The Messenger Winter 2011 PDF

The
M E SSENGER
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4-13 14-23 24-25 26

Aims
To uphold the teachings of Scripture as
summed up in the Westminster Confession
of Faith.
To assist the WPC churches in their congregational life and witness.
To foster a spirit of unity amongst WPC
churches.
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Articles of Church News, Letters to the
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The Messenger Committee

Revd Clem White (Editor)

Mrs Sandra Wilson (Treasurer)
Mrs Pam White (Secretary)
Ray Wilson (Proofing)
Mr Roy Lim (Designer)
Opinions expressed are those of the contributor and not necessarily those of WPC, the
editor or the committee. Submitted articles are welcome.
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Photo on cover: Visit to Pakistan April 8 - 11, 2011, Shahdra Congregation by Tony Bracefield Pg. 14
T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011
Editorial
Changes
There have been some recent changes
in the composition of our Messenger
Committee.
Ron Nugent, who has been our proof
reader for a number of years, is not able
to continue in this role. Ron has been an
assiduous proof reader who knows how
to dot all the is and cross all the ts. He
has also given us wise counsel on some
theological issues during his time with us.
We appreciate all Ron has done in serving
the Lord and us and thank Ron sincerely.
In answer to our prayers Ray Wilson has
now stepped up to the plate and will be
our future proof reader. Ray is a pastor at
Kelmscott WPC.
Another change in our committee is to
do with graphic design. Erica Woonings
has been our graphic designer for a
number of years. Erica introduced colour
to our front and back pages and did some
other redesigning of the magazine for us.
We want to thank Erica for all the hard
work she has done for us and give thanks
to God for her input. Again in answer
to our prayers the Lord has provided
us with another graphic designer in the
person of Roy Lim. Roy is a member of
All Nations WPC and comes to us with
much experience in graphic design and
Christian enthusiasm. We will probably
notice a few changes as Roy puts his own
stamp on the design of The Messenger.
Thanks Roy for coming on board.
An obvious major change is the
dimensions of this issue of The
Messenger. We are interested to get
feedback about what you think of this
A5 size issue. One advantage in using

this size is that it will fit into a ladys hand
bag, into your Bible or hip pocket. If we
dont hear any complaints we will assume
you like it.
SYNOD
Some might be thinking that is a
strange word; what does it mean? Well, it
simply means a church gathering. In our
Presbyterian form of government we do
not have a hierarchical system as does
the Anglican church. Its more of a flat
form where we have outward concentric
circles; the inner circle consisting of each
congregations session or committee of
elders. The next circle, the presbytery,
is made up of representative elders
from each session. The outer circle is
composed of representative elders from
each of the presbyteries. The synod deals
with matters that are common to all of
the presbyteries such as relationships
with other Christian denominations.
You will notice an advertisement
for our 18th Synod in this issue of The
Messenger. Please read it. This is a
great opportunity for all members and
adherents of our congregations to get
together and encourage each other in
the Lord. It will be a good time for the
East to meet the West and catch up with
old friends and meet new ones. Not only
that, you will be able to enjoy the blue
skies and beauty of the West.
So get the date into your diary right
now and arrange to be there. U
C lem W hite
T h e Me sse n ge r W i n t e r 2 0 1 1
Fe a t u re s
Creation: Gods Universe

by
N athan W oonings
This is the fourth, God willing, of a series of articles written by

various authors on the theme of each chapter of the Westminster
Confession of Faith.
Westminster Confession of Faith Chapter 4:1
he scientist approached God and

said, Listen, weve decided we no
longer need you. Nowadays, we can
extract stem cells, clone people, transplant
hearts, and all kinds of things that were
once considered miraculous.
God patiently heard him out, and then
said, All right. To see whether or not you
still need me, why dont we have a little
man-making contest? Okay, great! the
scientist said. Now, were going to do this
just like I did back in the old days with
Adam, God said. Thats fine, replied
the scientist and he bent down to scoop
up a handful of dirt. Whoa! God said,
shaking his head in disapproval... Not so
fast. YOU get your own dirt.2
It always amuses me every time I hear
that anecdote recounted. It reminds me
of a vital truth I constantly need to be
aware of. God created the universe and
everything has its origin in God. I cannot
live without God as much as other people
want to or try to3. I am dependent on him
for my very survival. It is the subject of
creation that our series in the Westminster
Confession of Faith (WCF) brings us.
We are going to consider just the first
paragraph of Chapter 4. God made
everything out of nothing, by his powerful
word, for his own glory, and it was all very
good.4
4
Creation out of Nothing5

God created everything in the universe
from nothing. I once visited a church and
the Pastor prayed something like, God I
pray that as you found the world in chaos
when you came to create it, so I pray that
you would turn the chaos of peoples lives
gathered here into something ordered
and beautiful. The Pastor was adlibbing
so I dont know if he actually realised
what he was saying. It certainly caught my
attention.
When God created the world he did not
take what was already there and make it
into what it is today. God is not a cosmic
sculptor who, like humans, with preexisting material, produces a sculpture6.
God began with nothing. At no time
does the bible mention that there was in
eternity stuff that existed. The created
universe has a beginning. The world, the
universe, atoms, matterall of it has its
origin in God. Genesis 1:1-2 doesnt say,
When God began to create...the earth was
without form or void or, In the beginning
of Gods creating...the earth was without
form or void.
Genesis 1:1 is an independent statement
from verse 2. It says, In the beginning
God created the heavens and the earth.7
It was the heavens and earth that God
had just created that was without form
and void, Genesis 1:2. The Hebrew word
create is absolute. Only God creates

in the Bible. In the context of the Bible
create means to make out of nothing.
Genesis 1:1 teaches the absolute beginning
of all things; space, time, energy, matter.8
God created all reality outside of himself
out of nothing that had existed previously.9
But how did nothing become
something? How was that possible?
The answer is astonishing. God spoke it
into existence! Imagine if our words had
power to speak something into existence.
How amazing would it be if we said, Let
there be a house on this block and it
suddenly physically appeared? Wow! Well,
Gods word does have power like that
and infinitely more. He spoke an entire
universe into existence (and we are still
only just discovering how vast it really is).
In eternity in the mind of God was the
concept of the universe. At a particular
chosen point in eternity, when time began
(i.e. when he created it), he spoke and the
eternal concept of the universe became a
physical reality. By the word of the LORD
the heavens were made, and by the breath
of his mouth all their host...For he spoke, and
it came to be; he commanded, and it stood
firm, Ps. 33:6, 9. By faith we understand
that the universe was created by the word
of God..., Heb. 11:3. In Genesis 1-2, we
see that with a divine word from God, an
entire universe comes into existence.10
When we say God created all things out
of nothing we must not make the mistake
of thinking that creation is an extension
of God. What do I mean? Well, if the
idea and origin of creation is God, that it
all comes out of him, we can conclude
that therefore, the created universe is
a part of God. For example, the very
concept of the sun is in God. The sun
owes its existence to God. Therefore, the
sun is God. The world around us is using
that kind of logic (even if it is doing it in
ignorance).
People are busy worshiping creation,

whether it is an idol, the sun, or
themselves.11 But the created universe
is not a part of God. All of creation is
indeed dependent on God. God must
take care of it and sustain it. But it
nevertheless has an independent existence
from God. The heavens and earth are just
that, the heavens and the earth. God is
God. God and creation are fundamentally
different. God is imperishable; creation
is perishable.12 God is eternal; creation is
temporal13
We cannot treat creation like we treat
God. We are commanded to worship
God14. We are commanded to have
dominion over the created earth15. We
have a higher place in the created order
than the sun, moon, stars and animals. Yet
people still look to horoscopes! Treating
the creation as if it was God is idolatry and
God condemns it16.
The implication of the teaching that
God made everything from nothing is
potent and powerful. God is the absolute
owner and possessor of heaven and
earth.17 If all of creation has its origin in
God then there is nothing in this universe
that does not belong to him. The sun,
moon, stars, water, air, angels, human
beings; all of them, are Gods. The entire
cosmos is the work of his hands. The
Apostle John, speaking of Jesus as God
says, John 1:3, All things were made
through him, and without him was not
anything made that was made. Again,
speaking about Jesus, Paul says, Col. 1:16,
For by him all things were created, in
heaven and on earth, visible and invisible...
all things were created through him... And
the author of the letter to the Hebrews
says, Heb 1:10, You Lord, laid the
foundations of the earth in the beginning,
and the heavens are the work of your
hands...
Creation for Himself18

Why did God create the world? Was it
because he needed it? Was it because he
was lonely living in eternity all by himself ?
Maybe it was because God could not get
all the glory he needed without the world?
I once thought that but I was wrong. God
loves his own company. He is completely
happy and satisfied existing all by himself.
There is nothing that anything or anyone
can add to him to make him feel more
complete. But we might say, If God
is God then he is the God of love. Get
rid of love and he is no longer God.
True. So we conclude, surely then,
for God to be the loving God that he is,
he needs creatures to love. But that is
not the case. God can fully express his
love even without creatures to love he
loves himself. God created the world not
because he needed it but because he willed
it.
Through his creation

God shows off how
glorious he really is.
To the question of why things exist
and are as they are there is no other
deeper answer than that God willed it.19
He created everything according to the
counsel of his own will, Eph 1:11; Rev.
4:11.20 Also note that no one but God
determines what he does and does not
do, Isaiah 40:1314. Creation was a free,
independent act of God. He is completely
self sufficient and is not dependent on his
creation in any way, Acts 17:25, 28.21
All of creation exists because of God.
Therefore all of creation exists for God.
Having willed it into existence he created
it for one purpose not to make himself
glorious (because he is already glorious)
but to bring glory to himself. The heavens
declare the glory of God, and the sky
6
above proclaims his handiwork, Psalm

19:1. ...everyone who is called by my
name...I created for my glory... Isaiah
43:7. For from him and through him
and to him are all things. To him be glory
forever. Amen, Romans 11:36. All
things were created through him and for
him, Col. 1:16. Creation is meant to elicit
praise from the depths of our hearts.
Through his creation God shows
off how glorious he really is. Creation
is Gods great exhibition to be admired
by his creatures. We admire magnificent
paintings in art galleries, but such paintings
pale into insignificance when we begin to
take in the created universe. Romans 1:20
says, For his invisible attributes, namely,
his eternal power and divine nature, have
been clearly perceived, ever since the
creation of the world, in the things that
have been made.
Take a look around you: the vastness
and complexity of the universe, the
trillions of stars. God has made them all
and named them all! O LORD, how
manifold are your works! In wisdom have
you made them all; the earth is full of
your creatures, Psalm 104:24. On the
glorious splendour of your majesty, and
on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
They shall speak of the might of your
awesome deeds, and I will declare your
greatness. They shall pour forth the fame
of your abundant goodness and shall
sing aloud of your righteousness, Psalm
145:57. It is he who made the earth
by his power, who established the world
by his wisdom, and by his understanding
stretched out the heavens, Jeremiah
10:12. Indescribable, uncontainable
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we
humbly proclaim you are amazing God.22
God is to be praised as Creator by reason
of the marvellous order, variety and beauty
of his works.23
Creation all Good24

Creation is amazing, but not all the
time. One moment we can be praising
God for his amazing creation and the next
minute we can look around and despair.
In the same amazing created world there
is, all around us, destruction, devastation
decay and death. Then comes the question
(which we have all heard at one time or
another if we are Christians), If the
creator God is so good why is there so
much pain and suffering in his world?
But God is not responsible for the
brokenness in the world. We will see
that when we come to chapter 6 of the
WCF. What is crucial is to realize that
God did indeed originally create a perfect
world; a world that was not full of death,
destruction, devastation and despair. It
was a world created good. Nothing was
wrong. Everything was right. Repeatedly
it says in Genesis 1 that when God looked
at the world he had created it was good
or even very good.25 Today it is not good
but it will be good again.
God despairs at all the pain and
suffering in the world. That is why he
sent Jesus. Jesus through his resurrection
brings in a new created world where God
will again be able to say, it is good. Will
you be a part of that world?26
The idea that there could be an
existence of the world apart from God
is absurd and is not found anywhere in
the Bible. God has created all things by
his powerful Word. The universe and
everything in it is the product of his will
alone. All of creation finds its ultimate
goal in his glory. This world which God
created was originally good and he should
be praised for it. Realising then our total
dependence on God the creator as our
sustainer, let us give him the loyalty,
commitment, gratitude and devotion that
he deserves. To give him anything less is
scandalous. Give to God the sovereign
creator the first place in both your lives
and thoughts.27 U
(Endnotes)
1 In this article all italics in quotes are mine. All bible
quotations are taken from The Holy Bible: English
Standard Version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible
Society.
2 Author unknown [no date] <http://
secularfranciscans.org/f6_30.html> [accessed 2 June
2011]
3 Therefore, I believe that is why evolution is so
vehemently defended today. It explains an origin of
the world that doesnt involve a higher being than
humans. Therefore because there is no God, the
most important person, in the end, in the universe,
is me. Sound familiar?
4 The astute reader of the WCF 4:1 will notice that
there are two things mentioned there that I dont
comment on, namely that creation was an act of all
three persons of the trinity and that God created the
world in the space of six days. For further reading
on both see Berkhof, L. (1958). Systematic Theology.
Edinburgh, U.K.: Banner of Truth, pp. 129, 152-160
5 The WCF (4:1) says, It pleased Godin the
beginning, to create, or make of nothing, the world,
and all things therein whether visible or invisible
6 Bavinck, H. (2004). Reformed Dogmatics (Vol. 2).
(J. Bolt, Ed., & J. Vriend, Trans.) Grand Rapids,
Michigan: Baker Academic, p. 417
7 See also Reymond, R. L. (2001). A New Systematic
Theology of the Christian Faith (2nd ed.). Nashville,
Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc. pp. 389-392 (it is
probably worth purchasing this book if you dont
own it). See also Kelly, D. F. (1997). Creation and
Change. Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland: Christian Focus,
pp. 65-66
8 Kelly D.F., p. 57
9 Kelly D. F., p. 58
10 Kelly D. F., p. 61
11 Romans 1:21-25
12 Psalm 102:26, 27; Hebrews 1:11, 1 Peter 1:24,
Matthew 24:35
13 Psalm 90:2
14 Deut. 6:13
15 Genesis 1:26, 28
16 Deut. 4:13; Deut. 17:3
17 Bavinck, p. 417
18 The WCF (4:1) says, It pleased Godfor the
manifestation of the glory of His eternal power,
wisdom, and goodnessto create the world
(italics mine)
19 Bavinck, p. 430
20 See also Isaiah 46:10; Dan. 4:35;
21 Berkhof, p. 130
22 Reeves, J., & Story, L. (Composers). Indescribable.
[C. Tomlin, Performer]
23 Packer, J. I. (1993). Concise Theology. Wheaton,
Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, p. 22
24 The WCF (2:1) says It pleased Godto create
the world, and all things thereinand all very
good.
25 Genesis 1:9, 12, 18, 25, 31
26 See Rev. 21; 22
27 Packer, p. 22
Fe a t u re s
A GATEKEEPER
IN THE HOUSE OF THE LORD
by
B arbara C ross
months of that school year before moving

away, but her friendliness to me had paved
the way for other friendships. Though
young I realised that it was because of
Laura Mae reaching out to me the new
kid that I began to feel accepted. Even
though a child I determined that when a
new girl came into my class I would try
to include her in what was happening
with my friends. I acted on that resolve all
through my school years.
In the years since then I have
It is very important that each
seen that this same situation
church member sees it as his/her
happens over and over again
in church life. A new person
responsibility and ministry to truly
visits the church, especially one
make each new person, or even one
who is shy or nervous about
being there, and often they are
who has attended for some time, to
ignored except for a possible
hello by the official greeting
feel they are part of the group.
party at the door of the church
or a handshake by the pastor after the
I had been living on a farm in Arkansas
service. How they need a Laura Mae
where we raised thousands of chickens or
who will make an effort to draw them into
broilers as they were referred to in the
the group.
industry. We then moved to the city of
It is very important that each church
Joplin in the state of Missouri a much
member sees it as his/her responsibility
bigger and more sophisticated place
and ministry to truly make each new
than the farming community that we
person, or even one who has attended
came from. As a young girl it was a scary
for some time, to feel they are part of the
thing to go to a new and bigger school
group. People often fail to do this because
where I knew no one. It was even more
they want to spend the time talking to their
worrying when for the first few days no
friends. (I know of one person who made
one spoke to me or offered to play with
it a personal rule that he would not talk
me at recess. That is until Laura Mae took
with his friends until he spoke to someone
it upon herself to invite me to play and
new or someone isolated in the church
drew me in to the popular schoolyard ball
that day.) Perhaps they arent sure what to
games. Gradually, as Laura Mae accepted
say to a person they havent met before,
me, others began to accept me as well.
so they simply ignore him. Too often the
Laura Mae was only in my class for a few
am rapidly approaching the Biblical life
span of three score and ten and, like
many others of my age, I often find it
hard to remember peoples names - even
those nearest and dearest to me. However,
after 60 years there is one name I never
forget Laura Mae Brotherton. Now why
would I remember a young girl whom I
knew for only a few months when I was
nine years old?
lack of a welcoming ministry comes about

because people simply dont think of the
needs and feelings of others.
How does one become a Laura Mae
in the church? A helpful thing to do when
one notices a person or a couple who seems
to be on their own is to go to them and
simply say, I dont believe we have met
before. My name is____ and we are glad to
have you with us today. Usually a person
will respond to that with their name and
then a bit of non-invasive small talk can
open the door to further conversation. (In
Britain one can always fall back on talking
about the weather!)
Following a personal introduction and a
chat it is then important to introduce the
new person to other people who may be
close by. (I often look for someone whom
I know is good at chatting with people).
The person who feels left out may not
be new. It may be someone who has been
attending the church for some time but
can always be seen standing on their own.
I have been told by some that the loneliest
place they ever find themselves is at the
church surrounded by other people. They
need to be drawn in to warmer fellowship
and begin to feel the love and friendship
of other Christians.
I have often observed a cluster of
people talking with each other while
someone standing nearby is obviously on
the outside of the conversation. How do I
make them feel part of the group? A friend
of mine, Dr Dale Bluman, a professor of
communications, in his book (Speaking
and Listening in a New Era) challenges
people to be what he calls gatekeepers. A
gatekeeper, he says is one who has the
ability to encourage others to participate
so that they do not withdraw from or are
not forced out by the group.
He suggests that the way to act as
a Gatekeeper is to reach out to the
person who is on the edge of the group
by doing three things. (1) Ask questions
which encourage participation. (2) Listen

carefully to their responses. (3) Give
feedback to what they have said. Over
and over as I, and others, have practiced
his principles of gatekeeping we have seen
the outsider physically step forward and
become part of the group.
Recently my husband and I attended a
church service where we were unknown
and at least eight people from the
congregation spoke to us and made us
feel welcome. There have been other
times when we have visited churches
where no one spoke to us and we felt very
unwelcome. Twice when this has happened
I have been bold enough to write to the
leaders of the church to tell them of our
experience. I have stated in my letter that
if I had come as an unbeliever to that
church I would never have come back
perhaps not to any church. I also said
that if I had come as a believer looking
for a church home, I would have looked
elsewhere. The purpose of these letters
was to encourage those churches to think
about their Christian responsibility to
reach out to others.
The Bible tells us in many places to
encourage one another. Encouragement
can be done in many ways but one of the
most needful and simplest is habitually to
practice keeping a keen outlook for people
who seem to be alone and to draw them
in and make them feel welcome. What
a blessing it is to others when we act as
Gatekeepers in the House of the Lord.
U
Barbara Cross is a missionary in England

and Wales with Mission to the World
(MTW)
Fe a t u re s
CATHERINE PARR
IN THE SHADOW OF DEATH
by
B arbara C ross
or many people, one of the most

interesting periods of history (at
least British History) is the time
of Henry the 8th and his 6 wives. At
present on British TV a series called THE
TUDORS is running. After 10 minutes
of it, however, I turned it off never to be
watched again, as it was both unhistorical
and also morally crude. Sadly, stories of
Henrys last wife, Catherine Parr, even in
serious books and articles often fail to
mention that she was a godly evangelical
Christian woman who almost lost her life
for her faith. I would like to correct the
often missing facts about her with this
short article about her life. Barbara wrote
this article for The Record, the magazine
of the Free Church of Scotland.
Henry in a hunt for a sixth

wife determined that he
would only marry a widow of
spotless reputation.
Most people know that Henry the
8th had six wives. Many know the little
rhyme that identifies them - Divorced,
Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded,
Survived. Some might know that the wife
who survived was Catherine Parr. But
few know that Catherine Parr was a godly
evangelical who fearlessly witnessed the
truth of the gospel to Henry during their
marriage in spite of the danger to her life.
Henry in a hunt for a sixth wife
determined that he would only marry a
widow of spotless reputation. His eyes fell
10
on Catherine Parr who had come to court

after the death of her first two husbands.
Though in love with another man she felt
it her duty to marry Henry. He found her
to be kind and caring.
Catherine had come under the influence
of such reformers as Archbishop Thomas
Cranmer. She authored several books of
devotions called Prayers or Mediations.
She longed for Henry to accept the gospel
and to complete the reformation. Because
of her tender care for him, Henry allowed
her to share her strong convictions with
him. Those who hated the beliefs of the
reformers looked in alarm at Catherines
influence on Henry.
As a painful ulcer burst in the kings
leg, the king became prone to fits of
rage. Knowing Henrys health was failing
Catherine became more zealous in her
witnessing. One evening Catholic Bishop
Gardiner and Chancellor Wriothesley
overheard Catherine encouraging Henry
to carry on the reforming of the church.
Henry was humiliated; thinking that the
men would see him as weak in allowing a
woman to lecture him. The two men did all
they could to stir up Henrys anger and he
told them to see if there were articles of
law that could be brought forward against
the queen even at the risk of her life. The
men were delighted.
The queen knew nothing of this plot
and when visiting Henry continued to
speak to him of religious topics. Henry
said nothing to her but told his doctor, I
do not like the queens religion and I do
not intend to be much longer worried by
the discourses of this doctoress.
God in his providence caused matters

to turnaround. Chancellor Wriothesley
carelessly dropped the paper which
bore the kings signature allowing the
destruction of the queen. A woman of
the court found this paper and brought
it to Queen Catherine. She became
terribly distressed, knowing that her life
was threatened. Henry, hearing of her
upset, but not knowing the cause sent
his physician to tend to her. The doctor
to whom Henry had confided the evil
plan told her that his conscience would
not allow him to keep silent. He advised
her to behave with humble submission to
Henry and see if he would turn from this
death plot. Catherine, still believing that
the gospel cause was important, realised
that perhaps she had been too forward
in her manner of presenting the truth to
him. Later Henry sent for her and began
to speak of religious matters, perhaps
hoping to catch her in her usual manner of
speaking. Her judicious reply to him was
I must and I will refer my judgement to
your Majestys wisdom as my only anchor,
supreme head and governor here in earth,
next under God to lean unto!
The King replied, Not so Kate, you are
become a doctor to instruct us and not to
be instructed or directed by us. Catherine
protested that she had argued with him
for two reasons in order to divert his
mind from his painful leg and to learn
from him. At this Henry replied, And is it

even so sweetheart? Then perfect friends
we are not again as ever at any time! He
then kissed her and said, It does me more
good at this time to hear the words of your
mouth than if I had heard present news
that a hundred thousand pounds in money
had fallen unto me.
Catherines enemies, unaware of
this healing of the relationship, made
preparations to confine Catherine in the
Tower. While the King and Queen were
taking an airing in the park, Chancellor
Wriothesley appeared at the head of
forty halberdiers with forty other men
following him. They had come to arrest
the Queen and take her to the Tower. The
king called out to the Chancellor, FOOL,
BEAST, ARRANT KNAVE! He told the
chancellor to be gone.
Some historians believe that King Henry
may have come to an evangelical belief,
perhaps largely as a result of Catherines
faithful witness. On his death bed he called
for the evangelical, Archbishop Cranmer,
and gave evidence that he trusted in Christ
for his forgiveness and mercy. U
Barbara Cross is a missionary in

England and Wales with Mission to the
World (MTW)
Food for Thought

If you read history you will find that the Christians who
did most for the present world were precisely those who
thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely
ceased to think of the other world that they have become so
ineffective in this.
C. S. Lewis.
11
Fe a t u re s
Knowledge and Piety

A ndrew Y oung
ou will recall that John Calvin as a reality in my present need that I really
believed that nearly all the true and know him. This is the kind of knowledge by
sound wisdom we possess consists experience that Calvin has in mind.
in the knowledge of God and of ourselves.
This leads him to say that God can never
Having discussed the relationship between truly be known where there is no religion
these two things he proceeds to talk more or piety. By religion he means the active
about knowing God.
worship of God. Religious people do more
The first thing he says about truly knowing than consent to the existence of God; they
God is that it involves more than conceiving order their lives with reference to him. They
that he exists. Thats where knowing him honour and adore him, fear and obey him,
begins but it goes beyond that to grasp what trust him and seek him. Where such attitudes
befits us [in God] and is proper to his glory. and practices exist, people dont stop with
True knowledge reaches out, as it were, and knowing things about God; they actually
lays hold of that in God that is proper for relate to him. And in doing so, they truly
us to receive. There is what we might call know him.
an experiential element to truly
knowing God. We conceive of
Reverence arises out of perception
him in our minds and respond
to that by embracing what is to
of Gods glory, love out of awareness
our advantage to know of him.
Perception and action are both
of the benefits he showers upon us.
involved.
It is one thing, Calvin writes,
Similarly, piety in Calvins thinking is
to feel that God is our Maker and that he
supports us by his power, governs us by his that reverence joined with love of God
providence, nourishes us by his goodness, which the knowledge of his benefits induces.
and attends us with all sorts of blessings. Reverence and love are the two central
It another thing, however, to embrace elements of piety, Calvin says. Reverence
the grace of reconciliation offered to us arises out of perception of Gods glory, love
in Christ. Only when both of these exist out of awareness of the benefits he showers
together the perception and the action upon us. Once again, where these things exist,
people do not stop with contemplating God
can people be said to know God.
An illustration might help at this point. as admiring spectators. They call upon him,
Writing these Insights always poses a great and look to him to provide that which is to
challenge. Every week Im confronted with their advantage.
But what is the root of such religion and
a sense of my inability to write something
that will help people know God and grow in piety? Where do they spring from? Calvin
their relationship with him. In that situation I believes they grow out of the conviction
frequently remind myself that the God who that God is the fountain of every good, and
made our minds is able to help us think and that we must seek nothing elsewhere than
write, so that I need not suppose myself to be in him. Behind the love and reverence of
on my own in this task. To remind myself that true worshippers is the belief that no drop
God is such a God is part of what it means to will be found either of wisdom and light, or
know him. However, according to Calvin, it is righteousness or power or rectitude, or of
only as I go beyond appreciating Gods power genuine truth, which does not flow from
and willingness to help me to grasping this him, and of which he is not the cause. It is
12
only when this is our firm conviction that we

will learn to seek all these things from him,
and thankfully ascribe them, once received, to
him.
Once more Calvin writes, Until men
recognize that they are nourished by his
fatherly care, that he is the Author of their
every good, that they should seek nothing
beyond him they will never yield him
willing service. Nay, unless they establish their
complete happiness in him, they will never
give themselves sincerely and truly to him.
A sense of our total dependence upon
God for all that we are and have, then, is what
Calvin sees as the source of that religion and
piety that leads us to know him. The three
things are inseparably linked. Everything

begins with understanding that all that we
are and have derives from God. Where this
is truly appreciated it will invariably create
reverence and love. And these in turn will
lead us to seek after him and know him not
simply as an idea, but as a personal, living
being who is the Author of all and Source of
our complete happiness. U
Andrew Young is a Grace Theological
College Associate Principal (South Island,
New Zealand)
OTher CONTACTS:
Continued from Page 31
TriNiTy TheOlOgiCAl COllege WeSTerN
AuSTrAliA
Address: Trinity House 632-643 Newcastle
Street, LeederviLLe, WA
Telephone: (08) 9228 9067
Email:
info@trinity. org.au
AuSTrAliAN iNdigeNOuS MiNiSTrieS
AliCe SPriNgS
Postal:
PO Box 31, Alice Springs, NT 0871
Telephone: (08) 8955 5271
Contact: Rev. Phil & Cathy Stuart
Church Service (winter):
Meets:
20 Parke Cres, Alice Springs
Time:
10.30am
Email:
stuartmob@stuarts.id.au
Stuarts web:
www.stuarts.id.au
eNglANd
Revd David and Barbara Cross

Email: D.Cross@talktalk.net.
PrOvideNCe reFOrMed PreSbyTeriAN
ChurCh
Pastor Christopher Seah
Mob:
+65 9139 4654
Meets:
350 Alexandra Road, Level 3

(Next to Princess House)
Singapore 159946.
Time:
9.30am
Bible Study/Sunday School: 11.30am
Postal:
c/o Apt Block 1D, Pine Grove, #0815, Singapore 593001
Email:
provrpc@gmail.com
Website: http:www.providencerpc.org
grACe PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh

BeLLMere, QLd 4510
Contact: Revd Bill Ham (07) 5428 1797
Email:
billham@powerup.com.au
grACe TheOlOgiCAl COllege

c/- 36 Balaclava Street WYNDHAM
Southland NeW ZeALANd
Contact: Revd Andrew Young
evANgeliCAl PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh

PO Box 31-210, CHriSTCHurCH,
NeW ZeALANd
Contact: Trevor Webb
Email:
web@clera.net.nz
ChurChFreO
the gathering 5:15 pm Sunday 408 South
Terrace South Fremantle, WA
Contact: Chuck Linkston
Email:
churchfreo@live.com.au
eASTgATe bible ChurCh
Meets:
52 Herries Street - Toowoomba,
Qld.
Time:
10am
Contact: Dave Kiewiet (07) 4636 5438
Web:
www.eastgatebiblechurch.net
June 2011
Please note: While every care is taken to
ensure the information on these pages
are accurate, it is the responsibility of
each church or organisation to inform
the editor of any changes.
13
Missions
Visit to Pakistan April 8th to 11th 2011

by
T ony B racefield
My review of the situation

Pakistan is a difficult country to work in
as a Westerner due to the level of bribery,
security issues, and health issues. It is
however, an ideal place for the Pakistani
Christian who can function very well while
we Westerners can help in short visits and
with plans, ideas, structure and money.
The Church Scene.
There is one main protestant church
in Pakistan formed in 1970 called not
surprisingly The Church of Pakistan.
This is a merger of Anglican (the biggest
with the most influence), Presbyterian,
Lutheran, and Methodist denominations.
As one might imagine with such a mixture
the Church of Pakistan does not have a
reformed doctrinal statement and tends on
the liberal and social side, with membership
of the World Council of Churches. The
ministers are generally not concerned
with the poor Christians of Pakistan, the
vast majority of the estimated 10 million
Christian population. A very large number
until you realise Pakistan has a population
of 180 million and it certainly appears that
way when you travel there.
Everyone I spoke to had the same thing
to say about the Pakistani Christians they
are very shallow and do not have a clear
understanding of the faith doctrinally
weak. This is largely due to the fact that
the majority of Christians are very poor
have a low or non-existent education,
are Christian because they are born in a
Christian home and the national church
is not interested in training them. Even
those that do manage an education are
heavily discriminated against by the Muslim
majority. Our car driver had a bachelors
14
degree in computer science but the

Muslims who operate commerce will not
employ him. In Pakistan a Muslim will not
eat at the same table as a Christian, and they
do not like even the shadow of a Christian
touching them!
The Christian Scene
There are approximately 10 million
Christians in Pakistan. They make up the
poorest people and in villages tend not
to own any gardening land so they are
always slaves to their Muslim masters (this
was particularly the case with the brick kiln
workers).
Because of the large discrimination,
Christians normally live in communities
together so you have distinct Christian
sections of Lahore where Muslims may
own the shops, but they will not live in
the area. This has the advantage that it is
possible in the future to create some strong
Christian communities and break the
poverty and discrimination cycle.
The Church of Pakistan ministers tend
to be well paid and ignore the poor (they
are only seen as being a drain on the church
and often will be in a more dangerous area),
so the villages that we went to visit had no
evidence of the Church of Pakistan at
work.
Generally, Christians do not have a good
understanding of the faith and while the
culture makes them declare that they are
Christian they normally will not know
what that means and of course many
will not be saved. It does mean however,
that they are willing to come to church so
opportunities to grow and strengthen the
Christian church with sound teaching are
vast.
The
place
of
Grace
Presbyterian Church of
Pakistan GPCP
In November last year while on holiday
with his family, Amjad and N believed the
Lord was calling them to start a new ministry
in Pakistan after being in NZ for 12 years.
Amjad knew that it must be established
on sound teaching and that this would be
the distinguishing factor. In January 2011
he asked his sister and brother-in-law to
start a home church at their house which
Amjad owned and things have snow-balled
at a massive rate since then. The church called Lahore Presbyterian Church - has
grown from three families to an excess of
100 people. This sort of growth in Pakistan
is unheard of.
Amjad began a large teaching ministry
via internet and telephone (most people
have mobile phones in Pakistan and
wireless internet) and over the month
of February he contacted a number of
Presbyterian pastors who wanted their
village congregations to join him.
Amjad approached me about a book of
church order for the new denomination
and we largely modified the GPCNZ
document to fit Pakistan and we then had a
structure to unite and grow a new reformed
denomination.
Grace Presbyterian College - first floor
In March 2011, Amjad flew to

Pakistan and inaugurated GPCP with 15
congregations (which represent between
2,000 to 3,000 people I went to see and
preach at 6 of these churches over the 4
days). The work has begun but the task is

huge and support in many areas is needed
for the denomination to grow well. But
grow well it could indeed do to maybe
the most significant reformed Christian
work in Pakistan this century!
Grace Presbyterian College
Amjad is currently building the rooms
for the Grace Presbyterian College to be
established as I type. They are attached to
his house and are probably where a garage
would have been. There are two large
rooms each 10 metres by 10 metres that
could hold up to 100 people in each room
at a time. They will be used for church on
Sunday.
This new college is critical because the
denomination will stand or fall on sound
biblical reformed teaching and there is not
a source of that in Lahore at present.
Amjad is planning to use some retired
pastors as teachers as well as himself and
other recent graduates.
Areas that Redeemer GPC
can help with.
It has become very clear to Amjad that
he and his family need to move back to
Pakistan to work full-time with this church
and denominational plant. He will need a
home church to both pray and coordinate
support for him and the Pakistan ministry.
My
daily
activities
in
Pakistan
Friday day one
We arrived at Amjads house which has
three storeys. It is located at Bahar Colony
- Kotlakhpat in a Christian area of Lahore.
We are now off to the first church
Shahdra Presbyterian Church
The service began at 7pm with about 1
hour of singing!! And it was beautiful they
love singing. Then I preached with a great
interpreter Pastor Z for 20 minutes.
This was the first time I have ever done this
15
so it took a bit of getting used to not

speaking too many words at once but by
the end we were in a real flow.
After two other pastors preached I
thought we had finished but no it was
time to pray for all the sick and needy who
had formed a large queue. Since I had
preached I was the man for the job never
before had I done anything like this and
I prayed the Lord would give me wisdom
and the realisation to the people that I was
just a man and only God does miracles.
But after preaching on mountain-moving
prayer from Mark 11 I needed to put this
message into action.
Shahdra congregation - men and women sit on opposite sides
A whole range of needs were present.

Some had children with poor eyesight
two young girls in one family clearly with
the same problem and another little boy
who was going blind in one eye.
Then came a whole range of adults
and children with fevers. Then there was
a family who had only two children. They
must have had a lot of miscarriages I
suppose as one son looked about 12 years
and the other five years. They wanted me
to pray for more children! Then a lady who
wanted to have a son! Then came a range
of physical illnesses, sore ankles, knees,
and arms. Also a lady who said the spirits
attacked her when she prayed and a number
saying they needed wisdom. Well about
30 minutes later, I felt totally inadequate
by the end of all that, but confident that
God would do whatever work He willed,
16
and challenged that these poor Christians

needed very simple help.
Saturday day two
Our first trip was to Bedian Presbyterian
Church. This is in a very dangerous area
right on the boarder of India and Pakistan.
One of Amjads elders asked if we would
be taking armed security with us! Amjad
said God will be our protector! So our
team of four vehicles set off. It took 1.5
hours to drive there and the last 30 minutes
was on very poor dirt roads. In this area
there are no longer any government police
which accounts for the danger, as bandits
can operate, but in day light Amjad said
we are normally quite safe! These villages
are clearly much poorer than in Lahore
mud houses many made from dung of
bullocks and the water is very polluted
due to the poor sanitation. The bullock
dung is important not just for building but
also for fire, as they do not have many trees.
All along the roads we saw people making
bullock dung rings and stacking them to
dry for later use.
We had planned to arrive at the Bedian
church by 2pm but Pakistani time meant
that we arrived there at 3.30pm. The
pastor explained something and we were
let through so Amjad was relieved at that
Pastor S welcomed us and we held the
worship service. After this I again was
required to pray for a number of needs. I
had to raise my hands over a whole group
of ladies and say a general prayer for them
all as they all wanted me to touch them!
We then proceeded to Chathianwala
Presbyterian Church where there was a
group of about 100 at Chathianwala church
as well again mainly women and children.
Amjad said that Christians in these two
villages are very poor and humanly speaking
have no hope of breaking the poverty
cycle as they do not own any land its all
owned by Muslims who pay the workers a
subsistence wage, if that. Amjads vision is
to be able to get the children to come to a

Christian school and be educated so they
can break this cycle. We finished at 5.45pm
and then continued to our 3rd destination
Youhannabad Presbyterian Church with
Pastor W.
Jouhannabad did not have a church
building but used the pastors house, where
we met on the roof! In Pakistan often the
biggest areas are the rooftops (which are
all made of concrete not iron). I think
probably about 150 people were sitting on
the roof.
Sunday day three
I had a great time with Amjad this
morning planning the Grace Presbyterian
Church of Pakistan structure and the role
of his church as the mother church and
heart pump of the whole denomination.
After lunch we began our afternoon
journey to Dafu Road Presbyterian Church
where the pastor is Pastor T. They did not
have a church and again due to the number
of people we could not meet in the pastors
house like normal but instead we met in the
courtyard. The problem in Pakistan is that
the price for staples like rice has increased
so much that the poor generally can not
afford even basic food and most Christians
do not own any land to have their own
garden so living is extremely difficult.
Monday our fourth and last day in
Pakistan
Had another great talk to Amjad. Again
it is so clear that what the church in Pakistan
needs is sound teaching the Christian
communities are Christian because of birth
and discriminated against by the Muslims
so they know they are different but they do
not understand the gospel and the teaching
of the Bible.
Amjad said a pastors monthly salary
should be about $200 NZ a month (currently
he pays the pastors $100 per month). But
to help the church with necessities about
$500NZ a month is needed for each work.
I will see what we can do with our contacts

in the US, Australia, and NZ on my return.
We arrived at Manga Mandi church
at 2pm and were greeted by a wonderful
group of flower throwing girls. This village
was very poor with mud huts, although
Translator Pastor Z , Pastor Amjad Khan, Communty Pastor Tony

Bracefield and Pastor S
they did have power. The church building

was packed with over a 100 people and
there were a lot who sat outside as well (at
least another 50 but maybe up to 100).
We left for the airport at midnight and
then I proceeded through all the security
checks at the airport heaps of them
including a full bag search for drugs!
The plane left on time and so ended
my four twenty-hour days in Pakistan with
much to think and pray about and to act on
once I return to NZ. U
prayer points:
Support for village pastors - $200 per month
Support for educational programs - $100 per month for
a teacher
Support of bibles and Bible College resources.
Funds to complete the construction of the bible college.
If anyone would like to support the work of Grace
Presbyterian Church of Pakistan or receive a monthly
email update please contact Tony Bracefield at
tonybracefield@watchdog.net.nz
Tony Bracefield
Community Pastor, Redeemer Grace
Presbyterian Church, New Zealand
17
Missions
What can we
do for Japan?
by
W endy M arshall
fter the March 11 earthquakes,

missionaries here were asking,
What can I do? This wasnt
an easy question to answer. When the
nuclear reactor situation became more
evident the question for many changed
to, What should I do? Many fled Tokyo
for a period. Others, like us, remained
here. Many things that wed previously
taken for granted changed: trains stopped
running and then ran on severely reduced
schedules; petrol was hard to find; basic
groceries like milk, bread and toilet tissue
were also rare; and electricity also became
a rationed commodity. We didnt know
what the future might hold.
accounts of the tsunami and earthquake,

early survey trips of the damage and
accounts of relief trips. The biggest
challenge was not just to find stories, but
get them written well often by people
who had never written for a magazine
before.
In addition to stories from missionaries,
I wanted a Japanese perspective. So I asked
a Japanese friend and colleague of mine,
Yoshie Yokoyama, some questions.
Why Dont Japanese Ask Why?

I asked Yoshie, a Japanese pastors wife,
if she has been asked, Why would God
allow this disaster? She responded,
I am not being asked that.
We
Japanese have known
One of the reasons why 99% of the
that a big earthquake would
population is not Christian is that
happen sooner or later. The
Christianity is still seen as something scale is beyond what anyone
expected. When earthquakes
happen, there is almost always
from the west, not Japanese.
a tsunami. We know that too. It
In the midst of the confusion I was
is the scale of the tsunami and how wide
given the opportunity to answer my
the affected area was, that is troubling.
original question. The Managing Editor
We are also aware of the risks of nuclear
of the magazine Japan Harvest asked me
power plants. There have been accidents in
to take on the responsibility of putting
the past. There were causalities. People are
together a special disaster edition of the
asking whether it is a good idea to have
magazine. Id only been working with
new nuclear power plants. The majority of
the magazine since late last year, so this
people say that we need them, although
was a huge challenge. By Gods grace
they might be a necessary evil. People seem
to accept that if we are to continue living
the edition turned into a full-coloured 40
our current convenient lives, without a
page magazine that included eye-witness
18
viable alternative, we cannot avoid having

more nuclear power plants.
I was struck by her assessment of the
Japanese peoples mindset. She said, Its
now a matter of fixing the damage. For
that we need patience and sacrifice, which
everyone is ready to contribute.
She went on to clarify why she hasnt
been asked why God didnt stop the
disaster. It is because Japanese dont
know the God of the Bible. In the world
of eight million gods, things are quite
arbitrary. Gods might punish us, but when
things happen, its up to us to clear up the
mess.
Digging deeper into the Japanese
psyche, she explained, One of the
reasons why 99% of the population is
not Christian is that Christianity is still
seen as something from the west, not
Japanese. If people think in this way, for
them, becoming a Christian is becoming
un-Japanese, which is very problematic.
Man is known to have lived on this land
for millions of years. Indigenous religions
grew which influenced even Buddhism
which arrived in Japan in the 6th century.
Protestant Christianity has only been here
for a little over 150 years.
Yoshie ended our discussion with
hope. Our Creator and Redeemer can
use this crisis so that Christianity becomes
something more than a superficial veneer.
It is up to us, His labourers, to make Jesus
meaningful for those who desperately
need Him.
In the midst of our correspondence
she wrote this: I want to encourage the
missionaries who remained in Japan. We
Christians are comforted, encouraged
and strengthened by the camaraderie and
courage that they are sharing in our future.
More than that, I believe that through
them, non-Christian Japanese will receive
the love of Jesus, who came and identified
with us, and gave His life so that sinful
men are saved.

Her words were a great encouragement
to me in the midst of the uncertainty that
reigned in those weeks after the earthquake.
It was embarrassing to be singled out
as courageous, when we werent doing
anything except staying. But we hope that
by the simple act of staying, weve been
an encouragement to our fellow Christians
here in Japan.
Though the news cycle has moved on
several times since March 11, wed ask that
you would continue to pray for Japan. The
disaster is by no means over. More than
100,000 people are still living in evacuation
centres. The government is grappling
with a lack of available land to build new
accommodation for evacuees. Thousands
are grieving lost loved ones whose bodies
they will never find. With summer coming,
water-borne disease will probably become
a problem. The nuclear reactors are not
yet shut down. The tsunami left tonnes of
garbage. One estimate was 14 years worth
of garbage! That will not be easy to remove.
Japan also faces the question Brisbane
faced Where will we allow people to
rebuild? except that here the scale is much
larger. The physical repercussions of this
disaster go on and on.
But what we most want is prayer that
Japanese hearts would be open to the
gospel. Pray they would find eternal
security and eternal peace. U
Wendy Marshall is a missionary with
Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF).
Wendy and her husband, David have
recently returned to Japan for their
third term of missionary service. They
are members of Metrowest Community
Church (WPC) Brisbane.
E-mail: marshalls@omf.net
19
Missions
Himalayan Vision Trip Anyone?

D avid & E leanor
To Our Praying Team,

Two young men who were here recently
on a vision trip asked Phil to take them on
a short hike in the Himalayas. Phil invited
several of us who are involved in local
ministries to accompany them. We went
to one of our favourite spots in the outer
Himalayas, in the mountains above the
Childrens Home.
The trail had climbed steeply about 2000

feet up through scrub and cactus then into
the oak forest, over a ridge and through
dense jungle to a small cave and spring
where we camped as the sun was setting.
Our friends thrilled to all the night sounds
and marveled at the multitude of stars in
a clear heaven. The following morning we
had a hearty breakfast and then headed
up another 1500 feet through thick brush,
forest and cliffs to the 7000 ft. peak. Along
the way we surprised huge elk-like sambar
deer, mountain goats, large baboons and
even a bear feeding on the acorns. We stood
on the top looking south towards the plains
spread out below. There were the towns,
villages and steep roads we had traveled
through, part of the Childrens Home
campus, the rivers, fields, forests beyond
and the distant lower Shivalik mountains. It
was all laid out like a map. Was that where
20
we had come from? Amazing! But we had

to travel through that to get here.
Then we walked the short 50 feet across
the knoll and looked to the north. Our
guests gasped at the sight: sheer cliffs, deep
valleys with raging streams and waterfalls,
remote little villages and hamlets hugging
the rugged slopes, forests, the 10,000 and
15,000 feet jungle-clad mountains in the
next range back, and finally the 22,000
to 25,000 foot solid line of snow and
glacier-covered peaks that form the mighty
northern spine of the country - all framed
by the blue sky and the other closer sights
just described. Their response? Wow! Look
whats ahead! When can we come back and
go there?
It seems that we all look ahead more than
behind, especially when we are young. We
joyfully anticipate the good things that we
think are coming - graduation, summer
holidays, Thanksgiving, Christmas and
dread what we think might be painful
or distressing visit to the dentist, final
exams, old age. Even our heads & eyes face
forward on our bodies, not backwards.
That forward vision is crucial to making
correct decisions in every-day life.
Informed, realistic vision, though is usually

built on past experiences. The older we get
the more we have of a backward review to
help make clearer the destination and form

todays forward vision. This letter is about
vision.
From our vantage point of Spring, 2011,
we realize that God has again returned us
this term to the very area and works in
which we have spent our adult professional
lives. This gives us many opportunities
to look back and be reminded of Gods
goodness and providence and to have
continuing input into the forward vision of
those now leading at the Childrens Home,
P.T. Seminary, Grace Academy and several
churches and fellowships.
OCTOBER VISION TRIP

Anyone interested?
...for a 13 day vision trip this Fall.
Dates:
Sept.28 - Oct.10.
Activities: Visits to the three institutions
mentioned above, worship at
Valley Bible Fellowship and
Covenant R.P. Church, and
a four or five-day hike and
prayer walk in the Himalayas
where Gods servants are hard
at work presenting the gospel.
Cost:
$3500 for each participant
(air fare from the USA not
included) will cover travel
within India, food, hotels, and

a generous contribution to
urgent ministry needs at Grace
Academy or the Childrens
Home.
Are you interested or do you know of
someone who is? Contact David at his
email address below. Please give names,
email addresses & phone numbers so that
David can keep in touch.
PRAYER VISION
Here are some of the things that we have
recently been asked to do by our national
& field partners. Most of these items
are also on-going on a regular basis.
We continue to try to build into other lives
as God gives us opportunities and thrill to
see past visions not only being taken up by
others now, but often further enhanced in
ways that we could not have imagined.
This list also comprises our prayer request
list for the next few months.
1. Developing the curriculum and leading
Life Groups for teachers at Grace
Academy (Eleanor) with the view to
making sure that they have made a
knowledgeable commitment to our
Savior Jesus Christ and then are going
on to grow in grace in their study of
the Word.
21
2. Mentoring
(David)
several
acquaintances and colleagues through
times of prayer, Bible study or
counseling.
3. Preaching (David) in Hindi and
English and leading Bible studies in
churches and fellowships.
4. Preparing materials for and conducting
teacher seminars (David) at Home
Academy (on the Childrens Home
campus) and at Grace Academy.
5. Leading evening dorm devotions
once a week for the national workers
children at the Grace Academy hostel
on campus (Eleanor with the girls,
David with the boys). The Principal
and we would like to see them
commit to the mission of the school
which includes the phrase: ...and
by challenging Christian children to
consider a missional vocation.
6. Serving on the boards and committees
of Grace Academy, P.T. Seminary,
Childrens Home, Home Academy,
two other well-known and excellent
Christian schools in other cities, Valley
Bible Fellowship, and Global Hope
Trust.
7. Developing vision and position papers

on possible new initiatives (David) to
assist c.p. efforts.
Your colleagues in the Gospel,
David and Eleanor
david@swissmail.org
(P.S. Praise! In our last printed letter we
asked for prayer for our short itineration
trip to the Eastern States & Canada last
fall. God answered by granting us safe and
pleasant travels, a full speaking schedule,
much interest shown, being encouraged by
all of you in your homes, churches, schools,
& small groups. Thanks.) U
David and Eleanor Fiol are Mission

to the World (MTW) missionaries
in northern India. They have been
instrumental leaders in helping start
the Bogphur Childrens Home, Christian
schools and other institutions.
Prayer for today

Dear God.
So far today Ive done alright.
I havent gossiped, I havent lost my temper,
I havent been greedy, nasty, selfish or over indulgent.
Im very thankful for that.
But in a few minutes, God, Im going to get out of bed
and from then on Im going to need a lot more help.
AMEN
22
Missions
Prison Ministry
T ony W alker
y name is Tony Walker and I

am currently a trainee chaplain
at Bunbury Prison. I have had a
wide range of jobs in my life ranging from
chef to croupier to fast food manager and
now prison ministry.
I have been involved in prison ministry
for the last six years through Prison
Fellowship.
I have recently completed a Bachelor
of Theology degree at Trinity Theological
College which was a great challenge as I
was not from an academic background.
However, it was a fantastic experience and
the staff and students were really helpful
and encouraging. It was a great community
to be part of. I graduated in November
2010 and I started my internship with the
Council of Churches in February this year.
Prison ministry is a unique ministry. It
has been a challenge in Bunbury Prison
given the wide range of inmates with all
different types of problems. My main
objective at first was to build relationships
with the inmates, chaplains and staff. There
are around 325 prisoners which consist of
250 in the main prison and 75 in the prisoner
release unit. There are a high percentage
of indigenous men at Bunbury which is
around twenty percent of all the prisoners.
At the same time in Western Australia the
percentage of indigenous people in jail
is around forty five percent. This is very
disturbing considering the percentage of
indigenous people in Western Australia is
around two percent.
I work closely alongside another chaplain
who is indigenous. We have started up a
Bible study. I am hoping to learn more
about the indigenous culture from Dennis,
the indigenous chaplain, so I can be more

effective in my outreach to indigenous
prisoners.
I am looking at a long term prison
ministry and with Gods help I am hoping
to gain financial support from all the
Westminster Presbyterian congregations. I
have been fortunate to be funded for the
first year from my local WPC, Mandurah.
I will be attending a Clinical Pastoral
Education Course in September which
will be held for 11 weeks at Royal Perth
Hospital. This is a compulsory course
for those who want to become a fully
fledged chaplain. The course is designed
to help chaplains gain better skills on how
to be more effective pastorally, including
listening skills and diagnosing problems.
I am looking forward to the course and
at the same time feel a little nervous. I
will also be attending a nine week course
called the Sycamore Tree, that is to be
held at Bunbury Prison. This is a course
that involves prisoners talking about their
own offences. During the course they also
listen to different victims and the impact
the crimes committed against them had on
them.
My traineeship is for two years and
hopefully, God willing, I will be employed
by the Council of Churches once my
internship finishes. U
Tony Walker is currently a trainee
chaplain at Bunbury Prison. He
has had a wide range of jobs in life
ranging from chef to croupier to
fast food manager and now prison
ministry.
23
Family Pages
How to Raise
Your Parents
1. Do not be afraid to speak their
language. Try to use strange
sounding phases like, Ill help you
with the dishes. and Yes.
2. Try to understand their music.
Play Andy Williams CD Moon
River, until you are accustomed to
it
3. Be patient with the underachiever.
When you catch your dieting mum
sneaking salted peanuts, do not
show your disapproval. Tell her
you love fat mothers.
4. Encourage your parents to talk
about their problems. Try to keep
in mind that to them things like
earning a living and paying off the
mortgage seem important.
5. Be tolerant of their appearance.
When your dad gets a haircut,
dont feel personally humiliated.
Remember its important for him
to look like his peers.
6. Most important of all, if they do
something you consider wrong, let
them know its their behaviour you
dislike, not themselves.
24
Jokes
If God calls you to Africa
and cannibals confront you,
keep cool, calm and
collected Dont get into a stew!
ssssssssssss
When Adam told his wife a
joke,
back in the days of yore,
she could not say, as do
wives today,
Ive heard that one before.
Keep Watch
Watch your thoughts; they
become your words.
Watch your words; they
become your acts.
Watch your actions, they
become your habits.
Watch your habits; they
become your character.
Watch your character; it
becomes your destiny.
Reasons Why
You Need Jesus
Westminster
Shorter Catechism
1. Because you have a past.

You cant go back, but He can. The
Bible says: Jesus Christ the same
yesterday and today, and forever,
Heb 13:8. He can walk into those
places of sin and failure, wipe the
slate clean, and give you a new
beginning.
Q. 30. How does the Spirit

apply to us the redemption
purchased by Christ?
2.
Because you need a
friend.
Jesus knows the worst about you, yet
He believes the best. Why? Because
He sees you not as you are, but as
you will be when He gets through
with you. What a friend!
[a]. Rom. 10:17; ICor. 2:12-16;

Eph. 2:8; Phil. 1:29
[b]. John 15:5; ICor. 1:9; Eph.
3:17
3. Because He holds the

future.
Who else are you going to trust? In
His hands, you are safe and secure today, tomorrow and for all eternity.
Jesus says: I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd lays down his life
for the sheep... I know my own and
my own know me. John 10:11,14.
with the scripture proof
A. The Spirit applies to us the

redemption purchased by Christ
by producing faith in us [a], and
by this uniting us to Christ in our
effective calling [b].
Q. 31. What is effective calling?

A. Effective calling is the work
of Gods Spirit by which he
convinces us of our sin and
misery, enlightens our minds
in the knowledge of Christ [a],
and renews our wills [b], and
so persuades and enables us to
embrace Jesus Christ [c], freely
offered to us in the gospel [d].
[a]. Acts 26:18; ICor. 2:10, 12; II
Cor. 4:6; Eph. 1:17-18
[b]. Deut. 30:6; Ezk. 36:26-27;
John 3:5; Titus 3:5
[c]. John 6:44-45; Acts 16:14
[d]. Isa. 45:22; Matt. 11:28-30;
Rev. 22:17
25
Church News
Extracts from Reports to Presbytery from

Western Australian WPC Congregations
ALL NATIONS
Ministries
Worship Services
We have seen a steady growth in attendance
over the past year, especially the past 6
months. There have been some new families
who have joined us, and we have run two
membership classes. The preaching has been
well-received with Simon preaching mainly
on Acts and 1 Samuel, with smaller series on
Gods control, Psalms, Christmas and Easter.
There has been an increase in participation in
service leading and the music team.
Bible Caf
Our Friday Night Bible Caf ministry has
been a very positive thing for our church since
it started in early 2010. During school term
we average 30-35 people every Friday for
dinner and discussion. The purpose is that
we engage with a topic both as a larger group
and smaller groups. We have run a variety of
topics, from social issues like alcohol through
to theological topics and the worldviews of
other religions. We have seen non-Christian
friends regularly on these nights.
This has been positive for our youth and
young adults who have become part of Bible
Caf. Our youth group is stronger this year
(about 10) and active in the wider church
family.
Training
The elders are trying to improve our culture
of training. We have had a theological student,
Ewen Lin, join us a day a week. Simon is
meeting regularly with some of the leaders
among the youth and some others to mentor
them in the faith. Regular training events are
run, such as recent ones on encouragement
and service leading.
The Session is
encouraging our people to take advantage
of good external training events (like the
Childrens Ministry Convention) by paying
the registration fee for those who go along.
We want to strive to have our church consist
of everyone being involved in ministry.
26
Other ministries
Sunday School continues to be very
important to us, and an opportunity for
many of our people to serve.
A home group continues every Wed night.
A prayer meeting has started up once a
month.
A mens group meets fortnightly with a
small group of men.
Our annual family camp continues to be
useful and well supported.
BULL CREEK
The Session is grateful to God for the
increase in attendance and new members that
we have seen in the last year. By Gods grace,
this has seen more ministries and increased
participation from the congregation. This
poses a challenge to the eldership to provide
more support both in the pastoral and
leadership direction of the diverse ministries
ranging from the car park ministry to the
worship teams.
It has been proposed that two or three elders
are grouped to undertake oversight of the
different ministries and to provide feedback to
other elders about their respective portfolios.
This process is being further developed in
conjunction with the deacons.
Session continues to seek the Lords guidance
in the calling of new prospective elders
and deacons to help in His work here in
Bull Creek. There are no nominations for
eldership this year and one nomination for
deacon.
The appointment of Nathan Runham as a
ministry intern assisting the teaching elders
and the various ministry groups has been an
encouraging development this year. Session
has also approved the development of an
apprenticeship program for prospective
applicants interested in pastoral and mission
work. These applicants will be invited to
serve as apprentices under the supervision
of the teaching elders after which they may
be encouraged to embark on a formal course
of study in the area of ministry they may be

called to.
The eldership in Bull Creek have been given
the opportunity to participate in the work
of proclaiming the gospel and to share with
people from all over the globe attending the
local church here in Bull Creek. It is with
humility and gratitude that we continue to
seek the Spirits guidance and enabling in this
kingdom work.
Indonesian Congregation
Since March 2009, the Indonesian morning
service has been held in Brentwood at 9.30am.
The Church building can accommodate up to
120 people and currently the number during
this service has almost reached its maximum
capacity. The afternoon 4.00pm service is
still held at Bull Creek. The Sunday School
encompasses 6 classes consisting of children
aged 2 until school children in year 7-8 group.
During the week, the building in Brentwood
has been used by various ministries of WPC
Bull Creek (due to lack of space in the main
building), as well as ministries from All
Nations and Three Crosses Churches. The
Indonesian youth group meets there every
Saturday at 10.30am, ministering to students
in high school as well as those in University
and colleges. The young adult fellowship
consists of those who are in the workforce
and yet to have family. They meet on Friday
night every fortnight.
There are 2 home fellowship groups which
meet regularly every alternate Friday evening.
One group consists of families who live
around Bull Creek and surrounding suburb
and the other group consists of families who
live around Canning Vale and surrounding
suburb. In addition to these, there are other
small groups under the supervision of
the elders and deacons of the Indonesian
Congregation of WPC Bull Creek.
Corporate Prayer is held every first and third
Wednesday night of each month and this is
usually followed by bible study. The womens
study group meets on every other Thursday
morning and mothers with young childrens
fellowship meets on every other Friday
morning. These meetings are usually held at
Brentwood.
The approximate number in our congregation
currently stands at around 250 individuals. We

do have increase in newcomers, however this
is usually accompanied by people returning
to Indonesia or moving to other states and
countries once they complete their study in
Perth.
BROOKTON
Please continue to pray that God will use
the Challenge papers on the stand at Nolas
roadhouse. Around 50 of these are taken by
the public each month.
We letter boxed a Christian tract in virtually
every house in town before Christmas.
The Back
to
Brookton
Sunday was a
great success
when
we
welcomed
David
and
Brett installs whirlbirds
Barbara Cross
back. They ministered there back in the early
70s with their young family.
Christian books and Bibles have been
purchased from Koorong Bookshop and resold here and Kondinin at 25% discount. It
is great to see the number of books being
sold. We want to encourage everyone to read
more, especially the Bible.
It has been a joy and encouragement to have
folk coming over regularly from Narrogin.
They have made themselves at home with
us and become
one with us. It
was
through
Rachel
and
Brett that we
participated in
the Christmas
Eva Jetta is warmly
welcomed as a new member Carol evening
in Narrogin. We
seemed to make a bit of a hit with the crowd!
The Bush Mission held during the last
week of the school holidays was a great
encouragement to our congregation and
provided opportunities for us to meet other
people in the district. We pray that God will
bless the seed that was sown and that we will
see them back again next year.
27
KELMSCOTT
Prayer Items:
Thanksgiving for the blessings of life and
health and peace which we have received
from our Lord;
Thanks to our Lord for the music, leading
and preaching of the Word which we need
to help us on our way;
Thanks for being able to be a part of the
family of Christ which extends beyond
our borders;
Thanks for the young people who are
being raised up through faithful family and
church life and pray for them to continue
to grow to full-orbed faith and service in
Christs kingdom;
The gatherings for corporate worship to
be up-building for believers and attractive
and accessible for newcomers;
Training of Erik as an elder/pastor/undershepherd/bishop/overseer/minister of
this branch of Christs church;
Our governments at all levels in our world;
For efforts to witness and evangelize
unbelievers to be successful;
For Phil, Cathy and Joshua to be kept safe
and encouraged to continue ministering
the love and grace of God in a town that is
increasingly troubled by social problems;
For Phil, Cathy and Joshua to be able to
take holidays when they need;
For Mustard Seed Orphanage;
For local chaplains in schools;
For Christians with families who could be
nominated for office of elder and deacon
to join our fellowship;
For everyone to continue to be faithful in
the little things of the faith;
For an efficient and financially effective
subdivision of our land; and
That our Lord may be glorified in all our
lives!
KINGSLEY
HIGHLIGHTS:
At Kingsley Presbyterian Church we
continue to praise God for His kindness. In
accordance with our vision-setting exercise,
we have identified training as a key feature of
our Church life. Our goal is to equip all Gods
people to do the work of pastoral ministry
by teaching the Bible to each other and to
28
the lost. In this regard we have many folk in

formal training structures. So, we have about
13 men who are training to be deacons. We
read Kellers Ministries of Mercy together as
well as do some exposition of Bible passages.
We then discuss how we can serve Gods
people in practical ways.
Our Elders continue to equip ourselves to
read the Bible with others. A ladies group of
about 13 ladies meet every second Monday
studying the book of Luke with the purpose
of reading this wonderful gospel with others.
About 14 men meet at our Bible Ministry
Training to study the book of Romans and
teach it in the various Growth Groups. In all,
we have between 35 and 40 people in some
form of formal bible ministry training - for
which we are so very grateful to God.
Other than that, God continues to bless our
Sunday meetings. We are still experiencing
steady growth and on Sunday we can
sometimes expect up to 200 adults with up
to 60 children on top of that. This is a cause
for concern regarding our modest venue and
we are praying and thinking about what to do.
23 people have just completed a membership
course called Joining In. We look forward to
welcoming them into membership.
New ministries are still being initiated by
Gods people and in this we rejoice. A brand
new youth ministry kicks off this Sunday
and we are committed to praying for it to be
another mechanism for Christ to be preached.
Our Missions committee has been renovated
and our support for missions has doubled.
We were greatly encouraged in the fact that
we sent out our first missionary family - the
Stapletons - to work amongst AIDS orphans
in South Africa.
Our Church plant is a source of joy. A
core group is forming who are dedicated
to the concepts of Gospel, Community
and Mission. We have a steady number of
visitors. We meet on Thursday nights for our
Knowing God program where we have been
studying the book of Acts.
But above all else, we rejoice over new
conversions. As best as we can tell, we think
there are at least 3 people this year who are
becoming followers of Jesus Christ for the
first time. (There are others who are being
engaged and challenged but there are the
first signs of new life in these 3 folk). For

us, this is the bottom line. This makes it all
worthwhile and nothing causes us to rejoice
more than this. Praise God!
MAIDA VALE
Maida Vale has experienced a stabilizing year
this year. Numbers have remained constant
with families leaving and other families
attending the church.
The cell groups have had some movement
with new groups starting and settling in. The
mix of the groups is still changing with more
husbands & wives now attending groups
together.
The ladies groups are still attracting a good
number of the women and have had an
exciting year of Bible study and fellowship.
The ladies have again held two outreach
evenings that have been well attended and
provided good speakers that have appealed
to visitors from outside the church.
A focus on the teaching of Gods word and
encouraging the congregation to grow in
Gods word, enjoy the fellowship of believers
and serve God as they are able is the focus of
all our group ministries.
Youth ministries have also changed. The 18+
group is not functioning and the Discoverers
young teens group that had not been
operating last year has recommenced with
new leadership coming forward. The KICK
older teens has continued. This is an
exciting thing for the youth and the church
Mens breakfasts have been re established on
a regular 2 monthly basis. These breakfasts
have had a focus on reaching men from
outside the church.
We were able to actively be involved with
an outreach tent at the Kalamunda Show
this year. The Jesus Tent operated by a
group People who Promote Jesus gave
us the opportunity to speak with people and
promote our own church. We have supported
this event for 2 years now.
Mandurah
It has been a challenging year for Mandurah.
We have lost families (members and
adherents) mainly due to relocation. We
praise God for more people willing to serve
in the church. There remains a good spirit of
unity in the session. Session is so thankful to

God that everyone who attends is serving the
church in some way. The session and other
leaders in the church are amazed at the great
generosity of the small church, especially as
many in our church are pensioners.
CHURCH MINISTRY
Missions:
We are very excited to have our own mission
which we currently fully support financially
for 2011. We have called it Prison Break.
We are seeking to break people out of
prison: to have an influence to stop people
re-offending and reach out to them with
the Gospel. Tony Walker heads this up as a
trainee Prison Chaplain and we are excited
especially in the future to work with Tony as
a congregation.
We also continually support prayerfully and
financially the orphans in Myanmar, MERF,
Phil and Cathy in Alice Springs and OMF.
Sundays:
We worship at 10am. Nathan preaches twice
a month and Steve and Clem fill in on other
Sundays.
Home Group:
We have a weekly home group where people
can come and sit around the word and
fellowship together. We have studied the
book of Job. We are currently looking at the
Beatitudes.
Mens Breakfast:
Our men get together about every six weeks.
We meet to build one another up. We deal
in particular with mens issues. For example
we have dealt with headship in the home,
sexual sins men struggle with, and addiction.
It is wonderful to have seen men open up
about really private issues and to be able to
encourage them in it. Most of the men in
the church attend and it is great to have non
Christians come to this as well.
Ladies Bible Study:
The ladies in the church meet once a
fortnight. As with the mens group, most of
the women in the church attend. It is a forum
where women can openly discuss issues of
the Bible as relating to their everyday lives.
There is also terrific fellowship to be had for
all who attend. U
29
Contacts
Westminster Presbyterian Church

AuSTrAliAN CAPiTAl TerriTOry
belCONNeN WPC
Meets:
61 Templeton Street,

(cnr Rowan St.)

COOK, ACT 2614
Time:
9.30am and 6.30pm (every Sunday)
Address: 61 Templeton Street,

COOK, ACT 2614
Office Ph: (02) 6251 7727
Fax:
(02) 6251 7737
Email:
pastor@wpc-belconnen.org.au
Contact: Revd Geoff Findlay
Telephone: (02) 6259 7707 (a/h)
NeW SOuTh WAleS
S.e. AuSTrAliA PreSbyTery

Moderator: Revd Geoff Findlay
Email:
geoff@wpc-belconnen.org.au
Clerk: Elder Perry Blackmore
Email:
Perry.Blackmore@optusnet.com.au
QueeNSlANd
ChriSTiAN COMMuNiTY ChurCh PACiFiC

PArAdiSe
Meets:
Menzies Drive Pacific Paradise State
School, Sunshine Coast Qld.
Time:
9.30am
Postal:
119 Glenview Rd, GLENVIEW QLD
4553
Contact: Revd Dan Bosshard
Mob:
0439 708 092
Email:
danbosshard@bigpond.com
grACe ChriSTiAN ChurCh (buderiM
WPC)
Meets:
Corner of Stringybark Rd and Toral
Dr, Sippy Downs, Sunshine
Coast
Times:
7.45am, 9.30am and 6.00pm
Chinese Church (Mandarin
language) meets at 1pm. English
Hour (free English classes) at 4pm.
Postal:
PO Box 346, BuderiM, QLd 4556
Telephone: (07) 5445 8933
Contact: Revd Bob Burnett (07) 5442 1783
Email:
gracechurch@westnet.com.au
Web Site: www.gracechurchbuderim.com.au
MeTrOWeST COMMuNiTy ChurCh (MT
OMMANey WPC)
Meets:
Times:
30
Mt Ommaney Special School, 94

Capitol Drive, MT OMMANEY
9:30am & 5pm
Website: http://www.metrowest.cc
Postal:
2/101 Harts Rd, INDOOROOPILLY,
QLd 4068
Contact: Revd Ian Spence
Email:
spence01@optusnet.com.au
grACe ChriSTiAN ChurCh (redbANk WPC)
Meets:
School Road, redBANK PLAiNS
Time:
9.30am
Nathan Campus
Postal:
P.O. Box 347, GOODNA, QLd 4300
Contact: Revd David Smith
Telephone: (07) 3495 7051
Email:
david@gracecc.com.au
PreSbyTery OF QueeNSlANd
Moderator: John Hamilton
Clerk: Ian Spence
Postal:
2/101 Harts Road,
INDOOROOPILLY, QLD 4068
Telephone: (07) 3371 2512
Email:
john.h@bigpond.net.au
WeSTMiNSTer TheOlOgiCAl COllege
QueeNSlANd
Principal: Revd Terry Clarke

10 Hollings Close, Kuraby,
QueeNSLANd 4112
Postal:
PO Box 346, BuderiM, QLd 4556
Telephone: (07) 5445 8501
Email:
information@wtc.qld.edu.au
Web:
www.wtc.qld.edu.au
WeSTerN AuSTrAliA
All NATiONS PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh
Meets:
The Beaufort Centre, 74-82 Beaufort

Street (2nd Floor), PerTH.
Time:
10.00am
Email:
churchoffice@allnations.org.au
Web site: www.allnations.org.au
Telephone: (08) 9228 4951
Fax
(08) 9228 4956
Postal:
PO Box 8693, Perth BC WA 6849
Contact: Revd Simon van Bruchem
Email:
simon_vb@optusnet.com.au
brOOkTON (CAlvAry PreSbyTeriAN)
Meets: Richardson St., BROOKTON

Time:
10.30am.
Postal:
PO Box 99, BrOOKTON, WA 6306
Contact: Revd Clem White (08) 9535 3301
Email:
candpwhite@bigpond.com OR elder
Arthur Slater (08) 9642 1231
bull Creek WPC
Meets:
Times:
Postal:
32 Bull Creek Drive, BuLL CreeK

9.30am, 6.30pm.
32 Bull Creek Drive, BuLL CreeK,
WA 6149
Email:
wpcbc@iinet.net.au
Telephone: (08) 9332 6300
Fax:
(08) 9332 1991
Contact: Revd Steve Schoof (08) 9310 3357
Email:
standbe@bigpond.com
Contact: Revd Mark Vivian (08) 9455 3919
Email:
pastormark@iinet.net.au
Contact: Revd Craig Newill (08) 6161 0525
Email:
craignewill@gmail.com
Website: www.wpc.net
Bull Creek WPC Indonesian Services
Time:
9.30am
Meets:
190 Bateman Road, BreNTWOOd
Time:
4.00pm
Meets:
32 Bull Creek Drive, BuLL CreeK,
WA 6149
Revd Paulus Surya (08) 9414 5872
CANNiNg vAle COMMuNiTy ChurCh
(CANNiNg vAle WPC)
Meets:
Canning Vale Community Centre,
Cnr Waratah Blvd. and Eucalyptus
Blvd., CANNING VALE
Time: 10.30am
Postal:
PO Box 5153, CANNING VALE
SOuTH, WA 6155
Telephone: (08) 9256 4776
Contact: Revd Alex Nathan
Email:
alexandernathan@iinet.net.au
kelMSCOTT WPC
Meets:
Lot 60 Centre Rd, (Cnr Railway Ave)

KeLMSCOTT, WA 6111
Times:
Prayer 9.15am. Service 10.00am
Postal:
PO Box 305 THOrNLie WA 6988
Telephone: (08) 9398 7200
Contact: Revd Anton Noppers (08) 9498 3306
Email:
wpck@iinet.net.au
kiNgSley PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh
Meets:
Time:
Postal:
15 Moolanda Bvde, KINGSLEY

9.30am
15 Moolanda Bvde, KINGSLEY, WA
6026
Telephone: (08) 9309 4043
Session Clerk: Elder Tony Veale (08) 9448 6542
Email:
contact@kingsleychurch.org.au
MAidA vAle WPC

Meets:
Times:
Postal:
4 Old Maida Vale Rd, MAidA vALe

10.00am and 6.00pm
4 Old Maida Vale Rd, MAidA vALe, WA
6057
Telephone: (08) 9454 7401
Fax:
(08) 9454 4307
Contact: Revd Roger Palmer
Email:
wpcmv@myoffice.net.au
MANdurAh WPC
Meets:
Time:
Postal:
The Nellie Reagan Hall, Peel St,

MANdurAH
10.00am
PO Box 2147 d.C., MANdurAH, WA
6210
Interim
Moderator: Revd Steve Schoof
Contact: Elder Nathan Woonings
Telephone: (08) 9586 1910
Email:
nw_wpcm@iprimus.com.au
MurdOCh Three CrOSSeS ChurCh

Meets:
Times:
Postal:
Murdoch University
10.00am; 5.00pm
9 Johansen Promenade MurdOCH
WA 6150
Contact: Revd Matthew Waldron
Mob:
0419 140 404
Email:
mattwaldron@bigpond.com
PreSbyTery OF WeSTerN AuSTrAliA
Moderator: Revd Simon van Bruchem

Email:
simon_bc@optusnet.com.au
Telephone: (08) 9228 4951
Work:
(08) 9457 0107
Home Clerk: Elder Steve Heathcote
Postal:
21 Carcoo Court BeCKeNHAM 6107
Email:
sheathcote@downings.com.au
Telephone: (08) 9479 1508
SyNOd OF WeSTMiNSTer PreSbyTeriAN
ChurCh
Moderator: Simon van Bruchem

Clerk:
Mark Vivian
Email:
pastormark@iinet.au
Treasurer: Elder Dirk Soet
Telephone: (08) 9444 7506
Continued on page 13
31
29 September - 1 October 2011
Westminster Presbyterian Church

Presbytery of Western Australia
18th Synod
The Presbytery of Western Australia invites you to this important time of fellowship in the Gospel, reviewing our
past actions and planning for future ministry to extend Gods kingdom in this region of the world. The WPCs 18th
Synod 2011 will start 9:00 am on Thursday 29 September and officially run until 2:30 pm on Saturday 1 October. We
encourage interstate visitors to arrive in Perth by Wednesday 28 September. Transportation to and from the airport can
be easily arranged; just let Maureen know your arrival time and flight number.
For those who can attend, WPC Bull Creek will also host a combined service of worship at WPC Bull Creek on Sunday
2nd October at 9.30 am, followed by a time of fellowship over lunch for those delegates who can stay. We are praying
and working now to enable this to be a fruitful assembly.
All are welcome!
We welcome delegates, endorsed by their respective
presbyteries, to attend and participate on the floor of Synod. We
also welcome WPC members, adherents and visitors to attend
the Synod. Take advantage of this opportunity to meet the
delegates and to observe this national assembly of elders. Your
presence will encourage the delegates as they participate in this
important forum of our church.
Our meeting venue is superb!
All Nations Presbyterian Church
Second Floor
The Beaufort Centre
74-82 Beaufort Street
Perth WA 6000
(Opposite the WA Museum)
Lunch, morning and afternoon tea will be provided at ANPC
each day.
Dinner will be provided Thursday and Friday; Saturdays dinner
will be arranged for those delegates who are staying until
Sunday.
Synod registration fee: $40.00
Day visitors: $15.00 per day or $10.00 per meal
Our Accommodation is excellent!
All Seasons Perth - Acacia Hotel
15 Robinson Avenue
Perth WA 6000
(600m north of ANPC)
AAA Rating: Four Stars
www.acaciahotel.com.au
Accommodation Costs:
Double Room: $199.00 per room per night* (Queen bed)
Twin Room: $199.00 per room per night* (Twin single beds)
Single Room: $169.00 per room per night*
* All room costs include continental buffet breakfast
Rooms with facilities for the disabled are available at the Acacia
Hotel.
32 T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011
WA Churches!
We hope that WA commissioners will stay at the All Seasons
Hotel to facilitate fellowship with our interstate brethren.
Social Program!
There are plenty of things to see and do in Perth. ANPC is
located in the heart of Perth and the All Seasons Acacia Hotel
is within easy walking distance of the Northbridge cappuccino
strip and the Perth CBD. Bus travel in the inner city is fee of
charge. Yes, you do get something for nothing in Perth! We will
organize a program for wives who attend with their husbands.
Please Register Early!
Details on who is attending are extremely important to us;
we need to know as soon as possible. We have limited rooms
available until 1st September; we then have only those rooms
that are booked and deposit paid. This is the tourist season and
the hotel is likely to fill up. Please book early. You can cancel
before 1st September but cancellations after this date will
attract a $100.00 cancellation fee. Accommodation bookings
after the 1st September will be difficult to make.
Bookings and Enquires:
Maureen Southgate
All Nations Presbyterian Church
PO Box 8693
Perth BC WA 6849
Email: churchoffice@allnations.org.au
Phone: (08) 9228 4951 (Thursday or Friday)
Fax: (08) 9228 4956
Please book your accommodation
with Maureen Southgate
by Monday 1 August 2011.
In the Masters Service,

Mark Vivian
Synod Clerk
JOIN
US

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The

4-13 14-23 24-25 26

Deadlines for each Issue

Feb 14 for Autumn issue

and addressed to Rev. Clem White at the

The Messenger Committee

Revd Clem White (Editor)

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

A5 size issue. One advantage in using

Creation: Gods Universe

This is the fourth, God willing, of a series of articles written by

he scientist approached God and

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

Creation out of Nothing5

create is absolute. Only God creates

People are busy worshiping creation,

Creation for Himself18

Through his creation

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

above proclaims his handiwork, Psalm

Creation all Good24

months of that school year before moving

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

lack of a welcoming ministry comes about

which encourage participation. (2) Listen

Barbara Cross is a missionary in England

or many people, one of the most

Henry in a hunt for a sixth

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

on Catherine Parr who had come to court

God in his providence caused matters

from him. At this Henry replied, And is it

Barbara Cross is a missionary in

Food for Thought

Knowledge and Piety

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

only when this is our firm conviction that we

things are inseparably linked. Everything

Revd David and Barbara Cross

grACe PreSbyTeriAN ChurCh

Visit to Pakistan April 8th to 11th 2011

My review of the situation

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

degree in computer science but the

Grace Presbyterian College - first floor

In March 2011, Amjad flew to

days). The work has begun but the task is

so it took a bit of getting used to not

Shahdra congregation - men and women sit on opposite sides

A whole range of needs were present.

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

and challenged that these poor Christians

to be able to get the children to come to a

I will see what we can do with our contacts

Translator Pastor Z , Pastor Amjad Khan, Communty Pastor Tony

they did have power. The church building

fter the March 11 earthquakes,

accounts of the tsunami and earthquake,

Why Dont Japanese Ask Why?

T h e M es s eng er Winte r 2011

viable alternative, we cannot avoid having

men are saved.