Cumberland ECU supporters' page

Farewell this blog!

2011-11-11T10:48:00.000-08:00

For those of you who have been patiently waiting for this blog to show signs of life, alas! It is no more. Some time in the near future I will close it down permanently.

Apart from the obvious reasons—I no longer work at Cumberland ECU, and haven't for some time, as those who have followed the news through more reliable sources will be well aware—I will soon be starting work with the Conservatorium Christian Group. So to have this blog continuing will be unnecessarily confusing.

Thank you, friends, for praying for the team at Cumberland and for my small part in it. Please don't stop giving them your support in whatever way you can.

You can continue to support the work of the gospel at Cumberland by going here, and navigating the appropriate links. For example, you can contact Bon Waddell and, if you aren't already, ask her to receive the weekly Cumbo prayer and praise update by e-mail.

Meeting first years

2010-02-24T11:40:00.001-08:00

What a great time! At Cumbo campus meeting first years, and asking them if they wanted to join us in reading the Bible.

The vibe was good, the sausages were cheap, campus security moved us from a reasonable spot to a better spot (I don't know if they meant to do that), and about 30 first years had given us their contact details by morning tea time.

So now we get on with doing our thing. Which in this case is Tuesday at 12, Luke 1:-4.

1:1 Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

Genuine certainty is a rare thing.

Would you like to receive an e-mail prayer letter?

2009-08-06T21:30:00.001-07:00

Would you like to receive the Cumbo prayer letter by e-mail (if you aren't already)? Shoot me an e-mail at ggordonc AT optusnet.com.au

It's taken longer than I wanted to get all of this sorted out, so thank you to blog readers for your patience, and thanks especially to those who have already been praying and supporting the work in other ways.

Paul and Sandra King

2009-07-16T20:30:00.000-07:00

Amongst the people we pray for at Cumbo are Paul and Sandra King, working with CMS in France amongst uni students.

Read Izaac's blog!

2009-07-15T19:00:00.000-07:00

This 'support Gordo at Cumbo blog' is not dead yet, but it is in an artificial coma awaiting resuscitation. Apart from updating regularly, I reckon it needs a new name. "Support Gordo @ Cumbo" seemed fine when I was starting off, but now every time I look at it it feels unnecessarily Cheng-ocentric and not sufficiently Cumbocentric.

I've *got* to **think**!!

Any suggestions gratefully received.

Meanwhile, Izaac Cowling, currently a trainee working with us at Cumbo and doing a fabulous job, has started a blog. He is helping organize the Cumbo bit of next week's Mid Year Conference for various universities including Cumbo, Wollongong, UWS, UTS Kuringai, Christians in the Media...

Our topic this year is the Holy Spirit, and Phillip Jensen is the speaker. Izaac has a series of posts featuring things Mid Year Conference related, and you can find them here.

Phillip Jensen is the Dean of St Andrew's Cathedral here in Sydney, and wrote about the Holy Spirit on the Cathedral blog recently, here. This is not the first time he's spoken on the subject.

Check this sub-3 minute video of Phillip answering the question What does 'baptized by the Spirit' mean?

Izaac blogs

2009-07-14T00:44:00.001-07:00

One of the most terrific things about working at Cumbo is the team there, who all love Jesus and are doing their best to let others know the truth about him.

Izaac is one of them, and he has started a blog recently. Check this recent entry on manhood and metaphors, with a great insight into the right use of Isaiah 40.

Bocce on the lawn

2009-03-31T17:03:00.000-07:00

People, mainly Tracey Gowing my co-worker here at Cumbo, have suggested to me that Bocce has become for me another gospel; that I'm trying to spread the message of Bocce far and wide, that Bocce is more important to me than life itself.

Well it's not true. Because although I am turning up today at 12 with my Bocce set in hand, I expect the previous evening's downpour, along with this morning's continuing wetness, will render Bocce on the lawns at Cumbo an event not worth pursuing.

My major concern is that the Bocce balls will rust from the dampness. Advice please.

My other major concern is that no-one will turn up.

My other, other major concern is that the campus authorities will once again prohibit a fun activity designed to bring students together for the purposes of non-study.

Flooded

2009-03-30T12:45:00.000-07:00

Today at Lunchtime Bible talks we're talking about the flood of Genesis 6-9. In both Old and New Testament, this is a picture of salvation: that God rescues us without any contribution from ourselves.

Would you pray that those who are not certain of their salvation will turn to God and put their trust in him?

Start on time

2009-03-25T18:21:00.000-07:00

Note to self: When speaking on Genesis 4-5 at Lunchtime Bible Talk, make sure to actually get to the first point on the outline before 20 minutes of talking time has elapsed.

Note to others: Sorry about that everyone, next Tuesday when we look at Genesis 6-9, you can expect that the first point of the outline will roughly coincide with what is said when the speaker begins to speak.

Common lunch hour

2009-03-24T17:18:00.000-07:00

Common lunch hour is being encroached upon at Cumberland; that means that the regular Tuesday and Thursday 12.00 timeslots are having lectures scheduled, which is bad news for students who want to do non-study related activities on campus. That includes the Cumbo ECU.

Some students were fighting back yesterday by coming to the Lunchtime Bible Talk in preference to the lecture. But it would be great to pray that this obstacle to meeting is removed and the common lunch hours properly observed.

Meanwhile over at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the Christian group has been asked to pay $160 a time to hire a meeting room for 1 hour each week. The mood of campuses is increasingly that they are a degree factory.

Opportunities for talk

2009-03-23T16:45:00.000-07:00

One of our standard questions at Cumberland is "Would you like to read the Bible with us?" So Izaac asked this of the Indian guy that he was picking up the pizzas from for our training evening last night. The man said 'Yes'.

The evangelistic opportunities at Cumbo are just falling out of the trees as you walk past!

Genesis

2009-03-17T18:16:00.000-07:00

We've been studying Genesis in our lunchtime Bible talks. So many questions! But notice, will you, that the first words spoken by any part of God's creation [update:though see comments] are a lie, worse, they are an insinuation.

This Thursday March 12: support Gordo @ Cumbo!

2009-03-06T12:35:00.000-08:00

This blog is becoming repetitive; sorry about that for those who are weighing up whether to make this blog a part of your daily reading. Don't make your decision for about a week or so because right now, I'm just trying to getting the airbus off the tarmac!

But for those of you who are here for the first or second time, thankyou! And I would love to see you this Thursday March 12 at 7.30 for my second (and last for a bit) support supper!

Here are the details:

The supper is on at 7.30 for 7.45, at St Paul's Anglican Church, Moseley St, Carlingford.

If you are able to RSVP and/or would like to get info about how to pray for the work and support it financially, please let Anna Cole know. Send her an e-mail;

acoleATmatthiasmedia.com.au (replacing the AT with @)

Let her know you're coming; you can also let her know if you would just like to receive the regular prayer letter. Or phone her during work hours on 9663 1478 (Matthias Media)

If you can't make it to supper but you still want to be a supporter of the work at Cumbo, the best and easiest way to begin is to contact AFES direct.

RSVP to March 5 or March 12 Ministry launch/support supper for Gordo at Cumbo!

2009-02-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

If you would like to come this Thursday (5 March) or the Thursday after (12 March) to hear about the work I will be doing at Cumbo, meet a student, hear from my co-worker Tracey Gowing and learn how you can be a supporter, you can RSVP to Anna Cole, a member of the Cumberland Support Raising Team

The easiest way is to shoot her an e-mail on

acoleATmatthiasmedia.com.au

(replace the AT with an @) and let her know which date you are coming on.

You can also phone her during work hours on 9663 1478 (thanks to my previous employers, Matthias Media!).

(For the full detail on where and when, see the previous post).

The first post! Support Gordo on March 5 or March 12, 2009 AD

2009-02-25T01:46:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody.

If you have come across this blog, you probably know that I am just starting work as the Campus Director with the Cumberland Campus of Sydney University, employed by AFES, the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students.

So what I'm planning to do here is use this blog to keep you informed. Especially, I want you to know about how you can pray for and support the work that I am doing with the team at Cumbo.

On campus, I'll be working closely with Tracey Gowing and a whole team of keen ministry staff and students as part of the ECU, the Evangelical Christian Union.

There's a lot more to say, but right now here's something especially designed for Sydney-based friends and supporters. There are 2, yes TWO support suppers planned for early March.

Supper 1: March 5, 7.30 for 7.45 at St Paul's Anglican Church, Moseley St, Carlingford. If you know me from somewhere other than Carlingford (Gladesville, Pymble, Matthias Media, Wahroonga, somewhere else in Sydney or Melbourne??), then this is the one for you—although if you can't make it, you're welcome to the other one.

Supper 2: March 12, 7.30 for 7.45, also at St Paul's Anglican Church, Moseley St, Carlingford. If you know me from Carlingford, then this is the one for you—although if you can't make it, you're welcome to the other one.

At both suppers, you will get to hear about the AFES work at Cumberland, and the work that I'm doing. You'll get to meet a Cumbo student, and hear about the work from their perspective.

Pretty soon I will post again with a bit more detail, including how you can RSVP, but I thought it would be good to let you get the relevant date—March 5 or March 12—into your diary as soon as you can.

If you can't make it to either supper, the best and easiest way to begin supporting the work is to contact AFES direct.

UPDATE: If you can RSVP to either supper, that would help a lot with working out supper.

Send an e-mail to acoleATmatthiasmedia.com.au (replacing the AT with @); you can also let her know if you would just like to receive the regular prayer letter. Or phone her during work hours on 9663 1478 (Matthias Media)