Hebrews describes the Word - the Scriptures - as being 'alive and active' and they are. The Spirit brings to mind the words we need reminding of, the hope that we need to keep clinging to, and our incredible God who made everything and loves his people. As I hiked up mountains in the South Island of New Zealand and looked at the incredible scenery all around me, just a couple of weeks ago, I had these words from Psalm 121:1-2 on repeat in my brain:
"I lift my eyes to the mountains - where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."
That Psalm continues on to share the wonders of our loving, kind, caring God who watches over his people, protecting and guiding us along the way. It's a Psalm of comfort and hope when God's people are struggling or unsure of things.
Fast forward a thousand+ years and the apostle Peter writes of even more hope that God has given us in his Son, Jesus.  A Living Hope through the resurrection of Jesus because he is alive! 
This passage, 1 Peter 1:3-7 is one of my all-time favourite passages that God has used many times when I've been suffering or questioning in times of trial. They have been the words I've needed to hear to give a reason for my experience, and to give me hope in them. These words have offered an eternal perspective and lifted my eyes to God's point of view to see the vast span of his plans for me and for all believers, enabling the perseverance required to keep walking the Christian faith and to experience the joy that comes from breathing in this living hope. I can't wait to share this with you on Sunday!
What passages does the Spirit bring to you to remind you of the hope we have in Jesus? 

This week we also share in our living hope as we bear witness in three(!) baptisms and commit to journeying with them in faith. Come ready to celebrate the hope we have in Jesus together!

Amy

I​n difficult times such as these, we want to hear Deuteronomy’s promise that God will make us abundantly prosperous in our undertakings. Josh Mackenzie (CMS missionary) brought us a wonderful message from Deut 28:1-14 last week; beginning our “Hope in God’s Promises” sermon series.
This Sunday’s reading, Psalm 25, leads us to pause and contemplate what it means to prosper in God.
Psalm 25 is not an expression of gratitude for a windfall (financial prosperity), but a heartfelt prayer of lament, trust and hope in God. To prosper in God is to adopt a stance in life that is embodied and embedded in prayer. “To you, O Lord, I lift my soul,” the psalmist declares (25:1).
To lift up one’s soul to God means to lift up one’s hands in an outstretched position in prayer. The gesture signifies holding one’s conscious identity, one’s life, outstretched to God in sole and complete dependence upon God and God’s help. To pray, “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul” is a synonym for ‘In you I trust’ (verse 2) … and ‘I wait for you’ (verses 3-5, 21). To prosper in God is to own and acknowledge one’s utter dependence upon God.
The soul lifted up to the Lord and set squarely on God trusts in God’s saving power and everlasting covenant and God’s teaching. So, if we are to be prosperous in Him, we must seek God’s guidance and follow His ways even if they are challenging and contradict what we understand it means to prosper.
Through this psalm we are reminded that God’s instruction comes from prayer rather than study, from God rather than human wisdom and human teachers. To prosper in God is to trust God enough to receive His help and mercy. Prospering in God comes from actively trusting in God and eagerly longing for God’s response.
Therefore, I encourage you to take on the same stance as the psalmist; bring your life before him, pray to God, actively acknowledge your utter dependence upon Him, and receive His help and guidance in every circumstance.
No one who hopes and trusts in God will ever be put to shame (verse 3).
May you remember that God is good, all the time!

Yours in Christ,

Rev Tanya

​Yesterday was International Women's Day and I had the privilege of attending a breakfast at Mornington Racecourse where I heard Hayley Cull speak. Hayley is the Deputy CEO of Plan International Australia, a leading humanitarian organisation focused on child rights and girls' equality. She spoke about the power of "Hope" in the lives of children and girls in extremely challenging situations. Hope is powerful!

In this broken, hurting world, we all need hope. The surest hope we can have is in the promises of God. They do not change. They are a sure foundation for building a more positive future. This is good news for the whole world, and we hope this year, many more people will hear about the Hope that is found in Jesus Christ.

The Mackenzie family know and seek to share this hope with people they live among in the Northern Territory. They will share a little bit about their work with CMS this coming Sunday then Josh Mackenzie will bring a message from Deuteronomy 28:1-14. May we all find hope in God's promises in this passage and all of scripture. We have a God who keeps his promises. He gives us hope in a broken world.

I hope to see you on Sunday,
 
Blessings,

Rev Tanya

​Life is full of warnings and encouragements!

I got the news today that my dad has had a heart attack and will be flown to Melbourne from Albury tonight to have an operation in the morning. It has been a scare for him and me, but it is apparently a routine procedure for hospital staff. When we get through this tough time, we will likely see it as a warning (They say!?). In contrast, this morning in Wednesday Church, we heard our own dear Margaret speak words of encouragement from God's promises in his word, which we know are true and hold to dearly in the tough times.  

Scripture is full of real-life stories we can all relate to, even though they were written so long ago. I've often read the letters Paul wrote to the seven churches referred to in the book of Revelation and wondered what God would say to our Church today. In those letters there are words of warning and words of encouragement, meant to edify and grow the believers and the Church as a whole. 

This Sunday we will look at the gifts given to the church for its growth and edification as listed in Ephesians 4:1-16. It lists Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers as people sent to equip God's people for works of service. John Shanasy who is gifted with words of knowledge and prophecy will bring a message that I expect will both warn and encourage us as any prophetic word ought to. 

Please join us on Sunday, full of the Holy Spirit and ready to test this word and receive what God has for us.

In Christ, 

Rev Tanya

​Last December on my prayer retreat I asked God for a word for the Church for 2025. As I sat looking at a new young green shoot of a plant swaying in the breeze, I sensed God gave me the word "regenerate" (meaning Growth and New Life). I was reminded of a song my mission team and I sang all through Africa 10 years ago; "This is what you do" by Bethel music. You might like to listen HERE.

We know people grow when they have the right balance of support and challenge. And I believe this year will be a year of regeneration (new life and growth) for our church community. I'm not talking just about numerical growth but more so about the growth and renewing of each one of us. God calls us to grow in Him. I guess that's why God allows challenges in our lives, and also surrounds us with supportive fellow Chistian's, providing the right environment to grow strong, like a tree planted by a stream. 

Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17:1-8 tell us we are to be like trees planted by streams of water that remain fruitful and vibrant even in adverse conditions. These passages provide this vivid metaphor for the life of someone who places their trust in God. These people are grounded in the spiritual nourishment that comes from a relationship with God. And just as the tree spreads its roots toward the river, a person who trusts in God extends their life toward His presence and grace, drawing strength and sustenance from Him. This root system enables us to grow and flourish and bear fruit even in challenging times.

This year I hope you will join me in cultivating a closer, personal relationship with God through regular prayer, reading scripture, engaging in worship, fellowship with other believers, and depending on God for your/our needs. As we do so, our lives will be marked by continuous growth and fruitfulness. May we increasingly display the fruits of the Holy Spirit; love, joy, peace, and kindness, and make a positive impact in our communities and relationships.

This will be our focus for this Sunday's sermon as I share more on this vision and the direction which I believe God is leading us this year.  Hope you can join us.

Rev Tanya

​When I was in year 5 at school, I had the BEST school teacher ever. Her name was 'Miss E' (short for Eagleton), she liked Winnie the Pooh (and so did I), and her mum went to my church. I loved being in her class. For a long time, I wanted to be a teacher, just like her. 

As I grew up, I became more concerned for the many young people who didn't have a faith in Jesus - now there's even young people in Australia who have never heard a proper story about Jesus (can you believe it?!). While I was still discerning where God might take me in my life during the University years - whether primary school or ministry - the big kicker for me was that I LOVED teaching the kids about Jesus. And the amazing thing about the message of Jesus is sharing the hope we have in Him. While I felt a special calling from God to share the good news with the next generation, the bible shows us a continual pattern of God's people taking on this job together too. 

As a nation, Israel was always looking to the next generation. Time and time again, they are reminded by God and their leaders not to be 'like their ancestors - a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God' (Ps. 78:8 - think that complaining 'wilderness' generation), but instead to look towards the next generation coming after them for the sole purpose of them trusting in the Lord (Ps. 78:6). Their job, as a whole nation, was to pass on the amazing things God had done for them, his special words and promises to them, and to teach their children there's a God who loves them. Their job was to keep 'growing young' and pass on the faith to the next generations. It didn't fall to just the parents of the one family, nor did the parents send them off to church and never speak about God at home... it was a whole-of-life passing-on-of-the-faith with the 'whole village' supporting one another. 

As we consider the good news Jesus brings - that anyone can enter the Kingdom of God through him - who are we looking to share that news with? Who are we passing on our faith to? Not just as individuals, but as a whole church. Together, how can we be 'growing young' and passing on our faith to the next generations? 

Can I encourage you to hold that question before God this week and pray about it, for it, and for each other. Pray that together, we may see this village here in Mount Eliza transformed with the good news of Jesus going out to all the generations. Amen. 

Amy

​What you think about matters! What you focus your mind on not only influences your decisions and your direction but can impact your brain and nervous system. Negative thinking will have a negative response, and positive thinking will have a loving and positive response which God has always planned for you. He made us to live in love, with positivity (faith), but this broken world in which we live influences us to think differently sometimes. Therefore, as Christians we are called to rejoice in God despite our circumstances. We are called to no longer conform to the ways of this world but be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom 12:2). In this week's bible passage, Paul teaches us that we are to be full of joy in the Lord no matter what circumstances we are in and think about/focus on; whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy (Phil 4:4-8). These thoughts will guide us in the ways God wants us to go. 

Remember he has good plans for you. Plans for a future and a hope. So, be deliberate in what you think about. As a person thinks in his/her heart, so he/she is.

I hope to see you this Sunday.

Rev Tanya Cummings

​When I was away on prayer retreat last year, God gave me the word "GROW" for this year. It has pressed on me since then and came to the fore on my annual leave break. I sense God is wanting me to grow personally, and each of our congregation to grow in God, and for our Church to Grow in numbers. We will lean more into this through our sermons next month. In the meantime, please dream and speak with me about what God might be calling us into, so we can grow!

This Sunday I'll be bringing a word from Philippians 2:12-18 which has challenged me. No doubt it will challenge us all to grow in our understanding of God's word and his good purposes for us. In this scripture it says; 
"Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."
"Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life"

Do these verses describe you? 
Do you have different standards of behaviour when you are with different people?
Is your faith in Jesus the driving force in your life?
Do your attitudes and words promote unity or dissension in our church community?
Is our church community an example of an orderly, harmonious society?
Is your light shining? Do you feel intimidated by non-believers?

These verses, which all of us who are Christians are called to live out, describe a challenging way to live which we can't do in our own strength. We need to obey the spirit's leading our lives in order to live as his blameless, pure children who represent him in this world. This is God's will for us, and he will give us everything we need for doing his good and perfect will.

He is with us, in us, and will help us. We just need to submit to him and grow!

I hope we all look like spiritual giants by the end of the year!

God bless you abundantly as you allow him to have his way in you.

Rev Tanya.