This morning's sunrise at Newport Beach...
After sunrise (how creative is our Lord?!) it was off to Dee Why for breakfast - yup its not often that you have to wait for the cafes to open for breakfast hey.... but while we were waiting we came across this little dude...
Meanwhile...If you know me or have been reading this blog for a while, you would probably have picked up that I love art and I love good song lyrics (quite often its the lyrics make a song).
So you can imagine my response to this exhibition cant you?!
Combining two of my favourite things - what more could i ask for?!
(More pics from the morning on flickr)
"Everything is gonna be alright In the summertime"
I am now officially on 'holidays'...One week...with quite a bit of uni work to get through too...
But that didnt stop me from embracing the holiday mode and the beautiful weather that came with this weekend.
Saturday AM saw me heading to the wonderful Dee Why Beach for brunch with a group of girlfriends I have known for over 6 years and went through youth group with. We do not see enough of each other these days. While the dissmal serving of banana that came with my pancakes reflected the countries current lack, it was nonetheless a very tastey meal. Post brunch we spent some time in prayer for one another sitting by the rock pools of God's beautiful creation! What a blessing to have friends - and days - like these!
Saturday PM I finally got to see the up and coming, very talented Gallery live! Ok, so they may be my friends and so get a bit of a plug...But they were great! Check them out! I was so impressed!
Sunday also brought a bit of adventure and fun in the sun. After an enjoyable morning at TC I headed to the musuem of Sydney for an art exhbition for a bit of 1920s and 30s glamour and style. There were some great photos and I was once again inspired to get out into the streets of sydney and get into some more random people shots!
It was then to a BBQ - a taste of true summer making itself known again!
Bring on more weekends like this - warm, sunny weather and good friends!
One last thing to note - and the most important, so please, stay patient...
And that is of course church tonight.
We are currently making our way through the gospel of John. One of the things I love about the Bible is that no matter how many times you read a passage or a book there is always more to learn, or always key truths to be reminded of.
And tonight was no exception.
We were looking at Redefining Temple Worship from John's account of Jesus clearing the temple (John 2:12-25); speaking of the fact that we no longer need a place, a stone building, to meet with God, but we can meet God in person, in the person of Jesus. How great is that! Just think about it for a minute...
Meanwhile, we were also reminded that as we are united in the resurrection of Jesus, the raising of the new temple, we too are 'born again', are redefined, and must live a life that reflects this fact.
And what does all this have to do with worship?
Well, we gotta look at what this rebirth is all about, how it can actually be reflected in our lives...and this is where the words of Romans 12:1-2 come in:
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Yes, worship is more than what happens in a building. It is constant.
Obvious?
Yes, I've heard it before too.
But does your life reflect it?
I believe this is to be the response we should have every single day:
"here I am to worship,
here I am to bow down,
here I am to say that you're my God"
The Sacred Romance - Part 1
We come into the world longing to be special to someone and from the start we are disappointed. It is a rare soul indeed who has been sought after for who she is – not because of what she can do, or what others can gain from her, but simply for herself. Can you recall a time when a significant someone in your life sat you down with the sole purpose of wanting to know your heart more deeply, fully expecting to enjoy what he found there? More people have climbed Mt. Everest than have experienced real pursuit, and so what are we left to conclude? There is nothing in our hearts worth knowing.
We long to be known and we fear it like nothing else. Most people live with a subtle dread that one day they will be discovered for who they really are and the world will be appalled. (p.84)
We will draw our identity from outside ourselves; the question is, from whom? In the end, it will be from those moments and those people on whom we’ve had the biggest impact. (p.90)
The gospel says that we, who are God’s beloved, created a cosmic crisis. It says we, too, were stolen from our True Love and that he launched the greatest campaign in the history of the world to get us back. God created us for intimacy with him. When we turned our back on him he promised to come for us. (p.91)
If God is the Pursuer, the Ageless Romancer, the Lover, then there has to be a Beloved, one who is the Pursued. This is our role in the story. (p.98)
These are some extracts from the book The Sacred Romance by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge.
I'm not sure if any of you have heard of it or read it, but its an interesting read. These words come from the chapter called 'The Beloved'.
It is refreshing to be reminded that God is more than the author of the story, he is the central character; the hero. And not only that but as the hero, he is pursuing us.
Us!
To have an intimate relationship with Him!
I do not feel worthy, yet i know through God's grace in Jesus this amazing love and relationship is possible.
Do you have any thoughts on what these wrods from The Sacred Romance has to say??
Tonight's Sunset
Ok I hadnt planned on posting 3rd day in a row, but this was so nice i had to post it...so those who missed it can share in the beauty!
How amazing is God's creation!?!
Infinite Attention
Can God hear a hundred million prayers at one time?
"God has infinite attention to spare for each one of us. He does not deal with us in the mass. You are as much alone with him as if you were the only being he had ever created."
C.S. Lewis
One Challenge, One Promotion
Reflections:
Steve Irwin dies. Peter Brock dies. And its 5 years since the September 11th attacks.
The world have had a few things to think about lately havent they? A few reality checks.
Each of these above mentioned events, although quite different in scale and impact, all have one thing in common.
They all remind us that life is fleeting and fragile.
If we go into more detail, they also remind us that God is in control and when we try to take over chaos results; that we live in a fallen world; that we need to look ahead to future hope rather than becoming attatched to this world.
But if we go back to the first point for a second, reinforced by these words in Romans:
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:18-23)
how does that make you feel?
What are you going to do about it?
It is too easy to have that happy image of God - loving, comforting, caring, faithful, Fatherly. Yes, He is all these things. But he is much, much more than this too. Not only Lord and Saviour but all powerful and rightfully angered by our rebellion.
Surely in such a fleeting world out of our control we need to take seriously the need to tell people about the hope they can have in Jesus, and prepare them (and ourselves) to meet God by calling people to repent and turn to the Lord before it is too late.
How have these events impacted you? What are you going to do about it?
Advertisement:
I apologise to move onto something potentially trivial in comparison to the claims i have just made, but since I cannot make it to the official launch tomorrow, I feel obligated to announce...
that
the wait is over
the moment you have all been waiting for...
Colin Buchanan's DVD 'King of Christmas' is here!!
Get it today! Col has a good message to give...and you may even see a glimpse of me on there somewhere too...
Enjoy people!
Under the Tuscan Sun
I saw the film Under the Tuscan Sun for the first time this week.
Ok, so its not a great film, its definately one of those feel good zone out and enjoy type films, which you definately need every so often.
It did however confirm five truths:
1. One should not look for contentment in relationships alone
2. I can't stand snakes
3. You cannot run away from your problems (she may be living in a tuscan villa, but life isnt perfect, similar life problems still exist)
4. Fear can control the decisions you make (Whether or not is was more fearful to buy a house in Italy rahter than return to the chaos of home, I am not entirely sure just yet);
and
5. I really, really, really want to go to Italy
for art's sake...
Some slightly bored university students hire a van, park it outside an expensive hotel, and dressed in suits that say 'Furniture Removal Company', they stride into the lobby of the hotel and remove half the furniture....in order to use it in their own, otherwise empty, apartment.
Is this theatre? Or pure theft?
If we then add in that they sold the furniture a few years later when they got sick of it -and one of the items turned out to be a pricey antique - does that change the nature of performance and/or theft?
Want to know the context for this story? Well, don't worry, i didnt try it. But my theatre lecturer did when he was a student in Chicago. He loves it! Apparently got away with it. And totally defends it as theatre!
Wonder how well that argument would go down in a court of law...
"happiness isnt happiness without a violin-playing goat"
These two photos were taken in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens when I was there a few months ago. I came across them again in the weekend.
Is it just me, or do they remind you of Notting Hill too?
And this one not only reminds me of that lovely scene when Julia Roberts reads the thing on the bench and says "some people really do spend their whole lives together"; then sits, and asks him to sit beside her...such a simple scene, but so lovely...(ok, so you probably dont need to be told by now that I'm a bit of a romantic)
But reading that also makes me wonder what people will think of me when I'm gone. Someone who loved her family, friends, music, art....and God? I hope the latter is there!
I quite like that quote too - "Stop wasting time...Look there is life. Go"
How true is that?! Time seriously goes by so quickly (I cannot believe it is september already!), we have to make the most of it. And I dont just mean lets enjoy life - although there is a place for that too obviously - but i think we also gotta remember that we are to use this time God has given us, use it wisely, use it to further the kingdom and bring glory to Him. Its a challenge cos its so easy to let a day slip by, dont you think?!
This actually brings me to what has been on my mind of late...what to do with my life once uni finishes this semester! In a way I am blessed with a number of options (or at least ideas), but that also means a lot of decisions to make - regarding both ministry and jobs - and I want to make one that will honour God and mean I am where I can best serve Him...
If you are the praying kind, I would appreciate prayer for wisdom in this area.
