Author, Art of Mentoring (2009, 2011)
Senior Pastor of Hope Unlimited Church with Husband Mark in New South Wales, Australia
Co-Producer of Hillson Music, Australia
Wrote popular worship song, "Shout to the Lord"
3 Daughters, Amy, Chloe, zoe
2 Grandchildren
GUEST BIO
Darlene Zschech: The Art of Mentoring
By
The 700 Club
NEW OPPORTUNITIES
Darlene and her family for many years have been privileged to be a part of Hillsong Church in Sydney,
Australia, where Darlene says leadership is modeled and encouraged. Also, corporate mentoring and making a place for the next generation is a priority and strategic. Since mid-January 2011, Darlene and her husband Mark have become senior pastors of Hope Unlimited Church in New South Wales, Australia. They are grateful for all that the Lord has done through their years at Hillsong Church, but are very excited to see what God will do at Hope Unlimited Church and this opportunity of leadership. Though Darlene has and will remain in her various roles in worship ministry, she and her family have always been local church people and are looking forward to this new venture.
MAKING WAY FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS
As believers, we are called to follow the great example of Jesus Christ. It is Darlene’s deepest desire to remind leaders everywhere that the Kingdom of God is about people and we are not here to build our kingdoms, but to bring God’s Kingdom into the lives of others. Throughout her travels around the world, she has talked to various leaders. She has discovered through these conversations that the art of mentoring and guiding teams is not about “meology.” It is found in helping others reach their full potential so they can know, appreciate, and draw on the great heritage of faith available in Jesus.
Darlene remembers how she felt the sense of “coming home” when she first set foot in her local church.
Through the years, she has come to appreciate the presence of God in His people. Since she has felt readily accepted as “a disciple of Christ, who was always willing in heart but very broken in soul,” she is passionate about extending this love and acceptance to the current generation and future generations. Darlene feels as fathers and mothers in the Lord, it is our responsibility to help our [spiritual] sons and daughters to achieve more than we could ever have dared to dream so that one generation can build on the next.
For this generation of worshippers and leaders, Darlene is convinced they want to be involved with a message that moves people at the core of their being. They don’t want to “pretend” to know God, they want the real thing. She hopes people will reach their full potential and abilities in Christ and use those strengths to help empower the next generation. As we mentor the next generation, Darlene hopes Psalms 145 will be a reality in our lives. The passage blesses the name of the Lord and speaks of one generation praising His works to another. She will be sharing a song from her new album, You are Love, called “Cry of the Broken.”
CREATED TO WORSHIP
We were created for worship and to spend time in the presence of God. Darlene reminds us that when Paul and Silas were in jail, they worshipped God. Suddenly while they were worshipping, there came an incredible sound and God delivered them from that prison. Darlene says worship is a positive act that requires obedience. “It’s a free will offering which reflects the generosity of God,” she says. “Through worship, the spirit of God starts to change us from the inside as we learn to open ourselves up to Him and what He is saying to us. It’s thanking God for things even though they’re not there yet,” Darlene says. “It’s appreciating Jesus not for what he can do, but for being your Savior. And there’s power in that. The more time we spend in God’s presence worshipping Him, the more we beginto hear and know His voice,” she says. “His power becomes evident in our lives and we become more like Jesus.”
From the age of 10, Darlene performed in a weekly children’s television show, singing, dancing and hosting segments. As a teen, Darlene continued in music with various local gospel bands in Brisbane, Australia. Outwardly, her childhood seemed glamorous. When she was 13, her parents divorced. The pressures of television, combined with the emotional turmoil of her parents’ divorce and the custody battle took their toll on Darlene. At 14, she was bulimic. In 1980, Darlene’s father rededicated his life to Christ and started taking her to church. At the age of 15, Darlene gave her life to Jesus. She also met her husband, Mark, at the church, dated for a year and a half and married when she was 19 years old.
As newlyweds, Mark and Darlene struggled financially. Darlene sang commercial jingles for KFC, Diet Coke and McDonald’s. Mark struggled to keep their motorcycle parts business afloat along with their new family, Amy and Chloe. It was then that Darlene decided to praise God through the struggle. “I learned we’ll never find hope looking at our circumstances,” she says. “It’s only found by fixing our eyes on Jesus who doesn’t change and who’s always faithful.”
The Zschechs served at Hillsong Church for twenty-five years. In 2004, a Compassion International mission trip prompted Darlene and Mark to start Hope: Rwanda, a global effort created to bring hope to this nation devastated by genocide. The “Hope” has now spread similar efforts in Cambodia, Vanuatu, India, Uganda, and other countries. In January 2011, Darlene and Mark accepted the role of Senior Pastors of Hope Unlimited Church. They are still involved with Compassion International. The Zschechs live in the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia with their family.
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