Emag #2 2018 final

#2 2018

EMAG

quarterly publication for acc leaders

NEW WINESKINS CHURCH ATTENDANCE

GENDER ISSUES

INDIGENOUS VOICES

NEW INITIATIVES

CHURCH OF THE FUTURE TAKING CHURCH TO THE COMMUNITY

YOUTH CHALLENGES & OPPORTUNITIES

COMBATTING ORPHANAGE TOURISM

WOMEN’S MINISTRY

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Cover: iStockphoto

CHURCH OF THE FUTURE This edition of ACC EMAG takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities of a changing society and innovative ideas for the Church of the future.

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NEWS News snapshots from across the ACC movement.

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HAY RUN BRINGS HOPE In the midst of severe drought,. David and Kerry Jackson are helping struggling farmers in NSW.

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YARRABAH BUILDING VISION Paul and Natasha Munn decided to step out in faith and self-fund their new building.

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CHURCH OF THE FUTURE NEW WINESKINS In the midst of a changing society, Wayne Alcorn looks at the need for innovative ways for the Church of the future.

CHURCH ATTENDANCE NCLS data reveals highly educated church attenders on the rise.

IWWIWWIWI ‘Hello Gen Z’ author Claire Madden looks at the trends influencing casual church attendance.

GENDER ISSUES: FOUR GIFTS FOR JASON James Macpherson shares his encounter with a transgender visitor to his church.

YOUTH MINISTRY: Amelia Dingle examines the challenges and opportunities of youth ministry today, with insights from Youth Alive State directors.

WOMEN’S MINISTRY: A Q&A with Kylie Di Mauro looks at going beyond Bible studies and morning tea for women’s ministries.

TAKING CHURCH TO THE COMMUNITY Paul Bartlett examines the problems faced and fresh ideas to build a sense of community in the Church.

THE 75% PLAN Ralph Estherby shares on preparing your church for the unthinkable.

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INDIGENOUS VOICES Q&A with ACC’s young Indigenous leaders on their Christian faith and Indigenous heritage.

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COMBATTING ORPHANAGE TRAFFICKING Q&A with Rebecca Nhep on child exploitation and preventing orphanage trafficking.

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WHAT WILL THE CHURCH OF THE FUTURE LOOK LIKE? Alphacrucis Professor Mark Hutchinson gives a historian’s perspective on the future Church.

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NEW RELEASES New books by Christine Caine, Craig Johnson and Alex Seeley.

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New music releases by Planetshakers, Intensifire and Hillsong’s Y+F, and new DVDs.

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NEWS

SNAPSHOTS FROM ACROSS THE ACC MOVEMENT

PENTECOST SUNDAY

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acckids Kidshaper National Tour Day 2 in South Australia – @jamesmacpherson honouring all those

standing who serve in Kids Ministry and don’t get paid at all (95% of the room). Thank you for all you do!! #kidshaper #kidshapertour #kidmin

SAFER CHURCHES

AGM in Melbourne with presentation by @stephencrouch on behalf of ACS Financial board.

ACC SUPPORTS NATIONAL REDRESS SCHEME

ADORE

adoreconference ADORE 2018, you were powerful & altogether beautiful. Sow & See; See & Sow. “Do not allow the wait to tell you the harvest is not coming. The harvest is coming.” – Ps @georgiebaxter

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The Australian Christian Churches (ACC) announced its intent to opt into the National Redress Scheme for survivors of institutional child sexual abuse.

We already have a well established single legal entity that has been working with the National Redress Scheme as part of the consultation process to date, and will continue to work with the scheme with the objective of entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enable all our churches, schools and ministries to opt in via this entity.

The National Redress Scheme started on 1 July 2018 and provides support for people who were sexually abused as children while in the care of an institution.

We encourage anyone who has experienced child sexual abuse in an institution to contact the National Redress Information Line – 1800 146 713.

OUTBACK OUTREACH

HAY RUN BRINGS HOPE In the midst of drought-stricken New South Wales, struggling farmers are experiencing the love of God through a generous initiative launched in faith by ACC pastors David and Kerry Jackson. “

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e’ve been involved with the Hay Drive since we started in 2014,” says David. “Up north, where we deliver the hay, they have had five years of severe drought. In that time, we have probably delivered twenty road trains up to the drought area, bringing $250,000 worth of hay, and at least another $150,000 of non-perishable food.”

only connection with God they have. Initially, we didn’t tell them who we were, but we now have access into 120-130 farmers in the area,” shares David. “They phone us every six to eight weeks and tell us how they are going, if they are sick and if they need prayer.”

David loves the work the Lord has called him to do amongst those in rural Australia. Born and bred in Gilgandra, he was involved with the local AOG church after he gave his life to Christ in a tent meeting at the age of eight. “I grew up wanting to be a dry land farmer like my dad,” says David, “but when I was 17, I felt the strong call of God on my life.”

These generous and spontaneous gifts in times of great need have brought hope to farmers who have been doing it tough in remote areas.

“We have seen the whole gamut of emotions when we deliver the hay,” said David who runs the non-for-profit ministry, Westernair. “There’s been laughing, crying or complete loss of words, as they try to show how grateful they are. When they ask us, ‘Why do you do this?’, we tell them we want to show them the love of God. We have seen how this has melted many a 70-year-old hardened farmer’s heart.”

David was a qualified pilot by the age of 19 and thought that serving with Mission Aviation Fellowship would be the obvious fulfilment of his call. It was the prophetic word of a visiting Dutch preacher who confirmed that his call was to outback Australia and “I was quite happy with that,” declares David. “I love the people of the country!”

This unique outreach has brought God to the door of those who often live far removed from local churches in urban towns, and it’s made a great impact. “They usually say, ‘Why are Christians doing this when the government does nothing to help us?’” says David. “When we give a bale of hay or a drink of water to those in need, we do it in His name.”

He went to Bible College in Brisbane in 1969 and married his childhood sweetheart, Kerry, two years later. Those early years of ministry were full of adventure – travelling with mission outreaches and pioneering churches, until they found themselves back in Gilgandra while David recovered from Ross River fever.

Those isolated farmers have become like an extended congregation of David and his family.

As Assistant District leader for the ACC’s western region of NSW, David travels extensively around the area.

“To them, we represent the Kingdom of God and we are the

“It was during a routine visit in 2014 that we noticed how dry

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‘WHEN WE GIVE A BALE OF HAY OR A DRINK OF WATER TO THOSE IN NEED, WE DO IT IN HIS NAME.’

Pastor David & Kerry Jackson

the country was becoming, so we called in on some farmers,” he explains. “We started hearing stories how they were doing it tough with no rain and no support. After a week on the road, we came home and said, “We have to do something to help them.”

– DAVID JACKSON

The Hay Run started with that desire to make a difference. “We had a truck and a trailer, and raised a bit of finance, and started looking for hay to purchase,” explains David. “We initially thought if we could get six loads of hay up to the farmers, we’d be happy. But God has kept on providing. It has exceeded all our expectations – we never thought it would end up like this.”

The challenge remains as David reveals how the price of hay has tripled in price in the last six months, yet they are committed to keep trying to raise the funds. They have also started to see the ravages of heartbroken landowners as banks start to foreclose on properties and farmers who have lost hope and taken their lives.

“We have to get up there and let them know that God loves them,” says David. “Just to know that someone cares, brings tears to their eyes. Even though it can be heartbreaking, it’s a privilege to be an answer, to be part of these people’s lives.

For more information or to support David & Kerry Jackson’s ministry, visit Western Air Ministries on Facebook (www.facebook. com/westernairministries/ ) or email: westernair@bigpond.com

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PH: 1800 646 777

Trying to get a loan for your church?

Securing a loan for your church can be as challenging as trying to get a camel to go through the eye of a needle.

The process is inherently complicated - AND most camels just don’t fit.

Fit through the eye of a WHAT?

The challenges around securing a loan for YOUR Church: Your Church “Just Doesn’t Fit”

Misinformation

The biggest challenge Churches face is being a Church and “not fitting” the standard lending model.

Some banks won’t even consider an application from a Church or Not-For-Profit.

Many Churches have been fed misinformation resulting in them not being able to secure a loan.

We’ve even heard banks talk about 50% LVR’s which in many circumstances is just not true.

Lack Of Knowledge Around Church

“Rip Off” Fees

The banking sector often does not understand the Church and NFP market. Many don’t even know how to review a Church or NFP.

Of the few Churches who have been able to convince a bank or lender to accept their application, many are being charged extremely high fees/rates/charges that are unnecessary.

Complex Structures Churches are sometimes known for having complex structures which makes securing a loan very difficult. The application process is often lengthy and hindered negative bankers and lenders.

ACS LENDING has strong relationships with all major lenders & have our own ACCumulator funds to lend from. We understand church and are aligned with you & your vision.

Need Help Securing A Loan For Your Church?

Call 1800 646 777 for more information on how you can go about securing a loan for YOUR Church! Our friendly lending team have extensive experience & expertise & are ready to help you achieve your visions & accomplish your mission - growing God’s kingdom one person at a time.

Visit: www.acsfinancial.com.au/lending-for-churches-schools for more info.

8 ABN 91 460 778 961 | AFSL 247388 | ACL 247 388

BUILDING CHURCHES Natasha and Paul Munn of New Life Church, Yarrabah

YARRABAH BUILDING VISION

PAUL & NATASHA DECIDED TO STEP OUT IN FAITH AND SELF-FUND A PURPOSE BUILT CHURCH

QLD – New Life Church in Yarrabah started their vision for a new church building with just $30 in their account in July 2016. Two years on, they are believing to finish their facilities by the end of the year.

Pastor Paul Munn and his wife Natasha started the initial outreach to Yarrabah from what was Living Waters Church in Cairns in 2000. A 50 minute drive south of Cairns, Yarrabah is the largest Aboriginal community in Australia with an estimated population of 3,000 managed by the Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire Council.

“We have been blessed with the contributions of some local businesses, such as Bakers Certifiers, Yarrabah Council, NQ Sheds, Stick lizard Transport Company and Babinda Electrics,” said Paul. “We would like to finish the job and move in by the end of the year.”

Paul grew up in the community and changed the course of a life of drugs and crime when he made a decision for Christ. Both he and Natasha work in the community and have a vision to build a strong church there.

He believes this is possible.“Mission Aide are also going to assist with bringing a team of labourers to Yarrabah as soon as we can obtain more funds to buy the materials to complete the job.”

In July 2016, they relaunched the church as its own entity and decided to step out in faith and self-fund a purpose built church.

“After renting community facilities for many years, we finally secured a sub-lease on a piece of land in the community to build our own church,” said Paul. “Today we have a congregation of approximately 50 which now meets in the training centre at Yarrabah until the church is built.”

Pastor Gary Swenson is on the New Life church board and has been impressed with their faith and commitment.

“What they have achieved in such a short time with raising the finance and getting their building project to its current stage, is outstanding,” said Gary. “They have a council required time frame within which to complete the building so they need to be able to raise some added finance. If any church is interested in providing support for them, they can contact me via email: gswenson@optusnet.com.au .”

The church has self-funded the building project, which has cost over $150,000 to date. It is now half way to completion, and still needs the plumbing, lining (gyprock), electrical work and flooring installed at an estimated cost of $100,000.

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Creative thinking

CHURCH OF THE FUTURE New ideas

Innovation

Generations

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iStock photo

CHURCH OF THE FUTURE

NEW WINESKINS

BY WAYNE ALCORN

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If we look at the ABS Census figures over recent years, there is evidence of a decline in Christianity in our nation. In 2006, 64% of Australians identified themselves as Christians.

Ten years later, the figures from 2016 reveal only 52% of the population identified as Christians. We cannot close our eyes to the fact that in just a decade, one in ten people have lost faith, specifically in the 25 to 34 age group.

It is vital for us track of what’s happening in our own local churches, and across our movement. What we can learn from our ACC Census data prepares us for the future. Interestingly, while our constituent base is growing, regular Sunday church attendance figures have dropped slightly. The reality is that we may be leading larger churches with people who attend less regularly.

In the midst of a changing society, we know there is more competition for people’s time, especially with Sunday sport and extended trade over weekends. We cannot presume that Sundays belong to the Church anymore, so now is the time to keep finding innovative and practical ways to provide different >> options for people to come to church.

e may live in constantly changing times, yet there are many signs that God’s favour is upon us. Our annual ACC Census report paints a healthy picture of our movement and we are reaching more people than ever before.

Back in 2011, we set the goal for ourselves to ‘double in a decade’ and as a movement, we have grown by 150,000 constituents over the past seven years. On the face of it, these stats defy the reports that the Church is declining. God has been so good to us as we have consistently had an average growth of 7.1% every year since then.

The ACC Census also reveals there are more salvations (over 51,000 were recorded last year); over 40 churches were planted in the last 12 months, and almost 90% of local churches conducted outreach activities in the past year.

As we celebrate our strengths, we cannot become comfortable and ignore the signs of the challenges that face every church in the future. It very easy to live in our bubble of blessing, when on the outside, society is changing at a rapid rate. The shifts in ideology, political opinions and community attitudes are increasing, and as our nation slides into a state of spiritual decline, we need to keep the mission of the Church in focus.

I always remember the words of a mentor who told me, “Get the stats or the stats will get you.” It is not so much about being pre-occupied by numbers but more about discerning the signs of the times.

NOW IS THE TIME TO KEEP FINDING INNOVATIVE AND PRACTICAL WAYS TO PROVIDE DIFFERENT OPTIONS FOR PEOPLE TO COME TO CHURCH. 11

WE HAVE TO BECOME SMARTER IN HOW WE REACH YOUNGER GENERATIONS FOR JESUS AND WE NEED INNOVATIVE IDEAS TO DRAW PEOPLE TO OUR SERVICES.

5 STRENGTHS FOR THE FUTURE 1. Be Holy Ghost People “ But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit” (Jude: 20) In the midst of the turbulent times, pray in the Holy Spirit, as this is the key to breakthrough. It is where we gain understanding and find answers to things we can’t understand.

– WAYNE ALCORN

Our biggest challenge is knowing how we respond to a changing world. Jesus reminded us in Mark 2:22 that new wine requires new wineskins. We cannot hold on to old methods and expect the same results. He called us to be ‘fishers of men’ and maybe it’s necessary for us to go where we haven’t gone before, and consider throwing our nets into deeper waters.

Instead of enjoying the comfort of being a big fish in a small pond, perhaps we need to start swimming in a bigger lake?

There is a great harvest out there, and we need to prepare for the challenges ahead. We have to become smarter in how we reach younger generations for Jesus, and we need innovative ideas to draw people to our services. Instead of expecting them to come to us, perhaps we need to find new ways to go to them.

I am constantly inspired by stories of leaders in our movement who keep pushing the boundaries and exploring innovative ideas to reach people for Jesus. Let’s keep learning from each other and discovering new pathways to bring light into the darkness.

At the end of last year, I felt a heaviness in my spirit about the state of our nation. I found myself reading the book of Jude, who shared some of the serious problems in society in those days; many of which we can identify with today. What I love is that Jude didn’t stay focused on the problems, but he began to give encouragement and build faith and hope for the future.

2. Stay in love with the Father “Keep yourselves in God’s love” (Jude 21) We can easily find ourselves drifting from where we should be because of familiarity or disappointment. The antidote is to stay in love with the Father.

3. Stay on Mission “…as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt; save others by snatching them from the fire;” (Jude 21-23) Our salvation is not about an abundant lifestyle for ourselves, but the ultimate mission is the salvation of others. Let the love and mercy of God keep us passionate for those who are lost.

4. God’s got this!

“To him who is able to keep you from stumbling…” (Jude 24) As our churches and ministries get bigger, we will face bigger challenges, yet let’s always remember to keep our confidence in Him; He is able to keep us on course.

5. Live a life of praise “…to the only God our Saviour be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” (Jude 25) What you behold is what you become. Don’t look to someone else to the worship leader of your church – you lead the worship and your focus on Him, to bring Him praise and honour. If we look to Him, He lifts us up.

Here are five thoughts from Jude that will keep us strong in the midst of changing times:

Wayne Alcorn is the ACC National President. He pastors the multicampus Hope Centre in Brisbane together with his wife, Lyn.

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CHURCH ATTENDANCE

HIGHLY EDUCATED CHURCH ATTENDERS ON THE RISE The National Church Life Survey reveals that there has been a strong increase in the proportion of churchgoers with a university degree and a strong decline in those with only a school-level education, in the ten years between 2006 and 2016.

The result is a more highly educated churchgoing population. Young attenders are the most highly educated yet.

In 2006, half of church attenders had school as their highest level of formal education. In 2016 this proportion had dropped to 38%, a decline of 12 percentage points.

Alongside this, there has been a rise in churchgoers with university degrees from 27% in 2006, to 33% in 2011 and 37% in 2016, an increase of 10 percentage points in ten years. The shift is due to generational changes in education, with more recent generations in Australian society more highly educated than those before them.

Overall across Australia’s churches, with about four in ten attenders university qualified and the same number having a school-level education, a dichotomy may also exist between the two groups. The implications for highly educated younger ministry staff is to meaningfully communicate with the full educational spectrum represented in their church.

With Pentecostal churches having a more even spread of levels of education among their members, church leaders will still need to remain aware of the needs of less educated attenders as well as the emerging highly educated ones.

Photo: Carla Dibbs (AC Graduation)

FAST FACTS: 37% of all attenders in 2016 have a university degree, up from 33% in 2011 and 27% in 2006. This is an increase of 10 percentage points in ten years.

25% have a trade certificate, diploma or associate diploma; fairly constant since 2006.

38% have primary or secondary school education. This is down from 42% in 2011 and 50 per cent in 2006; a drop of 12 percentage points in ten years.

EMPLOYMENT CHANGES THINGS – LESS TIME FOR CHURCH available for church activities as time-pressured people may not have as much time for involvement. This may also encourage churches to consider how they can shape their programs to help working parents spend more time with their families, perhaps through activities that include and allow them to participate together.

Changing work patterns need to be understood by church leaders, in order to wisely steward the gifts of their people and best facilitate their involvement in sustainable ways. Whether retirees, full-time employees, or part-time employees with family/ domestic duties as well, the people in a church are balancing life, work and caregiving in new ways.

There’s been a rise in the number of people in the labour force, including more women in paid employment and people delaying retirement. The result is ‘time strapped’ people with less time for volunteering and participating at church.

The old assumptions about having free time are being challenged by the new trends and raises questions as to how the church can contribute to a work-life balance.

In 2016, around half of Australian church attenders (49%) were employed, another 8% performed full-time home duties/ family responsibilities and 36% were retired.

This all has implications for churches in terms of the hours

Source: NCLS Research.Pepper, M. & Kerr, K.J. (2017/2018). www.ncls. org.au 13

CHURCH ATTENDANCE

IWWIWWIWI AND OTHER TRENDS INFLUENCING CASUAL CHURCH ATTENDANCE

BY CLAIRE MADDEN

iStock photo 14

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The church that Jesus established is inseparable from people meeting together. It involves people living each day in the context of authentic relationships with other people who share the faith, and creates a place where regular participation fosters the facilitation of relationships at a deeper level.

CC is experiencing growth in church constituents, yet church attendance numbers have been somewhat steady, not keeping pace with the growth in constituents. What is shifting in society that may be influencing this more casual approach to attendance?

Whilst our shifting consumer expectations of service delivery that allows ‘experience on demand’ and facilitates the ‘IWWIWWIWI’ lifestyle, along with personalised flexi-working lives may provide somewhat of an explanation to the changing behaviours around church attendance, it does not provide an endorsement of a casual, laissez-faire approach to community. It is descriptive of today’s culture, but it need not be prescriptive of the way the church. Meeting together is an essential part of the Christian faith, and has been since Pentecost. Faith being outworked is inseparable to being a part of community.

We are not the first generation of the church to wrestle with a culture of casual church attendance - Hebrews 10:24-25 speaks directly to this same issue: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (NIV).

Furthermore, with the rise of single person households, increased job and house mobility and changing family structures, the fragmentation of relationships and community is being felt by many. From the worship experience through to the caring conversations that happen in the foyer, the church offers so much of what our increasingly fragmented and hypermobile societies are craving – faith expressed in an authentic, offline, genuine community.

FLEXI-LIFE When we consider the workplace, we see there has been a transformation from the typically structured 9am to 5pm days in the office to a flexible approach of working anywhere, anytime. Our smart devices have facilitated lifestyles of increased convenience, yet have also contributed to a blurring of personal and professional lives: being constantly contactable has created expectations that we can be accessed 24/7, forming a boundaryless world where we have more regular connection but less rigid routines; a world where there is more communication but less consistency; more personalised but less prescribed lifestyles.

Flexi-working has opened up new realities and opportunities for people to re-engage with work which was previously not possible. What has developed alongside this is a shifting expectation that workplaces ought to facilitate my job around what I can do, when I can do it. The worker has become empowered in a new way, and is used to personalised job roles to suit their other life priorities. Flexi-working is certainly advantageous in many ways, but perhaps has shaped an expectation that we can now work on our terms, that is, IWWIWWIWI (I want what I want when I want it!).

EXPERIENCE ON DEMAND Similarly, the way we access services has undergone disruption and consumer expectations have shifted accordingly. Think about the music industry. When the CD was developed it caused significant disruption, wiping out the need for LPs and cassette tapes, and the music industry boomed as a result of this new technology. Yet the CD has been disrupted with music streaming through platforms like Apple Music and Spotify. This has created ‘experience on demand’ where users can stream whatever they want, whenever they want it, no longer needing to go out and purchase a physical product to access new songs.

Similarly, Netflix has disrupted the world of TV, DVDs and movies, allowing users to stream entertainment effortlessly. Users have quickly adopted these new streaming technologies and adapted the new mindsets of instant gratification, endless options and convenient entertainment which requires no advanced planning or effort to access such services.

How can the Church understand and respond to the culture of today, whilst spurring one another on towards love and good deeds and encouraging people to not give up the habit of meeting together?

• Communicate options – from multiple service times (and even days) to connect groups that run at different times of day – create and communicate that there are options for people to get connected • Flexible volunteering – whilst the ideal may be for everyone to be regularly volunteering, creating flexible, project based and short-term volunteer options can create options for the modular nature of some people’s schedules • Foster community – when people experience genuine community where they feel known, they feel like they belong and that people miss them when they don’t come –these life-giving relationships will provide a solace for people that will never be substituted by staying home and tuning into a program or downloading a podcast.

CHURCH AND COMMUNITY Then we come to church attendance: turning up at the same time and same place every week; a community which encourages and operates best with ongoing commitment and participation (which involves being physically present), unlike social media communities which people can opt in and out of as the wind blows. The picture of community painted for the church in passages like Acts 2:42-47 shows how the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, where they were together and shared everything they had; where they met together every day, broke bread together, ate together and enjoyed the favour of God and all the people.

Claire Madden is a social researcher, keynote speaker, media commentator and author of Hello Gen Z: Engaging the Generation of Post-Millennials. www.clairemadden.com

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GENDER ISSUES How does the Church of the future navigate the changing structures of society that include unisex toilets, gender fluidity and the recognition of LGBTI in Commonwealth legislation? JAMES MACPHERSON shares his encounter with a transgender visitor to church, and how it’s possible to bring grace and dignity to every individual.

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A CONVERSATION ABOUT GENDER

FOUR GIFTS FOR JASON

BY JAMES MACPHERSON

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Our service was starting by the time Jay had finished describing his journey and so Jay didn’t get a chance to ask my perspective; if indeed he had wanted it.

Had Jay asked me, I would have explained that I don’t believe a man can become a woman. That would have been the gift of honesty.

I would also have explained that regardless of how Jay identified, if Jay was looking for friends, then Jay would find our church full of people who – whilst not agreeing about gender – would certainly welcome him.

When someone wandered over to meet Jay, I said: “This is Jay. Jay is at our church for the first time and I was just saying to Jay that Jay will find people here are very welcoming.”

It was a clumsy sentence.

It would have been easier to have said: “This is Jay. She is at our church for the first time and I was telling her that she will find people here are very welcoming.” But I didn’t want to use the female pronoun “she” because to do so would have been dishonest – and honesty is one of the greatest gifts you can give a person.

I could have, instead, said: “This is Jay. He is at our church for the first time and I was just telling him that he will find people here are very welcoming.” But I didn’t want to use a male pronoun for a thick-set man wearing a dress and sporting breasts since that would have shamed Jay. So I repeatedly used Jay’s preferred name rather than a pronoun because though I didn’t agree with Jay about gender, I didn’t want to shame Jay. This is called the gift of respect.

Jay continues to attend our church. I’m believing that as we give Jay the gift of attention, trust, honesty and respect, the Holy Spirit will bring him to a point of healing and peace.

ASON* identifies as a woman and was quick to point out how he would like to be addressed: “My name is Jason. But I’d prefer to be called Joanne. Or Jay.” He waited for my response. I held out my hand and said: “Nice to meet you, Jay.” Jay looked relieved. I think Jay was expecting an argument about biology.

Now we could have had that argument, because I don’t for a second believe that Jay is a woman. Jay is a man in a dress.

And I don’t believe surgery or prescribed hormones can turn Jay into a woman; though I’m sure treatment would help Jason pass himself off as “Jay” a little more convincingly!

But all of that was beside the point. Upon meeting Jay, I didn’t initiate a debate about chromosomes. I warmly shook Jay’s hand and, sitting down opposite him, said: “So tell me your story.”

This was my first gift to Jay. It’s called the gift of attention.

I listened intently to Jay’s story. How as a child he had thought of himself as a girl. How he grew up to marry his childhood sweetheart with whom he raised three kids. How in recent times, unhappy with life, he had decided to live as a woman. And how this decision had devastated his family.

Jay told his story with wit and self-deprecation that had me laughing and wincing – sometimes at the same time.

I found myself admiring his courage. Jay is a burly bloke. It can’t be easy to venture to the local shopping-centre in a dress.

I also found myself despairing for Jay. It was clear that, though he claimed to be now living as his “true self ”, he was far from happy.

As I listened to Jay, the thought occurred that he might be laying a trap for me. Perhaps Jay had come to our church specifically to provoke an argument so as to be offended and then slander our church in the media as a bunch of hateful bigots. Was our conversation being recorded?

I ignored those thoughts and decided to assume the best of Jay, taking him at face value. That’s the second gift I gave Jay. The gift of trust.

*Jason/Jay is not his real name. Name has been changed to protect the privacy of the individual involved.

James Macpherson is the Senior Pastor of Calvary Christian Church and member of the ACC National Executive.

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YOUTH MINISTRY

& You

CHALLENGES Talk to any youth leader today, and you will find that reaching and discipling Gen Z presents some different challenges to those faced by youth ministers in previous generations. While there may be challenges, the good news is that there are also exciting new opportunities. AMELIA DINGLE examines the ups and downs of youth ministry today.

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shares that young people are always searching for something because they are missing love. “Not the boyfriend and girlfriend love or love that just takes and doesn’t give back, but genuine love that shows a person that it doesn’t matter who they are or where they grow up - that’s what we’re missing.”

All they want is to belong and feel accepted. Church leaders know that a relationship with God and the church community are the answers that this (and every) generation is searching for – answers that are timeless and don’t change. It may well be that it’s the methods of communication that may need to change.

One may be tempted to think this generation can best be reached online and through social media.

However, these mediums can never replace one-onone discipleship from leaders who are role models and navigate ‘real life’ well.

Since the 1980s, Youth Alive Australia has been resourcing youth ministries and raising new generations of youth leaders to effectively minister to young people. Youth Alive recently launched The Schools Revolution, an initiative designed to empower students to win their friends for Jesus in schools. The website schoolsrevolution.com is an online community and fortnightly live-streams coaching for students.

Youth student, Taylah (b. 2002) shares that one of

he latest ACC Census data reveals over 63% of ACC churches host weekly youth groups, as well as clubs and activities for young adults. Over the years, youth attendance has always shown a steady increase among the 13 to 17-year-old age group, yet for the first time, there is a slight decrease in attendance.

Just because there is a youth group scheduled, doesn’t mean young people will attend.

Gen Z (born between 1995 and 2012) are a savvy generation. In her book ‘Hello Gen Z’, Claire Madden shares critical insights into how to engage with this generation of hyperconnected, agile and adaptive digital savants. Claire writes that Gen Zs are living in a mentally unstable, emotionally broken, spatially vacant and physically torn generation; who in all the searching and brokenness, feel the necessity to pretend everything is ‘picture perfect’.

As were generations before them, Gen Zs are wrestling with core issues of intimacy, independence and identity. They are trying to identify their meaning and purpose in life; often asking the questions, “What do I believe” and “Why do we exist?” And they want to determine the answer to these questions themselves, not necessarily choosing answers their parents did.

For many young people, this results in not considering religion or spirituality as particularly important, instead viewing it as a personal ‘lifestyle’ option. Issak (b.1998) 18

& uth

OPPORTUNITIES INSIGHTS FROM YOUTH ALIVE STATE DIRECTORS

the major challenges is how the influences of media, lust and relationships affect today’s society. Teenagers, in particular, don’t want to stand out by being ‘good’ and going against the crowd or saying no to something like alcohol or sexual interactions. They get scared off by all the rules that they think being Christian entails; but as we act as Christ-like as we can, those around us think “Woah! Why is she/he so different?”. Then when they come to church they find out they are loved and accepted; they discover what it is really like.

Interviews with Youth Alive State leadership (in the following pages) revealed some interesting insights into youth ministry today and the challenges and opportunities ahead. What it really comes down to is being equipped to reach and disciple this generation of young people; loving and accepting them, spending the time to forge relationships, to know and understand them, and to show them what living for Jesus really looks like.

There are many further resources available to assist you in doing this including ‘Hello Gen Z’ by Claire Madden, youthalive.com.au and ythmin.com.

SAM LONG Youth Alive State Director, South Australia

Q:What are some of the challenges being faced by leaders when endeavouring to reach, build and disciple the youth?

A: With the youth climate changing so rapidly, youth pastors and leaders across the board are facing the ever-changing challenge of presenting the gospel in a relevant and compelling way while competing with so many other forces that are vying for young people’s attention.

Q:What new ideas have you and your team used to reach and disciple young people?

A: Last year, off the back of our conference, we released a resource that has now been adopted nationally called ‘Schools Revolution’. Schools Revolution is an initiative designed to empower students to win their friends for Jesus in schools. As a part of this initiative, we launched a website (www. schoolsrevolution.com), an online community and fortnightly, live-streamed coaching for students. We have seen an incredible response across the nation with hundreds of student leaders from every state being plugged in to make a difference for Jesus in their schools.

We also run an intensive leadership training day called Momentum that exists to give youth pastors, youth leaders and worship teams specialised youth ministry training.

Amelia Dingle is a Gen Z student in marketing and media, who serves her local church youth group as a youth leader.

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INSIGHTS FROM YOUTH ALIVE STATE DIRECTORS STEPHEN ‘LOTTY’ LOTT Youth Alive State Director, New South Wales

THERE’S A NATURAL DISCONNECT BETWEEN THE LANGUAGE THAT THE CHURCH SPEAKS AND THAT OF THE GENERATION IT DESIRES TO SPEAK TO.

Q:What are some of the challenges being faced by youth leaders today?

A: The generation youth ministries are currently trying to reach are immersed in a society that is rapidly moving away from a value system that reflects the generations before it. Few have a direct connection to a church through a grandparent, like the generation before them did. This has created a natural disconnect between the language that the church speaks and that of the generation it desires to speak to. This is a real challenge, and the source for some exciting change and innovation.

Q:What are some effective ways you and your leaders are using to reach, build and disciple the youth?

A: The first thing God did after Paul’s Damascus Road encounter, was to send him Ananias, who helped him take his next step. Likewise, each of us can point out people who have been a great influence on the growth of our faith. Every innovative idea for reaching and discipling this generation still has this fundamental truth as its foundation. Therefore, when a young person, who speaks the language of this generation, is trained and empowered to reach and disciple those around them, that is where youth ministries are seeing great results.

DAVE EDGAR Youth Alive State Director, Victoria Q:What are the challenges to reach, build and disciple the youth today?

A: One of the biggest challenges in today’s climate of youth culture is that although teenagers are more connected than ever before thanks to social media there is also a severe disconnect in the area of deep meaningful relationships. Youth teams everywhere are working hard to break through the walls young people put up through social media, to get into a space where they can speak into their actual lives and help them grow in the areas of the heart.

IT’S A WHOLE LOT OF TIME SPENT DOING LIFE WITH A YOUNG PERSON THAT PRODUCES GREAT DISCIPLES.

Q:What are you doing to reach and disciple today’s youth?

A: The healthiest youth ministries in the nation are where the youth pastors and their teams understand the power of ‘time spent’ investing into a young person. There’s no shortcut. It’s phone calls, group hangouts, hamburgers at McDonald’s and a whole lot of time spent doing life with a young person that produces great disciples. However you package it, this is what it boils down to. In a conversation with a youth pastor overseas, whose youth ministry went from 800 to 500 people in 12 months, he said he realised he had been leading his team from a distance and had not invested enough time into them. As soon as he adjusted his style of leadership he saw immediate results and numbers increase.

Whether a youth ministry is 10 people or 1000 people, the same principle applies... discipleship is ‘time spent’.

20

COLOUR

TWENTY-19

the wonder. the colours. the favour.

BE FOUND IN THE NEW Colour Conference. Placing Value Upon Womanhood.

Colour is a global movement of everyday women, with hope in their heart and “change” in their step.

A twenty-two year journey has seen this diverse and fabulous host of women help multitudes of others. If making the world a better place resonates with you, you belong within this miracle story.

Sydney

The Theatre at ICC Sydney INTRODUCING TWO WEEKEND CONFERENCES Conf One: 14-16 March 2019 | Conf Two: 21-23 March 2019 Colour Conference Twenty-19 endorsed as the ACC annual women’s conference

Your host Bobbie Houston and the Hillsong worship, teaching and leadership teams.

Special guest speakers

Christine Caine Sydney (Conference 1&2) John Gray Sydney (Conference 1) Lisa Harper Sydney (Conference 2)

colourconference.com/sydney colourconference.com/sydney 21

WOMEN’S MINISTRY What will women’s ministries look like in the churches of the future?

Today over 70% of ACC local churches run regular ministry gatherings for women. ACC EMAG spoke to Pastor KYLIE DI MAURO about the changing needs of 21st century women’s ministry.

BEYOND

BIBLE STUDIES & MORNING TEA Q&A WITH KYLIE DI MAURO Q: At a time where society is focused on gender equality, is it still necessary to have specific women’s ministry groups in the local church?

KYLIE: I do believe it is so important to have a specific women’s ministry within a church. Whatever you focus on, you will see the results – whether that be youth ministry, children’s ministry or women’s ministry; a focused approach will see fruit. Even though society is changing at a fast pace, sometimes within the Church, the old thinking about women and their roles can still be subtly beneath the surface.

God has a plan and purpose for each woman and this teaching is vital in helping women be all they can be.

I believe women need friends, to be able to gather together and celebrate their differences, and encourage each other through teaching.

Friendship is necessary for us to have balanced churches and families, teaching the next generation what being a Christian woman looks like.

Q: How has the landscape changed in women’s ministry at local church level over the decades?

KYLIE: Society in general has changed towards its attitude towards women. Gone are the stereotypes where a woman has to stay at home to be a mum and be the sole labourer within a household while the husband goes out and makes the money. A woman today can take any role if she is prepared to work for it. Gender roles have slowly begun to merge as women have gone back to work and now expect men to share with helping in the home and with the children.

Naturally, this change has also made its way into the Church. While in the past, women were employed in administrative roles, or roles within the children’s ministry or missions, this has started to change. More and more women are now employed as pastors within a church, either full time or part time. The latest stats reveal that 32% of ACC credentialed pastors are female.

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BUSYNESS WOULD HAVE TO BE THE NUMBER ONE CHALLENGE FACING WOMEN TODAY.

I think it’s also really important to remember seasons. It doesn’t mean your career is over if a mother chooses to stay home and not be in paid employment. Her ministry is to her family as a sole focus, with other mums she meets in the community through school drop off, sport, community playgroups etc. All churches run on volunteers in some capacity and that is many women’s call to ministry.

– KYLIE DI MAURO

Q: Do you think women’s ministry should do more to address the tough and challenging issues in society, such as domestic violence?

KYLIE: I think it is very easy to get caught up in issues that are happening around the world today. If we gather our women and put Godly wisdom, character and strength into their lives, and make our women’s ministries a place where they can bring their friends, where they feel safe, then that is a great place to start. We can’t ignore what is going on, but once you have a healthy core, then we have healthy women who can go out and help with some of these issues that God places in their hearts. ACW national director, Bobbie Houston has always spoken over the Sisterhood and Colour Conference that we “gather, equip and mobilise”.

Q: What are the key challenges facing women today so that they value the input of women’s ministry?

KYLIE: Busyness would have to be the number one challenge facing women today. Typically, a woman continues to work while having children, raising children and doing the general household duties so there is little time for anything else, but I believe we need to take time to make and establish those positive relationships within our lives that women’s ministry can foster.

When at school, girls spend all their childhood years with their girlfriends. As they grow up, life gets busier and more demanding and friendships are often something that suffers the most. Having a regular women’s meeting enables women to take time out for themselves, to be in a positive Christian environment and to establish close relationships.

Q: We are seeing more women step into strong leadership roles on boards. How can we be encouraging women, especially younger female emerging leaders, to recognise their purpose and not be afraid that their gender disqualifies them?

KYLIE: Often instead of encouraging or cheering each other on, women can often feel threatened and pull each other down if someone does step up and do something different or stand out.

When we gather together, we can genuinely get to know each other and, as we learn about all God has for us as women, we can be mindful to encourage each other.

I love seeing more and more women step up and I find that the stories are all quite similar – loneliness, lack of encouragement from other women, a sense of feeling out of their depth but willing to give it a go.

I’m loving the opportunity to be involved on the NSW ACC State Executive. I get to work with a team of amazing people who are committed to seeing the ACC raise up a new generation of both male and female leaders.

We have also just launched emerging leaders in NSW. This is for 18-30 year old male and females where the State Executive and other seasoned pastors provide input into the next generation to help them form friendships with each other and be in an encouraging environment to equip them with lifelong lessons for their future as leaders.

Q: What are some of the innovative or creative ways that you think we can reach and minister to women out in our community today?

KYLIE: I think we need to be very creative in our approach to reaching women today. Gone are the days where women’s ministry is only morning tea and a bible study. There is nothing wrong with this, but this approach can only be one aspect of women’s ministry.

We need to look at the demographic of our community and target them specifically. You will find women in different stages of life, for example: • Mums with babies or pre-schoolers: Think about running a mums and bubs community group Run a mums and bubs or mums with pre-schoolers at a park once a fortnight/week.

• Working mums: Running evening connect groups for working women with speakers that speak into their lives on topics such as careers, juggling kids and workforce, or how to be a godly woman.

Bible studies with suitable times for working mothers.

• Older women: Consider how you can engage the women in your community regularly by running small groups who meet over a bible study; put on a lunch, or get them involved with a community focus e.g. knit bears for the local children’s hospital.

Kylie Di Mauro is a credentialed pastor with the ACC, and together with her husband Sam, are the campus pastors of Hillsong Hills. She oversees the local Sisterhood ministry and is a member of the NSW State Executive. Kylie is a mother of four and is currently studying her bachelors in theology through Alphacrucis online.

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COMMUNITY How do we engage those who don’t have church on their radar?

PAUL BARTLETT looks at the problems we face and ideas to foster a great sense of community through the Church.

HOW CAN WE CREATE A MODEL OF CHURCH THAT IS QUICK TO MULTIPLY, CHEAPER TO RUN AND DIVERSELY ENGAGES A WIDE NUMBER OF PEOPLE? – PAUL BARTLETT

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TAKING CHURCH TO THE

COMMUNITY

BY PAUL BARTLETT

T

he latest Australian Census showed those ticking ‘no religion’ rose from 22.6% to 29.6% – nearly double the 16% in 2001. The total number of Christians still made up 51% of the population, but this is much less than 88% in 1966, and 74% in 1991.

The number of people who say they have not attended a church function at all in the past six months has increased considerably in the past ten years. Across Australia, church attendance is on the decline.

One thing we must come to terms with is this: It doesn’t matter how awesome our church services are, a huge number of people will not come. It’s not because they don’t like us – Church is just not on their radar.

So, how can we create a model of church that is quick to multiply, cheaper to run and diversely engages a wide number of people?

Currently, we seem to be focused and stuck around the ‘more is better’ approach. We may think the answer is to have more church services, or a higher quality of production and preaching.

We believe that this will grow churches but this won’t work.

All our churches look the same. This may engage a certain type of person, but it will not engage the majority, in our increasingly diverse society.

The current paradigm for church success is very difficult to achieve. We think success looks like large congregations in large, flashy church buildings. These buildings are very expensive to build, staff and maintain. Many local church pastors will not be able to achieve this.

Maybe we need to have smaller, but more local congregations, all over a city that meet in cafés, homes, halls, that integrate and weave their way into the life of that community: congregations that foster a strong sense of community and engage a higher proportion of people in the life of the church – as opposed to larger church services which have a high percentage of disengaged, passive attendees. But how do, we get there?

IDEAS TO TAKE THE CHURCH TO THE COMMUNITY • Begin redistributing resources (time, energy and money) away from just a Sunday experience to expressing church in multiple different ways. For example, at our Lighthouse North location, we don’t have a worship band because we don’t have people to do that yet. Rather than try to produce something just because it is what everyone else does, we choose to focus on activating the existing gifts of people already in the church.

People have other creative gifts to offer, such as a passion around hospitality. Begin to build your church around the giftings of people there.

• Reduce preaching time from 40 minutes to 20 minutes and increase the connection time afterwards. This saves pastors hours in preparation and allows more time for people to connect with each other – re-allocating time and energy. Smaller churches could have a 20-minute message and 30-minute discussion groups straight afterwards, that act as Connect Groups. You could build mid-week interest based missional groups, focused on connecting with and engaging the community, as opposed to more mid-week church activity.

• Allow and actively encourage a diverse range of church expression. Don’t just carry a hint of local flavour. Strongly embody the local culture and flavour. If your church is by the beach, it should feel and look different to a church in the city, and different to a church in the country.

• Facilitate creative expression and planning. Does a church service always have to have singing and preaching? Could the church host a community meal in a local café for a Bread and Wine event? This is a public communion celebration we facilitate at Lighthouse North. We hire out a local café for a couple of hours of bread, wine and cheese. Our pastor, Grant Lowe, gets 25

>>

up after a while and gives a sort of toast, where he speaks for five minutes of the significance of the bread and wine.

our local community. It is difficult for us to do this in an industrial zone so we moved to The Woolshed to have our faith gathering – a place where people already eat, work and play.

• A churchwide working bee, refreshing a worn-out school or community hall. Churches often do these things sporadically, but they are secondary to the Sunday church service, and only engage a small number of people. Maybe a way we can engage more people in the process of community transforming activities is to diversify our Sunday activities.

• Confidence in what a church environment can bring, not just what a church environment has to say. The goal is less preaching time and greater interaction. The people who attend our ACC churches are full of life and we experience encouragement by spending time connecting with them. They speak life and wisdom into each other’s lives – at a different level to what we experience in the world.

• Pastors could ‘tithe’ their time. Ten percent of a 40-hour week spent involved in their local community somewhere, in an area they have genuine interest, gifting or passion for; e.g. join a local soccer team, become a member of the local business chamber, volunteer for a local not-for-profit organisation. Other pastors have joined local 4 Wheel Drive clubs and become key members in them.

If we continue to think that getting people to church services is the way to transform our community, then our nation is in trouble – because they are just not coming. Like me, you’re passionate about helping people who don’t yet know Christ in your suburb, town, or city but feel like you’re not getting as far as you’d like. You’ve launched or been involved in so many different programs, prayer meetings, and outreach activities. And you’re seeing some people finding and following Christ, which is fantastic. But surely we can’t just keep doing what we’ve always done if we’re not making that much headway in reaching our goal of introducing Christ to our communities.

• Community research for church planting. Churches should be samples of their city, still demonstrating Kingdom culture, yet not a mirror of society, or a totally irrelevant weird sub-culture either. Have church planting teams research values, current connections and culture of the community they wish to plant in.

Discover where it intersects with their values and culture, what the connections of the church planting core group and leadership team are and build off those.

Paul Bartlett is the senior pastor of Lighthouse in Wollongong and the national leader of ACC Community Engagement. Paul is the author of the book ‘Thank God it’s Monday: Sunday’s not enough’. www. acccommunityengagement.org.au

• New locations. Churches used to be in the centre of towns and a place for people to gather. We should use the same model when planting new churches. A large auditorium and space for kids programs is an important consideration for Christians.

However, maybe we could consider having smaller and more gatherings in the centre of every suburb, rather than large gatherings on the outskirts. We strategically moved out of our facility at Durgadin Drive, which was amazing for Sunday church, but not conducive to our vision to be present and influential in

2018 Community Engagement Conference

PLANT GROW HARVEST

A practical two day conference with some of the nation’s best speakers on community engagement, helping you see your community differently!

Ideas in conversation

www.acccommunityengagement.org.au 5th & 6th September The Woolshed 601 Princes Highway Yallah, NSW

REGISTER OR FOR MORE INFORMATION | EMAIL COMMUNITY.ENGAGEMENT@ACC.ORG.AU | CALL 0431269961 WEB ACCCOMMUNITYENGAGEMENT.ORG.AU | #ACCSNAPSHOT #ACCCOMMUNITYENGAGEMENT 26

NEW INITIATIVES

POP UP CHURCH TASMANIA– You wouldn’t think that it was church, if you didn’t know better. It smells of sausages, sunscreen and summer. There are people everywhere but they’re not your usual church people; this is because most of them have never set foot inside a church before.

A worship team set up on the back of a truck delivered a short, sharp, worship set, before the pastor jumped up and preached the Gospel in a relevant, relatable way.

A team from the youth ministry played cricket with the local kids. Children were transformed by face paint into fairies, tigers and superheroes. Free pancakes kept those waiting in line for the jumping castle happy. Various community organisations have pitched in to send a message to the community: You matter; you are important to us, to Jesus.

This was the scene on a Saturday in February at the Pop-Up Church Festival, which took place in Bridgewater, one of the most disadvantaged outer-suburbs of Hobart. From 12.30pm to 5pm, a strip of council land adjacent to the local shopping centre was transformed into a festival celebrating the people of an area not often celebrated. Over 1,000 people attended the festival and for many, it was their first introduction to what connecting to a local church meant.

Jesus was known for popping up where a religious teacher might be least expected. Energizer Life Church decided to be like Jesus, popping up where you might least expect them.

The idea for Pop Up Church came out of a brainstorming session among the wider leadership group of Energizer Church. Through much prayer 27

and planning, Pop-Up Church first came to life in January 2015. The first Pop-Up Church events took place over three consecutive Saturday nights in January 2016. The goal: go to where the people are.

On summer nights in Hobart, the people are mainly in the restaurant precinct on the waterfront, so that’s where Energizer went. Initially, finding the right venue was a struggle, but God opened up the right doors and eventually the church ‘popped up’ in a filthy, empty, rusty, packing shed on the waterfront. Teams of volunteers worked tirelessly to make the place fit for human habitation.

Pop-Up Church itself has transformed since then, into a community festival and will likely continue to transform as it explores different ways to reach and bless the people of Hobart.

Energizer Church’s senior pastor, David Morse, explained the metamorphosis: “As much as anything it was about flexibility and being relevant to the community and area. We wanted to give something that was meaningful for them, a place to celebrate who they are and that looked much more like a festival than anything else.”

Just as Jesus left the temple to seek out the company of tax collectors and prostitutes, Energizer Church will continue to find opportunities to go into places where brokenness is evident and bring a light into dark places, bring salt and light into Hobart’s community.

The Victorian Multinational Pastors Network Team

MULTICULTURAL CONGREGATIONS

MELBOURNE– Multicultural, multinational and ethnically diverse churches are an important and growing reality in the ACC movement, as people from many different nations relocate to call Australia home.

The ACC Census reveals that 51% of ACC churches can be defined as ‘multicultural’, where at least 20% of attenders are not from the most common ethnic group. It is also interesting to note that 43% of ACC local churches have an ethnic group other than Anglo Celtic as their dominant/most common ethnic group.

Over the decades, Melbourne has become one of Australia’s most culturally diverse cities. Six years ago, the Victorian State Executive developed a plan to ensure that the growing number of multicultural churches were not neglected but remained well connected and aligned both with and within our movement. Better cohesion for all was an important goal and a commitment to ‘REAL’, an acronym for Relationship, Encouragement, Assimilation and Lifting the name of Jesus by edifying the local church..

Chaplaincy Australia

Chaplaincy Conference NSW/ACT 2018

Caring for the carer

The Victorian State Executive appointed Multinational Pastors Network Team of pastors from distinct ethnic churches to assist this task, capably led by Lucky Kanagasabai, who fulfilled the leadership role for over five years. The present team of seven culturally diverse pastors, is now ably led by one of our main Samoan pastors, Enele Tailiki. It now supports and assists over 100 ethnically diverse churches in Melbourne. They represent many cultures and nations including several African nations, Sudanese, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Arabic, Assyrian, Philippino, Spanish, Italian, Korean, Burmese, Vietnamese, Asian, Indian, Sri Lankan, Fijian, Tongan, Samoan & Cook Islands.

Thursday 6th - Friday 7th September, Thursday evening and all day Friday.

The Woolshed, Wollongong

For more information and to register see our website www.chaplaincyaustralia.com Those in the helping professions constantly give out to others, this is an opportunity for

Throughout the year, several multinational events are held to promote fellowship, unity and inspiration. They are held in different churches to facilitate involvement and feature the variety of worship expressions from many diverse cultural groups. Some involve dance and different music styles. These congregations are like ‘beacons of light’ in their respective communities. Let’s pray that God will increasingly use them to reach lost people across Australia.

YOU to be refreshed, inspired and cared for!

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PREPARING YOUR CHURCH FOR THE UNTHINKABLE...

THE E

PLAN

BY RALPH ESTHERBY means that you are well prepared and can put the final details in place when it is actually needed.

very week, all around the country, pastors, leaders and worship teams make preparations for the various services that will happen over the weekend. We plan for every contingency, trying to think of all of the things that are needed – the resources, the people, the run sheet, the worship, and the Word.

Additionally, most churches think beyond the weekend and engage with their communities in programs, projects and amazingly innovative ways to share the hope and life we live for.

We spend a lot of time planning, resourcing and preparing for what we know is going to happen, but how much time do we spend getting ready for what we haven’t thought of?

The 75% Plan helps you connect with your local council’s emergency response plan and will embed your church in your community’s response. It will focus and motivate individuals in your church towards making a difference when it really counts.

The main steps of the 75% Plan include: • An inventory of your community and the potential risks.

• The policies and supports which need to be in place (insurances etc).

• Methodology for connecting with local authorities.

How do you prepare your church for the ‘unthinkable’?

• Chaplains in every church - trained in critical incidents and who know how to assist people in the midst of grief and loss.

Every community has the potential to be hit by something ‘unthinkable’ – whether it is a flood or a drought, a massive car accident or a domestic violence issue that becomes a mass murder. The further you look the more ‘unthinkable’ it becomes… mass shootings at the Mandalay Casino or a bomb at Ariana Grande’s concert in Manchester.

• Logistics and resources.

• Communication strategies to church and community.

• Access to emergency financial supports and partnering with Chaplaincy Australia.

The reality is that your community could experience the ‘unthinkable’ and the question is…are you prepared?

The key is to work with the community, don’t try to force yourself on them... Show yourself ready and the Lord will use it!

The 75% Plan is a Chaplaincy Australia initiative to provide resources to churches in order to prepare them for response to critical incident or natural/civil disaster within their community.

The 75% Plan will be launched at the 2018 NSW State Conference and will be available nation-wide at the National Conference in May 2019.

It is a tailored system which matches churches with their local community’s critical needs and helps them integrate with the resources which are already in place. Helping churches be 75% ready for any possible eventuality.

Remember every ACC Church should have at least one CA Chaplain!

Ralph Estherby is the National Director of Chaplaincy Australia For more information visit www.chaplaincyaustralia.com

If you leave your response until the crisis emerges you will be left behind. You cannot plan 100% of the response because you don’t know what you are responding to, but being 75% ready

29

VOICES

INDIGENOUS

Q&A WITH ACC’S YOUNG INDIGENOUS LEADERS

Q: How has your church background impacted your life so far?

SINEAD: I was raised in a non-Christian home until age 11. My mother was at a low point in her life and she found Jesus when she physically moved away from her situation. Once my mother became a born-again believer, our faith in the Lord and the church was invaluable to our livelihoods. Ultimately it was my mother’s decision which led me to salvation. This included shaping me into the strong and persistent women I am today.

The church has shaped my life in more ways than one. It’s taught me the power of forgiving and loving members like family. The world taught me only worry about my own true family. The church also taught me the values of real wisdom vs. world knowledge and how to be a good leader through feeding your godly wisdom and having compassion.

SINEAD DUMAS, 26 Ganggalah Church, NSW

Q: Does your faith and Indigenous heritage complement each other?

SINEAD: I strongly agree that our Indigenous heritage and my faith complement each other. Firstly, God gave us the strong spiritual connection to land and people for a reason. He gave these as gifts but like all cultures, there are times where we misuse them. This is where the difficulty lies for some religious institutions and sects of Christianity. They cannot understand the value our culture played in leading us to Baiame (Baayami or Baayami meaning God, the Creator). I believe He led us to Him only because of our spiritual wisdom. God continues to use our people and culture in more ways than we can comprehend. Even today our spiritual awareness makes us the best Gate Keepers, Warriors and Watchman for God’s Kingdom; with Gangglah Church being the leading example.

Regarding my own service to God, I think it’s simple. I am to set the example for non-believers and my mob. God has always told me that I would make a lasting reputation on people through my interactions. Whether it be in the church, the workplace, university or around the world. Sometimes this is through my husband. People want genuine friendships with us as a couple and I think that we need to always be good witnesses. We need to display the right ways to those around us. The service is by being “an example”. I’m still not 100% certain how else God uses me.

Q: What are some things that you think your generation of Indigenous believers can contribute to building the Church of the future in Australia?

SINEAD: The greatest one is leveraging off the spiritual understanding God gave us so long ago. Young people lose connection to land and culture quickly, especially those in urban areas. Like I already said, God has very important positions in the church for his indigenous people. My church already actions and motivates the members to “tap into” their gifts.

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CHRISTIANITY HAS NOT ONLY GIVEN ME DIRECTION AND FULFILMENT BUT A GREATER LEADERSHIP FOCUS. – ELI HENAWAY

ELI HENAWAY, 19 Hope Centre, QLD

Q: How being a Christian has shaped your life so far.

ELI: I joined a youth group, became a youth leader, started serving on Sunday’s and am now in my third year of Interning in my church. However great or small that may sound, to me it was unplanned. In between each step that I took, I was completely lost as to where to from here. As I continued to learn and grow in Christ and practical leadership, I went from being purposeless and lost to knowing there is lots of work to be done. Christianity has not only given me direction and fulfilment but a greater leadership focus.

Q: Does your faith and your Indigenous heritage complement each other and how you serve God? ELI: My Indigenous heritage has given me a lot, all of which I am very grateful for in my Christian journey today. It first of all gave me a sense of respect for my Elders and a desire to learn from them. I believe this is something often overlooked even though it can have great benefits. Another thing it

gave me was my openness to spirituality and an awareness of its existence. This meant easily understanding that there is a good spirit (The Holy Spirit) who is with me and bad forces that try to fight against me. There are plenty of cultural lessons like sustainability, leadership and even storytelling that have given me a greater understanding and different perspective on living. I plan on going out into the world to serve God through the marketplace and I know that I could never leave these cultural values behind. I know that I don’t just keep these values with me because of my culture, but because God values these things as well.

Q: How can your generation contribute to building the Church of the future in Australia?

ELI: Our generation of Indigenous believers are living in a very modernised era and this is important to note. We have grown up in a very multicultural environment and most likely are very westernised too. This means that our emerging leaders are able 31

to relate and minister to our own cultural backgrounds, as well as hitting the nail on the head for the general population. The landscape for my generation has changed and is changing rapidly. We now have leaders who are combining knowledge, faith and divergent thinking to create new ways to reach others and build the Church.

Q: What do you feel Indigenous young people need from the Church today to give them a sense of purpose and direction for the future?

ELI: I believe we need to let our leaders know what Indigenous faith-based paths are available. This could mean a path of leadership development that shows them where they would personally operate best in ‘ministry’ and how they can reach certain demographics inside and outside of their own culture to give emerging leaders a sense of purpose.

I’VE DISCOVERED I CAN BE AUTHENTICALLY ABORIGINAL AND AUTHENTICALLY CHRISTIAN AT THE SAME TIME. – BRADLEY DUNGAY

BRADLEY DUNGAY, 23 Ganggalah Church, NSW have this big vision, I just love to serve and be salt and light in the Indigenous community and the world around me.

Q: Share a bit of your church background?

BRADLEY: Well my background wasn’t the most sheltered life growing up. I am a Dunghutti man from Port Macquarie, During my primary and partial high school years, I attended a Seventh Day Adventist school, so this had some influence of Christianity. I ended up getting kicked out of my school in Year 9 because I had possession of marijuana on school grounds. From there I went to a public school where all my friends were, so my life started to go downhill.. For five years I was stuck in addiction. When I finished school, my life was in shambles, and my uncle invited me to church where I encountered God and had a desire to pursue God and where He wanted me to go. In the last four years, as a Christian, I have been involved with Ps William Dumas’s ministry, travelling to different churches and mission trips around the nation. I’ve also been involved with Youth for Christ, and part of a church plant in Kempsey.

Q: What can your generation of Indigenous believers contribute to building the Church in Australia?

BRADLEY: I think Indigenous people can contribute by bringing a different perspective, not just a western perspective. We have a lot of different views to life and how we live, so by allowing the Church to be open more to the Indigenous way of thinking, I believe the western church can learn a lot from the Indigenous people, such as being more family oriented, being connected to land, respecting elders etc.

Q: What do Indigenous young people need from the Church today to give them a sense of purpose and direction for the future?

BRADLEY: What I would like to see for Indigenous young people is more of a opportunity for them to be able be in the position to be a voice and equipped to reach their local communities and their own people. There is no one else better to reach the Indigenous than someone who is Indigenous themselves. I also think that the Church needs to embrace the Indigenous people more, as there is still a stigma in the air and a huge gap between the Indigenous and the Australian Church.

It’s really awesome the see the ACC contributing to the indigenous initiative for the upcoming conference Juriga, which is about the next generation of young indigenous leaders being equipped for the future of the Australian church. I encourage anyone who has a heart for the indigenous people come and participate in the upcoming conference.

Q: Does your faith and your Indigenous heritage complement each other and how you serve God? BRADLEY: Yes, very much so. Ever since I’ve become a Christian, I’ve discovered more about my indigenous heritage than I knew in the past. Ever since I’ve stepped into the calling that God has for me, it just has been a organic process of sculpting my identity through my indigenous culture and Christianity. I’ve always had this conflict within me that Aboriginal culture and Christianity doesn’t mix. I thought you have to be one or the other, but I’ve discovered I can be authentically Aboriginal and authentically Christian at the same time. It becomes my own world view not sculpted by others opinions. I’m not 100% sure of what God wants me to do. I don’t

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Q: Share a bit of your church background and how being a Christian has shaped your life so far.

JAY: In the past I was so struggling with my life and was addicted to alcohol. It was so hard for me to handle hard problems and I went through witchcraft and curses were upon me. A spirit of darkness attacked me, but I found people like my aunty who encouraged me about the Lord. So I found Jesus and become Christian. I have seen how God changed my life from darkness in to the kingdom of light.

Q: What you see yourself doing with your life to serve God? JAY: My hope is to do things by faith and not by sight. my life I see how I served God is to tell others to know him and share His love to others I love doing what He commands.

Q: What are some things that you think your generation can contribute to building the Church of the future in Australia?

JAY: Building church is who we are and it is important that we need to come together to build the Church and body of Christ.

Q: What are some things that you feel Indigenous young people need from the Church today to give them a sense of purpose and direction for the future?

JAY: To rise up and take a stand that God has a plan and a purpose for our lives.

JAY RAGURRK, 23 Bagot Church, NT

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IINTERNATIONAL

CHURCH PLANTING IN FUKUOKA, JAPAN MODERN SLAVERY BILL Thursday 28 June was a monumental day as Australia’s Modern Slavery Bill was introduced to Parliament. The Bill recognises orphanage trafficking and the exploitation of children in orphanages as a form of modern slavery linking it to the criminal code.

When passed, the law will require companies with an annual turnover of more than $100 million to report annually on the risks of modern slavery in their operations and supply chains.

The introduction of the bill is a significant milestone in the fight against modern slavery.

The bill follows a parliamentary inquiry last year specifically tasked with considering whether Australia should introduce comparable legislation. to the UK introducing a Modern Slavery Act in 2015. The bill also follows the NSW Modern Slavery Act which was passed on June 21, 2018.

What’s it like to plant a church in bustling Fukuoka city, Japan? Here, ACCI field workers, EUGENE AND FIONA GEBERT share the journey they and their family have been on for the past 12 months.

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e arrived as ACCI field workers to Japan in mid-2015 with our daughters, Jessica and Elyssa. Our heart was to make disciples, empower God’s people in Japan to reach others, and to see churches planted throughout the nation.

Exciting days On 8 January 2017, we planted WakuWaku Life Church – WakuWaku meaning ‘exciting’ or ‘thrilling’ in Japanese, which we believe sums up what it’s like discovering and experiencing an exciting and abundant life with God. For the first ten months, the church met in our tiny Japanese apartment. In fact, we discovered that by removing the furniture in our living room each week, we could seat up to 20 people! We were blessed to have a good core of people attending regularly and used this time to build relationships in the community, grow our networks, start doing outreach in a local university and launch WakuWaku Life English.

We knew that in order to achieve the vision God had placed on our hearts, we’d need to find a permanent venue. Miraculously we found the perfect property with auditorium space for up to 60 people and received all the necessary approvals.

Strategically, this venue has not only has given the church a place to meet but has allowed us to run events and offer language classes to the community and begin to outreach and support those who are homeless in a nearby park.

We are passionate about seeing Japan reached with the Gospel and we believe that church planting is the key to seeing this happen. With this in mind, we have also registered an organisation that has its core focus on this. The aim is to be able to provide a gateway for those with a heart for church planting within Japan so that new churches can be established.

SEE Q&A WITH REBECCA NHEP ON PAGE 36

Fukuoka city, Japan

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Q&A

COMBATTING ORPHANAGE TRAFFICKING

REBECCA NHEP ACC EMAG spoke to the CEO of International Programs for ACC International, REBECCA NHEP, about child exploitation and preventing orphanage trafficking.

Q: Recently there have been news reports on drafting legislation against human trafficking and slavery. How have you been involved in this?

REBECCA: In March 2017, the Australian Government launched a Parliamentary Inquiry into Australia establishing a Modern Slavery Act. This was big news amongst anti-trafficking and anti-slavery organisations who were pushing for laws to be enacted to force big business to make sure their supply chains were slavery-free. What no one anticipated was the way God would use this inquiry to shine a spotlight on another emerging and largely unknown form of trafficking: orphanage trafficking. This is where ACCI was able to get involved and advocated for orphanage trafficking to be included in the scope of the inquiry.

Q: What specifically is orphanage trafficking?

REBECCA: Orphanage trafficking is defined as the active recruitment of children from their communities and families into orphanages for the purpose of exploitation, including orphanage tourism. Orphanage tourism, in turn, is defined as a form of exploitation because children are harboured in orphanages subject to the long-term impacts of institutionalisation, often kept in poor conditions, often presented as orphans complete with fake stories and fake documents, all in order to elicit the sympathy of tourists and volunteers who come, even pay, to visit them. Whilst some volunteers pay a fee for placement, others are invited to come and visit the children for free, play with them, or volunteer to care for them. Those responsible for the children’s exploitation know that many of these visitors and volunteers will connect with the children’s plight and commit to becoming a long-term donor to better the children’s lives. Unfortunately, the only ones profiting from the good will of foreign visitors and donors in these cases are the unscrupulous directors and traffickers who are using these children as commodities.

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Q: What kind of awareness has there been about Orphanage Trafficking?

REBECCA: At the time of the Modern Slavery Act Inquiry, orphanage trafficking had barely made it onto the radar. It was certainly not part of the scope of Australia’s Modern Slavery Act inquiry. We saw this inquiry as an opportunity to bring this type of trafficking to light and to the attention of the Australian Government and Parliamentarians. It was a long-shot worth taking to advocate for steps to be taken to combat the drivers or orphanage trafficking; orphanage tourism and charitable giving to substandard overseas orphanages.

Q: Well done to you and the ACCI team. How are you involved in educating people about orphanage trafficking?

REBECCA: ACCI also had the opportunity to work with DFAT on the development of the Government’s first public awareness raising campaign called Smart Volunteer. This campaign released in March 2018 focuses on encouraging Australian tourists and volunteers to be smart, informed and prepared and discourages involvement in orphanage tourism of unskilled volunteering in overseas orphanages. We’ve also developed resources for the faith-based community, including our ethical missions trips online training and toolkit.

Q: How have you been involved in getting orphanage trafficking on the radar?

REBECCA: ACCI along with the members of ReThink Orphanages, the cross-sectoral network ACCI co-founded in Australia, made submissions to the inquiry. This led to orphanage trafficking and orphanage tourism as a form of exploitation being included in the inquiry’s scope. As a result, ACCI was called to give expert witness at the public hearing held at Parliament House in Victoria. Based on our responses to questions posed by the various Parliamentarians on the inquiry’s committee, we were asked to write two supplementary submissions; one outlining recommendations for charity sector reforms that would prevent foreign aid funding from being used to finance orphanage trafficking, and a second outlining an overarching multi-tiered divestment strategy encompassing awareness raising, legislation, regulatory reforms, and technical support. During this time we engaged with a number of Ministers and Politicians, including the Minister for Education and a key advocate, Senator Reynolds from Western Australia. Momentum was building and commitments to action were being made.

Q: We understand you have also stepped into the international arena when it comes to child exploitation.

REBECCA: The publicity surrounding orphanage trafficking during the course of the inquiry attracted the attention of the international community. Momentum continued to build. Other countries began looking at how they might follow Australia’s lead and legislate to curb orphanage trafficking. In April 2018 I was in London representing ACCI and ReThink Orphanages during the week of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings.

There were three 3 events held on this issue in partnership with the Australian Government and ACCIR was asked to write a briefing paper that was issued to all Foreign Ministers and Parliamentarians from Commonwealth countries who attended these events. The paper outlined the measures governments could take to curtain and prevent orphanage trafficking. Following the events, a number of key UK Parliamentarians put a call to the UK Government to include orphanage trafficking in the UK’s Modern Slavery Act and to take steps to ensure charities, churches and volunteers are not fuelling orphanage trafficking through their giving, voluntourism and volunteering efforts.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association has expressed an interest in including a module on orphanage trafficking in their online Modern Slavery training for Commonwealth Parliamentarians and legislators.

In June I was able to present on this issue at the International Summit on Child Exploitation in Tourism, hosted by the Colombian Government in partnership with several UN agencies and ECPAT. This was a high-level summit and will result in recommendations being put forth that affect global policy and practice.

Q: What is the current progress of the Modern Slavery Act? REBECCA: In December 2017 the inquiry came to a close and the final report titled Hidden in Plain Sight was released.

It recommended that orphanage trafficking be included in the definition of modern slavery in the proposed Modern Slavery Act plus 11 other recommendations regarding orphanage trafficking and orphanage tourism. Nearly all the recommendations ACCI made in the supplementary submissions were included.

In February 2018, the Australian Government announced that Australia will introduce a Modern Slavery Act and that orphanage trafficking will be included. If enacted, this will make Australia the first country to legislate against this form of trafficking.

Q: What is your passion and hope for the future of exploited children?

REBECCA: I want to see children free from exploitation.

Children are not commodities. They are little image bearers of God. God’s opened up amazing opportunities for ACCI to advocate for children’s rights, beyond what we ever imagined.

We know God’s heart is for orphanage trafficking to be fully eradicated, and we will continue to pursue every opportunity He opens up for us to that end. If this journey has confirmed one thing to me, it is that God is true to his word. He stands with each vulnerable child and he is their ultimate defender.

I WANT TO SEE CHILDREN FREE FROM EXPLOITATION. CHILDREN ARE NOT COMMODITIES. THEY ARE LITTLE IMAGE BEARERS OF GOD.

Rebecca Nhep is the CEO of ACCI’s International Programs.

For more info: www.ethicalmissionstrips.org

– REBECCA NHEP 37

ALPHACRUCIS

CLASS OF 2018 CONGRATULATIONS to the 696 students in the Alphacrucis Class of 2018 who graduated in April.

AC teaches programs in over 30 accredited courses, through to doctoral degrees in theology and ministry, business and education & social sciences.

Michael Murphy with Alun Davies

Michael Murphy with Glenys & Kevin Hovey

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AWARD

The winner of the 2018 Alphacrucis College Distinguished Alumni Award, Pastor Alun Davies. This award recognises and encourages alumni who are outstanding leaders in their vocation and community, who exemplify AC Graduate Attributes, have made significant contributions to the Christian church, their vocations and community, and have demonstrated continued interest in and contribution to AC. Alun has been awarded for his leadership and many years of service to the Australian Christian Churches, missions, and Christian education. He has been a pastor for over forty years, and is currently the Vice President of the ACC, and director of ACC International. He was the senior pastor of Faith! Christian Church for 30 years and founded Harvest Bible College in 1987, which has graduated thousands of students and is now the Melbourne Campus of AC. Alun studied at AC in 1971-72 (then named Commonwealth Bible College) and taught on the faculty during 1979-1983.

The inaugural joint-winners of the 2018 Alphacrucis College Community Engagement Award were Dr Kevin Hovey and Pastor Glenys Hovey.

This Award recognises and encourages the achievement of a student, staff member, or alumni who have made an exceptional contribution toward the College’s community engagement objectives.

Kevin and Glenys have been awarded for their leadership and for their many years of service to missions, the church, education and to their local community. Kevin and Glenys work tirelessly together in whatever vocation or community God has placed them. Together they served the people of PNG for over thirty years.The impact of the Hoveys on the various communities they served is palpable. At an age when most people have already entered retirement, the Hoveys are still seeking ways to better serve God and their community.

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WHAT WILL THE CHURCH OF THE FUTURE LOOK LIKE?

BY MARK HUTCHINSON

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The next time you see a self-congratulatory piece by the Greens or Get Up as to their ability to mobilise opinion for their social agenda, think on our forebears, who largely invented that machinery of social mobilisation for good causes. And then think about what that means for what we consider to be ‘church’.

hen I am asked, ‘What is the church of the future going to look like?’, the obvious answer is: ‘Look at who is in your pews… and who is not.’ The tensions between those who seek to take the (inevitably increasingly challenged) present model forward, and those who subtly push back against a model which has essentially excluded them, are generally what make new models of church come into being.

We do what we can for our generation. It would help, perhaps if we built in a sense of obligation for the future, but that is a task to be held with humility. Some, I suppose, ask about the future church because they are not happy with the one they have got. That is a sign that things have already begun to change. Others, because they have become seized with fear about the pace of change around them and the challenges churches seem to be facing.

Churches, as a whole, are not killed by their enemies (though the genocide in the Middle East at the moment is an example of an attempt to do just that). They, like other institutions, are killed by well-meaning leaders who make what seem to be the obvious choices for good reasons. What we do not take into account is the fact that the ‘obvious choice’ is usually one handed to us by a societal status quo, and informed by a selfinterested elite. The ‘good reasons’ are the technologies put into our hands by a particular time and place.

The starting point to all such conversations is to say, ‘Relax! Jesus says, “I will build my Church…”.’ We are co-labourers, but the primary design is not ours. The Church of Jesus appeals to the margins, the excluded ones, those over the frontier. When people look for it in the courts of the powerful, it has probably already moved on.

Then, of course, there are the unasked questions. The first might be ‘Why are you asking me? I’m a historian!’ Well, there are good reasons for asking historians this question.

Some few weeks ago I happened to pick up a discounted copy of George Trevelyan’s Life and Letters of his uncle, the great Whig historian, Lord Macaulay (1909 – second edition, unfortunately!). (You might need to look him up). Trevelyan was reflecting on Macaulay’s upbringing in the house of his famous father, Zachary Macaulay, and on the latter’s signal contribution to the end of the slave trade (no, Wilberforce didn’t do it all on his own). He notes (in a wonderful Trevelyanesque passage):

What will the Church of the future look like? Ultimately, it is where Jesus, ‘the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth’ (Rev 1:5), stands among the lampstands which witness to those truths about Him. It will be an ancient and future faith, where old enemies have become new friends, where the transforming and eternal Gospel is wrapped in a ‘style’ which is adapted to the season, where there is creative push and pull between what is and what is yet to be. It will be as it is: a place of ‘trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance’, and perseverance wisdom (James 1: 2-3). It will be as it is, a place of strenuous joy. It will be as it is… and that is how it should be.

By the zeal, the munificence, the laborious activity with which they pursued their religious and semi-religious enterprises, they did more to teach the world how to get rid of existing institutions than by their votes and speeches at Westminster they contributed to them. With their May meetings, and African Institutions, and antislavery reporters, and their subscriptions of tens of thousands of pounds and their petitions bristling with hundreds of thousands of signatures, and all the machinery for informing opinion and bringing it to bear on ministers and legislators which they did so much to perfect and even to invent, they can be regarded as nothing short of the pioneers and fugelmen of that system of popular agitation which forms a leading feature in our internal history during the past half-century.

Mark Hutchinson is Professor of History and Dean of the Faculty of Education, Arts and Social Sciences at Alphacrucis. He is an internationally-regarded intellectual historian focusing on the history of higher education, evangelicalism and globalisation, and the history of Pentecostalism.

IT WILL BE AN ANCIENT AND FUTURE FAITH, WHERE OLD ENEMIES HAVE BECOME NEW FRIENDS. – MARK HUTCHINSON 39

STUDY BUSINESS Diploma of Business | Bachelor of Business

Business Owner. Entrepreneur. Corporate Executive.

Whatever your dream, AC has a mentor that will help you gain both practical experience and industry connections.

MEET YOUR MENTORS Dr. Jim Cornish

CEO Nanotek, MD Rae Morris Within 7 years of co-founding Nanotek in 2004, Jim had grown the company into an international multi-award winning franchise system with operations in over 15 countries. Today, Jim is Managing Director of Rae Morris Cosmetics, Australia’s no. 1 Celebrity make-up artist and product line.

Fuchsia Sims

CEO Adventure Junky Fuchsia is an integrated marketer highly skilled in social media. With a double life as an adventure coach Fuchsia assembles, motivates and leads the Adventure Junky team to its objectives. Fuchsia has a degree in International Marketing from the University of Sydney and studied International Business at the Copenhagen Business School.

A self-confessed nomad, and firm believer that adventures make the world go around.

Jonny Shannon CEO Gamify

Over a three-year period, Jonny co-started four companies, one of which has become a billion dollar business. These ventures gave him the financial backing he sought to follow his true passion in life, youth-work. Having originally studied youth work, it was always his ambition to become a motivational speaker to young people and the teachers and schools that work with them.

| business.discover.ac

A L P H AC R U C I S C O L L E G E 7 0

Y E A R S

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NEW BOOKS

UNEXPECTED:

Leave Fear Behind, Move Forward in Faith, Embrace the Adventure

By Christine Caine Is it possible to have peace in an uncertain world? To not only expect the unexpected but embrace it?

Most of us want to have life under control, but God wants us to anticipate the unexpected with a faith deeply rooted in his goodness. He wants us to know that because He is in control, we don’t have to be.

In Unexpected, ACC pastor Christine Caine helps us walk into the life God has for us--unknowns and all. Using dramatic examples from her own journey, Christine offers real-life strategies and biblical inspiration to help us move from fear and worry about ourselves to hope and trust in God. As we learn new ways to manage disappointment, strengthen our hearts, and build our faith, we can enjoy a new adventure with God that is more fulfilling than any day we spend trying to anticipate what will happen next.

Stepping into our God-given destiny means stepping into the unknown, but we can embrace that calling because God knows it already. Nothing in our lives takes Him by surprise. So even in the midst of personal upheaval, relational challenges, financial stresses, family transitions, career disappointments, and chaotic world affairs, we can expect God to be good and do good. What other expectation do we need to have? Listen to God’s dare to trust Him in every unknown of your life today www.koorong.com

CHAMPION

How one boy’s miraculous journey through autism is changing the world

By Craig Johnson Even on your worst day, you may become someone else’s best hope.

Until two years of age, Pastor Craig and Samantha’s son Connor was just like other kids—playful, verbal, and affectionate. Then everything changed.

He stopped talking, displayed behavioral problems, and withdrew into his own world. The official diagnosis—autism.

Craig and Samantha refused to believe a meaningful life for Connor was impossible. God confirmed their faith by revealing to Craig that Connor would one day touch the lives of thousands of people around the world.

Then, one day, a miracle occurred.

Connor spoke.

Instantly flooded with a variety of emotions, the Johnsons rejoiced. Their boy could talk. And not only talk but perform a perfect recitation of Pastor Joel Osteen’s opening affirmation: “This is my Bible, I am what it says I am.” Today Connor is a vibrant young man, and his family’s faith-filled response to his diagnosis has launched a worldwide wave of support and attention for special needs children of all stripes.

Written with transparency and humour, Champion will inspire those in the middle of an unexpected trial to rise up and become someone’s champion.

www.koorong.com

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TAILOR MADE

Discover the Secret to Who God Created You to Be

By Alex Seeley Exchange the lies of hurtful labels and wrong thinking for the truth of who God created you to be!

From an early age Alex Seeley was told she was an accident, but she also carried the weight of feeling stupid.

Labels like these, sometimes spoken over us by well-meaning people, can cause us to believe lies about ourselves that make us question why we were born and what our purpose on earth could be. Yet, according to Psalm 139, God designed us in His image with a unique DNA and amazing characteristics! We are loved and created for a purpose that only we can fulfil.

In Tailor Made, Alex helps us recognise our wrong thinking often brought on by generational patterns, insecurities, circumstances, lack of forgiveness, and an inaccurate view of God our Father, and offers to replace them with a new view of who God says we are our personal destiny. It’s time to find your own sense of belonging and the path to becoming the original, authentic version of you that God intended!

Alex Seeley spent 17 years on the pastoral team at Planetshakers, Melbourne, with her husband Henry.

They moved to Nashville,USA in 2012, and founded The Belonging Co. which reaches over 3,000 people across Nashville and thousands online from all over the world. www.koorong.com

NEW RELEASES MUSIC

ENDLESS

Intensifire Worship ‘Endless’ is the fifth album, from the Intensify Band, the youth expression of Inspire Church in Sydney.

‘Endless’ features nine songs released at the 2018 Intensifire Conference, one of Australia’s premier youth and young adult conferences.

Available: Spotify, iTunes, Google Play and at www.intensifire.com

MOVIES

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE The powerful story behind the song that brings hope to so many … often in the midst of life’s most challenging moments. Amazingly, the song was written in mere minutes by MercyMe lead singer Bart Millard, although the lyrics took a lifetime to craft, chasing a dream while running from broken relationships with his abusive father and his childhood sweetheart. www.koorong.com

HEAVEN ON EARTH Part 1 Planetshakers

Recorded live at Planetshakers’ regional conferences in Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore, the EP captures the heart and dynamic praise of Planetshakers Band along with tens of thousands of worshippers. ‘Heaven on Earth Part 1’ is available on all digital platforms.

Available: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes,

Google Play, Amazon Music and www. planetshakers.com

PAUL, APOSTLE OF CHRIST The story of Luke, friend and physician, who risks his life when he visits Paul, who is held captive in prisonin Rome. At the time when Emporer Nero is determined to rid Rome of Christians, Luke resolves to write another book, one that details the beginnings of “The Way” and the birth of what will come to be known as the Church. www.koorong.com

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III

Young + Free “This is a continuation of our story... this is chapter three,” says Laura Toggs of III, the third album from Hillsong Young & Free. The release is the first studio album from the band and features 17 powerful worship anthems. The Hillsong Y+F team describe this album as an altar to remind us of God’s faithfulness.

Available: Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, YouTube and hillsongstore.com.au/iii.

GOD’S NOT DEAD 3: A light in the darkness When a deadly fire rips through a local church, the adjoining university uses the tragedy to kick the congregation off campus. A legal battle emerges and the controversy creates a dilemma for the small church - can Christians fight for their rights and be the light for Christ at the same time? www.koorong.com

KIDS MINISTRY RESOURCES

STOP WRITING CURRICULUM How can a children’s ministry leader make the best use of their time?

First step, they can stop writing their own curriculum.

A quality children’s ministry curriculum can help build a great program, but it can’t pastor families, develop leaders or grow your church.

A children’s ministry leader makes the best use of their time when they as the leader focus on these things, instead of spending their time writing their own program.

If a children’s pastor had only four hours mid-week they could spend all of, if not more, than their four hours on writing and creating their own curriculum at the cost of developing their teams and pastoring families. We would suggest a different approach:

Hour 1. Leadership. Growing and leading the team, meeting with key team new leaders, recruitment and screening, strategy.

Hour 2. Program. Planning highlights, gathering supplies and resources, using the curriculum to prepare the lesson for your ministry.

Hour 3. Pastoral. Calls, visits, cards, supporting children, families and leaders.

Hour 4. Prayer/Communication. Communicating to team, leadership, families and PRAY! Our Hillsong Kids BIG Curriculum team work hard to produce high quality, interactive and customisable curriculum so that all the hard work is done for you leaving you to focus on what’s most important in your ministry. Give your children, families and teams what they need most... YOU! Invest yourself into growing your team, connecting with parents and seeing your ministry flourish.

More information on the new Hillsong Kids BIG curriculam: http://hillsongstore.com.au/the-gospels/

NOW AVAILABLE !

N ew 9 Curricuwl eek Seriesum

Available on DVD, Digital Download or License Subscription 43

FIND OUT MORE

2018 CALENDAR

JULY PANASIA MISSIONS CONFERENCE 30 July - 2 August 2018 Novotel Phuket Resort, Thailand www.accimissions.org.au/panasia2018

www.accimissions.org.au/panasia2018

AUGUST KIDSHAPER CONFERENCE 14 – 16 August 2018 Gold Coast www.acckids.org.au/kidshaper18

www.acckids.org.au/kidshaper18

UNITED WE STAND - YOUTH ALIVE 17 August 2018 Australiawide http://united-we-stand.co http://united-we-stand.co

SEPTEMBER 2018 Community Engagement Conference

COMMUNITY CONFERENCE 5 – 6 September 2018 The Woolshed, Wollongong NSW www.acc.communityengagement.org.au

PLANT GROW HARVEST

A practical two day conference with some of the nation’s best speakers on community engagement, helping you see your community differently!

Ideas in conversation

www.acccommunityengagement.org.au/community-conference/

5th & 6th September The Woolshed 601 Princes Highway Yallah, NSW

REGISTER OR FOR MORE INFORMATION | EMAIL COMMUNITY.ENGAGEMENT@ACC.ORG.AU | CALL 0431269961 WEB ACCCOMMUNITYENGAGEMENT.ORG.AU | #ACCSNAPSHOT #ACCCOMMUNITYENGAGEMENT

CHAPLAINCY CONFERENCE 6–7 September 2018 The Woolshed, Wollongong NSW www.chaplaincyaustralia.com

Chaplaincy Australia www.chaplaincyaustralia.com

Chaplaincy Conference NSW/ACT 2018

Caring for the carer Thursday 6th - Friday 7th September, Thursday evening and all day Friday.

The Woolshed, Wollongong

For more information and to register see our website www.chaplaincyaustralia.com

INDIGENOUS EMERGING LEADERS CONFERENCE 7 – 9 September 2018 Tweed Heads NSW www.ganggalah.com

Those in the helping professions constantly give out to others, this is an opportunity for YOU to be refreshed, inspired and cared for!

www.ganggalah.com Chaplaincy Australia

Chaplaincy Conference NSW/ACT 2018

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