You may have seen the new series on ABC called ‘The Assembly.’ This show features experienced ABC journalist Leigh Sails working with a group of neurodivergent young people who aspire to become journalists. Leigh helps them prepare to interview a celebrity. If you haven’t seen it yet, do yourself a favour and check it out!
One of the questions considered for actor Sam Neill was, “if you could have a conversation with anyone, living or dead, who would that be?” This question struck me deeply, and I started to ponder who I would choose.
It struck me that I would choose Reverend Joe Westlake. Rev Westlake was the visionary who first proposed the idea of starting a Christian school for families in the West. He organised the first public meeting, which saw 30 families gather who shared this dream.
I would love to discuss the early days of Heathdale Christian College with him, including how they managed to acquire the site for the Werribee Campus despite having very limited funds. I’d also be interested in learning about the perseverance of this group, who, after years of effort, saw the dream of the Melton Campus become a reality. Wouldn’t it be fascinating to hear these stories firsthand?
As I’ve talked with others about Heathdale Christian College’s foundational years, I’ve sensed a significant backstory. This backstory involves a group of prayer warriors — parents who prayed consistently and faithfully each week for the vision of HCC to unfold. They prayed for the provision of land, for families to enrol in the school and for the finances needed to make it all happen, so that families could experience Christian education. For years, they persisted in asking, seeking and pleading with God. What an inspiring story!
I find it difficult to pray for something for even a few minutes, let alone for years. I am deeply inspired and encouraged by these prayer warriors. How blessed are we as a community because of their steadfast faith. Their persistence in prayer has been our blessing.
I was reminded of this inspiring story recently when I read the following passage from the New Testament:
“When the Lamb ripped off the seventh seal, Heaven fell quiet — complete silence for about half an hour. I saw the Seven Angels who are always in readiness before God handed seven trumpets. Then another Angel, carrying a gold censer, came and stood at the Altar. He was given a great quantity of incense so that he could offer up the prayers of all the saints, the holy people of God on the Golden Altar before the Throne.” Revelation 8:1-4 (The Message)
The commentator of the study guide I was using made the following comments on this passage: “We now come to the next great theme of Revelation — the power of prevailing prayer. When the seventh seal was opened, there was silence in Heaven for the space of about half an hour. Why? In order to hear the prayers of God’s people. As someone put it, there are more things wrought in heaven and earth through prayer than this world dreams of.”
The silence then gives way to action. As The Apostle John watches, an angel comes before the throne of God, mixes the prayers of God’s people with incense, combines them with fire and then hurls the censer over the ramparts of heaven so that it falls to earth. When the censer reaches the earth, there are peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake. The prayers that have come before God, purified and set on fire by His Spirit, return to earth with tremendous force.
If I am honest, I sometimes wonder if my prayers make any difference. Yet, reading Revelation 8:1-4 reassures me that our prayers never reach Heaven in vain. Rather, our prayers are heard, purified and returned to earth with great power. This passage helps us believe that our prayers for this world are heard and, after being mixed with the fire of God’s Spirit, fall back to earth. What an inspiring thought: today, as every day, the earth is stirred spiritually because we, as God’s people, persist in prayer.
Many people can inspire and encourage us, providing good examples. Our prayer warriors have blessed generation after generation at Heathdale. They may have known only a few people in the College today, and only a few may know them. Yet we are blessed because of their persistence in prayer.
May we be encouraged by this and continue their legacy, being known as a community that persists in prayer. Let us persist in prayer for our Board as they seek to serve God. Let us persist in prayer for the staff as they continue to impact the lives of their students. Let us persist in prayer for the students, that they may grow in God’s love and become followers of Jesus. Let us persist in prayer for each other as parents, as we strive to raise our children as The Lord Jesus has called us to do.