Jack De Vries was hired on by the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia and began his work as Ministry Training Coordinator in January 2008. In 2012 this role shifted to that of Ministry Development Coach.
Jack came from Canada where he pastored three Christian Reformed churches: Alliston CRC, Alliston, Ontario(1983-87), a church plant:...
Jack De Vries was hired on by the Christian Reformed Churches of Australia and began his work as Ministry Training Coordinator in January 2008. In 2012 this role shifted to that of Ministry Development Coach.
Jack came from Canada where he pastored three Christian Reformed churches: Alliston CRC, Alliston, Ontario(1983-87), a church plant: New Life Community Church, Pickering, Ontario(1987-95), and Bethel CRC, Listowel, Ontario (1995-2007). Jack is a graduate of Calvin Theological Seminary (Master of Divinity - 1983) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (Doctor of Ministry - 2003) Jack and his wife Jeannie currently live in Petrie, a northern suburb of Brisbane in Queensland. They attend and are members of Bray Park Community Church. They have four adult children and seven grandchildren living in the USA and Canada.
In Isaiah 58:11 we read: "The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail." Australia has seen times of drought and floods. There is another type of drought in Australia; there is a spiritual drought. But God promises to provide refreshing rain, a never ending supply of refreshing water. The water he provides will satisfy the needs of all Australians. As we take up the missional vision God has given us we extend the life changing invitation of Jesus: "Come! Whoever is thirsty, come, and take the free gift of the water of life!" (Revelation 22:17)
A battle rages for the souls of people. The person of prayer will recognize that the forces of hell will do everything to keep men in bondage to their sins. The person of prayer understands that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). The man or woman of prayer...
One of the best advice I ever received as a young pastor was the importance of 'to-do lists". I received this advice in the early days of planting a new congregation. Life was busy and I found it difficult to get all the tasks of ministry done. Marty was an aspiring realtor, with a young family, and the housing market was booming. He was well familiar with hectic schedules and busy days....
“The mark of good leaders is that they’re always learning and thus growing spiritually, intellectually, experientially, and emotionally.” So writes Aubrey Malphurs in his book Building Leaders (Baker Books: 2004). He goes on to say that “leadership development is never ending, because leaders are learners and if they ever stop learning, they stop leading.” In the CRCA we are committed to seeing leadership development across our denomination, in our churches, and among our pastors. The third...
A journey of a thousand kilometres begins with the first step. Whether you travel by foot, or car, or plane – it all begins with the first step. Moving that one foot in front of the other. Starting that engine in your Toyota Camry. Booking an airline ticket with Flight Centre. It all begins with the first step. All CRCA pastors are being encouraged to establish a coaching relationship for themselves to move ever closer...
You got to love hinges! What would we do without them? Every time we walk through a door way hinges are our best friend. While some doors slide on rollers, most doors move on hinges. You pull or push a door and you move from one place to another. I'm sitting today at RTC Melbourne listening to a number of talks on the Biblical book of Ezekiel. What do you do with...
