Some people would say that “the church” has had its day! They would argue that we are now a post-modern, post-Christian, secular society where the church simply has no rele-vance for the majority of people. 

Sadly, they have a point! We will be filling out census forms soon, and I’m sure, like in years gone by, many with no engagement in “church” will happily tick “Christian” for their reli-gion. I read a claim that there are now more people around who have left the church, than are left in the church. 

As a Pastor this is something that I often struggle with. I find myself pondering some kind of response. I have concluded that shouting, “NO, YOU’RE WRONG, THE CHURCH IS RELE-VANT” (with volume for effect), might not be the best response. 

And so we are left with this question: other than being the religious service department of “Births, deaths and marriages” (and who knows for how much longer given recent debate), what is the church’s role in our society? 

It’s good to look and see what Jesus might have said. In his famous “Sermon on the Mount” Jesus says this: “Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavours of this earth...You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colours in the world.“ (The Message Translation) 

The role of God’s church is not to be the tradition keepers; the moral police; or a “nice” group of people who meet on a Sunday morning. The role of the church is to remind us all that God is God; to point the way to where God is at work in this world; and to encourage others to seek out and find God through his Son Jesus Christ. 

I’m not sure if this is “relevant” in the popular sense, but what I do know is that Jesus changes lives, and He calls on His church to be salt and light in the world. 

Blessings. Pastor David Auty. 

Olya shared with us the other week about how God is already speaking to us through this years Prayer and Self Denial. Over three Sundays, without any prior knowledge or planning, three things happened:

1. I preached on Acts 16 (as part of our Acts series);

2. the next week Pastor Mark Trewavas came and shared about their journey to Thailand to work amongst the Isaan people

3. the next week Olya was introducing this years Prayer and Self Denial and what was on the introduction page? Acts 16 AND a project with the Isaan people in Thailand! Wow!!

I really want to encourage every one of us to engage in this years appeal with open ears, arms and hearts. Listen for what God is saying to you, to your family, and to us as a church family. Use the weekly handouts as a prompter to prayer and engagement, remember that 7-8am on Tuesdays we'll be praying down here at the church prayer room...and please try to make it along to each of the next three Sunday mornings as we explore together what God is saying to us.

The theme for the 2012 Prayer and Self Denial campaign is Are You Ready? Are you ready to Reach?

Are you ready to Redeem?

Are you ready to Restore?

Over the three weeks we will be looking at Paul and Silas' mission journey in Acts 16.

The receptacle this year is an integral part of tranzsend’s reaching, redeeming and restoring. Made in the Kalasin province of Thailand by the Isaan people, it is part of a project bringing economic help to a poor region, and providing opportunities for the local churches to reach out to the majority Buddhist population. There will be one large ‘family’ container for each church, as well as a small container for each family.

I can't wait to hear what God is saying to us during this years Prayer and Self Denial appeal!

Arohanui,
Pastor David Auty