SUNZ Adventure Magazine November 2014

ISSN 1176-5143

adventure November 2014

IncaRnational Leadership

WAY2GO MAGAZINE INSIDE

Leadership is about influence, and we all influence others or circumstances in greater and lesser degrees.

EVERYONE HAS A SPHERE OF influence. The question is really about how we exercise our responsibility and skills in these different places. This edition of Adventure is about a quality of leadership that may not be found in many leadership textbooks.

IT TOUCHES ON THE CHARACTER AND motivation of a person in a leadership role.

Leadership has always been an important part of Scripture Union ministry. The quality of leadership not only determines the success of activities but has a vital impact on those being led.

I am always humbled by the people I meet who are in places of influence in our communities, and who talk about the formative influence of SU events and people in their lives.

Today, we continue to make leadership development an important element in our ministry activities, sometimes this is formal and at other times it is informal.

Leadership skills can be learned but it takes something else to shape the character that drives those skills.

As you read through these pages look for the clues to great leadership, and use them to reflect on your own experience of leadership and being led.

And thank you for being part of this ministry together, especially if you are in a position of leadership.

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

JESUS AND PAUL BOTH GAVE A definition of leadership that is antileadership as power and status, and that is a key understanding in our practice.

They were not about command and control but they were both energetic, and initiative takers, and servants.

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EDITORIAL

contents FEATURES

UPDATES

4 WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TO

26 REGIONAL UPDATES

PUT INTO PRACTICE THE WORDS/ ACTIONS OF JESUS IN OUR NEIGHBOURHOOD? Wayne Fraser

10 NEVER TOO YOUNG TO LEAD Neville Bartley

19 KIDS CLUBS MAKING A

NOVEMBER

25 LIGHT FOR THE PATH Ruth Vercoe

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY

LIFELONG IMPACT Paul Dadd

24 SCRIPTURE UNION AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT Joe Kapolyo

INTERVIEWS 8 WHAT IS YOUR BEST LEADERSHIP WISDOM? SUNZ Staff

22 LESSON IN INCARNATIONAL

LEADERSHIP - Q&A WITH RICHARD STARLING Jamuel Enriquez

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15 WAY2GO MAGAZINE

RESOURCES 28 RESOURCES FOR LIFE

What does it look like to put into practice the words/actions of Jesus

in oUR neighboURhood?

By Wayne Fraser {National Director} OPINIONS ON LEADERSHIP FILL articles, books and websites.

Skills and techniques are often illustrated with diagrams, easy to follow steps to success, and stories like Scott and Amundsen’s race to the South Pole. Often the focus is on personal achievement leading to the reinforcing of a title and or status.

Leadership skills can shape vision, create change processes, and manage systems but leadership is shaped profoundly by the deeper qualities of a person’s character. Competence is essential but the formation of character is more important. For a Christian in leadership, character is developed through spiritual habits or growing towards greater Christlikeness.

JESUS ONCE CALLED HIS DISCIPLES together and gave them a fresh perspective on the qualities of a leader.

He said to them; “You know that those foreigners who call themselves kings like to order their people around. And their great leaders have full power over the people they rule. But don’t act like them. If you want to be great, you must

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be the servant of all the others. And if you want to be first, you must be everyone’s slave.”

He finished with a phrase that Jo Sanders labelled the Master’s Master Principle; “The Son of Man did not come to be a slave master, but a slave who will give his life to rescue many people.”

It seems the leaders of the early Christian community took this seriously.

Leslie Newbigin, the influential British missiologist, said that what they did so carefully and daringly was to think about all of life from the perspective of God’s revelation in Jesus.

They did not first seek out some framework or resource in the broader culture and then justify it by arguing that it was consistent with this revelation of Jesus. They centred their understanding, framing and practices of Christian formation and leadership practices on the fact of the incarnation as the place where God’s intentions and purposes are made known.

The incarnation of God in the person and work of Jesus, dwelling among us, is at the centre of this reality. What implication does this Biblical belief

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have on the quest for authentic Christian leadership?

JESUS NEVER ENROLLED HIS DISCIPLES in a workshop as we might, nor did he ask them to read a stack of books. Instead, he chose twelve people to be with him as companions.

The Apostle Paul described his own ministry in this kind of incarnational language. He wrote; “But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us.”

Incarnation is a leadership principle modelled by Jesus. Incarnational leadership promotes a leadership approach that values embracing the humanity of others and active humility. Servant-hood practices are the embodiment.

At the heart of leadership for a follower of Jesus - whether that is exercised in the Beehive, the commercial heart of Queen Street or the study of a vicarage - is a grounded, humble courage where followers are redefined in terms of

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what they do.

LASTING LEADERSHIP LEAVES A LEGACY. It is about caring for people and a cause, caring about their long-term good, laying down your own life for the well-being of others and a mission.

A leader who follows the legacy of Jesus’ leadership is one who is available and engaged rather than absorbed with self-importance. We see leaders who are wedded to a mobile phone and constantly answering emails, but that is not the legacy we are looking for.

As Jesus called people to travel with him, so staying the distance and traveling with people, riding through the rough and smooth patches, leaves a legacy.

God meets us in the concreteness of our place and time, not in disembodied ideas or feelings. An effective leader works to enter into their followers’ world.

The irony of leaving a leadership legacy is that the goal must be to live so that you will be forgotten and that Christ will be remembered. That kind of leadership seen in Jesus undermined the power and authority of the ruling class and status and

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will do the same today.

So, incarnational leadership is following the legacy of servant-hood that Jesus demonstrated, being present and calling out the best in others for the cause of the kingdom. What other example of servant leadership is there apart from Jesus?

STEVEN COVEY DESCRIBES SERVANT leadership as a fundamental, timeless principle, one that leads to empowerment.

He says; “…the only way you get empowerment is through high-trust cultures and through the empowerment… that turns bosses into servants and coaches…”

There are Christian leaders who have taken this incarnational principle seriously and who have sacrificed much to live alongside and to serve the needs of others. Incarnational leadership is a mission principle the practice of servant -hood is its’ out working.

This is a challenging subject and it may be helpful to recall the biblical principle of the mustard seed as we consider it.

A Christian’s responsibility is not to change the whole world but to be an influence where they are and to sow seeds

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that will grow into something unexpected and much larger.

By following the servant leadership example of Jesus who lived with and journeyed alongside people, it is possible to be part of a leadership revolution that leaves a legacy far greater than ourselves. As you reflect on this personally, words from the following Methodist Covenant Prayer may be helpful;

“I am no longer my own, but yours. Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will; put me to doing, put me to suffering; let me be employed for you or laid aside for you, … And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.”

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THE 2015

S UM MIT Ba se C amp

SAVE THIS DATE 29TH AUGUST 2015 9.30AM-4.30PM NORTHGATE COMMUNITY CHURCH ROTOTUNA (10 mins north of Hamilton City) 7 | sunz.org.nz HAMILTON

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.

q&a WHAT IS YOUR BEST LEADERSHIP WISDOM?

SYLVIA COULTER

Northern Regional Director

WAYNE FRASER National Director

The essential Three C’s when building a leadership team are; Character, Competence and Chemistry.

Ever wondered why the leaders in our government are called “ministers”?

Presumably it’s because they are first and foremost servants “ministering” to the needs of the people. (Did someone say “Yeah, right”?) Now view the perfect example - King Jesus riding a humble donkey, washing the feet of his followers and declaring “I am among you as one who serves.” (Luke 22:27)

ANDREW RAMSBOTTOM

Children and Families Worker 1. Spend a significant time praying over your planning, team and event/project.

2. Be meticulous in your planning as a leader and do it with a small team.

3. Make sure that all communication is PAUL MARTELL clear, easily understood and Relationships Manager implemented.

4. Wherever possible give your Train those around you to be leaders. team handwritten “thank you’s”, they Be patient when they fall over. are so much more personal.

5. Evaluate the success of your event or project with your team when it is over.

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INTERVIEW

NIGEL WINDER

Southern Regional Director and Children and Families Worker The best leaders I know and want to follow are those who are servant hearted and who lead out of a deep love for God. In my own leadership I have been greatly challenged by the words of the Psalmist who wrote in Psalm 115:1 “Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.”

STEVE ADAMS

Waikato/BOP Youth Worker A person with Leadership needs integrity to help others to aspire to great things for God.

I believe the greatest leaders are motivated by the humble and intrinsic motivation of glorifying God and reflecting His character of love and faithfulness.

ANDY BANKS

Auckland Youth Worker I always remember a number of years ago when I started a leadership position, a friend said to me “the most important job you have is to be an encourager”. I always felt I was, until a performance questionnaire by colleagues showed otherwise. I found I was ‘thinking’ encouragement, but never ‘verbalising’ it to the person who needed to hear it.

At the end of a marathon race, the crowd’s cheers of encouragement spur the runners over those last few steps and make all the difference. As workers in the kingdom, we all need that Barnabas (son of encouragement – Acts 4:36) in our leaders to help us take that next step, no matter how hard that may be.

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INTERVIEW

NeVer tOO yoUng to lead!

By Neville Bartley {National Youth Director} PROVERBS 1:4 ENLIGHTENS US AS TO one of the reasons that Solomon wrote Proverbs. It says “To give prudence to the naïve, to the youth knowledge and discretion.” Too often in our current world young people are given a free pass to life. We really don’t expect much from them except to obey adults, study hard and be a good citizen.

Solomon didn’t seem to take this view. He believed that they are able to be taught and trained in God’s word and that they can learn wisdom, knowledge and discretion. These are things that are often missing from adults who have walked with God for a long time.

I think God is saying to us not to underestimate our young people, and that they are capable of wisdom and understanding and capable enough to lead. We so often in the church talk of our young people being the leaders of tomorrow, and I think we sell them short with that statement.

Young people are not only leaders of tomorrow they are also leaders of today and we need to begin to train and equip them to step into those leadership roles.

THE BIBLE IS FULL OF EXAMPLES of young people being called and used

by God to not only lead but to do it in outstanding fashion. Josiah inherited the kingdom of Judah at the age of 8 and at

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the age of 16 sought God and began to reform the nation (2 Chronicles 34:3-7).

David is probably the most wellknown, chosen by God when he was just a boy to be the next king, defeating Goliath at about the age of 12. The funny thing was that Saul told David he wasn’t able to fight Goliath, so the trend of telling young people (called by God) they can’t do something has been around for a long time.

The funny thing is that sometimes so-called maturity, or experience with age actually becomes a hindrance when faced with tasks that seem too big, where as a young person will often just trust God and get on with it.

WE NEED TO HELP YOUNG PEOPLE search the scriptures, learn from the Lord and grow in stature just as Jesus did here on earth as a young boy. We seem to want to create ways to entertain not engage our young people, and that is doing a disservice to them and to God.

We need to find ways to enable them to engage with scripture and with God. The scriptures are always relevant and always powerful no matter what year it is, or the age of the person engaging with them.

We need to provide the opportunities for our young people to step into their potential as leaders and then

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leave the rest up to them. David fought Goliath not because anyone pushed him; he did it because he feared God more than he feared Goliath.

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DAVID IS A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF A young person picking up skills because of their pursuit of God’s call on their life. All that time, as a young person in the court of King Saul, helped to prepare David to be king and to be a man after God’s own heart.

Another example of preparing a young person for the task they are called to is that of Timothy. The church today needs to draw from Paul’s example with helping Timothy, a mere teenager, to step up and be the leader God had equipped him to be.

Paul told Timothy not to let his youthfulness hold him back, and he gave him plenty of opportunity to step up and lead. Always guiding him and teaching him, letting him know he wasn’t expected to do it on his own, but giving the opportunities to step out on his own.

We need to step out and get a clear message out to our young people that they need to know and be the people God has called them to be.

We need to instil in them the fact that all they have is all He needs and all He needs is all they have. As adults we need to step up and be Paul and ask God to show us who our Timothy is, and work at encouraging them, ARTICLE

teaching them, equipping them, and releasing them to lead in God’s power.

Our role as adults should be to mentor and guide our young people to fulfil the call God has on their lives.

Those who are called to be leaders need strong Christians to take them alongside and teach them as Jesus taught His disciples, and mentor them as Paul mentored Timothy. Let us take 1 Timothy 4:12 not just as an encouragement to our young people but as a rebuke to us as adults not to look on them in that way.

DISCIPLESHIP AND MENTORING ARE words often thrown around within churches but they are things that we struggle to do. I don’t think we struggle because we lack the knowledge on how to do these things. I think we struggle because we doubt ourselves in being able to disciple and mentor others, particularly teenagers who for many adults are scary.

In our society, we paint the picture of teenagers as being rebellious, rude, thoughtless and stubborn individuals who don’t want to have relationships with adults. While they are growing into their adultness they do long for relationship, true loving relationships of others, particularly of those older than them.

We need to get the world, and often the church view, of teenagers

out of our heads and just see them as Jesus did and how God does. They are young adults needing older adults to walk the journey with them. Walk and share our journey, warts and all.

Adults need to be open, honest and vulnerable with them, and be prepared to give them space to grow and make mistakes. Mentoring and discipleship are not programmes to be learned or applied. They are lifestyles to be lived.

I believe we all have our own Timothy just as Paul did. We just need to ask God to reveal them to us, trust God’s choice and step out and be vulnerable to God, to ourselves and to these young people.

When we do this we will see leadership develop within our Christian youth in a way that will change the face of the church and the face of society.

LET THE CHURCH LOOK FOR NEW ways to engage their young leaders, and challenge them to step into their role, and out into the world, and let’s just dare to believe that they are capable in God’s power to take down some of the Goliaths facing their generation.

Young people are not only leaders of tomorrow they are also leaders of today...

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EXODUS P R I M E

ExodusPrime Youth Leadership Training and Mentoring

Exodus Prime young leader training camp and mentorship programme from SUNZ equips young New Zealand Christians to be leaders of impact, today and in the future.

16 - 20 JANUARY 2015 visit www.sunz.org.nz

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Being with God

Bible and prayer guides for people with dementia In this new and ground-breaking series of Bible and prayer guides, familiar Bible words, prayers and songs in each day’s theme nurture faith as memories are triggered.

Each title includes: • 31 daily devotionals: Bible readings, prayers • A ‘cues and clues’ box to help engagement with the day’s theme

• Inspirational CD with a hymn or song for every day, specially compiled for each guide • A brief ‘expert’ introduction and a ‘How to use…’ section • Developed in consultation with experts in dementia care

Supported by MHA and CCOA

‘With its carefully chosen mix of familiar words and evocative music, this imaginative and practical resource is nothing less than a Godsend.’

Pam Rhodes (Presenter of BBC TV’s ‘Songs of Praise’, Patron of Methodist Homes for the Aged)

Buy online www.sunz.org.nz 14 | sunz.org.nz Buy direct 0508 423 836 8959 BWG DB104 210x148_Mono AW.i1 1

RRP $14.99 each 26/2/10 17:18:02

Issue 48

The MAIN THING is to keep the MAIN THING the MAIN THING. What is the main thing God wants for the children and families you work with?

What do you want want for these children and their families?

Only you can decide but as you pray and think about it, it will help you if you think about these areas.

HEADS

What do they know about the Bible already? What do they know about God?

HEARTS

How do they feel about God? Do they have a relationship with God?

HANDS

What issues are they facing in their everyday lives? Do they live their faith out in their everyday lives?

It is good to summarize your main thing into a sentence that is easy to remember and quick to tell others.

This will guide the way you design your programme and the content and curriculum you choose. For example, if you have decided your children need to get to know each other and your main thing concentrates on relationships, your programme might include more time in small groups building relationships. Or if you have lots of non-churched children and you want them to know the Bible well, then it will contain lots of stories and teaching. And if you want to help your children live out their faith in their everyday lives, then your programme might include practical ideas and time to talk about their lives.

Keep your main thing in front of you and refer to it often – and remember as your children change and grow, your main thing may change too.

Welcome to the WAY2GO magazine. It’s full of ideas for people who work with children in their churches and local communities. Pull it out and pass it around.

KidsclUbs MAKING A LIFELONG IMPACT Paul Dadd

{Children and Families worker}

“You are the light of the world.

A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.

Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.” Matthew 5:14,15 MARJON IS THE CHILDREN AND Families Pastor at Mountainside Lutheran Church in Mt Wellington, where their desire is to be a strong presence in their local community. Last month Marjon received a phone call from a woman who needed help.

She explains, “She was a young mum needing food for her and her baby.

When she was a child she attended a kids’ club at our church but since then has had no connection with us. But in her time of desperation she remembered our church and contacted us for help.”

WOW! A WOMAN WHO, AS A CHILD, had been welcomed and loved at a kids’

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club by people from her local christian community and was so positively affected by that experience that they were the people she turned to years later when life was tough and she needed help.

I believe that is Jesus’ desire for his church: for it to be a community of believers whose primary focus is to show Christ’s love and care to the people around them. For the church to be like a light on lampstand or a town on a hill - a strong presence in its community to whom people instinctively turn to when they are in need of love, hope or food for a hungry baby.

BUT TO BE A LIGHT ON A STAND AND not a light under a bowl, we need to be prepared to step outside our usual church structures and habits and seek to connect with people in new ways.

Running programmes for children in their local community has been a focus for Mountainside Lutheran Church for many years. Marjon and a team of volunteers run a SUPAkidz club for primary aged children at the neighbouring school.

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She describes the impact the SUPAkidz club is having in their community, “It’s a great way of connecting with kids and their families. Our club is held after school in the church building, which helps the families become familiar with us and where we are. Many families are now connecting with us through other activities in the church as well as SUPAkidz which gives us more opportunities to share God’s love with them.”

do with people when they are young can make a significant change later on in life.”

By the time a person is twelve they have often formed the ideas and values that will stick with them into adulthood. The SURGE club helps the group from Inspire Church to encourage young people at the local school to see life from a Christian perspective and to explore values that will hold them in good stead for the future.

LUKE, AN INTERN AT INSPIRE CHURCH in Albany, who is involved with a group from his church in running a lunchtime surge club in the neighbouring intermediate school, believes that connecting with young people in his community is really important.

Luke explains his motivation, “Life is like a pathway that can lead in all sorts of directions, and the little things we

SCRIPTURE UNION’S HEART IS TO support churches like Mountainside and Inspire Church to build good relationships with children and young people in the local community through programmes like SUPAkidz and Surge. They are an opportunity to share God’s word and love with them in a safe and caring environment; to be a light on a lampstand.

“Life is like a pathway that can lead in all sorts of directions, and the little things we do with people when they are young can make a significant change later on in life.”

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A LESSON IN INCARNATIoNAL LEADERSHIP Q & A WITH RICHARD STARLING Jamuel Enriquez

{Marketing Coordinator}

OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS I’VE quietly held a high regard for the amazing yet humble work Richard Starling and his amazing team achieves in their community – in a ministry I think is quite a demanding one to be involved in.

Richard Starling leads one of SUNZ’s youth program’s called Stay Real, which reaches out to at-risk youth in the community. As I reflected over this magazine’s theme of ‘Incarnational Leadership’, I thought that I could learn something significant from Richard.

HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN YOUTH MINISTRY? I got saved at 19 and I’ve been involved in youth, or working with youth from the age of 21. I’ve always been involved with kids often that were marginalised. I first went to the boys home – I was about 23 at the time – and I wrote a letter saying, “To whom it may concern, I’ve noticed kids around the streets looking lost. I felt I had

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an answer for them, and that answer was in Christ”. [I wrote this letter] because I felt compelled in my heart to reach out. I didn’t even know about the boys home or heard about the boys home. All I heard in my heart was “go to the boys home” and all I did – and back then we didn’t have modern technology [laughs] – was I looked in my phonebook, looked for ‘boys home’, found the address and wrote a letter saying that all I wanted to do was come and share about Christ. So I sent the letter off thinking that no one’s going to say yes to that, but they actually invited me in and that started a three-year program which I started running.

HOW DO YOU THINK YOU’VE BEEN ABLE TO SIGNIFICANTLY HELP THE YOUTH IN YOUR MINISTRY? I’ve had to learn, I didn’t always have it right. I still don’t have it right. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes and I will make more. You know, we’re on a journey. With

INTERVIEW

the young people in Stay Real programmes we journey together, we’re doing life together. You had the privilege of meeting that young boy earlier. You can see our journey and we’ll continue to journey.

You know he’s about 14 [years old], but he must’ve been only about 6 or 7 when I first journeyed with him. There’s another young girl I’ve journeyed with, she was 8 and now she’s 18. We’ve journeyed 10 years together. And you can really speak into their lives. If you try to speak into someone’s life that you haven’t journeyed with then, you know, what are you giving them? You’re giving them empty words, so the idea is to journey with them and show them through love.

WHY DO YOU THINK PEOPLE WOULD FIND IT DIFFICULT TO RELATE WITH THE VERY PEOPLE THEY WANT TO HELP? We’re caught up in a society where we have boundaries, and we have personal space or personal bubble. And I’m not saying we don’t need to have those things, but if you go and work with someone and you have your personal boundaries, or “professional boundaries” it makes it hard to connect with them. That’s what the program – Stay Real – is about, a tool to connect with the child and the family.

HOW HAVE YOU MADE SUCH A POWERFUL POSITIVE IMPACT IN THE COMMUNITY YOU’RE WORKING IN? You have to have self-belief, but you have to know above all that God has called you or you can’t do it. You need to be able to build a bridge for others to walk across and not be afraid of your leadership.

You’ve got to spearhead it, you really do.

A leader’s got to lead and leaders make decisions that no one else likes but you’ve got to make them. That’s just the way it is.

FROM THIS CONVERSATION IT’S CLEAR to see how many traditional qualities of leadership such as determination, relationship building and strong-willed decisiveness are all evident in Richard and have made a practical impact in his ministry.

What’s most compelling to me though is how God is the key foundation to Richard’s leadership. It’s compelling to me because Richard never specifically set out to be a leader. Instead, these leadership qualities he embodies are merely a by-product of his passion to see God’s will to be achieved.

All I heard in my heart was “go to the boys home”...

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INTERVIEW

Scripture Union and leadeRship deVelopment Joe Kapolyo

{Key Speaker at the Summit}

IN THE YEAR 2000, GERSHOM CHIONE was General Secretary (National Director) of Scripture Union Zambia. He was among a significant group of Zambians heading up Christian organizations and denominations in the country. They all had in common this fact that they came to faith in Christ through the work of SU and they acquired the basic elements of leadership through participation in the varieties of ministries that SU offers. This is true of many Christian leaders within and outside the Church all over sub-Saharan Africa.

GERSHOM, A FORMER SECONDARY school teacher, is currently the pastor of Kitwe Chapel in Zambia. He is a theology graduate of both All Nations Christian College (1986) and Moorlands College (2005) in the UK. Before taking on the post of General Secretary, Gershom served as the Schools Travelling staff worker.

GERSHOM’S PERSONAL LEADERSHIP development can be traced back in part to the influence of a godly Brethren missionary lady, the late Rae Masterton, a kiwi from Christchurch. Rae taught Religious Education and supported SU work in government schools in Luanshya in Zambia.

Gershom was helped in coming to Christ through this work and finally made a personal commitment to Christ at an SU Camp west of Lusaka in 1974.

He began to develop as a disciple of Jesus through daily personal quiet times using SU Bible Reading Guides, attendance at the weekly Bible Study Group meetings with material provided by SU staff and of course weekly involvement with a local Church.

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SU HAS BEEN PARTICULARLY successful in producing leaders not only for the church but for the wider community.

The key lies in the very simple method involving several components: insistence on leading each individual to faith in Christ, thus giving them purpose centered not on self but on serving the Lord through the Church and community.

In addition, the disciplines of personal daily devotions and regular group Bible studies engender growth in Bible knowledge and a greater appreciation of the will of God and his wider purposes, and this leads to a life of obedience.

IN THE PROCESS PEOPLE PICK UP lots of transferable skills from involvement in regular bible study groups, SU committees and camps ministries.

These skills include, minute taking and therefore record keeping, chairing meetings, organizing events, public speaking, leading others to Christ, and many more. All these prepare them for any future leadership roles they may assume.

SU HELPS POTENTIAL LEADERS TO BE Christ centered and highly motivated for service in the church and wider community. That is certainly our Zambian experience of the work of SU. JOE M. KAPOLYO SEPTEMBER 29, 2014, LONDON

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“Stop DOING Ruth and

start BEING RUth." Ruth Vercoe

{SUNZ Board Member}

“Living a life that loves Jesus excites me...”

EACH NEW YEAR INSTEAD OF HAVING A New Year’s resolution, I take some time to ask God what He wants for my year. “Stop DOING Ruth and start BEING Ruth,” is what I got from God last summer, and it was a big eye opener for me. It is so easy to get caught up in life DOING what you think others want from you, but are you really living out the person God wants you to BE?

When you’re living outside of what you’re called to be (or trying to straddle both!), life is draining. It wasn’t until I took this onboard that I started to truly see the person God had made me to be, and the paths he was leading me on.

BEING who God made me to be is a constant journey of discovery about the greatness of God, and I love doing this journey with worship, prayer and quality time in Gods word.

“I’VE FOUND A LOVE GREATER THAN life itself, I’ve found a hope stronger and nothing compares, I once was lost now I’m alive in you.” What awesome words to sing, but even more, what better words to live out!

Living a life that loves Jesus excites me, and I love the chance to reflect in worship, God’s power, his promise, the purpose he has for me and others, and spending the time in worship based prayer helps me to refocus and again look into what BEING Ruth looks like.

EXODUS CHAPTER 15 VERSE 2 SAYS, “the Lord is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him” (ESV).

Just as Moses called out these words, these words are my prayer and petition; each day is a blessing where I can live in BEING Ruth, BEING a child of God. I am loved. I challenge you too, to BE the person God has made you to be.

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UPDATE

OUT aboUt &

Regional News November

AUCKLAND/ NoRTHLAND

WAIKATo/BOP

Sylvia Coulter

Graham Fullerton

A sample of recent northern region events: in July two children’s camps and Henderson Youthserve; in August seven Joe Kapolyo meetings including a multicultural night when Ake entertainingly promoted her Cook Island home; in September two staff database training days and a successful Ponui Xtreme camp; in October increasing interest in “You’re Losing Us!” with several bookings in November.

Hi everyone, our Waikato regional support team do a fantastic job for SUNZ, with our inspirational chairperson Graham Fullerton (who might I say has a sharp eye for detail and is a great encourager for Wayne Goodchild, myself and other SUNZ supporters).

Two events illustrating SU priorities are “Across the Generations” held in early November to help churches do “all-age” things well, and “The Summer Adventure Begins”, our camp prayer evening. We promote cross-generational sharing of life and faith, and also emphasise prayerful dependence on God.

The last few months have of course been a busy time, with Christian school groups steadily ticking along. Youth training workshops in and around the Waikato churches continue to grow with more and more churches. It’s a real blessing to be able to assist wherever we can with material or expertise.

Wayne Goodchild has just finished two winter snow camps at the SU Adventure Lodge at Whakapapa with heaps of snow around. We had our appreciation dinner on the 7th November and had a great evening thanking the many SU supporters around the Waikato.

A lot has happened for us to be thankful for. I can feel a song coming on “bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me bless his holy name”. Thanks everyone for your support and please continue to pray for this great work.

UPDATE

SoUTHLAND Nigel Winder We appreciated the cultural richness of Joe Kapolyo’s messages and meeting many of you who came to his meetings and the breakfast in Mosgiel hosted by SUNZ.

CANTERBuRY Ben Necklen Young people are so resilient when you get them with their pairs to overcome a challenge. This was seen on our recent winter camp in the Craigieburn Mountains.

Winter camp this year was a fantastic time of adventure and spiritual growth. Whether it’s the memories of camping out in -8 degrees or the campers’ feedback wanting more time in their small group discussion times, it is inspiring to see faith being developed.

It has also been really inspiring to once again be gathering together for lunch and prayer with the wider SU family in Christchurch. Alistair and Ruth Falconer are doing a fantastic job in getting people together to pray for the SU ministry.

Aaron Douglas (Youth Consultant) has slotted into the team and has been out making new acquaintances. He and his wife Hannah were real assets on the SUPAkidz Camp Team – a great induction.

The SUPAkidz Camp “Space Academy” with 56 campers was filled up (and full on) which again was a real testimony to the power and faithfulness of God and His desire to be made known.

Administering the Spring Camps was trying with delays in the setup of our new IT systems. Bronwyn and Heather through much patience, persistence and hard work ensured campers and leaders still got to camp. What a great team!

We are looking forward to the next round of Children’s Ministry Network meetings early in November to share our favourite Christmas/Advent ideas and resources.

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UPDATE

One of the core aims of what we do at Scripture Union is to help resource churches and their ministries. This is what drives all the changes happening in SU Resources currently as we try and bring you a greater range resources and in many cases at reduced prices.

One of the best resources is the Light material range, providing a wealth of flexible materials for running sessions for children aged 5 and under, right through to teenagers, all following the same syllabus.

It will help you run fun, flexible and exciting Bible-based sessions for children and young people. Perfect for kids church and intermediate leaders, Light equips you with all you need to teach and disciple your groups in a way that works for you.

Leaders Guides and Children’s Activity Books for Bubbles, Splash!, Xstream and theGrid are published every 3 months.

All of the resources are designed to work across the age groups, with everyone

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exploring the same biblical theme and often the same bible passages. However, they have also been created with the specific needs of each age group in mind.

Also in the Light range are undated resources.

Substance is for 14-18 year olds, and is an undated photocopy-able resource with nine volumes in the series with each containing ten theme based sessions.

Mosaic responds specifically to the needs many churches have where a small number of children meet together across a wide age range. There are six titles in the series.

For the dated resources (supplied every 3 months) the best way to ensure you can get this resource is to place an order with us for the full year – email info@sunz.org. nz for an order form.

RESOURCES

DATE BASED CURRICULUM RESOURCES

BUBBLES

SPLASH

XSTREAM

THE GRID

For 5’s and under

For 5 - 8’s

For 8 - 11’s

For 11 - 14’s

UNDATED RESOURCES TO USE AT ANY TIME

SUbstance

MOSAIC

For 14 - 18’s

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For mixed ages

RESOURCES

Children’s ministry impacts children, both in the church and the local community, and families too. It touches the present as well as the future. That makes children’s ministry leaders very special, and it makes looking after them very important.

But building strong, effective leaders takes time and skill.

PRAY

PRAY FOR YOUR LEADERS Ask the Holy Spirit to be with them and work through them.

CONNECT WITH YOUR LEADERS CONNECT Take time to get to know them and listen to their hearts and what is happening in their ministry and in their lives.

TRAIN

TRAIN YOUR LEADERS The Top Tips series can help you as you work with them. These books are big on practical advice and make great conversation starters for training.

There are loads of titles to choose from so there’s bound to be at least one that will be perfect for you and your group.

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RESOURCES

summer

CAMPS 2014/2015

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summer CAMPS

2014/2015 www.sunz.org.nz

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