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Farewell to the Underwoods
Last week was the last week of Ben Underwood's 10 years of faithful service to God here at St Matthew's. It's always hard to say goodbye, especially now, but please have a look at the farewell video and take some time to thank God for the Underwoods and pray for them.
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Do you need help in a time of need?
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This is a time when we find ourselves under all sorts of new and intense pressures. Each one of us is going to require help in different ways. And each one of us might be able to offer help in different ways.
This Sunday, St Matthew's Everywhere is going to focus on the topic of spiritually surviving COVID-19. This snapshot focuses on other ways in which we might need help surviving this season, and how to get that help.
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Practical Care at St Matthews during COVID-19
This time has made us aware of a potential increase in need for practical assistance for many of us. Many factors contribute to this need including: the social isolation measures continuing; increased social isolation if we are in our senior years or have a pre-existing health issue; if we are ill or are caring for someone who is ill; if we are under financial strain or stress.
Thank you to those who have offered and are ready to give practical care during this time, whenever it is needed. Because you have done that, we now have 15 people ready to help their brothers and sisters in need – to do shopping, pharmacy trips, other errands, bring around a cooked meal and help with household problem solving.
This issue of Snapshot also has information on financial assistance that is available. Heather Kerr (also our finance officer) is co-ordinating the practical care plan by matching those who need help with a practical carer. We will do the best we can to assist you but there will be some things we can’t assist with.
Furthermore, if you’d like someone to be regularly in touch with you to encourage you over the phone, one of the staff would love to help that happen.
Please do not hesitate to reach out if you are in any need. Your brothers and sisters are ready and willing to help you. It can be difficult to admit we need help and to make the step of telling someone else that you do! You could ask a friend to reach out on your behalf if you prefer. In the body of Christ, it takes humility to serve but it also takes humility to admit you need help. Both kinds of humility flow from knowing Christ. He models humble service and he is the one before whom we humbly admit that we need his help.
If you need any practical help, please contact Janine (Office Manager) at hello@stmatthews.com.au, or phone her on (08) 9381 2640, or be in touch with one of the staff. Please let us know what kind of help you need and your contact phone number and address. We will let Heather know and she will put a carer in touch with you.
“May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else…” (1 Thess. 3:12)
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Mental Health Help at St Matthews
As part of the Snapshot today, there are four documents for you to peruse. These were developed in part as resources for our Mental Health evening, which we were unable to run. We urge you to make use of these resources to help yourself and others through this extraordinary time we are lliving through. Please click on the links below which describe and take you to each of the documents:
1) An article to read - “ Three things to do to safeguard your mental health during Covid-19”.
2) A book list and description of books available for sale now at St Matt’s on mental health, including a book review on two of them.
3) A general article with ideas and resources on supporting mental well being.
4) A general article for families with ideas and resources on supporting mental well-being. |
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Financial Help at St Matthews
St Matthew's has a benevolent fund. It was started years ago by the St Matthew's family to offer financial relief to needy people in the family.
It has helped many in the past, and if you do find yourself in financial distress don't hesitate to reach out and ask for help, particularly if you have experienced a substantial loss of income.
If you would like to make a contribution to the fund please contact us as well.
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Easter with St Matthew's Everywhere
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How did you celebrate Easter this year? Some families did traditional easter egg hunts, many enjoyed watching the live Colin Buchanan at Home Easter Show and still more enjoyed watching St Matthew's Everywhere while eating Hot Cross Buns or Easter Eggs. We hope you were able to find some time to give thanks for the great good news that Jesus Christ is risen (He is risen indeed!), even and especially in this strangest of Easter seasons.
If you weren't able to watch the livestream of Ben Rae's excellent talks for The Cross and the Empty Tomb on Good Friday night, the video will be available for a little while longer on the St Matthew's website. Click here to watch it, or watch it again!
We would love to keep sharing how our church family are experiencing St Matthew's Everywhere, staying connected and caring for one another. Send your photos to hello@stmatthews.com.au or use the hashtag #stmatthewseverywhere on Facebook and Instagram.
If you would like to experience St Matthew's Everywhere with others via Zoom (or some other video conferencing software) we have groups that have formed at different times to pray, reflect and encourage each other after watching the weekly video. Contact hello@stmatthews.com.au for details.
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Messages from our Mission Partners
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Jill in the time of Covid-19
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At 6pm every day the air raid sirens go off & the army start arresting people still on the streets - 1600 so far. The government has responded to Corona with a sledgehammer & put us under martial law about 10 days ago. We have hundreds, not 1000's of cases, but we also have an inadequate healthcare system for the population, let alone the millions of refugees. So I'm thankful.
About 2 weeks ago schools, mosques (wow) and all the borders were closed. Then they announced a complete lockdown. We only had one afternoon for panic buying. Bread was the currency, not toilet paper. After 4 days, since many people live hand-to-mouth and had run out of food, the government decided to distribute bread & water to the whole country. It was chaos. I prayed the bread buses would reach the poor areas first - some of my refugee friends have nothing in the cupboards & had run out of bread. Because of the chaos, the rules changed again & now we're allowed out on foot for limited hours during the day, for small local shopping trips. Mostly tinned stuff/bread, not much fruit & veg (I'm predicting pandemic constipation).
This is our current situation for who-knows-how-many weeks. Thank God with me for ... a great homie (Jo), that it's spring, that we have a sunny balcony to socialise with the neighbours, that we have made new relationships with neighbours in the past week, that we have online Arabic classes & exercise, capacity for zoom meetings out-the-wazoo and food in the cupboard. I'm mostly going well, but sometimes a bit anxious about what I should be doing or what I'm not doing or what else will happen, here and at home in Oz. Do you feel a vague restlessness and have trouble sleeping too?
Absolutely everybody is spending too much time on the internet. The upside is that people everywhere may be craving hope, or just bored, & stumble onto links about the Good News.
But four things worry me. First, the opportunity for escalating domestic violence with men trapped at home, all over the world. Second, people's survival, all over the world. For many people, no work = no food. All primary health services here seem to have shut down - refugees relied on medication supply from UN & NGO clinics (including ours). Third, how Africa will cope. Fourth, the mental & spiritual health of Australia & the West, in the grief and fear over jobs, livelihoods, our loss of control and new pressures experienced in every home.
That's 4 things definitely too big for us to handle.
So when I say 'they worry me', I'm telling myself (us) to throw these things into the big arms of Him who is the Alpha & Omega, Beginning & End.
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Thoughts on COVID-19 from Joan in South East Asia
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Here are a few impressions:
- the borders are closed to surrounding countries except for semi-trailer freight trucks.
- large numbers of local migrant workers have returned from neighbouring countries as these businesses elsewhere have closed and the workers' jobs have therefore finished.
- schools are closed, so with over 50% of the population under 25 years, the streets are quieter.
- from last week (23rd - 27th March) the language centre has been running its classes on-line through Skype, with mixed success chiefly due to students' connectivity issues.
- from this week, the govt. here is imposing a lock-down of sorts, but food shops are to remain open.
- local folk here are generally worried, as they know the country doesn't have the medical facilities to cope; a number seem to be heading back to family villages.
May our father keep us, and use all of this for his purposes....
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In this season there are new ministry opportunities and needs for our Church family. We are particularly in need of people with technology skills such as video production, editing, websites or other areas that might help to connect us at this time. We are also in need of equipment for those things if you are able to lend it.
As ministries to our church family begin in a whole range of new ways, we would love to hear from you how you think you might serve. If you can serve or even if you have an idea for serving, email us at hello@stmatthews.com.au or call
(08) 9381 2640.
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As a church, St Matthew's is looking to ways we can care for all in need during this time. If you find yourself in need physically, spiritually, or socially, please reach out to us. Email us at hello@stmatthews.com.au or call (08) 9381 2640.
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