An opportunity for the Spirit of God to move: the Franklin Graham God Loves You Tour (NZ)
A couple of weeks ago NZCN news reflected on the ongoing necessity of Christian believers sharing the good news of Jesus with others – in conversations, and in the teaching and preaching of our churches. We need to do that in ways which are loving, prayerful, clear, respectful, authentic, faithful, and empathetic.
From time to time, in addition to our everyday witness to Christ, there also come opportunities for large numbers of churches to work together in mass evangelistic gatherings. In 1959 and 1969, the Billy Graham meetings had a major spiritual impact on New Zealand.
Such an opportunity is again occurring very soon, with meetings in Christchurch, Wellington, and Auckland, at which Billy Graham’s son Franklin will speak. In a number of countries, Franklin Graham has proven to be an effective evangelist in his own right.
CHRISTCHURCH: 12 Nov, 6.30 p.m. in the Christchurch Arena WELLINGTON: 16 Nov, 6.30 p.m. in the TSB Arena AUCKLAND: 19 Nov, 6.30 p.m. in the Trusts Arena
The meetings will also feature live music.
All these events are free of charge, and everyone is welcome. Through the generosity of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, these events are at no cost to New Zealand.
No tickets are required, and coming early is strongly recommended. See the NZ God Loves You Tour website, which includes downloadable FAQ answers to practical questions about admission, transport, parking, and so on.
Like all of us, and like all Christian leaders, Franklin Graham is less than perfect. Some Christians in New Zealand – including NZCN leaders – have earlier raised questions about some of the opinions Franklin Graham has previously expressed in the context of American politics and culture wars. In some of those matters we may agree with him, in some we may disagree, in some we may be not like the way he said it, and in some we may see little or no relevance to New Zealand. We have been very strongly assured, however, that Franklin Graham is coming to New Zealand solely to preach the Gospel, and that he will stay clear of secondary and political matters.
There are several ways in which we can help these events to have a deep spiritual impact…
Prayerfully INVITE friends and family members, and accompany them to the event.
As an individual or a church, arrange or participate in a GROUP BOOKING, to facilitate bringing as many people as possible to the event. The BGEA says that 80% of those who respond to the Gospel at such events are invited by a friend, and 75 percent of those came by the same means of transport. Your church may want to arrange hiring buses.
Above all, PRAY that God may move powerfully by his Holy Spirit, and that large numbers of people may come to faith and become committed followers of Jesus. Pray that these coming events are part of a much wider (and much needed) spiritual movement in New Zealand towards faith in Jesus.
Mā te Atua koutou e tiaki e manaaki i ngā wa katoa May the Lord bless and keep you at all times
The God Loves You Tour with Franklin Graham is proving to be a great catalyst in bringing the churches of Christchurch and regions together for the sake of the Gospel.
Over the last 8 months many events have been held in the city preparing for the event on Saturday 12 November. These include 31 Christian Life and Witness Classes, a prayer breakfast and lunches for pastors and leaders, two dynamic city-wide prayer gatherings, one of 800 the other 400 people, plus other smaller meetings with leaders of different ethnic churches and endless phone calls and coffees with pastors.
In all over 200 churches are actively involved, at least 500 prayer counsellors have been trained, over 250 volunteers are serving at the event.
We are now entering the last week of preparation and prayer and we are sensing the joy of anticipated harvest. We are believing for many new believers to be added to His church and that they will become disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. Immediately after the event on Saturday a rigorous follow up programme kicks off. A team assembles and each new believer will be designated to a local church for love and nuture.
It is our earnest prayer that the love and unity we are experiencing will continue and grow in the days ahead. Only by praying and working together will we see God’s Kingdom manifest in our cities and nation.
Sally and Wayne Curham BGEA Tour Associates
Franklin Graham “God loves you” Tour evangelism training
As there is no ‘’one fits all’’ approach to growing God’s Kingdom here in NZ, I was very happily supportive of the GLY Tour, offering my networks and connections to promote the events. I also was impressed with the thorough approach to preparation for the events, i.e. multiple Evangelism & Discipleship training events in many areas around the event cities.
But I became more and more aware of a strong divide in the Church in NZ over the tour, namely Franklin Graham’s political position/stances and a reluctance to be seen to support his perceived far right-wing ideology. Also, I heard some very contrary reports about the training events… Now, THERE I could get firsthand info by attending one of the nearby events, and I did.
The training event I attended, run by Michael Kwok, was superb: engaging, keeping it simple, following through the pathway from ‘in touch’ to ‘committing to faith’ and discipleship. It was practical, well presented, with enough breaks to chat through the application in your church group, and opportunities to ask questions. The training highlighted the importance of personal involvement in bringing people to faith (buddying up) and the need for local meaningful, theologically sound fellowship, and …yummy bikkies!
So I wholeheartedly recommend the training and, as one of many avenues of trying to bring friends, family and colleagues closer to God, also recommend the event.
May the Lord use all involved in this Tour to bring people into a rich, personal relationship with himself, Father, Son and Holy Spirit!
Blessings, Capt Monika Clark Nat Director of Church Army NZ
Join Franklin Graham as he shares a personal message of hope and enjoy an exciting evening of live music. This event is free of charge. Bring your friends and family!
Scott Lenning, NZ Tour Director of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, joins us to share prayer needs for their team, the tour, and people invited to attend Franklin Graham's 'God Love You Tour.'
Every Monday night, from 8-9pm, we run a national prayer meeting on Zoom with 70-80 participants joining from throughout the nation. Come join us!
BECOME AN ACTUAL MEMBER OF NZCN
Individuals, couples, churches, and Christian organisations may all officially join NZCN. Becoming a member carries some benefits (see here), but is primarily about making a statement that you are firmly committed to biblical Christianity and to working together with other Christians.
Helping to build awareness of different parachurch organisations serving the church in New Zealand and overseas.
NZCN featured member
Listed on our Directory by our Church and Christian Organisation members
ECM NZ European Christian Mission New Zealand
European Christian Mission’s vision is to see the peoples of Europe transformed in the name of Jesus Christ. This is our dream and aspiration and it motivates everything we do.
Our purpose, or reason for being, is to glorify God by the planting and developing of reproducing churches that evangelise and disciple the peoples of Europe.
ECM is about facilitating church planting in Europe, but our identity as a mission is expressed through our shared values and culture.
ECMNZ has partnered with NZCMS & Bishopdale Theological College to create a new Missions Internship program with cross-cultural placements in Asia, Pacific, Europe and beyond!
Join our Internship Information evening on Zoom: 17 November @ 7:30pm NZT.
Connecting people for employment, internships, or voluntary roles in Christian organisations and churches. This can include looking for people to join governance boards or to fill a need for a specific skill/project.
Employment Opportunities
Listed on our Job Board by our Church and Christian Organisation members
*Denotes a new or recently re-listed opportunity*
Tertiary Students Christian Fellowship all either part/full-time
Numbers in brackets indicate the number of events currently listed in that category until the end of November.Some events have both online and in person options to attend.
Events
Listed on our Calendar by our Church and Christian Organisation members. In chronical order with listings added this week highlighted.
Many of us struggle to pray regularly and with confidence amid our everyday lives. Oftentimes, this is because we don’t know how to pray when we encounter the diverse challenges, obstacles, and opportunities in our homes, workplaces, churches, and communities. We are not alone in this struggle!
In this Venn Short Course, Praying the Prayer of Jesus: Inhabiting the fullness of The Lord’s Prayer for the whole of life, you will have the opportunity to explore the pattern of prayer that Jesus gave to his disciples, and to learn to pray alongside others. You will consider what it looks like to worship and serve God in every aspect of your life, to seek the reign of God for the good of your communities, to ask for God’s daily provision, to practice forgiveness, and to resist evil.
Considering the recent publicised failings of Church Leadership, this Carey Conversation provides some biblical and theological reflection on the nature of Church and leadership in Aotearoa today.
In this conversation, Jonny Weir (Carey’s Director of Ministry Training) will interview Frank Ritchie (Wesleyan Methodist minister and one of the authors of the Arise Church report). They will explore some of the potential problems with models of church and leadership being adopted today.
Dr Christa McKirland (Lecturer in Systematic Theology), Dr Michael Rhodes (Old Testament Lecturer), and Luke Kaa-Morgan (Te Pouarataki mō te hikoi) will also join the conversation to provide some biblical and theological reflections on what it means to be the Church and models of leadership that we could aspire to. There will also be opportunity for Q&A.
Thursday, 17 November - Program starts at 7am, Breakfast at 8:20
AUCKLAND PRAYER BREAKFAST
The Auckland Prayer Breakfast is just over 2 weeks away! It’s taking place on Thursday 17 November. Eden Park has played host to many famous sporting moments; 17 November will be a Kingdom moment.
Keri-Ann Hokianga is an Evangelist in the Māori Anglican Church of Te Tai Tokerau; check out Keri-Ann sharing her heart for the Breakfast below.
We encourage you to get your tickets today for yourself, for friends, for your church, for a group of 10. Tickets are only available until midday Friday 11 November so get in quick!
New Zealand society is in a period of significant change, much of it away from the Christian faith and values. Christian voices in society are either ignored or scorned.
We need Christian voices which are positive, sensible, reasoned, well-informed, and clear.