NEWS – MArch 19

When Steve Oliver welcomed Mike Irving and his churches in Sydney into the Regions Beyond family, he set about planning to take a wider team along to demonstrate the value of diversity that our movement upholds. This team has recently returned from Australia…

Trevor reports: We have had a great time in Australia; it was so exciting to see God’s hand on the whole team. Grace City Church is a wonderful addition to the RB family and Mike and Lynn have gathered a very special bunch of people. Our time away with their Core Team was exceptional, it felt as if we had always been together.

For me the highlight of the trip was seeing how Glenn and Emma Paten are settling in Adelaide and meeting Will Hall who they are now relating to and helping to establish a new church plant. Glenn brought Will across to our team time in Sydney and he felt really comfortable and accepted among us, so we could soon be welcoming a new family church in Adelaide too!

Rachel adds: Our time as part of the team travelling to Grace City Church was wonderful; we met brothers and sisters who made every effort to make us feel welcome. As we all had the opportunity to share one of our values, it was clear that our new brothers and sisters had the same heart. There was also a strong sense that in God’s purposes this linking was going to be a stepping stone to other nations.

Kim says: One of my highlights from the Sydney trip was having the opportunity to visit the Grace City Care centre. We met new people and had conversations, sharing the gospel and praying for them as well.

Secondly, we were encouraged as we shared about what we are doing in the Philippines, that the work there is significant and that we don’t despise small beginnings.

Mike Irving speaks on behalf of the Australian leaders: Grace City Church had the amazing privilege of receiving Steve & Heather Oliver as well as an incredible team from various RB churches from across the nations. To say that they had a big impact on our church is an understatement, whether it was crying as Topsy shared or laughing as Trevor shared, we felt God shaping us afresh for His purposes and for the call on us as individuals and as the church. There was a very real sense of becoming one in heart as the team shared so personally and we feel like we have become part of the ‘family’. There was also a great feeling that we can achieve so much more now that we are together. Thank you to everyone that came on the team and to those that helped them get all the way to our distant shores.