Who we have faith in...

Im bound to repeat some of my earlier points in this post, but I was just drawn to writing another post about faith, but this time I will focus more on who we put our faith in.

Recently I went through a situation where I put my faith in someone and they ultimately failed me. At the time I felt quite disappointed, I had faith that they would help me, they had agreed to help me, but in the end they felt my request was not that important and ignored it (I guess im still feeling a bit unhappy about it).

Afterward I began thinking about who we trust and why. Everyday without even consciously thinking about it we put our faith in others. We may trust that the electricity company will supply power to our house, we may trust that the transport company will deliver us to work, we may trust our loved one to cook for us. And most of the time we trust in these things without giving it a second thought.

But the trouble with trusting in "man" is the simple fact that man can prove untrustworthy. It may not be for malicious intentions, but there are times when "man" will let us down.  And at those points we can feel extremely hurt, because we have put our faith in someone and they have proved unfaithful.

But should we abandon having faith in anyone, from fear of being hurt? That would be impossible, as we all know its impossible to live without faith. But we need to look at who we trust. The wonderful thing is there is one who we can always trust upon and know that we will never be let down...

God. He is absolutely trustworthy. One of my most favourite lines in the Bible is Hebrews 13:5

"I will never leave you, I will never forsake you"

This sums up the awesome promise we have in Christ. I only need to look through the book of Matthew to find countless references to the power of faith in God. Jesus highlights the power of having faith and prayer in Matthew 21:22 when He says

And whatever you ask for in prayer, having faith and [really] believing, you will receive.

Man can say that to you, but you know that there is the chance he will let you down. But if you look throughout the entire Bible and throughout the entire history for that fact, you will see there is not one example of a time when Jesus has lied or failed us!! Do you know one person who lay claim to that fact?

But another point to why its so important to have faith in Christ is the fact that its only when we put our faith in Him 100% that we will see amazing things begin to happen. Look at the man in Mark chapter 2 where his friends lowered him through the roof of the house so that he could get to Jesus. Then as it says in Mark 2:5

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."

Because of the mans faith, he was healed. When we have such great faith in Jesus, He is able to work miracles in our lives! There are many other examples of stories like this throughout the new testament. They all serve to highlight the power of having faith in Jesus and bringing our troubles before Him.

Next time you are in the middle of a troubling situation and you have no idea how you are going to make it through, just take some time to pray to the Lord. Bring your problem before Him and have faith that He will see you through. When you look at the great men of the Bible, one thing the have in common is they all had a great faith in the Lord. Again I want to highlight that if we ask in faith we shall receive (refer to 1 John 4:14, 15; Mark 11:24; Matt. 21:22)

"The just shall live by his faith" Habakkuk 2:4

2009...reflections

Well 2009 is finishing in very much the same fashion it has played out for the whole year...very busy. Although I went to church this morning, Im determined to do nothing more than watch TV and play PS3 this afternoon...and blog of course.

Anyway...looking back over the bad points of this year...I guess the worst point was being told I would need surgery on my right shoulder. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love hitting the gym and working out. Being told I would need a shoulder reconstruction meant I would be able to do no more than lay on the couch and watch TV for at least month, followed by little movement in my right arm.

Of course there were other negatives, that related to work. But they all taught my more patience and how to deal with "troublesome" clients.

When I think about it there hasnt been too many struggles, which I can praise God for. I guess whenever I felt that I was about to fall into trouble, I just took time away from things to pray to
God and ask for his help in my situation. I guess the knowledge that no matter what difficulty I face, I always have God by my side makes it much easier to face the hard times with courage and strength. Ultimately when I came through the bad times, I was full of praise for God i that I can always depend on him to see me through the hard moments, as long as I have faith in his eternal promises.

Other bad moments of 2009...Fevola hitting the post against Hawthorn, Carlton's last quarter against Brisbane in the first final and trade week 2009...

Anyway, the good moments for 2010...this may sound funny...but one of the bad moments of the year ultimately turned into a great moment...having surgery resulted in my relationship with God being renewed and becoming stronger than ever. I was able to spend a lot of time in prayer and in God word without the distractions of everyday life. In the end I felt so refreshed after my break and my relationship with God was stronger than ever.

Other good things...Carlton making the finals for the first time in many many years...getting a free PS3 =) and joining a new Connect group which has allowed me to make some great new friends.

Other things from 2009....

Best Movie: Inglourious Basterds
Special Mention: District 9

Worst Movie: 2012
Special Mention: Knowing

Best Album: The Resistance - Muse
Special Mention: Surface Paradise - Root!

Best new restaurant i tried: Little Beijing House
Special Mention: Gingerboy

Worst new restaurant i tried: Butchers Grill

Hmm...well thats enough for now...im looking forward to a big 2010...and getting back to the gym and doing what I do best...working out!

End of year update...

Well this month has gone a bit crazy. There I was blogging away happily on a regular basis, when "BAM!" I got smacked with 5 different projects at work...simultaneously! Well thats my excuse for blogging at bare minimum over the past couple of weeks. But finally things are starting to slow down again...back to the way I like things.

I guess its time to start reflecting over the past years, what I have learned, the good and bad parts and what are my plans for 2010...

So starting tomorrow till the end of this year I will discuss the year that was 2009 for me...

First Report from Canberra

Well this is my second day in Canberra....for those that dont know...the capital of Australia. So far things have been quite eventful from a work perspective and quite uneventful from a social perspective. Canberra is so dead at night! On my first night here...I headed down to the local restaurant district for some dinner and places were closed!! The following was my first view of Canberra outside the airport...

Anyway, Im staying at the Rydges Capital Hill...not a bad place. Reason work selected this place was due to its closeness to DBCDE (the department we are working for). They are basically across the road which is good for me. Plus the Dialog office is only about 5 minutes away which is nice too.

These are photos in my room...my comfy King size bed

My spa...I intend to use at some point...

My bathroom after I unpacked...

Tonight I went for a walk down to Manaka for dinner...

Then I did the unthinkable....dinner alone!!

I had some tasty chicken...but that still didnt make up for the embarrassment of eating alone...

Anyway...tomorrow I aim to take some more photos of the sites around Canberra and also comment on some of the more interesting things that have happened so far....

The Test Of Our Faith

Something that has been on my heart is the topic of faith and the trials of our faith. One of the early things we learn as a Christian is that our lives wont be trouble free. The moment we give our lives to Christ doesnt mean we will have a straight run to heaven. There we be obstacles along the way, there will be tests. But the way we percieve these obstacles is the important thing.

James 1:3-5 says the following on Trials and Temptations:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him

I really like this piece of scripture because no matter how many times you read it,  you are bound to find more wisdom each time! This passage speaks to us about how we see trials, the importance of trials, the significance of going through trials and how to deal with trials. People could writes whole books on that, but James has been able to summarise it all in a few lines.

Starting with the first line, we should be joyful when we face trials. Not complain of our situations but see it as an opportunity to grow. Can you imagine studying a subject, but there was not assignments or tests? How would you be able to measure your progress? Likewise God will test our faith to expose wheter it is genuine. 1 Peter 1:7 also mentions this:

These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

 There is also another extremely important thing that we obtain through trials and that is patience or perseverance. Could anyone argue the importance of patience in developing our character? When we reflect on the kind of people we are drawn to, we will usually find we gravitate to those who are patient.

It is normal for us to act impatiently in times of trials, but that is not what God desires. He is looking for those who are patient in times of trouble and can endure. Just as Jesus said in Matthew 5:5

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

One of the greatest examples of a person who endured trials with patience is our Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews 12:2-3 says

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

This an awesome piece of scripture which we can draw strength from in troubling times. When we feel we are in hard times, we need only fix our eyes on our almighty saviour and what he acheived on the cross!

But what about the result of being obedient throughout our trials? Through submitting to God and displaying patience throughout our trials and tests, we are ultimately growing in Christ and demonstrating our Christ like characteristics. This is what our Lord God delights in most of all.

Another wonderful thing that comes out of trials is that we draw close to Christ. Many times I have heard and experienced myself that through a difficult trial I have come out of the darkness much closer to Christ. We are given the opportunity to grow closer to Christ, much closer than we could have under normal circumstances! Therefore why should we be upset and troubled when we are facing trials, we should rejoice that its an opportunity to grow closer to His awesome presence. And again through this close relationship we can learn to be more like Chirst.

In the end trials will always end. And after the storm there is the sunshine. We need only grow in our maturity, draw strength and wisdom from Christ our saviour and always remember that he will never leave us, just as Hebrews 13:5 states:

Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Average Jus Update

Well in order to stop this blog getting to impersonal, I have decided today I will post about what is currently going on in my life.

Well its been a month since I had my shoulder reconstruction...and it really has been an amazing month! I spent 2 and a half weeks at home as I was in no shape to work. Initially I felt it was going to get pretty boring at home for that long, but in the end it was a really great opportunity to draw closer to God. I spent more time reading Gods word and more time digesting what I read. When I returned to work, I felt refreshed spiritually.

So I have been back at work now for 2 weeks, although the first week was cut short by a lot of shoulder pain, but I managed to make it all the way through this week despite the considerable pain it caused me. I was so close to not going in on both Thursday and Friday...how not staying at home made a big difference in the outcome of my week...

That is because I am now going to Canberra next week to help kick off a pilot with the office up there. I will be leaving on Monday morning and returning Friday night. I have no idea what to expect since I have been basically provided no information. Lets all pray that it doesnt end in disaster.

Another really big decision I have been recently praying about it...participating in a mission trip. I am planning on attending a mission trip to China in April next year. It will most likely be to Hengyang in the Hunan province. There I will be volunteering in an orphanage. I really feel God calling me to do this and I pray that he will use me in a way I can make a difference to the poor childrens lives. The trip will go for 16 days, but I will most likely do a bit of traveling after that, but Im still to decide where exactly I would go to.

Sometimes I get so wrapped up in my own problems, my own situations, I forget how lucky I am. I get so concerned about such little things, but in the scheme of things they are so insignificant. Sometimes I need to take a step back and put things in perspective. But that is usually harder said than done.

In other news, I have been stocking up on PS3 games, despite the fact my ability to really play is quite minimal at the moment. Currently the catalog goes as follows:

• Killzone 2
• Metal Gear Solid 4
• Guitar Hero 5
• Rock Band
• Band Hero

I also have 2 guitar controller, drum controller and microphone....and I can confidently say that my singing ability is up there with the best of them =P

The Day Is Near

Okay, I am going to try and keep this blog post a bit shorter since my last few posts have been getting a bit long...dont want to put you all to sleep...although Im sure one of my shorter posts would be just as boring.

Anyway, the topic I wanted to focus on today was the "blend-in" spirit. You would have no doubt heard the saying "dont rock the boat", when someone refers to not wanting to disrupt the normal way things are operating. It may be in your workplace, you are surrounded by people who constantly speak bad words, gossip about others and talk badly about your coworkers. But instead of standing up for what you believe, you just go along with the flow, you blend in, you go along with what is acceptable in the world. But do not be mistaken....none of this is acceptable to our God!

Romans 13:11 states:

This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

The day is coming when Jesus will return. It's important that we don't neglect this fact! This is why its vital that we don't submit to the "blend-in" spirit. When we are going about our daily life, it will tell us its okay to blend in with others, go along with what they are doing, be part of the team. But we must not allow the spirit to attack us, we must draw on Gods mighty word. Romans 12:2 speaks of this:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

One of the big dangers is, if we allow the spirit to stumble us, we may get to a point where people no longer see us as Christians. If we allow ourselves to enter into the ways of the wicked, then what did Jesus die for? When the spirit comes upon us, we must know how to say NO!

God doesnt deserve to be second best in our lives, he doesnt deserve to be put after anything. We must ensure that at every opportunity we put God first, above all else! Romans 13:14 says:

Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature

We must allow the desires of our flesh to direct our path. We are called to live our lives differently. We must live our lives like Jesus and for Jesus! No longer shall we live our lives for ourselves, for God has created us for a purpose. Remember that the things of this world are brief and we can take none of it with us. Do you really think that the promotions you get in this world mean anything to God? This is summed up in Mark 8:36

What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?

So you need to think - is God number one in your life? We must constantly be in prayer with God, not just offering him the crumbs of our life. The life we lead here now will impact how we spend eternity. Therefore we must not live for things that will fade away

In the end we must present ourselves pure to God. He will ask us how we spent our time, how we lived our life for Him and carried out his purpose for us. How will you be able to answer that? In our life, we are not called to be successful, but rather we are to be significant. We are to live lives where we stand out for Christ, just as it says in Matthew 5:14-16

"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

It’s not the duration of our lives that counts, but the donation of our lives. Always remember what we get in this life is unimportant, what we do with our life is what is important to God!

Don’t fall for the blend in spirit!

AFL 2010 Preview - Carlton (Setup)

Ok...in my last post I discussed the in's and out's for Carlton next year. Now I want to look at the potential setup next year and what the best 22 will look like...

Defence
This year Carlton was hit bad by injuries and this was highlighted in defence. Losing Jamison for a great deal of the season hurt, especially since he is shaping up as an awesome Full Back and a rock to build our defence around. Another player we missed running our of the back half was Waite. Having him back next season will be invaluable at both ends.

As for the positives, injuries forced the others to step up, in particular Thornton, Bower, and to a lesser extent Armfield whose run and carry is great to watch and Russell looked much better in the latter half of the season.

Having the whole group together next year is an exciting prospect and should be a good year if we have a good run with injuries.

Midfield
This is where the magic happens. Although the boys need to put in a bit of work into the defensive side of their game, when we have the momentum, the group is deadly and totally unstoppable. Murphy and Gibbs stepped up another knotch, in particular Murphy. His disposal skills this year improved out of sight from previous seasons and he has become one the leagues best goal scoring midfielders kicking 31.17. Gibbs on the other hand is looking like an excellent defensive midfielder and I always feel confident with the ball in his hands as he runs out of defence. He is also an excellent set shot for goal, kicking 15.8 in 2009.

With the addition of McLean, this adds further depth to the midfield. He is a hard in and under type, much like Hadley, so this should work well and free Judd up more in 2010 to be on the receiving end of the ball instead of having to go in and get his own ball.

Forward
This is the big question mark area...can we survive without Fevola? I actually think its quite an exciting era with group we have and the potential there. On the surface it looks like we have too many small forwards and no real strong marking options, but when you actually look at the list its not so bad and the hole Fevola leaves allows for the others to step up and create some excitement.

Eddie Betts had an awesome year kicking 38.21, which is a big improvement from previous years and he is just getting better and better. Gartlett burst on the scene and looks like a great pickup kicking 12.9 in 2009, just needs to bulk up and he will be a star. Yarran showed flashes of why he was picked so early and is another star of the future. Others that look good include Robinson and Houlihan who will benefit from more opportunity without Fevola. I also think Walker is better used as a forward, he can do some great things when his body is 100%.

But the biggest three are Setanta O'hAilpin, Matthew Kreuzer and Jarrad Waite. All are tall,, agile athletic players with strong contested marks and good kicks on goal. Waite and Setanta are both talented enough to play at both ends of the ground also, but I feel next year they will be required more up forward, in particular Setanta O'hAilpin. His 4 goals against Freo mid season showed just what he was capable of. Im interested to see how Kreuzer is utilised, I think we will still see him in the ruck, but he will definitely be spending much more time inside the forward 50.

Ruck
We are still yet to see big Warnock, but fully fit I see him sharing ruck duties with Hampson and Jacobs is the backup in case of injury. Hampson needs to take another step with his disposals and marking, but hopefully a solid preseason will see improvements in those areas. His athletic ability is just awesome, one of the only ruckmen who could run down a midfielder in a tackle.

So this finally brings me to my top 22 for 2010

FB	Bower	Jamison	Joseph
HB	Gibbs	Thornton	Armfield
C	Simpson	McLean	Carrazzo
HF	Henderson	Waite	Houlihan
FF	Betts	Kreuzer	O'hAilpin
R	Hampson	Judd	Murphy
Int	Warnock	Russell	Yarran
Walker

This is without looking at preseason form, but I feel that with everyone at 100% we would line up similiar to this. Depending on who Joseph lines up on, he will usually start down back. I like Armfield of the half back line. The midfield is quite dynamic depending on the momentum of the game, but I see Hadley and McLean swapping with each other. Henderson and Setanta will probably share CHF and FF position with big Kreuzer.

The other players that are knocking on the door include:

• Hadley - right on the edge of making the team, would easily take Russell's position if he doesn't keep his good form going!
  
• Austin - very competent in defence and can go forward when needed
• Browne - another hard defensive midfielder, but needs to work on decision making
• Grigg - looked a bit lost in 2009, but was carrying injury. Hopefully he has a big 2010
• Lucas - great wraps from draft, depending on preseason, could make an appearance across half forward
• Robinson - this guy is as tough as they come, just has to harness that energy and he will be great up forward
• Scotland - his form has really gone downhill, but on his day has such beautiful disposal
• Garlett - Will probably rotate with Yarran depending on form. Yarran could also be given a run in the middle

Overall, the side doesnt look that different to 2009. I believe that 2010 will be more a step sideways opposed to a step backwards. The draw starts out quite difficult, but the mid season should provide a good run into the finals.

In terms of the ladder standing at the end of 2010, that will be my next post, but I see Carlton finishing in a similiar position to this year, around 6-7 on the ladder. I think it will be a solid year and will propel us towards our grand final assault in the following years!

God's Appointed People

Do you ever think about what it would be like to live during another time period? Sometimes I think what it would have been like to live during the 70's and early 80's, seeing some of Carlton's famous grand final victories. But there is a reason why we are here now, there is a purpose for each of us in the position we are in. We are God’s appointed people for today. He put us here for a reason, at this point in time. But are we all living to fulfil the purpose? If not, what is holding us back? Are we single minded people, set on the goal? Or are we double-mided, as it states in James

But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

We must remember everything in our lives is appointed for us unto God!

In life there is basically two ways to live:

• Highway to heaven
• Byway to hell

Therefore we must constantly refill ourselves daily with the word of God, this word should be final for us. We must stay on the straight path, as it describes in Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight

But the problem today is too many people do not stick on the straight path, they like to take detours via things that are unpleasing to God. They indulge in things that satisfy the flesh, things which ultimately lead you to the byway to hell. Today many “Baal’s” still exist, false God's in our lives, things which take our focus from Christ. But God wants us to be single minded for only Him. Therefore we must

refresh ourselves daily with Gods word, we must know His plan for us. Romans 8:6-8 talks of the importance of this:

The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

We must live our lives according to our calling and we learn this through reading his word and obeying His commands

Apart from being single-minded and focused on God, we cannot allow our past to creep back in and take hold. Matthew 6:24 says:

No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

We have been born again and moved on from our past, we are forgiven and God has given us power to beat our past. So we must protect ourselves from the desires of our past. We must no longer live according to what is right in this world but instead how Romans 12:2 says:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Even on the straight path, we may fall and make mistakes, but we must remember what Acts 3:19 states:

Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,

Jesus is the truth and that doesn’t change! Jesus can make all things work together for those that love and worship Him. This highlights the significance of living in line with His heart and denying ourselves. Romans 8:28 reads

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

If you love God and live for His word, we are different to others, when we enter a room, the spiritual level changes! Just as Romans 8:37 says:

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

But we can only achieve what we put in. You can only reap that which you have sowed. Galatians 6:7-10 says

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

If you continue to allow the flesh to guide you, it will only result in destruction. But if you sow according to the desires of the Holy Spirit, you will receive eternal life. Therefore we must be single minded and not give up our good works. Luke 11:17 warns of the consequences:

Any kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and a house divided against itself will fall

People continually attempt to split themselves, be in both sides. But this isn’t what God planned for us

We need to be the best we can be for God and enhance the lives of others.

We are the people God has a purpose for today, thats why we are here now. But in order to know our purpose, we must read His word, spend time in His presence. In order to successfully serve Jesus, we cannot continue on serving other gods, it unpleasing to Christ and we will ultimately fail. We must leave our past in the past, we are a new creation in Christ. Just as 2 Cor 5:17 tells us:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

We must attack our worries with the promises of God!

Google Wave invites available...

Just a quick note, I have some Google Wave invites available if anyone is in need...

AFL 2010 Preview - Carlton (Additions and Deletions)

Well the lists are almost complete for the 2010 AFL season so I think its time to write up my prediction for next years Premiership season, focusing of course on Carlton...I will begin by looking at the Additions and Deletions...


ADDITIONS

Trade Week:
Lachlan Henderson (Brisbane Lions) - part of the Fevola trade. The exciting 19 year old is very Fernahan-esque. He posesses strong marking ability, stamina and his ability to play at both forward and back. Although he isnt a straight swap for Fevola, he is an fantastic prospect and will definitely be given good supply from our elite midfield. A future star...we all  hope!

Brock McLean (Melbourne) - quality hard midfielder that Carl were able to tempt away from Melbourne. Will be a great addition to an already star midfield group and will be a big help to Judd.

Rookie elevation: 
Sam Jacobs - the tall man has great potential in the ruck and was looking good before he was struck down with injury. Adds valuable depth to the ruck group, but I dont see him realistically getting a game unless one of the other ruckman goes down (Warnock or Hampson)

Aaron Joseph - a great tagging defensive midfielder. Shut down some of the games greats this year (ie G. Ablett) and his hard work paid off as he didnt miss a game all year. Has excellent future ahead of him!

International rookie selections: 
Peter Labi (Papua New Guinea)
Zach Tuohy (Ireland)

NAB AFL Draft:

Kane Lucas (East Fremantle) - Pick number 12. Touted as a top 10 draft pick but was passed up. Described as Hard-running and highly-skilled player who likes to run and carry. Could add some exciting passages of play if he can break into the team next year.

Marcus Davies (Tassie Mariners) - Pick number 43. 191 cm quick midfielder/defender who possesses great power and endurance. Could be valuable in defense for us next year and Tassie usually serves good hard players.

Rohan Kerr (Dandenong Stingrays) - Pick number 59. Described as an exciting half-forward who can push into the midfield. Very little expectation on this guy

DELETIONS

Retired: 

Nick Stevens - unfortunately Stevo had to pull the pin on a frustrating career. Was harshly judged during the year, but in the end should be remembered as a very good player who had beautiful disposal skills. But after suffering the serious neck injury, he never was the same. Will be sorely missed.

Exchange period: 
Brendan Fevola (Brisbane Lions) - Fev...you could write many blog posts on this man alone. While he is a superstar forward, he is also a major headache for the rest of the team and coaches. He won the club goal kicking from 2003-2009, he has kicked 575 goals during his 187 games with the Blues and he has been the focal point of our forward line for many years.

But he has also created a lot of trouble for the Blues, most of it due to a major drinking problems. He was involved in pub brawls, he was busted pissing on a nightclub window and made a complete clown of himself at the 2009 Brownlow medal count which resulted in various rumours of some very appalling behaviour. While many speculated this was the last straw for Brendan, others feel that his time was already up.

While key forwards are as rare as hens teeth, it is stated time and time again that teams dont win Premierships with a single key forward. This has been one of Carlton's big weaknesses over the years. The single mindedness of our midfield delivery to the forward line has exposed Carlton as predictable and often see's Fev double or triple teamed rendering him useless. He was also very hard on players who didnt select him as the first option, regardless if he was in best position or not.

Ultimately he is going to be 29 at the start of next season and as the saying goes "a leopard doesnt change his stripes". I highly doubt he will turn into a more team oriented player suddenly at Brisbane and will find it difficult to play second fiddle to big Jono Brown. As for the whole in Carlton's forward line, I feel we have the talent to cover the forward line appropriately, and we will be much less predictable in 2010!

Delisted: 
Jordan Bannister - played 2 games in 2009, but failed to justify another year on the list

Adam Bentick - struggled with injuries and was unlucky to be delisted as a result


Cameron Cloke (second list lodgement) - had the potential to be a genuine forward option, but struggled to take his chances. Looked good in the reserves, but never showed the same form in the seniors. May be  picked up in the PSD due to his height and rucking ability.


Jake Edwards - failed to get a game in 2009, never really showed anything great.


Adam Hartlett - this one is frustrating. He was extremely injury prone, but despite that he was given chances in the seniors at both ends of the ground, but failed in both positions. Despite having a good sized body, just isnt up to AFL standard.


Greg Bentley (rookie) - was never happy when we picked him. In his fleeting appearance in the seniors he showed exactly why Port got rid of him. A number of crucial fumbles are all he will be remembered for


Lachie Hill (rookie) - Never played a senior game, suffered leg injuries, no loss.


Darren Pfeiffer (rookie) - Originally from Adelaide, initially showed some flashes of good form, but was not able to sustain it. No loss.


Luke Stanton (rookie) - Never played a senior game, suffered back injury, no loss.

In my next post I will look at what to expect from the team and also our best lineup for 2010

Who are we in the dark?

We all have some secrets that we keep to ourself. Things that we dont want others to find out about us, things that we want to keep hidden. They may be bad habits that we are unable to break, they may be guilty pleasures that we do. No matter what they are, they are holding us back in our walk with Christ and we must overcome them. But sometimes we may not even be aware of the bad habits, since they have become so ingrained in our lives. But we must deny these things are walk a life as God called us, with Godlike characteristics. Therefore we must ask ourselves...Is our character Christ-like or Man-like?

Character is such a major and important element in our life. It is how we are perceived by others and will determine the course of our life. Galatians 5:16-26 says

So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other

 This passage has a stern warning, but also an amazing promise! If we continue to live a life where we gratify the desires of the sinful nature, we will not inherit the kingdom of God...we will not spend eternity in His almighty presence. But...If we allow the Spirit to guide our way and we display the fruits of the spirit through our life, we will see the promises of God come true.

We must always remember that we cant have it both ways, we cant indulge our sinful nature and at the same time please God. For as it says above "For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature." The two are opposite and we must choose what we will do, please our flesh or please our almighty God.

This passage also lists the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit:

1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Patience
5. Kindness
6. Goodness
7. Faithfulness
8. Gentleness
9. Self-Control

Which  of these are lacking in our lives?  Which do you need to pray about? Do we really love as God called us to love? How much do we love those people that have hurt or betrayed us? What about the people that have lied and cheated us? Do we still love them and show kindness towards them?

When you look at the people in your life, the people around you, you will find that you gravitate towards people that are similar to us, like minded, similar interests etc. We feel comfortable around these people. But there is one problem...this in not the way Christ called us to live!! Christ desires that we love those people who we find unloveable, the undesirable people. We must never judge!

One of the things we must remember is when you have the love of God inside you, how can you lack any of the other spirits, they all come as one! Its impossible to be full of joy and possess no peace, it impossible for someone to be faithful but not have self-control. You may be lacking one or another, but its impossible to be missing one entirely. When we have the fruits of the spirit in our life, people will be drawn to you; they will be drawn to your Christ-like characteristics. We will be known by our fruits.

2 Corinthians 5:20 says

We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.

If we are beacons for God, we must live all our life as God has taught us, not just the elements people can see. The things in our life that we try to keep in the dark will always become exposed in the end. These are things that are unpleasing to Christ. We must have self control in all areas, not just our outwardly actions, but even our thoughts, for God can always see the true desires of our heart, nothing is hidden! If all the fruits are present in our life, when the hard times hit, things won’t start falling apart. Finally if all the fruits are present, people will be attracted to us!

We must always act as Children of God!

Great Workout Tracks

One thing I probably could never live without is my iPod. The place i use my iPod most of all would be in the gym. I need to have my iPod with me while I'm working out, I need it for motivation...although once I get going...the tracks usually blend into white noise. It is also a good way to prevent people from disturbing you when your working out.

Now i know most of the songs that I listen to will not be most peoples taste, but these songs are awesome for when your worjing out, they get your adrenalin pumping and you ready to take it all on. Gym is not really the place for listening to Taylor Swift or Beyonce =P

I like to make up playlists of songs that will plug into for the duration of my workout. I wanted to share my top 10 songs for workouts

1. Wish - NIN
2. Gave Up - NIN
3. Knights of Cydonia - Muse
4. New Born - Muse
5. Survivalism - NIN
6. 1,000,000 - NIN
7. Sleep Now In The Fire - Rage Against The Machine
8. Testify - Rage Against The Machine
9. Spin The Black Circle - Pearl Jam
10. Get Down, Make Love - NIN

So if your gearing up for gym and your looking for some new tracks for your workout, add a few of these...you will doing squats and deadlifts like its no ones business =)

Ministry of Caves

Recently I went through a difficult situation with another person. I felt hopeless, like there was no solution, no way out, there was no light to guide me through the difficulty....it felt as if I was stuck in a cave!

We  all experience times of difficulty during our walk with Christ. We find ourselves in situations where everything appears hopeless, as if we are in the dark and the solution is impossible to find. But how do we actually respond in these situations. From my personal experience, the initial reaction I had was of hopelessness. I couldn't see what I could do to fix things. I wanted to give up. This can very easily be your response in this times of trouble. But these is another way we can respond, we can respond to our situation with discipline!!

Psalm 57 talks about this. It was written by David while he was hiding from Saul inside a cave. He starts by crying out to God for mercy

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge.I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.

This is likened to us when we are in hard times, we cry out to God, but they way in which we cry out determines God's response to us. In these situations, can we rule our spirit and rise up in faith?

Caves in our own lives can come in different shapes and forms. It may be in the workplace, it may be in our relationships with others, it may be in our relationship with our wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend. We may be having trouble finding employment, a place to live, money to pay the bills...we all will experience our own cave situation, but how do we respond? We must respond with discipline and in faith!!

The first step to achieve this is to ensure we get our God focus. Its no good allowing ourselves to end up in the cave and then go searching for His word. We must have God's word preloaded, we must be prepared with His word, ready to speak out in the troublesome time. Hebrews 4:12 says

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.

God's word is alive and full of power, what an awesome and inspiring promise that is! When we find ourselves inside the cave, we must be prepared with the promises of God, so that we can speak them out. Psalms 119:105 states:

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

This is exactly the kind of thing we can hold onto in these dark moments, God will guide us, He is a light for our path. When we go into the darkness preloaded, it won't overwhelm us, there will be light, a hope. This will help us find a path out of the cave, out of the hard time.

But another thing we must learn is to speak to our spirit. The promises of God are powerful, but in order to claim them, we must speak them out! We can not be quiet, reserved, timid or doubtful, but rather be vocal in our response. We must claim the promises given to us. James 1:5-8 says

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. 

We cannot doubt the word of God, as this shows we are easily tossed and blown, unstable in our endeavours. But instead we are called to trust His mighty word, claiming the many promises he has declared to us!

Another trap we may fall in is waiting for the right timing. We may think that the time in our life is not right, the circumstances dont suit us, you dont feel comfortable doing it today, maybe its better if done later. This is all wrong! We must rise up now, not wait for the right timing because the right timing is now. For if we wait, we will find that we never leave the cave

We must learn to speak out Gods word to our heart and mind. Just as it says in Romans 10:10

For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

We must spend less time reasoning and more time claiming the promises. For good has made a plan for us and no amount of reasoning from our small minds will do better that the perfect purpose God has set out for us.

We will all come into a cave, but will we let ourselves give up hope or will we demonstrate a discipline response. Will we go through life unprepared for the cave experience, or will we be prepared with God's word? We must know how to speak to our hearts the promises of God. We must not delay in our response. For God is a light to us when everything else appears dark, lost, hopeless. We must always hold onto his word, just as David speaks in Psalm 27

THE LORD is my Light and my Salvation--whom shall I fear or dread? The Lord is the Refuge and Stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid?

My favourite iPhone applications

I've had my iPhone for about 4 months now and in that time I have played with a number of applications. While some of them are still in active use, there are others which slowly get used less and less before ending up in my Trash can.

So I have decided to make a list of my favourite applications for iPhone. This isn't a "Best apps for iphone" list, but rather a list of apps that I find most useful.

Tweetie2
Probably my most used app. Very easy to use and the best twitter client I have tried ($3.99)

eBuddy 
Second most used app on my iPhone. Very useful chat client which allows you to login to a variety of different chat accounts using a single login (Free)

Facebook
App which gives you a mobile friendly view of your facebook account. Essential for any iPhone user on facebook (Free)

Ping!
iPhone to iPhone messaging. Was initially free when I first got it, but now there is a cost. Benefit of this is it works like free SMS, but the downside is you can only message iPhone/iPod touch users. ($1.19)

Dropbox
Great app which allows you to  sync files across different computers and online. Also provides facility to share with other users (free)

Shazam
Ever hear a song and really want to know what it is? Then this app is perfect for you. It will sample some of the song then come back to you with name and artist! (free)

iTranslate
Really useful app if you want to quickly work out what a word/sentence is in another language (free)

iFitness
Actually this would be my top app if i wrote this 1 month ago. This is a great app for tracking your workouts and progress in the gym. You can record what exercises you did, how many sets and reps, and create graphs of your progress. Well worth the cost Even has descriptions/videos on exercises if you need help ($2.49)

Metlink Melbourne
Essential app for anyone in Melbourne who uses public transport. Gives you access to timetables and the sorts as well as can help you work out how to get to your destination using various forms of public transport

Tap Tap
Currently I have four versions of this on my iPhone, TapTap 2, TapTap 3, TapTap NIN, TapTap Coldplay. Best game for iPhone! Works like DanceDanceRevolution, except you use your  fingers and shake the iPhone too. Great selection of songs on all versions! ($1.19)

Special Mentions

Evernote - Great app for storing notes or what ever pops into your head

Knights - Awesome game, especially when waiting for something/someone

Table Tennis - Another good game

DoodleBuddy - Paint for iPhone. Very useful and fun, especially when you connect with another person via wifi

The New Man & Old Man

I will never forget the day I was saved, the day that I accepted Jesus into my heart. It was truly a turning point from which I have never looked back. Through God's grace I was able to walk forward knowing that now that I was living my life for Him and Him alone. I know longer was a slave to sin. I was a new man.

There is a section in Colossians which speaks of this transformation (Col 3:8-17)

But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Gentile of Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all and is in all. Therefore as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

This is a mighty message written by Paul. It sums up exactly how we are called to live, we are to cast of the shackles of sin. Anger, rage, malice, revenge, these are all things of our old self. But God has set us free of those things.

It says in Galatians 2:4

This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves

We are brand new in Christ, not by way of the law. The freedom in  Christ has made us a new man.

But sometimes in our walk with God, after a period of time we allow the old man back into our life, little by little.  But we must hold on to Gods word. In Ephesians 4:20-25 it says

That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your mind and to put on the new self, crated to be like God in true righteousness and holiness

The characteristics of the new man includes compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. All throughout the new Testament, it speaks of the characteristics of the New Man and how he should act. For we have been born again, made new and are no longer restricted by what held us in our past.

But sometimes we may fall back into bad habits, it may only begin with something small. We might start going out with the old gang again, then we start drinking again and it goes on. Whether it be lying, cheating, stealing, If we allow the “old man” to feed the flesh, the flesh will pull our decisions in the wrong direction. We will ultimately stumble and backslide.

This highlights how important it is for us to daily feed on God's word, refreshing us constantly.We must fill the “new man” with God’s word. We will not succeed if we try and fill the “old man” with his word. Another failing point is if we just hide the "old man" from others. We might goto church and praise God, participate in church ministry and events, but after all that we go home and give into the ways of the old man,  it wont remain hidden for long. If we try to cover our “old man” characteristics, it will eventually come through.

God isn’t interested in covering our cracks, he wants to make us completely new. If we think we can still live as the old man in secrecy, we are fooling ourselves! As it says in Romans 6:6

For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should be slaves to sin

We are no longer slaves to sin when we are made new through God's grace. I know myself in the past, there were things in my life I struggled with, things that seemed to have a bind on me. But after I was saved, these things no longer ruled me. Through Jesus, I had been made new! We must live as “new men” and not give the “old man” a chance to break in.

God wants to renew us daily and see us live continuously for him and by his word!

What did I watch/read during my break...

I was just thinking about all the TV and books I watched/read while I was recovering from surgery, so I thought I might note down what I went through and what was good...

Books

Drawing Near (John Bevere)

 This is an amazing book which talk about living a life of intimacy with God. Highly recommend.

The Sacred Romance (Brent Curtis and John Eldridge)

This another great book that talks about drawing closer to the heart of God

Cross Country (James Patterson)

Another book that focuses on Detective Alex Cross. Not one of the best books, but very brutal storyline.

TV Series

24 (Season 2 and 3)

Jack Bauer must be tired of saving the world by now....arent they up to season 8 now?

Curb Your Enthusiasm (Season 1 and 2)

The intro music for this show is the best. And Larry David is pure comic genius...but we already knew that from Seinfeld.

The Shield (Season 1 and 2)

 Awesome cop drama...Vic Mackey is my hero!

Chobits

Anime that talks about the relationship between humans and AI. Really nice series.

Movies

2012

Big budget blockbuster disaster movie which had me laughing more that it probably would have hoped

Harry Potter and Half Blood Prince

Just another HP film...nothing special to note here

Gen X Cops

Big budget film making comes to HK, but they forgot the storyline. But was still good way to relax one afternoon.

Ghost In The Shell

A female cyborg cop and her partner hunt a mysterious and powerful hacker called the Puppet Master. One of the first anime films I watched. Still awesome to watch second time around

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

So-so story about game show impresario Chuck Barris...but I was only half awake due to the medication

The Girl That Lept Through Time

Awesome story by Mamoru Hosoda about the consequences of time travel

Nausicaa Of The Valley Of Wind

Despite being made back in the early 80's, this is a well produced, beautiful story by Hayao Miyazaki

Futurama movies (The Beast with a Billion Backs, Bender's Game and Into the Wild Green Yonder)

Futurama is one of the most underrated shows ever created and the four movies they created are all gold! Cant wait for the new season next year!

But after all that..all I really want to do is....GET BACK INTO THE GYM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!

End of my break...

Well tomorrow I'm heading back to work. Although the shoulder is still restricted to a sling which means one handed typing for at least another 2-3 weeks minimum, Im getting quite bored at home....need some of that social interaction.

Its been two and a half weeks since I went in for surgery and while the shoulder is progressively getting better, there is still quite a long way to go before I can get back into the gym and doing those kind of things I love.

But one of the positives to come out of this has been the chance to really slow things down, take time to reflect and assess things in my life. This is probably something a lot of people dont do enough. We get so wrapped up in our busy lifestyles, we don't take time to just relax and think about things.

Another thing about being stuck at home and not being able to get out is you are pretty much cut off from your social life in many aspects. At first this did feel quite lonely, but this also highlighted something else....the fact that I was lacking intimacy in my relationship with God. One of the dangers of developing a busy lifestyle is you may begin to start depriving yourself of time in His presence.  We lose that intimate feeling we have when we draw close to Him, when we spend time in His word. But we must not forget  the eternal truth that God desires an intimate relationship with you and I, just as it says in Exodus -

"For He is a God who is passionate about His relationship with you" (Exodus 34:14)

 So despite how busy we get in life, we should never neglect time with God, for it is written -

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8)

What an awesome promise that is! But I myself have been guilty of not drawing close to God, but rather looking more to relationships with "man". I was making myself too busy, and all the noise was preventing me from hearing the clear messages that God has been trying to speak to me. But over the past few weeks, I have spent time immersed in God's word, and feel His presence with me and as strong and clear as ever. The loneliness I initially felt was replaced with rejoice in the intimate relationship I have with God, I spent time drawing nearer to God.

Tabata Training...longest four minutes of my life...twice!

In one of my last PT sessions before my surgery JL decided to introduce to me a new training method called Tabata Training. Now I have been doing PT sessions for over two years and I have suffered through a fair bit of pain, whether it be HIIT, full body circuit training, or just regular "extremely difficult" exercises...but Tabata Training definitely moves to the top of my "most difficult training methods"

Basically Tabata Workout is...

an interval training cycle of 20 seconds of maximum intensity exercise, followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated without pause 8 times for a total of four minutes

So what does that actually mean? Well pick one of the more challenging exercises you know, then for the next four minutes you will do 8 repetitions of 20 seconds on and 10 seconds off, but those 20 seconds on must be done at 110% intensity!!

The two exercises that I did using the Tabata approach were:

1. Dumbbell Squat Press
2. Deadlift Upright Row

Both of these exercises are in che challenging department, but add in the Tabata protocol to the mix and you have a painful workout ahead...not to forget that this was in between the rest of the exercises in my workout.


Credit for creation of this most wonderful training method goes to a fella from Japan by the name of
Dr. Izumi Tabata. He and a team of researchers from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo first released this approach back in a 1996 study , published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise. It provided proof regarding the dramatic physiological benefits of high-intensity intermittent training. They concluded based on their studies that just four minutes of Tabata interval training could do more to boost aerobic and anaerobic capacity than an hour of endurance exercise.

If you know me at all, you know I'm a big fan of interval training for a variety of reasons and this study only further validates my thinking. Steady state sessions of cardio are little more than a waste of time and effort. Of course Tabata training is incredibly hard, you will probably need someone to push you through your first few sessions, but the results will be incredible!

One particular method i want to try is Tabata Sprints. Basically you sprint as hard as possible for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds and go again.Running up and back gives you a good way rto map your distance and gives you the incentive to try and beat previous sprints.

Burt like I said earlier, Tabata training can be used with a wide variety of exercises, but try to target compound exercises that really get the heart beating. What better way to spend 4 minutes of your workout!

How To Respond To Intimidation?

I previously discussed why we feel intimidated and some of the methods that the enemy will use to intimidate us. I wanted  to move on to how we can respond to the intimidation that we will face. If we are not fully equipped when we are faced with intimidation, it can be a really hard situation to get through.

As I mentioned previously, sometimes we feel intimidated because we fear people more that we fear God. But here are some of the keys to responding to that intimidation:

We must have the right perspective
When we are up against intimidation, we need to get God's perspective of whats happening. Its easy to just think of it through our limited perspective, but then it just makes the situation look much worse. If we try to understand the situation through our own perspective we can very easily make mistakes. In my previous post, I referred to the story of Sennacherib threatening Jerusalem (Isaiah 36). In the Isaiah 37, it tells of King Hezekiah humbling himself and going to the prophet Isaiah for assistance. He seeks Gods assistance when he recieved the threats from Sennacherib. Simply....Hezekiah had a vision and he made changes.

Jesus speaks of perspective and how we see things in Matthew 6:22-23

Your eye is a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light. But when your eye is bad, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!

We all see the same thing, but its the way we perceive that image which dictates how we respond. We are presented with opportunities every day of our life, but each of will perceive the situation differently. For example you may be presented with an opportunity to serve in your church, you might be presented with a job opportunity etc...but if we dont allow us to take God's perspective we may find ourselves intimidated by the situation. We may think that some other person will do the job better than us, or we will fail, or we are not good enough. All these doubts and fears will creep in. But this is not what God intended for us! He has a plan and a purpose for our lives...far greater than we could ever imagine. Thats why its so important that we take His perspective. Just  as it says in the above verse, the eyes provide light to our body. We need to ensure that our eyes see things the way God intends us to, we need to get Gods perspective of things.

We must hold our nerve
This may sound so simple, but its crucial. In the story of Hezekiah, he didnt just lay down when he was confronted by the Assyrian's...he stood firm! This is something that we must also apply in our lives. When we are intimidated during our walk with Jesus, we cant just run away, but we must stand firm and hold our nerve. It is very easy to just run from our purpose when we hit trouble.  We cant let the circumstances allow us to compromise our calling, what God has planned for us.

We must pray
When we are faced with difficulty and intimidation, we must seek advice from the Lord. Its very easy to run to a friend for advice, but they will not always have the right perspective. When Hezekiah was faced with intimidation, he didnt go to his advisors for help this time. He went to the prophet Isaiah, he was after a word from God. We must take our problems to the one who has the right perspective.


Get real and honest
When we come up against difficulties, we must be realistic about our situation. We see in Isaiah 37:14, Hezekiah goes before the Lord when he receives the threatening letter from the Asyrians. He lays it out before God, and prays. This is the perfect picture of what we should do, we should bring our problems before God and pray. The intimidation we face isnt just about us, it relates to our God, it is stopping us from completing our purpose. Just look at Psalm's, many of them start out as stories of sadness, rejection, mistakes. But as they go, they turn into songs of praise, with a vision of victory and the power of God. We must have the same approach, lay your troubles at the feet of our Lord, allow Him to work a miracle in our situation and praise him.


Forgive
In the past, Hezekiah and his advisors had ignored Isaiah, but when they were in desperate need, they came running to him for help and guidance. It would have been very easy for Isaiah to turn them away, but he didn't. The advisor's had come before him wearing sackcloth, not the magnificent robes they were used to. We must be able to forgive also, in these times of intimidation.


Sing the song of victory before its achieved
After Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, Isaiah responded with a song of victory from God...before the victory was even achieved!! We are able to live in the knowledge that God will never abandon us, and will see us victorious. So even before we see the victory, we can praise Him and give thanks.


Know God's purpose in your life
I have already touched on this, but its imperative that we know God's calling for our life. that way we can be confident that even when we face troubles, we know God will guide us, since we haven't achieved our purpose yet. An example of this was in Acts 28:3 where Paul is attacked by viper, but he just flings it into the fire. He knew he hadn't achieved his purpose yet, he still had work to do. When we view our success, we must see that its through the power of God.

God never intended us to feel intimidated. We must look at our purpose in life, and work towards it. When we know what our purpose is, we will be able to defeat intimidation. We must remember that in the end, we are all accountable for the purpose God has given us.

Home from surgery...

Well I'm back home after my 2 days in hospital for surgery...still feeling pretty out of it from all the drugs they have me on. Overall it wasn't a bad experience...just a fair bit of pain.

Just wanted to say a note of thanks to those that visited me in hospital and those who wished me well. You guys and gals are the best and I really appreciate everything.

Why Do We Feel Intimidated?

So far in my blog have shared mainly about fitness, a bit about work. But now I want to talk about something that is more important to me than any of those things...my faith. Back in April of 2004 I gave my life to Jesus and since then he has done some amazing things in my life.

I guess I could talk about what Jesus has done for me all day long, but right now I wanted to talk about a topic that was touch on in church recently. I have decided to discuss it here as it not only gives you...the reader...a powerful message, but it also allows me to revisit the key points that were raised during the services.

Intimidation...we all feel this at different points in our lives for different reasons, usually because we feel inadequate in comparison to someone else. But as Christians, why do we feel intimidated? There is a simple answer for this - we fear man more than we fear God! We fear how people will react to us when we start to speak to them about the word of God. We worry how they will respond when we tell them about Jesus Christ and what He did for each and everyone of us.

But the simple fact is as believers we should never feel intimidated as we are the children of God. As it states in John 1:12

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God

This is an awesome message for us as believers of Christ. But its even better since we have no reason to feel intimidated in the face of people.

Ultimately though, the fear of God should always be greater than our fear of man. This isnt to say wer should be scared of God. Quite the opposite in fact...the fear of God is that awesome reverence of the Lord that comes from being sensitive to His glorious, holy and majestic Person. This results in respect and obedience.

But intimidation of man will stop us being effective in terms of the purpose God has ordained on our lives. This is highlighted in 2 Timothy 1:7 ...

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

Take a second to really let that passage sink in...God did not provide us with a weak spirit, one that was meant to be kept quiet. God gave us a powerful spirit, one full of love and self-discipline! God doesnt want us to worry about what man thinks of us...this is totally insignificant.

God wants to break the curse of intimidation in our lives  so that we can take the next step in our walk. If we are bound by intimidation, we cannot server God 100%, we cannot truly fulfill our purpose.

One story from the Bible that is relevant to this topic is from the book of Isaiah, chapter 36, which talks of the when Sennacherib led an army into Judah, one detachment of which threatened Jerusalem. Isaiah on that occasion encouraged Hezekiah to resist the Assyrians. But the way in which Sennacherib tried to intimidate Hezekiah can be related to us today.

The follow is a list of ways in which the enemy will attempt to intimidate us...

The enemy will bring unanswerable facts
 This was something that Sennacherib king of Assyria did to Hezekiah. He highlighted facts that made Hezekiah's army look weak. But this doesnt mean we should stand down

The enemy will talk about the failure of others
This is an effective way for the enemy to introduce more doubt into our minds. When we see the failure of others, we may start to doubt our own ability and success

The enemy will bring out sarcasm and highlight your mistakes
What better way to make someone regret their ability than to highlight the mistakes you have made in the past.

The enemy will make threats against you
This is another way that can quickly make people feel intimidated, as the threats are thrown at them, they may feel that they cant endure.

The enemy will try to coax you
When we are not going along with someone who is trying to intimidate us, they can turn to persuasion. This is one thing the field commander attempted, stating he would give Hezekiah two thousand horses.

The enemy will misrepresent God's word
As a last resort, the Field Commander stated in verse 10

"Furthermore, have I come to attack and destroy this land without the LORD ? The LORD himself told me to march against this country and destroy it."

 But in the end we must always remember those key words in 2 Timothy 1:7, the fact that God has given us a spirit of power, love and self-discipline. With these weapons, the enemy will have no power in terms of intimidating us.


It's what God thinks which ulimately matters!