the adventures of Sammy and a parking meter...

It stands fast, anticipating their return.
The speed of time, like a child expecting termoil;
Primarily tiresome... then it gets fierce.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick, tick, tick.
Mortals glide to their destinations with haste.
Among the crowd, Alas! they have returned;
fed it another token.
It had longer to count;
More life to live.
[source]

On wednesday, I had a very big, crazy, but a day that needed to be had.

I went to a bible study in the morning, and in general conversation, somebody pointed out to me that I really needed to make peace with somebody. At first I just wanted to crawl up into a little ball of shame, but I came to realise that this person had said this to me in love, and it was the words I needed to hear. I got into my car and felt God speaking to me about this, and I really just wanted to ignore it like I had been for well over a month, and think it would just go away. It clearly wasn't, and the fact that I would have to face the person in a few weeks, quite honestly, scared me.

The adventures with the parking meter started after I left bible study, and came into the city to do some odd jobs before going to a friends house. Usually I park in the coles car park, as it is free, and I can park there for 3 hours. But Bendigo is seemingly in a car park crisis, and there were no car parks anywhere! So after chugging up a lot of petrol, and getting out of the car park, I search the immediate area for a car park that I will have to pay for. Even then I have no luck, but I do manage to find one outside the warehouse nightclub, but it has a limit for fifteen minutes.

That doesn't matter, I thought to myself, as it swallowed my 50c peice (it was all I had!) and went to the Camera House for job #1: passport photo. I needed a new passport photo as my home made ones weren't adequate, and I needed to get them in the mail as the price for passports goes up next week by $7. I stand in the quewe for no longer than 30 seconds when I am sat down for a rather unglamorous passport photo. The man said come back in 15 minutes.

Dang, I only have parking for 15 minutes. Ah well, I devised a plan of action! I would go to word (most dangerous store ever), as I had lost my bible. This would kill some time, and then I would go straight to the parking meter, and put a bit more money in.

After selecting a new bible, finding out after I had paid for it that the 20%-off sale starts tomorrow, I look at my mobile and realise I had been in word for 20 minutes. I run two blocks back to my car to put in what change I had, which didn't even give the parking meter 15 minutes, and return to the Camera House to pick up my passport photos. I was there for about 15 minutes.

I also had to take a packet of chips to my friends house for the afternoon. I went back to my car to put more money (I asked for change, I now had an abundance of 20c peices) and ran over to coles. After not being able to find the chip aisle, I settled for a coles brand of shapes, then ran back to my car once again. Funnily enough, there was two minutes left on the parking meter.

I still had to post the passport photos, and I wasnt putting any more money in that meter. All of this commotion had given me a bit of a head ache. I went home and got a disprin and disolved it in some water (as I still am a sook and can't swallow pills), and while trying to drink this, walked around the corner to the post box to post the passport photos (I must have been the funniest sight in all of Bendigo).

Now, I told my friend I was going to be at her house at 12, it was now well past 1pm. I jumped in my car, and drove to her house, her trying to call me twice on the way.

Upon arrival, my friend explained to me that she felt incredibly dissapointed in me that I was so late, and told me I should have called her. At first I thought she was joking, but the seriousness in her voice hinted that she was actually quite annoyed. She later told me that the reason she told me, was because in the bible, it tells you to tell people when they do wrong against you.

There seemed to be a reoccuring theme here.

Later I was thereputically folding brochures with my friend Cara, and I told her about all of this, and said how I planned to make peace at a certain engagement party, she really put it out to me: why am I waiting until then?

Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

- Matthew 5:23-24

God is pretty passionate about being real and about reconciliation. He considers it so highly, that he says, "hey, don't offer me anything, go and make peace with your brother and then face me!" And I guess this has been sitting on my heart, in that, you try and pray, and give your offering before God, and you feel like you just can't because there's something weighing on your heart that you just need to fix.

And so yesterday, I decided to fix it. I sat at my desk and prayed about what to say, and God gave me all of these things and I wrote them all down and took them with me when I visited them, although, they are a pretty busy person, so I am going to meet up with them on monday. It's going to be interesting considering I haven't talked to this person in well over a month, and we used to see each other quite a bit.

just some points

I listened to an interesting sermon on wednesday by a prophetic teacher called Travis Ripley. It was so good I thought I'd blog some random dot points.

• Jesus was corruptable (vulnerable) in the world - but didn't corrupt!
  
• You don't go to church (the building) you are the church!
• It's not so much about who you are, it's about whose you are!
  
• If we're not like him, we won't see him!
  It says in the bible that those who are pure in heart will see God!
• And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. [Romans 8:10]
  We need to stop reaping in the flesh! How obsessed is this world today about satisfying the flesh! Satan has things that appeal to the flesh (and sometimes even the soul!)
  When you are born again, the change will be the spirit living (dwelling) in you! .. and I like this bit: not spiritual 'quickfixes'!
• Jesus prayed or God's will to be done in heaven as it is on earth.. In the kingdom of God, you can't have it your way!
  Satans way lets you have it your way.. but it eventually will lead to death!
• David was a man after God's own heart. He was a worshippin' warrior - soft, but tough!
• When Jesus was tempted in the desert by satan:
  Satan: "C'mon, proove your the son of God, do this, do that..."
  Jesus: "Yeah, I'll proove it! Through obedience to God!"

Sorry if that went over your head, its a part 2, but still had some great stuff in it!

getting my eyes fixed!

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2

Isn't it funny how you're just in a simple, yet theological conversation with someone and 'it' just clicks. And it seems so real that it brings tears to your eyes.

You see, I have a problem, where I can be cynical, or discerning, and I can focus on the problem. With my anxiety I generally have the issue that I will dwell on the anxiety, and look and focus on it, rather than what I really should be doing, and this answer, is found simply in Hebrews 12:2.

Where does Paul say to keep our eyes fixed? Jesus! He doesn't tell us to dwell and dwell on an issue, and trust me there are many, because who does that give the glory to? (I'll give you a hint, it's not God!)

there already is a happy ending...

She has dreams. So many huge dreams that just seem so unreachable right now. She wants to get up, progress and move forward. She wants to just travel around the big city lights. She wants to get on an aeroplane and fly to a distant land.

But irrational fear stops her, and with her perseverence she just seems to freeze and fall down. She fears that everybody will look at her and think that her big, awesome, God isn't so big and awesome after all. They will think she is just one giant hypocrite, that she obviously isn't serving the God she has claimed to. Besides, she has God, why does she have such high levels of anxiety, right? She is convinced that people will see this as a result of the choices she has made in the past six months. What should it matter what other people think?

She falls and feels like the fear paralyses her from any rational thought. She is scared to ask for help, but gives in, cries out, and someone hears. They pick her up, walk with her, talk with her, pray with her, just the sound of the voice of a friend seems so strengthening and renewing.

She then runs into the arms of God, so drained, she falls asleep in his hand, incredibly comforted. All of the stresses and pain and weaknesses she just totally surrenders, lets go, and rests in this mighty hand.

God whispers and reminds her that healing takes time, that He is always near, to meditate on His word and to continuously rest in Him.

Psalm 91

1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”

3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
8 Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
10 No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
11 For He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you in all your ways.
12 In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.

14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
15 He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him,
And show him My salvation.”

Trav vs. Bendigo

"There are some good things about Bendigo... Just because I can't think of any is irrelevant."

- Trav

runaway duck

My mum had a duck. Her name was nit-wit. Sadly, yesterday morning, Nit-wit went missing. My mum has looked all around the place and can't find her. It's very sad. I really loved this duck too. I hope that it has just gone walk about, and will come home soon.

:(