In Chris Edwards’ mind Sydney’s “heart” is the Western Suburbs. Chris, the youngest of three sons, was raised in Seven Hills and with his family attended the Anglican church in Lalor Park. His father was (and is) a lay preacher.
Chris recalls ‘coming to faith’ when he was 10. “My Scripture Union Notes said you could actually know Jesus well enough to talk to him on a personal level! So, I prayed.” Whilst the witness of friends at school had a “profound” impact, Chris is quick to add that the consistent and faithful example of his parents underscored the truth and power of the gospel.
Now involved in pastoral ministry in South Australia, I asked Chris to share something of his journey from Seven Hills to the Adelaide Hills.

SR: Tell us about your family.
CE: I am married to Belinda and we have two fantastic children. Nicole is almost 16 and is ready to start driving lessons. Timothy is 10 and wishes he was learning to drive.

SR: Why full time ministry?
CE: While I was marketing mortgage backed securities I found my time being taken up with interstate travel and work. As a result, the Bible study group we were leading and the Youth group for which I was responsible came second to my secular work. I shared this concern with my rector. He urged us to invest a year of our lives at Moore College. We stayed for four.

SR: Key ministry experiences to date?
CE: Lalor Park was the most formative. I was trained as a leader in the fellowship group there. That mentoring model has shaped what I do now. Being allowed to preach (by Simon Manchester) in those early days confirmed that pulpit ministry really was a possibility for me. I was also a student minister with the planting team at Quakers Hill in the late 80s and early 90s. This experience showed me how pioneering-type ministries really can reach the unchurched . I had never seen people come to faith like that before! We vowed that if the opportunity arose we would readily accept a church-planting assignment.

SR: How then did you come to be serving in Adelaide?
CE: Sydney has a great number of Bible-teaching churches and this is not always the case around the Anglican Communion. When the rector of Holy Trinity Adelaide, Paul Harrington, explained his vision for planting Bible-teaching churches all over that city we were persuaded to share in the work. Paul also explained his ideas to the Archbishop (of Adelaide) and was invited to join a diocesan task force.
In Adelaide, we do not have parish boundaries per se. It is possible therefore for Holy Trinity to plant new churches all over the city. So, four years ago, I assembled and trained a team of 30 people. We met as a Bible study group with a view to establishing a new church.

SR: And then?
CE: We dreamed and prayed. After about 9 months the dream (of establishing local urban congregations) became a reality. We have now been meeting for just over three years in the Adelaide Hills - about 30 minutes from the City Centre. The idea of a growing network of Bible-based churches is still very much behind all that we do. This year we will begin another new congregation in the Hills. Then, under God we’ll combine our resources and plant a new church in a different location.
We’ve had some real encouragements in the work. Just recently a new family arrived at church. They had never attended a service before (in their lives!). They visited because a member of our team said, “Come and meet some great people and listen to what God has done for you”. They were overwhelmed with God’s mercy to them in Jesus.

SR: What are the challenges?
CE: The greatest challenge for me is to preach nothing but Christ. Our culture (here in Adelaide) is “church tolerant” rather than “church friendly”. There is always a temptation is to preach things that are attractive rather than the truth.
There are other issues. At a diocesan level the spectre of child abuse continues to haunt us. The police have been investigating a number of cases and this year we expect more repulsive deeds to be uncovered. In addition, our diocese wrestles with financial constraints. As a denomination, we are losing ground. Many pastors and members of congregations do not believe that people are lost and dead without Christ.