Each Year Nowra City Church takes up a Missions and Social Justice Offering. Its called the Imaging Offering. At the church we have a very open policy on the Finances of the Church, so here is the report that we published in the church a few weeks ago on where the money has been spent so far. Due to the sensitive nature of some of the Mission areas we are involved, some areas are a little light on detail.

Imagine Offering Expenditure Report 2011

….so others may live

Thank you to all who gave – this report shows the effectiveness of your giving.

Promo Video for Imagine Offering 2011

A video report on Imagine Day 2011

Imagine Offering Report

In May of 2011, the passionate people of Nowra City Church gave $348,000 into the Annual Missions Offering, believing that they could be transformers – which was the theme of the day, transforming the lives of many people, through their giving and prayers. This is a report of the influence that has been achieved as a result of the strategic implementation of missions programs and spending.

I believe this year; we have seen a significant increase in the fruit from our Imagine Offering giving. I am also very excited as we start to talk about and plan the influence that the Imagine Offering 2012, now called the Imagine Protest, will have. We want to protest, by giving sacrificially, against things like:-

• The Child Sex Trade in Cambodia
• Generational Poverty in Vietnam – including the treatment of the elderly and the disabled in a particular welfare organization in Denang.
• The living conditions of people in Kathmandu, Nepal, who live in squalor in a slum.
• Social Injustice in Australia
• The way children are treated in Uganda
• The way Christians are treated in Egypt
• People going to a lost eternity in China, Canberra, Nowra, Sanctuary Point, and Kenya
• Destructive Youth issues in our culture in Nowra and Sanctuary Point
• People going to a lost eternity – to the utter most parts of the earth – everywhere Digital Missions has influence
• People not having food at Christmas time and the fact that they are alone
• And other areas of protest which will be announced at church.

This year join the Occupy Heaven Movement on the 20^th May 2012.

But let’s first talk about the significant impact of Imagine 2011

Cambodia.

We have continued our support of the SHE Rescue Homes, where young girls who have been rescued from the Child Sex Trade in Phnom Penh, are rehabilitated, educated and loved. We have been and will continue to be involved in the SHE program as they are doing an incredible job, and we also understand that this is a long term commitment to the girls that have been rescued. How much is a little girl worth? In Cambodia they are sold for $300 USD. The enormity of this tragedy is beyond words. I am a fan of SHE Rescue Homes and their work. In the Imagine Protest 2012 – we will continue to protest against this wicked thing and see young ladies freed from the tyranny of a corrupt and vile system of sexual exploitation.

China

We have a great relationship with the Missionaries we support in China. They are incredibly effective in what they do. Unfortunately, the sensitive nature of their work means that details in a public forum need to be generalized. Suffice to say – souls are being saved, leadership is being raised up and the Kingdom of God continues to flourish in Communist China.

Egypt

We gave money into Egypt, through Ps Fakoury, who is the leader of Christian Outreach Centre for the Middle East and is based in Cairo. Once the former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was deposed, there was a leadership vacuum and Ps Fakoury, began co-ordinating the various Christian Denominations to work together to put forward Christian politicians in upcoming elections.

Recently I spoke to the Christian Outreach Centre Movements International President, Ashley Schemierier and he said, there is major momentum right now happening in assembling Christian Denominations right across Egypt. WOW. How great is it, that Nowra City Church can be a part of what is happening in this country.

Vietnam

This year (2011) our major focus in Vietnam was the construction of a piggery within the boundaries of a Welfare Institution that houses the elderly and intellectually disabled children, 185 in total. The objective of this program is to increase the food source to these people, who really are abandoned by the Communist Government – who allocate 20cents per person, per day for food budget. It is also going to provide them with a source of income as we would then buy any excess pigs off them for our Poverty Eradication Pigs Microenterprise Program. The Missions trip to build the Pig Sty is happening in July 2012. Part of our Anti Poverty Imagine Protest 2012 – will be to fill the pigsty with pigs.

Church Planting

An allocation from the Imagine Offering was put toward planting a church. The National Executive of the Christian Outreach Centre Movement has asked Nowra City Church to become one church in two locations, coming alongside Impact Church in Monash ACT, providing leadership, culture, direction and resources to assist the church to reach its full potential. The leadership team and I are very excited about Nowra City Church working with Impact Church, having influence in the Nation’s Capital and potentially seeing a church in Canberra of over 500 people in the next few years.

Chairs

Through the Imagine Offering, Nowra City Church purchased 100 new chairs to expand the seating capacity of the Church Auditorium. Within a month of their delivery, the church was filled to capacity several times through the Hot Winter Nights Outreaches, leading me to conclude that we should have bought 200 more.

Indonesia

Indonesia is the most populated Muslim Country in the world and so it’s very strategic that this country became part of our Imagine Offering focus. We helped finance a Miracles and Souls Crusade that Evangelist Tim Hall was conducting in Jakarta in July 2011. Tim reports that the miracles were so prolific and the sense of God so strong that he was left continually shaking his head in amazement at what God was doing. Over the week long crusade, 4300 people gave their hearts to Christ in first time decisions and over 20,000 people came out to hear the preaching and be prayed for. One entire school of 900 students got saved.

Nowra City Youth

Over the last 18 months, Nowra City Youth has continued to explode with 120 – 140 regularly meeting at the Nowra Campus on a Friday Night. Most Friday nights, there are young people who give their hearts to Christ. Imagine Offering finance was sown into the Youth Ministry to ensure leadership and resources were available to this incredible soul winning ministry. I love Nowra City Youth.

Sanctuary Point Youth (Sanga Youth)

The southern campus of Nowra City Youth, Sanga youth is having amazing success with some very solid transformational conversions of late. Recently Ps Simon was preaching and told the story of a young lady who was saved at Sanga Youth and now is fired up and powering on for Jesus, making a very public stand for her faith. Imagine Offering money has been used to rent facilities, provide promotional material and other needs to ensure Sanga Youth has what it needs to harvest all that it can, making a difference to the community of Sanctuary Point

We have also got hold of a second bus that is now being used to increase the number of people that can be picked up for youth on a Friday Night. And the reality of the situation is that we could do with another two buses. Love this problem. But it is a problem.

Brazil.

In the far upper reaches of the Amazon Jungle is a missionary family, Bud and Suzanne Simon. Long term American missionaries working through the Xingu Mission organization, they specialize in church planting and training of local Church pastors. They currently oversee a network of 63 churches as well as pastor a church of 400 people. They are very effective in their context and Nowra City Church has sown some money into their organization to help finance what they are doing with the local churches. Recently I spent some time with Bud in LA and hearing the great success stories of amazing church plants in jungle villages was fantastic. So inspiring to think that we have been part of that.

Uganda

Irene Gleeson has a very effective ministry feeding and housing orphans in war torn Uganda. These are orphans from the war that is currently being waged by the LRA under the leadership of Joseph Kony (as in Kony2012). When contacted about the money that Nowra City Church was sowing into the orphanages, she said she had just been praying about the challenges that have arisen as food prices have increased significantly due to the famine in Somalia. She was greatly blessed and said that the finance will be very effectively used in her feeding programs.

This is part of Irene’s response when Peter talked to her about the money

“WWWOOOWWWWW….WOW… That will help us BIGTIME…
As cost of food is soaring cos of famine across border in Sudan..(sad but war is coming there too)..Job 5 We will laugh at war & famine.HOW?.cos God’s people will send help unexpectedly. Hey tell yr people they fulfill God’s Word.”

Some exciting news is that Irene will be here for the Imagine Protest 2012 Day on the 20^th May 2012.

Digital Missions

As God has been speaking to the Leadership of the church about reaching the masses at the end of the mouse click, money has been sown into this area in order to be effective at preaching the gospel through this medium. This is a significant mission field that Nowra City Church is now very active in and it is already yielding fruit. Over the last few months; we have relaunched the website, started live streaming, solved issues with our iTunes podcasts, hosted a Digital Missions Summit, purchased a new camera and other necessary equipment, started Nowra City Church Facebook and Twitter accounts and started blogging. (In the space of two and a half months since I have started blogging, there has been over 21,000 reads of my blog – peterpilt.org) Additionally we have continued the Radio Spots on 941FM, these spots have now gone national with up to 500 radio stations using them. We have also improved the quality of the website sermon downloads and also the quality of the CD’s and DVD’s that are available for purchase. The latest project we are working on is developing an iPad and iPhone app for Nowra City Church. Our Online Community Pastor, Cameron is also working with the team at Monash to bring that campus into the Digital Media world.

Alfresco

As the church continues to grow, our Café needs to expand to handle the great growth that sees the café packed out each Sunday. So some money has been allocated toward the construction of the Alfresco dining area. This will facilitate the expansion of the incredible fellowship and friendships that take place in the Chat Room on a Sunday. With the completion of the slab, we have now spent the money allocated to this area.

Shift Conference

Shift Conference last year was a very significant time of ministry to the youth of the church and beyond and this year promises to be even bigger. The State COC youth have now adopted Shift as one of their major conferences. Ps Simon and the team have planned a massive outreach on the Saturday down at the Nowra Skate Park and the entire conference is coming together very well. To assist in covering the budget for the conference a small contribution was made out of the Imagine Offering to the Conference.

Shift was a great time of missional engagement

Red Frogs

The annual Schoolies Outreach has for many years been a tremendous way to engage with a post modern generation as they conduct their after school parties. Statistics prove that Red Frogs saves lives, saves souls, saves ladies from sexual abuse and overall lays down a great foundation of Christianity in action. As in previous years, Nowra City Church has bought a tonne of Red Frogs

Radio Advertising

As part of our growth strategy, we have started using radio advertising in a more deliberate and intentional way. Over the last few months we had advertised, Hot Winter Nights, SOS Store, Sanga Youth, Sunday Services and now our Easter Services. These ads have been successful at increasing the number of visitors in Church.

SECET

Supporting the work of SECET, Nowra City Church has made a donation of several thousand dollars into the great area of outreach that SECET is.

India.

Expanding our missions influence on to the Sub Continent by sending a donation India Inland Missions (IIM). They run Bethesda Childrens Home a home for orphans, destitute children or those rescued from Human Trafficking. This year the home will be caring for 1263 resident children. IIM also are training missionaries for not only India but the remote regions of Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan & Myanmar (Burma)

Local Area Outreach

Our heart is for our city and to see the people of our city given an opportunity to hear the message of Christ and receive Him as their Lord and Saviour. The various major outreaches that we do throughout the year, are in part, financed by the Imagine Offering. The 5 Sundays of Hot Winter Nights. Easter, Christmas, Christmas Hampers and Soldier Care Packs to name a few.

Social Justice Co-ordination

The incredible work of Social Justice through the movement of Christian Outreach Centre continues to gather exceptional momentum. A strategic plan has been developed and the implementation of this plan is now being worked on. Recently Global Care has been instrumental in providing assistancto flood affected areas in Roma and St.George. Out of the Imagination Offering, some money was allocated to assist in covering the costs associated with moving the Social Justice Portfolio forward in our Nation.

Conclusion

As I have been involved in the sending out of last year’s Imagine Money and then speaking to each of the ministry areas that we have supported, it has been truly inspirational to hear of the fruit of the offering. Thank you Nowra City Church for your sacrifice and your passion for others. It makes a difference. And now we have the opportunity to do it again. The Imagine Protest on the 20^th May 2012. So others may live.

Ps Peter Pilt

Categories: Church related, Financial