Faith Stories, the Queensland Synod’s new resource for congregations, was launched in Redcliffe Uniting Church last month. The eight week course, written by Duncan Macleod and Graham Beattie, features Redcliffe minister Peter Armstrong as the narrator, along with members of the congregation sharing about the way they started their journey of faith.
Peter says that he hasn’t seen a course quite like Faith Stories. He says it’s great to have a resource that connects our faith with listening skills, an awareness of what God is doing in the lives of people, and a broad understanding of the gospel. “It’s not a course instructing you on how to convert people. Faith Stories is about equipping Christians with the skills and knowledge they need to bring their best to their relationships. It’s about deepening the understanding of your faith and your life. It will encourage you to strengthen your relational networks with family, friends and the workplace, and in those contexts have the skills and confidence to share your faith in effective and powerful ways.”
Georgia Dee talks about how she was sick a lot as a child in hospital. “I had the Anglican and Catholic ministers come around to my hospital bed and help me with my homework that my mother would bring me from school. And after we’d done that then they’d talk to me about the Gideon’s Bible that was always in the hospital room.”
Jacqui Le Roux grew up in a home where God was used as a swearing word. At the age of 15 she noticed that one of her friends had a natural way of talking with God. She remembers her friend asking God, “Please help us find a car park”. Jacqui remembers thinking, “I didn’t know you could talk to God like that”. She was shocked. She’d thought that God was a bit of a ‘meanie’ and a task driver. The prayer started Jacqui on a journey discovering that she could talk to God as a friend.
Rob Williams and Danielle Airton came to Redcliffe Uniting four years ago with his wife, asking to have their son Cameron baptised. Rob discovered a community that offered more than they expected and stayed around to grow a faith with a supportive family.
Danielle Airton, when she came to church, regarded herself as an atheist. Her husband had grown up in a family of faith but it was Danielle who felt stirred to seek baptism for their son Ashton. Through a “Search for Life” course she is exploring many of the questions that she’s been asking for a long time.
Greg Adsett talks about having a lifetime of involvement in the church. His father, Graeme, is a Uniting Church minister. Through Greg’s youth he was able to access a strong group of peers through a youth group. It was through running a drop in centre that Greg saw that God could change lives. It was in his teenage years that Greg made a commitment to follow.
Lynne Angel, at the age of 14, was invited by a friend to join a local Baptist youth group in Sydney. Over four months Lynne learned about the way God had been involved in her life, protecting her. She gained a faith that taught her to love other people.
Friends Darren Born and Gordon Hart share a common faith, even though they come from very different backgrounds. Darren talks about growing up in a church family, based on camp sites run by his parents. He didn’t have much choice as a teenager about being part of the church but he was deeply influenced by high school camps. Gordon comes from a bike culture. He brought his daughter to church one day. As they got out of the car his daughter jammed her fingers in the car door. The minister prayed for her. She stopped crying and miraculously her fingers were fine. Gordon realised that there was a power in this world that was much better and bolder than him.
Peter in his introduction to the course, reminds us of the importance of relationships and faith sharing.
“Faith Stories is designed to empower you with the confidence and capacity to connect those you know with the story of Jesus. Through the strongest of human needs, relationships. While technologies come and go the need for people to connect to others never fades and in many respects seems to grow stronger every day. In a world that lacks intimacy there is a wonderful chance, through relationships and friendships, for Christians to share their love and hope of a personal relationship with God.”
