COUNTRY MUSIC AND THE GOSPEL

OK so even people who say they don’t like country music actually do…. It’s just all about getting back to the basics of good acoustic instruments and good melodies and songs..

We had a blast last weekend doing a couple of great concerts at the Gympie Country Music Festival in the town of Gympie QLD. We are so grateful to the local churches who supported the events. 

And yes we even included Banjo players!!! Dean has set his sights on conquering the Banjo… So he humbly played his first tune to the church on Sunday. Next time I return to Gympie we have promised the locals we will perform some songs together!!! Go Dean!!! And thanks Gympie!! 

Pictured: Steve with Vince from Care Outreach and Pastor Dean Comberford of Gympie Community Church on the Banjo.

Gympie Country Music Muster Sunday

It makes me sad that there are no opportunities to do Gospel concerts at the Gympie Muster, which is recognised as the largest Australian Country music event each year in Australia…Yet it seems like the organisers have lost their way as most of the locals in the town of Gympie don’t want to be there. They feel like the event has been stolen from them by greed and alcohol sales.. It started out as a family camping weekend for country music fans… Pray with us for a change in attitude with the organisers of this historic event.

Despite that on Sunday we had large crowds attend a Sunday morning church service and an evening concert in town. Thank you so much to the Gympie Community Church and the Gympie Christian Family Church for your amazing support and enthusiasm. We will be back!!

Pictured: Steve preaching last Sunday morning at the Gympie Community Church. 

Love Letters From God

Pictured: The ageing ‘Eternity’ sign on a farming property south of Nanango QLD. A simple challenge to all who travel that road.

You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 2 Corinthians 3: 3

I was deeply challenged this morning by our reading from the One Year Bible. Kerrie and I try to read the Bible together each morning when we can. It was a reminder that we are all called to be a love letter from Christ to the people around us and to our world. Because of Jesus it is no longer about the letter of the law that brings judgement and condemnation… But about the spirit of His love, grace and forgiveness and His promise of eternal life. One day you and I will die. There is no backing away from the reality of that. We are all getting older and the decisions we make along the way all have their consequences. Ultimately… Our lives matter and we are to be a witness of the goodness of a loving God and the creator of all things.

Without the presence of God's spirit in our society we begin to self destruct.. It all becomes selfishness and the pursuit of power, greed and conflict. It is never God’s way. His ultimate desire is that we find peace and purpose in the freedom of what Christ has done for us on the Cross.

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’. 2 Corinthians 3:17

I love these words and the liberty I have because of them. Let us choose to be living love letters from God for the people in our world.

Godspeed,

Steve Grace

Be a Blessing not a Burden

Pictured: A vintage Harman crane standing dormant in a paddock somewhere on the Hay Plains near Rankins Springs, NSW.

 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Some days you feel like you can’t go on… you can’t drive another mile or lift another thing… You don’t have it in you to reach out to others and give of yourself. Well… good news, it’s time to stop and breathe. I know that feeling. We passed by this redundant old crane a few days ago and I thought to myself.. “I know that feeling”. The old crane could no longer carry the weight of its task. Ironically it’s final job was dredging irrigation channels that bring water and life to dry country. But we were never created to carry more weight than we can carry or take on more burdens than we can bear. We are created to walk in relationship with God and with people. 

When we started out in this music ministry 30 years ago I remember clearly hearing God’s voice in my heart saying..”every town you visit… every concert you present… every song you sing.. make sure you are a blessing and not a burden”. Never leave a church, a concert, or a town with people feeling like the event was a burden. If it’s God’s work then there will be an on flow of His blessings and the presence of His encouragement and peace. It’s never about money or lack of it… Don’t ever be burdened by that weight as it will bring down and destroy your dreams.

Choose to be a blessing. Or as my mate Warren says..’Be the blessing’. When Jesus went to the Cross he took on the weight of the world.. a world of sin. And He died to make us free from its curse. He rose again so that we don’t need to be encumbered by the heaviness of life’s circumstances and debt. He is risen so that we can live! 

Choose to be the blessing… not a burden.

Thanks again for being with us on the journey.

Godspeed,

Steve Grace

FARMING, FAITH AND FAVOUR

Pictured: Elden ‘Bousa’ Oster holding a cluster of wheat stems in a paddock that has miraculously flourished despite the erratic weather conditions of the past season. 

Along with his sons Jake and Charlie, Elden Oster takes great pride in working the land. He sees it as a great privilege to be part of feeding the world from the family farm on the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. Despite the lack of early rains in April/May this year Elden moved ahead in faith to begin planting crops, asking God to use the land as a witness of His provision and faithfulness. Miraculously, the crop in this paddock is thriving. It’s still a long way to go before reaping begins in November but this is just another example of faith for the harvest. Believing for God’s best in the tough times and the good times.

From one humble seed planted in faith an abundance can come. There are nine healthy stems on this one plant that all have the potential to produce quality heads of wheat. From one seed a multitude will grow. It seems to be the master plan of everything God has created. Please pray for the farming families across Australia who work tirelessly every year to produce food for the nations of the world. Without them we would not have the basic essentials for our everyday lives. 

Tuesday Night Shed

Pictured: The Crossing Australia Harley and Steve in action in a big shed near Cleve, SA.

 

The freezing temperatures and winter weather did not keep people from turning up for a big BBQ and concert in Cleve last Tuesday night. About 120 locals and a few from other towns attended the last minute booking for the town. We were exhausted after a busy weekend but always knew the effort would be well rewarded with an enthusiastic response from a grateful town. Thanks so much to Michael and Ali Evans and their team for organising the event and catering a good feed for everyone. The message from Isaiah 44:22 really spoke to many in the crowd as we prayed for the coming season. What an honour it is to be able to spend some time in these rural communities and meet the locals. Thanks Cleve.

Shed Happens

Pictured: The hard working Motorhome ready to unload at another concert destination. A big shed near Cleve, South Australia.

 

The past three wintery weeks have been extremely full with some great events across the massive farming region of the Eyre Peninsula. We’ve visited Port Augusta, Minnipa, Karkultaby, Streaky Bay, Port Lincoln, Cummins, Cleve and now we head for Balaclava, Laura, Maitland, Victor Harbour and Berri. We’ve been overwhelmed with the friendship and hospitality of Eyre Peninsula families and amazed at the attendances at most of the events. Thank you so much to everyone who has taken part in serving the events. We feel very humbled by the generosity and enthusiasm we’ve seen, both in the farming communities and in Port Lincoln. If you’d like us to do an event in your town next year please email Trent admin@stevegrace.com

THE CHURCH I SEE

Pictured: The historic Methodist Church in Balaclava. Built with faith and purpose to proclaim the Good News of Christ.

 

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25

Never tear down in unbelief what has been built by faith. 

We live in a world that is hell bent on change for the sake of change. There is no real moral conviction to the current trends and forces attempting to manipulate change in our world… just a spirit of selfishness and self indulgence by a select few. Whether it is extreme Islam  or the president of North Korea Kim Jong Un attempting to make his mark on history or the homosexual lobby groups striving to justify ‘marriage equality’.. It concerns me greatly that the fundamental principles of generations that have gone before us are now being attacked, undermined and abolished by faithless politicians for the sake of keeping the minority happy. I don’t get it. 

I’ll say it again,… 'Never tear down in unbelief what has been built by faith'.  At some stage we must come to terms with the fact that our mothers and fathers, our grand parents knew more about life and ethics than we do now. At some stage we’ve got to get honest and real about what is right and wrong, what is truth and what is a lie… We’ve got to make clear decisions that can be handed down to the next generation. 

I sang in this church last Sunday. There were new born babies in prams, there were families, young adults and there were elderly people in their final years of life. The church was full. People came to sing and pray. They came to hear the truth of God’s word, humble enough to be challenged in their faith and willing to take on all that is revealed in the teachings of the Bible. It was an inspiring morning of worship. Some came to worship and others came for prayer. I was honoured to take part in the morning meeting. After church there was tea and coffee and fellowship and noisy kids and laughter and fun in the church hall. I loved it. Just real people… real life…. real faith.

It was just another church in an Australian country town built a long time ago by a generation who believed in Jesus and the hope he has for humanity. Keep it real.

Godspeed,

Steve Grace

When the Rains Come Down

Pictured: The miracle of rain on thirsty land. The Flinders Highway on the Eyre Peninsula, SA.

We arrived on the Eyre Peninsula two weeks ago to do a series of concerts, shed nights and church services.. and to pray with local communities for much needed rain. We joined in agreement with many churches across the region who had faithfully been praying for a change in the weather conditions. Amazingly it has been raining ever since!! The entire region has been covered with a good soaking and farmers can confidently begin to plan out their season. Farming is always a combination of faith, wise choices and risk. There are no guarantees in this world and every family on the land knows the costs. We ask you to pray for our primary producers throughout Australia. There has been drought in Western Australia and outback Queensland farmers and graziers are still struggling to get going after years of dry. 

Whether it is wheat, barley, beans, canola, chick peas, lentils, lucerne, hay, watermelons, vegetables or livestock we pray our farmers put their trust in God our provider and live lives that honour Him. We are grateful for the rural communities of Australia that work hard to feed the world.

- Steve