The annual update from our National Leader, Charles Hewlett, for 2024.
Listen to Charles' update on The Lowdown podcast.
I hope that my time as National Leader will be remembered for the phrase ‘gospel renewal’ and the wonderful privilege local Baptist faith communities have of participating in God’s plan to reconcile all things to himself through Jesus Christ (Col 1:19-20). I pray that we never forget that the gospel message we proclaim is from God; it is the very power of God, and it works – it can restore all that sin has marred and destroyed (Romans 1:16-17).
I am so keen to use my word count to encourage you with recent gospel renewal stories I have heard:
- The young mother who got baptised after joining the Bible reading sessions held at the Kumeu Baptist Church playgroup. This woman’s baptism has been a two-year journey with the KBC team praying, building relationships and ploughing the field. A simple invitation to read scripture has changed her life.
- The local church that decided to develop its land to provide much-needed housing for elderly people. This year, Te Puke Baptist Church voted unanimously to start The Jabez Initiative, a charitable company that will build Evergreen House – Whare Katoa. This is a wonderful example of a church stewarding its resources for gospel renewal.
- The refugee family from the Republic of Congo that started coming to Eastside Baptist Church after a woman from Eastside stopped to pick them up while they were walking in the rain. As she drove them to their home, the woman invited them to church. The family came the following Sunday, and now seven other Congolese refugee families also attend Eastside.
- We ran a photography competition asking people to send in their photos of gospel renewal. The winning shot was of a young man called Daniel being baptised in the sea. The looks on the faces of all involved are a beautiful testament to the power of the gospel. (See cover photo.)
- Baptist entity Project Esther, which provided a house and wraparound support for a woman and her children driven from their home by domestic abuse. This woman wrote a letter to Project Esther Trust Manager Daphne Marsden, saying, “This kind of organisation...gives women who are abused a light of hope and a feeling of we are not alone.”
- The father and son who were baptised together at Beachlands Baptist Church. The wife and mum of these two guys has been praying for them for the past 20 years. During a church service, they asked the elders to pray for them and ended up giving their lives to the Lord. Faith and persistent prayer works.
This is what ‘gospel renewal to people and places in our local neighbourhoods’ looks like—being Baptist at its best.
I want to acknowledge the two teams of people that I work most closely with. Thank you, Karen, Luke, Mike, and Wayne (the ‘Lead Team’), for your deep love for the Baptist family of churches and your incredible hard work in wanting to see them thrive. Thank you, Chris, Mike, Peter, Rachel, and Reti (our ‘Regional Leaders’), for your leadership throughout 2024 and the way you continue to bring life to our Regional Associations. Thank you, Christine Stride (my Executive Assistant), for helping me to stay so organised and focused – you have been a wonderful addition to our team.
I am also keen to acknowledge the work of Susan Osborne (our President for 2024). Thank you for visiting so many of our churches and spending quality time engaging with our pastors. What a gift you have been!
Finally, to John Tucker. What a superb principal you have been for Carey Baptist College over the past seven years. I think about the amazing staff team you have built, the progression of the college’s commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, leading the college through the difficult COVID years, the creative regionalisation of pastoral leadership training, your inspiring preaching within our local churches, the way you light up our national hui, the continued development of the Centre for Lifelong Learning, overseeing the purchase of a new building for the college, achieving the best EER report ever, etc etc... But mostly, I am thankful for who you are as a person. Your relationship with Jesus and deep commitment to prayer, to the Scriptures, to a fruit of the Spirit character, and to the people of God is so contagious. I believe these are the things that make you such a wonderful leader for us. I am going to miss our regular breakfasts at Little Luscious in Ellerslie.
Thank you, New Zealand Baptists, for your love for Jesus and commitment to the mission of God. May he continue to bless you heaps.
This update is from the 2024 Annual Report of the Baptist Churches of New Zealand, which you can view here.
Photo: By Martin Rohr from Albany Baptist Church (North Auckland).
