It is time to give an update on how we are going financially as a church. Our offerings for the first quarter are down $8000 on budget. At the same time we have kept our expenses down so overall we are $4800 behind as a church. At this stage of the year that is Ok, but...

It is important that we do continue to grow our income as a church and the primary way in which we do that is through the regular offering/tithe (whether that be direct debit, direct credit, cash or envelopes). Thank you for your faithfulness to God in this area.

On Sunday the 22^nd April, I spoke about the call of Jesus to sell our possessions and give to the poor if we are to experience the life that is really life (called eternal life – beginning now and continuing for eternity). I encouraged us to: de-clutter and give the money away; tithe AND give regularly/systematically to the poor; and to take every opportunity to give generously.

Through July we will be engaging in a special fundraising campaign to enable us to meet our commitments to the mission of God beyond Logan Uniting Church. We will give you more information in a couple of weeks to enable you to prepare for this. One of the things we will be doing is a MONSTER garage sale on the 28^th July. A number of people have responded to the message on de-cluttering and raised the idea of a garage sale to help us live out this spiritual exercise. Start identifying the “good stuff” you no longer use but which could be sold to help serve others.

Please be praying for this. The way we use Money is a very important spiritual practice.

In the notices you will also see an advertisement for the “Church in life” seminar being held on the 14^th July. I know Mark Setch personally and have heard a bit of what God is doing through Brian Medway and the church he is leading. This seminar will be very helpful as we continue to grow in being a disciple-making movement that is used by God to transform people’s lives in Christ. It would be great for a large number of us from Logan to attend and to learn from the experiences of others and also to share our own insights.

Yours in Christ

Graham Keech

Seasons

I was reading a leadership article recently in which Bill Hybels reflected on how churches are always in a “season”. It could be a season of growth; or change; or consolidation; or malaise; or ...; but it is important to recognise what season we are in and what God is calling us to do in it.

 I reflected on the question as to what season Logan Uniting is in with the ministry leadership team. We used words like application, consolidation, awakening (in terms of living more fully God’s call to mission and discipleship). Tim Robinson used a phrase that has caught my attention and I believe is a great picture of the season we are in. He suggested we are in a season of “sowing in winter”. Last year had something of an autumn feel to it – there were some difficulties, cut backs, losses – but God has now brought us into the winter season. This is a necessary season in which we prepare for spring.

If this is true, what are we to do in this season? The answer lies in remembering where God is taking us as a church. This is best represented in the diagram below:

My deep sense at the moment is to be praying for pre-Christian people we know regularly and purposefully. It would be great if every group, every time we met, began by each person praying for 2 pre-Christian people - that they would come to faith in Christ and live passionately for God’s Kingdom. It is prayer which will enable the seed of God’s word (and our witness) to germinate and produce the greatest fruit for Christ. We are doing this as a ministry leadership team and so is church council.

 Personally I have also set the alarm on my mobile phone to go off every day at 10-02 am. This is to remind me of Luke 10: 2, where Jesus tells us “...The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” The workers for the harvest will come from the harvest. So every day at 10-02am, I pray for my pre-Christian friends to become passionate workers for Christ and for me to be faithful as a witness for Jesus. Wherever possible I also ask those who I am with at the time to join me in this prayer.

Will you (and the groups you are part of) please join me in this prayer focus.

I wonder how you would answer the question as to what season we are in as a church. I would love to hear your responses. 

Yours in Christ

Graham Keech

PS. I don’t think we are at the beginning or the middle of winter – there are already indications of new shoots of growth happening.