28th May 2025

Hearts Ready to Worship

From Travis

Over the past month I have had the privilege of worshipping (through song) with two different sets of fellow pastors gathered from across the nation. There was nothing fancy about either experience - no stages, lights, bands or hype. The first was led simply by one of the pastors on an acoustic guitar, whereas the other we had to rely on being led by lyric videos. And yet...

... and yet, common to both experiences was the way the gathered saints burst eagerly and enthusiastically from the very first lyric into worship. Not just into singing, but into worship. Not out of routine or obligation, but out of loving devotion. It was tangibly and visibly clear, that here were two groups of people who relished the chance to worship. Who delighted in being in the presence of their King. Who came ready to worship. It was so powerful!

I share these experiences to encourage us in two ways. The first, is an encouragement that the Australian church is in good hands if local churches are being led by those with such hearts for worshipping God! The second is as a reminder and an encouragement for us gather with the same heart and mind: as those eager to express our devotion to God. As those ready to respond to God in worship. As those hungry for fresh encounter with the One who saved us.

The pastoral team have been reviewing our Sunday Services and reading through the feedback from you (thank you to all who shared). As we have, one thing has been overwhelmingly obvious: we all have a common heart for our Sunday Services to be spaces of encounter with God. For them to be spaces of deep devotion, formation and discipleship.

In response, I feel the stirring of the Holy Spirit and a rising of conviction,

to call us as a church community to

come ready to worship.

To come early. To come prayed up. To come ready to sing of God's goodness. To come ready to lay down our burdens at the foot of the cross. To come ready to celebrate the forgiveness and freedom Jesus has brought. To come ready to encourage one another with the passion in our voices. To come ready to cry out on behalf of those who don't yet know him.

This Sunday, let's gather together in the room by 9:30am and by 5:00pm ready to worship.

Ministry Highlight: Backyard Baptism

Last Saturday we were thrilled to see Aston express his devotion to Jesus through Baptism!!

Aston says: I have called myself Christian and felt a relationship with God for almost all my life, however the past year and a half since attending Youth and now becoming a Youth leader I have grown closer to Him. I have been reflecting, reading the Bible and praying regularly and have been feeling ready to get baptised for a while just without finding a time or place to make it happen. At Youth on Friday night I approached Josh Kay about getting baptised and he was excited to help do it for me. After a bit of planning, we ended up at the Burdon’s house the next day where I got baptised. I think this was an important, natural next step in my faith journey as I continue to develop and express my faith. Thank you to everyone who came to support me in this time.

Praise God for Aston's faith, and please pray for him as he seeks to live as a Jesus follower for the rest of his life.

If you or someone you know is interested in declaring faith through baptism fill out our expression of interest form... here.

What's Next?

After our May Mission Month series 'More Like Jesus' finished last Sunday, we are excited to begin our next preaching series!

In the AM Service we are returning to Exodus from this Sunday. Last year we journeyed through chapters 1 - 20, exploring the powerful story of God's loving rescue of His people. Over the next six weeks we will finish the book, looking at chapters 20 - 40, exploring the importance of Covenant Relationship and the Presence of God. In so many ways, the story of God's people in Exodus mirrors and speaks into our journeys as the people of God today. So we anticipate the next six weeks being deeply impacting and personally challenging!

If you would like to catch up or revisit Exodus part 1 from last year, we have created a Youtube Playlist of those Sunday Service Livestreams here: Exodus Part 1.

In the PM Service we will continue in Mark's Gospel. These last five weeks in the opening chapters of Mark have been wonderfully refreshing, challenging and practical as we have looked at the early ministry of Jesus. And we are hungry for more!

Supporting our Next Generations

We are continuing to celebrate a fabulous BAMCAMP from last term and praying into the ongoing fruit of our youth ministry, led by Zach and our wonderful youth leaders. If you missed it last Sunday, we showed the full BAMCAMP video which you can watch here:

These peak faith experiences can be incredibly impactful! Our younger kids don't want to miss out either, so this school holidays our yr4-7s are heading to State Kids Camp.

To raise money to help get them there, they will be doing a bake sale this Sunday after both AM and PM services.

Come ready to buy a homemade cake or a slice, or simply make a donation! You can also give by direct deposit with the reference 'State Kids Camp'.

Final Call: May Mission Month

Thank you to everyone who has given generously to our May Mission Month appeal - so far we have raised enough to purchase 62 Megavoice players featuring the Old Testament in the Karamojong people’s language. 

It is not too late to give towards a player here.

Seniors Service

Thursday May 29

Join us for a great time of hymn singing, communion, encouragement and connection. This month we are excited to have Bob Gibson sharing his story!

This Sunday

This Sunday AM we return to Exodus, with Johnny speaking on Exodus 20:22-23:19 'The Covenant of the Redeemed'. We encourage you to read through the passage before Sunday, as it is a lot of ground to cover on Sunday.

This Sunday PM Travis will speak on Jesus' Parable of the Sower from Mark 4, and his message might just involve Maltesers... come to find out more!

Welcome Lunch

Sunday June 15

If you have joined us at NVBC recently, we'd love to invite you to a relaxed lunch together. These are a great way to get to know each other in a more unhurried space. RSVP here.

Prayer Night

Wednesday June 18

It has been too long! We believe that prayer is powerful and undergirds all we do at NVBC, so we invite you to join together with us for a powerful night of prayer.

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