Hello everyone!Coming to you from the shelters of family life in Christchurch! Here are a few things that have happened in the last two weeks. I have finished my BLS training! score! I surprised alot of people by arriving to dinner clean shaven! I moved into the Guys flat instead of living in the Hyatt (with girls) The hyatt is a group of recycled offices that were converted into bedrooms (they are prefab buildings) and I watched the departing snowboarder school leave for outreach. We have 3 teams going, Malaysia/Turkey, Queenstown/India, and Jordan. The Queenstown team will be staying for a night on base before leaving to goto India (in about two weeks?)
While we were sitting down in the guys flat we had a talk about what rooms we would stay in. We begun praying to find out if God was to say anything about it, and then began to discuss. While praying I felt like my flatmate, Kent, shouldn't have to move if it came to it. The other thought that came to mind was "I would like to be in the same room as Matt" (who had just arrived) The less obvious would be, that I would have to stay in the same room because of beds - since the bed that I was sleeping on can't be moved. So when we were discussing where everyone would go, I was able to be honest. Everyone of the little nudgings was answered, and we are now in the places we all want to be. While discussing, it was funny how everyone got the places they wanted. I had thought "I don't want Kent to move, because I want to serve him" and that, in addition to staying in the flat, was answered.
All the students that were supposed to leave on Outreach did - miraculously at the last minute everyone's outreach fees were paid for! This really became obviously amazing when I thought about how each would be going away very soon. God really is in no pressure for us to move until it's the right time. I managed to get into Oxford very early on the Monday morning, catching a ride to Rangiora, and managing to get to the worship in the morning just after it begun at 9am. When I got there, I was free as a bird, like I didn't care what people would say, I am free! free from peoples expectations. It was a peculiar feeling! Then I started dancing and joyfully singing. By the end of the meeting, I realized God loves me. That means what it says. This is rest.
What you do when you don't have to do anything is what happened for the rest of the weekend, preparing fallow ground, and waiting for the hand of God to pick me up and take me somewhere. As I write this it strikes me how amazing God's love is, it must be very ferocious. This past week, staff have arrived, and started BLS training for another season, I will not be joining them this time, as I have already finished it. The staff are coming in from all over, whether base staff, or joining the Backpackers or Justice schools. We are all a big family here! Students will be arriving close to the beginning of October, when the schools start. We are looking ahead to a Spirit-filled and restful time on base here - sustained by God's glory. Also, I will be applying to staff the next Around the World School in February,2012, this is where God is leading me to lately. O the joys of praying in my greatest dream!
"I was free as a bird, like I didn't care what people would say, I am free! free from peoples expectations." love it Nathan. That's what I love about you, and it is something that I think many of us wish without stating it! ... Keep up the blogging mate, ... you have blessed me through it.
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