I trust that you are keeping well and encouraged in your walk with Christ. It was wonderful to be back from my travels to the Philippines and to gather again with our church family in worship this past Sunday. We were blessed by the message Jonathan Tweeddale shared on “Discernment and Taking Ownership of Your Faith,” from Acts 17:1–15 and Matthew 13:1–23.
Taking ownership of our faith is vital. Each of us must make our faith truly our own through personal, deliberate reliance on Christ, rather than resting on inherited belief. Such a living faith grows through Scripture and prayer, deepens in joyful intimacy with God, and is expressed in obedience and worship. Mature faith is grounded in truth, ready to be explained to others, and lived out daily in the lifelong pursuit of holiness.
At yesterday’s Wednesday service, I highlighted four key aspects of owning your faith:
Personal and Deliberate Faith – moving beyond passively accepting what you’ve been taught to actively embracing what God reveals through Scripture.
Intimate Knowledge of God – seeking more than surface knowledge, growing in understanding of His nature, attributes, and reality.
Joyful Obedience – showing our love for God by living to please Him through praise, worship, and faithfulness.
Grounded in Scripture – ensuring our faith rests on God’s Word and being ready to explain and defend it.
Here is a simple prayer you may use this week:
Lord Jesus, thank you for calling me to follow you. Help me to make my faith my own, to grow stronger each day, and to live in a way that shows your love. Keep me faithful, Lord, and guide me by your Spirit. In your holy Name I pray. Amen.
I would like to thank Rev Bob Barnes, Justin Tweeddale, and Alan Nicholson for preaching and celebrating Communion while I was away.
On Sunday I shared the sad news that our parishioner Shona Iuli passed away after a brief illness, aged 64. Her funeral service will be held at St Christopher’s on Monday, 22 September, at 10.00 am. Please keep the Iuli family in your prayers, and if you are able, come and support them at the service.
This week holds much for us to uphold in prayer:
Diocesan Synod (Thursday–Saturday in Nelson): Pray for God’s blessing, wisdom, and unity for all attending. I will be present along with our Synod Reps, Mary Griffiths, Alan, and Valerie Nicholson.
Public Healing Service (Saturday, 21 September): Afternoon tea at 3.30 pm in the Parish Hall, followed by the Healing Service in church at 4.00 pm. Pray that this will be a time of God’s grace, presence, renewal and healing Our guest preacher, Rev Robin Kingston, brings rich pastoral experience and will speak on healing and forgiveness. He will also be preaching at both Sunday services on “How Do You Recognise God in Action in Your Life?”
Messy Church (Sunday, 22 September at 4.00 pm): Pray for children and families to be drawn to Christ, for strong attendance, and for God’s blessing on our Messy Church team and volunteers.
Finally, in the wake of the shocking and tragic killing of Charlie Kirk last week, I want to share a portion of a pastoral letter from Archbishop Stephen Wood of the Anglican Church in North America. His words remind us that our hope is found not in human solutions, but in the cross and resurrection of Christ:
“The violent taking of life—and in the case of Mr Kirk, the attempt to silence by force those with whom we differ—is a profound evil. As citizens of a different kingdom (Philippians 3:20), our calling in these days is not to answer with bitterness or despair, but to reflect the eternal values of that Kingdom (Hebrews 12:28), embodying the hope and peace of the gospel to which we bear witness… Violence cannot be healed by more violence; hatred cannot be driven out by hatred. Only the love of God in Jesus Christ can transform hearts and reconcile enemies… Christ’s resurrection assures us that evil and death will not have the final word… So may we proclaim with conviction that faith in Jesus Christ is not one hope among many, but the only hope we have—the only hope our nation has—the only hope the world has.”
Archbishop Wood concludes with this call:
“Pray earnestly for all who are bereaved, persecuted, or suffering from acts of violence, that they may be upheld by the Lord’s presence and strengthened in hope; for our nation, that peace and mutual respect may prevail over violence and hatred; and for the Church, that we may be steadfast in our witness to the gospel of peace.”
May the Lord fill your heart with His peace and bless your family always.
