Fresh beginnings around us

As I shared last Sunday, the new year offers many fresh beginnings. All we need to do is look around and see these impending changes.

Let me share the outline of the sermon I delivered on Sunday, 4 February.

I took this photo when we stopped at Shag Point’s southern end because of road works. I noticed the new house built on the hilltop. We were following a moving van. Someone or a family might be moving.

Youth ministry resumed on 8 February

Our youth group meets every Thursday from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. Please ask Tom or Bevan for more information.

Invite young people you know to join.

Family Love Sunday on 18 February

On 18 February, we will focus on the Christian Family. A panel of speakers will share about parenting, discipline, lessons learned, and how we can strengthen the Christian home.

Train children in the way they should go; when they grow old, they won’t depart from it.

Proverbs 22:6

Fellowship lunch on 18 February

It’s time we gather together for lunch after the worship service on 18 February. Let this be a time to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, milestones, fresh beginnings, and many more.

As our first fellowship lunch this year, let us celebrate the new people who have joined and rejoined us.

We have an IT intern – Christian Jericho

On behalf of OBC, I have accepted Christian Jericho, or CJ, to spend his internship with us in fulfilling the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science he is finishing at National University, Philippines.

CJ is the eldest son of Art and Kathy Luna. If you can recall, when Art received their NZ Residence Visa, he brought his family to New Zealand in May 2023.

CJ continued with his IT course online. Now, he only needs to accomplish 170 hours of internship to get the BSIT degree.

CJ’s tasks are improving our website and digitalising the church’s photos and documents for our online archive. We will discuss other IT-related tasks more in the days to follow.

Church Tasks Roster

The tasks roster is an opportunity for us to participate in the function and operation of our church in the areas of worship and service.

Please feel free to write your names on the rostering sheet on the table at the side of our tea area.

Don’t hesitate to ask Bevan, the pastor, or any member regarding any task you are interested in and if you need further information. Thank you!

Thank you for your generosity! The Yumos are coming on 25 July.

Thank you for your prayers, generosity, and support for this fundraising event. It is such a blessing to see how the Holy Spirit moved the hearts of the people at OBC and in the community (Totara School, Otago Rural Support Trust, etc.).

We raised a total of $6,000 for the family. Praise the Lord.

We bought their tickets on Wednesday, 5 July. The Yumos (Joel, Ralph, Faith, and Chelsea) will leave the Philippines on 24 July and arrive in Christchurch on 25 July. Joel and the kids thank God and everyone who contributed and prayed for them.

You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us, your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God (2 Corinthians 9:11-12)

Website Management Training on 15 July, 5:00 PM at OBC

We need some people to help in updating our website. Please let me know if you are interested.

No, it’s not as complicated as you might think. If you’re using email or social media, you can learn how to manage a website. I will also be teaching simple online marketing skills.

Fellowship Meals on 16 July

Let us celebrate God’s goodness for giving birthdays, anniversaries, answered prayers, and trials that strengthen our faith in God through a fellowship meal on 16 July.

Fellowship meal is also a time to get to know our churchmates, hear their faith journey, and pray for one another.

Please let us also take the chance to help one another in housekeeping. Thank you.

Weekly Reminders

• Youth Ministry – No meetings due to the term break.
  NOTE: Please ask Tom or Bevan for more information. Thank you!
• Prayer Meeting – Thursday from 3:00 to 4:00 PM
• Music Jam – Thursday from 4:00 to 5:00 PM
  We invite our young people and anyone in our church to come and sing, play an instrument, and even just be there to listen.

Abundant Life Bible Study on 9 July, 1:30 PM at OBC

Everyone is invited to join. We need to resume the discipleship sessions we have started.

We will take up Lesson 3. Please fill in the blanks, and be ready to read, discuss, and share.

See me if you don’t have a copy of the “Abundant Life” Workbook.

Pastoral Care

Please allow me to arrange a schedule to visit you at your home, or we can meet in town.

Apart from the regular pastoral care visitation, I will be applying the faith-wisdom discovery tool.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11).

Food Cupboard and Salvation Army Food Bank

Please let us continue bringing non-perishable items to our food cupboard to help a person or family in need.

I met with Jocelyn and Paul Smith, the Salvation Army Oamaru officers, on Thursday for a catch-up.

They told me anyone struggling with food supplies could go to the Salvation Army Store and grab some bread and other available food items.

Thursday Meeting Roundup

Our Regional Leader, Rachel and I met last Thursday, and we discussed the following concerns:

• We need to contact a plumber to resolve our plumbing issues.
• We need to buy a new fridge/freezer. Thanks to Tom and Erin for providing a temporary solution.
• We will be canvassing for the cost of a commercial dishwasher. We aim to install this before our 140th Foundation Anniversary on 13 August.
• We need an updated Health and Safety Plan.
• We need a certified Fire Evacuation Plan.

May I appeal for volunteers to help me with the items listed above?

It was a beautiful sunny day last Thursday, and below is a photo I took at… Oamaruvians know where this place is.