Summer

Identifying our growth seasons help individuals to maximize personal growth, to develop self-awareness, team awareness, situation awareness and God awareness. Helps in our personal learning curve (holistic growth) upwards in the 5 dimensions (spiritual, mental, emotional, physical, social). So it is good to recognize, respond and result harnessing of each season. So we can learn with victory rather than become a casualty!

Summer (Growing/Training/Stretching)

Growing is a process that takes time and patience. As we serve actively growth can be and should result in our character, word of God and skills to develop. So focusing on the events, the convention camps or conferences, we will feel empty when its over. But when we focus on serving, that will be the major growth point.

Example: When we begin to serve God in worship, our confidence, our voices and skills will increase and importantly our worshiping life style will change to please God. Putting theory and head knowledge into practice will determine if you really understood all the teachings in the first place!

The need to develop skills in worshiping, teaching etc in ministry is important, so let God shape our character, patience, loving kindness and not just the skills. e.g. How do we handle difficult people and difficult situations. Is the our heart attitude right?

What specifics do you need to work on in your character, in the word of God and in your ministry skills?

Effective training builds competency and confidence that pays off in better results. This requires a personal relationship with God and professional training and discipline. The K.A.S.H training goes like this:

K-Knowledge (bible): understanding and using the word of God in the correct way
A-Attitude (teachable, open heart): Have to have heart of humility and love for people. e.g. A student passes his studies to become a doctor but has the wrong attitudes, he can not maximize his help to others.
S-Skills(practical ministral): to be effective in minstry
H-Habits (needs to be cultivated): Discipline to plant good seeds to sow good crops

Stretching speaks of willingness and the discipline to go further and try harder than before. It is making the most of the time before summer ends in order to achieve certain results. It will pay dividends to go the extra mile!

So the question is are you willing to go that extra mile and what does the stretching really mean to your context?

From workshop "Maximizing personal growth seasons"

Winter

Written 1yr ago..

Winter

Just like melbourne's weather, four seasons in a day, this 3rd letter in the past 3 weeks is of WINTER. The first season was spring, which is the plowing and planting of gods words into our hearts. The second is autumn, the preparation for the coming season, bearing down to the bare essentials. All these seasons require energy, time and planning. Therefore God has made a season for us to rest, and that is winter!

Have you notice, after a long day at work, running from errands to errands, our physical bodies requires resting. Similarly, we can also feel our spiritual chalice running on empty during times of trials. The feeling of being burnt out, drowned in our thoughts of the daily events, and thinking to ourselves of the little time left to do something we like. Have you ever felt like this before? If you have dear brothers and sisters, you need rest!

First, I want to ask each of us, to think of how we define resting?

Personally i feel, to have a good rest, I need to travel somewhere. Take a vocation and plan some activities to keep me occupied during this time. Do something that i like. For instance, i remember last year, about this time when i joined caregroup. I took a trip to mount macedon and daylesford. To climb the mountains and bathe in spring water. Sounds relaxing isnt it? it is, if you take it just as that. On the road however, i went to magnetic hill, horse riding, farming, trekking etc. By the end of the day i was very exhausted. This is not the proper rest because i was more tired when i got back than i had left.

Let me clarify what resting is, it is not what we do, where we go, or the length of time we rest, but it a time of refreashment in body and spirit. It is a time to reflect on the past seasons and remember what God has done for us. It's about retreating from the world, and entering into fellowship with the living word, Jesus Christ. For Mark 6:30-31 says

"The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest"

It is also a time to plan what comes next in our lives and this requires reflection. Be careful when you think back to the past, don't get stuck there but learn from errors and look and plan ahead. God intends us to move forward and live in the present. First thing is, we need to get our compass bearing, reading our maps and charting our course right. Remember to include god in the planning at this time, better still, let him be your consultant.

Prov 16:9 "in his heart a man plans his course but the lord determines his steps"

And for those to whom feel guilty for taking the rest, remember that taking rest is not a sin. God himself made the seventh day, the sabbath day to rest. Exodus says 31:15 "the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, holy to the lord". The sabbath day was intended for two reasons, to take rest from our bustling lives at work and studies and to remember what God has done for us. It is time to pause what we are doing in our daily lives so that we will not forget the purpose of all our efforts and lose balance, this is crucial to a faithful life. So make a time for rest, god intends you to be performing at your potential.

So remember, when you are feeling tired and weary from work and studies, you need rest. You need to draw on gods words to restore your physical and spiritual health. Get a top up spiritually :)

A prayer
Heavenly father, i thankyou for the season of winter, the season to rest and recover from the tribulations. I pray for the restoration of us to yourself, that we may return and renew our days as of old. May the holy spirit replenish our lives with energy, freashness and faithfullness. May the plans for our lives be made clear to us during this period, that we can see what your will for us will be. I pray that we are able to find a balance between working and resting Lord. O God we call upon Jesus name to answer our prayers, Amen.

Point to ponder over
When was the last time you had rest?
And how will you find the time to rest?
Remember a season of seeming inactivity does not equate to inactivity!

Autumn

Written 1yr ago..

Autumn

The image of tree leaves changing colors from green to varies colors yellow, red, brown, and overflowing leaves in the gutter is best known in the season of autumn. The scorching hot summer that has just past (season of growth) and the chilly breeze of winter (season of rest) slowly looms ahead. Autumn to me speaks of internal preparation for the next season of growth shedding the non-essentials for survival of the cold days to come.

It is a time that god searches our hearts, refines our character and builds us up to be biblical people. God reminds me, through tribulations and obstacles that we faced during the previous seasons, the fruits of our labor will taste the sweetest when we know we have victory that comes from Jesus Christ. So I take to heart that God puts these temporary barriers that he intends us to overcome, to mould and shape our character into our full potential. And God does this because his love for us.

Hebrews 12:4-11 says "my son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves… God is treating you as sons and daughters. For what children is not disciplined by the father? If you are not disciplined then you are illegitimate children and not true sons and daughters"

The choices we make in our daily lives may it be the decisions we make during hardship times or choosing the program on tv to watch, it can either strengthen or weaken our Christian life. Therefore we need to examine our hearts before God, draw closer to his words and understand his will for us. We need to be honest to god with our speech, our actions and our mannerism because the test will come to reveal what is truly in our hearts. Is it of God or of self? Examine our hearts and come back to the core principles of our faith in Jesus, 2 Cor 13:5-6 says "examine yourselves to see whether you are in faith; test yourselves."

As I write this to you today my brothers and sisters, God tested me on the way home. An elderly man of aboriginal descent, bearded, fumed with tobacco smell and rugged clothed stepped onto the bus. (My past experience with aboriginals in my neighbourhood has not been pleasant, I can remember a time I was chased and sworn at for no particular reason) I felt this man was no different from the man in my memory, his behavior was seen as abnormal, he could not keep still in his seat, tossing and turning. His hands wavering around, and his eyes bewildered, people on the bus were either staring at him or ignoring him. My first reaction was to ignore him and try to face the other way as the smell of heavy tobacco and beer penetrated my nostrils. Suddenly, I felt god telling me why are you treating this man like he is the fowl of the earth, he is my son too. My heart melted and I began to pray for him in my heart. Asking for the peace and sovereignty to transcemd upon this man. I continued to pray in spirit as I did not know what else I can do. Within a minute of my prayer, this man turn around stretched out his hands and shook my hands. His faced calmed and his movements became stabilized, he even smiled at me. At that moment, I knew god had responded to my prayer and even giving me a sign that he knows what is in my heart. So I thank god for searching my heart today, to reveal to me if I have taken his word to my heart. I know I could have chosen the easy path to ignore a man in need of prayer, and that would have meant I held onto bitterness and unforgiveness.
Aligned with the season, we need to search our heart, do a reality check to find what we are holding onto is of God. Are we defined by the title we have, the past experiences, the possessions we have, or by our 9-5 work? Just as the trees shed their leaves to save nutrients to supply to vital parts, we too need to strip down to the core of our character to survive the seasons. Therefore we need to look within us, drop whats of no use to us and retain whats good, 1 Thes 5:21-22 "test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil"

The clue to the basic principle that we should have in heart is given in Matthew 22:37-40 "Jesus replied, love the lord your god with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind, this is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself. All the law and prophets hang on these two commandments."

Prayer for the caregroup
Lord almighty, as we come to know that the obstacles we face in our lives are put there for a reason. I thank you for the times of stretching and growth that temporarily is uncomfortable but in the long will help us make the right decisions in our lives. I pray as the holy spirit searches everyone's hearts and finds goodness, may you magnify it and remove those that are not from you. In Jesus name we believe you will do great things in our lives. Amen

Thought that counts
Ask yourself what needs to change within me in order to get to the next level in my character and ministry?

Spring

This was written one year ago after a Hope Convention held in brisbane...

Spring.

The season of Spring is a time to plough the hardened grounds and sow the seeds of Gods word into our hearts. It is a time to soften our hearts and lay our burdens and sins before God. For these hardness in our hearts can barricade God in our lives and lead us astray.

Dont wait any longer brothers and sisters, ask God to breakup the hardness in our lives and remove the bad soil in our hearts. Pray in spirit that we may have our heart SOFTENED and GOOD before God.

We must remember that we have been saved through Jesus Christ, that our hearts are no longer hardened by the worldly views but soften by Gods Love and Mercy. Hebrew 3:15 "As has just been said: today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion".

May we spiritually encourage one another daily and build one another up in the body of christ. So that none of us may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. Let us stand together firm on gods word never forgetting that we are in fellowship in christ together as brothers and sisters.

And know that God is not far from us, we only need to call on him as a friend through prayer. We should endeavour to develop a bond and closeness to our father, being sensitive and receptive to his word. This is similar to recognizing a friends voice when they call on us on the phone. We should be able to know when god is speaking to us and i pray may we take what we hear and learn into our hearts.

So tis' the time to sow the seed of god in our hearts and mind for it is likened that good soil produces good fruits and bad soil yields bad fruits or no fruits. Matt 13:8-9 "Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop-a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear"

A Prayer:

Father in heaven, i pray that the holy spirit can rain upon our hearts and allow your healing hands to soften our hardened hearts. May the bad soil that we hold be replaced with good soil that you intend us to have. I pray god, that your words will be likened to good seeds taking root in our lives and let us nurture these seeds into the fullest potential. May we see the fruits promised sprout out and into our lives. In Jesus Name we we pray. Amen.