Has anyone?

[GodsoldierClintus]

Been to the Australian Eastern Territory Bible College in Sydney and those anyone know anything about bible college? I'm becoming a soldier soon, and once I get enough money from working I'm heading down to the Bible College.

Your opinions are much appreciated.

 

[ChristInAction]

Do you mean like a officer-ship thing, or just bible study school?
We have both down here in melbourne, The bible study one is called 'year in the son' & I have a friend going threw it at the moment. She says its awesome. Really full on, but theres others older who have been threw it, that changed & grew so much in that year.
The bible collage to become an officer is also really good. Sharpie is in it now & its really good.

Anything like that I think you'd really enjoy & grow heaps, Pray about it & if its what Gods calling you to do. Go for it!

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Yeh I'm talking about the officer training one. I know God's calling me to do it, I just wanted to know what it's like that's all. Cheers thanks for that.

 

[BoazB]

GSC, are you sure you are called?

 

[Evangelina]

I've been there, but as a student - not as a cadet. I miss it Apparently the experience is quite different as a cadet, as for a student just turning up for classes.

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

I'm absolutely sure I'm called

 

[BoazB]

I'm absolutely sure I'm called

How do you know?

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Okay this will be a long answer.

I think I had a pretty bad childhood and teenage years, I basically came to the point of suicide. This I blamed on my parents, who both have mental conditions and decided that I also was mentally ill. It's all in my testimony but basically because of this I've had to relearn how to interact with people because I had learnt to detach myself. The only thing that kept me from suicide was my sister, whom Christ had placed in my life after I asked him for a little sister.

I left my hometown to go to uni and was basically allowed to do anything I wanted, so i turned to alcohol as a form of escape. I was actually accepted into a Salvation Army run college. So yeah it was my second year at this college that I accepted Christ in my life.

I was always interested in social justice and just needs of other people particularly when I was younger. I started not caring in the years after I had almost suicided. But the passion for it and for life has always been part of me that I never realised.

So this year (I turned to Christ last year) I have started working for a charity, started doing evangelism at uni, started helping lead the bible studies at the college. I'd been thinking about ministry for a few months but only privately, in any case, my mentor basically told me he sees in me a passion for people and justice and whether I had thought about missionary.

Well I had, and that only helped confirm that the things I had been through, the skills I've been given (I'm a very good public speaker), and my interests all align pretty much with a life of missionary.

As I described it to my pastor it just seems "logical"

I'd appreciate your thoughts

 

[Evangelina]

Please don't take this post as discouragement, OK? I'd hate for it to cause you to give up on God's calling for your life.

Officership requires a great maturity of faith. It's ROUGH. Like James wrote:

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more severely.
For all of us make many mistakes. If someone does not make any mistakes when he speaks, he is perfect and able to control his whole body.
(James 3:2)

It's a really hard road, and it's one on which people can do a lot of damage. Even the apostles had to spend 3 years in 'intensive training' with Jesus before they were ready to step into an unsupervised ministry role. Paul started out preaching without any spiritual growth - and was quickly hurried away to a retreat to learn more about Christianity.

I'm not saying that it's not a legitimate call. There's a good chance that it is. But don't be surprised if it takes a lot longer than you ever imagined, and takes you into learning experiences that you never expected.

Just to give you an idea... a few years ago I felt called to become a lieutenant. I'm still not there, and I'm not sure that I correctly interpreted the call. What I DID do, though, was to ask for God to lead me... and so far I've gone from youth shelter to radio school to TAFE and to a new corps (where I was soon leading worship and prayer and even preaching - once. Hmm). Sometimes God gives us a calling, and then says "Slow down - let me lead you there". It may sometimes seem like an extremely roundabout route, but in God's 'big picture' viewpoint it's the fastest route from A to B.

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Thanks Evangelina.

Yeah, I certainly don't think it's going to be easy, but I know what Christ has done for my life, and certainly I have already dedicated my life to him. What I want and what He wants are two different things, so who knows where I'll end up. At this stage I'm not sure that's it's definitely with the Salvos, but my way of looking at it is, he put me in a Salvation Army church for a reason. Certainly in the limited number of churches I've been to, a few baptist, pentecostal, I find the Salvos the "best".

I've made my decision, so now it's just a matter of God taking me there like you said. I wasn't aware the Salvos still had lieutenants in their ranks? Where abouts in Australia are you (don't have to answer if you don't want to ) Thanks!

 

[Evangelina]

Brissie.

Lieutenants were brought back in a few years ago as a sort of temporary officer... for situations where someone didn't want to or couldn't commit to life officership.

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Amazing, I'm from Brissy too! I'm with Inner City West, which corp are you at?

 

[BoazB]

Okay this will be a long answer.

I think I had a pretty bad childhood and teenage years, I basically came to the point of suicide. This I blamed on my parents, who both have mental conditions and decided that I also was mentally ill. It's all in my testimony but basically because of this I've had to relearn how to interact with people because I had learnt to detach myself. The only thing that kept me from suicide was my sister, whom Christ had placed in my life after I asked him for a little sister.

I left my hometown to go to uni and was basically allowed to do anything I wanted, so i turned to alcohol as a form of escape. I was actually accepted into a Salvation Army run college. So yeah it was my second year at this college that I accepted Christ in my life.

I was always interested in social justice and just needs of other people particularly when I was younger. I started not caring in the years after I had almost suicided. But the passion for it and for life has always been part of me that I never realised.

So this year (I turned to Christ last year) I have started working for a charity, started doing evangelism at uni, started helping lead the bible studies at the college. I'd been thinking about ministry for a few months but only privately, in any case, my mentor basically told me he sees in me a passion for people and justice and whether I had thought about missionary.

Well I had, and that only helped confirm that the things I had been through, the skills I've been given (I'm a very good public speaker), and my interests all align pretty much with a life of missionary.

As I described it to my pastor it just seems "logical"

I'd appreciate your thoughts

Thank you for that answer. Sorry I took so long to get back to you, but at the moment the net is like a bucking bronco.

Here are some of my thoughts:
(a) I fully endorse the comments made by Evangelina about training before going out. It will only be after (life) training, and when the Lord says "Now. Green light. GO" that one should go. He might just be saying to you at the moment, "Get Ready"

So use the time and get reay.

(b)If the Lord is indeed calling you to officership, He will keep nagging... but be warned, panic if the time comes for "Green light, Go" and you don't.

(c) put out a fleece for "calling", and another fleece for "green light go."

(d) Pray about it, and speak to others (but becareful who... some guys want you to go to college next week LOL... even if you aren't ready. If you aren't ready, the wheels might come off, and that is not what the Lord wants.

NB: Moses left town at 40 and came back to town at age of 80 to fulfil calling. There must have been a lot of training! (but I wouldn't leave it that long ) In the meantime, try and walk closer with the Lord every day.

If you want to hear more, PM me.

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Thanks BoazB. I guess from my posts it sounds like I'm ready to pack my bags and leave now.

I still have one more year of university, my goal is to become a full soldier soon enough and participate in some kind of mission work with the Army in Brisbane. I will continue working with my charity where I'm learning a lot of stuff. Also I moved out this year and picking up cooking skills and stuff like that.

I still need money before I can go down, so I will either use my degree in accounting and get a job or I will serve as a missionary with the missionaries on campus and mission to the uni students for a year or two.

These are all just options I have considered, and I'm sure there are plenty more that I will need to think about.

 

[BoazB]

Thanks BoazB. I guess from my posts it sounds like I'm ready to pack my bags and leave now.

I still have one more year of university, my goal is to become a full soldier soon enough and participate in some kind of mission work with the Army in Brisbane. I will continue working with my charity where I'm learning a lot of stuff. Also I moved out this year and picking up cooking skills and stuff like that.

I still need money before I can go down, so I will either use my degree in accounting and get a job or I will serve as a missionary with the missionaries on campus and mission to the uni students for a year or two.

These are all just options I have considered, and I'm sure there are plenty more that I will need to think about.

Good stuff.

I did two years military training, 4 years teacher training, 7 years of teaching in a small town, and then I became an officer.

At the small town, there was no Salvos, but I was called even then... and God knew that... and when I arrived at a little church there, they said, "The minister is ill, can you preach (There's no escape )

The actual move to the college was with a week of fleeces, including the freezing of my post. The Lord works in amazing ways, opening doors infront, and booting us through it... rather like sheep at a sheep dip.

The Lord knew I had been

 

[Timyone]

Been to the Australian Eastern Territory Bible College in Sydney and those anyone know anything about bible college? I'm becoming a soldier soon, and once I get enough money from working I'm heading down to the Bible College.

Your opinions are much appreciated.

lol i study there!!!
umm oops i only read the first line, i should have read more

 

[Timyone]

man good to hear i guess!! its good to get young officors!!
theres a few girls this year that are pretty young hey!
dont forget about the officors can only marry officors bit hey, and that they (the salvos) get to send you where ever (which can be both a plus and minus depending on what your into, and where they send you!

But yeah, totally get as into the bible as you can if you want to go into officorship!! because one important thing for teaching the word, is that you need to know the word! do as many bible studies as you can, attend connferences, pray alot etc!!
(well i guess conferences i was just thinking because they have speaklers and you can watch how they talk etc and learn heaps!!)

But yeah any questions ask me and i can find out for you i guess hey, (if i ever come back into this thread :S)

I study there doing a bachelor in theology, but probably wont ever become an officor, but who knows

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Thanks Timyone!

I didn't know that officers can only marry officers, but I don't think that will be too much of an issue for me, and I know about sending officers away and stuff. So your studying in the Bible College, what kind of stuff do you do, like how many days of the week are you studying and stuff. Do you know how the officer training differs?

Many Thanks

God Bless

Clint

 

[Timyone]

man the marridge thing really works in the salvo context, as the man and woman are pretty equal in alot of ways, both can give sermons etc etc, it really ads to the make sure God's calling you bit hey

ummm
the differences?
studying sepperately is sorta like normal uni, where you just turn up and do classes, you can actually come and live at the college and do that as well if you like, a diploma is 2 years i think and a bachelor is three (ish)

Being a cadet (becoming officor) is alot different to what i do, studying like i do is sort of a bit more on the outside, which is unlike going to other bible colleges where you live in etc, and get to know every one heaps well.

The cadet training is alot like that though, they all get to know every one from their year heaps well, umm theres alot of sermon stuff that they do, they get appointed to a local core where they sort of work with the officor there for a year, ..

umm what else did you want to know?

 

[GodsoldierClintus]

Thanks for all that T, the marriage thing, that's a bit daunting I mean how many Salvos Officers are there? And by officers that doesn't count soldiers does it? It's certainly something I need to think about.

Although having said that like I said before I'm almost 100% certain I'm called, I've been reading through the soldiership book and it sets a pretty high standard. A lot of it has been really helpful already, helping open my eyes to things I can improve. It's a really challenging thing and I've been praying for confirmation on whether this is really my thing.

I'm aware this isn't the only way to serve God (obviously) but no ones really asked me about becoming a soldier. I think I will need to take a step back to evaluate because if God wants me to be an officer I'm sure I will end up being there anyway, and I don't want to jump in without being absolutely sure.

So are you a soldier T, or just studying there?

Thanks

God bless

Clint