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The Royal Albert Hall will be at capacity this May as more than 3,500 women come together under one roof for the 7th annual Colour Your World Women’s Conference in the UK. Colour brings together women from all over the United Kingdom and the world representing a broad cross-section of Christian denominations. Founder of the Colour Conference, and Hillsong’s co-senior pastor, Bobbie Houston, said the heartbeat of the conference remains the same, "placing value on womanhood", but there’s a real sense that this year’s conference marks a coming of age. The experience features a stunning opening celebration, two fantastic days packed with life giving insight and wisdom, worship, soul food and captivating moments, pamper zones, indulgent and yummy treats plus a Colour Kids programme is available. Pivotal to the Colour message is the desire to build awareness about the plight of humanity both locally and globally. As always, there will be a strong emphasis on social justice and mobilising women to respond to often desperate need. "We try to make it as practical as possible for women to make a difference in their spheres of influence, which has been the reason for the formation of the colour sisterhood," Bobbie explained. We’re so looking forward to having J.John back with us for 2008! We know he will inspire and enlarge our capacity to become effective agents of change. Colour Your World Conference runs from 6-8 March in the Acer Arena, Sydney, 1-2 May in London and 26-28 May in Kiev, Ukraine. For the full story download the Spring '08 Philo Magazine from the top of this page To findout more about Hillsong's Colour '08 conference click here |
A few years ago when God challenged me to see the reality that the third world countries face, I didn’t do anything about it, partly because of time. So two years on and working with J.John, when one of his Associates, Andy Economides, Director of the Soteria Trust, asked me to accompany him and his team to Ibadan, Nigeria in October 2007, I felt great trepidation and excitement all rolled into one and knew it was an opportunity I didn’t want to miss. In brief, Soteria Trust is an organisation that aids vulnerable children. It helps provide the children with education so they may gain qualifications, which will eventually lead to employment opportunities and then make a life for themselves and their family. The main purpose of going to Ibadan was Soteria College, to which the first building of two was recently completed. Our set programme was filled with meetings, building the IT room and setting up computers. The other times were spent visiting schools where we led seminars, shared the Good News and taught Christian values and ethics, and visiting the churches Andy was invited to speak at. I was taken aback at how poverty-stricken the country was and yet it remained rich in its colours. Everywhere I turned brightly coloured outfits were in my view – the people looked amazing. However, there were many other times when what I saw shocked me. There were lorries and trucks left on the side of the roads that looked like they had been there for years; cement houses the size of a garage for a large family; policemen with rifles at the ready; witnessing the beating of a man on the side road; beggars everywhere you looked and a corpse in the middle of the road - all very normal occurrences in the city and just a few of many things I saw. If all God wanted was for me to open my eyes – this trip certainly did just that. It’s made me realise even more how fortunate and how blessed I am. I came back appreciating all that I have here and wanting to do more for the needy out there. Bernadette Ocampo P.A. to J.John |
Greetings from Baghdad. When you work in the most dangerous place in the world serving Jesus Christ, you need friends. J.John and Philo are the friend I need. Every week J.John and I talk several times, we laugh and we encourage each other in the service of our Lord. To me, J.John and Philo are even more than a friend, they are my encourager and my sustainer. Thank you for all you do to keep me going in this conflict through your friendship, prayer and provision. We were having lunch with one of the Archbishops in Baghdad and talking about Christians struggling in Iraq and the way that the Church has to survive. Amidst the conversation and terrible food the Archbishop came out with a statement I don't think I'll ever forget, "The Church is an instrument for redemption, not administration," he said. My mind went back to my days as a minister. I thought about the hours I'd spent in administration compared to the time I'd spent seeking the work of redemption. Here, in one of the most dangerous places in the world, the gospel is simple: we love Him because He first loved us. From lunch we moved to our Iraqi Anglican Church council, which is the only church council in Iraq that cuts across the Iraqi Coalition divide. The members of the Church Council were Iraqi, American and British.The meeting began and each representative gave an account of what was happening in their congregation. Then, without any preparation, the main item on the agenda became clear: How do we stop the leaders of St George's Baghdad from being kidnapped and killed? Our people are increasingly going hungry and relying on the church for everything - their food, water, medicine and rent. Our relief work through the church has radically increased, but supplying the needs of the people involves huge risks. We stop for a moment and realise that most of our church leaders have been killed or kidnapped. Fais, our lay pastor, is not convinced by our concern. His one concern was the redemption of our people. The words of the Archbishop came back to me. Redemption or administration. Fais explained to us that the work of the Gospel was always dangerous, that there was certainly the risk of kidnap and murder but he said he was prepared to take this risk for the sake of redemption. Oh how difficult it was for those of us from the West to accept this risk and position. We are all aware of danger and risk; you can't be ignorant about these issues if you're here in Iraq but are we really prepared to take real risks for the sake of redemption? After that Church Council we were seriously challenged. Challenged like I had never been before, at any Church meeting. My mind went back to the previous weekend at church. Many of our children had their first communion that day. They filed into church wearing their wonderful white robes made by the Mothers’ Union, singing the simple word 'Hallelujah'. Some of the children were in tears. As they came to the front of the church I asked one of the girls why she was crying. She told me it was because it was the most important day of her life and she knew that Jesus was walking with her. Their song was a song of redemption and their tears were tears of redemption. My mind returns again to the words of the Archbishop. They challenge us here and they should challenge us back in the UK. Yes, we have to have administration but we must not forget that the key purpose of the Church of Christ is to share the good news of Jesus. Quite simply, it is about bringing in redemption, about changing lives and taking risks in order to accomplish this. I think back to the words of my life mentor, Donald Coggan. Every time we parted he would say: "Take risks, not care." I hope I have done. That is why I'm here and I truly love it. Philo Trust was able to raise £16,000 from their Carol Service collections towards Canon Andrew White’s ministry. We thank all those who gave so generously towards this wonderful work. Canon Andrew White Anglican Chaplain in Iraq, Philo Associate and President, Foundation for Relief and Reconciliation in the Middle East www.frrme.org |
