to our culture, and learning to drive on the opposite side of the road. After their initial study period, the children wanted to stay on for the whole year to further their education.
With Jack back in Korea and time on her hands, Ellie decided to upgrade her English and IT skills. It wasn’t until the autumn of 2008 that her husband Jack was free to join the family. At first Ellie started going to a Bible study at Northcross. She thought it would be a good opportunity to improve her English, learn Christian history through the Bible, and perhaps better understand western culture. Ellie had majored in English Literature at the University of Korea, but David Glood introduced her to more than an academic piece of literature. He showed her the Living Word. David was the first of three key people God used in Ellie’s life. In 2008 she and the children came to Windsor Park, primarily because Stella had made a friend who attended the church. Stella and Wonje have since become quite involved – first in Windsorkids, and then in Tribe. Ellie soon found herself attending the English classes run by Sue and Mike Blanchard who help beginners with basic conversation.
ELLIE KIM
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In 2009 Ellie began a Bible study with Sue (mentor number two) along with about five Chinese. “My curiosity started with Sue,” Ellie explains. “From the time I started studying, the more I studied the Bible the more I was convinced about God.” Her loneliness began to melt away. Ellie enjoyed the Bible study, her English improved, and friendships grew with other students at the dinners Mike and Sue would arrange. “I didn’t know God in Korea, but when I moved from Korea to New Zealand I still believe I was led – like Abraham [who lived in a land with beliefs in other gods] who God moved with his family to the Promised Land.” To Ellie New Zealand is the Promised Land – a land chosen for her by God because this is where she met him. Ellie’s love for all that God has done even shines through her written words. She wrote to me in in an email: “God took Abram to the land. Likewise God took me from my motherin-law who is a very pious Buddhist and used to take me to the Buddhist temple. If I were still in Korea, I still would not know God. How terrible it is.” She believes New Zealand is blessed to have no nuclear power plants, not many factories, lots of rainbows, clean air and smooth traffic. Ellie has had a part time job for five years now. She does data entry in an aviation-related company for John Aplin (her third mentor) who was once a pas-
tor in England. He encourages Ellie to give the Bible priority. She is thriving on Bible study, having just completed James by Beth Moore. “I want to be a more mature Christian, [to grow] in Christ-likeness,” she says. Ellie finds the Bible fascinating. She studied through the Old and New Testaments, finding Isaiah and Daniel particularly interesting as she saw their prophecies fulfilled by Jesus at the cross and observed how well the Old and New Testaments worked together. On 22 May 2010, Ellie was baptised. “It was like... really special... reborn actually.” She came as Soonbok, a name which means “pure blessing.” She became Ellie – a chosen name which means “light.” “Jesus is the light of the world,” she says. “That’s why I like the name.” I tell Ellie her eyes are shining. She smiles and says, “That’s because I’m so happy I can be talking about God.” When Ellie came to New Zealand she never imagined those initial two months would turn into seven years. In her early days at Windsor Park there were few Asians, but now she looks around and sees all nations. “I pray to God, thanking him that every corner overflows with him. With God I see things different from before... He has changed my heart.” Ellie is happy to be God’s Own.
“I didn’t know God in Korea, but when I moved from Korea to New Zealand I still believe I was led – like Abraham [who lived in a land with beliefs in other gods] who God moved with his family to the Promised Land.”
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ELLIE KIM
Dr Myk Habets is Head of Carey Graduate School, Carey Baptist College
MY VIEW|MYK HABETS
“The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it”
Abraham Kuyper (1837-1929) was one such visionary prophet – an incredible witness to us in so many ways. He was a Dutch Calvinist theologian, pastor, politician, newspaper editor, statesman, journalist, educator, and Christian leader. Historian Richard Lovelace called him the greatest evangelical thinker since Jonathan Edwards, and that is high praise. Kuyper was best known for three things: first, he was the leader of his political party and became Prime Minister of the Netherlands (1901–1905); secondly, he founded the Free University of Amsterdam; and thirdly, he has a passionate vision for cultural transformation. Central to that vision was his concept of “sphere sovereignty.” According to Richard Mouw, “When God saves us, [Kuyper] insisted, he incorporates us into a community, the people of God. And this community, in turn, is called to serve God’s goals in the larger world. In the life of the church we worship a
are his Kingdom subjects may make use of any of it freely for his glory. Economics, politics, education, health, law, family and arts are the contexts into which Christians are called to live out Christ’s Kingdom. As Kuyper once famously said: “No single piece of our mental world is to be hermetically sealed off from the rest, and there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, ‘Mine!’” In Kuyper’s worldview, the unifying principle isn’t justification by faith; it’s that the triune God’s sovereign and transforming grace is for the entire cosmos. That passion pushed him into politics, education, and the arts. It should push us into those realms and many others also. And in these spheres the Christian’s impact is to be established in circles of influence within each mediating structure so that the message of Christ, the presence of the Spirit, and the glory of God the Father are made manifest and culture is transformed. What mediating structure of society has God called you into? Do you see your calling as an educator, economist, lawyer, artist, architect, environmental engineer, domestic artisan, or whatever role God has placed you in, as a calling to Esther-like influence? Be encouraged that “for such a time as this” God raises up his children to positions of influence, in order for creation to begin to experience its own redemption (Rom 8:22), and for families, communities, and entire societies to flourish (Jer 29:7). It is so that all things might be brought under the Lordship of Christ (Phil 1:20). Christian, culture, vocation, Christ, Kingdom—these things go together in God’s plan for “there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, ‘Mine!’”
“When God saves us, [Kuyper] insisted, he incorporates us into a community, the people of God.”
How we fit in The exact details of Kuyper’s programme of sphere sovereignty may be debated, but he was right in his central vision. The world and all that is in it does belong to God and he gives it to us in his Son in whom we become heirs and co-heirs of all that is his (Rom 8:17). Cultural transformation, worldly involvement and participation Y KU in every mediating structure in AM H ABR A society is ours by divine invitation. In 1 Corinthians 10:25–26, Paul said, “Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience. For ‘the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.’” This implies that Jesus Christ owns the world and everything in it. It also implies that we who R
Abraham Kuyper
sovereign God, but that God then commands us to be active witnesses in our daily lives to God’s sovereign rule over all things.” Kuyper did not see rights as coming from the state, or from autonomous individuals. Rather he believed Christians should support the “intermediate bodies” or mediating structures in society, such as the family, church, school, clubs, the press, business and industry, the arts, economics, etc. Each of these should have its own sphere of sovereignty, to keep in check any totalizing tendencies by the state. It is God, however, who is the ultimate sovereign and source of authority, and he consents to these mediating structures in order to make life possible in a fallen world. (We see the origins of this concept in the Israelite community with the rise of judges, courts, elders, etc, and the principle extended into the NT teaching on the role of the state.)
PE
T
hese words from Psalm 24:1 reflect God’s passion for his creation—animate and inanimate. Holy Scripture will never let the disciplined reader think God cares about escape plans, other-worldly spheres, or “spiritual” living (if “spiritual” means ethereal and unrelated to real life.) The triune God of love is the Creator, Sustainer, and Perfecter of all, the one who moves history towards its appointed goal, and he does this through the mediating structures of human society and the natural world. The gospel (literally “good news’’) is that the almighty loving God of grace has created and called human beings to participate in that work in central ways (think Eph 2:8-10 for starters). So it’s good to reflect upon those Christians to whom God has given a special vision to clarify for all of us what Christ is calling us into.
COLUMN/MYK HABETS
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Sam Burrows is an ex-Middle School teacher (he made it out alive) who is currently working in Young Adult ministry while completing a Graduate Diploma in Theology at Laidlaw College.
LIFE WITH SAM BURROWS
Church Dropout – because you haven’t read enough about this already
I
had the privilege of attending flannel graph Sunday School from the moment I escaped the womb and very quickly learned all the evangelical classics - “Shine Jesus Shine,” “Our God is an Awesome God” and “We are the Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything.” Eventually I graduated to the confusing world of youth group and I began searching. At first I didn’t know what for, but I had a sneaking suspicion it was bigger than morality and a spirituality that seemed to put emotion and hype on a pedestal. It suddenly dawned on me that my own approach to spirituality was narrow in the broad spectrum of things. As I explored this, it became increasingly obvious I was not alone. All the research seemed to say the same thing. Eighty to ninety percent of Kiwi young adults wandered away from church with better things to do on Sundays than hear about the three steps to living a life of holiness. Or being a leader like Joshua. Or having faith like Abraham. Or being a worshipper like David. Or experiencing financial blessing like Judas. So, like many in our early twenties, I began to feel alienated from a community of people who weren’t interested (at least in practice) in addressing what was worrying me. And it was in this scary space that I began to drift. This is an incredibly unsettling experience for someone for whom church has always been central. In this space my disillusionment had time to grow. And then suddenly, I got employed by another church to work with the young adults group. Weird.
Sometimes I feel like a translator In my job I’m always trying to get two types of people to understand each other. I’m constantly surprised by responses from some of the older generation who like to argue that the gospel is
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SAM BURROWS/COLUMN
simple, and that we just have to have faith and read the Bible and the rest will work itself out as we focus on our relationship with God. Which is fine, except that our world is not simple, so we just don’t have that option. But I get equally frustrated at some of my peers who fob Christianity off because they find church services boring, too structured and appearing not to confirm their own theological convictions, agendas and caricatures of Jesus. Admittedly, there are some who come to church for reasons other than Jesus. Probably girls. So what’s the problem here? Well I think at a fundamental level, us “millennials” would like to be heard, but led from that place. To be met where our heads are at, but not to remain there. Just because we have frustrations and disagreements doesn’t mean we like it that way. The problem is that when these concerns are ignored or downplayed it just comes across as patronising or ignorant. And then you lose us, because it looks like you actually don’t care enough to hear us out.
No, this God isn’t like that. This God not only takes on humanity, but he steps into the darkest places of it. He takes on confusion. He takes on rejection. He takes on alienation. This God experiences physical, emotional and psychological pain, he is humiliated, stripped naked and becomes a social and political outcast. He becomes the very worst parts of what it means to be human in order to redeem it all. This “stepping-into” God, this “becoming” God could have something to say about the whole discussion. At a simple level, you could argue that what we need here is a similar approach. We need people who are willing to doubt with us to help us move on from doubt, people who are willing to feel our frustrations too, in order for us to be able to hold them a bit more loosely. We need people to get right into our faith crises to show us that in fact there is a way out and a way to reconcile some of our tensions. To get into our theological misgivings and estrangement in order to point the way forward. To listen well and walk alongside us to show us that some questions need not shipwreck us or cause us to find church irrelevant. That’s all I’m looking for. And the only time I’ve thought about gapping it was when the operations of church seemed to have no time for any of it. That, and that time the worship band played I Wanna Be A Reflector. That song makes the Trinity grieve for the world in ways sin never could.
So what’s the problem here? Well I think at a fundamental level, us “millennials” would like to be heard, but led from that place.
The Incarnation and being community To get all theological on everyone to make my point and look smarter than I actually am, I’d like to talk about the incarnation at this point. In the person of Jesus, we see a God who looks at the very real problems with the human condition and acts decisively. He doesn’t sit there shaking his head in disapproval, wishing we would sort our crap out and stop making everything so tricky while he barks doctrine at us.
Make a difference with a Career in Mental Health. Jobs that allow you to leave a positive mark on this world are unfortunately few and far between. However, this job at leading mental health organisation, Equip, is one of the rare ones. Equip has a rich Christian heritage and a Christian ethos. As an extension of Windsor Park Baptist Church it is an innovative model of practice that’s getting results but also provides effective support, skill and education for all people. Here is what some of our staff have to say about working at Equip: “I would highly recommend it. As far as NGOs go this is the best I have worked in” “Very supportive, very warm and caring to their team” “I feel I have heaps of support” .
It is worth keeping an eye on our website for positions that come up. These could be as Support Workers, Leaders, or in the Admin team. Whatever your role, you’ll be part of a working side by side with service users to help them achieve their goals, celebrate their success and make barriers easier to get around. We’re looking for people who like people. People, who have natural communication skills, possess empathy but are also practical. Notice we didn’t say you need qualifications or experience in mental health? For the Support Worker role, if you do then brilliant, but if not, Equip will support you to get the Certificate in Mental Health and Addictions. So as you help others progress, you’ll also be helping yourself progress and up skill.
So if you’re looking for a job that’s more than just a job, download an application pack from our website: www.equip.net.nz
Joy to the World O Come All Ye Faithful The call to Christmas echoes through my mind As I sit scratching out Christmas cards dutifully And organising the presents, food, and family festivities. What will it mean, really mean This year to remember the birth of the Christ Child? How will it impact my future? How will it colour my decisions? Will it be only a brief remembering? Or could Christmas 2013 Be an awakening To the wonder of knowing my Saviour, who is Christ the Lord, afresh? POEM SUSIE JOHNSTON PHOTO LIGHTSTOCK.COM