SRE Good News - November 2025
Thanksgiving for God’s provision
Many thanks to long-serving SRE teacher, Arthur Ashley (on right) who is passing the ‘SRE baton’ to Nigel Lyons (on left). Arthur and Nigel are part of Holy Trinity Baulkham Hills. Arthur has been involved in SRE for many years and loves the opportunity to teach the Bible to public school students. He took on coordinating Sre when a former coordinator moved away several years ago. Despite a range of challenges, Arthur has maintained a positive relationship with the school and kept all the SRE classes happening. In a wonderful answer to prayer, Nigel, the new Families minister, has joined the SRE team and is now taking on SRE coordination. Nigel says,
"Serving alongside Arthur has truly been a joy. His heart for the Gospel has been fantastic to see. Another key value of Arthur's serving in the SRE Coordinator's space is his heart to ensure that the teachers are well-equipped and compliant in all that we do. This handover has been made so easy because of who Arthur is and all he has done.”
Keen to explore God’s word
An SRE teacher at Narrabeen Sports High has been encouraged by the joy of teaching this year. They shared how one Year 9 student stayed back after class to ask where he should begin reading the Bible. Although he had tried starting in Genesis and found it difficult, his eagerness to keep exploring God’s word was a real encouragement.
The gospel in a heart language
At Canterbury South, an SRE teacher has seen the unique role SRE plays in his students’ lives. Most of them attend churches where services are not conducted in English, making it difficult for them to understand the Bible’s message. The teacher shares that SRE often provides their only opportunity to hear the gospel in a language they understand. He says, “Seeing their eyes light up when they realise what Jesus has done is so satisfying”.
New interest in Jesus
An SRE teacher from Chatswood High recently experienced a powerful reminder of how God works in students’ hearts. One of his Year 7 students had been inviting her friends to SRE and the lunchtime group all year, without much success. Then one day, two of those friends burst into the classroom mid-lesson and asked, “Sir, can we please join this class? We really want to hear about Jesus!”
After gaining permission from their parents, the girls joined the class and have since been asking more questions— even attending the lunchtime group together. Their enthusiasm has also encouraged their friend to invite them along to youth group.
Sharing faith and life skills
At Berkeley , one SRE teacher goes above and beyond each week, staying for half the day on Wednesdays to run cooking classes as part of her lunchtime group. She’s not only sharing the life-changing gospel message but also equipping students with practical life skills to take home. This is especially important in a community where many come from low socio-economic backgrounds and sometimes cook dinner for their families.
Building bridges between church and school
A local mother has been faithfully nurturing relationships between her children’s school, the local SRE team and her church. Her ongoing involvement has opened new doors for gospel partnership in the community.
The Community Minister at Fig Tree Anglican shared that this connection has been a real “God-send.” For years, the church had been hoping to build stronger relationships with the school across the road but had found it difficult to engage. That began to change when a member of their congregation - who also serves on the school’s P&C - was encouraged to be more intentional in fostering links between the school and the church.
Now the school has begun responding positively to the church’s SRE coordinator, who has been visiting local schools with the church’s coffee machine to serve coffee to teachers before school and during breaks. They’ve also started volunteering in the canteen and finding other simple ways to be a warm Christian presence within the school community. What a wonderful example of God opening doors through faithful, everyday connections.
Moved by the message of hope
An SRE teacher from Manly teaches SRE to Year 1 and Year 5 students at her local public school. While using the colours from the Connect C2 cycle to explain the gospel, one Year 5 girl was so moved that she began to tear up. The teacher says, “It was a wonderful moment to share with her the gospel and the hope that the Bible has to offer and that Christians have because of Jesus."