願 父 神 所 賜 的 恩 惠 和 平 安 與 你 們 同 在
Grace and peace to you from God
St Johns Halcombe to Close
Dear members of the Lutheran Church of New Zealand (LCNZ) and friends, in recent weeks I have been meeting with members of the small congregation of St Johns Halcombe to discuss their future.
In recent years numbers have declined steadily. The congregation numbers about 7 and so while this was a sad decision to make, we believe it is a wise decision.
I recently wrote the following to the members of the Council of Synod -
While this is quite a sad announcement to make to you, I believe that God has good and new things in store for us in the LCNZ … good and new things that even come out of a dying and closure such as St Johns. I am incredibly grateful to our Lord for the way he opened the hearts of these people to be open to change, closure … and open and welcoming towards me, as I broached the subject with them. The members of this small congregation have displayed amazing grace during these weeks of conversation; thank God for that.Judy Calder, chair of the Council of Synod writes the following -
St Johns Halcombe was for a very long period a central place in the Lutheran Church. Historically it has been very important and it has contributed well to the church.The date for the Closing Service has been set for Sunday 2nd June 2013. We have already formed a small organising committee to prepare for this day of thanksgiving to God, and we will inform you of details in connection with this service as plans and decisions are made.
Our plan will be to acknowledge how God has blessed many people through the ministry of St Johns over the years - the members of St Johs, the community of Halcombe, and the wider Lutheran Church.
Our God is a God of seasons - seasons that include life and death. i encourage us all not to consider the closing of St Johns so much as a death as much as it is a celebration of the life of grace that God has brought to bear on and through this congregation.
I was sent these words in an article to read -
The gospel of John describes a sad scene of scared, grief-stricken, and disappointed disciples. A few days after the resurrection, these disciples are hiding out in a house behind locked doors. Jesus appears among them anyway on that first Easter evening, and his first words to them are, "Peace. At ease. Just breathe. Receive the Holy Spirit."
When it is closing time in any congregation, inevitably there is grief about what comes to an end—with disappointments and with uncertainties about what will happen next. And yet these are precisely the conditions that Jesus entered into on that first Easter evening.
If what happened then still happens now, a congregation’s closing strains our Easter credulity that it is actually an ending at all. Disciples that linger long enough in the dark with God eventually come to find the end to be but a beginning. And that being in the darkness with God sheds a whole new light on things. The body of Christ is truly ever dying and rising again.Meetings
The season of meetings for 2013 has already begun. The Lutheran Support Ministries (LSM) and the Finance Advisory Council (FAC) have already met. I attended a Mission Directors meeting in Melbourne last week. This coming week I will be attending College of Presidents and one day of the General Church Council (GCC) as well as a whole host of other meetings sandwiched in-between. The LLL Board meet at Botany on the 16th February and COS and the Gateway Gift Trust Baord will meet on the 1st and 2nd March.
Please pray for those involved in serving on committees and boards and councils.
Next Issue of the Olive Tree
Just a reminder about the first edition of the Olive Tree for 2013. The theme is Discipleship and how we are reaching out to others around us. The text is Matthew 4:18-20 ... As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him.
Please send your stories and articles to Dan by the 15th of February.
Upper Moutere Fire
Some of you may have heard that fire destroyed part of the Moutere Hills Community Centre and Upper Moutere on the 21st January. More information is available at these websites -
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/news/8206697/Fire-crews-rush-to-battle-Moutere-blaze
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/news/8212986/Moutere-community-undaunted-by-blaze
http://nelsonweekly.co.nz/fire-guts-moutere-community-centre/
eNews ... President's Page / LCNZ Updates
Please encourage others to sign up for the regular updates on news around the LCNZ and beyond. It's as simple as going to http://www.enews.lca.org.au and following the instructions.
Mā te Atua koe e tiaki; God be with you …
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