We are coming to the end of Ordinary Time in the Church calendar. This is the period from Easter to Christmas (or, more specifically, Advent). During Ordinary Time the Church focuses on the teachings of Jesus and the life of discipleship. It is the longest “season” in the Church calendar and is a reminder that our faith is for every day; for the ordinary time which makes up most of our lives! And as Ordinary Time comes to an end, we turn our attention and our hearts to prepare to celebrate the first coming of Jesus at Christmas. It is at Christmas that remembering the Church calendar might be of most benefit to us. The Church calendar reminds us that our lives revolve - not around Black Friday sales, or presents, or end-of-year functions, or holidays - around the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This reality ought to reshape our experience of the craziness of Christmas, like it ought to reshape all of our experiences as followers of Jesus. 
As a practical expression of this, you may want to use an advent calendar - and not just one of those chocolate ones - as a way to recall that what we are doing is preparing to remember Jesus’ first come and to anticipate his future coming. We seek to repeat the sounding joy and rehearse the coming joy! But whatever you do, let us recall the centre of our lives as the Christmas season picks up pace around us!

Marc Rader | Senior Pastor

This Weekend:

Join online or onsite at 9:30am and stick around after the service for tea and coffee and/or join at 6pm and stay for dinner afterwards!

Save The Date:

This Saturday 22nd November: Men's Breakfast 

29th November: Christmas Festival Working Bee

30th November: AGM + Extraordinary Meeting 

30th November: Final Hopedrive of 2025

6th December: Ladies Gingerbread Decorating Afternoon

19th, 20th, 21st December: Festival of Christmas 

Not My Will, but Yours Be Done

The story of Pinocchio captures the imagination with its theme of wishes coming true. A dream, a wish, a hopeful glance at a star—if desire is strong enough and luck is kind, life turns in our favour. It is a lovely idea, and one that reflects the human longing to see our hopes fulfilled.

But the New Testament teaches something far deeper about how God works. Christian prayer is not wishing; it is trustful submission to the One who knows us better than we know ourselves. Jesus’ own prayer in Gethsemane shows this:

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” — Luke 22:42

Wishing seeks the fulfilment of our desires. Prayer seeks the fulfilment of God’s will. We present our hopes honestly, but we surrender the outcome to a Father who loves perfectly and answers wisely. Sometimes He gives what we ask; sometimes He shapes us instead. And that is where real transformation begins—not in getting what we want, but in becoming more like Christ.

Derek Mullins | Elder 

Hopefield has been chosen as the recipient of the 2025 Community Kickstart Grant! With the $10,000 grant Hopefield will launch HopeHaven, a newly packaged initiative will provide a coordinated response to homelessness in the Sutherland Shire. Thank you too all who voted!

Christmas is a wonderful opportunity to be generous and big-hearted. We encourage everyone to prayerfully consider how they might give this Christmas! One way you can give is through the Hopefield Giving Tree!

The project target for this year is $9000, donations of any amount are welcome and all donations are tax deductible

On November 30th at 11:30am, we will be holding our AGM, where we’ll be presenting and passing the 2026 budget. Following this, we will be appointing Elders. Documents can be found below. Join us onsite or via Zoom.

All ladies and girls over 10 years old are invited to gather together and decorate a delicious Gingerbread House on the 6th Dec at 2pm- 4:30pm! Lollies and afternoon tea provided. A short Bible talk will be given. You are welcome to bring additional lollies and decorations. Choose from Original, Chocolate or Gluten Free Gingerbread when registering.
Register before Friday 28th November

We will be reactivating the GBC Links Directory within GBC Links next week.  A reminder that the GBC Links Directory is only visible to others who have a GBC Links log in.  The directory is 'opt-in'.  Individual's details will only be made visible if that individual has given permission.  To review and/or update what fields you have allowed to be included in the directory follow the following steps:\

1. Navigate to 'My Profile' Page:

• Log into GBC Links
• Go to 'My Profile' by hovering on your name in the top right corner. Click Profile

 2. Select 'Privacy Settings'

• Desktop - Find Privacy Setting on the far left side under 'Me'
• App - Click 'Me' to expand list to find Privacy Settings

3.  Adjust Privacy Setting:

• Items highlighted in green will appear in the member directory
• Items highlighted in gray will not appear
• You can also choose to not have your profile show by unticking the box next to 'Show my profile'

Enjoy a cooked breakfast, coffee & conversation together with other local men tomorrow morning on the 22nd November at 7:30am! Guest speaker Bruce Munroe will share about his passion for mission! All men are warmly invited!

Our Festival of Christmas is just around the corner and we need your help.  We are only able to provide this opportunity with the help of the GBC family.

Prepare For Christmas Working Bee Next Saturday 29 November 8am 

On Saturday, 29th November, we’re hosting a working bee to transform our space for the Festival of Christmas! 

Festival of Christmas - 19, 20, 21 December 

Once prepared and the place is set, the Festival of Christmas comes alive through the participation of our community of faith. Your investment into a small but important role for a small moment in time will bring joy and energy to the event.  Each night needs 50 volunteers to bring this festival to life - so let's all jump in where we can to support each other as we bless our local community together.

You are invited to join us for a short but effective time of “zoom” prayer Thursday at 7:30pm. A 30 minute guided prayer led by one of our wonderful GBC Elders. You can join in using this link JOIN PRAYER ZOOM or using the Meeting ID: 919 1693 5880 Passcode: f603j2. We look forward to spending this time together in prayer.

Baptist World Aid: Better World Gifts

Give a gift that gives twice

Do you know a family member who has everything, or a friend who is passionate about building a better world and don’t know what to get them for Christmas?

Consider a Baptist World Aid Better World Gift.

Your donation provides a gift for your loved one that gives twice – providing a valuable resource or gift to someone who really needs it. Better World Gifts are meaningful, ethical, and fun. Each card has a beautiful image which represents the impact of your donation, on behalf of your loved one. All the proceeds from our stationery gifts go to our Where Most Needed Fund. At their heart, these gifts are an expression of God’s extraordinary love at work in the world and how we get to share and be a part of it.

Follow the link for more information and to purchase

https://baptistworldaid.org.au/faith-in-action/better-world-gifts/

A Message from Gary and Jan Speckman:

"We wanted to express our appreciation again to GBC for your support and partnership for our ministry with Power to Change over the years in our various endeavours . Some people have asked what we are doing next in our retirement. One of the things is to continue to be involved with GAiN as volunteers. Let us know if you are interested in Water For Life or Medical Missions projects."

Prayer Requests from Karen Watkins:  

I’d love you to pray for patience for me as my body continues to heal, specifically for: 
- a gradual return to work - my brain feels “squeezed” when I concentrate too hard; 
- ceasing of anxiety symptoms - still present in tingling lips, hands and feet; 
- over-stimulation from loud noises and enclosed spaces; and 
- lowering my blood pressure to an acceptable rate. 

If you have something for Family News, contact office@gymeabaptist.org.au or call on 9521 4611. 

Wednesday 26th November at Donald Robinson Village (DRV), meeting at 12-15 for a 12-30 start. All men are invited to attend.
 
Guest Speaker this month will be Matthew King, representing Anglicare, who will be speaking about Anglicare projects around the world. Cost is $20 for a light lunch
 
Please book by contacting the DRV Café, either in person or by phone (8543 7273, 9am to 2pm), by Thursday 19th November. Payment can be made by credit card or cash up to Wednesday, 26th November.
 
Any enquiries please ring Ian Scarfe on 0439 914 957