I’m too old and unfit to ride waves like these now, but I still like to look at them!
Just wishful thinking
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Monthly Archives: March 2006
Timmis Wisdom?
Today Steve Timmis from Sheffield spent some time with our youth pastors in a conversational mode. In the small time we spent I have to say I liked the feel of what he had to say. He struck me as someone who knew what he was about (both theologically and practically) and wasn’t afraid to have some biffo.
Amongst the things he said were: (I will try to represent him accurately as these are my memories – not verbatim)
– church planting is not just the best form of evangelism, it is the best form of discipleship – because in the missional setting people get stretched and challenged in new ways and are forced to chew thru where their lives are at.
– there is no biblical warrant at all for large church gatherings download entropy free casablanca divx online . There is nothing that can be achieved in a bigger group that cannot be accomplished by a small household group. He said this quite categorically and we had some good conversation / debate around it. He didn’t say it because he is part of a funky emerging church etc. He simply believes it theologically. I am not convinced yet, but look forward to chewing it thru some more.
Tomorrow he is doing a Forge postcards gig and I reckon it’ll be great value. I have been texting people and telling them to get there as I reckon this bloke has some good stuff to share, especially for those of us doing local neighborhood mission.
Where I’ve been
Ok, so the blog has lain dormant for a few days while I have been busy with the Forge intensive and some other stuff.
After many years of being around missional thinking I think I have become desensitised to the impact of teaching that deconstructs old paradigms and offers new ways to think. To me its the ‘same old same old’ now so I need to remember that for people hearing this stuff for the first time it can be quite earth shattering.
Some of the highlights of the 4 days were:
– Danelle’s talk on the priority of love in mission. She was absolutely sensational and we will definitely be using her again at our Forge gigs.
– Hanging out with Hirschy. Al has become a good mate and I enjoy the chance to catch up and chew the fat of life.
– Having a great crowd at the Weekend gigs and seeing the word spread.
Tonight we had a team meeting to reflect on the significance of what we had all heard as well as to to listen for what God may be saying to each of us. It seems the core issue was that of living as disciples and sorting out the implications of that. (Hey – how surprising is that?!)
There has been at least one very radical life change decision as a result and I’m sure more will follow.
Forge finished on Saturday night, but (for a number of different reasons) I finished up with two preaching gigs on Sunday morning – one at 8 AM (ouch!) and the other at 10 AM, so when I got home at 12.30 I was well ready to crash. I slept for 3 hours before heading round to some friend place for a barby and some late night drinks and conversation.
Monday was beach day and veg day. It was a fantastic recovery from the hard driving of the past week and a much needed space to recover and relax. As a new week hits I feel like I am ready to go again.
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I Love a Bargain
The radiator on my Landy has been gradually leaking more and more and yesterday was at the point of not being safe to drive in the hot weather. I was about to drop it in at my local radiator guy, but am very glad I didn’t…
Basically the radiator is shot, so they would have hit me for $520.00 for a new one, plus coolant, plus flushing, plus install… I’m thinking maybe $700.00 at least.
When I rang the first bloke this morning he told me it would take them half a day just to get it in and out. I explained that I could get it out in 15 minutes and wasn’t going to pay them for their labour on something so simple. “Well some of our guys are quick and some are slow” he says. What the?!!!… If a complete noddy can do it in 15 minutes then what kind of cretins work for him?!
I decided to take it out myself and see if it could be repaired. Nope. Cactus! Stuffed. Buggered. A new radiator is $520.00. Unbelieveable! The car is worth maybe $3K so I am not spending that amount. After trying to the local 4WD discounter who could do it for $400.00 I eventually tracked one down at a wrecker’s yard and haggled to get him down to $250.00.
Another 15 minutes work to put it back in and its all good. I am soooo glad I didn’t drop it in or they would have had me at their mercy and I would have paid the $700.00. Who wants to blow that kind of money on a radiator?!
Lent around the Dinner Table
The decision to enter into the Lent period has been already been an interesting one for us as we have chewed over the question of what to ‘give up’ for 40 days.
It has caused us to reflect on what our life is composed of. What is healthy/unhealthy? What grips us and would be hard to let go of…
At present my in-laws are with us and meeting with our community, so they have been co-opted into Lent also! Tonight and last night we sat around the dinner table and discussed our lenten fasts. (Hirschy has been there as well but he reckons he doesn’t believe in Lent!)
My M in law is giving up sweets, my F in law caffiene, Danelle still doesn’t know (she reckons she has no vices so I have suggested she give up ‘self righteousness!) and I have chosen to forego for sweet foods and cakes for 40 days. The discussion around why we chose what we did was interesting and shed some light on who we are. It was interesting making the choice. I realise what we choose to fast from isn’t necessarily a ‘vice’, but i get the sense that there is little point giving up activities that contribute to our health and much more value in refraining from activities that are potentially damaging to our health.
As we sat around tonight I realised that without even trying we had already provoked some valuable assessment of life and personal habits.