The Lutheran July 2020

N A TIO N A L M A G A ZIN E O F THE L U THE RA N C HU RC H O F A U STRA LIA

JULY 2020 CHURCH

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VOL 54 N06

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Faith-at-home resources

Blessed

Christ is in a ll COLOSSIA

NS 3:11

BY OUR

l d iv e a rs it y r u t l u c

LUTHERAN

CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

EDITORIAL

Editor Lisa McIntosh p 08 8267 7300 m 0409 281 703 e lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au Executive Editor Linda Macqueen p 08 8267 7300 e linda.macqueen@lca.org.au

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Mountain-top experience The Lutheran Women of New South Wales retreat Cindy Harrison had planned to attend at Warrambui Retreat and Conference Centre Murrumbateman earlier this year was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As she already had her ‘fur babies’ booked into a kennel, the member of Parkes Lutheran Church decided to have her own mini-retreat at Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. She says ‘bushwalking (good for the body) and quiet reflections (good for the soul)’ was her main focus for the weekend, during which she enjoyed ‘the peaceful surrounds of the Blue Mountains, the birdlife, new shoots of life after the fires’ – and reading The Lutheran on one of her bushwalks from Katoomba to Leura.

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People like YOU bring love to life Naz McLean St John’s Lutheran Church Hope Vale Qld Student at Brisbane Boys College

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Most treasured Bible text: The creation story in Genesis 1

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LUTHERAN

CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA 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.

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Early Childhood Educator ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’

Jo Belfield St Peter’s Lutheran Church Indooroopilly Qld Retired missionary (PNG) and teacher Most treasured Bible text: Revelation 2:10 ‘ … be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.’

Let the light of someone you know shine through their photo being featured in The Lutheran and LCA Facebook. With their permission, send us a good quality photo, their name and details (congregation, occupation, what they enjoy doing, most treasured text in these difficult times) and your contact details.

July Special features EDITOR'S

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Cross-cultural ministry and mission in the Lutheran churches in Australia and New Zealand are nothing new. For when the first Lutherans came to Australia and New Zealand from German states in the 1830s and 1840s respectively, they were arriving in lands where no-one shared their language, beliefs and traditions, or even their style of food. And indeed, those missionaries who took the gospel to Aboriginal people from 1838 were involved in cross-cultural ministry, learning the local languages and culture in order to share the good news.

For many early Lutherans, their reason for emigrating was to preserve their culture, language and freedom to practise their faith their way. Along with wanting a better life for their families, aren’t these the same reasons many people today leave their homelands and come to ours? And yet we fourth, fifth, or even sixth-generation Australians and New Zealanders can be reluctant to welcome them.

Those of us who have grown up Lutheran in our two countries are used to being regarded as ‘the German church’, in which many members are related to one another, or at least require a last name starting or ending with ‘sch’ for membership. (I did once receive a letter from a Lutheran church group with my surname spelt McIntosch.)

I praise God that today we have the gift of greater diversity and that our congregations better reflect our multicultural societies.

I’m grateful that we can learn from and share life and faith with people of different backgrounds. And that we can take seriously our commission to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19), recognise our responsibility and privilege in welcoming the stranger (Matthew 25:35) and remember that God so loved the world (John 3:16), not just those who are like us.

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Colour my world – Cultural mix equips us for mission

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Partners in the gospel

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Diversity part of God’s creativity

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Reaching out with God’s love

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Sharing faith blesses us all

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Learning from each other

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Church@Home

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Care and connection

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Regulars Heartland

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In this issue, we hear from people from around our LCA/NZ who serve in cross-cultural ministry, with its unique blessings and challenges – especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. And we are called on to play our part in welcoming, serving and sharing the gospel with new arrivals.

Along with our theme coverage, we again feature a selection of Church@Home worship and faith-building resources, especially for those who don’t have internet access. And we’ve included a survey to get your thoughts on whether to continue these when all church buildings reopen and you can worship face-to-face again.

Some of our regular columns have made way for these resources but they will return soon and we thank you for your understanding.

It’s time to act. Let’s cast the net!

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Dwelling in God’s word

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The inside story

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Directory

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Your voice

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Sudoku

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Prayer calendar

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In this my 50th edition as editor, I’ve been greatly blessed by the stories we share in the following pages – and I pray you will be too, as you explore them.

Lisa Our cover: iStock.com The Lutheran J U LY 2 0 2 0

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JES U S I S G OD'S LOVE. HE G IVES U S NE W HE ARTS TO L AY AS IDE O UR OL D WAYS, TO B EL IE VE AND FOL LOW HIM, TO L IVE WI T H HIM E VERY DAY.

heartland

RE V JOHN HENDERSON

Bishop Lutheran Church of Australia

G LIMP SING OUR HE AVENLY F U T URE ‘After this, I looked and saw a door that opened into heaven’ (Revelation 4:1 CEV).

I recently passed the third anniversary of the heart attack I had in Namibia during the Lutheran World Federation Assembly. Remembering their care for me at the time, I wrote to the medical team at the Roman Catholic Hospital in Windhoek. The hospital doesn’t have a website or an email address, but my message reached the heart surgeon’s office and he responded on behalf of the team.

At the time, I remember lying on the crash cart and thinking, ‘Well, if that was life, it’s now okay to let go’.

You might think that was the effect of medication, but I remember feeling calm before being given any. I felt ready to die. I just hoped the pain wouldn’t get any worse beforehand!

TH E VEI L THAT SEPARATES H EAVEN FRO M EARTH HAD BECO M E THAT BIT TH I N N ER AN D TH ERE WAS N OTH I NG TO FEAR. 4

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Well, it turned out it wasn’t my time, not just then. God must have had more for me to do.

I’m not normally given to strong feelings, yet that calmness endured for several days. The veil that separates heaven from earth had become that bit thinner and there was nothing to fear.

I had glimpsed, just dimly, what, or rather who lies beyond it.

As the Bible says: ‘Now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known’ (1 Corinthians 13:12 KJV).

But our feelings aren’t reliable, and our memories can be short. The bubble had to burst. Soon enough it was time to return to Australia. That in itself was an interesting experience, as it turned out that we had unwittingly overstayed our visas. I also found out what it’s like to travel in a wheelchair.

Returning to the churchwide office after sick leave, however, it was time for me to stop dwelling on all that. There were so many people to see and so much catching up to do. Before long, life returned to almost normal.

Lately, however, while I’ve been working from home, some of those thoughts and feelings have stayed with me.

Is our everyday life, with its duties, responsibilities, tasks and busyness,

merely a veil we draw over our real life in Christ?

As the Lord Jesus once said to his friend, ‘Martha, Martha! You are worried and upset about so many things, but only one thing is necessary’ (Luke 10:41,42 CEV). Again, as the Bible says, ‘So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory’ (Colossians 3:1–4 NRSV).

Why did I feel so calm when facing what I thought could be my death?

I believe it was the presence of Jesus Christ, my Saviour.

Gospel faith, taught to me from childhood, and around which God has built my whole life, is what calmed me. ‘God is love’, the Bible says, ‘and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them’ (1 John 4:16 NRSV).

You know, we’ll never get it perfect, not in this life. That’s why God has done everything perfectly for us (see John 19:30).

And now he waits, ready to receive us home to live with him eternally.

The LCA/NZ’s Cross-Cultural Ministry department has been restructured to ensure our congregations better reflect the cultural makeup of our societies. We asked Craig Heidenreich, who has taken on the role of Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator, for his view on this crucial arm of the church’s Local Mission commitment.

IT ’S TI M E TO ACT.

Let’s cast the net!

by C R A I G H E I D E N R E I C H

I feel blessed to join the LCA/NZ team in Cross-Cultural Ministry and would like to share my heart with you.

During these early months in the position, two passages of Scripture have come alive for me.

The first is Numbers 13. Remember those 12 spies who go into the Promised Land and come back with a mixed report?

In verse 30, Caleb counters the doubt with this stirring statement of faith: ‘We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.’ I can imagine Caleb shouting this out to the people who were listening.

He and Joshua saw the reality of the promise, but the other spies saw only problems.

nations. He has given his church the gift of the Holy Spirit and calls us to participate with him. Let’s say with Caleb ‘we can certainly do it’!

The other passage that has resonated strongly with me is John 21:1–11. The resurrected Jesus appears to some of the disciples while they are trying to fish without success, telling them to cast again on the other side of the boat (v6). The net ends up ‘full of fish’ (CEV).

What does the ‘Promised Land’ mean for us? Is it our future heavenly home, or is it right here?

As I reflect on this, I remember that when we fish for souls, it’s a corporate endeavour. We are net fishermen and our net is made up of all the threads of our loving relationships and our interdependence in the body of Christ. We work hard to mend the holes by guarding our relationships (John 13:35) and, by God’s grace, our net of love effectively ’catches’ those whom the Lord gives us.

Jesus has been given all authority from his Father and he is establishing the kingdom of God among the

I am also aware of the times when we cast a perfectly good net and catch nothing all night.

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Can you hear what I’m hearing? Is our Lord saying, ‘Cast your net on the other side of the boat and you will find some’? Is this the time to try something new and fill our nets to bursting point?

I note in John 21:11 the statement: ‘Even with so many [fish], the net was not torn’ (NIV). I believe we are about to take in a big catch as we reach out in love to people of other cultures. This might strain our capacity to stay united, but our relationships will not be torn.

Our net is made up of all of us, with our different gifts and callings. Men, women, young and old, pastors, lay leaders and the rest of the body – introverts and extroverts, we are all needed to take in a catch.

And I’d like to exhort some of the threads to play your part.

Pastors

You are key leaders and key threads in our net – strengthening the strands around you.

Will you take up the slack again and cast into unknown territory? Will you risk the challenge of ‘cleaning’ all those extra fish? It might get messy.

Will you help us keep our eyes on Jesus and urge us to ‘have a go’ – even if we almost tip the boat over in our enthusiasm?

Will you remember how good it is to tailor your message for new converts? Will you preach and remind us that it’s always been God’s plan that Jesus receives his bride from every tribe and tongue and that we have the joy of being part of this great ingathering?

Seniors

Thank you, dear ones, for staying the course when others have left or gone to glory. We need you in our net. We need your wisdom and your endurance.

Perhaps your bodies are tired, but please pray. Pray for soft hearts inside and outside the church and, ‘Ask the

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Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field’ (Luke 10:2b).

Even if you have ‘fished all night’ would you help us cast again? Would you be willing to be an honorary grandparent to a migrant family? You might feel like your race is nearly done, but maybe there’s a final lap to go.

Pillars of the church

I can see you holding up everything – often unnoticed.

Decades of commitment, investing a lifetime to keep the faith and hold onto what is ‘tested and true’.

Would you help us ‘cast on the other side’? Can you hold back the urge to say, ’We tried that before and look what happened back in … 1980?’

Will you let yourself be mere threads in God’s hand? Will you make room at the table – even at the board meeting – for someone who looks different?

Hospitality teams

Yes, you are probably mostly women, faithfully serving like the ones mentioned in the gospel who ‘ministered to Jesus’ needs’.

Remember your love for Jesus and that we show our love for him ‘when we do it unto the least of these’.

Yours is the privilege to set the table for our new guests.

May God refresh you and your love for the lost.

Parents with teenagers

I’ve had teenagers and it’s a worry when they don’t seem interested in church life.

You use all your influence to get them to come on Sunday, but they seem distracted. If only they would behave themselves until they become mature adults like you are! Responsible! With a mortgage and endless labour, while you look forward to a short annual holiday and eventual retirement.

IS TH IS TH E TI M E TO TRY SO M ETH I N G N E W A N D FI LL O U R N ETS TO B U RSTI N G PO I NT?

Is there another way? Young people need adventure – just like you did. Let’s go ‘fishing’ together and take some risks to open up the world to the next generation.

Our kids are allergic to racism, so when we love strangers it comforts them that we have a better world in Christ.

Think what an education you can offer your children when you happily eat with and do life with people of other religions – that’s when your kids will see how good the gospel is.

Above: Pastor Greg Schiller (right), who serves Trinity Lutheran Church Cairns in Far North Queensland, joins congregation members to recognise Papua New Guinea (PNG) Independence Day. These annual celebrations commemorate the day PNG became an independent state from Australia on 16 September 1975.

Below left: Members of the Indonesian community, including Pastor Ani Sumanti, sing at Trinity Lutheran Church Pasadena, in suburban Adelaide.

Concerned citizens

Both photos were taken prior to COVID-19 gathering restrictions.

You may have had thoughts like:

You energetic ones – the first to volunteer

I can hear you say – or at least think – that Australia and New Zealand are being overrun by strangers.

‘I have to work with people I can barely understand.’

‘I wish those Muslim women wouldn’t wear headscarves.’

‘Those African young fellas look a bit menacing.’

‘Gee those census figures are a worry and I wish the “Christian” numbers would stop dropping.’

‘Maybe we can fix it if we vote in a Christian government?’

I’ve had all these thoughts and more!

Aussies and Kiwis, we need you in our net!

Would you lean into our Lord again and catch a glimpse of what is meant by John 3:16: ‘For God so loved the world world’? ’?

Can you give up some of the comfort of living among familiar people, imagining that, just maybe, our Lord has brought some of his special ones from other countries to live among us?

When we start to connect with these strangers, would you give your best to help them understand what makes Australia and New Zealand so good?

Pray for the Muslim woman when you see her at the bus stop wearing a headscarf. She may be lonely and a smile might go further than you think.

And those African lads – they’re probably just a group of friends (who stand out a bit). A fair percentage of their parents are probably Christians who are praying hard for their kids. Perhaps you can get through to one of them – while someone else reaches out to your kid.

Perhaps you are feeling a bit jaded that the rest of the church family doesn’t seem to be showing much ‘ticker’. Can you forgive, roll up your sleeves again and encourage those around you?

If you hear the Lord say, ‘throw again’, will you say, ‘I may have fished all night, but at your word Lord, I will do it!’?

This is the time for action, dear friends, not recriminations.

This is the time to haul in a net ‘fit to burst’.

Can I encourage you today with the knowledge that Jesus gives us the ability to obey as we take the step, not before we stride out in faith?

You might feel that you are not good at this outreach stuff – that you don’t even really like strangers. Take a step with him and a new joy might be closer than you think.

Let’s feel the wind of the Spirit in our hair while we grasp the net again and say with Caleb, ‘We can certainly do it’.

We want to hear from you if any of this resonates.

Our LCA/NZ Cross-Cultural Ministry team is small in number, but we would love to do the journey with you and hear what you are doing. Please email me at craig. heidenreich@lca.org.au and make yourself known – we are looking for champions.

Craig Heidenreich is the LCA/NZ’s Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator.

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Colour my world

Photos: Benjamin Huckel

CU LT U R A L M I X EQ U I PS US F O R M I S S I O N B Y M AT T H U C K E L

It’s quite hard to put into words what cross-cultural or multiethnic ministry at Trinity Pasadena in suburban Adelaide feels like. There’s something that feels wonderful and new, but also very normal at the same time.

Nine years ago in my job as a music therapist, I worked with a paralysed man with locked-in syndrome. We were able to make music together using an electronic machine to produce live sounds from his head movements, with me accompanying on guitar, piano, or lute. After a year, I discovered that he was experiencing spontaneous vivid colours in a condition called synaesthesia.

Curiously, it would only happen when he moved his head to music and when I played live with him. When we added my music to his music a third thing was experienced: colour.

This is what our multiethnic ministry at Pasadena feels like because it brings a wonderful synaesthesia-like effect. When we combine the ‘music’ or cultural ingredients of a Lutheran community of European heritage with the cultures of Indonesian, Persian and African communities, you get the extra effect of experiencing colour, warmth and joy. I think it fills the Father’s heart with delight. I’ve learned here that God very much wants his diverse family to be together.

TH E R E A L CH A LLEN G E A N D G I F T FRO M GO D IS F O R US TO SYNTH ES IS E A LL TH ES E CU LTU R A L CO LO U RS TOG ETH ER TO B ET TER EQ U I P US F O R CROS S - CU LTU R A L M IS S I O N TO R E ACH TH E LOST I N TH E W I D ER CO M M U N IT Y.

Over the past few years, our communities have been growing closer as we have been learning the art of blending cultural and spiritual ingredients in worship, social activities and fellowship. We are also learning to widen our lens to see more things from other people’s perspectives, challenging certain aspects of worship practice to better include and serve members of a different culture.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve tried to stay connected with our ethnic communities, reflecting our diversity in our online services. At our Pentecost service led by our cross-cultural worker Pastor Ani Sumanti and myself, we wove in video greetings from our people of different ages in different languages. Our website, too, is now able to be viewed in three languages; such is the importance of serving a diverse community.

In his writings on the German Mass, Martin Luther shared a heart wish for the use of a diversity of languages in worship: combining German, Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Luther also saw the value of youth learning multiple languages for the office of the ministry and the mission of the church.

The real challenge and gift from God is for us to synthesise all these cultural colours together to better equip us for cross-cultural mission to reach the lost in the wider community.

In the photo with the sanctuary colours of our church is the lute, Djembe and an Angklung; each instrument representing European, African and Indonesian cultures. This photo represents both a spiritual and cultural synaesthesia; a church of colours, bonded together through the musical love of the Holy Spirit.

Pastor Matt Huckel serves at Trinity Lutheran Church Pasadena in South Australia.

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