How two sponsored children met, fell in love and moved to New Zealand

Danny and Joyce are part of Eastgate Christian Centre. They were both sponsor children in the Philippines and are now both living in Auckland. Hear…

Mentored in pastoral prayer: Roland Browning

Reflections of how a pastor mentored a young person through modelling pastoral prayer and the significance of challenge through discipleship.

Sunday church service turns into free bike fix-up

Sunday mornings aren’t just for sermons and worship songs at Wellington South Baptist Church. See how they partnered with a local bike fix-up/repair/swap charity to…

“I want to be like Jesus. And Jesus gave his life for the church”

Charles Hewlett believes robust leadership of Baptist faith communities is absolutely crucial if we are to bring gospel renewal to people and places in our…

Invitation to share your COVID-19 vaccine beliefs

Christian participants from evangelical churches in New Zealand are being sought to explore their ideas, beliefs and views surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine.

The dream job?

Are you or someone you know looking for a job that is people-facing with global travel, invigorating, rich, and meaningful? This could be it! Come…

We care about racial justice and violence in Ukraine and Myanmar

Baptists care about the state of war, violence, and political unrest in the countries of Ukraine and Myanmar, as well as global racial justice.

Blood is life

We celebrate with Graeme Woodfield, a member of Orakei Baptist Church, for being recognised in the Queens Birthday Honours this year for his service to…

Reconnecting as church: Timeless strategies and bowling a beamer

“How should churches journey with folks who are hurting due to the COVID pandemic as they begin to gather again?”

The gospel and racism

To what extent should we as Christians engage with difficult questions of race and racism? What does the Bible say about race and racism?

Xtend 2022

Xtend is more than just a camp, it’s an opportunity for your life to change! Hear from Allie, Dave, Katya, Rob, and Callum about their…

Is Big Good? A MEGA question

Mark Day, a Baptist pastor in Hamilton, reckons with our devotion to ‘bigger is better’, and hopes for revival: “the making of a disparate people…

Rachel and Tiaki talk Matariki: God, family, injustice and tradition

Listen in on two people, Tiaki and Rachel, tangata whenua and tangata Tiriti, chatting about the coming season of Matariki, including the prophet Amos who…

Regional Hui highlights: Otago and Southland

Rachel Murray shares some highlights from the Regional Hui held at the Catlins River Ridge Retreat, 26-28 May 2022.

Matariki Celebration at Ōtūmoetai Baptist Church

Jan Ozanne is Family Pastor at Ōtūmoetai Baptist Church. In this article read about how they celebrated Matariki in 2021 – it might give you…

Matariki – a time to look beyond

Matariki is a gift to the Church of Aotearoa. It is a celebration of relationship, acceptance, remembrance, invitation, hospitality, and delight. This is not just…

Regional Hui highlights: Upper South Island

Julie Chamberlain shares some highlights from the Regional Hui held at Glenroy Lodge Baptist Camp, Canterbury 25-26 May 2022.

Benefiting from structures of oppression

As Christians we are called to “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless and plead the widow’s cause” (Isiah…

Who’s on your fridge? A crucial moment to act

How can we work towards a safer and fairer world for all God’s children? Right now, the New Zealand government is considering legislation that will…

What’s next? Church on the other side of Omicron

The last two years of COVID-19 have been deeply disruptive, both for society and for the church. Many Christians have drifted away from regular engagement…

Heart and housing in Whangārei

“Here we are, all Baptists, finding a way to help needy people in Aotearoa…” through property ownership, management, and wrap-around care.

Change-makers

Dave Tims, Director of UNOH New Zealand, shares how transformation begins with focusing on the people around us. Meeting the needs in our communities doesn’t…

The dream job?

Are you or someone you know looking for a job that is people-facing with global travel, invigorating, rich, and meaningful? This could be it! Come…

We care about racial justice and violence in Ukraine and Myanmar

Baptists care about the state of war, violence, and political unrest in the countries of Ukraine and Myanmar, as well as global racial justice.

Blood is life

We celebrate with Graeme Woodfield, a member of Orakei Baptist Church, for being recognised in the Queens Birthday Honours this year for his service to…

Bubbling with new opportunities

Currently back from Bangladesh, what have Cindy and Ross Meyer been up to, and what’s next for them?

I think I would’ve liked Uncle Eric

He recognised that his faith community was missing an opportunity to be in mutual relationship with a people group that God had created; a people…

Matariki gathers people together

NZBMS has provided a bunch of Matariki resources to help faith communities honour and celebrate the season.

Matariki – a time to look beyond

Matariki is a gift to the Church of Aotearoa. It is a celebration of relationship, acceptance, remembrance, invitation, hospitality, and delight. This is not just…

Benefiting from structures of oppression

As Christians we are called to “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless and plead the widow’s cause” (Isiah…

Who’s on your fridge? A crucial moment to act

How can we work towards a safer and fairer world for all God’s children? Right now, the New Zealand government is considering legislation that will…

Vaini Village report (Tonga eruption relief)

Working with the Pacific Leadership Forum, NZBMS were able to send NZD$8000 to the village of Vaini on the island of Tongatapu. Through the kind…

Easter Sunday in the megachurch

Before I started to pray, I made a silly mistake: I looked at the Stuff newsfeed. The fourth headline down depicted the demise of another…

Glen Eden and Visionwest Waka Whakakitenga

Visionwest Community Housing addresses the issue of homeless in New Zealand by providing safe, warm, and quality, rental accommodation for low-income families who cannot access…

Imagining a gender equal world: our experience of Women’s History Sunday

Imagining a gender equal world: our experience of Women's History Sunday

Local church made a cheesy Covid safety video (And we love it!)

Pastor Albert Tang at Pakuranga Chinese Baptist Church mentioned on social media: “Just sharing the video we produced for information and clarification for returning to…

God’s hands and feet—Community Chaplaincy

“I value every opportunity to be God’s hands and feet where possible” says Beryl Diack, Community Chaplain of Eastside Baptist Church in Invercargill.

Wrapping women in aroha: Still Water Scarves

Two years ago, a small group of women from Palmerston North Central Baptist Church, inspired by a message by Tearfund during missions month, set up…

Justice like a river: immigration and prayer

Deborah Makarios of Epuni Baptist Church asks “Who is my neighbour?”

An open letter to the unvaccinated in the Christian community

Gareth Jones attends Dunedin City Baptist Church and is Emeritus Professor in Anatomy at the University of Otago. He has written this letter to Christians…

“I want to be like Jesus. And Jesus gave his life for the church”

Charles Hewlett believes robust leadership of Baptist faith communities is absolutely crucial if we are to bring gospel renewal to people and places in our…

Is Big Good? A MEGA question

Mark Day, a Baptist pastor in Hamilton, reckons with our devotion to ‘bigger is better’, and hopes for revival: “the making of a disparate people…

Regional Hui highlights: Otago and Southland

Rachel Murray shares some highlights from the Regional Hui held at the Catlins River Ridge Retreat, 26-28 May 2022.

Regional Hui highlights: Upper South Island

Julie Chamberlain shares some highlights from the Regional Hui held at Glenroy Lodge Baptist Camp, Canterbury 25-26 May 2022.

Assembly Council update

This is the May 2022 update from Assembly Council. These will become regular updates letting you know what we're up to, the things we are…

Red-orange-green light: a pastor, a church and unity in Christ

Tim Palmer, Senior Pastor, Franklin Baptist Church shares his journey in a local church as they seek to navigate the vaccination discussion, as they listen…

Has the time come to act?

In this opinion piece Andrew Clark-Howard continues the dialogue on mandates, vaccinations, protests and theology.

The other half of what we owe each other

Andrew Clark-Howard’s assessment of the anti mandate protest (What we owe each other: freedom, protest, and responsibility) draws upon excellent resources from Bonhoeffer on freedom.

What we owe each other: freedom, protest, and responsibility

We’ve all seen it; the images and videos on our screen of people gathering to protest at parliament with a rather bewildering array of placards…

Re-imagining registration

“Managing change” and “learning to pivot” are phrases we’ve become familiar with over the last year. Probably more than we would actually have liked! While…

The End of Life Choice Act: the practicalities

What actually happens in the process of assisted dying? In this article we hear from GP Rebekah Kilpatrick who unpacks the approximately 40 hours of work…

The End of Life Choice Act: being a carer

The caring of a person who has made the choice to end their life through physician assisted dying is now a possibility in New Zealand.…

The End of Life Choice Act: what does faithful Christianity look like?

Assisted dying became legally available on 7 November 2021. Continuing on in this series of articles to resource and support our churches at this time, pastor and scholar Jonathan…

Caring for each other helps in many ways: churches respond to the pandemic

Human beings need many things to survive and to thrive. In addition to our obvious physical needs, self-determination theorists point to three things that are…

Not vaccinated: a pastor’s personal opinion

Simon Williams is a pastor at Kaiapoi Baptist Church. The opinions expressed here are his own. View more opinion on Baptist magazine.

Responding to the #MeToo movement—with a message from Jesus and the Samaritan woman

Is sexual abuse an issue for the church in 21st Century Aotearoa New Zealand? In this long-form article Daphne Marsden, one of our pastor/scholar/authors shares…

The End of Life Choice Act: pastoral responses

Assisted dying became legally available on 7 November 2021. Our lecturer in Pastoral Care and Counselling, Dr Phil Halstead, begins this series of articles to…

An individual’s Christian response to a vaccine mandate in the workplace

Vaccination mandates and the workplace: Are Christians in the firing line? Gareth Jones attends Dunedin City Baptist Church and is Emeritus Professor in Anatomy at…

Emerging from a lockdown response to a global pandemic

Rick Pierce, works for the Northern Baptist Association as a Network Pastor, Health & Development. Here he shares some ways local churches can respond as we…

Cross-shaped unity for church through the COVID-19 Protection Framework

Since the Government’s announcement about the COVID-19 Protection Framework, my mind, like that of many pastors, has been occupied by what this will mean for…

5 things parents want you to know in order to help their neurodiverse kids

Jenny Lee, a professional educator who serves in several community roles, including Rotorua Baptist’s Kids Church, shares advice on how the church can support neurodiverse…

You have influence… and your leadership matters

Board Chair of Global Leadership Network New Zealand, Naomi Cowan, is excited about the upcoming GLS One Day Online Experience. Find out more!

3 Golds for NZ Baptists

On Saturday 4th September 2021 at the Australasian Religious Press Association (ARPA) Awards, New Zealand Baptists, through the Baptist magazine, received some great accolades for…

What’s the point?

This article is a transcript of the sermon delivered on Carey Sunday (1 August 2021) by Dr Michael Rhodes, Lecturer in Old Testament. Find the…

Two Christian views on the proposals against incitement of hatred and discrimination

The New Zealand Government is proposing changes to strengthen and clarify the protection of people from discrimination against aspects of their identity, such as ethnicity,…

Being the (well-washed) hands & feet of Jesus

This is the most exciting time, as we are part of a movement responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in a positive life‑giving way. The history…

Church insurance

Mark Davie explains the aims and benefits of the Baptist Insurance Fund and Brian Brannigan of Trinity Baptist Church shares a cautionary tale about the…

4 benefits of a good accounting system

During this time of economic uncertainty, a modern accounting system is important to provide key and timely information to church leaders. Cameron Fisher of CATAS…

4 benefits of a good accounting system

During this time of economic uncertainty, a modern accounting system is important to provide key and timely information to church leaders. Cameron Fisher of CATAS…

Being the (well-washed) hands & feet of Jesus

Christian Savings

This year Christian Savings (previously Baptist Savings and Development Society) is celebrating 58 years of partnering with churches.

Effective leadership

Charles Hewlett has been thinking about the effective leaders he has had the opportunity to work alongside. He believes that these leaders make a number of similar…

Meet Andrew Urquhart—Radio/TV announcer

Andrew Urquhart and his wife Johanna attend Māngere Bridge Baptist Church. Andrew is an announcer at Rhema Media, where he co-hosts a radio interview show…

Baptisms

Parihaka reflections: A vision for our country

As part of Hui 2017, delegates watched the documentary film Tatarakihi—Children of Parihaka and were then invited to Parihaka by Te Ātiawa iwi. Here are…

Meet Marina Young—founder of Buttons Project

Marina Young and her husband attend Doubtless Bay Christian Centre. Marina is the founder of Buttons Project, which helps bring awareness to the effects of…

I’m glad you’re not my doctor!

Charles Hewlett and Mike Crudge reflect on the benefits of lifelong learning for Baptist pastors—for the pastors themselves and for the churches they lead.

Why Pākehā need to know who they are: belonging in Aotearoa

Alistair Reese considers the need for Pākehā to understand who they are and how they belong in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Women’s History Sunday, 6th March 2022

Featuring two remarkable New Zealand Women: Elinor Thornton and Merrilyn Withers

Amidst the lockdown struggle: cracked open by joining together

Lockdown from the perspective of a working Mum

This story was first shared in April 2020.

A centurion reflects one year on

It’s still good news

Maybe you prefer old-fashioned face-to-face interaction... but you still love getting out your phone or tablet to scroll through social media, video chat, send emails…

The Word made flesh

Christmas means different things to different people. Wendy Joyes explores how artwork has variously portrayed Jesus and his coming as a baby, and what the…

“Now thank we all our God”

Last Writes

Eyes still firmly fixed on Jesus

There is much important discussion happening about COVID-19 and the future of ministry and mission. Charles Hewlett shares why he thinks it would be a…

Virtual spiritual retreats

Worship in te reo

The heart of celebration is reorientation

Your story counts

Worship 7:9

On Saturday 7th September 2019, more than 300 people gathered to celebrate the diversity of cultures and identity that make up the Northern Baptist Association…

How Good is the Golden Rule? Learning the Language of Love

“Finding Strength in the Power of Prayer”

Edmonds Namburi, who has just concluded his time as a Mission Council member, reflects on “Finding Strength in the Power of Prayer”, which is one of the…

A prophecy in paint

Life is worship

All thy works shall praise thy name

When the Spirit moves… HE MOVES!

At the 2018 LEAD Conference, Markus Schonberger spoke about making room for the Holy Spirit to move during church services. He said, “At times it gets…