WISELink August 2008

The August 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

WISELink July 2008

The July 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

Living God

I was contemplating the Spirit the other day, reflecting how important He is to our enabling, to our empowering, and to our enrichment as Christian women. This is very important to me as I have been taking on my new calling in life as EO of CareWorks. I know I couldn’t do this in my own strength, capacity or competency‐ all a bit beyond me if it was left just up to me!
So often we may think we are doing things in our own strength. But Jesus has left us a crucial reminder, a wonderful going away present, the presence of Christ living within us and all around us (see John 14:16‐17). I have been reminded of this in a number of conversations over the last week. Firstly with a dear friend in ministry leadership, and then again in a conversation with Maurie, one of our CareWorks managers. Aa third time, in case I didn’t get it the first or the second time, was when Val Zerna spoke on Sunday night at the Mile End Centenary, about Global Mission Partners. (By the way if you want a truly inspiring and passionate speaker Val is for you).
These conversations were all focused on a particular image or metaphor that Frank Beale, an elder statesman of Churches of Christ, and formerly a pioneering missionary in Papua New
Guinea, used once in his writing. He was quoted by Jeff May when he wrote the forward for the OMB centenary commemorative book.
‘I spent fifteen years being scared and out of my depth. Then when the growth took place it was like body surfing. Working with the Holy Spirit means that you are being carried along with your head only just above water and if you don't ride with it you get dumped and left behind. It was the greatest fifteen years of my life.’ Frank Beale
Not being much of a body surfer myself, and yet having experienced the exhilaration of being held up and carried on a wave to shore, I believe this is a very appropriate image. However, I’m sure that Frank’s experience is not so different from many of us. We take so long to learn to let go and let God by the Spirit take hold of our lives. Then it is truly like body surfing, being taken along by the wave of God’s enabling, empowering, enriching presence. Maurie used a similar image describing our Christian life as being like a cork keeping afloat on a stormy sea, tossed about but not overcome. And it is exactly that. The mystery of God has taken hold of us and it is no longer I, but the presence of God living in and around me, being and doing!
I am constantly marvelling at how God is alive and active amongst us here at CareWorks. As people come needing assistance in the midst of their crisis I discern that God is somehow transporting them beyond their present circumstances into a new dimension of being. They are becoming all God has created them to be by the power of God’s Spirit at work in our midst, and in them. When someone comes just at the right time to us in our need, and gives generously of themselves in some voluntary capacity, I again say thanks to God for the many ways The Spirit is at work, often imperceptibly.
Whatever God has called us to be and do, whatever God is calling us to be and to do, be assured God provides the wave of the Spirit. This wave drenches us, refreshes us, and miraculously holds us up. It guides and directs us. It brings us to the safety of the shore and then takes us out again into the depths. When we succumb to God’s Spirit to carry us wherever and whenever, we’re in for an incredible ride!
Grace and peace, Julie, Executive Officer, CareWorks

God is Spirit - RRT

This month the attribute of God we are looking at is, “God—the Spirit”.
Yes we all are probably quite aware of the work of the Holy Spirit, and may take its presence with us for granted. Each one of us who has accepted the call of Christ on their lives and owned Him as Lord and Saviour, has the Spirit of God living within.
In May we celebrated Pentecost, the birthday of the church, but also the anniversary of the coming of the Spirit of God to the world. When God recalled Christ back to heaven to be with Him, He left us with His Holy Spirit to indwell His people and give guidance to us.
This wonderful gift was freely given to us by God, just as He freely gave His Son to redeem us. The Spirit of God is another love gift from God.
It is this promise of God, this promise of having His Spirit with us and in us, that gives us the ability to accomplish much in His Name. God knows that we need His help as we can not do it on our own and be able to resist the many temptations that will come our way on a daily basis.
God knows us through and through. He knows our every thought and feeling. In 1st Corinthians 2:12, we read; “And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.” (NLT)
All of us were created with a “God void” in our lives that needs to be filled in some way. Without it filled, there is an emptiness that yearns to be filled by something. Many seek in different ways to fill the void and want to feel a spirit’s presence within.
In Adelaide recently there was a “Mystic Fair” where people flocked to the Showgrounds looking for answers to fill this “God void” in their lives.
Sadly, they will not have found the Spirit of God ‐ the one who would bring life and peace to their lives, but they went seeking in the wrong place! God’s Spirit is the only one who can fill this void and set us on a path of freedom and fulfillment. It is His presence and His only who fills this void. It is at these Fairs that we are Christians need to have a presence to share the good news of God’s Spirit being alive and active in this world.
How awesome it is to know that we can have the Spirit of God as our constant companion and never be alone. May you know this presence in your life today.

WISELink June 2008

The June 2008 of WISELink is now available online.
I will once again be publishing the feature article(s), please feel free to discuss the article in the comments area of each post.

Living God - RRT

What a theme I chose for this month! Yes I know that God is Living, I experience His presence with me constantly, but ... As I sat and tried to write something, I started and stopped and then tried again another day. And still didn’t get very far, until today. I receive lots of emails and many of them are quite funny and it was one of these that set me thinking.

The story goes that an atheist was out in the forest admiring the trees and the rivers and the scenery generally around him when he is confronted with a bear. A huge bear … like a 7 foot Grizzly! Now as atheists don't believe in God, what could he do, well he couldn’t pray now could he!

Anyway, he has a conversation with God about him ignoring God all these years and now when his life is in danger, he suddenly believes? Realising that he would be hypocritical to expect God to accept him now, he asks God to make the bear a Christian instead.
The bear then thanks God for the meal set before him and the email ends.

This got me thinking. We Christians purport to belong to the living God. We attend worship and say with our mouths that we believe in the Living God, but our day‐to‐day lives do not show that we are Christians. In Julie’s article in this issue she talks about a guy who says that He can feel the love all around at CareWorks. This is amazing that He can feel God’s love
surrounding Him. This love can only be felt from a Living God.

As Christians who want to share the saving grace of God with our friends and family, we need to take hold of the Living God and let Him live in and through us. I know that I let what is happening all around me pull me down and I don’t let the Living God shine in and through me. It is a daily challenge that I confront head on.

A friend of mine went to work in a business and decided that if they knew she was a Christian they may treat her differently from what they might otherwise do. So she decided not to use the “God talk” that she was so used to using with her Christian friends. After she had been at the place a while, one of the workers asked her what was different about her? She answered that she didn’t know. Then her workmate said, “There is something different about you, you are calm, and serene against all the odds, you’re a Christian, aren’t you? My Grandma was a Christian and she behaved just like you.”

The old song that we used to sing years ago springs to mind, “And they will know we are Christians by our love”.

Belief in the Living God is not enough, it must be evident in how we live. Serving the Living God enables us to live out His love and exhibit it to the world around ‐ to our family, friends, workmates and indeed to the people we meet where ever we go. This is our challenge to live by constantly and show the world the Living God.

James 2:18 says: But someone will say, “One person has faith and another actions.” My answer is, “Show me how anyone can have faith without actions, and I will show you my faith by my actions.” (GNB)

Living God - JS

What is the evidence of life, of God being alive? How do we know? Can we use the usual criteria - can we see, touch and feel God?

The letter to the Romans says a resounding ‘Yes’- the basic reality of God is plain enough in all that God has created. Creation reveals the eternal power and divine mystery of God (Romans 1:20). The complexity and interwoven design of nature expresses the living God. Many of us would say ‘Yes’ to that - looking out across the landscape, looking down on a panoramic view, looking back along a beach - we capture a glimpse of Living God.

Jesus enters our world and we are invited to meet God come as a man, Living God as a visible and tangible human being. To me this is an even greater mystery than what we glimpse of God in the pattern of creation. The Gospel of John leads us to encounter Jesus as God living with us. Jesus identifies himself with life in many of his sayings. One that springs to mind is “I am the way, the truth and the life.” (14:6)

Jesus goes even further, however. Not only do we encounter Living God in Jesus but also we are offered the gift of being filled with this life. “I have come that they might have life, life in all its fullness.” (10:10) As has been expressed profoundly, “The glory of God is a [person] fully alive!”

Being attentive to God living with us, opens us up to the life of God that God is breathing into us. At times in our fast paced, over stimulated, noise filled, materially crowded existence we can shut down to recognizing the reality of Living God in the small, everyday of life. Living God is in the people, the goodness, the aspirations, the activities and events, the love that we meet each day.

We have many friends at CareWorks who regularly visit us. Bruce rides his bike and comes first thing before the day gets busy. He sits in the Café with a hot cuppa made by Maurie and has a chat. He says “I can feel the love, it’s all around, in the faces of people here… Can’t you just feel it.” Over the months Bruce has been meeting God living amongst us, and I sense it has done his soul a power of good. Living God enables, empowers, enriches and enlivens us too!

Grace and peace,
Julie (Exec. Officer— CareWorks)

WISELink May 2008

The May 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

I will once again be publishing the feature article(s), please feel free to discuss the article in the comments area of each post.

To err is Human, to Forgive, Divine …

“To err is human, to forgive divine” is a true saying for me because honestly I don’t find it easy to forgive, myself and those closest to me. If I did I know I wouldn’t be finding it so hard to write to you! But I wrote to Ruth (our editor) recently to offer to write a regular column in WISE. So here I am, thankful to Ruth for the great topics she has set for 2008, but wishing I hadn’t been so eager because this issue focuses on forgiveness. There’s nothing like writing a piece or preparing for a Bible study to hone our understanding, is there? So back to the topic at hand.

Forgiving God is actually the topic, and I’m real glad because forgiveness is what God is good at, although we forget this at times.

I was sitting with a woman the other day. Her fridge had just blown up in the over‐whelming heat wave. All her food had gone off and she needed assistance. She pointed to her head as if she were to blame for her predicament. We reminded her that fridges, especially older ones, have a habit of conking out when you need them the most. No, it wasn’t her fault.

Often people come to CareWorks with some sense of shame and failure for seeking help. We seek to reassure people that their situation is a result of a whole host of reasons, and failure is a human reality we all face. Rather than being blamed they are supported in finding a way through the maze of failings they are experiencing. At the heart of our approach is the awareness of our God who is so compassionate and forgiving, who expresses extreme acceptance, and doesn’t come down on us like a ton of bricks to condemn. The cycles of resentment and revenge, bitterness and back‐stabbing, and self‐condemnation are so prevalent in our community, and we are not above them. Forgiveness is continually needed by all people.

God affirms that an act of loving forgiveness is what reconnects each of us with God, others and ourselves. How crucial is the word of Jesus who has become the forgiveness of God for all people. This is for me the astounding message of Easter that after and in spite of death, defeat and devastation, God freely forgives us, keeping no account of our failings and proclaiming us “not guilty”. He gives us the opportunity to begin again. In Jesus, God makes forgiveness human in this world of relationships where forgiveness can seem impossible.

We are called to be Women of Crucifixion‐Resurrection, breaking the cycles that would destroy us and others, and proclaiming a new beginning. At the worst of times, when Jesus was condemned, he cried out to God profoundly, “Forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing.” How can anyone unless they experience another way in us, divinely enabled?

Grace and Peace, Julie

Julie Simpson is the newly appointed Executive Officer of CareWorks. A Churches of Christ Pastor and qualified social worker she has shared ministries with husband Grant in the Southern Circuit and Mt Barker.Julie has also been an aged care and hospital Chaplain. Julie is a mum and grandma, and a member of the Prospect Church at Blair Athol‐Kilburn

Seize the Moment

Over the last few weeks I have been made to think of making the most of the moment put before me. My life has been in a state of change, something I don’t like and find hard to cope with. Many hours I have laid awake at night contemplating the “could have beens,” the “should have beens”, and the “maybe if I had done something different I may have been able change the outcome.”

All of this is a waste of time if I take to heart the fact that God is in control. I know this is so, but I like to think that I am in control, and there are times when I want to BE in control and not leave it to God.

I have been doing some research on the Internet. There has been one reoccurring theme that has been jumping out at me over and over during these past few days. That theme is “To make every moment with our loved ones count.”

This has set me thinking, “How can I best make today count for my family? Tell them I love them everyday, create an environment for them that is loving and enjoyable and accept them at all times!”

There were at least 5 articles I have read that were on this theme, totally different from what I was looking for. So I decided that this was not “co‐incidence” but “God ‐incidence” and I stopped and took stock of what I was doing.

The last article I read was in a digital scrapbooking site that I receive emails from daily. They always have a thought for the day as part of their email. I find this is the most interesting section of the email, apart from showing me more about one of my chosen crafts. But this one challenged me even more than usual as I realised that maybe God was trying to get my attention.

To précis the story, a lady was sharing that she had sent some photos of her children to her father who was gravely ill because she didn’t have time to go and see him. So instead of taking the photos to show him and to show off her newly acquired ability of digital scrapping which he was interested in, she posted the photos. She never phoned either, just posted them across town to him.

Within a couple of days she received a call to let her know that her father had passed away during the night. Yes he had received her photos and had cried as he looked at them the night before. He knew his time was very short. But the daughter’s moment to share with her father had gone! She would never have the opportunity to show him what she had been doing, to tell him that she loved him, and to share many other things she realised she should have done.

Her message to me is to seize the moment, live in the now, get rid of regrets that hold me back, and to show my family and friends that they mean everything to me.

What can this mean for all of us? We all can live in regret and allow it to hold us back from doing what God has called us to do and be. We need to live today as though it was our last. To leave behind our regrets and hurts, and allow those we love and care for to know that they are our world and mean everything to us.

There is a saying that goes “Seize the Day,” but I think for me it is, “Seize the moment and live it in triumph for Him.” God gives us each moment, and what we do with it is our gift to Him.

Let there be no “what ifs” or “could haves” in your life. Clear out the regrets and live your life to the full in and for God. In so doing we will give Him all the glory and honour due to Him.

WISE Link April 2008

The April 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

I will once again be publishing the feature article(s), please feel free to discuss the article in the comments area of each post.

Wise Link March 2008

The March 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

I will once again be publishing the feature article(s), please feel free to discuss the article in the comments area of each post.

The Old has gone and behold I make all things new

2007 has gone and 2008 is here.

I sit here and contemplate 2007. It has gone along with its joys and sorrows. The memories remain but the year is spent.

While watching the New Year Celebrations in Sydney on the Television, I thought about the difference a second makes. It changed from 2007 into 2008. I watched people party and make resolutions for their lives in 2008. Many made these resolutions that they knew they wouldn’t keep. They thought about the changes they may have to make to in their lives from what they are at present.

Most of us are driven to set goals for ourselves. We want to improve. We know in our hearts that we should improve. Thinking back to Christmas, we know we have eaten too much Christmas fare, so we think a diet is the way to go. Or there’s an ambition that we want to achieve so why not now. Unfortunately, we often set goals so lofty that we are set up for failure before we begin.

One lady’s list showed the changes she would like to make in her life, and goes like this:

During 2008, I would like to...

• Not take myself so seriously
• Find some time each day to laugh
• Plan time to learn new things
• Journal more often about the blessings I have received
• Look at myself in the mirror everyday and say, “You’re okay”
• Tell more people more often that I appreciate what they do for me
• Throw or give away things I haven’t used in the past year
• Exercise more regularly
• Eat more vegetables and fruits because this helps me to be more healthy and I refuse to go on a diet and forget the chocolate, though it is vegetable!!!
• Plant some flowers in my backyard

An achievable list but still needs work to achieve.

So as we have seen one month of the New Year of 2008, how can we make a difference in the world in which we live?

With God’s help we can achieve much in our lives before Him if we ensure we put His will and way for us first in our lives. God makes all things new and it is He who gives our life meaning and purpose.

Perhaps as 2008 unfolds, let’s make a New Year’s Resolution to:

• Not only know who God is but BE the person that He calls us to be.
• Thank God daily for the blessings He gives us.
• Encourage the people around you - family, work colleagues and Church family. Encouragement
  is a very special gift that costs us nothing but when given enables people to go that bit further in the work for the Lord.
• Take time out and be refreshed in Him to know Him more, and above all listen to Him and His will for us in 2008.
• Be the change in your church/home/area/workplace that will make an effect for God that’s everlasting.
• Appreciate those around you for who they are.
• Be prepared to go when He calls and do things you can hear Him prompt you to do.

Let’s allow Him to RENEW us in 2008!

Wise Link February 2008

The February 2008 of WISELink is now available online.

I will once again be publishing the feature article(s), please feel free to discuss the article in the comments area of each post.