Napier Baptist

The Decison 08 website has a helpful page where you can compare and contrast the different policies of the different parties. Go here.

With elections looming in NZ and around the world I'd encourage you to consider what it means to live and vote as global Christians (i.e. not Christians narrowly focussed on what you're going to get out of this election). The Tearfund website has some very helpful material about voting as global Christians available online here. So too does the Micah Challenge website here. I especially enjoy Jim Wallis' article on Faith Priorities for this Election.

The following comes from the Tearfund website and raises critical issues for the world's economy and focus at the moment.

WITH the meltdown of international banking and credit filling investors with dread, developed nations are using the crisis to legitimise backing away from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), said TEAR Fund Executive Director Stephen Tollestrup.
The MDGs signed by 189 nations promised to halve poverty for the poorest of our planet’s people by 2015 and increase aid to 0.7 per cent of their countries GDPs.
“The truth is”, says, Mr Tollestrup, “the MDGs go well beyond a handout. If we dare to think outside of the square we will find that we need to see productive and growing economies in the developing world to help us move out of this current mess and bring long term economic stability.
“Rather than simply throw a trillion dollars at failed Wall Street financers, perhaps it’s time to think clearly about an economic shot in the arm for the two-thirds world. This will strengthen the global economy and counter the poverty where over a billion fellow human beings languish and die, and fundamentalism and terror incubate.”
Micah Challenge advocates for governments to honour their commitment to the MDGs, TEAR Fund, as a member of this international Christian campaign, is urging New Zealand voters to make honouring the MDG promise an election issue.

I've had a couple of e-mails asking me when the sermons are going to be updated - they have just been updated here. We have someone who's a very busy professional who takes it upon himself to record the sermons, convert them into mp3s and host them on his webstie - and all he does all of this in what little spare time he has as a global executive! So, please be gracious and patient.

Rees, if you read this, thanks so much for all that you do for our church...

I'm back from Auckland and back into things at Napier. The book of the trip was a bit of surprise because I didn't go there planning on reading it. I picked it up off the shelf and browsed through it briefly and I was hooked. The book of the trip was From Midterms to Ministry: Practical Theologians on Pastoral Beginnings and I'd recommend that anyone who has or is or is going to make the transition from Bible College/Seminary to local church ministry read it. It was one of the highlights (especially the article by Thomas G Long) of my reading spree.

I also notice that Real Live Preacher has posted his second video on his series on hell here.

I know that with elections looming many pastors get cornered about who people should vote for, or even worse, you get cornered asking about who you're voting for (with the less than subtle subtext that it should be the same party as the person who's asking you!)? Another useful website to have a careful snoop around is the New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services. It represents 6 denominational Social Services networks, one of which is NZ Baptist Action. They work on the front line of social service and their vision is to work for a just and compassionate society in Aotearoa New Zeland. They provide some excellent information and articles on some of the pressing social issues that I think one should consider before deciding who to vote for.