“It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 1:7-8 (Jesus speaking to his disciples).

Our heavenly Father reports to no one. No one is above him, everyone is subject to him. He sets things in place to happen at certain times, and they will. On the afternoon of Tuesday the 4th, I was with Charles, one of my action group guys; we were talking to students about God. The first person we met was a Taiwanese guy named Roy. It turns out that Roy was not a student at all, but simply visiting New Zealand. I asked Roy how long he was in our country for. He said, “One month”. I asked when he would travel back. He said “Tonight”! As we shared with Roy, it became obvious that he was very open to the gospel. A lot of the things we talked about he already knew to be true; the existence of God, our sinful nature, etc. Even though he’d never been to church, God had been working in his heart.

Charles and I were able to explain to Roy who Jesus was, and when we got to the part about making a decision to accept Christ, Roy told us that was what he wanted to do. We were able to lead Roy in a short prayer right there, as he opened his heart to Jesus! Neither Roy, Charles or myself knew that the final hours of Roy’s time in New Zealand would be so life-changing. But there is one who did! God fixed this to be the time that Roy would come to know him, by his own authority. And just as Jesus promised the Holy Spirit to his disciples to help them be witnesses, Charles and I also had that same help!

I’m now waiting to hear back from Roy in Taiwan. Please pray that either myself or someone else he comes in contact with (he said he didn’t know any other Christians) can help him find people to encourage and walk with him on his new journey. Pray that as a young believer, he’ll be protected from Satan’s tricks to try and lead him astray. Praise God for the work he has done in Roy’s life!

The fourth question asks “Would you like to know more about tuning into a relationship with God?”; possible answers are ‘yes’, ‘no’ and ‘maybe’. Approximately 3,000 students fill out one of these cards, and around 2,000 students say ‘yes’ or ‘maybe’ to this question! That’s 2,000 people who we can potentially share the gospel with, as soon as the year starts!

We give each of these people a phone call, and organise a time to meet them on campus. We give them a magazine (pictured), and talk through the article on tuning into a relationship with God with them (there are also articles on studying, relationships, and life’s big questions).

Praise God for this great opportunity, and pray that the students who we’ve been able to share the gospel with this term will keep thinking about what we’ve shared with them! Praise God for the 13 students who have received Christ at Auckland University through this campaign in the last few weeks, and pray for their continued growth in their walk with God!

1. To provide an opportunity for students to get to know each other better. Often students who have just got involved with Student Life have only met the students in their Action Group (bible study), and perhaps a few others. This gives them a chance to see a piece of the wider movement!
2. We get a chance to communicate the vision of Student Life to those who are thinking about being involved, or who have been hanging around the fringes somewhat. We’ll challenge them to be involved!

Please pray that the weekend goes well. Specifically, pray that we can get a good amount of students along, that they have fun, and feel both challenged and welcomed! Please pray for me as I prepare to give a talk about the vision of Student Life. Pray that I can challenge students effectively!

To see lost students turned into Christ-centered labourers through our movements on campus.

CSLs are one of the driving forces that keeps our movements going; they make disciples who make disciples. A CSL is committed to sharing their faith regularly and leading an Action Group (a group that meets for Bible study and sharing their faith on campus).

Next week we’ll be holding an event to say thank-you to those who have served as CSLs this year, and welcome those who are saying ‘yes’ to step up to this challenge for next year.

A CSL is both FAT and SIMPLE:

• Faithful
• Available
• Teachable
• Spirit Filled Life (understands and practices this).
• Initiative Evangelism: Takes the initiative to
  share their faith with people.
• Methods and Materials: Familiar with, and
  committed to our methods and materials.
• Purity in Relationships: Clearly maintains and
  promotes purity in all relationships.
• Leadership Potential: Demonstrates the desire
  and capacity to lead others.
• Enthusiasm: Demonstrates enthusiasm in taking
  on and holding the position of CSL.

Please pray especially for those who are planning to be CSLs next year, that they will rely on God’s strength to help them in these areas.

Being used by God to introduce someone to him is an experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything! It’s such a privilege to be used by God in this way.

Pray that these guys will continue to grow in their faith, see God work in and through their lives and bring glory to him.

Please also pray for Jonathan and Meo. These two guys are both interested in what it means to know Christ, and I’ve been able to meet with them and talk about this (Jonathan especially is asking serious questions about what it would mean for him to accept Christ). Pray that God will work in their hearts to bring them to himself!

Pray that where God wills, I will be used by him to work in all of these guys’ lives.

Thanks for your prayers!

There really is no catchy way to say this: At approximately 10am this morning, in the fast lane of the Southern Motorway into Auckland, carnage happened. The guy in the car in front of me slowed down suddenly, meaning I came to a screeching halt to avoid hitting him. Unfortunately, the guy behind me also came to a screeching halt, the halt part of that event provided by the rear of my car! …Subsequently causing my car to be pushed into the car in front.

Thankfully no one was seriously hurt… well, except for my poor car. Chances of survival: minimum (still waiting for the insurance assessor to call, but it doesn’t look good). The good news is that I don’t have to pay the excess on the insurance, because I’m not at fault.

Please pray for the three of us involved that there would be speedy recovery from any whiplash (I’m feeling it, so I’m sure they are too). Please also pray for the other two guys that they don’t get too stressed out by the ordeal! (Especially the guy who is legally at fault; thankfully he did have insurance though). Please also pray that if I have to find a new car, I can find the right one quickly! (I don’t know when I’m going to have time? How do I finish support raising without a car?)

Oh yes, that other thing. Both car accidents I’ve now been involved in were on the way to staff meetings… I knew staff meetings had hidden costs!

I’d like to begin with a “summary” of 2007. As I have taken the time over the last few weeks to seek God, there are two things he has taught me that stand out above all the rest.

The first thing — which may sound obvious, but I sense God has been saying to me directly in recent times — is that he wants me to trust in him more. Psalm 143:10 stands out to me, it says

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!

My natural response is “Lord, I am already trusting in you as much as I know how.” He has responded, “Yes, I know. I’m going to teach you how to trust in me more, so that you can.” That is both a scary and exciting prospect!

Secondly, recent times have brought along many challenges, both in ministry and personally. Romans 8:24-28 is encouraging,

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Despite any difficult challenges that come along, I know that God uses all things for good, because of his purposes and salvation that he has called me to!

So, what of the future?

With these things in mind, I believe God is leading me away from Waikato University for 2008. I have been asked (and confirmed) to work in Auckland next year! This will be a significant change in many ways. My role will include 4 days a week doing campus work, and 1 day helping with IT in the national office. In this, I’m looking forward to working with Murray Johnson, a Canadian who is coming over specifically to help with IT.

With the change of location will come many challenges! Probably the hardest thing for me will be leaving behind my friends here in the Waikato, this is especially true of the staff team that I have been working with this year. I’ll also need to sort out living arrangements, a church, and all sorts of other details too! (I’m not sure of the exact date I will be moving, although it will likely be sometime in January).

Please pray for me during this time as I prepare for and begin to make this transition! I’ll post further updates on the move when relevant.