Recently André, one of our church “regulars”, did this pencil sketch (approximately 40cm X 27cm) of our property and thought we might like to use it to raise money for any special project we had in mind.
So this beautifully framed picture is now up for auction, (we have called it a “J-Bay” auction) with proceeds going towards the purchase of a much needed new whiteboard for the church.
Bids close at 5pm on Sunday 10 December and must reach Pastor Alan by then.
Bids will be published on this website as soon as possible after they are received.
The current high bid is $300.00.

The winning bid was $300 by a syndicate which intends to donate the drawing to the church. How good is that!

Last Sunday morning we had our annual Sunday School presentation. The children presented several musical items and a play depicting the formation of the British and Foreign Bible Society in 1804. The kids and teachers did a wonderful job. There were certainly a few future preachers on display! We are very proud of our young people and grateful for the teachers who give so much of their time and efforts to ensure we have a great children’s program on Sunday mornings.
On Sunday night we had an evening of praise and worship. Alan led us, and then gave a short message, based on Malachi 3:1, on God coming suddenly to his temple. He encouraged us to press on, expecting the Holy Spirit to move, from our perspective, suddenly. We saw, however that God’s “suddenlies” never catch him by surprise; he always has a perfect timing for what he wants to do. We then entered into a further time of praise and worship. The Holy Spirit moved gently but powerfully on several of those present as we waited on God and continued with a beautiful time of singing and playing in the Spirit.
On Friday night we launched our new youth group, amidst great enthusiasm, as Alan met with about a dozen young people and discussed plans for a new youth ministry. So we’re on our way, ready for a great year of growth in our young people next year.

Another great Sunday at Bendigo Christian Fellowship.
In the morning meeting Alan led us in a great time of praise and worship – free, enthusiastic and inspirational.
Carol spoke at communion time giving us an object lesson by distributing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, which we all brought to the table as we collected the elements. We then ate the bread and drank the wine as we looked outside the building towards all the other people God is calling to complete the picture.
Our guest speaker was Barry Burski, a South African born Jew from the Celebrate Messiah ministry. Barry shared a message titled “The Credentials of the Messiah”, in which he showed us how Jesus fulfilled the messianic prophecies, highlighting in particular Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 7:14, Isaiah 9:6-7 and Micah 5:2. The teaching was excellent and Barry’s passion for his people to see Jesus as the Messiah was obvious.
In the evening meeting Wendy led us in another relaxed and free time of praise and worship, then Alan built on last Sunday night’s message, “Jesus heals – who, how and why”, with some inspirational preaching on healing today through the church, looking at a number of miracles recorded in the book of Acts. We saw that there was no particular “method” used, but that the early church moved in authority and power, fulfilling Jesus’ promises as laid out in John 14:11-12 and Mark 16:15-18.
At the end of the meeting a number of people sought healing and Alan had members of the Body lay hands on people and minister healing, with several people reporting physical evidence of the presence of God.
Watch this space for more testimonies – God is doing great things!

The good times continue to roll at Bendigo Christian Fellowship.
On Sunday morning Sue shared a short message around the communion table based on an adaptation of American President Kennedy’s words, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what can you do for your country”.
Then Alan shared an encouraging and prophetic message based on Hosea 6:1-2. He told us that the church is now moving into the third day and that God is in the process of not only reviving the church, but restoring it to the pattern he originally designed, built on the foundation of apostolic vision and prophetic revelation as shown in Ephesians 2:19-22. He said that old structures are being torn down and apostolic and prophetic ministries raised up, crossing denominational boundaries. We are in the midst of what history may well show to be the greatest reformation of the church in its history.
In the evening meeting Alan preached on the topic of “Jesus heals – who, how and why”. We saw that Jesus did not heal every sick person he saw, but did heal everyone who came to him to seek healing. We saw that he used a variety of methods, such as a command, a rebuke, physical touch etc, but always with authority and never asking the Father to heal. We saw that the underlying motivation for healing was his compassion. This is the model for us as we seek to bring God’s healing to those around us.
Next week we have the Jewish ministry, Celebrate Messiah, coming to share with us the gospel from the Jewish historical perspective in what promises to be an enlightening and encouraging time around the word of God.

A note from Pastor Alan:
Earlier this year, Helen burst into my office holding a pathology report, which contained the words “no evidence of Hepatitis C”. Ten years earlier she had been diagnosed with the disease and the prognosis was not good. Recently I asked her to share this testimony to the healing power of God, but healing her of Hepatitis C was only one of the many things God has done in Helen’s life. Here is Helen’s story …

When asked to do my testimony on Hepatitis C, I hesitated and said could I think about this.
Almost immediately the words “When”, “How” and “Why” came to mind.
After pondering those words for several hours, I decided to write down my thoughts in regards to my healing.
With tears rolling down my cheeks, the awesomeness of my Lord Jesus Christ overwhelmed me.
I’d like to share this with all of you.
Almost 4 years ago, I walked through the doors of the CRC church here in Long Gully. I was a mess, ready to take my own life. It was like my insides looked like my outsides, tired, run down, hurt … truly it was just as ugly on the inside as well as the outside. If there was one word that describes the way it was, it would be the word “failed” in capital letters all over my life. Everything I’d ever done, I failed, my mothering, marriage, schooling, my ability to function as a person, the list went on.
I knew I had a short time before my liver would stop working, I was on borrowed time.
I had already committed my life and knew Jesus to be my Lord and my Saviour, as I had been attending Pastor Pauline’s church in Ararat. There my Jesus allowed me to grow.
Oh, how I remember those days in the seven years I backslid.
If I had anything that had never been done to me, those seven years made up for it. I can’t explain the pain, the heartache, the evil that came into my life in that time. I’d lost everything a human could lose.
So when I walked through our doors here at CRC, no-one could take anything else from me. I was so lost but deep down I knew Jesus loved me, even if no-one else did, Jesus did. Even though people doubted me and told me I’d only last 6 months, 4 years later I’m still here growing stronger in God.
So my walk with my Jesus became so real, he’d become my closest friend. No-one could ever know me the way He does.
You see my testimony is not, He healed me of Hepatitis C.
Jesus has healed me of all kinds of stuff, because I’m 100% sold out to Jesus.
I’m His to do with as He pleases because I made a right old mess of my life.
I’ve no idea when this wonderful miracle of healing took place.
Nor do I have any idea of how Jesus did it.
But to the why, sure that’s easy, it’s because He loves me!

Helen

Last Sunday’s meetings were again wonderful. God is speaking to us and doing some great things in our church.
On Sunday morning Alan’s communion message, based on Hebrews 2:14-15 revolved around the humanity of Jesus and what that means to us. As we meditated on these things and gave thanks to God, we went into a beautiful time of worship and singing in the Spirit.
Our guest preacher was Franklyn Elliott, National Director of Healing Rooms Australia, who was in Bendigo to officially open the city’s first healing room. Franklyn opened up Matthew chapters 8 and 9 and took us through a day in the life of Jesus. We saw that he healed a leper, healed a Roman centurion’s servant by simply speaking a word, healed Peter’s mother in law of a fever, and then, with a word, drove out demons from many who were demon-possessed and healed all the sick. He calmed a storm, cast demons out of two demon-possessed men, healed a paralytic and upset some religious leaders. He raised a girl from the dead, healed a woman with a discharge of blood, healed two blind men and drove a demon out of a dumb man and healed him.
We saw, in Matthew 9:35, that Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. We were encouraged to see that this pattern is now the calling that is upon the church.
The message fitted in exactly with where our Pastor has been leading us and confirms so much of what God has been saying to the church.
On Sunday night, before preaching, Alan led us in a time of laying hands on people present with particular healing needs and each one reported that their symptoms disappeared or significantly reduced immediately. He then picked up on the theme of the morning and gave a message based on Matthew 8:13, 16-17 and Matthew 9:28-29. He showed us that faith is the key to releasing healing and that the problem is often not so much unbelief as wrong believing. We need to take God at his word and not allow circumstances to shape our believing. Expounding Hebrews 11:20-27 Alan explained that people of faith see things that unbelievers don’t and encouraged us to use our imaginations to see what God can do in and through us.
God is certainly doing some awesome things in our church. Watch for more testimonies coming soon!