Keeping Up With the Andersons

Just a thankyou for the year and an invitation to lunch at our place Nov 3. 12.30 onwards. A chance to hear about what God has been doing, and fellowship. See the invitation below! Let us know if you plan on coming, so we can happily feed you

And keep praying for us in this final week with students before exams! I am so thankful to God for his work in his community of saints. Chat soon!

It was a huge and great week. I was just sharing with a friend that I have the best job in the world.  I get to see people grow in Christ.

On Wed, I was priviledged to see an Economics girl say thankyou and turn to Christ for the first time. Please pray for her, that she'll have Jesus as her foundation, and God will bring her to maturity in him. Pray that I'll be wise in helping her feel more a part of the Economics EU community and help her be part of a good church.

On Monday, I went to a friend's father's funeral. Please pray for the family, as her response to her dad's death is to live every day as though it is your last. Pray that God will use this time to bring them to a living faith in Christ. Pray for me and her other Christian friends to be loving, prayerful and speaking words of life.

Conversation with some EU students who are part of the Catholic church - was really great...we chat again tomorrow. They have all finished the book and leant it to others...I think there's big issues floating around in people's minds. Particularly pray for a girl who keeps wanting to chat through the logistics and emotions and relationship upheaval of leaving and is seriously considering it.

The Economics evangelistic event Thursady 2pm - thanks for your prayers. There were about 30 students there, with some not-yet-Christian friends and a guy who is searching from my bible study group. Keep praying for those conversations, especially with the guy from my Bible study group.

The ISM planning night was helpful. Pray that the team works hard and strategically. We forsee a lot of interest and need to be prepared, especially for the start of next year. Also pray for the summer holiday ISM plans!

And meet a friend week at ACES was great. Friends came to Bible study, hang time, conversations were had and Jesus was on the agenda. Hopefully it encourages this to be a normal thing we do!

Pray for this last week in Semester, that we would finish things well!

With just one week to go before normal conteact with students finishes, this is a fairly frantic time. But even with my todo list ever growing along with my list of unread-but-need-to-read emails I still have a lot to thank God for. The two things that have encouraged me most recently:

1. God has been saving people. Both of the international students in my God's World course have decided to become Christian in the last few weeks. Also other people who have been in contact with MG have become Christian including a girl in economics just last week.


2. Students have been doing more walk-up evangelism. On monday our team of evangelist who approach people on the front lawns to talk about the gospel is usually between 4 and 6 people but this week it swelled to 14 as the students who were being trained in the Leading People to Christ course decided to get involved.

Pray for those who have become Christian this year. Thank God for His mercy and pray that they will be strongly connected to a church and warmly welcomed into God's family by other Christians. Pray for evangelism at the EU. Thank God that it's happening and pray that the momentum is not lost over summer.

Also, please be praying for this extra big week...

...the usual (and so fantastic) small groups, evangelism opportunities, training and conversations. In my ISM bible study group for our young Christians, we''re looking at the topic of evangelism last week and this week.We particularly want to equip them to know the gospel and be able to share it appropriately with their family and friends in their home culture. Please pray for the Spirit's enabling in this.

...the extra - conversation with some EU studentswho are part of the Catholic church tomorrow about protestantism and catholicism. Please pray that it would be fruitful and helpful and that long tem, all these guys would grow hugely in Christ. We've all been reading a new book by Ray Galea (nothing in my hand I bring) about why and how he left the catholic church. He's spoken at an EU conference and RICE, so most of the guys also feel they know him as he writes. I recommend the book to you also.

...the extra -Economics evangelistic event Thursady 2pm.The event has been somewhat disporganised, due to student leadership changeover, but the students are keen. PLease pray students will come, and whatever the outcome, people would be talking with their friends about Jesus!

...the extra - ISM planning night tomorrow. Pray that God would use these extra hours we have together to effectively plan and utilise the resources we have for his glory. Also pray that our leader, Megan, wouldn't get overwhelmed or worn out as she enthusiasitcally desires to grab many opportunities. Thank God for her wisdom, and pray for her. Also pray that the people who went on the trip to Canberra won't form a clique within ISM but be outward looking!

...the extra - meet a friend week at ACES. We are trying to be more outward and evangelistically focused. This week is aimed at bringing and meeting each other's friends, as we bring them along to bible study, hanging out time, anywhere where they can spend time in christian coomunity.

...not Calcutta. Yep - we've just spent an awesome weekend in Tarcutta. Where is that - you ask? Well, that means we haven't yet cornered you to ask you to join our summer mission team to Tarcutta. It's a small country town half way between sydney and melbourne. It's another place in the world where people need to know Christ. It's another part of the world where life can be difficult, and many people rarely think of God except when the census comes around.

It's a place where drought is taking its toll, and where God is at work. 25 or so people landed in Tarcutta this past weekend to pray, meet and plan for mission on 12-20 Jan (it's not too late to join! Hint, hint, nudge, nudge!)

We had such a great time! And we are such a diverse group!

We were warmly welcomed by the Christians with bonfire and camp cooking and bush poetry. I learnt about droving, prayer and depression. And I learnt that God can work through all sorts of people.

It's also really special to have my parents join us on team.

Please pray for our preparation.

I came back on Sat from the ISM trip to Canberra! It was wonderful!

We went to all the tourist attractions and unusual places like...the institute of sport, lake eucumbyne.

We enjoyed Christian community and time together. Even one of my friends became a Christian! That's so exciting! They're all asking when the next trip is.

Read more about it in the newsletter attached.

Enjoy the photos.



Winners All Round at the Australian Institute of Sport.



A Dangerous Pose at Lake Eucumbyne in the Snowy Mountains.



Most of us at the same lake - we had so much fun!



Enjoying Floriade.



One of the students up Black Mountain Tower. The moon was so beautiful.



Megan (my co-worker) and I "blown away" by the view up Black Mountain.