https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM0z-JwqpsI&feature=youtu.be

Westcity Church

Love God | Love People | Follow Jesus

WESTCITY HUB & COMMON PURSE

WE ARE A GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE ALL ABOUT JESUS

(Well, what did you expect from a church?)

We are old people and young, artists, people with disabilities, lawyers and plumbers, activists and accountants who have been captured by, and caught up in God’s Dream for the world and God’s purpose for our lives, that we see revealed in this Jesus.

Maybe we are a church for those who don’t like ‘church’. A church for those who don’t want to play religious games or be entertained  but on a good day, desire to live the love that God has shown us.

 

WEEKLY UPDATE – June 30

To all members and visitors of the Westcity community

After months of watching our Westcity service in our pyjamas, we are now preparing to get dressed and meet face to face. Yes, it is happening! Starting this weekend – 5th July!

We are also keen to keep our updates short and sharp. So, without further ado, here are our top 4 tips for serving the Westcity community and beyond this week:

1. Register for weekend church service
For the next two weeks, we can have only 60 people plus children in our chapel. You can continue to watch on-line or you may be heading along to a Sunday Home (local homes hosting service online). But if you want to come to Nanson Street then you need to please register here to attend on Sunday July 5th and 12th July, as soon as possible as we have limited spaces.

We look forward to meeting together and welcoming our local community, new comers, young families and those not already connected within our church community.

Here is a video update from Phil, on ‘Westcity Coming Home from July 5th’.

2. Give to the Common Purse
June 30 is the last day for giving with tax-deductibility for the 2019/2020 financial year. We have had another fantastic response to our Common Purse appeal. It is one way we reach beyond our walls, give extravagantly and serve our world. We would love you to join us – you can donate at anytime here.

3. Livestream Sundays 10.15am. We are so happy to be able to continue to connect and care for our online community locally and around the world.
Our weekly online resources will also continue for you, throughout the week, such as Podcasts, Home Study Notes, Pastoral Notes, Weekly Updates and other initiatives. You can check all these out via The Hub on our website.

4. Serve on our Media Team
Not only are we returning to our church building for LIVE services from this weekend, but we are going to continue to maintain our on-line presence. This means we need a small team every week covering all of the AV roles. If this is your passion, interest – or potential passion or interest – then let us know and Josh will follow up with the detailed information. It’s a growing ministry area at Westcity which is making a fantastic difference. Send an email to Josh Fernandes at av@westcity.church. You can also find more details via The Hub on our website.

Love and blessings,

Phil and the Westcity Team

SUNDAY SERVICE

10am @ 63 Nanson St Wembley, Perth, Western Australia

Our desire as the Westcity community is to find God’s story in our stories and our stories in God’s story. Each week, we explore scripture so that it might capture our imaginations that we would be open to the Holy Spirit’s transforming work and be equipped to live God’s love. We often give a gentle opportunity for those who haven’t said yes to God’s love to do that and to explore baptism.

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CHILDREN’S CHURCH

8am ONLINE

Godly Play is a great opportunity for adults and all ages to listen, wonder and respond.

Listen to the story, stop and wonder about the questions, then respond by doing your own work – each person can do their work differently.

Parents, it would be lovely if you can sit down and watch this video with your children. Pause the video after each wondering question, and share your thoughts with one another. Set aside time to “do your work” – you might draw, or paint, or make, or play, or read, or write … each person can do their work differently.

Please share your thoughts and work in the “Westcity Community” Facebook group if you wish.

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CURRENT SERMON SERIES

Home Brew: ‘Lessons from a pandemic’ July 2020

"We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose… For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future."
Romans 8:28,38 (GNT)

The Covi-19 pandemic is on the wane and Australia has been very fortunate to record relatively few deaths (of course, even one is a tragedy). But we have not avoided the distress of worrying about virus transmission as we go about the normal activities of life, the toll of disconnection from work colleagues and loved ones and the financial catastrophe for so many. All of us have been affected and all of us have needed to go deeper in our faith to cope with this once-in-a-century upheaval.

The Westcity community, like every community, welcomes the improving conditions and is beginning to come to terms with what part faith has played in our responses to date and how our faith in God now beckons us towards the future. We think that July would be a good time to take stock and see what we have learned about life and faith so far, with a positive eye to the future. And we know that many from our terrific faith community have stories to tell that would be so encouraging for us all. So in July we are asking people who don’t ordinarily speak on a Sunday, to speak into the church community and tell their stories of living at home, in community, at work and in the wider community through these last few months. We are calling it “Home Brew: Lessons from a pandemic”.

PODCAST

RESOURCES

Home Study Notes – June 28 

Jesus and the Church – Part 4 | Make a Difference Far Away | Jon Bergmann
Livestream Sunday Sermon

Scripture: Acts 17:16-34 Paul reaches out to the Gentiles in Athens.

Notes:

  1. What impacts one person does not necessarily impact someone else in the same way.
  2. How we experience God is a deeply personal thing.
  3. Our experiences should not be invalidated by another’s response to our sharing.
  4. It is a mistake to expect others to experience Jesus Christ like we do.
  5. We should try to avoid imitation and manipulation of spiritual experiences.
  6. We should realise that the body of Christ is made up of a DIVERSE group of people.
  7. The church should be a place where people are encouraged to be themselves.

Questions:

  1. What are some experiences of meeting with Christ that moved your heart?
  2. What are some experiences of others’ meetings with Christ that failed to move your heart?
  3. Why is this the case? (Different personalities, upbringing, cultures).

Lessons and Questions Raised from the Text: (Acts 17:16-34)

  1. Why does Paul go to the synagogue on arrival to Athens? (comfortable area).
  2. Paul is invited to the marketplace to share his faith. Why?
  3. Paul preaches a message that is inclusive, relevant, and familiar to the Athenians.
  4. Even though Paul was distressed by the many idols, why didn’t he attack their idolatry?
  5. Why does Paul quote from their own poets?
  6. Jon shared that he rates Paul’s message as a great example of how to reach people with the Message of Christ who think differently to us. Why does he rate it so highly?

Final Thought:

It can be helpful to share a broad span of ways that people experience God, including our own experiences, as long as we recognise that each individual is different and may experience God in their own way.

Richard Kerridge – Home Churches & Building Healthy Communities

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Pastoral Note – June 30

Cutting each other slack 

Last week I was thinking about how so much of the Christian experience is lived in the tension between the now but not yet. This week we are thinking about just how tense these times can be! We are almost back to normal but not really because we still can’t travel far and wide and we still can’t all get together for worship. But very soon we will be gathering without restrictions if there isn’t a spike. And then there’s the spectre of a second wave of infections a la Victoria this week.

There are mixed messages about no community transmission, how protests and footy can happen but we still have to keep our distance and our borders are shut tight. We don’t know how our state economy will respond in house prices and rent and what happens when jobkeeper winds up? There is real tensing as we wait and wonder and that can lead to reacting to things we would normally let go.

And then the scripture speaks

James 1:19

Remember this, my dear friends! Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry.

In other words we are all living in a uniquely stressed time and scripture would strongly suggest it’s a time to cut each other slack. More than usual and for longer than usual.

Chiz (Neil Chisholm) – Teaching Pastor – Spiritual Formation & Discipleship

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Common Purse 2020 – Supporting local and global projects
“but they had all things in common…not a needy person among them” –Acts 4:32-35

Westcity is a faith-based community committed to looking like, and loving like, Christ. Part of this commitment means giving beyond ourselves to serve and support others in practical ways to people who may never attend our church nor hear our message.

Every year (June 21 & 28) we take up an offering to distribute to local needs within our borders, as well as to global partners, building capacity and providing sustainable solutions for people in the majority world. We believe something powerful happens when we give and bless others collectively. We would love you to join with us.

Here is a video of Phil giving an overview of the Common Purse and its history and vision.

Here is a video from Kirrliy (Common Purse Global Chair) on the capacity building global projects we are supporting this year.

Here is a video from Danielle Lobo (Common Purse Local Chair).

Click here to go to our fundraising page and make an online tax deductable donation, by June 30. For more information on the finer details of how our Common Purse operates visit our Giving page.

You can also read more stories about the launch of our Common Purse on our Westcity Church Facebook page.

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CONNECT

Whether you're young or old, Christian or non-Christian, we welcome you at our church and we have a place for you to connect, be loved and in turn learn how to love God, love people, and follow Jesus.

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Care

Carry each other’s burdens and in this way you will obey the law of Christ. Gal.6.2

We all have seasons when we need people to stand with us in prayer, by sharing your prayer need, the Westcity prayer network will do just that. You can email your prayer request by clicking the button below. Or to talk with one of our prayer team email westcitychurch@gmail.com

Grace produces gratitude and gratitude gives gladly.

2 Corinthians 8:7 (NIV)

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