Australia - Celebrating 15 Years of Grace

In Romans 11.36, we read, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” And as I look back now, just a week on from celebrating our fifteen year anniversary as Sovereign Grace Church, Wahroonga, Romans 11.36 is without doubt my full-hearted declaration. It has all been His work, and it is marvellous in our eyes.  

Humanly speaking, our story actually began back in 2004, when God led Mike Pasalich to write to C.J.Mahaney to see if Sovereign Grace would ever consider planting a church in Sydney, Australia. This letter, through a long chain of God-inspired events, would lead to our move. A move that was unexpected, unforeseen and unanticipated by us, yet a journey that God had so clearly began. We would’ve never even come on holiday to Australia if left to ourselves, it’s so far to come from the UK!! But God had other plans, and so in June 2010 my wife and I, along with our three small children, got on a plane to relocate to Sydney, Australia from Newport, Wales, to plant the church. Full of hope, full of faith, full of unknown, and yet full of clarity that this story had truly started with Him.

Did that make the transition easy? No. Honestly, it was really hard to be in a foreign land, 10,500 miles away from family and all that knew of as familiar. I had never actually planted a church before, nor been a lead pastor, nor ever pastored in a very different context to my own. But as I look back now with my family, fifteen years on, our view is filled with grace, grace and more grace.

In the last fifteen years, we have repeatedly seen His saving grace, with so many people: Jiy Lim, Celia Tan, Nick Gordon, Bri Edwards, Nick Beed, Steve Jackson, Momch Pasalich, Ryan O’Gorman and Annette Packham, to name but a few, coming to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Some of these dear Saints we still get to worship alongside on a Sunday, others have already gone on to be with Jesus, and each one of them, is a wonderful trophy of grace.

There’s also been restoring grace, as so many of our folk have arrived at Sovereign Grace over the last fifteen years having previously given up on church or God, for a whole variety of reasons, and yet have been gently and wonderfully restored by His hand.

There’s also been sanctifying grace, where lives and marriages and families and workplaces, have been totally transformed by the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Lives that have been touched by the King, and people then who are being changed from one degree of glory to another by His gracious hand.

Then there’s been sustaining grace. Job tells us, ‘For as sure as sparks fly upwards, troubles fall’, and we’ve seen that. Health challenges, marriage challenges, relational challenges, parenting challenges, financial challenges, we’ve experienced them all... But what we’ve also seen time and time again is His people being carried in the grip of His grace and never let go.

And then there’s been His provisional grace. Since our very inception in 2010, God has provided for us as a church in incredible ways. Financially, we’ve rarely gone without.  In facilities, He’s always provided for what we need, often in abounding ways. And in personnel, His provision has always been a wonder to behold – musicians, worship leaders, pa, media, graphic design, set up, hospitality, welcoming, group leaders, sphere leaders and pastors. He’s provided it all.

In His abounding grace, He’s even given us the opportunity to send out our first church plant, Sovereign Grace Church, Parramatta in September of 2019, and watch the birth of Sovereign Grace Churches, Australia. Then there’s been the amazing work of His grace in Asia-Pacific, in places like South Korea, Nepal, India, Pakistan and the Philippines, in which He’s so kindly allowed us to be a part. It’s all so much more than we ever imagined we’d get to see when we arrived in 2010, but so indicative of the gracious and kind God He is.

For from him and through and to him are all things. He’s such a kind and gracious King... It’s all His work and always will be... And so may all glory go to Him.

Soli Deo Gloria.

Below is a video that we put together for our anniversary celebration. Fifteen years of grace. Enjoy.