the matthews family

team australia / church planters

3.13

Serviettes, The Panel, Afterwork, House & School

Hello from the land Down Under,

Luke 18 :17 (ESV)

“Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

The kids started attending Australian Christian College (college is the term for primary & high school in Australia) this year.

Serviettes: A tradition that my Mum used to do for my brother & I, was to write a note on my serviettes (napkin in Australian) in my Speed Racer (or was it Fat Albert) lunch box. If anyone saw it while I was at school, I would act like the note was not cool, but I will admit I looked forward to her words during the day. So, I thought I would do that for our kids. Something simple, but a message, from their Dad,  to encourage them during the day. One day after school, I tried to use the serviette  to clean Caroline’s face, because I saw that it was still in her lunchbox. A look of terror went over her face and tears started to form. Ahh…What had I done to cause the waterworks? (I am pretty hopeless when it comes to understanding the hearts of girls, sometimes) Later that night, Cathy explained the reaction to me. Caroline saved all of the napkins, because Daddy had written messages to her. She has all of the napkins stashed away in her little corner of special things. This explained why I am sternly reminded if I ever forget to write her a message. Also, I pity the person who touches the serviettes or tries to ‘recycle’ them. She loves getting the message from Dad and she cherishes the notes. (Please do not send me any messages on idols, she is five!) Children always are great for lessons in life and it continues to  amaze me how we can learn something from the devotion and love of a five year old.

I would be going too far to compare my messages on serviettes to the Word of God. Yet, the Bible is the Father’s message to us. Do we treat His message to us with this level of devotion? I was taken back with the impact that this simple action by Caroline had on me and my response to God’s Word. I do my devotions, I study the bible daily and I seek out good bible teachers to study under. Yet, do I look for His message with this fervor? Do my actions on responding to His message to me, show the same level of conviction? All of these are rather self-examining questions and to my shame the answer would have to be, ‘no’.  Thanks to Caroline and the gift she is to us, I have learned to love the Lord’s Word with a new vigger and I saw again why we are asked to have a child-like faith.

Panel + Series:

We started a new method of reaching out to  the communities around Sydney. Prior to every series at City Bible Forum we have been coordinating The Panel. It is a panel of three ‘experts’ on a topic from different positions. They come in for the lunch time and discuss/debate a topic and then open the floor for questions form the audience.

We have had two panels and they have met with Standing Room Only. Great discussion and questions. Also, it has translated to increased attendance at our lunch time meetings. We are meeting new people, especially non-believers, who are coming along to hear what our speakers have to say from the Bible.

If you would like to watch the videos, be part of the discussion or see the images from the panels go to City Bible Forum, Sydney. The two panels that have commenced, Imagine no religion…would we be better off? and Crossing Over… Is there anything after this life?

CBF Afterwork:

We have been looking for options to consider people coming together for a potential church plant. Afterwork is one of those considerations. We have contacted people who are seeking to know more about the bible and Jesus. They are not currently connected to a church and are looking for further study or just getting started. So, we are currently meeting with a group of about 15+ people on Wednesday nights. Please pray for the growth and fruit from this ministry.

Glorious Hope Baptist Church:

Peaks and valleys – We started this year with the hiring of a youth pastor and the youth group was quite excited about the consistency of good Bible teaching and fellowship. Unfortunately, the young man had to resign due to family issues a couple weeks into the term. So, the kids have acted well to the situation, but we could use your prayers on this issue.

School:

The kids are getting adjusted to school. Rebeca & Hope are getting adjusted to the rigors of year 11. It is very intense compared to homeschooling, but they do love the friendships they are making. They are a blessing to the school and the teachers do appreciate them in class. Josh seems to have a good ‘band of brothers’ in his classmates. School is challenging, but he is excelling in Mandarin (Chinese) and Art. Also, he placed second in swimming (50 M Freestyle) and cross country (2km run) and qualified for zone. Caroline, as the principal stated, could be left alone with the class and could teach it for the day. She loves school, her teachers and all of her classmates. She is ‘tutoring’ some of the other little girls in her class. (Yet she thinks the word tutor is a funny sounding word, ‘tooter’… must get it from her uncle)

House:

The house we rent is on the market for sale and we are looking to move closer to the school. The rental market is less than 1% of the housing market in Sydney. Needless to say, it is quite competitive. We could use your prayers. We need a house for ministry, that fits out family and that we can afford.

Well that is the info on the Matthews for now. Thanks for all of your prayers and we look forward to hearing from you soon. Keep glorifying the Lord.

The adventure continues…

Russ, Cathy, Becca, Hope, Joshua & Caroline

 

2.12

Panel + Series, School, Youth & House

Hello from Down Under,

Thanks for your prayers and questions about our various ministries & our life in Australia. It has been a busy couple of weeks in Sydney and we wanted to get you up to speed on all that is happening.

Panel + Series: At City Bible Forum we have looked at trying a new format for our talk series each week.

Format: Each month the Forum would begin with a Talking Point issue. We would have a panel of 3-4 ‘experts’ on the various topics. Then from the panel, the following weeks would be a series answering many of the discussion points from a Biblical perspective.

Imagine series: Panel discussion would utilise the lyrics from the John Lennon song and discuss the idea Imagine there was no religion- would we be better off? Then Al Stewart would do a series for three weeks on the Biblical perspective of these implications based in the New Testament. Our panelists are Dr. John Dickson (Biblical historian), Jane Caro (Writer/Atheist) , Dr Tanveer Ahmed (Writer /Clinical Psychiatrist), Simon Smart (Director of the Centre for Public Christianity) & Antony Leowenstein (Jewish- Atheist / Writer). Find out more on our website: City Bible Forum

Results: We had both panel discussions and it was exciting to see rooms with standing room only and an approximate attendance of 300 people. All of the details can be seen on our Facebook page City Bible Forum, Sydney. If you would like to dialogue with our panelists on the topics, please write in on the Discussion boards. You will have pictures, audio, and discussions on Facebook site, video of the events should be added after Wednesday.

School: The kids started their school year (Our school year starts in January, at the end of our summer) at the Australian Christian College (College is the name for primary & high school in Australia). There are many changes and challenges going from home schooling, but they are adapting to the home work and classroom setting. They enjoy the school, their new friends, sport and many of their teachers. Pray that their transition goes well and they continue to serve our Lord and Savour in all they are doing.

Youth: Glorious Hope Baptist hired a new youth pastor this year, Rubin Noel. The kids are excited about his leadership and input. He looks to be a good addition to our church family. Pray for him as he teaches through James this term.

House: We are looking to find a house closer to the school and on a train line. Pray we can find the ideal house for us to serve in ministry and will be closer to the school.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…

The Matthews Family

1.27

Caroline’s Doctor’s appt, School & Panel + series

Caroline’s Doctors Appt

We wanted to update you on Caroline’s doctor’s appt. with the pediatric cardiologist. If you remember last year, Caroline had been diagnosed with a development of tissue on one of the valves of her heart. It causes a slight leakage or murmur in her heart. The specialists at the time stated there was no concern at that time and we would need to come in for an evaluation each year. If there is any growth, she would need to have surgery.

Come to find out this condition only occurs in approx. 2% of people and usually needs surgery. Our cardiologist has had to operate on all of her patients that have this condition in the past.

It has been a year since Caroline was diagnosed with this condition. She has not had any ill effects since the diagnosis. She was a champion at the doctor this week. After looking at her heart, the cardiologist saw no growth in the tissue and did not see the need for surgery at this time. Caroline even said, “I like going to the doctor, ” as we left the office. What a trooper. We will need to go back for another evaluation in 12 months. Thanks for your prayers.

School

A big day for all on Monday, all of the kids start school at the Australian Christian College (Colleges are the schools prior to University in Australia) Yes, our school year starts in January, after summer in Australia. Quite an adjustment from homeschooling for Cathy and the kids. Please be praying they all adjust well to the transition.

Panel + Series

City Bible Forum is changing the format for the Forums for 2011. It is exciting changes, but not without its challenges. We would appreciate your prayers for it. Details about City Bible Forum at www.citybibleforum.org

Format: Each month the Forum would begin with a Talking Point issue. We would have a panel of 3-4 ‘experts’ on the various topics. Then from the panel, the following weeks would be a series answering many of the discussion points from a Biblical perspective.

eg: Imagine series: Panel discussion would utilise the lyrics from the John Lennon song and discuss the idea Imagine there was no religion, God, heaven or hell… Then Al Stewart would do a series for three weeks on the Biblical perspective of these implications based in the New Testament. Our panelists are Dr. John Dickson (biblical historian), Jane Caro (Writer/Athiest) & Dr Tanveer Ahmed (Writer /Clinical Psychiatrist/ Moderate Muslim).

Panel format: Three to four individuals would be willing to discuss their view on the topic. It is not a debate, but an interactive discussion with a moderator and the audience. We would have key people set in the audience who have a specific view on this topic to set in motion the conversation. We are following the model of SBS ‘INSIGHT’ for the format. Time: 1:10-1:50 (Wednesdays and Thursdays) First week of each month.

Panelists: We would like the panel to be a mix of differing view points. We have a mixed audience of approximately 200+ each week. The experts we are contacting are not desiring to recruit for their own cause, but willing to intellectually discuss their view with an audience and others in a panel atmosphere.

Panel and series topics: Imagine no religion, Crossing Over: Is there anything after this life?, Why do we do what we do? Analysing the Human Condition, 2012 and end times: A look at the book of Revelation and others. All will follow with a series based on a biblical perspective of the topic.

We would appreciate your prayers for this format change and that many non-Christians would come to hear the panel and the series.

Thanks for your support and prayers.

The adventure continues…

The Matthews Family

11.06

Home again… thanks for everything

Thanks for your prayers and the time we had with you in the US. We have made it home to Australia. Only one missing box, but I am sure it will show up soon. The flights went well and we are thankful to be back in Oz. We were able to make it to Glorious Hope Baptist on Sunday and we have a Annual General Meeting with ABWE on Monday. We are feeling the effects of jetlag, but all in all it is going well. We hope to get the house all put together & life back to normal in the coming days. We will send out a more extensive update soon. Thanks for everything.

Projects to work on & prayer requests:

-Direction for new church plant; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011

-Direction for ABWE with planning for 2011 & leadership

-Direction for housing & schooling for 2011

-Funds one desktop computer  - Our computers need an upgrade to keep up with the demand of the city ministry (Approx. cost :$800 -1000)

-Funds for  a new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

-Funds for a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla) Approx. cost: $15,000

Thank you for your prayers and support.

Here is how you can support us monthly, increase your support or with a one time gift.

It is easy as 1-2-3

1. Go to www.abwe.org and click on the GIVE tab (It is in the upper right corner in an orange box)
2. Put in our name and the amount & follow the instructions
3. Our account number is 0132363

The adventure continues…
Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope , Joshua & Caroline

10.22

2 more weeks of furlough… Hope

“Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope.” -Psalm 119: 49

This will be one of our last furlough updates. Since in less than two weeks we will leave for Australia. We have had a great time with our churches, supporters, friends & family while we have been in the US. The time has gone by quickly and many have been asking us to get together in the last two weeks. Our schedule is pretty full. We will be in two more churches (First Family Church-24 Oct. am & Saylorville Baptist – 31 Oct. am & pm), speaking at a youth event (Mt. Pleasant @ Calvary Baptist – 30 October), have our Australian BBQ for supporters, friends & family (27 October – Saylorville), various other events and packing to go home. Thanks for all who have asked to get together with us. We would encourage any of you to come to one of the churches or events, our family would love to see you there. If we are unable to see you during this time in the US, our next furlough will be in four years.

We continually reminded how this journey is not about us, but about our Saviour Jesus, in whom we put all of our hope. Our faith continues to grow and we are thankful for all that has been provided for us through many generous people. Also, we continue to look forward to our eternal future with our Lord.

Through various commitments, we have seen the Lord provide for our monthly support. Our family continues to praise God for all who have given towards this goal. We still have some of our goals to be met before leaving for Australia. I have attached our furlough goals to this correspondence. If you have any questions about our financial goals or how you can help, please email us at matthewsdownunder@bigpond.com. Please consider helping out with meeting these goals.

“What I love about the true gospel of Jesus is that it offers hope.” – Donald Miller

Projects to work on & prayer requests:

- Salvation of the many that we have spoken to during our time in the US. Neighbours, groups and those in the churches.

- Hope’s (our daughter) passport to arrive to us prior to 3 November.

-Funds for 3 new laptop computers  - Our computers need an upgrade to keep up with the demand of the city ministry          (Approx. cost – $800 -1000 per computer)

- Assistance with shipping of 2 donated, rebuilt desk top computers for city ministry ($350/computer – we have a portion of this raised) We cannot ship them with our luggage on the plane with us due to the x-ray systems.

- Funds for 1 new laptop & 1 new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

- Funds for a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla) Have you ever thought of donating your current vehicle for ministry needs?

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011 – Our goal is to raise $5000 or more for this fund.

-Funds for furlough – This venture has been a bit more costly than we realised

That is it for now. Thank you for your prayers and support. We hope to see you at the churches.

If you will not see us at the churches, here is how you can support us monthly, increase your support or with a one time gift.

It is easy as 1-2-3

1. Go to www.abwe.org and click on the GIVE tab (It is in the upper right corner in an orange box)
2. Put in our name and the amount & follow the instructions
3. Our account number is 0132363

Thanks for the questions and the support.

The adventure continues…
Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope , Joshua & Caroline

9.21

Our hero… (and a bit more)

While we are on furlough, our friend Andrew is visiting from Australia. During the visit, we have taken the opportunity to do some tourist things in Iowa. One thing that we decided to do was to go on a tour of the State Capital Building in Des Moines. I will be honest, it was great. We encourage anyone to take the tour, it is an amazing building with fascinating history. The person who made the tour enjoyable and educational was our tour guide, Peg.

Peg was passionate, excited and knowledgeable of all areas of the building. Also, she gave credit to the architects, financiers and builders by name. One gentleman she referred to throughout the tour was, Robert Finkbine. She would even state his name with the title of ‘Our Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ His name was memorable, because she acknowledged him at least ten times with the same title, ‘Our Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ The realisation that hit me was I grew up in Iowa, I had been to the Capital Building many times, but I had never heard his name before that day. Yet, Peg shared his name as a noted historical figure that should never be forgotten. To my shame, by the next day, I had forgotten his name and  had to call the tour company to get the information. ‘A Hero of Iowa, but one who was easily forgotten.’

Even with all of the new education of Iowa history, the challenge Peg gave me was in her communication style. She said she gives the tour numerous times a day, month & year. Yet, I would assume that she would be just as passionate about the building and her ‘Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ Peg challenged me to communicate with the same level of passion about  ’Our Hero, Jesus Christ.’ We have the privilege of talking with many people every day, month and year about Jesus, but do I share with the same enthusiasm & passion as Peg did about Mr. Finkbine? Do any of us? It was a good challenge during a time like furlough. I would pray we would communicate with this message passionately, even on our most exhausting days.

Robert Finkbine died in 1901 and he did leave leave a legacy. Interesting, as I study history and the Bible, the Finkbine legacy will eventually fade and will be a blip on your local Wikipedia page. A vapour that will eventually be forgotten.

Yet, our ‘Hero, Jesus’ lives on. His legacy will never die. We do live to share about ‘Our Hero, Jesus, Our Saviour, Our Lord, & Our King.’ He is the one who we serve and desire to share with anyone who will listen, His saving message. I hope I can be as passionate, excited and knowledgeable about all he has done, is dong and will do for us all. Praise His name.

Thanks for the challenge Peg.

A bit more…

Praises:

1) We have had supporters increase their support and new support come in during our time here.

2) The visit from Andrew has been a blessing for us from ‘home.’ We needed the Australian infusion into our lives to spur us on for the coming month.

3) An offer for computers to be sent to Australia. We are still waiting on assistance with the shipping.

We have had for some specifics on our prayer requests:

-$200 monthly increase for support – This is due to a change in our schooling situation for 2011 and some adjustments in support from specific churches.

- Shipping of 2-3 computers to Australia

- We still are praying for 4 new laptops for city ministry (Mac or PC)

-1 new laptop & 1 new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011 – Our goal is to raise $5000 for this fund.

-Funds for furlough – This has been a bit more expensive than we realised, but the Lord has provided in his mighty way

-We would like to purchase a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla)

That is it for now, but there will be more to come. Thank you for your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…

The Matthews family

9.01

First Furlough… what an experience

Our First Furlough… What an experience… Thanks for you prayers for our first furlough. It has been quite an exciting, busy, and exhausting blessing to serve. We are at a different church each weekend and then meeting with friends, supporters & pastors during the week. It is a great time of sharing about four of our favourite things: Jesus, the Bible, Australia and our family. It is fun, but quite tiring. Our health has been up and down, but I think we are adjusting our schedule to get rest in this process.

Answering the Consistent Questions: We thought we would answer some of the questions from the church meetings.

“Why the short furlough?” Due to planning purposes for the various ministries in November and the desire to get back to the field we chose to a shorter furlough. It is difficult to be away from the work for such a long time. We are enjoying the time in the US, but we hoping to get home to Australia soon. When we came from Australia we had full support, but while at ABWE we needed to make some adjustments in our support levels and we are praying and working hard to meet those requirements. (Details below)

Caroline-ism: We were driving back from the church last week and Caroline said, “We do a pretty good American accent, don’t we.” Hope replied,”Honey, we are American.” “Oh, I thought we were Australian.” “Well, we are both, but we have an American accent.” Pray she can get her mind around that one.

Can we ask for you prayers for safety in our travels and discernment on where we can go for new support options?

Praises:

1) The calendar is filling up quickly with small groups, youth groups, friends, family and our supporting churches. We are still available for some groups and churches during the week, but time is going quickly. Thanks to all who have asked us to come.

2) Good connections with our neighbours and new people in the churches. Please continue to pray for  opportunities to share the good news of Christ in the US.

3) Our friend Andrew will be here soon. Pray for his safe arrival.

We have had for some specifics on our prayer requests:

-$275 monthly increase for support – This is due to a change in our schooling situation for 2011 and some adjustments in support from specific churches.

-4 new laptop computers & 2 new desk top computers for city ministry – Our computers need an upgrade to keep up with the demand of the city ministry

-1 new laptop & 1 new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011 – Our goal is to raise $5000 for this fund.

- One family or an individual who would be willing to come and serve in ministry in Australia. We would like people to consider working in the City ministry & church planting effort. Our suggestion would be to consider a short term trip, then look towards a long term commitment.

-Funds for furlough

-We would like to purchase a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla)

That is it for now, but there will be more to come. Thank you for your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…
Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope , Joshua & Caroline

6.10

Questions about furlough

“ I just jumped on the train after leaving Circular Quay, the home of the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We completed the City Bible Forum today where close to 100 people came to hear from Ian Powell on ‘Jesus – Mad or Majestic? I am the Bread of Life.’ We have a swim carnival this afternoon and we were preparing for an evangelistic weekend away with the City Bible Forum group.” – Russ

This was just in one day, how do we begin to communicate all the Lord has brought into our lives in four years? It is a challenge, but a challenge we look forward to sharing with you. We are coming to a church near you. As it gets closer, we have been getting more questions. Here are areas where you can pray or assist us with in the process of furlough.

Will you be doing school? – Cathy and the kids have been asked if they look forward to having a holiday from school for the months we are in the US. We will have a few weeks of travel where the family will not be able to do school work, but once we are in Iowa, school begins again. The kids will work on school through a distance education programme at Australian Christian College.

Do you have a full schedule? – We have been fortunate to coordinate a time to spend with all of our current supporting churches. Also, all of our individual supporters and church families are welcome to come to our Matthews Family BBQ on 27 October @ Saylorville Baptist Church. During our church visits and at the BBQ we will be presenting our ministries and the opportunities of sharing about our Saviour, Jesus Christ, in Australia. We will be in a different church every weekend and our schedule is very full now. I appreciate all who have responded to or have requested assist with different ministry opportunities in the US. We do love sharing about what the Lord is doing in Sydney and in our lives. Our schedule is filling quite quickly.  I would encourage anyone who would like for us to come to any events or groups while we are in the US to email us prior to 15 July.

How are you doing for funds? Based on the projected budget, this furlough will cost approximately $25000. The costs: plane tickets, petrol, a van for travel, prayer cards, rent for housing in the US and maintaining our home in Australia, phone, etc. The airplane tickets and accomodations in Maryland and Iowa are taken care of in the US for furlough, but we could use some assistance with the travel funds. Anyone that is willing to assist us in this area, please contact us at matthewsdownunder@bigpond.com. We can direct you to where to send the funds. Thank you for this assistance.

How are you getting around? We are blessed to have a van for the time we are on the East Coast, but we are still looking for support for a van for our travel from the East Coast to Iowa and for the time we are in Iowa. Does anyone have any contacts or access to a van we could utilise during this time? Please send any information to the email address above.

Thanks for the questions. We look forward to seeing you soon.

The adventure continues…

Russ, Cathy, Becca, Hope, Joshua, & Caroline

5.21

A Sydney perspective

John 21:16a

16He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”

We are so grateful to God for all He is doing in our lives.

I know throughout John 21, we find different applications of the word love in the Greek. Yet, in studying this word, love,  many times we lose sight of who we love. The object of our affection is lost in the action that He calls us to do. In the passage, Jesus asks Peter to feed and tend His sheep. But we can only do that through our love of Jesus. It is easy in Christian ministry to begin to focus on the work or the people. This is good in a human sense, but if this is our focus, because the sheep and the work can be quite frustrating to care for, many times bitterness and frustration begin to enter into our thoughts. It was made apparent to me that our focus and our love has to be first to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus. Surprisingly, something I preach daily, but still have to be reminded to do. No wonder Jesus had to ask Peter three times if he loved his Lord.  Only from this position of love for Jesus can we begin to love Christian work or love His people. I am thankful to be reminded to always remember my first love, Jesus.

Thanks for the prayers for the events going on this month and what is coming up soon.

Winning the City Dinner – This is an annual fundraising event for the ministry in the city. The three weeks prior to the event we had seven people registered and on the night we had 98 people attend. A great night to communicate the opportunities and the needs of the ministry in the city. We had many new people come along and we did get some new supporters. There are always room for more, please pray for more supporters of this unique and groundbreaking ministry, City Bible Forum. (Link provided on this website)

Fellowship plant- We had a great time in Coogee with an evangelistic event in the Eastern Suburbs. We met at a friends house, had a BBQ and a good talk from Al Stewart. There were 8-9 couples there and 50% of the room were not Christian. (with children there were 30+ people there the first night) Exciting night and has the potential for a fellowship. Please pray for the next event on 6 June. Could this be a new church in the future?

Pamper Day – Glorious Hope Baptist’s women’s group puts on an evangelistic event to reach the community around the church each year. Many of the women in the neighbourhood do not get to get their hair and nails done. So, the ladies of the church put on a Pamper Day with volunteer hairdressers and other nail & make up professionals. They have 60+ women come through and then have a lunch which includes an evangelistic talk. Cathy and the girls love assisting in this event. This year the first four women that Cathy served were Muslim and Cathy had the opportunity to pray with most of them. An exciting event for God’s glory.

Dating, Rating and Mating …a biblical perspective – Let me share a perspective on ministry in Sydney. I was asked to do a two part series for a young adults group in Bankstown. Worked all day on preparing for the Sydney Prayer Breakfast in the city. Took the train home and then I ate dinner with a good Lebanese friend at Habib’s Charcoal Chicken shop (Yummy), then go to the church and speak on Dating (finishing with a gospel presentation on the ultimate relationship with Jesus) to a group of 40-50 young people and then counseled a young Iraqi Christian on his relationship with his Maori (native New Zealand) girlfriend. How they can live godly in their relationship and whether they should get married. No one can train you for this experience, the Lord has done some amazing things in our lives (There is a video link for this series on this website and on Russ Matthews Facebook account.)

Furlough – We could use your prayers on this area. We are excited to see our family, friends and church families, but it will be hard to be away from home (Yes, Sydney is home) and all that the Lord has opened up to us here in Sydney. Here are some key prayer points:

  • All of the paperwork will be completed prior to leaving
  • We will be able to organise all things for the ministries while we are away
  • We will be able to be part of a swearing in ceremony for citizenship prior to July
  • We need a van for our time from Maryland to Iowa and while we are in Iowa
  • Extra finances for the trip: Higher plane costs, fluctuating exchanges rates and additional costs in the US have put a pinch on the budget
  • Churches in the US will see the need for the work in Australia and the opportunities that the Lord has allowed us to be included and God would be glorified in this whirlwind tour of the US

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. Exciting & exhausting days, but we are grateful to be part of all the Lord is doing in Australia.

The adventure continues…

Russ, Cathy, Becca, Hope, Joshua & Caroline

2.11

A great season in ministry

For those in the frozen Tundra (The Northern US), to give you a warmer perspective on things. We are currently in the middle of the hot season here in Australia. It has been unseasonably humid, but February is generally hot every year. (30+ Celsius everyday) Also, this is the time of year when things start to ramp up in ministry opportunities. We would appreciate your prayers on many items that are on our plate at this time. It is exciting to be part of all that is going on in Sydney. [Read more...]

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