Gary Grant

I will be posting on Monday ...notes from Sundays sermon..at Craigieburn... Stay tuned.... And keep your heart open.

You know we should treat the times we have with our parents as precious. When the time came for my mum to go to heaven it was a sad time, and yet I was so aware that she was headed to her life's eternal hope. I miss the times of just ringing and having a quick chat... sitting down and having a coffee and pinching her favourite biscuits from her cupboard.. and of course i just miss her and dad. I want to share with them the things I am doing, what I am achieving, but also sharing with them the struggles and the pain of ministry as only a child can share with his parents. and simply that cant be done any more on this planet. I find myself, at times just welling up with emotion on just how much I miss them, from time to time.... and  its something  we all have to grapple with. I think, however, that if they could, they would just say to me...get on with the job, do what we started, share what we gave you,  pass it on to your children, (tried to do that) because ...

Tonight we gathered our team over dinner, they're awesome people. And i don't want to do life and ministry in this church without them. They serve in the house. They are a group who wants to please God. I have learned over the years, that often my best people end up moving on into greater ministry for the Kingdom, I expect to lose some of these fine people for the greater kingdom cause also. Leadership is influence, it is servanthood, it is caring, it is getting your hands dirty, cleaning toilets, it is picking up the rubbish, putting out the bins,and getting rid of dead mice. Leadership is loving, and caring for people who are sometimes difficult and touchy.... Everything rises and falls on leadership. I believe that. So if some things are not going completely according to plan, it is a leadership issue to fix it. Celebrate and reward the wins. Fix the problems Just do it. It's called leading.

So...I have been wanting to blog this one for a few weeks now. It's not that I am afraid of criticism, because simply stated, you don't do a job like mine without someone taking a shot at you...but what does one do, when that critic is within ...you know a one time friend, colleague on the same side? Truthfully, actually quite hurtful.... Caused some soul searching and then, some mentor talk...to clarify. Bottomline.... Some criticism is unfounded and untrue... Makes me re visit what it is I stand for and how I do what I do and why I do it. I serve king Jesus... I wish to please Him alone... After all I am doing what he asked me to do and how He asked me to do it, so really the criticism is of Him. And that is a scary thought for those who dabble in that arena. Be careful what you complain against and how you hurt others in that process. And more importantly , be careful who it is you criticize and why. I have grown through this one...it still hurt me though. Ma...

Today whilst at the local ANZAC day service we sang the old hymn...abide with me. I wonder if anyone realizes what they were singing ? A prayer really. I wanted to stop the 300 or so people and tell them that fast approaches the eventide and God wants them to abide in Him...and He with them. I pray that one day I will get the chance to tell Australia that these hymns are prayers that you make and God actually answers them.