Southland Christian Ministry Training
|
By Ian Whitley, on October 11th, 2010%
It has been another difficult week in which I have been guilty of letting the negatives get on top of me. Even recognising that this was happening did not seem to help! How come an optimistic person like me could become a pessimist? By focusing on the wrong stuff and letting the negative self talk predominate. I found myself drifting in a sea of emotion and was brought to my senses when I read the following:
The opposite of love is not hatred,
The opposite of hope is not despair,
The opposite of mental health is not madness,
The opposite of remembering is not forgetting,
In every case the opposite is nothing but indifference.
These words were written by Elie Wiesel, a Jew who survived the horrors of the concentration camps of Nazi Germany, who recognised that indifference is so tempting, so seductive yet in the long term it is destructive. That quote reminded me of another from the same era:
“In Germany they came first for the communists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me – and by that time no one was left to speak up.” (Pastor Martin Niemoller, quoted in Be Our Freedom Lord, p254)
We live in a world where there is injustice, pain and suffering, there will be times when negative feelings weigh you down, but resist the urge to just opt out and be indifferent. These people survived and flourished even in extreme circumstances, so can you! This week I also read and was encouraged by the story of Sir Edward ‘Weary’ Dunlop and his survival, by “rejecting helplessness, indifference and fear… he was a light and a beacon of hope in those dark days of 1943 and 44…” (quote from Ian McLean) but maybe that is a story for another time. Don’t give up to indifference and negativity, you have what it takes to make a positive difference!
Chaplain Ian S Whitley
By Ian Whitley, on September 26th, 2010%
There are some weeks when it feels like no matter what I do, I just can’t get ahead. You don’t need me to tell you that life is sometimes hard, and we all go through difficult times, but how do we deal with those issues that get us down? This week I have been reminded of what happens when people just deny they have a problem or adopt poor coping mechanisms – out of control stress, depression, relationship breakdowns, alcohol abuse and other self destructive behaviour. The scary thing is that there have been times over the last few days when that has been internal and not external!
That is the bad news, the good new is that it doesn’t have to be like that! Although you might feel like a victim and it seems like you are unable to do anything about your situation, you CAN! My first go at this ponderings I came up with seven things you could do… but it just did not ring true for me, and where I am at, so I decided to tell you a story.
 I first met Bruce when he was probably only 16 or 17, and I was 15. He was the opposite of me in every way. By that age he had already tried everything, he smoked heavily, was an alcoholic, dabbled in drugs, was covered in tattoos and had a police record. He was qualified to do nothing and only got a job as a storeman because the boss wanted to give him a chance. He couldn’t seem to get his life together, and at every corner things just got worse. One night while smoking in bed, heavily under the influence of alcohol, things happened and the boarding house where he lived burnt down. He fronted up to work next morning with nothing but the clothes on his back, and his boss, (my father) invited him to live at our place till he could get his life sorted out.
My life from that point my life changed, as I began to understand that I had everything going for me. I had a stable, loving family, a good education, healthy self esteem, hope for the future and the belief that God was in control. As Bruce would say that is easy for you – I have NONE of that! Yet in the years to follow my brother Bruce taught me basic counselling skills, as we worked to overcome his bad start in life, we laughed and cried through many and varied crises. He emerged from those struggles with a strong faith and was able to establish a stable family for his children but bore the scars of those early years for the rest of his life.
Why tell you this very personal story? Because I needed to remind myself that bad things do happen to good people. We cannot control what has happened to us in the past, or our family background but we can choose our response. Sometimes it is only when we get to the very bottom that we are forced to accept the truth about ourselves and the need to take desperate action. Maybe you too are in one of those crises, what are you going to do about it? If you have admitted that your life has become unmanageable and that you are powerless to fix it, you have reached step one of the AA process. My job is to help you with step 2, to come to believe that there is a higher power that can help to restore your sanity… yes, it is possible but nobody ever said it would be easy.
Chaplain Ian Whitley
By Ian Whitley, on September 14th, 2010%
 This week we celebrate the Battle of Britain with a formal ceremony in Martin Place involving myself and a few others from here at RAAF Base Richmond. Why? Surely after seventy years, for a battle that took place on the other side of the world, there is not much relevant to us? WRONG! The fact is it still has a lot to teach us, but sadly most Australians in the 21st century know very little about it. So here is your crash course to wet your appetite.
The name ‘Battle of Britain’ stems from a famous speech by Prime Minister Winston Churchill who announced to the House of Commons: “The battle of France is over. I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin…” (June 18, 1940) and shortly after it did! The battle lasted from 10 July 1940 to 31 October 1940, and is usually celebrated on 15-16 September, to commemorate the turning point in the battle.
Most historians consider this battle a watershed event in air power studies because it was the first battle fought entirely in the air. The aim of the German Luftwaffe was very clear, to gain total air superiority as a prelude to invasion. The British aim was to survive and keep getting up one more time. The statistics are shocking, for both sides, but in this battle of attrition the biggest loser was Germany, and it never really recovered.
There were many who felt that England could never survive such an onslaught, but inspired by leaders such as Winston Churchill they beat the odds, and over time won the war. It was of this battle and particularly fighter command of the RAF that Churchill said:
“Never in the history of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few”
(House of Commons, 20 August 1940).
Sometimes it is all too easy to just latch onto one liners like that and think you have the whole story. If you want to know more, take the time to read the context of this and other speeches of Winston Churchill. A recent book called “Speeches that changed the World” (ISBN1 74045 663 7) is a great resource to do just that. To go one step further, have you recognised that you have power to change the future through your words, your vision and passion? Consider, what would it take for you to lay down your life for your country or to call others to do it? Churchill offered only “blood, toil, tears and sweat” and in this short time Wikipedia lists Britain as losing 544 aircrew killed, 422 aircrew wounded and 1,547 aircraft destroyed…
We need to know our history or as someone once said we will be doomed to repeat it.
Chaplain Ian Whitley
By Ian Whitley, on September 10th, 2010%
 In a past life I was the pastor of a church in Wellington, in the central west of NSW just down the road from Dubbo. As part of my introduction to rural ministry I spent a lot of my spare time as a farm labourer, learning about sheep, cattle and cropping. The work was hard but it was great just getting away from the phone, learning new skills and beginning to understand what makes the Aussie farmer such a unique breed. That seems like a lifetime ago but the lessons are still valid.
I have fond memories of farmers struggling to work out what to plant, balancing the need for oats as stock feed, against cash crops like wheat and canola. Then you have to throw into the mix how much each crop  will cost to put in and the need to rotate crops through various paddocks and whether you have enough sub soil moisture to put in a particular crop! Then they need to factor in when to expect follow-up rain and whether the final product will make it worth it!
Why am I telling you this story? Because every job has its down side! Every decision has repercussions and you never control all the factors which determine the outcome. Farmers realise that and take the risk to put in a crop – what about you? Have we become so risk averse that we avoid the things that could provide us with a sense of purpose and fulfilment, and refuse to do those things that would nourish and feed our souls?
Many years ago I heard an old Chinese proverb that says this:
If your vision is for a year – plant wheat.
If your vision is for a decade – plant trees.
If your vision is for a lifetime – plant people.
In my job I am taking the risk of investing in people, and believing that God will bring a harvest in due time. What about you? What are you sowing?
The Bible puts it like this:
“Don’t be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants he will harvest.”
(Galatians 6:7).
Chaplain Ian Whitley
By Ian Whitley, on August 8th, 2010%
It was with interest that I read a recent article called “Continuous Improvement Ponderings”. In the light of all the people I talk to who are already in ‘change fatigue’ mode, the thought of this process continuing for the next ten years and saving $20 Billion in the process seems overwhelming! The ‘rolling wave’ feels like it is drowning many, so here are a few helpful hints on how to stay afloat, and surf that wave instead. So, instead of focusing on the demand for Improved Accountability, Improved Planning and Enhanced Productivity,
- Keep the big picture in focus! We all want to pay less in taxes, we do not want to see waste in any level of government! We need to be able to accept the fact that there some things that we can’t change, so don’t fight it, see what you can do to make that big picture a reality.
- Maintain a positive attitude! Yes, this process will bring pain – all changes do, but the challenge is to refuse to focus on just the negatives and seek out the positive aspects.
- Get the facts! All too often we are content to operate and make decisions on assumptions which may or may not be accurate. This new world order will only ‘work’ if the foundations are based on solid truth.
- Refuse to focus on the past! We will never return to the good old days – they were not that good anyway. Yes, we must learn from the past, but to build a new and better future we need visionaries who are open to new possibilities.
- Move forward with confidence! Start each day with a clean slate, remembering that each day brings new opportunities. Yes, there are many challenges and unknowns but with some innovative, creative approaches we can achieve what many believe to be impossible!
 While on leave I was able to do some surfing. On one particular day it was big, I felt intimidated by the size and was tempted to just go home and do something else. Yet when a couple of other board riders decided to have a go, I joined them. It was not easy getting out, and I felt unprepared for the challenge, but at the right time I took the plunge and caught one of the best rides of my life! We can spend all our time and effort whinging about the Strategic Reform Program (SRP) or we can choose to catch the wave. Yes, it is a big wave, and it is not necessarily going to be easy to get in position to catch it, but it offers the ride of your life, if you attack it with the right attitudes. Come to think about it those five points apply to most areas of life, so stop playing around and get on with making the most of what God has given you – this is your life, not a dress rehearsal!
Chaplain Ian Whitley
|
|
a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me – and by that time no one was left to speak up.” (Pastor Martin Niemoller, quoted in Be Our Freedom Lord, p254)
