Ministers report 2025
In 2023 and 2024 we refreshed our vision for the Awatere.
Our Vision for the Awatere:
Christian communities united in Christ,
· gathering to worship in Spirit and truth,
· pursuing biblical truth,
· equipped for every good work,
· joyfully serving as ambassadors of Christ.
This vision statement recognises that we live in different communities and have different church backgrounds. So, the way we express of our faith will vary. But we are united by our faith in Jesus Christ who suffered for our sin and was raised to life for us.
This statement also summarizes God’s call for this parish.
First, we must worship God in Spirit and truth – there is only one thing that God seeks in the Bible and that is true worship. Therefore, our Sunday morning gatherings are the most important thing we do. We must worship as our God directs us in scripture.
Second, we pursue biblical truth. This means that our preachers will preach the Bible. It also means that we will all be searching our Bibles for the truth about life and salvation.
Third, we want to respond to our salvation by doing good to those around us. To do this we all need training in biblical care and empowering by the Holy Spirit.
Finally, we are ambassadors for Jesus. We are living in a land that has forgotten who her true King is, and we are his representatives. Our job is to show and announce that Jesus is the true, good King of all people.
To implement these statements, we need focus. This is how we stated our mission for 2024 & 2025:
Our mission for 2024 and 2025 is being disciples and making disciples by:
· developing pathways to Christian faith,
· gathering to grow in Christ,
· learning to share the gospel of Jesus Christ effectively.
Here is how we are implementing our mission statement:
· developing pathways to Christian faith
We are learning to view all our initiatives and activities through the idea of a ‘pathway’ to faith. We are asking, ‘How are our activities and ministries helping or encouraging people to make a step towards faith in Jesus?’
The diocesan season of evangelism in 2025 aligns well with our mission. In 2025 we plan to organize a ‘Hope Explored’ dinner. This dinner will be like an Alpha dinner, where people are invited in a non-confrontational way to attend a group that explores the Christian faith. At the dinner, people have a good meal, experience good conversation and hear a short invitation to attend a ‘Hope Explored’ group for three evenings.
· gathering to grow in Christ
One of the key functions of a church is growth in Christ. The main place where God promises to meet us and grow us is our Sunday gathering when we pray, sing, teach and see (in the sacraments) God’s Word. I pray that God’s Spirit will continue to grow us in Christ as we gather.
We also grow in Christ when we get together to study God’s word. It has been exciting to have a growth group meeting most weeks in Seddon, and also to see the establishment of a women’s group to do the Christianity Explored course. It is also great to see that there is a monthly bible study happening in Kekerengu.
· learning to share the gospel of Jesus Christ effectively
Most of us find sharing the gospel a challenge. We have been learning the gospel together by preaching the Two Ways to Live gospel outline on Sundays and by studying the Two Ways to Live outline at our growth group. We have had some very deep discussions and the gospel has been getting deeper into our souls. We are also promoting the ‘Ripple Effect Seminar’ which is being run by Julie-Anne Laird on March 9 at Nativity. (1 pm – 4 pm).
Finally, a big thankyou to everyone who is a part of our congregations! Thankyou for all the things you do for your saviour, seen and unseen. My prayer is that we will experience his joy, more and more, and that one day, we will all hear the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
May God give a plentiful harvest.
John Phillips.