Today was a day of mixed emotions. We had Spiritual Day at the College, which was AMAZING...Well, at least the time I was there was anyway. I led a min choir in the singing of a song called "Let Your presence fall" It was acapella and was beautiful. It aided people in stopping and reflecting on the power and the presence of God in all things, including the business of life. Our Guests were Lt. Colonels Judith & John Jeffries, Captains Lindsay and Jenni Frost and Mrs. Lt. Col. Collinson played the piano for parts of the day. Spiritual days are an important part of the College calender. It's great to set aside a day from the business of study etc and seek out God through prayer and reflection. Come Holy Spirit!
Today was also the 3rd year Anniversary of Mum's passing. I caught up for lunch with the family and it was good to share fond memories of a beautiful woman of God. I miss her so much, but am so happy that she knew Jesus and because of that I'll be seeing her again one day. She had an incredible influence on my life and I thank God for her, and for the fact that she came to know Christ and continually grew from strength to strength. Thank you Go, for the gift of my Mum and for the beautiful spirit she had, and for her unconditional love for others and passion for you. Amen :)
Tonight I chaired a College Council meeting at my School where I was School Captain. I am still on the council, a year and a bit on after graduating. They made a position for me and I am thankful. This year at the AGM, I was voted in as Vice-President. I chaired the meeting tonight, because the president is away on holiday. I am thankful to still have influence in my school, a place that encouraged, supported and empowered me so much. Teachers at my school always thought that I would become a teacher (like I had planned) and become Principal of that school. They even still called me "Principal Stobie" haha. God please bless Hoppers Crossing Secondary College in every possible way. Thank you so much!
God of all eternity, we bow before You now to seek You, to know You more and to connect with You. You are strong, mighty and powerful, yet, you love us so much and know us individually. Sustain us by Your love and challenge us, compell us and convict us by Your Holy Spirit. You have been so gracious unto us, may we share your love, salvation and grace to all we come into contact with. For your name's sake, Amen!
God Bless you all - Missing you! Thanks for your prayers, thoughts and love. XOXOX
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Dear Mum,
Today was Mothers Day. It was a beautiful day. The weather was warm, there were many smiles and it was a great day celebrate the beautiful gift of Mothers. Happy Mothers Day.
For me, Mothers day brings many, many memories, some good and some not so good. For those who don't know, In 2004, my beautiful Mum, Rhonda died exactly a week after Mothers day. So, today was emotional for me, and you know what, that's ok. At Moonee Ponds it was my turn to do a part in the meeting called "My Part" and so I did this and spoke about the specialness of Mothers and the great gift from God that they were. I got through, there were many tears, but I think people could understand what I was saying. To finish off this particular segment, I sung a song that I wrote, called 'Dear Mum'. It's mainly about my Mum, but it was my prayer that people would be able to take something special from it. Mum has been gone three years this coming Wednesday (the 16th). I miss her dearly, but I'll blog about that on Wednesday. Here's the song I wrote, I hope you are blessed by it and you can relate parts of it to your relationship with your Mum, or someone who has been a Motherly figure to you. God Bless!!!
Dear Mum,
Verse 1:
Thanks for all you’ve done for me,
And for the love you shared.
You taught us by example,
You showed how much you cared.
Chorus:
Now you’re in heaven,
You’re watching me from above.
I miss the smell of your perfume,
And the warmness of your hugs.
I look up to the stars at night,
And see your beautiful eyes,
Thanks for being in our lives.
Dear Mum
Verse 2:
One thing will always be true
You’ll always be my Mum, and I’ll always love you
The kisses and the hugs, the tenderness and love
That helped to see me through
I knew I could count on you
For me, Mothers day brings many, many memories, some good and some not so good. For those who don't know, In 2004, my beautiful Mum, Rhonda died exactly a week after Mothers day. So, today was emotional for me, and you know what, that's ok. At Moonee Ponds it was my turn to do a part in the meeting called "My Part" and so I did this and spoke about the specialness of Mothers and the great gift from God that they were. I got through, there were many tears, but I think people could understand what I was saying. To finish off this particular segment, I sung a song that I wrote, called 'Dear Mum'. It's mainly about my Mum, but it was my prayer that people would be able to take something special from it. Mum has been gone three years this coming Wednesday (the 16th). I miss her dearly, but I'll blog about that on Wednesday. Here's the song I wrote, I hope you are blessed by it and you can relate parts of it to your relationship with your Mum, or someone who has been a Motherly figure to you. God Bless!!!
Dear Mum,
Verse 1:
Thanks for all you’ve done for me,
And for the love you shared.
You taught us by example,
You showed how much you cared.
Chorus:
Now you’re in heaven,
You’re watching me from above.
I miss the smell of your perfume,
And the warmness of your hugs.
I look up to the stars at night,
And see your beautiful eyes,
Thanks for being in our lives.
Dear Mum
Verse 2:
One thing will always be true
You’ll always be my Mum, and I’ll always love you
The kisses and the hugs, the tenderness and love
That helped to see me through
I knew I could count on you
Monday, May 7, 2007
Grace's Place
Grace's place is an excellent expression of effectively sharing the Gospel with people from the community. It's a wonderful initiative that is run at my Corps Placement, Moonee Ponds Salvation Army on Fridays, 10am onwards.
It is held in the back hall, which is considerably large in size. When the leaders first walk in, it is merely just an empty hall. But by the time the people start rolling in, it has been transformed into a beautiful sanctuary. A place that is a refuge for some, a happy place, filled with joy, love and acceptance. The lower and middle class are well represented. Many come through the doors who need Jesus, and whom the community has forgotten about or, rejected. This is not the case at Grace's Place. It's set up with round tables with brightly coloured tableclothes drapped over them. There's board games, crosswords, coffee, tea, biscuits..It's truly amazing. There are also some couches along of the walls near the Welfare Office - Anyone can sit there, but generally those who are at the Salvo's for Welfare sit there.
After 45 mins or so of good fellowship, There is an intentional discussion time, where the leader will write a question or phrase on the whiteboard and all those in attendance, as well as the leader explore the question or phrase further. The best part is that the Welfare clients join in as well. They love it. After half an our of discussion we share in a meal together. After that there is a Mini Worship service, where we sing some songs, read the Word and then have a short sermon/devotional.
I had the awesome oppurtunity to lead this last Friday, as the Corps Officers were on Holidays. For discussion time I wrote on the board "What is love?" The discussion time was wonderful. Lots of the welfare clients joined in, as well as the other people who were there for Grace's Place. All up there was about 25-30 sharing in discussion. A big pool of idea's, suggestions, views and experiences. It was wonderful. Discussion time finished and we then shared in a meal together.
For our worship session we sang some songs of Praise, thanking God for all He is doing! I then spoke about love and what the Bible had to say about it. The three Scriptures I used all had different dimensions of love, but they all led back to the same principle. To be like Jesus, we MUST love. The Scriptures were:
1st Corinthians 13:1-8 & 15
Galations 5:22-26
John 3:16
I thank God so much for the oppurtunity to minister in this way @ Grace's Place and Praise God for the lives changed because of Him. Read these verses and tell me what you think about what the Bible is saying about LOVE.
Miss you all - God Bless!
It is held in the back hall, which is considerably large in size. When the leaders first walk in, it is merely just an empty hall. But by the time the people start rolling in, it has been transformed into a beautiful sanctuary. A place that is a refuge for some, a happy place, filled with joy, love and acceptance. The lower and middle class are well represented. Many come through the doors who need Jesus, and whom the community has forgotten about or, rejected. This is not the case at Grace's Place. It's set up with round tables with brightly coloured tableclothes drapped over them. There's board games, crosswords, coffee, tea, biscuits..It's truly amazing. There are also some couches along of the walls near the Welfare Office - Anyone can sit there, but generally those who are at the Salvo's for Welfare sit there.
After 45 mins or so of good fellowship, There is an intentional discussion time, where the leader will write a question or phrase on the whiteboard and all those in attendance, as well as the leader explore the question or phrase further. The best part is that the Welfare clients join in as well. They love it. After half an our of discussion we share in a meal together. After that there is a Mini Worship service, where we sing some songs, read the Word and then have a short sermon/devotional.
I had the awesome oppurtunity to lead this last Friday, as the Corps Officers were on Holidays. For discussion time I wrote on the board "What is love?" The discussion time was wonderful. Lots of the welfare clients joined in, as well as the other people who were there for Grace's Place. All up there was about 25-30 sharing in discussion. A big pool of idea's, suggestions, views and experiences. It was wonderful. Discussion time finished and we then shared in a meal together.
For our worship session we sang some songs of Praise, thanking God for all He is doing! I then spoke about love and what the Bible had to say about it. The three Scriptures I used all had different dimensions of love, but they all led back to the same principle. To be like Jesus, we MUST love. The Scriptures were:
1st Corinthians 13:1-8 & 15
Galations 5:22-26
John 3:16
I thank God so much for the oppurtunity to minister in this way @ Grace's Place and Praise God for the lives changed because of Him. Read these verses and tell me what you think about what the Bible is saying about LOVE.
Miss you all - God Bless!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Lectio Divina
We had Spiritual Formation today and we learnt about a method of Prayers call 'Lectio Divina.'The term 'Lectio Divina' is Latin for divine reading, spiritual reading, or "holy reading," and represents a method of prayer and scriptural reading intended to promote communion (conversation) with God and to provide special spiritual insights. It is a way of praying with Scripture that calls one to study, ponder, listen and, finally, pray from God's Word.
I've done a bit of reading up on this and there is basically 4 moments in this method of prayer. They are:
Lectio (Selection)
Read the passage slowly several times.
Meditatio (Practise)
Reflect on the text of the passage, thinking about how to apply to one's own life. Gravitate to any particular phrase or word that seems to be of particular import. It is a very personal reading of the Scripture and application to one's own life.
Oratio (Prayer)
Respond to the passage by opening the heart to God. This is not primarily an intellectual exercise, but more of the beginning of a conversation with God.
Contemplatio (Survey)
Listen to God. This is a freeing oneself from one's own thoughts, both mundane and holy. It is about hearing God talk to us. Opening our mind, heart and soul to the influence of God. Any conversation must allow for both sides to communicate, and this most unfamiliar act is allowing oneself to be open to hearing God speak.
I really felt God speak clearly to me during this time of prayer today. We focused on the Scripture found in John 14: 21-26. You can look it up for yourselves, But the part where God spoke clearly was where He said "The Holy Spirit will teach you everything". Over the past couples of weeks Satan has been reminding me of my shortcomings, failures and how I don't understand or know everything straight away. He's taken pleasure when I see how there are so many other awesome Christian's/leaders and how I'm not up th that same standard as maybe others in my session are, but that's ok because the Holy Spirit will teach me everything. It's a process in which I will learn constantly and consistently. It won't all happen at once.
I am thankful for this method of communication with God. May I continually learn from God's Holy Spirit and may I continue to seek out direction from God.
Where are you at with God now? Do you connect with Him each time that you pray? Mayb you could try this method of prayer. Glory to God in His church, for Christ's sake - Amen!
Miss you all!!!
P.S - I've started reading the Bible cover-to-cover (well sort of) I read Some chapters from Genesis and Matthew...So I'm moving through both testaments at the same time. It's exciting - God is so very good!! Maybe God will lay it upon your heart to do it also. Hallelujah!
I've done a bit of reading up on this and there is basically 4 moments in this method of prayer. They are:
Lectio (Selection)
Read the passage slowly several times.
Meditatio (Practise)
Reflect on the text of the passage, thinking about how to apply to one's own life. Gravitate to any particular phrase or word that seems to be of particular import. It is a very personal reading of the Scripture and application to one's own life.
Oratio (Prayer)
Respond to the passage by opening the heart to God. This is not primarily an intellectual exercise, but more of the beginning of a conversation with God.
Contemplatio (Survey)
Listen to God. This is a freeing oneself from one's own thoughts, both mundane and holy. It is about hearing God talk to us. Opening our mind, heart and soul to the influence of God. Any conversation must allow for both sides to communicate, and this most unfamiliar act is allowing oneself to be open to hearing God speak.
I really felt God speak clearly to me during this time of prayer today. We focused on the Scripture found in John 14: 21-26. You can look it up for yourselves, But the part where God spoke clearly was where He said "The Holy Spirit will teach you everything". Over the past couples of weeks Satan has been reminding me of my shortcomings, failures and how I don't understand or know everything straight away. He's taken pleasure when I see how there are so many other awesome Christian's/leaders and how I'm not up th that same standard as maybe others in my session are, but that's ok because the Holy Spirit will teach me everything. It's a process in which I will learn constantly and consistently. It won't all happen at once.
I am thankful for this method of communication with God. May I continually learn from God's Holy Spirit and may I continue to seek out direction from God.
Where are you at with God now? Do you connect with Him each time that you pray? Mayb you could try this method of prayer. Glory to God in His church, for Christ's sake - Amen!
Miss you all!!!
P.S - I've started reading the Bible cover-to-cover (well sort of) I read Some chapters from Genesis and Matthew...So I'm moving through both testaments at the same time. It's exciting - God is so very good!! Maybe God will lay it upon your heart to do it also. Hallelujah!
Thursday, May 3, 2007
A wonderful day!!!
I led prayers this morning at College and I decided to get everyone to write down the alphabet and then write down words of praise to God next to each letter. When we finished this we had a prayer time where there was opportunity to loudly speak our prayers to God! It was fantastic. People all over the place we're saying words and sentences of praise. God is so good. He was happy!
We then had Theology A (Salvation Army) This was good. We spoke about lots of things. One of the mains things was the fact that God doesn't grade sin, to Him, it's all bad and equally bad. We also spoke about the sixth Salvation Army Doctrine. "We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has by His suffering and death made an atonement for the whole world so thst whosoever will may be saved." - We spoke about Christ's suffering and death and that He did it so that anyone who seeks Him out for forgiveness and steps into a relationship with Him, will be saved. This is open to ANYBODY, Not just the Jews, and not Just the Gentiles, EVERYBODY!! Jews, Gentiles, Black and white - EVERYBODY you can think of!
After class I went somewhere that holds a VERY VERY special place in my heart. The Williamstown Salvation Army for Home League. This is a beautiful expression of a faithful Corps. These people are incredibly faithful. They may be getting older, But they're loving the Lord more and more each day as He reveals more of Himself to them. I love each of them dearly. This Corps has some remarkable people who continually strive for Holiness and strive to be like Jesus. Two people for example are Major Ruth Bennett and Dorothy. They are both faithful servants of Christ and I am incredibly blessed to know them. They bless me in very special ways. PLEASE pray for this Corps. This is a Corps of Prayer Warriors, faithful intercessors who long to see revival. Join them with your prayers.
Tomorrow I have 'Grace's Place' @ Moonee Ponds...I'm leading it as the CO's are away on vacation (Furlough). I'll blog more about what it actually is and how I went tomorrow.
God is faithful. He loves us and cares for us dearly. He's desperate to see people turn unto Him. May WE be Jesus to those who are yet to know Him. God Bless you as you experience His ocean of love, forgiveness, salvation and grace.
Serving under the Risen King Jesus,
Cadet Stobes xoxo
We then had Theology A (Salvation Army) This was good. We spoke about lots of things. One of the mains things was the fact that God doesn't grade sin, to Him, it's all bad and equally bad. We also spoke about the sixth Salvation Army Doctrine. "We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has by His suffering and death made an atonement for the whole world so thst whosoever will may be saved." - We spoke about Christ's suffering and death and that He did it so that anyone who seeks Him out for forgiveness and steps into a relationship with Him, will be saved. This is open to ANYBODY, Not just the Jews, and not Just the Gentiles, EVERYBODY!! Jews, Gentiles, Black and white - EVERYBODY you can think of!
After class I went somewhere that holds a VERY VERY special place in my heart. The Williamstown Salvation Army for Home League. This is a beautiful expression of a faithful Corps. These people are incredibly faithful. They may be getting older, But they're loving the Lord more and more each day as He reveals more of Himself to them. I love each of them dearly. This Corps has some remarkable people who continually strive for Holiness and strive to be like Jesus. Two people for example are Major Ruth Bennett and Dorothy. They are both faithful servants of Christ and I am incredibly blessed to know them. They bless me in very special ways. PLEASE pray for this Corps. This is a Corps of Prayer Warriors, faithful intercessors who long to see revival. Join them with your prayers.
Tomorrow I have 'Grace's Place' @ Moonee Ponds...I'm leading it as the CO's are away on vacation (Furlough). I'll blog more about what it actually is and how I went tomorrow.
God is faithful. He loves us and cares for us dearly. He's desperate to see people turn unto Him. May WE be Jesus to those who are yet to know Him. God Bless you as you experience His ocean of love, forgiveness, salvation and grace.
Serving under the Risen King Jesus,
Cadet Stobes xoxo
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Relational Evangelism
God has really challenged me about Relational Evengelism lately. I even presented a tutorial on it to my Mission Foundations class. Here are some fo the notes from it.
The theological basis for relational evangelism comes from a perspective on the doctrine of the incarnation. In John 1:14, we read that “...the word of God became flesh and dwelt among us”. The Greek term for flesh, here, is sarx, which is used when referring to flesh, muscles, tissue and the like. The implication is that the Jesus, who was born, was a human being through and through. The term, “incarnation” is taken from the Greek word, “in carne” or literally, “in the flesh”. Yet at the very same time Jesus was and is also fully, God. To put it another way, God, not ceasing to be God, became a human. To diminish either characteristic in our understanding of Jesus, leads us to false theology.
Relational evangelism emphasizes that the incarnation is the ultimate example of God initiating personal, intimate contact with mankind in the context of a relationship. In Christ, we have “...the visible expression of the invisible God”. (Colossians 3:15 JBP) We can “Behold the glory of the Father” because Jesus came to us “in the flesh” In John's Epistle, (I John 1) he emphasizes that they had their senses exposed to Jesus (we have heard, seen and touched Him). Through the incarnation the Infinite God became the Infinite Personal God. It is also interesting to note that the term “dwelt” in John 1:14 is an Aramaic term which is translated, “pitching one's tent.” The imagery is rich, as we have a Saviour who did not merely put in an appearance for an hour or a day, but who “pitched his tent” among the human race, consenting to “make Himself nothing." (Phil. 2:7)
This is the truth of the incarnation that gives relational evangelism its methodology for reaching the lost. As God personally brought the Good News to mankind, so we are to “incarnate” Christ to the lost, that is, to break through, (pitch our tent) significantly into the lives of the pre-Christian for the purpose of not only verbalizing the Gospel but also to live it before them. As Christ lives His life through the believer, they see the “visible expression of the invisible God” as well as hearing the Word of salvation.
Evangelism is the duty of all Christians. The great commission at the end of Matthew’s Gospel (Matthew 28:19) is a commission for all who follow Jesus Christ: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” There are reasons as to why we must do this and do it with a joyful heart. Christ commands us to do this, the world urgently needs the Gospel and the fields are already “ripe for harvest” (John 4:35). So why have we become so complacent in this and not moving out and building relationships? God commands us to do this.
We share our faith because we cannot contain ourselves. This was true of the early church. When the religious authorities ordered the disciples to stop preaching the gospel, Peter’s answer described their burning desire: “For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
Evangelism is not a matter of knowing all the answers, nor does it require that we have a sophisticated theological argument. Instead, it is a natural outgrowth of a deep faith that drives Christians to share their faith. It is something good that we want others to enjoy. Something we can’t contain because we are so excited by it. That’s the Good News of Christ Jesus!
Relational evangelism is something that I am very passionate about. Not because it’s easy or less work than other forms of evangelism, but because I can relate to people more because of our common interests. Relational evangelism just makes sense to me. Its potential is huge and if done correctly can be a mighty work for the Kingdom of Heaven. It’s combining things that you love. Your love for Christ combined with your love for hobbies/activities. Your Christlikeness will just ooze out of you and as you journey with people they WILL see Christ. They will notice that something is different and the faith journey begins. How exciting! God is so good – Hallelujah!
During the tutorial discussion, some people had a bit of an issue with me using the phrase 'Evagelism is the DUTY of ALL Christians... What do you think? I'm very interested to read peoples thoughts on this.
God Bless - Miss you all!
Love, Stobielicious!
The theological basis for relational evangelism comes from a perspective on the doctrine of the incarnation. In John 1:14, we read that “...the word of God became flesh and dwelt among us”. The Greek term for flesh, here, is sarx, which is used when referring to flesh, muscles, tissue and the like. The implication is that the Jesus, who was born, was a human being through and through. The term, “incarnation” is taken from the Greek word, “in carne” or literally, “in the flesh”. Yet at the very same time Jesus was and is also fully, God. To put it another way, God, not ceasing to be God, became a human. To diminish either characteristic in our understanding of Jesus, leads us to false theology.
Relational evangelism emphasizes that the incarnation is the ultimate example of God initiating personal, intimate contact with mankind in the context of a relationship. In Christ, we have “...the visible expression of the invisible God”. (Colossians 3:15 JBP) We can “Behold the glory of the Father” because Jesus came to us “in the flesh” In John's Epistle, (I John 1) he emphasizes that they had their senses exposed to Jesus (we have heard, seen and touched Him). Through the incarnation the Infinite God became the Infinite Personal God. It is also interesting to note that the term “dwelt” in John 1:14 is an Aramaic term which is translated, “pitching one's tent.” The imagery is rich, as we have a Saviour who did not merely put in an appearance for an hour or a day, but who “pitched his tent” among the human race, consenting to “make Himself nothing." (Phil. 2:7)
This is the truth of the incarnation that gives relational evangelism its methodology for reaching the lost. As God personally brought the Good News to mankind, so we are to “incarnate” Christ to the lost, that is, to break through, (pitch our tent) significantly into the lives of the pre-Christian for the purpose of not only verbalizing the Gospel but also to live it before them. As Christ lives His life through the believer, they see the “visible expression of the invisible God” as well as hearing the Word of salvation.
Evangelism is the duty of all Christians. The great commission at the end of Matthew’s Gospel (Matthew 28:19) is a commission for all who follow Jesus Christ: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” There are reasons as to why we must do this and do it with a joyful heart. Christ commands us to do this, the world urgently needs the Gospel and the fields are already “ripe for harvest” (John 4:35). So why have we become so complacent in this and not moving out and building relationships? God commands us to do this.
We share our faith because we cannot contain ourselves. This was true of the early church. When the religious authorities ordered the disciples to stop preaching the gospel, Peter’s answer described their burning desire: “For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
Evangelism is not a matter of knowing all the answers, nor does it require that we have a sophisticated theological argument. Instead, it is a natural outgrowth of a deep faith that drives Christians to share their faith. It is something good that we want others to enjoy. Something we can’t contain because we are so excited by it. That’s the Good News of Christ Jesus!
Relational evangelism is something that I am very passionate about. Not because it’s easy or less work than other forms of evangelism, but because I can relate to people more because of our common interests. Relational evangelism just makes sense to me. Its potential is huge and if done correctly can be a mighty work for the Kingdom of Heaven. It’s combining things that you love. Your love for Christ combined with your love for hobbies/activities. Your Christlikeness will just ooze out of you and as you journey with people they WILL see Christ. They will notice that something is different and the faith journey begins. How exciting! God is so good – Hallelujah!
During the tutorial discussion, some people had a bit of an issue with me using the phrase 'Evagelism is the DUTY of ALL Christians... What do you think? I'm very interested to read peoples thoughts on this.
God Bless - Miss you all!
Love, Stobielicious!
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