The Parable of the Good Samaritan by Jan Wijnants (1670) shows the Good Samaritan tending the injured man. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In Luke 10, we find the “Parable of the Good Samaritan”, where an expert in the law comes to Jesus and asks, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus responds by asking him what is written in the law, to which the expert answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” These two laws are also found in Matthew 22 and Mark 12 in the context of the Two Great Commandments. There’s a general rule in biblical literature. If it’s said once, it’s important. If it’s said twice, it’s really important. If it’s said three times, you better listen, because this is so very important. EG: Holy is the Lord – important. Holy of Holies – really important. Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty – so very important. We’ve got these two great commandments repeated in three of the Gospels – there’s something rather important about what is said here.

The expert goes on to ask a really good question: “Who is my neighbour?” which Jesus then launches into this parable.

³⁰ In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³² So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³ But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴ He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ The next day he took out two denarii^[c] and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

Luke 10:30-35 (NIV – Bible Gateway)

As with many bible stories, the modern listener loses a lot of the intricacies that are involved here. It seems like a rather nice story, but instead, it would have provoked his audience, it would have shocked them. To understand this, we need to look into the characters. Firstly, the man, heading from Jerusalem to Jericho (a distance of about 15 miles, or 24km), would most likely have been Jewish.

Jewish high priest wearing a hoshen, and Levites in ancient Judah. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Priest would have been a Jewish priest. The Greek word used, hiereus, is used to indicate a priest – either Jewish or Gentile – who offers sacrifices and is busied with sacred rites. In the context of this story, we need to assume that it is a Jewish priest. The priest may have known this man – assuming that the man lived in either Jerusalem or Jericho, and this priest – also heading on the road to Jericho – may have been either at the temple in Jerusalem, and had known this man. Yet, he passes him by without help.

The Levite, traditionally from the tribe of Levi,  ”served as assistants to the priests. It was their duty to keep the sacred utensils and the temple clean, to provide the sacred loaves, to open and shut the gates of the temple, to sing the sacred hymns in the temple, and to do many other things.” (Blue Letter Bible) This is someone whose whole purpose was to be seen as clean in the eyes of the Lord. Touching anyone who was bleeding, and naked, would have removed his purity.

Finally, the Samaritan. This is the shocking part. Jews hated the Samaritans. Samaritans hated the Jews. Samaria was in the north, the old Northern Kingdom of Israel, while Judea – with its capital Jerusalem, was in the south. If you read Chronicles, the author doesn’t treat the northern kingdom very kindly – they are seen as sinful, and get punished for their idolatry and iniquity by getting conquered by the Assyrians. In a Babylonian Talmud, these words are found about why the Jews excluded the Samaritans:

Why are Samaritans [kuthim] excluded from entering Israel?
–Because they were mixed up with the priests of the high places.
Rabbi Ishmael said:
“They were righteous proselytes in the beginning.”

(Virtual Religion)
Josephus in his history book, Antiquities, also showed that the Samaritans didn’t like the Jews.

Now (about 9 CE) when Judea was administered by Coponius, who was sent out byQuirinius [the Roman governor of Syria]…these things occurred: During the celebration of the feast of Unleavened Bread, which we call Passover, in a custom of the priests the gates of the temple [in Jerusalem] were opened after midnight.

And then, when their opening first occurred, Samaritan men coming into Jerusalem in secret, began to scatter human bones in the porticoes and throughout the temple. (So, the priests), who were not accustomed to such things before, managed the temple with greater care.

Josephus, Antiquities 18.29-30

This is a map of first century Iudaea Province (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So you can see that the Samaritans and the Jews really didn’t get along. Jews would often avoid travelling through Samaritan country, even if it meant taking a longer route – A Jew travelling from Galilee to Judea would generally travel via the Decapolis so as to avoid Samaria. So when Jesus uses a Samaritan in his story, that’s shocking enough, but that he would actually be the one to stop and help this Jewish man would have been completely unheard of in this day and age. But not only did he stop and help. He took the man to an inn and took care of him. And when he could no longer stay, he paid the innkeeper two days wages to look after the man, and offered to pay any extra when he returned. Even in today’s society, that is unheard of. Sure, we might see a victim and call an ambulance, and might stay with them until they get there, but to actually take care of them, and to pay for extra care – even that is unheard of in today’s society.

So, as you can see, this story is really quite shocking. And that’s when Jesus poses the question to the expert. “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” (Luke 10:36). Jesus leaves it for the expert to figure out. Not wanting to say that it was the Samaritan, the expert says, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus says, “Go and do likewise.”

Jesus didn’t tell the expert to give up his own beliefs. He didn’t instruct him to take up the beliefs of the Samaritan. He told him to “Love your neighbour as yourself.” To love those that you hate. To love those whose beliefs differ from you, and to have mercy on them.

Plate entitled “To the friends of Negro Emancipation”, celebrating the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thankfully, there are many examples of Christians who have taken this command, to love their neighbour as themselves, and have applied it, even when it may have differed with their beliefs. I think of the abolition of slavery, where Christians were at the forefront of people saying that it was wrong – even though we could have turned to our bibles and said that it was right for us to own a slave. Instead, we showed love to those that had no rights, and said that it was wrong, and we fought for it to be abolished. The people that we freed may often have been from different beliefs than us – but that didn’t matter. We showed them love anyway, because they are our neighbours, and Jesus commanded us to love them.

Asylum seekers protesting on the roof of the Villawood immigration detention centre in Sydney, Australia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In a more modern context, Christian groups have been at the forefront (along with many other community groups) fighting for the fair treatment of refugees and asylum seekers in detention in Australia. For example, CARAD – the Coalition assisting Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Detainees – supports many who come out of detention, helping them find accommodation, food, clothing, education and English lessons, and much more. Those that are helped aren’t necessarily Christians, and often come from Muslim countries. They are of a different faith and belief, but they are still our neighbour, and we help them still, because Jesus commanded us to do so.

Jesus shows us that our neighbour is the Jew, the Gentile AND the Samaritan – that is to say that our neighbours are the insiders, the outsiders, AND the untouchables. He doesn’t ask us to agree with them, or to take up our beliefs. What he does ask us to do is to show them love, to show mercy to them, and to love them as we love ourselves.

Who is the Samaritan that God is challenging you to love?

Related articles

• The Parable of the Good [Insert Your Samaritan Here]. (somedoubted.wordpress.com)
• Be a Good Neighbor (chasingthewind.net)
• The Story of The Good Samaritan (21st-century-faith.com)

Reblogged from Geektroverted:

Some great pics here. Star Wars invades some famous pieces of art.

Seven Sacraments Altarpiece by Rogier van der Weyden (c.1445-1450). You can see around the edges the seven sacraments. From left to right, Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation (at rear of centre panel), Holy Orders, Marriage, Last Rites. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Everyone knows that the Salvation Army doesn’t celebrate (perform) the sacraments, right? The fact of the matter is that while yes, the Salvation Army does not celebrate Holy Communion (or whatever term you prefer to use in its place – Mass, Eucharist, The Lord’s Supper), and we don’t perform “water” baptisms, the Salvation Army is indeed a very sacramental church, and celebrates its sacraments on a daily basis. I hope to show to you today that the Salvation Army does indeed embrace the sacraments, and that they are in fact a wonderful thing.

What is a sacrament?

On a very basic level, a sacrament is a means of grace. By that, I mean that a sacrament is an outward sign of the grace of God that resides within us. The best way that I heard that related into everyday language was relating it to the love that I have for my wife. There are various ways that I could show my love for my wife. I could get her flowers, or jewellery, or give her a kiss, or a hug, or even tell her that I love her. None of these things are what love actually consists of, they are just outward signs that show that love. However, if I don’t do at least some of these, my wife would get rather upset – she may not know that I still love her. The sacraments are the same. They aren’t what the grace of God actually consists of. They are just outward signs that we reside in God’s grace. Through doing the sacraments, they are an outward sign that we reside in the grace of God. If we don’t do them, even though we still remain in the grace of God – how would anyone know?

So, What are the Sacraments?

The Roman Catholic church has seven Sacraments. Many of these are observed in many churches, so let’s list them here now.

1. Baptism
2. Eucharist
3. Reconciliation
4. Marriage
5. Confirmation
6. Holy Orders
7. Anointing of the sick. (Formerly, the Last Rites).

Source: The Seven Catholic Sacraments.

These seven sacraments are what are generally considered as sacraments, however there are three that are (almost) universal amongst all denominations – Baptism, Eucharist and Marriage. These three are regarded as universal, because they are mentioned in the bible. I’ll discuss these three later.

Modern confessional in the Church of the Holy Name, Dunedin, New Zealand. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For those that aren’t aware of the others, I’ll do a quick summary here. Reconciliation is the process of forgiveness. In the Roman Catholic church, this often takes place in the form of the confessional, where you confess your sins, the priest gives you some prayers to say, and you are absolved of your sins. In the Anglican church, this is done through a group confession within the liturgy, and the priest gives the absolution. It can be done in different ways in different churches. In the Salvation Army – while no formal setting may be seen, the confessional side may well happen at the Mercy Seat during a service (however, we should note that this is not the only use of the mercy seat.)

A stained glass representation of confirmation in the Lutheran Church. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Confirmation is where you confirm God’s presence in your life. For those who are baptised at birth, confirmation is the opportunity to affirm the vows that were made for you by your parents. In Adult baptisms, confirmation is often done at the same time. In the Salvation Army, you may think of confirmation as someone becoming a Soldier after being dedicated as a child.

A Presbyterian licentiate making his vows of ordination. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Holy Orders is one that causes some conjecture as to whether it really is a sacrament or not. With all of the other sacraments, they are open to all – anyone can partake in them. However, with Holy Orders – that is, to become a priest, minister, or Officer – there really should (or must) be a calling of God to this vocation. That being said, if we consider sacraments to be a means of God’s grace, then the sacrament of Holy Orders is indeed a sacrament, as it is through the process of formation for ministry, and the public ordination service that a public declaration of God’s grace within our lives is made.

Healing Service (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Finally, the sacrament of Healing the Sick, or the Last Rites. In the Catholic church, the last rites were given to someone to ensure that their soul was right with God before they passed from this mortal world. This has progressed into the sacrament of anointing the sick, a practice which is also partaken in the Anglican church. Many other churches also have “healing” ministries (I put healing in quotation marks, as there is a wide range of healing ministries, from the simple anointing with oil, and a blessing, through to “slain by the spirit”-style healing acts.)

The universal sacraments

The three that are regarded as universal are regarded this way because they are mentioned in the bible. Marriage is mentioned multiple times in the Bible. We know that Jesus was baptised, and John the Baptist performed many baptisms. And finally, we know that Jesus celebrated the Passover meal, and instructed his disciples to “do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19; Last Supper also found in Matthew 26, Mark 14 and mentioned in John 13).

Marriage

Photo from our wedding, during the hymn “How Great is our God”

My Wedding was a wonderful occasion, coming mostly from the Salvation Army Book of Ceremonies, with a bit of my Anglican heritage thrown in there with my Dad blessing the rings. This was very much a sacramental moment, where we were able to publicly declare the love we had for each other, and the love we had for God. However, note that the sacrament is not “Wedding” but “Marriage”. The wedding is a part of that, it kicks it all off, and is a very public statement of the grace of God. However, marriage comes as a sacrament every day. Every day, as we go out into the world, when people look at us, and see our marriage, it is a public declaration of the grace that God has for us. Marriage is the one with the least controversy surrounding it as to whether it is a sacrament or not – as all churches (to my knowledge – happy to be corrected on this) practice it.

Baptism

An evangelical Protestant Baptism by submersion in a river (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For many, there is a belief that the Salvation Army does not practice baptism. While it is true that the Salvation Army does not practice “water” baptism, we do have our own ceremonies that have the same symbolism and the same public display of God’s grace. I guess the first question to ask is what role does baptism play?

At a very basic level, baptism is the process where someone becomes a member of that church. Some may say that you only become a Christian by being baptised – I don’t feel that is true. We read in John 1:12 that “those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” Anyone who believes in the name of Jesus has the right to become a child of God – a Christian. Likewise, in Acts 4 we read “many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.” There’s no mention of baptism there, yet the number of men who believed grew. Nowhere in the Gospels do we read of the disciples being baptised – only that Jesus was baptised.

At a deeper level, baptism is also symbolic. There are connections to the healing pools used in Jewish custom, where you are cleansed of your ailment when you dip in the pool. For Christians, baptism is symbolic of us washing away our old life, washing away our sin, and rising again to a new life. The symbolic action in a water baptism is clear in this sense. But not all churches practice a full immersion baptism. For many – including the Catholic and Anglican churches, a small amount of water is poured over the head. It is still symbolic, and still has the same effect.

Someone once said to me this joke. Churches who practice full immersion baptisms – Baptists, some Church of Christ, etc – they’re like washing machines, they use a lot of water. Some churches – like the Catholics and Anglicans – they’re like hand washing, they use a lot less water. Now the Salvos, yes the Salvation Army, they’re a bit different. They’re Dry Cleaners.

Becoming a Soldier in the Salvation Army is very much like baptism. No, it doesn’t use water. But in putting on the uniform, we leave our old life behind, and start a new life with Christ. For me, the uniform has taken on even more meaning since becoming a cadet. We have to wear the uniform every day for class – and for some, being forced to do that might lead them towards lessening the importance of the uniform. But for me, it is a daily reminder that I am God’s child, and each day that I put it on, it is a little grace moment, where I can publicly display my love for Christ. Soldiership is very much a sacrament on par with baptism.

Eucharist

Baptist communion elements (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Now, this is the tricky one. Eucharist goes by many names – Mass, Communion, The Lord’s Supper. And yes, the Salvation Army do not “practice” Communion as a regular ritual. I make a distinction between “practice” and “celebrate” here. While the Salvation Army does not engage in regularly practicing the ritual, the Salvation Army does state that “When Salvationists attend other Christian gatherings in which a form of Holy Communion is included, they may partake if they choose to do so and if the host Church allows.” (Source)

The Salvation Army also states that “Salvationists are encouraged to use the love feast [fellowship meal] and develop creative means of hallowing meals in home and corps with remembrances of the Lord’s sacrificial love.” It must also be noted that “In accordance with normal Salvation Army practice, such remembrances and celebrations, where observed, will not become established rituals, nor will frequency be prescribed.” Basically, Corps can celebrate a “love feast” (personally, I dislike this terminology, and would prefer fellowship meal) which may include elements similar to a celebration of Communion. However, it cannot become an established ritual, and the Salvation Army will not prescribe the frequency in which it must take place. So a Salvation Army corps may celebrate a “love feast”, however it is at the discretion of the corps and the officers, and is not prescribed from higher up.

The big statement that the Salvation Army makes on communion is this one: “Christ is the one true Sacrament, and sacramental living – Christ living in us and through us – is at the heart of Christian holiness and discipleship.” Sacramental living is the big thing. That through every moment of our lives is an opportunity to show the grace of God.

General Albert Orsborn (Image Credit: SAwiki.net)

This comes most strongly through the words of General Albert Orsborn.

My life must be Christ’s broken bread,
My love his outpoured wine,
A cup o’erfilled, a table spread
Beneath his name and sign.
That other souls, refreshed and fed,
May share his life through mine.

My all is in the Master’s hands
For him to bless and break;
Beyond the brook his winepress stands
And thence my way I take,
Resolved the whole of love’s demands
To give, for his dear sake.

Lord, let me share that grace of thine
Wherewith thou didst sustain
The burden of the fruitful vine,
The gift of buried grain.
Who dies with thee, O Word divine,
Shall rise and live again.

The Salvation Army is indeed a sacramental church, where soldiers are encouraged to live a sacramental life. May you find a sacramental moment in your life today, where you can publicly display the grace of God.

Photo by CBGlades on Flickr

In class the other day, we were talking about how our language – and more specifically our accent – can sometimes form a barrier that can prevent people from fully engaging in worship. Two of the main points was that Australian’s have an accent, we just don’t acknowledge it and as such we don’t make the appropriate adjustments to ensure that we are heard clearly; and that we often use language that people don’t understand.

Christianese is its name, and there are a variety of dialects within Christianese that can leave even a well versed Christian perplexed. How much more for someone who doesn’t even know about Jesus?

Christianese

For example, “Are you saved?” From what? “Do you know Jesus as your personal saviour?” Who? “We believe in the One God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit” Wait a minute there, you said One God, but mentioned three!

Salvos are great for their own dialect. “See the CO for more details”; “The DYS is coming next week for JYG”; CSM, DC, TC, THQ, DHQ… I sometimes think we love our acronyms more than the actual army does. Someone even made the point that we often even abbreviate the acronyms – for example, DYS becomes DY.

But the Salvo’s aren’t alone in their own dialect. Ever thought what the Greeting of the Peace looks like to a new person? “The Peace of the Lord be always with you” “And also with you” and then people you’ve never met come up and shake your hand, say “Peace be with you” and expect you to say something back. Or “Eucharist” – it’s a funny word, that many people don’t know, yet we still use it.

The Catholics often have it with their actions – stand, sit, kneel… I could go on…

Removing the barriers

Image by Chico Passos at sxc.hu

The problem with this language is that it can be a stumbling block for someone new to the church. If it’s a big enough problem, it can actually prevent someone from fully engaging in the service. The sermon may have been absolutely perfect for them, they might have been willing to make a committment to Jesus, but with these barriers, it can sometimes stop that committment, they may just leave, and never return. Hopefully they might go to a different church, but they might not. The barriers we created may have just lost a soul.

I’m going to highlight a few barriers here, and give my thoughts on what we can do to remove them so that people new to the Church can fully experience the service without getting hung up on the little idiosyncracies that we all have. A number of these are Salvo examples, because that’s my experience, however I will try to include examples from other church traditions, and I would encourage you to think of (and add in the comments) your own thoughts. This is by no means meant to be an attack on these traditions – quite the opposite in fact. I want to embrace these traditions, and make them accessible to new people so that they can access them as well.

Language

Language can be a big barrier. We have to be very careful in how we use it, and try to remove as much insider language as possible. However, it can often be easier said than done. Acronyms are used because it’s easier. Insider language is used because it makes sense to us. Some things are easy to get around. For example, the CSM, when presenting the notices could say “For those new here, I’m Garry, I’m the Corps Sargeant Major, often referred to as the CSM. If you want to know more about what I do, come and see me after the meeting.”

However, insider language can be a bit more difficult to get around. Perhaps, a glossary sheet as part of a newcomer’s book (see below) might be an appropriate way to get around this. The Glossary can contain a number of the common terms used within that church (eg, Prayer Book, CO, CSM, Confession, Absolution etc)

Meeting Elements

Photo by Henkster at sxc.hu

The various elements of a service may seem self-explanatory to us, however, to someone new to that church, it can seem rather intimidating. For example, the Greeting of the Peace, as found in Anglican, Catholic and Uniting Church services. How intimidating can it be for a new person to have someone come up to you, shake your hand, and say “Peace be with you” and expect you to respond appropriately. I know for myself, the Band and Songster Messages in the Salvation Army took me a while to get my head around. What purpose do they hold? Am I supposed to applaud afterwards? How does this fit in with my ideas of worship? And this was coming from some who was a Christian and had grown up in a church. Each denomination has these little “quirks” – things that make sense to the congregation, but may not make sense to a new person.

My thoughts on how we can remove this barrier is to have a “Newcomer’s Book” – a “This Church for Dummies” guide if you will. Basically, breaking down the elements of a normal service, and explaining a bit about them. For churches that use a Prayer Book, you might take that as your guide – include page numbers for every segment, even if it’s on the same page as the previous item! For those that have a more fluid service style, highlight your common meeting elements, and write about them. Try and write as much information to satisfy a new persons initial inquiries, but not too much information so as to overload them. For example, you don’t need a 3,000 word essay on the importance of the Songster Message, when a short 20 word description might suffice.

When preparing this, you’ll want to get some help. You’ll need two, maybe more, smart friends from outside your church. Maybe they’re a non-Christian, maybe they’re part of a different church. Either way, ask them along, and ask them to critically analyse each section – get them to ask the questions that you will include the answers to in your book. Then, once the book is complete, ask another friend along, giving them the book to see how helpful it is.

This may take a bit of work, but if it’s removing this barrier then a message that might have otherwise been missed may get through to those in attendance.

Songbook and Sung Worship

This first half is more in relation to The Salvation Army, but other churches might find some comments of note here. The Salvation Army has their Songbook, which contains the songs of The Salvation Army, many of which were written by the great founders of our faith. The songbook itself is a wonderful tool, that I’m now coming into a real appreciation of. However, many churches are moving away from a physical songbook, and putting the words of the hymns onto the multimedia screen. The benefits here are that you aren’t limited to the Songbook songs, however there are some limitations.

For example, the Songbook contains just  the words for the song, but not the tunes. The tunes are to be found in the Salvation Army Tune Book. The thing is, some words can be sung to different tunes. Take for example Away in a Manger. Lovely Christmas carol, I’m sure you’ve all got a tune running in your head. There is however, a second tune that is also sometimes used. But you can also sing the words of Away in a Manger to the tune commonly used for “O Boundless Salvation” – the founder’s song. Likewise, you could sing the words O Boundless Salvation to the tune of Away in a Manger.

It’s all to do with Metre, which if you look in songbooks might be written as: 8.8.8.9 or 10.10. This allows you to pick tunes that your congregation might know better, to words that might be fresh.

However, sometimes, words fit a tune very well, but the music has an extra line. What generally happens is that some words are repeated. This is all fine in the actual songbook, where you’re often used to picking these things up when you’ve got the actual book in front of you. But when using multimedia, there is absolutely no reason why you couldn’t include the repeated lines. The worst example of this was when the words were on the screen, but the multimedia people moved onto the next slide before we were halfway down the slide, because they didn’t know what lines were repeated. As such, they were in the middle of the second verse, while we were only halfway through the first verse.

There is no reason why when putting the Powerpoint together that the words (and any repeats of lines) can be fully printed out on the multimedia. This would allow those arriving for the first time to have more of an idea of what is happening, and not be distracted by the lyrics (or lack of them).

Photo by Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) on Flickr

This leads me onto another issue. The standard worship service for a number  of services was set up when group singing was a common activity – it wasn’t unusual for you to be part of a choir, and singing in a pub was also a common activity. However, these activities are becoming less and less common – however, congregational singing is still a major part of our worship service. There is a number of biblical references to singing – the word ‘sing’ appears 114 times in the Bible, mostly in the form “sing unto the Lord” – so I do not believe we should get rid of this from our services. However, it may be something that we include in our Newcomer’s Book, along with words that lets a new person know that it is OK not to sing if they don’t feel comfortable doing so.

Photo by nhw84 at Flickr.

We also need to be aware that there are many different ways to worship. Some will paint, or draw, or dance, or even iron (long story). It may not be possible to include this in every worship service, however, I think that where possible we need to be as inclusive as possible, and include the opportunities for those in our services to worship as they see fit.

So there’s a few things that we can do to remove the barriers in our worship so that a new person can fully engage in the service, opening them up to hear whatever God is saying to them that day.

Related articles

• Music in Christian Worship (epages.wordpress.com)
• Gloriously Unlimited Possibilities! (ponderingbylaurie.wordpress.com)
• Work Matters by Tom Nelson (How our worship and “workship” matters to God!) (haroldcameron.wordpress.com)
• Ten Ways to Plan Worship Services with Better Flow (jonwellman.com)
• The ‘Waldo’ in Worship (ofdustandkings.com)

A split second decision… what would you do?

Gospel Graffiti (Pic: Flickr)

Our decisions can haunt us. Did we make the right one? Did we act according to our beliefs, or morals? In the video above, the photographer stalks this scene, following the girl and the gunman. A silent plea for help from the girl. The photographer observes, recording history, and is rewarded for her outstanding shot. Yet, she is upset – haunted by her decision. She got the shot she wanted, but at what cost?

Every day we make similar decisions. It may not be as “life or death” as the scene in the video, but even still we make decisions. We must live with whatever decision we make. With every word that is said, with every action that we do – they make up who we are. They make up our character.

For the Christian, we believe that we will be called to account for our words and actions at the end of our lives. And we also believe that we can help guide our decision-making by living out the Gospel, by allowing our words, thoughts and actions to be shaped by the Bible. Does this help?

It can, but we can also be harder on ourselves – for when we make a mistake, we are often angry because we should have known better.

Thankfully, there is hope for us. John writes in his Gospel that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned.”

We will make mistakes in our actions, in our words and our thoughts. After all, we are only human. Maybe I have said something wrong in this post. But because Jesus died on the cross I am granted eternal life. Because I believe in him, he will not condemn me for the mistakes that I make. Yet, I will continue to strive, to live according to his glory, to share his message that all who believe in him will not perish, but have eternal life.

I’ve been using Google Calendar for a while now, which is especially awesome as it now sync’s with my phone. However, with everything looking the same, I longed for the ability to look at my week and quickly glance what was class time, what was study time, when assignments were due, and – importantly – when my “personal” time was – the time where I could go and practice my violin, play a game on my computer, or squeeze in a round of golf.

My Colourful calendar

I discovered that this was able through the ability to colour your events in Google Calendar. This was a fairly recent, but welcome, addition to the Google Calendar, and will quickly allow me to see what my week looks like. However, You are not able to edit the colours, or to apply labels to your colours so you know what each colour is to be used for.

I played around a bit, and then worked out a solution – the tasks bar!

My Colour categories

The tasks bar is always open, and always there, no matter what screen you’re looking at in Google Calendar. So what I did was create a new list – called Colour Guide – and created a “task” for each colour, and what I want it to be used for. So as you can see, Red is for Classes, Blue is for Meetings, Grey is for House Duties (cleaning the college), Orange for prayer and devotions – and so on.

Then I applied the colours for each appointment or event. I started out going into each event and picking the colours out from the selection below the event details – as in the picture on the right. It was only half way through that I discovered a far easier way.

Clicking on any event will bring up more details, showing time and where, and some other details. However, what I didn’t realise was that clicking on the arrow to the left of the event title will allow you to change colour. This way you don’t have to go into the new screen to edit the event details, you can get this done a lot quicker.

So there you go – go colourise your Google Calendar, using a new Tasks list to help remind you of the categories you’ve set.

Related articles

• 10 Simple Google Calendar Tips and Tricks to Boost Your Productivity (mashable.com)

The Salvation Army Training College, Melbourne

I’ve practically finished my first week of orientation at the Training College. We’ve had a lot of different orientations – to uniform, to education, to prayer and more. Yesterday, we had a session called “Coping with Change”. We have all had to go through a big change in order to come to the Training College. At a very basic level, the shift from Perth to Melbourne was a big change. We were discussing yesterday the differences in language that we share – from Milk Bars and Delis, to Stobie Poles and Power Poles and even the way we pronounce Lego.

One thing we did was to create a well-being plan that focussed on some goals in four areas – Physical, Mental, Emotional and Spiritual. By setting goals in these four areas, we can help take control of certain areas of our life so that we can deal with the change better, but also be in a better mental state. Part of the exercise was to write down some names that we would share the plan with so that we can be accountable with it. So I’m going to share my goals with you, and post regularly on how I’m going.

Physical Goals

We'll be walking a lot around Princes Park. Look carefully - there's the training college in the background.

Exercise helps so much with staying focussed and your general mental health, that it’s really rather important. For me, I’m committing to at least 3 blocks of exercise a week, with one of those being high intensity in the gym. I like working out  in the gym, but I also enjoy walking with Liesl, as it often gives us time to chat. So by saying one of them will be high intensity, allowing the rest to be walking in one of the various parks around college, I can get that exercise in and still have that nice thing to do with Liesl.

At the training college, we get our meals provided. They often provide desert. While desert is nice to have, it’s not great to have all the time, and it’s not great for weight control (especially as I’m looking to lose a bit more weight). So I’m not going to have more than three deserts a week, one of those being a healthy desert (fruit, yoghurt etc).

Water is also really important, and it’s something that I’ve often neglected a bit. I’m going to try and drink 1L of water each day. This will keep me hydrated, and allow my body and mind to be working as intended.

Finally for the physical side, I’m going to set up a sleep routine that allows me to get 6 hours of sleep per night. I find that 6 hours works well for me, and allows me to function as needed. By setting up a sleep routine, I can set myself up in the right frame of mind for sleep, by doing the same things before heading to bed each night, indicating to my body that it’s time to wind down.

Mental

I had difficulty choosing goals for the mental side, because often it’s hard to find a mental goal that has a specific, measurable outcome. Their suggestion of one was “every time I catch myself thinking negative thoughts, I will reframe these into positive ones”. For me, I find that a difficult one to measure, which means it’s not very achieveable because I can’t be accountable on it – and if I’m not accountable on one goal, then I won’t be accountable on any of the goals.

(Image from sxc.hu by dwayno)

Instead, I set myself a goal of spending an hour a week planning my schedule and organising my week. If I don’t have a plan for my week, I know that I can end up doing not much. This could be very dangerous here, as I could quite easily get behind in my assignments. Instead, by devoting time to scheduling and planning, I can look at what time I have during each week, as well as looking at what deadlines I have approaching, and I can block out time accordingly. This should hopefully calm my mental state because I know what is happening, and know that I am on track with assignments and the like.

Emotional

Spending time with family is very important, and a must for the emotional side. I plan on spending an hour a day devoted time with Liesl – chatting, or watching a tv show together, or similar. It’s important, because she’s very important to me. When our baby comes along, I’ll also need to spend time with her, so I’ll need to be very careful with my scheduling to make sure that no-one gets forgotten.

As well as family here, I need to make sure I spend time talking with family at home, as well as my mates. I’m going to make sure I set aside time once a week for a video call with my parents so that I can catch up with what’s happening with them, and stay in close contact. And a suggestion from the guy who was running the session was to set aside time to e-mail friends to stay in contact with them. So I’ll be e-mailing one of my mates each week, so that I can stay in contact. They have so much happening in their lives at the moment – one’s getting married, ones about to become a father, and a third is in the process of building a house. These guys were a big part of my life – they were all part of the wedding party – and I need to stay in contact with them.

Spiritual

A Celtic Primer: The Complete Celtic Worship Resource and Collection

While you would think studying Ministry would allow the spiritual side to be covered, you also have to be intentional about it. For me, I’m going to be intentional about finding a regular time to spend half an hour in personal devotions and prayer. I think this is going to come – for the first part of the year at least – from a book that I received from my work at the Uniting Church called A Celtic Primer.

Also in the spiritual side is setting aside time for the things that you enjoy. For me, it’s music and Golf. So I’m going to try and learn an entire Bach Sonata or Partita by the end of the year. I’ve tried to be realistic about this, in that my time is limited, so I won’t get much practice done. So I’ve chosen one that I’m already familiar with – the First Sonata in G Minor. I performed the 3rd and 4th movements of this at my graduation recital, so I know these, and I’ve played through the first movement enough to know the general layout of it, which just leaves the second movement – the fugue – for me to learn from scratch. Even still, if I plan it out, I need to learn an average of 6 bars a week to have it complete by the end of the year. That shouldn’t be too much of a stretch.

Finally, with golf, I’ll aim to get out on the course once a month. It may be difficult – particularly around assignment times – however I really enjoy golf, and want to keep it up – so I shall try for once a month. I’ve already bought a scoopon for a round of golf at the fantastic Eynesbury Golf Course, so I shall head out there one day, and the Royal Park Golf Course is a short walk from the college, so hopefully I can squeeze 9 holes in there fairly regularly.

I’m hoping that with these goals, the journey through college will be made easier (mentally), and that I will enjoy a lot of it. I’ll be keeping accountable, posting regularly on here about how I’m going (about once a month).

Related articles

• How Exercise Impacts Your Mental Health (myyeartothrive.wordpress.com)
• Playing Golf Will Help You Keep Your New Year’s Resolutions (azgolfandhome.wordpress.com)
• Hone Your Mental Skills, Part 1: Goal Setting (stack.com)
• Music and Mental Health (kractivist.wordpress.com)

So, Friday we went out looking at cars, and at our second dealership, found a car that was a good buy. It’s a 1994 Holden Berlina, so its a lot larger than any car I’m used to. It’s also got many features that I’ve never had in a car before – for example, electric mirrors and windows, climate control, remote locking… It is a car with a much larger engine, but we won’t be driving it much during college, so hopefully it shouldn’t ne too much of an issue.

We had a good farewell from Perth. Sunday we had our last meeting at Floreat, with a divisional farewell as well. On Monday, our gear got picked up. I’ve had to pack my instruments to get them over, so I’m hoping that they arrive safely and undamaged.
Tuesday, we said farewell to many of our friends, with a dinner at Hillarys. It was great to catch up with them one last time before heading to college.
Wednesday, we had dinner with Liesl’s family, which was again a wonderful way to spend our last night in Perth. Family is a wonderful thing, and to spend our last night with them was a very special thing.

So we’re slowly growing accustomed to Melbourne, it has been a bit chilly the last couple of days, but we’re still looking forward to the challenges that college presents.

Farewell Speech to Ben and Liesl

A few weeks ago Liesl led the devotions at Songster Practice. She spoke about her life being in the ‘count-down’ phase as she was going through ‘the last time I will be doing this’ before leaving WA for the Training College… the half packed boxes a constant reminder that time was ticking away far too quickly. She expressed that her sense of excitement and anticipation was tinged with sadness because she would be leaving her church family here at Floreat. Liesl has grown up in this church since she was a baby, except for a brief period after the family moved to Morley and attended the Corps there. However Liesl’s heart was always at Floreat so she returned and became one of us again where she has been nurtured and encouraged in her faith and service for God. Those who have known Liesl would be aware of her strong conviction that God had called her into full-time ministry in The Salvation Army.

Image via Wikipedia

When she met Ben, who at the time was attending and involved in another church some of us may have wondered if God had other plans for her life. Would Officership still be her calling? As only God can do, He worked His plan and purpose out for both Ben and Liesl in bringing them together and laying on Ben’s heart that same conviction that as husband and wife they were to serve Him as Officers in The Salvation Army.

Today is another count-down for you both when we here at Floreat officially farewell you. Yes! It is a little premature as you are not leaving us yet but with Christmas and the New Year holidays it is appropriate that today we acknowledge your service in this church and assure you of our continued support in this new phase of your lives. On behalf of the Corps I want to thank you for your service to God in this place. Liesl, you have an amazing gift for Children’s ministry and many have benefited from the talents and service that you have given over past years. You will be greatly missed as our Session leader at mainly music. This has not been an easy task but you have competently engaged the parents and children in such a way that it has been a delight for other members of the team to see the enjoyment and participation of the mothers, grandparents and especially the children. There have been disappointments in the past for you but this has never dampened your resolve to use the gifts God has given you to change young lives and introduce them to Jesus.

Ben you have contributed so much with your God-given musical gifts and talents in leadership, training and encouraging others and more recently in the leadership of the Songsters. Whilst this appointment was to be a training experience for you, I want to expres as a Songster my gratitude for your commitment, dedication and helpful, patient instruction during practice. It has also been good to sing some familiar pieces which you have set to a new arrangement and I acknowledge your gift in this area. Both of you have served in the Youth ministry, organising and leading youth meetings, arranging speakers and so much more.

To say that you will be missed is an understatement. Who will take you place is a question to be addressed but I am reminded that this is God’s work you have been engaged in and He will provide and continue the good work and the influence you have accomplished in His name.

Your daily routines have been fairly predictable… work, Corps, social commitments… although it has been busier because of all the things that you have needed to do as you prepare for the Training College. Things are about to change for you from mid January 2012. College life will dictate your daily routines… to some extent you will lose the flexibility and choice of doing your own thing when you want to. Duties, chores, lectures, assignments, deadlines, out-training experiences, preparation for various ministry assignments will all be part of your normal life experience for the next two years. You have no doubt though about this, plus the fact that you will also welcome a precious gift from God in the form of the baby you will bring into the world. So life will change drastically for you and it would be natural to be overwhelmed with the doubts and uncertainty of all that is about to happen for you both. I would suggest that you put these thoughts behind you. Life is going to be exciting, challenging, rewarding and the different experiences are going to bring a new dimension into your lives which as yet you may not fully comprehend. This is because you are following God’s will for your lives and as the simple chorus declares, “Doing the will of God… the best thing I know in this world below is doing the will of God”

In closing I want to leave you with some promises from the Word of God.

“Therefore, [my brother and sister, Liesl and Ben,] be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things you will never fall and you will receive a rich welcome into the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ”

These are the words of the Apostle Peter in his 2nd Letter 1:10. The things he refers to are found in the preceding verses where he challenges Christians to make every effort to add goodness to their faith, then knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, and brotherly kindness and above all love. I am certain that College life and the training you will be undertaking will nurture and help you grow so that you will truly be Disciples of the Cross in two years’ time.

Another Scripture I want to pass on to you is Paul’s words in Romans 8:28.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose”

I quote from the message translation this passage with some extra verses.

“God knew what He was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love Him along the same lines as the Life of His Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity He restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives in Him. After God made that decision of what His children would be like, He followed it up by calling people by name. After He called them by name, He set them on a solid basis with Himself, and then, after getting them established, He stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what He had done.”

When the pressures get heavy and the demands seemingly unbearable remember these words of Paul and take encouragement from the fact that God will always meet you at your point of need.

To the congregation, I would say, Ben and Liesl still belong to us. They may be leaving us and embarking on an amazing and exciting journey but they will always be a part of this Corps and therefore we have a responsibility to support them, encourage them, take an interest in what they are doing, to make sure we have their email address if we have a computer so that we can send messages and most important of all we are to continually uphold them in prayer.

To Ben and Liesl in the words of Paul, I say, “May God Himself, the God of Peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful and He Will do it.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24.

Liesl’s farewell

The last time I had to say goodbye to this church, I was about 10 – and probably threw a tantrum or something. But this time I know it is for good reasons and I am going to attempt to do so without tears – but no promises.

Even though I was away for a short while, Floreat was always my home – and I am blessed to be able to say I have been part of this family for my whole life – and like all families we have been together through good and bad, supporting each other all the way. For this I am truly grateful.

I can’t imagine not being here – I look back and realise this corps has been an integral part of my life and memories. A lot here would remember the beginnings better than me – I was a regular attendee since just a few weeks old. I was dedicated in this building with many of you present.

I found a whole new adoptive family of aunties and uncles who may as well be blood. I have beautiful memories of Sunday School with teacher Alice and others, marching around the lower hall to “I’m too young to march in the infantry”. I remember years of anniversary musicals with teacher Barbara and others.

Of course I was a true Salvo kid – a bandmaster’s daughter – learning the cornet with Gary and the junior band, and the timbrel – How could I ever forget Junior Soldiers with “Cranky” Mrs Jackson – who knows I really love her. And I’ve been to more fete’s than I care to count!

Although at about the time of being enrolled as a Senior Soldier, I left the corps for some time, I never really left – people still loved me and people still cared. I continued to attend JYG and eventually Youth Group before my heart couldn’t stand being away any longer – and with the help of the wonderful Marion Family Chauffeur service, I was back where I belonged.

It was during the next few years the love and support of this corps was just what I needed. And I can never be more grateful for the people here who have always been there.

I will cherish the most the heart of Floreat – the love and kindness that is offered to all who enter the doors – an attitude I will hold onto as I work with people from all walks of life. But I have always known I could bring anyone here without fear of judgement or aloneness and I am grateful to the love shown to all the “strays” I’ve brought in along the way – none more so than the acceptance shown to the strange Anglican that rocked up out of the blue as the newest boyfriend in my life. Despite the obligatory making sure he was good enough, he was welcomed with open arms.

And I know I speak for Ben when I thank you for the way you have loved him – It is not just with my sadness that we say goodbye but even in what feels like longer but has only been about three years, Ben has experienced the family we have.

It’s hard to believe that the 22 year-long chapter is closing – but I know we have the prayer and support of a beautiful family back home.

I struggle to imagine all the major events of life not involving this building – every Christmas begun here – every mother’s day, Father’s day. It’s the place I signed my Soldier’s Covenant, the place I gave my life to God – various times – the place I preached ym first sermon, led my first meeting, accepted my call to college, married my soul mate and grew in faith for so long. I get upset sometimes when I think of my baby not growing up here like I have – not having a church to call home – but  instead of getting upset I will thank you all – for all the good lessons you have taught us, for nurturing us to this point, for showing us what it means to be a family, for supporting us in every way possible – from prayer, to words of encouragement, to fundraising assistance.

You all have played a part in getting us to this point where we are ready to say “C’ya later” and enter Training College as prepared and spiritually ready as we can be.

Although College is making me remove my Floreat Epaulettes, it is still, and always will be – our Home Corps.

So again, thank you – for simply loving us – in whatever way it has been. We can’t thank you enough!

This song, sung to the tune “Old Hundredth” – to which the Doxology is often sung – has some wonderful lyrics, which resonate with the church universal.

All people that on earth do dwell,
Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice;
Him serve with fear, his praise forth tell,
Come ye before him and rejoice.

All people that dwell on the earth should sing to the Lord with a cheerful voice. I love singing, and especially praising God. I find it interesting that the way I sing very much depends on the song – I put on a more “contemporary” voice for the modern praise and worship songs, and a stronger, more traditional voice for the older hymns. Personally, I love singing the old hymns, and always do so with a “cheerful” voice – whether old or new, coming to praise God through music is something that I love and always brings cheer to my heart.

O enter then his gates with praise,
Approach with joy his courts unto;
Praise, laud and bless his name always,
For it is seemly so to do.

For why? The Lord our God is good,
His mercy is for ever sure;
His truth at all times firmly stood,
And shall from age to age endure.

Praise, laud (meaning: extol, or praise highly) and bless his name always, for the Lord is good. It’s important to praise God always – and this is something that I try to do in my life – to praise God always, no matter what I’m doing. Packing boxes and getting ready to move? Praise God! Cleaning the dishes? Praise God! Finishing off assignments for College? Praise God! No matter what you do in life, use it as an opportunity to praise God always.