Newsletter 20-August-2017

BACKGROUND: Joseph Makes Himself Known Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. ² And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.

³Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?”But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence. ⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! ⁵ And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. ⁶ For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. ⁷ But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.[a]⁸ “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. ⁹Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. ¹⁰ You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. ¹¹ I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’

NEXT Sunday:27 ^th August 2017
Next week's theme: "Defiance"
Focus Scripture: Exodus 1:8-2:10
Other Readings: Psalm 124; Romans 12:1-8; Matthew 16:13-20

Prayer Points:- Rev Grahame Drummond and family as they mourn Maureen, and for Erika Lim as she and her family mourns the death of her Grandmother; Rita Jackson for comfort and healing; Brenda Ryan for good heath; Steve Logan for strength in his recovery; Families, Children and Leaders for Mainly Music Ministry please; Everybody with winter coughs and colds! .

Nomination Team: , The year has cycled around and we are into the season of the approach of our Annual General Meeting (AGM 24 September 2017). The first step towards it is to establish the Nominating Team who are tasked with gathering a list of people to serve on the Leadership Team. There is a detailed letter available on the foyer table with more information.

Congregational Meeting Notice: .We will hold a congregational meeting immediately after worship today to elect the Nomination Team. I have received two nominations: Christo John and Lily Han to serve on the Nomination Team.

Alpha course:If you would like to explore what this is, you can still join, please come along this Sunday, 20 August. The Alpha course is an opportunity to introduce people to the Christian Faith. The course is recommended for those questioning God, having doubts, or have a desire to get closer to God. Pray please for: The course and for God to touch the hearts of those seeking or in need of renewal. For spiritual protection for St John’s and all involved during Alpha..

Scaffolding – Worship Room Roof: The Scaffolding around the worship room is for our roof maintenance project. On our behalf ‘Kowhai Roofing’ are coating the long-run-iron worship room roof with a sealant coat (guaranteed for 12 years) to protect and preserve it. The cost of the protecting coat is about $7 000.00 and the scaffolding about $7 000.00. We had this much money saved in our ‘roof’ fund. The scaffolding will be around for about a month.

Can you do this?We are looking for someone to be a Church welcome-er on the first Sunday of each month. If you or you think someone else might help out in this ministry please talk to Lorraine – or Loas Toung or Joan Rutherford. Thank you.

Real life: with John Cowan and Newstalk ZB 730pm Sunday nights, This Sunday night on Real Life (10-04-16), John hosts his weekly nationwide chat show featuring a different high-profile guest. John talks with them about their life, their upbringing, their passions and their view of the world.

The Prayer Course

A six week, free, online course based on the Lord’s Prayer. It is produced by Alpha to help Christians develop their prayer lives. The course consists of six quarter hour videos. It features Pete Greig, the founder of the 24/7 Prayer movement, author of several books on the topic of prayer, and the director of prayer at Holy Trinity Brompton in London. The prayer course can be accessed, signed up for, previewed and downloaded on line at prayercourse.org.

Luther and the Reformation Festival 30 July – 3 September St Heliers Presbyterian Church and Community Centre, 100 St Heliers Bay Road. Everyone is invited to this Festival of music- choirs – film – audio visuals – drama – talks and discussions. Programme enquiries: Phone 575 6098 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.