Now some of you perhaps have heard
how Paul in Troas preached the Word;
and how the week so quickly passed
that on the night that was his last
he preached quite long to compensate
(although the hour was very late).

But some there are who still don’t know
that seated by an open window
there was one weary listener
whose sleepiness caused quite a stir!

Eutychus was the young man’s name.
It’s hard to say who was to blame,
but Eutychus couldn't stay awake,
which just then was a huge mistake.

From "Eutychus Falls Asleep" by Eric Metaxas

A Word For The Church In Perth In 2012
by Ps Paul Botha
The Church in Perth is like the Boy Eutychus:
A Boy is immature, not yet fully formed into maturity and manhood. His identity is still being forged. He is not at his full strength yet and is still in the process of developing stamina to match his strength.

I believe God would say to us that we must make maturity our goal. If maturity is our goal, then mission will be the outcome. Mission is best accomplished from a base of strength. It is clear that the destiny for the Church in Perth is to be a mission base, training, equipping and sending missionaries into all the world. To do this effectively, the Church in Perth must be mature, healthy, strong and persevering.

Currently, the Church in Perth is a boy, demonstrating massive potential, but still lacking the discipline and perseverance that the rigours of responsibility brings to mature Churches. God’s desire is that the Church in Perth would mature from being a boy into being a Man, fully equipped for the good works we were created for.

The boy Eutychus fell 3 stories, in 3 stages, to his death. In a similar vein, the Lord showed me how the Church in Perth has fallen in 3 stages.

1. The first fall of the boy was to fall asleep. No doubt the weariness of another busy day made the boy tired. The drowsiness and fog began to settle on him, and he lost the fight to keep his eyes open. Somehow he had managed to make himself just comfortable enough to be able to slumber and doze, until finally, he fell asleep.

Just so, the Church in Perth has fallen asleep to the urgency of the hour. Wearied from busy-ness, and losing the fight to stay watchful and prayerful, many in the Church in Perth are dozing and nodding off, even while being on watch on the walls. Some have even fallen asleep, but they are not even aware of it (as we never are, until somebody wakes us up!).

2. In a deep sleep, the boy shifts and moves, not realizing how precariously he is perched, and he falls out the window, plummeting to the bottom.

There are windows of opportunity that the Church in Perth is sovereignly positioned to optimize. There are times, seasons, projects, tipping points, that the Lord has brought and will continue to bring to our City, let’s call these windows of opportunity? But the Church in Perth is asleep to these windows of opportunity, choosing instead to shift and reposition ourselves for greater comfort and ease.

3. Many in the Church in Perth fell asleep, fell out and are now dead, the problem is that they just don’t know it! Like Paul warned Timothy, there are many who profess to hold to a form of Godliness, yet they deny the power of true Godliness, that of being transformed and conformed to the image of Christ, and of continuously growing up into His fullness (not some lesser version that we make up to justify our position, petulance or passivity).

It seems almost unbelievable, but the Bible tells us, so it must be true, that this boy could fall asleep and die under the preaching and ministry of the Apostle Paul! The Church in Perth has been blessed with many great ministry gifts -great preachers, great evangelists, great miracle workers, great apostles, great prophets, great pastors, all through the Church in Perth. It is not the fault of the leaders alone, for the state of the Church in Perth, we are all responsible for our condition.

But praise be to God for the story of Eutycus doesn't end in death. Paul went down, threw himself on the boy and wrapped his arms around him. The primary focus for the Church in Perth, is to fulfill our mandate, our assignment, from the Lord Jesus.

What is that assignment? I believe it is to be a Missionary Training and Sending Base. This requires a high demand on the maturity, service and sacrifice of the saints in Perth. I believe that if we are faithful in this regard, then we will become the City of Light, shining brightly in this world. Then we will become a City of Refuge, prosperous and secure, regardless of world economies and the shakings coming soon (or even now), to all the Earth.

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News & Commentaries
Jan16 US Supreme Court rules 9-0 for Churches in landmark religious freedom case. It ruled unanimously in favor of a church’s right to be itself, and its freedom to assign its ministries. Church employees cannot sue for employment discrimination under this 'ministerial exception' to anti-discrimination laws and a setback to President Obama's Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
“Allowing anti-discrimination lawsuits against religious organizations could end up forcing churches to take religious leaders they no longer want. Such action interferes with the internal governance of the church, depriving the church of control over the selection of those who will personify its beliefs.” - Chief Justice John Roberts.
read full article

Jan13 Same-sex marriage activists taking actions on court, that is, the Margaret Court Arena at the coming Australia Open in protest against the views expressed by pastor Margaret Court for expression her view that same-sex marriage is unhealthy and unnatural. Activists are planning to unfurl 'rainbow flags' as their sign of protest. In response to the planned protest pastor Margaret has this to say, "I actually love homosexual people, I do not have anything against them. It's just my view and it's in the scriptures ... The Bible will always be the TV guide to my life."
source: WAToday.com.au

Nominated Rev Margaret Court as an Austrialian National Living Treasure

Dec 3 Labor voted in favour of same-sex marriage in defiance of the warning within the Labor delegates of electorate backlashs and the Pandora's box of social chaos that will be opened when marriage is redefined.
ED: No children can be produced from a same sex marriage. Where will the shortfall in working Australians coming from to upkeep the ageing population? This is a question skipped in the debates. Europe had gone into that same path much earlier and the population void is been filled by immigrants. Not unlike the measures taken today by central banks to print more currency to overcome the GFC woes of today the future generations will be made to pay for the convenience of a few of today's generation.

Read also: Kevin Rudd's sister quit Labor Party over same-sex marriage

Bill Muehlenberg's Commentary which include Labor's Barry Cohen criticism of his party

Nov 28 The Syrian Church & Arab Spring uprising. Behind the news of violence and Arab League sanctions of President Assad's crackdown on demonstrators the future of the Syrian Church is very much ignored. Unlike the Coptics in Egypt the Syrian Christians, though forming proportion (10%) to the total population, had not known to be supportive of the uprising. Already threats against the Church had been made by leaders in the uprising. The believers in Antioch, the Syrian city where missionary efforts were centered during Paul's time, were as credited for being called Christians for the very first time (Acts 11:26). Syria had also served as a sanctuary for fleeing Iraqi Christians. Should the little buffer that Christian in Syria now had against an all out Muslim aggression against Israel be further weakened the sign is ominous for Israel. Turkey (the nation from the north) and Syria are close allies.

Nov 2 WA government introduces bill to legalise prostitution in 'tolerated zones'. According to a report from ACL legalising brothels, contrary to the intention, only increases the harms of the prostitution industry. The legalisation of prostitution in other Australian states has failed. Despite brothels being legalised in 1999 in Queensland, the University of Queensland estimates that 90 per cent of prostitution in that state remains illegal. The problem of human trafficking remains closely linked with prostitution. Legalising prostitution also sends the message that the purchase of a woman for sex is acceptable and tolerated by the government. It tells men that it is okay to buy women and use them for sex.
Make a Stand
Sex Slavery by Four Corners

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