When I was first told the theme of conference (Own it) I took some time to think about how this looks. The three topics that came out of my pondering on “Own it” were
Beginnings: both CS and personal
Simple Gospel
I will go
I wanted to focus intentionally on the beginnings of our personal faith as Easter is a great time to reflect on this. The beginnings of CS in Australia is a great testimony of God stirring a small group of late teens to embark out to form CS. The desire is wonderful and truly inspiring. Today CS is an international movement. ‘Every surfer in every surfing community has the opportunity to know and follow Jesus.’
My second session was about the simple gospel, about being aware of a changing environment here in Australia, where society might be preaching a message of the irrelevance of Christianity but individually people are seeking, many knowing that there must be ‘more than this’. I challenged us to not be intimidated by culture but to come back sharing the simplicity of the gospel and stripping away the superficial.
My last session, ‘I will go’ really looked at not allowing our circumstances to prevent us sharing the gospel but rather seeing the importance of our daily lives in providing opportunities to share the love of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
For me the Sunday dawn service and baptisms were a highlight and such a powerful proclamation.
Bless ya. Mark J.
