Many thanks to the Church congregation who shared their love and affection with Ben, Bec, Mia, Josh and Anna Bonython in the farewell service last month. The many gifts, well-wishing comments, smiles, laughter and hugs indicated the depth of appreciation held for the entire family. BFC was able to provide the family with a generous gift to help finance a long-awaited family holiday. They will be travelling to Sydney and Melbourne, visiting former Church adherents along the way… a Pastor, it seems, never really has a complete break!

What now for Burnside Family Church?

Isaiah 40:31 states "They that WAIT upon the Lord shall renew their strength.”

This verse speaks to us. Sometimes we will fly like eagles, other times we will be running, and no doubt, much of the time walking, but the promise of God is that He has enlisted the highest authority so that we might not crash-land whilst flying, not grow weary and faint as we walk the future together. The Hebrew word "wait" in the context of this verse means to "hope in sure anticipation and expectation" for what is to come. “Wait” does not mean sitting down and staring about the place. Whilst we wait in anticipation, we all put our hand to the plough.

Thankfully, I played a team sport. If things were not going so well, I could look to others, perhaps the star player to retrieve the situation. Fancy being a Boxer, just you and your opponent in the ring, and you are losing badly; left with nobody but yourself and your personal resources. In the Kingdom of God, BFC is playing the team game. We invite you all to play the game, choosing to participate while we "wait" rather than spectate.

Our Church is full of good people doing good works. Our roots run deep in the love of God and His people. In the last two weeks, without being asked, we have seen many people volunteer themselves where they perceive a gap. (Let's face it, Ben and Bec and family have left some big gaps as they wore big shoes.)

Tony and Vicki Alkmim have offered to cover Pastoral visiting in the church.
Joshua Reynolds, without a word spoken, has stepped up in leadership of all things technical.
Jeff Byerly has worked tirelessly on all things financial.
Mark Harrison heard there was a need for the bins to be put out mid-week. His hand went up.
Nick Chehade has been hosting electricians and plumbers throughout the week.
Pam Horton too, has met with tradesmen and the like on behalf of needs for BFC.
Laura Duke quickly stepped into the interim role of Youth Leader.
Murray has kindly volunteered to be a contact point regarding the Building programme.
Sharon Jenkins has responded to the need for leadership in the Wednesday connect group.

People have voiced the need for concerted prayer while we "wait." To that end, the pre-Sunday service prayer time, held in the back hall, will commence at 9:20am with intentional prayer for the Church's future being a feature. Likewise, the regular Tuesday 10:00am Prayer meeting will have a similar focus.

The Church has duly appointed Elizabeth Reynolds to undertake two days of paid employment to help fill some of the largest gaps. She is already doing so much around the Church, so with much thanks and gratitude we welcome her into the position of "Music and Administrative Director". If you would like to be added to the service roster in any capacity, then please see Elizabeth. One of Elizabeth's biggest jobs will be compiling and printing the monthly newsletter. Laura Duke will continue a half day of employment in respect to Children’s Ministry…

…and then we need a new Pastor! Conversations are already happening, but the best we can offer in relation to a new Pastor is to "wait"!