Gary Grant

I have now been(along with Jules) the corps officer of the Ringwood corps for 2 weeks. It's very different to Craigieburn (where I spent the last 12 years) and you wont hear me say it's better or worse..it's just different.   It's a large Corps(church) for Salvation Army standards, and I know that God has placed me here. Can I say I am loving it ? well no not yet.... the truth is, I am gobsmacked by the load of work there is to be done. I am not afraid of hard work, just in this case, surprised. Last night I went along to the evening service which recommenced for the 1st time in 2013... there was a small amount of people present, we sat on lounges and listened to each other share their stories of what God had been doing in our lives .... we worshipped Him, we prayed, and we ate pizza and drank Coke (Zero) and there was a special intimacy in the room. for me personally I was moved deeply by The Lord God who spoke into my heart, reassuring me, reminding me...

As salvo officers, it is clearly understood and expected that from time to time we are required to move from appointment to appointment. (posting) For a lot of officers this happens around the 5 year mark, but for us, it has been 12 years since we have had to move. And so here we are at Ringwood, having left the church we planted at Craigieburn after 12 years. We begin our 18th year as officers in our 3rd appointment. Please don't misunderstand that, we are not inexperienced, because of having just 3 appointments, we have been through much in those years, chaplains on duty during the Port Arthur massacre, growing 2 corps into vibrant ministries, planting 1 from scratch, raising many leaders and traveling in mission trips overseas into India as well as time at many conferences throughout the world (ICO for Julie, Willowcreek USA, Greece, Turkey study tours, and much more)where God has equipped and shaped us. And so here we are...raring to go, and willing to keep serving Jes...