Te Haerenga o mata whanui 2008:
Update one
Te haerenga o mata whānui is a 2nd level Te haerenga programme for those who have done Te haerenga and wishes to go further. Te Haerenga o mata whānui is about broadening your horizons and going deeper in our understanding of who God is.
This season of o mata whanui we have and are looking at cultural issues such as church history and its impact on Maori, reference points within Maori culture that point to God, who is 'Io'? what about the other 'gods'? are they gods? etc and soon we will look at the Treaty of Waitangi.
In Brief:
First weekend at Maungatapu marae
Charlie Mathews came and shared his wealth of knowledge about Io (the name we call God which means the most supreme) The weekend was very rich and deep. Although we all couldn't grasp hold of its fullness there was such an assurance and our spirit agreed to the fact that He was here all the time. Tears shared, revelation unfolded and like someone said that weekend "It's like blue bird chips, the big taste always gets through"
We look forward to many of these gatherings around and about Io, the most supreme God.
Second weekend at Hairini Marae
Alistair Reece was our guest speaker and spoke about church history. He spoke about the journey of man in response to Gods mandate to fill the earth as He determined the times and places that they would be. Alistair touched on the migration of peoples coming to NZ after the Maori, settlers, traders, missionaries etc all the way down to the history in Tauranga with the local tribes.
There were encouraging stories about the effect the gospel was having and the rise of prophets in the country. Sad stories as well in terms of land confiscation and miss communication of two peoples.
We are challenged with 'what do we do with this information'?
Our next gathering is on the Treaty of Waitangi in which we are looking forward to.
As things still develop with Te haerenga, we see that for Maori, in order to talk about God, we have to talk about these other issues. In a sense, they have been and are huge barriers for many. Pray with us as the Lord guides us through.
Prayer needs
That the Lord bless and affirm our gatherings with His presence and revelation of truth.
Barriers be broken and Gods heart and intensions be revealed.
Favor with local communities
Funding to operate Te Haerenga programmes.
Preparation and wisdom for Te haerenga 2009 (2 programmes in different regions will run simultaneously)
Protection of the truth and the courage to walk in it.
Thank you for praying into this.
Contact us: info@islandbreeze.org.nz
archived updates of Te Haerenga