Ecclesiastes

I enjoyed Susan's recent post on Ecclesiastes, Meaning in life, although I notice that there are now lots of comments on it that I haven't read. Not everyone is in agreement with Susan's thoughts, it seems :). Oh well, I like them! Here is some of what she wrote:

What a different perspective is the one "above the sun" than the perspective below! Below, our toil seems fruitless, but above, everything we do is to God's glory. Wow. That really helps me put things in perspective, because right now I want to serve God by nurturing my own children and instructing them of God's love, but that's not where He's placed me right now! But that doesn't mean I can't glorify Him as I teach, tutor, babysit, or even as I iron clothes or scrub dishes - more so, in fact, since those are the tasks He has currently given for me to do. Ch. 9, v. 10 of Ecclesiastes says, Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might. If only I could faithfully carry out this verse always! That is the challenge to every Christian.

I have read Ecclesiastes several times, and I especially like the end of the book.

Susan has also provided us with some poetry on the topic, Joy under the sun.

Read more...

Shooting our own soldiers

This is a guest post from my friend Dave, on the topic of the church. I think the a verse from Galations, which I read this morning, applies to this topic. After reminding the Galations of the commandment to love one another (5:14), Paul goes on to say: "But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!". We have to be careful to make every effort to avoid this! I am not sure about all the details of what Dave has written, particularly the last paragraph, but I'd be intersted to hear your thoughts! This is a topic which is worth considering a lot more than we do.

In the first world war, the military on both sides made extensive use of trenches in battle. Ultimately, the goal was to fire upon and destroy the enemy and then move forward, capturing ground. One can imagine a number of platoons, perhaps from various allied nations, constructing trenches close together. The men in the various trenches would probably have different backgrounds and cultures, and their trench-making habits are likely to have differed somewhat: some may have been deeper than others, or with differently sloped sides, or with all manner of other, subtle differences. Nevertheless, all of the groups within these trenches had a common over-arching goal: to defeat the enemy (and they had no doubts as to whom or what that may be). Now imagine some of the trenches fighting not against the enemy, but rather shooting men in other, allied trenches in the back, because the former platoons disagreed, perhaps, with the trench-building style or the colour of the uniforms of the latter. If this kind of behaviour continued long enough, it wouldn’t take long, to be sure, before the enemy hardly needed to bother with an offensive at all. They would win by default as their opposition crumbled into a heap.

This, unfortunately, demonstrates the way Christians often function. The analogy was related to me by a close friend and as soon as I heard it, I was struck by the truth of it. Christianity is divided into a plethora of what could perhaps be called “sub-groups”, denominations, but despite the differences, we are all under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, our king and our general. He has given us one battle plan: thus we all fight the same battle and we use the same weapons. It is fair to say that the strategies of different captains in particular skirmishes may differ, but does it follow that these captains may be fairly accused of defiance or mutiny on that basis? I think not, and therefore cannot understand the enormous amount of vindictive squabbling that seems to go on within the church.

Now I also think it is important to understand what this analogy is not saying, and perhaps where it breaks down. There are certainly some groups, who are classified as Christian, whose beliefs cannot be aligned with scripture, and therefore, with such groups the church cannot be associated. Such groups have fallen into deception: they have eaten from the fruit of false teaching. This does not mean, however, that we must “shoot them in the back”, because, despite their being deceived, they are still not the enemy. I would argue that they are no different from “flower power”, peaceful objectors-of-war who perhaps don’t understand all of the issues. As a result, I would say that groups which are not aligned with scripture are not even fighting the right battle: it is more likely that they are not on the battlefield at all. I think the church quite simply needs to be clear about not following false teachers to false battlefields. That way we don’t need to shoot them in the back! We will have made the most enormous mistake, as a church, if we are in the wrong battle (in effect a non-battle), shooting at anyone except the enemy. How rebellious captains are dealt with is not for other captains to worry about: that is the prerogative of the Lord alone.

by Dave Drew

Read more...

Food in the USA

After I wrote my post The dark side of travel I started thinking about the food I ate when I was in the USA. Although I wrote very negatively of travel food, it was mainly meant to be a joke :)!! I enjoyed nearly every meal I had in the USA. Most of the food I ate was home cooked, which I don't think is the norm in the USA where people eat out a lot more than we do here.

One of the highlights of the USA culinary experience was being offered iced tea everywhere I went. I visited in the heat of summer, which explains why it was a popular drink. I had never heard of iced tea before! I spent my whole time in the south. Is iced tea a particularly southern emphasis, or is it just as prevalant in the north?

I also ate more mexican food than I ever have before or since! Another memorable culinary experience was a dessert night I attended for a birthday party. I also went out to someone's home for a 4th of July dinner. I think we ate watermelon, the "right" thing to eat on July 4. Of course, we also drank iced tea!

In the USA, it was kind of comforting to see the familiar eating chains that we have here. I bought Subway at the airport in LA, shortly after setting foot on USA soil for the first time, and it was like I had something from home to hold onto!

Read more...

Sacrifice

When I think about the beauty of sacrifice, this week's Carnival of Beauty topic, my mind automatically goes to Christ. His actions are the highest example sacrifice, and they produced the greatest results of any sacrifice in history. The fact that he took our punishment upon himself upon the cross means that we can have life. He was even separated from the presence of the Father, for us.

The second person I think of when I consider the beauty of sacrifice is my mother, and mothers generally. Growing up, I saw my mother sacrifice for us every day. At the time I may not have realised it, but now I look back upon those everyday memories and realise the sacrifice that was involved in what Mum did for us. Mum uncomplainingly served us meals, washed our clothes, kept a large garden, homeschooled, exercised hospitality, and cleaned our home. She put up with our complaints, even though we should have been grateful. We often failed to express gratitude, yet Mum continued to sacrifice. In this, she was like Christ. Our saviour never receives the praise he truly deserves, yet he continues to pour out his life for us.

In general, motherhood involves many sacrifices. I have never been pregnant, but I have seen many people experience this stage of life. It sure is a challenge! Many people experience more sickness and pain than they ever have in their lives before, and their bodies are never the same again! It is no wonder that in our modern society, where most people live for pursuing pleasure and avoiding pain, women increasingly choose to forego motherhood or limit it as much as they can. Childbirth is easier and safer than ever - yet many do not see that the pain it does cause is worth it.

Following pregnancy and childbirth, motherhood continues to present the necessity of many sacrifices. Sleepless nights, the mother-as-taxi syndrome, endless hugs and love, to name a few! Yet the beauty of these sacrificies is obvious to those of us who have wonderful mothers like mine, and even to many of those who do not. These sacrificies are worth it to raise up godly offspring, which is one of the purposes of marriage (Malachi 2:15). These sacrifices are worth it when the children finally do rise up and call their mother blessed, as the Proverbs 31 woman experienced. These sacrifices are worth it because life is about love and relationships, and God designed the relationship between parents and children to be one of the most important and fulfilling of these.

I could write more, but the Online Access Centre is about to close . . . this article has been written in only about 20 minutes, but I hope you still get something out of it!

Read more...

Over a hill

On October 4, I officially enter my mid-twenties. I will turn 25. To celebrate this milestone, I am holding a party on Friday October 6.

Time: 7:30pm
Food: Dessert, dessert, and more dessert. If you want anything to eat that is not sweet, you’d better have it before you come!
Place: My parent's house, address not published on net.
RSVP: email me at sherrin.ward@gmail.com, or phone or text me if you have my numbers
Can’t make it? Visit my weblog, “Small Things”, to see the food and fun you missed out on: http://sherrinward.blogspot.com

Read more...

The power of stories

My friend Phil posted a thoughtful, insightful comment on my last post Kids, social problems, and government control.

I wanted all my readers to benefit from Phil's comment, so I've made it into a post of its own. I recently read the story of Amnon and Tamar again. It is helpful to read these lessons I can glean from it, rather than just thinking "yuck, I'd forgotten how gross this story is"! There is a reason for every story in the Bible. They are all important teaching tools. The Bible frankly presents the reality of sin, but always with the intent to lead us to what is good. Here's what Phil wrote about stories:

I agree. Stories are so important! Stories shape us. They teach us values, inspire us, motivate us, restrain us...

How blessed we are if it is God's story that shapes our lives.

In many ways the themes dealt with are not that much different: sex, death, rape, witchcraft, violence, war, greed... The difference is that they are put into their proper truthful perspective and related to the greatest reality Himself, God.

Take for example one of the old testament's most R-rated stories, that of Amnon & Tamar. Is this a story for children? Absolutely. What a powerful lesson on the deceitfulness of lust! Whereas before the incident he was sick with love/lust, afterward it says, "Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her." As for Tamar herself, she became a desolate woman. The story unblushingly & honestly shows the devastation and destruction brought about by Amnon's sin.

It seems to me that the stories most children (and adults) are exposed to today teach lies (e.g. that immorality is a good and normal way of life)instead of promoting the truth. They often fail to show the true consequences of our actions.

I agree that it is a parental responsibility to be discerning about the stories children are exposed to. However, wherever possible I would also want to support a government which reflected biblical standards.

Read more...

Kids, social problems, and government control

The Australian media often features articles about the growing obesity problem amongst children. There are currently many discussions happening as to whether or not the government should implement such measures as advertising restrictions for fast food, and a junk food tax. Patricia Edgar, in her article "Nothing in it for Tomorrow's citizens" (The Australian, Thursday September 21, 2006), wrote that advertising should be restricted. According to Edgar, "The number of overweight people on the planet - more than one billion - exceeds the number of malnourished".

Yet this was not the central focus of Edgar's article. Rather, she lamented the lack of quality children's TV programs. "Today children spend more time with machines than with their parents." Edgar's concern is that what is shown to children promotes a culture of materialism. "Brands are ubiquitous and the fight to resist is overwhelmind for parents. We feed our kids toxic food. We have squandered TV's capacity to teach, inform and inspire."

Edgar's assessment of children's media is certainly one I would echo. Due to my babysitting and teaching experiences, I am increasingly aware that the media marketed to children is problematic. One of my main pet hates is the Bratz craze. Bratz dolls are heavily made up and scantily clad. There are movies featuring them, and merchandise ranging from shoes to pencil cases. One child I teach, age 6, seems to have Bratz everything. Images of purity and gracious femininity have been overtaken by sensuality and rebellion. This is just one example.

While I agree that children's media consumption is a concern, I am less impressed with Edgar's solution: government intervention and better early childhood education. "A national strategy for children must include the media." Such a conclusion assumes that the government is responsible for what parent's allow their children to watch on TV, or what parents choose to buy their children at the shopping mall. I believe that parents are responsible, not governments.

God gives the responsiblity for children's education to parents. All stories, including those told on TV, are "education". The Bible is full of stories, indicating the importance God places upon them. There is no such thing as "just a story". The tales the TV spins hour after hour, whether in advertising or programs, are not neutral. Parents are responsible for what type of stories they allow their children to be told.

One reason I think parents resist fulfilling their responsibilities properly, is a fear that their children will be "weird" if they are not soaked in popular culture. Christian parents at least, seeing the usual rebellious and unhappy children of the world, should want their children to be weird. If I have children, I want them to relate well to others and the world. Today, success in that goal would make them very weird.

Parents, even those who are not believers, can and should choose to fill their children's lives with stories that are good. Stories around the dinner table that impart family history and identity. Stories of nature and beauty, and of the character and virtues that they want their children to have. As an aunt, I also count myself responsible to tell good stories. Tales that inspire children to live beautiful lives.

If parents will not choose to fill their children's lives with stories that will infuse their lives with hope and purpose, no one else can fill that gap. The government can make what regulations it likes. The child care centers can be encouraged to implement, as Edgar suggests, "quality early childhood programs that employ drama, music, and information to enrich the lives of children". None of that can ever compare with the pattern God gives us in the Bible: parents walking beside their children, and telling them the stories they need to know.

Read more...

The Beauty of Romans

This week Amanda hosted the Carnival of Beauty. She has compiled the entries here. I have already enjoyed reading some of them. I have been blessed with the insights ladies have shared, and the personal perspectives they have brought to it. I noticed that the links to Loni's post don't seem to be working in Amanda's list. I visited Loni's site for the first time today. I enjoyed her perspectives on the topics she covered. She is one of those inspirational homeschool Mum's of many! I was especially blessed when I read her story of being Thankful for Life. In this post, Loni shares how she was adopted out as a baby and her thankfulness to her birth parents. She says: They gave life and yet gave it up - a very enormous, unselfish sacrifice.

Read more...

Clarendon

Last weekend I had the joy of visiting one of Tasmania's many old houses. This is one of the most beautiful I have seen. It is about 30 mins south of Launceston. It was built in the 1830s, and is said to resemble some Louisiana mansions.

I enjoyed touring the house, but what I most enjoyed was wandering the lovely grounds in the spring weather. The birds were singing, the sun was warm, and best of all I could wear open shoes for the first time in months and feel the wet grass on my bare feet.






I enjoyed walking beside the river that borders the property. I love the new bright green leaves on the trees.

On the drive back, the views distracted me! I had to stop and try to capture them. However, the pictures below don't seem to capture the beauty of what it was like to be there!




I felt so full of joy on this spring day. I loved the drive, as well as my visit to Clarendon. I enjoyed listening to my hymn CD and relishing the beauty of nature. All seemed well with my world, at least for a few hours! It is a blessing when the beauty of God's world reminds us of His goodness, provision, and faithfulness. Truly, he gives in abundance.

Read more...

The joy of our salvation

This week's Carnival of Beauty topic is The Beauty of Romans. I cannot touch on all the beauties of the book of Romans in one blog post, but I am going to share what some of the highlights are for me. Please write about what you enjoy about Romans in the comments section. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Romans shows the full extent of human sinfulness. Some of the syptoms of this are recorded in Romans 1:28 - 32. They include idolatry, disobedience to parents, unforgiveness, violence, hatred toward God, backbiting, inventing evil, immorality, and approval of those who practice evil. I appreciate this list because it shows each person their nature. Even those who have lived so called "good lives" are guilty of some of these things that bring the judgement of God.

It is God's mercy to show us what sin is, because without understanding sin we cannot see our need for a saviour. We need to see our own hopeless bondage to sin before we can recognise that in this state we can do nothing to save ourselves. Romans shows us the condition of all humanity: "For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (3:22-23). The only solution is also the same for all humanity: "being justified freely by His grace through the redemptiont hat is in Christ Jesus" (3:24).

I also enjoy the way Romans explains the benefits of our salvation. We have peace and reconciliation with God, and true freedom. Romans reminds us that we are now God's children: "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirits that we are children of God" (Romans 8:16). Romans teaches us the depth of God's love. "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" (8:32). This salvation is not a trying, joy-suppressing event. Instead, it is the doorway to benefits and joys we could never have otherwise experienced.

Romans also teaches us how to respond to our salvation. I particularly enjoy the focus on loving one another. In the first chapter, Paul emulates the Christian spirit in his longing to see other Christians. Much of the joy of our Christian life should come from our fellowship with others. It is tragic when people leave the church, and even Christianity, over poor relationships with other believers. Many people who have left Christianity cite the church as their key reason. Loving and edifying each other is to be a priority, so that the opposite is the case. People should be reluctant to leave the church, because they love it so much!

In chapter 14 of Romans, we are taught that our Christian fellowship is so important that we are not to allow disputable matters to come between us. I don't believe this means we are not to come to conculsions on a wide variety of matters. It also does not mean we cannot discuss different Biblical ideas and convictions in order to encourage others to consider them. "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope".

However, in presenting what we believe the Bible says about a matter we are to maintain love for our brothers and sisters. Our priority is to "glorify God" (15:6) and receive one another in love (15:7), not to dispute and argue. We must never loose sight of our fellowship in the gospel. I am not sure exactly which matters are disputable and which are not, but I do know that if someone has been saved by grace through faith (Eph. 2:8) I am to receive that person as a brother or sister in Christ.

One of my memory passages also conveys the beauty of how we are to live as Christians. It challenges me every time I review and consider it. I'll leave you with its convicting words. Romans 12:9-13:

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in dilligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.

Read more...

The dark side of travel

Although I love to learn about other countries, and I want to travel more at some stage, I am sometimes reminded that travel does have a dark side. The food I hear about is particularly worrying. I recently read the Travel and Indulgence section of The Weekend Australian. One article describes the city Reykjavik in Iceland. Here's what the author has to say about the food. "Restaurants in Reykjavik are varied and, of course, pricey. But fush soup, which features on almost every menu, isn't. With local delicacies including everything from lundi (puffin) and sivo (singed sheep's head) to harkarl (putrefied shark meat) and sursaoir hrutspungar (pickled ram's testicles), we eat a lot of fish soup." A couple of months ago I read about the food in South Korea, and it sounded even worse. In markets they were serving some type of worm which looked a smelt like fresh rabbit droppings.

One reason not to travel: you won't like the food. In fact, when you see it you will realise that you are not hungry at all.

Read more...

The Beauty of Beginnings and Endings

Today is Carnival of Beauty day. It is Wednesday still for those in the USA, where the carnival hostess lives, although it is already Thursday afternoon here. Go and read about The Beauty of Beginnings and Endings at Chasing Contentment. I haven't yet had a chance ot read the entries, but I plan to soon.

Read more...

More on blogger beta

I am presently in the process of labelling many of my past posts. To do this, I have to edit and republish them. So I apologise to those who have blog tracking systems that keep registering lots of new posts from me, when there are not really that many! I know some blog tracking systems (perhaps all) register as new any posts that have been edited.

As I mentioned before, if you want to comment and you are still on blogger (as opposed to blogger beta) you cannot use your blogger login details. You have to choose the "other" of "anonymous" category.

All this is a bit troublesome, I know, but I think the benefits of blogger beta will outweigh troubles in the transition time.

Read more...

Fighting fear

I enjoyed reading Kimi's Update on my bed rest and a few thoughts yesterday. I have been praying for Kimi (and several other people I read about on blogs) as they come to mind. I appreciated Kimi's sense of humour, humility, and faith in this post. I appreciated Kimi's thoughts on fighting fear. I am poor at fighting fear. It is great when people don't make excuses for their fears, but instead confront and repent of them. What a good example! Here is what Kimi wrote on fear:

Anyway, it has been a little difficult having so much "worry time" available. With both of my pregnancies being more stressful, I am always having to fight fears as I wait for the "next blow". My mother is being called over all the time so I can ask her questions on whether she thinks there is a problem or not. But while I was at the hospital, God did give me some wonderful verses to comfort me. Mind you, I certainly don't always turn to these as I should with my fears. But when I remember to, they are of great comfort.

Psalm 34:4 "I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears."

Psalm 46: 1-2 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear......"

(Notice that we are not promised no trouble in this verse, but promised that God will be our strength and refuge when we are in troubling times)

God also spoke to me through the story of the disciples with Jesus in the stormy sea. The disciples were very frightened and scared as Jesus slept. After Jesus rebuked the storm, he turned to his disciples and said "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" Mark 4:40 I realized that when I was very afraid, it was because of a lack of faith in the goodness of God and not having enough faith in His promises. I also realized that I always thought it was silly for the disciples to be so afraid when they had Christ with them. But don't I have Christ with me? Did he not promise that he would be with us always, even to the end of the age?

God is good and he continues to work in my sinful, fearful heart.

Read more...

Comments with blogger beta

If you want to comment on my blog, but you have not yet transferred to blogger beta, simply click the "other" box and write down your name and web page.

Read more...

Steve Irwin's death

Here in Australia, the death of Steve Irwin is a frequent topic of conversation here in Australia. Even I have nearly shed a few tears over the descriptions of his death, and the fact that they have footage of it, and I definitely would not describe myself as a fan! I know that Irwin's death has also been big news in the USA, as he was even more popular over there.

Apparantly Steve Irwin's widow Terri is a Christian and she homeschools using the same curriculum that I use where I work. So we can be praying that she will find her comfort and strength in God.

I was interested to read a story on the Creation Ministries International about Irwin's death. In some ways it seemed insensitive to use his death to put across our own religious ideas. However, we all have to make sense of death in some way. I have read numerous articles in The Australian exploring the death from various perspectives. Explaining how various ideas can be answered and understood from a creationist perspective is helpful. Check out the article: The stingray of death.

Mike Jolly has also written about death in the context of Irwin's unexpected demise. Check out his article here. As he says, what are you living for? Is life all about doing what you love, or is there something more?

Read more...

Joy in life and death

Dr. David Menton's talk on the DVD
Fearfully & Wonderfully Made explains in detail the beauty of our beginning. Many people, Christians included, speak of some pregnancies as accidents or mistakes. As Dr. Menton explained all the processes that are necessary for a human being to even come to the stage of conception, it became clear that this could never be so. God has designed the human body with the intention that conception will occur. If one process is not working properly conception becomes unlikely or impossible. The parents may not have planned a baby, but God did.

After conception, human survival is just as remarkable. The walls of the womb must be hospitable for the child to implant. Unfortunately, some birth control devices including “the pill” not only interfere with pre-conception processes but also change the lining of the womb so that the tiny human being is much less likely to be able to implant. Considering this, it is even more amazing that we are here! The processes of a child’s conception and implantation happen without a woman’s knowledge. The beauty of the child’s beginning, and often its premature ending in the womb, is unknown to her. When a child dies before birth, whether the death is known or very early and unknown, we often mourn the person less than someone who dies after birth. This is not because the person is less valuable to God. It is because we know him or her very little.

For most of people, the beauty of a child’s beginning starts to sink in with the first ultrasound. As one uncle excitedly declared to me, “there is a little person in there”! The suspense and excitement builds as the birth draws closer. In my family, no one has found out whether they are having a boy or a girl through ultrasound. Even my sister, who is having twins, has decided to keep it a surprise. The anticipation is wonderful! After birth, the beginning person is still largely a mystery. What a joy it is to watch them grow. Wispy strands of hair, which never seem to grow much, somehow turn into ringlets. Chubby legs become lean. The person becomes known, and all the more precious.

Endings, like beginnings, can be beautiful. A life well lived will lead to a blessed end. My Grandad is an example of this. Granddad spent much of his life serving others, including as a missionary. Close to the end of his life, it was beautiful to sit beside his bedside and hear some of his recollections. A hard worker all his life, Granddad rarely stopped to talk. Yet here he was, in pain and confined to a hospital bed, with time to talk. He told me his favourite Psalm, number 139, and I read it to him. He shared special experiences from his missionary days, including his close friendship with a native man in PNG.

At his funeral, his children and grandchildren rose up to speak during an open sharing time. Their comments showed the foundations of Granddad’s life. As Mum said, Granddad often spoke of how wonderful it is that God accepts us not for what we have done, but because of Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins. Dad spoke of Granddad’s great humility. While some struggle at their parent's funerals to find good things to say, Dad struggled to fit in all he wanted to say of Granddad’s character: reliable, dependable, diligent, gentle, loving, serving, compassionate. The funeral was a celebration. Living well means being Christ focused and servant hearted. I am grateful for a grandfather who demonstrated that such a life leads to a beautiful end.

This post was written for the Carnival of Beauty. This week's topic is The Beauty of Beginnings and Endings.

Read more...

Big changes underfoot!

I have decided to undergo a massive blog re-make! I was never thrilled with my original colour, so I am glad I can now change the colours as I like them. Please let me know what you think of my new colours and design, even if you don't like it. I will perhaps change the colours each season.

The main reason I changed over to blogger beta is that I want to use categories. I have not yet sorted it out completely, but hopefully all my posts will soon be filed under and appear on my sidebar under those categories. I hope it works out!

I am also thinking of changing my blog name. I am not sure what to though . . . everything I think of seems cliched. My latest thought is "Sovereign Seasons", accompanied by Eccles. &: 13-14 "Consider the work of God; For who can make straight what he has made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him." This seems very sober, and will perhaps offend any less Calvanist readers I have . . . but I like it. What do you think? Do you have any other suggestions for what I could call my blog?

Read more...

A Red Hill tour

The ladies over at Montain Musing made a visit to Red Hill recently, after reading my travel wish list. They have posted lots of photos, so I can have my own Red Hill tour via the computer! Isn't blogging great? I love "meeting" kind people like the Girotti family. I haven't had a chance to look at all the photos yet, but I intend to spend plenty of time enjoying them as soon as I can! Patrick Henry is one of my heroes, and I am looking forward to visiting his home in person some day.

Read more...

Joy and contentment in Christ

I often hear excellent sermons that I would love to share about on my blog. Like most of the things I would love to share on my blog, they never quite make it here. This time, though, it is finally happening!

A few weeks ago we had a visiting preacher from England, Pete Woodcock, at my church. He spoke on Philippians 4. As you may have gathered from some of my posts, I have been having a tough time being content this year. I keep repenting, and keep failing. So I was grateful to hear a sermon on joy and contentment. I can't say I've improved since hearing it, but I am grateful for the reminder of where true joy lies. Here are some of the points Pete made, taken from my notes.

Question: What takes your joy? What makes you discontent?

These things can be broken down into rough categories:
1. Relationships
2. Circumstances
3. Worries
4. Wrong thinking

God wants to rub it in that we are to rejoice (Phillipians 4:4). We can do this because we have a relationship with God. We need to trust he is in control, pray, and think right.

We are easily side tracked into putting our energy in the wrong places. Put your energy into rejoicing in the Lord. Devotion to the wrong things will kill your joy and bring discontentment.

1 Tim 6:6-8 For godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into this world and it is certain we can take nothing out. Therefore, if we have food and clothing, with these we shall be content.

Hebrews 13:5 Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,"

You have God! Rejoice in Him! When you have God, that is everything. If you rejoice in the Lord, you will get your thinking right. Your resources and your future are in God.

We live in a time when people are utterly discontented. We need to shine out satisfaction in God. Be satisfied within yourself, not needing anything from the world (except food, drink, and warmth). You only need God. Be Christ-sufficient.

Biblical contentment is not indifference, not the absence of emotions. It has been said, the Stoics: "Make the heart a desert, and call it peace." This is not what we are called to. There is a time to weep. Contentment does not mean things will not hurt. But there is something bigger than the hurts - God. God's peace transcends understanding (4:7). The God of peace is personally with you.

1. Right relationships will bring a joy in the Lord (4:2-3). Rejoice in the Lord and divisiveness will go away (provided it is a personality problem, not a doctrinal, error problem). Joy comes in serving in relationships. Even though there are differences, they recognise those they differ with are in the Lord and that is the most important thing.

2. Right focus (4:6-7). Anxiety throttles us and chokes out the truth, so we are unable to bear fruit. Anxieties drain us and cut off our motivation. God's remedy: worry about nothing, pray about everything. Transfer everything on your worry list to your prayer list! We often worry about non-essentials or future scenarios instead of rejoicing in the big, good things God has given us in the present. Worry = self focus. Prayer = God focus, puts God at the center.

3. Right thinking. Feed your mind with positive things (4:8). Think on Christ. He is the epitome of all the things mentioned in this passage (lovely, true, noble, virtuous, etc.). See how everything relates to Christ.

4. A right trust (4:10-19) in the one who is in control. Confidence in God's providence. Paul had a patient confidence in God's providence. God has the times and seasons in his hand. When you start trying to take control, you become discontent and worry. Realise God is in control of the fact that you haven't been healed yet, or you don't have something you want. There are two ways God can act: 1) miracles. 2) working out millions and millions of events to accomplish his plan - providence! Which is harder? Which is more complex?

Our first reaction to a discontent person should be to teach them about God's sovereign control. Teach them not to try and manipulate things and take too much upon themselves.

Conclusion: Our culture is not content with little or with much. It is a consumer age. We constantly think we need more. Christians who rejoice in having enough can be a wonderful witness. Shopping is the national pastime in Britain. The average person receives 2,000 ad messages per day. All saying: be discontent. We have turned our wants into needs. Food, clothing, warmth, friends are needs. There is nothing wrong with wanting something - it is wrong to turn it into a need or a right. For example, many couples want a baby and there is nothing wrong with that. However, it is wrong when those couples decide it is their right to have one and they should be able to do whatever they like to get one - including processes that kill embryos. If only we could see that God is what we need. Even Christians are always falling for ads. When you have the Lord, you can do anything (4:13). You'll be able to be poor, rich, mistreated, or comfortable and still be content.

Read more...

Mount Wellington

Last weekend I visited Mount Wellington. This beautiful mountiain is a spectacular backdrop for the city of Hobart. I have not been up the mountain for years. I loved the views, especially since we were there on a clear day.









Here I am with some snow, which you can't really see! I wanted to see snow before winter was over. This snow was scarce, clinging between rocks, but I did get my wish! It was still August when I got to hold snow in my hands.

Read more...

Travel

My favourite quote on travel is from Bess Steeter Aldrich's A Lantern in Her Hand:

Abbie Deal (the central character) responds to her daughter’s comment that she has lived a narrow life as a pioneer who settled in the same town from her early twenties. “You know Grace, it’s queer, but I don’t feel narrow. I feel broad . . . I’ve married . . . and borne children and looked into the face of death. Is childbirth narrow, Grace? Or marriage? Or death? When you’ve experienced all those things, Grace, the spirit has travelled although the body has been confined. I think travel is a rare privilege and I’m glad you can have it. But not everyone who stays home is narrow and not everyone who travels is broad.” Abbie also speaks of how she has enjoyed nature, seen history in the making, and war.

This is an unusual favourite travel quote for a person like me, who is fascinated by the world and would love to see more of it. I loved visiting the USA in 2003. It has sparked in me a great love of the history of the country. It would be wonderful to go again. Here are a few of the places I can think of that I'd like to visit:

Shaker Villiage in Kentucky

Biltmore Estate in North Carolina

And far too many places in Virginia, including these:

Montichello

Shenandoah National Park

The wonderful, the marvelous Colonial Williamsburg which I visited last time and fell in love with

Patrick Henry's grave at Red Hill

I also have a hankering to visit Africa . . . and wouldn't Europe be nice?

However, I believe the quote I have written out above keeps all these desires in perspective. Ultimately, whether or not I travel is unimportant. Many people have lived their whole lives in one village, and their lives were good and broad in the sight of God. There are far more important things to do in life than travel. It is not like moving around the planet somehow translates wisdom into the heart.

Travel is a blessing, and I have learnt a lot from it. However, I never want to place it above more important things. A Lantern in Her Hand is a beautiful book, because it shows clearly what those more important things are. Abbie Deal was deprived of many things in order to serve her husband and children. She earnestly desired that her children would have what she did not have. Yet as they pursued art, music, literature, education, and travel, some of them left out more important things. One chose not to marry solely so she could concentrate on her career as a teacher. Another chose to have no children so she could fulfill all her musical talent. The book portrays Abbie's sadness and wonderment at such choices.

Relationships are the essence of life. Travel will leave photos, memories, and perhaps some distant friends. Music will play and bring pleasure, and then be gone forever. All the literature in the world will someday be burned. Yet people are eternal beings. It is as we enter into their lives and choose to serve them that we grow truly broad and deep in spirit.

Read more...