Hi Church Family,
 
We had some of our kids return to school this week as the restrictions around COVID-19 are beginning to ease. To say they were excited to get back to their friends and some kind of normal routine is probably an understatement and they have really enjoyed being back at school. I had the opportunity of working at a different school to them this week too and observed just how excited kids, in general, are at getting back into the routine of school life. I think we all are pretty keen to get back to ‘Normal’ whatever that is.
 
I also think we are all aware that this will be a bit of a slow process and as such I will keep you informed along the way with regard to what’s happening for Church at Granite. I’m open to ideas and suggestions from people as to what this may look like and I’m aware that different people will be comfortable with different levels of interaction over the coming weeks and months, so I’m sure there will be a bit of mix and match along the way. For example, there may be some people gathering at the Church Building and some at home or some may meet in groups and log into Zoom that way. We need to be creative in our approach to getting back together and still be mindful of the implications of what we do. All while we look forward to when we can all be back together in the same place having a service followed by a shared lunch.
 
In the meantime, we will continue to gather together on ZOOM at 10:30am every Sunday…
 
This Sunday as we meet to worship, reflect, and connect as a community of believers in Jesus Christ, let’s focus on Him. We’re not meeting in a Church building or at singular place at the moment and as I sit here typing away on the keyboard the words to of that beautiful Matt Redman song ‘Heart of Worship’ have come into my head. The lyrics go… When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus. Jesus remains the focus of our Worship, wherever we are, and whatever we are doing not just on Sunday but every day throughout the week. When we come together, we don’t necessarily worship more, but the worship is magnified as we do it together as followers of Jesus. I hope that you feel that in some way even as we meet on ZOOM.
 
This week I will take a detour from Matthew and look at 1 Peter 1:13-2:3 It’s interesting to consider these words of Peter in light of how we see him in the Gospels. How do you view Peter and the other Disciples? In the passage above Peter’s focus is on Holy Living, on Sunday we will dig a little deeper into what that means and how we do it. If you get a chance, it would be worthwhile reading the first two chapters of 1 Peter and then the rest later, It’s a great book 😊 Being Holy is something that we should take seriously as Christians; not just out of obedience but also because it sets us up for right living as followers of Jesus. What do you think it means to be holy in all you do (v15)? What can you and I do to be more holy?
 
Join the Zoom Service this Sunday at 10:30am
by using the following link:
 
https://zoom.us/j/474053157
Meeting ID: 474 053 157
 
If you do not have internet access you can also phone in using the following phone number:
PH: 7018 2005
You will then be prompted to enter the Meeting ID: 474 053 157
 
Looking forward to seeing you on Sunday morning at 10:30am
______________________
Please don’t forget that we can still directly deposit tithes and offerings into the Church bank account during this time. Donations for the building maintenance works can also be deposited into this account with the reference to ‘Building’ so that it goes towards that fund. The details are below…
Granite Community Church        BSB: 633 000        Acc: 16 086 8402
 
Hope you are enjoying your Weekend!
 
Blessings,
 
Ash Buchanan
Senior Pastor
Granite Community Church
www.granite.church
0408 942 145

Hi Church Family,

Communion This Sunday

I had thought that during this period of isolation time would seem to go more slowly than usual but it seems to be racing through faster than ever. What has your experience been? As we see restrictions easing and things getting back to some kind of normality over the next weeks and months; please pray for the leaders of our Church. I am sure everyone wants to get back out to ‘the paddock’ as soon as possible. We want that too and we also want to make the right decisions at the right times in a way that is safe for everyone and complies with the advice given by the government.

In the meantime, we will continue to gather together on ZOOM at 10:30am every Sunday… BYO Coffee and Carrot sticks

Join the Zoom Service this Sunday

by using the following link:
https://zoom.us/j/474053157
Meeting ID: 474 053 157

If you do not have internet access you can also phone in using the following phone number:
PH: 7018 2005
You will then be prompted to enter the Meeting ID: 474 053 157

This Sunday as we worship together, we will have a chance to sing, to share in prayer and have communion as we reflect on our Saviour and all he has done for us. He is worthy of all our praise!

We will also be looking at Matthew 16:1-20 In these verses we see Peters response to Jesus question of ‘Who do you say that I am?’ and Peter’s response is beautiful. He says “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” If someone asked you who Jesus was, what would your response be? It’s worth thinking about. Jesus also has more to say in these verses about the religious leaders of the day and there’s plenty for us to think about as we reflect on his words together.

Looking forward to seeing you on Sunday morning at 10:30am

______________________

Please don’t forget that we can still directly deposit tithes and offerings into the Church bank account during this time. Donations for the building maintenance works can also be deposited into this account with the reference to ‘Building’ so that it goes towards that fund. The details are below…
Granite Community Church        BSB: 633 000        Acc: 16 086 8402

Hope you are enjoying your Day!

Blessings,

Ash Buchanan
Senior Pastor
Granite Community Church
www.granite.church
0408 942 145

Hi Church Family,

It was encouraging to hear from Dan Andrews earlier in the week regarding the way forward for Victoria as the government starts to ease COVID-19 restrictions. Being able to have some family and friends over is a big relief. I hope you are going ok and finding time to stay in touch with each other. If you would like a pastoral visit, or prayer or would like to chat about anything at all please contact me via email [email protected] or on my mobile (0408 942 145) I’m looking forward to being able to get back out to ‘The Paddock’, however I think it will still be quite some time before we can meet as a larger group.
In the meantime, we will continue to gather together on ZOOM at 10:30am every Sunday… BYO Coffee and Morning Tea (not to share)
Join the Zoom Service this Sunday
by using the following link:
https://zoom.us/j/474053157
Meeting ID: 474 053 157

If you do not have internet access you can also phone in using the following phone number:
PH: 7018 2005
You will then be prompted to enter the Meeting ID: 474 053 157

This Sunday we will be continuing our Matthew series as we finish chapter 15 with verses 21 – 39. Here we see Jesus interaction with a Canaanite Woman who displays great faith. It is interesting to consider the reaction of Jesus disciples in this case. What were they thinking? How would you and I have reacted in the same circumstance? After this interaction we see Jesus compassion, as great crowds of people come to him and he heals them and then performs another food miracle by feeding the multitude with seven loaves and a few small fish. What do you find significant in these verses? I keep going back to verse 31 where it says… ‘And they praised the God of Israel’

During the Zoom service we will also have time to Worship through singing and prayer and we will have a chat to a couple of old friends.
I'm looking forward to sharing this time together with you :-)
______________________

Please don’t forget that we can still directly deposit tithes and offerings into the Church bank account during this time. Donations for the building maintenance works can also be deposited into this account with the reference to ‘Building’ so that it goes towards that fund. The details are below…
Granite Community Church        BSB: 633 000        Acc: 16 086 8402

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13 NLT)

Blessings to you as you follow Jesus,

Ash Buchanan
Senior Pastor
Granite Community Church
www.granite.church
0408 942 145

Dear Church Family,
 
Don't forget Mother's Day tomorrow!!!      

I hope that you have had a good week. Our house has been full of activity with people doing School and work and just enjoying each other’s company. It sounds like our house is a bed of roses doesn't it? But it is actually really hard at times. We have our fair share of frustrating moments and challenges of various kinds too. Life is a series of ups and downs even when there is no global pandemic. So, this current climate just adds to the complexity of living in a sinful, fallen world. It’s assuring then when we read Jesus' words in John 16:33 where he says ‘I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth, you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
These words lead me to Proverbs 3:5-6  (NLT)
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.
6 Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take.
Our God is greater than anything we face, so we can be sure that when we seek Him with all our hearts, He will guide us. That’s my experience and I pray it will be yours at this time and throughout your lives as you follow Jesus.
 
This Sunday is Mother’s Day, so we will be focusing our ZOOM service on celebrating our mums. When I think about mums the first thing that comes to mind is love. Tomorrow we will have a look at some verses from the Bible that speak about love and we will reflect on how they relate to mothers and to children. If you want to get a head start you could read 1 John 4:7-21 and think about how the statement ‘God is Love’ impacts your idea of what love is?
 
As part of our Service tomorrow we will be having Communion too, so make sure you have your emblems ready (bread and juice, or equivalent) and we will take part in that together.
We may also have some special guests, making an appearance during the service, so that's exciting 😉
And we will be giving an update on where we are at with the Building Maintenance Fund Appeal!
 
Looking forward to seeing you on ZOOM tomorrow at 10:30 am
 
Join the Zoom Service this Sunday
by using the following link:
 
https://zoom.us/j/474053157
Meeting ID: 474 053 157
 
If you do not have internet access you can also phone in using the following phone number:
PH: 7018 2005
You will then be prompted to enter the Meeting ID: 474 053 157
  
Please don’t forget that we can still directly deposit tithes and offerings into the Church bank account during this time. Donations for the building maintenance works can also be deposited into this account with the reference to ‘Building’ so that it goes towards that fund. The details are below…
Granite Community Church        BSB: 633 000        Acc: 16 086 8402
 
As always remain strong in your faith. Trust God. Be there for each other and others in the community. Pray for each other and those who are making the big decisions. Be a positive voice and presence in the world and follow Jesus in everything.
 
Ash Buchanan
Senior Pastor
Granite Community Church
www.granite.church
0408 942 145

Good morning all 😊

It's been a cool week, with lots of rain and even though we are still largely housebound, we praise God for all of it.
Blessed be His name in all of the ups and downs of life. He is faithful!
It's great that we can continue to meet together during this time, to hear from God, to seek Him, to worship Him, and to encourage each other.








​This week on the Zoom Service we will be continuing our series in Matthew. I'll be looking briefly at chapter 15:1-20
Have a look at verse 12 and consider the question of... why? Who do you personally relate to most in this passage?

Tomorrow is the first Sunday of the month so make sure you have your crunchies ready (if you deserve one 😁)
We will also be having a missionary update and time to sing to our awesome God together.

I'm really looking forward to seeing you online at 10:30am!

Here's the link:
https://zoom.us/j/474053157
Meeting ID: 474 053 157

If you do not have internet access you can also phone in using the following phone number:
PH: 7018 2005
You will then be prompted to enter the Meeting ID: 474 053 157

Remember that offerings are going directly into the Church bank account during this time please. (If you want to give cash please contact me to arrange this) Donations for the building maintenance works can also be deposited into this account with the reference to ‘Building’ so that it goes towards that fund. The details are below…
Granite Community Church        BSB: 633 000        Acc: 16 086 8402

As always remain strong in your faith. Trust God. Be there for each other and others in the community. Pray for each other and those who are making the big decisions. Be a positive voice and presence in the world and follow Jesus in everything.

Blessings,

Ash Buchanan
Senior Pastor
Granite Community Church
www.granite.church
0408 942 145