M A C K AY CHRISTIAN F A M I LY AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2014
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COMING UP AT MCF
IS THIS YOU? Do have artistic flair or have some helpful handyman skills? Our fabulous Design Team are looking for some new recruits! Interested? Simply leave name & address at info desk and our Design Team leader, Priscilla will be in contact with you.
M C F B A N K I N G DETAI LS Account number: 69481 8914 BSB: 084 792 Please label your transfer with the appropriate title so we can direct your money to the right area. eg. ‘tithes and offering’, ‘Badi sponsorship’, or ‘missions’ etc. Cheques should be made payable to: Mackay Christian Family
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Nothing, a little or a lot words by Ps Sharryn Westbrook Recently I’ve been meditating on the concept of fruit production, not bananas or mangos although they are amongst my favourite fruits; more precisely the fruitfulness of my life particularly in relation to John 15:1-2, 5, 8 where Jesus says: “I am the vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit. By this My Father is glorified that you bear much fruit.” It’s a sobering though really; for me it’s probably had more to do with being in my forty’s, critiquing my life to this point. None the less, it is a valuable exercise and something I would encourage everyone to do from time to time, to be introspective and reflect on the choices you have made in the light of eternity, to contemplate their fruitfulness. Unsure about what ‘fruit’ is? In one respect good works = fruitfulness. God’s absolute best, His highest good for 4 /// AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14
us, can also be defined as ‘fruit’, or when we are walking in the centre of His will for our lives, we are fruitful, abundant, successful and productive; we find our pursuits rewarding. What strikes me as interesting in the verse and extremely thought provoking are the degrees of fruitfulness represented here: no fruit, fruit, more fruit and much fruit. Our lives can produce nothing, a little or a lot for God and the degree to which we are fruitful appears to be entirely up to us. Jesus makes this phenomenal statement in John 15:16, “I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain”. We are called to simply surrender all that we have and are to God for Him to use, even when we cannot see how He could use such a small thing. However, our self talk can hinder our forward motion. Sadly, we have a tendency to see our future through our past failures. If we’ve tried unsuccessfully to accomplish something significant and our self-esteem has taken a battering, we can be reluctant to step out and take hold of opportunities in the future, paralysed by the fear of the unknown or our propensity to fail. It might not be a lack of faith in God’s ability but self-doubt which can rob us of fruitfulness. I am so glad God does not see us like we see ourselves! I love the way the Bible is so raw when it comes to exposing the shortcomings of the men and women contained in
its pages and how, in spite of themselves, God used them. It kind of makes me feel like I am among friends when I read how Jonah ran in the opposite direction after God told him to go to Ninivah and the way Gideon tried to hide when the angel of the Lord called him a ‘mighty man of valour’, because he was so hung up on his own insecurities - ‘who me?’. Then, to be absolutely certain it was God speaking to him, Gideon laid a fleece twice! (Been there, done that!) I smile out loud at Moses making repeated excuses as to why he couldn’t possibly be sufficiently qualified to be the deliverer in Exodus 4; “What if they won’t believe me? I’m not eloquent, there has to be somebody else you could send.” God’s response: “What’s in your hand? I’ll even tell you what to say!” For every excuse why he couldn’t, God had a come-back. I so love that about God! He is the one who “...calls those things that are not, as though they were”. The size of your monumental stuff-up is inconsequential to God. He knows you better than you know yourself and He is still cheering you on! So, here’s the
We are called to simply surrender all that we have and are to God for Him to use, even when we cannot see how He could use such a small thing.
challenge; ditch the excuses, fix your hope firmly on Jesus and start living to your potential and be fruitful! Nothing, a little or a lot, the choice is yours; what’s it going to be?
LOVING CHURCH LIFE words by Catrien Oosthuizen
Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Prov 22:6 It is such a privilege for our Kids Ministry Teams to partner with families on the journey of knowing and loving Jesus. We want to give our best to the children of our church so that as they grow up, they will not deviate from the plan God has for them. Our aim is to work as a team with parents in achieving this goal. Since our family have moved to Australia, Mackay Christian Family has become our family. We have been blessed with ‘adopted’ granma’s, poppies, aunties, uncles and even siblings. It has enriched us as a continued next page... AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14 /// 5
family and don’t know what we would’ve done without them! It is clear that it truly does take a village to raise a child and we are so grateful for people around us to love and care for us in such a way that we are not ‘parenting’ alone. Church is an awesome place to raise our children. As we demonstrate our love and passion for Jesus by being part of the church family, we encourage a softness in the hearts of our children towards God. Never underestimate the power of “The Family”, there is lots of love and care to go around! We have been kicking some awesome goals in children’s ministry so far. Our “Brave Hearts” camp was a huge, action packed success where we ministered the love of Jesus to nearly 50 children. New to our calendar has also been KIDSJAM holiday program that included Masterchef, Wildwinter, Pancakes&P.J’S and KIDSJAM services which is a special service catered for our kids. It has been such a blessing to see our kids step out in faith, hungry for more of Jesus.
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COMING UP! 24th August // KIDS TAKE OVER! Lock this in on your calendar, invite family and friends for fun filled morning. 21st September // KIDSJAM // Masterchef - boys only Granny chicks - girls only 28th September NO K.I.C.K & Kings Kids, only Teddy Bear Club 5th October // KIDSJAM: Popcorn& Movie
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Lots of things have been happening at Revolution lately. You might notice a new logo popping up around the place, this will enable the branding of our ministry to be broader, something we can work with well into the future, this change in branding has allowed us to create some resources, which are available from the Information Desk on Sundays or the Revolution Cafe on Friday nights. These new resources include 5panel snap back caps @ $30 each and iPhone 4 & 5 cases @ $ $5 each. RevRiot, our ministry for year 4-6 students has been operating well with an average of 25 students attending regularly, Krystal Healy has taken the reigns of this exciting ministry and is doing a great Job with fun games, exciting prizes and a great afternoon tea on a Friday afternoon. RevRiot is the place to be on the junior campus! Friday nights at Revolution have had an reinvention over the last few months, ‘The Golden Ticket’ was a great series based around Charlie and Chocolate Factory with 8 /// AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14
its focus being… we hold the golden ticket that everyone is looking for. There were geeks and umpa-lumpas, boogiemen, and Mr Wonka himself made an appearance! Giant lolly pops and big baskets of chocolate for people who found the golden ticket and we saw 10 young people over the two week period say yes to Jesus. In the coming weeks we will be holding “The Lounge Sessions, where young people can chill out a little before RevLive on a Friday night and learn about the decision they have made. So if you are in Years 4-6; RevRiot, 3-4:30pm at Providence Campus is the place for you to be! For Years 7 to 18 year olds then RevLive on Kings Park Campus is where it is at! See you Soon The Rev Team
Malcolm Forbes, the late publisher of Forbes Magazine, said “Diversity is the art of thinking independently, together.” This year, Tenielle & I have been honoured to have been given the responsibility of leading the Young Adults congregation of MCF. This demographic consists of a broad range of young people with different life goals, varying relationship statuses and from contrasting cultures. Our goal is to create a culture where diversity is embraced and respected. Where relationships are built through opportunities of connection, as such, our main focus is hitting up various cafes after church for coffee and dessert following the Sunday night service as well as one planned event a month. So far this year we have had movie nights, park and beach hangouts and ‘The Amazing Taste’ - a three-course progressive dinner
‘Amazing Race’ style. Coming up, we are looking forward to some healthy rivalry with our Emerge peers (New Life Young Adults). This will be a Touch Footy competition at the end of August and of course, our annual Extreme Conference in the September holidays. Saturday November 1st will see us joining with Emerge again for a combined Young Adults Ball before the madness of Christmas festivities set in. We have loved seeing the goodness of God in both our lives and in the lives of our young adults this year as we have walked this road with our leadership team and we look forward to what He is yet to do. Love, peace & chicken grease, Brento & Tenielle Roberts AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14 /// 9
words by Kerry Brannan
We are four months into our knitting and crocheting adventure and many friendships have been established, with many blankets, beanies, slippers completed. Our first shipment of blankets went to Zambia recently and another shipment of blankets will go soon to be distributed to the Indigenous Communities in NSW. We truly are changing the world, one stitch at a time. All ladies are welcome to come along, we meet the first Saturday of every month at 2:30 pm in the Powerhouse foyer. Please see the Info Desk for any enquiries or contact Kerry in the Church office.
LOOK TO THE HORIZON Horizon Leadership College is holding information nights on 25 August, 20 October and 8 December and we would love you to join us to hear about the exciting things ahead. In 2015 HLC is offering Certificate IV and Diploma of Ministry. Some of the subjects covered in these courses are Old and New Testament Overview and book studies, Leadership, Ethics, Christian Worldview and Public Speaking. Our year consists of a great line up of inspirational, faith filled speakers such as Daniel Ross, Shane Willard, Craig Tomkinson, Ben Naitoko and regular lecturers including David Westbrook, Tim Spark, Nathan Cunneen and Darron Hayhoe. Can’t wait to see you there! 10 /// AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14
My MIssion field words by Cheryl Greer
Muli Shana, which means Hello, how are you, in one of the many languages in Zambia What an experience my family and I had visiting our daughter Rachael in Zambia on the mission field at FCE. The people of FCE are doing an amazing job reaching people in the villages of Zambia, but they need your prayers. There is a real spirit of apathy, lack of initiative, poverty, witchcraft, idol worshipping, lack of education, aids, broken families and health problems in the Zambian people. I was faced with so many first time situations. First time out of Australia; first time in a third world country; first time being the only white person in the street; first time trying to be sold illegal diamonds; first time in freezing conditions (well -2 is freezing at night for me and 4 degrees during the day brrr); first time I saw someone trying to break into a car in broad daylight; first time where I have been constantly hassled to buy people’s product; first time when I have tried to teach people something with an interpreter, and the list goes on. But
definitely not first time on a mission field. My mission field is right here in Mackay where God has planted me. In my neighbourhood, in the schools, at the shops, at my church etc. I do not need to go overseas to be effective for God and to share His Word, but it certainly does open my eyes to the great need of people who do not know the truth of our loving Father and Saviour Jesus Christ. It has opened my eyes to the need for me to listen and be obedient to God and to use what I have in my hands to the best of my ability to show the love of Christ to those in my community. What is my community?? My community is wherever I do life; whoever I come in contact with. God has place us right where we are to touch the lives of the people around us. To let our light shine. Don’t hide the love of Jesus! Shout it from the mountain tops! Does your community know the wonderful love of Jesus? Have you told them about the wonderful relationship you have with your Saviour? Do not be afraid, God has not given you a spirit of fear but of POWER, LOVE, and a SOUND MIND. Let the whole world know that Jesus lives in you and let us see the city of Mackay transformed and His Glory to be seen all over the world.
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MISSIONS U P D AT E words by Cheryl Greer
their community, transport people to the hospital, and provide health care for the villages around Koti ni Eden . PRAISE GOD they have purchased this car and now they are able to do this work more efficiently. Thank you to all who have contributed to make this happen.
Kalimantan, Africa
“GO therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Jesus has given us the great Commission to GO. This can mean to other countries; to our neighbours; to teach Religious Education in the school; to our friends and family. Do not take this lightly and ask God where he wants you to GO, as He will be with you always. God is Great from Our Neighbourhood to the Nations!!
Zambia, Africa Over the last few years people have been giving and fundraising for Rachael to purchase a car. This car is to help serve in
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William and Marlinde from New Hope were in need of a car. PRAISE GOD World Outreach International has loaned them money to purchase a Toyota and thanks to the generosity of many it is now ½ paid off
Nepal Recently the single “From the River” was released on itunes. This single was written by Josh Kerr, the Vocals by Tiffany Wilmont and Josh Kerr with Badi girls from Nepal. PRAISE GOD for people who are available and willing to help support and reach these girls for Christ. Please go on line to purchase this single and help support these beautiful little girls. Bangkok Daniel & Shannon Ross Exciting news on the birth of their first child Selah Joy Ross - PRAISE GOD There are things that are happening over there right now that they have only dreamed of for years. God is connecting them to key leaders in the region and they feel that 2014 is going to be a year of clarity for all the things God has in store for them.
Please continue to Pray for our team over seas: Jason & Toni Attard in Papua New Guinea ; Brian Scott and Ruth Bell in South East Asia; Faye Walkling in Thailand; Brett & Val in Kununurra; Charles & Lenda Bessie in Kupang, Timor
News from Faye Walkling Fay is one of those people who is letting her light shine and making a difference over in Thailand. Fay is doing a wonderful job but needs your support financially as well as your prayers. Fay cares for some boys and is always faced with many challenges whether it be the weather of extreme heat and humidity, drug re-hab, the issues the boys are facing or the chickens who won’t lay because of the heat so they can’t sell the eggs. I love the quote she shared on her last newsletter by someone anonymous “One hundred years from now, it won’t matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in my bank account, or what my clothes looked like. But one hundred years from now, the world may be a little better, because I was important in the life of a child”. Please continue to pray for Fay.
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THE COUNTD REGISTE
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AUGUST Reading Plan THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR 01 2 Chronicles 30:1-31:21 Romans 15:1-22 Psalm 25:1-15 Proverbs 20:13-15 02 2 Chronicles 32:1-33:13 Romans 15:23-16:9 Psalm 25:16-22 Proverbs 20:16-18 03 2 Chronicles 33:14-34:33 Romans 16:10-27 Psalm 26:1-12 Proverbs 20:19 04 2 Chronicles 35:1-36:23 1 Corinthians 1:1-17 Psalm 27:1-6 Proverbs 20:20-21 05 Ezra 1:1-2:70 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5 Psalm 27:7-14 Proverbs 20:22-23 06 Ezra 3:1-4:23 16 /// AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14
1 Corinthians 2:6-3:4 Psalm 28:1-9 Proverbs 20:24-25 07 Ezra 4:24-6:22 1 Corinthians 3:5-23 Psalm 29:1-11 Proverbs 20:26-27 08 Ezra 7:1-8:20 1 Corinthians 4:1-21 Psalm 30:1-12 Proverbs 20:28-30 09 Ezra 8:21-9:15 1 Corinthians 5:1-13 Psalm 31:1-8 Proverbs 21:1-2 10 Ezra 10:1-44 1 Corinthians 6:1-20 Psalm 31:9-18 Proverbs 21:3 11 Nehemiah 1:1-3:14 1 Corinthians 7:1-24 Psalm 31:19-24
Proverbs 21:4 12 Nehemiah 3:15-5:13 1 Corinthians 7:25-40 Psalm 32:1-11 Proverbs 21:5-7 13 Nehemiah 5:14-7:73 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Psalm 33:1-11 Proverbs 21:8-10 14 Nehemiah 7:73-9:21 1 Corinthians 9:1-18 Psalm 33:12-22 Proverbs 21:11-12 15 Nehemiah 9:22-10:39 1 Corinthians 9:19-10:13 Psalm 34:1-10 Proverbs 21:13 16 Nehemiah 11:1-12:26 1 Corinthians 10:14-33 Psalm 34:11-22 Proverbs 21:14-16
17 Nehemiah 12:27-13:31 1 Corinthians 11:1-16 Psalm 35:1-16 Proverbs 21:17-18 18 Esther 1:1-3:15 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 Psalm 35:17-28 Proverbs 21:19-20 19 Esther 4:1-7:10 1 Corinthians 12:1-26 Psalm 36:1-12 Proverbs 21:21-22 20 Esther 8:1-10:3 1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13 Psalm 37:1-11 Proverbs 21:23-24 21 Job 1:1-3:26 1 Corinthians 14:1-17 Psalm 37:12-29 Proverbs 21:25-26 22 Job 4:1-7:21
1 Corinthians 14:18-40 Psalm 37:30-40 Proverbs 21:27 23 Job 8:1-11:20 1 Corinthians 15:1-28 Psalm 38:1-22 Proverbs 21:28-29 24 Job 12:1-15:35 1 Corinthians 15:29-58 Psalm 39:1-13 Proverbs 21:30-31 25 Job 16:1-19:29 1 Corinthians 16:1-24 Psalm 40:1-10 Proverbs 22:1 26 Job 20:1-22:30 2 Corinthians 1:1-11 Psalm 40:11-17 Proverbs 22:2-4
Proverbs 22:5-6 28 Job 28:1-30:31 2 Corinthians 2:12-17 Psalm 42:1-11 Proverbs 22:7 29 Job 31:1-33:33 2 Corinthians 3:1-18 Psalm 43:1-5 Proverbs 22:8-9 30 Job 34:1-36:33 2 Corinthians 4:1-12 Psalm 44:1-8 Proverbs 22:10-12 31 Job 37:1-39:30 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:10 Psalm 44:9-26 Proverbs 22:13
27 Job 23:1-27:23 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:11 Psalm 41:1-13 AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14 /// 17
SEPTEMBER Reading Plan MAY Reading Plan The Bib THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR 01 Job 40:1-42:17 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 Psalm 45:1-17 Proverbs 22:14 02 Ecclesiastes 1:1-3:22 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 Psalm 46:1-11 Proverbs 22:15 03 Ecclesiastes 4:1-6:12 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:7 Psalm 47:1-9 Proverbs 22:16 04 Ecclesiastes 7:1-9:18 2 Corinthians 7:8-16 Psalm 48:1-14 Proverbs 22:17-19 05 Ecclesiastes 10:1-12:14 2 Corinthians 8:1-15 Psalm 49:1-20 Proverbs 22:20-21 06 Song of Solomon 1:1-4:16 18 /// AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14
2 Corinthians 8:16-24 Psalm 50:1-23 Proverbs 22:22-23 07 Song of Solomon 5:1-8:14 2 Corinthians 9:1-15 Psalm 51:1-19 Proverbs 22:24-25 08 Isaiah 1:1-2:22 2 Corinthians 10:1-18 Psalm 52:1-9 Proverbs 22:26-27 09 Isaiah 3:1-5:30 2 Corinthians 11:1-15 Psalm 53:1-6 Proverbs 22:28-29 10 Isaiah 6:1-7:25 2 Corinthians 11:16-33 Psalm 54:1-7 Proverbs 23:1-3 11 Isaiah 8:1-9:21 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 Psalm 55:1-23
Proverbs 23:4-5 12 Isaiah 10:1-11:16 2 Corinthians 12:11-21 Psalm 56:1-13 Proverbs 23:6-8 13 Isaiah 12:1-14:32 2 Corinthians 13:1-14 Psalm 57:1-11 Proverbs 23:9-11 14 Isaiah 15:1-18:7 Galatians 1:1-24 Psalm 58:1-11 Proverbs 23:12 15 Isaiah 19:1-21:17 Galatians 2:1-16 Psalm 59:1-17 Proverbs 23:13-14 16 Isaiah 22:1-24:23 Galatians 2:17-3:9 Psalm 60:1-12 Proverbs 23:15-16
ble in One Year 17 Isaiah 25:1-28:13 Galatians 3:10-22 Psalm 61:1-8 Proverbs 23:17-18 18 Isaiah 28:14-30:11 Galatians 3:23-4:31 Psalm 62:1-12 Proverbs 23:19-21 19 Isaiah 30:12-33:9 Galatians 5:1-12 Psalm 63:1-11 Proverbs 23:22 20 Isaiah 33:10-36:22 Galatians 5:13-26 Psalm 64:1-10 Proverbs 23:23 21 Isaiah 37:1-38:22 Galatians 6:1-18 Psalm 65:1-13 Proverbs 23:24 22 Isaiah 39:1-41:16
Ephesians 1:1-23 Psalm 66:1-20 Proverbs 23:25-28 23 Isaiah 41:17-43:13 Ephesians 2:1-22 Psalm 67:1-7 Proverbs 23:29-35 24 Isaiah 43:14-45:10 Ephesians 3:1-21 Psalm 68:1-18 Proverbs 24:1-2 25 Isaiah 45:11-48:11 Ephesians 4:1-16 Psalm 68:19-35 Proverbs 24:3-4
Proverbs 24:7 28 Isaiah 54:1-57:14 Ephesians 6:1-24 Psalm 70:1-5 Proverbs 24:8 29 Isaiah 57:15-59:21 Philippians 1:1-26 Psalm 71:1-24 Proverbs 24:9-10 30 Isaiah 60:1-62:5 Philippians 1:27-2:18 Psalm 72:1-20 Proverbs 24:11-12
26 Isaiah 48:12-50:11 Ephesians 4:17-32 Psalm 69:1-18 Proverbs 24:5-6 27 Isaiah 51:1-53:12 Ephesians 5:1-33 Psalm 69:19-36 AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 14 /// 19
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