**NEWS FLASH** After more than 13 years without a paid minister, Geraldton Baptist Church has appointed a Pastor.

Since 1998 the responsibility of pastoral care and pulpit ministry has been taken by a small team of Elders and Deacons, supported by other gifted people within the congregation. In recent years a part-time Administration Officer has been employed to support the Elders, Deacons and the congregation.

The new pastor, who has 21 years of pastoring experience, will begin in the role in early 2012.

The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) has called for people who oppose homosexual marriage to lobby politicians before Christmas.

Managing Director of Australian Christian Lobby, Jim Wallace AM, said while December is a busy time,  the issue of gay marriage is now at a critical point demanding urgent action.

“Unfortunately the time of this debate is not of our choosing… [but]…it is vital that Christians are activated now and before Parliament resumes in February,” Mr Wallace said.

Since the Greens have succeeded in having a motion passed in the Federal Parliament urging MPs to consult with their constituencies Mr Wallace said he expects there will be a determined effort by homosexual activists to ensure pressure is put on politicians to believe gay marriage is supported by the public.

ACL has urged Christians and concerned citizens to visit, call and email their local Federal Member to express their views in support of marriage. Action before Christmas is more likely to catch the local member in his or her office.

ACL has prepared a 3 minute video for churches to show to their congregation and has appealed to them to make a stand.

“I believe we can see marriage and its benefits retained and strengthened in Australian life, but it will require us speaking up at this crucial moment,” Mr Wallace said.

Associate Professor Nicholas Tonti-Filippini, right, is dying and in pain, but says his opposition to legalised euthanasia remains unchanged. Read articles written by Prof Tonti-Filippini at Onlineopinion.com.

Read his letter to South Australian Premier Mike Rann, as published online by the Herald Sun. (Picture: www.heraldsun.com.au)

Want to have your say as your State debates euthanasia bills?

Follow the debate and get involved by visiting the Make A Stand website. This is run by the Australian Christian Lobby, a grass roots lobby group which aims to see Christian principles and ethics used to foster a more just, compassionate and moral society.

“No man has power over the wind to contain it; so no one has power over the day of his death.” - Ecclesiastes 8:8

SUMATRA, Indonesia – Benjamin T. Uskert, a pilot and mechanic serving in Sumatra, Indonesia with MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship), died Sunday, Nov. 7, in a swimming accident.

Uskert was at a beach with a group from a local orphanage when two teenagers ventured into deep water and were swept away from the shore. He and another adult swam out to assist them, but Uskert and one of the youths were overcome by the waves and current. Uskert was pronounced dead at the scene; the body of the teenager has not been recovered.

“We are profoundly saddened by the loss of our friend and fellow worker in Christ, as well as the young man he was attempting to rescue,” said John Boyd, president and chief executive officer of MAF. “Please pray for Ben’s wife, Katie, and son, Jeremiah, as well as the other members of the family.”

The Uskerts joined MAF in 2008. They attended language school in Indonesia for nine months before beginning service with the MAF Sumatra program in December 2009.

Ben Uskert was born and reared in Valparaiso, Ind., and accepted Jesus as his Savior at an early age. He graduated from Purdue University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in Aviation Technology. He took additional courses at Trinity Bible College and Moody Bible Institute. Prior to joining MAF, Uskert worked as an aircraft technician and trainer. He also served as director of maintenance for the Indiana Aviation Museum, overseeing a fleet of 17 aircraft. He married Katie Tucker in 2005, and their son, Jeremiah, was born in 2007.

Memorial services will be held on Saturday, Nov.13, in Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia.

A fund has been established to assist with the cost of family members’ travel to Indonesia. Contributions can be made through the MAF website at www.maf.org, or by calling 1-800-FLYS-MAF.

Mission Aviation Fellowship – MAF has served in Sumatra since 2004, when the organization played a key role in the recovery efforts following the deadly Tsunami that devastated the Aceh area.

Founded in 1945, MAF (www.maf.org) is a Christian ministry organisation that transports missionaries, medical personnel and supplies, performs disaster relief work, and conducts emergency medical evacuations in remote areas. MAF also provides distance learning services, as well as telecommunications services such as satellite Internet access, high-frequency radios, electronic mail and other wireless systems.

- Angela Harding, Communications Officer, MAF International Asia Pacific

Want to be a Camping Missionary?

Here’s an exciting opportunity to join the Scripture Union staff team next year and become a missionary in your own state.

Warriuka, the school camping department of Scripture Union, is looking for passionate people who love the outdoors and witnessing to young people to take up the challenge of an Internship. 2011 Internships start on the January 17, for 6 or 12 months.

Info and application forms: Check out the SU website https://suwa.org.au/warriuka.php or email Matt Coutts on Mattc@wa.su.org.au or phone 9443 5055 or 0413 201 854.

Rock Legends Petra To Headline Strawberry Jam Music Festival 2011

Classic Petra is the first of many big international bands coming to Albany for Strawberry Jam Music Festival in 2011. In early 2010, Petra announced the reunion of its “classic” 80ʼs lineup, which consists of vocalist Greg X. Volz, guitarist Bob Hartman, bassist Mark Kelly, drummer Louie Weaver, and keyboardist John Lawry.

This is the Start of a massive line up for Strawberry Jam, this is one of the biggest Christian events to hit Western Australia!

Petra will be back in the studio this summer to re‐record a CD of previous hits from the records: Never Say Die, More Power to Ya, Not of this World, and Beat the System. Classic songs like “More Power to Ya,” “Judas Kiss,” “Grave Robber,” “Adonai,” and “Beat the System” will be revamped with a modern production edge. In addition, the band will craft several new songs to add to the classic hits on each record, with production to be finished towards the end of 2010.

Petra have released 24 Albums with 10 million records sales thru out the carrier. They have received 4 Grammy and 10 Dove awards. They have been placed in the Gospel Music Hall of Fame and were the first Christian Rock band to have merchandise place in the Hard Rock Cafe. In short, Petra are legends!

from Strawberry Jam Music Festival website, http://www.strawberryjam.net.au/

The Strawberry Jam Music Festival is on Easter Sunday, April 24th, 2011 with Grammy Award winning band Petra headlining (with more announcements to come!) at the Handasyde Strawberry Farm in Albany, Western Australia. Visit the website for more details.

Geraldton doctor Murray James-Wallace witnesses an elderly woman being brought back from the dead while on holidays in the Middle East.

Story on page 3, Geraldton Guardian, Wednesday, October 6, 2010. Purchase a back issue from Geraldton Newspapers, (08) 9956 1000.

In 2008 I spent 7 months in Jerusalem at the House of Prayer for All Nations on The Mount of Olives.

During this time the Lord had asked me to open a gateway between the Nation of Australia and Israel. I have carried the burden of the pain and victimisation of Israel heavily since that time. Part of the understanding God had given to me was the importance of Australian forces saving Israel on three occasions. The first time was in World War 1 at Beersheba when the Australian Light-horsemen charged the Turkish stronghold. This victory led to the liberation of Jerusalem. On the second occasion, the Australians played a crucial role in Tobruk and Alamein in ensuring the Allied victory in Northern Africa. Then again, prior to the American bombing of Iraq, Australian troops were sent to disarm the missiles armed and aimed at Israel. The reason I felt called to go on this prayer tour was because I believed that God was calling me to be part of the Spiritual troops from Australia to again take our place and fulfil our calling to stand in Warfare alongside Israel.

“But it is not the spiritual life which came first, but the physical and then the spiritual.”  1 Corinthian 15: 46

On Thursday 27 May, I left Wagga to join a tour of Israel with Catch the Fire Ministries. The tour was led by Pastor Daniel Nalliah, and was comprised of about 60 intercessors from Australia.

On the tour we were able to pray at significant Biblical sites throughout Israel. One of the directives was to pray that the Golden Gate be opened in preparation for the second coming of Jesus Christ. The Golden Gate is presently bricked up and inaccessible. We visited Bethlehem, the Garden Tomb, The Garden of Gethsemane, the Old City, the Dead Sea, En Gedi, The Sea of Galilee, Tiberius, Haifa and most of us were baptised in the River Jordan.

On Friday 4 June I woke up feeling nauseous as there had been a gastric bug that was circulating through the tour group. That morning one of the group had spoken over my life a word from God that I would be an even greater blessing wherever I went and that when God tells me to go to another Nation that I must go.

I do not have much recollection about what happened on the bus, but do remember a soft inner voice saying, “You’re going to die in Israel”. My response to this was, “but I was given a word for the future just this morning”. Then I heard Pastor Daniel calling me, “Diana look at me. Look into my eyes now.”

I was later told that Maggie, whom I had been sitting next to on the bus, had looked at me and seen that I was sitting looking straight through things. She said that it looked like the people on TV when they were dead. She yelled and the doctor who just happened to be sitting behind me observed that I was not breathing and there was no pulse or heart beat. He proceeded to hit me in the chest and to try restart my heart. He was unable to resuscitate me. Then, someone rebuked the Spirit of Death and Pastor Daniel told the people on the bus to pray because I had died. Pastor Danny put his finger to my chest and called me back. He said, “Diana, look at me. Look into my eyes.” Danny rebuked hidden ancestral sins and said, “You have completed a prayer assignment regarding Israel and the enemy has struck, and you will recover when we cross into Jordan”.

I was taken by ambulance to a small medical clinic at the border and given a saline drip. After talking about alternatives and hospitals, we chose to continue as planned and drove to Amman where we caught an overnight plane to Colombo. The next day was spent in Colombo and another overnight flight followed to Kuala Lumpur and Melbourne. I stayed in a motel in Melbourne before catching another flight home to Wagga.

Since then, it seems to me that my burden for Israel has been dispersed amongst 60 other prayer warriors. The team clearly see a call to pray for and stand with the people of Israel in their call to possess and live in the land according to God’s word, and to understand Australia has a key role in supporting this edict.

“Then the nations shall know, understand, and realise that I the Lord do set apart and consecrate Israel for holy use, when My sanctuary shall be in their midst forevermore.”  Ezekiel 37:28

Diana Shield,

Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia,

June 2010

Sometime before 0810 we boarded the bus at the hotel in Tiberius.

At 0810 I take a photograph of an electrical pole warning of a ‘Danger of Death’, no doubt to those who climb electrical poles…or dare to complete missions for God.

Minutes later and still on a main street of Tiberius a lady in front moves from her seat saying ‘[Pastor Danny] something is not right with her friend’ in front of me.

I stand up and lean over the lady immediately in front of me. She is unresponsive, cyanosed, not making any respiratory effort and has absent radial and carotid pulses. A preliminary diagnosis of pulse less cardiopulmonary arrest is made.

I repeat the examination and position her airway and then provide a single blow to the chest. As the seat did not recline (I could not reach the lever), I began to formulate a plan to move her to the aisle to commence cardiac compression. I repeat the examination, she remains pulse less. Geraldine R from the CTFM ministry is now sitting next to her and praying. Someone has called for Pastor Danny.

Pastor Danny is standing next to Geraldine and next to him is John Shanasy. Geraldine says ‘this is spiritual and have seen this before’, Pastor Danny instructs the bus to ‘pray in tongues’, Pastor Danny gestures to the lady and says [Spirit of Death leave [lady] in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth], Satan you are the Loser, Jesus is the winner], [lady] look at me’, she opens her eyes and looks at him.

He speaks to her and she responds. Smiling. She proceeds to vomit .

We are on the outskirts of Tiberius, I explain that clinically she requires a hospital. She could have had a heart attack, asystole or otherarrythmia, hypoglycaemia or a stroke or seizure. Danny says this is spiritual and has generational links to Freemasonry. John receives a word that this is an attack from Satan to end her life in Israel and that if she can get to Jordan the Lord will heal her.

I have two choices, professionally to pull rank and as the only qualified medical practitioner ‘order’ the bus to a hospital in Tiberius. Having witnessed the miraculous recovery of the lady from death to life in that she responded to a verbal command. I explained that this lady is very sick, she ought to go to hospital but ‘I place myself under the authority of the pastor and the Lord Jesus Christ.’

The lady continued to vomit and become incontinent. She was not allergic to anything, had a mild hypothyroid condition had no heart problems, but had had mild diarrhoea in the morning. My concern was that continued vomiting and diarrhoea might lead to hypokalaemia (low potassium in the blood) and that this would precipitate a further cardiac event. I asked her what she wanted as far as medical care – she chose to stay on the bus, I could have influenced this decision but chose not to. People continued to pray.

At the Israel ‘exit’ border Geraldine, john and myself cleaned the lady. We transferred her to a wheel chair, another bus and then to the Jordan ‘entry border’. The guard on duty asked me if I thought she had had a heart attack, or diabetes? I said I thought she had ‘food poisoning’. He listed off all the things I really did think she may have had, I answered this way so as not to impede her transferring across to Jordan, a word had been given that she needed to get out of Israel. I had to trust and obey. The ambulance was called.

Geraldine and myself were transferred with the lady to the clinic beyond the Jordan ‘entry’ border. At the clinic the Jordanian doctor set up a drip of 1l of Normal Saline, gave her MAXOLON and BUSCOPAN and gave us a lecture about not eating hummus in summer. Geraldine and I left the lady to present to the passport control office. We returned to the clinic, a second bag of normal saline was running. Leaving Geraldine with the lady I returned to the bus, to choose which bus was most suitable for transporting the lady to Amman. One with the toilet was chosen. The bus drove to the clinic and the lady walked from the clinic with the help of Geraldine and John Shanasy. The timing to complete the Jordanian doctor’s assessment and management was equivalent to the time it took the team to clear the customs. There was no cost for the medical treatment and they refused a tip (US$100 was left under the ashtray).

I was able to pray with and for the doctor who was Islamic and obtain his address so I can send him medical equipment.

The remainder of the IV fluids were run through and the lady was provided with oral rehydration solution. It was most notable that she walked everywhere and improved. On the flight to Sri Lanka, I checked on her but she slept most of the way. I understand she flew to Melbourne after another connection and has been seen by her GP who said her ECG was normal and she is doing well.

I am a procedural GP, that is, I am a senior medical practitioner, who has procedural rights in obstetrics and anaesthesia at both the local public and private hospitals, I also provide airways management support in the emergency departments. I co-own a private medical practice of about 15 doctors. I completed my updated Advanced Cardiac Life Support skills accreditation at the end of 2009. I have attended many ‘codes’ at various hospitals and in the community over my 15 years in acute medicine. This lady suffered a catastrophic cardio respiratory event, failed to respond to cardiac thump, was clinically diagnosed as dead approximately three minutes, requiring resuscitation. The intention being able to extract her from her chair to place her on a flat surface suitable to commence basic life support. Before these arrangements could be made she only responded immediately and dramatically to the verbal commands to look at the pastor, and when a spirit of death was commanded to leave her. Her prognosis, in my opinion, in the context of severe vomiting and diarrhoea was for a repeat cardiac event.

I can only conclude that this lady and those around her serve an awesome God who hears prayers, bestows gifts of healing and knowledge, and who cares about individuals and states. I stand in awe.

Dr Murray James-Wallace

MBBS (WA),FRACGP, FACRRM, DRANZCOG, DCH, FRM

Geraldton, Western Australia

23 June 2010

Dr James-Wallace, a Christian who co-owns WA’s biggest medical practice outside Perth, in Geraldton, told The Age he had no doubt that Diana Shield died on the bus in Israel from pulseless cardiopulmonary arrest. 

Dr James-Wallace, a procedural anaesthetist with current cardiac life support training, said he told Pastor Nalliah that Ms Shield was dead, but he replied: ”No, this is spiritual, I’ve seen it before.” Pastor Nalliah, a well-known Pentecostal minister, said he was prompted by the Holy Spirit to ”call back life”. A lifeless Ms Shield then opened her eyes and smiled. She has since returned to Australia, where an electrocardiogram gave her a clean bill of health.

Read the story in The Age;

I was raised from dead, woman tells

Barney Zwartz

October 2, 2010

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/i-was-raised-from-dead-woman-tells-20101001-1614w.html