May 31, 2004
letting teenage boys loose with a disposable camera - dangerous. very dangerous. i have the photos now to prove that. jeepers. that is way too much information.
May 30, 2004
it's sometimes easy to think that the world is going to hell... literally. with things how they are today, especially the media reports we get. tonight we were challenged, inspired and encouraged. 30,000 people per day(!) are coming to know Jesus in Africa. In China (pushed by some as the world's next super power), 100,000 people per month are! Isn't that insanely amazing and wonderful! despite all thats going on in the world, the craziness and evil, God is working and moving and changing people. His Kingdom is growing.
We also watched a video about the 5 guys, Jim Elliot, Pete Fleming, Ed McCully, Nate Saint, and Roger Youderian, killed by the Auca Indians in 1956. Crazy stuff. I had heard a bit about Jim Elliot before, but not the fuller story. Amazing stuff came out of that - these murderers became Christ followers because of the passion and dedication of ordinary people who desired to see the world reached for God. In less than two years after the murders, Elisabeth Elliot, her daughter Valerie, and Rachel Saint (Nate's sister) were able to move to the Auca village having learnt the language and established some relationships. Many Aucas became Christians. Insane! but awesome insane! God is mighty and sovereign and we have NO idea what His power is capable of!!
meetings
maybe it's a Christian thing, based on how much we love meetings at work. but how good are church meetings. especially when they're about the budget and go for 2.75 hours. lovely. although i must say i'm disappointed that people who choose to be accepted into church membership get scared off by "budget" meetings - "it'll be boring", "it'll go forever" - well it's gotta happen, and we need your input! and was also heaps impressed that i had to be the centre of attention twice without notice today. yep, heaps! money and God is such a fat thing. no wonder Jesus talked about it a bit - He must know how much we need His help!
it's interesting visiting different churches. and reminding myself that we're all worshipping the same God, no matter how we do it. not that northridge is miles different from tcbc, it's just interesting.
i think all to often i box jesus in inside of me, not letting him live through me. i let my own insecurities, pride, doubt and all the stuff that's 'me' get in the way of allowing him to live through me. it's a strange-ish concept to get, and to actually see happening in my life more and more. but i want it to. i need less of me and more of him.
May 29, 2004
who killed nick berg?
i don't know about all this conspiracy stuff. it just keeps recirculating. either way it's horrible. but i think i wouldn't make much of a conspirer... i think i see things too black and white sometimes. still, it's all a bit weird.
manual labour
me, tim, mr bob, dad and mum spent much of this morning putting up marquee thingys for deb's 21st (altho it's not til next week, and mum and i think it's a bit silly to put them up now but hey). go strong jenny go! i am such the weakling - it's so pathetic. but i felt strong and muscley and helpful so that's ok!
so if any of you need some heavy duty pole holding, rope pulling, clothes line holding or standing-around done... you know who to call!
sometimes i think it would be nice to have more than one bathroom in this household. just sometimes.
May 28, 2004
i wish to speak welsh - crazy language. no j, k, q, v, x or z. but there's ch, dd, ff, ng, ll, ph, th - which are all considered letters.
dd = th
ll = thl
f = v (ie. fi = vee)
w = oo
si = sh when followed by a vowel
stuff like that - it's awesome.
things that are exciting about today
i slept til 7:13am
i'm not so snotty
it's friday
tomorrow's saturday
joy's at work today
GAP's having super fun photo rally tonight
i get to see tim on a friday
i meet with libby
i'll get to see erin
it's a new day!
May 27, 2004
"you've got mail"
how fun is it getting big packages in the mail. i feel special!
it came today - very unexpectedly early! my Brio Cross Country Train Set!! C/O Fly Buys. Good on ya Fly Buys. And I thought this excitement warranted another little piccie of the fun itself
Hoorah!
foodcourt fun... i like howie and jo and david and tom. jo was fun too at office. was interesting trying to answer and hearing other answers to "agency" questions. like remembering that i am a youthworker. and that is weird. i'm not quite sure how i forget that i am. i guess i just see it as the cafe and trips and officey. and about God's purpose in it all. not like we're a "proper" youth agency. although we are. im silly.
today had funny moments. howie's envelope stamping is up there in qualityness. and debbie calling howie "robbie howie" on the phone. and i like that it's funny too with debbie and tom. poor tom. i am only joking. i should stop. it's not funny.
i have spent too much of my life trying to convince debbie that she likes particular boys. and it hasn't ever turned out pretty (matty looked promising for a while there). perhaps i should stop trying. and just let her find her own boy on his and her own terms. but it's so much fun interfering and being silly!
May 26, 2004
i wonder where the lines are:
aquaintence -> friend
also like with youth group young people and stuff. some of them i'd count as friends. it's interesting.
May 25, 2004
May 24, 2004
sometimes i think it would be nice to have more than one computer in this household. just sometimes.
May 23, 2004
justice, mercy, compassion
was reading 2 samuel 1 (NLT) last night... and it brought me to tears actually. sometimes i don't understand the seemingly great callousness and injustice of the things that happen in the Bible. it was about this Amalekite guy who has killed saul (at saul's request) for the sake of saul's dignity. i am not condoning murder. but then david has this guy killed for killing saul, the Lord's anointed one. i don't quite see the justice in that. this guy hadn't done anything malicious (which i know doesn't mean he hadn't sinned)- there's just so much violence and killing to sift through... i don't understand when it's 'justified' or God-ordained and when it's not... and that makes me frustrated and a bit angry. sometimes it's hard to see how the God of the Old Testament is the same God as Jesus. i guess it's the same values - justice, mercy, compassion, love. but it's different in light of Jesus' sacrifice. perhaps the world would be much the same as those OT times if Jesus hadn't come and made the difference then... still, it's a lot to think about.
the game
sammy's accompanying me to the football today, good on him - go the mighty swans! (not sure of the word mighty there, looks a bit silly; graceful instead?! doesn't quite have the same impact). hope it's a quality game - ie. good football and a swans win. but we'll see. i don't think there are any promises of a quality game.
last night, tim and i went into the city for some dinner. we caught the train in, and we went to an italian cafe/restaurant in The Rocks, which was pretty nice. after that, we walked off dinner walking around circular quay, and the opera house. we took in a bit of what the city of Sydney has to offer at night time. it's quite a spectacular sight when you stop and think about it. it was good stuff. then we travelled home again after some maccas dessert. was a nice evening. oh, we also visited the Ken Duncan gallery - so much temptation to buy something nice for Debbie's 21st... but alas no purchases were made. some beautiful pictures there.
May 22, 2004
May 21, 2004
Proverbs 26:20-22
When you run out of wood, the fire goes out;
when the gossip ends, the quarrel dies down.
A quarrelsome person in a dispute
is like kerosene thrown on a fire.
Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy;
do you want junk like that in your belly?
over the seas
i was just thinking a bit about travels and how much i've taken mine for granted... that i haven't valued them enough, and spent so much valuable time whinging.
coz i hated when we went to Hong Kong - i was really sick, and was in the middle of my eating disease - and i certainly let people know i didn't want to be there.
i only enjoyed USA for the last 4 days coz louise was there for that much, but the first two weeks sucked - i was sick for that too.
then the europe holiday - i was also sick for (i'm picking up a theme here). although i loved england... i hated france. but loved holland.
but i've been so fortunate to travel to a lot of different places in the world over my lifetime. i wish i could remember more of it from when i was a little kid. to live in a place like holland is awesome - even if i don't remember it.
i guess it was easy to complain coz i was often sick, and because i fear flying. but at least i do look back and think how good in retrospect it was seeing weird and wonderful places.
the world is such a big place. sometimes to think how big and how many people living away their lives.... it's crazy!
but i'm glad to be a part of it all. and i want to make a positive difference. hmmmm...... i wonder if i'll ever travel to exciting places again. i mean, as exotic as poatina may be, i'm not quite sure it cuts it....
May 20, 2004
May 19, 2004
Fly Buys
i just made my first ever fly buys redemption... no fancy flight to anywhere exotic, no fancy dinner at a nice restaurant, no, not even a fancy new blender. i 'bought' a fancy 'Brio Country Crossing Play Set'. how cool is it! only 11,500 points! "it's all about set up"
day off
so i'm at home now after spending two hours of my "day off" working at the office. now i have plenty of church youth stuff to do at home... but i procrastinate - grandparents, blogs, emails, msn... it's all good. i'm just pacing myself. savouring the day off experience...
May 18, 2004
so many people in this world that i love so much, and never get to see, or spend that quality time with. the world is such a busy place with so many things competing for our attention and time. so how valuable then is the time we get to spend with the people who matter most to us... very i say!
everyone's sick
it's true - howie, steve, margy, debbie, mumma, everyone. phoebe's operation is today. please pray that it goes well. and that her recovery is speedy and complete. and that being in a cast for 3 months isn't too uncomfortable or distressing. and for Steve and Bel as they learn how to care for her.
May 17, 2004
May 16, 2004
I to easily succomb to fear – letting it overtake and overwhelm me. There are many things about this year, and the next few years, that scare me. It’s not that I think God can’t do it, I know that all things are possible with Him, but it’s the knowledge that I can’t do it, and knowing that for things to happen I have to be able to do something as I work in partnership with God. Not that He needs me or you, but if we let Him, He’ll use us to achieve His purposes. I want to let Him. But in the same breath, I just want Him to do it all – all glory to Him, and no work for me. And I know in my head that is wrong, but I know too that would be so much nicer and easier. I’m feeling very challenged to trust God in the practicalities. Easy to say “Oh yeh I trust God”, but knowing I have to do stuff too, I don’t trust myself. And all of that scares me.
May 15, 2004
the wedding
my family bonded last night as all four of us ended up watching SBS and waiting for the arrival of Mary for her wedding to Crown Prince Frederik at midnight... we spent about an hour and a half as guests, Frederik, royalty and finally Mary arrived... then she got there, entered, sat with her husband to be, and we all went to bed - we just wanted to see the dress. strange family i have.
May 14, 2004
newsworthy
channel 7 4:30pm news interviewing some guy who happened to be in the same pub as danish crown prince frederik and mary donaldson when they met four years ago... interviewer man ask the questions we NEED to know the answers to... "what did they drink?" - by golly, what a joke.
what is it about blackouts that throws us all into disarray? just had a hour or so powerfree in hornsby. i thought maybe just the old side, but verity says it was at westfield too, and it was crazy with people outside and shops closed etc etc. we're so dependant on power. but how are we not to be?
sometimes you just have to reflect on the choices you've made over the years, and wonder about the "what if's". not in an unhealthy way, but it's just interesting to think where i might be instead of where i am...
May 13, 2004
if i said "where is tanzania?" would you not know?!
crazy is that i was asked today. of course, i said Africa (not that that's a country). but the crazy thing was it was the post office lady where i was mailing a letter to Tanzania. she asked what country that was in... but she works in a post office - you'd think she'd know - wouldn't you?!? oh well.
May 12, 2004
english is a stupid language
how do you think "ghoti" could be pronounced....
.... did you guess "fish"????? yep.
take the 'gh' from enouGH (f)
take the 'o' from wOmen (i)
take the 'ti' from contribuTIon (sh)
and you get fish... crazy!
the powers that be say that my old blog will be no more if i don't blog... so i blogged. i'm not ready to let go just yet. but it's all happening here!
May 11, 2004
families are funny
what a classic! spent some time at Dabinett's tonight. only at the Dabinett's would you get Sarah screaming "she's got a penis!" "where is it?" as she and Deb watch shocking trash reality tv (those poor poor men on that Miriam show); Tim eating cake and throwing knives to procrastinate from chem assignments; Glenda sitting quietly in the dining room while all this happens; and Kirri happily talking to all the family while Tim watches the equalisers on his computer and CD player... hehe.
it's funny how totally different one family is from the next. some are so easy and comfortable to be around, and others make you much more self-conscious and nervous. i hope my family is one of those easy and comfie ones.
Matt 11:28-30
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
hmmmmm.....
...old dog learns new trick...
taught myself to juggle three balls at cafe yesterday... i have three witnesses and everything! so exciting. i'm not heaps good, but i'm sure i'll improve. hoorah!
May 10, 2004
first ever
had my first ever krispy kreme doughnut today... not too shabby. don't know quite what all the fuss is about. i'm happy with the occasional donut king cinnamon donut myself. but whatever floats your boat! the office smells lovely though!
May 09, 2004
it scares me to think how easy it is to block out everything that's going on in the world, and just put it into the "too hard basket". it scares me because i know i do that all the time. that it does seem too big for me to make a difference. stories from all over the world that speak of hopelessly tragic situations, cycles that can't be broken, lives that are futile existences. but most of it is because of inaction, or inappropriate action. but it's still all too big. i know we have a big God who hears our prayers, and that praying is powerful. but so is God-inspired action. have to slow, wait and listen for that small voice that is telling us what to do. but how often to i give myself the "luxury" of the 'slow, wait and listen'. barely enough, if enough.
imagine if...
you could just think yourself into losing weight so you didn't have to get up at 6:25 in the AM. just imagine.
moments when the Bible just absolutely catches it, puts it exactly as it is, are awesome...
Romans 7:15-25
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord!
It's somewhat comforting to know that in amongst all my garbage, it's not only me... Paul fought the same battles, you fight the same battles, we're all in the same boat. And Jesus is the only one who can calm the storm.
May 08, 2004
shopping
i'm not the hugest fan of shopping... i don't have the patience, the money or the desire. i often find it quite painful. but today tim and i went to macquarie, and DFO (first time for us both). not too bad. tim got some pretty good bargains. i bought a couple things too. i always see stuff that i could buy, or stuff i'd like to wear, but never would and really don't need. maybe that's why i don't like shopping. i don't like wasting money, and i don't like having to decide whether to actually buy something or not. i don't understand how some girls (and boys too) can spend hours upon hours walking around shopping centres, trying on billions of things, and spending lots of money on stuff they won't really wear much. i think it has a lot to do with my mother, and how me and my sister were raised. but today was good. hoorah!
new fun...
GAP was tops once again last night - heaps of people which is exciting, and a couple of new faces too!! it's encouraging seeing the young people inviting their friends along, and having such a great night together. Debs spoke really well on peer pressure. some of the guys really got into it - nodding in agreement with points she made and stuff. so hopefully God will be pointing out things to each of them (and us leaders!) about temptation and pressure and stuff. it was good she used our memory verse too (1 Cor 10:13)... hehe.
plus phil had gone out and bought some new toys for us to play with which everyone got heaps into...
to add to table we already have in the greenhouse...
So we continue to pray that God will do a mighty work through GAP in the lives of the young people... such an awesome bunch of guys and gals...
May 07, 2004
May 06, 2004
famous!
today is famous day...
~David on page 15 of the Advocate - story AND photo
~Steve, Bel and Phoebe on page 7 of Advocate - story
~Me interviewed on Triple H about the Uluru Pilgrimage
May 05, 2004
Found out today that Debs has Raynaud's disease. Same as my Gpa and great uncle. It's nothing too huge - just a disorder of the blood vessels that supply blood to your skin. But there you go - it has a name. I guess most things do nowadays.
May 04, 2004
i decided coping mechanisms are good. if you don't think about it, it will go away, at least for the short term... never mind that it'll become a billion times worse - that's not the point!
nah. being overwhelmed is silly. it can just be hard to trust God in the practicalities, because i still know that it's me having to get everything done. it's a weird thing - coz it's Him doing it all, but it's me too. and it's that 'me' bit that is freaking me out. coz i can't do it all!
May 03, 2004
phoebe
i had lunch with this little angel today in the park ... and with her wonderful mum. it was plenty fun.
13 hours of work is fun!
not that i complain or argue... howie and steve are working 24/7 at the moment. phoaw!
May 02, 2004
had my first flute 'student' tonight - luke did very well. it's fun trying to teach someone to play the flute, or even to get the flute to make a note. elise and i enjoyed.
had youth supper at our place tonight - was jampacked. lots of fun, laughter and conversation - and plenty of food! go mumma go! was good to catch up with a few people i haven't seen for a while, and to go a bit nuts with some of the young people.
interesting sermon tonight from nick green. about purpose and mission. got me thinking a bit about what my part in the big picture is. and how local mission can be overlooked, but how overseas mission is so important too. i guess more forefront of mind though is how do we fix the imbalances - injustice, poverty, environment/circumstances. and how do i, as one person in the 'west' make a significant difference to the billions of people dying physically and spiritually. i don't want it to be something that's just too huge to think about. i don't want to be overwhelmed into inaction. but i'm not sure what i can really do.
May 01, 2004
gap
how incredibly good is it to see young people making steps in their own walks with God!! last night was pretty profound at GAP. it was awesome after all of it to hear tammy tell andrew (who had only just arrived back) "where were you man, you missed an amazing night!". that is encouraging - to see that God is working in the hearts of this fantastic group of young people. it was a great start to the term too, with a number of new and new-ish faces, as well as seasoned gappers. God is gonna do big stuff this year i reckon - as long as we let Him, and make sure it's not us but Him!