Can you drink nothing but water for one month to transform lives through safe water?
Safe Water September is a challenge to drink nothing but water for the entire month of September, to raise funds for safe water projects in rural Zimbabwe and Vanuatu. Yes, you can still eat food, but no coffee, tea, soft drink or milkshakes! For every $20 you raise, one person gains access to life-changing safe water. This means kids will go to school, child and maternal deaths will drop, and communities will be transformed!
Globally, 1 in 10 people don't have clean water close to home – we want to change this.
Gather a team and join us! Sign up to take the challenge now at www.safewaterseptember.org.au You’ll also find some great resources online to help you get started, including a video clip, blog and simulation game.
When you participate in the challenge, donate, or even spread the word, you are helping to make a difference in the lives of people living in Zimbabwe and Vanuatu. Thank you!
#SafeWaterSeptember
#DrinkWatertoGiveWater
Stirling Theological College is seeking a Principal to lead the college in 2021 and beyond. Stirling is a Christian theological college affiliated with Churches of Christ in Australia. A college of the University of Divinity, Stirling teaches undergraduate and postgraduate (coursework and research) degrees to PhD level. Innovative courses in leadership, counselling, ministry, theology, biblical studies, pastoral education, spirituality, supervision, and Christian discipleship are offered through flexible learning programs.
Stirling’s vision is to be a Christ-centred learning community that equips people to advance God’s shalom for the flourishing of the world. Leadership, ministry and mission formation is a key aspect of Stirling’s life. It is also committed to providing a stimulating learning centre for people to engage in theological education with practical application in diverse cultural contexts within the church and the wider community.
The campus is located at 44 – 60 Jacksons Road, Mulgrave 3170 Victoria. The campus is closed until 31st January 2021 due to the restrictions of COVID-19. All courses in 2020 are being delivered on-line.
A generous salary and benefits package will be negotiated with the successful applicant.
Stirling Theological College is partnering with UniRecruit to undertake a national and international search for high calibre candidates for this position. Detailed information about Stirling, selection criteria, the position description, and the application process is available on the UniRecruit website http://www.uni-recruit.com.au/current-roles/
Confidential enquiries should be made to:
Michael Toohey on +61 (0) 418 883 807 or michael.toohey@uni-recruit.com.au; or to,
Ann Newton on +61 (0) 412 358 234 or ann.newton@uni-recruit.com.au.
Applications are to be emailed to Michael Toohey by the closing date of Friday 21 August 2020.
Aldgate Church of Christ, The Village Well
What does it mean to find our unique story in God’s story and how do we hear it spoken through our interactions with others? While COVID-19 has certainly impacted us as a community it has reminded us of the story continuing to unfold in our liminal spaces, of creativity that is born in times of listening and contemplation. And, it has challenged us to be open to discerning how the Grand Storyteller finds creative ways to still reveal the Word.
The Studio continues to be a space of connection, relationship, mutual listening and evolvement. When we could not gather in groups or outside, chalk drawing appeared in the car park where neighbours would walk beside, a bare wooden cross among the gum trees became a place for anyone to leave a message, a prayer, a symbol of hope and we painted ‘au plein air’.
As The Studio recommences inside our building we begin connecting with members in the wider hills community to prepare for an exhibition, offering The Well as a place to share our stories through art. The Story continuing to move in all and through all.
Check out our new look state newsletter!
I hope you enjoy reading some of the wonderful stories from our churches that will begin to drop over the coming days and weeks. We are using a new format to communicate how we are participating in God's mission. I am looking forward to receiving more stories from our churches to share across our movement, along with stories from our ministry partners Life Care, GMP and CareWorks.
In addition to sharing some good news from our churches we were keen to tie the look of the Newsletter in with the theme of this year’s convention; Participate: in life: in Christ”.
Participating in the life of Christ through union with Christ (Christ in me, I in Christ) is a New Testament theme that emerges throughout the apostle Paul’s writings, John’s writings and the New Testament more broadly. (Col. 1:27) We are invited in these New Testament writings to align ourselves with Jesus. We are to follow the lead of Jesus as we live out our lives and to seek to be in relationship with Jesus as our primary response to the call of the Gospel.
Our lives are full of participation; in our families, our workplaces, friendship groups and in society as a whole. We are also called to participate in the movement of the Churches of Christ and for these many reasons we see this theme as relevant for us at this time. Our hope is that our reflections at Convention will help us to think about how we participate in the Churches of Christ movement. We also hope it will help us to participate in life as a response to our participation in Christ.
Peter Barney
State Minister
Vacancy for a Minister
Strathalbyn Church of Christ
South Australia
We are seeking a Minister with appropriate theological qualifications and past ministerial experience to serve with the leadership team in the rural town of Strathalbyn. Applicants should have a deep commitment to prayer, have an enduring love for pastoral care of the congregation and the community, and desire to actively reach out to our community and to evangelical missions with the love of our saviour, Jesus our Lord.
We believe in the sovereignty of God, the centrality of the cross of Christ and His sacrificial love for us, and the authority of scripture.
Please contact info@strathalbynchurchofchrist.org.au for further information.
The Music Team at Marion Church of Christ has stepped into the world of Virtual Choirs
Singing a beautiful rendition of "The Blessing" by Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes, we joined together via our phones and studio through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thank you so much to everyone who participated and the behind the scenes team.
Please share with your friends and family - connect with one another and surround yourself with these beautiful words:
The Lord bless you
And keep you
Make His face shine upon you
And be gracious to you
The Lord turn His
Face toward you
And give you peace
There are lots of extra challenges on families at the moment, as many of us are finding our homes being our places of work as well as classrooms if we have school-age children.
With most of our face-to-face church programs having stopped, there is a great opportunity for us to support and equip families in doing faith-formation at home.
We know there are lots of resources bouncing around the internet currently, and we’d love to hear what you’re using, and how its working. We also want to share resources with you regularly that we believe can support families.
One such resource is called Family.fit. It's been developed by a collaboration of global movements with a desire to see families around the world flourish. Each session can be done in 40 minutes, either inside, at a park, or in a backyard, and has a specific theme. It involves 7 elements, including simple physical challenges and exercises, a short talk and discussion, digging into a bible passage and reflecting on it, and praying together. It's designed for people of all ages.
New content is being written and uploaded weekly, and its all free. You can access the site with the link provided and download & print the PDF files as well. You can also view all videos from the site itself, or Youtube.
We’d love to hear any feedback you receive about it, as well as any other online resources you're finding valuable with at-home discipleship.
Adrian Blenkinsop
Included in this edition:
Articles by Peter Barney
News from GMP and CareWorks
A resource for families