Greetings all, may the Lord be with you,
I know it’s been months since the election, and a little late, … but thank you for all your hard work in the Federal election this year. As the first year that Australian Christians has contested a Federal election in New South Wales, we did phenomenally well!
Not only did we get more than fifty-thousand first preference votes, but we outpaced parties that threw millions of dollars into their campaigns! Spending less than ten thousand dollars, we managed to get more votes than even the National Party.
A little insight though: in early April, after prayerful consideration, I travelled to Melbourne to acquire an airship for our campaign, certain it was God’s will. He provided miraculously—an airfare under $50 and a hire vehicle for less than $10! Yet, challenges arose: the manufacturer was hospitalized, and on the return, we faced fuel issues but connected with communities along the way. Back in Sydney, high winds and parking woes prevented launches, limiting its use to ground-level photos instead of soaring over the Royal Easter Show. Through it all, I saw God’s message, like Gideon’s: fewer resources, greater reliance on Him.
His plans are greater than ours.
We had issues with printing corflutes including the courier delivering one tenth of the final shipment a week before election day, and I had to contact them to raise the alert that they’d missed the other nine boxes!
Also, we had a plan for use of a news crew, but most of the appointed days became unviable. Our prime day was abandoned because of the likelihood of the news cycle about the death of the Pope drowning out our message.
All these circumstances, along with the fact that the major conservative policy-matrix groups didn’t even list us for New South Wales might be discouraging, but God was with us. Truly, the biggest public endorsement we got was from Dr. Joanne Howe, who is known for her pro-life campaigning.
At one point, when I was called to be informed that yet another opportunity had to be cancelled due to things beyond our control, I simply laughed! Why? Because I knew God was reminding me of Gideon and his 300 men. Every failed opportunity was to be considered one of the thousands of soldiers Gideon was told to send away.
And the result?
Even though we had no single-use paper (which is an election first, as far as I’m aware, and probably saved entire forests worth of trees, and landfill…) for our How to Votes, we still managed to do amazingly well.
And when I say “we”, I don’t mean just me. I was just the lead candidate and am currently just the State President. I only preside; I don’t direct. My job is to facilitate leaders doing the job of leading, not to tell them how to lead. I don’t even mean Duncan and myself, or State Council; I mean you. We as a party, as a team, as a family of brothers and sisters in Christ, and as dual citizens of a nation on this earth and a Kingdom above, did amazingly well. Those who stood diligently at polling booths, our prayer warriors, and people who gave us space to speak in their congregations contributed greatly.
I am so proud of the tireless work that was done, and so thankful for the trust that was put in me for this campaign.
I am interested in the 127 people who put (possibly Sen. Tony Sheldon first, but then) Senator Tim Ayres, and then somehow decided that the next best choice was me. That means that there are 127 people who voted below the line for a single Labor candidate first but then decided that the next best option was me. I’d love to meet them and hear their thoughts.
In the end, we had 74,711 votes before they were transferred, mostly to Family First. That’s ten percent of the quota; not bad for a first-time campaign on a shoestring budget. Ultimately, our support resulted in One Nation getting a seat. Let us pray that Senator Stacey has the influence and wisdom to carry out God’s will in our government; we can see that it’s already an uphill battle for what is Good and Right.
Later this year, we will come together to celebrate the great work done by everyone in the party.
But the battle is far from over.
Let’s carry this energy forward; your passion fuelled our success and will ignite the next.
We have an election in March of 2027, and are fast running out of time to be registered for it. We need 750 members registered with the NSW Electoral Commission before November 2025 (yes, that’s this year). This ensures our party name on the ballot, amplifying our voice for the next State election. It is wonderful that Maryka has a seat in West Australian parliament, but that is not enough. We need representation in New South Wales. Not just to support her across the country and mirror her values, but also to shape our own state. What if our voice in parliament could champion the unborn, love the unwanted, listen to the unheard, teach the uneducated and reconcile with the unforgiven? What if our voice could restore Biblical values to our communities?
The Bible makes it clear that when the citizens of the land ask why their storehouses are empty and their fields barren, they should look to the widow, the orphan and the aliens among them and they will find their answer; the chief task of a ruler of any group is to provide for those within what they cannot provide themselves. And our state is getting further and further from that task. We are more focused on supporting those who need no support, at the expense of the defenceless, than we are on supporting those who need help.
And without those 750 members, we won’t be able to stand for Christ next election. We’ll just be a bunch of people in a column. Accompanying this letter, you have a copy of a page that can be used to gather those willing to join and support us either as financial members, part of that 750, or both. Download the form, print it out, gather the details of those interested, and return it to myself, the office or Owen as soon as possible; that would be a great help. If that is not an option for you, prayer and simply talking to people about the party are a valuable contribution.
Big things are coming, and God has given us the opportunity to stand with Him in victory, but we must prepare ourselves.
Thank you again for all your work, and I look forward to the next chapter in Australian Christians NSW.
Joshua 1:9 (NIV) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
