GCCB’s Session met in a stated meeting at 7pm, Monday evening, 29 October 2018. Present were: Teaching Elder John Butler, and Ruling Elders Des Morris, Brad Joyce, and Tim Richards from GCCB; and borrowed session members Teaching Elder Darren Burnett, and Ruling Elders Al and John Baigrie, from Grace Morayfield, and Teaching Elder Dan Bosshard, from Community Christian, Pacific Paradise. Teaching Elder Clint Lombard from GCCB and Ruling Elder Hilary Jasch sent their regrets.
Des Morris gave a devotional from Ephesians 2:1-7, on the order of God’s working in salvation. After sharing prayer requests and pastoral concerns, the Session spent a season in prayer.
The Session then moved to consideration of a number of items of business, which included:
- A report from the Treasurer trough Tim Richards clarifying the Session’s questions regarding the treasurer’s report to the previous meeting. The Session is grateful to Lord for providing for the congregation’s needs, and thank God for the generosity of our members and adherents.
- The Session issued a call for a congregational meeting on Sunday, 2 December 2018. The schedule for that morning’s services was set for a 7:30am church breakfast, combined worship service with the Lord’s Supper at 8:30am, and the congregational meeting at 10:00am. The purpose of the meeting is to 1) consider a two-year extension of the call to Teaching Elder John Butler as a pastor of GCCB, beginning 14 June 2019; 2) consider the terms of the call to TE Butler; and 3) any matters related to the previous items. John’s call and visa expire 14 June 2019, and extending the call and approval of terms for a contract would enable filing and approval of John’s visa renewal in a timely manner. The Session will distribute materials related to the call and the proposed contract to the communing membership of the Church. Anyone with questions regarding this meeting may address any elder, and the elders will be contacting our communing members to see if they have questions.
- Session approved a request to the presbytery that it consider at its November meeting (at GCCB on 17 November) dismissing our “borrowed” elders and requesting the National Assembly dismiss its counsellors to GCCB, all with the thanks of our local session and congregation for their assistance the past two years.
- The next meeting of the Session was set for Tuesday, 27 November 2018.
After two and a half hours, the Session closed its meeting with prayer.