每周新闻2020年9月18日

9月20日主日崇拜

主耶稣告诉我们为什么我们会忧虑，为什么无需忧虑，怎样能做到。对基督的信心帮助我们停止管理神掌管的，开始看顾我们所拥有的。

  • 11:20am圆桌会议：周日崇拜后休息5分钟，我们将举行圆桌会议。我们计划在11:20开始，12:35结束。会议的主题是“传递信仰”。我们将观看一个简短的录像并从以下几个方面讨论何谓“传递信仰”：
  1. 那些激励你和挑战你的因素
  2. 你的见解或新发现
  3. 我们作为个人或一个群体能够怎样更有效地传递我们的信仰

周间小组活动：

  • 英文口语，“平安”（Shalom）和“芥菜籽”将在学校假期休息三周。有些小组休息一周，有些小组不休息。请跟组长确认
  • 如果你想参加小组请联系Grace，gracemunro8@gmail.com， 0425 707 386.

关怀小组: http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

教会年度大会将于10月18日举行：

  • 交报告的时间到了：请各个团体的领导记得在10月5日之前交报告
  • 提名执事，财政，主席和秘书：附上提名表，请大家阅读和提名，已经担任一段时间的执事们考虑连任时需要大家的肯定

需要两个会员共同提名，被提名人需要在表格上签字。请在10月11日之前提交表格，我们将于10月18日的年度大会上投票任命。

Weekly News 18 September 2020

Sunday 20 September:

Preacher:  Jun Tan       Matthew 6:25-34 “Stop worrying and start living”

Jesus tells us why we worry, why we shouldn’t, and how. Faith in Christ helps us stop managing what lies in God’s control and start taking care of what lies in ours.

  • 11:20am TABLE TALK: On Sunday we will hold our next Table Talk.  Following a 5 minute break after the service, we aim to begin at 11:20 am and conclude by 12:35pm.  The topic is:  Passing on Faith. We will watch a short video clip and  discuss what it means to pass faith on by looking at:
  1. the things that inspired or challenged you;
  2. the insights or new perspectives gained; and
  3. what we – individually and together – can do differently to be more effective in passing on our faith.

During the week:

  • Conversational English, Shalom and Mustard Seed are taking 3 weeks off for school holidays. Some other care groups are taking 1 week off, others are continuing on. Contact the leader.
  • If you would like to join a Care Group, contact gracemunro8@gmail.com, 0425 707 386.

 Care groups:   http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

ANNUAL CHURCH MEETING, 18 OCTOBER

  • Time for reports:  Leaders of all groups, don’t forget we need your reports in by 5 October.
  • Nomination of Deacons, Treasurer, Chairperson and Secretary: A nomination form is attached – please read it, and be the person who nominates someone.

Deacons who have been serving for a while need your affirmation as they consider another term of service.

Two members need to nominate any person, and the nominee also needs to sign the form.  We need to submit the forms by 11 October, and will vote on these appointments at the Church Meeting on 18 October.

每周新闻2020年9月11日

9月13日主日崇拜

让我们住在（获得永久居留权）全能者的荫蔽下而不是在流行病的笼罩中!

周间小组活动：

  • 英文口语，“平安”（Shalom）和“芥菜籽”将在学校假期休息三周。有些小组休息一周，有些小组不休息。请跟组长确认
  • 如果你想参加小组请联系Grace，gracemunro8@gmail.com， 0425 707 386.

关怀小组: http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

查经小组:

今天我们来介绍“平安”查经小组。由Bill Washington带领，每周五晚上英文会话班结束后7：45活动。这个小组已经成立了6-7年。

这个小组讲英文，不但学习圣经，还可以帮助英文会话班的学员提高英文。

每周有读经及讨论。他们敞开愿意讨论任何问题。目前这个小组有4-5人。如果你想参加，请联系Bill。

提交年度报告：

各个小组的领导，请记得在10月5日之前交报告。谢谢刘洋第一个交报告。

财务报告：

八月的奉献总共$7,865,比预算多出$315,我们很受鼓舞。教会收到Jobkeeper和政府补贴共$4,405。我们还提前收到Manse三个月的租金。八月的费用比预算少，主要是计划的维修延迟进行。因此八月盈余$7.971。

Joyce和李薇会准备新版的预算，跟5月的预算比会有较大调整：

  • 因为不能在教会聚会，水电费和其他费用将有所节省
  • 因砍树和修理屋顶，下水道，维修开支增加
  • 因不能使用教会，教会的租金收入减少到正常收入的10%
  • JobKeeper继续到明年二月.
  • 预算每月奉献$7,500

修改的预算将在10月18日教会年度大会上呈交。

Weekly News 11 September 2020

Sunday 13 September:

Preacher:  Geoff Ryall       Psalm 91:1-16    “A Psalm for a Pandemic”

Let us be people who dwell (i.e., take up permanent residence) in the shadow of the Almighty and not the shadow of the pandemic!

During the week:

  • Conversational English, Shalom and Mustard Seed are taking 3 weeks off for school holidays. Some other care groups are taking 1 week off, others are continuing on. Contact the leader.
  • If you would like to join a Care Group, contact gracemunro8@gmail.com, 0425 707 386.

Care groups on the web:   http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

Care Groups:

Today we highlight the Bible Study,  Shalom, led by Bill Washington on Friday evenings at 7.45pm, following Conversational English. The group has been going for around 6-7 years.

This group is in English. As well as doing a Bible Study, it can help some of the more experienced Conversational English students in developing their language skills.

Each week they have a Bible Reading, and a discussion about it. They are open to discuss any questions people may have.  At present there are only 4-5 members, so if you would like to join, contact Bill.

TIME FOR REPORTS

Leaders of all groups, don’t forget we need your reports in by 5 October. Thank you Yang for being the first one to report!

FINANCES

It was encouraging to see the offering figures for August, $7,865, which is $315 better than budgeted. JobKeeper and a Covid subsidy totalled $4,405, were a great help. We received 3 month’s rent in advance for the Manse. Expenses were less than budget in August, though this was largely due to delays in finalising some maintenance matters. So there was a surplus of $7,971 in August.

Joyce Lin and Wei Li are preparing a revised budget which will see some significant changes to the budget we accepted in May:

  • because we are not meeting in the church, utilities expenses are lower,
  • various much-needed maintenance work is being done,
  • the reduction of rent to 10% from groups using the church building,
  • JobKeeper continuing.
  • a budget offering figure of $7,500 every month

This revised budget will be presented at the October 18 Annual Church Meeting.

每周新闻2020年9月4日

9月6日主日崇拜

  • 早上10点网上崇拜：点击链接https://us02web.zoom.us/j/480278172
  • 讲道谭军       马太福音 1：18-25   “为什么要有父亲?为什么是约瑟?”

为什么神要让一位父亲出现在耶稣的生活中呢?为什么约瑟会成为耶稣的父亲?神安排约瑟做耶稣的父亲怎样影响我们对父亲的看法？

周间小组活动：

关怀小组: http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

查经小组:

今天我们来介绍“寻求者”小组。这个小组成立于2013年，周三上午活动。过去几年它由6到8名姐妹组成，今年有些新成员参加。这个小组的特点是它是中西合璧的。成员里既有老基督徒，又有新信徒。老信徒感受新信徒的热忱，新信徒学习老信徒所经历的信心之旅。

这个团契的中心是查经，帮助成员提高对圣经的理解以增强信心。过去一年学习的重点是旧约的前面几部：创世纪，出埃及记，申命记，现在在学约书亚记。

这个小组已经满额（目前有十六人参加），无法再接受新成员。我们期待有感动的弟兄姐妹发起一个新的小组，来满足大家对学习圣经的渴望。

提交年度报告：

我们将为10月18日举行的教会年度大会准备一本报告。请以下活动的负责人提交总结过去一年的活动和对未来的憧憬的报告并于10月5日前将报告用电子邮件发送到balwynbaptistchurch@gmail.com。

  • 查经小组组长（一到两段话)
  • 教会维修
  • 英语会话
  • 秘书
  • 牧师
  • 祷告
  • 行政
  • 财务
  • 音乐团队
  • 视频音频
  • 翻译小组
  • 儿童和青少年事工
  • 跨文化事工
  • 乒乓球
  • 其他没有列出的

我会给各项活动的负责人发邮件，你们可以先开始准备起来。

Weekly News 4 September 2020

Sunday 6 September:

Preacher:  Jun Tan        Matthew 1:18-25    “Why a Father? Why Joseph?”

Why did God insist on there being a father figure in Jesus’ life? Why was Joseph Jesus’ father? How does God’s insistence on having Joseph affect our view of fathers?

During the week:

 Care groups:   http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

Care Groups:

Today we highlight “Seekers”.  This Bible Study group has been running since 2013, on Wednesday morning. For several years, it comprised 6-8 women, but this year has had new members join. The group is diverse, with a mix of Caucasians and Chinese, which is one of its strengths. Some members have been Christians for decades, while others are new in their faith. This means that people can learn from one another – the long-term members learn from the enthusiasm of the new believers, and the new believers learn from those who have walked the journey for a long time.

The focus of this group is Bible Study, with a view to helping people grow in their understanding of the Bible and strengthening their faith.  In the past 12 months, the focus has been on the early books of the Old Testament: Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy and now Joshua.

With the numbers now attending, this group (16 have been in attendance recently) cannot easily take on new members. It would be good if someone else was prepared to start a new group, as people seem to be hungry to learn more of the Bible.

TIME FOR REPORTS

The Church’s Annual Meeting will take place on October 18, and we will prepare a book of reports for that meeting. To do so, we need to receive from all leaders in the church a brief report on the year’s activities and their dreams for the future.  Reports will be needed by 5 October at latest, sent to balwynbaptistchurch@gmail.com. We need reports from the following groups:

  • Care Group Leaders (just a paragraph or two)
  • Maintenance
  • Conversational English
  • Secretary
  • Pastor
  • Prayer
  • Administration
  • Finances
  • Music team
  • Audio Visual
  • Translation team
  • Kids4God and Teens4God
  • Cross-cultural Mission
  • Tabletennis
  • And any other groups I have missed!

I will email the leaders of each group, but you can make a start now!

每周新闻2020年8月28日

8月30日主日崇拜

想经历真正的基督的医治，我们要深入挖掘我们所声明的信仰和我们所活出的信仰之间的鸿沟，以帮助我们把每天的生活建立在基督话语的磐石上。

周间活动：

  • 查经学习和关怀小组活动将照常在线上进行。如果你想参加请联系Grace，电子邮箱 gracemunro8@gmail.com， 手机 0425 707 386.

关怀小组: http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

关怀小组:

今天我们来介绍“以斯帖姐妹团契”。这个团契的目标是帮助姐妹们共同分享学习圣经故事。这个团契使用中文，每两周聚会一次，周六晚上活动。

这个小组有26个姐妹，每次大概有12人在线上聚会。聚会的方式是先读一段经文然后讨论，不仅仅是读懂故事更是要把原理应用到生活中。上周她们学习了妓女喇合的故事，她接待了约书亚派出的探子，在约书亚记第二章。

这个团契的一个使命是互相支持和代祷。带领者是Grace Tsui，如果你想参加，请跟Grace联系。

“ALWAYS LOVE” -永不止息的爱

上周日崇拜后Kate Pocklington推荐的那本书“Always Love”的价格是35元。

网站 – https://www.alwayslovebook.com/

你可以在下面的网站和链接买到这本书：

以下是Kate为这本书写的推荐：

“Sara Lubbers 在Always Love这本书中做了件伟大的工作，她选择了圣经中的主要故事并将它们互相交织在一起，用生动的语言，震撼且有创意地展现神的真相。对寻求神的年轻读者，以及所有年龄层的带着探索的精神并喜爱圣经描绘的人，这本书是无价之宝。.”

– Dr. Kate Pocklington- 服务于领袖培训和建立事工

Weekly News 28 August 2020

Sunday 30 August:

Preacher:  Jun Tan        Luke 6:46-49    “Take up your cross…and a Shovel”

To experience true Christian healing, we must dig deep where there’s a gap between our stated beliefs and our lived beliefs in order to build our everyday life on the Rock of Christ’s living Word.

During the week:

  • Normal activities: The usual Bible Studies and Care Groups will continue to meet online. If you would like to join a group, contact gracemunro8@gmail.com, 0425 707 386.

Care groups:   http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

Care Groups:

Today we highlight “The Esther Sisters Fellowship”.

This is for sisters to join and share via the collective learning of bible stories. It’s in Chinese, and happens every fortnight on a Saturday night.

There are around 26 sisters in the group, with an average of about 12 people attending each time they meet online. Their practice is to read a passage of scripture and then talk about it, not only learning from the story but also applying the principles of it to their own lives. Last week they studied the story of Rahab, a prostitute who hosted the spies sent by Joshua, in Joshua 2.

One of the important functions of the group is to support and pray for each other. The leader is Grace Tsui, so if you want to join, please contact her.

“ALWAYS LOVE”

A number of you asked for the details of the booklet which Kate Pocklington recommended after last Sunday’s service.  The cost is under $35.  Always Love website – https://www.alwayslovebook.com/

You can buy it at:

Here is Kate’s recommendation which she wrote for the book…

“Sara Lubbers has done a magnificent job of choosing key stories of the Bible and weaving them together in Always Love, resulting in a powerful and creative presentation of God’s truth wrapped in refreshingly alive language. This is a gem not only for young readers of God’s truth, but for all generations who retain an adventurous spirit and a love for God’s Biblical narrative.”

– Dr. Kate Pocklington- serving in leadership development and mission formation

每周新闻2020年8月21日

8月23日主日崇拜

旧约是一部很长的故事书，它教导我们神永远爱我们并给我们机会和他恢复关系 – 这取决于我们如何积极地回应他。

周间活动：

  • 查经学习和关怀小组活动将照常在线上进行。如果你想参加请联系Grace，电子邮箱 gracemunro8@gmail.com， 手机 0425 707 386.
  • 我们现在有几个小组，它们有不同的主题：
  1. 一个是以祷告为中心
  2. 另一个是读经
  3. 另一个有定期的“咖啡和茶”并提供相互的鼓励
  4. 查经小组
  5. 一个向先生在中国的陪读妈妈们提供帮助

在下几期”家事报告“中我们将介绍这些小组。

关怀小组: http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

执事会:

我们希望有更多的人参与周日崇拜的故事分享。如果你愿意参加请和谭牧师联系。

  • BRIAN HILTON帮助我们教了将近六年的英文会话课，他即将迁居海外。我们感谢他的付出-他是一个很好的英文老师且鼓励参与者跟随主耶稣。
  • 财务报表显示教会的财务状况良好。七月的奉献比预算的少了$1563,并且我们有额外的维修和购买厨房设备的开销，因此七月的收支差额比预算少$2,755。欢迎有感动的弟兄姐妹为厨房设备和其他特别支出做奉献。
  • 有几个外面的社团租用教会做他们的活动场所。从三月开始他们就无法在教会活动。这些社团 (Probus, Wise Women Workouts and SBI) 过去几个月一直继续支付部分租金以履行年初所签的租约。昨晚在执事会上我们决定，因他们无法使用教会，让他们继续支付那么大的金额对他们是不公平的。我们决定减免租金让他们只支付正常租金的十分之一。这意味着教会的收入将会减少，但我们认为这样做才对他们公平。

Weekly News 21 August 2020

Sunday 23 August:

Preacher: Grace Munro        Psalm 126.                   “God in the Old Testament”

The long story of the Old Testament teaches us that God always loves us, and offers us restoration – it is up to us to respond positively to him.

During the week:

  • Normal activities: The usual Bible Studies and Care Groups will continue to meet online. If you would like to join a group, contact gracemunro8@gmail.com, 0425 707 386.
  • We have several groups happening now. It is great that they are all slightly different:
  1. one with a focus on prayer,
  2. another on Bible Reading,
  3. another has a regular “tea and coffee” and offers encouragement to others,
  4. Bible Studies，
  5. one offers support for those whose husbands are in China.

In the next few “In the Family” issues we want to highlight these.

Care groups:      http://balwynbaptist.org.au/ministries/care-groups/

FROM THE DEACONS’ MEETING

We would like to see some more people who are willing to take part in the STORY-TELLING part of our Sunday services. If you would like to participate, please contact Jun Tan.

  • BRIAN HILTON has helped us with tutoring at Conversational English for at least 6 years but he is now going overseas. We give thanks for his service – he is a great English teacher and inspires attendees to follow Christ.
  • FINANCIAL reports indicate that we are doing reasonably well. Offerings were down $1563 on budget in July, and we have had extra expenditure on maintenance/purchases, so overall we are $2,755 below budget expectations. Gifts toward the purchase of the stoves for the kitchen and other special items would be welcome.
  • We have several OUTSIDE GROUPS who use our building regularly, but of course they have not been able to meet since March. Three groups (Probus, Wise Women Workouts and SBI) have all maintained some giving over the past few months, honouring the agreements we made at the beginning of the year.

Last night at the Deacons’ meeting we decided it is unfair for them to continue to pay large amounts for a service they can’t use at present. So we decided to ask that they pay 1/10th of their normal payments. This will mean a loss of funds for us as a Church, but we feel it is only fair to do this for them.