Thought For The Week 6 May 2018

Welcome to our services of worship. I trust you will connect meaningfully with God and one another today. Last weekend 5 members of the parish attended the Alpine Presbytery gathering in Christchurch. A range of speakers spoke on the theme of Social Enterprises which is where business acumen meets social concern and profits are generated to serve a social need. You could call it ‘capitalism with heart’ and though it’s not exclusively a Christian thing, many Christians are at the forefront of this new way of doing business.

The gathering farewelled outgoing moderator Rev David Coster who has retired from the role having served 2 consecutive terms. The new moderator is Rev Ann Stewart who I’m sure will serve the presbytery well.

A highlight of the gathering was the presentation of a cheque for $3million from St Andrews at Rangi Ruru which is to go into the Alpine mission fund. This money will be available as grants to mission projects that meet the criteria and is a significant boost to the fund.

Also on the good news front: permission has been granted to proceed with our St Stephen’s foyer upgrade project. The workgroup will meet soon to get this underway. We are also about to begin insulation work on the frequently used  St Stephen’s hall which will make this a much more comfortable space throughout the year.

Blessings,

Brent