Old Wells

2007-04-25T10:03:00.000-07:00

Battle Ground

On Friday we were on the brink of a major spiritual breakthrough in our prison group. Today we came in to hear that the church service on Sunday had been very disruptive and when we went to get the group from the wing some of our keenest lads had gone to work or to educatioin. The lads that came were tetchy, silly or argumentative. In middle of the afternoon I had to deal with a very complex and delicate situation with a prisoners family that is still unresolved and which took me out of the group.

We are not surprised. We are in a battle for souls and this kind of thing has happened before. We could back off or we could up the prayer. You know what option I want to choose. So all you prayer warriors out there please will you just keep on praying.

God bless

Carol

2007-04-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

Hotchpotch Blog

This blog is a bit of a hotchpotch of things so forgive me if it is a bit all over the place.

Hayley, our youngest daughter is back safe and sound from her inter-railing trip around Europe. She has had a wonderful time and I am so glad I didn't listen to the people who told us we shouldn't let her go.

We did a school assembly about the Bible this morning, which went well until the headmaster had to go and follow up what we said with a politically correct statement about the Koran having wonderful stories in it as well. It might have but its not the word of God, which was the while point of our assembly. Aaaaagh!

Last week I was totally inspired by the story of Marie Ozanne in Flora Larson's book "My best men are women." Having been stationed in the Channel Islands I don't know how I missed hearing about this courageous saint.

Whilst stationed as a Salvation Army officer in Belgium, WW2 broke out and Marie had to return to her native Guernsey, where she reported for duty and was given responsibility for St Sampson Corps.

But then Guernsey was invaded and Salvation Army activities were forbidden. Marie, however simply continued her pastoral duties in full uniform. Every Saturday afternoon she stood in the market place reading her Bible and talking to anyone who dared to stop and listen. The authorities confiscated her uniform so she continued her ministry in civilian clothes and set about learning German because the invaders needed God too.

Marie who was a trained teacher was asked to teach in school but even though it would have made life easier for her she declined the offer, feeling that all her time and energies must be consecrated to her calling as an officer.

On one occasion someone vandalised a public monument and it was announced that unless the guilty one confessed all the islanders would be punished. Marie wrote to the occupation authorities and offered to die in the nameless ones place to save her fellow islanders from punishment. This was refused. She was horrified to hear constant screams from the internee camp where prisoners underwent floggings and torture. Marie went and protested and asked to speak to the camp commandant. Eventually she was such a thorn in the side of officialdom that she was sent to prison herself. From her cell she wrote encouraging messages but her health was failing and she died in February 1943 aged 38.

Interestingly today whilst sorting through some papers I came across a quote from the April 1983 Soldiers Armoury which said, "It is tragic when a Christian destined to be a king among ment, adopts a guise of ordinariness because he fears the consequences of Christian distinctiveness."

Marie Ozanne was certainly not guilty of this and I pray that we won't be either.

God bless

Carol

2007-04-21T01:13:00.000-07:00

Prayer Alert

Please will you pray for the 8 young prisoners in our chaplaincy Quest Group. We have had an amazing week with them. On Wednesday they poured out questions about everything from "Is it remotely possible to wait to have sex and remain faithful to one person for life?" to the dangers of the occult and freemasonry, and "Where do you go when you die?" Their questions revealed the absolute confusion they are in about spiritual and moral issues. It is like someone has used their minds like a mixing bowl in the kitchen, poured in a wide variety of ingredients and then scrambled them up.

But they are so hungry for meaning and hope they all returned on Thursday. My fellow chaplain Becky put on a really long, old fashioned video of the life of Christ and they sat and watched it with intense concentration. At the end there is a prayer of committment, which they were so intrigued by they insisted it be rewound so they could listen to it again.

They were back on Friday for another session, in which we had some light-hearted fun but also read the whole of Psalm 139, and had some deep discussion about heaven and hell. (Thankfully nobody from the politically correct brigade was listening in! ) As we were watching a worship video, the presence of God was all over them. The Holy Spirit, I am convinced was touching something deep in them. It would have been great to have prayed with each of them then but it was "bang up" time and we had to take them back to their cells.

We have decided that next week we are going for a time of worship, a short message and an appeal. Please, please will you pray for God to protect them, keep them hungry and meet with them. Please also pray that we are led by the Spirit to handle this his way.

God bless

Carol

2007-04-20T07:37:00.000-07:00

Fighting on enemy territory

Yesterday I posted a quote from General George Carpenter that said, "Defensive warfare has less to recommend it to the Salvation Army than anyone. We were raised up to fight on enemy territory. Our organization is built upon the commando system, mobile, quick in action, suitable for small groups without dependence upon elaborate equipment."

Graeme Smith, in his comment on the quote quite rightly saw it as supporting the use of small groups in mission. As someone who loves the cell model or ward system as a strategy for reaching and nurturing people in the faith I am delighted to find backing for it from the archives of Army history.

But actually it wasn't that aspect of the quote that really grabbed my attention but the call for Salvationists to invade the devils kingdom rather than simply try and ward off his attacks.
Interestingly, during the same research into Army history during WW2 I also came across Albert Orsborn's assessment of the SA in Great Britain during the war years.

" In the Salvation Army, I speak only for the British Isles we fought a long rearguard action against the devil. There was no question of revival or advance. We were concerned to try to hold our forces together, despite disintegrating influences of war and immediate post-war years.
Our musical sections had been decimated. Even our women soldiers who are so faithful in all forms of voluntary service, were taken up with war-time activities in national undertakings. Interest among the public in spiritual things was at its lowest for many years. Many of our younger officers, starting their vocation between the wars, laboured in vain to win converts. Not for them the crowded halls, the lively street meetings, the stimulating opposition, the crowded Mercy Seat of our earlier days. They were cast in the role of God's unheeded witnesses that he might be justified when a backslidden generation came to judgement."

Perhaps if we had heeded the rest of Carpenter's advice below we might not still be obsessed with survival than taking new territory for the kingdom.

"We must have fire in our hearts to drive us out, to sing, to speak, to pray with a zeal that commands attention and a love that cannot fail!"

What will it be in 2007? Fighting on enemy territory or just a rearguard action?

God bless

Carol

2007-04-19T13:28:00.000-07:00

Keep Mobile

I came across this, whilst doing some other research. It is from the desk of General George L Carpenter in the War Cry - 18th April 1942

"Defensive warfare has less to recommend it to the Salvation Army than to anyone. We were raised up to fight on enemy territory. Our organization is built upon the commando system- mobile, quick in action, suitable for small groups without dependence upon elaborate equipment. We must not forget this, nor allow circumstances to drive us into our buildings when we ought to be outside."

God bless

Carol

2007-04-07T23:43:00.000-07:00

Lethal Weapon

I'll explain the heading in a minute.
So far we have had an excellent holy week. The singing at our Palm Sunday meeting was spine tingling. We don't have a large congregation but wow did they give My Jesus I love thee some wellie. It was much better than the musically excellent choir from St Paul's I was listening to this morning on the radio. It's Easter sunday and they had about as much passion as a wet lettuce!

Through the week we have had our Resource Centre prayer room open. It was lovingly prepared by Jo, who based it on the sayings of Jesus from the cross. Photos were taken and when I get them I will post them. This picture is the outside of our Resource Centre. As you can see its an insignificant little place but hours of prayer were offered from this little room this week that reached out around the world.

We also squeezed into the prayer room for our Good Friday meditation. The Holy Spirit ministered, as we listened to the song "Written in red" And then it was out onto the High Street for the walk of witness that Alan felt convicted to organise. He decided last year that he was going to walk down the High Street on Good Friday carrying a cross. If nobody joined him that was OK but he felt he should do it. As it happened over 80 local Christians joined in.

The cross was too big to go into the car so it had to be carried to the starting place for the march, for a short distance through pavements filled with shoppers. We tried to do this as safely as possible and no-one was bumped but at the crossing, someone said, "You want to watch what you're doing with that, it's a lethal weapon!"

And now I'm off to get ready to celebrate the fact that that lethal weapon, ended up destroying sin and Jesus alive.

We are an Easter people and hallelujah is our song!

God bless

Carol

2007-03-30T10:24:00.000-07:00

Terrible Mother

I am beginning to feel that I am a terrible mother.

On Monday our 18 year old daughter is setting off to travel around Europe by train, on her own!

I've left a gap for the sharp intake of breath every one seems to have when I relate this information. There then follows an incredulous, "Aren't you worried? or "I don't know that I'd let my daughter do that!" One person followed up her comment of "She's brave." with a series of horror stories about abductions!

I also smiled slightly yesterday however at the reaction of the mothers in the parents group I run. They all said that they would not sleep if their daughter was going off on a trip alone and if they did they would have nightmares.

I found it rather ironic because what they would see as normal teenage behaviour for a young girl really would horrify me. I would be far more worried if my daughter was spending all her hard earned cash binge drinking. I would be far more worried if she was going on an 18+ holiday to Majorca. I would be far more worried if she was obsessed with her weight. I would be far more horrified if she was contemplating moving in with her boyfriend, which all of them did when they were her age or younger. I am more concerned about the fact that she didn't agree with me that the bingo game at the pub quiz she went to was gambling!

Actually I am full of admiration for our Hayley and have confidence in her mature, common sense attitude.

I think the difference between me and some of the parents, is that my concern for her is really about what might attack her mind and heart than the physical dangers of travelling alone. And those attacks and pressures have been and will more intense in the work place and at uni than during this trip.

Nevertheless I am not naive and we have put all kinds of safeguards in place for her, like booking accommodation in advance, contacting my cousin who lives in Germany and linking her with a number of SA centres on her carefully planned route and insisting that she phones us every day. And of course first and foremost committing her to God and praying for her every step of the way.

So what do you think?

God bless

Carol

2007-03-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

The power of prayer

In my reports from Ethiopia I mentioned a woman called Desenia which means my sister. We met her in one of the prisons and she has a 22 year sentence for murdering her husband. We know nothing more of the case, other than women in Ethiopia are sometimes driven to desperate measures to escape abuse and the pressures of the hard life they lead.

When we met her, Desenia was very upset about her children. Through translators we understood that her eldest had a job as a domestic and her younger children had been trafficked. There was some misunderstanding because of dialects and we have since discovered that the younger children are with her dead husbands family and are OK. Having said this it is unlikely Desenia will ever see them again. However it was her 14 year old daughter that she was really worried about. Apparently she had run away when her mother was imprisoned because she was worried about reprisals for the murder of her father. She was the one who ended up in some kind of bonded labour and was extremely unhappy.

Desinia's story touched all of us and we have really prayed for her. There is fantastic news!
Last week another couple of friends from Northallerton were out in Ethiopia and visited Desenia again. Prison Fellowship in Ethiopia located the girl. She has been brought to the town where her mother is imprisoned and is being looked after by one of the prison officers. She is able to see Desenia on a regular basis. Prison Fellowship in Northallerton have offered to sponser some of her educational needs.

We don't know the faith background of those involved but it seems that the prison officer who is caring for Desenia's daughter is very wary about Christian influence. She was reassured that our support is unconditional, although we would of course dearly love them all to come to know Jesus. We would be grateful for your prayers.

God bless

Carol

2007-03-28T01:03:00.000-07:00

Wilberforce, National Treasures and revival

We went to see the film Amazing Grace last night. I admit it, I cried at the end. Now that is something of an admission because whilst the rest of my family cry at Bambi, I am known as never crying in films. Acutally it wasn't the film that brought the tears but the statement by one of the characters, "The slave trade has now ended." It was all I could do, not to stand up and shout, "If only that were true."

Anyway it's a great film.

This morning the radio was turned to Radio 2 and Sarah Kennedy was going on about some latest newspaper survey about British National treasures. She was joking about why Wogan wasn't on the list. The list includes, Elton John, Judi Dench and Richard Hammond. These are the characters that apparently the British people see as contributing to the national good and for whom we have great affection. They may be very nice people but national treasures?
Where are the Wilberforce's, the Shaftsbury's, the Booths of our day? Well I suppose we have Bono..........

And revival. Well perhaps that's it. We need a revival to raise up people in our nation who will change society.
Pete Grieg, in Awakening Cry, which I am reading at the moment sees "revival as an extraordinary work of a sovereign God that revitalises the church and transforms society."

His other definition of it is:
"Revival is a process that restores the church to her normative state: as the agent of Christ on earth. It is initiated by God, in reponse to prayerful prepartation, and it is marked by an extraordinary awareness of God in the community at large, particularly among the poor."

God bless

Carol

2007-03-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

Awakening Cry

I've just started reading Awakening Cry by Pete Grieg. I like what I've read so far, which is only the first chapter.

Here he addresses an issue that I blogged about a while backwhich is, revival and normality.
Pete Grieg quotes Robert Coleman, "From the standpoint of New Testement Christianity, there is nothing unusual about the revival experience...... The idea that revival is something of special times and seasons comes from the inconsistant nature of man, not from the will of God."

Pete continues, "Coleman is suggesting that we should regard revival as the revival of normal Christian experience rather than the occasional elevation of it. We are, therefore, currently sub-normal!

He goes on to say:

"Most people assume that revivals are only ever meant to be limited seasons of blessing; an occasional energy boost for an otherwise languid church. Some respected revival theologians argue that God only ever intends the church to advance through sporadic growth spurts; loping down the years from one revival to the next- two steps forward and one step back."

"But the early church appears to have lived in a fairly constant state of revival for nearly three centuries!............The revivals come and go because we are in a battle and not because God intends the church to endure seasons of sub-normality."

The state the church at least in the UK is in is not normal and we shouldn't settle for it.

God bless

Carol

2007-03-23T16:01:00.000-07:00

Testifying to the blessing

I recently gave my testimony at Divisional Councils. I intended to just express my thanks to God for our 23 years in the Yorkshire Division and that we were excited about what God had in store in the future. I found myself testifying to the blessing of holiness. I sat down, thinking that's really done it now because as soon as you testify to living a holy life someone is bound to be thinking, "What a hyprocrite! I bet her husband and her kids could tell a different story!

But it wasn't done in arrogance but in thankfulness. In my early years of officership I was so bound by fears and pride that my service for God was debilitated in many ways but the Lord broke the chains. I know it is possible to overcome the strongholds of sin and live in oneness with Christ on a daily basis.

Thankfully people were gracious and the comment was made that it was a long time since they had heard anyone testify along these lines. I did so in the hope that others might believe for themselves.

I have joined in a debate on holiness that is on Andrew Bale's blog, beyond the brook
The following is my contribution and how I view my daily experience:

"What an inadequate salvation anonymous suggests we have been provided with.

a) Anon says “we strive for holiness but in our broken way……”

Response: Why do so many Christians insist that salvation is through faith but holiness is down to our striving to achieve it?

b)Anon says, "We continue to struggle with sin because sin, the brokenness of all creation is still a problem…….."
Response: I thought Paul said that “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.”

c) Anon says “my own decision to consecrate myself will never be perfect.
Response:
I read once that there are four parts to me
the part known to all
the part known to me and not to others
the part known to others and not to me
the part that is unknown except to God

My understanding of my heart is inadequate and in that sense my decision to consecrate myself will never be perfect. I might be naïve but I simply come to God on a daily basis and lay what I know and what I don’t know about myself on the altar. It’s not a worthy offering in itself but is acceptable because of Jesus’ blood. But just as in the OT the offering on the altar was consumed by fire so I believe through faith is the offering of my life. My offering is not only accepted but transformed through the fire of the Holy Spirit. And because we are in New Covenant times it is a living sacrifice that God can use.

And where the growing in holiness takes place is in the Holy Spirit being at work within to enable me to be honest about the parts known to me and not to others, to receive help from others about the stuff known to them and not to me. The Holy Spirit also reveals in his time and in his way what is hidden to all but God. Then as I am fond of quoting, "my consecration must keep pace with God's revelation." (William Booth)
All still goes on the altar for the fire to consume and use.

God bless

Carol

2007-03-21T15:24:00.000-07:00

Being holy on a Wednesday.

It's not easy being holy on a Wednesday,

-when you start your day with a visit to the dentist.
-when you are in the limbo of being under marching orders but have another four months to go
-when the ironing is breeding in the basket
-when some of the lads in the prison group were a pain today
-when you disagree with someone about an issue
-when you are unsure of how the churches together lent group you are leading will go

In the flesh today I really couldn't be bothered but I knew in my bones that to not be bothered today was to be disobedient to the Lord. So several times today I've said to the Lord, "OK, with you I choose to be bothered. Help me push through.

And it worked. He did help and I got the victory.

Yippeee!

Carol

2007-03-19T13:32:00.000-07:00

Seeking or waiting?

“We seek divine grace today still to obey the call of yesteryear from our Founder, General William Booth: “Go for souls and go for the world souls!” We are called to engage with the lowest. We have to go where they can be found. Salvationism seeks out. It does not sit and wait for the lost to apply for help.” (Shaw Clifton in New Love)

I love that statement. It is what we have been about, particularly for the last 13 as we have been engaged in pioneering Salvation Army work in Ripon and Northallerton. Alan often says he has an “in your face” ministry and that the Salvation Army in Northallerton should “get everywhere” so that people in our town know that we are there for them. Most people in our town are lost but they do not know it so part of our task is to help them to see they need to come home to God.

However I want to add that whilst we do not wait for the lost to apply for help we do need to wait upon the Lord for where to seek them and how to find them. Passion and drive are all very well but we could easily “toil all night and catch nothing” because we have not heard or obeyed the Lord’s command to “throw our nets” in a different direction.

I read this the other day in a sermon somewhere, “The problem too many folk have is a “How can I build a way” mentality. We need to stop trying to make things happen on our own and start looking for the ways God has created.”

These years of planting have been a lesson in keeping the seeking and the waiting in balance.
When we have waited upon the Lord he has always be faithful and directed our paths. He has not let us sit idly by for much time at all. Waiting upon the Lord isn't any less work than trying to build your own way but it has infinitely better results and you don't destroy yourself in the process. Sometimes we have become frustrated and assumed that we had misunderstood God’s leading when results have not been instant or what we expected. But I also praise God that there are those times when we’ve waited upon God, he’s gone with us when we have gone seeking and the lost have been found!

God bless

Carol

2007-03-14T11:51:00.000-07:00

Agent Bond

We've just returned from the Yorkshire Divisional Officers Retreat. It will be our last in this division, in which we have served for the past 23 years and it was probably the best.

We have been blessed to have been part of a division that takes risks and has led the way in the UKT in planting new corps and innovative mission but Commissioner Linda Bond was God's agent in these last few days to, as someone said, make sure we have been "shaken and stirred" to press on to greater things.

In the last 3 days I've almost got tired of saying amen I had to say it so often! What I longed for someone to say about covenant, she said, what I longed for someone to say about holiness, she said, what I hoped someone would say about loving the Army and revival in the Army she said. What I longed for her to say about passion for the lost she said. She touched the heart of what it means to be an officer and what it means to be an officer in these days.

And then the Holy Spirit fell upon us and we rushed to the mercy seat, wept, prayed, pledged our lives into his service and stormed the forts of darkness with our exhuberant praise!

And was it all just stirring stuff? I don't believe so. I believe the Salvation Army, Yorkshire, the UKT and maybe the world will see the fruit of what the Holy Spirit did in us in these days.

God bless

Carol

2007-03-05T14:24:00.000-08:00

The Home Front

It's been ages since I did a blog. After all the excitement of Ethiopia, finding out our new appointment and the cell church conference my mind seemed to have so much to process that I couldn't seem to get it together for a blog.

I am grateful that life has not been flat and boring, since what for me was a momentous trip. This is not because anything particularly spectacular has happened but because I sense the Lord's hand is upon the future of Northallerton, our appointment to Pill and ministry opportunities I believe God will open up.

And even though there are only a few months left for us in Northallerton, there is I believe more that God has for us to do on this home front before we leave. So this blog is just a little update of where we are now.

Our little fellowship have to face the fact that as well as losing their "founding pastors" from July they will no longer have full time leadership. This is hard for them but they are showing some real backbone. They have responded with faith, and an openness to do what it takes to keep the flag flying. We love them.

Some in our fellowship have some health concerns so we had a healing service on Sunday and whilst we are believing for physical healing the whole process of reaching out in love for the needs of one another is deepening relationships.

The parents group I run at the school is growing and I really pray that this can be kept going. Just recently the Family Tracing Service was able to put one of the mums in touch with her Dad who she hasn't seen since she was a small child. The group were also really interested in my Ethiopia trip. I couldn't explain the pictures I showed them, without telling them the testimonies of the people they were seeing, so it was a brilliant opportunity to share faith in a natural way. A dad that has joined the group has SA connections and is interested in Alpha. The Kid's Alive club is also busier than it has ever been.

Alan continues to work in the town centre. He has so many contacts that it takes ages to walk from one end of the High Street to the other! He is planning to walk up it on Good Friday carrying a cross. A number of us have said we will go with him. The police are fine about it but there are still some daft "more than our jobs worth" restrictions to overcome from the council.

In the prison we just keep on with what we are doing. We are blessed at the moment with a Governor who really values Chaplaincy and often drops into our groups. He has recently started going to Church. We just tell the lads about Jesus and they listen, ask questions and some have come to faith. One lad not long ago had the courage to give his testimony in a chapel service which is fantastic.

If you want an easy life you don't decide to become a Church Planter. We have been planting for 13 years so we know that is true. This plant has had its fair share of difficulties and in the past conflicts. Yet God is keeping the promise he gave us from Genesis 26:22 "He named it Rehoboth, saying, "Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land."

God bless

Carol

2007-02-24T08:47:00.000-08:00

OKOK

This is Okok. His name, believe it or not means "little white bird" He is 6ft 7in tall and well you can see for yourself!

What a story this man had to tell.

He was in England studying for a degree in agriculture and rural affairs when he became a Christian. On return to Ethiopia he had a job working for the government and a call upon his heart to share the gospel. Following the impulse of the Holy Spirit, he began singing and preaching under a tree.

This was 15 years ago. There are now 30,000 members in his church in 98 congregations!!

His faithfulness had not been without cost. During this 15 years he has spent over 3 years in prison as a political prisoner. He decribed how he felt abandoned by God and couldn't at first understand why he was locked up, covered in lice and in such a terrible place. He felt like Naomi, who called herself Marah, meaning bitterness. But then God spoke to him and gave him the same promise that he gave to Paul in Acts 27 when he was a prisoner and shipwrecked. "God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you." God kept his promise and he saw many fellow prisoners come to faith, their lives saved to serve God. He believes that when many of these influential men leave prison they will have a great impact on his nation.

This was a big man, in more ways that one. It was an honour to meet him and I have never felt so humbled when at the conference the UK team were called to the front to be prayed for and Okok prayed an impassioned prayer for us. May God answer his prayers and may we be as faithful and obedient to God's call as he is.

God bless

Carol

2007-02-24T08:17:00.000-08:00

Amanuel

Part of our time in Addis Ababa was to take part in a Pastors Conference. The pastor I am with in the photo is Amanuel and he gave me permission to share his story.

About ten years ago Amanuel was in a desperate state. He had an alcohol and a drug problem which had developed following tragedy in his family. His mother had become ill and this so upset his youngest brother, aged 11 that he shot and killed himself. His mother, broken hearted

did not live long afterwards. Hearing this another brother living in Russia, also committed suicide and then another brother did the same. Hoping to find some kind of escape from all that had happened Amanuel took his wife and young son and emigrated to Kenya (I think) This was disastrous and he found himself struggling to have enough to live on and they had to return to Ethiopia.
Amanuel believed in God, and started to cry out to him for help and having been brought up in the Orthordox tradition thought that fasting might move God into acting on his behalf and help him to care for his son. So he locked himself in his room every day and cried out to God. Nothing changed and he was nearly at the end of himself when his sister who had become a Christian invited him to a meeting at the Pentecostal Church. Whilst he was there, a visiting minisiter began giving words of prophecy for various people in the congregation. Amanuel got increasingly angry. He had been fasting for weeks, crying out to God and yet God had no word for him. And then suddenly he heard the minister say that there was someone in the church who had been locked in his room, crying out to God for his son. God had heard his cry. Amanuel was amazed and from that moment his life turned around. Today he is free from his addictions, healed of his pain, and a church leader. He travelled with us to some of the prisons and was an excellent translator for us and a gracious man of God. I also discovered that he had been reading Finney's revival lectures in the back of the van whilst we were travelling. I couldn't believe I had found a Finney fan!
He had also heard of the Salvation Army. Most Ethiopian Christians had never heard of us and were highly amused that I was a major. However I'm not sure he had quite got the historical context of the beginnings of the army as he asked me if William Booth was still alive!

If you read this Amanuel, God bless you and we are praying for you.

God bless

Carol

2007-02-24T07:03:00.000-08:00

While women weep.................

In each of the prisons we visited in Ethiopia we were also allowed to visit the women prisoners and their children. It was these visits that had the most profound affect upon the team. Even now as I write my emotions rise when I think of their situation. It is true that some have plenty of space but on entering their huts we are silenced at the deprivation of their living conditions. There is a mud floor and only one out of the five or six women has a mattress to sleep on. They are totally dependent upon what family and friends will bring them from outside. None have mosquito nets and their few possessions are hung on hooks in plastic carrier bags on the walls. There is a single light bulb hanging from the corrugated roof that gives the only light in their windowless home. It is hot and dirty. Some of their children share this accommodation, others are being looked after by family or people in their village, others when they have reached the age of 12 will have been thrown out onto the streets to fend for themselves. We conferred together and decided that we had enough beurre between us to buy each woman a mattress. Prison fellowship would organise this for us.

We were able to talk to the women through our interpreters and discover their stories. One was a mother with a toddler, she was also pregnant. Her husband and two other children were in the prison next door. They are accused of perverting the course of justice because they turned their lights out when a local man, involved in a violent crime was on the run. They have no legal aid and no idea when their case will come to court. The women will have her baby in the hut, having had no pre-natal care. If she gets into difficulties the prison authorities will at least get her to a clinic in the town. If I never do anything else worthwhile in my officership I will never forget the privilege of praying with this women, the sense of the presence of God and the tears we all shared.

We heard story after story but perhaps Desinia's which means my sister represents them all. Her sentence is 22 years for killing her husband. 50% of the women in prison here are in for this crime. It should be remembered that most of them were put into arranged marriages at the age of about 12 and committed to a life of yearly child-bearing, fetching and carrying water, and scraping a living from the land, perhaps suffering terrible abuse and may have been infected with HIV by their husbands. Desinia's children are not with her. Her eldest is 14 and a domestic servant, another child is in the care of people from her village but is very unhappy and her youngest two children she believes are victims of human trafficking. She is in despair. Never have I prayed with such intensity that righteousness might flow like a river and justice like a never ending stream.

Evangeline Booths words seemed very poignant when I read them the next day.

I see forsaken children, I see the tears that fall

From womens eyes once merry now never laugh at all;

I see the see the sins and sorrows of those who sit in darkness

I see in lands far distant the hungry and oppressed

But behold! On a hill, Calvary!

The world for God, the world for God

I will give my heart!

I will do my part.

God bless

Carol

2007-02-17T13:31:00.000-08:00

Prison Visitors

I travelled to Ethiopia with three others, all from Northallerton. Leading the trip was Rev. Kingsley Armstrong, who is the president of International Gospel Outreach. Kingsley travels all over the world as an evangelist and also supports people in mission in places such as Ghana, Uganda, Pakistan, the Ivory Coast and Guatamala. Becky is a fellow prison chaplain in Northallerton YOI and Ally, a staff nurse is a prison visitor.

During our week long stay we visited 5 prisons, where we preached, talked to prisoners, prayed with them and reviewed practical needs which can be met by our fund raising. We visited men and women. I loved it. God is at work in the prisons in Ethiopia. There is a hunger for the gospel and many are getting saved. A pattern emerged as we got to each prison. We would be met by the chaplain, who would take us to see the Commander of the prison. They were usually delighted to see us as Prison Fellowship have done so much to improve conditions. Then we would be taken to a pre- arranged service in the chapel where we would each introduce ourselves and share a word from the Bible, the ladies would sing and then Kingsley would preach.

Our interpreter was Israel, a lovely Christian who works for PF. He has a lovely wife called Blane and a son called, Hallelujah!

Please would you pray for the following. One evening I was praying about what I would share the next day in the prison and I felt strongly that I should speak about God hearing us and us hearing God and that there would be someone there who needed physical healing for their ears.
I was somewhat nervous the next day about sharing this as there were only 15 prisoners in the service due to the timing of our visit clashing with the distribution of free meat. If there were 100 or more in the service the chances of someone having a hearing problem were higher but in 15? Anyway I decided to risk sharing what I thought God was saying and immediately a prisoner put his hand up, came forward and I prayed for him. I have now idea if he was healed as we had to leave before I had a chance to speak to him.

On another occasion again as I was preparing what I would say I sensed God telling me there would be someone in the crowd who was fighting God. I spotted him during Kingsleys sermon. He didn't respond with the other 15 who got saved that day so I called him out afterwards and shared what I felt God was saying about him. He listened and let me pray for him but that is all. Please pray for this lad. I believe God has his hand on him to be a leader.

I was hoping to do a blog every day next week but I forgot I am away at SA Cell Church Conference from tomorrow so I'll have wait to share my Ethiopia stuff until I get back.

God bless

Carol

2007-02-17T10:03:00.000-08:00

A world away

4 am and its -4 as I leave the quarters to begin my journey to Ethiopia. We arrive at about midnight their time and to summer.

But the weather and the time are insiginificant differences compared to the streets of Addis Ababa early the following morning, as we set out, for prayers at the Prison Fellowship offices. My eyes are on stalks as we pass through a modern city of new office blocks, horrendous traffic (mostly toyotas) and people rushing off to work and school. But at the same time there are small boys steering their goat herds along the pavement, donkeys pulling carts, beggars pleading at the window of the van when you pull up, women carry their babies on their backs, tin roofed shacks, and tiny shops selling anything and everything, shoe shine stalls and unmade side roads with children playing their games. It's a culture shock indeed.

And then suddenly we are ushered into the prayer meeting. They are singing in a middle eastern style and it sounds strange but immediately we are at home. Jesus is there. I have visited several countries now and it is always the same. I have a moment of complete wonder and joy at the universality of the gospel. I hear the same passion, see the same love and these are my brothers and sisters.

The staff at Prison Fellowship Ethiopia are wonderful and doing an absolutely amazing ministry but we do not have time to talk as very quickly it was time to set off for our first prison visit.

2007-02-16T07:05:00.000-08:00

Wanderer returns

Landed in England this morning from an amazing trip to Ethiopia. There is just so much to blog about I don't know where to begin. I think I may blog on a different thing from the trip, each day for a week with pictures etc, starting tomorrow. Today my head is a whirl, I need some sleep and for my stomach to recover from Ethiopian food.

Just to say for those who don't know. We received marching orders whilst I was on my way out to Addis Abiba. We are following Andrew and Tracy Clark to Pill in the South West Division. We are delighted. It will be strange to go back to our home division and to leave Yorkshire after 23 years. However we believe that God is in this move and we are praying that God will do ever more than we can ask or think of in Pill.

God bless

Carol

2007-02-05T13:33:00.000-08:00

Adventure Week

Whoever said that being a Christian was boring?
How can it be when God arranges so many adventures for us?

Some months ago I was invited to go to Ethiopia with some friends from the local Baptist church, a result of my involvement in prison ministry here in Northallerton. When I agreed it seemed a long way off but now the trip is two days away.

We are only going for a week but whilst we are there we will be visiting four prisons and taking part in a Pastors Conference. This all involves a lot of travelling on African roads! One of the prisons we visit is for women. My fellow prison chaplain, Becky, visited here last year and was so moved by the need that she produced a CD to raise funds to improve their conditions. At the end of November "our lads" and some of the staff in Northallerton Prison also raised over £400 towards the cause. The women live in a very confined space with little privacy, with toilet facilities in the mens wing. Most of them have very long sentences and have their children with them until they are 12 years old. Then they face the ordeal of not only being separated from them but knowing that they are going out to fend for themselves unless a sympathetic relative will care for them. We are going to see how the money raised has been used. There is an amazing openess to the gospel and lots of genuine conversions in the prisons there so you can guess I am just a bit excited.

We fly out at 5am. Our marching orders will arrive in the post at about 11am. Fortunately our DC has agreed that we can ring him at about 7am so Alan can ring me whilst I change planes at Amsterdam! We have no idea where we might be going. Like I said being a Christian is an adventure!

I just love it!

Anyway obviously it will be difficult to post for a week but I'll probably write screeds when I get back.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-28T05:44:00.000-08:00

Revival and normality

I read this comment recently about revival and the Salvation Army.

"We were born in revival but we cannot live in revival. It is not the normal state of the Church."

I agree that it is not the normal state of the church but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be should it?
Does God intend for us to swing from fervour to apostasy, from passion to lukewarmness? It may have been the pattern of history but is that because God wants it that way?

I can't believe that, when the Bible clearly says that God wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the gospel. If he has chosen the church to be his body on earth to deliver this message then why would he only pour out the fullness of his Spirit to some generations and not others, to some lands and not others, to some denominations and not others?

The only reason I can think of that the blessings of revival times are not evident all the time is because God's people have ceased to keep in step with him and have fallen into compromise and sin. If that is true then we need to confess our sin and repent.

But resisting God, allowing a coldness in our relationship with God to come in makes our hearts hard and resistant. We lay ourselves open to the deceitfulness of the evil one who convinces us that low level faith, low level commitment, and low level effectiveness is acceptable.

Yet God is so gracious. He moves by his Holy Spirit to convict and soften hearts, to open eyes and ears to stir us to life again. Sometimes he convicts us through his word, sometimes through prophetic voices, dreams and visions or whatever he chooses. There are times when our hearts are so hard that he has to withdraw his manifest presence so that we will desperately long for intimacy and power.

I believe God does everything, except take away our free will so that Christians can be an effective body of Christ on earth. 2 Peter 1:3 "His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness."

It is up to us to respond in repentance and obedience
Revival is only necessary because we refuse total submission to God and fail to receive what he has provided.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-26T08:11:00.000-08:00

Life and death decisions

Andrew Bale's prophecy that the future survival of the Salvation Army being decided in the next ten years resonates with me and as others have commented God has been saying similar things to them as well I would like to add what I believe God revealed to me along similar lines.

In February 2005 my husband, Alan and I were at a conference and after a day of teaching and interaction with other people seeking reach our communities with the gospel in the 21st Century I went back to our billet and was praying and reflecting upon all that had gone on that day. All day I had had a sense of urgency and conviction that these days are not days when we can afford to avoid issues concerning the situation the Salvation Army is in, not just for our own survival but for the sake of the lost.

As I prayed back in our room in our billet, the presence of the Holy Spirit seemed to come over me like a wave that almost took my breath away. And I don’t know how to really describe what happened next, except to say that if I hadn’t been so aware of being in someone else’s house the most natural thing for me to do would have been to cry out in the way someone would if they heard the shocking news that a loved was in a critical condition.

I was left questioning the Lord about what all this meant so I continued to pray and a picture came into my mind of conjoined twins, both alive but at a point where if either were to survive there must be a critical decision of separation. And the cry came to my mind, “Don’t let my baby die.”

It seemed to me to be a picture of the struggle between two forms of salvationism. Initially I thought that this picture was about the stuggle between the new and the old ways of doing mission in the 21st century and that one had to give way to the other or both would die. But on reflection I believe the picture is not about methods or structures. Instead it is about there being two kinds of salvationism, the carnal and the holy.

Later I learned more about conjoined twins and discovered that often the larger twin appears to be the healthiest and struggles less. However this can be because it is lazy and rather than fight for life itself, saps the life out of the smaller twin. The smaller twin has to have a passion for life to keep going. Worldly salvationism appears at the moment to be the most dominant.

If there is no separation then both babies will perish. To separate means that a choice has to be made that one of the twins will die. However the one with the greatest chance is the one who has already learned to fight for life in the womb.

All I know from all this is that the cry that came from within me, "Don't let my baby die," felt like it was the cry of the Spirit within me. I believe the Holy Spirit wants the Salvation Army child to live. But it can't live as conjoined twins, one being worldly and one living in the spirit of holiness. Unless the crucial choice is made life, expectancy is short. To submit to surgery is
risky and requires great faith, The choice is as difficult, as crucial and as painful as parents of conjoined twins having to decide to separate them. Knowing that to do nothing might destroy both and to act is to quite literally decide which shall live and which shall die.

Worldliness actually shouldn't live so why is it painful to separate from it? It is because we are often fooled because outwardly it looks attractive, strong, more successful than holiness and we don't want to really believe that we have to choose. We want both the world and holiness but that is impossible. One must die so the other might live.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-24T09:59:00.000-08:00

How do you know?

On the back of my blog on conversion I have been asked the following question:

"I would like to know how you know if you have a real conversion."

I will make an attempt at an answer but it would be great to have others give their responses too.
Here we go:

A long time ago a very wise man called Jonathan Edwards said that the main sign of a true conversion was a change in our affections, that is a change in our desires. When we are converted God implants a new love within us for him. One of my favourite verses is Romans 5:5 "And hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

We know we are converted when our reason for being is loving God with all our heart, mind and soul. I would say we know we are converted when we start with God and we live the rest of life in relation to him. Our life circles around him. He is not an add on to life but is our life.

Dr E Stanley Jones whom I quoted in my original blog wrote, "The Way (of Christ) is not negative. You are not a Christian because you don't do this that or the other. You are a Christian when life is centred in Christ and not in yourself. You are emptying your hands to grasp a whole Christ."

What religious but unconverted people often do is add God into the various aspects of their lives but actually life really circles around gratification of their needs. God is part of life because they recognise that there is a gap that needs filling. God is part of their life because there is a fear of the consequence of not acknowledging his reality. God is part of their life because they want what the church offers.

The Bible shows us that the ability to put Christ at the centre rather than our ego is the result of the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, to whom we have submitted our hearts. We are not converted through trying to work up love for God or supressing our love for lesser things, like ourselves, other people, or physical and emotional gratification.
We are converted by surrendering our lives into his hands for him to make the change.

In Romans 8:16 Paul says that if we do that the Holy Spirit will give us an assurance within that we are made new and that we are converted. It is extremely difficult to explain such an assurance to someone who has not experienced it. It is a bit like trying to explain what something tastes like to someone who has never tried it. You can make comparisons but the only way someone is going to know the assurance of the Spirit is as the Bible says, "taste and see that the Lord is good."

To sum up: You know when you are converted because

a) God is not a hobby or a duty but the love of your life

b) The Holy Spirit has revealed it to you

I've gone on long enough and I hope this helps to answer the question.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-23T10:39:00.000-08:00

Classic Gowans

"Worship without obedience is a bad smell in the nostrils of God."

God bless
Carol

2007-01-20T07:43:00.000-08:00

Army on parade but not on the battlefield

Andrew B has blogged a timely prophecy on beyondthebrook, based on Isaiah 1. It resonated with me given two recent experiences.

I went on an officers discussion page, where someone had asked for advice about dealing with the demonic. The answers he got in the main were leave this alone and ask a priest to come in and deal with it. Now I wouldn' want anyone wading into to something ill-equipped and without adequate prayer cover and with a blase attitude but what kind of army are we if we have to ask others to fight the battles that God raised us up to fight? What right have we to call ourselves a Salvation Army, sing about tearing down the devils kingdom if we run at the first hint of a tiny demon! We are an army on parade but absent from the battlefield.

The second thing was watching a vintage clip of a SA open air meeting and the 1904 Congress on www.sermonindex.net It made me cry and my heart ache for that pioneer spirit to be restored.

On my knees

Carol

2007-01-18T13:41:00.000-08:00

More on Conversion

I just went on the http://www.sermonindex.net/ as recommended by Andrew on his Beyond the brook blog and lo and behold the first sermon on the list by Leonard Ravenhill was on the very subject I'd just blogged about. So I just had to download the following quote:

"I am convinced that many evangelicals are not truly and soundly converted. Among the evangelicals it is entirely possible to come into membership, to ooze in by osmosis, to leak through the cells of the church and never know what it means to be born of the Spirit and washed in the blood. A great deal that passes for the deeper life is nothing more or less than basic Christianity. There is nothing deeper about it, and it is where we should have been from the start. We should have been happy, joyous, victorious Christians walking in the Holy Spirit and not fulfilling the lusts of the flesh. Instead we have been chasing each other around the perpetual mountain.What we need is what the old Methodists called a sound conversion. There is a difference between conversion and a sound conversion. People who have never been soundly converted do not have the Spirit to enlighten them. When they read the Sermon on the Mount or the teaching passages of the epistles that tell them how to live or the doctrinal passages that tell how they can live, they are unaffected. The Spirit who wrote them is not witnessing in their hearts because they have not been born of the Spirit."

God bless

Carol

2007-01-18T12:57:00.000-08:00

Conversion

I am reading a book by Dr E Stanley Jones on Conversion. The reason I was attracted to the book is because I have always liked his stuff ever since as a kid I picked up his book The Way from my Mum's bookshelf. It was also because I think the word "conversion" is hardly heard these days to describe the work of God in a person's life. We talk about people "coming to faith" or making a committment or giving their lives to Christ. They are not bad phrases but we are surely missing a vital thing if we forget that being a Christian involves to quote Dr Stanley "a change in character and life followed by an outer change of allegiance corresponding to that inner change."

God bless

Carol

2007-01-16T09:57:00.000-08:00

Self-Denial

We recently received the publicity for Self-Denial Missionary Appeal

The slogan this year is “Stick up for people in need! Stick your money in here, please! Give it up for the Lord!

Be warned this is a bit of a ramble but this raises for me again the whole subject of how we handle our material wealth. I have to admit I am more than a little uncomfortable with some of the things that are suggested we give up, a week’s wages, chocolate biscuits, tea, newspapers or whatever else we can think of. It’s not that I am unwilling to give any of those things up. It’s rather that whilst I can choose which luxury to give up, many of my fellow Salvationists around the world will be wondering about which basic necessity they will have to do without this week. And let’s face it might be more realistic for some Salvationists to replace items like chocolate, newspapers and tea with the villa in Spain, the second car, the widescreen TV and the dishwasher, for there to be any real sacrifice involved.

I’m not just having a go at others. In 2000 we inherited a moderate amount of money that we have committed to be used mainly for the education of our daughters to prevent them getting into student debt, but it still feels like a luxury to have that cushion of security in the bank. Even though we don’t touch it to live on day to day I can still see areas of my life where I should live more simply and sacrificially.

And before anyone asks I’m sorting it. But there are all kinds of dilemmas you face like how to buy a simple thing like a skirt, or my weekly groceries ethically. What’s the difference between being responsible and being mean? When are material blessings something we should accept as a gift from God and enjoy them and when should we deny ourselves?
How do we stop ourselves getting so wound up with it all that we become sour faced, pious and boring?

So, what about Self Denial Appeal? Is it wrong to still have it? No I don’t think so but we surely have to close the wideness of the gap between our luxury and the majority of the world’s poverty by taking a hard look at how we live our lives every day. So that when we do come to the annual focus on missionary giving what we actually give is a sacrifice not what is at present for many of us the cream off the top of a very rich pie.

Wouldn’t the Self-Denial Missionary Appeal be the place to begin living differently all the year round.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-14T15:04:00.000-08:00

Saints

There are times when the saints drive you loopy but other times when you are just so encouraged and stirred up by their example. So thanks Lord for all the saints I met this week who helped and encouraged me by living for Jesus.

Monday:
Went to listen to the Archbishop of York in All Saints Church Northallerton. It was packed out. He preached the gospel, and to every difficult question he was asked he just kept bringing everything back to Jesus and having Jesus in you. This guy is having real impact.

Tuesday:
North Yorks team meeting. All of us face huge challenges in mission but able to pray with passion, authority and honesty for one another. Also a meeting at DHQ where we were given time, were listened to and received with graciousness. I'm putting that on record because people are often so quick to criticise but not so quick to acknowledge when they are trying to discern what God wants.

Wednesday:
Cell group at our house. Just so good to see this group expressing by word and action the values upon which Northallerton Outreach is built
Always evangelising
Becoming disciples
Creating true community
Demonstrating Christ's love
Engaging in ministry
Focussing on Jesus

Thursday
I don't say it often enough but it's really great being in ministry with my husband. God forbid that the army should ever lose this precious model of shared ministry.

Friday
It's Friday so it's my friend Becky and I in prison. Subject for the group today, "What do I believe?" At the end one of the lads it very genuinely had had his faith in Jesus re-ignited! Hallelujah! Then our usual good humoured debate with the Imam about the state of the world and the madness of political correctness, followed by Tesco's. In Tesco's cafe, Becky and I get stuck into bacon sandwiches, and deep theology. Becky is God's gift to me and a true Christian friend. We're both excited that next month we're travelling to Ethiopia together, to support chaplaincy work in prisons over there. I'm praying my visa comes OK.

Saturday
Geraldine Latte leading an evening of worship at the Baptist church. Inspired. Our God is an awesome God.

Sunday
Preached on Ph 1:12-26. I want to be like Paul, who even in chains was able to encourage others to speak the word of God.

"Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly." v 14

God bless

Carol

2007-01-10T14:21:00.000-08:00

Hearing God

To be honest we have been through a time of uncertainty and questioning about whether our original vision for Northallerton was from God, given some of the stuff that was happening or not happening here.

There are many times when God has spoken very clearly into my life and times when he has graciously used me to communicate prophetically into the lives of others. This was not one of those times!! Despite regularly bending God's ear (if that is possible) it seemed that he was not going to give me a "word" on the situation so that I could know what to do and what to fight for.

Instead my times in his word always seemed to lead to verses that focussed on his character and that is all. And of course that is more than enough. That is all I really needed.
So for example I was able to write in my prayer diary, "Read Psalm 89 Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. It is a rock in a sea of uncertainty."

I have also re-discovered the truth that one of the ways of God is to take you to the wire, to what seems like the last possible moment before he steps in, speaks and provides. The story of Abraham laying Isaac, the child of promise on the altar of sacrifice has been very real to us.

I would also want to say we are very humbled and thankful for the mature and godly way our people are responding to some big challenges. They are all stars.

God bless

Carol

2007-01-01T04:53:00.000-08:00

31st December

Christ our Friend

"The soul needs to know Christ, not merely as a master but as a Friend (John 15:13-15) Most Christians seem not to have apprehended the condescension of Christ sufficiently to appreciate fully, not to say at all, his most sincere regard for them. They seem afraid to regard him in the light of a friend, one whom they may approach on all occasions with the utmost confidence and holy familiarity, one who takes a lively interest in all their trials and feels more tenderly for them than they do for their nearest earthly friends." (Finney)

1st January

Christ our elder brother

Mt 28:10 Romans 8:29 Hebrews 11:10-18

Christ is not merely a friend but a brother. He is a brother possessing the attributes of God. He is not ashamed to call us brethren and shall we refuse or neglect to embrace him in this relation and avail ourselves of all that is implied in it? He says to the desponding and tempted soul, "Am I not a man and a brother?" He is the first born among manhy brethren and yet we are heirs with him, heirs of God and joint heirs with him of all the infinite riches of the Godhead." (Finney)

Happy New Year

God bless

Carol

2006-12-30T12:54:00.000-08:00

3oth December

Christ is the strength of our heart

Psalm 73:26 My flesh and my heart faileth but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

"What Christian has not at times found himself ready to halt and faint by the way. Temptation seems to steal upon him like a charm. He finds his spiritual strength very low, his resolution weak and he feels as if he should give way to the slightest temptation. He finds himself empty, all weakness and trembling. Were it not that the strength of his heart interposes in time he would doubtless realise in his experience his worst fears.
But who that knows Christ has not often also experienced his faithfulness under such circumstances and felt an immortal awaking, reviving and stength taking posession of his whole being? Christ the stength of his heart develops his own almightiness within him. Christ has girded him to the battle and made strong the armso fo his hands with the strength of the mighty God of Jacob." (Finney)

2006-12-29T14:28:00.000-08:00

December 29th

Christ our Sanctification

Christ is not the Sanctifier in the sense that he does something to the soul that enables it to stand and persevere in holiness in its own strength. He does not change the structure of the soul but he watches over and works in it to will and to do continually and this becomes its sanctification. His influence is not exerted once and for all but constantly. When he is apprehended and embraced as the soul's sanctification he rules in and reigns over the soul in so high a sense that he, as it were, swallows us up, so enfolds, if I may say, our wills and our souls in his, that we are willingly led captive by him. We will and do what he wills in us. He charms the will into a universal bending to his will. He so established his throne in us and his authority over us that he subdues us to himself. He becomes our sanctification only in so far forth as we are revealed to ourselves and he revealed to us and as we receive him and put him on.

What! has it come to this, that the Church doubts and rejects the doctrine of entire sanctification in this life? Then, it must be that it has lost sight of Christ as its sanctification. Is not Christ perfect in all his relations? Is there not a completeness and fulness in him? When embraced by us are we not complete in him? The secret of all this doubting about and oppostion to the doctrine of entire sanctification is to be found in the fact that Christ is not apprehended and embrace as our sanctification." (Finney)

2006-12-28T01:15:00.000-08:00

Boxing Day

Governor

"We also need him revealed to the soul as the one upon whose shoulders is the government of the world; who administers the government, moral and providential of this world for the protection, discipline and benefit of all believers. This revelation has a most sin-subduing tendency. That all events are directly or indirectly controlled by him who has so loved us as to die for us; that all things absolutely are designed for and will surely result in our good." (Finney)

December 27th

Prince of Peace

"Whoever knows and has embraced Christ as his peace and as the Prince of peace knows what it is to have the peace of God rule in his heart. But none else at all understand the true spiritual import of this language, nor can it be so explained to them as that they will apprehend it, unless it is explained by the Holy Spirit." (Finney)

December 28th

Captain of salvation

"The fact is that when the soul is ignorant of Christ as Captain or Leader, it will surely fall in battle. If the Church, as a body, but knew Christ as the Captain of the Lord of Host; if he were truly and spiritually known to them in that relation, no more confusion would be seen in the ranks of God's elect. All would be order and strength and conquest. They would soon go up and take possession of the whole territory that has been promised to Christ." (Finney)

God bless

Carol

2006-12-25T12:52:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day

Mighty God

" What is Christ to anyone who does not know him as God? To such a soul, he cannot be a Saviour. It is impossible that the soul should intelligently, without idolatry, commit itself to him as a Saviour unless it knows him to be the true God. It cannot innocently pray to him nor worship him, nor commit the soul to his keeping and protection until it knows him as Mighty God. To be orthodox merely in theory, in opinion, is nothing to the purpose of salvation. The soul must know Christ as God- must believe in or receive him as such. To receive him as anything else is an infinitely different thing from coming and submitting to him as the true and living and Mighty God." (Finney)

O come let us adore him
Christ the Lord

Happy Christmas

Carol

2006-12-23T23:44:00.000-08:00

23rd December

Wonderful

"The soul needs to be needs to be so aquainted with him as to excite and constantly keep awake its wonder and adoration. Contemplate Christ from any point of view and the wonder of the soul is excited. Look at any feature of his character at any department of the plan of salvation, at any part that he takes in the glorious work of man's redemption; look steadfastly at him as he is revealed through the gospel through the Holy Spirit at any time and any place , in any of his works or ways and the soul will instantly exclaim, WONDERFUL!" (Finney)

24th December

Counsellor

"Until he is known and embraced in this relation it is not natural or possible for the soul to go to him with implicit faith in every case of doubt. Almost everybody holds in theory the propriety and necessity of consulting Christ, in respect to the affairs that concern ourselves and his Church. But it is one thing to hold this opinion and quite another to apprehend and embrace Christ so spiritually in the relation of counsellor as naturally to call him Counsellor when approaching him in secret and as naturally to turn to consult him on all occassions and in respect to everything that concerns us and to consult him too with implicit confidence in his ability and willingness to give us the direction we need." (Finney)

2006-12-22T08:40:00.000-08:00

21st December

Risen for our justification

"We also need to know Christ as risen for our justification. He arose and lives to procure our certain acquittal, or our complete pardon and acceptance witn God. We need to know that he lives and is our justification to break the bondage of legal motives and to slay all selfish fear , to break and destroy the power of temptation from this source." Finney

22nd December

Man of sorrows

"The clear apprehension of Christ as being made sorrowful for us and as bending under sorrows and griefs which in justice belonged to us tends at once to render sin unspeakably odious and Christ infinitely precious to our souls. We need to have Christ revealed to us so as to completely ravish and engross our affections that we would sooner die at once than sin against him, Is such a thing impossible? No it is not. Is not the Holy Spirit able and willing and ready thus to reveal him upon condition of our asking in faith? Surely he is." Finney

2006-12-21T13:14:00.000-08:00

Name above all names

This week has been manic so I must admit that I haven't had time for an in depth study of Leviticus. However I am also acutely aware of the danger of ignoring the one in whose name all of this activity is done and every year I look for the things that God wants me like Mary to ponder on and treasure. And this year I picked up Finney's book on sanctification and found a book full of the names of Jesus. So if I can remember to post them I will put a different name on up to Christmas Day until 12th night.

December 20th
Substitute
"It is one thing for the soul to regard the death of Christ merely as the death of a martyr and an infinitely different thing as every one knows who has had the expeirence to apprehend his death as a real veritable and vicarious sacrifice for our sins, as being a substitute for our death. The soul needs to apprehend Christ as suffering on the cross for it so that it can say, "That sacrifice is for me, that suffering and that death are for my sins, that blessed Lamb is slain for my sins. If a full apprehension and appropriation of Christ cannot kill sin in us, what can?" (Finney)

God bless

Carol

2006-12-12T08:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas Rush

I suddenly realised that is is almost two weeks since I posted but like everyone else I'm caught up in the whirlwind of Christmas and all the extra stuff that happens.

There is a lot going on and sometimes it all seems such a hassle and then you get those lovely moments that make it all worth while. Here are just a few.

Dave, a "gentleman of the road" turned up this weekend. He usually does this time of year and has spent a number of Christmas Days with us. The good news is that he won't be with us this year. I am delighted not because he is bad company, (in fact we will miss him) but because he is going to spend Christmas with his Dad. This is fantastic news. Please pray he won't get drunk and blow his chances of repairing this relationship.

Jack, aged 12 and a junior soldier did his first stint of carolling this year, having been learning to play tenor horn for the last 8 weeks. OK so he isn't ready for the ISB but he did really, really well considering how long he has been learning. He stood proudly in his army hoody, refusing to cover it up with his coat and enjoyed himself so much, he can't wait for next year!

There was something quite wonderful about singing "Who is he in yonder stall" on Sunday morning. It was one of those koinonia moments when Jesus really is at the heart of the worship.

Today someone put a donation through our door today. It was for a £1000!!!!

We have had an email from fellow God's Messenger, Major Joan Gibson who is a senior midwife at Howard Hospital, Zimbabwe. The good news is she has got her work permit for another 3 years and her students have done really well but there are lots of challenges. She writes of just a few.
" The hospital continues to be very busy and although the official statistics show that the national HIV rate is down to 18% we are still seeing a lot of people who are postive. At present we have around 600 patients on anti-retro viral treatment and another 300 waiting for drugs. Drugs have been in short supply recently and as a result we have not been able to start any new patients on treatment. The situation changed last week and we have now been informed that we can start 6 new patients per week. The drugs make a huge difference to peoples lives so it great to have them again.

A couple of months ago a the police brought us a little boy who had been delivered down a Blair toilet not far from the hospital. He had been fished our the pit by a man who had been passing by and heard the baby crying. The poor baby was very cold and extremely dirty but the staff cleaned him up and I was able to provide clothes and some powdered milk. We called him Makonborero, (Blessing) and everyone loved him. I was concerned that he might have brain damage from being cold but this did not happen and very quickly all his bruises healed and he started gaining weight. I just hope he is not infected with HIV. He has now gone to a children's home in Harare, where I hope he does well. It was sad to see him go but we couldn't keep him on the labour wared forever.

Inflation is extremely difficult to deal with. Last Friday I bought some groceries and by Tuesday of the following week they had all more than doubled and them by Friday of this week they were up again! When you receive your salary you spend every cent because tomorrow it will not be worth very much. It is extremely difficult for the hospital to survive in this climate with food and cleaning materials rising every day. We spend the whole week phoning round looking for need drugs but they are no where to be found. This week there is no milk."

Think I know where our Carol Service collection might go this year.

God bless

Carol

2006-12-01T14:21:00.000-08:00

Skint

Earlier in the year my daughter Hayley and I really got hooked on this TV programme about people living in poverty in the UK. It was not that we enjoyed watching other people's misery but that the characters in this brilliant documentary were so wonderful.

Yesterday I bought my Big Issue and noticed that there is a new series starting on Monday on BBC 1 at 10.45pm Don't miss it.

The Big Issue article about the series points out that whilst there are less people sleeping on the streets than there were ten years ago there are still 100,ooo people who are moving endlessly between hostels, B&B's and sofa surfing friends houses. They have a roof most nights but no security, stability and are often forced to live in very difficult conditions among sometimes dangerous people.

I know that this is true I hear the stories from prisoners most weeks.
For example there is Dave(not his real name) who having suffered abuse from his family as a child ended up with a speech impediment. He left home to escape but found it difficult to form friendships because of his lack of social skills. Through loneliness he got into a drinking culture with his work mates. He couldn't handle this and when drunk and overwhelmed by the memories of his past he got angry and committed an act of vandalism. On release from detention he was sent to a bail hostel where he was introduced to speed and ecstacy. He is now once again a guest of her majesty. On release he will probably have to go to another hostel with other people with a drink problems or addiction. Will he cope? Will he reoffend? What do you think?

The Big Issue ends its article by saying that the solution to homelessness is never just a roof over someones head but addressing the problems that got them there in the first place. How right that is.

God bless

Carol

2006-11-30T10:25:00.000-08:00

Promises and wise words

"As the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Isaiah 55:1-11

I have been given this promise several times lately. It has been a strength to me and I am holding on to it.

I found these wise words in my Mum's old autograph book.

"The secret of the Victorious life is to say 'yes' to God - and to keep saying it"
George Carpenter, I.H.Q 18/5/1943

And from The Christians Complete Armour by William Gurnall

"Engage God by prayer to stand behind you. God has an offensive and defensive agreement but with you, but he waits to be called in. If you go into battle without him you have more valour than Moses, who would not stir without God even though he sent an angel as his lieutenant. (Ex 33)"

God bless

Carol

2006-11-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

Grace

Since Philip Yancey's book "What's so amazing about grace?" was published talking about grace has become very popular in Christian circles.

I don't have a problem with that. I like the book. I am where I am, I am what I am because of grace. I preach grace, love to tell stories about grace and aim to live a "grace full" life. When I really think about the grace of God, although I am not given to romantic language it absolutely ravishes my heart.

I'm just a little worried however that grace is becoming a synonym for tolerance and I think they are very different things. The Oxford English Dictionary defines tolerance as "allowing the existence or occurance of something that one disagrees with or dislikes without interference"
The very essence of the grace of God is interference. It is God being prepared to make the utmost sacrifice in order to destroy what he hates to save what he loves.

Last week I attended a retreat for officers where a guest speaker from another denomination spoke about grace. I was puzzled because grace was almost being desribed as God being prepared to break his own rules about the need for repentance because he is so loving.
The parable of the lost son was given as an example. Jesus has the Father bestowing the full rights of sonship back to the prodigal without there being any sign of repentance. The son according to the speaker returned to negociate a deal not seek mercy. Maybe I am too much of an elder brother but that explanation did not sit eaily with me. I had always thought of the son turning his back on the city and returning home as an act of repentance.

We had three sessions on grace and I struggled not because I don't think God is a God of grace but because I believe the value of grace is understood so much more when we remember that God is right to condemn us to hell. I groaned inwardly because people around me were saying amen and nodding enthusiastically to what he was saying and there I was yet again swimming against the tide, wondering how we can speak about grace, and not give hell a thought.

Isn't the grace of God all the greater because he does judge us and we are condemned. Our sin is far more offensive that we ever imagine. He is also offended by different things than we think he is. Never mind sin, even my righteousness to him is a bunch of stinking rags.

Am I just being a grump old woman? I am just a little concerned at the way the precious gift of grace is undervalued if all we mean by it is that God is quite nice really.

Here's what Catherine Booth had to say:

" The Christ of God is the embodiment of his righteousness. He will only administer the benefits of this sacrifice in accordance with the divine standard of right. He will do no violence either to the government of God or to the nature of man. Although love was the supreme ingredient of his character, we hear no words of an indiscriminate charity dropping from his lips, no excuse of sin, no palliation of the guilt of enlightened transgressors of his Father's forebearance. He hated iniquity as supremely as he loved righteousness. The great end and aim of his coming was the regeneration and restoraton of man to the mind and will of God." (Catherine Booth from Popular Christianity)

God bless

Carol

2006-11-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

Prisons Week

This week in the UK Church recognises the minsitry going on in Prisons. There is loads of amazing stuff going on and plenty of challenges and some frustrations.

Please pray for the following:

that the opportunity to conduct all out evangelistic groups continues

that more of our lads get saved. (current likely candidates- Scott, Danny and Tom)

for effective Christian follow up when they leave prison (especially for another Danny)

for Prison Chaplains to be more than "professionals" ( Actually we need to pray that a lot of them get saved)

for the true gospel to be preached (there is a lot of rubbish peddled about)

against political correctness when it gets absurd

for a greater impact upon staff (Please pray for Andy and Norman in particular)

that something is done to reduce the numbers of people in prison in the UK which is currently
a staggering 86,000

Thanks in anticipation

Carol

2006-11-14T11:20:00.000-08:00

Influence

I wasn't going to post this until tomorrow but I couldn't resist it.

It's more from my Mum's old training college lecture notes. Once again Lt Commissionair Astbury.

"The Army's distinctive principles and characteristics must be maintained or our influence will wane.

1. It is non political. This is a great strength to us with all parties and governments.

2. It is unconventional. The Salvation Army is always doing a new thing. It is opposed to formality and respectability; anything to win men to God.

3. It is aggessive. "The world for Christ" Agression excites interest, compels attention, creates sympathy, porvokes opposition, secures support, inspires enthusiasm.

4. It is distinctive in its teaching about sin, judgement, hell, holiness etc. Its teaching awakens conscience, produces conviction and results in conversions.
Lack of definite holiness teaching results in inconsistency, scandals, quarrels, backsliding, declension in spiritual power and therefore loss of influence."

So that's what happened!

God bless

Carol

2006-11-14T11:07:00.000-08:00

Professionalism

A bit more wisdom from Cadets Lecture Notes 1940

Lecturer Lieutenant Commissioner Astbury

"Professionalism in religion is the taking up of God's work as others take up Law, Medicine, politics of other occupations as a means of livelihood.................
Mere professional officers can never be sold-winners. Passion for sin can only be cast out by men filled with a passion for souls. Cleverness, education ,oratory or any other art or ability cannot do it. "Not by might, not by power but by the Spirit of God.(Zechariah 4:6)"

"A professional officer may raise money, organize demonstrations, draw crowds but only a Blood and Fire officer can build up a Blood and Fire Corps."

2006-11-13T05:41:00.000-08:00

Holiness 1940 style

I have in my possession Cadets Lecture Outlines for the Crusaders Sessions 1940-1941.
(They belonged to my mother who was a Cadet in that war-time session)

The following are extracts from a lecture by Colonel Patterson on holiness. When did we lose this direct and simple view of holiness?

"Many have vague and wrong notions concerning Holiness, setting the standard to high or too low. Holiness is not sinless perfection, infallibility, freedom from mental or bodily infirmities, a state free from temptation and where advancement is impossible but it is freedom from habitual wrongdoing and makes sinful indulgence inexcusable."

"The life of holiness begins with a definite transaction between the soul and God. The work of Sanctification is by the Holy Spirit upon conditions.

1. Recognition and acknowledgement of inward evil.

ii. The renunication of all known sin, doubtful things and likely hindrances

iii. Full entire consecration to the will and service of God of body, mind and
heart.
iv. Simple appropriating faith"

"Assurance of sanctification is given by the Holy Spirit usually when faith is exercised. Soemtimes witheld for a while as a test, therefore consecration and faith should be maintained until assurance comes."

"Results of Sanctification are greater love towards God and man and usually a sustained and spiritual joy."

"Sanctification can take place in a moment but it is still a beginning. We must grow in grace towards fullness of stature."

The Founder: "Man's consecration must keep pace with God's revelation."

Let's do it!!

God bless
Carol

2006-11-07T09:13:00.000-08:00

Buddha's on the shopping list

Alan and I dropped into a supermarket near us to get some food for Alpha tonight and happened to go into the household section of the store. We noticed that among the items you could purchase to decorate your living room were statues of Buddha and what appeared to be other Hindu gods. It was no surprise that there were no crosses statues of Christ or even fish symbols there for purchase.

I thought it might be an interesting exercise to write to the store headquarters and comment and see what the reaction is. The gist of the letter I am sending is below:

"This afternoon whilst shopping in the Boroughbridge store I was interested to see Buddha figures on sale in the household section. In our multi-cultural society this is no surprise to me but I was also concerned as I didn’t at the same time see any products on sale that reflected any other faiths.

I recognise that you are a supermarket and not a religious artefact store so I don’t expect to necessarily buy articles symbolising my faith from you. However if you are prepared to sell the icons of one faith I could also expect to be able to buy those of my own faith, which is Christian as well.

I would like to encourage you not to avoid the issue or react to letters like mine by going down the route of not stocking anything with a remotely religious connection. As we approach Christmas I would love to be able to purchase Advent Calendars, Christmas cards and decorations that depict the Biblical nativity from your store. I would urge those who make policy decisions to either begin or continue to stock products that are as obviously Christian as some of the products in your stores in the period leading up to Halloween were obviously pagan.

Yours sincerely

Carol Young

I am actually quite cautious of Christians shouting about our rights and going on about "We're supposed to be a Christian country." Such sentiments can often come from a fear of having our privileges torn away and our comfort zone disturbed than a concern that Christ's name is being belittled or the gospel being silenced. However I am also aware that Christians are not the only evangelists. If we our streets are not filled with the proclaimation of the gospel there is not a void for long. Some other so called gospel will and in most places in our nation, already has taken its place.

God bless

Carol

2006-11-01T14:27:00.000-08:00

Hidden in Christ

We had a cracking cell group tonight, unpacking our inheritance in Christ. When we got to the fact that as Christians our lives are hidden in Christ (Col 3:3) David asked what it meant and although the rest of us thought we knew we found it really difficult to explain and agreed to go away and come up with a clear answer.

So answers on a postcard please.........

God bless

Carol

2006-11-01T13:57:00.000-08:00

World views and education.

There was a "Thought for the Day” item on Radio 4 last week. It referred to the faith schools debate and why there is such passion surrounding the subject and why agreement is so difficult. The education debate is about more than syllabus, style or lesson content but behind it is a difference of world views.

He said there are three very different ways of approaching education that are based on the way we see humanity.

a)The secular view. This comes from the age of enlightenment.A child is seen as a blank canvas upon which education writes values, information and culture.

b)The Muslim view is that a child is born under Islam – Islam means the will of God. A child remains in the will of God until they reach an age of responsibility when they must choose to live under God’s will for themselves. Education is about informing that choice.

c)The Christian view is neither of these things but says that all people are born with a propensity to rebel against God. The thing they need most is rescue. Education is learning what is required in order for mankind to be restored to his original purpose both individually and in society.

Just thought it gave an interesting insight into the issues.

2006-10-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

Uttermost

This word has fallen into disuse as the new translations of the Bible use other words to translate the original Hebrew or Greek and I think that's a shame because it is a great word. I am so passionate about this word that I preached on it on Sunday, talked about it at Cell group and now I'm blogging on it too.

I love it that the depths of God’s passion are to the uttermost. I love it that God’s vision for his world and his people is to the "uttermost" I love it that God's reach is to the uttermost.

Jesus, fulfilling the will of the Father is determined to do his uttermost, to the uttermost extent with the uttermost ability and with the uttermost results.

Hebrews 7:25 “He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for us."

This verse connected with two things especially this week. I have had a a burden to pray for a Moslem friend, who has been to Mecca for Ramadam. The Holy Spirit has reminded me to pray for him and his family every single day he has been away. This verse reminds us that God is able to save to the uttermost "those who come to God through Jesus." I am praying that that our friend will have a revelation of Jesus and God will protect him from harm whilst he is away.

The other thing was the interview in the Salvationist with the Chief of the Staff. In it she recalled her time in Zimbabwe, when often she had to stand between gunmen and the children in her care. There were many atrocities which she witnessed and tried to report but her leaders didn't believe her. They said, "No human being would do that to another."
But mankind can and frequently does go to the "uttermost" of depravation but even then, hallelujah he is "able to save"

But the up close and personal challenge for me and our congregation is "Are we "uttermost" Christians?
Does our reach go as far as God's?

Have we allowed God to do his work in us to the uttermost extent?

Believe him! the holy one is waiting
To perfect within you what grace has begun;
God wills for his people an uttermost salvation;
To sanctify you wholly the Spirit will come.

For some of us it is one thing that prevents us being "uttermost" Christians.

The one thing may be a stumbling block over something in the word of God. We find it hard to believe this “one thing”. But because we doubt that one thing we can’t make much sense of the rest of it.
The “one thing” may be a festering splinter. A resentment, a bitterness, an area where we haven’t forgiven someone or even ourselves.
The “one thing” may be an idol. The rich young ruler came to Jesus and asked what he needed to do to gain eternal life and Jesus and it was to let go of one thing.
These are all things that we need to hand over to Christ.

Paul on the other hand had one thing that he would loved to have got rid of. He called it his “thorn in the flesh” He prayed and prayed about it but it wouldn’t go away. He could have said, "I could be an uttermost Christian if only God would release me from this burden." However he didn't say that. He said instead, "His grace is sufficient” In other words the grace of Jesus was able to provide to the uttermost just what he needed to handle it.

Yours "to the uttermost"

Carol

2006-10-23T00:55:00.000-07:00

Who do you think you are?

I have been watching the latest series "Who do you think you are?" on TV when we remember to record it. I love history and I find in fascinating. In the last series Jeremy Paxman, the TV journalist discovered that his Scottish relatives were rescued from absolute poverty by the Salvation Army. One of them became an officer and eventually emigrated to Canada.

Sometimes as a child I was annoyed by my surname, Mackinder. Everyone prounounced it wrongly and I always had to spell it for other people. I thought I was the only one in the world other than my Lincolnshire relatives who was lumbered with it.

On Saturday I decided to do a bit of research on the internet and discovered there are hundreds, if not thousands of Mackinders out there. I managed to trace my lot back to 1825, although I discovered there have been Mackinders in the county of Lincolnshire since at least the 16th Century. There is some Scottish connection way back of course. After that I gave up because it would cost money to find out more.

I didn't find any heroes, just shepherds, four generations of them. None of them moved more than a few miles from a little village called Scopwick until my Dad's generation. My own grandmother never ventured beyond Linclonshire until she was in her 70's, when she moved with my parents to Bath. Up until then she had never seen a hill!

My Mackinders didn't own their own sheep and they lived on low wages, in tied cottages and appear to be very boring. There is no family fortune, no great inventions that amazed the world, no great tomes of wisdom. Not much of an inheritance then?

Wrong!

Their lives centred around the local Methodist Church circuit and in each generation the gospel was passed on, until it reached me, through my Dad and my Uncle Charles who swapped shepherding sheep for shepherding people as a Wesleyan Reform minister.
That's an inheritance for eternity.

Who do I think I am? I know who I am.

I am God's child (John 1:12)
I am Christ's friend (John 15:15)
I have been bought with a price. I belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:19)
I am a saint (Eph 1:1)
I am complete in Christ (Col 2:10)
I am a citizen of heaven (Phillipians 3:20)

(from list compiled by NT Anderson. Freedom In Christ Minsitries)

Yours, well and truly "in Christ"

Carol

2006-10-17T15:28:00.000-07:00

Castled in the Covenant

"He(God) does not parcel himself out, a few crumbs at a time to one, a crust to another - as one feeds the sparrows. He allows you to claim as yours whatever he has. He makes his covenant with every believer. Were some left to fight it out in the strength of their own abilities then the strong would be more likely to stand and the weak to fall in battle. But castled in the covenant, all are safe together because all rest in the power of his might."

(from The Christian in Complete Armour by William Gunnell)

I love that phrase, "castled in the covenant"

God bless

Carol

2006-10-17T08:09:00.000-07:00

I always told you I was an angel!!!!!!

God bless

Carol

2006-10-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

Am I bothered?

I had one of those days yesterday when I had to really wrestle with "stuff" Talking with a friend, we discussed whether these times are from Satan or from God. We concluded it was both.

Satan certainly was attacking and I am not surprised given the stuff we have been preaching, the way I had been part of exposing his tactics in someone's ministry and the presentation of the gospel to children at school and to prisoners in recent days.

And God? I was longing for revival that seems so slow in coming, I was frustrated by some ministry stuff, anxious about the future and agonising about how far from the kingdom some of my unsaved friends are.

Now I think there is something important here. We are often aware that it is wrong to be anxious but we slide into fatalism clothed in Christian language. It maybe that we don't worry because we don't care enough. I don't want the kind of peace that means I've lost my passion. The current catchphrase from Catherine Tate comes to mind, "Am I bothered?" Yes I am and so I should be.

Somehow I sensed God in all this. He wants me to keep facing the issues, not so that I can fret and worry but so that I am driven to my knees to keep my heart clean, to follow his tactics, to fan my faith into a flame and have hope renewed.

I'm not sure 4am is the best time to do that but it had the desired effect and my armour is bright again.

God bless

Carol

2006-10-10T01:23:00.000-07:00

Climate Change

I've just discovered Francis Schaeffer. Well I've known about him for ages but never read any of his stuff despite the fact I've had three of his books on my shelves for years. I always thought he was a bit too intellectual for me. However I picked up a book called Death in the City the other day and it is challenging.

Schaeffer is writing in 1968, nearly 40 years ago about the spiritual climate in the Northern Europe of his day. He talks about the church needing reformation in terms of a return to the teachings of Scripture and revival in terms of a life brought into its proper relationship to the Holy Spirit. He states very forcibly that he believes Europe to be a post-Christian society, under judgement from God because we have trampled upon the truths of the Reformation. He goes on to say that like Jeremiah, it is from the perspective of judgement that we should preach.

Here are a few quotes:

"I believe that much of our evangelistic and personal work today is not clear simply because we are too anxious to get to the answer without having a man realise the cause of his sickness, which is true moral guilt (and not just psychological guilt feelings) in the presence of God. "

"With love we must face squarley the fact that our culture really is under the judgement of God. We must not heal the sickness lightly. We must emphasiaze the reality. We must proclaim the message with tears and give it with love."

"It is my experience that giving the realisitic message does not turn people off- if they feel real compassion in you."

"We are saying we want reformation and we want revival but still we are not preaching down into this generation, stating the negative things that are necessary. If there is to be a construction revolution in the orthodox, evangelical church, then like Jeremiah we must speak of judgement of individual men great and small of the church, the state and the culture for they have known the truth of God and have turned away from him and his propositional revelation. God exists, he is holy and we must know that there will be judgement. And like Jeremiah we must keep on so speaking regardless of the cost to ourselves."

Whether he was right 40 years ago is one debate. What is more urgent in my mind is this. Has the climate changed? Are Schaeffer's observations about what is wrong and what we should do right for today?

God bless

Carol

2006-10-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

Kidding ourselves

If thousands came to Christ tomorrow in the UK there would be some who would say, “See I told you that we needed to be more culturally relevant!”

If men and women dropped on their knees in repentance across the UK tomorrow there would be those who would say, “See I told you that we were wise not to do away with the tried and tested methods of evangelism.”

If next Sunday every church was filled with seekers after God there would be those who would say, it came because of our adaptability and others that it came because of our consistency. Some would say it was because of charismatic leadership and others that it was because of mobilised members.

Well actually although I believe that we will see revival in this land I don’t believe it will be tomorrow. We are still too reliant on methods, schemes and bandwagons, to which we would accredit any significant turning of the tide and it’s just a personal opinion but I don’t think God will let it happen until we have stopped kidding ourselves about some things.

I have been reading Isaiah 48. God knows how prone we are to mistake the source of things. God is just about to turn the tide of the fortunes of Israel but God says he had to tell them what he was going to do in advance, otherwise they would stupidly think that things had changed because of their worship of idols.

V5 Therefore I told you these things long ago before they happened I announced them to you so that you could not say, “My idols did them; my wooden image and metal god ordained them.”

Not only that we kid ourselves that we are not really under the judgement of God because there we have not been struck with a thunderbolt! Rather we assume that if we maintain things a bit, see a little bit of church growth as reported in the Salvationist this week then we must be doing something right.

Francis Scheaffer writing in 1968 says, "There is only one perspective we can have of the post Christian world of our generation: an understanding that our culture and our country is under the wrath of God."

Isaiah says, “For my own sake I delay my wrath, for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you so as not to cut you off.” (v9)

God is not being mean, just practical. Later in verse 18 he says to Israel as I am convinced he says to us today, “If only you had paid attention to my commands your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea. Your descendents would have been like the sand your children like its numberless sands.”

But its not too late and God does not want to cut us off. We just need to change our plea. We dare not plead for justice but we can ask with confidence for his mercy.

God bless

Carol

2006-10-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

Harvest Carols

Another interesting thing happened on Sunday whilst the band were playing in the street.
I was talking to a couple who stood by the band to listen and they said that they first heard the music whilst in the queue in Boots. The assistant, making conversation with them had said, "Can you believe it? It's October 1st and they're playing Christmas Carols already!"

The couple were able to gently correct her, "No, that's "We plough the fields and scatter!"

O well!

God bless

Carol

2006-10-01T14:33:00.000-07:00

What a day!

It's been a great day and very interesting!
I opened the living room blinds to see a young bloke legging it up the road, pursued by an older guy, with his feet clad in his slippers! 5-10 minutes later we're in our kitchen, one policeman knocking on the window, another on our garage roof, four police cars at the front of the house and dogs. We discover that the young bloke is not one of "my lads" from the YOI but he's breached his tag and been breaking into cars up our street. They think he's hiding behind our garage. Anyway he wasn't and they didn't catch him. A right bit of excitement for a Sunday morning before we go to the Army!

We arrived at the Town Hall to prepare for our Harvest Festival in torrential rain and one of the drains erupting like a fountain. Fortunately it was all over quickly and we didn't have a flood.

It was great to have Shipley SA worship band with us to help us today and we began with playing in the High Street outside the Black Bull. There was a pretty good response. We then moved up to the local estate where we work in the school and were expecting to see loads of kids playing out but instead there was no-one about. Until we looked down the street to see once again, loads of police, ambulances and a crowd on onlookers. Apparently someone had been taken hostage in one of the houses!

Later we found that the chair lift, giving access to people with disability wouldn't work so sadly one of our congregation had to go home. What is going on today?

However despite all this we just had a fantastic day. We had a good crowd at the meeting, Shipley folks did so well, Jack our Junior Soldier was presented with his gold award (pictures later) and we were all very proud of him. And I believe God was glorified by the enthusasitic worship and people listened to the word with rapt attention. Praise the Lord for two seekers.

God bless

Carol

2006-09-27T14:23:00.000-07:00

Aaag!!!!!

I've had problems accessing email and my blog for a few days. Not a major calamity but annoying especially as I was dying to blog about a funny thing that happened during Annual Appeal. This is my third attempt to publish this so I might end up with three posts that are the same but nothing ventured nothing gained.

A young guy of about 18 or 19 opened the door and I gave him my usual patter that I was calling for the Salvation Army appeal envelope. He looked at me as if I had arrived from outer space and then shouted, "Mum, it's a woman from the Starvation Army!"

God Bless

Carol

2006-09-22T11:08:00.000-07:00

I've a few moments to blog before supper. What are the significant things that God has spoken to me about this week?

Urgency
Someone who has drfited away from the Lord has been joining in fellowship with us for a couple of weeks but warned us that work will take her away very soon. I am really aware that we must not waste the opportunity we have left to really be extra alert to what God wants us to preach and to "grasp the nettle" in terms of speaking a word in season. Yet I also question this. Isn't the matter of someone's salvation always urgent given the fact than none of us know what tomorrow will bring?

Acting with authority

There was a timely word at a leaders prayer breakfast. There are some prayers that God cannot answer because there are some things God will not do for us because he has already given us what we need to deal with the situation. We want God to do this or that but God sometimes says, "No you do it with the resources I have given you." e.g forgiving someone, casting out a demon, taking each thought captive......

Christian armour
I am reading the Christian in Complete Armour by the Puritan writer William Gurnall (the modernized version) This stood out:

"Cowards never won heaven. Do not claim you are begotten of God and have his royal blood running in your veins unless you can prove your lineage by this heroic spirit: to dare to be holy in spite of men and devils. YOu should find great strength and encouragement in the knowledge that your commission is divine. God himself underwrites your battle and has appointed his own Son the captain of your salvation."

Supper awaits

God bless

Carol

2006-09-18T14:48:00.000-07:00

On the sofa

I really wasn't feeling well yesterday so following the morning meeting crashed out on the sofa. I then watched a film on one of the God channels, which was basically about the error of separating morality from the authority of Jesus.

The film was Ok, a bit cheap budget and cheesy but there was one line in it that I can't get out of my head.

"Jesus can't save someone he can't command."

Do you agree or disagree?

Also whilst I was still "on the sofa" I received a phone call with the news that someone I had spoken to earlier in the summer about faith issues had got saved! I hasten to add that there were lots of other factors than my involvement in his decision to say yes to Jesus but I am so delighted with the news. It made my day.

God bless

Carol

2006-09-13T13:33:00.000-07:00

Joy and sorrow

Joy
Two weeks ago I put a guitar into the hands of a young prisoner and taught him three chords. He has a natural talent for music but had never tried the guitar. Today with a beaming face he told me how excited he is about playing. A whole new world has opened up for him.

Today he also sat in the chapel group and the word of God was put into his hands. I don't think he had tried it before. I pray that a whole new world will open up for him.

Sorrow
A prison visitor and I sat with a confused and devestated young man reeling from information received in a letter that came this morning. He had enough problems and challenges already without this. I wanted to hug him but its not allowed. I pray he will know that he is not alone, he will find comfort and a way through.

For the joys and for the sorrows
The best and worst of times
For the this moment, for tomorrow
And all that lies behind
Fears that crowd around us
For the failure of my plans
For the dreams of all I hope to be
The truth of what I am

For this I have Jesus
For this I have Jesus

(Graham Kendrick 1994)

2006-09-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

Harvest

I am and have constantly been encouraged by the words of Zechariah 4:10 in the Message translation says, "Does anyone dare despise this day of small beginnings?"

Back in May I was very much aware of the fact that we had been in Northallerton for 6 years and I recognised that we are not now really at a point when we can say anymore that we are beginning.

The work here is good and my heart was filled with gratitude at so much answered prayer and for the good folk who are part of our mission. But there was a Saturday in May when I sobbed my heart out in frustration when I thought of the amount of ploughing and sowing we have done in comparison with the harvest we have so far reaped. Alongside some glorious victories there have been activities and people who have promised much but yielded little and there has been pain in that.

In the early hours of Sunday morning I woke still chewing over what God wanted us to do about all this. I felt him say that we must recognise the season we are in. We have been sowing the seeds of the gospel in this town and in people all this time. That has been good and right but it is time to reap. We must do that by giving people opportunities to respond to the claims of the gospel and that will involve challenging them and upping the stakes. This will take courage.

For the farmer, harvest time happens every year. Whether it yields a good or a poor result the harvest season happens. We have kept sowing because we have been afraid that the results of our reaping might not meet with our high hopes and expectations. Rather than face disappointment we have tried to pretend we are still in the sowing season. We have let our English reserve and fear of being thought pushy overtake the impulse of the Spirit to challenge people to move on in their faith.

That moment was a recognition for me that it is harvest time whether we like it or not. To do nothing is to lose what we have already sown and to try to harvest is to risk facing that there might not be much to reap. Yet we must face that possibiity for the sake of those who have let the seeds of the gospel become planted in their lives.

The line of a Bible verse that came to me, I believe from the Holy Spirit was “Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping carrying seed to sow will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.” We must have boldness and trust in God.

I then read Isaiah 44:22-5 and it seemed that God was speaking those words directly to my heart.

Having shared the above with the congregation on Sunday who responded with simple and beautiful prayers I have had an anxious day today, knowing that we planned to have the first session of our next Alpha course tonight and we had only two people plus helpers signed up. By late morning they too had disappeared because of their work circumstances. I thought so much for reaping then and what I said on Sunday.

We decided to go ahead anyway just in case of the remote possibility that somebody by turn up from posters and leafleting. Then whilst I was at the dentist having a tooth filled and feeling very sorry for myself a lady rang with a message to say she was coming with a friend. The friend turned out to be a lady I had worked with in the prison and with whom I had spoken to about faith issues a couple of years ago!

OK so there are only two new people on the course at the moment but to me it's confirmation of God's word to me that we can reap from seeds that have already been sown.

God bless

Carol

2006-09-09T09:06:00.000-07:00

Preaching Christ

I am reading David Wilkerson's book Hungry for more of Jesus. I read this in it before I settled down to prepare my sermon for Sunday.

"Nothing will get us in the flow of the revelation knowledge of Jesus Christ until we put up our notes, stop studying other preachers and study Christ alone in the secret closet of prayer."

"Away with all success preaching, motivational preaching, self image preaching, political preaching. They are but dregs peddled by those without a fresh revelation of Christ."

O Lord, break the bread of life to me.

God bless

Carol

2006-09-07T13:55:00.000-07:00

For Jesus only

Whilst we were getting ready to go off to the Dales, our daughter was watching one of those Day-time TV property programmes. It featured a couple who were buying an old church which they were going to convert into a private dwelling.

I am not usually overly sensitive about church property being sold off. To my mnd church buildings have too often become a wrong focus. Yet this really got to me. I could not help but feel saddened that this building that had been dedicated to God to be used to assist a whole community to worship and work in his name was now going to be lived in by just one couple, who although very nice people were seeking personal gain from the purchase. One of the final shots of the church was the doorway over which was inscribed, "Jesus only"

That night I had one of those powerful dreams that when you wake up you know it was significant. My dream was of a Salvation Army songster brigade, all dressed in their summer uniforms. I was leading worship but was suddenly aware that as they got up to sing, each person had fitted white linen covers over their blue epaullettes so that their S's were no longer visible. In the dream I was shocked by the action but also confused as to why they didn't just take their uniforms off and go and sing in a secular setting if they were ashamed of the dedication implied by the motto Saved to Serve on their uniforms.

In the dream my challenge was met with total surprise at my being upset. They thought their behaviour quite normal rather than ludicrous. They could not see that there was a contradiction in wanting to be called a Salvation Army songster brigade but covering up the evidence. In the dream I discerned that this Songster brigade once dedicated to God was now being used as a vehicle for pleasure and power. In turn I was deeply disturbed by how little it mattered to them that God was not being given what belonged to him and that they thought they had a perfect right to use the songsters in this way. In the dream was ended up outside praying with some children who had not yet been influenced by the attitudes within the hall.

Before I am accused of having a go at army sections, that really was not what the dream was about. It is about giving to God what truly belongs to him and seeing that as normal.

Later that day I read Isaiah 43:20 "I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland to give drink to my people muy chosen, my people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise. Yet you have not called upon me O Jacob, you have not wearied yourselves for me, O Israel."

I truly believe that the battle for the Army and for the church at large in this day is a battle of consecration. Will it be "Jesus only"

2006-09-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

Up the dale

We've just come back from "up Dale" There is nothing quite like driving through Wensleydale and Swaledale, listening to Our God is an awesome God on the CD player. As we drove through mile after mile of this breathtakingly beautiful landscape a sense of wonder at the splendour of God's creatvity just kept on growing until even this was put in perspective as the next song on the CD rang out with the words

Above all powers, above all kings
Above all wonders and all created things
Above all wealth and treasures of the earth
You were here before the world began

Crucified, laid behind the stone
You lived, to die rejected and alone
Like a rose trampled on the ground
You took the fall and thought of me
Above all

Later we sat in an old barn that our friends have turned into a prayer room. There is no electricity, just a few candles, the floor is covered in shingle, the walls were once whitewashed decades ago and the seating was made up of old wooden chairs. It is the antithesis of the classy, theatres of modern Christian worship seen on God TV. Yet it was just the kind of place in which I imagine Mary gave birth to the new born Jesus. In the stillness, looking out through the doorway at the hills outside Jesus spoke and I heard.

Thank you Lord

2006-08-31T09:23:00.000-07:00

Finished

I have now finished Rennovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard.

Its value for me was the examination of the various aspects of human life, how they interact and are affected by one another. He lists these as:

Thought (images, concepts, judgements and inferences)

Feeling (sensation, emotion)

Choice (will, decision, character)

The body ( action, interaction with the physical world)

A social context (personal relations to others)

Our soul (the factor that integrates all of the above

It is how all these "essential parts of the human self are effectively organized around God" that interests the writer. He says, "Spiritual formation in Christ is the process leading to that ideal. The human self is then fully integrated under God."

It seems to me that Dallas Willard hits on a very important issue in our times and in our culture. We live in a society overloaded with information of shallow content, where experiences and emotion are highly prized, where the body is worshipped or despised, relationships are damaged and the soul is forgotten.

One of the questions at the end of chapter 3 is "What is the heart and what is it's basic role in human life?

Anyone like to have a go at answering??

God bless

Carol

2006-08-23T14:07:00.000-07:00

All power to your elbow Archbiship

Last week the Archbishop of York, Dr. John Sentamu gave up his planned family holiday in Salzburg in order to camp inside York Minster where he invited people from all over the country to join him in heart and mind to pray every hour for peace in the conflict between Israel and Lebanon. He also shaved his head and fasted for the week.

There has been widespread publicity in the British media about his action with varying responses to it.
Some were very cynical. One blogger wrote, “What a hoc of bull. Don’t eat or drink anything for 7 days then talk to me. I bet his fasting had a lot of “howevers”. Just a show.” Other comments have been that it has been a gimmick on the level of David Blaine, the illusionist.
Others haven’t doubted his sincerity but whether he can make a difference.
One man said, “He can’t change anything,” Another, “It depends if you believe or not. I personally think the church has had it, but my kids are impressed.”

There has been much positive reaction too, particularly by those who went to visit the Minster themselves. There was a real sense of the presence of God and many have responded to the challenge to pray for peace.

One comment was, “Nobody can quite explain what this eccentric ecclesiastical spectacle might achieve, but under the beautiful gothic awning of a medieval Minster, the balance of opinion is that prayer might be worth a try.”

A mixed reaction to a Christian doing something so public is to be expected. Personally I believe he is a man of God who is willing to go out on a limb on all kinds of kingdom issues and we should be backing him to the hilt.

What made me smile but also made me mad and sad was the reaction of some so called believers who reacted with, “He should stick to religion and not meddle in politics.” I’m still trying to work out what pray and fasting are if they are not religious. And another, a church leader said, “What he is doing is undignified for a man in his office.” He should read 2 Samuel 6:22

God bless

Carol

2006-08-22T14:14:00.000-07:00

Stewing

I was going to write the following as a response to Heather as Heather's Place (see Armybloggers) but as I got started I realised I had too much to say for a comment and anyway what Heather shares is something I feel a lot of women in particular do when faced with criticism, confrontation or conflict.

That is we tend to stew!

I have been quite an expert in "stewing" on stuff in my time so I thought a few tips on how to get over it might help.

1. Try telling someone else you trust who isn't directly involved. Having to put our worries and reactions into words usually reduces their size dramatically. If you can't do that write them down and read them back.

2. Choose someone who will not just tell you to forget about it just because they will do anything to make you feel better. Real friends will tell you if you've messed up, will often recognise where you are making mountains out of molehills and will reassure you that you are still worth knowing and loving.

3. Make a point in your prayer time of specifically off-loading the situation and your feelings. Wait upon God to receive his forgiveness and empowering.

4. Don't spend your whole prayer time on the issue. Stewing is not the same as praying. I think it is very important to adopt a framework of prayer because it helps to focus upon other stuff whilst at the same time acknowledging whats going on.
Personally I often use Weatherhead's Private House of Prayer, which uses the picture of prayer being like a house of rooms. Each room features a different aspect of prayer. Room 1 is Affirming the Presence of God, Room 2 Praise and adoration, Room 3 Confession and Offloading, Room 4 Receiving from God (including forgiveness), Room 5 Expressing Purified Desires and Room 6 Intercession and Room 7 Meditation.

For me this gets my feelings into perspective, gives me something to do with them but also turns my focus upwards to God and outwards to the needs of others.

4. It can be helpful to do something symbolic to express that you are putting off your anxiety, the burden or failure. For example write it down on a chalkboard, or pick up stones that represent the issues. Then in the light of the promises of God to cleanse, forgive, heal and help, rub out what you have written or put down the stones one by one. But don't forget to spend some time receiving the forgiveness, healing,etc.

5. Check your diary. I'm serious. I've often mistaken conviction of sin and demonic attack for PMT!

That's it from Auntie Carol

God bless

2006-08-21T01:44:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all who prayed for our BBQ.

We had a great time, although the weather was unpredictable to say the least and this put a few off coming. Nevertheless we had people among us who have yet to come to faith. They heard our friend Gram's testimony (pictured above) and all took an invite to Alpha. We await to see who comes.

God bless

Carol

2006-08-19T02:55:00.000-07:00

BBQ

We have our annual BBQ tomorrow afternoon. This is an event to which we invite our friends and neighbours to offer hospitality and build community. This year we are also using it as a vehicle through which we invite people to our next Alpha course.

Please pray in the light of the depressing weather forecast that the event can go ahead as planned, that people turn up who are ready to respond to the Alpha invite and our people will infect everyone who comes with a desire to know Jesus.

Thanks

Carol

2006-08-16T14:22:00.000-07:00

To the tower and back

I've been to the tower this week. No not the one at Denmark Hill, although I went past it several times, but the Tower of London. I didn't get locked in for saying rude things about the monarchy which Alan was concerned I might and I kept my head.
Actually Alan, Katie and I had a great time in what is a fascinating place.

The White Tower in full of displays of armour and weaponry. One suit of armour particularly caught my eye. It was for the King's champion. Originally it was the champion's duty to ride, on a white charger, fully clad in armour, into Westminster Hall during the Coronation Ceremony. There he threw down his gauntlet and challenged any person who dared to deny the sovereign's right to the throne. It just crossed my mind as I stood in that ancient, tourist-filled hall that my life, (minus the white horse) should be a constant challenge to the evil one who denies the King of kings his right to rule.

We also went to see the amazing crown jewels. They are in a secure building, through the thickest steel doors I have ever seen, behind glass and fitted with a sophisticated alarm system. They were beautiful but inaccessible and for the exclusive use of the royal family.

As the Yeoman of the Guard didn't invite us to stay the night we went back to Katie's royal residence in Peckham. As we got off the bus, Alan commented that the guy sitting behind us had been reading his Bible for the whole journey. Now I just love that irony. The word of God is a far greater treasure than any crown or sceptre but its not under lock and key, housed in a special building. It's our there, changing the life of an ordinary bloke on a London bus. Brilliant!

God bless

Caro

2006-08-16T14:02:00.000-07:00

Barefoot Guy

I was looking through my previous posts to try to find someone's blog name I had forgotten and came across a response to one of my posts back in April from "Barefoot Guy" that somehow I must have missed. Anyway Barefoot Guy is Sean Dietrich who has done some great songs that you can download for free. He is very influenced by Keith Green so they contain a lot of challenging stuff about discipleship.

The website is www.SeanDietrich.com

Why not check it out

God bless

Carol

2006-08-09T11:24:00.000-07:00

Achievements

We met a lady again this week who had come to the Army when we were the officers at her local corps. Whenever we have recounted the joys, sorrows, battles and victories we experienced in that appointment her story has never really featured to any great extent.

This was not because we did not think she was important but because we didn't really think our influence upon her life had been that significant or had called for any great sacrifice on our part. Her perspective was quite different and she shared that the support that Alan in particular had given her at a time of bereavement had saved her life.

I remember once being in a meeting where a missionary gave her testimony. She shared some of the work that she had been involved in but she ended by saying that she left the mission field knowing that it could well be, that the most significant thing she had done there was something she had completely forgotten and nobody else knew about.

I admit that I have often thought that it is the thing that I have worked the hardest on, had the most visible results in and given me the most personal satifaction that have mattered most.

The reality is that there is only one achievement that is of any worth in any appointment. It is our loving obedience of Christ.

God bless

Carol

2006-08-02T14:01:00.000-07:00

Fellowship

It's been a week sharing in good Christian fellowship. If I say it has been the right kind of Christian fellowship I hope you know what I mean. It hasn't been to moan about other people or to engage in a club activity or escape from the all the nasty stuff going on in the world. It has been faith building and empowering.
and we need that to keep up focussed and to get a God perspective back when our own outlook becomes negative or inward.

On Sunday, Alan went to Ripon, a former appointment and it was good to see folks there conintuing to faithfully serve the Lord whilst I stayed in Northallerton with our folk who sang their hearts out and listened so attentively to the word.

It has also been good to participate in the annual Hollybush Camp. Hollybush Christian Fellowship is about 3 miles down the road from us and is based on a farm. People come from all over the UK with their tents and caravans for a week. They engage in daily Bible studies and worship celebrations with a Bible thumping message and altar call. It's Pentecostal, it's loud and the music I must admit is not always to my taste but it usually results in people getting saved, filled with the Spirit or healed.
10 years ago an officer couple went to Hollybush Camp and received a vision to re-open a corps in their division that had closed its doors. This week they were there with 28 of their folk. It was so good to share with these "on fire" Salvationists and pray with them for the even greater things!

We've been up to Catterick Garrison to meet the new manager of one of the Red Shield Clubs. Again it was good to detect the passion to reach out to the lost and to do more that serve tea and sandwiches.

Last night the local Prison Fellowship group met to prayer walk around the prison. The prayers were fervant and sincere, although I was rather amused at Ernies prayer that God would bring down the walls. I think he meant spiritually! We then went back to our Prayer room. I don't know what to say except that God turns up here. It was humbling and so strengthening to be prayed for personally by the rest of the group.

Today its been Alpha and we shared openly and prayed for healing.

"Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing but let us encourage one another and all the more as you seen the Day approaching." Heb 10:25

God bless

Carol

2006-08-02T13:16:00.000-07:00

House of tiny tearaways

I have been watching the above TV programme on families who have children with severe bahavioural problems. One of the issues raised has been the lack of authority and discipline of the parents. Some of them give in to the demands of their children because they cannot bear to see their children upset or unhappy and some fail to take authority because they fear that their children will not love them if they make them do what they don't want to do. The result is some very unhappy and stressed out families.

Sadly it's not that difficult to see some parallels between the House of Tiny Tearaways and the Household of the Saints. Leadership is not easy and our hearts often want to comfort rather than chastise, entertain rather than educate and give rather than make any demands.

I wonder what William Booth would make of the "chummy" sytle of leadership most of us exercise in the church today.

Well I read this in the March/April 2003 edition of the Officer. It is from some fragmentary notes of Booths address taken at a staff council in 1893.

"There is not one of you in whose personal sorrows and struggles I do not feel and interest. I would like to go into them myself if I only had the time. I would like to go home to tea with each one of you and help you mothers nurse the baby and share your troubles. I cannot bear to see you suffer but I am unable to avoid it. I am determined to use you all to the utmost of God's work . I am going to get out of you all I can. A General is no good for his post who is not willing to see his soldiers suffer. And however good my plans may be they will involve not less but more hard work, sacrifice and discipline than in the past; but they will ensure, I believe with your hearty co-operation an abundant harvest of success."

Now if you think that the reaction of Booth's hearers to his determination to get out of them all he could was to walk out in indignation you would be wrong. An officer in the meeting wrote in response, "The above remarks occupied the first sitting of the Council. Needless to say that the stirring words of our beloved General moved us to tears and to a fresh consecration of ourselves to God and the war!

God bless

Carol

2006-07-27T13:45:00.000-07:00

My thoughts for yesterday were expressed in reply to Andrew Bales blog on Beyond the Brook but I am continuing with Dallas Willard and Rennovation of the Heart.
This passage stuck out for me today.

"Much of what is called Christian profession today involves little remorse of sorrow over what we have been or even for what we have done. There is little awareness of having been lost or of a radical evil in our hearts, bodies and souls, which we must get away from and from which only God can deliver us. To manifest such awareness today would be regarded as being psychologically sick. It is common today to hear Christians talk of their "brokenness". But when you listen closely it is clear they are talking about their wounds, the things they have suffered, not the evil that is in them. Few today have discovered that they have been disasterously wrong and that they cannot change or escape the consequences of it on their own.
There is little of Isaiah's sense of unworthiness before God: Woe is me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips." (Is 6:1)

Yet without this realization of our utter ruin and without the genuine redirecting of our lives which that better realization gives rise to, no clear path of inner transformation can be found."

I think he is right

God bless

Carol

2006-07-25T01:33:00.000-07:00

Tired of the gap

The need to face up to some realities about my own heart condition was confirmed and encouraged yesterday through a trip to a Christian bookshop to spend the vouchers I had for my birthday. Having found The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard inspiring I decided before I went that I wanted to get something by him, although I had no idea what else he had written. Imagine my delight when the only book by him on the shop was "Renovation of the heart."

Isn't it good how God leads you down a pathway and then provides the resources to travel with?

Anyway the foundation verse for the book is "Above all else, guard you heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Prov 4:23

The blurb on the back says:
I'm not okay and you're not okay. We're in serious trouble. And yet the life that we are promised in Christ should be one of spiritual maturity and increasing holiness. We should be brimful of the fruit of Spirit. So why the yawning chasm between what we are and what we should be?...................... We live from the heart, the spiritual place within us from which outlook, choiceds and actions ahve been formed by a world away form God. Now it must be transformed."

I say amen to that. I am so tired of the gap in the church, in the army, in me between what is and what should be but as John Gowans writes:

I believe in transformation
God can change the hearts of men
And refine the evil nature
Till it glows with grace again

God bless

Carol

2006-07-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

Heart matters

A few weeks ago whilst leading an Alpha Holy Spirit day I was teaching about God putting his law into our hearts and of course quoted Jermiah 31:33 "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts ." Later that week during a night of prayer at the Resource Centre the Lord spoke to me again about his desire to write his will on our hearts.

This is what I sensed he said,

I will write my truth upon your heart, not in erasable pen but I will engrave it deeply into you. Your sins, because of the blood of my son can be washed away like chalk and lost forever but my word in your heart can last forever. I can write more as you allow me to enlarge your heart.

The engraving of the Spirit of truth is very beautiful and it contrast with the ugly graffitti of the values of the world. However because your heart is not stone the engraving may at first seem painful but I am gentle and skilled and I will never harm you. You will learn to welcome my touch and the word being seared into you.

I then found the following verse in the songbook

And what if strength should fail
And heart more deeply bleed?
Or what if dark and lonely days
Draw forth the cry of need?
That cry will bring thee down
My needy soul to fill
And thou wilt teach my yearning heart
To know and do thy will.

And that is what God has been doing. I wrote the other day that the book Be a hero impacted me. Through it God showed me that there was a lot of assumptions in my life about the levels of my compassion. They have been a lot shallower than is Christlike. This was very humbling but I know I have to accept his verdict. I have had to allow him to cut more compassion and love into my heart.

I borrowed a book on the life on Sarah Lankford Palmer, (the sister of Phoebe Palmer)from Andrew Bale earlier this week and it was nothing specific but reading about this lady's life I felt very much I am not at the place of total surrender that she was.

So anyway as a result I've been down the prayer room tonight, my prayer being that God would show me the true state of my heart. As I sang O for a heart that is whiter than snow to him, I believe God's done a bit more surgery and although I know there is more he wants to do I have his peace.

God bless

Carol

2006-07-20T15:10:00.000-07:00

The Youngs are back in town

We've had a great holiday at Le Pas Opton which is a campsite in France run by Spring Harvest. We received a lot from it

a real rest
brilliant weather
lovely accommodation,
croissants for breakfast
gorgeous beach and big waves
winners T shirts ( Our team won the Quiz)
great fellowship with Christians from all over the UK
inspiring Bible study
time to read the library of books we took with us
great trip to Nantes Cathedral
a power cut whilst France were playing somebody in the World Cup!

O and a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Amongst the books I took was Be a Hero. Maybe it was all the more powerful because I was enjoying such luxury I don't know but whilst the holiday has physically and mentally recharged me, God has used the book to deeply challenge me.

Now we are back it is time to turn challenge into change.

God bless

Carol

2006-06-30T15:14:00.000-07:00

That was the week that was.....

We're off on holiday on Monday but if I had any thoughts this week of being in a winding down sort of mood, God seemed to have different ideas. I have no crisis to report or dramatic stories to tell, only that people seem especially to have come our way this week who have wanted someone to listen to them.

We cannot report that dozens of people came into our hall because we don't have one but there have been so many people to meet and come alongside this week on the High Street, at school, in the prison and of course in Tesco's

There have been Mums telling us about their kids, prisoners going on about everything from the state of their hair to feeling suicidal and Alpha course participants sharing their experiences of God on the Holy Spirit day. There has been a lady talking about her upset at the injustice she had suffered, a teacher speaking of her concerns about a pupil, an divorcee seeking wisdom about how to handle a parenting dilemna, and a little boy who says that he will miss us when Kid's Club finishes for the holidays. We heard the adventures of a gentleman of the road who calls in to visit from time to time and the despair of a guy who doesn't know how to handle his guilt about some money he had stolen or his anger problem.

Tonight however, we gathered a crowd together of people whom we and our congregation have listened to and prayed for, for a while to our Friday Nite Live event. And now it was they who listened. And the thing they were quite prepared to listen to was the simple gospel proclaimed through testimony.

I like being a co-worker with God.

God bless

Carol

Ps I'm still going on holiday though. I suspect I'll find some kingdom work to do even in France but it does mean I won't be blogging for two weeks.

2006-06-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

Isaiah 32:8

"But the noble man makes noble plans and by noble deeds he stands."

I keep getting drawn back to this verse. I have never preached on it or even really noticed it before. However it stands out, especially as I am reading the challenging "Be a hero" at the moment.

In an earlier verse (v5)Isaiah looks to a day when "No longer will the fool be called noble nor the scoundrel be highly respected."

It reminded me of years ago when I was studying English Lit at School. We were doing Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy and there was a discussion about which of the main characters were the most appealing. Tess, the heroine of the book was ruled out, she was too much of a victim and so was Angel, the decent and moral character. He was too wet and too boring. No, the one most of the girls in class liked the best was the unscrupulous seducer, "D'Urberville. Those in the acting profession almost always seem to prefer playing the villain. Goodness is so often depicted as bland but a person's immoral lifestyle is often described as "colourful"

But the reality is, as Isaiah points out in v 6 the ungodly person "leaves the hungry empty and from the thirsty he witholds water."

Our world needs noble men who make noble plans and who stand by noble deeds."

What I deduced from a tentative study of this verse is that the heroic and the noble Christian life cannot be lived by accident. It has to be on purpose. We must make it a priority. There is a link between noble men and noble deeds. It's noble plans.

Just some musings

God bless

Carol

2006-06-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

Night of Prayer

Our prayer room will be well used this week-end. Two of us are praying all Friday night and people will be praying there all day Saturday until 9 pm. Please blog any prayer requests.

The last time I prayed all night was in November when I had a very profound experience of the Lord. I don't expect a repeat experience because God is creative and speaks in a variety of ways but my faith is high that he will speak and that our prayers will be effective.

God bless

Carol

2006-06-22T02:20:00.000-07:00

Sanctification

Justification brings forgiveness
Regeneration brings renewing
Sanctification brings cleansing

In regeneration sin does not reign
In sanctification it does not exist

In regeneration sin is suspended
In sanctification it is destroyed.

In regeneration irregular desires are subdued
In sanctification they are removed

Regeneration saves us from the commission of sin
Sanctification saves from the being of sin.

By Rev A.M Hills in Hoiness and Power

Is this your experience?

Can we preach this in the Salvation Army today?

What do you think?

God bless

Carol

2006-06-21T09:51:00.000-07:00

Holy Spirit at work today.

The Holy Spirit has been at work today in our Alpha Group as we gathered together for our Holy Spirit Away Day. The evidence of God's creativity has been all around us in the magnificent countryside of the Yorkshire Dales but also amazingly in the way in which the Holy Spirit worked in individuals as we prayed for him to come and and minister to us.
The Holy Spirit did something different and creatively in and for everyone who was there.
One lady made a first time committment to Christ, another experienced his power, another was released in prayer, another took another step in discovering faith is not about religion but personal relationship, another had a sense of being bathed in sunshine and warmth at his touch.

Among these older people God is doing a new thing and Joel 2:28 has been fulfilled again on the 21st June 2006. Hallelujah!

2006-06-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

Inheritance.

This week the family of Princess Margaret has been selling off her possessions in order to make the most of their inheritance.
Our inheritance is far greater, is not taxable and is waiting to be claimed.

Here is what Andrew Murray has to say about it:

"It is indeed a solemn, precious thought God's Holy Spirit can make all God's promises and provisions in Christ our experience. Who is ready to come into this life and claim their inheritance as children of God?

Let me suggest four steps

1. Say, I must be filled with the Spirit. God commands it, my soul needs it. The Spirit longs for it, Christ will do it, the world needs and I cannot live aright without it.

2. Say, I may be filled with the Spirit. God does not say you must live holy without saying you may. God has promised it, Christ has purchased it, the word reveals it, thousands have experienced it.

3. Say, I would be filled with the Spirit. Say my heart longs for it. Begin to say, I give up everything, O God; self, sin. self-will, self confidence. the flesh; I give up everything.

4. Say I shall be filled with the Spirit. God has promised it to me and I am going to trust God for it. I give myself up fully and I claim the filling of the Holy Spirit."

Enjoying a full salvation

Carol

2006-06-14T14:13:00.000-07:00

Inspiration from Isaiah

This was God's word for me today from Isaiah 30 v18-21.

v 18 Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you, he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem you will weep no more. How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction you teachers will be hidden no more; with you own eyes you well see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

What can I say other than these words are true. They mirror my recent experience. I have waited upon him particularly in recent days and he has spoken to me and shown me what to do.

We've got a great God! Well you know that but it's good to say it.

In his name and for his sake

Carol

2006-06-12T14:49:00.000-07:00

Street Collection

We had a street collection for the local work of the Salvation Army in Northallerton on Saturday. It was boiling hot and even though the streets were quieter than usual because of the World Cup we did really well.

I just ought to let you know that standing for hours with a collecting box in my hand is in my estimation on a par with doing the ironing and cleaning the oven. It really isn't my favourite way to spend my time.

But I decided I could either clock watch and look miserable all day or I could do this task for the glory of God. I chose the latter, prayed for grace and it was the easiest flag day I have ever done. I met loads of people I knew and raised more money that I usually do. Attitude and praying really do make a difference.

One thing made me smile. A girl of about 8 was given a pound, by her Gran to put into my box. She did so willingly but then as I put a Salvation Army sticker on her lapel asked me, with a puzzled look on her face, why a sticker cost a pound.

Another made me think. A little boy, again with his grandma, was dressed from head to toe as an England fan but when I asked him if he was going home to watch the match he looked at me blankly. "I don't think he really knows what it's really all for and what it's all about!" said his grandma.

And the moral of this story is.................................

God bless

Carol

2006-06-08T00:54:00.000-07:00

Shout hallelujah with me!

Another of our lads in the prison revealed yesterday that he has made the decision to become a Christian. His name is Martin, he is out on Friday. Please pray for him.

In His name and for His sake

Carol

2006-06-07T01:11:00.000-07:00

Die at your post

The Army papers arrive on our doorstep on Wednesday mornings usually just in time for me to glance at them whilst eating my breakfast. This event can be marked with interested calm, a few hallelujahs at some good news or something someone has written that inspires. Sometimes, I admit, Alan has to come in and calm my outrage down, when the letters page in the Salvationist is particularly infuriating. This week, however I was moved and challenged by the interview with Edna Williams.

She says, "Late one night, in my house on the territorial headquarters compound, the watchman came round to put out all outside lights. He told me to be quiet as there were soldiers and tanks at the gate. I put on my uniform thinking: If I'm going to be shot I want them to know who they are shooting! I knew that as a soldier of God there was no need to hide away."

Her words reminded me of William Booth'message entitled Die at your post. Here is an extract:

"Men and women who will die at their post are the very sort in demand just now in the Salvation Army and elsewhere. They are what the world needs, what we are praying for and what God wants. We are constantly told that we make the service of God and the obtaining and retaining of his favour too important and serious a thing. That we demand too much when we say that there must be no compromise, no holdng anything back, no denying him in little matters.......

Come along! No more reckoning up of what an out and out life for Jehovah down here among men will cost. Here is the altar; put all on. All has not gone on yet and you know it. And here is the secret why both the early and the latter rain have been withheld. Now let go and look out for the deluge."

2006-06-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

Nothing to say?

I've just realised that it is a week since I did a blog. What's happened? Have I got nothing to say?

Well it did feel a bit like that as I've actually been chewing over some stuff about mission which I needed to get my head around, whilst I have been painting our kitchen a shade called "holiday!" The results of the musings will probably find their way onto the page eventually but

But apart from that there are just times when people don't need our unsolicited opinions but someone to listen to them and make a Spirit-led response. I liked that thought from Booth- Tucker which Matt Clifton quotes on Future Fire, "Find out what their thoughts are before you share yours."

It's been a week of dealing with people suffering bereavement so it has been very appropriate to do that. Alan travelled to a family funeral, we offered support to a close neighbour whose mother was tragically killed by a train, a corps member's wife died after a long illness and it has been an honour to minister to him and to his family. One of the prison lads heard the news that his girlfriend had miscarried their child.

On the other hand there have been so many times, when I've been somewhere and been prompted

Hello my name is Hayley (Carol's daughter) Hope you like the latest blog, my mum said to put that she's done a really good job on the kitchen, but I helped! Back to Mum...

Before I was so rudely interuppted with a hug and the above......There have been times when I have been prompted to say something to someone and I've plucked up the courage to speak, thinking I'm going to look a complete idiot only to find that what I thought sounded like nonsense fitted exactly into their situation. It's all about been sensitive to the Spirit I suppose and speaking when you have something to say.

God bless

Carol

2006-05-30T13:30:00.000-07:00

Witnesses

Andrew Bale's blog on soulwinning caught my eye because it resonated with what I was trying to share in my sermon on Sunday based on Acts 1:8.

The promise Jesus gave to the apostles was that when the Holy Spirit came on them they would recieve power. Jesus went on to say what the promise of power was for. It was to be his witnesses.

Now, I think that there are a lot of people in churches who are actually a little disappointed with what Jesus said. In their honest moments some people hear this promise and wish that they could disconnect the promise of power from witnessing.

They hoped that the power would be given for some other reason than promoting and defending Jesus and his gospel.
They are comfortable with the idea of power to overcome their bad habits which they can see damages themselves and others. They are keen on the idea of power to heal people who are sick. Who doesn't want power to solve political problems and address social injustice in the world? Power to turn worship into an exciting spiritual experience is the desire of anyone who has had to sit through a mind and bottom numbing Sunday morning service.

But when Jesus was actually making the promise about power, the only promise he made was that we would be his witnesses. This is true in Matthew 28 when authority/power is given to go and make disciples. Mark 16 speaks of powerful signs following those who believe on the power of Christ's name but only after he has instructed the disciples to go into all the world and preach the good news. Luke ends his gospel with the prophecy that the good news will be preached in all nations. In other words the only thing that the Spirit’s power seems to be be given for is to testify to the good news about Jesus Christ.

Now in actual fact the coming of the Holy Spirit’s power does often see people overcome their sinful habits, healing takes place, people are stirred to act against injustice and do good in the world. But when they do they point to the fact that they are only possible because of Jesus life, death, resurrection and ascension. They are to point men and women to the Saviour.

Some want the results of the power, the warmth the life and the heat but the mention of the gospel of Christ makes them nervous because whilst stories of lives turned around are news, whilst alternative methods of healing are popular, whilst campaigning against injustice raises your street cred and having supernatural spiritual experiences are intriguing in our post modern world, the cross of Christ is not politically correct and is still the offence it always was.

However to those who have received salvation the promise of power to witness is music to their ears. More than anything they want to share the good news that there is a Saviour. I believe if you are truly born again then you would want to share the gospel. If we haven’t that desire then we must forget celebrating Pentecost and get back to Good Friday and realise again how lost the world is and how lost we are without the work of Christ on the cross.

God bless

Carol

2006-05-25T13:31:00.000-07:00

Covenants, officers and prayers

Andrew Clark writes on his blog about it being two years since he signed his officer covenant and I realised as I read it that it is 24 years today since Alan and I signed ours.

I was called to be a Salvation Army officer at the age of 11 as I witnessed the Commissioning of the Victorious Session. God whispered to me that one day I would stand on that same platform as an officer. He kept his word and a couple of weeks before my 22nd birthday I was commissioned.

It has been an adventure, sometimes frustrating but never boring. It has been fulfilling, demanding, heartbreaking and wonderful. I continue to be amazed that God has given me such a privilege. God has been faithful in helping us to keep our covenant with him.

If there is one thing that causes my hackles to rise it is officers moaning about their lot, what the Army won't let them do and I cannot for the life of me understand what this retiring when you have done 25 years is all about. But then when I get all self-righteous and pompous the Holy Spirit always brings me to task. He reminds me that I have been very fortunate that the Army has allowed me to follow the dream of planting new congregations, that I have been blessed with excellent support networks and that my husband and I can work together well. Others have had to face frustrations and difficulties I can only imagine.

About 12 years ago I was in the middle of a rant to God about officers who had left the work, for what in my opinion were not good enough reasons. He listened until I had finished and then said, very clearly, "And where were you? When this officer's marriage was in trouble where were you? Were you praying for them? When that officer couldn't take any more isolation and the hardness of his people, where were you? When another fell into error or sin, where were you? Were you sitting in judgment or on your knees praying?"

The episode humbled me and shocked me into action. I knew that from then on Alan and I had a commission from God to pray regularly and in particular for our session. We have managed to trace most of them and pray for them as often as we can. This is not because we are particularly noble but simply becasue the Holy Spirit just doesn't let us off the hook with this and we have found that the blessing has far outweighed the committment. So often the people we sought to support have ministered to us and helped to keep us on the right track.

I've rambled on but I suppose I'm just hoping that maybe others might take up the challenge to pray.

God bless

Carol

2006-05-22T13:52:00.000-07:00

Officership

I have been sorting through old Officer magazines lately and this little snippet jumped out at me today from an article entitled "Ten things I learned about officership" by Allen Satterlee (USA SOuthern Territory)

4. The Salvation Army has made only one promise to me

When cadets are commissioned you will not hear it said, "You will be a territorial commander....divisinal youth secretary....training college officer." The only promise the Army makes an officer is that he or she will have the opportunity to serve. Despite having some ideas of what I should or should not do, I have to remind myself that no promises were ever made except that I would be allowed to serve. The Army has kept its promise.

24 years since commissioning I too remain humbled by the privilege and thankful for the oppporutnity I have been given to serve.

God bless

Carol

2006-05-19T08:54:00.000-07:00

Prison Update

Thank you to everyone who has prayed for Scott and the lads in prison in Northallerton.

Due to the enthusiasm shown at our groups over the last few weeks and numerous significant encounters with individuals we planned that this morning we would give opportunity for the lads to take a step of faith and act on what we have been talking about.

On other fronts here things have been difficult and as you might expect in the battle for souls everything on the planet from lack of radios to sleepy inmates seemed to conspire against this morning's group happening. However we managed to collect 6 lads. Scott who some of you have prayed for has had some disappointments concerning transfer and a job so is a bit down. The atmosphere was really flat and getting answers to any questions like getting blood out of a stone.

Yet I just felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to just keep going and afterwards Becky my fellow chaplain said afterwards she felt the same. So despite the distractions and the negativity we did have our response time. We read scripture, invited the lads to give their burdens to Jesus, which they all did symbolically by writing them down and putting the papers in a dustbin, and we prayed for the Holy Spirit to work among us. Each lad except one allowed us to pray for them individually in front of the others.

Does this mean they all got saved today? No, I don't think it does but there was not one of them that didn't sense that there was a powerful presence in the chapel and they are now more open than ever to want God wants to do in their lives. They have all returned to their cells with the Alpha booklet "Why Jesus" and a copy of the sinners prayer. Please continue to pray for Holy Spirit conviction and protection from the evil one.

Still believing

Carol

2006-05-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

Discovery

I was sorting through some old Officer magazines and found the following piece of writing that appeared originally in the War Cry March 2004, Hong Kong Command. Author unknown.

"The CHURCH has many organisers, but few agonisers
Many who pay, but few who pray; Many resters but few wrestlers;
Many who are enterprising but few who are interceding.
People who are not praying are playing.

Two prerequisites of dynamic Christian living are vision and passion and both of these are generated in the prayer closet. The ministry of preaching is open to a few. The ministry of praying is open to every child of God.

Don't mistake action for unction, commotion for creation and rattles for revivals.

The secret of praying is praying in secret.
A worldly Christian will stop praying and a praying Christian will stop worldliness.

When we pray, God listens to our heartbeat. Hannah's lips moved but her voice was not heard (1 Samuel:12,13) When we pray in the Spirit, there are groanings which cannot be uttered (Romans 8:26)

Tithes may build a church, but tears will give it life. That is the difference between the modern Church and the early Church.
Our emphasis is on paying, theirs was on praying. When we have paid, the place is taken. When they prayed the place was shaken (Acts 4:31)

In the matter of effective praying, never have so many left so much to so few. Brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray."

2006-05-15T11:15:00.000-07:00

Normal Christianity

On Saturday I attended the Sound the Trumpet prayer event at the NEC in Birmingham.
There were a lot of good things in the day and what I am about to say is not really about the event because the idea being put forward is one that is constantly reworked in one form or another in various contexts.

During the afternoon session reference was made to an initiative being launched in 2008, which seeks to mobilise churches across the UK to engage in acts of kindness to neighbours, to get out on the streets and to get involved and do something in our communities in the way of witness and service. The speakers were passionate and sincere but I was overwhelmed with a sense of sadness.

Why?

Because what they were suggesting should be a special campaign is surely what should be normal everyday Christianity. On a DVD that I received on the day, mention was made of a wonderful move of God that took place in one of the large cities in the UK when the kind of thing they were suggesting was done there. This move of God was that young people drafted into an area spent a whole ten days serving the community. I am not doubting that what they did had an impact but I was reminded of some words of Catherine Booth when talking about missionary work in 1890,

"I can remember a sort of inward pity for what I thought then the small expectation of the church.....I can remember how disappointed I felt at the comparatively small results which seem to give satisfaction."

Isn't serving our community what every Christian should do normally if they have the Spirit of God in them every day, in every town and city?

Watchman Nee wrote a whole book on the subject. He says, "What is the normal Christian life? It is something very different from the life of the average Christian.......... The apostle Paul gives us his own definition of the Christian life in Galatians 2:20 "It is no longer I, but Christ." Here he is not stating something special or peculiar- a high level of Christianity. He is, we believe, presenting God's normal for a Christian, which can be summarized in the words, "I live no longer, but Christ live his life in me."

My prayer tonight is, "O God make me a normal Christian not an average one."

God bless

Carol

2006-05-12T10:41:00.000-07:00

Questions

I have had a real opportnity to share the gospel this week. My previous blog was about the prison, where we are seeking to reach 18-21 year old male offenders. Following prison I was invited along with some other ministers to the CU at the High School, our audience was 14-16 year old students. Earlier this week I was leading an Alpha course with five senior citizens.

Guess what. I was asked the same kind of questions about God, life and faith in each group. Same hunger, same answers, same Jesus, same gospel.

Carol