My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus' Name
Chorus:
Oh Christ the solid Rock I stand
All other ground is sinking sand
All other ground is sinking sand
When darkness seems to hide His face
I rest on His unchanging grace
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil
Chorus
His oath, His covenant, His blood
Support me in the whelming flood
When all around my soul gives way
He then is all my Hope and Stay
Chorus
When He shall come with trumpet sound
Oh may I then in Him be found
Dressed in His righteousness alone
Faultless to stand before the throne
Chorus
This song is amazing!! I was singing it on my way into work this morning and it is so true. I realised that no matter what happens in life I have more to base my life on than a job or a relationship...God is the foundation for my life and on him and his promises I will stand!
Monday, September 15, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Stop this train
The thing with life is that you can’t get on and off the train, you can’t press pause and restart things when you are ready for them. Life just keeps on advancing.
Sure you can retreat from your present position to something safer, more comfortable but you can never escape, you can never stop the flow of time, you can only keep on moving and learn to deal with what life throws at you.
Sure you can retreat from your present position to something safer, more comfortable but you can never escape, you can never stop the flow of time, you can only keep on moving and learn to deal with what life throws at you.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Castlewellan Castle
Last weekend saw me heading away with a few youth groups from Dublin to Castlewellan Castle! It was a really fun camp in a beautiful castle. I met some really fun people my age and had some great chats about life and God and the world. It was a brilliant weekend. Since a picture can paint a thousand words here are a few thousand words about my weekend:
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Alive
Due to numerous complaints/requests (depending on how you look at them) I though I would let you all know that I am alive and well here in Dublin. St Patricks day was super fun! I watched the parade, went to an irish dance, enjoyed a port and a cigar and generally just had a great time hanging out enjoying the craic that over flows here in Ireland. For those of you who arent in the know craic as defined by my good friend dictionary.com is: fun, enjoyment, abandonment, or lighthearted mischief; and sometimes in the context of drinking or music. People say things like: 'There was great craic' or 'Whats the craic?'. I have even adapted it to my own likings: 'whats craic-ing'.
This is a photo of abbey!
This is two of my flatmates and me at the local kiwi/aussie pub called the woolshed
I was stoked to be able to find a job and a place to stay within my first week here in Dublin as it is notoriously hard to find either, especially a place to stay. I happened to be out one night in a pub and run into two girls who were in the year ahead of me at Roskill Grammar and they had a room that was coming up for rent. So I jumped at the opportunity and proceeded to go through the rigmarole of applying for tax codes and all that fun stuff. Once sorting that out I was able to relax and settle into my own little slice of heaven in phibsborough, Dublin 7. For reference if anyone feels like sending me mail or a much welcome taste of home then my address is: 99 Connaught St, Phibsborough, Dublin 7, Ireland. I will be at this address until the end of April.
I have also been really fortunate to find a good group of friends through the church that I am attending, Abbey Presbyterian. Its an amazing cathedral that is really beautiful but the numbers are dropping and so they are going through some tough times of looking at where they are heading in the future which is both difficult but also exciting.
This is a photo of abbey!So yeah I have had an awesome time here in Dublin so far although although it is going to be great when I head over to continental Europe for a bit of travelling and then a month in Freiburg, Germany with Campus Crusade and then a week in Korea at CM 2007 which is the first world wide Campus Crusade for Christ conference. So I am excited about what is to come! That will put me back in NZ early July which is now only a few short months away. It will be great to be able to finally hang out with my girlfriend and to be able to pursue a short distance relationship rather than a long distance one :P It will also be really great to catch up with mates and see how they have fared over the past year while I have been away.
Here are a few photos from my time here in Dublin so far:
This is a group of lads from the hostel. Three kiwis and two Italians
This is me dressed and ready for my first day at work!
This is two of my flatmates and me at the local kiwi/aussie pub called the woolshed
Local overground trains
When it snowed at 2am in the morning!!
The Liffey as it heads towards dusk
A local hospital in Phibsborough
The early morning sunrise on my way to work
A local gallery lit up for a display
Grafton St at its quietest. It is one of the main shopping streets in Dublin and on a Saturday it is shoulder to shoulder
ME WITH MY NEW BABY! Literally! Its an SX Baby 1/2 size guitar, perfect for travelling and fitting into overhead storage compartments.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
What is it about my life that people want to have?
Do people want a life that is focussed around abstaining from certain things, practicing certain other things and thriving to be the best I can be with Christ's help? On the face of it you would disagree that this is what many of our Christian lives are like. Yet we can often find ourselves blindly pointing to the bible to support abstaining from alcohol or from premarital sex or profanities without also considering the practical realities behind these issues. We then go on to apply blanket rules to our lives and the lives of those around us either directly or indirectly through our attitudes and reactions. We think that by upholding Christian standards and by living as a Christian people will see something in our life that is different to theirs and ask us about it. Yet I know I live a life that is often typified by restraint where I still live as a slave to my old sinful nature that looks no different to the people I am trying to impact.
I think people desire after something in their lives that frees them from the state of sin they live in and gives them hope that there is something more than just living for today and that there is something out there after they die. People know that the wool is being pulled over their eyes but they don’t know who is deceiving them or why. People that I come across cry out for justice and desire real relationships with people. They want to meet people in their life who are willing to be vulnerable with them, to admit their flaws so that they themselves can be open about their own shortfalls. Yet what I seem to offer them is a relationship with God that is guilt plagued and restrictive. A relationship with a God that I confine to being somewhat of a Father Christmas type or a general who gives me specific orders and yet gives me anything I need and ask for 'as long as it is in his will'. A God who is definable down to a set of doctrines which if one is pulled away, the whole house will come crashing down.
My doctrines about God seem to constrict him (at least in my mind) and restrict those not 'part of the faith' from entering rather than being recognised as things which were written by someone as an understanding of God. Things like the trinity are touted as irrefutable truths yet it is a term never directly mentioned in the bible. I am not setting out to disagree with the core doctrines of Christianity as they stand because at this point in time they appear to be the best way of explaining God and the gospel, two concepts that in the scheme of things I profess to know little about. If in the future a supposedly better way of explaining God was to be found then I would seriously consider it, weight it up against the Bible and then potentially change my point of view accordingly.
I guess what I am trying to say is that I am asking questions about my life and about the church and what people who aren’t already Christians think about these two things. I look at my life and see what I thought were well thought out doctrines and principles weren’t really that well thought out after all. The reasons behind my actions often seem to come out of my relatively conservative upbringing rather than out of an understanding of who I am in Christ and how he has made me. I am struggling with what it means to be a man after Gods own heart and to gain an understanding of just what it means to be a friend of a God who is awesome and powerful and who knows me intimately before I even speak to him. A God who created the amazing universe we live in and each of us for the sole purpose of giving him glory.
I want to understand and know in my heart what it is to have freedom in Christ and live my life from that position. I would love to live a life that is relevant to people yet is distinctive so that through my words and actions they will see something different, hope.
I would love it if all people could understand that despite the seeming hopelessness that they see everyday that all is not lost and that this world, no matter how corrupt or unjust it may seem, will not be destroyed but instead that it will be restored by Christ when he returns.
I want to give wholeheartedly to my local church and to those in need, both in my neighbourhood and in the rest of the world. Yet it seems that no matter how much money or time I give unless people have a relationship with Christ they will still be separated from God when they die and that above all else is what breaks my heart. This is something that I pray I will remain focussed on my whole life.
I commit to the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love people, no matter what, and to desiring to live a life that is marked by freedom and true joy.
I invite you to join me.
I think people desire after something in their lives that frees them from the state of sin they live in and gives them hope that there is something more than just living for today and that there is something out there after they die. People know that the wool is being pulled over their eyes but they don’t know who is deceiving them or why. People that I come across cry out for justice and desire real relationships with people. They want to meet people in their life who are willing to be vulnerable with them, to admit their flaws so that they themselves can be open about their own shortfalls. Yet what I seem to offer them is a relationship with God that is guilt plagued and restrictive. A relationship with a God that I confine to being somewhat of a Father Christmas type or a general who gives me specific orders and yet gives me anything I need and ask for 'as long as it is in his will'. A God who is definable down to a set of doctrines which if one is pulled away, the whole house will come crashing down.
My doctrines about God seem to constrict him (at least in my mind) and restrict those not 'part of the faith' from entering rather than being recognised as things which were written by someone as an understanding of God. Things like the trinity are touted as irrefutable truths yet it is a term never directly mentioned in the bible. I am not setting out to disagree with the core doctrines of Christianity as they stand because at this point in time they appear to be the best way of explaining God and the gospel, two concepts that in the scheme of things I profess to know little about. If in the future a supposedly better way of explaining God was to be found then I would seriously consider it, weight it up against the Bible and then potentially change my point of view accordingly.
I guess what I am trying to say is that I am asking questions about my life and about the church and what people who aren’t already Christians think about these two things. I look at my life and see what I thought were well thought out doctrines and principles weren’t really that well thought out after all. The reasons behind my actions often seem to come out of my relatively conservative upbringing rather than out of an understanding of who I am in Christ and how he has made me. I am struggling with what it means to be a man after Gods own heart and to gain an understanding of just what it means to be a friend of a God who is awesome and powerful and who knows me intimately before I even speak to him. A God who created the amazing universe we live in and each of us for the sole purpose of giving him glory.
I want to understand and know in my heart what it is to have freedom in Christ and live my life from that position. I would love to live a life that is relevant to people yet is distinctive so that through my words and actions they will see something different, hope.
I would love it if all people could understand that despite the seeming hopelessness that they see everyday that all is not lost and that this world, no matter how corrupt or unjust it may seem, will not be destroyed but instead that it will be restored by Christ when he returns.
I want to give wholeheartedly to my local church and to those in need, both in my neighbourhood and in the rest of the world. Yet it seems that no matter how much money or time I give unless people have a relationship with Christ they will still be separated from God when they die and that above all else is what breaks my heart. This is something that I pray I will remain focussed on my whole life.
I commit to the two greatest commandments: To love God and to love people, no matter what, and to desiring to live a life that is marked by freedom and true joy.
I invite you to join me.
Sunday, January 7, 2007
More Useful
I have now entered the domain of blogger because I felt that it was better to be more open to the adapting world of Web 2.0. Here people can comment on my posts without having to give away their personal details to 'the man'.
This post finds me in the State of Virginia about 40 minutes drive from Washington D.C. in the home of a group of fun Christian guys that I met through a guy in California.
Herein lie the potentially life changing events of the last little while:
I survived an expensive yet totally worthwhile trip back to my homeland, NZ!!!. The wedding I went back for was magnificent. John and Libby had their ceremony at the Kings College chapel which is amazing. The bridesmaids looked gorgeous (I am biased though :P) as did the bride, the pastor shared from his heart about true Christian marriage and their vows were really special. The afternoon tea that followed was a great time of catching up with friends I hadn't seen in ages while enjoying the sweet sounds of one Graeme Rogers and his crew.
Later in the day was the wedding reception which was held at a venue called Duda's which has an epic view out over the eastern suburbs and the harbour. The food was excellent and the company was even better. The speeches were both funny and special and conveyed just how supportive both families are of John and Libby and their marriage which is really cool. I was glad that I was able to be at John and Libby's wedding to experience the beginning of something new and exciting. I was also glad I was able to spend some time with my girlfriend Penelope. Unfortunately the reception came to a close fairly quickly which was definitely reflective of how much I enjoyed myself that I got so engrossed in the situation that the time flew by.
Pen and I headed off from the reception to a local pier that looks out over Auckland City. It was raining lightly which added to the romantic feel in the air. As it so happens this pier was the location of our first kiss which I must say was the best of my life to date. We walked out onto the pier and stood and sat for awhile, enjoying each others company talking about the future, the present and the past. I saw an opportunity to ask Pen out and took it. I wanted to convey to her that she is special and that I am prepared to be committed to her through out my time away. Thankfully she said yes!
It was definitely difficult to leave New Zealand knowing that I was leaving behind a girl as great as Pen. I got to the departure lounge and sat and listened to a few tunes on my iPod to pass the time but as the time of departure got closer and closer my heart sank. Emotions started welling up about how hard it would be to be away from Pen and I even had to go to the bathroom and compose myself. I was one of the last to board and I had to fight back tears as I was taking my seat, I was already past the point of no return. Thankfully a talkative American from Oakland sat down next to me and took my mind of the situation for at least a little while. It is still difficult now but it gets a little bit easier each day. I guess the hardest thing is just wanting the other person to be there experiencing everything that you are, seeing all the amazing things hand in hand.
I survived an American Christmas! I enjoyed it immensely! I am glad that I was able to spend some final time just chilling out with my uncle and aunt and cousins before I headed out east and they headed off to Mexico. I even went cruising down a street that had been done up for Christmas, one house had over 100,000 lights on it! Definitely adhering to the ethos of more is better. I also enjoyed spending time with my families extended family, most of whom I met at Thanksgiving. It was definitely sad to leave California. I will always reflect on my time there with fond memories of time spent getting to know what it is like to live the suburban life in California. I am grateful for the people I was able to meet who opened up their lives to me and made me totally welcome during my time there. I will never forget all of you and I hope I will be able to visit again!
Indiana was enjoyable! There I said it despite the skepticism of those who read this it truly was. What made it enjoyable wasn't the multitude of sights to see and things to do (which there pretty much isn't any of either), it was the people. Sam and Jill from Keynote were really fun to hang out with and it was great to have a few familiar faces to flash a smile or a wave to when going to the main meeting of the Indianapolis Christmas Conference. The conference was epic! Think 2500ish college aged people taking over two hotels and a conference venue for 4-5 days and you have a recipe for fun and frivolity. It was also a time where we were all able to connect with God on a deeper level. Tim Muehlhoff spoke about God and what we think of him as well as what to do when we hit hard times. One of the highlights for me was hearing Thomas Abraham speak. He is the Vice President of the Asia and Pacific Region and he spoke with clarity on the four C's of our relationship with God: Conversion, Commission, Challenge and Commitment. During my time at conference I was challenged to dig deeper into God and to rely on him more in everything I do. I felt challenge to apply for a summer project with Campus Crusade in Rome and so I am in the process of doing so and I will find out if they have accepted me by about the end of February.
My time in Virginia/Washington D.C. so far has been epic. The guys who I am staying with have been so welcoming and accommodating, definitely showing the love of Christ to me. I have been in to Washington D.C. twice now and head in tomorrow for my final look at the city. The most memorable part of my sightseeing definitely has to be the various memorials especially the World War II memorial. They are breath taking. You have to see them to believe them. Another highlight is the Natural History museum where I got to see the dinosaurs in person, something every young boy dreams of! I was also lucky enough to see an exhibit of early biblical texts from 300AD to 1000AD. This exhibit was a great remind of just how amazing it is that we have the bible today in its complete form and that our belief system is a historical one not a work of fiction. The exhibits ranged from scriptures written on pieces of papyrus or wood to full on bibles with golden covers and highly detailed art work. I am definitely glad I got to see the exhibit. Last night a large group of us went out to Georgetown which was really cool. It reminds me of Parnell or Ponsonby except it is way flasher and way more expensive to eat out and shop there. I had a great time chilling out with new found friends over dinner and drinks. I even briefly met two English gents who initially mistook me for an Aussie and thought they would have to fend off talk of the ashes series but were delighted to hear that I was a kiwi and that I wasn't going to hold over them the fact that it is highly likely that our boys will win the world cup this year. Definitely a night to remember.
I head off from Virginia on the 10th for NY! I am so excited about it! I am looking forward to spending some time chilling with David in the city that never sleeps, doing and seeing the things that we have previously only ever seen in movies.
This post finds me in the State of Virginia about 40 minutes drive from Washington D.C. in the home of a group of fun Christian guys that I met through a guy in California.
Herein lie the potentially life changing events of the last little while:
I survived an expensive yet totally worthwhile trip back to my homeland, NZ!!!. The wedding I went back for was magnificent. John and Libby had their ceremony at the Kings College chapel which is amazing. The bridesmaids looked gorgeous (I am biased though :P) as did the bride, the pastor shared from his heart about true Christian marriage and their vows were really special. The afternoon tea that followed was a great time of catching up with friends I hadn't seen in ages while enjoying the sweet sounds of one Graeme Rogers and his crew.
Later in the day was the wedding reception which was held at a venue called Duda's which has an epic view out over the eastern suburbs and the harbour. The food was excellent and the company was even better. The speeches were both funny and special and conveyed just how supportive both families are of John and Libby and their marriage which is really cool. I was glad that I was able to be at John and Libby's wedding to experience the beginning of something new and exciting. I was also glad I was able to spend some time with my girlfriend Penelope. Unfortunately the reception came to a close fairly quickly which was definitely reflective of how much I enjoyed myself that I got so engrossed in the situation that the time flew by.
Pen and I headed off from the reception to a local pier that looks out over Auckland City. It was raining lightly which added to the romantic feel in the air. As it so happens this pier was the location of our first kiss which I must say was the best of my life to date. We walked out onto the pier and stood and sat for awhile, enjoying each others company talking about the future, the present and the past. I saw an opportunity to ask Pen out and took it. I wanted to convey to her that she is special and that I am prepared to be committed to her through out my time away. Thankfully she said yes!
It was definitely difficult to leave New Zealand knowing that I was leaving behind a girl as great as Pen. I got to the departure lounge and sat and listened to a few tunes on my iPod to pass the time but as the time of departure got closer and closer my heart sank. Emotions started welling up about how hard it would be to be away from Pen and I even had to go to the bathroom and compose myself. I was one of the last to board and I had to fight back tears as I was taking my seat, I was already past the point of no return. Thankfully a talkative American from Oakland sat down next to me and took my mind of the situation for at least a little while. It is still difficult now but it gets a little bit easier each day. I guess the hardest thing is just wanting the other person to be there experiencing everything that you are, seeing all the amazing things hand in hand.
I survived an American Christmas! I enjoyed it immensely! I am glad that I was able to spend some final time just chilling out with my uncle and aunt and cousins before I headed out east and they headed off to Mexico. I even went cruising down a street that had been done up for Christmas, one house had over 100,000 lights on it! Definitely adhering to the ethos of more is better. I also enjoyed spending time with my families extended family, most of whom I met at Thanksgiving. It was definitely sad to leave California. I will always reflect on my time there with fond memories of time spent getting to know what it is like to live the suburban life in California. I am grateful for the people I was able to meet who opened up their lives to me and made me totally welcome during my time there. I will never forget all of you and I hope I will be able to visit again!
Indiana was enjoyable! There I said it despite the skepticism of those who read this it truly was. What made it enjoyable wasn't the multitude of sights to see and things to do (which there pretty much isn't any of either), it was the people. Sam and Jill from Keynote were really fun to hang out with and it was great to have a few familiar faces to flash a smile or a wave to when going to the main meeting of the Indianapolis Christmas Conference. The conference was epic! Think 2500ish college aged people taking over two hotels and a conference venue for 4-5 days and you have a recipe for fun and frivolity. It was also a time where we were all able to connect with God on a deeper level. Tim Muehlhoff spoke about God and what we think of him as well as what to do when we hit hard times. One of the highlights for me was hearing Thomas Abraham speak. He is the Vice President of the Asia and Pacific Region and he spoke with clarity on the four C's of our relationship with God: Conversion, Commission, Challenge and Commitment. During my time at conference I was challenged to dig deeper into God and to rely on him more in everything I do. I felt challenge to apply for a summer project with Campus Crusade in Rome and so I am in the process of doing so and I will find out if they have accepted me by about the end of February.
My time in Virginia/Washington D.C. so far has been epic. The guys who I am staying with have been so welcoming and accommodating, definitely showing the love of Christ to me. I have been in to Washington D.C. twice now and head in tomorrow for my final look at the city. The most memorable part of my sightseeing definitely has to be the various memorials especially the World War II memorial. They are breath taking. You have to see them to believe them. Another highlight is the Natural History museum where I got to see the dinosaurs in person, something every young boy dreams of! I was also lucky enough to see an exhibit of early biblical texts from 300AD to 1000AD. This exhibit was a great remind of just how amazing it is that we have the bible today in its complete form and that our belief system is a historical one not a work of fiction. The exhibits ranged from scriptures written on pieces of papyrus or wood to full on bibles with golden covers and highly detailed art work. I am definitely glad I got to see the exhibit. Last night a large group of us went out to Georgetown which was really cool. It reminds me of Parnell or Ponsonby except it is way flasher and way more expensive to eat out and shop there. I had a great time chilling out with new found friends over dinner and drinks. I even briefly met two English gents who initially mistook me for an Aussie and thought they would have to fend off talk of the ashes series but were delighted to hear that I was a kiwi and that I wasn't going to hold over them the fact that it is highly likely that our boys will win the world cup this year. Definitely a night to remember.
I head off from Virginia on the 10th for NY! I am so excited about it! I am looking forward to spending some time chilling with David in the city that never sleeps, doing and seeing the things that we have previously only ever seen in movies.
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