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Open Door at Zac’s Place is a community church in Yarra Junction, Victoria. Yarra Junction is a town on the Yarra River in the Upper Yarra Valley, about 60 km from Melbourne’s CBD. It is on the fringe of the Melbourne Metropolitan Area.

Zac’s Place (as it is affectionately known) was started by Ned and Sue Wynne in 2018. Ned is the President of the Yarra Valley Chapter of God’s Squad Christian Motorcycle Club.

Why the name? Zac is Zacchaeus, a man in the Bible who meets Jesus and connects with him at the foot of a sycamore tree. Jesus invites himself to dinner at Zac’s Place. The people are shocked that he would go and spend time with this ‘sinner’ but Zac is moved to turn his life around. He tells Jesus that he will give half of his wealth to the poor and return fourfold anything that he extorted from anyone. Read the story in the Bible (Luke 19:1-10).

Seeking Jesus, connecting with him, hospitality (an open door), looking after the poor and the vulnerable. That’s why we call our place Zac’s Place.

Zac’s Place is an expression of the Movement that Jesus started about 2000 years ago. He was walking along the beach and he called out to two sets of brothers who were fishermen, inviting them to connect with him, to be his followers. They did, and the church was born, a Movement that would change the world and help people to connect to God. Read about it in the Bible (Mark 1:16-20).

Who Are We?

A Church in the Neighbourhood

Zac’s Place is in the neighbourhood, of the neighbourhood, for the neighbourhood and with the neighbourhood.

In the neighbourhood: Sometimes churches can come across as though they want to be separate and different and so they they don’t come across as being in the neighbourhood. Zac’s Place sees itself as embedded in the Yarra Valley, and in Yarra Junction more specifically. We are here to stay and we are pleased to say we belong in this community.

Of the neighbourhood: You’re not going to see pictures of snow-covered mountains in Switzerland or desert storms in Africa on the walls of our place or in the PowerPoint slides we show during our conversation times. No! We are here in the Yarra Valley with a magnificent river flowing through the middle of town, and gum trees all around. We are a community made up of good neighbours and excellent cafes and sporting facilities… and Zac’s Place.

For the neighbourhood: It’s too easy for an organization to be in a town or region for its own benefit, rather than being there to serve the needs of the people and the place. Zac’s is in the Yarra Valley so we can help meet the needs of the area, especially in areas of social problems such as loneliness, spiritual problems such as loss of meaning and hope, and to be a source of joy in the messiness of life.

With the Neighbourhood: Zac’s Place has a goal to help make the Yarra Valley to be the best place around… so good you never want to leave, and if you do, you can’t wait to get back to it again. That’s called place-making, and there’s no way we can do that by ourselves. We love partnerships because we can really see things getting done. We are committed to working with the neighbourhood, anybody and everybody. That’s why we are a part of the Yarra Junction Community Group and LinC, and why we will continue to build good relationships within the region.