It's all about after you jump...

Falling or flying? It all depends on your perspective.

Photo by Timon Studler on Unsplash

I thought I was ready, but I wasn’t…

We’d been in New Zealand for a week before we plucked up the courage to try the national pastime of bungy jumping. The reality was the drop was way higher than we were expecting.

It was more ominous; the river was flowing faster than you could imagine, and the screams from other falling tourists were more ear-piercing and intense.

We slowly backed away from the edge of the bridge and opted for the zip line instead. 

That was not our time to jump!

But 2023 was our time, and we jumped, not off a bridge, but into a new adventure, community, dreams, and way of life.

So as we wrap up an incredible year, we wanted to thank you for jumping with us; you have truly been the highlight of the year!

Firstly, thank you for subscribing!! And a special thank you to our paid members who have supported us through the unknown times of not knowing how we were going to make ends meet.

Thank you for the emails you have sent with encouraging words, the questions you have asked, the forums and discussions, and the comments on posts. 

Not to mention the invitations to come and minister to your teams and churches and the recommendations to friends which have meant the world.

To the creatives and pastors who have been "all in" with us and allowed us to help you shape your communities, we say a huge thank you!

There have been some great moments that stand out.

We especially remember launching the newsletter back on February 6. We nervously wondered if anyone would read our humble weekly offerings. 

And you did!! This email marks our 79th newsletter for the year - wow!! 🤯

The Hopeful Rhino has become a blend of free weekly Rapid 5 emails full of links to keep you inspired and our long-form journal articles for paid subscribers around topics related to faith and creativity, culture, church, and Christ.

Although we know the chat needs some reinvigorating, and our comment section is a little quiet (more on that below), we’ve been blown away by the fact you’re reading every article. The quality of our members who create, lead, pastor, and disciple in many different spheres around the world is incredible.

Each week, we sit at The Farm and talk about you - what would be helpful for you this week? If we were in your position, what would we want someone to encourage us with? How can we help you discover Jesus is always better than you imagine, that your art matters or that worship is your home country?

Yes, you are often on our minds!

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” - Philippians 1:3-6

And so, when you have called us from Taiwan, Scotland, Northern California, Hawaii, or Texas to ask a question or seek guidance, it is our honor to be allowed into such sacred spaces.

To our friends at Bethel, The Father's House, Celebration Church, Life Church, Mariners, THE Church, Saddleback, Passion, Leading Second, YesHeis, and the many other ministries around the world that we have FaceTimed, coached, connected, recorded podcasts with, or been friends with across the ocean - thank you for enriching our lives.

For those who were part of our team at Hillsong and have come on the Rhino journey with us - your friendship and partnership are a gift.

And to the many thousands of you we are yet to meet face to face but who have introduced yourselves via replies to emails, in the chat and comment sections, or who have filled our email with stories about yourselves - we have loved getting to know you a little this year and look forward to more in the coming year.

So, what does 2024 look like?

We are just getting started!! This year has been a great start, full of experiments, and we have big dreams to roll out over the new year. 

• We intend to add to our membership space and build the things we couldn't do in 2023.

• We'll add group coaching calls with more tailored content for leading creatives and following Christ creatively. 

• We also hope to relaunch the podcast and include member-only portions with great guests to enrich your lives.

• We also dream of launching several courses and downloadable resources to help you live and lead creatively.

We're looking at more in-person events too. 

Conversations have started about being in Hawaii in January, the mainland USA in the first quarter of 2024, Africa and Europe in May, and the Paus conference in Canada in October. 

So, who knows, maybe there is space for some meet-ups and ministry (drop us a line if you are interested in connecting or having us speak at your church).

And a lot is happening where we live, too.

We have dreams of a little Church community forming here in Sydney. There's new passion and new songs on the horizon as we work on ways to continue to empower worship in the church.

New generations are coming through, and yet again, Aslan is on the move!

We have a deep hunger and desire to go with him - to see our world fall in love with Jesus, to find ways to speak about him, compel others to follow, and wear him well.

So, if you are up for the journey - let's do 2024 together!

Tell us what you have most enjoyed this year. Let us know what would be helpful next year.

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If you're willing, please forward this to a pastor or creative/worship pastor you know and invite them to be a part of the Hopeful Rhino in 2024.

We believe in this space and its potential to help pastor and lead those who pastor and lead.

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Once again, thank you for being with us this year! May your Christmas season be full of grace and peace. 

Love and gratitude,

Cass and Rich

One last thing…

We will take a break next week to let your inbox breathe between Christmas and the new year. Then, in the first week of January, we will have a fantastic Rhino Journal article to kick off the new year!!

Creative writer Amanda Viviers will join our paids members and teach us all how to journal our way into creativity in 2024. Here's to the most productive start to a New Year you have all ever had!!