Hi Church,
Father’s Day are mostly full of joy — dad jokes, party food, and picnics in the park. This year was my first one without the kids at home as Amanda and I step into empty-nester life, but the prayers and heart responsibility never stop. I loved the long phone calls. I’m also aware for some this day can be painful. So in every season, we must lean on the faithful love of our heavenly Father.
Sunday’s service was so encouraging, with many visitors, Youth and Kingdom Kids involved, engaging worship fromJosh, a beautiful song from Ps Debbie-Ann, and Jackson’s communion message bringing both laughter and reflection on our Heavenly Father’s character and attributes. Neve added some fun through the announcements, and we finished with a scrumptious morning tea from Amanda and her helpers.
The Father’s Day message brought by Ross Nancarrow invited us to reset our picture of God the Father by looking again at Jesus. When Jesus taught us to pray, He began with the words “Our Father,” reminding us that prayer begins not with perfect words, but with a clearer understanding of the One we are approaching. Many of us carry pictures of fatherhood shaped by earthly experience—some beautiful, some painful, and some marked by absence. Others may have inherited a distorted view of God as harsh, distant, or difficult to please. But Jesus gently corrects our vision: “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.”
In Jesus we see the Father welcoming children, stopping for the overlooked, touching the untouchable, forgiving the broken, weeping with the grieving, serving His disciples, and giving Himself at the cross. This is the Father’s heart toward us. As men, women, parents, and young people press into the Father, identity is renewed, families are strengthened, old patterns can be broken, and purpose becomes clear. This week, may we choose again to let Jesus define the Father for us—and live as deeply loved children of God.
A special reminder for this week coming is the Combined Churches Worship and Prayer night that brings together churches across our region. We are meeting at the Salvation Army church on Saturday night from 5:00pm and a sausage sizzle will be available by donation. An Offering will be taken up to help with SRE resources to be supplied into all government public schools. God promises his blessing when we dwell in unity. Let’s live it!
Loving you Church and a big thank you to all the faithful and dedicated Men out there who keep showing up day after day to love and support their families.
Ps Greg and Amanda