Devotion – May 2023

Who do you think you are?

On 13 October, a long time ago, I was born. On 10 November one month later, I was born again.  And although my birthday is the day I celebrate each year, 10 November is even more significant. This is the day I was baptised. On this day God placed his mark on me and declared: you are mine! Often when I contemplate this, I think of how different my situation could have been. For instance, if I wasn’t born into a Christian home, I have no doubt my journey through life would have taken me on quite a different route.

Bible Study – May, 2023

“Blue mind” is a growing area of scientific research looking at what happens to our minds and bodies when we are in, or near, water. I immediately connected with “peace like a river”. Most of us can probably relate to finding psychological benefits to being near water. I find being near the beach is a wonderful sensory and calming experience, and I can relate to the research. Perhaps we don’t need research to tell us these things. Our Creator God knows it – because he made it all.

Let’s look at some different images from Scripture that begin to give us a glimpse and a beginning of the understanding of the peace of God.

Carlsruhe Ladies Guild 120th Anniversary

There are still a few of us who remember 50 plus years of guild. We were newly married young women trying to settle into a new life, in a new country area, mostly on farms. Very soon, we found we were “expected” to join the Guild, part of St John’s Lutheran Church, Carlsruhe, near Waterloo and Manoora and surrounded by farmland. In my case, my mother-in-law was thrilled to have another driver in the family, me! Thus, she did not have to ask her husband or sons to drive her to guild as they had in the past!

The blessing of scholarships

Most people are not overly excited at the prospect of supporting scholarships for international partner churches. When it comes to mission work, it just doesn’t carry the same thrill that comes when we see pictures of missionaries reaching out to tribes in the jungles of North Sumatra, or the sense of ownership that comes from helping build churches in the mountains of northern Thailand. Yet scholarships for pastors to undertake advanced theological studies remain the …

Devotion – April 2023

Joyful Tribulation Last year the Lutheran Women Vic/Tas Convention was held at Laverton, and I had arranged with three other committee members to carpool. I was looking forward to a road trip with these ladies; we planned to meet at my house for lunch before we headed off. The car we were travelling in was a beautifully maintained 1990 Toyota Cressida that my friend’s husband recommended we take. It reminded me of Dr Who’s Tardis …

Bible Study – April 2023

Joy: Identifying and living with the fruit of the Spirit Joy is a fruit of the Spirit. We will begin by looking at the background to the well-known Fruit of the Spirit passage. We teach songs to Sunday school children, we can maybe list off the fruit – but let’s go back to the “root” of this scripture and use the analogy to really explore what it means to have the joy of the Lord …