When times are tough and the rain won't come, who do you talk to, where can you go? There are many out in the Bush who are 'doing it tough' and it can be easy to feel that you've been forgotten, especially when you live miles from anywhere.
When the Politicians and the Press forget you, don't believe you are forgotten! There are people around who do care and are making a difference in their own small way.
Care Outreach is one such organization that is doing just that!
They originally started in Queensland, later expanded into northern New South Wales and more recently started operating here in South Australia. How do they help? Well they do a few things like visiting stations, farms and homes in country towns. They organize events designed to lift the 'spirit' and encourage communities to keep going. They deliver food hampers, gifts and toiletries.
Care Outreach is a Non-Denominational Christian organization made up of volunteers. They do not get Government funding but are supported by the many caring and generous people who understand our connection to the 'bush' even though they don't live there.
Do you know someone who would benefit from a visit or who needs a helping hand? Would you like help?
Go to: www.careoutreach.com.au or Email: info@careoutreach.com.au
When the Politicians and the Press forget you, don't believe you are forgotten! There are people around who do care and are making a difference in their own small way.
Care Outreach is one such organization that is doing just that!
They originally started in Queensland, later expanded into northern New South Wales and more recently started operating here in South Australia. How do they help? Well they do a few things like visiting stations, farms and homes in country towns. They organize events designed to lift the 'spirit' and encourage communities to keep going. They deliver food hampers, gifts and toiletries.
Care Outreach is a Non-Denominational Christian organization made up of volunteers. They do not get Government funding but are supported by the many caring and generous people who understand our connection to the 'bush' even though they don't live there.
Do you know someone who would benefit from a visit or who needs a helping hand? Would you like help?
Go to: www.careoutreach.com.au or Email: info@careoutreach.com.au
Talking about what troubles us is never a waste of time, even though it seems that most men would think so.
The old adage a problem shared is a problem halved is true!
Women seem better at sharing than men, but when the miles are many it can be hard to find someone to talk to.
Sometimes it can also seem too impersonal going to an agency, an organization, but what you need to remember is that the people who really do care are usually the ones who set these organizations up.
The old adage a problem shared is a problem halved is true!
Women seem better at sharing than men, but when the miles are many it can be hard to find someone to talk to.
Sometimes it can also seem too impersonal going to an agency, an organization, but what you need to remember is that the people who really do care are usually the ones who set these organizations up.
God never forgets where He leaves his children! Help is only a prayer away. Sound corny to you? Well there are many in Care Outreach who can share stories of how prayers were answered and lives even saved.
Did you know Jesus judged who his real disciples were on how much they acted like him while on Earth?
In the Book of Matthew Chapter 25 verse 31-40
we see Jesus saying that the ones who really know him are the one who feed the hungry and thirsty, who take in the strangers, clothe and care for them, visit the sick and the ones in prison.
Well there are many who are real 'thirsty' in this land of ours and if you can't personally get out there think about supporting ministry like care outreach.
Did you know Jesus judged who his real disciples were on how much they acted like him while on Earth?
In the Book of Matthew Chapter 25 verse 31-40
we see Jesus saying that the ones who really know him are the one who feed the hungry and thirsty, who take in the strangers, clothe and care for them, visit the sick and the ones in prison.
Well there are many who are real 'thirsty' in this land of ours and if you can't personally get out there think about supporting ministry like care outreach.
Sometimes you gotta break just to get fixed up! When things go easy, we can become complacent. We forget that we all rely on others just for everyday things. We forget that it took a farmer to plant, sow and reap. We forget the bakers who get up early to make our bread. We also forget our connection to, and need for God.
I found when things were going really well in my life that I thought I was incontrol, that it was me who called the shots. However when things went wrong, I began to see I wasn't really in control of much. I also began to see that we all live in community, benefiting from the hard work of others. I also came to see the need for help from on high.
I think it takes true strength of character to admit our weakness, to see our personal blindspots - we all have them. Those who think they don't - well they are just in denial and that is a state of deception. It is only when we face the truth that we can truely be free.
This is even acknowledged on "The Biggest Looser". The trainers say you have to really see who you are to be able to change!
Jesus himself faced this with the head religious leaders of his day. The Pharasees he said were 'blind', really blind because in part they refused to see that they were no better or different to the people who they thought were 'unclean'. He called them 'blind guides', trying to instruct others yet not able to see the way for themselves.
So the best way to get fixed when you are breaking is face the truth! None of us are meant to be an island. None of us have all the answers, all of the time. We need others and we need Jesus. It's not weakness to accept help from others "it's just plain common sense"!
I found when things were going really well in my life that I thought I was incontrol, that it was me who called the shots. However when things went wrong, I began to see I wasn't really in control of much. I also began to see that we all live in community, benefiting from the hard work of others. I also came to see the need for help from on high.
I think it takes true strength of character to admit our weakness, to see our personal blindspots - we all have them. Those who think they don't - well they are just in denial and that is a state of deception. It is only when we face the truth that we can truely be free.
This is even acknowledged on "The Biggest Looser". The trainers say you have to really see who you are to be able to change!
Jesus himself faced this with the head religious leaders of his day. The Pharasees he said were 'blind', really blind because in part they refused to see that they were no better or different to the people who they thought were 'unclean'. He called them 'blind guides', trying to instruct others yet not able to see the way for themselves.
So the best way to get fixed when you are breaking is face the truth! None of us are meant to be an island. None of us have all the answers, all of the time. We need others and we need Jesus. It's not weakness to accept help from others "it's just plain common sense"!
This is one of the best explanations of why God allows pain and suffering That I have seen. It's an explanation
Other people will understand.
A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed.As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation.
They talked about so many things and various subjects.
When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: "I don't believe that God exists."
"Why do you say that?" Asked the customer.
"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain.
I can't imagine loving a God who would allow all of these things."
The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the
customer left the shop.
Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed
beard. He looked dirty and un-kept.
The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber:
"You know what? Barbers do not exist."
"How can you say that?" Asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber and I just worked on you!"
"No!" the customer exclaimed.
"Barbers don't exist because
If they did, there would be no
People with dirty long hair
and untrimmed beards,like that man outside."
"Ah, but barbers DO exist!
What happens is, people do not come to me."
"Exactly!"- affirmed the customer."That's the point!
God, too, DOES exist!
What happens, is, people
don't go to Him and do not look for Him, nor obey Him. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."
Other people will understand.
A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed.As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation.
They talked about so many things and various subjects.
When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: "I don't believe that God exists."
"Why do you say that?" Asked the customer.
"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain.
I can't imagine loving a God who would allow all of these things."
The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the
customer left the shop.
Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed
beard. He looked dirty and un-kept.
The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber:
"You know what? Barbers do not exist."
"How can you say that?" Asked the surprised barber. "I am here, and I am a barber and I just worked on you!"
"No!" the customer exclaimed.
"Barbers don't exist because
If they did, there would be no
People with dirty long hair
and untrimmed beards,like that man outside."
"Ah, but barbers DO exist!
What happens is, people do not come to me."
"Exactly!"- affirmed the customer."That's the point!
God, too, DOES exist!
What happens, is, people
don't go to Him and do not look for Him, nor obey Him. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."
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Refiners Fire
Going through adversity is a lot like walking on hot coals - it is painful!
But like the old saying goes "no pain no gain". I don't mean to sound trivial about this issue, because it hurts when everything is going wrong. But if I speak from my own life I know that it's times like these that I grow the most. I never knew how to be 'really' understanding and compassionate about pain and suffering in others until I had to go through it myself. I remember when God called me to move to Melbourne, He told me that it would be a time of great blessing and that I would walk 'closely' with Him while there. Well I can tell you that my time in Bible College in Melbourne was one of the most toughest in my life. I was accused falsely of many things, made to give up my accomodation under false pretenses etc etc.
I remember in the midst of all of this saying to God He must have got it wrong, because I did not feel blessed. However looking back on this time I realize how I matured in my faith. I learned to lean on Jesus and how to stand firm when all around was sinking sand. I gained so much from the pain, that I would do it over again because it made me a better person. I also realized that we walk closest to Jesus when we share His suffering. When we are accused falsely we can identify with Jesus who was accused of many things wrongly. When we are shunned, ostracized etc we can then begin to understand what the Son of Man suffered for us.
Sometimes God uses the 'burning trouble in our lives to Refine us, often it is because He gets our attention best when our troubles are worst. Below is a copy of an email that I received some time back, it explains all about Gad as refiner.
There was a group of women in a Bible study on the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." Malachi 3:3 This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out about the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study. That week this woman called up a silver smith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest in silver beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silver smith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot--then she thought again about the verse, that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.
She asked the silver smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver smith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"
He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy--when I see my image in it."
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you.
Author unknown
Do you have a problem you think you can't overcome? Do you feel hopeless or depressed at times and wonder if life is worth living? Others have trod this path before you, and they wish to share the hope they have found. Go to Changing Lives Online - their stories will bless you, I know they blessed me!
Going through adversity is a lot like walking on hot coals - it is painful!
But like the old saying goes "no pain no gain". I don't mean to sound trivial about this issue, because it hurts when everything is going wrong. But if I speak from my own life I know that it's times like these that I grow the most. I never knew how to be 'really' understanding and compassionate about pain and suffering in others until I had to go through it myself. I remember when God called me to move to Melbourne, He told me that it would be a time of great blessing and that I would walk 'closely' with Him while there. Well I can tell you that my time in Bible College in Melbourne was one of the most toughest in my life. I was accused falsely of many things, made to give up my accomodation under false pretenses etc etc.
I remember in the midst of all of this saying to God He must have got it wrong, because I did not feel blessed. However looking back on this time I realize how I matured in my faith. I learned to lean on Jesus and how to stand firm when all around was sinking sand. I gained so much from the pain, that I would do it over again because it made me a better person. I also realized that we walk closest to Jesus when we share His suffering. When we are accused falsely we can identify with Jesus who was accused of many things wrongly. When we are shunned, ostracized etc we can then begin to understand what the Son of Man suffered for us.
Sometimes God uses the 'burning trouble in our lives to Refine us, often it is because He gets our attention best when our troubles are worst. Below is a copy of an email that I received some time back, it explains all about Gad as refiner.
There was a group of women in a Bible study on the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver." Malachi 3:3 This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out about the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study. That week this woman called up a silver smith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest in silver beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silver smith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot--then she thought again about the verse, that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.
She asked the silver smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver smith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"
He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy--when I see my image in it."
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you.
Author unknown
Do you have a problem you think you can't overcome? Do you feel hopeless or depressed at times and wonder if life is worth living? Others have trod this path before you, and they wish to share the hope they have found. Go to Changing Lives Online - their stories will bless you, I know they blessed me!
Outback Jack