Vicars Letter - 21 July 2023

Kia ora All Saints Whānau 

Guy here this week. This Wednesday, we had our 2nd class of Te Reo Maori learning here at All Saints with our teacher, Joan, from up the road. One of the learnings we discussed is to do with words like This, That, Thing, and Things. We then got onto the waiata "E Toru Nga Mea" (There are three things), which is a waiata about 1 Corinthians 13:13, And now these three remain: faith, hope and Love. But the greatest of these is Love.

I was struck as we were singing it and pulling apart some of the words we were learning, such as Nga and Mea, that these are really big things in our faith! This isn't something that I have suddenly realized, but it was as if the Holy Spirit was putting them in Bold as I heard - and later re-read - this passage and these three things in a way that I haven't seen before. It was also powerful through the lens of our Gospel series. The faith in God that we profess, a God that is full of grace towards us, Hope in a God that desires a relationship with us and that his kingdom will come on earth as in heaven, Love that we have so experienced, a Love like no other through our faith in God that there is a love that pours out of us that reflects what we have experienced. 

As we head toward the final week of our Gospel series, Claire will be preaching to us on the Gospel and Eternity. We are also hearing murmurings from people in the parish, and this lines up very well with our Mission Action Plan - with regard to growth and evangelism - that there is a hunger to practically learn the art of sharing the Gospel/Good News and presenting that to our friends, workmates, family, etc. So watch this space for some opportunities to dig a little deeper. 

As we come to the end of the series, it would be great to get some feedback on what has stood out to you, what have been some of the critical learning or wrestling you have had, and where have you experienced renewal through this series? Feel free to email the vicars here and let us know. 

July 30th, we have our Go Sunday, We are called to care for creation, and we are called to make disciples and share the good news, lets hit several birds with one stone. A chance for us to take the church outside the walls and to bring our people along with us. 

Invite one person from your five that you have been praying for to come with you on Go Sunday. 

A simple phrase you might use to invite them might look like this, 
"Sunday 30th, my church is going to Mt Victoria to plant native trees; it's going to be a really great time, would you like to come with me?"

Head over to www.allsaints.org.nz/gosunday to check out all the information on how to get there, what to bring, what's happening throughout the day, and of course, sign up yourself and your friend you are inviting. 

This week we have both 9 and 10:30 in the room on Sunday, so we look forward to worshipping with you all on Sunday. 

Ngā mihi, Guy