From the

Coalface

31st October 2011

The NORTHLAKES Salvation Army Community Church

Our Provisional Plans

Read 1 Corinthians 16:5-9 5-9 I plan to visit you after passing through northern Greece. I won't be staying long there, but maybe I can stay awhile with you—maybe even spend the winter? Then you could give me a good send-off, wherever I may be headed next. I don't want to just drop by in between other "primary" destinations. I want a good, long, leisurely visit. If the Master agrees, we'll have it! For the present, I'm staying right here in Ephesus. A huge door of opportunity for good work has opened up here. (There is also mushrooming opposition.) (THE MESSAGE) Most of us make plans for the future. Holidays are scheduled, social gatherings are put on the calendar, conferences or concerts are put in the diary. Those who follow Jesus make such plans but need to do so understanding that they themselves do not ultimately manage their own lives. Here, Paul is telling the Corinthians of his own plans to visit them. But this long and leisurely visit didn’t materialise and he copped some flak from the Corinthians because of it. While Paul had his own good ideas, God had other ideas. All our planning is thus provisional. We can normally assume the plans will be fulfilled. But circumstances can change. Our planning was done with the best of intentions. When the plans are changed we might wonder if we have made some terrible mistake. More often than not, we haven’t. We merely have to recognise our own limitations of knowledge and use such plans changes to deepen our trust in God’s wisdom rather than our own organisational sense. So we plan, but recognise God might have his own plans. One further thing: how interesting that Paul’s increased opportunities to share his faith corresponded to increased opposition. Something else to ponder!

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Northlakes Salvos

are now on

Twitter

follow us @NorthlakesSA

ONE’S TRASH ANOTHER’S TREASURE

When: 26th November

Where: 46 Reservoir Rd, Glendale

Things

required: Books, clothes. Bric-a-brac,

appliances, plants, furniture,

and what ever you have to donate.

Phone Jeff 0414 583 224 or Lisa

0488 201 227 for pick ups.

Soccer Team Presentation

The men’s and women’s soccer team present

ation will be during our church service on

Sunday 6th November.

Following this, a BYO picnic will be held at

Speers Point Park to celebrate the successes of

the season.

All players and

families are

welcome, along with

any others from our

church family.

Graeme Evans

Mental Illness - No One There To Save You The band Simple Plan has a song which reflects on life with these words: "To be on the edge of breaking down And no one's there to save you. No, you don't know what it's like Welcome to my life." This could be either teenage angst or the struggle with mental torment. ABC sports reporter, Craig Hamilton has written a book on his own struggle with mental illness called "Broken Open." In this honest and revealing story he tells of a mental breakdown in his life due to Bipolar mental illness. He writes about his experi-ences to help people understand the condition. Hamilton says that one in six Australian sufferers of Bipolar illness commit suicide and one in three never receive treatment. It’s the great unspoken illness of our society. People are afraid to ask for help so they struggle on alone. In the words of the song – "with no one there to save them." Are you struggling with depression and can’t see a way out? If so, please act. Tell a friend. See a doctor. Pray and be sure you get help.

Page 3 Northlakes Salvation Army

Editor's Note: The following is a re-

port on the practical applications

of Michael Frost & Alan

Hirsch's book, The Faith of Leap:

Embracing a Theology of Risk, Ad-

venture, and Courage, (Baker Books,

2011).

If you’re a Christian, you aren’t

meant to live a safe life. You’re

meant to live an adventurous life,

following wherever God leads you.

Anything less than that dishonours

God, blocks your ability to grow into

the person God wants you to become,

and diminishes your contributions to

the world.

The only way to truly fulfil God’s

purposes for your life is to take the

risks God calls you to take – just as

Jesus did. So the next time God calls

you to take a leap of faith, do so.

Here’s how to follow God on a great

adventure:

Stop settling for a mediocre life. A

mediocre life isn’t good enough for

you, since God intends for you to live

a great life every day that you’re

alive on Earth. Realize that by set-

tling for mediocrity, you’re missing

out on many blessings that God

wants you to enjoy and many oppor-

tunities to do work that had eternal

value.

Make Jesus your role model. Jesus’

life was a great adventure, full of

risks that demanded courage but led

to profound change for the better. As

a Christian, God wants you to live as

Jesus did, embracing adventure to the

fullest. If you shrink back from

following wherever God leads you,

you’re not honouring Him. But if you

love God and other people and make

whatever sacrifices are necessary to

fully follow where God leads you,

you’re emulating Jesus and honour-

ing God.

View life as an opportunity rather

than as a threat. Ask God to give

you a vision of specific ways that He

wants you to serve Him in this world.

Let that knowledge excite you and

motivate you to seek and fulfil God’s

purposes for your life every day, in-

stead of worrying about what trouble

might come your way each day.

Recognize that any control you may

think you have over what happens to

you is an illusion, so trying to control

your circumstances is a waste of your

time and energy. Instead, embrace

the opportunities that God gives you

each day, and make the most of them,

trusting that God will help you along

the way.

Pray for the faith you need to

overcome fear. It’s natural to feel

afraid when you encounter

challenging situations, but you never

have to give into the fear that you

feel. Pray regularly for fresh doses of

faith that will empower you to move

forward with what God wants you to

do, despite feeling afraid, because

God is with you. Read God’s

promises to you in the Bible and

decide to trust them every day. Direct

your fear toward a healthy fear of

God (a reverence for Him), since that

reverence will help humble you and

motivate you to follow God’s

guidance in your life – which is the

best way to handle life’s challenging

situations.

Remember that you play a role in

the greatest story of all, and it’s

urgent that you act. God has given

you an important part to play in the

great story of what He is doing in the

world. If you don’t take action to do

your part, the story won’t be the one

God wants to write, and our fallen

world will suffer even more. But if

you do play your part, then you can

help bring God’s redemption to

people who urgently need it. Don’t

delay; act immediately to do whatev-

er God is calling you to do.

Build a community of fellow

adventurers. Join other Christians at

your church and in your local area to

unite around common missions. In

the process, you’ll encounter God

and each other in new ways. Create a

culture of adventure in your Christian

community, encouraging each other

to take the risks necessary to serve

well. Tell each other your stories of

what God is doing through your

lives. Thank heroes in your commu-

nity for what they’re doing to honour

God and help people; study their

lives and let them inspire and moti-

vate you to serve in heroic ways

yourself. Pair people up with mentors

when possible, so they can learn from

each other and do more great work in

the world. Encourage others in your

church to be courageous in their wor-

ship, discipleship, community,

and mission pursuits, building every-

thing they do around fulfilling God’s

How to Develop a Faith of Leap

SHARE A

PRAYER

Check out our website

www.northlakessalvos.com.au

Every Sunday we have a prayer meeting 45 minutes before Church.

This is a wonderful opportunity to pray for the Sunday Celebration Service and also any urgent prayer needs.

For Our Church Family at Northlakes

Pray Sale of house and wisdom for the future.

Ryan—surgery

HSC Students exams, pray for calm and trust in

the Lord.

Year 10 students for trial exams.

For Emily Dunn as she travels to Vietnam for

Uni work.

Liz with inoperable lung cancer.

Family members who are not saved and need

God.

Our parents.

Peter Miller diagnosed with cardiomyopathy.

Barbara who has cancer.

Praise Healthy baby news for Ellen

Chris and boys new home.

Karina’s new baby Pippa Lee Troke.

Safe travel, home safely.

Northlakes Salvation Army

For the Salvo’s

Latin America North Territory —Pray for the unity of Salvationists in the 9 countries that make up this territory; for a strong Christian influence in the Army’s schools and kindergartens; and for the continued growth and development of the Army’s strong work in Cuba.

Sydney Congress Hall, NSW—Major Terry Grey & Major Lyn Edge, Captain Rhombus Ning and Captain Lai Li

Sydney East & Illawarra Chaplaincy Service, NSW—Major Judy Knight (Coordinator), Majors John & Phyllis Thorley, Major Elaine Redwood, Betty Lanham, Sharon Jory, Envoy Alan Staines (Hospital Chaplains), Major Judy Knight, Sharyn Widdowson, Major Heather Rose (Court Chaplains), Majors Lyndsay & Dawn Smith (Fire Brigade Chaplains), Captain Rhombus Ning, Captain Lai Li, Commissioner Verna Skinner, Alan Byrnes, Major Hilton Harmer, Major Cliff Randall (Airport Chaplains)

Sydney East & Illawarra Divisional Headquarters, NSW—Majors John & Narelle Rees, Majors Kelvin & Cheralynne Pethybridge, Major Paul Kinder, Major Elwyn Grigg, Major Sue Winterburn, Major Kay Clarke-Pearce, Major Diane Maxwell, Major Gweneth Woodbury, and team

Sydney Street level Mission, NSW (Including Inner City (Streetlevel) Community Welfare Centre)- Major Robin Pullen and Team

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HAPPY

BIRTHDAY

Any information regardingAny information regardingAny information regarding the newsletter / the newsletter / the newsletter /

wanting to place an add..wanting to place an add..wanting to place an add.. Contact Fiona StigContact Fiona StigContact Fiona Stig 0423 033 318 or 0423 033 318 or 0423 033 318 or

fiona.stig@spcc.nsw.edu.aufiona.stig@spcc.nsw.edu.aufiona.stig@spcc.nsw.edu.au

God’s there, listening for all who pray, for all who pray and mean it.

Psalms 145:18 The Message