I know, I know, I haven't been very diligent with these blogs as of late. But I will be more focused on them this year. Thats one of my New fiscal year resolutions, uhhh, right? So, this is the beginning of change, lets see how my discipline has got since being over here. I have notice that no matter how close we get to Gods heart we can never seem to get rid of all of our issues. There are few ways we end up dealing with them though.
1) We accentuate some we are too lazy to change and it becomes the norm for our life as we hear under a guise of laughter and acceptance, "oh, thats just Adam. Its just the way he is!" even though those issues are blatantly unbiblical. (SLOTH)
2) We pretend we are really better than we are to avoid open hypocrisy and save face. This is probably the most common and comes largely from insecurity I would think. (PRIDE)
3) Or we can pursue God and find ourselves in constant humiliation and floating through transformations until our dying breath, chasing holiness to our grave. Though I'm not always here, I feel this rat race at the moment. (HUMILITY)
In the bible people who were living their lives in humility and absolute abandon for God, chasing that scathing refiners fire to their dying breath were the ones who saw the massive release of the Spirit of God in their life! And if we want a release of God's Spirit, transforming us, those around us and even society we need that reckless abandon.
When I got back to Australia I was giving the opportunity to teach again on a friend of mines school. I taught on the body of Christ and unity. I usually teach on this during the significant "Survivor week". This is when the outreach teams are pitted against each other in competitive games to create friction and allow them to see their issues as open wounds and mend them before getting into the intensity of the mission field. So I always enjoy this opportunity. And Stephen also gave me the opportunity to share with the school on a topic I have had mounting interest in and have began studying on my own time, Greek vs. Hebrew thinking as well as Hebrew culture!
I really enjoyed teaching and I think I communicated the information well enough, but after a plane ride and only pushing into God exclusively with my mind and study at home, I knew I had let the ball drop. There was very little spiritual power in the week, I didn't feel that the Spirit was with me. I was speaking a dry message, a potent informative message void of any application or meaning. I had not saturated the week before hand in prayer, nor had I really engaged the Spirit of God while at home once my opportunities to speak had passed me by.
I learned something after that week, I'm not ok with ok. I really don't like to give God anything less than my best. What do I have to lose, some sleep or energy. This life is a vapour in the vastness of eternity and I'm here worrying about my spelling and grammar as I write this blog entry. Hoping a sleep well tonight, napping in the day if I don't. I think satan has far better ways of attacking us than naps, so I don't think they are inherently evil, however, I only have one opportunity to do this right. And God may have given me authority over this next school because it is one persons one chance to meet God face to face. Or maybe he put you father or mother over your children and you are their one chance to see God's character, or maybe you are put in that science class with all those thugs and burn outs that you don't usually hang out with because you are their one chance at experiencing God.
As I am prayerfully preparing for this next school I will be leading, God is putting it increasingly on my heart to give it all, everything I have and hold nothing back. As a school leader I directly oversee and meet with nearly all of my 20ish students at least once in a fortnight, as well as being specifically in charge of the growth and spiritual development of these powerful staff member that have been entrusted to me. Meeting with them ideally weekly. Logistical nightmares and no weekends or evenings off can make a school leader a little greedy with their personal time. However, I feel God has asked me to use my breakfast time as a bible study with willing and keen students to go through the books of acts (my favourite book and the one I have studied most). To have early morning prayer meetings with my staff regularly. To enter realms of faith and spiritual power with this school I haven't seen before myself. To believe that God will back up the ambitions He has put on my heart with His Spirit. I am excited for this adventure and am really focusing my energy and spirit in these weeks, gaining wisdom and insight from God. Prayer over this next year is essential to the ministry I'm involved in. So thank you all for that.
Now for a couple last important things. I always put the really important things at the end, because I'm so long winded that only those who are really interested in whats going on with me get a little more personal information at the bottom.
Firstly, I have been asked to speak overseas in the Solomon Islands, which is really amazing. I am so honoured and excited to be stepping into international speaking engagements on schools. But this base is a project we are trying to assist, its always had trouble running and keeping going. So they are asking international speakers to try and find their own financial means to get there. The base has offered to take up an offering for me and help pay for a ticket to the Solomon Islands, which would cost me between 500 and 700 dollars Australian. However your prayer in the bringing in of these finances would be a powerful blessing to me right now. I also would appreciate your prayers in preparation for teaching if I take this opportunity, I will be teaching for possible two weeks on two topics that I have never taught on before, thats many hours of study and preparation.
The second thing is something I don't usually do. And that is promote or advertise YWAM. I am simply a believer working in an organization that fits with my personality and desires in ministry. But I have seen so many peoples lives transformed in so many different ways through this organization that I just have to put a plug. I have seen couples who have been simply existing grasping at the material straws that could get their hands on transformed into passionate and powerful missionaries. I've seen kids come on gap years between university and are giving complete ownership of their faith as their own, the means to defend their faith in their future, a depth of personal relationship with God that challenges me, and guidance and vision for their future...then they have headed off to uni and been released in the fullness of the potential of who they are. I've seen 40 year olds come thinking they missed their chance to make use of their 70 years of life on this earth and they are given a redemption of purpose and fulfillment of the depths of their hearts desire! Or a kid confused and barely saved, he find hope and spiritual power, identity in Christ and was thrown into a world and story bigger than his own. A story that once you are caught up in spoils you for a normal materialistic life. That boy was released into bringing that same experience to others and wouldn't trade it for the world (that was me by the way). I really would recommend doing a Discipleship Training school through YWAM. It can just be to increase your relationship with God, to get healing, to see if God even exists, experience another culture, find out who you are in God so you can actually know his plans for your life. OR it could be to pursue missions, ministry or a degree or diploma through the University of the Nations which is YWAM's training wing and has accredited degree programs!
SO, get the word out and be sensitive to the Spirit in your life and those around you, recommend this to anyone and everyone, or just those you feel led to. But it really is a powerful thing. There are 1200 locations in 173 nations world wide, 150 nationalities involved and 20,000 fulltime staff, with 4,000,000 people having been a part of it over the years. Email me @ marshywam@gmail.com for more info, or check out www.ywam.org to see the many countries you could do this course in. I also encourage you to go to youtube and search "YWAM DTS" or YWAM promo, and watch some videos. And thanks again for being a part of what God is doing globally through me, I love you all and wish you His richest blessings!
PEACE, LOVE and PRAYERS!
