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JAC
Interview with Lieutenant Nicola Poore
Lieutenant Nicola Poore is a fascinating
Australia Eastern officer.
An out-take?
“I am a sponge.”
JAC:
Who are you? (we’re looking for a quick bio)
I am a committed “blood and fire” Christian
who is captivated by the life and teaching of Jesus Christ and
as a consequence, I choose to engage in his mission through
The Salvation Army. Most recently, I spent 2 years at the
School for Officer Training as a Herald of Grace. Having been
commissioned and ordained as a Salvation Army officer, I have
just commenced my first appointment as the Corps Officer at
Hawkesbury City in the Australia Eastern Territory.
I am 28 years old with an incredible passion
for music and the creative arts. It would come as no surprise
then, that I have a background in Music Education and was a
Music teacher for 3 years prior to entering Training College.
I am passionate about building authentic
relationships, especially with my family. Family life is
vibrant and fun as the youngest of 5 children, and I am
fiercely devoted to my 10 nieces and nephews who never cease
to surprise and delight me.
JAC:
Tell us about your salvation and sanctification.
I cannot remember a time in my life when I
didn’t know Jesus. I thank God for a family and a community of
faith who showed me Jesus and encouraged me to love him
personally. Having said that, I would say that I got saved as
a teenager at a Territorial Music Camp. An awareness of grace
overwhelmed me – there was nothing that I could do to save
myself; my salvation was a gift from God. My personal walk
with Jesus changed from that point on.
Since then I have eagerly pursued more of
God with an insatiable appetite that I pray never wanes.
Sanctification and holiness of life was a new revelation for
me when I attended a Brengle Institute for creative people in
my young adulthood. The thought that I could be holy truly
captured my attention. Personal sanctification, as well as the
sanctification of the body of Christ, particularly our Army,
features often in my prayers.
JAC:
What is your mission/calling?
There is no doubt that God has called me to
his redemptive mission as a soldier, and now as an officer, in
The Salvation Army.
Yet in more particular and personal terms,
the Lord has been speaking to be consistently about my voice
in recent years. “The Sovereign LORD has given me a
well-instructed tongue to know the word that sustains the
weary.” (Isa 50:4) Simply stated, this is my calling – both to
know the word and to speak it.
JAC:
How does the Army support your war fighting?
The Army is the framework through which I am
best able to participate in Jesus’ ministry on earth. In
Australia, The Salvation Army is blessed with high-standing
and a trusted reputation in the community. Our reputation
affords us unparalleled opportunities for ministry, and we
have a responsibility to steward our reputation well.
More practically, there is freedom to
innovate and experiment while fighting the salvation war on
the Australian front. Our leaders are generous and courageous
in supporting new initiatives, as well as retiring those
methods that are tired or ineffective.
JAC:
How do you influence people?
I am consciously aware that I represent
Jesus at all times. God helping me, I hope to influence people
as an ambassador of holiness. I am the hands and feet of
Jesus, and of particular importance to me, I am also his
mouthpiece. I use my words carefully and in a deliberate way
to build up the body of Christ and to speak words of life.
JAC:
Who influences you? (and how/why?
We’re thinking of books, disciplers, mentors, coaches,
models, teachers, leaders, etc.)
I am a sponge. I will absorb whatever goodly
and Godly influence I encounter. There are no limits to that:
written, verbal, old, young, extroverted, taciturn, intimate
friend or acquaintance.
I cannot overstate the wonderful and
all-pervasive influence of my family of origin, especially my
parents. God has also wired me in such a way as to consciously
look out for role models and heroes of the faith. In my
experience, these holy influencers have often been women of
God who were older and wiser than me. Col. Janet Munn, Maj.
Deborah Robinson and Maj. Julie Campbell are only some of
these life-changers. So deeply have these women imprinted my
being, that I gave them a silver star (Christmas decoration)
at the time of my commissioning to symbolise and recognise
their impact upon my life.
I wish I read more widely and enjoyed it
more, but in all honesty, I read the Bible. Any other book is
a bonus. The writings of Samuel Logan Brengle and Richard
Foster have also been significant in shaping my theology.
JAC:
What are your dreams for the next several years?
I am committed to fullness of life on earth.
I want to experience more of God and be more like who he wants
me to be. My primary dream would be to grow to be more like
Jesus in every way. Sincerely.
Here at the outset of a lifetime of ministry
as an officer, I want to stay fresh and sweet-hearted. I dream
that my fervour and enthusiasm for the Lord would increase in
the years to come. Staleness and burnout are not inevitable.
I want to see fruit – fruit that will last.
I want to participate in proclaiming good news to the poor and
setting the oppressed free. I want to pray more, fast more,
and be entirely dependent on God for my survival and my
flourishing.
May the Kingdom of God come, and may the
will of God be done here on earth.
JAC:
What are the keys to successful warfare on your front and the
larger salvation war?
Our starting point must be to recognise that
the salvation war is God’s, and we simply join him in fighting
that battle. This means that methods and strategies will look
different everywhere because the activity of God will look
different everywhere.
Authenticity would be among the foremost
cultural values underpinning Australian society. Along with
this would be the concern for the “under-dog” and the desire
for a “fair go.” The Salvation Army, sometimes described as
“Christianity with its sleeves rolled up,” is uniquely
positioned on the Australian front to demonstrate how these
values (authenticity, equality, justice) function in the
Kingdom of God.
JAC:
How do you cultivate your relationship with God?
My relationship with God is intimately
connected to all of my life. There is no divide between the
sacred and the secular, and so I honestly try to experience
God and recognise his activity around me and in me at all
times.
Every healthy relationship needs time. My
aim is to find quality and unhurried time with God every day –
I have come to realise that my survival literally depends on
it. For me, night time works best.
The way that time is used looks different
because I want our time in the “secret place” to be fresh and
varied. The consistent elements are prayer, the Scriptures,
music, silence and creativity – oh and tears. These elements
will feature in different ways depending on how I feel and how
I sense the Holy Spirit speaking to me. I strongly encourage
believers to experiment with different spiritual disciplines
on a regular basis.
In addition to this, I am blessed that my
most intimate friends and mentors are incredibly zealous for
the Lord. Through their example and exhortation, my
relationship with God is nurtured considerably.
Additional recommendations: testify, listen
to sermons (podcasts), fast from technology, read widely and
study theology.
JAC:
How are you and your comrades strengthening The Salvation
Army?
Full surrender and entire consecration is
how we can each best strengthen The Salvation Army. All of our
time, our gifts, our talents, our passions, our restlessness,
our experiences, our personality, our training – all of it can
be used by God to strengthen the body of Christ.
Now as a Corps Officer, I see my role to
primarily involve the mobilisation of the body. Identifying
the gifts of the Spirit, calling them forth and discipling
believers as they develop and steward their gifts. We need
each other.
JAC:
What are some of the dangers we have to face in the coming
years? (And how?)
Self-sufficiency is a danger I recognise in
myself. I suppose this is rooted in pride. A deliberate
posture of humility is the only way I can overcome the dangers
of being self-sufficient in life and ministry. I suspect there
would be others who might resonate with what I have described.
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