Carols on the Lawn’ 2017

Our annual public Christmas festival, ‘Carols on the Lawn’ is fast approaching, and final week preparations are well underway. Next Sunday (10th) evening from 5.45pm we will start serving BBQ sausages and drinks whilst a scattering of people from all around us gather on chairs and blankets in anticipation of Stage 9 going LIVE at about 6.30pm. This year’s special guest performer will be the angelic Amber Nichols (Finalist The Voice 2015) and alongside her, vocal and keyboard accompanist Karen Hush. With the latest edition of The Elastic Band, this troop will lead us in traditional carol singing and present a few song items as well.

We will of course be expecting a jolly visitor arriving in a carriage powered by Rudolph the Red Nosed MG so let’s make sure everyone we know is INVITED to enjoy this fun so we can, each one, celebrate the greatest gift of ALL – Jesus Christ, God’s Son – Saviour.

Please help us host a classic CCC welcome for our guests which will include a bunch of the good people from Northern Beaches Church of Christ.

For more information and to stay up to date with what’s planned; please visit and or point family members and friends towards https://www.facebook.com/events/2733655353558606/

A Family Christmas Dinner

A great family fun atmosphere was shared over an expertly prepared Christmas Dinner last Friday at the Private Function Room, Woonona-Bulli RSL Club. It was refreshing to let our hair down a little and engage in some Christmas trivia (thanks John as ever), some charade type shenanigans with The Three Sisters (thanks Julz, Donna & Sandi), extraordinary hampers from the wonderful Poddy’s and some carols & items to ice off the already palatable Friday night treat. Thanks to all who made this possible. We hope attenders enjoyed the party and that many more will join us in 2018.

THANK YOU Jesus and to all Who Worked Hard for OPEN Day 

Last Sunday afternoon I found myself singing the Keith Green classic ‘Thank You Jesus’. It seemed a more than appropriate reflection on our OPEN Day event, celebrating God’s empowering presence for the mission journey so far and His provision via some amazing servants of Christ who coordinated to completion, stage one of our facility refurbishment and all that was needed to display it. We have announced from day one that the process of ‘Rising HOPE’ is incremental and deliberate. We have NO desire to do anything we don’t believe the Holy Spirit has led us to build either spiritually or physically and we sure aren’t interested in anything that doesn’t help us look more like Jesus. Building bridges to our neighbourhood that can be both recognized and understood as safe, genuine path ways to freedom, takes a lot of prayer-peration as well as culture and mind set shifting. The HOPE Project is NOT interested in shuffling deck chairs across existing churches; it is however unswervingly dedicated to representing and demonstrating the kingdom of heaven, as it is understood IN Christ for TWO primary reasons. Firstly, to re-align our existing knowledge of God into an empowering and daily life transforming relationship with Jesus and secondly to be vessels that now looking more like Jesus, will develop safe spaces and reproducible opportunities that help others, particularly people with no active faith or good relationship with any mission community, to discover this indiscriminate, life freeing, rescuing and redeeming love for themselves and engage with it every day in the context of THEIR spheres of life, work and play. The shape of our facilities will never determine this process BUT it might indicate a genuine, heartfelt and intentional desire to engage openly with anyone who might be asking that all important question, “we would see Jesus”. Last Sunday was a watershed moment, a marker placed in the heavenlies. Let’s keep working together to restore HOPE.

It has been requested by 3 of our number that I release a summary of the OPEN Day Presentation so I will do that NEXT WEEK.  Meanwhile …..

Mark Chapter FOURTEEN (What did Jesus actually DO?)

  1. Jesus continues to dine with people in THEIR homes. The life transforming empowerment of communion with Jesus is worth closer scrutiny. (vs 1-2)
  2. Jesus treats all comers equally. He deals with what each person brings fairly and without prejudice; telling the truth to stupid IN love and seeking always to highlight worthy effort as an example, even legacy to learn by. (vs 3-11)
  3. Like with the Triumphal entry, Jesus is more and more entrusting the disciples with facilitative leadership the closer He gets to the Cross. (vs 12-16)
  4. Not only does Jesus love them enough to tell them the truth, He loves them enough to continue communing even with the one who would be betray as well as those who would say they’ll never deny but still do. (vs 17-31)
  5. Jesus served His disciples, even those who would fall away. He established a prophetic way to remember and celebrate the work of the cross. (vs 22-26)
  6. Jesus instructed them by faith – BEYOND the Cross and planned their meeting (vs 28)
  7. Jesus seeks the company of His Father AND His friends. He vulnerably exposed His need to inattentive followers. Jesus honestly sought God’s will amidst His own anguish, setting sail for the goal even though hesitant in the flesh. NB: A revelatory thought perhaps???? Jesus’ concern with the disciples’ tempted flesh may be a reflection of His own battle? (vs 32-42)
  8. Even in receipt of the betrayal act and in the face of overwhelming force, Jesus’ powerful compassion is a great weapon (vs 43-52)
  9. There is some strong affinity between this truth proclamation and Stephen’s in Acts 7. The Holy Spirit knows the language which is unmistakable when compared with the enculturation that had happened to the Jews’, hindering reception of the good news. (“I am” cross reference John 8:58) His words described messiahship. (vs 53-65)
  10. Remorse is the first step to repentance in the FACE of Jesus. Peter’s lesson (vs 72)

Here’s the Link to What’s Happening at the HUB this week http://corrimalcommunitychurch.com.au/blog/9-uncategorised/7-click-here

Here’s the Link to this week’s Prayer Diary for The HOPE Project http://corrimalcommunitychurch.com.au/blog/9-uncategorised/9-click-here

Here’s the Link to HOPE College, Student information & Application Process http://corrimalcommunitychurch.com.au/blog/9-uncategorised/10-click-here