As followers of Jesus in Tasmania, we have been faced with a number of challenges the last few months, particularly in terms of legislation going against some of our core values and beliefs. Amidst all of this, the Salamanca Declaration is a way of saying to the government that there are many people in this state who want to affirm the classical Christian values of life, liberty and legacy. The Declaration was drawn up by five church leaders representing the major denominations in Tasmania, including Bishop John Harrower. It affirms that all human life is sacred, that we are all endowed with the liberty to worship God and have our consciences informed by our faith in God, and that the marriage between a man and woman is the best home environment to raise children and to leave a legacy for our State. The Declaration was signed by Tasmanian church leaders in April and presented to the Honourable Mr Michael Polley MHA, Speaker of the House of Representatives.

And you can sign it too! You can add your name to the list of signatories who affirm the Declaration by clicking here. Let’s keep reminding our politicians that Christians in this state are united in opposing legislation which undermines life, liberty and legacy in Tasmania.

This year, in the run up to Easter, we are going to do something a little bit different. All through the week leading up to Easter Sunday, we’re going to have the old church open as a prayer room for people to come and pray.

Inspired by the Moravian church of the 18th century, we’re aiming (!) to pray non-stop for a week. Why not sign-up for a one hour slot, any time you like day or night (!) and commit to spending that hour in the prayer room.

Pray!?
Pray!? Why bother? Well, Christians are in the amazing position of having a relationship with God, who made the whole world. We get to talk to him, and we get to listen to him. Of course, it’s not always easy to hear someone speaking when there’s lots of noise around us – so stepping aside and taking some time out just to pray can be a really great experience.

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One of the things that’s been on my heart for a while is that, as a church, we would be training, developing and helping people to become missionaries, leaders, church planters and disciple-makers. We are St Barnabas’ Church, and Barnabas was one of the people in the Bible who was fundamental in encouraging, equipping and releasing people into all that God had made them to be, and helping them to discover who God had called them to be. Without Barnabas, Paul would have probably spent the rest of his life hiding in a cave in the desert, but Barnabas said to him, “Come on, now is the time”, and Paul went on to make an enormous impact for the Kingdom of God.

I believe that we really are a Barnabas church and one aspect of that is what we are now calling “The Barnabas Team”. We are doing our best to equip young adults and students who we know, particularly through The Imagine Network (our student network), to discover all that God has called them to be and have a go at stuff. This year we are doing this for the first time, and have two young adults who have agreed to be our guinea pigs!

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Tanya and Peter have been fellowshipping with us at Barney’s for a little while now, and they are about to embark on some exciting stuff in a local school. We interviewed them last Sunday to find out a bit more about them and what they are about to do.

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We are very excited to announce the grow: weekend, for family and friends of Barney’s! It will take place from 3rd-5th May at Camp Clayton, Ulverstone. It will be a great time for all of us to grow in different ways. We will welcome some guest speakers who will be sharing with us on the topic of being ‘naturally supernatural’ and there will be a program for the kids too!

To hear Andy introducing the grow: weekend, click here.

To download a copy of the brochure, click here.

To read the brochure online, and for registration, click here.

We hope to see you there!

The English Language Cafe at Barney’s is a great place to come and practice your
conversational and listening skills. The Cafe is facilitated by
members of the Launceston community who volunteer their time to assist anyone who speaks English as a second language. In our first year – 2012 – we have seen over 100 individuals come and enjoy the discussion and activities at the Cafe. Each week the volunteers present a topic for discussion, and then we all enjoy some discussion and a variety of activities around that topic. Some of the topics that we presented this year included driving, food, greetings, small talk, Aussie animals, Tasmanian destinations and beach safety. The Cafe is not only a place to practice English, but a wonderful place to met new friends and be involved in a fun, caring community. This is what some of those who’ve attended have said about why they enjoy the English Language Cafe at Barney’s:

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New for 2013! We’ve worked out how to record audio from Barney’s gatherings and upload it onto the website! To listen to talks online which you might have missed, click on ‘resources’ and then ‘Barney’s Talks’. Or just click here.

Oliver and Rebecca are two members of our community at Barney’s who are off to do some exciting stuff for a few weeks. Here’s how they described themselves and what they are up to:

We’ve been in Launceston for about a year, we came over from Melbourne and Rebecca has been studying at WEC (Worldview College for Missionary Training). Oliver has been working for an architect who designs churches and has also been helping out at the English Language Cafe at Barney’s and working with students through the Imagine Project. We are really going to miss worship at Barney’s while we’re away.

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Last November, church leaders from across Tasmania came together for the Building a Discipleship Culture Workshop in Poatina. Set at the Poatina Lodge, those attending were greeted by the magnificent views of the Western Tiers and surrounds. We were made welcome and immediately felt at home with the 1960s decor and open fireplace. This was no ordinary ‘conference centre’ but this was going to be no ordinary conference.

Participants came from the north, south, east and west of Tasmania and ranged in age from young university leaders to those with many years ministry experience.  Meal times in themselves were an event as people gathered and shared ideas and stories they were absorbing from the event.

The main speaker was Rich Robinson, leader of the Network Church, Sheffield and 3dmUK; a network of community churches numbering some 2000 in Sheffield, England.  Why is this so significant and why have a representative from this community address leaders in Tasmania?  Because, as we were to see, the ideas presented and discussed were challenging to those from traditional church backgrounds and yet fundamental to effective church planting.

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Over the summer break, we’ll be doing our Sunday morning gatherings a little differently. Here’s what to expect:

30th December: no Sunday gathering

On Sunday 30th December, there will be no gathering in the morning, as many people are away.

In January, our Sundays will look like this:
Sunday 6th, 10am: gathering at Barney’s as usual
Sunday 13th, 10am: joining Newnham Baptist Church at 319 Invermay Road (behind ANZ bank) for their gathering
Sunday 20th, 11am: church on the beach at Lagoon Beach, Low Head, with Newnham Baptist Church and Launceston North Uniting Church, followed by BBQ and beach fun!
Sunday 27th, 10am: gathering at Barney’s joined by Newnham Baptist Church

See you there!