| Church - It’s not just about Overseas Mission |
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A message from the DirectorWelcome again to Living Words! In this issue we feature a church that really imbibes ‘mission’ to its very core and seeks to take an outward approach to all it does. By featuring Hillsborough Baptist Church (HBC) we are not saying that there are not many other good examples to choose, in fact quite the contrary, but last year we had our 45th anniversary celebration and the Senior Pastor of HBC, Greg Liston, spoke to us on ‘Every Member Mission’.The concepts grappled with here are a challenge for all of us in churches, and Greg’s article elicits these well. The divide, so common in the church, between ‘overseas’ mission and local church life that so easily creeps into church thinking is cleverly examined by Greg. Enjoy his challenges and insights. In addition to the numerous overseas mission workers that HBC have supported over the years, they have many areas of involvement in the local community: • Prison Ministry • Food-bank • Mentoring at various schools • Hospital Services • Refugee Resettlement • 24/7 Prayer Ministry Family ministries such as: • Mainly Music • Quench Coffee Group – for parents with pre-schoolers • Toolbox Courses for parents • Alpha Courses And other programmes for people in the community, including: • Bible in Schools • Fresh Perspective Mentoring Programme (ADULT) • “Angels” – helping refugees with crisis needs and transport • SOFA – for year 5 & 6 children Also in this issue Fiona Taylor reviews two great books available through Wycliffe: Little Bean’s Adventure – a wonderful book for children and helpful resource for teachers; and Two Lives, One Dream – the story of Sam & Nancy McBride, former leaders in Wycliffe NZ. Finally John Rentz outlines one of the most recent missions advances in the Pacific – Tongans beginning to serve in missions through Bible Translation. May God Himself enrich you as you enjoy reading this issue of Living Words. In Jesus’ precious name
Wayne Freeman |