Vision Network

visionnetwork's Board of Reference
– as at 31 July 2009

The Rev Neville Bartle, National Leader, Church of the Nazarene
Commissioner Donald Bell, Territorial Commander, The Salvation Army in New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga
Luke Brough, National Leader, Elim Church of New Zealand
The Rev David Bush, General Secretary, Methodist Church of New Zealand
The Most Revd Peter Cullinane, Bishop of Palmerston North, Catholic Church of New Zealand
Peter Eccles, Chairman, Congregational Union of New Zealand
The Right Revd Richard Ellena, Bishop, Anglican Diocese of Nelson
Robert Erickson, President, Lutheran Church of New Zealand
John Fabrin, CEO, Rhema Broadcasting Group
The Rev John Gummer, Director, Christian and Missionary Alliance of New Zealand
Ken Harrison, General Superintendent, New Zealand Assemblies of God
Brian Hughes, Senior Pastor, Calvary Chapel
Brent Liebezeit, President, Christian Churches New Zealand
The Rev Rodney Macann, National Leader, Baptist Churches of New Zealand
Rex Morgan, Secretary Treasurer, Worldwide Church of God New Zealand
Tony Plews, Executive Director, Leadership Development International
Lloyd Rankin, National Leader, Vineyard Churches of New Zealand
The Right Revd Dr Graham Redding, Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand; Principal, Knox Centre for Ministry and Leadership
The Rev Murray Robertson, Pastor Emeritus, Spreydon Baptist Church; Director, Leadership Development Network
Hal Short, President, United Christian Broadcasters International
Les Stephenson, Acting CEO, World Vision New Zealand
Dr Mark Strom, Principal, Laidlaw College
Steven Tollestrup, Executive Director, TEAR Fund
Professor Paul Trebilco, Department of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Otago
The Rev Richard Waugh, National Superintendent, Wesleyan Methodist Church of New Zealand

From Glyn Carpenter

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort - 2 Cor 1:3

This has been a difficult year. But it is good to begin this report acknowledging the goodness of God and the presence of God with us. God has allowed and enabled us to serve Him for another year, and for this I am truly thankful.

This year's report is slightly different in content, format, and style to previous years. It still contains a brief summary of the major activities. But it concludes with a personal appraisal of where visionnetwork is up to and my own role in it.

The Team

First, I want to acknowledge the members of our team:
- Denis Smith (volunteer), who has managed our accounts for seven years since visionnetwork was founded in September 2002
- Terrena Griffiths, who has tidied up our systems, managed contacts with churches and members, and worked on funding and resourcing
- Liz Carpenter and Subhadra Krishna (both part-time), working on accounts, subscriptions, and database maintenance
- Stephen and Gayann Phillips (volunteers), for managing our web systems
- Colin Kennedy (volunteer), for developing our Media Strategic Plan
- Board Chairman Bruce Patrick and all the members of the Board, for their support at Board meetings and all the matters that occur in between

I also want to acknowledge and thank the members whose subscriptions help fund our activities, and especially thank those donors who have helped us with significant contributions. Every organisation needs funds to operate, and financial supporters are very much a part of our vision and mission. Just as important, though, is the sense that others are with you. Thanks to all those who support us in prayer and through words of encouragement.

Secondly, I want to welcome two new team members, and say a special thanks to the person who committed to cover the salary of one for three months and the other full-time:
- Helen Alcock, Business and Publishing Manager, will manage the quality of visionnetwork communications including newsletters, reports, and press releases, plus manage the business and strategic plan and fund-raising
- John McNeil will take responsibility for researching, writing, designing, and managing content in the web systems

A Right-sized Team

One of the challenges we have faced in visionnetwork has been the small size of the team, and the endless number of issues we could and should be involved with versus the number of issues we are able to be involved with.

In my opinion, a recent example where this balance did not work out was the report on Drivers of Crime released by the government in July. I missed the call for submissions earlier in the year, and was disappointed to see the report, which summarised about 50 submissions, not contain one mention of faith, religion, or spirituality, let alone God or Christianity.

Government departments may discount submissions containing such words, but it is surely our job, or the Church's job, if invited by government to comment on such issues, to talk about God and the relevance of God to such issues. If the Church or visionnetwork or some other group does not do this, who does?

Even though the team is still very small in comparison with similar organisations overseas, we are certainly in a better position now than we were 12 months ago.

Restructure

I am pleased to report that the organisation restructure passed unanimously by resolution at last year's AGM has been implemented. Letters of thanks were sent to all members of the former Council and Advisory Group, and letters of invitation were sent to people for the new Board of Reference and Advisory Group.

At 31 July, 25 people had accepted invitations to the Board of Reference, with one or two people still to follow up. We also received a number of unsolicited letters of endorsement, which were both encouraging and humbling.

We have also completed the shift of our offices to the Evangelism and Discipleship Centre in Penrose. For the last year we have been working from home offices, but with the addition of another person in Auckland, it was felt that a proper office was necessary to simplify systems and communication.

Our new address is 122 Hugo Johnston Drive, Penrose, phone number (09) 525 0949.

WEA General Assembly and Regional Leaders Meeting

Every six or seven years the World Evangelical Alliance has its General Assembly. Last October this took place in Thailand. It was a privilege to join around 500 delegates from 120 nations and hear first-hand stories, especially from people who are part of the persecuted church.

Several statements were issued from the assembly, including the Millennium Development Goals, the global recession, and the environment.

In April this year, WEA part-funded me in my capacity as chairman of the South Pacific Evangelical Alliance, to join the other six regional leaders to discuss the goals and programmes of the WEA Leadership Institute. We discussed a variety of delivery mechanisms to accommodate the range of circumstances in different countries around the world, and agreed on the purpose and content of 10 core modules on network/alliance governance, purposes, funding, communication, and public engagement.

These programmes will be a great value to new and existing leaders, in any sort of network or alliance structure.

Web

Our web and monthly email (v-Zine) to churches and Christian organisations is an important tool for keeping Christians in New Zealand informed, resourced, and connected. With the input of our webmasters and also the professional expertise of our two newest team members, the web and v-Zine have a new lookin time for the AGM, which will make information much easier to access. While layout and ease of access are very important, the most important thing is that the content continues to be well researched and relevant.

Media Strategy

Colin Kennedy (media consultant) volunteered at last year's AGM to help us develop a media strategic plan. visionnetwork's motto is Gather Build Speak, and this was very much in line with our goal to bring a non-strident Christian voice to issues in the public arena.

The plan has been produced after consultation with several of the task-force leaders, and significantly focuses on speaking "good news" on whatever issue is being discussed.

Although visionnetwork does not speak for any church or denomination, a comment by visionnetwork can reasonably be said to reflect the views of around 500,000 practising Christians in New Zealand.

Refugee Fund

As reported last year, we became involved in the case of a particular refugee that had the potential to set a significant benchmark in dealings with the Refugee Status Appeals Authority. Significantly at issue was how the RSAA can test the validity of a person's faith and also whether Christian converts should be deported to countries like Iran.

Any church speaking fees we received during that time were paid to a Refugee Fund set up to help fund legal costs.

I am delighted to report that the legal action was successful.

Israel

A significant amount of my personal time and energy between September 2008 and April 2009 was consumed by the Israel project. This began when we were asked to help set up a dialogue with the Israeli Ambassador, based in Canberra, and New Zealand church leaders. On the understanding that this was to be a genuine two-way dialogue with a real opportunity to speak directly to a representative of the Israeli government, we agreed to help.

The war which broke out between Israel and Gaza mid-way through this project caused major loss of life and destruction (principally on the Palestinian side, although the Israelis argue this was justified) and heightened tensions everywhere in the region.

The outcome of our project in New Zealand was that the dialogue did not eventuate, but a book, Israel - 5 Views on People Land and State, was published and has been very well received. The possibility of the book being reprinted overseas by one of the big publishing firms is currently being explored.

My sincere thanks go to the five people who contributed to this book. I am pleased that relationships have been developed which did not exist previously, and that others have a chance to gain a better understanding of the issue in a unique way through the publication.

DayStar

At the start of this year DayStar, with which visionnetwork has a covenant relationship, passed governance control to Media Inc in Australia. This decision was taken after a long period of wrestling unsuccessfully with how to expand its revenue base. Because Media Inc had several other publications, it was felt that they could use economies of scale and their existing base of operations to run DayStar more efficiently.

A key part of the decision was that editorial control would remain in New Zealand and that if any decisions were taken by Media Inc that DayStar's New Zealand Board believed did not serve the mission of DayStar in New Zealand, then control could be reclaimed by the New Zealand Board.

Hope 2010

This project was introduced at last year's AGM, but there has been no resource or capacity to progress the project. It remains a very worthwhile project in terms of presenting the Church and her activities to the wider public.

Election 08

visionnetwork sent a letter to all members of parliament titled What Would You Do? The letter covered 11 different topic areas so that MPs would know that Christians are not concerned with just a narrow range of issues. The letter was also sent to all ministers' associations, with the suggestion that they use or adapt the list of questions as a basis for meetings with candidates.

I spoke in four different churches in the month before the election on the topic of Christians and Government, wrote in DayStar, and spoke and prayed on Radio Rhema.

Interfaith

The Statement on Religious Diversity (SRD) is scheduled for a review this year (2009). At the national interfaith forum which I attended in February, I asked about the timing and process for this but was told that no decisions had been made at that stage.

As someone who has attended all but one of the last five forums, it was noticeable that the majority of attendees were newcomers each time. In a small-group discussion I was the only person who had ever attended a forum before. This may indicate a low level of interest in this issue, which may be relevant in terms of the documents that are produced.

Religion in Schools is one of the points raised in the SRD. A set of draft guidelines was published last year and there have been two rounds of submissions to which visionnetwork has responded after dialogue with Churches Education Commission (who run the Bible in Schools programme). We await the final version of this document, which will be released at the Religious Diversity Forum on 24 August 2009, and hope that Christian faith is reflected more fairly than has been the case in the drafts.

At that same forum, there will be the first public discussion, no doubt with another document to follow, on Religion in the Workplace.

Resourcing

visionnetwork is seriously underfunded for the work we do. Many people are facing financial difficulty at present so I certainly do not see us as an exception in this.

However, visionnetwork's situation is not caused simply by the current recession. I have not succeeded since starting with visionnetwork six and a half years ago to establish a viable funding model. This not only causes a lot of pressure, but means that time is not spent focusing on external issues and projects.

I am organising a meeting with several members of the new Board of Reference to discuss this. In the meantime, any suggestions and donations will be gratefully received.

Networks and task-force partners

Micah Challenge

The Micah Challenge is a global initiative of the World Evangelical Alliance (of which visionnetwork is the New Zealand member) and Tear Fund. Its goal is to raise awareness in the church of global poverty in general, and the Millennium Development Goals in particular, and also to challenge and encourage those governments that committed to the MDGs, which includes New Zealand, to meet those goals. (The MDGs were launched in 2000 and are due for completion by 2015.)

The New Zealand Micah Challenge group includes virtually all of the major aid organisations, plus many other groups and individuals, ably led by Paul Thompson.

I meet regularly with a core group that is currently working towards a global campaign for October next year (10/10/10) when we will join Christians from around the world to mark two-thirds'-time.

For Micah Sunday this year we will be distributing a special prayer resource and information kit.

Church in the City

Ministers associations and city-based church-leader networks are a significant dimension of Christian leadership. In December, a meeting of around 25 people involved in this area revealed some different approaches and the tensions between them.

After talking to several of the leaders involved, I wrote a paper, now on our website, called City Church - Not a One Trick Pony, highlighting the different approaches and suggesting that even though the vision/mission are the same, different strategies might be appropriate for different groups at different times.
(http://www.visionnetwork.org.nz/theology/484-city-church-not-a-one-trick-pony.html)

Recession and Kingdom Economics

There has been a lot of discussion about the recession and what responses Christians can and/or should make. One group I joined in Auckland, led by Viv Grigg, met one evening a week for three months, drawing in a variety of people who are living out different strategies.

Interest was expressed in having a two-day consultation, drawing in a wider group of practitioners and church representatives. As the impact of the recession will certainly go on for some years, this is an excellent idea and we will do what we can to support the initiative.

Education

Last year Ash Taylor from Masters Institute reported that he was looking to connect existing Christian education networks and others involved in education. Since then, Ash has been very involved in the work of integrating Masters into Laidlaw College. As a result this network activity has not progressed.

Arts - Visual

Peter and Jessica Crothall of Chrysalis Seed have switched their main communication from a printed to an electronic magazine (e-zine) and enhanced their website with a number of new features, including a social networking space.
They have been travelling extensively to encourage Christian artists and facilitate networking.

Church Life Survey

This group runs a detailed survey for participating churches soon after the time of each government census. The last survey was used as an opportunity to convert the paper-based system to a web-based system to offer greater flexibility and cost savings.

All of the set-up problems have been resolved, and churches that participated in the first run of this new system should have received their reports.

Some overall conclusions are now being developed by one of the committee members and will be published as soon as they are complete. Future runs of the survey should be much more straightforward.

Children and Family Forum (CAFF)

The CAFF network has only had one meeting in the past year. Sean Pawson was leading CAFF while he was working in this area for the Baptist Union. We understand that the person who has taken over Sean's role may be continuing with CAFF, but we have not received any communication from them in the past six months.

Family

The force of the recession is creating significant levels of stress for families, and frequently those already less well off are affected most. Obviously this is an area for Christians to be deeply concerned about.

There are many Christian voices in the family arena, however, often contradicting each other, and it is not easy to identify someone who can bring them all together. Sometimes the most public voices can also be the most polarising.

History shows that one of the consequences of this is that government can be reluctant to get involved in what may be seen as sectarian squabbling, and the ability to influence public policy is consequently undermined.

The cancellation of the large-scale consultation organised by the Families Commission for February 2009 was a disappointment to many. However, the cost of such a consultation was hard to justify in the middle of a recession, and there were grounds to wonder what would have been the outcome.

Lyn Campbell who wrote this section last year finished her term as a Families Commissioner at the end of 2008. For the time being, I try to maintain contact with the various groups.

Christian Sports Network

This group includes members involved with activities ranging from sports chaplaincy through to evangelism using sporting personalities and coaching kids' sports teams. A major focus of activity now and for the next two years is the Rugby World Cup 2011, with opportunities for connecting with our communities throughout 2010 and up to the event.

Unity and Peacemaking

The Resolve conflict resolution group has had a quieter year. David Newton, who is a Christian and one of the top mediation experts in Australia, visited New Zealand at the start of 2009 and ran another successful workshop that was well received by participants.

Evangelism and Discipleship
(Report by the Rev Dr Bruce Patrick, Director of Church Development, Alpha New Zealand)

The founding vision of visionnetwork included a strong commitment to mission, to the evangelisation of New Zealand and the fulfilment of the Great Commission. Across New Zealand, many churches share that vision and are engaged in a wide variety of forms of evangelism. This report cannot be a directory of such ministries and I will mention only three.

Having moved on after 16 years at the Baptist Tabernacle in Auckland to a new role with Alpha New Zealand, I have become more aware of the earnestness of a vast number of our pastors who struggle to discover ways of evangelising their communities. The apostle Paul affirmed diversity when he commented on the use of "all possible means" to share the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:22). I am also aware of the faddishness of the New Zealand church. We are as quick to adopt, or adapt, as to discard. Every church needs multiple entry points for the unchurched or the once-churched. The clear communication of gospel truth in a relational and respectful context where trust is established, is still a pre-requisite for many if they are to make an intelligent response to Christ. The Alpha Course is one programme which continues to provide this.

Every church also needs a widely understood and accepted discipleship process whereby believers are grounded in the faith and in living by faith. John Fuller continues to energetically promote Omega discipleship materials, with a growing number of endorsements from pastors and senior pastors and without a lot of market competition.

Christchurch (2004) and Wellington (2007) held a Harvest Mission with evangelist Greg Laurie. In 2 Corinthians 8:18 (NRSV), Paul writes about "the brother who is famous among all the churches for his proclaiming the good news". After several years of preliminary discussion, Auckland Christian leaders agreed on 5 July 2009 to extend an invitation to Billy Graham associate evangelist Greg Laurie to lead a Harvest event in the Vector Arena, 24-26 June 2011. This decision marks a spiritual breakthrough for our largest city. It was my privilege to lead this meeting and in the process to honour the Rev Hon Graeme Lee of the national Evangelism and Discipleship Centre, Penrose, whose perseverance and leadership brought it about, under the good hand of God.

Jesus said, "Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest'? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting" (John 4:35).

Prayer
(Report by John Fulford)

In my continuing role of visionnetwork Co-ordinator for National Prayer Networks, it has been a thrill for me to be involved in a variety of prayer events and gatherings, and see increasing evidence of the Lord stirring the hearts of young and old for prayer, with the promise of an ever greater spiritual awakening in the nation! In all of this, the growing development of links and networks and the building of momentum for prayer is what excites me most! Here are my main involvements:
• National 24/7 Prayer Gathering Oct 17-19 in Wellington, led by Jay Lucas and Ian Nicholson with great input from others - great expectations!
• National Days of Prayer Nov 7-9, in Wellington, led by Warren Lyons with focus on Foundations of Righteousness and Justice with Humility - Roots and Fruits - plus Pillars and Prayer at Parliament Buildings - plus the Elections.
• "Unrelenting" Prayer Conference Mar 26 - 29 in Tauranga, led by Aaron Walsh and the Tauranga House of Prayer, plus Bob Sorge and John Dawson - a deepening and challenging spiritual experience!
• Global Day of Prayer May 31, Pentecost Sunday. I co-ordinated and again publicised widely with CDs, articles and radio, and featured 22 locations on our visionnetwork website where gatherings were being held through the country (including four in Auckland), plus reports on a number of these. There was special coverage on Shine TV and Rhema for the 10 days preceding.

I am also personally involved in monthly prayer meetings in Auckland with a Waitakere Prayer Team, Men's Ministry Leaders, Missional Leaders, and Multi-National Combined Churches, plus a quarterly half-night Prayer for Auckland. And I have met with the Lydia Prayer Ladies Executive (I am also their National Adviser) in November and August. The April/May DayStar focused on prayer, and did a special feature on my calling and role.

With the Caughleys of Intercessors for NZ, I am now involved in leading eight Regional Prayer Gatherings around the country to develop greater networking and momentum. We have held the first successfully in Hawke's Bay. We are aiming towards further major national gatherings and events, including concerted involvement with the Greg Laurie Harvest mission in Auckland.

For further details on all of this (including a copy of the DayStar article), please email me: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Environment
(Report by Dr Richard Storey, National Director, A Rocha Aotearoa New Zealand, leader visionnetwork task-force group)

The past year has been a time of steady growth for the environment task area, punctuated by a few key events. The Christian conservation group A Rocha was granted charitable trust status in August 2008. The group has experienced steady growth with the formation and strengthening of local chapters in Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington and Christchurch.
These groups have become the main context for the practical outworking of A Rocha's vision. The projects on Mount Karioi, near Hamilton, and Kennedy's Bush near Christchurch are now attracting media attention, forming partnerships with local government and conservation groups, and drawing in a range of volunteers. Teaching on the Biblical imperative to care for God's creation has reached a wider audience this year thanks to a fruitful partnership with DayStar magazine, resulting in the regular Earth Matters column.

Beyond A Rocha's borders, the environment was highlighted this year by Walk 4 the
Planet, an ecumenical march from Stewart Island to Wellington during the 40 days of Lent. In January the Anglican Archbishop David Moxon gave a compelling presentation to the worldwide heads of the Anglican Church on the need to reduce global warming, calling on the church to show "moral leadership". And the Presbyterian Church has published an excellent handbook called "Caring for Creation" that has been circulated to all parishes in New Zealand.

A key event for A Rocha will be their national leaders' forum in October. This will be a time to crystallise the vision for the next few years and to plan a strategy for implementing it. The focus for A Rocha over the coming year will be to build community and strengthen the initiatives that have begun, rather than a focus on growing in size. A partnership with Scripture Union is hoped to result in a summer youth camp with a focus on learning about God's creation and how to care for it. It is hoped the resources developed for this camp will be distributed for others to use in camp and youth group settings. Several New Zealanders are heading overseas to spend time in A Rocha centres, increasing the number of Kiwis with first-hand experience of A Rocha.

Several of our members have noticed a groundswell of increasing environmental awareness in the Church. This has been evidenced by increasing numbers of magazine articles and resources written by mainline churches, and a growing number of ministers and pastors preaching on this topic. However, at the same time opinion is swinging towards scepticism of climate change, the biggest environmental issue of our time, among New Zealanders generally and particularly within the Church. Our belief is that this scepticism stems largely from a mistrust of science and scientists, and by an unbalanced presentation of the costs of action vs inaction in the media. The first problem probably stems from the creation vs evolution debate, but has been made worse by recent books and articles on climate change that have misunderstood and misrepresented the scientific process. It will take a lot of careful work to build Christians' respect for science in the current environment.

Arts - Music
(Report by David Lyle Morris)

Key events, successes, failures, etc of the past year
Development of New Zealand worship network, with Wayne and Libby Huirua at the forefront;
Looking to resource the local church in New Zealand for worship in musical terms;
Practical teaching and encouragement and impartation at events, and through the website and CDs and DVDs (http://blog.simpliworship.com/);
Great fellowship building with Auckland region worship leaders and teams through quarterly gatherings;
Network launched in South Island through Hornby Presbyterian Inspire worship conference.

Key events, plans, initiatives, projects, conferences, etc for the coming year
Regional event in Wellington led by the Huiruas, weekend 17 October this year;
Parachute Festival and Noise Worship event

Key issues
Resourcing the smaller churches in New Zealand to sustain their worship life in appropriate ways, when the most common model comes out of mega-church - sometimes this model is unattainable in the average church. Incorporating a breadth of style and content, to engage different generations, denominations and cultures. Maintaining the best of tradition, alongside contemporary and prophetic expressions, the best of new material for music being produced around the world, hand in hand with the depth our hymns. Exploring the wider use of the arts and different forms of worship creativity in the church environment and beyond.

Rethinking Crime and Punishment Project
(Report by Kim Workman, Director)

The RCP Board of Reference has reviewed its strategic direction. In that period, there was a significant change in the political environment; sufficient to justify a review of direction. As a result of discussion over that period, we decided to shift our emphasis from a focus on penal policy, to a broader perspective that addressed the limits of the criminal-justice system in responding to social harm. We then developed the following principles:

Principles
We are committed to the following seven principles:
Crime and related harms cannot be dealt with by the criminal justice process alone.
A range of social, economic and political interventions are necessary to prevent crime and create a society in which everyone benefits from justice, safety, economic and social security.
Criminal-justice interventions should be proportional, evidence-based, and have as their aims inclusion, reparation and crime reduction.
Criminal-justice policy and practice should emphasise the minimum resort to custody, and other forms of restraint on liberty, consonant with a just, safe and socially secure society.
Criminal-justice policy should address the crimes of the powerful (both individual and corporate) as well as those associated with the least powerful sections of society.
Criminal-justice policy should respect human rights, and the criminal-justice process should operate in accordance with the letter and the spirit of domestic legislation and international instruments and conventions.
Criminal-justice policy and practice should treat victims and offenders, suspects and witnesses, with dignity and respect.

The Shifting Role of Rethinking Crime and Punishment
Since June 2008, we have experienced an increase in support from the judiciary, service providers, and a broadening community representation. We have been urged by organisations such as Victim Support, the Mental Health Foundation, Drug Foundation and like organisations to persist with our efforts.

Over the last year, Rethinking has shifted its focus in accordance with the new set of principles. It has focused its attention on:
preparation of select committee submissions;
contributing independent, contestable policy advice to government on crime and justice related issues;
harnessing "coalition partners" to provide supportive and complementary advice on key issues;Rethinking Crime and Punishment is regarded as an independent, serious and credible contributor to the crime and justice debate.

Conclusion

As I said at the beginning, it has been a difficult year. visionnetwork is seriously underfunded. For small teams, especially when they are under resourced, there is a lot of pressure and many tasks are not completed as well as they should be.

I regret particularly over the past year that contact with leaders in the different specialist areas has not been as regular as it should have been. This has meant that we have not been able to assist these groups communicate their messages and resource Christians as much as would like to have done. There is certainly a need to pick this up over the coming year.

Also, there is a need for more engagement with church leaders over visionnetwork's work programme . It is always important to ensure that resources and funds are stewarded in the best way possible, and input from church leaders on what are seen as key priorities is important in this process.

On a personal note, I still have a strong sense of God's calling to the work of visionnetwork. Despite the pressure and frustrations caused by the funding situation I never have any sense that God wants me elsewhere. I heard someone say once that if pressure is forcing us into God this can actually be a good thing.

At the same time, pressure can also alert us to situations which need to change, and as indicated in the Resourcing section above, we are seeking ideas on how this situation might be changed.

Please pray with us for the work and resourcing of visionnetwork, and please let us know if you have any thoughts on how we can improve what we do.

Glyn Carpenter

Over the past 12 months, visionnetwork has been involved in a number of key issues. Early this year, for instance, it published Israel: 5 Views on People, Land and State, as its contribution to dialogue on one of the most vexed international areas. Recently it made a submission on the Human Rights Commission Religion in Schools document (see above). The network is also undergoing a major restructuring to better assist churches and further the goal of unity.

Read more: visionnetwork annual meeting