Newsletter 02/09/26
Updated: 3 days ago
Good Fruit
I’ve just come back from my honeymoon!
We went on a short cruise. Nothing too fancy, but honestly, it was such a great few days away. And one of the highlights for me was, of course, the FOOD!!
When I walked into the all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet, my eyes (which were bigger than my stomach) were immediately drawn to the pancakes, the waffles, the hot syrup, the bacon and eggs, the sausages, the butter, the pastries. Oh my goodness, the Danishes. And we can't forget the coffee, I admit it wasn't the best, (it reminded me of the countless conferences & retreats I used to go on as a pastor), but it flowed endlessly and freely.
There were so many tasty treats to choose from that I almost completely missed this small table tucked away in the corner... Nothing particularly exciting about it. No hot syrup. No freshly cooked bacon. Just a simple little table filled with fresh fruit. Good fruit. Stuff that may not be as exciting, but it would certainly be better for me in the long run!
Strangely enough, I think the work of A New Way can be a little bit like that.
We don’t have fancy words or impressive titles that flow like hot syrup. We certainly don’t have a pancake palace or waffle house to call our own. Our pockets aren't lined with greasy bacon & eggs and we definitely don't go on retreats and conferences with flowing coffee... We’re actually pretty simple. But I think we have a lot of good fruit.
Truthfully, sometimes I get so distracted by everything else that I forget to notice it.
Jesus said (paraphrased of course) that you can recognise a tree by its fruit.
When I stop for a moment and look at what A New Way has been producing, I’m incredibly proud. Not because we’re big or flashy, and certainly not because we have everything figured out. I’m proud because tucked away in our little corner, there is some genuinely beautiful fruit layed out on the table; ready for those who are looking for something healthy. For those who are sick and need vitamins, or those who are feeling heavy (after years of waffles) and want something a little lighter.
So that’s what I want to do in this newsletter. Before we rush on to whatever is next, I want to stop for a moment, look around, and notice some of the good fruit that has been growing right in front of us.
Baptisms!
Since our last newsletter, we’ve had a few milestones worth celebrating. We’ve now officially been an ACNC registered charity for one year, and we’ve also celebrated two years of meeting together as a community on Wednesday nights.
But I think one of the greatest highlights so far has been celebrating our very first baptisms at A New Way!
Five people were baptised, four adults and one teenager. What makes that even more special is that only one of the five was previously regularly attending a church! (and even they had never felt safe enough to take the step of baptism until finding A New Way.)
Baptisms have always been one of the highlights of ministry for me. There is something incredibly special about watching someone publicly say, "This is what I believe. This is the life I want to live." So getting to do this for the first time with A New Way was something I won’t forget.
We gathered at the home of one of our board members, Neil Harris, who very generously offered us the use of his spa... the only theological conundrum was whether to turn the bubbles on or off!
There was plenty of laughter and many few tears of joy. For me, this is some of the clearest good fruit we could hope to see. Not big numbers or impressive statistics, but real people finding a community where they feel safe, discovering faith for themselves, and choosing to follow Jesus.
And rather than just telling you about it, I thought I’d let some of them tell you themselves...
Sam's Baptism Testimony - Shared with permission
For a major part of my life, I was constantly searching. I jumped from job to job, sport to sport and country to country, always thinking that maybe the next thing would finally fill this void that I felt inside of me.
For a while, I genuinely thought I had found the answer in things like crystals, tarot cards and angel numbers. I had spoken to more psychics than I could count, and I even had 222 tattooed on my back.
What I once believed were numbers that would guide me now represent something completely different. They no longer remind me of what I used to believe in. They remind me of the God who found me in the middle of it, just how far He has brought me and just how powerful His love truly is.
There were people along the way who tried to tell me about Jesus, and I would laugh at them. I would tell them they were delusional or that Christianity was some kind of conspiracy theory. I wanted absolutely nothing to do with any of it, but what I didn’t realise was that no matter how much I was running from Jesus, He wasn’t running from me.
Through all of my searching, He had already searched my heart. He already knew me better than I could ever know myself. He knew every part of me, the parts I showed people, the parts I tried to hide and the emptiness I was desperately trying to fill.
One night, I reached a point where I felt completely broken. I felt like I had nowhere else left to run, so I finally cried out to a God that I didn’t even know if I believed in. I didn’t know how to pray. I didn’t really understand who I was praying to. I didn’t understand the difference between God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I didn’t understand the Bible. I didn’t even understand what Christianity was. All I knew was that there had to be something more than the emptiness I had been carrying.
So as I was sitting in my car, I said:
“Lord, if You’re there, show me, because I don’t know what to do anymore.”
From that moment, something changed. I remember being covered in goosebumps, and this heaviness that I had carried for so long suddenly felt lighter. I realised that I had spent so much of my life searching everywhere for something that could save me, while pushing away the One who had been there the whole time. And now I can proudly say that I never want to run from Him again.
But even after finding God, church still scared me. For so long, I had this idea that Christians were supposed to have everything together. I thought you had to be perfect to belong in a church, and I was terrified that if people really knew who I was or how little I understood, I would never be enough.
Then I came to New Way.
On my very first day, I honestly had no idea what was going on. I didn’t even know what a covenant was, and the talk confused me so much that by the end of it I genuinely thought we were talking about a temple. Afterwards, Lewis came over to me and asked how I was feeling and whether I understood what had been spoken about. And for the first time, I felt safe enough to be completely honest.
I told him, “I have absolutely no idea what is going on.”
Lewis didn’t judge like I thought everyone would, but instead he met me exactly where I was at. He sat down with me and explained everything to me as though I was a child hearing the story of our saving grace for the very first time. Something about that moment healed a part of me that I didn’t even realise needed healing. For so long, I had believed that Christianity was about being good enough, knowing enough or becoming perfect before you could come to God. But sitting there that day, I finally began to understand that I didn’t need to have all the answers before coming to Jesus. I just needed to come.
It means so much to me that the person who helped me understand the story of grace is now standing here with me as I get baptised. I know that following Jesus doesn’t mean I suddenly understand everything or that I’m going to live a perfect life. I still have so much to learn. But now I know that I don’t have to be perfect to be loved by God.
So today, when I go into that water, I don’t want to pretend that the person I was before Jesus never existed or that I need to leave her behind. She is part of my story. She searched, she wandered, she got things wrong, she grew and eventually she became the person who was willing to cry out to God.
And the beautiful thing is that God loved her too. So now I want to put it all in His hands, and I want to rise new. Lord, I know You’re listening, so I want these last words to be for You. You knew me long before I knew You. You loved me when I rejected You. You stayed when I ran from You. And when I finally called out to You, You were there. I spent so much of my life searching for You without even knowing it was You I was looking for. So I want You to know that I choose You. I choose You now, in this moment. I choose You for the rest of my life. I give You the person I was, the person I am and the person I am still becoming. Thank You for never giving up on me. My life is Yours.
Provision & Programs!
Since we last spoke, we’ve been successful in receiving a small community grant that allows us to spend $70 each week on supplies for our Monday nights at Kibble Park.
While $70 a week doesn’t cover everything, it makes a huge difference for a small charity like ours. It helps us continue turning up each Monday night with hot and cold drinks, something sweet to eat, and most importantly, the opportunity to sit, talk and build relationships with people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity.
We’re incredibly grateful for the way God continues to provide for A New Way. From the beginning, we’ve wanted to create spaces where nobody who is a part of our programs is asked to give and we never need to "pass the plate around" at any of our gatherings. Somehow, the provision keeps coming.
Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us as we apply for grants like these.
Sometimes the answer comes in big ways, and sometimes it looks like $70 a week. Either way, it’s good fruit, and we’re grateful.
.....
Similarly, we’ve had an incredible start to our Indigenous program at Frank Baxter Youth Justice Centre.
We recently met with the Centre Manager, who was blown away by the program and, particularly, by what staff and young people have been saying about it. In some ways, the program has become something even more than we originally expected... It has become a safe place where the boys have been able to speak openly about their own stories without shame. We’ve had conversations about where they’ve come from, the addictions and patterns they want to break, and what they hope their life journey might look like when they leave the centre.
Of course, right in the middle of all of this, we also get the privilege of sharing the good news of Jesus and exploring faith together.
It’s still early days, but already we’re seeing some really beautiful fruit. Perhaps the most exciting part is that some of the boys have been brave enough to record their stories and conversations for our podcast, so that others can hear directly from them.
Stay tuned. We’re really excited for you to hear what they have to say.
A Life Update!
It’s probably about time I apologise for the lack of newsletters and communication over the past few months!
Between working two days a week at A New Way, running my own celebrancy business, and somehow finding the time to plan our own wedding and honeymoon, writing newsletters and keeping social media updated has been nearly impossible. So I thought it was only fitting that I let you in on some of the excitement that has made life so busy.
As many of you know, Emily and I were married on July 2nd in the heart of Australia, at Uluru! It was truly one of the highlights of our lives. As busy and slightly crazy as the past few months have been, it has all been worth it.
We were married in a intimate ceremony, surrounded by the incredible landscape of Central Australia. A local Lutheran pastor married us and brought Jesus beautifully into the centre of our ceremony, which made the day even more meaningful for both of us.
Emily and I are so grateful for everyone who has supported us, cared for us and prayed for us, not just around our wedding, but throughout our lives. We know we don’t do life alone, and we’re incredibly thankful for the people God has placed around us.
We’d love to share a little bit of the day with you too. Below you can watch our short wedding video, as well as our wedding speech, which probably says better than I can here what the whole experience meant to us. It’s about the rocks in our lives: each other, the people we love, Uluru, and ultimately, our God, the rock beneath it all.
Wedding Video: https://www.aussieweddings.au/emilylewis
Call To Prayer!
We have a very specific prayer need, and we’d love you to pray with us.
On September 7th, the board of a large philanthropic organisation will meet and vote on whether to provide A New Way with core funding for the next three years.
This would be significant for our little charity. Core funding would help cover the administration and operational costs that simply come with running an organisation like ours. Our hope is that this would mean every cent we raise from individuals in our local community could go directly back into the community, supporting programs like our work at Frank Baxter Youth Justice Centre, Monday nights at Kibble Park, and our work alongside people living in social and community housing.
Needless to say, we’re all nervously awaiting the outcome. A positive decision could significantly shape what the next three years of A New Way look like and give us greater freedom to focus our time and resources on the people and communities we exist to serve.
It has taken months to get to this point, with meetings, application forms, financial audits and plenty of preparation behind the scenes.
Now, there’s not much more for us to do... So we pray.
We’re praying that when the board meets on September 7th, they will look favourably upon A New Way and see the good fruit that is already growing here, as well as what could grow with the right support behind it.
We’d really value your prayers with us.
When The Fruit Isn't Good
Recently, I’ve had two fairly confronting reality checks.
Firstly, I found out that an old ministry leader I served under many years ago, (church music ministry), had been convicted of some very serious crimes. This was someone I admired and respected at the time, as did many of my peers.
What shocked me almost as much as the news itself was how quietly I found out. It was all very discreet. Very "hush hush". And it left me thinking about how Christian communities respond when something terrible happens within our own institutions, particularly when the person involved was respected, influential or trusted.
My second reality check came from watching Death of a Pastor’s Wife. It is certainly not for the faint of heart, but I found it incredibly confronting. It has also become enormously popular on Netflix. While Christians can sometimes be afraid to discuss stories like these, the wider community certainly isn’t afraid to talk about them.
Throughout this newsletter, we’ve been celebrating good fruit. And there is so much good fruit worth celebrating, not only in our Charity, but across the entire world as faithful followers of God pursue their callings. But the uncomfortable truth is that sometimes there is rotten fruit too.
I am certain that our God works all things for good. But believing that doesn’t mean ignoring what is wrong, staying quiet when people have been hurt, or protecting institutions from difficult conversations. I believe we can love the "Church" deeply while also fighting for healthier ministries and Christian institutions.
A New Way won’t back down from those conversations, even when they can make some Christians uncomfortable (we understand this can be a natural reaction).
So if you have experienced pain associated with a Christian institution, have questions you’ve never felt safe enough to ask, or simply want to have a yarn about that number one Netflix documentary and all the feelings it brought up for you, you are welcome here.
A New Way is a safe place for those conversations; and our board is committed to creating safe policies, programs and we are committed to fighting the good fight, to make the Good News, good.
(I have an open door policy, I welcome deep and constructive conversation)
Donations & Bequests
As always, we continue to thank everyone who enables this ministry to continue! I pray for sustainability, and that means we need your help. Your input helps achieve the outcomes. If you would like to consider ANW as a recipient of a bequest, you can use the details below.
Acc: A New Way Services INC
BSB: 082-356
Acc No: 915282595
Reference: A New Way
Charity Details
Name: A New Way Services INC
ABN: 94309537864
Director: Lewis Ramsay Jonker
Director Contact: 0458384807
Email: lewis@anewway.org.au
Numbers 6:24
A New Way
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