THE LUTHERAN July 2015

JULY 2015

NATIONAL MAGAZINE OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

Print Post Approved PP100003514 VOL 49 NO6

So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. [ 1 Corinthians 3:7 ]

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EDITOR/ADVERTISING phone 0427 827 441 email rosie.schefe@lca.org.au

FROM LITTLE THINGS …

SUBSCRIPTIONS phone 08 8360 7270 email lutheran.subs@lca.org.au

Pastor Avito da Costa, ladies and teachers of the Lutheran Community Sewing Group (based at Good News, Albert Park SA) are excited to see themselves featured in the March issue of The Lutheran. Many copies of this issue went into homes where Christian magazines may never have been seen before.

www.thelutheran.com.au We Love The Lutheran!

As the magazine of the Lutheran Church of Australia (incorporating the Lutheran Church of New Zealand), The Lutheran informs the members of the LCA about the church’s teaching, life, mission and people, helping them to grow in faith and commitment to Jesus Christ. The Lutheran also provides a forum for a range of opinions, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor or the policies of the Lutheran Church of Australia. The Lutheran is a member of the Australasian Religious Press Association and as such subscribes to its journalistic and editorial codes of conduct.

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Editor Rosie Schefe 197 Archer St, North Adelaide SA 5006 phone 0427 827 441 email rosie.schefe@lca.org.au Executive Editor Linda Macqueen 3 Orvieto St, Bridgewater SA 5155 phone 08 8339 5178 email linda.macqueen@lca.org.au Design and layout Comissa Fischer Printer Openbook Howden

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Doreen Hannant

Jakob Heinrich

Anne Scholl

Peace Lutheran Church, Gatton Qld Retired Enjoys catering and scone-making Fav text: Psalm 23

Trinity Lutheran College, Mildura Vic Student: sports and recreation student leader Enjoys playing AFL and volunteering to help others Fav text: John 3:16

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Issued every month except in January

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If you want to meditate on the miracle of creation, one of the best places to begin is contemplating a seed. Pretty much any old seed will do.

Even in the most urban environment, chances are you can find a seed somewhere. It could be among the ingredients in your pantry, or it might be sticking to clothes, shoes or carpets.

Perhaps it has fallen into a damp crack and begun to sprout.

FEATURES 05 A fruitful beginning 08 Statement on Marriage

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10 First love 11 Present and distinct

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24 Encouragement from the past

God has invested enormous energy in seeds. These tiny (and sometimes not so tiny) packages contain not only life itself, but also everything needed to sustain and protect that life until the conditions are right to sprout. We know that some seeds can remain dormant, but alive, for hundreds of years. Then, when drought breaks, or after fire comes, or when they hit a moist spot, the protective case opens and the seed sprouts, sustained from within until the plant roots can take over that role and the green shoot greets the sun.

26 Lace and grace 28 Do a little—do a lot

COLUMNS 04 Heartland 14 Little Church

It’s an ordinary, everyday miracle of God’s providing.

No wonder then that Jesus used the picture of a farmer sowing seed when he taught his disciples about faith and the working of God’s word in their lives. The parable of the sower is so powerful it was recorded in three of the four gospels (Matthew 13:3–23; Mark 4:3–20; Luke 8:5–15). It remains a much-loved picture of the kingdom of God. Even though far fewer people are involved in the actual business of farming these days, we can easily understand the meaning of the seed falling on the ground, taking root and going on to produce a harvest. We can understand, too, the barriers of the rocky, shallow and weed-infested ground and see their effects in our own lives.

God invests enormous energy in us also. A seed that is planted in us in baptism, springs to life. A seed of faith that sprouts and is nurtured through encounters with God’s word, or with those people who speak into our lives with the breath of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it is we who are on the receiving end; at other times we are the ones to bring God’s word and purpose into the lives of others.

One thing we can trust: God’s seed is good. Even when it seems that our efforts at planting it aren’t producing much, that isn’t a problem with the seed, or even with us. Even in the face of failure, we know that God’s seed can and does produce a good harvest— even though we might not be able to predict where that will be. So don’t give up! Keep on sowing, keep on watering and be confident that God will produce the growth (1 Corinthians 3:7).

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15 Inside Story 18 Directory 18 Letters 20 Stepping Stones 22 Notices

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23 Reel Life

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32 World in Brief 34 Coffee Break

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30 Bring Jesus

When I was a Luther Seminary student in the 1970s and a young pastor in the early 1980s, Lutheran Renewal was the talk of the church. Sometimes this talk was happy, and sometimes it was argumentative. The winds of change were causing controversy over matters of faith, just as they still do.

As is the way of most movements, Renewal eventually petered out. By the 1990s our attention had turned to the so-called ‘worship wars’ and the Church Growth movement.

Some former Renewal leaders went on to become significant leaders in the LCA. The movement might have faded, but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t always been a desire to experience the gifts of the Holy Spirit. This desire is stronger among some than others. It reflects the diversity of the church.

Today there is a push to re-establish Renewal as a distinct movement in the LCA. This time its origins are a little different, but the spiritual

landscape is very much the same.

The questions before the church are also likely to be similar: is such renewal compatible with faith in Christ as our Lord and Saviour?

How do we read Scripture in this area? Can Renewal and the church work together, or must they be in conflict? People are watching to see which it will be.

Daily, unspectacular renewal through repentance, forgiveness and acts of love should be as much a part of every Christian's life as breathing out and breathing in The issues are also likely to be similar to those of the 1980s.

Are special gifts such as healing, speaking in tongues and signs and wonders necessary for a Christian?

Do we have to be baptised a second time (that is, with the Holy Spirit) to be born again? Can we prove that one Christian is reborn and another is not? Does the expectation of obvious gifts and

signs detract from or enhance our hope in Jesus our Saviour? These questions, and others, are likely to be as controversial now as they were then.

Before we go too deeply into these questions we must get back to the basics of how God saves us and how a saved person should live.

The Small Catechism, for instance, speaks clearly about how saved, baptised people will live: ‘Our sinful self, with all its evil deeds and desires, should be drowned through daily repentance; and ... day after day a new self should arise to live with God in righteousness and purity for ever’. Daily, unspectacular renewal through repentance, forgiveness and acts of love should be as much a part of every Christian's life as breathing out and breathing in.

Any renewal we might currently experience can only be a sign of that greater and final renewal, when God will make ‘all things new’ (Revelation 21:5) and we will ‘sing a new song before the throne’ (Revelation 14:3; 5:9). God has kept many of the details shrouded in divine mystery, but this we know: ‘We shall be changed. For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable, and this mortal nature must put on immortality’ (1 Corinthians 15:52,53). When this happens, our final transformation—our ultimate renewal—will have taken place.

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Photo: courtesy Michael Hauser

It begins with a seed that sprouts, and is nurtured and trained as it grows.

Then comes a time for this plant to produce fruit …

A fruitful beginning

by Rosie Schefe

On his first visit to Papua New Guinea, in 2008, Michael enjoys meeting a few locals at a river crossing between Kokoda and Popondetta.

Seven years after his first visit, Michael (also known as Mick) Hauser will soon return to the coastal city of Lae, in Papua New Guinea. His return will complete one cycle of learning for Michael, just as a new one begins.

In 2008 Michael was a participant in a study tour to Papua New Guinea. In Lae the group stayed in a guesthouse where LCA Mission International program officer (now interim director) Glenice Hartwich was also staying.

Glenice remembers meeting Michael: ‘It was on the steps of the guesthouse. We talked about volunteering, and Mick asked me if there were opportunities for volunteering through the LCA. I was able to tell him that, yes, there were. The following year he was off on a three-week trip to Sabah, in Malaysia, as a Mission International volunteer.’

When Michael returns to Papua New Guinea, he will do so as a lay theologian, appointed to serve at the Martin Vol 49 No6 P177

Luther Seminary (initially for two years) as a lecturer in systematic theology and historical studies. His appointment is part of the LCA’s 129-year ongoing partnership with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELCPNG).

But Michael’s story begins much earlier than 2008.

He describes his background: ‘I was born into a very German Lutheran background, on both sides of the family.

I was educated at every turn by Lutheran institutions: Faith Lutheran College at Redlands, St Peter’s College Indooroopilly and then Australian Lutheran College (ALC).’

But as a young adult he strayed away from matters of faith. He eventually returned to Lutheran schools, as a residential supervisor at Yirara College in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, and then at his old school, St Peters College.

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Photos: courtesy LCA Mission International

Life’s experience is perhaps the great teacher, particularly when it comes to being a multicultural Christian Michael (Mick) Hauser is waiting on his visa and work permit before taking up his appointment at Martin Luther Seminary in Lae, Papua New Guinea.

He hopes to teach for two years.

The how of God’s guidance is always a mystery to me; just like the sower in Mark 4:26,27. I really don’t know how it comes to be. Sure, I can tell my story in hindsight and see some of God’s fingerprints on my life. However, in dark days (and there are always some dark days) when I am blind to his works in my life, I have come to appreciate and rely upon an emphasis on baptismal life.

How I recount my particular history and the workings of God, who is most definitely incessantly active in it, can be quite unreliable and can change from day to day. What doesn’t change is the abiding promise of God in my baptism.

That is why my story always starts from there, the time and place where I was ever created anew.

All the things that I have been privileged to learn have prepared me and are about to be relearned over and over I speak of my baptism intentionally because it was actually a question regarding this sacrament that put me on the path into the finer points of Lutheran theology. When I put a few questions to him, Pastor Paul Smith (now Queensland District bishop-elect), had the gall to give me the Book of Concord to read. Who does that?

I appreciated what I read and came to realise there was a whole lot more to our confessional church than I could see through my skewed perceptions. This was around the same time that I first met Glenice.

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It was on my trip to Sabah that I made the decision to study theology. At that time, not only was I thirsty for good teaching, but I also enjoyed the adventure of a foreign culture (after serving at Yirara College for four years).

I considered that a theological degree would be advantageous for serving in a greater and longer capacity in the future.

After thoroughly enjoying studying for a Diploma of Theology at Australian Lutheran College (ALC) through distance education, I took the bold step of moving from Brisbane to Adelaide in 2011 to study full-time. I eventually completed a Bachelor degree with Honours in 2013.

I was called to study and learn.

But I was really stuck as to what I was being called into other than formal study.

I was eager to continue into doctoral research. However this would have meant a period of waiting and preparing a thesis.

In the meantime I had been encouraged to become reacquainted with Glenice at LCA Mission International, and she presented me with an opportunity to serve as a volunteer for three months in Cambodia.

This really helped to introduce me into the ups and downs of overseas service and living in foreign cultures. At the same time I gained some vital teaching experience. It also reminded me of my own propensity and patience to sit and to be in places where nothing is as it seems to foreign eyes, and of the

general inquisitiveness which something foreign awakens in me.

Of course, all the things that I have been privileged to learn have prepared me and are about to be relearned over and over. Being in community at ALC has been a privilege also. I sometimes joke that I must need a great ocean of grace spoken to me, because so many of my friends are pastors or in training to be pastors!

I’ll miss the friendships of both staff and students at ALC. Many of them will provide ongoing support even when I am at a distance. Prayer covers a lot of ground. It is a privilege to now go and teach and help those who are on their way to becoming pastors, to speak God’s promises to them, to be in fellowship with them and to hear them speak God’s grace to his people.

There are too many things to recount about God’s gifts to me, not only from learning at ALC, but also especially from being made and remade by our Lord.

Life’s experience is perhaps the great teacher, particularly when it comes to being a Christian in a multicultural setting. I have never been intentional in being so; it simply seems to happen.

I’m not naturally a ‘missionary’ or a lecturer or academic. But somehow our poet God has called me into this role for the time being as he continually calls me back to my baptism.

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MARTIN LUTHER SEMINARY, LAE, PAPUA NEW GUINEA Photos: courtesy LCA Mission International

Martin Luther Seminary in Lae is the Englishlanguage seminary for the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELCPNG) and the Good News Lutheran Church (a Lutheran synod with links to the United States). The ELCPNG’s offices are in Lae and it operates two other seminaries: Ogelbeng Seminary in Mount Hagen, and Senior Flierl Seminary in Logaweng, Finschhafen. The language of instruction at Ogelbeng and Logaweng is Pidgin.

Martin Luther Seminary trains pastors and laypeople (both men and women) for service in both synods and also educates students from the Philippines.

The principal is Dr Michael Wan Rapulga. Dr Rapulga received a scholarship from LCA Mission International to complete his doctoral studies at ALC. In 2014 another Martin Luther Seminary lecturer, Rev Emmanuel Som Yalamu, gained his Masters of Theology degree at ALC, also as a recipient of an LCA Mission International scholarship.

Top: The chapel and buildings of Martin Luther Seminary in Lae, which is jointly operated by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea and the Good News Lutheran Church. Bottom: At his commissioning in Adelaide on 17 May, Michael was supported by Rev Dr Jeff Silcock (left) and Rev Dr Dean Zweck (right) who both recommended him for the position at Martin Luther Seminary.

Long-time missionary and LCA pastor Greg Schiller is a former lecturer at Martin Luther Seminary, but now serves at Ogelbeng Seminary. Former missionary Rev Con Eckermann, who also taught at Martin Luther, is remembered through a number of carved panels decorating the seminary chapel. Many Australians have served as part-time or short term-lecturers (most recently, Rev Roger Whittall as a volunteer lecturer) or as volunteers in its library.

HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT MICHAEL THROUGH PRAYER Glenice says, ‘Michael will need our prayers and encouragement. Despite the fact that he will be in a city, he will still experience isolation. There are fewer overseas staff in Papua New Guinea than there used to be, so he may feel quite alone. He is also likely to face issues of personal security’.

Michael says, ‘Pray that I have patience, waiting for visa and work permits. For the resolve to learn a new language.

For courageous faith when adventure is coloured by 90 per cent anxiety. For living arrangements to be completed for my arrival. For the small number of personal effects to float in the right direction. For a suitable orientation Vol 49 No6 P179

program to be commenced at the appropriate time. For wisdom in how to spend my remaining time in Australia while in limbo. For continued good health and for safe travels in-country.

THROUGH GIVING Michael’s appointment has been made possible through a single legacy received from a Queensland family. However, the legacy does not quite cover the amount needed to support Michael for the full two years.

For more information about how you can help, contact LCA Mission International on 08 8267 7300 or email lcami@lca.org.au

VOLUNTEERING WITH LCA MISSION INTERNATIONAL LCA Mission International offers you many opportunities to serve as a long-term or short-term volunteer in partnership with local Lutheran churches in a number of countries. The skills needed are many and varied. To find out more contact LCA Mission International on 08 8267 7300 or email lcami@lca.org.au

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Pastor John Henderson, LCA Bishop On 22 May 2015 voters in the Republic of Ireland were asked to determine whether ‘marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex’. Of nearly 2 million votes cast, 62% voted ‘yes’.

The success of this referendum, supported by the Irish government, has sparked a worldwide response. It is seen as the first popular vote to enact same-sex marriage, rather than a vote by elected representatives, as has already happened in New Zealand (2013), many European countries, and parts of the USA. Does this signify a turning of the popular tide in relation to the issue, and how should we respond?

A senior Vatican diplomat, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, has said, ‘The church must take account of this reality, but in the sense that it must strengthen its commitment to evangelisation.

I think that you cannot just talk of a defeat for Christian principles, but of a defeat for humanity’.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten and his deputy Tanya Plibersek were among the first Australian politicians to respond to the Irish referendum by introducing a private members bill to Parliament. Well-known voices such as 2GB’s Alan Jones have come out in support of same-sex marriage.

Now Prime Minister Tony Abbot seems to be preparing for a free vote in the Parliament, without the usual ‘party line’ restrictions. It could take place as early as August. All this seems to mean that the odds of a change in Australian marriage law have increased significantly.

In Australia, marriage is regulated by a Federal Act (1961), which defines marriage as ‘the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life’.

While in full agreement with this definition, the Lutheran Church of Australia recognises that governments have the duty and responsibility under God to make and enforce laws for the ordering of society. For Lutherans, marriage is not a sacrament belonging to our salvation, but an order for the welfare of human 8

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society. If the rules of society stand in clear contradiction of the Word of God, the church is not bound by them.

An example of this freedom occurred when the LCA discussed conscientious objection to conscripted military service during the Vietnam War. It argued: When governments wantonly subvert their God-ordained functions and act in contempt and violation of God’s law, the individual Christian is bound to examine his position as a citizen and to let his conscience, bound by the Word of God, determine at what point and in which matters he must refuse obedience rather than to permit men to involve him in sin. Acts 5:29; Augsburg Confession XVI, 2.3.7. (Conscientious Objection to Service in War, CTICR, adopted by General Convention 1970) So, if the government were to change the law on marriage, the LCA would not be obligated to change its position on marriage. LCA pastors will not conduct same-sex weddings.

The legal requirement under which a religious celebrant conducts a marriage is that it be in accordance with the rites of the church. The LCA marriage rite is clear in this regard, quoting Genesis 1:27–31: ‘God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it”. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good’—and Matthew 19:4–6: ‘Haven’t you read that at the beginning the Creator “made them male and female”, and said, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh”?

So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let no-one separate’.

In 1978 the LCA issued a statement on ‘Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage’, which reads in part: 1. God, the Creator of humankind, instituted marriage. It is part of the created social order. So society, through custom Vol 49 No6 P180

or legislation, decides when a man and a woman are in fact married (Genesis 1:27,28; 2:18–24; Matthew 19:3–9; Augsburg Confession 16 and 28; Apology 23.9).

To use the name ‘marriage’ for same-sex partnerships would be to use the same name for things that are fundamentally different.

2. Marriage is the union of a man and a woman. This union excludes all other people. It is publicly and voluntarily entered into for the whole of life (Matthew 19:6; 1 Corinthians 7:39).

The LCA will do what it can to bring its views to the attention of government and the voting public. Do not expect us, however, to be quoted much in the popular press. Most of that space will be taken up by the bigger, noisier, more favoured voices in our society.

3. The purpose of marriage is • to unite one man and one woman (that is, husband and wife) so that they become ‘one flesh’. In this relationship the one person is the complement of the other (Matthew 19:5) • to produce children and to care for their upbringing within the framework of a family (Ephesians 6:1–4) • to provide an appropriate place and context for a man and a woman to have sexual relations (1 Corinthians 7:2,3).

The Lutheran Church of Australia today still affirms this understanding of marriage. The Commission on Theology and Inter-Church Relations is preparing a new statement on Human Sexuality, which is planned for release in July, along with a series of Bible studies. Here is an excerpt on the topic of same-sex marriage: Even though marriage’s attendant rites and ceremonies may vary over time and from place to place, it still reaches back to its divine origins within creation. There God instituted marriage as the union between a man and a woman. While a same-sex union may be based on romantic attraction, mutual affection and promises of long-term commitment, it is not an estate given with creation and embedded in the fabric of society from time immemorial. Unlike the union of a man and a woman, it is not the natural arena for bringing children into the world and thereby perpetuating the human community.

Theologically speaking, therefore, a same-sex union is not only contrary to God’s design, but it does not have the fundamental features that give marriage its unique quality.

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For our part, God is placing before us the challenge of remaining faithful to him, and of showing love and compassion for all people. While we do not identify same-sex unions as marriages, we know that all people seek and deserve the support of loving human relationships. We can no longer assume that those relationships will be in the form of marriage as the church knows it. This is the new reality in which we will share our faith in Christ.

The Christian church has no moral superiority to force its way onto society. To our mutual shame, Christians have condoned evil under the banner of their churches, as the current Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse is showing plainly to the whole world. Our only way forward is through repentance, turning back to Christ, and renewal in the power of his Spirit.

You and I live only by the grace of God’s forgiveness in Christ, and that must be what we want for all whom we meet— heterosexual and homosexual—just as Christ came not to condemn the world but to save it.

Finally, we will pray for our politicians, opinion makers, the churches, and the Australian public, as our society grapples with this most sensitive matter.

Pastor John Henderson LCA Bishop 29 May 2015 The Lutheran July 2015

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So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow (1 Corinthians 3:7)

First love

by Vaughn Spring

The church is more like a major hospital’s birthing suite than some well-oiled machine that purrs along life’s highway without skipping a beat.

Instead of the church lazily cruising towards the sunset of heaven, there are loud cries, painful seasons, tricky transitions, tears of joy and frustration— all overflowing from a complex web of relationships. These relationships take on even greater complexity because people of vastly different cultures and backgrounds are all birthed in the same room—the church.

This makes sense of some of the tensions we experience, both in local congregations and as synod. If you take a look around a church, you’ll probably find many people sitting shoulder to shoulder, who, apart from their union in Christ, may never have crossed paths. Each of those people comes along seeking that one thing they hope will give their heart rest—but it’s not always Jesus Christ.

Paul encountered people in Corinth who were setting their hearts on leaders in the church, instead of on Christ. They had organised themselves according to their position and were making divisive comparisons with each other— no doubt filled with pride—and sadly creating a chasm in the faith family. This 10

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kind of division is not only sad, it is also unappealing and a really bad witness!

The reality check Paul proclaims is profound. While you and I participate in the ministry of the risen and reigning Lord, every good and perfect gift comes from the hand of our gracious and loving Father, who delights in his beloved children.

In other words, Paul is pointing the Corinthians—and us—to the only One who can satisfy the deepest longings of our hearts, who creates a new community of faith, hope and love through the gospel that is completely counter-cultural.

When a community goes through a significant event like a cyclone, fire or flood, you see people band together with a shared heart and purpose. On the other side of the event, the bonds people have formed become part of their shared story.

What does this mean for us as people of the LCA/NZ synod?

While we’ve journeyed through significant life transitions together as a faith family, we’ve been through a cosmic event in our participation in the cross: being brought from death to newness of life through the death and resurrection of Jesus. This is our story.

It’s the one thing we invite people of every generation to share in with us.

Every time God brings the gift of repentance and faith to another person, whether they’re a member of your family or from a different culture, background or generation, you are looking into the eyes of a brother or sister who has received and experienced the same grace you have received. You have the same story of rescue and forgiveness through a crucified and risen saviour.

You see and live in a new bond that is stronger than the bonds which tie us to our own family, background or culture.

This is the wonderful fruit that God alone produces in his field.

This new identity is received as we’re baptised into an unbreakable union with Jesus. It’s not because of Paul or Apollos or anyone else; it’s the ministry of the Lord who abides and fills his treasured children with every good gift from above. As we share together as labourers in God’s field, let’s keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and rejoice as the Lord grows the beautiful fruit of his glorious kingdom among us.

Vaughn Spring is the pastor for Grow Ministries and leads the new Grow Coaching initiative for child, youth and family ministry in the Lutheran Church of Australia and Lutheran Church of New Zealand.

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Photo: Department for Lay Ministry

Lay workers gather to learn, celebrate and share

Close to 70 lay workers gathered at the Nunyara Conference Centre in the Adelaide Hills for a week of learning, worshipping, prayer, support and fun, as they shared their experiences with others involved in both paid and voluntary lay ministry roles.

Present and distinct What is a lay worker? What do they do and where do they work?

If you had been present at the Nunyara Conference Centre in Belair (Adelaide Hills) in May, you might have found this question easy to answer. About 70 lay workers, from almost every Australian state, gathered for the 2015 LCA National Lay Workers Conference.

But an easy answer might still not have been forthcoming.

There were paid lay workers, and volunteers. The youngest was 17 and the oldest has seen a few more than 80 birthdays. They held various job titles: chaplain, pastoral carer, ministry support worker, child and youth worker, young adult ministry worker, camp manager, camp staff, mission and outreach worker, culture-specific worker, worship and music coordinator, musician … the list goes on.

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of Australia. Their calling is to serve God and to be witnesses for Jesus in their communities. So they gathered together to explore what it means to be ‘knowing, hearing and following God in real life and ministry’.

Lay work, whether paid or voluntary, can be a lonely vocation. Sometimes lay worker roles are hard to define, or not well thought out before they are filled.

Sometimes the lay workers get the jobs that nobody else in the church is keen to do. It can be easy to think that their work is not valuable or producing measurable results. Sometimes knowing, hearing and following God is the hardest road.

That is why the Board for Lay Ministry runs the national conference every two years: it gives paid and voluntary lay workers an opportunity to gather together to learn, to network, to grow in their love for Jesus, to support each other and to be supported and

By Nevin Nitschke and Rosie Schefe

encouraged in the ministry positions into which God has called them.

Core to the aims of the conference is learning. This time, pastors Peter Steicke and Michael Dutschke set the tone of the conference with their presentations on knowing and hearing God. LCA church planting coordinator Dean Eaton then led participants into study of 1 Peter. Tim Hein invited the lay workers to consider what it means to follow Jesus. He reminded them that to be holy means to be present and distinct, not distant or undetectable.

What a great guiding principle for lay workers in their roles!

But it wasn’t all sitting and listening.

On Thursday afternoon everyone was loaded onto a bus for a brief tour through Adelaide’s CBD and dropped off in Port Adelaide for a dolphin cruise on the Port River. Brandon Chaplin was the guest speaker for that evening’s cruise dinner. He shared from his heart The Lutheran July 2015

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