If God gave

If God gave you one billion dollars, would you give 10% away?
You could build a theme park of joy
Or invent some meat out of soy
And still have enough to eat ice cream all day.

If God gave you one million dollars, would you give 10% away?
Build a house in a country town
Write a book and be all renown
And still have enough to fly Cathay

If God gave you one thousand dollars, would you give 10% away?
Buy a camera to remember your life
A nice present for your future wife
And still have enough to buy a cheese tray.

God gives you everything you have, do you give 10% away?
Encouraging someone with the words he gave,
Telling someone about how he came to save.
And still have enough to sit down and pray.

Conversation

When you speak to me, I never know what me I should be.

Should I be the listener, stay silent to let you extend your thoughts to cover the both of us. 

Use proper body language to show I'm listening, eye contact, but not too piercing. 

Or should I take the confident role, at a party, to protect us both from the awkward silences.

Talk about anything, but keep it interesting, otherwise you'll think I'm boring. 

What about the evangelist, taking your words and pointing them to Jesus. 

I'll only listen to find connections, I'm not really interested in life's complexions. 

Then there's the friend, who doesn't care what my next sentence is going to be. 

It doesn't matter where this conversation is heading, because we are spending it together. 

Relative Sadness

University, even with 4 weeks of holidays, feels too soon.
I didn't get to finish any Christian books, and now have to spend all my time reading Shakespeare.
I didn't get to catch up with school friends, even though we "talked" about it (on FB, at least).
I ate too much, slept too much, watched too much.
I didn't do any creative things (including updating on here).
I didn't research interesting places or interesting things or interesting facts.
I ignored too much, settled too much, faked too much.

So when people ask "How were your holidays?" I want to say, "bad, bad, bad." Instead, I be polite and say "Tiring but ok".

What I should say:

"Praise God for the sustenance he provides, the words he speaks, the rest he grants, the blessings he bestows, the life he resurrects, the prayers he answers, the joy he instills."

Because, my sadness is selfish. It's not sad at all. Amazing things have happened:

1. I led on three camps. All focused on the bible. All with God doing amazing things.

2. I attended my Christian group's Annual Conference, on "God Speaks". His words are full of grace and truth, warning and judgement, life and power, comfort and hope in OT, Jesus, & NT.

3. I planned my life (at least this semester!) and committed to continue following Jesus and devoting my morning as I wake up to be immersed in his word and depend on him in prayer.

So my life is good, thank God, thank God, thank God.

Ten Minute Poem

Ten minutes to write this so I type.

Trying to find out about the hype.

These letters seem to be too trite.

To explain the one who is the light.

Ten minutes is too short, too long.

I've started thinking and don't belong

In the realm of short tweets or FB posts.

I'm talking about the Lord of Hosts!

Ten minutes, my average quiet time.

Wake up, read bible, feel sublime.

Pray for a second, but don't want seconds

My ten minutes with God has ended.

Ten minutes, compared with eternity,

It's nothing. I'm too stuck in Modernity.

Where what is seen is more important.

Machines and technology are what's exhorted.

Ten minutes, help me God for the next few.

To give you praise and serve only you.

Flee from temptation, do evangelism.

Set me afire to your fanaticism!

Whether the weather

Let's skip over the "Oh, I haven't posted in a while", because I can't wait to get back into writing again, so let's begin.

First, a tongue twister.

The farmer wondered whether the wether would weather the weather or whether the weather would weather the wether. 

Because it has seriously been weathering the last few days. Pouring rain, massive thunderstorms, huge winds, umbrellas have been discarded as casualties of war everywhere you look. 

Universities have cancelled their classes, politicians have urges workers to go home early and be safe, houses have been washed away as bystanders watch in despair. 

Everyone is just watching, waiting, weathering the weather. Hoping that it doesn't destroy what they hold dear.

Jesus got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and was completely calm.

Jesus doesn't watch. He doesn't wait. He speaks. He speaks with power and authority. The power and authority humans did have before the fall, to be able to subdue the earth, but which was taken away at the fall.

And so as Christians, we can hope. We can hope so confidently, that actually, we can know. We can know that what we hold most dearly will never be destroyed.

So we don't have to wonder anymore.

p.s. Just as I finished this post, the rain stopped. Thank you God!

I would remove all the ticking in the world

I would remove all the ticking in the world.
All the clocks that wait for hearts to stop.
No difference between the boss or Mr Mop.
Better if suddenly, in an activity, we drop.

I would remove all the ticking in the world.
All the marks that state your worth in numbers.
Life's achievements counted in right and wrong answers.
Better if, graciously, we humanity share together stanzas.

I would remove all the ticking in the world.
All the sickness that is caused by those darned little insects.
Preventable, cheap, but nothing in it for FOREX.
Better if, theologically, Jesus returns and he brings the fix.

An update & A poem

368 days ago, I wrote a post called "The little blog that could" which had a little poem and then an update. It turned out to become more like "The little blog that didn't", which I am a bit sad about, but also happy, as it shows how many new things I have thrown myself into that has taken up my time.

Anyway, the updates are almost exactly the same. I am going on NTE again, (hopefully this time I will write a post about it!), going on a road trip with friends, uni was some study + lots of fun, and yatter yatter yatter.

I wrote this poem because I had time on the train. I realised I do best when I don't try and be abstract but just tell it how it is. So this is my introduction to you.


An Introduction

I'm a tree by the river
Sustained by the giver
Of all things, and who brings
Life to the withered.

I'm a missionary liver
The gospel I deliver
To all things and who sings
Of Christ the redeemer.

I'm an alien and a foreigner
Don't belong in Australia
In all things and who clings
To the sure heaven future

I'm a son and a brother,
With a loving heavenly father
Through all things, He's the king

There is no other

A Silver Forest

Ten thousand buildings make a lovely silver forest
The builders were impressed by this metropolis
No green to be seen except in mouldy corners
The sun never reaches those in lower quarters

The trains rumble underground, helicopters hover
And neighbours shout over the noisy bulldozer
Black suited creatures scuffle in a line
Swarming little coffee shops to fill up the time

Children scrape their feet on the burning bitumen
Playing hide and seek and chasing the postman
Cars toot their horns as soccer balls roll
Kicked into a constructed telegraph goal

A walk through a door to a dreamlike oasis
Cool air, pot plants, drinks overflowing your chalice
Large paintings and sweet music suggest perfection
But dear could you please shut the door behind you?!

Rejoice by looking to Jesus

A long post, basically just posting up my first talk I gave to my youth group last Friday. It was on Philippians 3:1-14. I hope it encourages you as much as it encouraged me to write!

Imagine if the Apostle Paul visited you today. What would he say? To be honest, I am pretty scared of Paul, he would be so angry at all the sin, all the cliques, all the selfishness. I mean, he called the Galations fools! He was pretty full on. But Paul in this passage we’ll see makes it clear that we are to rejoice! To rejoice!

It is essentially his last topic sentence of this letter. And like a good essay, it is building on what was already said before. Chapter 1 we see Paul is in prison for the gospel, and he is in partnership in the gospel with the Philippian church. In the gospel, Paul is also taking a courageous stand, that may end in death, but is all for the glory of God. Then in Chapter 2 we see Paul encouraging an attitude of Christ-like humility - which is putting others above yourself - in response to the gospel that Jesus did the exact same. These all culminate in his appeal that the Philippians “rejoice in the Lord”. But, aren’t all the things Paul just said previously pretty tough things to do? They require effort, sacrifice and oh, maybe even death. Brilliant. Where does the rejoicing come from then?

We’ll see that Paul is basically saying “Rejoice, by looking to Jesus” Keep that in your head. Rejoice, by looking to Jesus, as we see how Paul looks backwards, looks upwards and finally looks forward to explain his appeal to the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord.

Paul Looks Backwards
The immediate context of his urging for the Philippians to rejoice is actually in response to a danger in the church. We see Paul’s warning in v2. “Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.” The danger was that people in the church were reverting back to Jewish customs. They were looking backward to their life pre-Jesus, and actually going back to it.
Paul makes it clear in the next few verses the differences pre-Jesus and in-Jesus. (We don’t really ever get post-Jesus, we never go beyond Jesus). It’s there in your outline. Pre-Jesus – Boast in Self, as opposed to in-Jesus – Boast in Jesus. Some of the Philippians were boasting in their own good works to be right with God.

What does Paul do? Well, he looks back himself to where he was pre-Jesus. This is like his CV, a list of all his achievements.
v5 “If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.”

Paul is totally boasting here. And if you were a Jew, you’d be super impressed. Paul is saying he is the closest anyone could be to being a good person. In modern day terms, he is like the Minister’s kid, who can recite the whole of John, who never complains about doing the dishes, who is in our eyes, perfect, especially compared to us. But Paul knows that we shouldn’t be comparing our good works with each other, we actually need to compare them with Jesus.

And so we get to our 2^nd Point – Paul looks upwards.
Paul says we need to put Jesus into the picture, and that changes everything! v7 “But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.” Straight after his immaculate CV, Paul says compared to Christ, everything on Paul’s achievement list is rubbish. His CV has turned out to actually be a criminal record, a loss to his personal standing. The almost perfect Paul says it’s all for nothing. Three things arise from that. Well, firstly, it gives hope to all of us who feel like we were never up to God’s standards in the first place, who have nothing on our CV, who know how far we are from God. Paul says none of that matters, every good work he has done to make him feel more confident in his goodness is just more rubbish on the heap.

Secondly, it humbles us who think we have our goodness all sorted. Oh, we’re from a good Christian family, a good school Christian group, a good church. But that is all pointless if you don’t have faith in Jesus. Those are good things, but they become bad if you rely on them, instead of Jesus. They become rubbish.

And finally, that gets us questioning, what is it about Jesus that changes the playing field so much? Why does looking to Jesus make Paul rejoice, even though it basically meant all he had worked for in the early part of his life was meaningless.

Well, that is answered in Verse 10 “To know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead” Ok, everyone, you need to put on your seatbelts because this verse needs some serious unpacking.

First, to “Know Christ” That’s not to know about Christ or to know of Christ, it is to know him. Like you would know your parents or a friend. Paul knows Jesus, meaning he has a personal relationship with him. That might not seem so special, yeah, Paul knows this dude called Christ, but then.

“Know the power of his resurrection”. Woah, this isn’t some ordinary guy, he rose from the dead! And again, this is Paul “knowing” the power of his resurrection, and this isn’t the objective textbook “ I know the answer” kind of know. When Paul says know the power of his resurrection, he is basically saying “To personally experience the power of his resurrection”. How can he do that? Well this is where we have to answer the question, what is the “power” of his resurrection. What was achieved at the resurrection?

The answer? The defeat of sin and death. We as humans were under a curse for rebelling against God, and enslaved in the reality that because of our sin we would die. What Jesus achieved when he died and rose again was that we were free from sin and death, and could actually truly be right with God. None of this, us ourselves trying to be right with God nonsense, which never worked anyway. The power of Jesus’ resurrection is that it is the power to forgive our sins and make us right with God again. Paul is experiencing the amazing truth that his sins are forgiven and he is now right with God!

The “sharing in his sufferings” is the same idea, even though it might sound a bit weird, actually it’s another reason for great rejoicing. Basically, when Jesus dies, we also died. He represented us on the cross, so his sufferings, his punishment that he experiences, we also experienced, (although not physically). That’s the basis of the statement, Jesus dying on the cross for us. Here it is talking about it in the representative sense. If you don’t get the mechanics, don’t worry, the basic thing is that the punishment for sin is gone away because the death that it required to be paid has been paid by us, through Jesus who was our representative. And therefore we can now “Attain the resurrection from the dead!”

Maybe an analogy will help. Jesus on the cross can be described as the captain of the soccer team. The soccer team is all the Christians in the world. As the captain Jesus represents us. Say, our team did something really stupid, like score 20 own goals. The captain is the one who represents the whole team and resigns. Because the captain has taken that punishment, that team gets to play on normally, because the debt has been paid.

Obviously, with Jesus it is a little different. But basically, the point is that Jesus has the power to save. Look upwards because we are now seated in heaven with Jesus, because of the amazing power of the resurrection that we also personally experience if we trust in Jesus.

But not only are we looking at Jesus up in heaven, we are looking forward to the future here on earth, where we are working to be more like Jesus.

Which is our final point – Paul looks forward.

Paul knows that currently, he isn’t in heaven. Sadly, we aren’t in heaven either. Yes, we know Christ, we know we are saved by trusting in Jesus’ resurrection, but God hasn’t fully completed his work in us yet.
And that gets Paul excited. He looks forward to the future, even when he’s here on earth, where he knows with God’s help he will be moving towards completion in Christ, even though he knows it will only be finished in heaven.
I want to stress that THIS IS NOT A “JESUS SAVES YOU, SO NOW DO GOOD WORKS” message. I’ve got that capitalised in my notes. It is not! That is made clear as Paul says he is “forgetting what is behind”. He has left behind all his rules and regulations that make him right with God.
It comes back to “knowing Christ”. Paul has his eyes on the prize “in Christ Jesus” which means by knowing Christ Jesus, by being in a personal relationship with Jesus.
Paul knows we are not perfect now, but we still do know Christ Jesus. We are still looking at him. And as we look at him we will change. God will change us. With grace driven effort, we can change to be more like Jesus, whom we know. And as we change we rejoice, and we stumble and fall but God continues to mould us to be more like the final product which we will be in heaven, and which continues to spur us on.
To go back to the soccer team analogy, before, we were kicking own goals. Don’t continue to kick own goals! That’s just pointless. You can see your future, in heaven, knowing Jesus, so be transformed to be more like that final day, and rejoice!

So, Paul’s final point, to “rejoice in the Lord” well, it comes from looking to Jesus. Where you see how fruitless it is to rely on your never good enough good works, especially compared to the 100% certainty of salvation found in Jesus’ resurrection. Looking to Jesus, knowing him as your saviour and Lord means we will change. God will change us. But we look to Jesus and see how good he is and we rejoice in that change.

So , I urge you to Rejoice in the Lord, by looking upwards and onwards to Christ. Let’s pray. 

Heavenly Father,
Thank you that we can rejoice. Thank you that we can know Jesus, and know the power of his resurrection, that has saved us from sin and death. Pray that you would change us as we look to Jesus. Help us to rejoice, by looking upwards and onwards to Jesus. In his name we pray, Amen.

Hunger

I am hungry at the moment. It's only 11:30 in the morning, I ate a normal breakfast of Sultana Bran at 7 am, and even ate an apple half an hour ago, but my stomach is still left wanting.

Last Monday, I was on the exact same schedule, exact same breakfast and I was going fine. Even without an apple. 

I was probably more mentally engaged last week, talking to a friend for 2 hours about life and university assignments and different denominations/cults of Christianity; that might explain it. Today I am trying to focus on actually completing a uni assignment which still seems out of grasp, I look at the screen, then my hands, then the screen again, but all I'm really looking at is my stomach. Staring back at me. It is the one controlling me. Not me. 

It's not even real hunger, its totally fake. I know it is. So I want to beat it. I have more rations of food in my bag, which is just underneath my seat, within reach. I could have a stale but filling, cold hot cross bun in my hands within seconds. In my mouth, into my stomach, up back into my brain within minutes. The energy threading through my blood, into my hands, my mind, back into focus over the next hour. 

I haven't really been reading my bible regularly for the past couple of months. I do have time, I don't have structure. I do have resources, I don't have the will. I do have the need, but I don't have the hunger. 

I have been fasting for days at a time, getting weaker and weaker, and even the time I do spend becomes quick hits, jelly beans, or bits of popcorn, instead of a huge serving of lasagna, layered with biblical theology, a right understanding of context, proper application into my life. 

I'm even learning how to cook. I've just finished a preliminary theology certificate in Biblical Theology. I starve myself to feed the kids as Kids Church, at youth group, in my small group, at bible study. That's not how God's word works though. 

Because, firstly, it does work. Without it I am losing to worldly influences. I need the Bible to fill me up, so that I don't waste my appetite on things that will never last. 

Secondly, have I misunderstood the reality of grace? Unlimited, overflowing, amazing, grace? Reading God's word is a joy that God shares with everyone. It's not something that is limited, finite. That's the opposite of infinite. 

I am hungry for God's word. I better go read it now.

Weekend Away

On an Autumn colour Friday evening, 

Our bible study weekend away convening

Lemon meringue pie for a birthday,

Cooked in community, shared with Christian family

Sand kicked up in a morning beach run,

Swimming in God's bath tub with the rising sun

French toast, man-cooked with apples and honey.

Yellowing our teeth, filling our tummy.

Shopping, sleep and ticket to ride,

Hanging our busy-soaked lives out to dry.

Pizza for dinner, it's a winner.

Chewy, a mix of flavours, like our group with different behaviours. 

Chinese Pictionary, our creativity spent

Albert weeing in Sarah's bed.

Eurovision, each act bringing more laughs, 

Waiting for Mauboy and the Aussie Galahs. 

Driving home, back into the world,

But our experiences we'll never forget, they were just swell!

Glory

If you have known me for awhile, you might have noticed that each year I have some favourite words that I like to use. Especially when it comes to describing my relationship with God, since He is so infinite and awesome I end up each year find new things I get fascinated about him.

For the last few months that word has been "glory". I guess it was sparked by a poster advertising an upcoming camp which described humans as "glorious dust". I was just so blown away how puny humans, my sinful self, my meaningless dustful existence becomes "glorious" because of God's grace.

With this word "glory" in my mind, I've begun to look at many things from a different angle. For instance, in December I went on Mission to Narribri (which I did not end up writing a summary as promised in my last post). There I was struck how a country church of farmers and what some people would class as second-rate citizens (although I am definitely not one of them, they are amazing people!) becomes a place filled with God's glory.

Sharing the good news becomes a glorious exercise, as my heart overflows with God's grace and bursts to share it with others. Singing Christmas carols becomes a chance to praise God's infinite glory. Kids church leading turns into an awe-inspiring task seeing little children understand God's glory. Even day to day life becomes a testament to God's glory that flows to me through what Jesus has done on the cross.

God's glory, his glorious presence, his glorious creation, his glorious salvation plan; all so graciously allowing humans to be a part of, so we can experience that glory too.

That's why glory is my favourite word right now.

The little blog that could

First and foremost, a very short summary of the last year in a poem. (Just to put some spice into an otherwise boring life story!)

My final year of high school flew past.
Exams, assignments, study before breakfast.
Captaincy, meetings, then friends and family
All the more relying on God's majesty.

Now I'm back into the blogosphere, I feel like there is so much I could talk about! This blog has become my diary, and I feel if I don't type up my experiences, I will forget them. Amongst the overload of things I want to write, in my head I'm just singing "Just keep writing, just keep writing" (to the tune of Dory's annoying "Just keep swimming" song in Finding Nemo). So here goes quick fire paragraphs to bring you and me up to speed.

First, the much hyped but anticlimactical Hay Stacking Competition. I studied a surprising amount, in the library, making unofficial study buddies through glances across desks to motivate me to continue burying my head in the books. I am glad I did though, because I had been praying that I would study, and that is what happened, so God lovingly lavishing his grace upon me once again. During the exam period (3 weeks! With a 9 day period in between two exams!) I felt supernaturally sustained, through the prayers of all those in my church family. I cannot thank them enough, and thank God for them too. I never felt more blessed to be part of my church, I felt bad ever wanting to leave. 

Second, once my last exam had finally came and gone, my brother, who had just finished his thesis for his degree at uni, and I, left on a roadtrip all the way down to the Great Ocean Road and back along the South Coast. My version of "schoolies", I guess. I loved it, because it gave me something to do, to drive, and I got to see more of the beauty of Australia, and began to understand some of its geography better too. In typical guy fashion, most of the relationship building was subtle, but we did have good conversations too, which was good. I even got to be on the radio, for about 1 second, until my phone reception cut out, (although some say I was deliberately hung up by the radio presenter for blabbering about nothing...)

Third, fixing up all my uni preferences, hopefully going to study Arts/Education at Sydney University to become a high school teacher. I had an interview for a teaching scholarship where the interviewer seemed more interested about my Dad and his mission to Japan than me, but God was in control and the interviewer ended up telling me that just like my Dad I seemed to have very strong convictions that would be great as a teacher, assuring me I'd probably be offered the scholarship, which is nice.

Fourth and finally (alliteration!), I am preparing myself for a conference and mission called National Training Event, which is run by the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students, an organisation that organised Uni Christian groups. I will be going all the way to Narribri in rural NSW after the conference with a Sydney Uni team to help preach the gospel there, running scripture seminars, helping with the church services, and talking to people in the main street. I hope to write a reflection either everyday, or an overall one at the end of the mission, so keep posted.

If you have read this far, good job! I think this post had become much more like a personal diary entry, nothing really interesting or deep, just a blabble about my own life. It may have inspired you to go out and do some more evangelism, if it did, praise God! You can tell me about it in the comments!

Anyway, to end, the title of this post is "The little blog that could" because I think even after a 6 month hiatus, I think this blog with God's help can still be an encouragement to me and others, so I hope to continue it as long as I am able. I am thinking of creating a manifesto or something for this blog too, to define its purpose once again as my life heads in a new direction, but as always, it is your comments and your readership that encourages me to keep going, so thank you!

Creators or Consumers?

For a while I was pondering buying an iPad. The sleek design, the status symbol of the silver apple logo, the cool glass on your fingertips as you swipe your way through all kinds of apps. It was more than a want, it was a need, it felt like I would die without it.

But, I didn't get one. I was close, I went into the store with enough money in my pocket to buy one, but nothing ever eventuated. My 'need' was slowly surpassed by other 'needs' like a banjo or an ebook reader or a jazz guitar. 

My preparation for the purchase was huge. I looked at as many reviews I could find during my spare time, ranging from the "It will just be a dust magnet" to "It will flip your world upside down with its amazingness."

One review though was very interesting. It pointed out the difference between consuming information and creating it. It remarked that iPads were not meant to produce information, only to consume it. For instance, you could watch as many videos and read as many articles very comfortably on your iPad, but to go out and shoot film or to write stories, that was not what the iPad was designed for.

What about us humans? Are we designed to create or to consume?

In Ecclesiastes the writer makes this statement

There is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.

Cynical as it is, it is true. When we "create" things, all we are actually doing is rearranging atoms around that were already there. We are in a spiral of never ending consumption. Fulfilling our wants and needs.

Only God, who created from nothing, can be called the creator. Whether we choose to ignore him or to live for him, everything on this earth is supplied by him. In his grace, we are given the oxygen to breathe, the muscles to move, the earth to nurture, and so much more.

Another crushing blow to my pride knowing that I have no more independence than a child, but my response is praise and thanks knowing that God is love and his grace is never ending.

Spot the difference

"Dear God,

I always put it on my heart to seek you first, and seek the kingdom of God, knowing that you will provide for me. You have so far, I am school captain, I am doing well at school, you have provided everything. But I still feel dissatisfied. I get pressured, I live in a society where everything is about want. More more more!

You give peace, please give me peace now, peace that I may not understand, but that comes from the fact that you are God, and I am not.

Help me to dispel my worries, help me to get rid of sin, help me to become more and more like your son. Help me WANT to become more like your son.

I give my life as a living sacrifice to you, knowing that you know me better than I know myself, and you will ensure my life is lived to its fullest, real fullness. of Godliness, holiness and all for the glory of you.

Thank you for your love. Thank you that you ARE love. Thank you that you showed this love in sending your son to die for us, so I can now pray to you like this now.


Let this prayer and my whole life be lived for your glory.

In Jesus name I pray,

Amen"

"You're an idiot.
I'm busy, you're the one who is on holidays.
Get out of my room, go away, I don't want to help.

I love feeling important. I want that new TV. Why do they get more than me?

I just want to fit in, who cares about anything else. its just a joke!

I have to go (I just don't want to talk to you).
Bye"

Near-death experiences.

Reading Lamentations (I recommend it), and I was challenged by how glorious God is, and how sinful I am. But we are still called to be God's friend and are welcomed into heaven, his kingdom.

Jesus did some serious saving when he died on the cross. And like all human beings, I forget.

We share near death experiences. We can't wait to boast about the day we were poisoned, or the day we nearly suffocated in our sleep, or the time we nearly went on a roller coaster that crashed.

My closest near death experience is having such a bad cough I couldn't breathe. Not much, but I really thought I would die then.

But we we've all had near death experiences that are way more serious than that. We were "dead in our sins" (Eph 2:1). We followed Adam in eating the forbidden fruit, severing our relationship with the giver of life, effectively ending our life then and there.

You say you aren't dead yet? That's just God being merciful. 

But that's where it becomes a "near-death" experience. Because Jesus saves us from that death, he grafts us back into the tree of life, so we can live again, and never fear death again.

So next time you're asked that question, "What's your near-death experience", try sharing that, and see what others think.

God bless everyone!

Christmas Letter

Dear Reader,

Merry Christmas!

How time flies so quickly! It's been over a month since we've last talked; I must admit, life overtook my desire to blog the last couple of weeks. But I miss talking to you, I miss sharing my thoughts, I miss being encouraged by your comments.

I'm writing this with one hand at the moment, because my left hand is a bit out of action. A broken Metacarpal (the thumb bone) means a cast for 6 weeks, all through my precious holidays! God is teaching me patience, dependance on him, and a whole lot more, as I have suddenly got a whole lot more time to spend with him, reading his word and praying.

It is also really annoying though. I planned to have a massive "holiday cleaning" of my room, do lots of study, write a lot, read a lot. Now knowing it will take 2 -3 times longer than usual, I just don't want to do anything! Just sleep and watch movies. 

It's still early stages in recovery (I broke the bone two days ago) so I know there will be even more negatives to come!

I just want to cry!

But then I laugh. Because in all things God is good, he gives me good things, and he teaches me good things.

So Merry Christmas whatever your circumstances. Remember with me that it is a time where we celebrate God initiating his amazing salvation plan that we needed so much!

In Christ,
Tree

Sunburn

Often people associate God with light, and use the sun to illustrate how he illuminates the world with his glory (It's a good pun on Jesus as the "son/sun" too). But, I just wanted to ask, what about sunburn?

There are other things in nature that are good, but have negative effects on our lives too. Rain helps plants grow, but it's annoying when your iPod gets wet. All animals are God's creation, but I don't want to risk my life trying to befriend a lion. Volcanoes help nurture the soil, floods help spread nutrients across the land, and some plants need the heat from bushfires to survive, but all these events do serious damage to human lives.

I've probably got you thinking, but in reality, I can't offer you any answers to these problems. I just got home today, sunburnt, and wondered, "Why am I in pain from God's blessings?".

I've been blessed enough to have suffered little so far in my life, which puts me in a tricky situation when trying to explore what it means to suffer from God's creation. I'm sunburnt, but there are people out there who have lost houses, lost lives, lost everything because of nature.

You might have noticed, but when I don't understand something, or feel I'm out of my depth, I go back to the simple things. I don't know the answers, but what I do know is this.

Jesus said, "God blesses those who grieve, for they shall be comforted."

Jesus acknowledges that people will suffer, but he blesses them, he is with them, and no matter how long it takes, even if it may not be during their life on earth, he will make sure they are comforted. Isn't that an encouraging thought?

Family

Colossians 3. A great passage I read with my friend the other day. The first half is great, but for us, the Holy Spirit engrossed us in the back half.

Firstly, verses 18 to 21. "It's just a bunch of stuff to do!" you say. "Nothing encouraging in there" you say. Well, I see it differently. Let's take a closer look at verse 20.

"Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord."

Look! The first word. "Children". Paul is talking to me! He is talking directly to the kids in the Colossian church. The whole sequence, "Wives" , "Husbands" , "Children" , "Fathers" is one of a family unit. I think that is just great.

Great, because church, even at its beginnings was a family affair. All over the New Testament it talks of the gathering together of Christians. Brothers and sisters, united in Christ. I took that as an only spiritual familyhood until now. Christians are attending church as a family; encouraging, inspiring, and challenging each other. I've been learning that God's love breaks barriers, and this is another example. Imagine a non-Christian household where a younger brother can rebuke his older brother! Very rare. But in a Christian church, that is what we are called to do.

Now, if you look at what he says to each of the groups, you notice another great thing. His words are different for each member. Reading behind the lines you see that Paul is recognising the different roles we have in our family unit. Paul could have just said, "Christian families, love each other" and leave us to figure out how, but he doesn't. By being specific, he is making a statement that family members are complementary, and that our differences are part of God's plan.

My friend and I spent over 20 minutes on those 4 verses, but I'm glad we did. It showed me how families are another one of God's gifts that I would never have thought to ask for, but am blessed with anyway.

To end with, Colossians 3:23 "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters". I'm sure I can let you discover the riches in that verses for yourself. So dig in!

Growth

Q. How have you grown in faith in the past year?

A. You can see my growth in my posts I put up here. I've grown in my love for God.

Q. How have you grown in faith in the past month?

A. You can see here and here, the things I've learnt in the past month, which have kept me growing.

Q. How have you grown in faith in the past week?

A. Um... 

I was asked to answer these questions in a conversation recently, and the last question caught me off guard. I was tempted to say, "I was busy", or "It wasn't a priority" but I knew such excuses couldn't cut it. I had 'paused' my growth during the week.

You could argue that I've been growing enough lately, or if it's only for a week then it's fine, but that wouldn't be true. I am a tree, and I want to continue growing, even if it is by a little bit at a time. I never want to 'pause' growth in my love for Jesus.

A short post today, but only because I feel some other things I want to say need their own post to develop fully. So get excited for next week!

So, what will you do to grow in faith this week?