It has been six months since I moved out to Ballarat from Melbourne. I’ve always been a fan of the country. I’ve never felt comfortable in the city so looked forward to what Ballarat had to offer.

Upon moving up here, the first thing that struck me was the weekends. Having grown up with large shopping centers such as Chadstone, Doncaster and even the many shops found in Melbourne CBD I was used to rocking up to a shop late in the afternoon to find them open. Ballarat, didn’t work that way. This did come as a shock initially though it is now something I have come to enjoy. Life slows down on the weekend. The shops close early on Saturday afternoon and many don’t even open on Sundays. People enjoy their weekends, they relax and take it easy.

But is that the reason I love this place? Is that why I remain here? Not at all. The reason I love this city is that there is life. I don’t mean life as the world see’s it. Which is to say that there are people who are alive. Nor do I mean life as the Ballarat city council portrays it with their “Come to life Ballarat” campaign. No I mean that there are people here in whom there is life. The life I talk about is that granted by God (the Father) through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (the Son) and revealed by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

When I came to Ballarat, the first Church I attended (Grace Presbyterian in Sebastopol) was where I found fellowship. Like every other Church, it is filled with people who are saved by God’s grace. The Church is filled with people who are also struggling with sin as well. There are those who make the effort to reach out to the community, and there are those who are traditional by nature and closed. This is typical of every Church that I have visited.

Then there are those outside of the Church. Those who don’t know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Walking around Sebastopol, you will see new developments springing up, though a few doors down you will see houses that need a lot of care and attention. The people as well are in need of Jesus. They are friendly people. Many of them are probably good people as the world sees them. Yet without Jesus, they are dead in their sin. Unfortunately most of these people are the young men and women. They are the ones who will be the leaders of the community in not too many years. They are the ones who study at the Universities and the ones who are just entering the workplace. They are those who I would call friends. They are those who I would consider to be my peers.

There is a great need amongst those in Ballarat. That need is life. The words of the apostle Paul to the Greeks at the Areopogus (Acts 17:22-34) ring true in my mind as I live in Ballarat. The people are very religious yet they don’t have life. For in Jesus we live and move and have our being. The people of Ballarat will often be found at the pub. To them, that is their Church. Mateship is the center of their existence and though they may be wise in some areas, without Jesus they are still in their sin.

So how can the gospel penetrate the lives of these people? How can the good news of Jesus Christ who died and rose again for the forgiveness of sin reach out and penetrate the lives of these people? The answer lies in what is meant by being “missional”. Whilst it is a hot topic amongst what is termed as the new reformed, it is nothing new. Though it is reminding Christians of their need to live out the great commission as found in Matt 28:18-20. I’ve included verse 18 as it highlights that this is a command from Jesus and that his authority is the highest authority.

Life needs to be lived in the community. We need to be out in the community living amongst our friends, family, coworkers, neighbors and even those we would not want to associate with. As life is lived amongst them, they will see what it means to have life to the fullest. As life is lived amongst them, they will be addressed with the issues of the Gospel and the depravity of their sin. Not that we Lord it over them or berate them, rather that our lives are lived in such a radically different fashion. It is this that causes discussions to occur. It is this that allows for us to humbly proclaim the Gospel with love to them.

As a prerequisite, rather than a corollary, we must pray. Nothing will happen to the lives of the people unless God works in their lives through the Holy Spirit. We must seek God and ask that he works in the lives of the people. We must pray for the salvation of the people as Nehemiah prayed for the people in Nehemiah 1:4-11. Seek God asking that he creates repentance and faith amongst the people.

So it is that I live my life in Jesus. I also live my life amongst the people of Ballarat, seeking that they repent of their sins and turn in faith to Jesus.

God bless.