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July & August 2009

 

 

  

Nelson City Church of Christ 1998 - 2009

 

Grace and I arrived in Nelson October 1998; we were the youngest couple in the church, with only a handful of adults under 60 years, in an attendance of around sixty adults.

Today our average Sunday attendance of all ages is around 200; 80% are under 50. We are encouraged and challenged by the growth. Some of the critical factors have been:

  • My maturity of call, clarity and confidence of who I was as a minister of the gospel. I led from who I was, not who others wanted me to be.
  • Grace and I are a team in ministry, two together for Jesus.
  • A letter of call that gave a platform for change.
  • The leading of change within the elders before bringing it to the church. This took time and I had to grow through frustration to faith.
  • A prophetic picture from an elder before I came, of a new tree growing up alongside an old tree gave us our strategy, to plant and grows a new congregation alongside the old.
  • The searching and finding core DNA in our heritage that were part of who we are today. I can say to our church, everything has changed and nothing has changed, the same heart and spirit and essence we see reflected in the church 50+ years ago is here today.
  • A philosophy of ministry that believes the church is God’s mission to a lost world, that believes the Bible, that seeks the Holy Spirits presence and power, and is willing to take faith steps following Jesus, going where we have never gone before.

 

Two significant steps we took along the journey: One was the shifting our worship from the main chapel to a hall for a year while we refurbished the chapel; a second was adopting a two service format each Sunday morning.

 

Leading the church means continual change in my personal faith and ministry, my mindsets are under continual renewal. I have gone looking for input I needed. I have found learning to make tough decisions that put the church and its mission ahead of particular leaders the hardest; but it bears great fruit. I have learnt to pass through the valley of weeping making it a place of springs; that grief is part of ministry.

 

Lastly we have great heritage, and great people. God brings the best to us. We are on the threshold of growth, seeing a generation come forth who love Jesus and our church and the fruit of their lives is amazing. For me personally these are the best days of my life and ministry, and the most challenging.

 

Paul Burton

 

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Church Development

 

We are looking forward to Move09 and seeing many of you there. It will be a great time of encouragement so get in quick if you haven’t already registered. Registrations close 12 August.

 

We have some new things happening for our churches and trust this may help you in your situation. We are working with an accounting firm to provide a very cost affective Accounting package for churches. There will be an elective at Move09 where Graeme Scarlett will present the package or you are welcome to contact me about it.

Over the last two months we have had two of our ministers’ resign from our churches. Gwyn and Chris Slatter have resigned from Naenae church and Craig and Paulette Venables from Wellsford Church. Please prayer for these couple as they work through the way forward and their plans for the future.

Ralph Bradley has agreed to work for Christian Churches NZ as a Transitional Pastor. Ralph is going to be working with Naenae for the next 6 months as we re-establish direction. The church there has been closed and we will re open under a new banner. It is under CCNZ leadership at this stage. Please pray for this church as they re-launch and move into a new adventure.

 

George and Pauline Langford

 

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Greetings from the National Leadership Team

 

We met in Nelson on Friday 24th July for our meeting and Saturday morning we combined with the CEPTB, the meetings were very helpful and encouraging. Both teams are constantly looking at ways we can move forward as a movement and looking at initiatives to finances these advances, information on these opportunities will be presented at Move 09.

 

On Friday Brent Pickworth led us in devotions with the challenge; “are we constantly tapping into the power of God for Spiritual Transformation, are we aware of what God is there for and are we pushing into it”.

 

Matters of interest:

The financial programme which will be available for churches to tap into will be up and running for Move, there will be an elective to explain this to churches that are interested in investigating this offer.

 

Arrangements for Move 09 are completed. It is going to be an amazing time of input and Spiritual Transformation; if you haven’t registered yet you still have time. This is our opportunity to come together as a Movement to grow together and encourage one another on in the race. See you there

 

God Bless
NLT

 

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Regional coordinator for Auckland

 

Auckland regional pastors have met twice so far this year, once for lunch and once for a session with David Williams, Head of Counseling at Laidlaw College.

Both times were profitable on a relational and ministry level, with David Williams providing some excellent guidance about sealing with criticism, and the need to address both issue raised and identify the unmet needs at the source of the criticism.

 

We plan to meet once more after Move 09 and continue to look for practical ways to relate to and support each other.

 

Aaron Ironside – Regional coordinator

 

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 - Wider Church notes previously emailed separately are being included in CCNZ News.

The Wider Church

 

- Churches of Christ globally are being asked to celebrate the first Sunday in October by remembering the bicentenary of the key founding documents for our movement - The Declaration and Address of Thomas Campbell in 1809. Ideas at www.GreatCommunion.org Graham Carslake of Western Australia has this year written an early history of our movement, DNA of Churches of Christ. A$7 + postage. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

- The Forum of Cooperating Ventures is being held at Wanganui October 1-4. This is open to all members of the five partner churches - Anglican, Christian Churches, Congregational Union, Methodist, Presbyterian. CCNZ is involved in 13 cooperating ventures. www.ucanz.org.nz We will look for an opportunity at both this forum and Move 2009 for CV folks to get together.

- The next World Convention of our churches will be held in Goiania, near Brazilia, Brazil August 1-5, 2012. We have about 400 congregations in this area. Register possible interest in a South American tour to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or PO Box 211, Kirwee 7543.

- The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) quadrennial women’s convention will be held in North Carolina, USA June 23-27 next year. If in the USA you may wish to include this. www.quadrennial.org

- Hope is our Song, a conference organised by The New Zealand Hymn Book Trust (we are members) is being held at Palmerston North, October 23-26. www.hymns.org.nz

- The Point Chevalier Cooperating Parish is focussing their ministry on (and upgrading) their iconic Homestead property. Chris Ambrose, minister at Linwood Avenue Union Church, Christchurch has indicated he will be returning to Australia at the end of the year. The process for appointing a successor to Chris has begun.

 

Lyndsay Jacobs

 

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Great Communion service

 

2009 is a special year for members of the Stone-Campbell movement world-wide. These churches include Christian Churches in New Zealand along with churches of Christ and Disciples of Christ around the world. This year is the 200th anniversary of the publication of Thomas Campbell’s book “The Declaration and Address” which is regarded as one of the most important or our earlier documents.

 

In early October 1909 American churches gathered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to hold a communion service to celebrate the centenary of the publication at a spot as close as possible to where it was first published. Over 25,000 attended that event including a number of Australians (and possible some from New Zealand churches).

 

On October 4th this year churches around the world are being encouraged to hold a special communion service to celebrate part of our history. This Sunday is World Communion Sunday (which was first suggested by folk within the Stone-Campbell family to other world communions). It is also the Sunday closest to the centenary celebrations.

 

Churches in New Zealand could conduct a special communion time with sister churches. The Declaration and Address highlights the unity that should exist between Christians (sadly lacking even in the Stone-Campbell movement). It would be good for all the churches in an area to gather together to celebrate the Lord’s Supper together. This could be a time to invite other churches outside our Conference who have links with Stone-Campbell churches to join together.

 

On that particular Sunday I will be attending the Uniting Congregations Forum in Wanganui. It would be great to celebrate at some time during the day with fellow members of Christian Churches and co-operative ventures from around New Zealand our unity in Christ around the Lord’s Table.

 

There is a web site set up by all arms of the American Stone-Campbell churches which has some helpful suggestions about running such a service. It can be found at www.greatcommunion.org.

 

I would urge all churches to consider some special communion celebration (particularly with other churches) on 4th October

 

Chris Ambrose

(Linwood Ave Union Church, Christchurch)

 

TopBy Ron Bergman

Kiwi Link – Vanuatu – Urgent Need

 

 

Urgent prayer and financial assistance is needed for Miss Katrina Sali from Vanuatu. Katrina is 35 years old and is the daughter of Pastor Joses Sali. Nine years ago she attended Massey College and Lincoln College where she attended Bishopdale Church of Christ in Christchurch. Katrina was sent from Vanuatu to Christchurch hospital and was diagnosed with Cancer. She has been operated on and is to have chemotherapy starting this week. The urgency meant she had to go private and so funding is needed to cover all treatment plus airfares etc. Can you please help by contributing through Kiwi Link C/- Alan Tear or Ron Bergman.

 

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