Samantha Diffey (Crossroads Church) is studying for a Graduate Diploma in Theology at Laidlaw College, and it's having real implications for her ministry as part of her local church: ”for me, my study and my church community are inextricably connected.”
Samantha was part of a team who recently organised a women's breakfast (pictured above) with the hope of fostering community between women from different services, sometimes from vastly different generations.
She says she found it so encouraging to see nearly 100 women turn up to this event with a fairly even mix spanning the different life stages represented across their church as whole.
Being part of discipleship within community has been really important, she says:
“I have also been encouraged by the growth of new people within our life group community. Over the past few weeks, we have had several ladies new to church come and check our life group out, and it has been great to see how the ladies in my life group have gathered around these new girls—something that I think displays Christ-like community. One of our girls also was baptised a few weeks ago which was so good.”
Left: Samantha (second left) and her life group. Right: Bronwyn being baptised.
Samantha is praying that as she studies God would use her in her local church to bring women together to grow in faith as they love and disciple one another around the Word. She feels blessed to already see some of this fruit developing, and to be able to devote time to learning more about God.
Samantha has been granted a JH Baldwin Scholarship, kindly provided by Lichfield Lands.
If you are serving in a CCCNZ Open Brethren heritage church and would like to talk more about undertaking theological study at any level take a look at the CCCNZ website and chat to Liz Hodge, CCCNZ Scholarships Enabler.
