April 2025 News Update
Read our April 2025 News Update and Gershon Nimbalker's reflections on showing up in love this election season.
It's been a big week as Common Grace's new CEO started. Brooke shares about the last few months and invites us all to journey together into the next season for Common Grace.
Well it is finally here, my first week as CEO of Common Grace. I’m excited and feeling really energised to be stepping into this role to lead this incredible movement of people passionate about Jesus and Justice. I am also humbled by the personal support and prayers for this new season. Thank you!
Common Grace has been busy since the announcement of my appointment back in November with 16 days of prayer against domestic and family violence, the Advent series, churches marking Aboriginal Sunday, and record numbers responding to Aunty Jean Phillips’ call, coming together in prayer to #ChangeTheHeart of Australia. I want to take this moment to personally thank all the contributors for the 16 days of prayer, the Advent series, and all the #ChangeTheHeart host churches and volunteers.
During this past few months and even today, our nation has faced unprecedented times experiencing the impacts of climate change with the bushfires and the ever present reality that we are living in a Climate Emergency. During this time I have found strength in Dr Byron Smith’s prayer and it was an incredible privilege to speak to the International media about the bushfires as I joined the Christianity Today Quick to Listen podcast and Rhema Radio in New Zealand. Little did I know that the bushfires would prevent me travelling to our nation’s capital to lead Canberra’s #ChangeTheHeart service.
And so today, I write to you, feeling the weight of injustice:
And so I am reminded of our Advent series, that I am longing – I am longing for justice, I am longing for love, I am longing for Jesus. But it is not just me... I am longing with all of you – we are longing.
Through that longing, I feel hope because I cling to Jesus, and I believe Jesus has raised up this movement called Common Grace. As I step into this new season as the CEO, I continue to pray, plan, and dream. But I don’t do that in isolation, I do it with Jesus by my side, and I do it with all of you.
So what can you expect from me as CEO?
You can expect me to call you to pray.
You can expect me to call you to unite for the common good by taking action and getting involved to challenge injustice.
You can expect me to call you to find common ground by coming together across the breadth and depth of the Australian Church.
You can expect me to call you to share in common grace because there is no left or right in Jesus - there is just Jesus.
And we will do this together, what I call you to do, I call myself to the same, because at the end of the day it is simply sharing what I hear as a fellow follower of Jesus.
Some of the immediate ways that you can come together with Common Grace are by:
So together, let’s share in the common grace – that grace that God shows to all without distinction – the non-discriminating, all inclusive power of God’s love that is reflected in the goodness of creation and each other.
May we rise, together, as followers of Jesus from right across the Church, empowered by the Spirit and united in the hope that God’s healing justice would roll out like a mighty river across these lands now called Australia.
Yours in friendship,
Brooke.
Read our April 2025 News Update and Gershon Nimbalker's reflections on showing up in love this election season.
In the final episode of our Lent podcast series, ecological ethicist Byron Smith is joined by Common Grace’s National Director, Gershon Nimbalker, and Relationships and Storytelling Coordinator, Safina Stewart, reflecting on John 18 and 19.
Safina Stewart shares a message of thanks and prayer as Bianca Manning takes a sabbatical from her work with Common Grace.
In the sixth episode of our Lent podcast series, ecological ethicist Byron Smith is joined by minister Erica Mandi Manga and Common Grace’s Domestic and Family Violence Justice Coordinator Ellaina Welsman to discuss Peter’s denial of Christ in John 18.