This Sunday we celebrate another birthday for our church. Another lap around the sun for the community of God's people we call City on a Hill with lots to thank and praise to God for his work amongst us. 

But this birthday is a bit more significant than most. 

From the very beginning we have wanted to be a church that would see as many people as possible in Wellington come to know Jesus and be saved by putting their trust in him. It's what we mean when we say that we want to multiply and mature wholehearted followers of Jesus.

It’s so great to be getting into the Psalms as a church!

We’ve heard a lot of positive feedback from people keen to get stuck into the Psalm, especially tackling how it fits together as a whole book.

One of the tricky things I find with the Psalms is working out how they apply to us as Christians, given they were written for Israel, before Jesus. Plus they often address situations where I’m not sure I’ve faced or will ever face. It can be hard to relate.

It's okay to not be fine. This has been my experience of life over the past two months. My family has sadly said good bye to two loved family members and it has rocked me to my core. I don't feel okay. I've shed more tears than I can count, I feel fragile and overwhelmed by circumstances where I'd usually feel comfortable and confident. Just being able to think straight has been a challenge. 

The only thing that has brought comfort and peace in this time has been drawing near to God in prayer, in his word and listening to christian songs which point me to my rock and refuge.

This week I had the privilege of serving the kids who attended our Circus Mania kids club – the holiday programme for primary aged kids. We run this event every year with the hope that many of the kids who attend will hear the good news about Jesus and choose to put their trust in him or grow in their love for him.

This year’s theme was all about the circus and we had face painting, hula hoops, mini putt, catchy songs and a drama that certainly entertained with a clown, a juggler and a ring master.

This week we’ve spent some time together as a staff team praying, thinking and planning for the year ahead, as well as just connecting as a team. Every year we spend a couple of days dreaming and scheming for the future, and asking God to do his work and show his glory through our weakness, and it’s one of my favourite things to be honest.

This year I think was our most wholesome staff retreat ever, as we spent the first day tramping in the Ōrongorongos together, stopping at the bridges to share our testimony, a Bible passage, and pray for each other.

I remember it well. It was a Friday afternoon, I still had a few hours of work left to do. I was finishing up some tax returns for the wealthy client and then I had to dash out of the office to catch the 5:15pm train so I would make it to church in time to lead the 15 year old boys Bible study group.

The reason I remember this particular afternoon so well was because it was in that exact moment that it dawned on me for the first time which of the two things I was doing that day was going to last into eternity... and it wasn't the tax returns!