1 week into the Challenge,

Well it has been just over a week since my last post, and what God has been challenging me about.

This past week i have been spending more time with Christ, and although i haven't had a chance to get out on the street or in the community more, God has given me more opportunities to share His love with people, and also the Good News of Jesus, most of the time they have been when i least expect them and with people who i least expect. Mind you it is Jesus who gives me the words to say, (cause i am not the best with talking). And it has been Awesome and i thank Him for everything this week. Even for the fact that i lost my keys somehow on friday before the soup run, (they showed up after the soup run), cause it gave me something in which to connect with one of my friends from the soup run.

Now the reason i haven't been out on the streets or in the community more, is cause i have had a lot more work this past week, i worked 5 days and 2 nights. i usually only do 3 days and 1 night, so that i have time to be out and about.... but work were desperate, so i did a couple of extra shifts, which i have worked enough to pay for a camera to replace the one that was lost a few weeks ago... so i praise God for those shifts, cause i believe it was His way to provide for me.

Even though i have been busy working, and sleeping a little less than normal, Christ has given me the energy to go through the day, and filled me with His joy, which stays with me for my entire day.

So all i can do is praise God and thank Him for a great week, for His love, mercy, grace and joy, cause with out them i'd be dead tired and lost

Challenge

Lately i have been challenged by God to do more...

to be spending more time with Him

to be praying for the guys on the street in Adelaide more

to be praying for the people who live within in the city more,

to be praying for the council of Adelaide

to be spending more time on the streets, getting to know people

to get to know the community, both those in houses and in the street

to research more on what is actually the issues of homelessness in Adelaide.

to find out what boarding houses are around the place and visit them, and find out what they are like.

And to challenge other people to get involved.

So much of the time i have been by myself on the street, and at different times to minister to people, and that has sort of become an excuse for why i haven't done much of some of that stuff. (there is definitely room for improvement in all of it). And I AM SICK OF IT..... i am sick of the way that i fall into that trap, i am sick of feeling helpless about it all and feeling like i can't make a difference.

So i have decided that i am going to do it, i am going to be obedient and go hard .... in all of it...

I am sick and tired of going out and doing "ministry" stuff in the city by myself, and tonight i felt like i should be challenging/inviting people to come along/join with me in going out on the streets, and not care about what corps they go to or what even what church they go to.... cause it doesn't matter... we are one Church. And most of the people i chat with move on somewhere else anyway... they may even move on to suburb where a person who will come out with me is from, and then they can continue sharing Christ with that person.... if that makes sense ... to make it clearer.... if bob is from say Norwood corps, and he decides to come out with me, and we meet this guy, and the guy ends up getting a house in the norwood area, bob could very easily continue meeting with the guy, and sharing Christ with him.

So yeah this is my challenge for the coming weeks.... and i put it up here, as a part of being accountable with it...

What's God been challenging you about lately

Bless ya

This week has been cool... i have spent it working, hanging on the street with friends, and hanging with my half sister. This past week has been the most that i have spent with my half sister... ever. It has been good.

However, i have lost my camera and my wallet within a week(camera thurs, wallet tues)... which has been really annoying and made it really easy to focus on the negative situation of losing things.

I had to make a conscious decision to focus on the good part of the week, and more importantly to focus on God, my Heavenly Father.

Today after i realised i had lost my wallet, after i searched everywhere that i could, after i cancelled my cards, i turned on some music and spent some time worshipping God and spending some time with Him.

The first song was blessed be His Name by matt redman (words below). I found it true, that we can Bless the name of the Lord, in good times, in times of joy, not only that, but also in times of lost, sadness, darkeness, suffering... basically we can choose to bless the Name of the Lord no matter what is going on around us... And when we do, it all just fades away, as we focus on Christ. It is like when i am not wearing my glasses (i wear them to see long distance), when talking to people, every thing else is blurred and out of focus, and the person i am talking to is in focus, so it is easy not to get distracted by things that are going on around.

It's awesome

Blessed be Your name In the land that is plentiful Where Your streams of abundance flow Blessed be Your name And blessed be Your name When I'm found in the desert place Though I walk through the wilderness Blessed be your name		Chorus Every blessing You pour out I'll Turn back to praise And when the darkness closes in, Lord Still I will say Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your glorious name
Blessed be Your name When the sun's shining down on me When the world's "all as it should be" Blessed be You name And blessed be Your name On the road marked with suffering Though there's pain in the offering Blessed be Your name		Chorus
You give and take away You give and take away My heart will choose to say Lord, blessed be Your name I will bless Your name		Chorus
Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your glorious name		You give and take away You give and take away My heart will choose to say Lord, blessed be Your name *Repeat*

Famous Last Words

just been watching a live stream of a preach by Commissioner Earle Maxwell... at Famous Last Words, melbourne training college. At Famous last words, the college invite a retired Salvation Army Officers to come and than share what their last words would be to the Soldiers of the Salvation Army.

It was great,

he spoke to young salvationists, adult salvationist and senior salvationists.

the key words to each age group were

For the Salvationist Youth - To be committed to God

For the Adult Salvationist - To be consistant for God, by the Grace of God. Consistan year in, year out, no stepping aside.

For Senior Salvationist - To confident in God. There is no retirement in the Lord's work.

He closed with an awesome prayer from a 17th century nun....

and i will share it here..

Lord, Thou knowest better than I know myself, that I am growing older and will someday be old. Keep me from the fatal habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every occasion. Release me from craving to straighten out everybody's affairs. Make me thoughtful but not moody; helpful but not bossy. With my vast store of wisdom, it seems a pity not to use it all, but Thou knowest Lord that I want a few friends at the end.

Keep my mind free from the recital of endless details; give me wings to get to the point. Seal my lips on my aches and pains. They are increasing, and love of rehearsing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by. I dare not ask for grace enough to enjoy the tales of others' pains, but help me to endure them with patience.

I dare not ask for improved memory, but for a growing humility and a sureness when my memory seems to clash with the memories of others. Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally I may be mistaken.

Keep me reasonably sweet; I do not want to be a Saint - some of them are so hard to live with - but a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil. Give me the ability to see good things in unexpected places, and talents in unexpected people. And, give me, O Lord, the grace to tell them so.

AMEN

a classic quote from the Commissioner in question time....

rising early in the morning is a issue of mind over mattress.

basketball carnival.

Well i am 2 days into a basketball carnival... most of the games have been good, tho some were a bit rough... just for interest sake we have won 3, lost 2, and had 1 draw so far.

I am finding the carnival really good, not just in the games, but also in the relationships, with other team members, state members, opposition, and supporters.... just catching up with people i know from other years at the carnival and see where their at and what God is doing in there life...

But then there is also meeting new people... and having a chance to chat with them. Today i had the chance to do both... meet to knew people and talking with friends i haven't seen for a while.

It is always encouraging when we get to hear where friends are at... and what God is doing in their lives, it spurs us on. So the last couple of days i have fun doing that.

Today i also met some other people, and i got to talk to one of them about God, she wasn't a christian and is looking at different religion searching for something... This carnival has allowed her to ask questions about what christianity is about. It was awesome.

Also got to talk to a team mate, who has a bit of a rough trott the year, so that was great to be there for her, for her to talk to and be open... and me being open with her.

So today has been great... i am fairly sore but it is worth being here....

Cause the only thing i have in common with some of these friends is basketball... so what better place to share Christ with them... what ever that looks like at the time.

family (5th blog in 24 hours)

Today i visited my dad and his family... which was a bit of fun... and nerve racking at the same time.

You see my parents divorced when i was a kid, (8), and from the age of about 14 i can count the times i have seen my dad on one hand, til today...

So when ever i know i am going to see him, i am nervous, i never know what to say, so as i was driving there today i asked God that He'd guide me, and give me words to say, comfort me and keep me calm. Cause it is like i am visiting a stranger... cause i don't get to talk to him much.

However this time i also had a sense of excitement about going there, cause, i have been talking to one of my half sisters, and i have a bit in common with her, and really feel like i am meant to encourage her, both in her faith and in life.

And now that i have arrived back to where i am staying the night, i got thinking about family.

God created us to be a part of a family, a member of a loving, nurturing group of people known as a family.... however these days there is so many broken relationships in the "natural family", that they aren't loving, nurturing or even caring. So there are millions of people that are growing up not knowing that sort of love, community and family, and it breaks my heart... I imagine it breaks God's heart more.

However God offers us another family - His family... full of people who love God and others, who want to obey God and build up their brothers and sisters in Christ. Who nurture and care for each other.

We don't get to choose who we are related to in the flesh. But we can choose to be a part of God's family, a part of Jesus' family, the family full of love, no matter what, and it is the best thing ever,

4th blog for the road trip.

well it is now daylight, and we are close to sydney maybe an hour left.

As i was driving earlier today, i was watching the sunrise, and it was awesome.

And it made me think about break free/freedom...

it reminded me of how beautiful it is when we break free from all the darkness, sin, and hurt in our lives.... which is only possible through Jesus Christ.

And this freedom is so beautiful, and magnicent, and awesome, that it just causes people to praise God.

3rd blog for the night

well we have made it to wagga wagga, which is 11 hours into our trip. this last leg of the trip had a little bit of excitement.... we were driving along and saw a fire just off the road in a paddock... so we u-turned and went back and tried to put it out with what water we had... but alas, it wasn't enough so we rang for cfs to come out and put it out properly. And there was really good chats.

2nd post for the night

i was just reading through Ephesians 4,

1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.

2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—

5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

This is a great passage...

Do you live up to what you have been called to... i know that i don't always... and it is a great challenge.

Also it goes on to some of the things that we are called to ... to be humble and gentle, patient, live in unity and peace

Sometimes that is a hard call to follow... and by ourselves we fail... i know i always do if i try to do it myself...

but we don't have to do it by our selves... thankfully, the Spirit which is in each one of us units us, gives us something in common,

and also allows the love of Christ to flow through us.

this passage, urges us to get pass all the little differences that we may have in the way we do things, and focus on the one Awesome thing we have in common.,.,

Christ.

I love it how God calls us to something than provides us everything thing that we need to accoimplish it, (if we are open to recieving it from Christ).

I also think this is a good passage for this week, as i am going to be at a basketball carnival, and i will be living, playing and hanging out with my team...

So basically with the same people 24/7, and not all are Christians yet... which means there is awesome opportunity to show God's love and community to them and invite them into it.

Well, I am on my way to sydney... a 17 hour drive plus stops. At the moment we are about 5 hours into the drive. So there might be a few blogs within that time.

At the moment I am reflecting on my week, it was a busy week but it was good.

And I thought I would share one of the highlights from my week. Tuesday afternoon I just finished work and I was hanging out a little at the house where I dropped off some participatnts from the group I worked with dthat day, and I was talking to the staff at the house. I was saying I should head off and get things prepared for cell/bible study a my place, and one of the staff started to ask me stacks of questions about the bible, which lead into an awesome time of sharing. Sharing about the bible and also about Jesus, and I thank God for giving me the answers and the opportunity to share... and I claim the promise that none of His words return to Him void... So I trust Him to continue His work in both the house staff that were there for that conversation.

just finished work and I was hanging out a little at the house where I dropped off some participatnts from the group I worked with that day, and I was talking to the staff at the house. I was saying I should head off and get things prepared for cell/bible study a my place, and one of the staff started to ask me stacks of questions about the bible, which lead into an awesome time of sharing.

Sharing about the bible and also about Jesus, and I thank God for giving me the answers and the opportunity to share... and I claim the promise that none of His words return to Him void... So I trust Him to continue His work in both the house staff that were there for that conversation.

Isaiah 51

Last night, i was reading Isaiah 51, and vs 2 really stood out to me

¹ “Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance—
all who seek the Lord!
Consider the rock from which you were cut,
the quarry from which you were mined.
² Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor,
and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation.
Abraham was only one man when I called him.
But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.”

I found these verses really encouraging, especially verse 2.
For often I feel alone in what God has called me to, and i a lot of the time i am doing the things He has called to me alone (well besides God). But Abraham didn't stay alone, when God blessed Him after calling Abraham, God made him into a great nation.
You see, I believe that there is something really great that God wants to do in Adelaide, a revial, a transformation , i don't know fully what it is or what it will look like, but it is big. And i am full of excitement and wonder about what God is wanting to do.
I think this is what Abraham would of been feeling like when God told him that he was going to become a great nation.
At times Abraham would be able to "see" it, or "sense" it, but he never actually saw it with his own physical eyes, he would just have this indescribable hope, and sense of excitement within him, which was from God.
Just like Abraham not being around to see the fulfillment of God's promise to make him into a nation... sometimes i think/feel as if i am not going to see the fullness of what God wants to do here, what He has been planning. Like at the moment i get glimpses of it at times. Then there are times where i see nothing and wonder if it is going to happen or if it was just my imagination. I think Abraham would of felt like that as well, but Abraham held on to the promise that God had given him, he made mistakes, but he still came back to God with a repentant heart, and stepped back into the promise God had given him.
I pray that i can be as faithful to God as what Abraham was.

Isaiah 53

Isaiah 53

Who believes what we've heard and seen? Who would have thought God's saving power would look like this?

^2-6The servant grew up before God—a scrawny seedling,
a scrubby plant in a parched field.
There was nothing attractive about him,
nothing to cause us to take a second look.
He was looked down on and passed over,
a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand.
One look at him and people turned away.
We looked down on him, thought he was scum.
But the fact is, it was our pains he carried—
our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us.
We thought he brought it on himself,
that God was punishing him for his own failures.
But it was our sins that did that to him,
that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins!
He took the punishment, and that made us whole.
Through his bruises we get healed.
We're all like sheep who've wandered off and gotten lost.
We've all done our own thing, gone our own way.
And God has piled all our sins, everything we've done wrong,
on him, on him.

^7-9He was beaten, he was tortured,
but he didn't say a word.
Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered
and like a sheep being sheared,
he took it all in silence.
Justice miscarried, and he was led off—
and did anyone really know what was happening?
He died without a thought for his own welfare,
beaten bloody for the sins of my people.
They buried him with the wicked,
threw him in a grave with a rich man,
Even though he'd never hurt a soul
or said one word that wasn't true.

¹⁰Still, it's what God had in mind all along,
to crush him with pain.
The plan was that he give himself as an offering for sin
so that he'd see life come from it—life, life, and more life.
And God's plan will deeply prosper through him.

^11-12Out of that terrible travail of soul,
he'll see that it's worth it and be glad he did it.
Through what he experienced, my righteous one, my servant,
will make many "righteous ones,"
as he himself carries the burden of their sins.
Therefore I'll reward him extravagantly—
the best of everything, the highest honors—
Because he looked death in the face and didn't flinch,
because he embraced the company of the lowest.
He took on his own shoulders the sin of the many,
he took up the cause of all the black sheep.

Each time i read Isaiah 53, i am over whelmed by the love of Christ and reminded what He actually went through. The other day i was reading the passage in the message, and it hit home again... in a different way.I thought i would share it with you. In reading this passage in the Message, it got me thinking, if Jesus came now... would we recognise Him... the people of the first century didn't, would we... or would we just pass Him by... like so many people pass by people sitting on the street, and don't even smile, don't even seem to see them, or pretend like they didn't see them... would we see Jesus if He came... Hopefully each one of you would see Him. Jesus has told us in the Scripture that He is with the people sitting on the street, with the hungry or thristy, with those in prison, or nowhere to live... He told us that what we do for people in those sorts of situations, we do it to Him... so do you take notice of the people sitting on the street and at least acknowlege them, do you help people who you see that are hungry or thristy.

healings

Last night i was sitting out on the street with some aboriginals while they were waiting for the map bus to come and pick them up. We were sharing "stories". One of the girls, my age, was telling why she came down to adelaide from the small community where she lived near Alice Springs. She came down here cause her partner was in intensive care in a coma after being hit over the head with a iron bar.... and had a huge amount of stitches in his head... the doctors didn't know if he would come out of the coma with out brain injuries. The girl was actually saying that he was gone, he was dead like. She continued her story... she prayed for partner and the next day he was wake and eating ice chips... fully conherant.

She also shared another story of when she was still up near Alice Springs, living in her community, she got bronchitis, and was really sick with it, and got sent to Alice Springs hospital, and she prayed and got better.

Then her mother inlaw also shared stories of how she was healed back when she was younger.

I Praise the Jesus for the healing that these guys experienced. So do they... their eyes lit up when they were sharing their stories...

It was just so encouraging to hear them... so i thought i would share

It was awesome to hear their stories, and share with them. I pray that they will continue to follow Christ.

change

It seems every year in the second half of the year i go through some sort of change in my circumstances... and this year looks like it is not going to be any different.  It looks like things in Adelaide are going to change... there is a high possibility of if at any rate.

In some ways i am so sick of change, and i am starting to hate having to nearly start again, it is to point that sometimes i want to throw my hands up and give in.

Ministry here, has been a process of get to know people and share with people, and then it all changes and the process starts again.... I have seen so many people come and go, both workers (each year different people helping out) and also guys on the street (there are only about 3 or 4 people that i know out at the soup run that have been going there since i started going there).

So with the changes that might be happening, i don't really know what i am meant to be doing, whether, i still stay or whether i am to move on too... I am praying that the Lord shows me... and just trusting Him, that He'll guide me, cause i just don't know.  I would love your prayers to.

At the moment i just feel lost with it all, as i only found out tonight of the possible changes, and nothing is certain at the moment... so there is a chance that things might stay the same.

As you can probably tell, this is all pretty fresh in my head... so sorry if it is all over the place.

V-blog.

i thought i would do this for something different... and i was having fun playing around on my computer doing it. ...

 

Wolferine

Tonight i went to see "x-men origins: Wolverine", which was a lot of fun.
I love the whole x-men story, and i have always loved the character of Wolverine, I've never really known why. But i was thinking about it tonight after seeing the movie, and i think i like the wolverine character, because he has been through a lot, he has lost so many people that he loved, been betrayed, been rejected, before he lost his memory. And through all that (though at times he did give in to revenge), there was a genuine love in him, he knew who he was, and who he didn't want to become.
Then after he lost his memories, he became lost... and began searching to find who he is... to find his purpose... and in the process becomes known as a killer....
If you continue to read in some of the x-men comics (can't remember which series exactly, either the new x-men or the uncanny x-men), you find that Logan (wolverine) becomes the leader of the x-men, tho he doesn't think that he is capable of leading the x-men, Professor X could see the bigger story, and has faith in Logan. and encourages him.
As i was thinking about the story of Logan/Wolverine, i realised it was a story of redemption.... and it reminded me of the story that we are a part of, a story of redemption, through Jesus.
See, we were lost, confused, and unsure of our purpose.... we have all made mistakes, both big and small, we have given in to rage, revenge, hate at some point or another... but that is not the end of our story... our story continues... just like there was someone that believed in Logan, believed that there was a bigger story that Logan was a part of. We to are involved in a bigger story, and we too have someone that sees the whole story and encourages us to play the part that we are meant to play, and restores us, redeems us from our past hurts and mistakes, so that we can play that part. Jesus is that person for us... he sees the big picture, He encourages us when we feel like giving up, or thinking that we can't do it, and He guides us along the way... He can tell us the direction and the steps to take, to be able to be all we are meant to be... All we have to do is listen .... and then obey.

great story

i had a great night tonight, before i went out to basketball.  I went to the soup run, and it was awesome.  I didn't trust my self to remember fully what happened, so i recorded a message, on my phone while i was driving. 

so i am just going to up load it, and you can have a listen. 

Authority of Jesus

Last night i had a dream...

i was spending time with some other people in the country, and as we were driving back, i saw this fight going on in a valley... the fight got worse, we pulled over... i went over to the edge (the side of the valley was steep... like a cliff), and there is steel steps, like those at a factory... i walked down the steps to the first landing thing... the fight was getting serious... baseball bats were coming out and being used... i yelled out "stop it in Jesus' Name". And immediately two of the biggest guys started walking towards me, up the stairs. When they got to me, they handed me their baseball bats, and continued up the stairs and out. The police rocked up, and we went to the car and went to drive away but we got stopped.

During the day i was thinking about the dream... and God reminded me, For all things in Heaven and earth are under the authority of Jesus, Matthew 28:17-19

Also that we have been given authority through Jesus, authority over evil spirits, and how powerful that authority is. Luke 9:1-3. The enemy has to listen to us... Praise the Lord.

i hate the enemy.

I really hate the enemy (satan).   i hate it how he attacks christians and try and bring christians down.  And if that doesn't work, he'll attack family or even friends to get at christians and to try and stop them from being all that God wants them to be...

Lately I have been reminded how important it is to pray for our fellow christian family, but also for their wider family, that you personally don't know real well.

So pray for your fellow christians, for protection, that they will be able to stand firm in God's mighty wonderful love.  But not only prayer for you friends but also for their whole family, in the same way... satan will look for any little hole that he can get a foot hold in.  

Matt 1

As I was reading Matt I, I started to think that Jesus knew where he came from, not only spiritually (from the father) but also with his earthly heritage. It Went Just Jesus who knew His heritage in those days, but every Jew knew. they Would know stories about there great ancestors.

As they grew up they would have some sense of who they are and k now that they are a part of a bigger picture, a bigger story.

We In the Western World don't grow up with that sort of history/ story surrounding us , being told the stories from day one

the exciting thing is that we have been invited to Join in the story, to be part of this bigger story-Jesus invites us into His family therefore we don't merely have to hear the great stories of Faith, from the past or our generations or from the bible they become our heritage, as we are now related to those heroes of the faith

We have a strong heritage to live in & be encouraged By.

Isaiah 51:1 says

listen to me year who pursues righteousness & who seek the Lord.know the rock from which you were cut, the quarry an which you were hewn.

I always thought that this Vs Just meant look to God, know God, he is the one who created You. But today to was reminded of this vs by the Spirit as I mediated on Matt 1. that of does point to God, who made us, but also to our heritage. that there is some value in knowing our spiritual Ancestors & heritage. We can learn from their mistakes & take courage when they got it right.

So let us encourage each otherwith our own stories of fearful,of stories of how God usedus for something.

rev camp

So last week i was at rev camp.

And last week i promised to blog about the camp.

In short the camp was awesome, God moved, touched the lives of many, and talked to many of the youth.

There were 2 great spiritual guest leaders, Danielle Strickland and Michael Collins.

There was preaching that was laying the ground for Salvation, that a life with Christ isn't always an easy road to follow, telling people to way up the cost.

There was also teaching on the Holy Spirit, and sanictifcation, that there is no junior verson of the Holy Spirit.

There was also teaching about listening prayer... and a lot of practice of it... and a lot of youth hearing God for themselves and for each other. 

There was a lot of fun, during tribal wars, and footy (aussie rules)

All up it, it was a week, where God spoke to the youth of South Aus... Exciting

Pray for everyone who went to camp... I pray that they will continue to chase after God and listen to Him.

sabbath

been reflecting on the sabbath today (and a little yesterday while driving)

Through Sunday school years (those of us that went to sunday school), that the earth was created in 6 days and that on the 7th God rested and there for we are to have a day of rest (Exodus 20:8-11) and count that day holy.

How often do we think that the sabbath (a day of rest) is just a day to sit around the place, chill out, relax, maybe watch tv, maybe doing nothing. 

i want to challenge that concept, that the sabbath is just a day to have off and relax.  

I think it is meant to be more than that.

In Exodus 20 verse 10 it says that the "seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to the Lord"

So according to that verse the day is meant to be dedicated to the Lord

Isaiah 58:13 puts it this way, 

"Keep the sabbath day holy.  Don''t pursue your own interests on that day, but enjoy the sabbath, and speak of it with delight as the Lord's holy day. Honour the Lord in everything you do and don't follow your own desires or talk idly, if you do this the Lord will be your delight"

So i am thinking that the sabbath day is a day to spend with the Lord, not just chilling out, doing what we want to do, or not doing anything at all, which i think we tend to do a lot of (just doing what we want to do, when we have a day off).  To spend the day with the Lord, sitting with Him, talking with Him, asking Him what He wants you to be doing, how He wants you to spend the day... It may be just sitting with Him, chillin out, watching a movie, or could be walking around your neighbourhood with Christ, praying for it or it could also be going out and serving the community around you....

I think the key is spending time with the Lord... and doing what He wants you to do all day... not just doing the things that you want or think you should do... Unless you ask Christ, you'll never know if He has other ideas of how you should be spending the day... and His ideas are generally better.

Actually this concept is not just good for the sabbath, it would be a good practice in general.

rev live webstream

been at rev camp this week, 

so far it has been awesome, i will expand on camp later.

This is just a short note that you can join us tonight, 

as the session tonight is going to be streamed live on the internet

8pm EST (in Australia - which is 6am Thursday in Toronto and 3am Thursday in Vancouver) here: 

at 

www.salvationarmy.org.au/sstv

check it out... and also pray for every here, and watching.

is it worth it

Sometimes i look at how things are going in the city, with ministry and i start to get frustrated that nothing is happening, that i haven't seen much happen over the last 3 years. I start to think is it all worth it, or is it time for me to move on, to go some where easier, where the results are more visible.
The last week or so i have been thinking about that.
So yesterday i decided to look back over the years.
As i did, i realized that... God has been working.
Over the last 3 years we have had over 35 people come to cell, at different times... but they were all regular attenders at some point, of which more than 20 were from the community, and not just come and join us from a corps or another church. On top of that 35, we have had people that have only come once or twice.
I also counted up the about of people that i have regular contact with (well as regular as you can, seen at least once a month), and i counted that i had over 25 people that i regularly see and talk to.
I have also seen people move on in their lives, for example - trying to rebuild relationships with family, or getting off the street.
Looking back i Praise God for all that He has done in this city... it may not be fully noticeable when i look at the city as a whole, or look at my cell (which has only had 4 people attend lately), but when i stop and look back, look at the individuals.... God has and is at work... which is awesome... it encourages me, to keep going on for Him.

Is it worth it... Yes it is...

water bottles

just got back from handing out bottles of water to people in Hindley st.  Hindley street is the street in Adelaide with the majority of pubs and clubs. Adelaide is really bad with binge drinking, and handing out bottles of water is partly an attempt to combat that.  Giving people water, helps people to stay hydrated, and there fore less likely to get as drunk, cause the water would be absorbed byt the body instead of alocohol.  But not only that it was a good chance to go out and chat with people.  Most of the time, people just grabbed water and kept going, and didn't chat, but they experienced the love of God through us... 

I went out with a group from the local corps, ACH, and it was a great time, everyone had a lot of fun... but most importantly, God was there, and led our feet and also our conversations. And gave ideas of improving the concept, and the potential of all that it could happen in Hindley st.

So i praise God, that He is at work in this city, that He is stirring people's hearts to get out of the pews, and that He is using people willing to follow Him, to plant, nuture, and harvest seeds in people's lives here.  God is great.

Lord who provides.

The last couple of days i have felt really tired.... not 100% sure why... and today i just woke up tired... but instead of staying in bed, on a day off... i got up and went down to ACH (Adelaide Congress Hall). They run a coffee and toast morning 5 days a week, which they get a number of people coming along to. Some come in just for breakfast, some hang out there while they are waiting for their ER appointment (to get an appointment, people have to be there at 9am to book in, or they miss out), and others use the place just to catch up with people. I went along today, just to chat with people. I was tired the whole way there, but once i got there and chatting with people, the tiredness disappeared. While there i got to catch up with some people that i haven't seen for a while, including one guy who used to come along to cell, but hasn't been for nearly a year. I was also privileged to meet and talk to 2 other people, and to hear their stories. One had lost his wife and son over the years, and also some of his health. The other person, had recovered from a stroke, she had to learn to talk and walk again... and in that whole process her husband left, and has custody of the kids.
While walking to one of the day centres, for lunch i bumped into 2 guys that i hadn't seen for ages, an got to touch base with them and find out how they have been.
By the time i got home... i was tired again... and fell asleep, for a little bit, before i had to go to work. I praise the Lord cause i know He gave me the energy to go out and chat with people, and also gave me the love i have for these guys. The Lord knew that i needed energy, and He provided it... along with opportunity to share with people and the words to do so. I praise Him for just an awesome day.

dreams.

the other week when i decided that i would not watch tv, or get on the internet, and spend more time with God, reading His word, and other books that i can learn from.

I found that i started to have dreams ... that i remembered more often, which was awesome.  Some of those dreams didn't seem to have a meaning, they were just fun, others did... 

It is awesome that when we take time out for God, He is faithful... He reveals stuff to us, if we are willing to hear.  Not to say that God doesn't talk to us other times... sometimes we become to caught up in the things around us, to pay attention to what God is say... and i am thankful that God doesn't give up on us... no matter how many times we don't listen... He is always right there, when we open our ears to hear, and eyes to see, what Christ wants to tell us.

focus...

lately i have found myself losing focus at times... getting distracted by tv, internet, games and even my own thoughts.  So i have decided that next week i am going to fast the tv, videos, computer/internet and games... and the reason that i am saying so on here is not to brag about it... but for accountability... cause if i write it somewhere/tell someone, i am more likely to do it properly... and also to let you know that i am not going to be blogging at all next week.

i am going to start on Saturday the 21st and go til sun 29th at 5pm.  the only exceptions is if i am watching something as a part of work or as community.

update

An update on the results from the bushfire... 

181 people confirmed dead

over 5000 homeless

A number of fires are still out of control,

There is a bushfire relief fund, which

As at 7.00pm on the 10th February, the Fund had received $30.4 million from over 166,000 website and phone donations, with governments including the Victorian Government and Federal Government and corporates pledging additional sums. Donations are still continuing to flow in.

There are over 200 Salvos helping out in the areas, offering food, financial help, and crisis counselling.

Please continue to for those that have been affected by this fire, and also for all that are offering support and counselling... 

victorian bushfires

This weekend has been huge... several fires have swept through different parts of Victoria, leave devastation in it's wake...  So far the death toll of the fires is at 109, at least 750 homes have been lost, and more than 330,000 hectares have been burnt out. There have been whole towns that have been wiped out by the fires.  Many of the people and property affected by the bushfires but have also affected by the drought over  the last few years.

Some 3733 people have registered with the Red Cross after evacuating their properties... there are some amazing stories of survival... which can be read here...http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,25026484-5006301,00.html

However all of these numbers are expected to rise when the police, fire services and military people are able to get into areas that are still unsafe to enter.

What makes these fires worst, it is believed that some of the fires were lit intentionally... 

This map shows areas where fires have been burning, and has some of the story of what has happened there   http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?moduleurl=http://www.google.com/mapmaker/mapfiles/s/mapplet.xml&ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=-38.09566,145.717163&spn=3.155651,4.921875&z=8&msid=109203007921677191325.00046263080421b8a97d7

 

500 Volunteer firefighters have been coming from nsw, tas and nsw to help put out the fires... At the moment there is cool weather in Victoria, which is helpful to get the fires under control, however fire fighters have only til the weekend to have these fires under control, cause it is forecast for hot weather, which than create similar condition to this past weekend when the fires took hold.

So please pray for all who have lost family, friends, property, possession, for those that are fighting the fires, and all that are on the front lines providing support for both the victims of the fire and the firefighters.  

love them like Jesus.

I've been reflecting over this week... and been thinking about the people that i have been talking to, a number of them full of hurts and pain.  One guy that i was talking to on monday, wanted to change his life, wanted to get straight again, and make a difference in the world, he also was thinking about getting right with God, but something was holding him back from actually deciding to.  When i went out on friday i was hoping that i would see him, and talk and pray with him more, but i didn't see him... i saw the lady that he was with the other day, so i chatted with her for a while, and she was saying that she heard that this guy was in the remand centre, cause he hadn't been rocking up to his patrol meetings.

Another lady was having a bad day... the place where she was staying, apparently decided that they would make a rule stating that people living there couldn't have people visit there rooms, and also she had the police come in while she was sleeping, to raid her place.  This is a women who has been trying to do the right thing, so that she could get her children back... so with all this combined she was a shattered person that night.

Another friend has separated from her husband... 

When you stop and listen to people's stories you can hear the hurt and the pain, even when they are trying to put on a brave face... and sometimes you don't know what to say or even do... especially when they are questioning everything...

the best thing that we can do is love them like Jesus.

This song from casting crowns sums up a couple of the stories I've heard lately... and is a great reminder of what we can do... and that Jesus is holding them 

The love of her life is drifting away
They’re losing the fight for another day
The life that she’s known is falling apart
A fatherless home, a child’s broken heart

You’re holding her hand, you’re straining for words
You trying to make - sense of it all
She’s desperate for hope, darkness clouding her view
She’s looking to you

Just love her like Jesus, carry her to Him
His yoke is easy, His burden is light
You don’t need the answers to all of life’s questions
Just know that He loves her and stay by her side
Love her like Jesus
Love her like Jesus

The gifts lie in wait, in a room painted blue
Little blessing from Heaven would be there soon
Hope fades in the night, blue skies turn to grey
As the little one slips away

You’re holding their hand, you’re straining for words
You’re trying to make sense of it all
They’re desperate for hope, darkness clouding their view
They’re looking to you

Just love them like Jesus, carry them to Him
His yoke is easy, His burden is light
You don’t need the answers to all of life’s questions
Just know that He loves them and stay by their side
Love them like Jesus

Lord of all creation holds our lives in His hands
The God of all the nations holds our lives in His hands
The Rock of our salvation holds our lives in His hands
He cares for them just as He cares for you

So love them like Jesus, love them like Jesus
You don’t need the answers to all of life’s questions
Just know that He loves them and stay by their side
Love them like Jesus
Love them like Jesus

in shape.

today was my first game back at basketball for this year... it was a good game... but afterwards i am sore... i have sore legs muscles, and a nice wood burn on my leg... I was thinking about why my muscles were sore, and it is because i haven't done any real exercise for about 3 weeks, i haven't been disciplined to go out and exercise ... i was out of shape... not used to it.  If i had been disciplined and excercised during the break, the game would of been a lot easier and i would not have pulled up sore afterwards.

This got me thinking about our spiritual life... we got to be disciplined, other wise we end up spiritually unfit... which would mean we wouldn't hear God as clearly and fall to temptation and attacks of the emeny more often...  

How ever if we disciplined ourselves to spend time with God, to pray, read the bible, and spend time with other Christians in fellowship... we become spiritually in shape, the more time with God we have, the more that we surrender to Him the more spiritually fit we become.  We not only learn the promises of God, but we also claim them in Christ.  And the more disciplined we are with spending time with Christ, the more we want to... 

friends and ministry

Last week was fun... I had 2 mates from NZ staying with me, wanting to see and experience the mission stuff that I am a part of in Adelaide.... so it was fun having other people coming out to the soup run, west care, prayer walking... we also tried a couple of ideas that I have been wanting to try for a little while, but with not having people available at the same time as me, I hadn't been able to try... one thing that we tried was prayer door knocking. This sort of pushed all our comfort zones, some more than others... but it was awesome God lead us to the houses that we were meant to go to... which meant that we had a great reception even from one guy who didn't believe in God so therefore didnt want prayer... but he was open to chat, and is open for us to come back and visit again. God fully showed me how ready this neighbour hood is to receive us... even when we offer something “werid and different” (to them at any rate)

Also having these guys here and helping, was very encouraging to me... they will probably never fully know how much they encouraged me... and i thank the Lord for them and making it possible for them to be here for a week.

Over all it was an awesome week... I fully enjoyed being a part of a bigger community for the week... If any one wants to come over and be a part of things here... or even just visit... let me know... I love having more people around... that love Christ and follow Him.

I believe that God is fully ready to do some mighty stuff here this year... and I can't wait to find out what His plans are fully... I pray that I will be hearing correctly and faithly following His leading in where He wants me and what He wants me to do..

insane

Well, I have had a full couple of weeks... 2 weeks ago I was in melbourne for insane... which was a camp for people 13 to 25 years of age.. I went along as a volunteer leader...

The week was great... I had fun most of the time... I was able to catch up and hang out with some friends that I hadn't seen for a while, which was awesome... wednesday night was awesome Rowan Castle preached the Gospel.. and God did the rest and over 100 people came to know Christ... which was fully awesome. The camp finish on sunday 23^rd, and I stayed with some people that do some incarnational ministry, so it was fun staying there, reading some of the reports and stories that they had stuck up on the wall.. it was very encouraging. I was only there one night before driving back to adelaide.