Pentecost: A Spirit For All Time

Today marks the Christian celebration of the Day of Pentecost – the release of God’s Spirit Presence to mankind and His gift of Empowerment given to all Christian believers - for all time.

In contemplating verses from Isaiah 61 and Acts 2, we considered these Exciting thoughts about the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

• ENLIGHTENMENT ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God is a messenger of Good News.
• ENCOURAGEMENT ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God is a channel of peace and restoration.
• ESCAPE ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God points people to the Deliverer, who sets captives free.
• EXCHANGE ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God exchanges hopelessness for hope and is covered with a 'garment of praise'.
• ESTABLISHMENT ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God knows what it is to be established in God's provision.
• EXALTATION ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God has a genuine hope and confidence of sharing a 'double portion' because of our spiritual inheritance in Christ.
• EXAMPLE ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God can bring praise and glory to God through the example of their Faith-filled, Hope-focussed and Love-inspired living.
• EQUIPPED ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God is well equipped with grace to live victoriously.
• ENABLED ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God is enabled by the Spirit for betterment.
• ENERGIZED ~ Every Spirit-filled child of God is energized for eternity.

This Celebration Day in the corporate life of the Church and the personal life of every believer reminds us that we are indeed “Blessed to be a blessing”!

Jesus is glorified and gives the Comforter
His Spirit, to reside in all His servants here
The Holy Ghost to man is given:
Rejoice in God sent down from Heaven

To make an end of sin and Satan's work destroy
He brings His Kingdom in peace, righteousness and joy
The Holy Ghost to man is given:
Rejoice in God sent down from Heaven

The cleansing blood to apply, the heavenly life display
And wholly sanctify and seal us to that day
The Holy Ghost to man is given:
Rejoice in God sent down from Heaven

SASB 195 (verses 1-3) ~ Charles Wesley

Sharing The Journey

One of the rewards and challenges of chaplaincy ministry is the opportunity of journeying with those we contact and connect with. Sometimes the personal interaction is brief yet purposed and, at other times, it is a more lengthy and complex process. However, above all, I am convinced that 'sharing the journey' is always a personal privilege and God-directed blessing.

Each persons life journey is unique. There is no set formula or guideline when it comes to dealing with life's multifarious circumstances and experiences. Life certainly has its joys and sorrows, regardless of our backgrounds. The Message sums up Romans 12:15 well and offers some very wise instruction - 'Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down.'

With this in mind, in recent days I've come to appreciate afresh the value of Christian faith and the importance of sharing in spiritual fellowship with others. It is in making deep personal connections with others that I begin to sense the 'fullness of God' like never before.

Romans 12:15 (NLT) ~ "Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep."

Pentecost: A Spirit For All Seasons

As we continued our Pentecost series today, I was personally reminded that God's Holy Spirit is present in our lives to effect God's grace in our individual needs and challenge us each to go deeper in our spiritual relationship with God through all experiences of life.

The opening statement captured my attention: "We focus a lot of attention on God and Jesus, and rightfully so, but sometimes I wonder if we short change the 3rd Person of the Trinity - the Holy Spirit - at work within us and through us."

In focussing on the various roles of the Spirit, we explored the following imageries.

"A Spirit For All Seasons"
1. The Spirit as WIND ~ a powerful, life-changing force (Jn 3:8)
2. The Spirit as BREATH ~ a life-infusing force (Ez 37)
3. The Spirit as DOVE ~ a life-affirming force
4. The Spirit as FIRE ~ a life-renewing force (Mt 3:11)
5. The Spirit as WATER ~ a life-refreshing force (Is 44:3, Jn 7)

Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me

Break me, melt me, mould me, fill me

Pentecost: A Timely, Seasonal Spirit

In preparation for celebrating Pentecost as a faith community, we have commenced a Bible Message series entitled, "A Spirit for all time and all seasons".

A study of the Old Testament reveals that the Spirit of God is usually contained to encounters with a specific time frame or set purpose. Having acted in creation (Gen 1:2) the Spirit is continually mentioned in the carrying forward of God’s successful purposes. His ‘timely and seasonal’ Presence proved that success is assured through obedience to the Spirit, and that failure is inevitable when the Spirit departs.

Throughout the OT, we come to understand that the Spirit is always invisible but known by His effectiveness. We are never told of people experiencing particular feelings. His presence is made known by success, through the proclamation of God’s true message.

Interestingly, sometimes the Spirit came on people temporarily and sometimes more permanently. People did not seek the Spirit, but rather He came upon them at God’s will.

The Spirit was, is and always will be, the invisible, powerful presence of God carrying forward His purposes in history.

"A Timely, Seasonal Spirit"
1. The Spirit was ever-present before time began (Gen 1:2, Ps 33:6)
2. The Spirit strives with mankind (Gen 6:3)
3. The Spirit empowers God's servants for service (Num 27:18)
4. The Spirit inspires deliverance (1 Sam 16)
5. The Spirit encourages future hope (Isa 11:1-2, Micah 3)

Doctrine #3 - We believe that there are three persons in the Godhead - the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, undivided in essence and co-equal in power and glory.

Mother's Day?

This year, as in previous years, I've been caused to reflect on the relevance of the celebration of Mother's Day. Once again I'm reminded that, while I celebrate this annual occasion with a deep sense of personal joy, delight and gratitude in honour of my own mother, there is an ever-increasing number of people who are negativcly affected in signifcant ways by this day for a variety of personal reasons.

My personal reflections are impacted greatly by my role as both a chaplain and minister of religion in a number of cultural and spiritual settings over the past 14 years and have led me to the point of really questioning the relevance of celebrating Mother's Day within our faith communities and places of worship. More and more I am convinced that the Church needs to move away from a corporate and public worship celebration focus of this day, which encompasses a pletora of human emotion stemming from a kaleidoscope of life experiences.

If the Church is to truly be a place where love, acceptance, belonging and unity are fostered, then it would do well to respond compassionately by ceasing to focus on celebrating an occasion that creates much deep isolation and personal pain in the lives of those to whom it seeks to reach out effectively.

World Mission Fellowship (WMF)

Having served appointments in overseas service, held the office of WMF Secretary, and currently have the privilege of being a financial member of The Salvation Army Australia Southern Territory's World Mission Fellowship (WMF), I can personally vouch for the fact that this fellowship group is both vital and effective in supporting our personnel on overseas service ~ through the means of much needed intercessory prayer and financial funding.

Want to find out more about the WMF, and discover how you, too, can get on board with your support?

Check out their newly-developed website ~ http://www.salvationarmy.org.au/wmf

Help keep the Lord's "Great Commission" World Mission alive in the frontlines of Salvation Army international service!

Matthew 28:19-20 (NLT) ~ "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Holy Spirit...Move In Me

I'm still thinking and reflecting on yesterday's morning worship service - the visit of the Melbourne Staff Songsters to Melbourne's 614 Corps in the heart of the city.

I must confess to harbouring my own personal reservations about so many aspects of the scheduled worship and fellowship time, yet recall coming away feeling fully blessed, inspired and challenged because of the Holy Spirit's interaction that took place - both corporately, individually and, most notably, personally.

Majors Brendan and Sandra Nottle are genuine servants of God who pursue godly vision in constantly expressing the love of God in action without barriers. The phenomenal assurance of God's grace at work in people's lives was very evident, and a visible evidence of the Spirit's 'invisible' personal interaction.

Tonight during rehearsal our executive officer, Major Judith Soeters, shared some of the known spiritual victories that were celebrated in God's presence yesterday, and I guess...no, I know... that many more spiritual fruits are 'in progress' even now.

The MSS sang Nathan Rowe's composition, Holy Spirit, Move in Me - and I echo that prayer once again deep within me.

God's Heart...Our Dream

This evening I attended our Eastern Victoria divisional welcome and installation meeting to incoming Divisional Commander, Lieut-Colonel Jocelyn Knapp, and Major Cilla Bone, who takes up an additional appointment as Divisional Women's Ministries Secretary.

The new divisional leadership duo encouraged us to seek God's heart as we work together to become an 'Isaiah 58 Division' focussed on:

• loosing the 'chains of injustice'
• setting the 'oppressed free'
• being compassionate and responsive to the needs of our communities
• trusting God whole-heartedly to release the power of His healing, redemption and restoration in the lives of those we serve and minister to.

What a vision! ...and, together with God, what a sure reality!

Our incoming leaders shared their thoughts of GOD'S HEART, OUR DREAM...

For Our Mission Centres: Corps, Social Centres, Divisional Headquarters...

God desires...

• that there be plenty of prayer - less bickering and put downs
• that reputations are to be left intact - and harmful gossip has no place
• that fairness and justice be the standard - less inequality or positional exploitation
• that the focus is on the needs of the marginalized - less concern about preserving status/position

God wants...

• human dignity, justice, hope, compassion and community to be values which guide all decisions
• that money, personal ambition, personal preferences or personal satisfaction take a lesser place
• all personnel - volunteers, employees, officers, male or female - know that they are made in God's image and equally respected by all in leadership, and all given opportunities for self-development

God asks...

• that the atmosphere will be open and welcoming
• attitudes will be accepting and non-judgmental
• that all age-groups, from children to retirees, will be listened to, appreciated and encouraged to serve
• that opinions will be valued, without others taking a defensive position
• that language will be inclusive, in both the spoken and the written word

Psalm 37:4 (NIV) ~ "Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires."

A Believer's Prayer

I always thank God for giving me a most beautiful wife who is a constant inspiration to me. I am wonderfully blessed to have such a loving life and ministry partner.

Four years ago, at a time of great personal pain, Dabak composed the words and music to a song she entitled, A Believer's Prayer. Major Howard Davies kindly assisted by writing onto manuscript the vocal parts and piano accompaniment she played. The result was a composition that has blessed me personally on numerous occasions, as well as many others who have heard it since.

Here are the words for your own reflection.

Create in me a heart that’s pure and true
That through my life Your will I’ll gladly do
Equip me Lord, with wisdom from above
That I may know Your peace and love
Through calm or storm Your presence I would know
Through joy or pain Your comfort me bestow
Transformed into Your likeness, Lord, I pray
That I may serve You well today

I believe in Christ we can be strong!
I believe that to Christ we belong!
I believe we live in one accord
And from my heart I thank You Lord!

Your plans for me I may not understand
But this I know, my future’s in Your hand
Help me to always look into Your face
That I may know Your daily grace
Give me that grace to do my Master’s will
Give me Your strength to conquer ev’ry hill
Give me Your pow’r to live victoriously
Your faithful servant now to be