So in the last post about growing pains we spoke about not feeling like we have to know everyone. We want to be warm, welcoming, open & hospitable to everyone, even while we invest deeply in significantly fewer people than that, often through Growth Groups.
I mentioned there were four things I wanted to look at. Here’s the second one.
Village is bigger, but that’s not bad(der)
You might have noticed that Village Church has seen quite a few new faces in the past 18 months. If you’re one of them, we’re really glad to have you. It’s great to see the way God is working in and through people at Village, and we love the diversity, energy & dimension new people bring.
But one of the challenges facing Village Church at the moment, isn’t something unique to Village, but to any church or organisation that grows. That it “feels” different. Some love this change, some don’t. But as with every aspect of our Christian life, we’re pushed not to think about it merely in terms of us, but in terms of others.
There’s four things I want us to think about as a community as we grapple with change. Here’s the first one.
Don’t feel like you have to know everyone
They’re coming up, and Village Church & Life Point are running them. Markets, Carols…what more do you need? Here’s the details:
About a month ago at Village, we made some exciting decisions. We voted to:
1 – Take Mitch Eidse on as a pastor at Village Church.
2 – Increase Nat Carse to a full-time trainee position.
3 – Keep Deon & Jayesh on for a second year as trainees.
4 – Increase our giving to do all of the above.
At the time we spoke about a number of things needing to happen to finalise all this, so here’s a reminder and an update.
For Mitch’s position, we were applying for a grant from the Presbyterian Church that would pay 60%, 40%, 20% of his wage over the next 3 years respectively. Mitch has gone through all the interviews, and we’ve submitted the paperwork for this application, so we’re just awaiting that decision which will be made at the end of November.
For Nat, we’ve submitted the paperwork for him to be accepted into the Ministry Trainee Network (MTN), and will hear back from that at the end of November as well after he heads in for an interview.
For the budget, we agreed to take on the increase in budget of $41k, moving the VC budget from $164k for 2013 to $205k for 2014. On the night we spoke about this being an increase of around $12 per giving unit (could be family, couple, individual) at Village. As we’re part of the overall MPC budget, the rest of MPC needed to ok and include this in the full budget. That all went through smoothly at the congregational meeting back at MPC on 27 October.
As we head into 2014, here are some things to pray for and some things to consider.
Pray for the subsidy for Mitch that there’d be a positive response. We’ve done everything we can, so we just wait on the Presbyterian Church to make a decision. We’re not the only application, so just pray for wisdom for them as they consider them all.
Pray also for visas for Mitch & Steph. They need an offer of employment to get the visa, and at the moment that depends on the grant. And we’re never quite sure how long the visa’s take to go through, so pray that it’d all go smoothly.
Pray & consider for our finances as well. Those at the meeting committed to giving an extra $12 extra a week. Some are going to be able to increase their giving by more than $12 per week, and some far less than that. But we’d love everyone to pray about where they’re at, what the challenge is, and then invest in the future of Village Church in whatever capacity they can.
Thanks for your patience with this process, and thanks for your generosity of spirit in engaging with and being a part of all the changes. Over the next couple of weeks, we (Derek, Deon, Jayesh & Mitch) are going to be sitting down and kicking around a few ideas for 2014 as we keep working out how best to help you grow to be like Jesus, and reach those around you who don’t know him yet. Stay tuned for some of the things we’re hoping to do as a community in 2014.
Derek
You can’t have missed in the media the failures of the church in regards to its care of those it was supposed to protect. As a Christian, you’ll have felt the embarrassment of trying to explain the church’s failure, and how inconsistent it was with the Jesus & the Bible’s teaching.
So where did the church go so wrong? What does the Bible say should have happened? How do we talk to people about what’s happening?
On 7 & 14 July at Village, we’re going to be dealing with 2 mistakes the church made. It’s a series that Phil & I did at the City Bible Forum (http://citybibleforum.org/city/brisbane) with Glenn Hohnberg, and hopefully a good series to invite a friend to who might be struggling with what the church has done and how it fits with Jesus & Christianity.
Starting May 1, each Wednesday for 6 weeks, a course called The Reason for God will be running.
is that I love confessions. And creeds. And catechisms. Christian ones I’m talking about here.
The Apostles, Nicene & Athanasian creed. The Westminster & Heidelberg confessions – and the catechisms that go along with them. I love how core, biblical truths are brought together, summarised and put into a form where even I can remember them. They don’t replace reading the Bible – they complement it.
But while they’ve been used and developed since the earliest Christians, our interest and use for them has died. What do I need to remember something for when I’ve got Google? Do i really need to know why the one who saved me had to be God, what the church is, or how can we glorify God?
I’d argue yes. Absolutely. When God brought Israel out of slavery in Egypt, just as they were about to enter the promised land, he showed them what it looked like to live as His people, he said to them in Deuteronomy 6:
4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. 7 Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
When Paul wrote to titus, he told Titus to:
“teach what was in accord with sound doctrine” Titus 2:1
That is, lives shaped by grace. Just have a read of Titus 2-3.
The end point is not to just remember (or learn) what God says – that was the Pharisees problem. It’s to be shaped by it. And if we’re going to be shaped by what God says, we’ve got to know what He says. We’ve got know what His Word says.
So in tandem with our first Church History night where we’ll be looking at “Irenaeus and truths worth dying for” (14 April), I’m going to put out there something I’m doing with Jac and they boys, and we’d love you to join us. We’re going to start working through a New City Catechism that the Gospel Coalition have developed. There’s 52 questions / answers (one for each week of the year), and there are answers for both adults and children.
So we’re going to start working through it together. Not legalistically / pharisaically…but because we want to be shaped by God’s truths, and we think this’ll be a great way to remember them. Why not join us?
There are a number of ways you can do it – there’s a web site with the questions, and iPad app.
Christianity isn’t complicated. It’s deep and profound – but at its heart it’s a very simple message. The story of a world created, gone wrong & being fixed by a loving God.
Sunday Morning Meeting:
9:30am at F Block, QUT* Kelvin Grove Campus, Victoria Park Road, Kelvin Grove QLD, 4059
Sunday Evening Meeting:
5:00pm at 43 St. Paul’s Terrace, Spring Hill, QLD 4000
Office & Mailing Address:
C1D, 8 Carraway Street, Kelvin Grove Village Centre, QLD 4059
ABN: 69391334959
Contact Us:
Email: info@vc.org.au Facebook: fb.me/tvcbrisbane YouTube: @VillageChurchBNE
*Village Church and their ministries are not affiliated with QUT.
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