Step up, don’t step back

Look for opportunities beyond the ordinary

I have to admit to being overwhelmed with joy at the record number of deacons and stipendiary lay workers being ordained as this year commences. They represent the increasing number of people who are sacrificing to be trained and to go into ministry – and the increasing number of people who sacrifice to support them going through training and then in the ministries to which they go. 

We are sometimes tempted to think that we should rationalise ministries and cut back when times are difficult. The reverse is the case. Here is an investment in the future which we must make now.

I am hoping that each region of the Diocese will send at least fifty people for training each year – that amounts to approximately one person each year from each church. To help in this process we have developed new ways of entering the ministry of the diaconate, and hope that we will see the advent of more specialist ministries.

If we have ‘too many’ people, we can look for opportunities outside the ordinary. In fact we should be looking for this in any case. The aim of our Mission will not be met if we simply keep on doing what we are doing. We need to support fresh initiatives in church planting and evangelism. Without an abundance of workers it will be hard to create such new ministries. 

Some of the people sent (and supported) will go to the Youthworks College, others to Sydney Missionary and Bible College, and many, of course will train at Moore. We should be very grateful for the quality of what is being done at these institutions, especially for their firm commitment to teaching the Bible. This is foundational to the good health of the churches. God has truly blessed us.

And his blessing is not for us alone. When I thought about the ordination service, it seemed to me that something about it should represent not merely our local needs, but the opportunities we have for the world-wide mission. I therefore invited Bishop Hector Zavala of Chile to join us for the occasion and was delighted to find that he and his wife were able to be present. Through CMS we have a special interest in his Diocese, not least in theological education. Our continued support for the Diocese in terms of providing persons for ministry and support is highly significant.

The fact that Bishop Zavala has stood with us on that day is a signal that we are likewise committed not just to Sydney but to ‘all the world’. One of the special responsibilities which the Lord has given us at this time is in the area of theological education. We have highly developed and useful programs of study, whether at degree level or through diplomas (eg the Mary Andrews Diploma course) or through the successful PTC courses from Moore. Using these resources ourselves and sharing these resources with others is part of what we are being called on to do.

Please join me in thanking the Lord for his blessing upon us. Please continue to pray that his blessing will continue and that we will see more and more people offer themselves for work here and ‘in all the world’. 

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