news
7
June 2012
New church launched
The celebrations included a worship service where Orlando dos Santos, Principal of Austin Cove Baptist College, told the amazing story of the College’s beginnings. 1Church Senior Pastor Hans van Asselt added to the narrative by telling how 1Church is expanding to three congregations with the formation of the Austin Cove group before Lead Pastor Sarah Baggaley talked about overcoming fear. Following the formal part of the launch everyone enjoyed a free sausage sizzle and drinks. Entertainment included a bouncy
Photo: Kim Baggaley
More than 120 people from the local community and nearby churches attended the Funday Sunday Community Launch of Austin Cove Community Church on 29 April at Austin Cove Baptist College.
castle, zorb balls, face painting and Sparky the Dog, the 1Church mascot, made a surprise visit. The new group is the third congregation of 1Church, led by Senior Pastor Hans van Asselt. The other congregations are Mandurah Baptist Church and Lakelands Community Church, which meets at Mandurah Baptist College. Lead Pastors Kyle and Sarah Baggaley both work at Austin Cove Baptist College. Together with the core team of the new church they are connecting strongly with the local community. “We run Austin Cove Kids Community on Fridays for 45 children in Year 1 to 6 and also a Student Leadership Development Program for 20 children in Year 7 to 9. We’ve had to cap the numbers because the interest has been so strong,” Sarah said. “Since we started the church on 12 February, we’ve developed a strong core group of about 22 adults meeting at 10am on Sundays.” Summer-Lea Christie and her family were among 120 people who attending the Funday Sunday Community Launch of Austin Cove Community Church.
Churches on Facebook More than 30 leaders from Baptist, Church of Christ and Uniting churches met in Perth recently to talk about social media during a Leadership Link gathering. Stan Fetting from Crossover Australia spoke about the church’s engagement with social media. “Social media is underused by churches,” Stan said. “Facebook is used far more than Twitter.” Facebook, the social network launched in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg, has 800 million members worldwide. Each day there are 500 million posts on the network. “Facebook can now create a landing page and you can turn it into a mini-website. Many churches are moving their online presence into Facebook to reflect their values and connect with their members and community,” Stan said. “There are good examples of how people are using Facebook to create conversations about important things — John Sweetman, Tim Costello. Mark Broadbent, Pastor of Life Point Church in Brisbane, uses Facebook for all communication with the church. The website is a landing page to get people onto Facebook not the other way round.”
Crossway Baptist in Victoria has their own application — it’s a portal for their podcasts, but it also has a calendar of events, you can read blogs and donate to Crossway. The application is for people who are already part of the church. The network connections between groups and individuals are immediate and Stan suggests those using social media be clear and simple.
Facebook is used far more than Twitter. “Some people are observing us online, sometimes for a long time, trying to build up a picture of us,” Stan said. “What picture does our online persona reflect about our community of faith?” “Share your life. Be normal. Use self-deprecation, humour. Be
authentic to give a real picture of your life or group. Post comments that invite engagement. Things like, ‘this weekend I’m speaking on love. What’s the most compelling story of love you know?’” Social media gives churches opportunities for pastoral care: a birthday greeting, a comment to encourage a person, an invitation to join an event. Merely having a presence in the arena is not enough. “We need to be driving it,” Stan said. “Otherwise we’ll be telling people we’re inefficient, we don’t really care.” Pastor Mark Edwards from Inglewood Community Church has been seriously engaging with people through social media for a few years. “I found Stan’s encouragement to use pictures to tell the story of what our churches are up to particularly insightful,” Mark said. One group remarked that attending the Leadership Link event may have saved them $10,000 in their budget. Organiser of the event, Director of Vose Leadership Monica O’Neil, said she had seen some very helpful directions that are open for Vose Seminary and her personally to explore using social networking. The next Leadership Link event is planned for early June.
Celebrities spread hope A group of Australia’s leading singers, including Grammy award winner Olivia Newton-John and Australian Idol winner Stan Walker, recently came together to produce the album Hope: Songs of Faith and Inspiration.
The album, a collaboration of 12 songs celebrating the concept of hope, ran at number one on the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Classical Chart for three weeks when first released around Easter.
I reach out for hope as it’s the branch to hold onto in a storm.
Produced by Dancing With The Stars Musical Director, Chong Lim, the album’s theme of spiritual and psychological rejuvenation through the joy of music offers a fresh view of timeless, uplifting classic songs.
Album Co-Producer Andrew Hagger says he’s very excited that each of the artists who contributed to the project wanted to be part of this journey to inspire others. “When I think of difficult times in my life, I reach out for hope as it’s the branch to hold onto in a storm. It’s God’s gift to us all,” he said. “I hope people will discover the threads of hope in these songs.” Hope: Songs of Faith and Inspiration is a partnership of ABC Music, Universal Music and World Vision. Part proceeds from the sale of the album go to World Vision. For more information visit www.hopeinthislife.com.