Messenger: Published by Westminster Presbyterian Church - Volume 150 Winter Edition 2011

P u b l i s h e d b y We s t m i n s t e r P r e s b y t e r i a n C h u r c h | Vo l u m e 1 5 0 W i n t e r E d i t i o n 2 0 1 1
M E SSENGER
The
The Messenger
Vo l u m e 1 5 0 W i n t e r E d i t i o n 2 0 1 1 Features Missions Family Page Church News
Contents
4-13 14-23 24-25 26

Aims
To uphold the teachings of Scripture as summed up in the Westminster Confession of Faith. To assist the WPC churches in their congregational life and witness. To foster a spirit of unity amongst WPC churches.
contributions, letters, etc.

All materials for the editor, such as contributions, letters and comments about The Messenger should be directed to: Revd Clem White, 10 Melaleuca Terrace, HALLS HEAD, W.A. 6210 Phone: (08) 9535 3301 Email: candpwhite@bigpond.com.au
subscription DetAils
The 2011 subscription rates are as follows: 1. 2. If posted directly to your address, $4.25 per copy, or $16.00 p.a. Bulk mailed to your churchs Messenger representative for $14.00 p.a. $4.50 for single issues. Please send payments to: The Westminster Messenger via Sandra Wilson 105 Regency Drive, THORNLIE W.A. 6108 Email: sandrawilson@iinet.net.au otherwise Ph: (08) 9452 1830 or Mob: 0417 944 138
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Articles of Church News, Letters to the Editor and contributions for each of the 4 issues are to be in the Editors hand no later than: Feb 14 for Autumn issue May 16 for Winter issue Aug 15 for Spring issue Nov 14 for Summer issue
3. 4.
and addressed to Rev. Clem White at the contact address or email above.
the messenger committee

Revd Clem White (Editor) Mrs Sandra Wilson (Treasurer) Mrs Pam White (Secretary) Ray Wilson (Proofing) Mr Roy Lim (Designer)
Please noTe: all subscriPTions due in advance.
Opinions expressed are those of the contributor and not necessarily those of WPC, the editor or the committee. Submitted articles are welcome. You can help make your denominational journal a success by subscribing and contributing to it. We cordially invite you to do both. Photo on cover: visit to Pakistan April 8 - 11, 2011, Shahdra congregation by tony Bracefield Pg. 14
T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011
Editorial
Changes
There have been some recent changes in the composition of our Messenger Committee. Ron nugent, who has been our proof reader for a number of years, is not able to continue in this role. Ron has been an assiduous proof reader who knows how to dot all the is and cross all the ts. he has also given us wise counsel on some theological issues during his time with us. We appreciate all Ron has done in serving the Lord and us and thank Ron sincerely. In answer to our prayers Ray Wilson has now stepped up to the plate and will be our future proof reader. Ray is a pastor at Kelmscott WPC. another change in our committee is to do with graphic design. erica Woonings has been our graphic designer for a number of years. erica introduced colour to our front and back pages and did some other redesigning of the magazine for us. We want to thank erica for all the hard work she has done for us and give thanks to god for her input. again in answer to our prayers the Lord has provided us with another graphic designer in the person of Roy Lim. Roy is a member of all nations WPC and comes to us with much experience in graphic design and Christian enthusiasm. We will probably notice a few changes as Roy puts his own stamp on the design of The Messenger. Thanks Roy for coming on board. an obvious major change is the dimensions of this issue of The Messenger. We are interested to get feedback about what you think of this a5 size issue. One advantage in using this size is that it will fit into a ladys hand bag, into your Bible or hip pocket. If we dont hear any complaints we will assume you like it.
sYnOD
some might be thinking that is a strange word; what does it mean? Well, it simply means a church gathering. In our Presbyterian form of government we do not have a hierarchical system as does the Anglican church. Its more of a flat form where we have outward concentric circles; the inner circle consisting of each congregations session or committee of elders. The next circle, the presbytery, is made up of representative elders from each session. The outer circle is composed of representative elders from each of the presbyteries. The synod deals with matters that are common to all of the presbyteries such as relationships with other Christian denominations. You will notice an advertisement for our 18th synod in this issue of The Messenger. Please read it. This is a great opportunity for all members and adherents of our congregations to get together and encourage each other in the Lord. It will be a good time for the east to meet the West and catch up with old friends and meet new ones. not only that, you will be able to enjoy the blue skies and beauty of the West. so get the date into your diary right now and arrange to be there. U
C lem W hite
T h e Me sse n ge r W i n t e r 2 0 1 1
Fe a t u re s
Creation: gods universe

by
N athaN W ooNiNgs
This is the fourth, God willing, of a series of articles written by various authors on the theme of each chapter of the Westminster Confession of Faith.
Westminster Confession of Faith Chapter 4:1
he scientist approached god and said, Listen, weve decided we no longer need you. nowadays, we can extract stem cells, clone people, transplant hearts, and all kinds of things that were once considered miraculous. god patiently heard him out, and then said, all right. To see whether or not you still need me, why dont we have a little man-making contest? Okay, great! the scientist said. now, were going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam, God said. Thats fine, replied the scientist and he bent down to scoop up a handful of dirt. Whoa! god said, shaking his head in disapproval... not so fast. YOU get your own dirt.2 It always amuses me every time I hear that anecdote recounted. It reminds me of a vital truth I constantly need to be aware of. god created the universe and everything has its origin in god. I cannot live without god as much as other people want to or try to3. I am dependent on him for my very survival. It is the subject of creation that our series in the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) brings us. We are going to consider just the first paragraph of Chapter 4. god made everything out of nothing, by his powerful word, for his own glory, and it was all very good.4
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CrEation out of nothing5 god created everything in the universe from nothing. I once visited a church and the Pastor prayed something like, god I pray that as you found the world in chaos when you came to create it, so I pray that you would turn the chaos of peoples lives gathered here into something ordered and beautiful. The Pastor was adlibbing so I dont know if he actually realised what he was saying. It certainly caught my attention. When god created the world he did not take what was already there and make it into what it is today. god is not a cosmic sculptor who, like humans, with preexisting material, produces a sculpture6. god began with nothing. at no time does the bible mention that there was in eternity stuff that existed. The created universe has a beginning. The world, the universe, atoms, matterall of it has its origin in god. genesis 1:1-2 doesnt say, When god began to create...the earth was without form or void or, In the beginning of gods creating...the earth was without form or void. genesis 1:1 is an independent statement from verse 2. It says, In the beginning god created the heavens and the earth.7 It was the heavens and earth that god had just created that was without form and void, genesis 1:2. The hebrew word
create is absolute. Only god creates in the Bible. In the context of the Bible create means to make out of nothing. genesis 1:1 teaches the absolute beginning of all things; space, time, energy, matter.8 god created all reality outside of himself out of nothing that had existed previously.9 But how did nothing become something? how was that possible? The answer is astonishing. god spoke it into existence! Imagine if our words had power to speak something into existence. how amazing would it be if we said, Let there be a house on this block and it suddenly physically appeared? Wow! Well, gods word does have power like that and infinitely more. He spoke an entire universe into existence (and we are still only just discovering how vast it really is). In eternity in the mind of god was the concept of the universe. at a particular chosen point in eternity, when time began (i.e. when he created it), he spoke and the eternal concept of the universe became a physical reality. By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host...For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm, Ps. 33:6, 9. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God..., heb. 11:3. In genesis 1-2, we see that with a divine word from god, an entire universe comes into existence.10 When we say god created all things out of nothing we must not make the mistake of thinking that creation is an extension of god. What do I mean? Well, if the idea and origin of creation is god, that it all comes out of him, we can conclude that therefore, the created universe is a part of god. For example, the very concept of the sun is in god. The sun owes its existence to god. Therefore, the sun is god. The world around us is using that kind of logic (even if it is doing it in ignorance).
People are busy worshiping creation, whether it is an idol, the sun, or themselves.11 But the created universe is not a part of god. all of creation is indeed dependent on god. god must take care of it and sustain it. But it nevertheless has an independent existence from god. The heavens and earth are just that, the heavens and the earth. god is god. god and creation are fundamentally different. god is imperishable; creation is perishable.12 god is eternal; creation is temporal13 We cannot treat creation like we treat god. We are commanded to worship god14. We are commanded to have dominion over the created earth15. We have a higher place in the created order than the sun, moon, stars and animals. Yet people still look to horoscopes! Treating the creation as if it was god is idolatry and god condemns it16. The implication of the teaching that god made everything from nothing is potent and powerful. god is the absolute owner and possessor of heaven and earth.17 If all of creation has its origin in god then there is nothing in this universe that does not belong to him. The sun, moon, stars, water, air, angels, human beings; all of them, are gods. The entire cosmos is the work of his hands. The apostle John, speaking of Jesus as god says, John 1:3, All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. again, speaking about Jesus, Paul says, Col. 1:16, For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible... all things were created through him... and the author of the letter to the hebrews says, heb 1:10, You Lord, laid the foundations of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands...
CrEation for himsElf18 Why did god create the world? Was it because he needed it? Was it because he was lonely living in eternity all by himself ? Maybe it was because god could not get all the glory he needed without the world? I once thought that but I was wrong. god loves his own company. he is completely happy and satisfied existing all by himself. There is nothing that anything or anyone can add to him to make him feel more complete. But we might say, If god is god then he is the god of love. get rid of love and he is no longer god. True. so we conclude, surely then, for god to be the loving god that he is, he needs creatures to love. But that is not the case. god can fully express his love even without creatures to love he loves himself. god created the world not because he needed it but because he willed it.
Through his creation God shows off how glorious he really is.
To the question of why things exist and are as they are there is no other deeper answer than that god willed it.19 he created everything according to the counsel of his own will, eph 1:11; Rev. 4:11.20 also note that no one but god determines what he does and does not do, Isaiah 40:1314. Creation was a free, independent act of god. he is completely self sufficient and is not dependent on his creation in any way, acts 17:25, 28.21 all of creation exists because of god. Therefore all of creation exists for god. having willed it into existence he created it for one purpose not to make himself glorious (because he is already glorious) but to bring glory to himself. The heavens declare the glory of god, and the sky
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above proclaims his handiwork, Psalm 19:1. ...everyone who is called by my name...I created for my glory... Isaiah 43:7. For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. amen, Romans 11:36. all things were created through him and for him, Col. 1:16. Creation is meant to elicit praise from the depths of our hearts. Through his creation god shows off how glorious he really is. Creation is gods great exhibition to be admired by his creatures. We admire magnificent paintings in art galleries, but such paintings pale into insignificance when we begin to take in the created universe. Romans 1:20 says, For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. Take a look around you: the vastness and complexity of the universe, the trillions of stars. god has made them all and named them all! O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures, Psalm 104:24. On the glorious splendour of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate. They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness, Psalm 145:57. It is he who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens, Jeremiah 10:12. Indescribable, uncontainable awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim you are amazing god.22 god is to be praised as Creator by reason of the marvellous order, variety and beauty of his works.23
CrEation all good24 Creation is amazing, but not all the time. One moment we can be praising god for his amazing creation and the next minute we can look around and despair. In the same amazing created world there is, all around us, destruction, devastation decay and death. Then comes the question (which we have all heard at one time or another if we are Christians), If the creator god is so good why is there so much pain and suffering in his world? But god is not responsible for the brokenness in the world. We will see that when we come to chapter 6 of the WCF. What is crucial is to realize that god did indeed originally create a perfect world; a world that was not full of death, destruction, devastation and despair. It was a world created good. nothing was wrong. everything was right. Repeatedly it says in genesis 1 that when god looked at the world he had created it was good or even very good.25 Today it is not good but it will be good again. god despairs at all the pain and suffering in the world. That is why he sent Jesus. Jesus through his resurrection brings in a new created world where god will again be able to say, it is good. Will you be a part of that world?26 The idea that there could be an existence of the world apart from god is absurd and is not found anywhere in the Bible. god has created all things by his powerful Word. The universe and everything in it is the product of his will alone. All of creation finds its ultimate goal in his glory. This world which god created was originally good and he should be praised for it. Realising then our total dependence on god the creator as our sustainer, let us give him the loyalty, commitment, gratitude and devotion that he deserves. To give him anything less is scandalous. give to god the sovereign creator the first place in both your lives and thoughts.27 U
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(EndnotEs) In this article all italics in quotes are mine. all bible quotations are taken from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2001. Wheaton: standard Bible society. author unknown [no date] <http:// secularfranciscans.org/f6_30.html> [accessed 2 June 2011] Therefore, I believe that is why evolution is so vehemently defended today. It explains an origin of the world that doesnt involve a higher being than humans. Therefore because there is no god, the most important person, in the end, in the universe, is me. sound familiar? The astute reader of the WCF 4:1 will notice that there are two things mentioned there that I dont comment on, namely that creation was an act of all three persons of the trinity and that god created the world in the space of six days. For further reading on both see Berkhof, L. (1958). Systematic Theology. edinburgh, U.K.: Banner of Truth, pp. 129, 152-160 The WCF (4:1) says, It pleased godin the beginning, to create, or make of nothing, the world, and all things therein whether visible or invisible Bavinck, h. (2004). Reformed Dogmatics (Vol. 2). (J. Bolt, ed., & J. Vriend, Trans.) grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker academic, p. 417 see also Reymond, R. L. (2001). A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith (2nd ed.). nashville, Tennessee: Thomas nelson, Inc. pp. 389-392 (it is probably worth purchasing this book if you dont own it). see also Kelly, D. F. (1997). Creation and Change. Fearn, Ross-shire, scotland: Christian Focus, pp. 65-66 Kelly D.F., p. 57 Kelly D. F., p. 58 Kelly D. F., p. 61 Romans 1:21-25 Psalm 102:26, 27; hebrews 1:11, 1 Peter 1:24, Matthew 24:35 Psalm 90:2 Deut. 6:13 genesis 1:26, 28 Deut. 4:13; Deut. 17:3 Bavinck, p. 417 The WCF (4:1) says, It pleased godfor the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodnessto create the world (italics mine) Bavinck, p. 430 see also Isaiah 46:10; Dan. 4:35; Berkhof, p. 130 Reeves, J., & story, L. (Composers). Indescribable. [C. Tomlin, Performer] Packer, J. I. (1993). Concise Theology. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale house Publishers, p. 22 The WCF (2:1) says It pleased godto create the world, and all things thereinand all very good. genesis 1:9, 12, 18, 25, 31 see Rev. 21; 22 Packer, p. 22
Fe a t u re s
a gatEKEEPEr in thE housE of thE lord

by
b arbara C ross
months of that school year before moving away, but her friendliness to me had paved the way for other friendships. Though young I realised that it was because of Laura Mae reaching out to me the new kid that I began to feel accepted. even though a child I determined that when a new girl came into my class I would try to include her in what was happening with my friends. I acted on that resolve all through my school years. In the years since then I have It is very important that each seen that this same situation church member sees it as his/her happens over and over again in church life. a new person responsibility and ministry to truly visits the church, especially one make each new person, or even one who is shy or nervous about being there, and often they are who has attended for some time, to ignored except for a possible hello by the official greeting feel they are part of the group. party at the door of the church or a handshake by the pastor after the I had been living on a farm in arkansas service. how they need a Laura Mae where we raised thousands of chickens or who will make an effort to draw them into broilers as they were referred to in the the group. industry. We then moved to the city of It is very important that each church Joplin in the state of Missouri a much member sees it as his/her responsibility bigger and more sophisticated place and ministry to truly make each new than the farming community that we person, or even one who has attended came from. as a young girl it was a scary for some time, to feel they are part of the thing to go to a new and bigger school group. People often fail to do this because where I knew no one. It was even more they want to spend the time talking to their worrying when for the first few days no friends. (I know of one person who made one spoke to me or offered to play with it a personal rule that he would not talk me at recess. That is until Laura Mae took with his friends until he spoke to someone it upon herself to invite me to play and new or someone isolated in the church drew me in to the popular schoolyard ball that day.) Perhaps they arent sure what to games. gradually, as Laura Mae accepted say to a person they havent met before, me, others began to accept me as well. so they simply ignore him. Too often the Laura Mae was only in my class for a few am rapidly approaching the Biblical life span of three score and ten and, like many others of my age, I often find it hard to remember peoples names - even those nearest and dearest to me. however, after 60 years there is one name I never forget Laura Mae Brotherton. now why would I remember a young girl whom I knew for only a few months when I was nine years old?
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lack of a welcoming ministry comes about because people simply dont think of the needs and feelings of others. how does one become a Laura Mae in the church? a helpful thing to do when one notices a person or a couple who seems to be on their own is to go to them and simply say, I dont believe we have met before. My name is____ and we are glad to have you with us today. Usually a person will respond to that with their name and then a bit of non-invasive small talk can open the door to further conversation. (In Britain one can always fall back on talking about the weather!) Following a personal introduction and a chat it is then important to introduce the new person to other people who may be close by. (I often look for someone whom I know is good at chatting with people). The person who feels left out may not be new. It may be someone who has been attending the church for some time but can always be seen standing on their own. I have been told by some that the loneliest place they ever find themselves is at the church surrounded by other people. They need to be drawn in to warmer fellowship and begin to feel the love and friendship of other Christians. I have often observed a cluster of people talking with each other while someone standing nearby is obviously on the outside of the conversation. how do I make them feel part of the group? a friend of mine, Dr Dale Bluman, a professor of communications, in his book (speaking and Listening in a new era) challenges people to be what he calls gatekeepers. a gatekeeper, he says is one who has the ability to encourage others to participate so that they do not withdraw from or are not forced out by the group. he suggests that the way to act as a gatekeeper is to reach out to the person who is on the edge of the group by doing three things. (1) ask questions
which encourage participation. (2) Listen carefully to their responses. (3) give feedback to what they have said. Over and over as I, and others, have practiced his principles of gatekeeping we have seen the outsider physically step forward and become part of the group. Recently my husband and I attended a church service where we were unknown and at least eight people from the congregation spoke to us and made us feel welcome. There have been other times when we have visited churches where no one spoke to us and we felt very unwelcome. Twice when this has happened I have been bold enough to write to the leaders of the church to tell them of our experience. I have stated in my letter that if I had come as an unbeliever to that church I would never have come back perhaps not to any church. I also said that if I had come as a believer looking for a church home, I would have looked elsewhere. The purpose of these letters was to encourage those churches to think about their Christian responsibility to reach out to others. The Bible tells us in many places to encourage one another. encouragement can be done in many ways but one of the most needful and simplest is habitually to practice keeping a keen outlook for people who seem to be alone and to draw them in and make them feel welcome. What a blessing it is to others when we act as gatekeepers in the house of the Lord. U
barbara cross is a missionary in England and Wales with Mission to the World (MTW)
Fe a t u re s
CathErinE Parr in thE shadoW of dEath
by
b arbara C ross
on Catherine Parr who had come to court after the death of her first two husbands. Though in love with another man she felt it her duty to marry henry. he found her to be kind and caring. Catherine had come under the influence of such reformers as archbishop Thomas Cranmer. she authored several books of devotions called Prayers or Mediations. she longed for henry to accept the gospel and to complete the reformation. Because of her tender care for him, henry allowed her to share her strong convictions with him. Those who hated the beliefs of the reformers looked in alarm at Catherines influence on Henry. as a painful ulcer burst in the kings leg, the king became prone to fits of rage. Knowing henrys health was failing Catherine became more zealous in her witnessing. One evening Catholic Bishop gardiner and Chancellor Wriothesley overheard Catherine encouraging henry to carry on the reforming of the church. henry was humiliated; thinking that the men would see him as weak in allowing a woman to lecture him. The two men did all they could to stir up henrys anger and he told them to see if there were articles of law that could be brought forward against the queen even at the risk of her life. The men were delighted. The queen knew nothing of this plot and when visiting henry continued to speak to him of religious topics. henry said nothing to her but told his doctor, I do not like the queens religion and I do not intend to be much longer worried by the discourses of this doctoress.
or many people, one of the most interesting periods of history (at least British history) is the time of henry the 8th and his 6 wives. at present on British TV a series called The TUDORs is running. after 10 minutes of it, however, I turned it off never to be watched again, as it was both unhistorical and also morally crude. sadly, stories of henrys last wife, Catherine Parr, even in serious books and articles often fail to mention that she was a godly evangelical Christian woman who almost lost her life for her faith. I would like to correct the often missing facts about her with this short article about her life. Barbara wrote this article for The Record, the magazine of the Free Church of scotland.
Henry in a hunt for a sixth wife determined that he would only marry a widow of spotless reputation.
Most people know that henry the 8th had six wives. Many know the little rhyme that identifies them - Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, survived. some might know that the wife who survived was Catherine Parr. But few know that Catherine Parr was a godly evangelical who fearlessly witnessed the truth of the gospel to henry during their marriage in spite of the danger to her life. henry in a hunt for a sixth wife determined that he would only marry a widow of spotless reputation. his eyes fell
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god in his providence caused matters to turnaround. Chancellor Wriothesley carelessly dropped the paper which bore the kings signature allowing the destruction of the queen. a woman of the court found this paper and brought it to Queen Catherine. she became terribly distressed, knowing that her life was threatened. henry, hearing of her upset, but not knowing the cause sent his physician to tend to her. The doctor to whom Henry had confided the evil plan told her that his conscience would not allow him to keep silent. he advised her to behave with humble submission to henry and see if he would turn from this death plot. Catherine, still believing that the gospel cause was important, realised that perhaps she had been too forward in her manner of presenting the truth to him. Later henry sent for her and began to speak of religious matters, perhaps hoping to catch her in her usual manner of speaking. her judicious reply to him was I must and I will refer my judgement to your Majestys wisdom as my only anchor, supreme head and governor here in earth, next under god to lean unto! The King replied, not so Kate, you are become a doctor to instruct us and not to be instructed or directed by us. Catherine protested that she had argued with him for two reasons in order to divert his mind from his painful leg and to learn
from him. at this henry replied, and is it even so sweetheart? Then perfect friends we are not again as ever at any time! he then kissed her and said, It does me more good at this time to hear the words of your mouth than if I had heard present news that a hundred thousand pounds in money had fallen unto me. Catherines enemies, unaware of this healing of the relationship, made preparations to confine Catherine in the Tower. While the King and Queen were taking an airing in the park, Chancellor Wriothesley appeared at the head of forty halberdiers with forty other men following him. They had come to arrest the Queen and take her to the Tower. The king called out to the Chancellor, FOOL, BeasT, aRRanT KnaVe! he told the chancellor to be gone. some historians believe that King henry may have come to an evangelical belief, perhaps largely as a result of Catherines faithful witness. On his death bed he called for the evangelical, archbishop Cranmer, and gave evidence that he trusted in Christ for his forgiveness and mercy. U
barbara cross is a missionary in England and Wales with Mission to the World (MTW)
Food For ThouGhT If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. C. S. Lewis.
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Fe a t u re s
Knowledge and Piety

a NdreW y ouNg
ou will recall that John Calvin as a reality in my present need that I really believed that nearly all the true and know him. This is the kind of knowledge by sound wisdom we possess consists experience that Calvin has in mind. in the knowledge of god and of ourselves. This leads him to say that god can never having discussed the relationship between truly be known where there is no religion these two things he proceeds to talk more or piety. By religion he means the active about knowing god. worship of god. Religious people do more The first thing he says about truly knowing than consent to the existence of god; they god is that it involves more than conceiving order their lives with reference to him. They that he exists. Thats where knowing him honour and adore him, fear and obey him, begins but it goes beyond that to grasp what trust him and seek him. Where such attitudes befits us [in God] and is proper to his glory. and practices exist, people dont stop with True knowledge reaches out, as it were, and knowing things about god; they actually lays hold of that in god that is proper for relate to him. and in doing so, they truly us to receive. There is what we might call know him. an experiential element to truly knowing god. We conceive of Reverence arises out of perception him in our minds and respond to that by embracing what is to of Gods glory, love out of awareness our advantage to know of him. Perception and action are both of the benefits he showers upon us. involved. It is one thing, Calvin writes, similarly, piety in Calvins thinking is to feel that god is our Maker and that he supports us by his power, governs us by his that reverence joined with love of god providence, nourishes us by his goodness, which the knowledge of his benefits induces. and attends us with all sorts of blessings. Reverence and love are the two central It another thing, however, to embrace elements of piety, Calvin says. Reverence the grace of reconciliation offered to us arises out of perception of gods glory, love in Christ. Only when both of these exist out of awareness of the benefits he showers together the perception and the action upon us. Once again, where these things exist, people do not stop with contemplating god can people be said to know god. an illustration might help at this point. as admiring spectators. They call upon him, Writing these Insights always poses a great and look to him to provide that which is to challenge. every week Im confronted with their advantage. But what is the root of such religion and a sense of my inability to write something that will help people know god and grow in piety? Where do they spring from? Calvin their relationship with him. In that situation I believes they grow out of the conviction frequently remind myself that the god who that god is the fountain of every good, and made our minds is able to help us think and that we must seek nothing elsewhere than write, so that I need not suppose myself to be in him. Behind the love and reverence of on my own in this task. To remind myself that true worshippers is the belief that no drop god is such a god is part of what it means to will be found either of wisdom and light, or know him. however, according to Calvin, it is righteousness or power or rectitude, or of only as I go beyond appreciating gods power genuine truth, which does not flow from and willingness to help me to grasping this him, and of which he is not the cause. It is
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only when this is our firm conviction that we will learn to seek all these things from him, and thankfully ascribe them, once received, to him. Once more Calvin writes, Until men recognize that they are nourished by his fatherly care, that he is the author of their every good, that they should seek nothing beyond him they will never yield him willing service. nay, unless they establish their complete happiness in him, they will never give themselves sincerely and truly to him. a sense of our total dependence upon god for all that we are and have, then, is what Calvin sees as the source of that religion and piety that leads us to know him. The three
OTher CONTACTS: CONTiNued FrOM PAge 31 TriNiTy TheOlOgiCAl COllege WeSTerN AuSTrAliA Address: Trinity House 632-643 Newcastle Street, LeederviLLe, WA Telephone: (08) 9228 9067 email: info@trinity. org.au AuSTrAliAN iNdigeNOuS MiNiSTrieS AliCe SPriNgS
things are inseparably linked. everything begins with understanding that all that we are and have derives from god. Where this is truly appreciated it will invariably create reverence and love. and these in turn will lead us to seek after him and know him not simply as an idea, but as a personal, living being who is the author of all and source of our complete happiness. U
andrew Young is a Grace Theological College Associate Principal (South Island, New Zealand)
grACe PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh bellMere, Qld 4510 Contact: revd Bill Ham (07) 5428 1797 email: billham@powerup.com.au grACe TheOlOgiCAl COllege c/- 36 Balaclava Street WYNdHAM SOuTHLANd NeW ZeALANd Contact: revd Andrew Young evANgeliCAl PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh PO Box 31-210, CHriSTCHurCH, NeW ZeALANd Contact: Trevor Webb email: web@clera.net.nz ChurChFreO the gathering 5:15 pm Sunday 408 South Terrace SOuTH FreMANTLe, WA Contact: Chuck Linkston email: churchfreo@live.com.au eASTgATe bible ChurCh Meets: 52 Herries Street - TOOWOOMBA, QLd. Time: 10am Contact: dave Kiewiet (07) 4636 5438 Web: www.eastgatebiblechurch.net June 2011 Please note: While every care is taken to ensure the information on these pages are accurate, it is the responsibility of each church or organisation to inform the editor of any changes.
Postal: PO Box 31, Alice Springs, NT 0871 Telephone: (08) 8955 5271 Contact: rev. Phil & Cathy Stuart Church Service (winter): Meets: 20 Parke Cres, Alice Springs Time: 10.30am email: stuartmob@stuarts.id.au Stuarts web: www.stuarts.id.au eNglANd revd david and Barbara Cross email: d.Cross@talktalk.net. PrOvideNCe reFOrMed PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh Pastor Christopher Seah Mob: +65 9139 4654 Meets: 350 Alexandra road, Level 3 (Next to Princess House) SiNgAPOre 159946. Time: 9.30am Bible Study/Sunday School: 11.30am Postal: c/o Apt Block 1d, Pine grove, #0815, Singapore 593001 email: provrpc@gmail.com Website: http:www.providencerpc.org
13
Missions
Visit to Pakistan april 8th to 11th 2011

by
t oNy b raCefield
degree in computer science but the Muslims who operate commerce will not employ him. In Pakistan a Muslim will not eat at the same table as a Christian, and they do not like even the shadow of a Christian touching them! thE Christian sCEnE There are approximately 10 million Christians in Pakistan. They make up the poorest people and in villages tend not to own any gardening land so they are always slaves to their Muslim masters (this was particularly the case with the brick kiln workers). Because of the large discrimination, Christians normally live in communities together so you have distinct Christian sections of Lahore where Muslims may own the shops, but they will not live in the area. This has the advantage that it is possible in the future to create some strong Christian communities and break the poverty and discrimination cycle. The Church of Pakistan ministers tend to be well paid and ignore the poor (they are only seen as being a drain on the church and often will be in a more dangerous area), so the villages that we went to visit had no evidence of the Church of Pakistan at work. generally, Christians do not have a good understanding of the faith and while the culture makes them declare that they are Christian they normally will not know what that means and of course many will not be saved. It does mean however, that they are willing to come to church so opportunities to grow and strengthen the Christian church with sound teaching are vast.
my rEViEW of thE situation Pakistan is a difficult country to work in as a Westerner due to the level of bribery, security issues, and health issues. It is however, an ideal place for the Pakistani Christian who can function very well while we Westerners can help in short visits and with plans, ideas, structure and money. thE ChurCh sCEnE. There is one main protestant church in Pakistan formed in 1970 called not surprisingly The Church of Pakistan. This is a merger of anglican (the biggest with the most influence), Presbyterian, Lutheran, and Methodist denominations. as one might imagine with such a mixture the Church of Pakistan does not have a reformed doctrinal statement and tends on the liberal and social side, with membership of the World Council of Churches. The ministers are generally not concerned with the poor Christians of Pakistan, the vast majority of the estimated 10 million Christian population. a very large number until you realise Pakistan has a population of 180 million and it certainly appears that way when you travel there. everyone I spoke to had the same thing to say about the Pakistani Christians they are very shallow and do not have a clear understanding of the faith doctrinally weak. This is largely due to the fact that the majority of Christians are very poor have a low or non-existent education, are Christian because they are born in a Christian home and the national church is not interested in training them. even those that do manage an education are heavily discriminated against by the Muslim majority. Our car driver had a bachelors
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thE PlaCE of graCE PrEsbytErian ChurCh of PaKistan gPCP In november last year while on holiday with his family, amjad and n believed the Lord was calling them to start a new ministry in Pakistan after being in nZ for 12 years. amjad knew that it must be established on sound teaching and that this would be the distinguishing factor. In January 2011 he asked his sister and brother-in-law to start a home church at their house which amjad owned and things have snow-balled at a massive rate since then. The church called Lahore Presbyterian Church - has grown from three families to an excess of 100 people. This sort of growth in Pakistan is unheard of. amjad began a large teaching ministry via internet and telephone (most people have mobile phones in Pakistan and wireless internet) and over the month of February he contacted a number of Presbyterian pastors who wanted their village congregations to join him. amjad approached me about a book of church order for the new denomination and we largely modified the GPCNZ document to fit Pakistan and we then had a structure to unite and grow a new reformed denomination.
days). The work has begun but the task is huge and support in many areas is needed for the denomination to grow well. But grow well it could indeed do to maybe the most significant reformed Christian work in Pakistan this century! graCE PrEsbytErian CollEgE amjad is currently building the rooms for the grace Presbyterian College to be established as I type. They are attached to his house and are probably where a garage would have been. There are two large rooms each 10 metres by 10 metres that could hold up to 100 people in each room at a time. They will be used for church on sunday. This new college is critical because the denomination will stand or fall on sound biblical reformed teaching and there is not a source of that in Lahore at present. amjad is planning to use some retired pastors as teachers as well as himself and other recent graduates. arEas that rEdEEmEr gPC Can hElP With. It has become very clear to amjad that he and his family need to move back to Pakistan to work full-time with this church and denominational plant. he will need a home church to both pray and coordinate support for him and the Pakistan ministry. my daily aCtiVitiEs in PaKistan friDAy DAy one We arrived at amjads house which has three storeys. It is located at Bahar Colony - Kotlakhpat in a Christian area of Lahore. We are now off to the first church shahdra Presbyterian Church The service began at 7pm with about 1 hour of singing!! and it was beautiful they love singing. Then I preached with a great interpreter Pastor Z for 20 minutes. This was the first time I have ever done this
Grace Presbyterian College - first floor
In March 2011, Amjad flew to Pakistan and inaugurated gPCP with 15 congregations (which represent between 2,000 to 3,000 people I went to see and preach at 6 of these churches over the 4
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so it took a bit of getting used to not speaking too many words at once but by the end we were in a real flow. after two other pastors preached I thought we had finished but no it was time to pray for all the sick and needy who had formed a large queue. since I had preached I was the man for the job never before had I done anything like this and I prayed the Lord would give me wisdom and the realisation to the people that I was just a man and only god does miracles. But after preaching on mountain-moving prayer from Mark 11 I needed to put this message into action.
and challenged that these poor Christians needed very simple help. sAturDAy DAy two Our first trip was to Bedian Presbyterian Church. This is in a very dangerous area right on the boarder of India and Pakistan. One of amjads elders asked if we would be taking armed security with us! amjad said god will be our protector! so our team of four vehicles set off. It took 1.5 hours to drive there and the last 30 minutes was on very poor dirt roads. In this area there are no longer any government police which accounts for the danger, as bandits can operate, but in day light amjad said we are normally quite safe! These villages are clearly much poorer than in Lahore mud houses many made from dung of bullocks and the water is very polluted due to the poor sanitation. The bullock dung is important not just for building but also for fire, as they do not have many trees. all along the roads we saw people making bullock dung rings and stacking them to dry for later use. We had planned to arrive at the Bedian church by 2pm but Pakistani time meant that we arrived there at 3.30pm. The pastor explained something and we were let through so amjad was relieved at that Pastor s welcomed us and we held the worship service. after this I again was required to pray for a number of needs. I had to raise my hands over a whole group of ladies and say a general prayer for them all as they all wanted me to touch them! We then proceeded to Chathianwala Presbyterian Church where there was a group of about 100 at Chathianwala church as well again mainly women and children. amjad said that Christians in these two villages are very poor and humanly speaking have no hope of breaking the poverty cycle as they do not own any land its all owned by Muslims who pay the workers a subsistence wage, if that. amjads vision is
Shahdra congregation - men and women sit on opposite sides
a whole range of needs were present. some had children with poor eyesight two young girls in one family clearly with the same problem and another little boy who was going blind in one eye. Then came a whole range of adults and children with fevers. Then there was a family who had only two children. They must have had a lot of miscarriages I suppose as one son looked about 12 years and the other five years. They wanted me to pray for more children! Then a lady who wanted to have a son! Then came a range of physical illnesses, sore ankles, knees, and arms. also a lady who said the spirits attacked her when she prayed and a number saying they needed wisdom. Well about 30 minutes later, I felt totally inadequate by the end of all that, but confident that god would do whatever work he willed,
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to be able to get the children to come to a Christian school and be educated so they can break this cycle. We finished at 5.45pm and then continued to our 3rd destination Youhannabad Presbyterian Church with Pastor W. Jouhannabad did not have a church building but used the pastors house, where we met on the roof! In Pakistan often the biggest areas are the rooftops (which are all made of concrete not iron). I think probably about 150 people were sitting on the roof. sunDAy DAy three I had a great time with amjad this morning planning the grace Presbyterian Church of Pakistan structure and the role of his church as the mother church and heart pump of the whole denomination. after lunch we began our afternoon journey to Dafu Road Presbyterian Church where the pastor is Pastor T. They did not have a church and again due to the number of people we could not meet in the pastors house like normal but instead we met in the courtyard. The problem in Pakistan is that the price for staples like rice has increased so much that the poor generally can not afford even basic food and most Christians do not own any land to have their own garden so living is extremely difficult. monDAy our fourth AnD lAst DAy in pAkistAn had another great talk to amjad. again it is so clear that what the church in Pakistan needs is sound teaching the Christian communities are Christian because of birth and discriminated against by the Muslims so they know they are different but they do not understand the gospel and the teaching of the Bible. amjad said a pastors monthly salary should be about $200 nZ a month (currently he pays the pastors $100 per month). But to help the church with necessities about $500nZ a month is needed for each work.
I will see what we can do with our contacts in the Us, australia, and nZ on my return. We arrived at Manga Mandi church at 2pm and were greeted by a wonderful group of flower throwing girls. This village was very poor with mud huts, although
Translator Pastor Z , Pastor Amjad Khan, Communty Pastor Tony Bracefield and Pastor S
they did have power. The church building was packed with over a 100 people and there were a lot who sat outside as well (at least another 50 but maybe up to 100). We left for the airport at midnight and then I proceeded through all the security checks at the airport heaps of them including a full bag search for drugs! The plane left on time and so ended my four twenty-hour days in Pakistan with much to think and pray about and to act on once I return to nZ. U
prayer points: support for village pastors - $200 per month support for educational programs - $100 per month for a teacher support of bibles and Bible College resources. Funds to complete the construction of the bible college. if anyone would like to support the work of Grace presbyterian Church of pakistan or receive a monthly email update please contact tony Bracefield at tonybracefield@watchdog.net.nz
Tony bracefield Community Pastor, Redeemer Grace Presbyterian Church, New Zealand
17
Missions
What Can WE do for JaPan?

by
W eNdy m arshall
accounts of the tsunami and earthquake, early survey trips of the damage and accounts of relief trips. The biggest challenge was not just to find stories, but get them written well often by people who had never written for a magazine before. In addition to stories from missionaries, I wanted a Japanese perspective. so I asked a Japanese friend and colleague of mine, Yoshie Yokoyama, some questions.
WhY DOnT JaPanese asK WhY? I asked Yoshie, a Japanese pastors wife, if she has been asked, Why would god allow this disaster? she responded, I am not being asked that. We Japanese have known One of the reasons why 99% of the that a big earthquake would population is not Christian is that happen sooner or later. The Christianity is still seen as something scale is beyond what anyone expected. When earthquakes happen, there is almost always from the west, not Japanese. a tsunami. We know that too. It In the midst of the confusion I was is the scale of the tsunami and how wide given the opportunity to answer my the affected area was, that is troubling. original question. The Managing editor We are also aware of the risks of nuclear of the magazine Japan harvest asked me power plants. There have been accidents in to take on the responsibility of putting the past. There were causalities. People are together a special disaster edition of the asking whether it is a good idea to have magazine. Id only been working with new nuclear power plants. The majority of the magazine since late last year, so this people say that we need them, although was a huge challenge. By gods grace they might be a necessary evil. People seem to accept that if we are to continue living the edition turned into a full-coloured 40 our current convenient lives, without a page magazine that included eye-witness
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fter the March 11 earthquakes, missionaries here were asking, What can I do? This wasnt an easy question to answer. When the nuclear reactor situation became more evident the question for many changed to, What should I do? Many fled Tokyo for a period. Others, like us, remained here. Many things that wed previously taken for granted changed: trains stopped running and then ran on severely reduced schedules; petrol was hard to find; basic groceries like milk, bread and toilet tissue were also rare; and electricity also became a rationed commodity. We didnt know what the future might hold.
viable alternative, we cannot avoid having more nuclear power plants. I was struck by her assessment of the Japanese peoples mindset. she said, Its now a matter of fixing the damage. For that we need patience and sacrifice, which everyone is ready to contribute. she went on to clarify why she hasnt been asked why god didnt stop the disaster. It is because Japanese dont know the god of the Bible. In the world of eight million gods, things are quite arbitrary. gods might punish us, but when things happen, its up to us to clear up the mess. Digging deeper into the Japanese psyche, she explained, One of the reasons why 99% of the population is not Christian is that Christianity is still seen as something from the west, not Japanese. If people think in this way, for them, becoming a Christian is becoming un-Japanese, which is very problematic. Man is known to have lived on this land for millions of years. Indigenous religions grew which influenced even Buddhism which arrived in Japan in the 6th century. Protestant Christianity has only been here for a little over 150 years. Yoshie ended our discussion with hope. Our Creator and Redeemer can use this crisis so that Christianity becomes something more than a superficial veneer. It is up to us, his labourers, to make Jesus meaningful for those who desperately need him. In the midst of our correspondence she wrote this: I want to encourage the missionaries who remained in Japan. We Christians are comforted, encouraged and strengthened by the camaraderie and courage that they are sharing in our future. More than that, I believe that through them, non-Christian Japanese will receive the love of Jesus, who came and identified with us, and gave his life so that sinful
men are saved. her words were a great encouragement to me in the midst of the uncertainty that reigned in those weeks after the earthquake. It was embarrassing to be singled out as courageous, when we werent doing anything except staying. But we hope that by the simple act of staying, weve been an encouragement to our fellow Christians here in Japan. Though the news cycle has moved on several times since March 11, wed ask that you would continue to pray for Japan. The disaster is by no means over. More than 100,000 people are still living in evacuation centres. The government is grappling with a lack of available land to build new accommodation for evacuees. Thousands are grieving lost loved ones whose bodies they will never find. With summer coming, water-borne disease will probably become a problem. The nuclear reactors are not yet shut down. The tsunami left tonnes of garbage. One estimate was 14 years worth of garbage! That will not be easy to remove. Japan also faces the question Brisbane faced Where will we allow people to rebuild? except that here the scale is much larger. The physical repercussions of this disaster go on and on. But what we most want is prayer that Japanese hearts would be open to the gospel. Pray they would find eternal security and eternal peace. U
Wendy Marshall is a missionary with Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF). Wendy and her husband, David have recently returned to Japan for their third term of missionary service. They are members of Metrowest Community Church (WPC) Brisbane. E-mail: marshalls@omf.net
19
Missions
himalayan Vision trip anyone?

d avid & e leaNor
to our Praying team,

Two young men who were here recently on a vision trip asked Phil to take them on a short hike in the himalayas. Phil invited several of us who are involved in local ministries to accompany them. We went to one of our favourite spots in the outer himalayas, in the mountains above the Childrens home.
The trail had climbed steeply about 2000 feet up through scrub and cactus then into the oak forest, over a ridge and through dense jungle to a small cave and spring where we camped as the sun was setting. Our friends thrilled to all the night sounds and marveled at the multitude of stars in a clear heaven. The following morning we had a hearty breakfast and then headed up another 1500 feet through thick brush, forest and cliffs to the 7000 ft. peak. along the way we surprised huge elk-like sambar deer, mountain goats, large baboons and even a bear feeding on the acorns. We stood on the top looking south towards the plains spread out below. There were the towns, villages and steep roads we had traveled through, part of the Childrens home campus, the rivers, fields, forests beyond and the distant lower shivalik mountains. It was all laid out like a map. Was that where
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we had come from? amazing! But we had to travel through that to get here. Then we walked the short 50 feet across the knoll and looked to the north. Our guests gasped at the sight: sheer cliffs, deep valleys with raging streams and waterfalls, remote little villages and hamlets hugging the rugged slopes, forests, the 10,000 and 15,000 feet jungle-clad mountains in the next range back, and finally the 22,000 to 25,000 foot solid line of snow and glacier-covered peaks that form the mighty northern spine of the country - all framed by the blue sky and the other closer sights just described. Their response? Wow! Look whats ahead! When can we come back and go there? It seems that we all look ahead more than behind, especially when we are young. We joyfully anticipate the good things that we think are coming - graduation, summer holidays, Thanksgiving, Christmas and dread what we think might be painful or distressing visit to the dentist, final exams, old age. even our heads & eyes face forward on our bodies, not backwards. That forward vision is crucial to making correct decisions in every-day life.
Informed, realistic vision, though is usually built on past experiences. The older we get the more we have of a backward review to
help make clearer the destination and form todays forward vision. This letter is about vision. From our vantage point of spring, 2011, we realize that god has again returned us this term to the very area and works in which we have spent our adult professional lives. This gives us many opportunities to look back and be reminded of gods goodness and providence and to have continuing input into the forward vision of those now leading at the Childrens home, P.T. seminary, grace academy and several churches and fellowships.
within India, food, hotels, and a generous contribution to urgent ministry needs at grace academy or the Childrens home. are you interested or do you know of someone who is? Contact David at his email address below. Please give names, email addresses & phone numbers so that David can keep in touch.
PRaYeR VIsIOn
here are some of the things that we have recently been asked to do by our national & field partners. Most of these items are also on-going on a regular basis. We continue to try to build into other lives as god gives us opportunities and thrill to see past visions not only being taken up by others now, but often further enhanced in ways that we could not have imagined. This list also comprises our prayer request list for the next few months. 1. Developing the curriculum and leading Life groups for teachers at grace academy (eleanor) with the view to making sure that they have made a knowledgeable commitment to our savior Jesus Christ and then are going on to grow in grace in their study of the Word.
OCTOBeR VIsIOn TRIP anyone interested? ...for a 13 day vision trip this Fall.
dates: sept.28 - Oct.10. activities: Visits to the three institutions mentioned above, worship at Valley Bible Fellowship and Covenant R.P. Church, and a four or five-day hike and prayer walk in the himalayas where gods servants are hard at work presenting the gospel. Cost: $3500 for each participant (air fare from the Usa not included) will cover travel
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2.
3. 4.
5.
6.
Mentoring (David) several acquaintances and colleagues through times of prayer, Bible study or counseling. Preaching (David) in hindi and english and leading Bible studies in churches and fellowships. Preparing materials for and conducting teacher seminars (David) at home academy (on the Childrens home campus) and at grace academy. Leading evening dorm devotions once a week for the national workers children at the grace academy hostel on campus (eleanor with the girls, David with the boys). The Principal and we would like to see them commit to the mission of the school which includes the phrase: ...and by challenging Christian children to consider a missional vocation. serving on the boards and committees of grace academy, P.T. seminary, Childrens home, home academy, two other well-known and excellent Christian schools in other cities, Valley Bible Fellowship, and global hope Trust.
7.
Developing vision and position papers on possible new initiatives (David) to assist c.p. efforts.
Your colleagues in the gospel, David and eleanor david@swissmail.org (P.s. Praise! In our last printed letter we asked for prayer for our short itineration trip to the eastern states & Canada last fall. god answered by granting us safe and pleasant travels, a full speaking schedule, much interest shown, being encouraged by all of you in your homes, churches, schools, & small groups. Thanks.) U
david and eleanor Fiol are Mission to the World (MTW) missionaries in northern India. They have been instrumental leaders in helping start the Bogphur Childrens Home, Christian schools and other institutions.
Prayer For Today

dear God. So far today Ive done alright. I havent gossiped, I havent lost my temper, I havent been greedy, nasty, selfish or over indulgent. Im very thankful for that. But in a few minutes, God, Im going to get out of bed and from then on Im going to need a lot more help. aMeN
22
Missions
Prison ministry
t oNy W alker
y name is Tony Walker and I am currently a trainee chaplain at Bunbury Prison. I have had a wide range of jobs in my life ranging from chef to croupier to fast food manager and now prison ministry. I have been involved in prison ministry for the last six years through Prison Fellowship. I have recently completed a Bachelor of Theology degree at Trinity Theological College which was a great challenge as I was not from an academic background. however, it was a fantastic experience and the staff and students were really helpful and encouraging. It was a great community to be part of. I graduated in november 2010 and I started my internship with the Council of Churches in February this year. Prison ministry is a unique ministry. It has been a challenge in Bunbury Prison given the wide range of inmates with all different types of problems. My main objective at first was to build relationships with the inmates, chaplains and staff. There are around 325 prisoners which consist of 250 in the main prison and 75 in the prisoner release unit. There are a high percentage of indigenous men at Bunbury which is around twenty percent of all the prisoners. at the same time in Western australia the percentage of indigenous people in jail is around forty five percent. This is very disturbing considering the percentage of indigenous people in Western australia is around two percent. I work closely alongside another chaplain who is indigenous. We have started up a Bible study. I am hoping to learn more about the indigenous culture from Dennis,
the indigenous chaplain, so I can be more effective in my outreach to indigenous prisoners. I am looking at a long term prison ministry and with gods help I am hoping to gain financial support from all the Westminster Presbyterian congregations. I have been fortunate to be funded for the first year from my local WPC, Mandurah. I will be attending a Clinical Pastoral education Course in september which will be held for 11 weeks at Royal Perth hospital. This is a compulsory course for those who want to become a fully fledged chaplain. The course is designed to help chaplains gain better skills on how to be more effective pastorally, including listening skills and diagnosing problems. I am looking forward to the course and at the same time feel a little nervous. I will also be attending a nine week course called the sycamore Tree, that is to be held at Bunbury Prison. This is a course that involves prisoners talking about their own offences. During the course they also listen to different victims and the impact the crimes committed against them had on them. My traineeship is for two years and hopefully, god willing, I will be employed by the Council of Churches once my internship finishes. U
Tony Walker is currently a trainee chaplain at Bunbury Prison. He has had a wide range of jobs in life ranging from chef to croupier to fast food manager and now prison ministry.
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Family Pages
How to Raise YouR PaRents
1. Do not be afraid to speak their language. Try to use strange sounding phases like, Ill help you with the dishes. and Yes. 2. Try to understand their music. Play andy Williams CD Moon River, until you are accustomed to it 3. Be patient with the underachiever. When you catch your dieting mum sneaking salted peanuts, do not show your disapproval. Tell her you love fat mothers. 4. encourage your parents to talk about their problems. Try to keep in mind that to them things like earning a living and paying off the mortgage seem important. 5. Be tolerant of their appearance. When your dad gets a haircut, dont feel personally humiliated. Remember its important for him to look like his peers. 6. Most important of all, if they do something you consider wrong, let them know its their behaviour you dislike, not themselves.
Jokes
If God calls you to africa and cannibals confront you, keep cool, calm and collected dont get into a stew! ssssssssssss When adam told his wife a joke, back in the days of yore, she could not say, as do wives today, Ive heard that one before.
Keep WatCH Watch your thoughts; they become your words. Watch your words; they become your acts. Watch your actions, they become your habits. Watch your habits; they become your character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.
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Reasons wHY You need Jesus
WeSTMINSTer ShorTer CaTeChISM

WITh The SCrIPTure ProoF
1. BeCaUse YOU haVe a PasT. You cant go back, but he can. The Bible says: Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today, and forever, heb 13:8. he can walk into those places of sin and failure, wipe the slate clean, and give you a new beginning. 2. BeCaUse YOU neeD a FRIenD. Jesus knows the worst about you, yet he believes the best. Why? Because he sees you not as you are, but as you will be when he gets through with you. What a friend! 3. BeCaUse he hOLDs The FUTURe. Who else are you going to trust? In his hands, you are safe and secure today, tomorrow and for all eternity. Jesus says: I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep... I know my own and my own know me. John 10:11,14.
Q. 30. how does the spirit apply to us the redemption purchased by Christ? a. The spirit applies to us the redemption purchased by Christ by producing faith in us [a], and by this uniting us to Christ in our effective calling [b]. [a]. Rom. 10:17; ICor. 2:12-16; eph. 2:8; Phil. 1:29 [b]. John 15:5; ICor. 1:9; eph. 3:17 Q. 31. What is effective calling? a. effective calling is the work of gods spirit by which he convinces us of our sin and misery, enlightens our minds in the knowledge of Christ [a], and renews our wills [b], and so persuades and enables us to embrace Jesus Christ [c], freely offered to us in the gospel [d]. [a]. acts 26:18; ICor. 2:10, 12; II Cor. 4:6; eph. 1:17-18 [b]. Deut. 30:6; ezk. 36:26-27; John 3:5; Titus 3:5 [c]. John 6:44-45; acts 16:14 [d]. Isa. 45:22; Matt. 11:28-30; Rev. 22:17
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Church News
Extracts from reports to Presbytery from Western australian WPC Congregations

all nations
MInIsTRIes Worship serviCes We have seen a steady growth in attendance over the past year, especially the past 6 months. There have been some new families who have joined us, and we have run two membership classes. The preaching has been well-received with simon preaching mainly on acts and 1 samuel, with smaller series on gods control, Psalms, Christmas and easter. There has been an increase in participation in service leading and the music team. bible Caf Our Friday night Bible Caf ministry has been a very positive thing for our church since it started in early 2010. During school term we average 30-35 people every Friday for dinner and discussion. The purpose is that we engage with a topic both as a larger group and smaller groups. We have run a variety of topics, from social issues like alcohol through to theological topics and the worldviews of other religions. We have seen non-Christian friends regularly on these nights. This has been positive for our youth and young adults who have become part of Bible Caf. Our youth group is stronger this year (about 10) and active in the wider church family. traiNiNg The elders are trying to improve our culture of training. We have had a theological student, ewen Lin, join us a day a week. simon is meeting regularly with some of the leaders among the youth and some others to mentor them in the faith. Regular training events are run, such as recent ones on encouragement and service leading. The session is encouraging our people to take advantage of good external training events (like the Childrens Ministry Convention) by paying the registration fee for those who go along. We want to strive to have our church consist of everyone being involved in ministry.
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other miNistries sunday school continues to be very important to us, and an opportunity for many of our people to serve. a home group continues every Wed night. a prayer meeting has started up once a month. a mens group meets fortnightly with a small group of men. Our annual family camp continues to be useful and well supported.
bull CrEEK
The session is grateful to god for the increase in attendance and new members that we have seen in the last year. By gods grace, this has seen more ministries and increased participation from the congregation. This poses a challenge to the eldership to provide more support both in the pastoral and leadership direction of the diverse ministries ranging from the car park ministry to the worship teams. It has been proposed that two or three elders are grouped to undertake oversight of the different ministries and to provide feedback to other elders about their respective portfolios. This process is being further developed in conjunction with the deacons. session continues to seek the Lords guidance in the calling of new prospective elders and deacons to help in his work here in Bull Creek. There are no nominations for eldership this year and one nomination for deacon. The appointment of nathan Runham as a ministry intern assisting the teaching elders and the various ministry groups has been an encouraging development this year. session has also approved the development of an apprenticeship program for prospective applicants interested in pastoral and mission work. These applicants will be invited to serve as apprentices under the supervision of the teaching elders after which they may be encouraged to embark on a formal course
of study in the area of ministry they may be called to. The eldership in Bull Creek have been given the opportunity to participate in the work of proclaiming the gospel and to share with people from all over the globe attending the local church here in Bull Creek. It is with humility and gratitude that we continue to seek the spirits guidance and enabling in this kingdom work. InDOnesIan COngRegaTIOn since March 2009, the Indonesian morning service has been held in Brentwood at 9.30am. The Church building can accommodate up to 120 people and currently the number during this service has almost reached its maximum capacity. The afternoon 4.00pm service is still held at Bull Creek. The sunday school encompasses 6 classes consisting of children aged 2 until school children in year 7-8 group. During the week, the building in Brentwood has been used by various ministries of WPC Bull Creek (due to lack of space in the main building), as well as ministries from all nations and Three Crosses Churches. The Indonesian youth group meets there every saturday at 10.30am, ministering to students in high school as well as those in University and colleges. The young adult fellowship consists of those who are in the workforce and yet to have family. They meet on Friday night every fortnight. There are 2 home fellowship groups which meet regularly every alternate Friday evening. One group consists of families who live around Bull Creek and surrounding suburb and the other group consists of families who live around Canning Vale and surrounding suburb. In addition to these, there are other small groups under the supervision of the elders and deacons of the Indonesian Congregation of WPC Bull Creek. Corporate Prayer is held every first and third Wednesday night of each month and this is usually followed by bible study. The womens study group meets on every other Thursday morning and mothers with young childrens fellowship meets on every other Friday morning. These meetings are usually held at Brentwood. The approximate number in our congregation
currently stands at around 250 individuals. We do have increase in newcomers, however this is usually accompanied by people returning to Indonesia or moving to other states and countries once they complete their study in Perth.
brooKton
Please continue to pray that god will use the Challenge papers on the stand at nolas roadhouse. around 50 of these are taken by the public each month. We letter boxed a Christian tract in virtually every house in town before Christmas. The Back to Brookton sunday was a great success when we welcomed David and Brett installs whirlbirds Barbara Cross back. They ministered there back in the early 70s with their young family. Christian books and Bibles have been purchased from Koorong Bookshop and resold here and Kondinin at 25% discount. It is great to see the number of books being sold. We want to encourage everyone to read more, especially the Bible. It has been a joy and encouragement to have folk coming over regularly from narrogin. They have made themselves at home with us and become one with us. It was through Rachel and Brett that we participated in the Christmas Eva Jetta is warmly welcomed as a new member Carol evening in narrogin. We seemed to make a bit of a hit with the crowd! The Bush Mission held during the last week of the school holidays was a great encouragement to our congregation and provided opportunities for us to meet other people in the district. We pray that god will bless the seed that was sown and that we will see them back again next year.
27
KElmsCott
Prayer Items: Thanksgiving for the blessings of life and health and peace which we have received from our Lord; Thanks to our Lord for the music, leading and preaching of the Word which we need to help us on our way; Thanks for being able to be a part of the family of Christ which extends beyond our borders; Thanks for the young people who are being raised up through faithful family and church life and pray for them to continue to grow to full-orbed faith and service in Christs kingdom; The gatherings for corporate worship to be up-building for believers and attractive and accessible for newcomers; Training of erik as an elder/pastor/undershepherd/bishop/overseer/minister of this branch of Christs church; Our governments at all levels in our world; For efforts to witness and evangelize unbelievers to be successful; For Phil, Cathy and Joshua to be kept safe and encouraged to continue ministering the love and grace of god in a town that is increasingly troubled by social problems; For Phil, Cathy and Joshua to be able to take holidays when they need; For Mustard seed Orphanage; For local chaplains in schools; For Christians with families who could be nominated for office of elder and deacon to join our fellowship; For everyone to continue to be faithful in the little things of the faith; For an efficient and financially effective subdivision of our land; and That our Lord may be glorified in all our lives!
KingslEy
hIghLIghTs: at Kingsley Presbyterian Church we continue to praise god for his kindness. In accordance with our vision-setting exercise, we have identified training as a key feature of our Church life. Our goal is to equip all gods people to do the work of pastoral ministry by teaching the Bible to each other and to
28
the lost. In this regard we have many folk in formal training structures. so, we have about 13 men who are training to be deacons. We read Kellers Ministries of Mercy together as well as do some exposition of Bible passages. We then discuss how we can serve gods people in practical ways. Our elders continue to equip ourselves to read the Bible with others. a ladies group of about 13 ladies meet every second Monday studying the book of Luke with the purpose of reading this wonderful gospel with others. about 14 men meet at our Bible Ministry Training to study the book of Romans and teach it in the various growth groups. In all, we have between 35 and 40 people in some form of formal bible ministry training - for which we are so very grateful to god. Other than that, god continues to bless our sunday meetings. We are still experiencing steady growth and on sunday we can sometimes expect up to 200 adults with up to 60 children on top of that. This is a cause for concern regarding our modest venue and we are praying and thinking about what to do. 23 people have just completed a membership course called Joining In. We look forward to welcoming them into membership. new ministries are still being initiated by gods people and in this we rejoice. a brand new youth ministry kicks off this sunday and we are committed to praying for it to be another mechanism for Christ to be preached. Our Missions committee has been renovated and our support for missions has doubled. We were greatly encouraged in the fact that we sent out our first missionary family - the stapletons - to work amongst aIDs orphans in south africa. Our Church plant is a source of joy. a core group is forming who are dedicated to the concepts of gospel, Community and Mission. We have a steady number of visitors. We meet on Thursday nights for our Knowing god program where we have been studying the book of acts. But above all else, we rejoice over new conversions. as best as we can tell, we think there are at least 3 people this year who are becoming followers of Jesus Christ for the first time. (There are others who are being engaged and challenged but there are the
first signs of new life in these 3 folk). For us, this is the bottom line. This makes it all worthwhile and nothing causes us to rejoice more than this. Praise god!
maida ValE
Maida Vale has experienced a stabilizing year this year. numbers have remained constant with families leaving and other families attending the church. The cell groups have had some movement with new groups starting and settling in. The mix of the groups is still changing with more husbands & wives now attending groups together. The ladies groups are still attracting a good number of the women and have had an exciting year of Bible study and fellowship. The ladies have again held two outreach evenings that have been well attended and provided good speakers that have appealed to visitors from outside the church. a focus on the teaching of gods word and encouraging the congregation to grow in gods word, enjoy the fellowship of believers and serve god as they are able is the focus of all our group ministries. Youth ministries have also changed. The 18+ group is not functioning and the Discoverers young teens group that had not been operating last year has recommenced with new leadership coming forward. The KICK older teens has continued. This is an exciting thing for the youth and the church Mens breakfasts have been re established on a regular 2 monthly basis. These breakfasts have had a focus on reaching men from outside the church. We were able to actively be involved with an outreach tent at the Kalamunda show this year. The Jesus Tent operated by a group People who Promote Jesus gave us the opportunity to speak with people and promote our own church. We have supported this event for 2 years now.
unity in the session. session is so thankful to god that everyone who attends is serving the church in some way. The session and other leaders in the church are amazed at the great generosity of the small church, especially as many in our church are pensioners. ChURCh MInIsTRY missioNs: We are very excited to have our own mission which we currently fully support financially for 2011. We have called it Prison Break. We are seeking to break people out of prison: to have an influence to stop people re-offending and reach out to them with the gospel. Tony Walker heads this up as a trainee Prison Chaplain and we are excited especially in the future to work with Tony as a congregation. We also continually support prayerfully and financially the orphans in Myanmar, MERF, Phil and Cathy in alice springs and OMF. suNdays: We worship at 10am. nathan preaches twice a month and Steve and Clem fill in on other sundays. home group: We have a weekly home group where people can come and sit around the word and fellowship together. We have studied the book of Job. We are currently looking at the Beatitudes. meNs breakfast: Our men get together about every six weeks. We meet to build one another up. We deal in particular with mens issues. For example we have dealt with headship in the home, sexual sins men struggle with, and addiction. It is wonderful to have seen men open up about really private issues and to be able to encourage them in it. Most of the men in the church attend and it is great to have non Christians come to this as well. ladies bible study: The ladies in the church meet once a fortnight. as with the mens group, most of the women in the church attend. It is a forum where women can openly discuss issues of the Bible as relating to their everyday lives. There is also terrific fellowship to be had for all who attend. U
mandurah
It has been a challenging year for Mandurah. We have lost families (members and adherents) mainly due to relocation. We praise god for more people willing to serve in the church. There remains a good spirit of
29
Contacts
Westminster Presbyterian Church

AuSTrAliAN CAPiTAl TerriTOry
belCONNeN WPC Meets: 61 Templeton Street, (cnr rowan St.) COOK, ACT 2614 Time: 9.30am and 6.30pm (every Sunday) Address: 61 Templeton Street, COOK, ACT 2614 Office Ph: (02) 6251 7727 Fax: (02) 6251 7737 email: pastor@wpc-belconnen.org.au Contact: revd geoff Findlay Telephone: (02) 6259 7707 (a/h) Website: Postal: Contact: email: http://www.metrowest.cc 2/101 Harts rd, iNdOOrOOPiLLY, QLd 4068 revd ian Spence spence01@optusnet.com.au
grACe ChriSTiAN ChurCh (redbANk WPC)
NeW SOuTh WAleS
Meets: School road, redBANK PLAiNS Time: 9.30am Nathan Campus Postal: P.O. Box 347, gOOdNA, QLd 4300 Contact: revd david Smith Telephone: (07) 3495 7051 email: david@gracecc.com.au PreSbyTery OF QueeNSlANd Moderator: John Hamilton Clerk: ian Spence Postal: 2/101 Harts road, iNdOOrOOPiLLY, QLd 4068 Telephone: (07) 3371 2512 email: john.h@bigpond.net.au
WeSTMiNSTer TheOlOgiCAl COllege QueeNSlANd
S.e. AuSTrAliA PreSbyTery Moderator: revd geoff Findlay email: geoff@wpc-belconnen.org.au Clerk: elder Perry Blackmore email: Perry.Blackmore@optusnet.com.au
QueeNSlANd
ChriSTiAN COMMuNiTy ChurCh PACiFiC PArAdiSe Meets: Menzies Drive Pacific Paradise State School, SuNSHiNe COAST QLd. Time: 9.30am Postal: 119 glenview rd, gLeNvieW QLd 4553 Contact: revd dan Bosshard Mob: 0439 708 092 email: danbosshard@bigpond.com grACe ChriSTiAN ChurCh (buderiM WPC) Meets: Corner of Stringybark rd and Toral dr, Sippy downs, SuNSHiNe COAST Times: 7.45am, 9.30am and 6.00pm Chinese Church (Mandarin language) meets at 1pm. english Hour (free english classes) at 4pm. Postal: PO Box 346, BuderiM, QLd 4556 Telephone: (07) 5445 8933 Contact: revd Bob Burnett (07) 5442 1783 email: gracechurch@westnet.com.au Web Site: www.gracechurchbuderim.com.au
MeTrOWeST COMMuNiTy ChurCh (MT OMMANey WPC)
revd Terry Clarke 10 Hollings Close, KurABY, QueeNSLANd 4112 Postal: PO Box 346, BuderiM, QLd 4556 Telephone: (07) 5445 8501 email: information@wtc.qld.edu.au Web: www.wtc.qld.edu.au
Principal:
WeSTerN AuSTrAliA
Meets:
All NATiONS PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh
The Beaufort Centre, 74-82 Beaufort Street (2nd Floor), PerTH. Time: 10.00am Email: churchoffice@allnations.org.au Web site: www.allnations.org.au Telephone: (08) 9228 4951 Fax (08) 9228 4956 Postal: PO Box 8693, Perth BC WA 6849 Contact: revd Simon van Bruchem email: simon_vb@optusnet.com.au
brOOkTON (CAlvAry PreSbyTeriAN)
Meets: Times:
Mt Ommaney Special School, 94 Capitol drive, MT OMMANeY 9:30am & 5pm
Meets: Time: Postal: Contact: email:
richardson St., BrOOKTON 10.30am. PO Box 99, BrOOKTON, WA 6306 revd Clem White (08) 9535 3301 candpwhite@bigpond.com Or elder Arthur Slater (08) 9642 1231
30
bull Creek WPC
Meets: Times: Postal:
32 Bull Creek drive, BuLL CreeK 9.30am, 6.30pm. 32 Bull Creek drive, BuLL CreeK, WA 6149 email: wpcbc@iinet.net.au Telephone: (08) 9332 6300 Fax: (08) 9332 1991 Contact: revd Steve Schoof (08) 9310 3357 email: standbe@bigpond.com Contact: revd Mark vivian (08) 9455 3919 email: pastormark@iinet.net.au Contact: revd Craig Newill (08) 6161 0525 email: craignewill@gmail.com Website: www.wpc.net bull Creek WPC indonesian Services Time: 9.30am Meets: 190 Bateman road, BreNTWOOd Time: 4.00pm Meets: 32 Bull Creek drive, BuLL CreeK, WA 6149 revd Paulus Surya (08) 9414 5872 CANNiNg vAle COMMuNiTy ChurCh (CANNiNg vAle WPC) Meets: Canning vale Community Centre, Cnr Waratah Blvd. and eucalyptus Blvd., CANNiNg vALe Time: 10.30am Postal: PO Box 5153, CANNiNg vALe SOuTH, WA 6155 Telephone: (08) 9256 4776 Contact: revd Alex Nathan email: alexandernathan@iinet.net.au
kelMSCOTT WPC
MAidA vAle WPC

Meets: Times: Postal:
4 Old Maida vale rd, MAidA vALe 10.00am and 6.00pm 4 Old Maida vale rd, MAidA vALe, WA 6057 Telephone: (08) 9454 7401 Fax: (08) 9454 4307 Contact: revd roger Palmer Email: wpcmv@myoffice.net.au MANdurAh WPC Meets: Time: Postal: interim Moderator: Contact: Telephone: email: Meets: Times: Postal: The Nellie reagan Hall, Peel St, MANdurAH 10.00am PO Box 2147 d.C., MANdurAH, WA 6210
revd Steve Schoof elder Nathan Woonings (08) 9586 1910 nw_wpcm@iprimus.com.au Murdoch university 10.00am; 5.00pm 9 Johansen Promenade MurdOCH WA 6150 revd Matthew Waldron 0419 140 404 mattwaldron@bigpond.com
MurdOCh Three CrOSSeS ChurCh
Contact: Mob: email:
PreSbyTery OF WeSTerN AuSTrAliA
Meets:
Lot 60 Centre rd, (Cnr railway Ave) KeLMSCOTT, WA 6111 Times: Prayer 9.15am. Service 10.00am Postal: PO Box 305 THOrNLie WA 6988 Telephone: (08) 9398 7200 Contact: revd Anton Noppers (08) 9498 3306 email: wpck@iinet.net.au
kiNgSley PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh
Moderator: revd Simon van Bruchem email: simon_bc@optusnet.com.au Telephone: (08) 9228 4951 Work: (08) 9457 0107 Home Clerk: elder Steve Heathcote Postal: 21 Carcoo Court BeCKeNHAM 6107 email: sheathcote@downings.com.au Telephone: (08) 9479 1508 SyNOd OF WeSTMiNSTer PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh Simon van Bruchem Mark vivian pastormark@iinet.au elder dirk Soet (08) 9444 7506
Meets: Time: Postal:
15 Moolanda Bvde, KiNgSLeY 9.30am 15 Moolanda Bvde, KiNgSLeY, WA 6026 Telephone: (08) 9309 4043 Session Clerk: elder Tony veale (08) 9448 6542 email: contact@kingsleychurch.org.au
Moderator: Clerk: email: Treasurer: Telephone:
Continued on page 13
31
Westminster Presbyterian Church Presbytery of Western australia
29 September - 1 October 2011
18th Synod
the presbytery of Western australia invites you to this important time of fellowship in the Gospel, reviewing our past actions and planning for future ministry to extend Gods kingdom in this region of the world. the WpCs 18th synod 2011 will start 9:00 am on thursday 29 september and officially run until 2:30 pm on saturday 1 october. We encourage interstate visitors to arrive in perth by Wednesday 28 september. transportation to and from the airport can be easily arranged; just let Maureen know your arrival time and flight number. For those who can attend, WpC Bull Creek will also host a combined service of worship at WpC Bull Creek on sunday 2nd october at 9.30 am, followed by a time of fellowship over lunch for those delegates who can stay. We are praying and working now to enable this to be a fruitful assembly.
All Are welcome! We welcome delegates, endorsed by their respective presbyteries, to attend and participate on the floor of synod. We also welcome WpC members, adherents and visitors to attend the synod. take advantage of this opportunity to meet the delegates and to observe this national assembly of elders. your presence will encourage the delegates as they participate in this important forum of our church. our meeting venue is superb! all nations presbyterian Church second Floor the Beaufort Centre 74-82 Beaufort street perth Wa 6000 (opposite the Wa Museum) Lunch, morning and afternoon tea will be provided at anpC each day. Dinner will be provided thursday and Friday; saturdays dinner will be arranged for those delegates who are staying until sunday. synod registration fee: $40.00 Day visitors: $15.00 per day or $10.00 per meal our AccommodAtion is excellent! all seasons perth - acacia Hotel 15 robinson avenue perth Wa 6000 (600m north of anpC) aaa rating: Four stars www.acaciahotel.com.au accommodation Costs: Double room: $199.00 per room per night* (Queen bed) twin room: $199.00 per room per night* (twin single beds) single room: $169.00 per room per night* * all room costs include continental buffet breakfast rooms with facilities for the disabled are available at the acacia Hotel. T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011 32 wA churches! We hope that Wa commissioners will stay at the all seasons Hotel to facilitate fellowship with our interstate brethren. sociAl progrAm! there are plenty of things to see and do in perth. anpC is located in the heart of perth and the all seasons acacia Hotel is within easy walking distance of the northbridge cappuccino strip and the perth CBD. Bus travel in the inner city is fee of charge. yes, you do get something for nothing in perth! We will organize a program for wives who attend with their husbands. pleAse register eArly! Details on who is attending are extremely important to us; we need to know as soon as possible. We have limited rooms available until 1st september; we then have only those rooms that are booked and deposit paid. this is the tourist season and the hotel is likely to fill up. please book early. you can cancel before 1st september but cancellations after this date will attract a $100.00 cancellation fee. accommodation bookings after the 1st september will be difficult to make. bookings And enquires: Maureen southgate all nations presbyterian Church po Box 8693 perth BC Wa 6849 email: churchoffice@allnations.org.au phone: (08) 9228 4951 (thursday or Friday) Fax: (08) 9228 4956 pLease Book your aCCoMMoDation WitH Maureen soutHGate By MonDay 1 auGust 2011.
in tHe Masters serviCe, Mark vivian synoD CLerk
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Messenger: Published by Westminster Presbyterian Church - Volume 150 Winter Edition 2011

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P u b l i s h e d b y We s t m i n s t e r P r e s b y t e r i a n C h u r c h | Vo l u m e 1 5 0 W i n t e r E d i t i o n 2 0 1 1

Vo l u m e 1 5 0 W i n t e r E d i t i o n 2 0 1 1 Features Missions Family Page Church News

4-13 14-23 24-25 26

contributions, letters, etc.

DeADlines for eAch issue

the messenger committee

Please noTe: all subscriPTions due in advance.

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

Creation: gods universe

a gatEKEEPEr in thE housE of thE lord

CathErinE Parr in thE shadoW of dEath

Knowledge and Piety

Visit to Pakistan april 8th to 11th 2011

Grace Presbyterian College - first floor

Shahdra congregation - men and women sit on opposite sides

What Can WE do for JaPan?

himalayan Vision trip anyone?

to our Praying team,

Prayer For Today

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

Reasons wHY You need Jesus

WeSTMINSTer ShorTer CaTeChISM

Extracts from reports to Presbytery from Western australian WPC Congregations

Westminster Presbyterian Church

grACe ChriSTiAN ChurCh (redbANk WPC)

NeW SOuTh WAleS

All NATiONS PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh

Mt Ommaney Special School, 94 Capitol drive, MT OMMANeY 9:30am & 5pm

Meets: Time: Postal: Contact: email:

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

bull Creek WPC

Meets: Times: Postal:

MAidA vAle WPC

MurdOCh Three CrOSSeS ChurCh

Contact: Mob: email:

PreSbyTery OF WeSTerN AuSTrAliA

Meets: Time: Postal:

Moderator: Clerk: email: Treasurer: Telephone:

Westminster Presbyterian Church Presbytery of Western australia

29 September - 1 October 2011

in tHe Masters serviCe, Mark vivian synoD CLerk

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