Hi All,
This past Sunday Brianna and I were visiting Trinity Church Mt. Barker. I was preaching for them whilst their senior pastor Scott Maxwell is on break.
We were so kindly welcomed and they were so organised, like a little bee hive each person used their gifts and skills to serve so that things went smoothly.
After the service we had a number of great conversations. A little boy (~5yo) asked me “how did the people in the Bible know what to write?”, and another young girl (~11yo) asked “what’s your favourite book in the Bible and why?”. Hers happens to be 1 and 2 Kings, because it’s full of bad kings and it reminds her of Jesus the perfect King. Someone else was wanting to learn all about the Taste and See course we ran last year at Brighton as they are thinking about how they too can best reach the lost. We bumped into old friends from Trinity Church Adelaide and others who shared with us the connections they have at Brighton.
Visiting Trinity Mt. Barker reminded me of just how blessed we are to be part of such a wonderful network of churches where we can use our resources to bless and build each other up. After all, in God’s world we are not just individual churches, but we are a kingdom, many churches united in and under King Jesus. This got me thinking about Jesus’ baptism in Matthew 3:13-17. When Jesus was baptised he demonstrated his unity with humanity, and when we are baptised we demonstrate our unity with him and one another.
The Apostle Paul says to the Christians in Ephesus “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:4-6).
This would explain why it was such a blessing to visit another church, because in Jesus we have family everywhere we go! We have brothers and sisters all over the world.
So, join me in praying for them. And, next holidays when you travel, don’t be afraid to visit another church, you might just find some wonderful family members who also love and serve the King.
Your brother,
Paul