Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Book: Digitized - Spiritual implications of technology

There is no one untouched by technology in our modern culture.   Pastors, teachers, and families are looking for ways to understand how technology influences our relationships, our families, our churches, and our faith lives.  Digitized articulates how everyone is affected and what Christians can do in response.

Author Dr. Bernard Bull provides a systematic analysis of 12 characteristics of life in a technological world, 12 challenges that everyone faces, followed by 12 practical next steps for faith and life in this connected and technological world.

The book has two main sections:


  1. How is technology affecting us?
  2. How do we respond?


Tuesday, April 17, 2018

Book: Nau! Mission inspired

The stories of some people’s lives read like legends. For some of us names like Stanley Livingstone, T. H. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia), Sir Ernest Shackleton, Florence Nightingale, Oswald Chambers, and Louis Zamperini may come to mind. Others may think of Martin Luther King, the Apostle Paul, Abraham Lincoln, Esther (of the Bible). 
Whoever they may be, their stories have the ability to lift us to a higher plateau, inspire us, thrill us, make us cry, motivate us to search for meaning in our own lives. Nau! Mission Inspired is one of those stories. 
This is the story of a man of God, a Lutheran missionary and a college president–not always so. Once a profligate–a gambler, a rebel, a duelist, a horseman–then a desperate man, standing on a bridge in New York, without hope, wanting to end it all. Then, a sudden change of course, like Paul on the road to Damascus. Two men emerge from the darkness, save his life, tell him of the love of God. He gives himself to Christ, walks with Him from the rice paddies and temples of India to the battlefields of World War I, from the school rooms of a Black college in the segregationist South to the bush country of Nigeria. He’s a passionate man, an imperfect man, an impulsive man, a jar of clay God uses to pour out his grace upon the needy. The brush strokes used to depict this story are bold, sweeping, modern. So vividly are the characters drawn, the atmosphere recreated, the conflict reenacted, the dialogue recaptured, that it seems as though we’re watching a film. This speaks volumes to the success of Author John Nau in bringing this inspiring story to life.



Thursday, April 12, 2018

Book: Grace in practice

Grace in Practice is a challenging call to live life under grace -- a concept most Christians secretly have trouble with. Paul Zahl pulls no punches, contending that no matter how often we talk about salvation by grace, in our "can-do" society we often cling instead to a righteousness of works. Asserting throughout that grace always trumps both law and church, Zahl illuminates an expansive view of grace in everything, extending the good news of grace to all creation. Conversationally written and filled with fascinating insights, Grace in Practice will reward any Christian who seeks to understand the full measure of God's grace and the total freedom it offers.

Table of Contents

Grace in Theology 
   What Is Law? 
   What Is Grace? 
   What Is the Relation between Law and Grace?
The Four Pillars of a Theology of Grace 
   The Human Condition: Anthropology 
   The Old, Old Story: Soteriology 
   “What If God Was One of Us?”: Christology
   The Being of God: Holy Spirit and Holy Trinity 
Grace in Families 
  Grace in Singleness
  Grace in Marriage 
  Grace with Children
  Grace with Parents
  Grace with Siblings
Grace in Society 
  Grace in Politics 
  Grace in War and Peace
  Grace in Criminal Justice 
  Grace in Relation to Social Class
  Grace at the Mall 
Grace in the Church
  Grace in Church Politics 
  Grace in the Pulpit 
  Grace in Pastoral Care 
  Grace in Prayer 
Grace in Everything
  Grace as a Wall of Separation from the Church
  Grace as a Wall of Separation from the World



Book/Course: One Way Love - inexhaustable grace for an exhausted world

Real life is long on law and short on grace—the demands never stop, the failures pile up, and fear sets in. Life requires many things from us—a stable marriage, successful children, a certain quality of life. Anyone living inside the guilt, anxiety, and uncertainty of daily life knows that the weight of life is heavy. We are all in need of some relief.

Bestselling author Tullian Tchividjian is convinced our exhausted world needs a fresh encounter with God's inexhaustible grace—His one-way love. Sadly, however, Christianity is perceived as being a vehicle for good behavior and clean living—and the judgments that result from them—rather than the only recourse for those who have failed over and over and over again. Tchividjian convincingly shows that Christianity is not about good people getting better. If anything, it is good news for bad people coping with their failure to be good.  

In this "manifesto," Tchividjian calls the church back to the heart of the Christian faith—grace. It is time for us to abandon our play-it-safe religion, and to get drunk on grace. Two hundred-proof, unflinching grace. It’s shocking and scary, unnatural and undomesticated … but it is also the only thing that can set us free and light the church—and the world—on fire.

Table of Contents
Chapter 1 An Exhausted World 
Chapter 2 How I Almost Killed My Mother 
Chapter 3 Confessions of a Performancist 
Chapter 4 I Fought the Law (and the Law Won) 
Chapter 5 Ex-Convicts, Failed Disciples, and One-Way Love 
Chapter 6 The Unexpected Benefits of Hugging a Cactus 
Chapter 7 Grace In Everyday Life 
Chapter 8 An Offensive Gift 
Chapter 9 Objections to One-Way Love 
Chapter 10 The End of To-Do Lists 

You can view and download the six week course is available at



Friday, April 06, 2018

Article: Which Bible?

The question of which bible to read can be challenging because there are over 50 different English translations of the bible.  Some of these are translations that have attempted to accurately translate the bible from the original languages word for word, others have attempted to translate the bible from the original thoughts using words that are consistent with the original language and others have attempted to translate the bible using modern words and thoughts.   
If you are interested in reading more about bible translation methods please visit https://www.cru.org/us/en/train-and-grow/spiritual-growth/bible-translations.html

Some commonly used translations are:
ESV—English Standard Version is more literal word for word, not gender inclusive, average reading age 15 years plus.
NRSV– New Revised Standard Version is more literal word for word, very gender inclusive, average reading age 16 year plus.
NIV– New International Version 2011 version attempts to balance staying close to the original text and communicating its meaning in a way that is easy to understand, gender inclusive, average reading age 12 years plus. 
NET—New English Translation aims to be accurate, readable and elegant in its translation staying as close to the original text in both words and meaning as possible, gender inclusive, reading age is 12 years plus.   
KJV—King James Version uses ancient English language that can be difficult for some to understand, not gender inclusive, average reading age 17 years plus
NLT—New Living Translation uses modern language so moves away at times from the original words, gender inclusive, average reading age 11 years plus.
CEV—Contemporary English Version attempts to use simple language to avoid biblical jargon, gender inclusive, average reading age is 10 years plus
The Message uses very modern language so is considered a paraphrase, gender inclusive, average reading age is 9 years plus

There are also many study bibles, which are bibles using one of the translations, with extra notes, guides and maps.  
There are 3 Lutheran Study Bibles:
Concordia NIV Study Bible, 
Lutheran ESV Study Bible.  
Lutheran NRSV Study Bible 
These are also available from Australian Christian Resources  www.acresources.com.au  phone:  1300 36 75 75.

You can also access the bible online at:
www.biblegateway.org  59 English versions plus many other languages.
www.youversion.com over 50 different versions plus studies
https://lumina.bible.org 6 versions with studies and articles.

This article was originally prepared by Pastor Richard Schwedes for Sydney Lutheran Parish (St Paul's Sydney and Redeemer Narraweena).  You are welcome to use this article with recognition, to assist people associated with your congregation.   

Tuesday, April 03, 2018

2018 Easter cartoon


A picture by Dr Rev Mark Worthing based on the events that took place in Holy Week in 2018 in relation to the Australian Cricket team.

April Hymn of the month: Thine be the glory

April Song of the momth: O Happy Day

Church Management and Membership Data Bases

A good church data base will help pastors and their congregation provide good pastoral care, follow up, planning and potentially outreach.
A search of the web reveals there is a wide range of organisations developing data bases that are suitable for Church Membership management.   
Following are some data bases that are being used by Lutheran Churches around the world:

Pastoral Care
https://pastoralcare.com.au/
Pastoral Care 13 is an Australian developed data base for churches and can be used as either web based or an offline.    
Explore its features at https://pastoralcare.com.au/features/
Free trial download available
Cost:  $399 for Pastoral Care 13.   Cloud options are also available

Jethro Pastoral Ministry Manager and Easy Jethro
https://github.com/tbar0970/jethro-pmm#readme
Jethro is an Australian developed data base for churches.   Jethro Pastoral Ministry Manager is a web-based tool which helps churches keep track of people, families, groups, attendance, pastoral tasks, church services, rosters and documents. 
Jethro doesn't force you to work in a particular way but gives you flexible, lightweight tools to support your own style of ministry.
The Jethro software is an open source (GPL) and runs on a standard LAMP web server. Jethro's real advantages come to the fore when it's running on a proper web server, but it can also be run on a single PC using XAMPP.
Cost:  Free with the option for Easy Jethro at a cost 

Elvanto
https://www.elvanto.com/au/
Elvanto is an Australian developed cloud based Church Management system that began in 2010 with international offices.
Explore its features at https://www.elvanto.com/au/features/all/
Cost:  is based on the number of active adults in yoru congregation beginning at $13.20 per month for 50 active adults

Manna Systems
http://mannasystems.com.au
a web enabled data base system designed especially for sacramental churches. 
Cost:  based on worshipping members (not contacts) beginning at $50 for 6 months subscription (plus you also need to own or purchase File Maker pro

Ucare
https://ucarehq.com/ 
View its features at .https://ucarehq.com/features/ 
Cost:  10c per active person per month

Church Community Builder
https://www.churchcommunitybuilder.com/
Church Community Builder is designed with leaders at the forefront of our mind. They aim  to equip and empower your people with effective ministry tools to build community, engage people, and help grow disciples.   
Explore its features at:  https://www.churchcommunitybuilder.com/software
Cost:  starting at $90 per month for 100 attenders

Church Member Link
https://churchmemberlink.com/wp/
Church member link is a web-based church membership software that is designed for growth and administration.   
Check out its features:  https://churchmemberlink.com/wp/products/member-link
Cost:  $25, $30 or $35 per month depending on features

Church 360
https://www.concordiatechnology.org/church360/members
Church360º Members makes it easy for churches to not only track attendance, offering, and membership data but also understand what the data means. It's software that helps ministry leaders discover congregational trends and recognize opportunities for visitor and member engagement.   
Check its features:  https://www.concordiatechnology.org/church360/members/features/complete-list
Cost:  Start up cost plus a monthly or yearly fee depending on number of households

Realm Church Management Data Base
Developed by ACS technologies, 
Check out its features: https://www.acstechnologies.com/products/acs/features/discover-realm
Cost:  you need to contact ACS

Planning Center
https://planning.center/
A multifaceted church management software.
Cost:  Free for small usage then depends on the components and usage

Rock RMS
https://www.rockrms.com/
Rock RMS is a community developed Church Management System with a contemporary feel and many features
Cost: Free or by donation

Breeze
https://www.breezechms.com/
Breeze claims to be the world's easiest web-based church management software for small and mid-sized churches.
Cost:  $50 per month

Willie Heidrich Data base
Lutheran Church of Australia pastor, Pastor Willie Heidrich has developed a free data base for ministry in LCA congregations for more information email:   william.heidrich@lca.org.au

Articles to read when considering a Church Membership Data Base
8 questions to ask before launching a new church data base
Selecting a new church data base series
Who will you trust to pick your next church data base system?

Please feel free to leave comments about the Church Data Base system you use..