In this newsletter we look at:-
Radio for my Neighbours
New DVDs
COMMENT - by John Lindsay CRC’s Operations Director
"A radio station run by volunteers for the local community" sums up the efforts of Christians operating on low power FM licences around New Zealand.
Good News Community Radio in Rotorua is one of the larger operations. Currently broadcasting on a low power frequency, it had a full power licence for a number of years and has been allocated the non-commercial frequency for Rotorua.
"Our trust is a mix of people from various backgrounds who are passionate about community radio and the philosophy of this station," says Don Cairns, station manager and trustee. "We have a support staff of announcers, computer programming and administration who work together as a great team."
Good News Community Radio has been on air for twelve years. At first it was something of a curiosity in Rotorua but today it is a respected broadcaster with a significant listening audience. From the outset the philosophy was middle of the road programming with a mix of secular and sacred music that would appeal to an older audience. There is no advertising and staff volunteer their services.
The schedule includes short gospel thoughts featured throughout the day, supplemented with a few longer talks from speakers such as Charles Stanley. An important feature is the Wednesday ‘Life in Focus’ programme conducted by local Christian ministers.
The value of operating 24 hours a day was confirmed when listeners who could not sleep at night asked to hear inspirational talks after midnight.
"We have faced many obstacles but God has been faithful," says Don. "Under His direction, we are working toward the goal of claiming the Rotorua airways for Christ and using our studios to provide a ministry centre for people who need our support."
CRC has found other Christians hard at work running low power FM operations throughout the country.
The north Canterbury town of Rangiora has a station run by Alan Price from his home studio. Alan’s operation began as a re-transmission of LifeFM from a transmitter at the local Anglican church but he has created his own mix of music and spoken features.
All Saints Anglican church in the seaside suburb of Sumner in Christchurch has provided space in its bell tower for a station called The Wave.
In Auckland there are stations based at St James’ Anglican church in Mangere Bridge, with Les Dixon at the helm, and St Lukes Anglican in Manurewa.
"We broadcast the 9am worship service at St James live each Sunday morning," says Les, "as well as special services at Easter and Christmas. Our schedule also includes a Morning Prayer at 7.30am and an Evening Prayer at 9.30pm. The station’s music is mainly Christian plus a selection of easy listening and well-loved old timers."
New Plymouth residents can tune into James Cope’s One Christian Radio while in the deep south, Stuart Dixon operates a station in Winton.
Low Power FM provides a simple, inexpensive way for Christians to reach their local community through radio. Existing operators will guide newcomers and CRC makes its radio programmes available free of charge.
Frequencies and contact information for stations is available on the CRC website.
Charles and Hilary Price
Holy Land Series - Walking Where Jesus Walked
1035 Following God’s Direction (Mt Nebo) Charles 33min
V1036 Can Anything Good Come out of Nazareth? (Nazareth) Hilary 43min
V1037 Trust and Obey (Sea of Galilee) Charles 47min
V1038 He is Risen (Garden Tomb) Charles 46min
V1039 A Voice Crying in the Wilderness (Bethany) Hilary 55min
V1040 Moments of Mediation – a series of meditations from 11 different places in Israel. Each about 4 minutes.
Charles Price
Crucial Christian Convictions
V1041 Living With Biblical Convictions 43min
V1041 Convictions about Scripture 48min
V1042 Convictions about the Trinity 45min
V1042 Convictions about Humanity and the Deity of Christ 50min
Charles Price
Knowing God
V1043 The Existence of God 43min
V1043 The Knowability of God 49min
V1044 Knowing God by Experience 46min
V1044 The Sovereignty of God 43min
V1045 The Holiness of God 55min
V1045 The Worship of God 42min
V1046 Friends for Life (Movie) 90min
After the death of his wife, Jim Crawford learns that God is ready to guide him through his grief into a new life helping others.
V1047 The Perfect Stranger (Movie) 95min
Nikki Gominsky responds to an invitation to dinner with Jesus Christ because she thinks it’s from her husband playing a joke. But the stranger she finds waiting for her in the restaurant introduces himself as Jesus and during the meal Nikki discovers more than she expects about herself and about God.
See "New Zealand Library" on the CRC website for more information about these DVDs.
COMMENT - by John Lindsay CRC’s Operations Director
God has given us brains that have an amazing ability to analyse information, develop theories, sift through facts and come to conclusions. Because we have this power to reason we are inclined to doubt anything we cannot prove. We are suspicious of anything that requires faith.
When we look at what Christians believe, it is easy to accept the historical material in the Bible. We can associate events with locations on a map or link them to the great empires of ancient history.
Our understanding of Jesus Christ is a more difficult matter. While we can describe events surrounding the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem and His death on a cross, it is impossible to comprehend all Jesus meant when He said "before Abraham was born, I am". We don’t have the words to adequately explain such a concept.
It is a challenge we will never overcome. We may try and ignore it or declare that it does not matter, but it will lurk in the background threatening to unsettle us in our faith. And Satan will remind us of these unresolved issues to discourage us, cause friction between Christians, and make us look foolish in the eyes of unbelievers.
Our best response is to acknowledge that there is much we do not understand about the unique character of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is God and He has become everything it means to be a man. We cannot explain it, but we believe it because God has told us in the Scriptures.
There is no need to be embarrassed or apologetic when someone asks you to explain the mystery. These things are not understood by reason but by the revelation of the Holy Spirit. In the end, unbelievers must take up their argument with God.
