Out and About – Kingdom worker recognised

Felicity Bradford of Good Shepherd, Witta, in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast Qld, and a member of Glass House Mountains Lutheran Women’s Fellowship, was nominated in 2021 by the Sunshine Coast Council for a Fred Hollows Humanitarian Award – for her volunteer guiding at Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve in Maleny, a very popular picnic area with walking tracks and a beautiful place to observe the Glass House Mountains, so named by Captain Cook. Since …

Book Review – The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford

” … this is not just a story about childhood. It’s about what happens to those relationships and that family nonsense when everyone starts growing up, moving in different directions, and having families of their own.”

Megan Koch revisits one of her favourite books about changing relationships and vital friendships.

Bible Study – May 2022

Some people only pray when they are caught in a crisis. In the classic story of Huckleberry Finn, a story by Mark Twain, “Huck” and Jim (a runaway slave) are caught in a severe storm as they float down the Mississippi River on a raft. Jim pleads, “Huck, aren’t you going to pray?” Huckleberry Finn responds, “It ain’t bad enough yet”.

Read Anne Hansen’s Study on being ‘Close to God in Prayer’.

Devotion – May 2022

Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

It began in the Garden of Eden. You know the story. The devil tested Eve and Adam and they disobeyed. Genesis 3, and following, describes the entry of sin into the world and God’s punishment for sin here on earth and in eternity. God’s will was disobeyed and people were separated from God.

God was not going to let the people of his creation go, for he is a God of love who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). As we journey through the Old Testament stories, we learn of God’s plan for all nations to be saved. He chose faithful men like Noah, Abraham, and Moses to save and lead his chosen people. Nothing worked.

Australian Lutheran College (ALC) Pastoral Students Support Update

In July 2021, the Lutheran Women of Australia (LWA) Executive made changes to support the ALC Pastoral Students. The following changes are: To increase the amount of money gifted to the Pastoral Students. Given the changes to the Pastoral Program, the LWA have amended this encouragement gift, from the first year Pastoral Students to the third year Pastoral Students, to be used to purchase their Albs. This gift will increase to $500 per student, commencing …

Whyalla, St James Women’s Fellowship

Whyalla St James Women’s Fellowship is a very active group of Christian women who enjoy meeting together with Bible studies, fellowship and working hard. We have 14 members with the average attendance being 10. We started 2021 by getting together for Sunday lunch at a local hotel. It was great opportunity to catch up with each other after the challenges of 2020. The year 2021 saw us change our monthly meeting times from evenings to …

Woden Valley ACT, Immanuel Ladies Women’s Fellowship

Woden Valley ACT, Immanuel Ladies Women’s Fellowship, continued to meet throughout 2021, although we did have to make concessions to meet the COVID-19 guidelines. We sat at a larger grouping of tables in the church hall, records of attendance were kept, masks were worn (except when eating), no unnecessary touching, and we brought our own individual lunches. Of course, there was much sanitising and cleaning going on! All strange at first but everyone adjusted quickly, …

Smiles again at the Home of Praise

After such a long time, living life in isolation in Thailand, we are pleased that many people have now been, or are planning to get, vaccinated and that the number of COVID-19 infected people is decreasing. The evening curfew which lasted for many months, now no longer applies. The schools have started to reopen, we can attend worship in person, and we can gather again to share a meal at a restaurant. But Thai people …

Walla Walla Women’s Fellowship

Walla Walla Women’s Fellowship was started on 17 December 1925 by Pastor JTP Stolz. The Ladies Guild, as it was called at that time, met quarterly, then in 1927 bi-monthly, and since 1933 monthly. In 1968 a membership of 83 was recorded, and on average 50 attended monthly meetings. In recent years, with less women in the congregation, and more working women involved in family and sporting activities, the average attendance has been less than …

Resting in God

Cuddles with grandchildren are the best! I’ve just had a cuddle with our youngest grandchild. Coming to me with outstretched arms, we sat on the couch, her body snuggled against mine while enjoying this special time together.

What treasured moments they are! We all know that young children are very mobile and easily distracted, wanting to climb off to go and play or explore. Each cuddle provides a time to rest, to have a break from our usual routines and focus on the precious young person sitting on our lap. How similar it is when we take time for our devotions, Bible reading and prayers.

Jenny Gellert is president of Lutheran Women of Victoria/Tasmania. Read her full commentary here

Devotion – April, 2022

Have you ever come across something which seemed very simple and clear only to find, as you continued, it became more intricate and complex? Think of an invitation, a job offer, a dress pattern, a recipe, knitting instructions, even a marriage proposal. They all start very simply, just a few words or a picture to get your focus. Then, WOW, as you proceed further, they open up in a whole new unexpected way.

The Second Petition of the Lord’s Prayer starts very simply as we pray just three words ‘Your Kingdom come’, and this request comes without our praying for it. Here in these words, we ask that it come to each of us.

Bible Study – April 2022

By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me – a prayer to the God of my life. Psalm 42:8 (NIV)
A little boy was afraid of the dark. One night his mother told him to go out to the back porch and bring her the broom. The little boy turned to his mother and said, “Mama, I don’t want to go out there. It’s dark.”
Read the full Bible Study which tackles the idea of: “God pleasing prayers”