Clinton Church of Christ

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The New Zealand Update

The Antipodean

(A report of the work by Graham Walker on behalf of Jesus in New Zealand)

18^th December 2006

Dear Brethren,

Greetings and a warm welcome to the final report for the 12^th year of The Antipodean. Summer has not shaped up too well so far. So much for global warming, for we are starting to wonder if we have swapped hemispheres the way the temperatures have been recently. Still, we are looking forward to the holiday period in order to recharge and mount a great effort for the Lord in the New Year.

Out Reach

The congregational personal work is really starting to take off. Since I last wrote we have had the pleasure of Rod Kyle’s company for a week in November. Rod is this countries most prolific evangelist in my opinion and whenever I have the chance to use him I will jealously grab the opportunity. On this occasion we managed to cover 2 large streets by doorknocking mainly in the afternoons. Many good conversations were to be had and many tracts and Voice of Truth booklets were handed out. We did not set any bible studies but managed to make 12 callbacks that I have managed to whittle down to 5 contacts of a promising nature. All 5 have been presented with material such as the Searching for the Truth DVD and have indicated a desire to research the material in-depth. They have agreed to see me in the New Year after enough time to digest the information has passed. I will then present another gem that Rod shared with me. That is the 40 page booklet written by the late J. Harvey Dykes, 2000 Years Ago The Church Of Christ Was Established. This reprinted treasure from Star Publications (www.starbible.com) is a must have that concisely and succinctly makes a compelling defense of the church of Christ’s sameness 2000 years after its inception.

Frances has had a number of very interesting conversations with employees in her new job. It is for certain that her faith is “not been done in a corner” (Acts 26:26).

The Bible makes the point that the fervent prayers of the righteous will avail much (James 5:16), therefore my appeal to you is to join us in Timaru and pray for Olive, Gail, Tracey Nathan and Sue that the piecing sword of the Spirit will penetrate deep into their hearts.

Doris has also been very busy going door-to-door in her neighborhood and handing out a small pamphlet I made up especially for her. The result so far is that she has been bringing along her friend Gail for the past 3 weeks. Gail’s background is Baptist with her uncle being a retired Baptist minister. Her husband has recently passed away which presents me with a delicate task to teach her in light of the obvious implications of her beliefs. The response to my preaching thus far is encouraging as the plan of salvation and the organization of the church has been covered. She is now in possession of J. Harvey Dyke’s book plus our newsletter each week has the main article concerning the authority of scriptures. God’s word will not leave her heart void one way or the other, that we can be sure of (Isaiah 55:11).

The 2006 Census Report is out regarding the population stats for the Timaru district. The population that is realistically reachable location wise is 33,000 people.

Chastening

With every positive there just always seems to be a negative. You see I have had the need to do a most unpleasant task in church work involving the admonishment of one of our recent converts. Lenare Payne whom you may recall was baptized in September has let the Devil walk back into her life. It appeared things were fine but then she started missing worship. I asked her if she had a problem but she insisted everything was fine. Then after missing 2-3 weeks I managed to catch up with her after much avoidance on her part and discovered she was now attending the local Presbyterian Church (where she had come out of). According to her, it seems David Pharr’s book The Beginning of Our Confidence is to blame (sorry David). Her reading of the fine lessons David presents upset her because the conclusion to repent of worldly pursuits such as drinking alcoholic beverages etc was something she was not prepared to do. The end result is that she turned her back on the Lord. When I pointed out that the Presbyterians do not practice the truth her response was that she would take her chances. I guess the lot of an evangelist is 2 steps forward and 1 step back. However “the prize of the upward call” keeps us stepping out for the Master Who most matters.

Summary of the Year

As is my custom of previous years I will summarize this year in brief.

Our follow-up from the previous year’s Campaign for Christ continued netting two conversions. Great excitement and expectations have given way to disappointment. One I have already spoken of, however Valerie still continues on with her life albeit with a great struggle.

The advertising campaign in the local free community paper continues with a number of enquiries as a result. Anecdotal evidence says people are reading the articles, so I will continue to persevere through this medium.

Our distribution of the Searching for the Truth DVD has reached about 20 copies. That is 20 souls have information in their hands as to the truth about the church of the Bible. Who knows where this will lead to in coming months; even years?

Our winter was recorded the coldest for some 60 years with snow crippling the region for almost a month. Yet despite this we have had a number of visitors from both church members passing through and members of the community calling in to check us out. The sign is well worth having at the gate each Sunday morning, for during my door knocking I have had people say that they have noticed it. I am now toying with the idea of putting another out front with on one side listing 5 ways to identify the church of the Bible and on the other side Mark 16:16 belief + baptism = salvation – if not, why not?

It goes without saying that door knocking is the legwork of evangelism and the method of outreach that the Lord requires by example found in Matthew 10:5ff. We need more of those who are capable and able to use this method to preach the kingdom of heaven. Wednesday afternoons is the usual time that you will find Alexander and me in the field wielding the spiritual sword. A sense of satisfaction is to be gained from such an endeavour knowing it is the least you can do for He who died for us.

Our visiting speakers featured Calvin Reneau accompanied by his precious wife Ann. Rod Kyle spoke about the fundamentals of the faith. Both men gave us spiritual meat to feast upon and gave me an opportunity to sit and listen. Truth be known, the congregation were the true beneficiaries as it gave them a well earned break from me.

Finally, the other event that is always a shocker was the news of Betty Campbell’s bowel cancer. Providentially she could not have better been in the right place at the right time. The fact that Betty went to the doctor when she first noticed something was not right and an operation cancellation that afforded the surgeon time for a quick response of less than 7 days until he operated has meant that she has a better than 90% chance of complete recovery. In fact she is looking a veritable picture of health having just celebrated her 72^nd birthday just the other day.

Thank You For Another Great Year

The congregation and I thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued support this exciting year. We pray it will continue and that we live up to the Lord’s standard which we mutually share.

Our official address lies within the boundaries of the small settlement of St Andrews. And yes we have a golf course by that name. The claim is that it is the only official “St Andrews” golf club outside Scotland – how’s that?.

Cheerio for now,

Your servant in Christ to the Antipodes,

Graham Walker

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865- 457-0803 office phone	The New Zealand Update
		The Antipodean (A report of the work by Graham Walker on behalf of Jesus in New Zealand) 18^th December 2006 Dear Brethren, Greetings and a warm welcome to the final report for the 12^th year of The Antipodean. Summer has not shaped up too well so far. So much for global warming, for we are starting to wonder if we have swapped hemispheres the way the temperatures have been recently. Still, we are looking forward to the holiday period in order to recharge and mount a great effort for the Lord in the New Year. Out Reach The congregational personal work is really starting to take off. Since I last wrote we have had the pleasure of Rod Kyle’s company for a week in November. Rod is this countries most prolific evangelist in my opinion and whenever I have the chance to use him I will jealously grab the opportunity. On this occasion we managed to cover 2 large streets by doorknocking mainly in the afternoons. Many good conversations were to be had and many tracts and Voice of Truth booklets were handed out. We did not set any bible studies but managed to make 12 callbacks that I have managed to whittle down to 5 contacts of a promising nature. All 5 have been presented with material such as the Searching for the Truth DVD and have indicated a desire to research the material in-depth. They have agreed to see me in the New Year after enough time to digest the information has passed. I will then present another gem that Rod shared with me. That is the 40 page booklet written by the late J. Harvey Dykes, 2000 Years Ago The Church Of Christ Was Established. This reprinted treasure from Star Publications (www.starbible.com) is a must have that concisely and succinctly makes a compelling defense of the church of Christ’s sameness 2000 years after its inception. Frances has had a number of very interesting conversations with employees in her new job. It is for certain that her faith is “not been done in a corner” (Acts 26:26). The Bible makes the point that the fervent prayers of the righteous will avail much (James 5:16), therefore my appeal to you is to join us in Timaru and pray for Olive, Gail, Tracey Nathan and Sue that the piecing sword of the Spirit will penetrate deep into their hearts. Doris has also been very busy going door-to-door in her neighborhood and handing out a small pamphlet I made up especially for her. The result so far is that she has been bringing along her friend Gail for the past 3 weeks. Gail’s background is Baptist with her uncle being a retired Baptist minister. Her husband has recently passed away which presents me with a delicate task to teach her in light of the obvious implications of her beliefs. The response to my preaching thus far is encouraging as the plan of salvation and the organization of the church has been covered. She is now in possession of J. Harvey Dyke’s book plus our newsletter each week has the main article concerning the authority of scriptures. God’s word will not leave her heart void one way or the other, that we can be sure of (Isaiah 55:11). The 2006 Census Report is out regarding the population stats for the Timaru district. The population that is realistically reachable location wise is 33,000 people. Chastening With every positive there just always seems to be a negative. You see I have had the need to do a most unpleasant task in church work involving the admonishment of one of our recent converts. Lenare Payne whom you may recall was baptized in September has let the Devil walk back into her life. It appeared things were fine but then she started missing worship. I asked her if she had a problem but she insisted everything was fine. Then after missing 2-3 weeks I managed to catch up with her after much avoidance on her part and discovered she was now attending the local Presbyterian Church (where she had come out of). According to her, it seems David Pharr’s book The Beginning of Our Confidence is to blame (sorry David). Her reading of the fine lessons David presents upset her because the conclusion to repent of worldly pursuits such as drinking alcoholic beverages etc was something she was not prepared to do. The end result is that she turned her back on the Lord. When I pointed out that the Presbyterians do not practice the truth her response was that she would take her chances. I guess the lot of an evangelist is 2 steps forward and 1 step back. However “the prize of the upward call” keeps us stepping out for the Master Who most matters. Summary of the Year As is my custom of previous years I will summarize this year in brief. Our follow-up from the previous year’s Campaign for Christ continued netting two conversions. Great excitement and expectations have given way to disappointment. One I have already spoken of, however Valerie still continues on with her life albeit with a great struggle. The advertising campaign in the local free community paper continues with a number of enquiries as a result. Anecdotal evidence says people are reading the articles, so I will continue to persevere through this medium. Our distribution of the Searching for the Truth DVD has reached about 20 copies. That is 20 souls have information in their hands as to the truth about the church of the Bible. Who knows where this will lead to in coming months; even years? Our winter was recorded the coldest for some 60 years with snow crippling the region for almost a month. Yet despite this we have had a number of visitors from both church members passing through and members of the community calling in to check us out. The sign is well worth having at the gate each Sunday morning, for during my door knocking I have had people say that they have noticed it. I am now toying with the idea of putting another out front with on one side listing 5 ways to identify the church of the Bible and on the other side Mark 16:16 belief + baptism = salvation – if not, why not? It goes without saying that door knocking is the legwork of evangelism and the method of outreach that the Lord requires by example found in Matthew 10:5ff. We need more of those who are capable and able to use this method to preach the kingdom of heaven. Wednesday afternoons is the usual time that you will find Alexander and me in the field wielding the spiritual sword. A sense of satisfaction is to be gained from such an endeavour knowing it is the least you can do for He who died for us. Our visiting speakers featured Calvin Reneau accompanied by his precious wife Ann. Rod Kyle spoke about the fundamentals of the faith. Both men gave us spiritual meat to feast upon and gave me an opportunity to sit and listen. Truth be known, the congregation were the true beneficiaries as it gave them a well earned break from me. Finally, the other event that is always a shocker was the news of Betty Campbell’s bowel cancer. Providentially she could not have better been in the right place at the right time. The fact that Betty went to the doctor when she first noticed something was not right and an operation cancellation that afforded the surgeon time for a quick response of less than 7 days until he operated has meant that she has a better than 90% chance of complete recovery. In fact she is looking a veritable picture of health having just celebrated her 72^nd birthday just the other day. Thank You For Another Great Year The congregation and I thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued support this exciting year. We pray it will continue and that we live up to the Lord’s standard which we mutually share. Our official address lies within the boundaries of the small settlement of St Andrews. And yes we have a golf course by that name. The claim is that it is the only official “St Andrews” golf club outside Scotland – how’s that?. Cheerio for now, Your servant in Christ to the Antipodes, Graham Walker

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