Ron Brewer, NZCN Northland Regional Advocate, gives us this update from Whangarei.
Most people would agree that the Kiwi dream is fast slipping away from us. Christians -who believe they have answers- can sometimes be heard bemoaning the sad state of affairs apparent in our nation and seen first-hand in many-a-local community as poverty, substance abuse, broken homes, violence and other crime wreak havoc in so many lives. Where to get started and how to pull together to make a difference is a daunting task.
So it was a heartening sign of hope for change for the better when a sizable gathering from across the whole spectrum of churches in Whangarei freely came together on Sunday afternoon at Central Baptist Church to listen and to pray.
Can united prayer make any difference to our communities, our towns, our cities? Well-over 150 local folk thought so.
The title for the meeting was, Facing the challenge of a changing world. Four community leaders responded to the invitation to address the gathering. They were: our Mayor, Morris Cutforth, Dr Nick Chamberlain, the CEO of the Whangarei Health Board, Sharon Bain of the Salvation Army, and Morgan Allen of the Churches Education Commission.
Each speaker took a short session to lay out from their perspectives significant needs in the community and challenges in today’s world. Each session was followed by prayer from a different mix of Christian leaders on the platform, focussing on the needs presented and followed in turn with individual prayer in small groups of all those assembled.
The sense of unity and purpose in our calling upon God together in prayer and worship was certainly encouraging and we must hope and plan for it to be built upon and extended in the days ahead. Challenging times call for us to pray and work together as never before.
Ron Brewer is the NZCN Northland Regional Advocate
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