Happy New Year; it has been a long time between blogs. January has been a mixture of work and holiday with Marilyn and myself getting away to our bach at Mangakino for a couple of weeks at the end of the month. Our daughter in law Virginia and grandson Hunter came with us, so we got on the lake and had trips to Rotorua and Taupo. Grandchildren are a lot of fun but very tiring; it is good to get back to work for a rest.

This year is shaping up to be huge. Sunday services are very strong and are well attended with lots of visitors; there is a strong sense of expectation in the team that we are in for a great year.  

Our Senior College started today and the new Junior Campus next week. We start the year with over 800 students so that is a jump of nearly 300 for our college staff. Today Arrow Construction hand the keys over for the completion of the $9m. stage one. The next stage is on hold as it will cost a further $4.5m to complete. We have some other possible exciting developments with the college that we will find out if we get a green light to move on next month.

Don’t miss our new series starting on Sunday morning called “My Church.” We want to share some of the special values that I believe makes our church unique. Sunday night kicks off again on February 12 with a teaching series on relationships.