God’s Heart for Us

The Church makes many claims about God – about who God is and what God does and what God is like—and the biggest claim of all, the one that is at the core of all its claims is that God is love—above all else, God is love.

We sing songs and hymns about the God of love—we pray to the God of love—we are called to offer the gift of ourselves to the God of love—and then we dwell in Matthew’s Gospel reading (5:21-37) which speaks about God’s Law.

Are these really the words from the God of love, words from the very heart of God made flesh, Jesus? Well, yes, they are. We read a section of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus had gathered with his disciples near the Sea of Galilee and began to teach them how He came to fulfil all that He was telling them.

Now we all know the joys of listening to the sounds of the heart—we have perhaps felt, even heard the sound of our own hearts beating in excitement. Our heart is the centre of our personality—”Heart” means the core of ourselves in all our most vibrant aspects—we talk about the human heart as the centre of loving, of compassion, or tenderness, of courage.

But while God’s heart sings out a love song, begun in creation and is sung to us every day, our hearts so often fall far short of singing a love song back to God, or to others.

And so, in God’s mercy, God gives us the law—the teachings of Jesus—and this law will not let our hearts fall short of loving as God would have us love—it’s a law that would have us love in a way that respects the dignity of every human being—as reflected elsewhere in the Scriptures—and it’s a law that ultimately convicts us, because what it demands of us, we cannot achieve.

And here again the law shows us God’s love—for when He shows us our failings it is meant to drive us into His merciful arms. Discovering our failure to love as God loves is not a cause for despair—rather, it’s a call back to God, into the arms of Jesus, who loves and strengthens us, and sends Holy Spirit to us to lead us to love again.

The sound of our hearts and the sound of God’s heart are different—but they’re meant to sing the same song—so we are given the law that we might know more completely how to love—and when we fail—because we do fail—we are given the key to God’s heart—Jesus our Saviour and Holy Spirit our Sanctifier.

God’s heart is the key to the vast treasure of God’s mercy that stands ready for us to receive and use—the key to a heart that offers us true joy—true love—true grace—true mercy—true forgiveness—all because our God is a God of love—and in that we can be sure—for it comes to us in and through Jesus and Holy Spirit, for us to give to others.

Pr. Wayne Kerber

Bible Readings: Matthew 5: 21-37 (NLT)

Please check the website www.paravista.org.au for podcasts and video archives of weekly messages or head to our Facebook page www.facebook.com/goodshepherdparavista for regular updates and encouragement from our ministry team.

Prayer Requests

Please forward all prayer requests to the church office via churchenquiries@paravista.org.au or phone 8263 5087. If you know or have spoken to anyone who does not have access to a computer, please assist them to submit their request and offer to pray with them. Prayer requests are not included in the weekly news online. If you would like to view the current requests, please refer to the email that alerted you to this Weekly News.

Food Collections for Lutheran Care

Our first food collection for 2023 will be on Sunday February 26th at both services. 

Requests from Lutheran Care for February:

Tea
Coffee
Sugar
Pasta Sauce
2-minute noodles
Soap

We thank you for your very generous support throughout 2022 and hopefully this will continue through 2023 so Lutheran Care can continue to support families in need in the northern suburbs of Adelaide.

Family Hub Support Team

Request from Family Hub

The Family Hub need to replace some old lounges. which have worn out due to constant use. They are seeking lounges that can be easily wiped down and cleaned as they are used by young children. If you have a suitable lounge or want more details. Contact Peter Nitschke 0418868103

SYNOD News

Please pray for our church SYNOD and delegates as they make decisions that drive the future direction of the LCA.

Closing worship

The closing worship service commences at 9.30am (AEDT) on Sunday, 12 February 2023, will be livestreamed from the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. The link can be found on the General Synod website at Worship and Prayer.

Synod offering

The Synod offering will support the Finke River Mission songbook project (full details here). Members can donate to the Synod offering via the LLL (details below) or, a cheque (payable to: LCA Synod and passed to the church office.

LLL account details
Click here to do it directly to the LLL LCA Synod account or use the details below.
Name of account: LCA Synod
BSB: 704942
Account number: 100698743

District Synod – Call for Delegates

A big thank you to the two volunteers who stepped forward to represent themselves as Synod delegates in the life of Good Shepherd and the wider Church.

Vacancy

An opportunity exists for willing persons local to the church to become respondents to any security alarm events needing investigation at the church.  Work may be at random hours and in most cases have proven minor.  However, these incidents do require a physical check of the facilities to ensure security is maintained. All expressions of interest please contact Stephen, Belinda or the office on 8263 5087 or mark security on your connect card.

Ladies Fellowship

A big and sincere thank you to all who helped with the catering for Gerry Schwartz’ funeral. Special thanks to the Meet ’n’ Eat team who volunteered their time and expertise and to the husbands to helped with set up and clean-up. It is so very much appreciated and shows how the community comes together. God bless you all.

Di Schlenk, President, Good Shepherd Ladies Fellowship

Fellowship and Fun

On Sunday 12th February, from 1pm in the church hall. Come along and enjoy sharing time over some friendly games. All welcome!

BYO drinks, nibbles, afternoon tea.

A gold coin donation on arrival would be appreciated, and tea/coffee is available.

Activities for the afternoon will include cards, board games and carpet bowls – if you can’t play, then come and learn!

Contact Peter Schlenk for more details on 0419 217 767.

We aim to provide a welcoming, enjoyable afternoon of conversation and fun and look forward to seeing you there.

Connect Cards

Please fill in a connect card as you walk in the church as it is the only way we can connect with you!

Pastoral Care Calls Before Christmas

Thank you for everyone’s participation and connecting with our community.

Can all those who made calls, give the call sheets back to Cees, or drop them into the office before 12th of February so, we can collate all the information and if required follow up enquiries.

I pray God blessed you as you blessed others with your call. Blessings 

Cees Wesselingh

Young Adults February Event

What better way to kick off the new year and cool off from the heat than with a pool party! Join us for our first event for 2023!

We’ll also have a barbecue with meat provided but please bring drinks, a salad and/or snacks to share. Don’t forget to bring sunscreen, bathers, a towel, and goggles!

Christa Schwarz

Meet and Eat Fundraising

On Sunday,19th March at 2.00pm at the Good Shepherd church, the Meet and Eat Ministry invites you all to a concert.

Entry for children will be free!!

Come and be entertained by the Metropolitan Male Choir of South Australia and support us raise money for our Meet and Eat Ministry.

$20 a ticket includes afternoon tea. Tickets will be available from next week at the church office. See Peter Weckert for more info!

Young Adults Welcome Event 2023 hosted by Blueprint Ministries

This a welcome event for Young Adults who have moved to the city for work or study or who are already working/studying in Adelaide. An opportunity to network with others and get to know other Christian young people.

Family Support Coordinator News, From Georgie

Growing Faith at Home

Dear Church Family,

Is it good or bad to have rules and laws? How do boundaries help us and our relationships with others?  This week’s GFH resource reminds us that God’s way is the best way to live. Check out this week’s GFH resource for some ideas to try out with your family or friends. Don’t forget Growing Faith Moment resources I shared last week. Using the 4 keys Pastor Rolly shared last year (Caring Conversations, Devotions, Service and Rituals/ Traditions) GFM offers ideas for you to use with your family (children or grandchildren) as they either begin school, return to school, begin secondary school or begin year 12. These ideas help to nurture faith and strengthen your relationships within your family. Talking with children about their concerns and aspirations and blessing your children with prayer all play their part. Copies are available on the pin up board and the stands in the café. Electronic copies are available with this newsletter and will be accessible on our website for the next three weeks. Why not have a look?

Little Lambs

Dear Church Family,

Our Little Lambs Playgroup has been on hiatus throughout 2022. We have certainly been blessed in previous years with wonderful volunteers who have served in this area.  Is it time to revisit this opportunity to share God’s love with little people and their families/ carers?  Do you have a heart for little ones? Or do you know someone who does?  Our community values opportunities to connect with others. Sharing time together, chatting over a coffee as little one’s play is its own reward. Creating an environment where relationships can be formed and nurtured is a wonderful area of ministry!  If this is something you feel led to be a part of, I would love to hear from you. There are plenty of resources ready to go thanks to the creativity, generosity and love of previous Little Lambs team leaders. Please contact me via email here or chat with me sometime about this valuable opportunity.

A chance to connect with families in our Good Shepherd School Community

Would you like to volunteer at our school’s Welcome Party coming up on Friday 24th February? The school is looking for volunteers to help out in areas like selling raffle tickets, ice creams, fairy floss or popcorn, or even replacing bin or toilet products. The evening begins at 5:30, concluding at 9pm. They are particularly interested in filling time slots between 7 and 8:30pm. Session times go for 45 minutes. Please see Georgie ASAP or email here if you would like to serve in this way.

KAPS Update

Two things for now!

This year we are inviting students and their parents/ carers from Year 2 to 7 to come and enjoy the fun! Our starting date for this year is March 26th from 4pm to 6:30pm… (Many families will be already attending the Welcome Party at the end of February.)  More information will follow in due course!

School Snippets

On Wednesday we began our new Chapel theme of ‘Come as you are’. Mr. Jason Kupke, one of our new teachers, shared a message about how we are all special, unique and chosen to be children loved by God. Have a look at this week’s devotion for his reflection. We also took this opportunity to bless our Year Six students, who become leaders in our school and will graduate at the end of the year. We also encouraged and blessed all our students as they are all indeed previous, unique and loved by our Heavenly Father.  For more of what we have been up to check out this link https://bit.ly/3JW2SeM or pick up a copy of our school newsletter in the church café.

Chapel Invitation

What are you up to at 10 to 9 (8:50am) on a Wednesday morning? We would love for you to join us for Chapel.  Next week we welcome Pastor Rolly as he continues our new theme of ‘Come as you are’. You are welcome to stay behind afterward for some coffee and conversation. Looking forward to seeing you soon!

Devotions

We give thanks for all those who have contributed to our online devotions this year. Now we are looking for more! If you have one or more of your own that you would like to share, please send them through to the church office via churchenquiries@paravista.org.au

“…But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

1 John 4:8

Safe Church

Please consider the health and safety of others and do not attend the church if you are feeling unwell. 

In observing Christ’s command to love one another, we are to treat each other with respect and dignity. In honoring people, we are also fulfilling our responsibility under the law of the land. The LCA and Good Shepherd Para Vista is committed to implementing processes to ensure the church is a safe place. If anyone feels they have been subjected to sexual abuse or harassment in any form by anyone who holds a position of trust in the church, please contact:

P: 1800 644 628 E: report.abuse@safeplace.lca.org.au

Weekly News Submissions should be made by the Wednesday prior to Friday publication.

Church Giving via Electronic Funds Transfer:
Regular Electronic Giving (REG): BSB 704 942; Acc 100 354 939
Church Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday 9am-3pm (closed 12:30pm-1:30pm for lunch)
Church Website: www.paravista.org.au Email: churchenquiries@paravista.org.au

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388 Montague Road Para Vista SA 5093 |   Phone: 8263 5087 | PO Box 306 Modbury North SA 5092