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New CCCNZ Staff Members

We're pleased to announce the appointment of three new staff members: Ian Reid, Dave Giesbers and Jeremy Suisted.Ian Reid has been appointed as the 3Trusts Scholarship Coordinator to support the Hillview, Lichfield Lands and Longview Trusts by connecting scholarship applicants with the right study providers and the right ministry contexts - with the aim of growing gospel ministry here in NZ. Dave Giesbers will be working to assist churches in the area of church planting. This will involve suppo...

'Refreshingly low-key' - feedback from our regional conferences

'Refreshingly low-key and well organised' "I enjoyed the conference. It was very helpful and challenging with a good mix of speaker/worship/small groups/coffee." Great feedback has been coming in from people who are joining us at our regional conferences.   You don't need any special training or qualifications to join us – regional conferences are for anyone who loves and follow Jesus and wants to learn more about everyday disciple making. What is 'everyday disciple making'? Learning ...

As the Father sends me, so I am sending you

Pastor Lui Ponifasio, LifeChurch Manurewa...

“NZ’s problem isn’t poverty. The problem is you don’t know any people who are in need.”

Former Pastor Tony Dudley, Orwell Street Church...

We simply approached the principal of each school and asked, ‘How can we serve you?’

For 16 years, Russell Grainger’s church has been doing life with the people in Mt Wellington. Russell has been there the whole time, and this is what they have discovered. “Sixteen years ago, we made the decision to work with the local schools around us. Three primary schools and two high schools are right on our doorstep. Rather than overthink the whole thing, we simply approached the principal of each school and asked, ‘How can our church serve you?’ “We discovered that (1) they were...

What kind of community would be a sign against the prevailing consumer ideology?

Pastor Philip Renner, Chapel Hill Community Church...

With so much to do, it can be overwhelming. Often, this is what stops us. But I say, just start!

Andrew and Sonja Mitchell, Church on Vogel...

'I'd rather die in a Māori Pā!'

The CCCNZ Staff Team recently took some time out to visit the grave of Octavius Hadfield, an early missionary to New Zealand. As a young man Hadfield was plagued by illness and wasn't expected to live beyond his twenties; but this didn't stop him responding to the call of the Great Commission when he came to Christ as a teenager. In 1839 Hadfield made the journey to New Zealand as a CMS Missionary. Hadfield's boss, Henry Williams, considered his sickly condition and put Hadfield to work teachin...

100 Years on The Street

A new book available later this week chronicles the highs, lows, survival and success of an enterprising Wellington church. 100 Years on The Street retraces the history of Tory Street Hall, which was to become Elizabeth Street Gospel Chapel, later known as E-Street, and The Street City Church today. The culmination of three years of research and interviews, and full of personal testimonies, 100 Years on the Street tells the stories of the church’s life and mission work, its leadership and beli...

Regional Enabler Retreat: 7th-8th Apri

What happened when 10 CCCNZ Regional Enablers and representatives from PastorLink and GC3 came together from across New Zealand to explore how the gospel could grow across their region? We ate and prayed together. In the spirit of "Together Works Better" we explored how we can work together more closely as churches in our regions, to see the gospel grow. Wonderful to hear of Eldership prayer breakfasts, Pastors gatherings and joint Elders planning meetings, all with a desire of seeing the good n...

PROFILE: Norm and Liz Silcock

For the past seven years, Norm and Liz have been in itinerant ministry, supporting and encouraging smaller Assemblies in Samoa and Tonga, and around the North Island. In recent years, Norm and Liz have taken up the role of ambassadors for the Maori Postal Aotearoa. For over fifty years, MPA has been spreading the Word of God among Maori and other people through the supply of bilingual Bible-based materials. As MPA ambassadors, Norm and Liz are often on the road, building connections. Norm exp...

1600+ students hear the story of Easter

Many members of New Plymouth Bible Chapel have again assisted in putting on an Easter play that first showed in 1991! Chapel members, with believers from 20 other churches, acted, narrated, prayed and served in food preparation and hospitality. This is the story, as reported by STUFF: More than 1600 year five and six students have been told the Easter Story thanks to a walk-through play, with some youngsters hearing it for the first time. The performance took the students from the gates of J...

Bunnythorpe Family Church – The Journey

In 2012, with four young kids, it was time for a bigger house. Despite hunting in what seemed like all the right locations (kids schooling, our workplaces and our church), the Lord directed us elsewhere – to Bunnythorpe, a small village 10 minutes outside of Palmerston North. After a few years, we felt strongly that there needed to be an evangelical presence in the community. Was that of God or merely our own idea? To test it out, we continued to settle in Bunnythorpe, building friendships ...

When Gravity Shifts:

How does God help Whanganui believers share the truth of Jesus Christ, when they've been culturally conditioned to keep quiet? He gives them leaders from another culture. The church is Ingestre Street Bible Chapel, the pastors are Alice and Kinyua from Kenya, and this is how God brought them together....

Sharing the stage, the speaker, and the pool

In the week-to-week business of a local church, it's easy to become insular. You know other Christians are out there, but since you rarely engage with them, it feels like it's just your small band of believers at work in the world. Not so in Dunedin. Down there, the CCCNZ churches are doing good things together. ...

"What concerns me about the church is the lack of confidence in the Bible."

Nigel Pollock, the keynote speaker for next year's Regional Conference, made this observation when discussing the conference topic: How do we increase our engagement with Scripture? Behind the comment are Nigel's personal convictions about Scripture: "I strongly believe that the Bible is relevant to the whole of life. In fact, I think Scripture is foundational to who we are and what we're called to be in the world. Should we increase our engagement with Scripture? Actually, I think that unders...