ANDREW ATTRACTS A CROWD!

2007 V8Utes Rookie of the Year, Andrew "Fishtail" Fisher, the driver of the "Jesus. All About Life" Falcon, has just spoken at the Katoomba Mens Convention in February...just a couple of weeks before he will be speaking at the next MANZONE breakfast (March 15). Andrew's on-track success continues with an outstanding 7th outright recorded at the Bathurst 12 Hour Race during the Bathurst International Motorsport Festival. He was behind the wheel of a Team Lotus Australia Exige sports car. If you want to hear Andrew's story and see the fire-breathing ute contact Craig Hingston (0407 054 483, craighingston@gmail.com).

From Father To Son...

Masculinity. It is passed down from father to son...but more importantly from Father to son. Adam, Abraham, Jacob, David...they all learned who they were out of their intimacy with their spiritual father, God. After all, no one but God really sees who a man is on the inside. this is often thought of with a sense of guilt. Yes, I know God can see me...and what He sees is my sin, my failings. No He doesn't. Your sin has been dealt with. He has removed it from you "as far as the east is from the west" (Psalm 103:12). When your Father looks at you He doesn't see your sin, He has not one condemning thought towards you (Romans 8:1). You have a new heart. He promised it as part of the new covenant He has with you. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you" (Ezekiel 36"26). Be thankful that you have a loving Father who knows and loves you for who you are. He will teach you be a Man.

God Loves Wildness

"If you have any doubts as to whether or not God loves wildness spend a night in the woods...alone. Take a walk out in a thunderstorm. Go for a swim with a pod of killer whales. The Grest Barrier Reef with its great white sharks, the jungles of India with their tigers, the deserts of America with those rattle snakes. Would you describe them as "nice" places? Most of the earth is not safe. But it is good. After God created all this He pronounced it good. It's His way of letting us know He rather prefers adventure, danger, risk, the element of surprise. Creation is unapologetically wild and God loves it that way."

John Edlredge (author of Wild At Heart)

The Man In The Arena

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles...the credit belongs to the man in the arena whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who spends himself in a worthy cause...who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement...and at worst if he fails at least he fails while daring greatly. His place will never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat."

Teddy Roosevelt

"Everywhere you go I will be with you. No one will be able to stand their ground against you for as long as you live. for I will be with you...I will not fail you or abandon you. Be strong and courageous for you will lead my people to possess all the land...do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go"

God (speaking to Joshua in Joshua 1)

"Never give up...never surrender!"

Galaxy Quest

The 7 Qualities Of A Man

Compassionate
Follower [of Christ]
Father
Loyal
Lover
Leader
Unassuming

Keep Playing Til The Final Whistle

I have been reading a book on the history of the elite special forces, the SAS. There are many action packed stories but one which stood out to me was a reminder that in doing life we need to continue with the same zeal, integrity and desire for righteous living that we have in our younger, energetic years all the way through to when we finally leave this world for eternity. It's like sport. I love rugby, rugby league, cricket and basketball. How many times have you seen a team dominate a match then lose it in the final quarter...or final minutes. A lot! I remember when the Wallabies won the Bledisloe Cup three years in a row in the dying seconds of each test match. The story that struck me wasn't about secret missions or commando raids. It was about one of the founding fathers of the SAS. He was their highest ranking officer in WW2. All his life he had been larger than life. He became an engineer at Cambridge University where he was also a boxing champion...graduated from military college as an officer and their boxing champion...he spoke several languages...helped to train and lead the amazing Chinese jungle fighters in WW2 against the Japanese...led the SAS behind enemy lines on D-Day...was decorated 13 times in WW2 for bravery (!)...then when the SAS looked like it was going to be disbanded in peace time he campaigned long and hard to keep them. He was rewarded with commanding them in Malaya where his jungle training came in handy. Up til now I was thinking this guy is a real legend. What more could he do! But this was when his life took a major tumble...in the "second half" of his "match". He had been hiding a drinking problem and it got so bad that a general was sent in to kick him out. The officer was demoted, transferred, and the drinking got so bad he was dishonourably discharged. He became a miserable, penniless drunk and died prematurely from liver complications. He had gone from "the team most likely to win the premiership" to "bottom of the ladder" in just a few years. And, shamed by his behaviour, the SAS deleted him from their official historical records. Life is a marathon not a sprint race. Like Paul says in Hebrews 12:1 "Let us run with endurance the race [our life] that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus from start to finish."

V8 Blokes Breakfast - Feb 9

Hosted by CCC Bathurst, the V8 Blokes Breakfast is being held at Bicentennial Park in Bathurst on Saturday morning. It starts at 8AM and will go for a couple of hours. BYO breakfast. You might like to make a day of it and watch the V8 action at Mt. Panorama with the Bathurst International Motor Sport Festival.

Role Models Wanted

"This hurting world has a desperate shortage of strong leaders and dedicated fathers. We need meb who are fearlessly committed to godliness, righteousness and excellence. First and foremost we need a role model. We need a man with the vision, credentials and biblical mandate to help lead this movement of God. A leader...warrior...and father!" (written by Pat Williams, author of "The Warrior Within").

Hazards Of Being A Man

Just finished a good book called Hazards Of Being A Man. It's a thin paperback, the kind you get through pretty quickly. By Jeffrey E. Miller (I got mine from Koorong). He has pinpointed 12 areas where men often struggle. By identifying them you are on the right track to overcoming them. What are they? Individualism, Insensitivity, Unteachability, Discontentment, Unchecked Motives, Absence (from the family), Partial Obedience, Unresolved Anger, Lust, Misplaced Priorities (no, the kids do come before the golf or cricket on TV!), Manipulation, and Deflecting Responsibilities. Recommended reading.

If You Are One Of A Kind - You Qualify.

You know why we get along so well at MANZONE...because we're all so different. We've got Dads, uncles, singles, teenagers...a marketing manager, truck driver, draftsman, plumber, policeman, students, IT guru, a guy who works in the mines, maintenance person and a general manager. We've had such a wide variety of upbringings. One guy is even an ex Kiwi. "Ex" he keeps reminding us! But we've all got one thing in common. We love Jesus Christ. He has changed our lives...is continually changing them for the better...taking us on an exciting journey...and we're doing it together. If you're one of a kind, you qualify. See you at the next MANZONE event (or if you can't wait til then get in touch with me on craighingston@gmail.com and I'll introduce you to some of the guys).

Priceless!

Flotation device $3...pool table $20...creating the world's first floating BBQ: priceless!

Lend A helping Hand

John Lanser is on the lookout for people in Blayney who need a helping hand. It might be fixing a fence, some yard work, a garden that needs some TLC, a bit of painting, repairing a garage or carport, or hanging a door. Maybe even getting an old computer back to life or some simple car mechanics. Whatever, the guys at MANZONE are a talented bunch and are offering their skills. If you know of someone who needs a hand...get in touch with me, Craig, and I will pass the info on to John. Just email (craighingston@gmail.com) or phone (0407 054483).

MANZONE CALENDAR 2008

Here are the dates for your diary.

Looking forward to seeing you and your friends at our activities.

MAR 15 - BBQ breakfast with V8 ute champion Andrew Fisher

APR 4 - dinner at Cowra with army chaplain Tim Booker

MAY 3 - BBQ breakfast (speaker to be confirmed)

MAY 24 - Wildfire Mens Conference at Blayney with guest speakers Ps. Mark Zaia and Rob Thornton

JUN 7 - details to be confirmed

JUL 5 - details to be confirmed

JUL 7-11 - Hillsong Conference, Sydney

JUL 19 - Come N Try driver training day

AUG 2 - details to be confirmed

SEP 5 - details to be confirmed

OCT 4 - details to be confirmed

OCT 31-NOV 1 - Hillsong Mens Conference, Sydney

DEC 6 - details to be confirmed

For more information contact Craig Hingston (craighingston@gmail.com or 0407 054 483)

I Was Attacked With A Heat Seeking Missile!

Tim Booker has been chaplain to No. 3 Regiment of the Royal Australian Army. During that time he was attacked by a heat seeking missile in Iraq...he camped out in the desert on rations for weeks...and he parachuted out of planes. Sounds like an Australian James Bond! Tim is sharing his adventures at a combined mens dinner and we encourage you to come along. With a big crowd expected, get your registration in quickly (to Craig Hingston on craighingston@gmail.com).

DATE: Friday April 4

VENUE: Cowra Function Centre

COST: $25 per head

Meet Joseph...Our Youngest MANZONE Member

MANZONE is sponsoring young Joseph Ndahura who is a Compassion child from the Ahamuza Child Development Centre in Uganda. It is located at Rusembe which is 2 kilometres from the township of Hoima, northwest of the capital of Kampala. Joseph lives with his family and goes to school. He says his favourite subject is art and he likes music. Also, he is car mad and soccer mad which means the men of MANZONE will have plenty to discuss with him in our letters. Each month a portion of our event "fee" will go towards providing for Joseph. If you would like to write to him contact Craig Hingston (craighingston@gmail.com or 0407 054483).

Come N Try

A community intiative of MANZONE in 2008 will be the launching of "Come N Try" driver training at Blayney. Come N Try is an activity which has been run by the Christian Autosport Club of Australia (CACA) for 30 years. It involves taking road going cars on normal street tyres around tight obstacle courses marked by flags or witches hats. Cars travel in first and second gears, and sometimes reverse. It isn't about speed, it is about car control.

CACA uses grass surfaces and a concrete skid pan at Eastern Creek Raceway. Up to 5 people can cross-enter in 1 vehicle and often whole families get involved. You are never too young or too old to improve your driving skills. It can be done in a safe environment and there are always experienced rally drivers and circuit racers in CACA who can sit in the car to offer advice.

Craig Hingston first joined CACA in 1994 and has won their Presidents Award three times. Trevor Hibbs has also joined up and the two of them won the annual Wombat Award in 2007 for outstanding promotion of the club in a non-competitive way. Craig and Trevor presented the Come N Try concept to council, highway patrol and the regional road safety officer. The proposal was given a green light and council are looking for a suitable venue in the area.

We have been told that during the winter months when there is ice on the road there are dozens of accidents in the region. The goal will be to give people more confidence when their car breaks traction and know how to better control it. Hopefully preventing damage to person and property.

The first Come N Try is planned for Saturday July 19. It will be an all day activity involving up to 8 obstacle courses and a BBQ lunch. The minimum age is 14. A one day licence has to be purchased on the day. For more info contact Craig or Trevor.

Check Out The Ute Brute!

For more information on Andrew Fisher go to -

www.jesusracing.com.au

Life In The Fast Lane!

He drives a V8 Ford Falcon ute (of course!) extremely quickly...he is the 2007 Rookie Of The Year in the V8 Utes Championship...he is a full-on Christian...and he is coming to Blayney! Andrew Fisher steers the "Jesus. All About Life" ute on race tracks all over Australia putting the name of Jesus up big and bold on national TV each month.

Andrew will be driving a Lotus Exige sports car for Team Lotus Australia at the Bathurst International Motor Sport Festival on February 9-10 at Mt. Panorama.

If you would like a mouth watering BBQ breakfast...great coffee prepared by our baristas at the One Way Coffee Shop...inspirational message and friendly fellowship...book your seat right away with Craig Hingston (craighingston@gmail.com or 0407 054483).

DATE: Saturday March 15

VENUE: Abundant Life Church Blayney, Adelaide Street (parking at rear)

TIME: 7AM

COST: $5 per head

Ownership and Leadership

MANZONE has kicked off in 2008 with a BBQ breakfast at the church which featured a sensational inspirational message by our own Don Humphris on Ownership And Leadership. Graeme Summerson was master chef and Colin Crome was our barista…producing a mouth watering breakfast. Thanks to Keith Bond for participating in “60 Seconds With…”