Ministry Report - Christ Church St Ives
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2021
Ministry Report
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Contents ‘The Joy of Disruption’ 3 Some Future Looking Reflections 5 Ministry Purposes Magnification 8 Mission 10 Maturity 13 Ministry 16 Membership 18 Support to Ministry 21 Congregations and Ministries Kids 24 Youth 26 9.00am, 10.30am & Tuesday Church 28 Mandarin Ministry 29 St Ives Family Church 31 6.45pm 33 Safe Ministry 35
The Joy of Disruption
Nigel Fortescue
Senior Minister
Gospel ministry is constantly disrupted. All of us could vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will,
share stories of the way our plans to share the gospel we will live and do this or that.’” (James 4:13–15). 2020
with friends were thwarted or the plans of missionaries forced us into the opportunity to experience the reality;
were forced to change for various reasons. Such disrup- to step forth in faith; to really stand firm and hold on to
tions are nothing new—even the Apostle Paul underwent Jesus. We did not know what the next day would hold,
constant and massive disruptions in his ministry. but we always knew that God is good and would prevail
no matter what the pandemic brought about.
“After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy
among the Jews to kill him, but Paul learned of their This of course leads to joy as we find ourselves growing in
plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city confidence in God and his Gospel for, despite the trials and
gates in order to kill him. But his followers took him by tribulations of life—like a pandemic—we know the future!
night and lowered him in a basket through an opening We also know the God of the past, present and future
in the wall.” (Acts 9:23–25) and can be confident that he who began a good work in
you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ
He speaks of this event again in 2 Corinthians 11:32–33 Jesus (Philippians 1:6).
saying:
Since we have been able to gather again, I have been
“In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the overjoyed at the stories of hope and growing faith in the
city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. midst of the pandemic. I have rejoiced at hearing how
But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall devotional lives were resuscitated, families gathered for
and slipped through his hands.” worship for the first time in decades, prayer emerged as
an essential part of your daily routine. What a joy it has
One minute he was having a powerful and new preaching been to hear how God has indeed been building his
ministry in Damascus, the next, he was fleeing for his life! Kingdom even when our plans were thwarted!
In last year’s report I encouraged all of us to “keep building My prayer is that the benefits of the impact of the pan-
on the Christ Church Gospel legacy so that men and demic on our dependence on God might not fade. My
women, boys and girls may hear of Jesus and be saved.” prayer is that the pandemic might bring true disruption
I started at Christ Church on 24 February full of expectation to paltry prayer lives and blithe Bible reading—there
for a great year. On 18 March we ceased all church ser- might be radical change as we have come to see that
vices and activities due to COVID-19. That was a surreal humans truly are not in charge of the world. I also pray
and bizarre day. We did not get back in the building until that the miraculously quick arrival of the vaccine does
11 October! Then we were out for another month over not cause a proliferation of the humanist lie that humans
Christmas! Now that’s a disruption and it did not feel like can always triumph over the powers of the world.
there was much building going on in 2020—but indeed
there was and all of this was an opportunity and a joy.
“My prayer is that the
First, it was an opportunity to grow in dependence on
God. We all know the verses like,“Many are the plans in a benefits of the impact of
person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” the pandemic on our
(Proverbs 19:21) and,“Now listen, you who say, ‘Today
or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year dependence on God
there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do might not fade.”
not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your
life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then
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This leads to the second great opportunity of the disruption see it as an opportunity to reach more people and build
that has also brought joy—the opportunity to reshape wholehearted disciples in our community and beyond.
church life as a whole. There were losses in not being able to gather, but there
have been significant gains—who we can reach, access
Carey Nieuwhof, Canadian Christian blogger, wrote in the to church, and church members gathering for church
middle of last year: with their ‘not yet Christian’ family members week to week.
We are continuing to think through extending this reach
It’s amazing to me that despite the fact that virtually and making our online connections profoundly helpful for
every thought leader and business leader I’ve read or building wholehearted disciples. Hearing your stories has
have personally spoken to believes that the crisis is a been a great joy.
disruption, not an interruption, a surprising number of
church leaders still think of the current crisis as merely As we look to 2021, we need to acknowledge the greatest
an interruption. When you consider what’s been set into danger of a year of disruption—distraction from core
motion during the pandemic: from working from home, business. Our fears and disappointments can easily
the rush to digital, a damaged economy, massive unem- overwhelm us and lead us to forget what we as a church
ployment, the re-emergence of regional governance, are here to do.
deeply restricted travel, the instability of entire industries,
and, of course, the virus itself, to think that life is going Mission is our core business. In the marketplace of life
to simply go back to the way it was is not a wise bet. you are told to make sure you are at the centre every-
thing, enjoying yourself in every way, because that’s how
There is rarely a time in church life when the trellis (the you will do life right. Of course, reality is, that if you deem
systems and processes that enable ministry to happen) yourself and your experiences and your life as of first
does not need some renovation so that the vine (the importance, you will actually miss the very thing, the only
actual work of Gospel ministry) can continue to flourish. thing, that can guide you to do life properly—the death
When everything went on pause in 2020, the perfect and resurrection of Jesus. We are the light on the hill,
opportunity to assess, reshape and reignite the trellis calling people out from the darkness of self-obsession
emerged. As a staff team we spent time prayerfully eval- and into the light of Christ.
uating our structures and plans, role responsibilities and
goals. It was brilliant. I loved getting to know the team Let us allow the year of disruption to reignite the great Gos-
more deeply than I could have otherwise and we have pel foundations in our hearts and lives so we can Share
developed strong bonds and great gospel confidence Life and hope with a world that still desperately needs it!
in each other. You will see some of the changes to the
trellis Sunday by Sunday and read of others in this report In Christ,
but it is good to know that church in 2021 is not the Nigel Fortescue
same as it was at the end of 2019.
Perhaps the most significant trellis change is in the digital
space. We were forced to go online for church but we did
not see this as something merely to lament but rather we
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Some Future
Looking Reflections
What I have seen... strong biblical teaching and excellent and attractive
This is an excellent church. The gospel is preached. Children and Youth ministry.
Unbelievers come to know Jesus. There is a willingness
to serve. Community is being built. People are being What is also clear is that we are a church that wants to
lovingly cared for. God is being glorified in our gatherings. build wholehearted disciples. We are a church led by a
Christians are deepening in their faith. Many have been team who want to work well together and who know that
overwhelmingly generous. Change and flexibility are we are stronger together. We will benefit from clarity that
being embraced. is built together, embraced gladly, spoken about warmly
and enacted strongly.
Perhaps, however, much of this takes place with a lack of
known intentionality or coherence. I don’t think all our
church members could articulate the reason we do
church the way we do church. Our vision and mission What I have prayed and dreamed
has not permeated our thinking or behaviour. The idea about...
of working according to purposes is more in the mind of With all this in mind, I have been praying since February
staff than the mind of the church and carefully planned 2020, that we would build up an army of wholehearted
structures and plans have not been implemented with disciples and that God would make it clear to us how we
deep effect. should embrace this and live it out together for the glory
of God. I am eager to see people delighting in God, loving
What is clear to me through reading, discussion and our church community and each other, growing deep roots
observation, is that on the basis of our physical, human in faith, serving with gladness and seeking the lost by
and financial resources, springing from our Gospel DNA, proclaiming the Gospel—these are the characteristics
we can be so much more than we are—we can have a of wholehearted disciples of Jesus.
greater impact, a longer reach, a creative drive, a transfor-
mative gospel-shaped influence that makes waves in St In the next five years, I would love to see many more people
Ives, Sydney and the World. We have strength in numbers, in church each week, all of whom are devoting themselves
to growing as wholehearted disciples of Jesus.
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In the next five years, I would love to see many more being • overwhelming generosity that embraces Gospel-
discipled online as a genuine community who are seeking driven risks;
to be transformative wholehearted disciples wherever • new people visiting because of what members say
God has placed them. For the digital world is no longer a about church;
tool for ministry, it is a place for mission! • people (lovingly) bustling for opportunities to exercise
their gifts;
I long for us to be driven by the love of God in Christ and • a constant sending out of people into full-time
the hopelessness of humanity without him so that we do vocational ministry;
not simply become a community group, social group, • a constant striving for best practice in every sphere
religious interest group or an inwardly obsessed family. of church life.
We are a prayerful fellowship of wholehearted disciples!
Activating our five strategic purposes will enable this and
As these disciples grow, I would love to see: more. The diagrams below give some visual understanding
• an experience of church that people complain about to our staff structure and plans in order that we may
missing; continue building wholehearted disciples.
• growing, gracious and loving relationships across
generations and cultures; So let us set our sights on a version of the future that is
• deeper relationships with God for all generations concrete, risky, exponential, inspiring and memorable.
and cultures and a thirst to learn from the Word of Let us trust God that he wants a church that eschews
God and from each other; half-heartedness and fully embraces the Gospel shaped
• church gatherings that fuel us with the equipment and life of the wholehearted disciple. Let us set a course to
encouragement to honour Jesus on Monday morning; travel, a place to get to, as we seek to glorify our Lord.
• continual prayerful dependence on God to see people
saved from hell;
Delighting
in God
Seeking Growing deep
the lost roots in faith
Loving each Serving
other gladly
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Ministry Purposes 7
Magnification
We are made to worship. To love Jesus and delight in Him.
To magnify the beauty and glory of God as we live our lives
as followers of Him.
Purposes and Priorities for 2020 While we all grew weary of endless ‘Zoom calls’, we are
“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you thankful that God provided technologies to keep us con-
do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23 nected when we could not meet face-to-face.
Whether someone is joining us for the first time or the Some key initiatives include:
hundredth time, we want each and every gathering to • Sundays Online & Mandarin Subtitles
lead hearts to love Jesus—to guide the hearts of those • Growth Group Online
who are new and to guard the hearts of our church family. • Share Life Digital
For what the heart loves, the will chooses, and the mind • Livestreaming & Live Mandarin Translation
justifies. And so, as we deepen our love of Jesus, it flows
into everything we do. As we choose Him and his ways, New Digital Engagement Coordinator
we remember God’s word and His grace for us in Christ. With Ai Lyn Saunders beginning maternity leave, Georgia
Condie was appointed to the role of Digital Engagement
2020 Highlights Coordinator in December. Georgia has brought new ideas
COVID-19 and energy to the digital space as she forms plans for
While it may be a surprise, COVID has truly shown the digital engagement in 2021.
resilience and incredible giftings God has blessed us
with here at Christ Church St Ives. 2020 Challenges
No Singing
The season of COVID displayed the ability of our staff Our greatest lament has been our inability to sing as gath-
team to pivot and respond quickly, to engage and connect ered people. This has really highlighted the significance
with our church family through online gatherings. We also of singing as part of our gatherings—particularly for the
saw the servant-hearted nature of so many of our church music team. Hearing the people of Christ Church St Ives
family that allowed us to get online quickly. sing praises to our Lord is a great encouragement. We
praise God that we can sing all together again.
What a privilege to serve alongside so many as we bring
Significant Team Changes
honour and glory to God—no matter the season!
In 2020 we began as a team of five: Anton Marquez
(Minister for Worship), Lindy Luger (Sundays Coordinator),
Digital Discipleship
Ai Lyn Saunders (Communications Manager), Simon
In the early days of COVID, we pivoted quickly to engage
Swadling (MTS Apprentice), and Alex Moyse (Music
and connect people through various digital channels.
Teams Director).
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By the start of 2021: Priorities for 2021 & Beyond
• Ai Lyn began maternity leave; Music
• Lindy resigned from her role; A restructured team that will continue to drive our mission
• Simon finished MTS; and, to ‘lead hearts to love Jesus’ through music, and into all
• Anton accepted the invitation to become the Senior of life.
Minister at All Saints North Epping.
Audio/Visual
With these changes, Alex has taken on the role of Magni- An expanded team that will continue to grow in skill as
fication Director with increased hours and responsibilities. we work to take both in-venue and online services from
This includes the oversight of the Magnification purpose good to excellent.
and digital strategy with Georgia.
Congregational Identity
Ministry Programs & Initiatives Work with ministry staff, volunteer teams and congrega-
• Sunday Gatherings (inc. public bible reading & prayer) tion members to develop congregational identities that
• Special Gatherings (Easter, Christmas, Share Life draw existing people together and new people in.
Sundays)
• Lord’s Supper and Baptism Digital Engagement & Discipleship
• Music & Audio/Visual (inc. livestreaming) Engage our church family to continue to live lives of
• Digital Engagement (inc. web & video) worship and to reach new people in new ways through
digital means. A key strategy in 2021 will be continuing
Special Services in 2020 to explore how digital plays a part in engaging with new
8 baptisms people, as well as helping our church members grow as
2 weddings wholehearted disciples.
1 funeral
Member story: I’ve been part of the music team since 2016. A lot has changed in this time
Jo Swadling and a lot has changed in me. Over the last year or so, God has used music
ministry to teach me so much—to focus more on Jesus than on myself, to
deepen in my love of Him and to grow in my love for His people.
COVID-19 has been extra strange and different (of course!). God has used
this season to bring many wonderful new ways to connect with our church
family, to grow us as a music team and for us to work together using all our
different gifts to help encourage God’s people through music.
My vision of the role the music team plays at church has really expanded and
I’ve seen the way God uses our music ministry to comfort, uplift, and point
people of all ages to Jesus.
I had the amazing opportunity to lead a team in creating a series of hymn
recordings for the elderly in our church and aged-care. This provided a way
to connect with those who were feeling especially isolated and remind them
to keep their hope in God. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,
which is a real joy! Being stretched out of my own comfort zone has helped
me to rely ever more fully on God and the work of His Spirit in and through me.
Being involved in music can make you feel exposed and vulnerable, yet we
do it not for our own praise but to bring praise, honour and glory to Jesus.
I’m excited for our next chapter as a team, as we continue to grow, deepen in
faith, and lead hearts to love Jesus at Christ Church.
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Mission
We are a church that is passionate for people to be saved
because we are made for mission. Wholehearted disciples
of Christ help people connect to Christ through repentance
and faith.
Purposes and Priorities for 2020 In Africa
“Go and make disciples of all nations.” In partnership with George Whitefield College (GWC),
— Matthew 28:19 Steve & Susan Rockwell (with Matthew, Luke, Michael
& Jonathan), served to equip disciples of Christ in Cape
The Lord Jesus is risen and he deserves the honour Town, South Africa. The Rockwells have been serving
of every person everywhere. God promises salvation since 2014 when Steve was seconded by Christ Church
for everyone who turns to him as Saviour and Lord. For St Ives to be part of the teaching staff faculty at GWC.
God’s glory and for the sake of those who are lost to him,
our ambition is to go into the world and make disciples of In Asia
Christ. We want every member of our church family en- In partnership with CMS, Dave & Leoni Painter (with
gaged in mission locally, in our city and into all the world. Joshua and Grace), have served for 20 years to build
disciples in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Dave teaches at
In 2020, our priorities for mission were: the Phnom Penh Bible School and running PTC classes.
• Seek 60 adults to explore the gospel deeply Joshua remains in Australia to begin tertiary education.
• Continue to develop Share Life as a central pillar of In partnership with The Navigators, John & Ruth Ridgway
the Christ Church calendar served to build disciples cross-culturally across South-
East Asia, from their home base in the USA.
• Strengthen our small groups at Mandarin Fellowship
In partnership with OMF International, Ian & Debbie Farr
• Relaunch Connect to Church Life to engage new- have been serving to enable discipleship and partnership
comers to become active serving members across South-East Asia from the OMF International
headquarters in Singapore. Ian will begin handover of his
• Renew the Mission Policy and maintain care for role as International Coordinator for Finance to Stefan
existing mission partners Zaiss from Germany in September 2021 and plans to
return to Australia in early November 2021.
Ministry Programs & Initiatives
• Gospel Exploration (Evangelistic Courses and 1-to-1 In partnership with OMF International, Richard and Lisa
programs) Cho (with Luca, Aidan, Sianna and Jordan), have been
serving to enable discipleship and partnership across
• Community Outreach & Events (Share Life) Northern Thailand from their home base in Chiang
Mai. The Cho’s are in the process of moving back to
• Connecting with Newcomers Australia, with Richard, Luca and Ayden still in Thailand
for schooling and final projects, while Lisa, Sianna and
• Mission Partnerships Jordan returned in December 2020.
• Mission in Sundays and Growth Groups In South-West Sydney
In partnership with Chester Hill Anglican Church, Paul
• Local Mission Training Webb (with his wife, Beth, and their children Audrey,
Matilda, Silas, Eden & Esther) serve to build disciples
Mission Partnerships cross-culturally in Chester Hill. In 2020 Chester Hill
In 2020 we continued support for six Mission Partners Anglican farewelled Assistant Minister Nate Cheung to
around the world and across Sydney. become Senior Minister at Georges Hall. They also
combined parishes with Villawood Anglican, where Paul
now serves as Senior Minister at both churches.
10Mission Partner Care Committee The result was a spike in church attendance, an increase
William Hood continues to oversee our Mission Partner in evangelistic conversation and some great stories of
Care Committee, supported by Jacqueline Groombridge personal growth. Here are some examples:
and Pip Russell.
S professed new faith in Christ. After visiting church
The Christ Church Mission Policy has been significantly earlier in the year to listen to teaching on Habakkuk she
revised and there are related plans for a new Mission expressed that she didn’t understand the sermons, but
Working Group to be established which would be having attended Share Life, this was the first time the
responsible for ‘Vision, Strategy, Policy and Finance’ in Christian message had become clear to her. After a long
regards to Mission Partnerships. As the Archers finished chat with her Christian friend she decided to accept the
serving with CMS during 2019, and the Cho’s and Farr’s grace of Christ.
will finish up in the near future, consideration will be given
to establishing a new mission partnership in due course, P came to the Share Life Course. During the table dis-
and in accordance with the updated Mission Policy. The cussion it became clear that he had never ever heard of
Working Group will be established as a key next step the resurrection and so the table paused to explain this
before appointing new missionaries. fundamental aspect of the gospel of Christ. What a thrill
to share good news with those who have never heard.
Funding for Mission Partnerships
Christ Church dedicates 11% of general giving to financial Share Life Statistics
support for mission. We also pass on any giving that is • 93 total guests can be named (down from 184 the
directed to a specific Mission Partner or organisation. previous year due to COVID and online anonymity)
• 30% attended twice or more (up from 20% the
More details regarding the funding of mission is available previous year)
in the Financial Reports. • 37 guests at Share Life Course (down 10% from
previous year)
2020 Highlights
Share Life Christianity Explored
We ran our third Share Life campaign for the entire church. 2020 started well for Christianity Explored, but due to
It was a change of pace from large events to household COVID we weren’t able to begin any new courses in homes.
evangelism, with COVID-19 prohibiting large gatherings. We had 13 people complete Christianity Explored in the
11first half of the year, and many of these participants Priorities for 2021 & Beyond
continued online with follow up courses. It wasn’t until Share Life
the Share Life Course in October that the restrictions Continue to transform our church so that we reach more
eased and we were able to meet in person again. people, with a focus this year on improving year-round
mission celebration communications.
The table below represents the number of people who
have explored the gospel deeply through four or more Gospel Exploration
weeks looking at Jesus in the Bible in a small group Find 45 guests to explore the gospel deeply, with a focus
course (Christianity Explored or similar). This was a year this year on improving the pastoral journey into church
of dramatic downturn. A major factor is that we cancelled membership.
ESL classes, which is our biggest doorway into gospel
courses. Mandarin Ministry
Relaunch ESL and build smaller Mandarin communities
2020 Challenges instead of one combined Mandarin Fellowship, with a
Closed doors focus this year on strengthening leadership
Last year we closed the doors to our church due to
COVID. We were required to pack up our evangelistic Mission Training
programs like ESL and Playgroup. The front door to the Review Ministry Grid, and increase coaching for the
auditorium was fixed closed. keen.
But we opened a new front door… online church! And Mission Partnerships
what a great opportunity to embrace. We have many Create a Mission Working Group in order to build new
people who have joined our church online that would mission partnerships under the Senior Minister.
never have graced the building. My two favourite stories
include a Japanese lady from Melbourne who watched
every week since Share Life and remarked “I think I need
to find a local church now”. The other is a couple who
found Christ through sermons online and joined us in
person late in 2020 asking to get baptised.
12Maturity
We are a church hungry to know God, because we are made
for maturity. Wholehearted disciples of Christ grow to maturity
in Christ through Word and prayer.
Purposes and Priorities for 2020 Teaching series in 2020
“…to equip his people for works of service, so that the • Old Testament: Songs of Hope (Psalms), Habakkuk
body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in & Haggai
the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and • New Testament: Lord’s Prayer (Matt 6), Matt 26-28, 1
become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the Thessalonians
fullness of Christ.” —
Ephesians 4:12-13 • Topical: Summer Playlist – Songs in the Bible, Share
Life, Apostles’ Creed
We want every member of our church family to be growing
to maturity in Christ: growing in their knowledge and love 2020 Highlights
of God through Christ; and growing in godliness, through Growth Groups
their prayerful study of God’s Word both individually and Alongside weekly services, Growth Groups continue to
in the fellowship of God’s people. be the engine room for growing together in godliness, as
members meet together with open Bibles, to pray
In 2020, our priorities for maturity were: and encourage one another. The majority of groups used
• Supporting Community Leaders in their supporting, the studies provided which complemented the sermons.
equipping and coaching of Growth Group leaders.
• Growth Group leader training delivered by Communi- Whilst this COVID season has certainly created challenges,
ty Leaders during the leaders’ groups meetings. it also pushed us to think creatively. During lockdown
• Continuing to develop pathways for raising up when almost all groups met online, some new online-
Growth Group leaders. only groups were created. This enabled access to groups
for members who hadn’t previously been able to get to
Ministry Programs & Initiatives a group in-person. Other groups remain ‘hybrid’ groups,
• Growth Groups & Teaching materials with some people meeting in-person, and others dialing
• Termly leaders’ groups, and Growth Group visits, by in online. These various groups are well set-up for this
Community Leaders online context, both in equipment and the ability of the
• Together in Prayer: Church-Wide Prayer Meetings leaders to adapt to this different context.
13Growth Group materials Growth Group Leader equipping and supporting
Another positive from this COVID season was the redesign Approximately 65 Growth Group leaders attended our
of Growth Group materials. With groups forced to meet 2020 Leaders’ Launch on 9 February (with another 27
online during lockdown, the growth group study materials sending their apologies due to the torrential rain and
were tailored to the online environment: flash flooding that afternoon!). It was great for leaders
from across all networks to gather for a plenary session,
• shorter in length (due to the very real ‘zoom fatigue’ and then Network time, to be refreshed and equipped in
of any online meeting) the ministry of Growth Group leading. Leaders continued
to be supported and equipped in their termly Leaders’
• accessed entirely online, on the GG Online website groups, where Richard Sweatman’s excellent book,
(hard copy booklets could still be ordered for those Being a Small Group Leader (Matthias Media, 2018) was
who preferred) used as the basis for the equipping topics through the
year. For the 6:45 Growth Groups Network, Community
• 1-2 short videos in each study added to the multi- Leaders Hamish and Nat Osborne ran training for first-
media feel, and better engaged people with varied time Growth Group leaders.
learning styles.
Prayer Meetings
Community Leaders Together in Prayer in February 2020 saw over 150 people
Our Community Leaders are an essential and wonderful from across our congregations gather to pray. We heard
part of our large system of Growth Groups, as they sup- from Mission Partners Debbie & Ian Farr on the place of
port, equip and coach the Growth Group leaders. Our 69 prayer in mission and life, and we prayed for our mission
adult Growth Groups with their 126 leaders are orga- partners and our church ministries. Unfortunately, we were
nized in congregational networks (Morning Church, unable to have one in August due to COVID restrictions.
SIFC, 6.45, Tues & Thurs WEB – Women Exploring the
Bible), each with a Network coordinator who oversees
and cares for the Community Leaders, as they care for
the Growth Group leaders. During 2020, the 18 Com-
munity Leaders met together bi-monthly for dinner and
training, and they met in their own Networks on alternate
months. We have continued to develop the Community
Leader role to incorporate a coaching element, helping
Growth Group leaders to grow disciples in their groups,
and to seek to raise up new leaders. We have also been
working to raise up new Community Leaders.
142020 Challenges Priorities for 2021 & Beyond
COVID disruptions to Growth Groups • To work with the Ministry purpose to create a plan for
The lockdown in March forced all groups to meet online, Growth Group leadership development.
with all the frustrations of technology, and the isolation
associated with the loss of in person contact. There • To work with the CYF team and the Magnification
were also some groups who couldn’t meet at all over this purpose to create an excellent whole-church
time, as members weren’t able to operate in the online Galatians teaching series & investigate further
environment. However, these groups continued to care opportunities to cooperate.
for and encourage each other by phone. The majority
of Growth Groups were meeting online for at least 1.5 • To work with the Care Ministry to assist church
terms, with some resuming in-person meeting, or hybrid members to mature in their understanding &
meetings, from Term 3 onwards, whilst other groups response to common life challenges eg. mental
remained online for the rest of the year. A feature of this health, work, relationships, marriage & parenting.
season has been a longing to meet in person for church
and Growth Group without restrictions! It serves as a • To work with the Membership & Mission purposes
good reminder that actually being present with each to develop a healthy pathway from initial contact
other is the ideal for both church and Growth Groups— (e.g. Share Life, Christianity Explored) to Growth
to learn together from God’s word, pray together, do life Group membership.
together. However, we can be thankful to God that tech-
nology has provided a ‘next best’ option for gathering.
Member story: We joined Christ Church St Ives just as COVID hit. I was incredibly thankful
Frances Schwarz that I had met Michelle Temple at the school gate and she invited me to join
her Growth Group.
Having only recently left a church where we had felt incredibly connected,
joining a Growth Group purely via Zoom was intimidating. The experience
ended up being amazing. The women were incredibly welcoming and the
group had a great energy. Even in lockdown we were challenging each other
in our faith and encouraging each other to persevere.
When we met for the first time it was great to put bodies to faces! I love that
our group has people at different ages and stages of life. We all bring different
perspectives and experiences of living the Christian life. I love Thursdays and
look forward to meeting with people who 12 months ago were strangers but
now are friends.
15Ministry
We are a church where everyone has a part to play, because
we are made for service. Wholehearted disciples of Christ
serve Jesus gladly.
Purposes and Priorities for 2020 With all that in mind, it would be neglectful not to mention
“Each of you should use whatever gift you have and give thanks for the small team of people who moved
received to serve others, as faithful stewards of us from being a largely analog church to being a digital
God’s grace.” — 1 Peter 4:10 church in a very short period of time. Anton Luger together
with Lachlan Mitchell and a broader team of videographers,
“From him the whole body, joined and held together by editors, sound engineers, designers and digital commu-
every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in nicators ensured that church could go on. Under Anton
love, as each part does its work.”— Ephesians 4:16 Marquez’ expert guidance, this team has grown and a
whole new swathe of opportunities for serving Jesus gladly
We want to see members of our church family identified, have emerged. It has been awesome to be a part of it.
equipped and unleashed to serve God’s people and build
new and growing disciples of Christ. We want to see people Ministry Trainees and Year 13
increasingly grow to serve like Jesus, who didn’t come to Our MTS Trainees Simon Swadling (trained by Anton Mar-
be served, but to serve (Matt 20:28): joyfully, sacrificially, quez) and Rach Irwin (trained by Elliot Temple) have had a
dependently, and in a manner that suits their gifts. year of immense learning about adaptability and trusting
God in the midst of chaos. They both served on Sundays,
Highlights in Youth, and evangelism and continued to thrive through
The pandemic truncated many opportunities to serve a difficult and turbulent year that was not what any of us
Jesus gladly and it has been easy to lament and with expected. As part of MTS, they continued their study at
Eeyore, focus on the disappointments. Yes, it is true that Youthworks College two days per week, which both found
here, more than in any other area of church life, the tap to be a valuable time to grow in understanding the theology
was turned off for months and we had very few people and principles that ground Christian ministry in the Gospel.
serving in the ways they had willingly chosen to at the
start of the year. Even since we have been back in the
building, we have been limited by COVID restrictions and
the coming together of our morning services has meant
less opportunities to serve.
And yet, people have stepped up to gospel shaped service
in thoughtful and creative ways. Our Growth Group leaders
had to learn to navigate online meetings overnight and did
so with thankful hearts. Our Youth leaders had to wade
through the messiness of online relationships with young
people who appear to be online all the time and yet
struggle with discussing matters of the heart online. Our
Children’s leaders turned to low-tech letter writing and
high-tech video production and we have heard of some
children watching programs over and over and over again!
The list could go on for the way people had to adapt and
that is before we speak of the way staff had to learn to
preach to camera and pastor through screens. While our
plans were thrown out the window, God’s plans came to
pass as our church still served Jesus gladly and learnt
new ways of doing so in the midst of disruption.
16From 2021 we are opening up new Ministry Training 2. Providing Training
pathways to encourage more people to experience min- We have not yet established a culture of training and
istry in various ways prior to embarking on formal study. ministry improvement at Christ Church. Over the next 12
months we are seeking to make changes to establish such
Aaron Abraham and Taylor Ayres completed the Youth- a culture and continue to evaluate and re-evaluate what
works Year 13 program where young adults, following we are doing. Through a process of Reflection, Review
the completion of high school, study theology and gain and Revision in all our ministry settings we are hoping to
ministry experience at church, equipping them for a move many Ministry activities from good to excellent.
lifetime of serving Jesus. Despite the disappointment of
the cancellation of the Fiji Mission, they served gladly in 3. Opening Opportunities to Serve
a variety of ways including Scripture and Children’s and With significant changes in staff over the past several
Youth Ministry. years, it has been difficult to give consistent priority
to investing strategically in identifying, equipping and
Future Challenges and Priorities unleashing members of our congregations to serve
1. Establishing Teams across the church—though it is an extremely important
Over time, people step off ministry teams, and out of aspect of our church life together, it is not always the
particular roles, for lots of reasons; to serve elsewhere, due most pressing.
to health or family reasons, due to the busyness of life.
There’s an increasing need to encourage more people In 2021 we are employing a new staff member who will
in our church family to take up opportunities to serve have as their main responsibility the Ministry purpose
across an array of areas, whether it’s providing morning and who will be seeking to ensure we are opening
tea after our Sunday services, leading a Growth Group, opportunities to serve from both a bottom up and top
leading prayers in church, and many others. down perspective. We want church members to discover
ways they can serve and be further equipped and then
We are seeking to address this by establishing a teams to be placed in opportunities to serve. Let’s pray this
approach to service. Rather than just having people on a appointment can be effective in changing our culture and
roster, we want to see people being part of a team who opening the door to service for more people.
serve in particular areas and work together to improve and
grow, encourage and enthuse each other. For example,
we are seeking to establish Bible Reading Teams at each
gathering who will work together to improve the way we
do Bible reading in church through training, feedback and
encouraging each other in the work.
17Membership
We are made to love each other. Wholehearted disciples of
Jesus thrive in community and recognise they belong to each
other and therefore care for each other.
Care Ministry • produce resources to equip others to care well.
We are a church who cares deeply for one another • look for ways to help the wider community.
through all seasons of life. Wholehearted disciples of
Christ love God’s people, as part of his church the body
Ministry programs and initiatives
of Christ. • Triage system and network to make care calls during
COVID lockdown
Purposes and Priorities 2020 • Facebook care videos throughout the year
At Christ Church we seek to reflect the generous love of • Church-wide domestic abuse focus in May
God shown to us through Christ, by loving and caring for • Support for the church’s Viral Kindness initiative and
one another and our local community. St Ives Village Love Local campaign.
• Blue Christmas Service (a service of thanksgiving
Caring well for one another is a key aspect of Christian and consolation).
community. We are to serve one another prayerfully, • Online care training course—Sally Sims and James
practically and pastorally, and in so doing help one another Macbeth are filming videos for a course which will be
to know, grow and persevere in following Jesus. The one available later in 2021.
another nature of Christian care means that we must not
only be willing to care for others but also allow others to Highlights
care for us. Growth Groups are the primary means by Practical partnership with individuals and Growth
which we do this but all ministries at Christ Church seek Groups
to foster such a culture of care. The Care Ministry has continued to coordinate and equip
volunteers to meet both crisis and chronic needs. Care
The Care Ministry exists as a means of providing additional has included emotional and spiritual support, home and
care and support in crisis and chronic situations. The min- hospital visits, prayer, Bible reading, cards, flowers, calls,
istry seeks to equip individuals on matters related to care, emails and texts. In addition, practical help has been
so that we might be built up as wholehearted disciples of provided in the form of meals, transport, light housework,
Christ and Christ-like love may permeate all that we do help with moving, grocery shopping and linking individuals
as a church. with other support such as health care professionals.
In 2020 our priorities were: Care training and equipping
• to continue working alongside ministry teams, The Care Ministry ran four morning training sessions to
growth groups and individuals to support a culture equip the care team and church members. Attendance
of care that is prayerful, practical and pastoral averaged between 25 and 35 individuals.
• prayerfully ask God to be growing our love for him
and for one another, and praying for those going We looked at:
through a difficult time • Psalm 91 - The God who Protects Us
• review marriage resources and plan how we can • Walking in Faith Hope and Love during COVID and
help strengthen marriages Beyond
• provide a variety of practical and relevant care train- • The Anxiety Pandemic and what you can do about it
ing opportunities. • Pursuing Forgiveness
In response to COVID, our priorities from March were: In addition, in March we ran an evening seminar on
• to put structures in place so that members feel Responding Biblically to Conflict with James and Tracy
cared for and well connected. Nodder. This was a stimulating and practical seminar,
• respond well to the psychological, practical and spir- which took participants through the biblical logic of
itual needs of individuals impacted by COVID. conflict resolution.
18The Team Priorities in 2021 and beyond
Sally Sims (Care Ministry Coordinator), Jan Smith and Nitia • Prayerfully working alongside ministry teams and
Stace have run the Care Ministry this year, with guidance Growth Groups to continue to equip and promote a
and oversight from James Macbeth and assistance from culture of effective and safe, one another care.
Ian Porter, who joined the staff part-time in 2019 (with a • Continuing to build community and support networks
particular focus on pastoral ministry with members at at 6.45 and Family Church.
9am church). • Launching an online care training course.
• Finding a new care coordinator and building the team.
We are deeply thankful to God for Nitia Stace who has • Holding an evening Care Seminar on Mental Health.
helped to coordinate the ministry for the past two years. First Aid Principles with Colleen Hirst, psychologist.
She stepped down from this role at the end of 2020. • Exploring ways of strengthening marriages and run-
ning a Building a Strong and Safe Marriage course.
We are also thankful for Lynda Christen and Liz Booth have • Equipping parents through a series of Sunday
been looking at ways of developing community and care afternoon groups to read Paul Tripp’s book, Age of
among the ‘older adults’ at 6.45. They have organised a Opportunity.
couple of gatherings and plan to continue in 2021.
Challenges
We face the very real challenge of maintaining and grow-
ing our sense of community during this COVID season
and providing good care across diverse ages, cultures
and large congregations. As the church grows, the scale
and breadth of care needs to keep growing. Effective
care requires everyone to be involved in caring for one
another. A challenge for us all is to be willing to go deep-
er with one another and deliberately set time aside to
invest deeply in one another’s lives. This requires us to
be open to allowing others to really know and care for us.
Member story:
Janelle Ayres
The Care Ministry at Christ Church St Ives has provided regular, caring and
loving support to me and our family over a number of years. It is with their
encouragement, prayers and practical assistance I have felt the love of Christ
supporting us throughout life’s challenges.
I am most grateful for the relational aspect of their ministry via regular face-
to-face meetings or phone calls demonstrating empathic listening and
prayer support and the practical provisions such as delicious meals during
particularly difficult periods— these being just a sample of support we have
received. I am immensely thankful to Sally Sims, Jan Smith and the team.
19Newcomer Integration
A word from Garbo Chan
Connect Coordinator
Our challenge during 2020 was to continually cope as God has been so good. He continues to work in the lives
changes happened throughout the year! of people in new and exciting ways and the kingdom
continues to grow. While our newcomer numbers are
During the first half of the year when church was online, slightly down from 2019, He still is bringing significant
we were faced with trying to care for existing newcomers numbers to our church—in particular, 6.45 church have
when we could not meet them face-to-face. The Con- seen large numbers of newcomers.
nect team had a list of people they would call to see how
they were going. This was not easy for our teams, so I One example is of a family that joined us online in 2020.
would like to commend them for stepping out of their The husband and wife were from two different Christian
comfort zones for the sake of the gospel! heritages and found Christ Church one that they both
could agree on, especially for the solid Bible teaching.
With online church, we had a group of new guests who Later in the year when we started to meet physically
needed to be followed up. It was strange contacting again, they joined the morning service. They have been
people we had never met physically, but still a great joy. faithfully coming every week, slowly connecting with
The gospel has reached people we would never have people and making friends and have recently joined a
had a chance to reach before: people from Greater Syd- Growth Group. The husband recently made known that
ney, rural, interstate and those who are unable to go to he was a Christian at work and experienced some per-
church due to health, or being uncomfortable at church. secution. How amazing it is to see Christ at work in their
What a blessing! The challenge now is knowing how lives in such a time as this and to see them honouring
to care for our online newcomers so that they too can God at work and as they grow!
grow to be wholehearted disciples of Jesus.
20Support to Ministry
Anna Richardson
Business Manager
The administrative and support staff develop and main- Ministry, organising the calendar of regular room bookings
tain systems that support the vision and mission of for the year, returning to regular patterns of governance
Christ Church. The Wardens and Parish Council are meetings and reporting cycles after a January break.
responsible for property and finance, but week-to-week And ‘ad hoc’ tasks—searching for a cost-effective solution
operations are delegated to the team in the office. Our to our ageing office phone system’s incompatibility with
goal, as far as possible, is to free up the ministry staff to the NBN, and welcoming new staff to the team, including
be doing ministry, rather than the myriad administrative all the joyful fanfare and events related to the arrival of
tasks necessary to keep the church running smoothly. our new Senior Minister, Nigel Fortescue, in late February.
In partnership, the responsibilities of the Wardens, Parish In March things changed dramatically in a very short
Council, administrative and support staff include: time. While activity on the church site in its regular formats
• Finances – managing the income and expenditure vanished seemingly overnight, admin and support needs
of the church. This includes overseeing banking, did not cease!
payroll, accounts payable and receivable, insurance
and management of our various funds. We set up systems for our whole staff team to be able
to work remotely, and continued to manage required on-
• HR – ensuring that employment obligations are met site tasks while the church office was physically closed.
for our valuable staff team, particularly as new people
join us, and experienced colleagues depart. Rapid ways to cut expenses were investigated and
implemented—stopping regular cleaning and rubbish
• Property maintenance and facilities management removal contracts, shutting down and switching off on-site
– making sure church properties are maintained, appliances and automated heating/cooling systems.
cleaned and that on-site events are well coordinated. In parallel, we investigated our eligibility and applied for
relevant support programs like JobKeeper.
• ITC – ensuring phones, computers and necessary
online tools and systems are available to do the We set up new ways to communicate with and support
work of ministry. our church members, including lots of phone calls, and
a weekly stack of physical mail for those who could not
• Communications – website, production of all manner easily access online ways of connecting.
of marketing, video, graphics and other written
communication in our church life. We provided platforms for church groups to connect
online, including taking care that our ministry to young
• Event management – administrative support for people would continue to be as safe as possible in new
on-site and off-site events across all ministries. formats, with resulting administration requirements around
parental permissions and leader access accountability.
In a church our size, this is a significant ‘engine room’
where regular processes occur daily, weekly, monthly or We processed weekly ‘check-ins’ from our online services,
yearly, and ad hoc support needs are ever-present. The enabling ministry staff to contact and care well for people
church office is usually a vibrant hub with lots of activity with questions or prayer requests, to follow up those we
throughout each week. hadn’t had heard from for a while, and to celebrate the
ongoing progress of gospel ministry even as we longed
2020 began like other years for the support team. With to see your faces.
‘regular’ tasks—the annual financial audit, administrative
support for Youth’s Summer Camp, extensive database We watched in awe and thankfulness as the skilled and
work to set up for a new year of Growth Groups and CYF rapidly-assembled tech team poured time and energy
21into getting our church services and kids programs safe and compliant with regularly updated government
online. Later in the year, we upgraded the site internet requirements. This has included managing site capacities,
connection and purchased a carefully selected suite of hygiene and cleaning needs, extensive record-keeping
equipment to enable us to begin livestreaming from the administration, and maintaining a current COVID Safety
Cowan Rd auditorium in time for Share Life Sundays. Plan with specific Action Plans for each activity. Our efforts
were affirmed by a visit from NSW Health in late 2020,
As the possibility of returning to meeting in-person arose, who reviewed our safety plans, systems and records, and
we became adept at “COVID compliance” in all its forms. confirmed that we were compliant in all respects.
It is worth noting here the great benefit of being a part of
the Sydney Anglican Diocese, whose COVID–19 Task The cooperation of our church community with these
Force has produced consistent, timely and high quality ever-changing and often intrusive requirements has
advice and resources for churches during a time when been a triumph of ‘community over convenience’. This
rapidly changing rules and rumours proliferated. has highlighted to us what we have been missing and
how good it is to gather with our church family, even in
The administrative team has carried a significant load to restricted ways, and pointing us to the ultimate heavenly
enable church gatherings, ministries and events to be gathering of all God’s people!
Staff comings & goings
January 2020 December 2020
We welcomed Cathy Young a part-time Pastoral Assis- Ai Lyn Saunders went on maternity leave, with Georgia
tant. Cathy was with us until December 2020, while Di Condie joining us as a part-time Digital Engagement
Lucas was on maternity leave. Coordinator.
Elma McErlane joined us as a part-time Administrative Lindy Luger resigned as Sundays Coordinator.
Assistant, with particular responsibility for supporting
the Children’s, Youth and Families ministry. Simon Swadling completed his Ministry Traineeship and
began full-time study at Moore Theological College
Rachel Irwin began her two-year Ministry Traineeship. with a student ministry position at Emmanuel Anglican
Church Glenhaven.
February 2020
We farewelled John Menear with great thankfulness January 2021
for his service to us as a part-time locum throughout Di Lucas returned from maternity leave.
2019.
Rosie Campbell began her two-year Ministry Traineeship.
We welcomed Nigel Fortescue as Senior Minister,
with his wife Nicky, and their children Michelle, Megan, The Marquez family was farewelled as Anton accepted
Brianna and Brodie. the invitation for the role of Senior Minister at All Saints
North Epping from February 2021.
22Congregations
& Ministries
23Children’s and
Families Ministry
A word from Lauren Dewhurst
Children’s and Families Minister
I am thankful to God for the way that 2020 provided many new, different and exciting opportu-
nities for the gospel to reach and grow children in St Ives and beyond. Whilst COVID may have
interrupted our plans and stretched us all to think about how to minister through distance and
with limitations, God’s unstoppable Gospel continued to spread and has reached new families
and children. We have been able to spread the good news using different channels and modes
which we trust that God will use to strengthen families and make himself known.
Highlights
Sunday Children’s Ministry
We started the year with our regular Sunday Children’s
Ministry programs at all three morning services. In March
we moved online for Sunday programs which continued
through until October. During this time leaders connected
with children through teaching the Bible Kids Online
segments, writing letters of encouragement to every child
connected to our church and through designing and
producing Share Life Kids Programs.
The return to face-to-face Sunday programs in October
allowed us to design a different and exciting program for
kids and youth at Cowan Rd and at St Ives Park. The goal
was to offer programs so they could come every week.
The program has had many benefits including having
more children together which helps different friendships ministry impacted the morale of the leadership team
to grow, as well as fostering greater collaboration and with many feeling disheartened from being away from
teamwork among the leaders. We have noticed families the children.
who are missing from our programs after the time spent
away and long for the time when they will be able to return. Best News Ever - 100 days in Mark’s gospel
One wonderful initiative we put together during Term 2
Children’s Leaders was the Best News Ever Bible Reading Challenge. This
We give thanks for the provision of so many leaders in challenge was designed as a way of connecting with
2020. The leaders were committed to the programs and our Year 3-5 kids and families when we could not gather.
children in all the versions of delivery of the ministry and 60 children signed up for the challenge to read Mark’s
contributed greatly to growing wholehearted disciples Gospel over 100 days. The children and families who
of Jesus. One great loss for the year was our annual CYF completed the challenge loved learning about Jesus to-
training weekend away for leaders. Missing this oppor- gether in an accessible way. The leaders of the Year 3-5
tunity for training reduced the development of leaders team designed the Best News Ever videos which were
through training in the year.. The lack of face-to-face released each Friday afternoon during the term which
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