SUNZ Adventure Magazine February 2015

ISSN 1176-5143

sunz

adventure He rama t찾u kupu ki 천ku wae

February 2015

2GO WAYAZINE MAG IDE INS

Engaging with the Bible together

About 7 years ago the word ‘engagement’ started to become the buzz word when talking about the Bible. It has now become a part of our language.

I THOUGHT THIS WAS NOT MUCH MORE than trendy new phraseology, but it does convey an important idea. The ways in which we use and interact with the Bible are more numerous than reading alone.

To engage describes the reality that people are seeing the Bible in visually interesting ways and listening to what is between those two covers. Another idea in Bible engagement is the Bible as a yetto-be completed drama in 5 or 6 “acts” (Creation, Creation Spoiled, Story of Israel, Story of Jesus, Story of the Early Church, Creation Restored).

IT IS EASY TO IMAGINE HAVING MULTIPLE senses engaged as a drama is presented.

Some people have pointed out that between the “Story of the Early Church” and “Creation Restored” is where the Christian community can understand itself as being like a band of actors who together are ‘improvising’ the missing act,

2 | sunz.org.nz

working it out in harmony with the rest of the drama and the Author’s intentions and with one another.

In this edition of the Adventure we take a brief look at what ‘bible reading in community’ means for the Christian community. It is also exciting to know that over summer there were multiple opportunities for the Bible to be read in community and applied in life changing ways with the help of an extended community. Thank you for being a part of this exciting activity.

Wayne Fraser - National Director ............................................................................................

EDITORIAL

contents FEATURES 4 COMMUNITY READING Wayne Fraser

8 ARE YOU UP FOR A CHALLENGE? A free bible reading pull out for the month of February.

11 DIPPING INTO THE WORD OF GOD TOGETHER Aaron Douglas

19 WE NEED EACH OTHER Hilary Hague

22 NEW WAYS TO READ THE BIBLE Neville Bartley

20 CAMP BIBLE STORIES From Youth and SUPAkidz Camps

UPDATES 26 REGIONAL UPDATES JANUARY

24 LIGHT FOR THE PATH Paul Martell

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY 15 WAY2GO MAGAZINE

INTERVIEWS

RESOURCES

13 Q & A: WHY DO YOU ENGAGE

28 RESOURCES FOR LIFE

WITH THE BIBLE? SUNZ Staff

community

reading

BY WAYNE FRASER - National Director -

HOW DO YOU ENGAGE WITH THE BIBLE? CHANCES ARE IT IS THROUGH PERSONAL Bible reading, listening to a preached sermon or video, visiting a website, reading a book, card or a poster - or some variation of these.

By contrast, in both Old and New Testaments the communication of God’s word(s) was primarily oral in nature:

• ‘Moses came... and set before them all these words…’ (Exodus 19:3-8).

• ‘…all the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate… Ezra … read from it … and the ears of all the people were attentive to the book of the law…’ (Nehemiah 7:73-8:9).

• ‘ … [Jesus] went to the synagogue… He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him …’ (Luke 4:16-21).

The community involvement in engaging with scripture is striking: It was read aloud and people heard, listening together as a leader or priest proclaimed the word of God as he had received it.

Oral practice gives opportunity for the story that is being communicated

4 | sunz.org.nz

to be experienced by the senses. This continued for 14 centuries until the advent of the printing press provided personal access to scripture, profoundly shaping the Christian church.1

A side effect has been people becoming more individualistic in their interaction with God’s word. In turn, this leads to a more intellectual style engagement.

As written text has come to dominate communication, the community has been needed less and less to retain teachings and provide interpretation.

Eugene Peterson even says that it is easy for individuals with a Bible in their hands to suppose they are in control of it, and in charge of applying it wherever, whenever, and to whomever they wish.2 THE MODERN AGE REINFORCED A gospel for the individual. Key tenets became forgiveness as a transaction, a concern for personal morality, and the intellectual pursuit of 1. Shane Hipps, The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture, Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 2005.

2. Eugene H. Peterson, Eat This Book: a Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading, Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 2006, pp. 81, 82.

ARTICLE

doctrinal precision. The Bible became an individual’s handbook for moral living and right thinking, or a list of promises to claim.

The church community became more ‘a collection of discrete individuals working on their personal relationship with Jesus’, rather than the formation of a community to live out God’s kingdom ways.3

In comparison with biblical and historical examples, which emphasise the relational nature of God’s word, we seem to have lost some of the richness of community life - the listening together and responding together.

Engaging as a community can bring together different interests: people who want to know the Bible and study; those with a concern for their community and its functions; people desiring to serve others through political and popular contexts.

These groups should not operate separately, they must overlap. And the overlap is where God speaks. Imagine a place where God’s word ‘reads’ the life of the community by describing the human situation, suggesting alternative possibilities, and empowering people to live differently - a living embodiment of

God’s call and promise.

One practical theologian has provided this analogy: ‘The Bible is like the heart; if it remains outside the body of the community and the life of the people it dies and people die’.4 The community is needed to bring the word to life.

DIETRICH BONHOEFFER CREATED A community that lived by an ethos he called ‘common life under the word’. He realised the gospel ‘achieves its purpose when people are willing to allow the present age in general, and our lives in particular, to be interrogated by the Scriptures’ and called us to ‘read Scripture over-against ourselves, allowing Scripture to question our lives.’5

Can we read scripture ‘overagainst ourselves’ and recover some of the original community Bible engagement dynamic again? SU camps provide an opportunity for opening the Bible within a temporary community setting. In a 3. Hipps, pp. 53,54 4. Carlos Mesters is a Carmelite Friar and missionary to Brazil who has become a leading biblical scholar there.

5. Stephen E. Fowl and L. Gregory Jones, Reading in Communion: Scripture and Ethics in Christian Life, London, SPCK 1991, p. 145.

‘The Bible is like the heart; if it remains outside the body of the community and the life of the people it dies and people die’.

ARTICLE

relational setting, varied perspectives shaped by individual experiences and understanding are submitted to a biblical perspective.

The SU Children and Families team work with leaders and churches to introduce methods of interactive discovery engagement that draw people into sharing and learning and walking with God together. The goal is to discover together how to live Christianly in the world.

Engagement with the Bible at an individual level, in the context of a small group, and sometimes at the community gathering on Sunday, was also the genius of the E100 and Essential Jesus projects.

THE DIGITAL AGE PROVIDES A SIGNIFICANT opportunity for a new paradigm of engagement. Social media may reinforce the experience of interacting with Scripture in a larger community.

The internet and rapid adoption of smartphone technology could recover the richness we are missing. The free Bible app, YouVersion, which makes multiple versions and reading tools available, is as popular as Instagram and facilitates community readership.

The desire for community readership appears to exist and technology may be one way to re-establish the conversations wrestling with wide ranging topics. 6

Yet the answer is not techniques, digital technology alone is not going to save the practice of engaging with the Bible. God did not entrust his message to parchments, books, or to virtual space.

The message has been entrusted to men and women and even children.

When this Word is passed through the filter of community it is preserved. The community deepens both understanding and accountability.

GOD DOES NOT WRITE, HE SPEAKS, AND the community is enriched when people speak, to each other and what God speaks to them.

In what ways can you work towards redeeming this rich practice of the community and contribute to others engaging with what God has spoken to his world?

6. The ideas expressed in this article can be explored further in The Seed and the Soil by Pauline Hoggarth and available from the SUNZ Webshop.

T

6 | sunz.org.nz

ARTICLE

This CD is a compilation of music taken from six recordings produced by the Celebration Singers of Christchurch between 1974 and 1991

$18 includes p & p Available early/mid December Enquiries/Orders can be directed to russel.marsh1946@gmail.com

a r o f p u u o y e r A

?

e g n e l Chal

We have a challenge for you! The February Ultimate One Month Bible Engagement Challenge. It is an individual challenge and a community challenge all rolled into one.

WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?

Throughout February we will put up a scripture for the day on the SUNZ Facebook page (www.facebook.com/SUNZ.nz), along with a few suggested questions to ponder. (These passages are also on the following tear out page in this magazine.)

Your challenge is to join us every day to engage with this scripture - not just on your own, but as part of a wider community. Invite others to join you and read the scripture together. Connect in a café, or over the internet, or just join in with us on Facebook. Get creative and get engaged, and get others engaged with you. Find people of different ages and cultures to involve - even those who aren’t yet followers of Christ.

Just imagine what it could be like: hundreds - maybe thousands - of people engaging in the same scripture reading every day of February, and engaging with the same questions around that scripture. Imagine the interaction over Facebook, as everyone talks about what they think, feel and hear from the scripture, from God, from others. We could set New Zealand alight, set Facebook alight, as we set our own lives and the lives of others alight.

we’ve made it easy for you...

All you have to do is take some time to plug in and engage. Think of new ways to engage with the scripture, and new ways to engage with others as you engage with the scripture.

say “yes!”

Join us on the February Ultimate One Month Challenge.

1 FEBRUARY: PSALM 148 - PRAISE THE LORD Psalm 148 calls on everything in creation to praise God - our creator, Lord above all things, & redeemer.

• When do you find creation calling you to praise God? How can we, like creation, glorify God through being what God made us to be? Praise the Lord!

2 FEBRUARY: 1 KINGS 17- OBEDIENCE Elijah is a model of courageous obedience. God spoke, Elijah obeyed. Elijah called out to God, and God responded.

8 FEBRUARY – PSALM 149-THE GREATEST KING OF ALL! We have a king who is truly great (v2)! And he is worthy of praise.

• Use Psalm 149 as a springboard for your own worship of the King of kings.

9 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 1:1-12 – LIVING HOPE Life isn’t always easy for followers of Christ, but you’re specially chosen (v2) and nothing can take from you God’s gift of salvation (v4-5). God is with you and his Spirit is at work in you - what a hope to live by!

• How does obedience affect our relationship with God and what he can achieve through us? What are the areas where you struggle to obey or believe? Ask for God’s power to do what he says.

• How can you see God at work in your own life? Pray that you may know and share God’s grace and peace today.

3 FEBRUARY: 1 KINGS 18:1-15 - IN THE WORKPLACE

Thank God that our holiness doesn’t all depend on us! His Spirit is already at work in us (v2). We’ve been brought into God’s family through the death and resurrection of Jesus (v18–21) at great cost (v18-19). And so our hope is in God!

Obadiah wasn’t a prophet like Elijah, yet he used his position as administrator to help God’s people. Despite his fear, and with wickedness all around him, Obadiah still managed to honour & obey God. • What are the challenges you face in your job or life outside your home? Are there things God is calling you to do, in spite of the godlessness around you? Ask God for opportunities to honour him in all areas of life.

4 FEBRUARY- 1 KINGS 18:16-46 - LORD OVER ALL Sometimes we see God as important in church & family life, yet listen to worldly wisdom for business, politics, ethics & morality.

Elijah challenges us: If the Lord really is the only God, then he is God over every sphere of life, every age and every culture.

• In what areas are you tempted to listen to worldly wisdom? Ask for God’s direction in all areas of your life.

10 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 1:13-21 – HOLY LIVING

• How will your life show today that you are one of God’s people?

Take a moment to think about what your redemption meant for Jesus and his Father. Praise God for making you holy.

11 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 1:22-2:3 - THE LIVING WORD A lot in our world doesn’t last long – but the word of the Lord endures for ever. Being ‘born again’ is the start of our wanting to obey God’s Word and grow in our faith. But however long we’ve been Christians, we don’t know it all! In fact, we’re like babies in terms of spiritual growth (2:2).

• How has God’s truth changed the Christians to whom Peter is writing? How is it changing you? What could you do to get more ‘pure spiritual milk’ to grow in faith?

12 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 2:4-10 - LIVING STONES 5 FEBRUARY - 1 KINGS 19 – DEPRESSION Quite unexpectedly Elijah experiences a violent mood swing and deep depression. It was hard to sense God’s presence, but he showed himself in a gentle whisper.

• What causes for Elijah’s sudden attack of depression can you see? How might you be able to show God’s care in practical ways to those in a dark place? Ask God to help you listen for his gentle whisper right now.

6 FEBRUARY - 1 KINGS 21 – ABUSE OF POWER Jezebel thought that because the king had power he could do whatever he liked. How very different to God’s attitude to power!

We all need to look long and hard at how we use our own power – over family, colleagues or friends.

• What’s your response to the actions of Ahab and Jezebel? How do use the power you have? Do you ever use it to elicit guilt, for your own satisfaction, for personal gain? Pray that you will use power justly, creatively & with love.

7 FEBRUARY - 1 KINGS 22:1-5, 29-53 - THE NEED FOR WISDOM Jehoshaphat was a king who ‘did what was right in the eyes of the Lord’. However, this is qualified by an area of compromise which leaves us with a hint of sadness. We, like Jehoshaphat, live in a culture where people regularly make plans contrary to God’s will.

Every day we’re forced to decide when to remain quiet and when to speak up.

• What can we learn from Jehoshaphat’s approach (good and bad)?

Do you need to speak up about something?

Like Jesus, we are ‘living stones’ (v5) – being built into a moving, growing, dynamic community of God’s people. Building on the ‘sure foundation’ of Jesus (Isaiah 28:16), we show God’s light and love to the world (v9).

• What’s your part in the community of God’s people? What do you need to do, be or change to be a “living stone’? Praise God for bringing you into your wonderful light.

13 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 2:11-17 - FREEDOM LIVING Submit’ is a favourite word of Peter’s. Here, it’s applying to the rule of law (v13). Having freedom through Christ doesn’t mean we can live in any way we want (v16). Putting God first is what ultimately brings freedom.

• Are there times when we shouldn’t obey authorities? What are does ‘respecting all others’ (v17) mean to me? Lord, “grant us so…to love you that we may truly serve you, whose service is perfect freedom.” (Augustine of Hippo)

14 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 2:18-25 - WOUNDED LIVING Sometimes we feel we’ve been treated unfairly and are hurt & angry. Peter reminds us that it is God we are ultimately serving and talks of Jesus, our wounded healer. He was treated unfairly, yet put up with all his God-ordained suffering that we might be healed. He remained calm, entrusting himself to the just Judge (v23).

• Are there issues in your work where you need to do the same?

How can you submit to Jesus as your ‘Shepherd and Overseer”, as you go through today.

15 FEBRUARY – PSALM 150 - PRAISING GOD

22 FEBRUARY – PSALM 1 – ROOTED

Praising the Lord was a community activity. Even if music isn’t your thing, we all have breath– God doesn’t care about the quality of your singing, just your desire to honour him.

It’s easy to let the activities of our world take over our time for God (v1). Put roots down by delighting in God’s Word (v2) & you’ll find yourself yielding fruit & living for God(v3).

• Take time to look away from the troubles of this week and be encouraged. What has God done for you? Jot down some reminders. ‘Praise the Lord! Hallelujah!’

• What does the image of being planted like a tree mean for you?

How do you delight in God’s word? Thank you, Lord, for watching over me. Amen. (v6)

16 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 3:1-7 BEAUTIFUL LIVES

23 FEBRUARY – DEUTERONOMY 1:1-18 – GOD’S GOT YOU A PLACE

So many ads appeal to our vanity – how great we’ll be when our face or body is sorted! God’s word tells a different story: external beauty fades, but the inner beauty of a person who trusts God pleases God & draws others to him. As heirs of God’s gift of life we are all to respect each other.

Deuteronomy shows God’s people how to live in his love. The land (& everything else) is God’s gift and all of life is a journey with God to a good resting place (v8). The journey is not to be travelled alone (v 9). Jesus promised us we have a place in God’s house and he has gone ahead of us.

• Does the way you spend time, money & energy on inner & • Do you forget that you are secure in God’s grace, & that your outer beauty reflect God’s priorities? Does lack of respect for successes and failures are irrelevant? How can you share your load – anyone get in the way of your relationship with God? or to help someone else carry theirs?

17 FEBRUARY - 1 PETER 3:8–22 - SUFFERING Peter encourages us to stay focused on right living before God. No suffering of ours could surpass the suffering of Jesus, whose death & resurrection have dealt with all our suffering & sin (Hebrews 10:10). Whatever life brings, we have a sure hope of living for ever with our King!

24 FEBRUARY - DEUTERONOMY 1:19–40 - FACING A FALSE START The Israelites are reminded of God’s promises - and also of the times they failed to believe them. God didn’t give up on the Israelites because one generation did not trust him. He simply began again with the next one. This is how he responds to us too there is always a fresh start.

• How can I repay hurt with blessing today? How can I back my actions with a gentle & respectful account of my faith? Thanks • When has the size of a difficulty caused you to lose sight of God’s be to God for our victory through Jesus Christ! trustworthiness? How has God overcome the obstacles you faced?

18 FEBRUARY - 1 PETER 4:1–11 - LIVING FOR GOD Christ has given his life to set us free from sin. Our non-Christian friends might be surprised, but we’ve got to stop wasting time on things that don’t please God and live as if Jesus were coming back any day.

• What does Peter encourage us to do (v7-11)? Are you doing them? What do you need to stop wasting time on? Are you using the gifts and graces God has entrusted to you to serve him and others? Pray that ‘in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.’ (v11)

19 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 4:12–19 - SUFFERING WITH CHRIST Jesus taught Peter: ‘Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you … because of me.’ (Matthew 5:11,12) Now Peter passes on the message. Those who have received the gospel of God are safe with him. Peter encourages us to renew our commitment to live for God. • Why should we be happy if we suffer for our faith? How can you encourage Christian friends who are suffering? Thank God for the privilege of bearing the name of Jesus.

20 FEBRUARY - 1 PETER 5:1–7 - SHEPHERD FOLLOWING The shepherds of Jesus’ day led their flocks – they didn’t herd them. They allowed the sheep to rest, while they watched out for dangers. It can take humility to be the ‘sheep’ and allow yourself to be led! Leader or follower, we all (v5) are under God’s mighty hand.

• How do you measure up on the shepherd qualities that Peter describes? How good are you at submitting to others (v5)? Take some time to cast your cares on God.

21 FEBRUARY – 1 PETER 5:8-14 – STANDING FIRM You’re not on your own. God is on your side - the devil prowls around, but our Shepherd is watching out for you. We’re in it together – we’re part of a worldwide family of believers who share our experiences of following Jesus.

• How can we support each another to stay true to God?

Thank God he doesn’t give up on us.

25 FEBRUARY - DEUTERONOMY 4:1–14,32–40 - HE LOVES YOU Notice that God’s love for his people comes before his laws & that the teachings are to help them live well in this world (v 40), not to earn his salvation in the next! God’s commandments are part of his covenant (v13), his promise and commitment to go on loving his people.

• How does this affect your motivation to follow God’s teachings?

How do wisdom & understanding from the law (v6) differ from knowledge? How can you make sure you don’t lose track of things you are learning from God?

26 FEBRUARY - DEUTERONOMY 5:1–22- HOW TO LIVE! This passage is often used as a checklist of what we’ve done wrong, leading into a prayer of confession! Try using it to see what you’re doing right.

• Bearing in mind that Jesus extended the commandments to thoughts as well as actions, think about what you’re already doing to put each one into practice. Then pick one area you need to improve. Try to identify one new thing you can do & ask God for help to do it.

27 FEBRUARY – DEUTERONOMY 6 – TEACHING FOR THE HEART This is the heart of God’s law, to which Jesus added the command to love our neighbour. The ‘heart’ represents the thoughts and attitudes which shape us, not just emotions. The ‘soul’ represents the whole person – what makes you, you. And ‘fear of God’ is a deep reverence and respect.

• Which parts of your life show love for God most clearly? How does the way you live show respect for God? What needs more work? Invite God’s Spirit to work in you.

28 FEBRUARY - LOOKING BACK Thank you for joining in our Bible reading challenge.

• Share online or with your group what you have learned through your personal or group study. How might you make corporate Bible study an ongoing part of your life? Share your prayers of praise & thanks.

Dipping into the Word of God

TOGETHER

BY AARON DOUGLAS - Youth Worker -

AS A PREACHER AND A TEACHER I HAVE TO confess that one of my great frustrations is the Biblical illiteracy in our church communities.

Many reasons can contribute to the lack of a regular Bible reading discipline: busy lives; inaccessible Bibles; cultural distance from the story and an inability to understand it; little or no desire to read the Bible; ignorance of Bible reading resources; a lack of modelling in our Christian homes.

ONE OF THE GREATEST ADVANCES IN human history (before the internet, that is) was the printing press. It was also one of the greatest tools the Reformers had in the 16th Century: the accessibility of personal ownership of a Bible wrenched

sole authority for interpreting the Bible from an elite clerical few. Personal or family ownership of a Bible, along with advancing literacy, led to an explosion of personal and devotional lay reading of the Bible.

One unintended consequence of this has been a loss of the corporate/ communal nature of Bible reading and interpretation as a community. This is evident in sermons that don’t connect to the bigger ‘Story’, sermon series that never refer back to previous series, and a lack of actual reading of the Bible in our worship gatherings. It is compounded further by the rejection of an overarching story for history, and therefore failure to relate the Bible as a coherent whole to the human story.1

ARTICLE

February 2015

|

11

THE TOOLS FOR READING THE BIBLE AND making it accessible are numerous. Check out our range of Bible reading guides at www.sunz.org.nz. Try E100 Bible Reading Challenge which offers 100 carefully selected Bible readings designed to give people a good understanding of the Bible.

Or try Essential Jesus, which provides 100 readings to discover who Jesus was and why he is so significant. Find an accessible commentary such as Tom Wright’s For Everyone series.

I encourage every Christian to be nurturing the habit and discipline of regular reading of the Bible. And my desire for us all is that we rediscover the corporate act of reading and interpreting the Bible as a community.

WE ARE CREATED BY GOD FOR COMMUNITY with God and with each other, and we all reflect, in part, the image of God. Therefore, we all have something to bring to the reading of our Story, and it can never be solely a private habit. We lack or lose something when we don’t read and interpret our ‘Story’ together.

My challenge to us this year is two-fold: As pastors, preachers and

teachers, let us reclaim an excitement for the whole of the ‘Story’. When we are excited and able to connect the overarching story and its themes with the lives of those in our care then they get excited. Let us also be unashamed to read the Bible in church. If we don’t read the Bible in our worship together, how can we expect people to deem it important to read it themselves?

As individuals, with whatever resource we use devotionally, let’s find one or more others who use the same resource to Discuss, Debate, Digest, and Dwell together as we go deeper into the Word of God. 1 The current emphasis in a lot of theological study is to ground all study in a coherent Biblical Theology, which is the discipline of reading and interpreting Scripture as whole and not disconnected parts. Having preachers and teachers taught to read the Bible as a whole is a start. I highly recommend anyone read Craig Bartholomew and Michael Goheen’s book The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story. This is an excellent and accessible read for those interested being able to read the Bible as a connected whole and discovering how they fit into it.

...let us reclaim an

excitement for the whole of the ‘Story’.

12 | sunz.org.nz

ARTICLE

Q&A.

WHY DO YOU ENGAGE WITH THE BIBLE?

I engage with the Bible because it is where I learn that my story is part of God’s bigger story. It is also where I meet Jesus, the giver of life.

AARON DOUGLAS, Youth Worker

I engage with the Bible because that is when I meet God. God reveals himself to me through the stories, history and interactions of others with him found through its pages. What I read then shapes my response to him in worship, obedience, confession among other responses.

Without regularly engaging with the Bible my relationship with God would be very limited.

NIGEL WINDER, Southern Regional Director and Children and Families Worker

The more I understand God’s story, the more it helps me to understand where I fit into his story. My observation is that our society struggles with the concept of God’s authority, and they no longer have the respect for engaging with the Bible. I see this when I work with youth, that they struggle to see how their personal story might fit into a much bigger story - God’s story, as told through the Bible.

STEVE ADAMS, Youth Worker I love words and so I love the depth and richness of the words in the Bible. I love their layers of meaning and how every time I read I discover more about myself and how I relate to the world around me.

Most of all, I love how God meets with me and talks with me when I read his words.

HILARY HAGUE, Children and Families Ministry Director

INTERVIEW

February 2015

|

13

The primary reason I engage with the Bible is because I find it to be the best place to get to know my Lord, Saviour and King better. Being a Christian is about a relationship with God and others and the Bible is where I learn most about how to put this into practice everyday of my life.

ANDREW RAMSBOTTOM, Children and Families Worker

It is one of my most intimate times of the day with God. It is like sitting down with him and him speaking directly to me and into me. I suppose you could say every time I engage with the Bible it excites me, challenges me, encourages me, and helps me grow. It is like sitting in your father’s lap when you’re little, hearing his heart beat through his chest as he reads you the most amazing story. For me the question would be “why wouldn’t you engage with scripture?”.

NEVILLE BARTLEY, National Youth Director

I engage with the Bible as a way to hear the heart of God for the world and the people he created and wants a relationship with. It is an exciting book covering a lot of the history of the world and the struggle God has had building a relationship with his people. Through the Scriptures the Holy Spirit can speak to us in a way that is relevant for our lives and my life today. The age old messages from God give a great window to view our world through and to interpret some of the issues facing our 21st Century world globally, in New Zealand and in our local communities. My hope is that as the world increasingly takes on the heart of God the world will be a much better, loving, caring community where all people can thrive rather than barely survive.

RAEWYN ROWNEY, Children and Families Worker

My earliest memories are of my mum and dad sitting in bed in the morning reading the Bible, and ending the day with Bible stories and prayer. Their example began my Scripture engagement; by my midteens it had deep personal significance; no wonder meeting with God through the Bible remains vital for my brother, sister and me.

SYLVIA COULTER, Northern Regional Director

14 | sunz.org.nz

INTERVIEW

“we need each other’’

BY HILARY HAGUE - Children & Families Ministry Director -

MY 16 YEAR OLD SON WAS ACTUALLY giving me parenting advice, but I think his words are just as true when it comes to opening the Bible.

TRADITIONALLY WE HAVE THOUGHT OF opening the Bible as something we do on our own. But I’d like to suggest that there is something missing when this is the only way we approach God’s Word because when it comes to the Bible we need each other. We need our faith community.

The more complete the community that is actively exploring the Bible, the more significant the encounters will be.

A complete community includes people of all ages. We mature immeasurably when we engage openly and honestly with the Bible in intergenerational communities: children and adults actively listening to each other; teens and adults exploring life together; elders, kaumātua and grandparents all sharing and gaining insights from discussions with younger generations.

As we allow the Holy Spirit to work, new discoveries come to light.

Opening the Bible with a variety of ages and a mix of maturity and experience is good for us all. It brings about both personal and communal transformation.

WE BENEFIT FROM EACH OTHER WITH A sense of shared mutuality and growing relationship. Essentially, as we come together we grow each other up in Christ.

The Bible has so much meaning to be explored, and opening it with all ages together is a very significant way to understand and follow the word of God. What would that look like for your church?

In some congregations, people may never interact with those of other ages. But throughout biblical tradition, the church was not just multigenerational; it was intergenerational, with the whole church together as one family and people of all ages learning from one another in common life. This book will help you explore what it means to be an intergenerational church.

It’s available from SUNZ for $35.98.

Freephone us at 0508 423 836 for more information about this book.

ARTICLE

February 2015

|

19

Youth Camp Bible stories • Every morning at camp we do an energetic aerobics workout with our youth campers. Afterwards, we give them time to spend in their dorms working through a morning devotional. It has been exciting to start youth off in this routine. We also give the campers three months of devotions to take home so they can continue engaging with the bible after camp.

• On our recent South Island Winter Camp, campers requested to have more time in their small groups as their discussions around faith and the bible were so helpful.

• On our E3 Expedition Youth Camp we spent time each day reflecting on the book of Luke. It was a great time travelling the wilderness on the camp while at the same time reading through Luke’s account of Jesus and his mission on earth.

• At our youth camps we include a number of different ways of engaging with the bible. These include quiet times in the morning for reading, prayer and discussion times. We have creative times where campers build, draw or write something.

Sometimes we even jump all around the bible to explore concepts evident in many different scenarios and locations. We also sing and worship as a way to engage with scripture.

20 | sunz.org.nz

INTERVIEW

SUPAkidz

Camp Bible stories • Every night, 56 children at Southland’s Space Academy SUPAkidz Camp snuggled down in bed and listened as their leader read the Bible. Every day the question box was full with deep and probing questions about God and discussions were intense.

The children loved the time they spent together thinking about God, and at the end of the camp 15 children were given Bibles to take home.

• Children at the SUPAkidz Camp were memorising Proverbs 3 verse 5 together.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

Never rely on what you think you know,” they chanted. When they had finished they added the verse to all the other verses on the lanyard round their necks.

They carried these verses everywhere they went and took them home when the camp finished.

• Quiet time was the favourite part of the SUPAkidz camp for Koria.1 Now that she’s home she makes her mum sit down with her every morning and do it with her.

Her mum has asked how to get hold of the Snapshots quiet time books.

• A special treat was in store for SUPAkidz campers this year. Every child received a copy of Snapshots 365 to help them get to know God better through Bible reading and prayer. Thank you to all the people who gave money towards our Bible reading appeal in the Adventure to enable this precious gift.

1. The children’s names have been changed to protect their identities.

INTERVIEW

February 2015

|

21

New Ways to Read th

BY NEVILLE BARTLEY - National Youth Director -

WHEN I WAS GROWING UP I WAS NOT really a reader, I wanted to be outside running around being physically active.

I could read but I was slow and found it hard to concentrate for long.

In fact, I didn’t read a complete book from start to finish until I was 18 years of age and that was Winnie the Pooh. So for me, becoming a Christian at the age of 24 and being faced with the task of connecting with God through the scriptures was – and still is – a big challenge for me.

However, in our world of technology and change I have discovered new ways to engage with scripture. This has inspired me to encourage others who struggle, for whatever reason, to engage daily with scripture and to help find the way that best suits them.

SO, WHAT EXACTLY ARE THESE NEW ways to engage with scripture? Well, if you are like many of us you may have a smartphone, iPad (or any tablet) or personal computer. If that is the case you have a world of ways available to you to engage with scripture.

22 | sunz.org.nz

For someone with a smartphone or tablet there are “Apps” that you can download that allow you to view many different versions of the Bible at the same time.

There are other apps that mean you can pull up some scripture and press play to hear someone reading the scripture to you (one of my favourites).

Some are even like a play with sound effects and have different people playing the different roles in the scripture story.

These audio versions mean you can engage with scripture on the move, walking, running, driving even flying.

There are even apps where you can access movies based on scripture from both Old and New Testaments and they often have the scripture reference somewhere on the screen. There are bible reading plans that come with many of them, and some even have a built-in alarm so that it reminds you to spend time with God through the scriptures. As you can see with all of this out there, there are even more new ways people can now connect with God and the scripture.

ARTICLE

You can find the bible reading tools mentioned in this article by visiting www.sunz.org.nz and our Facebook page www.facebook.com/sunz.nz

d the Bible ALONG WITH ALL OF THESE WONDERFUL new ways to engage with scripture there are new ways for people to spend their time while engaging with scripture.

It has often been put, to many of us, that engaging with scripture should be a time where you alone interact with God through the Bible. However, there are others – like myself – that have discovered that while that is a good thing, it is also a struggle doing it alone. So, many of us are coming up with new ways to engage with scripture and to include others in the engagement.

You don’t even have to be present at the same location to engage with others and with scripture. You can use programs like “Skype” and “VOIP” to connect with people literally anywhere around the globe and spend time together engaging with scripture. You can have face-to-face calls on smartphones and tablets; you can connect over social media like Facebook, and involve a large number of people in the scripture experience.

THE TRUTH IS THERE ARE MANY different ways to connect with God

through scripture. If we are struggling to engage with God, then we need to take a bit of time and see what is out there that will suit us.

If it involves engaging together with others, then get proactive and invite others to join you. If we can put things up on Facebook for the world to see, surely we can invite others to join us in engaging with God through scripture.

In fact, a lot of these suggestions aren’t really new; they are just using new technologies to make them happen. So, let’s continue to challenge ourselves to meet with God daily through his word.

Let’s challenge ourselves and others to be aware of what ways are out there for us to engage, and let’s challenge and encourage one another to engage.

The cool thing is that if you want to, you can use a mixture of techniques to engage with the scriptures which will keep things fresh and new each day. No matter what you do, you need to do something, because we need to engage with scripture daily as a way to engage with our God daily.

ARTICLE

February 2015

|

23

Light for the path

BY PAUL MARTELL

- Relationships Manager -

WE HAD DECIDED AS A CHURCH TO PREACH through Ecclesiastes. In fair sized chunks.

I was given Chapters 2 and 4-6 – a huge amount of territory. Our pastor Steve Worsley challenged church members to learn chapters of the book and recite them to the church by heart.

We have an extra daughter in our family, Shona, who has a long history of learning scripture. She learned all of my section in the CEV translation which was interesting to me as I had decided to preach using NIV. So I read the passage a lot in both translations. I also kept referring across to the Message just in case I was missing something. But the reality on the day was something quite different.

As Shona was reciting for memory (which of course is much more impacting than reading owing to the fact that the truths in the passage had embedded themselves in Shona and she was thus able to express them so well) we could hear the ongoing refrains from a man who tried everything he could under the sun.

The refrain that kept occurring was ‘This makes no more sense than chasing the wind.’ I was expecting to be reminded of the NIV ‘This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.’

How wrong could I be! I was taken back as Shona recited to another time. A boy, 60 years ago, sitting at the dinner table where my Dad after every meal opened his trusty King James Bible and

24 | sunz.org.nz

read to us. So what I heard as the refrain was ‘This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.’ The reading of the word of God night after night had quietly become part of my being.

THE PASSAGE COVERS WEALTH AND its goals, Wisdom, Toil, Oppression, Community, Advancement and Riches.

And the refrain kept on ‘This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.’ Or as I was remembering it from my Godly dad ‘This also is vanity and vexation of spirit.’

The impact on the church group that day of being recited these chapters was very interesting. Before I preached I asked them what they had seen. Many picked up the same themes as I had, then one person in the congregation called out ‘I am depressed!’

So when I asked the congregation to describe what they had heard it was stunning. They had huge chunks of what I was going to say sorted in their minds just from hearing the word.

And so it is. The first bible verse I learned was ‘For I know whom I have believed and am persuaded to keep that which I’ve committed unto him against that day’ (it was a Sunday school memory verse which I could not get so my big brother taught me the chorus then I got it!) I have never doubted the truth of that verse since.

ARTICLE

LOOKING AT OUR MAORI CULTURE WE ARE aware that for their whole journey as a people, learning by memory the stories they have and reciting them to one another has great impact. So it was, spreading the Gospel. The Gospel of Luke was crucial, but often with one Gospel available to a whole village, hearing the word read changed the whole nature of Maori culture. The Maori culture was transformed by hearing the word of God.

In many of our Church and home cultures today the reading of the Word of God has been shrunk back. You see, whilst our liturgical churches have an annual calendar for readings many of us do not.

I am glad my home Church preaches through books of the Bible, but reciting them is rare indeed.

I am glad that as I hear any translation of scripture being read I can still hear Dad’s voice. It was very formal for this task, reading to us each night the adventures, disasters, poetry, history and reflective thinking of scripture.

I cannot think of any book that can be so world changing when read out loud. Or even better, learned and recited.

It is part of our culture & heritage. I am glad of that.

ARTICLE

OUT & about Regional News February

WAIKATO/BOP Graham Fullerton

AUCKLAND/NORTHLAND Sylvia Coulter

When former staff member Tim Long popped in for a visit, he inspected the space by the door where youth worker Andy is now based, though like all the field staff he’s often out in schools and churches.

Beyond the reception desk. Glenis, parttime office administrator, and Andrew are coming to terms with new database systems. At the back Annette is hard at work possibly on the church children’s ministry survey which her department have been conducting.

Towards the end of 2014 in Hamilton, the annual Appreciation Dinner was held with just over 60 Scripture Union supporters attending. The Dinner was held at the very pleasant and suitable venue of the North City Community Church at Rototuna.

The evening was organized by our two Scripture Union Staff workers, Steve Adams and Wayne Goodchild, doing this on behalf of our SU Regional Committee.

Following a nicely prepared meal Steve and Wayne took turns to interview each other about the work that they do for Scripture Union. This question and answer format, interspersed with some humour, was informative and entertaining for those attending.

A new venture this year was the ‘Waikato SUNZ Family Supporters Book’. This book contained all the information supporters needed to know about what Scripture Union is doing in the Waikato – Bay of Plenty and information about the people are involved.

Paul and Sylvia, out of sight in this photo, work from the office also.

UPDATE

CANTERBURY Ben Necklen

Camps have recently finished and we were so blessed to have such a talented group of volunteers running our camps. We in Canterbury have be very fortunate for the local support for our new bike camp in the McKenzie country and have enjoyed chatting to locals that see the vision of journey-based camps. We have also enjoyed another 11 day journey through North Canterbury and continue to thank God for the way he has been at work in the young people’s lives.

SOUTHLAND Nigel Winder

At the Southern Office it has been the usual frenzied summer camps season compounded by new systems to wrestle with and the ongoing unexpected teething problems. Our grace has been tested, but to the team’s credit (sounds like a rugby analogy), we have pulled together to get through some fairly stressful times.

On the 1st December 2014, after nine years in Don Street, we have moved office.

We are delighted with the bigger space, better parking, higher profile and easier access for visitors. You are of course welcome to come and see for yourself at 137 Yarrow Street, Invercargill. We are looking forward to another great year of ministry with hopefully a few less distractions.

TOP OF THE SOUTH Rebekah Smith

Last October we had the opportunity to once again run the awesome, equipping ‘Transitions’ event. This evening event was made up of 4 workshops covering budgeting, free legal advice, making cheap & yummy meals as well as making a survival plan, as students leave High School & enter the world of tertiary study.

We also had the privilege of giving out gifts donated by local businesses including kitchen ware, vouchers & 3 vacuum cleaners.

During the last week in December we also had the ‘It’s Your Move’ program presented to over 244 children in 3 local schools in Nelson. This was financially made possible from some local churches.

UPDATE

February 2015

|

27

Scripture Union NZ has a range of Bible Reading Guides to help you engage with the Bible on a regular basis. Talk to your Bible Reading Rep to find out what might be suitable for you. For more information about these or any of our resources please freephone 0508 423 836.

Encounter with God is designed to lead you to a deeper understanding about what God is saying to you and to His world today - $47.00 for a yearly subscription

Daily Bread will challenge, encourage, surprise and inspire you - $47.00 for a yearly subscription

Daily Devotions

for Young People in the Pacific Grow is a new daily devotional book created by Scripture Union Vanuatu for young people in the Pacific.

$4.50 Just full r fo a year

28 | sunz.org.nz

RESOURCES

Tiddlywinks

for under – 5s

only

9 $9.a9ch e

First steps in Bible reading for under - 5s. These books are split into 50 ‘first steps’, each introducing a Bible story and exploring its impact on a child, followed by a prayer suggestion. Each book explores the everyday life of fictional children who are easy to identify with, and draws out particular themes that link with the Bible.

RESOURCES

February 2015

|

29

Snapshots for 8 - 11 year olds

only

All 3 guides provide Bible reading material for a whole year.

Each day children will discover more about God through a short bible reading and a variety of activities – cracking codes, drawing pictures, filling in missing letters, thinking and praying.

30 | sunz.org.nz

.99 6 1 $ ch ea

RESOURCES

01 2 E TH

S

5

T I M UM Cam e s Ba

SAVE THIS DATE 29TH AUGUST 2015 9.30AM-4.30PM NORTHGATE COMMUNITY CHURCH ROTOTUNA (10 mins north of Hamilton City) HAMILTON

p

A one day event where we will be looking at how secularisation is impacting our ministry areas and exploring a constructive response in changing times.

The SUNZ AGM will be held at the end of the day.

Scripture Union NZ has a range of Bible Reading Guides to help you engage with the Bible on a regular basis.

Please contact us for more information.

stay in the loop LIKE US ON FACEBOOK facebook.com/sunz.nz

FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @newzealandsu

VISIT OUR WEBSITE www.sunz.org.nz

sunz He rama t찾u kupu ki 천ku wae

PO BOX 760, Wellington 6140 | 0508 423 836 | info@sunz.org.nz He rama t찾u kupu ki 천ku wae | Your word is a lamp to my feet. Psalm 119:105 SUNZ is a member of the Scripture Union International Family