Holy Spirit’s leading…

This Sunday we begin a series in the Acts of the Apostles which will focus on the way the early church discerned God’s will and worked together to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading. For this Sunday’s reading I have selected the time after the Ascension and before Pentecost when the disciples were gathered together and praying together waiting for the power Jesus had promised them, and they decided that they needed to replace Judas who had chosen to betray Jesus and had subsequently died. They sought the will of God in the way which was customary amongst Jewish people who did not have the direct guidance of Holy Spirit. They chose two of their number who had been with them from the start, and cast lots. In essence they rolled the dice and trusted that God would speak to them through the way the dice landed. The lot fell on Matthias and he was accepted as the twelfth disciple. Hearing God’s voice and discerning his will is something we all need to be able to do from time to time in our lives, and often we feel as unable to hear as these disciples in the upper room. Yet once the Holy Spirit was given at Pentecost all that changed. The presence of God was now not just found in the temple, but in the heart of every believer, and now God could speak and be heard by any one of them. The revolution which was the spread of the Gospel across the known world began with that change. No longer scared and huddled in an upper room, wondering what will be next, men and women filled with the Holy Spirit went out and spread the good news that Jesus was indeed Messiah and he had died and risen and was present with them. Signs and wonders followed these early disciples as God witnessed to himself through them. It’s something nobody had ever experienced before and it was so counter-cultural that it transformed the Roman world. Many years later John the apostle, in exile for the sake of the Gospel, was so in tune with the Holy Spirit that he was able to receive the Revelation which forms the last book of the New Testament. How do we tune our spiritual ears to hear the voice of God? We will explore the answer this Easter season.

Janice

This Week:

Regular Worship Times

Parish Contact Details

Notices:

Looking for a place to serve?…

We have opportunities at our Op Shop for volunteers. Training is provided and you will be assisted to obtain your police check and level 1 training certificate if you don’t have them already. The Op Shop is at the heart of our ministry to the Dromana community and we hope to grow this ministry, but we do need helpers to do that. Shifts can be as little as 4 hours once per month. Talk to Vicki Brown if you’d like to know more.

Janice away…

I am away at the Jumbunna Ministry Conference from Sunday evening until late Tuesday evening. I will be back for the Wednesday service and Bible Study and then will be taking Thursday 8th as my day off as I have a funeral to do at Mornington on Friday of this coming week. For urgent pastoral matters while I am at the conference please contact Kevin Cranwell 0438234457

All Saints Rosebud…

Rev’d Lynda Crossly, Vicar of the Parish of All Saints Rosebud and St Katherine’s McCrae has announced that she is leaving and will be moving to Brisbane to take up a new ministry there. Lynda’s last day is Sunday May 11th. We pray for her and Ian as she takes up her new ministry and we pray for the parish of Rosebud and McCrae as they begin the search for a new Vicar.

Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea!!…

The Craft Group invite you to join them for an informal afternoon tea on Wednesday 28th May from 1.30 – 3.00pm
A collection box and QR code will be available for donations to the Cancer Council We look forward to seeing you Contact Robyn or Carol.

This Week’s Prayer Focus

In our country and the world:

• That the government of Myanmar ensures that earthquake aid is protected from looters and military action and is distributed to its intended destination.
• For those suffering as a result of violence and home invasions.
• For all affected by the worsening antisemitic attacks around Australia and the world.
• For those facing homelessness, hardship, anguish and despair amid rising costs.
• For families affected by violence.
• For all in Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine and Myanmar.
• For all women in Afghanistan now banned from hearing each other’s voices.
• For those affected by natural disasters in around the world.
• For King Charles III, the UK and the Commonwealth.
• For peace and unity in countries around the World.
• For aid agencies such as “Save the Children”, Oxfam, CARE, UNICEF, World Vision.

In our community:

• For teachers and students.
• For doctors, nurses, paramedics, Coast Guard, the CFA & SES.
• For local community outreach groups such as the Dromana Community House and “Food for All”.

In our Diocese and beyond:

• A prayer for the election of a new Archbishop for our diocese:
  Eternal God, shepherd and guide, in your mercy give your Church in this diocese a shepherd after your own heart who will walk in your ways, and with loving care watch over your people. Give us a leader of vision and a teacher of your truth. So may your Church be built up and your name glorified; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
• For Archbishop Geoffrey Smith’s ministry as Primate of Australia.
• For Archbishop Philip Freier’s ministry in the Diocese of Melbourne.
• For the ministry of Bishop Paul Barker in the Jumbunna Region and Archdeacon Rev’d Sam Bleby, in the Frankston Archdeanery.
• In our Deanery, we pray for the parish of St John’s Flinders with St Mark’s Balnarring, their Vicar Rev’d Keiron Jones and Deacon Rev’d Christine Barren.
• For the work of the Church Missionary Society and Wei-Han the Victorian Director.
• For Anna Radkovic our CMS Link Missionary in Watamu, Kenya.
• For Christian churches around the world to be free to worship and be witnesses of the love of God as shown through the coming of His Son.

In our Parish:

• For our leadership and ministry teams.
• For Rev’d Janice O’Gorman.
• For the finances of our Parish.
• For our Parish, its people and those we reach out to every week.
• For the success of the new Family and Children’s Ministry.
• For the Alpha program, the leaders and all who will attend.
• For the 9am at home prayer time for the Parish, Dromana & Mornington Peninsula.
• For our Op Shop staff and all who visit each week.
• For all members of the Parish Council.
• For Hope25. That the Good News of Jesus will be known in the community of Dromana.
• For Family of Jane Hambly, Family of Fred Nicholson, Ellen, Phillip, Nikki, Jason, Bernadette & family, Noel and family, Rhiannon, Richard, Pat, Lorna & Peter, Keith S, Harry, Jen, Mike, Chloe, Ted, Monica, Jessica, Audrey, Backy, Fred, Robert, Jan, David, Guy