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ALWS has a rich history of working in partnership with Lutheran schools, a collaboration evolving from the close connection between our church and its schools. Together we can help grow students who have hearts of compassion and purpose. We encourage our young people to follow in Jesus’ footsteps, serving and meeting the needs of communities, both locally and globally.
Australian Lutheran World Service Executive Director Michael Stolz recently visited a Ukrainian Refugee Community Centre at Miechowice Lutheran parish in Bytom, Poland, and shares his experiences.
When I walked into the hall of the Miechowice Lutheran church in Poland and discovered a group of women sewing, my first thought was, ‘This looks just like a ladies’ fellowship group in a church hall in Australia’.
A young woman called out to me in Polish: ‘Jesteś uchodźcą?’, which in English means, ‘Are you a refugee?’ When I explained that I represented Lutheran people from Australia and New Zealand who provide support through ALWS, I was warmly welcomed by Katarzyna Kukucz and Pastor Jan Kurko.
Katarzyna coordinates the centre and initially had 20 staff to handle the overwhelming numbers of refugees it serves. The team is smaller now, and 90 per cent are Ukrainian. This Lutheran ministry has served 8,000 war refugees in the past 18 months!
Food packages. Emergency shelter. Ongoing accommodation. Language classes. Psychological counselling. Child care. Education. Yoga classes. Parenting classes. Youth camps. Craft-based fellowship. All with the philosophy that these people aren’t refugees, they’re guests. What also struck me as I was introduced to a dozen women sewing was that there were no men. There is still a war to be won and most men are in the army, fighting.
Some of the women shared their stories with me. Inna is from Kharkiv. She and her daughter hid in a basement for 10 days, then travelled by train for two days to escape, lights off to avoid detection and bombing. Tamara escaped Donetsk, an area gripped by conflict since 2014, with her daughter and granddaughter. Tatiana and her husband have lost their car dealership, and she now serves as a social worker here. Anzhela admired the work of the Lutherans in Ukraine, which led her to seek out a Lutheran church in Poland.
Olga did not speak; she has had two sons in the army, one of whom has tragically lost his life, while Kseniia, a teenager, yearns for her 23-year-old brother who serves in the army. Lubov expressed deep gratitude for the support that comes from Australia.
Inna summed up the feelings of many of the women: ‘It is very good here in Poland, but it is not home. When the war is over, we will go home.’
The ladies sang a Ukrainian folk song that they all knew from weddings, birthdays, and farewells. The minor key was haunting, but they found solace in singing together. When I looked up the translation of the lyrics of ‘Oyu, luzi chervona kalyna’, the chorus line resonates deeply: ‘Oh, my sweetheart, my dearest. Why did you leave me alone?’
I take heart that through ALWS, we as a Lutheran Church in Australia and New Zealand are working with our sisters and brothers in Lutheran churches in Poland, to make sure these refugees are not ‘left alone’.
Through ALWS, you can support the ministry of Lutheran churches in places like Poland and Ukraine, welcoming as guests people escaping the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Simply call 1300 763 407 or go to www.alws.org.au
On 11 May 2024, in Brisbane, ALWS will host Walk My Way Ukraine. Register or find out more at www.walkmyway.org.au
Going GREYT! 1 Peter 4:10
In Going GREYT! we feature stories of some of our ‘more experienced’ people within the LCANZ, who have been called to make a positive contribution in their retirement. We pray their examples of service will be an inspiration and encouragement to us all as we look to be Christ’s hands and feet wherever we are.
by Helen Brinkman
Okay, hands up everyone who has attempted to read the entire Bible from beginning to end! How many of you completed the task? Whether you succeeded or failed, the fact is that reading Scripture end to end is not an easy undertaking!
Put yourselves in the shoes of a new Christian and consider how much more difficult it would be to navigate the language and historical context, not to mention all that fighting and bloodshed. This conundrum is exactly why 82-year-old Derryl Huf, from Port Macquarie in New South Wales, spent the past two years putting pen to paper to write up a 158-page summary of the Bible in plain language with added context.
‘I’ve been surprised how few people have read the Bible from one end to the other’, Derryl says. ‘They say they started but didn’t get far because it was hard going, reading about all the wars, fighting, bloodshed and different tribes.’
For his 80th birthday, Derryl received a lovely ballpoint pen from a church friend which he wanted to put to special use. Studying seven different versions of Scripture for comparison, Derryl filled three exercise books and three biro refills writing the summary.
Twelve months after starting work, he hadn’t made it halfway. ‘I felt I had bitten off more than I could chew and felt it was too hard’, he says. ‘I constantly prayed about this, and everything came together, and my biro was guided by God’s hand.’
Helped by his speed-typing daughter Christine, who transferred the handwritten words to a computer, the summary was finished in August this year. ‘She could type faster than I can read – what a blessing, like all of our kids are’, Derryl says. He has now shared his self-published copies with friends, parishioners, fellow travellers while holidaying, and even his doctor – who grabbed it with both hands, he was so excited, says Derryl.
This latest endeavour is part of a life-long journey of sharing his faith.
Born in the Tabor district of western Victoria, the first boy of eight children, Derryl couldn’t wait until the day after he turned 14 to leave school and work on the family’s mixed farm of sheep, cattle and cropping.
At age 18, he felt called to the ordained ministry. ‘A sermon by (Pastor) EW Wiebusch hit me hard’, he recalls. ‘I wanted to join college and become a minister.’
But having left school so young made studying difficult for him. ‘After a year, I went back home and got very involved in Luther League and working with young people’, he says. ‘I realised that you didn’t have to wear a dog collar to be a minister.’
His local Tabor Lutheran Church had more than 100 youth group members, and so did many of the surrounding towns in the district, such as Tarrington and Hamilton. Derryl was appointed to the league zone executive, becoming president, and helping to run zone rallies, camps and state conventions.
It’s also how he met his future wife, Aileen Unger, who was on the NSW district executive. They were married in 1967 and stayed on his family farm for nine years before moving to Aileen’s hometown of Parkes in NSW.
After the move, Derryl’s urge to witness found him joining the Gideons, which he calls a wonderful introduction to spreading the gospel. ‘You can learn Scripture but if you can’t get it across to others, you are still only part way there’, he says.
Derryl diversified into carting primary produce after buying a semi-trailer to transport his bumper canola crop to Melbourne for crushing. The cost of the truck was less than the haulage charge. So began his carting business, which also led him to become a heavy vehicle driving instructor.
That opened the door to new ways to share the gospel. He received permission to offer his driving students a copy of a Gideon New Testament, also including the Psalms and Proverbs. ‘I had one refusal out of about 1500, and the driving lessons included many questions about why I offered this testament’, he recalls.
Derryl says the whole idea behind his Bible summary is to encourage people to study God’s word, and to make it easier to read. ‘St Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, chapter 3, verses 1 and 2, that you may not be ready for solid food, so start off easy with milk’, Derryl reflects.
While tackling a Bible with around 1750 pages may be enough to scare the average reader, Derryl hopes his two-year journey helps to simply showcase the lifesaving message of the Bible – loud and clear.
However, the summary would never have been written had events on a New Year’s Eve fishing trip in 2003 turned out differently for Derryl. He, Aileen and a friend of the couple were lost at sea for 26 hours after their 20-foot boat capsized off Port Macquarie. Then, as during his challenges working on the Bible summary, Derryl put his trust in God.
Forced to hang onto the overturned hull for more than a day, they were seen by a passing Greek coal ship having drifted 150 kilometres north of where searchers were combing the sea. Derryl had been praying all through the night and felt that God was at work the next morning when their ultimate rescuer, who was winched down from a helicopter, called out to them: ‘Let go of what you are hanging on to, I have come to save you.’
Derryl is happy to share copies of the summary and can be contacted at deenasea.339@gmail.com
Helen Brinkman is a Brisbane-based writer who is inspired by the many GREYT people who serve tirelessly and humbly in our community. By sharing stories of how God shines his light through his people, she hopes others are encouraged to explore how they can use their gifts to share his light in the world. Know of any other GREYT stories in your local community? Email the editor lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au
LETTERS FROM MEMBERS OF THE LCANZ
Prayer for voting delegates
The debate on the ordination of women has lasted for three decades, numerous votes have been taken under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and the answer has always been ‘no’.
My understanding was that the last vote to be taken would be at the 2023 General Synod. Then someone thought of the radical idea – one church, two doctrines, which is a good recipe for division in our church. We are asked to pray for unity when we have a divisive proposition put to us, is it right that we put God to the test? I think not. It is like a country with two flags – it is divisive and hinders prosperity and growth. It is a statement that there are two parties with diverse views. You cannot have a foot in both camps (as the saying goes) and you can’t serve two masters, as God’s word says in Luke 16:13. We may as well go back to the ‘them and us’ days when we had two synods.
What we need is decisive leadership from our officials – don’t leave important decisions to our congregations, because it ultimately comes down to whether congregations accept the decision or break away and go their own way. We don’t want to see a repeat of a breakaway decision by a Christian denomination not long ago.
It is my fervent prayer that all delegates at our next General Synod, who have the responsibility of voting, will give prayerful consideration and a lot of thought before casting their votes. A lot depends on it.
Neil Bittner – Curramulka SA
Unity based on ‘oneness of the Trinity’
I write in response to the letter to The Lutheran (Oct-Nov 2023) regarding the unity of believers through ‘Christ crucified’ as the ‘overarching concern’ for the LCANZ’s future. This unity applies to all believers throughout the world. This unity of the Spirit is God-given and cannot be broken. And yet, by observation, there is not a visible unity among the believers of the world and the Holy Spirit is grieved by this.
I acknowledge that, at the formation of the LCA, there were dissenting voices to parts of the founding documents. This is lamentable, as is the breaking of fellowship between individuals and the LCANZ which has occurred since. Yet, there seemed agreement at union that our practice and doctrine (Scripture-derived teaching of the church) went together to teach that the ordained ministry belonged to those men called into that office to be supported by those not called into this office.
It would seem that, somewhere between the formation of the LCA and now, there has been a change in status of the teaching of male-only ordination from it being a part of the doctrine of the Holy Ministry to it now being considered a theological opinion outside of a genderless doctrine of the Holy Ministry. How did this occur?
The unity that is ours is based on the unity and oneness of the Holy Trinity. The fullness and purity of the Holy Trinity make us new creations with pure hearts in Holy Baptism. That is why the confession of the LCANZ includes the doctrine of Holy Baptism and the practice of infant baptism. This causes divisions and rejection among believers. The confession rejects this rejection. Does this have any parallels with what is happening in the debate over the ordination of women as well as men?
Karen Tromans – Glandore SA
Good to be reminded of evil forces
Thank you for the focus on ‘Angels and Demons’ in the latest edition of The Lutheran. Having attended Sunday school and church all my life (closing in on 80!), I sense a change in the focus of the sermons. In my younger years, the words devil, Satan and hell were often mentioned, but nowadays we seem intent on not upsetting people and rarely are these words mentioned.
The current state of chaos in the world and ‘wokeness’ is fertile ground for Satan and the malevolent beings in the heavenly realm. It is good to be reminded they exist and not fear them but depend on our Creator and Saviour to overcome these forces in our lives.
Otto Stumbras – Maryborough Qld
Let’s practise what we preach
In Australia, we’re taught to ‘swim between the flags’ for our own safety on our beaches.
A church that fails to ‘swim’ between the two bastions of Scripture (Old Testament and New Testament) risks being caught up in the rips of secularism. Failing to practise what we preach (i.e. a place ‘where love comes to life’) can lead to a lack of authenticity about ourselves. People are quick to judge false or misleading advertising.
Far better to return to why we exist, and to what we practised at the start, or risk lampstands being removed (Rev 2:1-7).
Rev Peter Fuhlbohm – Lavington NSW
Opinions expressed in letters are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand. Shorter letters will be given preference over longer letters. Subscribers’ letters will be given preference over those from non-subscribers. Letters longer than 300 words and those containing personal attack will not be published. No more than two letters from the same author will be published in a calendar year. Some letters may be edited for clarity.
These three newly ordained graduates from Australian Lutheran College come from a wide range of backgrounds but will all be stepping out in faith to begin their first pastoral ministry parish assignments in 2023. Read on to get to know them a little and discover more about their ministry journeys.
JEREMY SMITH
AGE: 30
FAMILY: Wife Katie Smith
HOME CONGREGATION: St Johns Corinda Qld
VICARAGE: Faith Warradale SA, with Pastor Tim Klein
ASSIGNED TO: Immanuel Kadina, part of Maitland Parish SA
Who were the most influential people in your life as you were growing up? My family has been an incredible gift from God, especially the example of the faith of my parents and grandparents and the continual support and dependability of my parents and siblings.
Who are the most influential people for you now? Apart from my family, Katie and other long-term friends continue to help me through challenges and to understand how God works in my life.
What did you do before you went to ALC? I studied computer games programming and spent several years in games development while also working part-time at a conference centre.
Who or what encouraged you along the journey towards beginning pastoral studies? My brother helped me understand my sense of call, but my entire family and my experiences leading Christian Life Week camps were great sources of encouragement.
What is your most relied-upon Bible verse and why? 1 Corinthians 2:2. It’s easy to get caught up in the complexity of theology, but this verse is a hope-filled reminder that draws me back to the heart of the gospel – Jesus Christ and him crucified for us.
The most important thing people need to know about God is … what he has done for them (deliverance from sin, death, and the power of the Devil), and what it cost (the suffering and death of Jesus, his Son).
Which privilege of being a pastor are you most looking forward to? Walking the baptismal journey with people, especially supporting parents in their role of handing on the faith to their children and in helping young people understand all that they have received through baptism.
What is your favourite leisure activity? Katie and I enjoy going for walks to look at birds, bugs, and other wonders of God’s creation, and playing video games.
What is your favourite movie? It’s hard to pick a favourite, but I do enjoy The Princess Bride.
If you could chat with any famous person, living or dead, who would it be and why? There would be a lot of great people I would love to talk to as a witness of the faith, such as Paul, Mary, or Luther (perhaps with both our ‘Katies’!), but I would also like to chat with my grandmother, Neva, again.
JOEL GRIEGER
AGE: 31
FAMILY: Wife Nicola and son Henry
HOME CONGREGATION: Pilgrims of Zion Sedan SA
VICARAGE: St Pauls Glenelg SA, under the supervision of Pastor Tim Ebbs
ASSIGNED TO: Bordertown Parish SA
Who were the most influential people in your life as you were growing up? My parents
Who are the most influential people for you now? There are a lot of people who guide and influence me.
What did you do before you went to ALC? I worked in retail, more specifically in the fresh produce department of a supermarket.
Who or what encouraged you along the journey towards beginning pastoral studies? My participation in the 2017 Grow Leadership program, along with Pastor Neville Otto, whom I met during the program.
What is your most relied-upon Bible verse and why? Psalm 119:105. It reminds me that all we know about God comes from his word and that his word tells us how we should strive to live a holy life.
The most important thing people need to know about God is … that he is a loving and compassionate God above anything else!
Which privilege of being a pastor are you most looking forward to? Encouraging people on their faith journey by walking alongside them; serving people through God’s means of grace – welcoming them into God’s family through baptism, and reminding them of that grace through the Lord’s supper.
What is your favourite leisure activity? I am a sports fanatic, so anything to do with playing or watching sport.
What is your favourite movie? I’m not really into movies, but Forrest Gump definitely stands the test of time.
If you could chat with any famous person, living or dead, who would it be, and why? Bruce McAvaney, as he seems to be a sports nut, which would resonate with me. There are also people in biblical times – such as Judas or Jonah – whom I would want to ask why [they did what they did].
EDWIN SHOESMITH
AGE: 33
FAMILY: Wife Fiona and children Paxton, 4, and Chester, 18 months
HOME CONGREGATION: Emmanuel Lutheran Fellowship Toowoomba Qld
VICARAGE: St Petri Lutheran Church Nuriootpa SA, with Pastor Adrian Kitson
ASSIGNED TO: St James Lutheran Church Hervey Bay Qld
Who were the most influential people in your life as you were growing up? My grandfather played a key role in mentoring me, he would always be willing to help me.
Who are the most influential people for you now? Close family and friends
What did you do before you went to ALC? I was a theatre nurse in Toowoomba, then moved into clinical support for an orthopaedic company working with surgeons in theatre.
Who or what encouraged you along the journey towards beginning pastoral studies? My father was a big player in my taking the first step to contact ALC, along with Bishop Paul Smith. During my time at ALC, Dr Stephen Pietsch and Dr Andrew Pfeiffer were both hugely involved in my discernment for pastoral ministry.
What is your most relied-upon Bible verse and why? Isaiah 40:1–11. Because of Christ, our warfare is ended, we can find comfort in him and share that comfort with others. The most important thing people need to know about God is … that you are forgiven.
Which privilege of being a pastor are you most looking forward to? Ministering to those in times of need
What is your favourite leisure activity? Hunting and fishing
What is your favourite movie? The Lord of the Rings amongst many others
If you could chat with any famous person, living or dead, who would it be and why? J.R.R Tolkien – I would get a nice scotch, sit down in a comfortable chair, and ask him to ‘tell me a story’.
by Jonathan Krause
If you look at a map of Australia, it’s hard to find two places further apart from north to south than Darwin in the Northern Territory and Victor Harbor on South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula. And both places are a long way from the refugee camps at Kakuma in Kenya.
Yet more than 700 students from seven Christian schools – six of them Lutheran – have stepped out in those two areas in Australian Lutheran World Service’s Walk My Way to help more than 6,000 refugee children to go to school at Kakuma. And in SA, the school walkers were joined by members of Lutheran congregations and the wider community.
Anita Synott, Year 12 Team Leader at Good Shepherd Lutheran College in Darwin, says Walk My Way was so popular with the school community, they held two events this spring. In total, Good Shepherd raised more than $16,800 – enough to support nearly 650 refugee children in school for a year.
‘We are incredibly proud of our college community for recognising this initiative as being something very special, with the ability to make a huge difference to others less fortunate than us’, Anita says.
The first walk featured Years 6–12 students and parents and involved more than 170 people. Participants could ride, run or walk the 26-kilometre trail from the Leanyer Campus in the northern suburbs of Darwin to the Howard Springs Campus 25 minutes south of Darwin.
Good Shepherd followed up its first Walk My Way with its junior school students organising a successful ‘coin trail’ activity and completing round-robin events held during lunchtimes.
Meanwhile, at Victor Harbor, approximately 80 kilometres south of Adelaide, six schools came together in October for the inaugural combined schools Walk My Way.
A total of 569 walkers from Concordia College, Rivergum Christian College, Encounter Lutheran College, Immanuel College, Cornerstone College, and Endeavour College could choose either a 13-kilometre course or a 20-kilometre course. Each course included a circuit of local landmark Granite Island and started and finished at Encounter Lutheran College, just north of the town centre.
Before the Victor Harbor walk, ALWS Emergency Coordinator Peter Egesa reminded students why their help was so important, saying: ‘The UNHCR (United Nations Refugee Agency) estimates there are 89 million refugees and internally displaced people globally [and] 41 per cent of these refugees are children – one-and-a-half times the population of Australia. As you walk today, think about a child in Djibouti who is in a tent as a classroom and the temperatures are over 45 degrees and there is no cooling facility.’
As of 16 November, the Victor Harbor walkers had raised $62,912, enough to support 2,419 refugee children to go to school.
The Victor Harbor and Darwin events are part of a nationwide Walk My Way effort, with members of our Lutheran family taking part from congregations including Cowell on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula, Unley in Adelaide, and Rochedale in Queensland, as well as through Lutheran Services in the Sunshine State. As of 16 November, 1,035 walkers had raised $169,956 across 10 walks and supported education for 6,537 refugee children.
ALWS Executive Director Michael Stolz has praised the way so many parts of the LCANZ are forming partnerships to support refugee children and show the community our church at work. ‘Seeing Lutheran schools come together like this, encouraged by Lutheran Education Australia, supported by the LLL and LCA, welcomed by the hospitality and volunteer time of local Lutheran congregations – this is a snapshot of what it means for us to be a church where love comes to life’, he says. ‘It’s a privilege for ALWS to bring Walk My Way to our Lutheran Church’s ministries so that we can “walk in the way of love” to help refugee children who are so vulnerable, and in danger of being forgotten by the world.’
LLL Australia is a major sponsor of Walk My Way, while LEA, ‘The School Photographer’ and local businesses also supported the Victor Harbor event.
Jonathan Krause is ALWS Community Action Manager.
Years ago, when Pastor Michael Lockwood first began reflecting seriously on the idolatry of contemporary society, his goal was to understand the beliefs of those outside the church so that he could bring them the gospel.
by Pastor Michael Lockwood
Years ago, when I first began reflecting seriously on the idolatry of contemporary society, my goal was to understand the beliefs of those outside the church so I could bring them the gospel.
Yet the more I reflected on the idolatry of the world, the more I realised that the same idolatry had infected the church and my own heart too. Just as the ancient Israelites were tempted to worship the Lord and Baal as well, so we easily slip into thinking we can serve Christ without relinquishing the idolatrous agendas of our society.
In past ages, people worshipped gods of wood and stone. In the West today, we mostly just worship ourselves. This problem is as old as Adam and Eve, who wanted to be like God. Nevertheless, our society has sunk to new lows with its dedication to the worship of human beings, and all too often we Christians fall into the same trap. I therefore will explore three ways in which this idol is evident in us and our world and how the true and living God can set us free.
THE PROBLEM
Our secular world can propose nothing greater to live for than individual happiness and equates happiness with the fulfilment of our desires. Thus, the goal of life is to get the world around us to give us what we want.
This idolatrous self-interest is not restricted to those outside the church. The reality is that we all love ourselves too much. We may not always like ourselves, but we are self-interested and want the world and even God to revolve around us and give us what we crave. Often, we put a religious spin on this. We slip into thinking that if we are sufficiently virtuous or pious, God and those around us should reward us by bending to our will. We are then inclined to get angry with God or lash out at others when this strategy fails.
Furthermore, the church often panders to this idolatry. Pastors become people-pleasers. Churches try to cater to people’s felt needs, hoping to be rewarded with popularity. In the process they lose sight of giving people what they really need, the Bread of Life.
Paradoxically, this pursuit of our own happiness does not bring happiness. We were not created to be at the centre of the universe, and neither God nor the world around us will allow us to pull them into our orbit. Such efforts just lead to frustration. It is God’s will that will finally be done, not ours, whether we like it or not.
Our society repeatedly tells us to believe in ourselves and its fundamental assumption is that there must be a human answer to every problem. No matter what confronts us, we are told that human work and ingenuity can engineer a solution. This appeals to our sinful pride, which wants to be able to say, ‘We can do it’, rather than giving glory to God as the one who provides.
People in the church are not immune. All too often we say we trust in the Lord when our behaviour shows that we are really trusting in ourselves or other human beings. For example, what do we do in a crisis? Often, we call a meeting, in which we pray for two minutes and then plan and strategise for three hours. We never dream of calling on the church to pray all night as we see in Scripture, and as I have witnessed among Christians in Nepal. This pattern reveals the extent to which our faith is really in ourselves and not in the God who answers prayer.
This idolatrous self-reliance is expressed in how we relate to all three members of the Trinity. For example:
These efforts inevitably fail. Like all idols, the idol of the self demands great sacrifices from us, but then it lets us down since we have neither the strength, virtue, nor wisdom to take God’s place. Whether we like it or not, we are totally dependent on him. When we act like we do not need him, we guarantee that we will end up sinking exhausted under the weight of our foolishness, failure and sin.
Our humanistic society is an anxious place. This is the hallmark of idolatry. When we turn to idols, trusting them to provide for us and take our fears away, they inevitably fail us, so the fears remain. The same is true when we trust in ourselves or other people. The more we do so, the more anxious we will be about our performance and the things we cannot control.
The COVID crisis did not create this anxiety, but it has revealed it. In this crisis, our society has fractured into two camps, both of which are driven by fear. One side has been fearful of COVID and has trusted in human measures like masks, lockdowns, and vaccines to manage this fear. The other side is more fearful of things like censorship and creeping authoritarianism and has fought these fears with social and political activism. Whatever the merits of these respective actions, both sides would be less frantic if we spent more time looking to Jesus.
THE SOLUTION:
The God who gives us every good thing by grace.
The good news in this situation is that the true and living God wants to give us by grace all the things we have vainly tried to supply for ourselves.
This true God has come to break us out of our narcissistic self-focus. He wants what is best for us and is able to deliver. Yet he knows that this involves us dying to our destructive self-centred desires.
True joy is not found in getting whatever we want, but in learning to want what God wants. The blessed life is one that revolves around him and his will for us, which is always gracious and good. We are free to live this way, since he has promised to give us everything we need by grace, apart from our self-centred striving.
God has got our backs, so we can forget about ourselves, and instead focus on serving him and those around us as he calls us to do.
This same God now calls to us: ‘Trust in me. I will give you by grace what you have failed to provide for yourselves. I will feed you, clothe you, protect you, heal you, forgive you, honour you, empower you, delight you, instruct you with true heavenly wisdom, and welcome you into my kingdom.’
Furthermore, this God has come to calm our fears. The most frequently repeated command in the Bible is ‘fear not’.
Fear the Lord and him alone and then you will have nothing to fear, since he is gracious and he is mighty, and he has conquered everything that can bring you harm.
When Peter took his eyes off Jesus, he became afraid and started to sink.
How often have we not done the same? Yet while his eyes were on Jesus he could walk on the waves. The same is true with us.
By ourselves we can do nothing. We cannot provide for our earthly needs, save ourselves from death and hell, still our fears or fill the aching void in our souls.
Yet the true God is calling to us and saying: ‘Look to me, and me alone, in every dimension of your lives, so that your cup runs over with what my grace supplies.’
Rev Dr Michael Lockwood serves as a theological educator for LCA International Mission and has recently been called to teach in Taiwan. He is the author of The Unholy Trinity: Martin Luther Against the Idol of Me, Myself, and I.
Lifelong Lutheran and experienced business leader Michael Stolz has been appointed Executive Director of Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS) and will start the new role next month.
Mr Stolz, pictured, brings a wealth of high-level experience and expertise in business, consulting, project management and governance, with a strong track record of 30 years in transport, energy, defence, mining logistics and not-for-profit sectors. Gaining a Bachelor of Engineering (Aeronautical) in 1985, Mr Stolz also has an Executive Master of Business Administration and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
The son of missionary parents, he spent the first 15 years of his life in Papua New Guinea. He believes his life’s values were formed there, including an interest and commitment to the developing world.
From early adulthood, he has served the Lutheran Church – in Victoria, South Australia and Queensland – in roles including school establishment committees, congregation evangelism and stewardship teams, and District and Churchwide committees. He served as a non-executive director of the General Church Board (GCB) from 2012 to 2018. He is currently serving as chair of the board of his local congregation, Prince of Peace, Everton Hills, in Brisbane’s northern suburbs.
LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith said Mr Stolz would bring ‘faithful passion and purposeful deliberation to the role of executive director of ALWS’. ‘I have served with Michael in Lutheran agencies and on committees for almost 30 years, and I cherish his deep understanding of the gospel and his heartfelt yearning to serve the church in the name of our Lord Christ Jesus’, Bishop Paul said.
A long-time personal supporter of ALWS, in 2020 Mr Stolz joined the ALWS Board as a non-executive board member and also the Finance Audit & Risk Committee as a member.
ALWS Board chair Jodie Hoff said: ‘We thank God for calling Michael to this role. He is an exceptionally experienced and gifted team leader. On top of that, his governance experience on GCB and the ALWS Board will be invaluable.
‘For all his life he has sought to serve God wherever God has placed him – and he has done this with deep passion, great faith and profound humility. We look forward to how God will work through him as we bring God’s love to life in those the world forgets.’
Mr Stolz said he was looking forward to meeting stakeholders and staff and working with the ALWS team to ‘deliver an even stronger, better organisation that delivers impactful development and aid outcomes for the forgotten people in our wider world’.
‘It’s such a joy to witness how ALWS can bring together the mission field of students and staff in our Lutheran schools with our local church communities, together reaching out to people in the world’s most vulnerable communities’, he said. ‘You only have to see people of all ages stepping out in Walk My Way, and families in refugee camps celebrating that their children can now go to school, to know that ALWS is a precious gift of God to enable us to go and grow and bring love to life.’
Mr Stolz is married to Kathy, and they have four adult children.
Walk My Way is back for 2022 and is already having a big impact on the lives and futures of children living as refugees – with almost $33,000 raised as of 18 May.
Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS) is this year again hoping to raise more than $260,000 through its walking challenge – enough to support 10,000 refugee children to go to school. Last year more than $368,000 was donated nationwide, through approximately 4,000 people taking part in the more than 30 events. In 2022, there will be congregational, school and group walks, along with a Lutheran Education Australia-supported schools and community event planned for Friday 21 October. Individuals and families can also take part in their own walking challenge, where and when it suits.
The first group walk of 2022 was staged by Year 9s from Encounter Lutheran College Victor Harbor, south of Adelaide, on 3 May and, as of 18 May, had raised $9,720 to support children in East Africa and Myanmar. Students walked 26 kilometres as a service component of their year-level camps – the boys along the Heysen Trail on the Fleurieu Peninsula, and the girls at Wilpena Pound in the Flinders Ranges in South Australia’s north.
The second group walk for 2022 was organised by members from St John’s Lutheran Church Unley in suburban Adelaide and, as of 18 May, had raised $19,902 to support refugees from Ukraine. St John’s member Jodi Brook said organisers were overwhelmed by the response to the event, which brought together 70 people of all ages and abilities for three walks ranging between 3 kilometres and 7.6 kilometres on the streets near their church.
One of the walkers, Meagan Schwarz, said: ‘We were able to talk to our six-year-old about why we are doing this and to give thanks to God for all the things we take for granted which made this walk possible.’
Community Education Coordinator for Walk My Way, Kirra Lewis, said that since 2019, Walk My Way had helped 62,500 refugee children go to school.
You can still donate to the Encounter or St John’s walking teams, to other walkers or teams, or organise your own walk. See https://walkmyway.org.au for details.
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