We are stoked to see all the different ways in which the gospel is growing and bearing fruit in our lives and the lives of those around us!
We are loving our church at St Andrews Strathfield. We feel so supported and so well trained. Each Sunday we have dinner with the senior minister and then staff training on many different topics! The picture above is of Mark Gilbert helping us know how to reach Catholics in Strathfield with the gospel The congregation members have really welcomed us and are so teachable and godly largly due to the fact that many of them have been trained well through the korean university ministry our church runs at Syndey uni and NSW uni. Pip and I are both discipling people. Pip has been discipling a girl named Chloe who comes to church each week largely because her parents want her to but isn't yet a Christian. Pray she would read "a fresh start" by John Chapman, which Pip is giving her soon, and come to trust in Christ. I am discipling two people, one of which I met on beach mission, (who was leading with me) and is now coming to church with me. He was going to Hillsong his whole life with her family but never heard the bibles teaching on sin and never knew why Jesus had to die until at 20 he started going to the uni Christian group at UTS and understood why. He started questioning what his church was teaching, and him and I caught up to discuss it. My minister and I encouraged him to leave as he needed to be under God's word taught faithfully so he could grow. He ended up leaving Hillsong because they were false teachers, and has joined our church and is growing heaps through God's word being taught faithfully each week. Chris is now linked into a bible study and I continue to read the bible with him each week. From what I gather Christ really feels apart of church. Pray he keeps growing in his love and knowledge of Jesus and that Hillsong would repent of their false teaching and teach the true gospel to people.
We are loving our church at St Andrews Strathfield. We feel so supported and so well trained. Each Sunday we have dinner with the senior minister and then staff training on many different topics! The picture above is of Mark Gilbert helping us know how to reach Catholics in Strathfield with the gospel The congregation members have really welcomed us and are so teachable and godly largly due to the fact that many of them have been trained well through the korean university ministry our church runs at Syndey uni and NSW uni. Pip and I are both discipling people. Pip has been discipling a girl named Chloe who comes to church each week largely because her parents want her to but isn't yet a Christian. Pray she would read "a fresh start" by John Chapman, which Pip is giving her soon, and come to trust in Christ. I am discipling two people, one of which I met on beach mission, (who was leading with me) and is now coming to church with me. He was going to Hillsong his whole life with her family but never heard the bibles teaching on sin and never knew why Jesus had to die until at 20 he started going to the uni Christian group at UTS and understood why. He started questioning what his church was teaching, and him and I caught up to discuss it. My minister and I encouraged him to leave as he needed to be under God's word taught faithfully so he could grow. He ended up leaving Hillsong because they were false teachers, and has joined our church and is growing heaps through God's word being taught faithfully each week. Chris is now linked into a bible study and I continue to read the bible with him each week. From what I gather Christ really feels apart of church. Pray he keeps growing in his love and knowledge of Jesus and that Hillsong would repent of their false teaching and teach the true gospel to people.
Pip and I helped run a youth conference called Dig this semester. Alot of planning went into making sure the word of God was central in all we did, from the talks, to the other stuff on stage, to the discussion groups and so on. The talks were on Daniel, which Ed Springer preached from. The talks were very gospel centred, clear and catered to the age group well. We had alot of good feedback with many smaller youthgroups feeling encouraged not only be the word of God but also being around many other Christians their own age! Give thanks for the maturity of Christians and for the one girl I know of who became Christian!
I have been leading the walk up team at Moore Theological
College. We have had really good momentum with as many as 10 people going out
together do to walk up in Newtown or at Syd uni or UTS. I have organized training
and prayer events which have been attended by around 50 people which is
exciting to see God put it on so many peoples heart to keep reaching the lost
with the gospel while at college. Some cool stories: I have been trying to take
out different people who haven’t gone before or haven’t gone in a long time. I
took a guy called Paul out to UTS who hadn’t been out much before. We chatted
to a guy named Hugo from China. Hugo hadn’t heard the gospel before but was super
happy to talk and asked really insightful questions. At one point he even asked us to explain how Jesus could be God and yet not the Father. There came a point where he said something along the lines of “What
must I do to be saved?” And we were like “Thankyou God!” We then had a meeting
where we introduced him to a bible study leader at focus at UTS who spoke
Chinese. And he is still going to the bible study and
really enjoying it so please pray God would save him and make him a missionary
back to China. Another cool story is that I have been chatting to my next door neighbor
about Jesus. His name is Kim and he was homeless for many years and is in a
housing scheme. I told the walk up team to pray that he would keep hearing the
gospel and be saved on our facebook group. Two days later, two people from the
walk up team wrote on the facebook group that they chatted to a guy named Kim
about the gospel in Newtown randomly and I was so stoked as that was a direct
answer to prayer two days later!!!! Please pray as im trying to get him to meet
up with me and the local minister as he expressed interest in attending a
church but he keeps making up excuses why he can’t come (This has happened 4
times!). I’m always amazed to see God working powerfully as his word is
being simply explained and people challenged with the gospel.
"I invited my agnostic brother Peter to this event
Moore Theological college held called the Mark Drama, where students from
college acted out the gospel of Mark. He has only come to a hand full of Christian
events before, so I was stoked that he agreed to come with no reservations. He
really didn't know what to expect at all. It an interesting beginning. When we
got there, we sat next to a family, and I asked them who they knew here, and
the Mother leaned over and said with much excitement – Jesus! And I was like, “Darnit,
were sitting next to the whacky Christians, my brother is going to think were
all such nerds!” Then I realized she was talking about her son acting out the
role of Jesus and it became much less weird. We turned our attention to the
play.The stage was small. But before long we were both emmersed as the action
surrounded us as the actors weaved through the crowd even engaging with them at
points. There were times when we both laughed at some of the dramatic and often
foolish responses of the disciples. While at other times we both were held in
suspense and trepidation as Jesus was lead away and crucified. I believe that
the reason people don't believe is because we suppress the truth about God in
our unrighteousness. And my brother is a chief example of this, as he has
always saught to shut down and avoid conversation about Jesus. So having his
senses of sight, sound and touch all confronted with the person and work of
Jesus was a really good way for my brother to be confronted with Jesus in a way
that would generally not otherwise happen. When I asked my brother whether any
of that was new, he told me that he has never heard manyof the parables and
found them thought provoking. I went to a pub with my brother afterwards. My
brothers friends asked what we had been up to. And my brother responded by
telling them not only about what we had done but the fact that, though it was a
90 minute drama, he was thoroughly engaged the entire time and thoroughly
enjoyed every minute of it.
One of the awesome things about the Mark drama was that it
creates an environment where non Christian friends and families can hear the
drama of Mark performed in a context where they are able to discuss the gospel
with other christians. I had prayed that others would chat to my brother and that
I would have an opporunity to share my testimony with my brother. A friend of
ours called Talar came up to us afterwards and asked me to share my testimony,
which my brother had never asked to hear before. Then she asked him where he
was at. And after a discussion about his objections and the claims of the risen
Christ. She agreed with him that its not helpful to believe something blindly,
but at the same time its not good to reject something blindly either. And she
asked him whether he had read the bible before. My brother responded by saying
no, and acknowleding that her point was valid. He then said that he would
commit to reading the bible to investigate the claims of Jesus himsself, and
asked me to get him a bible! What better thing could my brother ask me to give
him? I was overjoyed! I am so thankful that my brother got to engage with
questions about the gospel of mark within the company of other Christians. I
have given him am ESV study bible which provides helpful commentary incase he
struggles to understand something. This is good because he refused to catch up
and read the bible with me. Please pray he reads it and is saved!
Pip and I borrowed a friends car recently and drove to Orange
for the day to visit my mum. A few years ago we took her to Orange evangelical
and introduced asked if someone could catch up with her as she doesn’t have
many friends. A lady named Marian caught up with her and has now become pretty
much her best friend! They watch movies together, have lunch together, go on
trips together and Marian goes to church with her each week and has invited her
to do Christianity explored through the church which Marian also went to to
support mum. Praise God mum has done the Christianity explored course and is
still attending church every week. Many answers to prayer here. Anyway, we went
up on a Sunday and sat through church with her. Mum's bible was filled with underlined versus showing how much mum has been engaging with the Word. After going
to church with her we were again thankful that she is hearing the gospel every
week at Orange evangelical and surrounded by a loving church family that really
cares for her. She has a personality disorder which means the church is being
extra loving to be patient with her. And due to her personality disorder she
struggles and her hard heart she still doesn’t accept our total depravity and
evil natures and thus isn’t yet a Christian I don’t think so please pray God’s
word breaks through these barriers and she repents and trusts Christ and give
thanks for the amazing gospel ministry happening in Orange through OEC (Orange
Evangelical Church).
Were having a guy
named Andrew over for dinner tonight. He used to come to the
evangelistic discussion groups I used to run in a café in Gordon but due to his
struggle with same sex temptation and the ridicule he got from people (who were
identifying as gay at school) for being Christian he stopped coming to
Discussion Group (Disco group) and stopped identifying as Christian and stopped
talking to Pip and I. This was 6 years ago. Then, out of the blue we got this
message:
“Hi Mike, been a very long time (about 6 years or so now I believe). I essentially just wanted to send an out-of-the-blue message: In the
past few months i've come to know jesus after years of internal battles, and
have recently settled into a new church in Maroubra. I was just reflecting on
some very constructive chats that we would have and how (even tho it may seem
like a while ago) they have shaped my current understanding of Christ. Also I
want to apologise I believe I was very quick to throw in the towel at Church and stopped contact with you to my knowledge, which was very unfair given the
kindness and warmth you and Pip always showed me. I hope you and Pip are doing
very well and am very interested to hear what you have been up to.”
How cool is that!!! So I caught up with him and heard the
journey he has been on and now were having dinner to potentially keep speaking the
gospel into his life and support him as he has many issues he needs to keep
sorting through. Praise God that his word is powerful and effective even when
we despair and for all intensive purposes, give up on people. 6 years his word
remained working on his heart!!!
Please pray for a conversation im having with a friend named
Andrew who wants to still identify as
Christian though he is not unrepentantly living in a homosexual
relationship in America. Were facebook messaging each other about these issues.
Please pray I can clearly communicate the goodness of God’s word and lovingly
listen, understand and respond to him in a way that points him back to the
gospel and the authority of the word that God would grant him repentance and
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
In regards to College life, Pip and I recently had exams at
college. I loved sitting there with Pip and trying to help her get back into
studying after so many years. I have absolutely loved hearing all that Pip is
learning as she comes back from class on Tuesday nights and excitingly tells me
of what she learnt and the friends she has made! I’m very thankful to God that
he has given me a wife who loves growing in in relationship with God and loves
people so well! I recently did my last exam for the subject of Hebrew (Syntax
and grammer of the language) and have now finished my three
years of Hebrews which is a massive milestone as most people don’t do it due to
how hard it is! (I will still have Hebrew in old testament). We have a really good bunch of college friends (pictured here) who we catch up with regualarly and will be, no doubt, a priceless network and support post college!
Im still looking to be ordained as a Sydney Anglican
Minister and recently went to the candidates conference. We looked at God’s
word and were taught on the issues of same-sex marriage, universalism (the idea that everyone is saved in the end),
annihilationism (the idea that there is no hell) and what we need to sign off on to become an Anglican minister.
Pray for the diocese, that God would be raising up godly and faithful gospel
workers as there are many theologically poor people wanting to go into the Anglican
diocese and the diocese is at a critical point in terms of its theological
direction with many people trying to subvert our reformed, evangelical and complementarian
foundations. I have been asked to join the Anglican Church League which
contents for these foudnations in the diocese. If I get elected please pray God
would grow me through this role and use me to serve the gospel here in Sydney
effectively.
We have just been on a holiday to Tasmania. We haven't been on a proper holiday in about a year so
it was well overdue! We wen't to a place called the Pumphouse which is the most picturesque place ive ever seen! Its a restored pumphouse on a remote lake. We went on a boat ride, a massive walk up a mountain with a georgeous view that almost killed us, went out on a row boat, saw some amazing wood sculptures and just relaxed enjoyng the view. We really enjoyed the rest and time together!
We would love to just give you a quick update on our infertility and how your prayers and financial support has been of great help. We have just undergone a treatment called IUI. We did it three times over a 4 month period with no success. Unfortunately this used a significant amount of our finances as each treatment was $2500. We chose to do it because it is the step to take before IVF and less expensive than IVF treatments. Pip found it hard when the treatments weren't successful. Not so much because of the lack of baby though of course that is always there. The disappointment came from "have we invested our money well?" and "are our desires God's desires?" Prayer is a wonderful thing as it doesn't always change our situation but it does our hearts. God is quick to comfort and it was great to find through some other friends undergoing a similuar journey a bulk bill IVF center. This has mean't it is possible to proceed with other treatments because we will only be $600 out of pocket per treatment. What a great gift from God because most IVF treatments are $8000 + and we have run out of money for that.
Also God's plans are so much more intricate and asking the question "are our desires God's desires?" is always a good thing to ask. We have confidence that God will use every treatment to make us more like Christ and give us a ministry to encourage others with. We continue to read great books by Megan Best and chat to other Christian friends about decisions and treatments we hope to pursue. We also are going to a evening seminar on IVF at the Preysbaterian college in August. On our holidays we have been reading a sensational book by Tim Chester. Its a bible study for married couples. In it there was the question "What would your marriage look like if you couldn't have kids" this is the reality we live in but thanks be to our greater hope in God it looks still very joyful and lots of fun. We still hope we bring glory in our marriage and enjoy very much our friends and their children. In fact we see our friends babies and children even more of a blessing and a miracle since we can't have our own and know how hard it can be. We are thankful for the way the involve us in their lives too.
We continue to thank God for all your prayers and support. We rely on it so much and live the results! We look forward to seeing you at our next supporters dinner. Please let us know whats happening in your lives and if you would like to catch up with us seperately or how we can pray and care for you.
We have just been on a holiday to Tasmania. We haven't been on a proper holiday in about a year so
We would love to just give you a quick update on our infertility and how your prayers and financial support has been of great help. We have just undergone a treatment called IUI. We did it three times over a 4 month period with no success. Unfortunately this used a significant amount of our finances as each treatment was $2500. We chose to do it because it is the step to take before IVF and less expensive than IVF treatments. Pip found it hard when the treatments weren't successful. Not so much because of the lack of baby though of course that is always there. The disappointment came from "have we invested our money well?" and "are our desires God's desires?" Prayer is a wonderful thing as it doesn't always change our situation but it does our hearts. God is quick to comfort and it was great to find through some other friends undergoing a similuar journey a bulk bill IVF center. This has mean't it is possible to proceed with other treatments because we will only be $600 out of pocket per treatment. What a great gift from God because most IVF treatments are $8000 + and we have run out of money for that.
Also God's plans are so much more intricate and asking the question "are our desires God's desires?" is always a good thing to ask. We have confidence that God will use every treatment to make us more like Christ and give us a ministry to encourage others with. We continue to read great books by Megan Best and chat to other Christian friends about decisions and treatments we hope to pursue. We also are going to a evening seminar on IVF at the Preysbaterian college in August. On our holidays we have been reading a sensational book by Tim Chester. Its a bible study for married couples. In it there was the question "What would your marriage look like if you couldn't have kids" this is the reality we live in but thanks be to our greater hope in God it looks still very joyful and lots of fun. We still hope we bring glory in our marriage and enjoy very much our friends and their children. In fact we see our friends babies and children even more of a blessing and a miracle since we can't have our own and know how hard it can be. We are thankful for the way the involve us in their lives too.
We continue to thank God for all your prayers and support. We rely on it so much and live the results! We look forward to seeing you at our next supporters dinner. Please let us know whats happening in your lives and if you would like to catch up with us seperately or how we can pray and care for you.
Love Mike and Pip
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