New Zealand News

October 2012
A bimonthly newsletter from

Volume XVI Number 5b

Kevin, Lynne, Loren and Kaitlyn Moore

Taking the Gospel to Porirua, New Zealand

www.poriruachurchofchrist.yolasite.com

P. O. Box 50560, Porirua 5240, New Zealand. Phone: 011-64-4-235-6162. E-mail: kmoore@fhu.edu Greetings from the Lords work in Aotearoa. W e thank God for your ongoing interest, continual prayers, and generous support. All who are with me greet you . . . (Titus 3:15a). IN MEMORY OF EUGENE HIBBETT (1932-2012) In Volume II of New Zealand News (24 years ago) there was a tribute to my own father who had been proud to see his son go into the mission field but did not live to see him return. Today we honor my father-in-law, another staunch supporter of missions, even though it meant having to be separated from his only daughter and half of his grandchildren. Dr. Eugene Prosser Hibbett went on to his eternal reward on the 6th of October (only a couple of hours after Lynnes birthday) after battling encephalitis for several weeks. He was a retired chemistry professor, having served Freed-Hardeman University for nearly four decades, though his godly influence reached far beyond the classroom. For many years, as long as his health permitted, he was a faithful preacher of the gospel and an elder in the Lords church. He was also well known and highly respected in the community, in part due to his service projects with the Lions Club, regular visits to the nursing homes, mowing widows lawns, and giving away his home-grown vegetables. He was also very soul conscious, always talking to people about the condition and destiny of their souls, setting up and conducting personal Bible studies, and developing his own evangelism tools. While there is no way of knowing exactly how many souls he brought to Christ during his lifetime, the number of those he tried to convert is unfathomable. The Hibbetts made multiple trips to New Zealand to visit and work with us on the mission field. They labored tirelessly, doing whatever needed to be done. They also endeared themselves to the New Zealand people. After all these years they are still loved and fondly remembered here, and even the children who are now grown still ask about Papa Gene and Momma Jackie. Admittedly these are enormous shoes to fill, but my pledge to him is to do everything within my power to ensure that his daughter, at least two of his granddaughters, and perhaps to a lesser extent the rest of his family, are heaven-bound. Gene Hibbett has paved the way for this family and is now among the great cloud of witnesses, cheering us on to join him and my dad in that mansion where we shall never grow old. The full version of this tribute can be viewed at http://kmooreperspective.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/in-lovin g-memory-of-dr-eugene-prosser.html A NEW ADDITION TO GODS FAMILY Cecile Marsh confessed her faith in Jesus and was immersed into the body of Christ on the 30th of October. As joyful as this good news is, the story behind her conversion is equally encouraging but requires some background information. I was blessed with the opportunity to serve as an evangelist for the Lords church in New Zealands capital city (Wellington) from 1987 to 1994, even though I was admittedly young, inexperienced, naive, and borderline incompetent. During this seven-year period, despite my inadequacies and thanks to the providential working of God (1 Corinthians 3:5-7), Joan Turrell was one of the first I had the privilege of teaching and baptizing, and Rodger Headifen was one of the last. W itn essing their continued faithfulness, steady spiritual growth, and active involvement in the Lords work over the years has

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been an even greater blessing. Joan has been active in the Wellington congregation ever since, and for the past several years Rodger has been one of the leaders in the small congregation meeting just over the Rimutaka Range in the Hutt Valley east of Wellington. Beyond me teaching a simple evangelism class and sharing Bible study materials, both Joan and Rodger have always taken initiative and demonstrated a sincere conviction for sharing their faith. Cecile is a life-long friend of Joans with whom she has been sharing Bible studies for the past couple of years. Since Cecile lives in the Hutt Valley, Joan recently asked Rodger for his assistance, and they have been successful in getting Cecile to attend the worship services of the Hutt Valley church, to continue her Bible studies, and finally to obey the gospel. We rejoice with the angels in heaven and welcome Cecile into Gods family. Words of encouragement can be sent to her via Hutt Valley church of Christ, P. O. Box 38-801, Wellington, New Zealand. Due to the slow and difficult nature of the Lords work in New Zealand, it can very discouraging if it is judged on a day-by-day, week-by-week, or even month-by-month basis. But to look back over a period of several years and see how God has been working, o p e n in g doors, saving souls, b u ild in g u p congregations, and blessing the feeble efforts of His humble servants, truly makes it all worthwhile. Making disciples who make disciples continues to be our primary aim (Matthew 28:18-20). LOCAL OUTREACH October 13th was the date we had set for a potluck breakfast followed by a letterboxing thrust to distribute House-to-House-Heart-to-Heart pamphlets in the community, but unfortunately it was rained out. We have rescheduled for November 10th. Our Bible studies with Radhika were temporarily on hold because of the hectic schedule in her new job. But we are now getting back on track and pray that the continued studies are fruitful. The Bible studies with Katarina have gone reasonably well, and she realizes that some major changes need to be made in her life. Time will tell how serious she is about responding to what she is learning from Gods word. Michelle Stretch (our newest member) has been inviting friends and family to church services. One Sunday her mother came along, and the next Sunday she brought her uncle. Neither was ready to have personal Bible studies but both committed to attending church services to learn more and to see what were all about. We have scheduled a special Friends and Family Day for November 18th as a way to make even more contacts. NEW CHRISTIANS NEWS June Rameka has had to make multiple trips to Auckland to help care for her ailing mother, and a couple of weeks ago she took her mother to worship with the South Auckland congregation. Now Junes father is in the hospital, so we are hoping this is another opportunity for our South Auckland brethren to reach out to this family and share the love of Christ. Kerisitiano Peterson has recently undergone a kidney transplant. She is now at home recuperating, and our prayer is that this will enable her to have a better quality of life and be even more active in the Lords church. NEWLY-WED WORKERS Hannah Smith and Stephen Higley tied the proverbial knot on the 20th of October in Palmerston North. Hannah is a young lady we have known for many years in the church (her mother helped deliver both of our daughters), and Stephen is a Memphis School of Preaching graduate from Bremen, Georgia. They met and developed a long-distance relationship online, and Stephen visited New Zealand earlier this year (mentioned in our March-April report). Following their engagement Stephen managed to raise financial support and secure a residence visa, and now the couple has settled in the town of Foxton (between Palmerston North and Porirua) to mainly work with the small church there but also available to help in other areas as needed. MOORE NEWS Lynne and the girls have remained in the States to help her mother and are due back in New Zealand November 14th. They will hit the ground running as we prepare to move back to the U.S. in mid-December. Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you (2 Thessalonians 3:1). In His wonderful service, Kevin, Lynne, Loren and Kaitlyn Moore
Sponsored by the Estes church of Christ, P. O. Box 191, Henderson, TN 38340. Correspondents: Steve Johnson (elder) sjohnson@fhu.edu (phone 731-989-7725); Richard Taylor, Jr. (elder) rtaylor@fhu.edu (phone 731-608-2536).