Category: <span>Church</span>

Published December 8, 2007 by

Not there yet

castle.jpgA couple of things.

I looks like Facebook has grown a brain and actually started including the text of a ‘wall post’ into it’s reminder emails. That or it fluked one. Regardless this is cause for celebration, but I can’t be stuffed, because….

I’m stuffed.

Last night was our youth group sleepover (ie. Friday Night finale for the year). I’d have to say it was a step up from the previous one in terms of maturity on the kids’ behalf. We were fairly ‘short staffed’ but Paul nicely came as a fill in for various parts of it.

As for sleep, I probably copped the worst of it having to stay up for the understandable position of a friend sightly panicking about her friend’s asthma and the absence of a puffer. This resulted in an amusing phone call from the girls to parents, not waking them – despite it being 2am as their two mum’s were up enjoying a night out. Which led to a further wait for drop it off and the peace of mind. While this was happening one of the other girls fell off a sofa bed and continued to sleep, we put a pillow under her but she didn’t want to move, so she stayed there the whole night.

Tip for youth leaders running sleepovers, “No breakfast until everything is packed up and clean”. Works a treat.

Now I am tired and Geoff is feeling sick and has gone home and I’m reading a really interesting book about South Africa, but I really should go to bed. Right now.

Books Church Life Ministry

Published November 20, 2007 by

Starred: October-November

I’ve starred a mass of 61 posts this time – so they might not all make it up here. I have a funny feeling quite a few of them are design related i.e. I’ve gone ‘oooh that’s nice/inspirational’, I will warn accordingly. Some may have also been linked to specificially throughout the month, this is basically me clearing out my ‘google reader starred posts yet again’ – all for the record.

some thoughts/responses to gender stuff – Makeesha/Swinging from the Vine

Hermenutic – Joshua/Love in the Key of Longbrake

Creativity should not be controlled – Naked Pastor

Complexity described – Mark/Anecdote (I love Ursula LeGuin)

Still loving gallery style photo walls – Abbey Goes Design Scouting (design)

Julia Rothman – Decor8 (design)

A lesson in typography – Poppytalk (youtube clip)

sew green – cool blog of the week – Poppytalk

lifedance – notafigment/Anna (art work)

we are not master builders – we are not messiahs – Makeesha/Swinging from the Vine

Judging a book by it’s vastly more interesting cover – Kat Coble/Just another pretty farce

The Emerging Church loves darkness (or what I stand for) Part II – Be the Revolution/David

Living with less – a dare – Anne Jackson/Flowerdust

Online romance turns sour – Rodney Olsen/The Journey

Heat sensitive wallpaper – Poppytalk

Talk to your daughter before they do – What will we find in the head of Mish?

Why I don’t like the term “modesty” – Makeesha/Swinging from the Vine

kafka planet – Daily Dose of Imagery

A personal story – Jesus Creed

What you should know about RSS – via GeoffRe(y)port

Feminism and the chaos of labels – Makeesha/Swinging from the Vine

Blog Action Day – Ethical Eco-Eating – James 5

Doing Boring Stuff Well – Boundless Line/Motte

Fonts and your face – Seth Goddin

Just do it – Naked Pastor

Six rules of cultural engagement – Joe Thorn

so, I made a book… sort of – Rebekka Gudeifsottir

Christiana Ceppas – Oh Happy Day/Jordan (amazing photographs)

To Create – Joshua/Love in the Key of Longbrake

Snow Flakes and Role Play – Naked Pastor

The Beautiful Project – Decor8 (design)

James Blunt & Reading the Subtext – Naked Pastor

The Emperor’s New Lamp (diy) – Decor8 (design)

The Best Truth – Anna/Hope Road

Poor Expectations Driving Martial Itch Earlier – BoundlessLine/Steve Watters

Sorry to talk so long – Seth Goddin

Stories make brands stronger – Anecdote/Shawn

2007 holiday card guide (part 1) – Poppytalk (design)

Spiral Bound – Hi + Low (design)

Brand New Dei – Homelessman Speaks

Small business success – Seth Goddin

PREFAB FRIDAY: Michelle Kaufmann Loft Design – Inhabitat

How to keep an art Journal Part 2– Suzi Blu (youtube)

If everyone did it we’d be living in trash – Makeesha and Shayel/Swinging from the Vine

Free $10 voucher Dstore – The Freebies Blog

Featured buyer on etsy’s Storque – Poppytalk

Notebooks, journals, sketchbooks – another link from Poppytalk

She likes organising things – five and a half

favourite interiors from skona hem (nr 12) – Poppytalk (ahh beautiful design)

Man married dog – Bob.blog

What grinds my gears – Anne Jackson

oh snap – Anne Jackson

Adolescence or Maturity – Naked Pastor

Blogging Christianity Church Design Ministry News Photography Relationships Social Justice

Published October 31, 2007 by

Historical Indulgence

wittenberg.jpgI thought I’d post a picture of the door of Wittenberg instead of the face. Martin Luther was *really quite an ugly man – a sentiment expressed in quite a few other theologians (or perhaps they were just rude to the artists?)… nicely though now. Good on him for whacking his disgruntlements about indulgences up for the world to see.

So in honor of my Dad’s Reformed church background and in honor of probably of my own – here’s to the guy who was brave and managed to change history with a piece of paper, a steady aim and lot of ideas.

Also you know… for translating the Bible into the vernacular (boy I love that word) and marrying a young nun even though he was worried that he’d die a heretic and didn’t really want to put anyone through that stress.

I think it’s important to understand our history, however I think it’s also valuable to recognise that even the most regarded aren’t perfect. Antisemitism is nothing to write home about.

Thus concludes my highly incomplete thoughts on Luther. Thanks to the past church history classes I’ve taken, Colin Youl, Craig Brown. The background has served me well. I couldn’t have posted this without you (or without wikipedia to refresh my memory).

Post dedication to here, as it made me realise that it’s ‘Reformation Day’.

*And if I by some fluke I happen to win via a pingback, please give the takings to someone else.

Christianity Church

Published October 22, 2007 by

I am the Church

I really like this concept I am the church.

Geoff talked about this when he was running youth this morning, about the necessary collective of Christianity.

Sooo… can a hermit off in the forest on his own island be a Christian? Must belief be accompanied by action?

I think so.

I like how God made two people to start us off.

I like how God is three.

Christianity Church

Published August 27, 2007 by

Compost of new smells

spring-web.jpgToday is for flinging open doors. The weather has taken a drastic improve which reflects on all the but the nastiest of predispositions. Amazing what a bit of sun can do. It’s honestly just nice to open up the house a bit so it smells ‘new’ again.

On the whole smelling new thing, yesterday marked the arrival of the new pastor. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Kevin and his wife Kerrie several times before due to convenient link-ins and am pretty excited for what this next stage holds. It’s been a bit of a wait – Rob and Di have done a great job of pulling things over.

Speaking with a couple of friends yesterday post-Sunday morning, we decided that something felt decidedly different. A good different.

Newness doesn’t just come as something fresh, but when something ends.

This Wednesday will mark the celebratory conclusion of my young-adults homegroup. It’s been a crazy journey with the group starting on the highest of highs (Happy Birthday Washington) and keeping at a consistent peak until somewhere things went vaguely haywire and changes of individuals and relational issues crept in. We are disbanding our structure and holding to our relationships. It would be a lie to say it hasn’t been fairly crap for a good part of it, but we’ve learnt lots, stormed, conformed, made war, peace, learnt of commitment. We’ve taken two, about five times over to try ‘fix’ things and now at a seemingly more stable state have declared it’s death so that we can somewhere find growth and love again.

I am finding quite a bit of a freedom in the fact that I no longer have to drag my heels along each Wednesday. There is something to be said for commitment and a time where it surpasses common sense. In hindsight I should have prayed about it more and asked God what the naff he wanted me to do.

Geoff and I had already been considering a move in the near future due to the rather drastic change of life that marriage inflicts.

Timing it seems is God’s immaculate zing. Monday has opened up a new possibility. We have met with a crew, (Not associated with Vineyard – but of some friends and some strangers – a little further along in life) once so far and it was a slow moving cart that picked up momentum into something quite delightful.

I like what is new.

image from Tony

Church Life