For the past 3 years I have been the director of and speaker at Man Camp. At these 3 camps I have seen every day blokes give life changing teaching, I’ve seen men set free from bondages such as alcoholism, sexual confusion & addiction, fear and anger, I’ve seen men give their lives fully over to Christ and others stand a step deeper in to their faith. The Man Camp experience for myself has been amazing with much teaching and refining from God, deep relationships being built and the pure joy of being an instrument of the Lord.

The focus has always been on setting men free from worldly issues and setting them on a path to understanding their identity in Christ. From the vision God showed me about 5 years ago we have stayed true to that calling and the impact has been amazing and the revelation of God in these men’s lives has been miraculous.

This year, on 3^rd June 2017 (08:30-16:00), we are running Man Camp Express at Axis Church, North Lakes. This is a compressed version of the real camp bringing together the most impactful teaching from the last 3 camps into a single day event: Legacy, Identity, Peace & Contentment, Love, Priorities, Son ship, Courage. Designed to be both impactful but also to give a broader audience the chance to see what Man Camp is about. With powerful teaching, a BBQ lunch and connection with other men, this day will be a unique event within our church and will most definitely be an encouragement to all men who attend.

We would love to see as many men as possible attend this event. Please encourage your church, your mates, your husband, your sons and brothers to attend. Register here: www.mancamp.org.au/mce2017

Please contact me if you need any information for newsletters.

Stephen Ellis
District Director for Wesleyan Men
Director – Man Camp
E: stephen@mancamp.org.au
M: 0415 806 649

Kingsley Community Training
Kingsley training in 2017 has begun well. Many lay people from Wesleyan churches and other fellowships are learning and growing in confidence through the Kingsley classes. Ministerial candidates can be found in Certificate IV classes (just beginning), studying the Diploma, Advanced Diploma and the Graduate Certificate (the final step to ordination).

Please be praying for Kingsley students and trainers this year. Pray also that God would call many more men and women into a variety of ministries. In the coming weeks- consider how you could encourage someone in your local church or community to begin Kingsley study in semester two, 2017.

Professional Development Opportunities
Each year Kingsley College offers subjects that provide excellent Professional Development for existing leaders. Pastors and leaders are welcome to join a subject for one seminar or for several- at a very reasonable cost. All seminars are available for web conference connection.

Seminars in Christian Education are available on the 24th April, 22nd May, and 19th June.
Seminars in Doctrine of Holiness are available on 1st, 8th, 15th and 29th May, then the 5th June. On the 8th May Peter Lam will lead a study on- Preaching Holiness Today.
The 15th May will see Susan Lee lead the discussion on- Experiencing the Holy Life.
Contact the College office in Broadmeadows for more details- 0423 127 199.

PD opportunities for the second half of the year include;
Church Planting and Development (first week in August)
Mentoring Leaders
Christian Apologetics

Rev Kevin Brown
Kingsley Australia

World Hope’s ministry in Cambodia began in 2005 in our effort to combat human trafficking. We worked alongside other faith agencies in a consortium to rescue, restore and reintegrate under-aged girls who had been trafficked into sexual slavery. Over the years of caring for these girls and restoring them we also ran training and education programmes for the community and government officials such as the police, social services etc. In 2013 we closed our centre because we were no longer getting the rescued girls, this is a good news story because our community education had worked. But we still saw a need to help rural Cambodians out of their poverty and so we began the Mushroom House project.

Chany is just one woman whose life has been impacted by her mushroom house. Chany, her husband, and their son used to live in a small house that was in poor condition in the Kompong Siem district of Cambodia. Her husband migrated outside their village for a job cutting wood, but he had to spend a lot of time away from home and often wouldn’t get paid and it was illegal work so the danger of being caught was there.

Even though they didn’t have the financial resources to invest in a business endeavor, Chany was able obtain a mushroom house. Over the past year life has completely changed for Chany’s family. Using the revenue from their mushrooms, Chany and her husband built a much-needed new home. Her husband no longer needs to travel for work. They have an ongoing source of income that not only provides daily food but enough earnings to improve their livelihood. All this with one simple investment—agricultural waste.

They use agricultural waste from one annual planting of rice and mung beans to create an environment for the mushrooms to grow. Since they already have the materials necessary for cultivation, startup costs are cheap—people without credit, opportunity, or savings can participate.

The results of this project have been amazing! Farmers sell their mushrooms at markets in Phnom Penh where their organic product garners twice as much revenue as its chemically-treated counterpart. For more information check our website.

(https://www.worldhope.org.au/agriculture/the-power-of-mushrooms)

Ruth Thomas

After the Rev Bill & Daphne Foster married they felt a calling to mission work overseas. In the middle ‘70’s the Fosters meet the Rev Dr Jim Ridgway of the Australian branch of the Wesleyan Methodist Church, who was studying in America at the time, and persuaded them to come to Australia. In 1974 the Fosters arrived in Australia and took up the pastorate at the Sunshine Wesleyan Methodist Church in Melbourne. Not long after Bill returned to America to complete his Master Studies in Adult Education.

Whilst there one of the areas he looked at was singles ministry. It was at this point that the idea for Camp Solo (as it was originally called) was born. Once they arrived back in Australia he tried to convince Youth For Christ, and other Christian groups, that a singles ministry was valid but no one was interested or saw that there was a need.

During one of the YFC camps on the Gold Coast that Bill would often speak at, some of the leaders and campers were now too old to be at YFC youth camps. They came to him and asked where they could go for a singles group as they were lonely and wanted something suitable for them.

The ‘final straw’ for Bill was when some of the singles in Bill’s church at Sunshine Wesleyan in Melbourne complained about doing everything on their own and didn’t like to go on holidays by themselves.

So in 1982 Bill & Daphne begin preparations for Solo’s first camp. They financed the initial one and ‘Camp Solo’ was born. Bill went into partnership with YFC where they supplied the cook and food and he supplied the people.   The first advertising was made in the July ‘82 issue of ‘New Life’ and announced that Bill Foster would be the speaker.

So on the 10th to 16th January 1983 Camp Solo’s first camp at the Tallebudgera Recreational Centre was a complete success. There were 82 that attended that camp and a lot of people were blessed and came into a new relationship with God because of the ministry given.

The current director, Rev Steve Mitchell, was introduced to Club Solo by Bill Foster one day as they were going to see a football match in Melbourne. I was studying at Kingsley College at the time and was serving at Bill’s church at Sunshine Wesleyan Methodist Church as worship leader. As they entered the ground Bill asked would he be interested in doing worship leading at the next Camp Solo camp at Log Cabin Lodge, Creswick. As it meant a free camp and a chance to get away for a long weekend from college I readily agreed.

Little did I know that 31 years later, after also being registrar and cleaner, I would now be the director. After the early days when I thought it was only a free camp and that would be all, I now know that God was grooming me to take over when the time was right. Steve took over the directorship of Solo in 1997 and has held it ever since. It became a National Auxiliary of the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Aus. in 2006.

I was born into a minister’s home and so know well the Christian life within the church. I was also married at a young age of 21 and divorced some 6 years later. After spending 12 years as a single I met my wife through Club Solo.   I do know how singles think and feel, as I have been through marriage, divorce & remarriage, so I know what it is like to be single and Christian.

There have been a lot of great times in his life that revolve around Solo’s ministry and the best of those were finding his wife Michelle at Solo as well as having two wonderful kids.

But probably the most fulfilling thing about Solo for me is to see folk who come to camps and events and you can see them change and become a better person because of the ministry given to them. Even though I am the director I rely heavily on the voluntary committee that help out at functions and camps to make it the best it can be so the ministry to the folk who come is the most effective.

In 2017 Club Solo, as it is now called, is still ministering to single adults around Australia but in a better way since email, internet and websites have developed. More Christian singles are each year are getting ministry through Solo, as well as those that have been coming back for years, and in some cases, decades. They see Club Solo as their family and me as their pastor as the church that they go to doesn’t have anything for singles.

We have regular monthly events as well as camps and holidays away. Our next camp is at the Norval Conference Centre, Halls Gap over the Queen’s Birthday Long Weekend in June & then one in NSW in September at Bethshan Conference Centre in Wyee. Our weeklong Gold Coast Holiday follows in January 2018. If you would like any information about these camps and holiday then please don’t hesitate to contact me.

If you would like further information as to how Club Solo can best serve the singles in your church then please don’t hesitate to contact me on the email or website or phone number below.

Thanks for reading

Rev Steve Mitchell

0417-356072

clubsolo@tpg.com.au www.clubsolo.org.au