Apr 25
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
I am currently struggling with the whole work , family and general life balance.
I have the opportunity to start two new jobs which pay good money. If I did these 5 days a week I could be earning up to $100000 a year.
That would mean we could get a house loan and buy lots of stuff, every Australians dream apparently. But the flip side of that is my kids would have to be in after school care till 5-6 PM every night. I would be tried and grumpy all the time and my house would turn into a disaster!
Also I have a huge desire to work with marginalised men and women in my community and I cant do both. I find myself being pulled in two directions:
The consumer side of me that loved spending 3 hours at Ikea with a friend last Sunday, where you can buy everything for your house including beer and meatballs, at very low prices and impulse buying reigns supreme whispers go for the money imagine what it will be like……….
The side of me that cries overtime I see a homeless person or feels compassion for struggling single mums is disgusted in this and warns of the waste of my life and the gifts I have been given.
What to do?
How do you know when the balance is right?
In this consumeristic world it takes so much effort to row up stream and there is very little positive affirmation for it from the wider community.
I really do know the answer of course and its not in the money or things. I have never had to choose before. I think this might be my cross roads.
Apr 23
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
Don’t be fooled by the blond hair, blue innocent looking eyes and cute smile what is within can only be described as pure evil!
But seriously. I was just replying to emails and writing in this blog and I thought Tilly was quietly watching ABC kids. Oh how I was wrong! I had to write about it to stop myself from being very mad, you know put some distance between me and the event.
What’s so bad? She was “cooking” With flour, milk and bread and other stuff she had helped herself to from the cupboard. It is everywhere, sticky wet lumps of glue like substance on the table, floor, microwave and of course on her!
This is just the latest in many disasters created by out youngest “little angel”. They include cutting her fathers book cover up with scissors, drawing on the couch and painting her toenails and bathroom floor ,the list is endless
This combined with and iron rod will that expresses itself in loud highpitch screaming and jumping up and down when she is not getting her own way regardless of where we are or who is watching leads me to conclude God has played a trick on Matt and I, who thought we had some idea about parenting, to prove that we do not and I am doing something very wrong. HELP!!!
I get more and more insane by the day and more and more sure that parenting is too difficult and requires more brains that I have! Oh well I had better go clean up………..
Apr 23
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
As we sat down to share communion as a family last night, a ritual we do most nights, I realized that yet another Sunday had gone past without us attending a formal church service. I said as much to Matt and we chatted about how amazing this was. We were once they type of Christian who was at church twice a Sunday even if ill and who’s live revolved around people in the church. I thought people who didn’t do this weren’t real Christians and needed to get their live on track. I now think of that as churchianity and that it was I that was perhaps not acting very Christ like. There was no room for private worship or meditation and life was full of inauthentic relationship and programs. I had no real time for people or their needs and found myself often letting people down because of it. Since I have left this rigid routine life my relationship with God is stronger and more natural and is centered around him and me, not me, the church, with God hanging around waiting for some attention. I am happier within myself than I have ever been and really feel that I know what it is I am meant to do on this earth. I have time to build real relationships with people and spend time with them. Why is that? I believe it is because life as a Christ follower is not about church at all but about living everyday in communion with others sharing life’s ups and downs, being real and loving God and people . I am not alone so many people I talk to these days say that they want to be spiritual and have a relationship with God but as far as church as an institution they do not want a bar of it. Don’t get me wrong I still believe that we need to fellowship with other people who share like minded beliefs, and we do. Just not in a way that puts God or church in a box with rules and regulations. All members of such a community must be free to have opinions, ask questions and decide the path they wish to travel on without judgement, rejection or ridicule. “Love one as I have love you……” must be how we measure our interactions with each other it is how Jesus said we would be recognized as one of his disciples.
Apr 23
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
On Saturday night the last episode of West Wing was screened on ABC. It is the only TV program I have ever watched every episode of. It has been running nearly as long as I have been married and frankly I am devastated. The point is these people, and yes I am well aware they don’t actually exist, have become part of my life, I feel like I know them personally. I cried allot as the credits rolled for the last time. Is there something wrong with me? My parents were the same with a show called As time goes bye often commenting to each other about what Jeanne or Lionel, the main characters, would do in a particular real life even. Why is it that TV does this to us? Is it the mark of a good drama or is it the telling tale of how bad our society has got that we have relationships with pretend people? Don’t know but I tell you this I will miss my Saturday night meeting with the leader of the USA and his staff.
Apr 16
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
We had family and friends around Good Friday for an Easter celebration of sorts. Not very formal, eating and drinking mostly with the focus on socialization. I was a little concerned about how some of these people would get on as they were from vastly different backgrounds and economic states. What happened was great. Unlike church Easter events I have been involved in in the past where every interaction is contrived and people are labeled “churched” or “non churched” and socialization is all based around the Christian looking for a way to get God into the conversation, here we were a group of people who were choosing to spend time with one another. It was all quite natural. My uncle, a professing atheist listened as Matt shared scripture and even took part in the breaking of bread.He even went as far as to take the scriptures home to read later as he had difficulty hearing Matt. New friendships were formed without Matt and I needing to do anything. It is what I have come to understand church is really about. No need for fuss or hype or long drawn out sermons just people, love, food and the word of God.
Apr 10
2007
lou| Category: Uncategorized |
As those of you who also read my hubbys blog (shmatt.com) will already know in March 2006 we started on an quest to follow a dream that God had implanted in Matt’s heart many many years before. With our three beautiful children (above) and as much stuff as could be stuffed into our sedan and no fixed place of addresses to go to we left quiet comfortable rural Tas to come to huge overwhelming Melbourne. 12 months has passed and we have had quite a journey. God has been constant and amazing in his provision and clear guidance. From providing us with a house, a house full of furniture practically for free within 1 week of our arrival and good jobs for us both to connecting us with people only the way He can. This initial post would be 1000s of pages long if I was to record what has happened in a year but maybe the thing I have been learnt during this year is that life is an adventure and if you don’t venture into it you will never gain anything.
So sticking to the theme of nothing ventured I step out and begin my life as a blogger. I hope some one somewhere will enjoy reading this- but if not at least I am enjoying doing it. Over the coming weeks I would like to share my dreams for working with marginalised people (particularly woman) in my city so stay tuned.
