What a year ! Twelve months ago we were living in Blackburn South, I was working as the National Operations Manager for a small Import/Export Company ( and hating it), we were soldiering at Rowville Salvos and we were aiming to get to college next year.
Twelve months on and we are living in beautiful Warrnambool, we are Lieutenants and have been full time Ministers for three months. God is moving here at the local corps, we are seeing some great things unfolding and there are even bigger and better things to come. You can never tell when life is going to take a twist, sometimes you just have to hold on and have faith that it will all work out. It has been a truly amazing year and we are very grateful to all our friends and family who have helped make this transition so smooth. The people at Warrnambool have made us feel so at home, it feels like we have known everyone for so long now. We are really excited that the kids have made some great new friends and fitted in really well to their new surrounds. I shouldn't be so surprised when I say that because we have always been certain that if God called us He called our whole family, and He would pave the way for the children as well as us. I try to tell them regularly but sometimes it is not always easy but I am very proud of our three children and the individuals they are growing into, they are each unique but they are the greatest gift we as a couple could ever have received. I will post some pictures of them each in the new year.
Susan continues to amaze me, she has this ability to make people feel comfortable with her immediately. The friendships and bonds she builds are truly a gift from God. I can honestly say my love for Susan grows with everyday, she is incredibly beautiful and a great Mother.
Once again thank you to everyone for the part you have played in where we are today. I pray that God will really bless you over this holiday period, and that you will all remain safe and secure.
I would like to leave you with a quote I read recently, God Bless and have a great Christmas !
The spirit of Christmas needs to superseded by the Spirit of Christ. The spirit of Christmas is annual; the Spirit of Christ is eternal. The spirit of Christmas is sentimental; the Spirit of Christ is supernatural. The spirit of Christmas is a human product; the Spirit of Christ is a divine person. That makes all the difference in the world.
- Stuart Briscoe
Sunday 23 December 2007
Wednesday 19 December 2007
The Missing Piece
I heard this story last Christmas and thought it was worth sharing
In a little German village there was an old experienced Toy Maker. At the start of December he placed a hand crafted Nativity Scene is his store window, immediately this drew peoples attention. The details were so intricate it must have taken him months to hand carve all the details on Mary and Josephs faces, the hairs on the donkey, the fleece on the sheep. The stable was incredible almost a perfect replica of what we all imagine that stable to look like.
The word quickly spread through the village and people started to gather at his window to look at this set. The local accountant came into the store and said he simply must buy this Nativity Set how much would it cost but the old toymaker said it was not for sale. Then the school principal came in and asked how much again to the same response it is not for sale. This continued over the coming weeks people flocking to see the display in the window, and people asking how much it would cost to buy. It seemed with every passing day the old toymaker got sadder and sadder, the locals couldn't work out was was upsetting him. People were crowding around his store window and browsing through his shop, but nothing could get him to smile.
The village was starting to close up for Christmas early on Christmas Eve when the toymaker heard someone enter his store, he moved to the front to see a young boy probably about seven standing at the front counter. The toymaker asked how he could help the youngster and the boy replied he didn't want anything but wanted to let the toymaker know he had made a big mistake. The toymaker lifted his head and enquired what the boy meant, the boy then stated "the Nativity Scene in your window is lovely but you have left out the most important part, the baby Jesus is missing." The old toymaker started to weep as he walked over to his workbench opened the top drawer and pulled out the hand carved baby Jesus. He explained to the boy that he was waiting for someone to notice but no-one had,and everyday he had felt more depressed about the fact that no-one had realised that Baby Jesus was missing. He then told the boy the Nativity Scene was his for free, and wrapped it and placed it in a bag for the boy to take home.
My prayer for you this Christmas is that as the season gets so busy and you get caught up in all the tinsel and presents that you would still remember to place the Baby Jesus at the centre of your celebrations, and remember the greatest present ever given for Christmas.
In a little German village there was an old experienced Toy Maker. At the start of December he placed a hand crafted Nativity Scene is his store window, immediately this drew peoples attention. The details were so intricate it must have taken him months to hand carve all the details on Mary and Josephs faces, the hairs on the donkey, the fleece on the sheep. The stable was incredible almost a perfect replica of what we all imagine that stable to look like.
The word quickly spread through the village and people started to gather at his window to look at this set. The local accountant came into the store and said he simply must buy this Nativity Set how much would it cost but the old toymaker said it was not for sale. Then the school principal came in and asked how much again to the same response it is not for sale. This continued over the coming weeks people flocking to see the display in the window, and people asking how much it would cost to buy. It seemed with every passing day the old toymaker got sadder and sadder, the locals couldn't work out was was upsetting him. People were crowding around his store window and browsing through his shop, but nothing could get him to smile.
The village was starting to close up for Christmas early on Christmas Eve when the toymaker heard someone enter his store, he moved to the front to see a young boy probably about seven standing at the front counter. The toymaker asked how he could help the youngster and the boy replied he didn't want anything but wanted to let the toymaker know he had made a big mistake. The toymaker lifted his head and enquired what the boy meant, the boy then stated "the Nativity Scene in your window is lovely but you have left out the most important part, the baby Jesus is missing." The old toymaker started to weep as he walked over to his workbench opened the top drawer and pulled out the hand carved baby Jesus. He explained to the boy that he was waiting for someone to notice but no-one had,and everyday he had felt more depressed about the fact that no-one had realised that Baby Jesus was missing. He then told the boy the Nativity Scene was his for free, and wrapped it and placed it in a bag for the boy to take home.
My prayer for you this Christmas is that as the season gets so busy and you get caught up in all the tinsel and presents that you would still remember to place the Baby Jesus at the centre of your celebrations, and remember the greatest present ever given for Christmas.
Wednesday 12 December 2007
HELP !!!!!!
The title of this blog is not actually a serious cry for help but more of a veiled Oh No what have I got myself into. Last Sunday night we had the first Youth Group meeting of the new Warrnambool Salvos Youth, what a night ! we had 22 in attendance. We played a number of games and then sat around ate some pizzas and discussed what we each wanted to achieve out of this group, and where/what we saw this group doing. We got great feedback from the kids and personally a very encouraging thing was that at the end of the night we asked them to give their details to Sue if they wanted to be followed up and informed about future events and all went and gave those details and expressed a desire to be a part of this group going forward.
As I say this was a great night, but I couldn't help thinking once or twice during the night how am I going to be able to bring the message of God to these kids. What am I a 38 year old bald fat man going to be able to do that will influence these children to seek the Kingdom of God. The great thing is as soon as I had those thoughts I also heard the voice of God saying "Just let me, you provide the environment I will take care of the rest". Not only did God reassure me of this but he also encouraged some of the youth to confirm this to me, I had one young girl of about 14 come up to me and say how great it was that Sue and myself took the time to care about her and how much fun we were to be around. Thank you God ! As always just when you need confirmation God sends it in the most unforeseen way.
The challenge is obviously now in front of us what can we do to keep kids entertained, to make them want to come back, to make them want to invite their friends, and most importantly to link them with the corps and to help them find God. Everything we do is about gaining Souls for the Kingdom of God, I don't know what environments these children come from, I have no control over that, but I can make sure that when we meet it is in an environment that is safe, friendly and filled with the Love of God.
May God richly bless you each in the environment that you work and minister, and may you allow God to use you to impact on someones life this Christmas.
If any of you have any ideas as to what I can do with this group I would be very interested to hear from you.
As I say this was a great night, but I couldn't help thinking once or twice during the night how am I going to be able to bring the message of God to these kids. What am I a 38 year old bald fat man going to be able to do that will influence these children to seek the Kingdom of God. The great thing is as soon as I had those thoughts I also heard the voice of God saying "Just let me, you provide the environment I will take care of the rest". Not only did God reassure me of this but he also encouraged some of the youth to confirm this to me, I had one young girl of about 14 come up to me and say how great it was that Sue and myself took the time to care about her and how much fun we were to be around. Thank you God ! As always just when you need confirmation God sends it in the most unforeseen way.
The challenge is obviously now in front of us what can we do to keep kids entertained, to make them want to come back, to make them want to invite their friends, and most importantly to link them with the corps and to help them find God. Everything we do is about gaining Souls for the Kingdom of God, I don't know what environments these children come from, I have no control over that, but I can make sure that when we meet it is in an environment that is safe, friendly and filled with the Love of God.
May God richly bless you each in the environment that you work and minister, and may you allow God to use you to impact on someones life this Christmas.
If any of you have any ideas as to what I can do with this group I would be very interested to hear from you.
Monday 3 December 2007
What is filling your life ?
I had the absolute pleasure of doing devotions at the end of singing company last night, now for those of you who don't know Warrnambool Salvos we have a singing company meet on a Monday night mostly from the community. Last night we had 33 kids and only 7 of these regularly attend our church. This is an amazing outreach opportunity and to see the friendships and bonds that have been built between these kids is very inspiring. There were two young girls there last night who were struggling with the fact that it was the anniversary of their two year old brother dying, to see the way the rest of the group supported them and just looked after them was quite moving. These kids didn't want to know what was wrong or ask questions about why they were upset they just wanted to support and love their friends. I think there is a lesson there for us as adults to learn. By the way we are having a social night on Sunday to plan and inform the kids about youth group next year and ten of these 33 kids have asked to be picked up for this night. AWESOME ! Thankyou God.
As I said earlier I had the task of doing devotions ( if you can call the opportunity to speak into the lives of 33 kids a task !) and I did something I had seen many years ago. First I filled a container with Table Tennis balls until I could fit no more in, asking the kids if we could put any more in I got a resounding NO. Then I produced some small pebbles and dropped them in the cracks between the balls, again I asked the kids if we could fit anymore in. This time I get a less confident NO. I then produced Sand and poured it into the container and it filled the space between the pebbles and the balls, again I asked the kids if we could fit anymore in. This time most with a great deal of confidence shouted NO. I then produced a jug of water and poured it into the container the water seeped through the sand and filled up the last spots.
I then read from the Scriptures and explained that we can all fill our lives up with so many things, (for me it used to be sport) that we leave no room for God and family. If we had filled the container up with sand to start off with the only other thing we could fit in would have been water. The amazing thing is when we fill our lives with the right things to start off with we still have times for the others. God is now the primary focus of my life, followed very closely by my family. But even though the focus of my life has changed I still have time for my friends and for sport etc etc....
What are you filling your life up with ? Is it in the correct order ? or are you filling it with sand or water ?
I pray that you might sit back and think about your priorities in life and maybe rearrange the order to fit in what is truly important in life.
As I said earlier I had the task of doing devotions ( if you can call the opportunity to speak into the lives of 33 kids a task !) and I did something I had seen many years ago. First I filled a container with Table Tennis balls until I could fit no more in, asking the kids if we could put any more in I got a resounding NO. Then I produced some small pebbles and dropped them in the cracks between the balls, again I asked the kids if we could fit anymore in. This time I get a less confident NO. I then produced Sand and poured it into the container and it filled the space between the pebbles and the balls, again I asked the kids if we could fit anymore in. This time most with a great deal of confidence shouted NO. I then produced a jug of water and poured it into the container the water seeped through the sand and filled up the last spots.
I then read from the Scriptures and explained that we can all fill our lives up with so many things, (for me it used to be sport) that we leave no room for God and family. If we had filled the container up with sand to start off with the only other thing we could fit in would have been water. The amazing thing is when we fill our lives with the right things to start off with we still have times for the others. God is now the primary focus of my life, followed very closely by my family. But even though the focus of my life has changed I still have time for my friends and for sport etc etc....
What are you filling your life up with ? Is it in the correct order ? or are you filling it with sand or water ?
I pray that you might sit back and think about your priorities in life and maybe rearrange the order to fit in what is truly important in life.
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