The voice of Queensland Baptists June/July 2017
New and Old Gold
Ethical Fashion Results
A Reflection
26
32
42
Print post approved ISSN: 100003837 | The Queensland Baptist - first published in 1890. This series Vol 15 Issue 3. | qb.org.au
CONTENTS
QB MINISTRIES 20
QB Women What is a Queensland Baptist doing at the United Nations?
22
QCCC Always improving: 90 years of Baptist camping
24
QB Archives Photos tell the story!
26
Romans Fifteen20 Mission to Queensland New and old gold
28
Malyon Re-thinking theology
32
30 Carinity Finding freedom through Christ
QB PARTNERS
REGULARS
32 BWAA Ethical fashion: The results are in 34
4
From the General
Superintendent
Global Interaction On the silk road
22
42 28
7
QB Prayer Focus 2017
8
Knowing God Series
10
Speaking out:
John Sweetman
12
Baptisms
13
Around the regions
18
Milestones
36
Persecution brief
39
God moments
44
Fun zone
46
Reviews
47
Classifieds
ARTICLES 38
Positive change
40
How to read Romans
42
A reflection
QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 3
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all. (Psalm 103:19 NIV)
‘Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’ (Mark 10:15 NIV)
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FROM THE GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT
A great strength of our evangelical heritage has been our emphasis on the need for salvation. We have rightly emphasised the need to get right with God, to ‘repent and believe’. We have been focussing on the need for us to be overt witnesses of what God has done for us. The message of salvation is too good to keep to ourselves! We now have over 50,000 women, men, young people and children in our Queensland Baptists community. We can have an impact on our community as we demonstrate the love of Jesus and engage in conversation with others about it. However, we need to be constantly aware that being a Christian is not just about the way to God, it is also about our walk with God. Becoming a Christian is about entering God’s Kingdom, becoming a citizen of Heaven, and coming under the Lordship (authority) of Jesus. When Psalm 103:19 states that the Lord rules over all, it does mean everything—including you and me. Any kingdom has at least four characteristics. First, there is a king. From Psalm 103:19 one immediately forms a picture of the majestic! Some kings and queens today are mere figureheads. It has not always been that way. Historically, kings and queens had much power and authority. God cannot be considered a figurehead. God, who is transcendent and immanent, rules all the universe—what we commonly refer to as ‘nature’ plus people. He is truly King of kings and Lord of lords. Second, there are the subjects. One cannot be king of nothing! We are
God’s creation. However, citizenship of the Kingdom is not automatic. The Bible makes it clear that whilst some people belong to the Kingdom, others do not. We are faced with that decision—whether to be followers of Jesus or not. Third is the relationship between the king and their subjects. We cannot regard God as a mere token leader or head without any real power. It is a submissive relationship. Romans 6:16 NIV puts it quite starkly when it states, “Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?” The walk with God, is one of obedience to Him as King. The fourth component of a kingdom is the tasks the subjects undertake. We should not only live as good citizens, but we also need to carry out the tasks of the king. The primary task is to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind, and the second is like it; love your neighbour as yourself. (Matthew 22:37-39). Beyond that, discipleship is learning to obey all the commands of Jesus— including to tell others about Him. Jesus pronounced the process of entering the Kingdom: repent and believe. These are affirmative actions on our part. Repent means a complete turnaround, not merely being sorry. Believe involves more than the mind, it is a conviction or trust in God. So, repent and believe can be understood as a complete change of ownership. We yield the right to have a say over our lives, in preference for allowing God to have
complete control. In Mark 10:15 Jesus used different words when he said, ‘Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’ Here the emphasis is on the passive—receive and enter. It is something God offers, and we respond (by repenting and believing) receiving and entering. It is essential we understand this as followers of Jesus. Being a Christian is not merely being able to give a time and place when we made our decision for Christ. It is a change of status from being self-ruled to being Godruled. It is both entering and living in the Kingdom. It is not some arduous life, but life with the King of kings is abundant life—living life to the full! Ministry Matters Thank you to our churches who participated in the NCLS. The results are now becoming available. Reading the results is one thing, understanding and using them is the next step. If you need assistance with this, please contact your Regional Consultant, who will be able to assist you. This edition of the QB has been put together for the first time by our Communications and Marketing Manager, Linda Nevell. Robynne Milne did a great job for a number of years, and now we look forward to this new chapter with Linda’s input. Congratulations Linda!
David Loder General Superintendent david.loder@qb.org.au
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FROM THE EDITOR The qb is a member of the Australasian Religious Press Association, published bi-monthly by Queensland Baptist Services Group in February, April, June, August, October and December.
I am honoured to present my first issue as editor of the qb, and I hope you find the content interesting and uplifting. Robynne Milne has done an excellent job as editor over the past eight years. I wish her well on her new journey and thank her for making the transition into the role easy for me. In this issue, we focus on the work of Baptist World Aid, and farewell Andy Coller who is leaving the role of Queensland State Representative to spend more time with his wife Julie. Many people have been touched by Andy’s work and humble character, and as he says in his article (A Reflection) “I am still a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s just the form that has changed.” That statement could be true for many of us, as the Lord calls us to different roles throughout our life, all to serve Him. Brent van Mourik has taken over the reins from Andy, and he is already bringing his own enthusiasm, compassion and talents to the role. Welcome Brent! John Sweetman (Speaking Out) writes about the positive and
Editor: Linda Nevell Design: Shell Graphix Print: Printcraft This magazine is printed with soy based inks and paper from sustainable forest plantations.
Robynne cutting the cake – Farewell Robynne!
negative impacts of technology, and the way it has changed our lives. Elissa Macpherson (QB Women) has some interesting insights from her recent visit to the United Nations, and Carinity (Finding Freedom through Christ) shares the amazing transformation in the life of Emily who was lost in a world of drugs and prison. Christ can give anyone a fresh start! We have also added a new section called “God Moments”. If you have a story, poem, testimony or inspiring quote to contribute, please contact us. We have added a few more puzzles to the “Fun Zone” section to get your brain working! I look forward to compiling the magazine, and welcome your comments and feedback. God Bless,
We welcome reader feedback and opinions about our articles. Remember to include your full name, email and postal addresses. Articles and advertising in The qb express the opinions of the authors, not necessarily the editor or publishers. Every effort is made to ensure the correctness of facts and information however we cannot accept responsibility for errors. The publishers reserve the right to accept or decline any advertising. Deadline for advertisement and copy: 10th of the month prior to the month of publication. PO Box 6166 Mitchelton Qld 4053 P 07 3354 5633 F 07 3354 5646 Advertising rates are listed in The qb Media Kit available at www.qb.org.au/newsmedia. Prices are also available on enquiry and advertising packages can be tailored to suit your budget. Reduced contract rates apply to three bookings within a 12 month period. Please contact us for details. A limited number of inserts are also accepted. Copyright © 2003 by Queensland Baptist Services Group. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the publisher.
Linda Nevell Editor, the qb qb@qb.org.au
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture verses appearing in The qb are from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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When he (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’ Matthew 9:36 38 NIV From the 4th to the 11th of June 2017, Queensland Baptist churches committed to a week of focused prayer for their communities, areas, regions and state. It is encouraging that we as Queensland Baptists have over the last 5 years been getting better at building relationships with people who do not yet know Jesus. However, our QB church statistics indicate that at best we are only connecting with 2% of our population! A 2016 NCLS survey indicated that at least 24% of Australians believe in a personal God. The harvest is indeed plentiful! Please continue to pray for the Lord to send out workers into the harvest fields of our communities. Pray that God would change circumstances and people, so that there would be an openness to the good news of Jesus. Most importantly, pray that he would change us so that we would be the ones who go in obedience to Jesus’ command!
QB PRAYER FOCUS 2017
‘Prayer does not fit us for the greater work; prayer is the greater work.’ Oswald Chambers
We would love to hear your stories about your prayer events as well as any testimonies that you have of God answering your prayers! If you have a prayer story to share, please email it to susan.harris@qb.org.au Let us all keep praying for a change!
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KNOWING GOD
DISCIPLESHIP THROUGH EVANGELISM:
MAKE DISCIPLES BY GOING & BAPTISING
THE INVOLVEMENT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EVANGELISM
“…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)
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People are born into this world one at a time, and they also born again into a new world by having an individual encounter with Christ. Likewise, evangelism is extremely personal. For those who have come to faith in Jesus Christ, each person’s journey and story is uniquely special and intimate. As one tracks the steps of many ‘giants of the faith’--the apostle Paul, Dwight Moody, F.B Meyer, Billy Sunday, Billy Graham--the reality of divine intervention, interception, and involvement in people’s lives can hardly be denied. Likewise, in each of our own stories of coming to faith, there is evidence of the Holy Spirit’s
‘finger-print’ and His involvement becomes so obvious that any suggestion of coincidence or human intervention becomes absurd. In A Biblical Standard for Evangelists, Dr. Graham writes the following: “The Holy Spirit is the great communicator. Without His supernatural work, there would be no such thing as conversion. Satan puts a veil over the truth, and this can be penetrated only by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is this third person of the Trinity who takes the message and communicates with power to the hearts and minds of men and women.”
At least three persons are involved whenever one comes to faith in Jesus Christ--The Holy Spirit, the one sharing their faith, and the person being reached with Christ’s message of hope and purpose. Regarding salvation, nothing can be achieved for the spiritual wellbeing of a person without the involvement of the Holy Spirit, both in the one doing the evangelising, as well as the one being evangelised. I can recall numerous times when preaching locally, or overseas, where people have responded to an invitation of Jesus, sometimes in their numbers, as the Holy Spirit touched their hearts and minds with His gentle but firm convicting power. What has often surprised me was that in some instances I had not said anything profound, and yet the evidence of transformed lives became a reality with the Holy Spirit at work. I recall preaching one night in an African village where there was no lighting except for a candle to illuminate the words of my Bible--it was so dark that I could not see the folk who were in attendance. As I closed the meeting, numbers of them made their way to the front of the meeting into the dim candlelight to receive Jesus as their saviour. Another instance that also stands out in my memory was when I was sharing the timeless Christmas story, at what was a traditional evening carols service. A close friend of mine for whom I had been praying privately in my daily devotional time, almost ran to the front and said that he needed to give his life to Jesus there and then.
As he said this, I must confess that the thought ran through my mind, ‘how did that just happen?’ There was nothing different in what I had shared that would mobilise a man of his stature in the community, and masculinity as a person, to respond in such a way of his own accord, so publicly--except by the work of the Holy Spirit! Another time I recall preaching ‘open air’ outside a rather primitive rural medical clinic to the patients. As I shared, suddenly a vehicle of armed security personnel pulled into the yard with the intention of evicting me from the premises (they told me this afterwards!); however, they suddenly stopped and listened as I shared from the Word of God, and after the message, some came to faith, while others requested Bibles. They departed with a totally different perspective--this is the work of the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus (John 16:26). He preaches not just in words, but directly to hearts. Therefore, we co-operate with the Holy Spirit when we preach to ears and minds, while the Holy Spirit preaches to hearts. John 16:811 reminds us that He is the one who convicts people in regards to sin, righteousness and judgment. Without the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, the unbeliever does not sense a need for Christ, and often rejects the message and the messenger. Regeneration of ‘and in’ a new Believer is another aspect where the Holy Spirit is at work in evangelism. A belief in Christ that fails to result
in a new life and a new nature is not saving faith (Perspectives on Evangelism, Dr. Bob Jones). The Holy Spirit indwells (takes up residence) within the life of a new Believer (Romans 8:9-11). Throughout the journey of a person coming to faith in Jesus Christ, and then continuing in that journey of faith throughout life, the person of the Holy Spirit is at work. Once a person becomes a believer, they are guided (Romans 8:14), encouraged towards victorious living (1 John 5:4), and empowered for service (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit has been actively involved in this world and in people’s lives from the beginning of time (Genesis 1:2). Any attempt to reach out to others for Christ without reliance upon, and involvement of, the Holy Spirit, is a pointless and futile exercise. While he may be “resident” in your life, He desires to be “president” of your life! Edmund Chan reminds us that the Christian life is not so much about “commitment,” but rather “surrender.” Oh! that each of us would regularly surrender afresh to the Holy Spirit, and allow Him to manifest the life of Jesus Christ in us and through us.
Pieter Henning Regional Consultant – CQ, NQ, & FNQ
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SPEAKING OUT
MY LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY I love new technology (in ‘new technology’ I am including hardware, software, and ways of communication). I certainly didn’t get this passion from my father, who has never touched a computer in his life. He doesn’t even use a digital alarm clock. No, it seems that my love for technology has been passed on from my grandfather. He was always the first in his community to purchase new products. Of course, In Grandpa’s day that cutting-edge product was the car, refrigerator, motor mower and washing machine—and lots of cameras. I can remember as a kid posing endlessly for photos as Grandpa experimented with his latest camera. And those slide nights…but that’s another story.
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Somehow I caught the bug. Of course, I’m no digital native (far too ancient for that), but I usually buy new gadgets before my much more technologically proficient (but financially poorer) sons. And they are jealous. I can’t always use these gadgets well, but it’s fun having them. However, as technology continues to explode, my love for new technology is beginning to wear thin. At Malyon, our online student population is growing rapidly, and we are working to stay abreast of technology that will assist in teaching and learning. Recently, we decided that all online classes should have at least one webinar during the
semester. For my dad’s crew, a webinar is an online video class to which students can log in from their computers. It’s like a big Skype conference. Despite the temptation to avoid webinars until my retirement at the end of the year, I thought that I should set an example for the faculty, so I programmed a webinar for my online worship class. How difficult could it be? Peter Francis can do them. I set up a date and web address from my college computer and emailed the class. Everything seemed straightforward. Well, I logged in at the right time from home, but instead of joining the class webinar, I unknowingly set up a new webinar. So there I sat waiting
and Andrew Dunstan run fantastic webinars. Peter can rotate between the video screen and a PowerPoint with ease. And he doesn’t even own a smartwatch! I’m sure that I’ve been humbled enough now. Surely my next webinar in a few weeks’ time will be both painless and enlightening. But I tell this story to illustrate how frustrating new technology can be, even when you appreciate it. I think that it’s healthy to have a love-hate relationship with the technological changes that are drastically influencing the way we do life. I like the way new technology enables us to: • • • • • expectantly for the class to join me and no-one came. Eventually, I realised my mistake and followed the link to the right webinar. My beloved students’ faces were now all on my screen, but they were saying things that I couldn’t hear. I looked down at the bottom of my screen to check the sound and found that the little audio icon that is always there had disappeared. I couldn’t turn the sound on because there was no icon to unmute. I spent 10 minutes fiddling while my class desperately tried to help by mouthing their advice with exaggerated pronunciation in the hope that I could lipread. Finally, my sound turned on and we were able to proceed with the webinar. At least, we webinared (new word) for 10 minutes until my home internet went down. Now before you decide that such inept use of technology rules out Malyon as a possible place of study, may I point out that Peter Francis
• • • •
Stay in contact with people whenever we want Find out about and communicate with each other through social media Discover all sorts of information at the touch of a button Watch just about any TV show we want (and avoid advertisements) Effectively teach online students (anywhere in the world) Check how many steps we walk every day and stay a little fitter Find out where our family members (or at least their phones) are located at any time Continue to work on this article from whichever computer I choose Communicate information with a much greater audience
Yet I worry about the way new technology enables us to: • Avoid personal friendships by replacing them with online relationships • Be accessible to anyone every moment of the day • Project our lives as wonderful and without pain • Believe fake news (lies) because it looks and feels like real news • Evade periods of quietness and solitude • Limit thoughtful discussion to a few soundbites or twitter comments
• • •
Retreat into our own worlds with people who share our prejudices Fill our minds with unimportant facts and news about shallow people Gain easy and immediate access to so much evil
The world is changing rapidly, and unless we have a specific call from God to be Luddites, we need to do our best to stay abreast. As history has shown us, with change comes new kingdom opportunities. We don’t want to miss those. I remember the hue and cry from some members when we first purchased a data projector at Bracken Ridge church in the early 90s. Quite a few saw it as a dreadful waste of money. They felt that there was nothing wrong with the overhead projector we were using (remember those?). But where would be without this technology now? Data projectors have been a huge help in communication and worship. But while many of us (with a few exceptions like my dad) can quickly see the exciting benefits of new technology, the real costs are often more subtle, slower appearing, and harder to talk about. Yet they must be raised and considered—Not by the reactionaries, who can easily be dismissed, but by the wise and mature and trusted. These are challenging times. We must hasten slowly. New technology is not necessarily good nor essential. It’s just new. The final word belongs to Scripture: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Phil. 4:8).
John Sweetman Principal, Malyon john.sweetman@malyon.edu.au
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Baptisms Biloela District Baptist Church • Sung Ting Birkdale Baptist Church • Isaac Lu Bridgeman Baptist Community Church • Dr Miles Kitts Brisbane Slavic Evangelical Baptist Church • Antonio Kozinets • Anita Iablonski • Sophia Rahimov
Rev Emil Rahimov, Antonio Kozinets, Sophia Rahimov, Anita Iablonski
Bundaberg Baptist Church • Julie Macpherson City North Baptist Church • Joshua Bushnell • Peter Garlick • Austin Hall • Catherine Swinerton City Tabernacle Baptist Church • Siyu Guo (Sugar) • Yi, Ding (Amy)
Antonio Kozinets, Sophia Rahimov, Anita Iablonski
This year, Tenthill Baptist Church began a monthly evening service to help families in the community who have not connected with our more traditional morning service. Our young people have played an important part in this service, using their gifts in areas like hospitality and music. As the purpose of this service is to connect with younger families and people who perhaps do not have a church background, we began our messages in Genesis, and so far have looked at ‘creation,’ the ‘image of God,’ and ‘sin.’ We finish off the service with dinner to help build a Godly community.
Cleveland Baptist Church • Chelsea Peters • Keira Peters • Annica Ylinen Gin Gin Baptist Church • Christine Coolwell Moore Park Baptist Church • Gus John Eardley • David Osborne Tenthill Baptist Church Evening Service and Baptisms • Desiree Blaxland • Kate Meyer • Rebecca Meyer Biloela District Baptist Church
Tenthill Baptist Church Evening Service and Baptisms
At our last service we were able to Baptise three of our teenage girls. In term 1 of youth group, we spent time in the ‘Two ways to live’ material (Published by Matthias Media). At the end of the term we encouraged our young people who had responded in faith to Jesus to be baptised. To which, Desiree Blaxland and Bek and Kate Meyer responded gladly. In their testimonies, they attributed Christian families, church, youth group and the Christian youth camp ‘TeenStreet’ as helpful factors in following Jesus. Vanessa Grant baptised these three girls. Vanessa helps serve in the youth ministry and leads the girls during the small group time.
Around the regions
Beachside Christian Church Ps Nick Tatlow | Beachside Christian Church | beachsidechurch.com.au There is a tradition among surfers (especially in Hawaii), that when a surfer dies, they paddle out with hibiscus flowers, form a circle in the water, say a few words of remembrance and then leave flowers floating on the surface of the water. On the afternoon of Good Friday, Beachside Christian Church held their 5th annual unique church service inviting Gold Coast surfers from various churches to paddle out in the Currumbin Estuary forming a cross with their surfboards, in commemoration of Jesus’ death, while celebrating the hope we have in the resurrected Christ. This was followed by a time of worship and communion on the beach as the sun set on Good Friday. There were almost 200 participants in the paddle out, with many more on the beach, and many unchurched beach goers saw a unique demonstration of surfers honouring Jesus, hearing the gospel message, and experiencing the church outside of the building. Beachside Christian Church has a desire to be out and about in the community as much as possible, and sees the coastal community as a focus for outreach.
On the move • • • • • •
•
Rev Al Loder’s retirement (Bundaberg) Pastor Mick Spann commenced at The Gabba Rev Ed Marshall pastoring in Canada (June-Dec 2017) Pastor David Luthy concluded at Cleveland and commenced at Lifepointe Pastor Dave Herron concluded at City North and commenced at Caboolture Rev David Toscano commencing Northern Community Church (Preston, Vic) Pastor Brent Van Mourik concluded at South Toowoomba and commenced with Baptist World Aid
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A new life for a historic Church (Pastor) Adrian and Narelle ILES | Agnes Water/1770 Baptist Church | pastor.adrian@optusnet.com.au St John’s Little Memorial Anglican Church (76 James Street Rosedale) has always held a special place in the hearts of local residents. Built in 1924 for 1500 Pounds by the son of a local pioneer, James Little and donated to the Anglican Church, weddings and monthly church services have been enjoyed by the local community. As the years passed, the beautiful historic building needed repair. In 1998 a team of Bundaberg volunteers, supervised by a direct descendant of the ‘Little’ family and an energetic restoration committee, carefully completed a $45 000 restoration. The building shone once more as an important part of Rosedale’s heritage; restored to its former glory. On July 14 2016, Adrian and Narelle Iles (Agnes Water/1770 Baptist Church) purchased the building from the Anglican Church with the purpose of expanding its use into a Community Support Hub for God. With the support of Mission to Queensland (MTQ) they were delighted to have an opportunity to bless the local community with another Baptist Church Plant. Several months of improvements to the property followed. Materials came from local businesses and
furniture restored by the Agnes Water Community Men’s Shed. St John’s Community Church (Rosedale) was born! The Ministry now includes wellattended monthly church services and regular evenings of Rosedale Youth. This offers Rosedale’s Youth wholesome fun, friendship-building activities, a devotion and supper on the first and third Friday of each month. Adrian and Narelle look forward to having an ever-increasing impact in Christ’s Name, and blessing the community as the Lord leads and provides. Please pray for us! MISSION: LOVING PEOPLE INTO HIS KINGDOM! Pastor Adrian Iles.
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The Meeting Place – All welcome Marybourough Baptist Church | maryborough-baptist-church.com
Community Fun Day at Bundaberg West Baptist Church 2017 Claire Rumballe | Bundaberg West Baptist Church bundabergwestbaptists.com We encourage all churches, regardless of size, wealth, or gifts, to be bold in their plans! In March 2017, we held a Community Fun Day at our church. Despite being the hottest March day on record, we drew an estimated crowd of five hundred. Community clubs displayed old cars, vintage motor-bikes, and table tennis. Families chose home-baked goodies and treasures from the jumble stall. Local school choirs entertained everyone as they enjoyed hamburgers, snacks and LOTS of cold drinks. How did this all happen? In August 2016, God challenged us to strengthen relationships with the community by hosting an outdoor event in our big back yard. We have run an annual model car racing event for eight years and more recently, a Carols Evening at Christmas time. Our small congregation has limited resources, so to run a Fun Day was a huge undertaking for us. In December 2016, God’s plans unfolded with the success of a Ministry Grant application to Queensland Baptists. This was such a boost to our confidence and we could then purchase much needed equipment. As we worked together to prepare for the Fun Day event, God drew our congregation together. Everyone contributed towards the successful event, and the atmosphere in our church is now one of JOY and HOPE. God took our plans and blessed them beyond expectation. Thank you to the Board of Queensland Baptists for making it possible for us to hold such an outreach event, and we praise God for His timing and faithfulness!
Maryborough Baptist Church has been connected to the community of Granville for decades and in 2014, the opportunity arose to expand this connection. The local squash courts went up for sale. This facility has 5 squash courts, a 3-bedroom residence, bathroom, a gym and sauna, and a large in ground concrete pool. Although the church did not have the funds to purchase the property, on Easter Thursday, 2015, a Christian businessman in Brisbane was an answer to prayer. He advised that his circumstances had changed and he was able to purchase the property and lease it to the church. ‘This is your facility’ he said. We praised the Lord! The very first activity was a prayer walk in and through the premises: thanking God and declaring that the amazing place was His. Since that time, the church has started a “Little Treasures” play time, an opShop, small café, prayer group, connect group and regular visits by other churches youth groups and kid’s clubs. The facility holds BBQs, prayer nights, worship times, and is an informal space to meet and connect with others. Baplink has also provided a grant to purchase a small coffee machine which has been put to very good use. The church has declared that ‘where God gives the vision, He makes the provision’. We are truly blessed and look forward to stepping into what the Lord has ahead for us. QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 15
City Tabernacle Baptist Church – ‘Tab Tots’ City Tabernacle Baptist Church | citytabernacle.com.au When most people think of Brisbane CBD they usually do not think of children. But every Wednesday, during the school term, around 60-75 parents and their children, meet at the City Tabernacle Baptist for ‘Tab Tots’ playgroup, an outreach ministry of the Church. The vast majority of the families who attend are new to Australia, live in Brisbane city and are mostly from the Middle East and South Asia. The purpose of ‘Tab Tots’ is not to be an ordinary playgroup, but a spiritual ministry in which the gospel is shared with every family. We do this through giving every new family a New Testament Bible and a Christian children’s book. Every week we send out an email to our 220 ‘Tab Tots’ families with a devotion, a testimony, or answers to common objections to Christianity. It is encouraging when families return to their home country, they still read our emails. For some, it is the only Christian input into their lives. We also have a table of Christian literature available, sing Christian songs, show love through prayer and sharing the gospel with families. We thank God that mothers have come to Christ through these activities. On Saturday 15 April 2017, the City Tabernacle took 120 people from ‘Tab Tots’ to see the Moogerah Passion Play, a dramatic account of the life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our plans to charter a mini-bus to transport interested families, grew to one bus, then two large buses. The number of interested families increased each week in the lead up to the event. As nearly all the attendees were not Christians, we were overwhelmed by this response. The families reported how impacted they were by the play and in particular, the scene depicting the crucifixion of Jesus. One mum explained that her son was distressed by the crucifixion but that she used the information we had given her to explain to him why Jesus died, and he now understands the gospel. Another mum requested a Bible in her language and has asked many questions about Christianity. Some families have started attending church events and have been visibly impacted by the gospel. We have also noticed a new openness among these inner city families to talk about Jesus. We are thankful to all volunteers who attended on the day, but most of all we praise our Father in Heaven for what He is doing in the hearts of these families.
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MILESTONES
David Loder with Nathan and Natalie Stanley.
ORDINATION CELEBRATION AT BILOELA DISTRICT BAPTIST CHURCH QB General Superintendent, David Loder, accompanied by his wife, Ann, visited the Biloela District Baptist Church for the ordination of Nathan Stanley. Nathan Stanley commenced in the senior pastoral role at Biloela in the latter part of 2015. Through the work of Nathan and his wife, Natalie, together with John Spranklin (Associate Pastor), and his wife, Meg, Biloela has enjoyed a time of steady growth and good connection into the broader community. Nathan’s ordination service was facilitated by David Loder, who shared helpful & encouraging words from 1 Timothy. We celebrate this milestone with Nathan and we look forward with anticipation to see the Lord continue to bless the ministry at Biloela.
NORTHSIDE EVANGELICAL CHURCH 10TH ANNIVERSARY SERVICE Our first church service took place on the 22nd of April 2007 with 12 of us, including 8 adults, 3 youth (my daughters) and 1 infant. Despite our small numbers we had a full service and a worship band comprising of drums, guitar, flute and a singer. The message of the service focussed on Philippians 1:6 NIV, which states, ‘he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion’. From this ‘small start’, God continues to do a good work in so many unexpected ways. The most unexpected, but one of the most joyful, is the multicultural diversity of our church. In our current group of approximately 90 people we have nationalities from 16 different countries:-
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Allan and Corianna Quak with the anniversary cake.
Australia, Chile, Congo, England, Germany, India, Iran, Kenya, Lebanon, Netherlands, New Zealand, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe. One truth we have learnt in the past 10 years is that, when we are willing, God can work an amazing work. Never let a perceived lacknot enough people, not enough finances, not enough time - be an obstacle to building God’s kingdom. Our 10th anniversary is a testimony to our God, who continues to carry His work towards completion.
PLAQUE UNVEILED TO COMMEMORATE ‘ONE OF THE FINEST BUILDINGS OF ITS KIND IN THE COLONY’ On 7 May, a plaque was unveiled at the City Tabernacle Baptist Church to identify the building as a key heritage site. It is the second plaque in Baptist Heritage Queensland’s (BHQ’s) Plaque Project and was unveiled at the morning service by BHQ President, Eric Kopittke, and the interim pastor of the church, Rev Richard Kingham. In his remarks, Mr Kopittke referred to press reports when the building was opened in October 1890 which stated, ‘The Baptists of Brisbane and of Queensland generally have good reason to be proud of their new City Tabernacle. The sacred edifice occupies a commanding position at the corner of Wickham Terrace and Upper Edward Street and is certainly one of the finest buildings of its kind in the colony, both as regards exterior
appearance and internal arrangements.’ The architect, Mr Richard Gailey, a member of the church, succeeded in his aim of creating an impressive ‘cathedral’ type structure which would take its place alongside other churches in the city and compare favourably with other Baptist churches around Australia. Mr Kopittke also mentioned that the large number of people attending the opening required the hasty completion of the balcony seating to fit them all in. The pastor, Rev William Whale, preached a stimulating sermon on 1 Cor. 3:16 KJV, ‘Know ye not that ye are the temple of God.’ During the dedication service on May 7, Rev Dr David Parker, archivist for Queensland Baptists, thanked the church for participating in the project. He explained how the event marked exactly 160 years to the day since Rev James Voller came from Sydney to assist the young ‘Brisbane Baptist Church’ after it was facing closure due to the sudden departure of its pastor. Voller encouraged the people to continue on and to send to England for a pastor. He also conducted the first baptisms in Brisbane in a reservoir in Roma Street. Sometime later, Rev BG Wilson came from England and saw great development in Baptist work. Dr Parker stated that BHQ hopes that its Plaque Project will result in many more important Baptist sites throughout the state being identified. The next one to be erected will be at Windsor Road Baptist Church. Churches interested in participating are invited to contact BHQ at archives@qb.org.au or by phoning Mr Kopittke, 3376 4339.
(L) Plaque Unveiled to Commemorate ‘one of the finest buildings of its kind in the colony’ (R) Miss Hope Colegrove, Eric Kopittke, Rev Dr David Parker and Rev Richard Kingham
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QB WOMEN
WHAT IS A QUEENSLAND BAPTIST DOING AT THE UNITED NATIONS? I’m sitting in the General-Assembly Hall at the United Nations in New York. In front of me is a microphone if I want to raise a question with the panel at the front. I feel like I’m stuck in a movie set, waiting for Tom Cruise to slide down from the ceiling. Ironically, actress Ashley Judd is scheduled to close a session tomorrow. Sitting next to me are two students from Pakistan. On my other side is a Scottish woman whispering to the woman next to her, a trade union representative from Sweden. A woman from Nigeria is giving the key note address regarding gender dimensions in human trafficking. This is all surreal. What on earth am I doing here? What am I doing here? I have travelled to New York as the social media editor for the Baptist World Alliance Women’s Department, who have sent a contingent to the United Nations Commission into the Status of Women, otherwise known as CSW. The CSW is a global intergovernmental body which hosts a two-week annual event. This event is ‘instrumental in promoting women’s rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women’ (www.unwomen.org/en/csw). Surrounding this commission are additional meetings designed for nongovernmental organisations. Predominant themes are human trafficking, domestic violence, gender issues regarding poverty and war, and the political and economic empowerment of women.
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So why am I here? 1. To engage in a positive manner with lobbyists who perceive Christians as ‘enemies’ to their agendas. Some of the sessions became increasingly tense as participants fervently argued their point on controversial issues such as homosexuality or unrestricted abortion. Those who oppose the Biblical paradigm often perceive Christians as a homogenous group of right-wing fundamentalists who espouse hate at those who oppose their agenda. Sessions at the CSW give opportunity to engage with such lobbyists in a manner that demonstrates grace, as we respectfully listen, challenge misconceptions regarding Christians and intelligently and graciously present our views. 2. To be stakeholders in issues of justice and gender. Attending the CSW enables the Baptist denomination to be a voice in global gender issues. There are about 40 million Baptists in the world, approximately 60% are women. The topics discussed at CSW affect our congregations. Academic discussions regarding refugees or domestic violence become a human reality at the grassroots level of local church. For example, in one of the most moving sessions I attended, two North Korean women shared
their stories of defection. They had spent time imprisoned and trafficked as ‘wives’ to China. They endured unspeakable acts of cruelty. Once they escaped, it was the local church who was at the forefront of offering them physical, psychological and spiritual resources. Additionally, during a session on domestic abuse, it was noted that churches are one of the primary points of first contact for women attempting to escape abuse. As Christians, we are on the frontline of gender justice, and it is worth asking how we use that position. Are we active agents for the values of the kingdom of God, or are we passive onlookers? 3. The CSW provided a valuable opportunity to network with Baptist women in leadership from across the globe. Most evenings the Baptist contingent met to share our experiences and insights. It was interesting to see how our cultural paradigms affected how and what we heard. We could offer insights into issues that affected our part of the world with one another, enabling us to be more understanding and supportive as team members. There was discussion about how we can be a group with a greater voice in future commissions and within our own communities.
4. To use the CSW as an opportunity to build a global prayer force. Secular organisations are not able to offer one of the most powerful solutions to injustice--prayer. One of the goals of the BWA Women’s Department Facebook page is to create an online global prayer force. This is being created through an online activity called “The World Minute of Prayer” an offshoot of the World Day of Prayer. Every month or so we feature an inspiring Baptist woman from around the world. We create a video briefly describing her story and we pray over her. While in NYC, I interviewed five amazing Baptist women to be featured in ‘The World Minute of Prayer’ over the coming year. We videoed global women leaders praying over these women in a variety of languages. They include a woman from Ghana who has adopted 11 abandoned children, another studying for her doctorate in theology at Yale, and a woman who is a leading global expert in antihuman trafficking. Attending the CSW reminds me afresh that we are part of a global body of Christ. It is encouraging to get a glimpse of the depth and breadth of the Baptist body. It is interesting to see how we fit as a group committed to justice and gender issues within a global setting. Our challenge is to be obedient to God’s directions within this setting and be gracious and truthful ambassadors for the kingdom of God.
Elissa Macpherson Elissa is an author and speaker. She is also a member of the ‘She is…’ team and the social media editor for BWA Women’s Department Facebook: BWA Women’s Department www.lavishpursuits.com.au
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QCCC
ALWAYS IMPROVING:
90 YEARS OF BAPTIST CAMPING One of the best parts of being involved in Queensland’s outdoor education industry is the regular feedback we receive about the product we provide and the impact it has on people’s lives. Most guests arrive at our facilities with high expectations, but it still takes a dedicated and cohesive team to these expectations. Here’s a small example of some feedback from a Queensland school camp. This school was onsite while ex—Cyclone Debbie raged over the top of us. Thank you for all that you did to facilitate another fabulous week for our college students. Your commitment to providing wonderful facilities, challenging activities and delicious food was once again, a major contributor to the growth experiences the students enjoyed.
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This year, there were several highlights that I particularly want to highlight: •
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Jonothon* is a highly nervous child, who is highly autistic. He refused to participate in several activities, but with encouragement from your instructors, he locked his harness, climbed the ladder, then on to the tree at the flying fox. He achieved beyond his expectations but also developed trust in the instructors and the equipment. The following day he abseiled the 6 m wall. There is no way he would have done that without your staff’s encouragement the previous day. *name changed I have two students who are on restricted, gluten free diets. Your instructor took the time to develop a recipe that would allow those students to cook damper on the bush skills activity. When one of those students was told it was the instructor who had made this possible, he responded by giving him a hug. This boy struggles with self-esteem and fitting in. This was a highly significant moment in his camp. Your on-call staff person came up to Harrison Lodge at 7.30pm during the cyclone to check on the air conditioning and to see if it needed adjustment for the evening. Well after standard hours of duty! The provision of alternate activities for the groups unable to abseil or canoe on Thursday afternoon was extra mile, and greatly appreciated. The activities were so enjoyed by the students that those I spoke to did not feel ripped off at not having been able to complete the programmed activities. Real coffee-shop for teachers and parents on Friday morning after a long, windy night!
I have been bringing students to Mapleton for twelve years and it has become a significant component of our school program. In a very real sense, I feel that our year really kicks into gear after Mapleton as the depth of relationships built, the growth in maturity and the students’ willingness to take risks in learning developed at camp, provide a solid foundation for us to build on. We pray God’s blessing on you all and look forward to another week of adventure next year! During the course of the camp, as the Queensland Government shut schools throughout the State, we had to work with multiple school groups to decide what they would do. Authorities had not given thought that the advice to shut schools to keep students/parents off the roads during floods was oxymoronic for our situation. Each of our major facilities doubles as a community evacuation shelter and is given priority by authorities, such that through the course of the event, we had direct access to emergency management headquarters. At the end of it, one of the parents commented they felt their child was safer with us than they might have been at home, or certainly if they had tried to get home. Another guest of ours, who frequents most of the State’s campsites during the year, separated the Queensland camping industry into three distinct categories: 1. The bureaucratic types who don’t really care about your experience, as long as you keep the rules and make their lives as easy as possible; 2. The profit-driven outfits who will work to give you a good time to ensure your repeat business; and 3. The not-for-profit and Christian operators who have a completely different motivation, which is to see people be all they can be and cost doesn’t factor.
2017 is the 90th anniversary of the commencement of Baptist Camping in Queensland and over that period of time we’ve built a long and proud heritage of excellence. Today’s staff stand on the shoulders of the giants who preceded us. One of the principles learned through the generations is the importance of small things and attention to detail. Every guest is a unique and precious creation, and going out of our way in the smallest way can make a huge difference in their experience and life journey. Collectively our sites host more than 600 group events annually, the majority of these are repeat guests and long-term partners. With so many long-term friends amongst our guest-list, something we have to do to remain fresh and relevant is ensure we are committed to constant improvement. Site planning always includes discussion on projects, large and small, to ensure there’s something different for repeat guests year-to-year. In the last year alone, Tamborine has launched multiple new outdoor education activity options, Brookfield has revamped its dining room and introduced great coffee, and Mapleton has new ensuited accommodation. Over the next year, QCCC’s provision of services to the Commonwealth Games will see significant new services introduced to our sites in preparation. We might be turning ninety this year, but for QCCC it’s onward and upward with the same vigour and vitality as the tens of thousands of children we host each year.
Andrew Grant Director of Queensland Conference and Camping Centres andrew.grant@qccc.com.au www.qccc.com.au
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QB ARCHIVES
Photos tell the story! The Baptist Church Archives Photograph Scanning Project The Baptist Church Archives Qld includes hundreds of photos. The photo collection contains many different subjects and work has been going on since 2015 to scan them all. In this issue of qb magazine, we want to feature just a few of these photos Some were found to be of little ongoing relevance because there was no information about the photo or its subject matter. The vast majority, however, contained valuable information about the subject of the photo. The new catalogue of scanned photos aims to show such information as the date of the photo, the photographer, a description of the photo and the size and quality of the photo. All photographs are scanned in TIFF (Tagged Image File Format), which is a high quality format popular among graphic artists, the publishing industry and photographers. To date almost 1,000 photos have been scanned and catalogued using a large good quality scanner and accompanying software. A wide variety of photos collected over the years of Queensland Baptists; include Baptist Union of Queensland Presidents; from
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Photo 1: City Tabernacle Cricket Team 1948 - 1949
the first in 1877 to the last in 1999, pastors and individual church leaders, theological college staff and students, and Baptist Assembly delegates. The collection also covers such things as historical events, Sunday school groups, sporting groups, church buildings, views of early Brisbane, memorials, church camps. The collection of information is an ongoing process. The catalogue is currently incomplete in relation to a number of the photos, so as new information comes to light, the catalogue is updated. Most of the more recent photographs are in colour, but the vast majority were taken many years ago and are in black and white.
Photo 2: Rev W. Poole
Photo 3: The Queensland Baptist College 1930
Among the many interesting photos of groups of people, we have a photo of the City Tabernacle’s cricket team, which won the Queensland Church Cricket Association’s B Grade Premiership in 1948 - 1949 (see Photo 1). The team included two men who will be well known to many Queensland Baptists: Max Lockhart (Vice Captain) and Charles Day. They are seated in the front row, right-hand side. Among those who served as presidents of the union over the 122 years in which that office existed, most served just one term. But there were some who served multiple terms. Among the latter group was Rev William Poole (See Photo 2). He
was a Victorian who accepted a call to pastor the South Brisbane Church in 1880. His ministry extended from 1880 to 1910. He was the fourth President of the Baptist Association of Queensland in 1881 to 1982, and also served as President in 1889 - 90 and 1906 - 07. His photo is among the presidents who have served the Association/Union since 1877. The work of the Baptist Theological College (now Malyon) has been documented over the years from the time it occupied a relatively small room upstairs in the City Tabernacle building to its present location at QB Gaythorne. In 1930, staff and students were relatively small in number. Photo 3 shows the Principal, Rev W Bell, with the Union
President, Alfred Kent, and Mr WD Grimes (Secretary) and the eight students, including a very young Rev John White (middle row, third from left). If you have any photographs which you think might be appropriate for inclusion in the collection, you are invited to contact Bill Hughes at the Archives or direct on 0409 915 685.
Baptist Church Archives archives@qb.org.au Phone 07 3354 5642, 07 3878 3178
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New and Old Gold The Apostle Paul wrote: ‘It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation’ (Romans 15:20). William Carey’s exhortations (from a sermon based on Isaiah 54:23): ‘Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God.’1 I was at a Pastors’ Area Gathering recently, and there were three tables of give-away books. Most of them were very old. They were the remains of a veteran Pastor’s
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library. I mined that dusty collection a couple of times and happily found a few buried nuggets. Old gold! One of my unearthed treasures was a work written by GW Hervey entitled ‘The Story of Baptist Missions’. It was published in 1892, one hundred years after the founding of the Great Foreign Mission Enterprise by William Carey (1761 – 1834). In the book’s introduction, AH Burlingham professed that Carey was ‘manifestly chosen by Divine Providence to inaugurate a wider and grander missionary movement than the world had seen before’.2 Burlingham
continued: ‘[Carey] came forth to fulfil his apostleship in modern Gentile evangelization, as Paul was ushered in to fulfil his in ancient time’.3 What a legacy! As I continued to read Hervey’s account of Carey’s life and mission, I couldn’t help but notice similarities between William and Paul in terms of their holy ambitions. The Apostle Paul wanted desperately to take the gospel to Spain (Romans 15:24). William Carey became resolute in his desire to take the gospel to India. Paul looked west to Spain. Carey looked east to India. Though
they were people of different times, who were aiming for different destinations, their shared ambition was ‘to preach the gospel where Christ was not known’ (Romans 15:20). Queensland Baptists, at our best, share that same ambition. Across this great state we are aiming to reach people who don’t know Christ. In 1892, Burlingham could affirm that the ‘missionary spirit of the Baptist denomination is its greatest strength, and its missionary record its greatest glory’.4 May we live up to our past! Our ambition is to continue to take the gospel to people at all points of the compass. Church planting remains an indisputable priority in this collective enterprise—in our mission to Queensland. As Tim Keller wrote: ‘Nothing else—not crusades,
outreach programs, para-church ministries, growing mega-churches, congregational consulting, nor church renewal processes—will have the consistent impact of dynamic, extensive church planting’.5 Paul’s apostolic ambition did not end with new converts. He envisaged that new churches would be a consequent and necessary outcome of making new disciples. The Apostle’s twin hopes are intertwined in Romans 15:20 – new believers and new churches. Paul’s favourite metaphor for the church was a ‘building’.6 His desire was to build Jesus’ church with new converts, in new places. That way, he ‘would not be building on someone else’s foundation’. His ambition was that wide. His vision was that grand. Holy ambitions need not be relegated to Bible pages, old sermons and dusty books. In these
GW Hervey, The Story of Baptist Missions, CR Barns Publishing, St Louis, 1892, p. 5. GW Hervey, The Story of Baptist Missions, CR Barns Publishing, St Louis, 1892, p. xix. 3 GW Hervey, The Story of Baptist Missions, CR Barns Publishing, St Louis, 1892, p. xix – xx. 4 GW Hervey, The Story of Baptist Missions, CR Barns Publishing, St Louis, 1892, p. xxiii. 5 Tim Keller, ‘Why Church Planting’ (http://www.acts29.com/why-church-planting/). Having made such a claim, Tim wrote: ‘This is an eyebrow raising statement. But to those who have done any study at all, it is not even controversial’. 6 Leon Morris, 1 Corinthians, Tyndale New Testament Series, Intervarsity Press, 1983, p. 66. 7 GW Hervey, The Story of Baptist Missions, CR Barns Publishing, St Louis, 1892, p. 40.
days, we should both expect great things from God and attempt great things for God. We are writing fresh pages in the story of Christian mission to Queensland. God is choosing, from this generation, people whose vision is wider and grander—People who share that same kind of apostolic ambition. God is raising up leaders who will go to unreached people, establish fresh foundations and ‘build’ new churches. New gold! As an old man, William Carey— missionary veteran of forty years reviewed all that had transpired and happily exclaimed, ‘What hath God wrought!’7 My prayer is that, when we look back in forty years, we will be able to say the same thing. And this is all for the glory of God.
1 2
Warren Crank Regional Consultant and Mission to Queensland
WHY NOT SUBCRIBE? Treat yourself or give as a gift.
Only $19.50 per year Ph 07 3354 5627 qb@qb.org.au www.qb.org.au PO Box 6166 Mitchelton Q 4051
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MALYON
Re-Thinking Theology Krystal Lopez-Barahona, Communications & Promotions Officer at Malyon College, interviewed Andrew Dunstan MPhil (theol), BTh (Honours I), BMin, Malyon Director of Launch and Lecturer—Systematic Theology Personally, I was a bit squeamish when people mentioned ‘theology’. I have had some past experiences with Christian theologians who weren’t very Christ-like. However, after coming to Malyon, I quickly realised that it wasn’t studying theology which made them behave that way. I sat down with theology lecturer Andrew Dunstan from Malyon College to dispel some misconceptions about theology.
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of the church. He subsequently became an evangelical.’ You were previously a youth pastor. What attracted you to teach theology? ‘In my early twenties while studying here at Malyon, during theology class, I frequently felt as if Christ Himself was speaking to me through the lecturer. It really convicted me, played a significant part in my sanctification, and drove me to truly lay down my life for Christ. ‘The result is, that I feel called to help overcome the negativity towards theology, by being a theologian and an active church member who honours God, and to help relate theology to everyday life.’ What do you think we benefit from the most when we study theology?
Do many students who come to Bible college think poorly of the term theology? ‘Yes, you are not alone there. I am blessed to watch students being touched by theology in class in a very personal and practical way. Some students will approach me after class and share their experiences of joy in learning more about the nature of God. Many will say that, in concepts they had assumed were abstract and barren like the Trinity, they have discovered the very basis of God’s loving nature and our intrinsic need for community. And so suddenly, they see theology as an integral part of why they came to Bible College—to know more of God.’
Where does this misconception come from? ‘In the first half of the twentieth century, a lot of academic theology tended to be fairly liberal. Liberal Christian beliefs and practices simply conform to the beliefs and practices of modern culture without checking that these values first conform to the Bible. But with the growth of evangelical Christianity since the Second World War, that has all changed, and theology tends to be much more evangelical. ‘An interesting example of this shift is when Alister McGrath, who was a liberal theologian, took on the role of pastor and discovered that such theology only hampered the growth
‘Several students who were not academics, or lovers of reading by nature, came to their first theology class have fallen deeply in love with God through studying theology. One student of mine was a young bus driver and was only scraping through the unit, but then the Holy Spirit started to move in his heart and he came to enjoy theology, because it was helping him in his relationship with God. Once he made that connection, he achieved distinctions and became an accomplished theology student.’ ‘Beyond a student’s personal walk, studying theology can also help them avoid unfaithful ways of thinking about God. As a pastor this ensures they both evangelise and edify more effectively.’ I came away from my chat with Andrew a little more intrigued with studying theology. If God is stirring your heart in this way too, you can find out more. Malyon College will be hosting another Open Night on Tuesday 10th October 6pm, or contact 07 3354 5656.
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Finding Freedom through Christ 30 JUN/JUL 17 QB.ORG.AU
Emily left home as a teenager to escape a tumultuous relationship with her father, living on and off the streets. When she was 17, she met her partner who introduced her to heroin. She was soon addicted with a $500-a-day habit.
Despite being an atheist, Emily started attending Bible study to get out of her unit. She realised that the prison chaplain genuinely looked past people’s offences and focussed on how much God loved them and the future He had in store for them.
Her partner was in and out of jail. Emily even took some charges for him, trying to keep him out. While he was inside, Emily started stealing to fund her addiction. Early one morning in 2009, Emily and her boyfriend were homeless and desperate. In the haze of withdrawal, and desperate for a fix, they decided to rob a bank. Three weeks later, Emily was arrested and put into the Management Unit for difficult prisoners.
Then one night, Emily encountered Jesus in her cell. She surrendered to Him and the light in her room went a hazy gold colour. That is when she started to feel the tangible presence of God. She felt Him say: ‘I’ve brought you here to repent, to turn to me and to have the purpose you were meant to have.’
At her induction, what stood out to Emily, among all the fierce and sombre faces, was the prison chaplain who beamed with warmth and kindness. Emily thought the chaplain’s smile was ‘magnetic’.
She was very confident in her sobriety when she got out. Returning to the same environment, and the same toxic relationship, she naively thought everything would be better. Trying to do it in her own strength, Emily relapsed, reoffended and found herself back in jail. That was the lowest point in her life. She was so disappointed.
Emily realised she’d met with Jesus but hadn’t made the decision to accept him as Lord over her life. She had been trying to do everything alone, and that wasn’t working. Emily started her own Bible study in prison and made a new best friend. Following her release, Emily was baptised at Southbank in January 2016. Today, Emily has finished a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Communications, which she started in prison, and wants to do her Masters of Social Work. She’s a support worker with Brisbane Rape and Incest Survivors’ Support and an active member of her church community. Together with her best friend, who she met inside, Emily has started a small group called Heart to Heart, helping marginalised women. She is living free from addiction and has embraced the freedom that comes from surrendering to Christ.
Each year, Carinity’s chaplains assist over 10,000 people in hospitals, aged care communities and prisons across Queensland. A Certificate IV in Chaplaincy and Pastoral Care is becoming the minimum requirement in many hospitals and prisons. The expense of this training requirement can be a barrier to entering ministry. The Carinity Chaplains’ Appeal helps raise funds to train and support chaplains. This year, the focus is on providing support to people in regional and rural Queensland to become hospital and prison chaplains. Donate now at www.carinity.org.au/donations
ETHICAL FASHION: THE RESULTS ARE IN! BY SAMARA LINEHAN
The 2017 Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report was launched in April. The industry-leading research grades 106 companies (330 brands) from A to F on the strength of their systems to address child labour, slavery, and exploitation. In 2017, more companies than ever before engaged with the research process, 83% in fact, up from 49% in 2013, when the project first began. Advocacy Manager, Gershon Nimbalker, says that whilst the industry has certainly made progress since our first report in 2013, more work can and needs to be done, particularly at a local level. In fact, of the 15 brands awarded an A grade or higher, only three are headquartered in Australia, and they are all Fairtrade partners. Sadly, the report also found that the issue of a living wage is still a major concern in the industry.
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A living wage is one sufficient for workers to be able afford the basics (food, water, healthcare, clothing, electricity, and education) for themselves and their dependents, and is a recognised human right. Of the 106 companies researched, only one, Mighty Good Undies, could demonstrate they were paying their workers a living wage.
companies to be held to account and the confidence they have in their own systems. APG & Co (who own Saba, JAG and Sportscraft), Big W and the Cotton On Group are among this group, while increased openness from General Pants, Gorman, Seed Heritage, Factory X, and Brand Collective about their labour rights systems is to be commended.
‘Asia Pacific is home to more than 40 million fashion industry workers, but for the majority, wages remain at levels well below what is needed to lift themselves out of poverty. Underpaid workers are trapped in a cycle of poverty,” explains Gershon. “Paying workers a living wage is achievable even for high volume, low cost operators, and it could transform the lives of millions while driving economic growth in their communities.”
After it launched, the report featured on Buzz Feed, ABC Breakfast, 9 News, SBS World News, in Fairfax and Newscorp newspapers, in the Guardian, in trade podcasts, on the Australian Christian Channel, and on dozens of radio stations across the country. And thanks to the involvement of Tearfund New Zealand, our new Ethical Fashion Report partner, media coverage across the ditch has exploded as well!
One of the positive trends identified by our research this year was the number of companies publishing full supplier lists, which has risen by 10% in the last 12 months. This sort of transparency makes a big statement about the willingness of
To get your hands on a copy of the 2017 Fashion Report, or to download our Ethical Fashion Guide so you can shop more ethically, go to behindthebarcode.org.au
Phillip has multiplied his harvest to seven 90 kg bags!
HELP BREAK GENERATIONAL POVERTY
Today Phillip has a flourishing farm. He has earned enough to multiply 1 goat to 23 and he has even started keeping chickens.
I met Phillip on the second day of a whirlwind trip to Kenya last year. Like his father before him, Phillip had grown up poor. ‘Life was difficult,’ he says, remembering his childhood. ‘Illness was common due to poor diet and bad hygiene. We could go days without food and going to school was a struggle.’ Due to his family’s poverty, Phillip was unable to finish his education. And, as a primary school dropout, his life’s course seemed set. You see, poverty is generational in Phillip’s part of the world. And it’s a cycle which is incredibly hard to break. ‘The only job I could get was a casual job at construction sites,’ Phillip explains, ‘But they are hard to get and very low paying.’ When Phillip became a dad himself, he felt the burden of his poverty more than ever. With a young family to provide for, he had no other choice but to travel 300 km from home to Garissa city in search of work. ‘It was very uncomfortable to work far away from my family,’ Phillip says. ‘I could imagine how my little son missed my presence. And my wife had to do all the jobs (at home), even the ones I am supposed to do.’ Sadly, this is not an uncommon story for poor families like Phillip’s. But even in Garissa, he had trouble finding regular employment. Every cent he earned was put towards his family’s survival. ‘It was very hard for my family to cope in life,’ Phillip says, ‘I could not meet the basic family needs.’ And then, in 2013 something happened which changed life for Phillip and his family… forever. His casual job had ended, and without any other work to keep him in
‘I have 20 chickens,’ he says. ‘Keeping chickens has improved life in my family because (by selling them) they are quick cash to cater for basic need.’ Garissa, Phillip decided to come home. ‘When I arrived,’ he remembers, ‘I found an organisation had started constructing a project with the community, a sand dam at a nearby river!’ Sand dams are simple structures, built across seasonal, sandy rivers. They are designed to ‘catch’ waterladen sand during the rainy season, so families can have a stable source of clean water all year round. (Families collect water by digging in the seemingly dry riverbed.) It is an incredibly smart and cost effective way to give whole communities a nearby water source. With no other jobs available to him, Phillip decided to put his skills in construction to good use and join the project as a volunteer. And that’s how he connected with the organisation helping his community to build the sand dam, our Christian partner in the field, ADS Eastern. With the help of ADS Eastern, Phillip received all sorts of training. From learning to breed indigenous goats with larger goats that produce more milk (which means more income), to agricultural training which has changed the way he farms. ‘I used to… get a total of three bags in a season,’ says Phillip. ‘[But] through these trainings I learnt that rains in our area are erratic and we need to grow drought tolerance seed.’ By diversifying his crop, and growing hardier drought resistant varieties,
But Phillip’s successes are not limited to his farm. Through his involvement on the sand dam project, he was also nominated to train as a sand dam artisan. And as a fully qualified artisan, Phillip now receives payment for the jobs he works on… which has helped him build a new home for his family! But what is even more impressive is that, through these sand dams he has helped give more than 800 people in drought prone Kenya a reliable source of water. What an incredible multiplication of impact! ‘I feel very happy,’ he says, ‘I am honoured when I see people fetching water from the sand dams.’ Through our annual Matching Grant Appeal, your gifts are matched with an Australian Government aid grant and are used to fund life-changing work. By matching your gifts with the Australian Government aid grant, it can have up to six times the impact for poor families like Phillip’s. But best of all, your generosity helps dads like Phillip to multiply impact themselves. ‘I am very happy,’ Phillip says. ‘I do walk chest forward knowing that I can provide at least all the needs of my family as a true African man.’ Phillip no longer worries about his children having a childhood like his own… because he has made sure that his family’s story of poverty ends with him. Help dads like Phillip break generational poverty. Give to our Matching Grant Appeal today. baptistworldaid.org.au/matchinggrant QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 33
‘Ben’ and ‘Pep’ (Bracken Ridge Baptist Church) are settling in well among the K people of the Silk Road, and are half way through their first term. Much of the ‘stuff’ of life we take for granted here in Australia is not available to them. Life among the K people is often bound up in bureaucratic red tape just to get the simplest of services. But our Father has been good and progress has been made in language learning and in building relationships with local folk. Ben writes, ‘As I sit and write this the house is quiet. This is a good thing, because today is the second day that my boys have gone to kindy! As many of you know, this has taken a long time to come to fruition. It has required countless trips to the kindergarten, requests for more and more paperwork, a 34 JUN/JUL 17 QB.ORG.AU
trip to the hospital, and a drive to the regional capital. But it has finally paid off. This is a great chance for our boys to begin to learn the local language and culture as well as an opportunity for them to start to find some local friends’. ‘The team has also been renovating a house to be used as a multipurpose space. I am very excited to say that those renovations are now complete, and we are putting the final touches on furnishing it. It has been great to be able to conduct English lessons in it. In the future, we hope that ‘Pep’ will be able to do some Occupational Therapy sessions in there, kids clubs, mothers groups...the possibilities are endless. ‘We recently had a team visit us from Melbourne. This was the first team visit that the Silk Road has had for six years, so naturally there was a lot of excitement. They ran a program on Easter Sunday, and organised an Easter egg hunt, kids program, and
Ben and the boys with a K friend at a local festival.
ON THE SILK ROAD
one of the team members delivered a message. This was a taste of home that was incredibly refreshing. ‘We were able to take a week off recently just to have some dedicated family time. It was lovely to be refreshed as we continue in our routine of learning the language and culture of the ‘K’ people’ Who are the K People? K people are warm and hospitable and tightly connected to their family and community. They are traditionally nomadic, living in a large country on the ancient Silk Road trade route between the Middle East and China. Their cultural roots are still strongly rural. K people are predominantly Muslim, while those surrounding them practice Orthodox Christianity. Their Muslim faith is intertwined with traditional animistic beliefs relating to ancestors and shamanism. While the number of believers is growing in the cities, still less than 1% of their ethnic group are Christian. www.globalinteraction.org.au
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PERSECUTION BRIEF
please pray FOCUS ON: INDONESIA The governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as ‘Ahok’, has been found guilty of blasphemy and sentenced to two years in prison. He will appeal the sentence. Benedict Rogers, East Asia Team Leader at Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) said: ‘This verdict and the sentence imposed represent an outrageous miscarriage of justice. It also represents a further, and severe, erosion of Indonesia’s values of religious pluralism as set out in the Pancasila, the state ideology.’ ‘Indonesia’s ability to hold itself up as an example of a moderate, tolerant, Muslim-majority democracy is further threatened and is now very questionable. We urge the courts to overturn this verdict on appeal and acquit Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama.’ As a Chinese Christian, Ahok is Indonesia’s most prominent ethnic minority politician and was the first non-Muslim governor of Jakarta for over 50 years. His campaign for re-election was overshadowed by the blasphemy allegation against him and he lost the vote last month. On 27 September 2016, Ahok reportedly quoted a Qur’anic verse on the campaign trail while addressing concerns that his political opponents may use the verse to discourage people from voting for him as a non-Muslim. He was then falsely accused of criticising the verse itself. The court case against the governor was filed by several conservative Islamic groups after his statement went viral via a doctored YouTube video.
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On 13 November 2016, Ahok was formally charged with blasphemy and his trial began on 13 December 2016. An estimated 500,000 Muslims turned up to a number of rallies in November and December 2016 to protest against his supposed blasphemy. Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslimmajority country, yet it rejected theocracy at its foundation and adopted a state philosophy known as ‘Pancasila’, giving equal recognition to the major religions. CSW believes that the case against Ahok is part of a broader attempt to undermine the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) in the country. On 10 January, the Indonesian National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) published a report detailing a steady increase in FoRB violations in recent years. CSW’s 2014 report, Indonesia: Pluralism in Peril, also found that rising religious intolerance poses a threat to Indonesia’s strong tradition of religious pluralism. Benedict Rogers added: ‘Indonesia’s blasphemy laws have been abused for too long, so we call on President Joko Widodo to review the blasphemy laws and amend or repeal them to prevent future injustices.’ Source: My Christian Daily
“You do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour that appears for a little time and then vanishes away” (James 4:14). It is such a mantra in our society – “Life is short” … “You only live once”. These phrases are often used by the world to justify an extravagant purchase, risky exercise or potentially harmful activity. Yet the Lord wants us to use this awareness of our very short lives to move closer to Him, and away from things that are passing away. Lord, help me to use the knowledge of my limited days to glorify you, and not as an excuse to live in a selfish or reckless way.
The natural world reflects the amazing love and creativity of God. Here are a few amazing facts about the diversity and wonder of His creation: •
Honeybees have tiny hairs on their eyes to help them collect pollen.
•
Sea otters hold each other’s paws when sleeping so they don’t drift away from each other.
•
A cat’s nose pad is as unique as a human fingerprint, so no two feline nose prints are ever alike.
•
Galapagos tortoises sleep for 16 hours a day and can go a year without food or water.
•
Gentoo penguins use a pebble to propose to their girlfriends. (Don’t try this at home!)
“The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become – because He made us. He invented us. He invented all the different people that you and I were intended to be. . .It is when I turn to Christ, when I give up myself to His personality, that I first begin to have a real personality of my own.” ― C.S. Lewis
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The Australian Christian Lobby has welcomed the announced gambling ads ban as a first step in protecting families from the legitimisation of sports betting. The Federal Government announced a plan to prohibit gambling adverts on commercial media from five minutes before the commencement of play until five minutes after the conclusion of play or 8.30pm, whichever comes sooner. ACL managing director, Lyle Shelton, said the ban could be correctly viewed as an acknowledgment by the Government that gambling ads were harmful to the community and were contributing to tearing families apart. “Sports betting is only allowed to be conducted by adults so it is unacceptable for gambling advertisements to be promoted to children watching their sports stars on television,” Mr Shelton said. “There is a growing mood in the community that gambling should not be normalised and be considered an acceptable part of sport. “Now that the Government has clearly expressed that gambling ads are harmful; the next logical step is for it to ban all gambling advertising. “Following this reform, it will be difficult for the government to maintain support for gambling advertising in other G-rated time slots.
POSITIVE CHANGE 38 JUN/JUL 17 QB.ORG.AU
“The ACL believes banning gambling advertising completely would be a winning strategy in tackling the cost borne by the community by problem gambling.” The ACL is grateful for the great work done by Andrew Wilkie MP, Senator Nick Xenophon, The Greens and the Alliance for Gambling Reform in agitating for gambling reform.
god moments THE LORD’S PRAYER
MY PRAYER TO GOD
The Lord’s disciples said to him “Lord teach us how to pray”. He gave to them the words of prayer We know as his today.
Father in heaven I bow at your feet, Coming willingly to serve, Your forgiveness I seek!
Our father up in heaven Hallowed be thy name. Acknowledging God’s sovereignty And we should do the same.
I come to you now; Persevering through strife; Accepting your will, You have planned for my life.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done On earth as heaven above. Not what we want, but your will Lord We ask you now in Love.
Loved ones I do cherish; God knows my desire, To help them when needed Rekindles the fire!
Give us this day our daily bread Forgive as we forgive Those who sin against us Here on earth now where we live.
For you see in my heart The anger and fears; Dear God in heaven Wipe away all my tears.
Lead us not to temptation And from evil set us free For thy kingdom, power and glory They are yours eternally.
Stay close by my side May you never depart; Thank you for forgiving Me from your heart!
Alan Watts Rockhampton Baptist Tabernacle
It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. Psalm 18:32 Raewyn Roxburgh Bridgeman Baptist Community Church
Would you like to contribute your own “God Moment”? It can be a poem, short story or quote. Please email your entries to qb@qb.org.au or post to PO BOX 6166 Mitchelton QLD 4053. Every published entry will win a $30 Koorong voucher.
QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 39
HOW TO READ ROMANS One Approach
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Is Romans a significant book in your life? My hope through this article is to make Romans significant, or even more significant than it is in your life. So to start with here is a quick overview. Romans is not written to one specific church gathering, but to those in Rome who are called saints (Rom 1:7). So when you think of the first readers, picture multiple churches in many locations using households, public buildings and open spaces in which to meet. They are among a population of approximately 750,000 people who live in the political and financial centre of the Roman Empire—it is a very sophisticated and cosmopolitan situation. The Christians are by far in the minority with a mixture of Jewish background Christians and Gentile background Christians. However, the majority of the church were once Gentiles and, by his own admission and calling, Paul’s main focus is on ministering to the Gentiles (Rom 15:18; Acts 9:15). The letter of Romans has a relatable context to our own, and many people really resonate with the teaching in the book of Romans. But there are also those who find the book of Romans difficult. If you are a person who has ever thought that the book of Romans is hard to understand, then be encouraged. Every Christian can have Romans as a significant book in their Christian journey, especially when they know the right questions to ask. Indeed Paul gives us the right questions to ask. There are two, and they flow out of the primary purposes as to why Paul wrote the book of Romans. The first purpose is found in Romans 1:11-12 NIV
I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong—that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. Paul knows he doesn’t need to explain the basics of the gospel. The people who first brought the gospel to Rome have already done that. So, in response to the situation, Paul focuses on a teaching that will bring mutual encouragement. The ‘spiritual gift’ Paul puts in the letter, and will later bring when he visits, is an extensive body of teaching. The purpose of this teaching is to help the Romans move beyond their current level of understanding and spiritual maturity. That purpose still occurs today. The book of Romans is not a theological tract, but it does express theological convictions which consistently bring about deeper spiritual maturity in those who are prayerfully searching after God. The second key purpose why Paul wrote is found in Romans 15:19b-20; 23-24 NIV …from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation …But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. It has been no more than 25 years since the death of Jesus. Yet the gospel, and churches, have saturated the area from
Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria through Syria, Asia, Macedonia the Islands in the Mediterranean Sea and into Italy. Since Paul will not start a new ministry in areas where others have sown the gospel new frontiers for the gospel are needed. Paul wants the assistance of the saints in Rome to help him get to Spain. This means that a key purpose of Paul in writing to the Romans is to encourage those who already have faith to have an ongoing missional heart for those who don’t have faith. When you think of a mission focused handbook, Romans usually doesn’t come to mind. We may have the perception that it is too deep or too theological. However, Paul writes this letter to the saints in Rome in order to teach greater maturity through deep theological truths for a key purpose of having an ongoing missional focus. Paul has two key purposes for writing: maturity and mission. This brings us to the two key purpose-focused questions you can ask each time you read a section of Romans: Key Question 1 How does this section of Romans encourage deeper spiritual maturity in a person like myself who already has faith? Key Question 2 How does this section of Romans encourage an ongoing missional heart in myself for those who don’t have faith? These are the questions Paul himself encourages us to keep asking as we read through Romans, which means these are two questions you can keep asking to ensure that Romans will continue to be a significant letter in your Christian journey. Ps Allan Quak pastorallan@nec.org.au
Andy tries a local delicacy in Cambodia – frog!
A In late June 2006, I walked into an empty office on the third level of the QB building. Luckily, I managed to scrounge some furniture from the friendly locals. Here I was, the first Baptist World Aid State Representative for Queensland, and the question was, ‘what do I do now?’ I rang my friends and asked if I could speak in their churches. What started with, ‘How do I fill my time?’ quickly became, ‘How do I fit all this stuff into my day?’ Baptist World Aid has changed a lot over these past 11 years. When I started, the head office was a
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n o i t c e fl e R by Andy Coller
converted house in Frenchs Forest. And some of my colleagues were teenagers back then, still in school! During this time, we have weathered the failures of a couple of our partners, the Global Financial Crisis, as well as all the normal challenges that can face growing organisations. Yet, God has been faithful. Today Baptist World Aid is an organisation made up of around 60 staff and as many volunteers. As we’ve grown, we’ve learned. As a result, more people are being helped and we are having a greater impact as we seek to be love and end poverty.
Over the years, I have often thought I have the best job in the world. I have had the privilege of seeing God at work all over Queensland and northern NSW: from Cooktown to Tamworth, Mount Isa and Longreach, suburban and city, small and large. I have been humbled by the welcome I have received in the churches, and I’ve been equally humbled by the generosity of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I still recall one of the most special gifts I received during my time as your State Representative. It was $2 in loose change, given by a lovely pensioner who lived in an aged
Andy and the new QLD state Representative Brent van Mourik
Andy and Baptist World Aid CEO John Hickey
The Queensland Baptists team brace themselves for Andy’s farewell.
care facility. She didn’t have spare cash, so this was a big sacrifice. I remember telling this story in a church and someone came up to me and said that he wanted to multiply that gift. He gave $200.
thoughts about this. I am sure that he will do some things differently (and most likely better) than me. I know Brent will do a great job serving you as your new Queensland State Representative.
But more than this, I have been blessed to witness (in person) God at work in the Philippines, East Timor, Cambodia, and Nepal. I love seeing our Christian partners leave the four walls of their church buildings to be the love of Christ in communities where there are no Christians.
Finally, I would like to acknowledge the support I have received from our QB Office. They have welcomed me as one of their own team, even though they didn’t need to do so. (Of course, me supplying coffee helped!) I will miss sharing devotions together. I will miss the morning teas and celebrations (although, I might be able to lose some weight now).
Now for a confession: I’ve been given a lot of credit for things that have happened here in Queensland, when actually it was God… just dropping things in my lap! The amount of times miracles happened, completely out of left field, has been amazing. And so, the time has come to hand the baton to Brent van Mourik. I want to be clear, I have only good
I am leaving this much-loved position to care for my wife, Julie, who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Please don’t feel sorry for me. I’m comfortable on the journey God is taking me on. Of course, there will be challenges. But I am still a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s just the form that has changed.
In honour of Andy’s “Dad Jokes” What do you call a fake noodle? An Impasta. Did you hear about the restaurant on the moon? Great food, no atmosphere. What’s the best thing about elevator jokes? They work on so many levels. How does a penguin build a house? Igloos it together.
QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 43
FUN ZONE WHERE IS THAT LITTLE PIGGY? Little Lucy passed her best hiding tips to Sir-Save-a Lot the Baplink piggy bank. Can you find where he is hiding? Little Lucy was hiding on page 46 (Apr/May Issue 2017).
CROSSWORD
WORD SEARCH Can you find the hidden words? They may be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, forwards or backwards.
Across 1. Aquatic mammal (5) 4. Striped equine (5) 7. Watered (9) 8. Flows back (4) 10. Tennis stroke (5) 13. Assumed name (5) 14. Disparaging remark (4) 17. Essential (9) 19. Rear part of a ship (5) 20. Smooth fabric (5)
Down 1. Relinquished (6) 2. Atmosphere (3) 3. Boundary of a surface (4) 4. Stringed instrument (6) 5. Confound (7) 6. Desiccated (4) 9. State of equilibrium (7) 11. Bird of prey (6) 12. Implement for writing or drawing (6) 15. Optical device (4) 16. Small snakes (4) 18. Colony insect (3)
Puzzle Choice www.puzzlechoice.com is the source of this Crossword.
44 JUN/JUL 17 QB.ORG.AU
www.bestpuzzles.com is the source of this word search.
SUDOKU CHALLENGE
REBUS PUZZLE
Sudoku rules: Each row, column and block must contain one of the numbers from 1 to 9. No number may appear more than once in any row, column or block. When you’ve filled the entire grid, the puzzle is solved.
Can you find the hidden word or common phrase in the picture puzzles? BrainDen is the source of the puzzles www.brainden.com
CALM SPOT - COLOUR Sudoku puzzle provided by www.sudokuoftheday.com visit them and get a new Sudoku every day!
Source: Savetz Publishing https://www.savetzpublishing.com www.adultcoloringpages.net
WORD UNJUMBLE In the Garden Unjumble the Words Relating to Gardens. Then unjumble the red letters to answer the clue. K R A E G I G N D G I H B R U S D R N E G A E O S R LAPI Clue: This is a common Garden Pest
QB.ORG.AU JUN/JUL 17 45
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PATTERNS OF EVIDENCE: EXODUS DVD: $19.99 AT KOORONG What is the validity of the history found in the Bible? Is it fact or fiction? Should we believe everything we have been told? Filmmaker Tim Mahoney takes us with him as he journeys across the world to explore answers to these questions amid startling new finds that may change traditional views of history and the Bible. With an open-minded and investigative tone, this film asks us to join the director at the intersection of faith, culture, science and religion to look for answers. - Publisher
PASSION CD: $14.99 AT KOORONG At the 20th anniversary Passion conference, over 50,000 young adults from across the globe gathered to worship. This album features exciting live performances from Passion Band, Chris Tomlin, Crowder, Matt Redman, Christy Nockels and Hillsong UNITED.
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OUTBACK AERIAL MISSION INC. is seeking a couple to join us in developing a ground patrol ministry in Western Queensland.
OAM is a faith based Mission with the calling to reach out to the isolated people in the outback regions of Queensland, teaching RI in schools and visiting people on properties and in towns, to share the Gospel with the unsaved and to encourage the believers.
ACCOMMODATION BRISBANE: House available as a ministry for
This is an unpaid faith position based in Longreach. The successful applicant will be required to raise their own support and to look to the Lord for their needs.
missionaries and church workers on the move. Three bedrooms, fully furnished, everything provided. Bus stop at the door. Minimal rent. Email: gtho4536@bigpond.net.au
Applicants with a sense of God’s calling on their life to this work are encouraged to contact the Mission for a Position Description and information.
CALOUNDRA - GOLDEN BEACH:
Highset three bedroom holiday home. Weekends or weekly. Pets OK. Close to beach. Phone 0402 077 822 or lizottaway15@gmail.com.
Contact OAM at PO Box 109 Longreach Qld 4730 or email steve@outbackaerialmission.com.au Web: http://outbackaerialmission.weebly.com
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CALOUNDRA: Sunshine Coast, Qld, beachside units from $400/wk, ph 0427 990 161.
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The Open Door
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The Open Door is a relaxed, refreshing environment that provides a unique uninterrupted setting for leadership seminars, prayer retreats, team weekends and missionary holidays.
For further information contact: Queensland Baptists Phone: (07) 3354 5600 Email: enquiries@qb.org.au
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