More from the Wayside Chapel by Jon Owen

Dear Inner Circle, For us, one of the lessons of 2020 has been that nothing is inevitable outside of risk, courage and effort. A few weeks ago this note was penned in the sadness and silence of our empty community cafe in Kings Cross. Our kitchens have been twice as busy this year, serving takeaway food and sending out our teams who travel all over the city in vans packed with freshly-prepared nutritious meals. Since COVID-19 hit in March, our cafe dining area had remained empty, a space normally bristling with life that had been marked by its absence. With the recent easing of restrictions, the planning has been on in earnest to re-open the cafes in our Community Service Centres in Kings Cross and Bondi. The path of least resistance would have been to continue our hiatus for at least another few months, but the call to community isn’t a call to comfort, it’s to connection. This note is being written in the new controlled chaos and joy of our re-opened cafe. Our visitors may now be greeted by staff who sign them in, sit at tables that are safely-spaced, and served by our kitchen staff from behind perspex screens, but they all know this is a minor inconvenience compared to the freedom of returning to their own safe space. Our mission is about creating community, it was quite a sight to behold as reunions filled our spaces in Kings Cross and Bondi, emanating enough colour and light to bring hope into even the most despairing of hearts. On the first day of re-opening our cafe, one of our much-missed regulars who we haven’t seen since the start of lockdown ambled in. He quietly informed us that we had re-opened on the day of his 66th birthday. Trish, our tireless Cafe Manager, reassured him that we had indeed re-opened just for him. She then hustled hard to throw an impromptu party. Normally tears are appropriate for the poor-quality singing that follows but as no singing occurred, the sight of this man being surrounded by familiar faces all emanating love was enough to bring those present to tears. I’m not sure if blowing out candles will ever be considered acceptable again, so with a clap of his hands the single flame was extinguished but a renewed sense of hope was born. For many of us, Christmas will look a bit different this year. For people experiencing homelessness, Christmas will be especially tough and lonely. There’s a lovely fellow who pops up at Wayside every year in the month before Christmas. He’s got his fair share of challenges but his heart is full of nothing but gold. He said that he’s drawn to Wayside at Christmas because the joy and goodwill that pours through our community at this time of year drowns out his own painful memories of Christmas. He was sad to hear that Wayside Chapel won’t be able to go ahead with our usual large-scale Christmas Day Street Party in Kings Cross due to COVID-19 restrictions but he was heartened to learn of our plans to create Christmas cheer for people in our community who are in need. Over the seven days before Christmas, including Christmas Eve, we will be hosting daily community lunches in Kings Cross that will capture the spirit of Christmas with freshly-cooked meals for people experiencing homelessness and isolation. These lunches may not have the usual fanfare of our street party, but they will still be served with a big dose of love and the gift of good company. You can find out more about our other Christmas activities here. We need your help to bring some joy to our community this Christmas. We will be recording a Virtual Choir performance of a secret song to be shown at our ‘Week of Christmas Spirit’ community lunches and on Wayside’s social media on Christmas Day. If you love to sing, we’d love you to participate by submitting your own video! The first 30 people to email media@thewaysidechapel.com with “Virtual Choir” in the subject line will be sent a link with specific instructions on how to record and submit your performance. Thank you for being a part our virtuoso Inner Circle, Jon Jon Owen Pastor & CEO Wayside Chapel Donate to Wayside Chapel's Christmas Appeal Protecting your privacy is important to us. Personal information collected from our subscribers is held in a password-secure database and used in accordance with Wayside’s Privacy Policy. We do not sell personal information to third parties. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information, or if you have any questions or concerns, please contact our Privacy Officer at mail@thewaysidechapel.com.

From the Wayside Chapel by Jon Owen

Dear Inner Circle,

A small group of us gathered in the chapel this week to farewell someone who few knew. He wasn’t one of our larger than life characters, but preferred to slip into Wayside to join in our Wednesday night Music Jam. He loved his Wednesday nights and at his funeral, his partner shared openly about their life together. They met after they had both turned their backs on a society that had turned it’s back on them. Separately, they lived by a lake near a remote outback township. Their tin shacks were separated by a body of water so she had a good view of him and when he tried to approach her, she threw rocks at him. No matter the number of rocks she hurled, he never yelled and always greeted her with kindness. After a couple of weeks, they spoke. Soon, they were inseparable, and their union gave them the courage to slowly re-engage with the world together. “I’d swap every single yesterday for just one more tomorrow. He was my world” she wept and we all fell silent.

We walk a sometimes precarious line at Wayside because we don’t use the language of “client” and “expert”, instead we see everyone who comes through our doors as a visitor. Yet language has a way of slipping into hollow noise. We live in a world where politicians can tell us that they act “for the people” while everyone can see that they act for themselves or the few. At Wayside we can say “visitor, guest, friend” with the meaning of “client and expert”. Words create worlds. We know the most at Wayside when we know ’no-thing’. When our relationships lead us to a human connection between two people, we certainly know no-thing. This is a movement greater than any symphony orchestra can play - when someone moves from being an object to a subject. When two people see each other not as a means to an end or as someone that needs to be managed, but as someone who holds the mysteries of the universe within them, it leads to awe, reverence and encounter. True relationship leads to connection, and connection to love. If real love ever makes you, ’feel good’, surely that is incidental to the activity but never constitutes the act of loving itself. How sadly does our culture get this the wrong way around? Listen to our love songs and look at our movies and you’ll hardly have to wonder how we’ve developed such a narcissistic culture. When it becomes someone’s job to keep you feeling good, love is no longer a fair exchange between two. Someone has disappeared to become the object of the other. This is where feelings of dominance can take over, and in it’s most extreme form, leads to domestic violence. Signs emerge long before any violence does, in subtle manipulation and control. The recent killing of a mother and her children is the end of a process, so we should begin our support where personal freedoms are curtailed, no matter how seemingly trivial they are. One of the most chilling memories Hannah Clarke’s mother has is when she was told by her daughter, “I was thinking it wasn't abuse, because he never hit me.”

On a lighter note, last Wednesday night was the launch of Wayside’s ‘Heart Choir at the cafe’, our new ‘pub style’ community choir at the Heart Cafe in Bondi Beach. The beauty of the Heart Choir is that it has no auditions and no performances, which means everyone is welcome. Last week people from all backgrounds and ability gathered, connected by Wayside’s mission and a love of singing. They learnt Cher’s ‘Believe’ in three-part harmony, and literally sang their hearts out to the surprise of passing foot traffic and the results were spine-tingling.
Watch it here.
https://www.facebook.com/thewaysidechapel/videos/193799198520806/?redirect=false

 Someone there even went so far as to say that it was one of the best nights of her life, while someone else, not usually noted for their positivity, was glowing in their praises after being part of it. For more information, and to register your interest for the next ‘Heart Choir at the Cafe’ event on 8 April, see our Facebook event page. Spaces are limited. We can’t wait to see you there!

Thanks for being part of our Inner Circle,

Jon

Jon Owen
Pastor & CEO
Wayside Chapel

Wayside Walks event - Book Now
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"Polished stones and sharpened arrows"-Another book in my library.

"Polished Stones and Sharpened Arrows" is a book written in 1888  by a man called CW Bibb.
 The idea of this book was to help Christians share their faith with others and also help them grow in their Christian life.
I have the book in my collection.
 It's full of illustrations which when  I read the book I saw how many familiar illustrations there are that I was taught to use myself when doing personal evangelism .
 I still think there's a value with of this type of illustration even though of course a lot of the illustrations that are used in personal evangelism and stories might be anecdotal
 some maybe true some maybe just to give an illustration.
But they can be helpful so I'm going to share some of these in my  my blog

 This next story which has a historical authenticity comes in a chapter titled "Trust in Christ".

"Romans 8:18  KJV

¹⁸ For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Margaret Wilson a young lady of 18, living in Wigtown, Scotland, was cruelly condemned  by James the 2nd to be drowned for her faith in Christ .
She was taken to the seashore and tied to a stake so the rising tide would slowly overflow her and give her an opportunity to recant her faith.
Calmly she awaited to the approaching tide.
 Someone asked "do you have any fears of the future."
 She calmly replied "Christ is my stay"

 As the waves came up to her mouth she repeated these lines.

 "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities nor powers,
 nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord"

 Both illustrations by John Everett Millais

Read about Margaret here.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Wilson_(Scottish_martyr) 

From the Wayside Chapel

Our friend Graham Long has retired from his role as the CEO of the Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross, Sydney.

Jon Owen is now in that role.

This is his latest message to supporters.

Don't only read this but follow the link to his recent Tedx talk.



Dear Inner Circle
What we love changes. There was a time long ago in my life when wet weather days and nights like the ones we’ve had in Sydney in the last couple days would have seen me gleefully crawling up into bed with a hot cuppa and good book, I loved them. A couple of nights ago as I walked through the building I saw a different kind of love in action, it looked like a frenzy of activity as plans were being made for the night of storms ahead. It looked like extra blankets and clothing being handed out. It looked like people sharing their “secret spots” where it was the driest and least wind exposed for sleeping. It looked like one of our regulars running around giving his mobile number out to everyone “if you get stuck call me and we can huddle together to stay warm”.  Could there be more generous acts than that? Yesterday morning after the deluge had really hit, love looked like quick access to our warm showers, dry towels, fresh clothes and hot breakfasts. Can you really imagine how hard it would be to live on the streets and not to have a roof over your head in this weather?  What I see is absolute resilience and willingness of those on the streets to help others even in the toughest times. Love looks quite different to me now and I’m a lot richer for it.
Last weekend all who have been in the building have been uplifted by a new choir practising in the building. There is a little girl who we have seen quite regularly of late and she is often dressed as a superhero. When I’ve asked who she is, she has looked at me like I must have been blind or a little slow. “I’m Woman Wonder!” For the first time, I saw little miss Wonder Woman sit still. She was truly captured by the wonder of the choir and it wasn’t just our little superhero who was dazzled, it was all of us in the room who were similarly captivated by the beautiful sounds together.
I was also recently invited to conduct a funeral service for someone from the transgender community. About 20 women and the deceased’s dog all huddled together in our chapel to mourn her passing and to pay tribute to a life lived to the full. What a character she was. There were lots of stories that were told about her life. One such colourful story recounted a time when she was asked to leave a women’s refuge when it was discovered she was running an escort agency from within it - the staff only found this out because her certificate of business registration arrived in their mail. When confronted she argued that she was running a perfectly legal social enterprise that was empowering and employing women. Did I mention that we certainly have some characters in Kings Cross? We love them all.
Just over a month ago I received the privilege of being invited to give a TEDx Talk at 1 Bligh St, it was an opportunity to share a little of what got Lisa and I started on a journey that has led us all the way to Wayside Chapel. It has not been a path marked by striving to be higher, faster and stronger, but rather an opportunity to move the other way, to be lower, slower and weaker and able to respond to the world as it is, rather than what we all expect or constantly aspire for it to be. As we move towards the silly season, I ask you to slow down and pause to really think about what things mean most to you. You can view my TEDx Talk here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0oXbuQ6WRI&t=15s


Thanks for being part of the Inner Circle.
Jon
Jon Owen
CEO & Pastor
Wayside Chapel

From the wayside chapel-Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,
Thank you so much for the outpouring of love and support in this past week. I try to respond to most of your emails but this week it was well north of six hundred emails and I need to be content to express my deepest gratitude here. We buried Mum in the same grave as Dad. At the moment of lowering the casket, I asked my siblings to sing an old hymn that we’d heard our parents sing together hundreds of times. When we were young, we sang pretty well together with strong harmonies. Last week we sounded a bit like someone was trying to drown kittens. It was a lovely, even powerful moment and my siblings will forgive me in just a few short years.
If you’ve ever attended our Sunday Church service in Kings Cross, you’ll be aware of a little lady up the front who we’ve lovingly named, Saint Interruptus. Our dear little saint died this week and we’re very sad to part with her. She’s been a regular at Wayside since 1967. She told me how previous ministers would be annoyed by her interruptions and at times, make her sit at the back of the chapel. In this past 12 years, Saint Interruptus and I had become something of a double act. I loved her and she loved me. I’ll have to rely on someone else in the community for Sunday interruptions. I’m pretty confident that our community won’t fail me.
One phrase stopped our world last week. A young fellow who has lived on the streets for two years, just last week obtained housing in a small flat. The positive attitude of this bloke is uplifting, not because he uses easy phrases or because there has been anything easy about his life, but because it’s been so tough for so long. As time has passed he’s become more involved in volunteering and is keen to help others even when his own situation is not fabulous. “How can I help?” is a good sign that a life is opening up and on the way to thriving whereas, “What can you give me?” is a sign of the opposite. Last week we had a function at Bondi and our young friend worked all night and until every task was done. He then said something that stopped all of us, “I’m going home now”.
Here is something that I promise will make your day, perhaps your year! Check out this beautifully crafted story of Wayside baker Andrew who spent many years in a spiral of addiction and homelessness and behold today the man, alive, engaged, contributing and even leading. Watch it, you’ll love it and you’ll love Andrew.
After a massive effort Wayside’s new serviced apartments at Bondi Beach are open for business. The location is right on Bondi Beach and the apartments have been redecorated by our new Ambassador, interior stylist, Jason Grant. The best part of this announcement is that all the profits from the rent will go directly to support our work with the most vulnerable in our community. Find out more and book here.
One of my granddaughters has a remarkable affinity with animals. When we walk hand in hand, I literally sense her heart leaping toward any dog that passes. The other day she said, “Oh Papa, look at that poor lost Jack Russell”. “Darling,” I replied, “Look at his lead and the lady holding it, he’s not lost.” “Papa,” she said, “Look at his face, he’s lost.”
Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham



Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,
Sometimes the impossible confronts my eyes, defying me to explain it or daring me to be arrogant enough to explain it away. It’s not easy to stand before the impossible, baffled and in awe. A man came into my office just now to offer me a slice of apple cake. Perhaps this doesn’t sound like a moment that could arrest the progress of time, but it was. The man was wearing a long apron and a white beret. This fellow is our baker. He’s learning his craft with the help of some of our fabulous staff and he’s thriving as he discovers himself doing well. I said, “I can’t begin to tell you how inspired I am to receive this cake.” “Well,” he said, “You say often on Sunday that, ‘God says you’re ok’ and no one has ever told me that I’m ok.” This fellow spent many years living on the street and perhaps in the order of twenty years fighting an addiction to heroin. We’ve shared the ups and downs of what is a daily struggle and broken our hearts as his story is revealed. It’s a story of an intelligent man who never had much but lost everyone and everything in life. Too humble to fight for a place in the world and too sensitive to blame his losses on others, he lived the life of a hermit, his only shelter and only comfort to be found in drugs. What I just saw was a man engaged; engaged with this community, engaged with life and moving on a path to health. Awesome, bewildering, impossible but real.
Here is an offer you’ll get from nowhere but Wayside! A lovely bloke involved in our program for people living with long-term mental health issues, is putting on his own exhibition. Pee Wee is a treasured part of this community and he’s always had a thing about pillows. He makes them and carries a collection wherever he may be. We are holding a “Pillow Exhibition” at Wayside Monday 8 August from 5pm to 7pm. There will be no pillows for sale and we won’t be asking anyone to part with any money for any reason. We want to honour Pee Wee because we love him. Call in if you have some minutes to spare and to catch the love of pillows perhaps, but especially, our love for Pee Wee. There is every chance that Pee Wee himself will sing a song or recite some poetry. We promise no dignitaries, no celebrities, no lectures, no fuss. It will be a night when we honour a good man. We promise no value for money; we promise nothing that might lead to excitement or inner peace; we promise only that you might remember that a city is judged by how it treats its poorest, and character is revealed in generous acts that cannot yield any return. It will be fun and very Wayside.
An urgent phone call came from a man suffering a, “religious emergency”. He was down in the café and I couldn’t help but stop what I was doing to discover what a religious emergency might be. An elderly alcoholic man told me that he’d accidentally touched a black man this morning and he wondered if he might have been rendered unclean or in need of prayer. “Mate!” I said with a tone that was confronting but full of compassion and sadness, “You do know that Jesus wasn’t a white man?” Genuinely bewildered he eventually said, “But I’ve seen photos!” “My funny old sausage, we’ve only had photography since about 1850. I promise you, Jesus must have looked like Klinger from MASH.” He shuffled away saying, “Ahhhh” but I think I only deepened the religious emergency.
My heart aches for America. This week they passed a bill in Texas ensuring people could carry concealed guns on all their college campuses. Various students gave testimony to how they feel safer knowing that there could be so many gun-toting students. All of us can at times turn people that ought to be friends into enemies, but to turn them into targets? The election process over there was always bewildering to me but this time around has taken my confusion to a whole new level. I’m nobody in the scheme of things but it looks like I’m watching an empire go down in history. Momentous times and so much at stake. Australia owes much to America and for a long time we counted the American way and approach to things as something to be unthinkingly copied, but dear God above surely now is the time to pull back. How could any leader over there arrest the headlong plunge into “everyone for themselves” and “rich is right”. America has many enemies but it looks like most of them put their hand on their heart when they sing the national anthem. If it all implodes, we’ll have to erect a memorial that reads, “We take it to be self-evident that all men are created isolated.” Our world so needs an outbreak of love.
Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

As a young man, I liked to think I was pretty bright. In my mid-twenties my head was awash with Freud, Ellis, Berne and the like. I wanted to serve people well but in the process I ran a solo commentary on how the world worked. I look back in horror and embarrassment at my pretentious twenty-something self. Knowledge comes through books but wisdom comes through pain.

In the little town of Waikerie, South Australia, I ran a visiting service for a government department whose primary responsibility was child protection. The office I used had no receptionist and no telephone; just a sign on the door to say that I’d be there on Fridays. No one had thought of mobile phones in those days. I started each visit with a full waiting room and I’d work until everyone had gone. They were often long days with no way for me to make enquiries for people or ask for help when my way got difficult.

One day a woman walked in with her daughter who I imagine might have been four or five years old. I will never lose the image of the little girl’s face. Her facial expression was akin to a snarling dog and yet she said nothing. I’m not sure she could talk. She seemed to be hiding a hand and so I gently pulled her arm up so that I could see her hand. Her little fingers were badly burned and blistered. The pattern of the burns suggested to me immediately that the burns were caused by a hotplate. The sore hand had received no medical treatment and had swollen to become as large as my hand. “How did this happen?” I asked the mother. She replied, “She tells lies”. I felt sick. Nothing I had ever learned was any good to me. I had no phone and no one to ask for advice. Under all my fundamentalist Christian formation was a question that gnawed at me for years. Where was God when that little kid’s hand was being held on the hotplate?

A couple of months later, I helped another mother with seven kids run away from the domestic violence of her drunken husband. The family lived on a part of the Murray River that was miles away from anyone or anything. On the day of escape, two of the children were unexpectedly with their father and so we escaped with Mum and five kids. When the husband returned, he was so incensed that his wife would leave him that he took his five-year-old daughter, put her in a weighted bag and lowed her into the river. The child died. My soul numbed for years until I could bare to ask myself where God might have been when that little girl was being lowered into the river.

It took me years to be able to ask my question let alone move toward an answer. Today, I know where God was when the little girl was mercilessly lowed into the Murray River. God was, “in the bag”.

Easter makes no sense except to reveal that there is no God-forsaken place where God isn’t. There is no person who is too far gone. The is no hole you can fall into where there is not goodness and hope at the bottom.

That is my Easter message for this year. When you are bewildered by Christians who observe this season and seem to honour what looks like an act of unspeakable brutality, understand that they know; God is in the bag.

Thank you for putting up with my odd religious message and thank you for being part of this inner circle,

Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/




 

From the Wayside Chapel by Rev Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

“Torrid” is one way of explaining life here just lately. We had a fellow attempt to take his own life with a rope although he fell into the capable and compassionate hands of Una before he came close to doing himself damage. Another dear lady, under the influence of ICE, suddenly produced a knife and threatened two of our staff. The saddest part of this situation was that she was threatening the person who loves her in this world the most. I’m thankful for highly trained and disciplined staff members who handled this according to long-practiced policy. The person was soon enough contained behind a locked door. Police responded quickly and soon enough the lady was in custody and on her way to psychiatric help. To top off a busy few days, on Sunday while our little church was on, a lady at our front door suddenly produced a knife and cut her own arm open causing a dramatic, spurting bleed. If that was me, I would have fainted, but this lady ran, fast. Our staff who were concerned that excessive blood loss could be fatal, also ran, fast. The outcome was a quick resolution where medical care and psychiatric care were put in place. Fabulous work on the part of all our people but you’ll understand that while they look pretty relaxed, they are on their toes all the time.

Quite often, members of our inner circle write back to me with stories that resonate with something I’ve written. I have to share this one with you (with permission) because it made me laugh out loud.

Dear Graham,
I always love reading your "Inner Circle" letters. When I read your comments on rules in the latest one, "wisdom is a tricky business", I thought you might enjoy this little story. I went to mass yesterday for Ash Wednesday and because it's a day on which Catholics come out of the woodwork to go to church, the church itself filled up quickly and the overflow was directed to a hall underneath. We were sitting on chairs waiting for the priest when a nicely dressed man standing towards the back (a church warden apparently?) said in a booming voice, "Please turn your phones off. It's rude to have them on." ...so far so good... "And if you don't like our rules, you can f*** off." Well, that's telling it like it is! (A few more interjections made it clear he probably had some kind of mental health issue. To state the obvious, one hopes that those outraged by the breaking of rules about appropriate language in a church could look past that.)
Best wishes

Do you want to be part of Wayside history? Over the past few months we’ve been working with renowned photographer, Gary Heery, and creative director, Andrew Henderson, on a follow up book to Stories from the Wayside. Our last two shoot days for the book will be next week so it is your last chance to be included in what will be a stunning book, celebrating the sometimes raw, sometimes confronting but always awesome and beautiful community. We extend to you, our inner circle readers, neighbours, volunteers, supporters and visitors, a warm invitation. Final shoot days are Wednesday 24 February from 11am to 2pm at Wayside, 29 Hughes St, Potts Point and Saturday, 27 February from 10am to 3pm at the Kings Cross Markets, El Alamein Fountain. We’d just love to include you what will be an important snap shot of our history.

We’re on the hunt for a Direct Marketing Manager to develop and drive direct marketing programs across multiple channels. Applications close this Friday so if you or someone you know is interested, find out more information here.

Walking in the front door this morning a lovely, gentle Aboriginal man stepped over to me to shake my hand. A rather lovely woman that we only see once every few months also walked over and gave me a hug. A group of four men interrupted their conversation long enough to each shake my hand. As I passed them and was near the door, one of them yelled, “So are you busy today, Rev?” “Well,” I responded, “that is the impression I’m trying to give”. One of them came back with, “You mean ‘that’s the illusion you want to create’”. I walked through the door with all four of them doubled over with laughter.

We shed more tears here than in your average community. Often tears of laughter and sometimes they express unspeakable sadness. It’s what we do. We stand with those who are discarded or irrelevant. We stand with those who just couldn’t cope in this high tech, low human world, in order that no one will be alone. This is not an act of charity on our part but rather is an acknowledgement that our deepest need is to belong to one another. We not only stand with the ‘down and outs’ but we stand with the ‘up and outs’ for every act of racism, every act of snobbery, every act of blindness gives the illusion of 'them and us' but the deepest, truest, highest thing we know is that there is just 'us' and when one is hurt or devalued, all are hurt and devalued.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,

Graham


Rev Graham Long AM
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

How are Christian Books Born Again?

Of course my title is misleading.

A book is an inaminate object so it is never born or born again in a human sense.

However there are many wonderful Christian books that can find themselves having a new life
after the original owner has died or changed their ideas or they are just lying around someones house.
Over the years I have bought many new Christian books but probably a lot more on the second hand market.
Some classic books are out of print these days but their message is timeless and vital.

I discovered a little cache of Christian books in a Rotary Book shop the other day.

Here are some of the titles and why I bought them.

 "Understanding the Bible" by John Stott. One of my favourite Christian Teachers. A must.

 "He Gave Gifts" by Charles Swindoll. Good balanced teaching on the gifts of the Holy Spirit is very important.

 "The Methodist School Hymnal"  I never knew this existed.Some wonderful old hymns.

 This is the Classic Devotional Book every Christian should have and use.You can follow it each day on the internet.  "My Utmost for His Highest" by J Oswald Chambers

 The Serendipity New Testament for Groups . The serendipity Bible Studies were wonderful in the 70's and still great for today. This I regard as a treasure.

Lots of great tips about how to lead and take part in small groups.

'The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel. This one I mentioned in my last post.
For the skeptics and Christians who want to know how to answer criticisms of your faith.

A great resource for used but very useful Christian books is at the following website.

http://www.christianbooksaustralia.com/
"

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

Walking in our front door and heading in for choir practice, a young woman struck up a conversation with a homeless person. It was an interesting, easy flowing exchange that ended when the man said, “I’m not really homeless, I’m just outdoorsy”.

At the door this morning a young fellow stopped me to announce that he had a new girlfriend. “I’m happy for you” I said. He told me that his secret was that he’d told the young woman that he was me! He said she was chuffed to be keeping company with Rev Graham Long, Pastor and CEO of The Wayside Chapel. “Gosh” I said, “So you’re not planning for this to be a long term relationship then?” This poor young bloke is very unwell and didn’t understand how I could foresee a problem. “Well” I said, “She might find out you’re lying to her and I doubt that she’ll take it well, or, she might meet me and see that you’re impersonating a poor old burnt-out has been.” I went on to ask the fellow why he wasn’t happy or content to be himself and claim to be only himself when meeting a young woman. Unfortunately the man is unwell and he slipped into gobbledygook.

Last night the building was buzzing with a large AA group meeting, hand massage and nails going on with the Twilight Team and the Honeybees choir filling the building with their beautiful sounds. The special thing about last night for me is that my dear daughter is a Twilight volunteer and she was doing some of the hand massaging and nail painting. I’m so proud of her I could burst. When I walked out of the building the Honeybees were singing with full blown angelic power, “Hallelujah”. Perfect!

I’m staying light this week to balance the heaviness and often intemperate commentary that’s everywhere in the air today. My word to the sad is that there are times when the only gift possible for humanity is to carry a heavy heart. Your hope for a dignified and fair world has been offended. In times of such grief its common to strike out with angry words and quick judgements. We need to not shield ourselves from the full sadness that comes from the haunting thought of bullets ripping through the flesh of those executed yesterday but we also need to know that our grief is just that, grief. It is not the time for us to find new ways of offending Indonesia. Let the grief blow us where it will but let the healing begin soon. Indonesia’s position on the death penalty will not move while we are waving our fingers and beating our chests. Both countries are sickened by the work of drug pushers and both countries could work together to form policies and practices that are humane and constructive. Australia is not superior; we’re not even more humane. If there was a referendum calling for the death penalty for peadophiles in this country, I promise you it would be successful. There is a dark side in both our countries and it requires people of good will in both countries to look for the best in the other and work for the best of both.

A lovely man is sitting in our cafe just now who said to me, “There’s a lovely freedom of speech vibe down here. As long as everyone believes the same thing”.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com
    
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     This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   
     http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/   

    

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

The good people of Bombala hosted me for their Australia Day celebrations. Sydney’s Kings Cross to the little town of Bombala is quite a cultural contrast. I began my speech by saying, “I walked down your main street last night and I didn’t see a single strip club or massage parlour. What kind of town is this?” I met so many hard working, honest people who mostly reminded me of an Australia that has largely disappeared. The primary activity of the day was shearing sheep. They stopped for a brief speech from me and also from the local Mayor and then they returned to shearing. The comedy act of the day was when they organised for me to shear a sheep. I didn’t want to hurt the poor animal that they put at my feet and so the job I made of shearing was just laughable. It’s an activity that is not kind on your back even to shear one sheep. How these folks are able to shear 200 and even 300 sheep a day is simply beyond my understanding. What an honour to speak with the locals and hear their concerns; to hear about the price of wool; the price of lambs; their vulnerability to weather; their understanding of the role of politicians; their fear about the threat of drugs to their young people. There were some clearly well-heeled people at the gathering and there were some young people whose fitness and strength left me in awe. There were many people who looked like they’d lived out in the weather for 40 years or who hadn’t removed their hats in that time. The main street literally had hundreds of 4x4 trucks and utilities and only one solitary small sedan. Even my car was something of a cultural shock to the street. I’m grateful to have met so many colourful characters and to have learned that should Wayside suddenly come to an end, shearing is not a way that I might make an alternate living.

Chatting in the cafe yesterday, a homeless man insisted on buying me lunch. I tried to talk him into allowing me to buy lunch for him instead. He said, “Think of all the times you’ve helped me in the past month.” “You’re right,” I said, “I’ll have spaghetti and a can of drink.” There are many people in this world who have so little but give so much. One of this city's most notorious criminals wrote to me from prison this week. He earns $20 per week in prison. If I told you the crime he committed, you probably would read no further. He sent me $200 and asked me to give it to someone in need. What an astonishing act of generosity! You can’t hate a whole person. The only way you can hate someone is to take a picture and call it the whole movie.

Sometimes our way is heavy. I’ve done two funerals last week and have three booked for next week. You should put a Wayside funeral on your bucket list. They are often sad, hilarious, deeply moving and inspiring all at once. Most of our eulogies come from voices that are never heard. Almost always, someone will stand and say, “I never met this person but if I had…” Sometimes there is the moving affirmation that, “This person was a bastard but he was my mate and I loved him.” Every now and then my mind plays the hundreds of funerals I’ve done here in fast forward. They are among my most precious memories as I’ve witnessed words of love with no polish and poor expression but almost extracted directly from the heart, bypassing the brain, lungs, throat and mouth. There is often a 'death weariness' to be clearly seen. Many people begin their words with, “How many times can we do this?”

Our team gets better and better at what they do. The other day I went into the cafe to see a table with five men all sitting around our Lisa, learning to sew. I saw our Julian and Katherine in our Twilight Team, sitting on the seats at the front playing some musical instruments. I stayed long enough to see quite a crowd gather. There were a few homeless people who got right into the singing, even shouting at various appropriate spots. There was a neighbour walking home from Woolworths who stopped and picked up a tin whistle to join in the jam. I saw a young mum with a couple of kids stop and join the fun. That was our mission, embodied and lived right there. To see the barriers that normally separate people melt is pure inspiration. Julian and Katherine created a moment where there was no good or bad, in or out, saved or lost, sick or well, housed or homeless. There was, “just us” and I went home more alive for having witnessed this vision of what could be.

That’s enough, thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.revgrahamlong.com/
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

                
Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From The Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

 Please note Graham is a family friend and a relative through marriage.

Dear Inner Circle,

All was pretty quiet in the nursing home on my last visit with my Mum. She was sleeping in the lounge area and I woke her up with a kiss. We held hands and she told me how blessed she was to be receiving the best of care. She pointed out various staff members and told me how much she loved them. At one stage I told her that I was thinking about writing another book. She looked me in the eye and gave me her best advice. She told me to centre myself in God rather than myself and “something of the power of prayer and the power of right living will come through your words.” She was so warm and generous with me and it took me ages to realise that she didn’t know who I was. She told my sister later that she’d been visited by the most lovely man.

Every time I went downstairs yesterday I saw Kate, one of our community workers, sitting alongside someone on our front deck. Sometimes it looked like she was sorting out minor matters for people and sometimes it looked like she was being alongside someone in their darkest moment. It was Wayside at its best and Kate is a gem. After dark I went downstairs and observed our Twilight Team in action. John (our very own saint and another of our community workers) was dressed in a Chinese style hat that had a pony tail attached and he was calling bingo numbers. This probably sounds unremarkable but the early hours of dark are often the toughest for people who have not been able to find a bed for the night. For those who have had a rough day and have nowhere to go, twilight is more than just the time when the light of day fades. John’s work was not about “legs 11” or “two fat ladies 88”, it was a stunning, breathtaking, hopeful act of love and engagement. The cafe was busy and Mitzi, who leads the Twilight Team, was overseeing everything in her unique, gentle way. As I walked away, I was never more proud to be a part of such a team. A man and a woman joined me as I walked up the street. They are clearly in love and many times in the day I had seen them in a deep embrace. Part of me wanted to say, “Get a room” but under the circumstances, such an expression could not have been more cruel. They carried with them some warm clothes that we’d found and several blankets. I guess they were headed to a nearby park for the night. As I climbed into my own warm bed last night, I couldn’t help but think of these two and hope that their love made the cold bearable.

The other day I read that in London people are erecting “homeless spikes”. Just like pigeons are kept off window sills, homeless people are being kept off public places by spikes. The older I get the more I think I’m an alien in this world. I understand and support the notion that we as families and as a society should not live beyond our means but this can be done without making victims of the poor. We can be humane and careful if we choose to do so. Pain can be shared without looking for someone to blame. For the foreseeable future I can't see how Australia could have the cheek to talk to any other country about human rights. We are in a moment where good people must stand up and speak up. We need to assert again the dignity of the human person and insist our leaders turn a “fair go” from an empty cliche to real, living policies. I urge every member of the inner circle not just to be upset about the current trends but to act. Do something lovely for someone. Let your words be more than noise in the air. Donate to ease the burden of someone who is sleeping rough or who has hit hard times. Let your vote of confidence in humanity move from your head to your heart and to your wallet. For those who are long term members of this inner circle, you’ll know I only ask for money twice a year; at Christmas and at the end of financial year, so if you’re in a position to do so, please give to our winter appeal here before June 30.

We will gather tomorrow morning at Wayside to lay to rest a woman whose personality animated this place for more than 30 years. I’ll miss her laugh and sense of fun. Our friend died at age 47 and every one of those years was a battle. This lady has proved that the highest and most noble is revealed in difficult circumstances rather than when the way is easy. I predict a large funeral and a mighty outpouring of love for a woman whose presence added grace to our days.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

PS. If you're around next Monday, I'd love to see you at a special 'Wayside Voices' event we're having in our Community Hall from 6pm to 8pm. People from our community will be sharing their own personal experiences of 'love over hate' and what it means to them. There is nothing more powerful than stories about love triumphing over hate. More details here.

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Privacy Policy  

                    

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

 Graham Long is a Family Friend and brother of one of our in law relatives.

Dear Inner Circle,

Here’s a first! A note came to my desk yesterday with $30 in it. The note said, “I stole a bag from the front of your building yesterday and I didn’t realise that there would be money in it. Could you please find whoever lost their bag yesterday and give them back this $30. I’m keeping the bag because I need it.” How quaint is that? We have a thief with a conscience. I’m not sure if the thief reads this note but if so, I’d like to express my thanks for being able to recognise how important $30 is to someone who has “fallen by the wayside”.

A man recently asked me to take photos of all his jewellery and to make notes about who will inherit it after his death. I took photos of each piece even though it looked like there was nothing of any real worth among it and I made notes about where it should go after the man’s death. Eventually I asked the obvious question, “Are you expecting to die soon?”. “Tonight,” he said. This was not my most comfortable moment of the week. As he told me of a life of physical and emotional pain, I felt something of a longing for death that actually made sense. It was sad to think a journey could be so unrelentingly bleak that there seemed to be no beauty and nothing funny left. I’m not sure what he expected of me but I reminded him that I have no magic powers. As much as I’d love to wave a wand and help the man fall in love with life, my only gift really was to be a tower of weakness by his side. I told him that I’d be off to Canberra and then South Australia for a couple of weeks and joked that if he wanted a truly classy funeral, he might like to hang on for two more weeks. As I said this, the man smiled and I saw enough of a glimmer of hope to make me think he’ll still be here when I get back.

Robyn and I are off to Canberra this weekend because I am nominated by New South Wales as a Local Hero finalist in the Australian of the Year Awards. Because I know well that there is no such thing as a single human person, I also know that there is no such thing as a singular hero. Every achievement is shared as is every failure. Provided everyone understands that this Wayside achievement is shared by my family, our board, our staff members, our volunteers, the many officials of the church who could have tried to turn us into a sausage machine but instead have encouraged us and celebrated our victories and the many people who I’ve met from the street who taught me about life and love, then, I’ll accept any award and I'll readily admit we are part of something heroic and that there is nothing more we’d love than for this to be seen as a gift to Sydney, NSW and the whole of the country. There are other worthy contenders for the same award so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens. The ceremony will be televised from the lawns of Parliament House Canberra on ABC TV at 6pm on Saturday. It’s an honour to be nominated and it will be no disgrace to miss out.

Given Australia Day is this weekend, it seems like a good time to tell you about an initiative of a truly great Australian. Dick Smith has supported The Wayside Chapel since the 1970s and continues to provide significant donations on a regular basis. We love Dick Smith and we love what he stands for. This year, Dick Smith Foods will give away $1 million to charities. Where this money goes will be decided by people who submit a photo of themselves with Dick Smith Foods products that they have purchased. If you want to help Wayside receive a donation, send or text* a photo of yourself with a Dick Smith Foods product to charity@dicksmithfoods.com.au, making sure you nominate The Wayside Chapel with your submission. Click here for more information. If enough votes come in, we could receive up to $50,000.

On Tuesday Robyn and I are off to Adelaide to catch up with my lovely old Mum for a few days and then we’ll fly to Port Lincoln and  drive for quite a way to a place called Coffin Bay. I’m not sure that even God knows where this place is but it’s a special place to a young couple whose wedding I will perform there. The groom is the son of my little sister. I'll be back the week after next.

With love from all here by the Wayside to you, our amazing inner circle,
Graham

*If you put our email address in the phone number field for texting, your message and photo will be received.

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/

 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Graham Long is a family friend and slightly distant  relative via family marriage.
He is the Pastor of the Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross,Sydney.
His newsletter is sent out weekly to his "Inner Circle".
There are many supporters  of the Wayside Chapel and it's work in the "Inner Circle"



Dear Inner Circle,

Surprises happen here on a daily basis. I remember walking into our Chapel once to conduct a wedding only to find the bride and the groom using the most foul language on each other at volumes that could be heard all through Kings Cross. I’m not a detective but judged this as being a difficult time to be pledging undying love. I’m not a counsellor either because my best efforts to calm this situation led to them physically throwing things at each other. I walked away but in a bizarre Wayside moment the couple came back a few hours later and I conducted their wedding. I’ve long since stopped making guesses about people’s suitability for marriage for the years have taught me that no one is in a position to know such things and that my judgements were usually wrong anyway. I saw the same couple today. They are together and drug free and each in awe of the other’s success with sobriety. They told me about their difficult road to recovery and how they had each helped the other. They didn’t really need to tell me anything because one glance at them said it all.

A woman who has spent many years living on the street said to me today, “I saw you this morning walking down the street, holding Robyn’s hand.” “We like each other,” I said. “How long have you been married?” she asked. “42 years,” I said. She looked at me like I’d not long landed from Mars but in a lovely way said, “Well that’s amazing.”

In another surprise on Sunday a woman came to church who I’d not seen in many years. I was delighted to see her and introduced her to a few of the locals. Lots of people use language that is a tad too dramatic for the circumstances but I was never-the-less blown away to hear her talk about how Wayside had changed her life and how she’d reached a point where she needed another dose of love. As she shared the tip of the iceberg of her journey with some, I remembered how dramatic it was at the time. Although still a young woman, she’d spent nearly all of her working life selling what can never be sold but only given. It’s a truth mostly lost in our day but you cannot take what can only be given and you cannot buy or sell what can only be given. I remember well her slow discovery that she had a soul; a personhood; a right to be and to live rather than to use and be used. As I’m writing this I’ve just recalled an amazing event when this lady landed quite a good job and held the only “I’ve-just-paid-tax party” that has probably ever been held anywhere in the world. What an honour it was to see her celebrate her achievement of pulling her weight in our community and what an honour it was to meet her again just now and see that her life has gone from strength to strength.

I’m inviting you to a party and I’d love you to save the date of Sunday, 13 April 2014. The Wayside Chapel will be 50 years old on that day. We’ll start the day with a mighty celebration at 10am in our Chapel followed by a huge street carnival. We’re shutting the street for the day and there will be stalls and jumping castles and all manner of fun things on the street. It won’t cost anything but a decision to stop and celebrate the presence of a good thing in our city and in our history.

Our Christmas Day was a success in every way. Although it was raining, street people and neighbours danced in the street together. It was a marvellous moment of mission. We really were a community of no 'them and us’. You can see photos from the day here. The new year has started with a bang. It looks to me to be far and away the busiest and biggest that I’ve ever known at Wayside. Hang on to your hats, fasten your seat belts, it could be quite a ride.

Thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

My Life Changing Christian Sermons Blog

To people who read this blog on a regular basis or also casually please note I have other blogs.
I am now going to be posting my own sermons on my Christian Sermons  site as well as this one.
I am speaking more regularly now in Christian Churches and it may be easier to locate all my Christian content in one place.
I will continue to post such messages on both blogs.
Note there are audio messages and written ones.

http://geoffthompsonstapelibrary.blogspot.com.au/

Sermons given at Parkrose Nursing Home and Renmark Uniting Church will be posted here and on that blog.

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Awesome Inner Circle,

There are almost 10,000 of you in our inner circle and you are an impressive lot. One of you heard of a man’s dramatic life turn around and paid a year's rent for the man. One of you gave me enough money to remake the garden of a man that has only a short time to live. A lawyer recently read an inner circle and offered his services to a person I’d written about. A small group of you heard of another guy who landed a job after years of unemployment but needed a car so you lent the money for the man to buy a modest car. That was a loan but it was given at almost no notice and I’m pleased to say the money was repaid in full. The staff here joke about how when I ask for razors or soap or towels or blankets that the goods start marching in the front door just minutes after the note to the inner circle goes out. One member of the inner circle bought 10,000 blankets when we were running short. Storing so many blankets became a major headache but what a problem to have. Thankfully there are still plenty of blankets on hand for those in need of some warmth at night. 

We’ve reached the end of what has been an awesome year. We love our building but I’m just as proud of the team we’ve built. We have an extraordinary team of people and for each one that has toiled this year for the sake of the people we serve, I stand in awe of you and offer my thanks and admiration. For the over 680 active volunteers who serve in a wide variety of ways, I thank you for your pure gift and for inspiring the rest of us. For the members of our Board who ensure our governance and finances are right, I offer thanks on behalf of everyone. For all the companies and experts who have given their services this year for help with everything from graphic design to auditing and the bewildering number of ways in which we’ve been the object of so much good will, I offer our deepest thanks.

It’s been a year of pain, passion and purpose. I’ve sat at many death beds this year. I have sung to people as they transitioned out of this world. I’ve been called into rooms where someone’s son or someone’s daughter lies motionless, their struggles all over. I have placed my hand and said prayers at these moments with tenderness, as if it was my own son or daughter or brother or sister. I’ve witnessed some, who seemed committed to their own destruction, come to life. I’ve seen the moment of turning. I’ve heard the words, “I’ve always blamed others but you know what, Rev, it’s me that kills my own chances for life.” I’ve seen families that were decimated by drunken and hateful words reconcile and move to better days. I’ve seen marriages this year that I thought were over come back to life and I’ve witnessed forgiveness and love renewed.This year I married lots of people, buried lots of people and christened lots of people. I managed to squeeze out a book this year and it has sold and still sells well and the publicity it earned for Wayside was astonishing.

We are throwing a street party on Christmas Day as usual and you are warmly invited. There is a simple church service in the street at 10.30am. Our own choir will sing and Geoff Bullock will be on the keyboard. The short church service will be followed by our usual street party. We’ll fill the street with happy music and you’ll see street people dancing in the street. If you missed out on a voluntary role but would like to make a contribution, just come and bring a smile and a willingness to say “hi” to people and to wish them well on this special day. Share something of the joy of our mission in a community of no 'us and them'.

Thanks for being our awesome inner circle this year. The pain, joy, struggle and celebration proved once again that you can’t measure the fullness of life by how many times you breathe but rather by how many moments take your breath away.

Wishing you a happy and safe Christmas and New Year that leads to life. I’ll begin writing again in early 2014.

Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

From the Wayside Chapel by Graham Long

Dear Inner Circle,

As our plane just lifted off the tarmac in Sydney a little girl seated right behind me said, "Oh wow, Dad! I can see the whole world!" Sacred moments come to us every day and many, if not most of them, are either not seen or simply overlooked as unimportant. This little girl's sense of wonder changed the dreadfully mundane business of flying into a moment filled with wonder. The confidence of the little girl in her father was contagious. "How fast are we going now?" "How far above the clouds are we?" The barrage of questions had me straining to hear the answers because I caught the little girl's sense of confidence in her father. He knew everything. When the wheels touched the ground in Adelaide, the little girl said, "That was the funnest thing ever!"

If we allow ourselves to be addressed in sacred moments, we are transformed. I not only felt the excitement of the little girl but I remembered when I had a 4 year old girl of my own who would confidently jump into anything assuming that I knew everything and would protect her. Sacred moments change history. At my brother's recent wedding, his three fine, grown up sons stood at his side. They were a holy trinity of best men. These boys knew as well as anyone the bumpy history of their farther and the many painful failures of the past. Yet in this sacred moment they stood with their father. The facts of history had not changed but the way we looked at those facts had changed completely. In the light of this sacred moment, past hurts had become lessons, and even a means of grace that added to the wisdom and depth of the moment. The deeper the past hurts, the greater the grace.

Sacred moments, when they come, transform the future. The future, when considered in the light of the everyday, can be summarised by the word 'fate'; a kind of projection based on the past. In a sacred moment, that which we knew as fate crumbles and dissipates and, in its place, 'destiny' is revealed. My little brother has joined hands with a good woman. They are not kids; they're in their fifties but they are literally working toward a future that nobody anticipated and toward a destiny that nobody had dreamt about just a short time ago.

I'm glad to be back home and back by the Wayside. When I said good bye to my dear old Mum, we recited together Psalm 23. It's funny that she can't remember anything from the last 10 years or the last 10 minutes but she recited the Psalm perfectly. Somehow, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me" seemed more powerful than ever coming from the mouth of this dear lady.

With love and thanks for being part of our inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

                 




This email was sent to geoff.g.thompson@gmail.com by graham@thewaysidechapel.com   | Read our Privacy Policy  

                    

From the Wayside

Dear Inner Circle,

Preventing a major life crisis can be a simple matter. Last night I sat with a woman who, in the past, had lost several years living on the street in a drunken haze and copped all the indignity that comes from a life on the street. She's reconciled with her family and has lived a productive life in the past few years. Last night she walked into my office anxious. She has good reason to be anxious but it became clear enough that it was leading her into a kind of paralysis. She's stopped eating. As we talked she kept burping in a way that interrupted her speech and looked painful. She spoke her worst fears and somehow trusted that I wouldn't belittle her by suggesting "solutions" and nor would I be overcome with the bleakness of her situation. When she walked out of my office nothing had changed except you could physically see that a burden had been lifted. She said, "All those years ago I reckon I allowed things to go on until I was overwhelmed and eventually had no other option but the street. The difference now is that I've got someone to talk to." You know what, not all of the time but most of the time, I think it is that simple. If we can overcome our instinct to "fix" people and instead allow ourselves to be alongside, most people will find a way forward or at least find the next step and that part of their burden which seems to be the darkest will be lifted when they feel they are not alone.

A woman living on the street sent me a message on Facebook last night. "Quick send me a bible verse," was the message. She doesn't own anything except a mobile phone and that is glued to her hand. She didn't tell me anything about what her sudden need was for a bible verse. I sent back, "When you pass through the fire, you will not be burned for I am the Lord the holy one and you are precious and honoured in my sight and I love you." I saw her on my way in this morning and she kissed me on the cheek and said, "Perfect". I still have no idea what drama she was living through last night.

Malcolm Turnbull will be the speaker at our next night at the Imperial Pub in Paddington on Sunday, 20 October at 6pm. I'll probably steer him away from politics if possible. I'd like this to be fun for him as well as for the rest of us. If you're inclined to want to score political points or whinge about the state of the world, I'd prefer that you do not come. He said on the tele recently, "I'm more sure of Malcolm and Lucy than I am of just Malcolm". His statement wasn't picked up but I thought it was lovely and I'd like him to start there (if he's willing) when he talks with us. Arrive about 6pm and organise food and a drink, Malcolm will talk, followed by Q and A and it will be all over at 8pm. Numbers really are quite limited and it is essential that you register your intention to come with Guy Cooper.

I am going away for the next two weeks which means there will be no note to the inner circle. I'll be off to Adelaide on Saturday where I will conduct the wedding of my youngest brother. A gathering of the Long clan will be noisy but it will be lovely to see everyone again.

Behave till I get back. Thank you for being part of this inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com

The Gospel under Canvas

I have in my possession a copy of the book  "The Gospel under Canvas, Sermons for Salvation. by E.C.Henrichsen as compiled by Arnold C. Caldicott.
I had the privilege of knowing E. C.Henrichsen's daughter Mrs Lucy Kruger when she and her husband David were members of the Church of Christ in Grote St. Adelaide.
Arnold Caldicott was our Pastor there for some years as well.
I am thinking I will make a PDF of the book as there does not seem to be a copy for viewing on the internet.
While at a friends place today we were going through old photographs in his family collection.
The 2 pics below were obviously in a tent Gospel meeting and may have been at one of E.C. Henrichsen's meetings.
In fact looking at his picture in the  book, the man at the front by the pole is a striking resemblance.
If you enlarge the blackboard it is a classic presentation of  the steps to salvation as taught by Churches of Christ in that era and one I have no contention with.
"Buried with Christ" refers to  being buried with Christ through your Baptism as outlined in Romans 6.
In these meetings people who came forward for receiving Christ were often baptised on the same night or soon after.
So watch this space for when I post a copy of the book.
It is fascinating to see all the hats on the ladies.
If you would like me to email a PDF copy please contact me on my email address.
The book was printed in 1957.
I have many of Arnold's taped sermons so when I get some spare time will post one of his sermons on my Life Changing Christian Sermons Blog.
Photos from Joe Brooks Collection courtesy of Phil Brooks

From the Wayside by Graham Long

 Graham Long's latest newsletter from the Wayside Chapel.
His Dad he mentions was Harold Long who some of his sermons are featured on my youtube channel Pembridge House.


Dear Inner Circle,

Our household had a bit of a fixation with Masterchef on the tele some time ago. Something about the show worried me but it's taken ages for the penny to drop. I think the thought of pantries that never end and the sight of three judges shoving beautiful food in their mouths and already full bellies and then making judgments is ugly. What has worried me is the complete lack of "gift" that is appropriate for food and for eating. I was raised by a man who stopped and thanked the holy fire before he ate any meal. Someone had always prepared the food and so at the end of every meal, someone had to be thanked. Even when we ate a pie at the Coles cafeteria (a rare highlight that was newsworthy for weeks), someone had to be thanked. I remember being embarrassed by Dad who thanked God out loud in public and I was bewildered while I held his hand and we went looking for someone to thank after eating the pie. I think he ended up thanking the lady at the cash register. I guess it was not just that he was religious but also because he was raised in Melbourne during the Great Depression and so for him, food and clothing always came to him with a strong sense of "gift".

Now we eat so often in restaurants and a natural exchange of gift and gratitude has been replaced by an exchange of money and expectation of value for money or satisfaction with the dining experience. I think we're losing something really important. In my boyhood, we ate together seated round a table and we talked to each other. None of us were keen on pumpkin and one day when Dad had finished saying grace, my sister's plate was piled high with pumpkin, including that from my father's plate. We laughed and sometimes battled and caught up with one another or listened to what ever it was our parents thought we needed to hear. Eating was a social event. Now, I think you can eat alone to nourish your body which is fine but a truly human act is social. It's a human act to eat together. I think to make a point of eating together would help to overcome the ugly sense of entitlement that is everywhere before us. I recently saw someone on their high horse, sending food back to the kitchen and I was embarrassed. In a restaurant, the natural relationship between the preparer of the food and the consumer of the food is broken. Consumers are often ugly individuals. Consumers live in economies. People live in families or in friendships or even in societies. Consumers are interested in value. People are interested in connection and sharing. This morning we had the most wonderful breakfast at Wayside. Our executive team and some other staff put on breakfast for our volunteers. Our ambassador David Wenham came and manned the BBQ. I don't think we are expert cooks but we certainly prepared and presented the food with love for our beautiful volunteers. We must have had about 70 volunteers for breakfast and the buzz was beautiful.

At a large funeral at Wayside yesterday I heard street people speak of a young man who had recently died. This was a wild lad in some respects but the thing that was said over and over was that whatever he had, he shared. There were several stories of people who on a cold night simply jumped under his blanket with him. No one was ever rejected. People who live in a world of stuff are concerned mostly with how they can get more stuff or more for the cheapest price. The world of stuff is not an attribute of wealth or poverty. It doesn't matter if you are looking to get your next meal or your next million. Stuff doesn't change lives but a gift does. You can only truly receive a gift when you see a giver. So many people came to the funeral yesterday because their lives had been changed by a gift.

Recently I gave a man a little job to do at Wayside and he's been faithful in serving others in the direction in which I pointed him. He's learning to make a gift of his life and energies and there have been a couple of hiccups as there always are on a journey like this one. He sent me a text me yesterday to say that he'd lost confidence in himself and that he was going to give up. This morning I saw him and he waved me over to his table. "I'd be sabotaging myself to stop now wouldn't I, Rev?" I could dance around the room with the joy that comes from seeing such a fellow learn how to live.

Thanks for being part of this inner circle,
Graham

Rev Graham Long
Pastor and CEO
The Wayside Chapel
Kings Cross
http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/


 Protecting your privacy and the confidentiality of your personal information is important to us, as it is fundamental to the way we operate. All information is kept in the strictest confidence and is stored in a password secure database. Levels of access to information are determined by an authorised employee's specific need to do their job. Personal information collected by The Wayside Chapel is never sold or passed on in any way, shape or form to any other organisation or non-authorised person for any purpose. If you would like to seek access to, or revise your personal information or feel that the information we currently have on record is incorrect or incomplete, or you believe that the privacy of your personal information has been interfered with, please contact us. Our appointed Privacy Officer is Laura Watts laura.watts@thewaysidechapel.com