On the road

Reading
Since having to travel in to the Corps each day I have managed to finish New Love, (Thinking aloud about practical holiness), by Shaw Clifton and other guest writers. There is something good in each chapter but I liked this from Jo Noland

"Where is God's perfection? It is found in our personal and corporate response to others. It is not holiness constrained; it is holiness released. It is not holiness "from" the world; it is holiness taken into the world. It is not holiness controlled; it is holiness directed. It is holiness portable, adaptable and all inclusive."

Looking
I have also decided that during my journey I would ask the Lord to use what I see out of the window to speak. Here is one example.

Most mornings we pass a car washing business. This firm specialises in handwashing and drying the customers car with a in a few minutes. To do this uses 8-10 men all working together, each with an appointed task. Apart from the obvious analogies of each person playing their part and the idea that the individuals matter and that it a persons needs are often met not just by one person but by a community of people, the thing that struck me most about this team was their readiness.
One morning there was no car in the bay being washed, but the men were still there, buckets, sponges, etc to hand. No one had wandered off because they were bored and neither were they distracted by other jobs. They seemed, to me at least sure of what they were on site for and stayed on duty.

O that this same readiness and focus was seen among Christians. We are so easily distracted and often so unprepared that when people do come to have their lives cleaned up, we struggle to find the resources to help them. I will never forget, a lady I was called in by the military army to help. She said that she had called Churches and gone to churches many times for help in the past but whenever she approached them, they were either shut, or the phone was answered by the cleaner, who had no other connection to the place. In the end she turned to New Age groups who always opened the door to her and offered her something. She came to realise that what they offered was empty but how sad that the Church was not ready to receive her.

Listening
The CD "A New Hallelujah" by Micheal W Smith has kept my perspective, despite the traffic lights, slow drivers and road works!


God bless

Carol

Change

Life is really busy, with just loads of ministry. I am not complaining. Much of what is happening is a result of asking God to open doors of opportunity and a lot of stuff is with the unchurched, which I love.

I am just conscious of carving out time to spend in prayer. Living away from Pill at the moment and at the same time extra responsbilities coming our way has meant that the prayer routines that we had in place have gone out of the window.

However change also brings new experiences and new blessings. The flat we are staying in overlooks a pond and garden. I have to admit I'm not a wildlife fan really but I have become quite fascinated by the antics of the resident duck population, the squirrels and by the badgers that visit in the evening. I think the only time I have seen badgers this close is when they have been dead in the road. It's great to seem them alive. Anyway the contrast of the scene outside of my window to the mayhem of my days, seems to still my spirit and ushers me into the presence of God.

In addition most days we now have an hour's journey from Bath to Pill each morning and I am redeeming the time by reading, praying and listening to worship CD's. The return journey is usually less busy and quicker but another opportunity to pray and read the word. I leave the driving to Alan and he is having to work out his own new prayer routines. More time at the hall means opportunity to use the prayer room.

So, although at first I felt a bit robbed of a comfortable way of enjoying my devotional life, I am now finding the changes a blessing.

God is good

Love and prayers

Carol

Prayer Cover

Last Saturday was what is known in our village as Pill Rag,which is I suppose a small scale carnival. Sadly although this is really meant to be a family event, in recent years binge and under age drinking have been an unwelcome feature. Also visiting groups of young people from other areas intent on causing trouble has led to fights with our village youth.

Concerned about this we decided to prayer walk the route of the carnival, pray outside the local pubs and pray around the site of the main activities prior to the event. On the Saturday evening from 8pm -10pm we went out and "prayer patrolled" the village, talking with the organiser, local people, the police and watching out for some of the young people we know. It felt right to be visible and available but also we rejoice because we believe our prayers and our presence contributed to the fact that this years Rag, apart from a few minor scuffles was peaceful.

God bless

Carol

Ps I apologise for the lack of blogs but I only have easy access to the internet when I am at the hall. We are at present out of our quarters whilst it undergoes major refurbishment.
The fact that we are living at a Salvation Army Care Home has nothing to do with the fact that Alan will be 50 this year!!!!!!! I also hasten to add that we are staying a very nice staff flat and that our friend Ena, who is the manager has been great in making us feel welcome.

New Things

This blog is really an update on the new things that I blogged were about to happen at Pill and which have now begun.

On Friday I went on my first night-time prayer patrol in Bristol. As on the day-time patrol people were only to willing to be prayed for. We had what I can only describe as some interesting "spiritual warfare" encounters. However the team were not phased by this and actually the strange events confirmed the rightness of what we were doing. We also met some really lost souls, with whom it was a privilege to share the love of God. I am praising God because I know there was a time in my life when I would not have dared to go out on the streets in this way. Now it is such a joy.

This morning we held our first session of Alpha. There were 7 of us in the group and I get the feeling that this is going to be a good one. We are from a wide variety of backgrounds and experience but there is a hunger to know more about what being a Christian means.

From this Alan and I went immediately to the Secondary School for our first Open Door session. Given that this must be one of the hottest days of the year so far, we did not really expect that any young person would want to spend their lunch hour indoors but we had 8 kids turn up. Afterwards their teacher said they were some of the most vulnerable kids in the school. Even at the first session they are beginning to open up to us so we are excited about the future of this venture.

I just want to add that the new things do not mean that the day to day things that we always do week in week out are overlooked or are unimportant.

"Whatever you do, whether in word or indeed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the Father through him." Col 3:17

God's Messengers

On 28th May 1982 the God's Messengers session were commissioned as Salvation Army officers.
This means that today we have been officers for 27 years.

Officership has not always been easy but I have never wanted to do anything else with my life and I still love the opportunities it opens up for me to serve the Lord. Most of the time it is a fantastic adventure.

What would be really good is for there to be a widescale revival in the UK before we retire. So if you're listening Lord, that's in the next 15 years. However anytime now would be even more wonderful!

According to our sessional song, God's Messengers must speak the word, live the truth and love the lost. I'm still up for that. Trust my fellow Messengers are too!

God bless

Carol

Do what the Lord says and don't disobey.

In February 2007, whilst I was on my way to Ethiopia, my husband Alan phoned me with the the news that our new appointment was to be the Corps Officers at Pill Corps near Bristol. Although at that moment many miles apart we both felt a sense that God was definitely in this. I travelled on to Addis Adaba and whilst attending a Pastors Conference there God asked me a question, "Are there still slaves in Bristol?"

I know that this was connected with the Human Trafficking campaign that the Army was involved in. Visiting women in Ethiopian prisons and meeting a woman whose daughter was living in a forced labour situation meant that from now on the human trafficking issue was related to people I had met, embraced and prayed with. I knew the answer to the question that God asked was a definite yes, although I also knew that the slavery encountered in the city of Bristol would take many forms and would include lack of emotional and spiritual freedom.

Sharing something of this conviction with Rev Kingsley Armstrong I was invited to accompany him to Cote D'Ivoire to visit a church that had a special ministry to people caught up in prostitution. It was an amazing time. A never to be forgotten experience was walking to labyrinth of alleyways, in the area where many prostitutes work and live. Although it was day time and the sun was shining it was a desperate place. I thought my heart was going to break in two. Later in worship that night God spoke to me again. He said he had brought me to Abidjan and I had walked the streets in that city and my heart had filled with compassion. Did I have the same compassion for people in the slavery of sin in my own city and was I willing to walk the streets there like I had in Africa? Of course I answered yes.

I returned determined to do this but seemed to come across obstacles. Last summer I met Rev Dawnecia Palmer, who heads up Peacemakers Prayer Patrol and this initiative combined my two passions of reaching out with compassion and prayer. There were such a frustrating series of delays that I was beginning to wonder if I was ever going to be able to obey what I really felt God had laid upon my heart to do.

Anyway, hallelujah! Last Friday I went out on my first Prayer Patrol on the streets of Bristol with Dawnecia. Prayer Patrol seeks to reduce crime and build better and safer communities through changing the spiritual atmosphere with prayer. This involves walking the streets at strategic times and praying with people that you meet. The results of the intiative have been absolutley amazing so much so that the organization has won awards from the Police.

We went out on a bright afternoon, for a maximum of 30 minutes and in that time talked with about a dozen people and had significant prayer time with three of them. Dawnecia was particularly excited that we had a conversation with a Rastafarian guy, who had always refused to speak to her before. It was just amazing how open people were to receive prayer. I am going on a night shift this week, when more people will be about.

But the great thing was to feel that I was doing what God had told me to do. I do not know what it will lead to but almost a year to the day God told me to walk the streets of my city I have done it, with his help.

Doing the will of God, doing the will of God
The best thing I know in this world below
Is doing the will of God.

God bless

Carol

Taking back what was stolen from us

A few weeks ago at the Fulness Retreat I sensed the Spirit say that one of the things he wants to re-release in the Salvation Army is extempore and vocal prayer.
As I was waiting upon the Lord I had a picture in my mind of lots of individuals on their own in their prayer closets all praying faithfully. I felt assured that there is a lot more Salvationist praying going on than we know about. However I also felt that the Spirit was saying that these prayers need to be released into vocal public prayer.

As I have been processing this it occurs to me that this again is all part of the same call to the Salvationists to have confidence in our identity. Prayers that are not reliant on prayer books or the eloquent and uttered by anyone who felt led something that characterised our worship and was envied by many other churches.

I have a growing conviction that there has been a gagging of public prayer in the UK SA that has become a spiritual stronghold over many of our corps. I believe that in some quarters the enemy has stolen our freedom in prayer. I am on a mission to get it back.

We have all been in those meetings when prayer has been asked for and there has been that restless awkward silence, whilst everyone waits for the usual volunteers to let everyone else off the hook. When at last, they wearily get to their feet because they can bear the silence no longer, the sigh of relief from everyone else is much louder than the words of prayer uttered.

More and more, in the Army we are reading prayers from the screen, praying silently and writing things down on bits of paper to avoid the agony of the silence and to try to involve the silent majority in the prayer time. That’s Ok, there is a place for those things but we must not retreat to them because people are afraid to express their heart.

I have never liked the awkward silence and have always been frustrated by it. But of late it has become a real burden. When there is a delay in people responding to the call for prayer and you know it is not just about people becoming still enough to be led by the Spirit, I want to cry. I feel a sense of sorrow that we can’t find our voices to pray in front of one another.

Anyway in the light of this I have been praying about my own corps, which is freer than many in this area but I also know that there are many who are frustrated at their nervousness about praying in public. Anyway having prayed, shared something of my heart on this and promised that we will not railroad anyone or embarrass anyone into praying out loud we have seen some release. At least 8 people prayed aloud on Sunday morning and others in the evening meeting. I am praying for even more freedom.

I have a growing conviction that if we find our voices to pray before one another we will find our voices to proclaim salvation to the world.

God bless

Carol