MORE - What's your dream?
12th May 2009 by Claire Hill
It's been five months since MORE was launched and it's been amazing to see young people across the territory engaging with the vision, taking ownership of it, working out what MORE looks like in their local community and embracing The Salvation Army's save.grow.serve mission. Incredible stuff is already happening - and this is SO just the beginning.
Young people, I really want to encourage you to dream. I encourage you to seek God for inspiration. This week, my blog is super-short. I've left space for you to finish it. Using the comments feature, share your dreams, visions and hopes. You'll inspire youth right throughout the territory.
What do you sense God saying?
What are your wildest, most ambitious dreams?
What kind of people do you believe God is calling us to be?
What is God calling you to give up?
What does MORE look like in your community?
What biblical promises are you holding on to?
What are the possibilities?
Let's unify, seek God and rise up in response to his call.
Bless you guys!
Claire Hill
MORE is The Salvation Army's message to a new generation.
It's a declaration to a generation that there is MORE to life than they ever knew existed.
It's a vision that there's MORE in store for the future and that the best is yet to come.
It's a promise that The Salvation Army won't settle for second-best and will strive to do MORE in order to reach and engage today's youth.
It's a belief that a generation will rise to become MORE than conquerors and will inherit everything that God has promised.
It's a challenge for each of us to surrender MORE in response to a Saviour who has given everything for us.
But most importantly, it's a shout of praise to a God who is without limits, without fault, without sin, without weakness and is able to do immeasurably MORE than we could possibly imagine.
save. grow. serve.
save - noah rzeminski
Noah Rzeminski from Wollongong tells how his father was not happy with his decision to b... Read more
serve - nadine sorensen
Nadine Sorensen shares how God altered her persepctive while on mission in Kenya... Read more
Got your own story to share? Write to us today!
Comments
in the world i live in, Gods always asking me: why can't i have more? honestly! and my reply is: God, im working 2 days a week at church, leading the youth, im out at youth events 4 times a week most weeks and im studying one day a week til nearly 10 at night, isnt that alot? God says tome, why cant i have you? what you do in my name is good, but i want to have your most personal moments too.
my ambitions should be the ambitions that God wants for His people, my heart should be shaped in the heart of God. he calls us to keep ourselves Holy and set apart for His will, but sometimes i only give Him the time i'm paid to give. he wants 'everything'!
i feel God is telling me to give up all those little habits i seem to hold on to from worldy living, like money, and possessions, and just focus. on. HIM! he'll provide for me if its something i need. too often we let little excuses like, ' i really need to work to pay for this, so i cant come to church for a few weeks' get in our way of just leaving it up to God. its important to run to God whenever we need help and guidance.
i believe in the concept of more being that whatever we think we could accomplish in our generation, God can always accomplish much more, and those that fully submit to His ways (like the disciples in the NT), will be able to accmplish much more than those that do everything in their own strength.
seek the Holy Spirit when you need to rely on Gods strength and not your own, its amazing what the possiblitites could be! i mean we could raise people from the dead! just a thought .
bless our generation
seek more of God because he's always seeking more of You!
'More' stadiums filled with people worshiping God, bring it on! its fully possible!!!! fire up!
amen to that brother!
Uprising here we come.
@cameron thomas:
Awesome stuff Cameron! Love it.
Imagine if an army of young people rose up who were driven and directed and motivated by what God wants (laying their own ambitions and wants aside), who were longing to have a heart that is in sync with God's heart, who were willing to give up anything to see God's purposes fulfilled. Imagine what God could do with a group like that...
You're doing an amazing job out there in Albury Cam. Bless you!
@Jake Maxwell Clanfield: So possible. Love that you always dream big Jake! Tell us what your dreams are for your local youth min! :) What does MORE look like there?
What do you sense God saying? keep going... im with u... keep going... u can do it!!
What are your wildest, most ambitious dreams? personally to be president or prime minister :P...i would love to see churches too full to hold people... i would love to see communities closed down during church times.
What kind of people do you believe God is calling us to be? i am reading a great book called the love languages of God in it they talk about the 12 disciples spending every waking hr at Jesus feet, following him, watching what he does... i believe God is calling us to be like the 12 disciples following him every where he goes... saying Yes even if we dont know whats going to happen.
What is God calling you to give up? selfish ambitions...
What does MORE look like in your community? MORE young people finishing school, MORE families staying together,MORE people being influenced by our church, my personal life, MORE youth and kids wanting to know who Jesus is, MORE people walking into our churches.
What biblical promises are you holding on to? God never leaves me nor forsakes me...
What are the possibilities? we cant put a lid on possibilities, they are endless
What are we doing? That’s what God’s saying to me at the moment. We have found this incredible message, that there is MORE to life than we ever dreamed. This message is literally eternity-changing. What are we doing with it? I’m so proud of the multitudes of young people standing up and striving for something bigger and better. We won’t accept second-best. But are we giving as much as possible to ensure this message is spread?
God is calling us to be warriors! It is the calling of every person to spread God’s love around the world. My dream is to see my town, my division, my state and my country raising their hands in praise to God. That can only happen if people know there is a God worth praising. How will we see a country in praise? We need to start in our own homes.
My community needs to be served. In Rockhampton, each person lives for themselves, and most are alone. We need to get off our backsides and show them love, show them God. Show them they are not alone, and that there is MORE.
Ask the LORD for rain in the time of the latter rain. The LORD will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, Grass in the field for everyone. Zechariah 10:1
I hold onto the promise that whatever I ask for I will receive. There are so many of them in the bible, but I like this one best because it is a visual metaphor of what I dream. That God will rain down over this spiritually dry country, and it will rise up in His name. Awesome!
Will this be easy? Nope
Will we be knocked down? Probably
Will God let us stay down? Never
Will lives be changed? Yes
Will it be worth it? Definitely
THE WORLD NEEDS TO KNOW THERE IS MORE. MORE THAN HATE, MORE THAN PAIN, MORE THAN JUST MAKING IT THROUGH THE DAY. WE NEED TO STAND UP AND SHOW THEM THERE IS MORE. THERE IS GOD.
seeing a generation that rises in a new level of passion i never seen before something that is just beyond this world. For God and his works and what breaks his heart. A passion that doesnt just burn out over a period, but stays alight and not only stay alight but continues to grow!
But i also see God taking this generation to a new level of worship things that we havent even beginned to see and experience and a new movement in the holy spirit.
But also a generation of LOVE!!! being a generation that loves upon everyone in such an extravegent way as the world needs love our unsaved friends need love. and not a love that is offered by this world...but something far beyond that...GODS UNFAILING LOVE!!!
@Anita:
Anita - I like this image of us all following him as closely and with as much devotion and trust as his closest disciples.
Also really like the way you've started to paint a picture of what will happen when we take MORE to our suburbs and cities... "MORE young people finishing school, MORE families staying together, MORE people being influenced by our church, my personal life, MORE youth and kids wanting to know who Jesus is, MORE people walking into our churches."
We pray 'your kingdom come...your will be done on earth as it is in heaven...' What does this look like in our suburbs, cities, nation, world...
@Jess: Preach it Jess! :) I love how you've acknowledged 1. Our part (we're called to take action, we're called to be WARRIORS and if we want to see our nation worshipping and acknowledging God it's got to start with us and 2. God's part (only by, in and because of his generosity, love and power).
I sense that God is saying to become more relevant to the young people, and it is great, because that is what MORE is all about! My most wildest dream is to have a massive concert type thing like Woodstock, only all about God. I think God is calling us to become more compassionate and understanding people that are able to relate to the issues that go on throughout peoples lives. I really feel strongly that God is calling all of us to be brave enough to come out of our comfort zone and follow him wherever it may lead.
I believe wholeheartedly that God is calling this generation to MORE than we can even dream. We are being called to MORE radical Kingdom living and MORE intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father.
So what does this MORE look like. For me personally, it looks a whole lot like LESS. Hebrews 12:1 calls me to "throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."
So with that in mind...
LESS gap between the life I live and the one God has called me to live.
=
MORE of God’s kingdom on earth
LESS of the stuff that stops me from being all God created me to be.
=
MORE radical living
LESS distraction.
=
MORE intimate, everyday relationship with God.
LESS religeous, jargon-laced prayers.
=
MORE raw honesty with God.
LESS moral compromise. Less taking the easy road.
=
MORE of a life fully set apart for Him .
LESS self-pity and negativity
=
MORE living in the freedom and victory I have in Jesus.
LESS whine, MORE shine!
LESS me = MORE God!
Peace.
Mel.
I could read the comments and comment on thoughs but im not going to im going to go of instict and just say wat i think i should not go of other people. I'm not going to beat round the bush God says it as he means it so should we.
U know wat i think one of the worst things i could do would be, when i have kids and i encourge that generation to fight this fight, to fight for God, to fight change the world, and they look at me and they ask, "What did your generation do" Imagine having to say "Nothing"
We cant be another generation to say ok lets change the world and then wait for someone else to do it, we cant do that anymore, we cant sit back and wait for the world to change, if its going to change for the better then we are going to do it.
If you want there to be light in the darkness then be that light
If u want there to be hope for the hopless then be that hope
We're not going to be another generation to sit at the back, God has put us at the front line he has given us our weapons and our armour so what excuse do we have not to fight?
@Benjamin Newall:
Hey Benjamin. Challenging words. I love your heart. Dreaming and speaking vision is important, but unless you take action; step out in faith on the vision God has placed in your heart, it's all just talk.
Maybe everyone needs to add onto the end of their comment the first step they're going to take. What's going to be different in your life when you get out of bed tomorrow morning?