Churches are for sale all over New Zealand. (Northern News, December 10, 2014)

A parish council chairwoman says that:

—  “Christian worshippers on a  regular basis are dwindling.”

—  “we are almost a third-world country when it comes to Christianity.”

—  “we need to minister to ourselves instead of sending people overseas.”

This church in Cambridge in NZ is now a coffee shop

In the article I am reading that there is one church for sale in Whangarei. It used to be an Exclusive Brethren church, before it became a funeral parlour. The building has a commercial kitchen and a walk-in chiller.

“Latest Statistics New Zealand census figures show the number of New Zealanders who affiliate with a religion has dropped 5.5 per cent since 2006, a trend reflected in any area except Auckland, which had a 1.2 per cent increase in the number of religious residents.”

But let us always remember that the church is not a building, the church is the people.

Type “SAINTS” into the search box and read the post!

Who is that?

Marsden Cross

Picture / D. Plummer

“On Christmas Day, 1814, the first Christmas service in New Zealand was held on this spot by the Reverend Samuel Marsden,” is inscribed on the base of the Marsden Cross.

His text was Luke 2:10:

“BEHOLD I BRING YOU GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY.”

The Marsden Cross was erected on March 12th 1907.

On the 100th Anniversary (1914)

a special service was held at the cross.

On the 150th Anniversary (1964)

another service was held. The Preacher was the Reverend M. E. Marsden, great great grandson of Samuel Marsden. He came especially from England to preach.

Many, many Christmas services have been held since 1814 all over New Zealand.

Marsden Cross

Picture / D. Plummer

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See also Bicentennial Celebrations on this blog!

KEY

“The Lord Himself must open the heart, to receive the things that make for our peace. He alone can put the key into the hole of the door and open it, and get admittance for Himself.” – Charles Haddon Spurgeon

In our local paper, The Northland Age, Thursday, November 27, 2014, I read last month that the founder of Duffy Books in Homes, Alan Duff, had some hard-hitting advice for the children in the schools, this time for the students of Pompallier Catholic School.

Pompallier Catholic School in KAITAIA

He told the pupils that if they decided to have no interest in books, that they would be failures in life.

He said also that if they decided that reading was not for them, they were making a conscious decision to be failures.

And here are his own words:

“If you had a chance to read and didn’t use it, bad luck. You’ll end up in a stupid job.”

The Bible is a book. In fact the Bible is THE BOOK OF BOOKS. The author of the Bible is the Holy Spirit.

What hard-hitting advice do we have for people who have decided that they don’t have an interest in the Bible, who have decided that reading the Bible is not for them?

Please let me know!

“Family violence concerns”

How it should be and how it sometimes is:

“OUR HOME IS FULL OF LOVE AND LAUGHTER,” I remember reading on a board, I saw in the window of a shop.

That’s how it should be.

“FAMILY VIOLENCE CONCERNS,” is says in the paper, The Northland Age, Thursday, November 27, 2014.

That’s how it should not be.

How is it at your place?