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We are excited as we receive reports telling a little of what God is doing around the nation this year. Historically, here have been many moves of God’s Holy Spirit in Australia.

The 1979 firestorm in Arnhem Land spread to most of the nation as Aborigines took firesticks to light fires of revival. Their prayers from Elcho Island in the north fanned the wind of the Spirit to take sparks from that fire that started a fire thousands of kilometres away near the mouth of the Murray River in the south.

This week we heard that the grandchildren of that revival are discovering that story. One of them found a copy of the book Fire in the Outback in a library and saw a photo of her grandfather, and posted about it on social media. Others are asking where to get the book and also the videos God’s Firestorm, and they are rejoicing in their heritage.

We’ve heard stories from early April of the move of intercession through the first of the Wailing Women Gatherings near Darwin, and the Indigenous Christian Leadership Gathering in Tennant Creek. We’ve heard stories of what God is doing in Central Australian Aboriginal communities around Easter this year, and plans for Pentecost gatherings — stories that fire our hearts to believe God is doing something this year that is bigger than ever before.

But Satan isn’t happy and is desperately trying to create division in the church and the world in every subtle and blunt way possible, especially in gender and sexual issues, and issues in health and witchcraft. Our Prime Minister has been attacked repeatedly, and he has pointed out the power of division in our nation and the world.

Report from The Australian, April 30, 2021:

Scott Morrison has urged Australians not to surrender to “identity politics” and the forces that undermine the community, declaring freedom rests on “taking personal responsibility”.

Speaking at a United Israel Appeal NSW donor dinner in Sydney, Mr Morrison set out his vision of morality, community and personal responsibility in the modern world while warning that reducing individuals to their attributes would end in division and a broken society…

“You are more than your gender, your sexuality, your race, your ethnicity, your religion, your language group, your age.

“All of these contribute to who we are and the incredible diversity of our society, and our place in the world, but of themselves they are not the essence of our humanity.

“When we reduce ourselves to a collection of attributes, or divide ourselves on this basis, we can lose sight of who we are as individuals — in all our complexity and wholeness. We then define each other by the boxes we tick or don’t tick rather than our qualities, skills and character.

“Throughout history, we’ve seen what happens when people are defined solely by the group they belong to, or an attribute they have, or an identity they possess. The Jewish community understands that better than any.”

[thanks to Kris Schlyder for his research on this.]

“… we have no tears left!”

For years, the number of deaths in Aboriginal families has been a constant and increasing burden: diabetes, cancer, deaths in custody, suicides, smoking, alcohol, violence — for many it has been five or more close family members dying each year. In many communities, funerals are lined up for many months and they can’t keep up as the deaths build up. They get to the point where they have no tears left and can’t mourn. The demonic power of death has taken hold.

It is time for an end to this!

… the end will come, when He will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father,
having destroyed every ruler and authority and power.
For Christ must reign until He humbles all his enemies beneath His feet.
And the last enemy to be destroyed is death.
~ 1 Cor. 15:24-26

But first, there must be a time of repentance!

Jeremiah spells out God’s judgement against His people — the sins of their ancestors and their refusal to obey and honour Him: “you said, ‘I will not serve You.’ ” (Jer. 2:20). In chapter 4 He calls God’s people to repent.

Finally, in Jeremiah 9:17-21 (ESV) we read:

Thus says the LORD of hosts:
“Consider, and call for the mourning women to come; send for the skillful women to come; let them make haste and raise a wailing over us, that our eyes may run down with tears and our eyelids flow with water.
For a sound of wailing is heard from Zion: ‘How we are ruined! We are utterly shamed’ … teach to your daughters a lament, and each to her neighbour a dirge. For death has come up into our windows; it has entered our palaces, cutting off the children from the streets…”

Last month we wrote about Guthadjaka’s call for the ‘wailing women’ to come together:

“Garray Djesu (God Jesus) is calling us to cry out to Him with our own milkarri (wailing) for our people and our land.”

Aboriginal people and people in many other cultures (including in Jesus’ day) found how to ‘wail’ in their sufferings, and trained special people to help them mourn.

We all need to learn how to repent and mourn for our own sins and those of our people. Praise God for our indigenous women meeting together to train their young people in this skill. Over fifty of them spent three days together last month and have decided they need to go much further in this, and plan to meet again before the end of this year.

Lord, give us hearts to learn from them and join with them in crying out for our land and its people.

• NT Central Desert Christian Leaders’ Gathering, 10-14 April, Tennant Creek —
  Nigel Davies reports that people came from central Australia, the Top End and W.A. Many leaders were encouraged and given the opportunity to minister in various ways, and around 50 people made a commitment to Jesus Christ and were baptised during the week’s meetings.
  Most of the people camped on the Showground and were provided with meals.
  Tennant Creek has had a major problem with the behaviour of some of the local young people, but a group of them attended the meetings and gave their lives to Christ. Pray for their discipleship and growth. Another gathering will be held later this year.
• Wujal Wujal community house church: Daniel Hamel is still asking for prayer support and a vehicle so he can begin ministry in this community near Cooktown. He can be contacted on 0488 161 804.

the PREPARE! journey GET READY!
a journey led by the HOLY SPIRIT through indigenous Australians

… the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the GLORY of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea. Habakkuk 2:14
… that He might present the church to Himself in splendour, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. Eph 5:27-28

day of prayer and fasting — 1st Friday of each month

We pray you will enter into a deeper relationship with our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and enter into ministry through the guidance and power of Holy Spirit this Pentecost (23 May).

May GOD continue to bless you HEAPS as you continue to bless heaps of others!

[Photo by Max Christian on Unsplash]