Vicars Letter - 14 June 2024

Revs Guy and Summer Benton

Kia ora All Saints Whānau,

We (Guy and Summer) are writing to you together this week. We want to take this opportunity to touch base with you all following the news that Andy and Emily shared on Sunday. 

We have been alongside Emily and Andy throughout this journey of discernment they have been on, listening to the Holy Spirit together as they sought to hear Gods call for their family. It has been a great privilege to walk alongside them through this process, as it has been a great privilege to walk alongside them through many years of ministry together. We have been deeply engaged in each other’s lives through a lot - joy, grief, fear, the birth of a lot of babies, a call to the priesthood and the daily rhythm of working together for God’s Kingdom. Being involved in their life in this way is something they have graciously afforded us through friendship and love. It is out of that love and deep friendship that we express both our sadness they are leaving and our absolute pride and celebration for the way they are responding to the call of God in their lives. Together with their children, and out of God’s hope for their family, they are choosing to reach further out to advance the Kingdom and we marvel at their willingness to say yes to God.

As a community of Jesus’ disciples here at All Saints we have borne witness to God’s faithfulness in so many ways. As a community together, we will continue to work to ensure that our eyes remain fixed on God’s call for us as the part of the Body of Christ that gathers together at All Saints, and also for us as a part of the bigger Body of Christ. Our heart is to look outside of ourselves so that we can recognise the opportunities God is giving us to plant new churches or graft into other parishes who need support so that we may see God’s word flourish in the hearts of those who do not yet believe, and witness the transformation, liberation and freedom that comes with that. 

It is with this deep hope in the power of the Gospel that we will send Andy, Emily, Leon, Arlo and Jasper out to the Penninsula Parish in September. And here at All Saints we will continue to raise up and send out people to share the Good News with those who have not yet heard. So let us rejoice! Let us celebrate all that has been done together over the last 3.5 years and look with hope for all that God will do among us in the years to come.

We also want to reaffirm our heart and desire to continue to lead All Saints into the future. We are passionate about what God is doing amongst us and through us. We have had numerous conversations with leaders in our missional communities, house churches and other key ministry leaders, about what our structure of parish leadership might look like post September and in each of those conversations we have felt deep excitement about what God is doing amongst us. Together with many of our leaders we are hearing whispers from the Holy Spirit about things like how we ensure we hold a culture of intentional discipleship, how we help people recognise ways God might be calling them into more leadership, and how we offer deeper Biblical teaching and theological discussion that empowers us to stand firmly in the truth of the gospel.

We join in with the prayer that Andy and Emily are praying for us out of Romans 12:10-13, as they mentioned in their communication on Sunday. As we walk together as authentic community, strive to serve the Lord from a place of complete knowledge that he died for us, seek the welfare of our city and those around us, and reorient our suffering in this world towards a God who is bigger and better than any pain or suffering we might encounter for the sake of the Gospel - let us intercede for God's Kingdom to come on earth as in Heaven. 

Thank you for the opportunity to share with you together this week as we acknowledge this news and look with hope towards the future. 

A small reminder that we have our 9am and House Churches this week. Please remember to share the Rememberance Service notice with those you know who might have lost a loved one or would be interested in spending some time remembering. And lastly, Matariki Working Bee and Go Sunday are fast approaching so get those in your calendar.

Yours in Christ, 

Summer and Guy