LIFE 101 UNDERSTANDING IT ALL

Christian Writers Blog Chain

2012-01-26T23:28:00.002+11:00

Orbit

Karl walked, Word had summoned him, he did not blink, did not complain, this day was obligation and promise, he left his home that was a garden with rich soil, plants grew in care an nurture, all were watered by a stream of gurgling crystal water, the life essence of everything.

Outside Karl's garden the land was unpredictable, bandits roamed looking for opportunity to further their realms, in this realm Karl had to always be on guard, but the memories of home grew an armour strengthened by Word.

It was into this wild unpredictable land that Word led Karl, he walked with steady feet between walls of stone, carved through mountains and down into valleys, there was danger with every step that Karl took, he had enemies, powerful, lurking in shadows that formed the shape of scorpions, who lifted their tails ready to strike but they sensed the time was not right.

Shadows obscure and hide unseen forces who wait for any sign of doubt, they have interest in turning Word's protected to hearts that favour the wild raucous anything goes empires that fight for territory in the land. Karl's only hope of protection is placed in word.

Stone trickles down the side of rock walls as Karl walks past, scorpions lift their tails higher, an attack is planned, some release their barbs, but Karl's armour, fastened with truth, light, unseen by a blind enemy, is able to deflect the barbs that fall to the ground with the pebbles that slide down the chasms walls.

This is the day, come rest with me, bells call, Word call, Karl looks forward to the rest stop where he can join with Word's gathered, there strength, given by word and feast are given, the witness is given, soft gentle nurture strengthens and repairs any cracks in Karl's armour.

This is Word's call, to witness, to love, to be on the frontier, exciting more to be washed in life's water, the road is not always clear, sometimes enemies threaten to overwhelm, but for Karl there is no doubt that Word comes to him, walks with him, and that one day in every seven the light of Word shines, life's purpose to listen to hear, Word speak.

A Gift From The Heart.

2011-12-28T09:50:00.001+11:00

Carey White sat outside in the early morning coolness, this was a nice time of day, she thought, no children yet, just the birds and me, and time to think about another curve the year had dumped.

The curve happened as she was on the way to accept an invitation to a Christmas Eve Service at a Church that was a ten minute walk from the house they lived in, Emma was the first to notice her father Bruce, she was also the first to give him a hug. Kirsty and Andrew needed some encouragement and a nod from Carey to join their sister and give their father a hug too.

Emma was the talkative one, she told her dad where they were going and not wanting to upset Emma and she guessed Kirsty and Andrew, Carey shrugged and said that Bruce could join them. He should have warned her that he was going to show up Carey had thought.

Carey was surprised that children presented the story about the birth of Jesus, for the Christmas Eve Service. Large fabric angels appearing in the roof of the Church at the right moment in the play, impressed Carey, and she was even more impressed when her children were given a bag of lollies as they left the Church. She had not sung carols for a long time either. The night had been good, even if Bruce has tagged along.

Christmas Day was better than she thought it would be, she had managed to save some money and buy reasonable presents for the kids and Bruce left presents too, before he left, he also said he was sorry he left his family six months ago and would like to try to come back into their lives. Before Christmas Eve Carey would not have considered the apology, but after the Christmas Eve Service, she wondered if it was possible to forgive him. Carey realised that she was not the only one who missed him.

The year had been one of change, starting with a bad storm that destroyed the business where Bruce worked, and a boss that felt he was too old to rebuild. Bruce could not find another job in the area, so they had made the decision to sell their house, they could not afford the mortgage with only Carey's part time job. Just after they moved into the rental, Bruce left, Carey knew he had been hurting, but leaving her and the kids, she hadn't understood.

Carey heard the back door open, she knew one of her children was up, Emma was walking towards her carrying a present. When Emma reached her mum she handed her the present and said,
'Santa didn't remember you mum, so I have a present for you.'
Carey accepted her present, wondering what her daughter could possibly be giving her.
'Come on mum open it.'

Carey apologised for being slow and opened her daughter's present. Inside were two feathers, and they were ever so special, because they were a gift from the heart. Carey suddenly realised that this was the second gift from the heart she had received, the first was at the Christmas Eve Service when the Pastor said that the birth of Jesus was about forgiveness. Carey thought if God can forgive the world and Bruce, then perhaps she could work at forgiving Bruce, because forgiveness was a gift from the heart too.

Nine Things To Do Before Christmas

2011-11-29T11:15:00.001+11:00

This is for the November Christian Writers Blog Chain.

1. Think about presents. Christmas is almost 25 sleeps away and time is speeding,

the decision I have to make is do I go

expensive

something a little cheaper

2. Make sure that there is plenty of ribbon and paper to wrap the presents, having one more present to wrap and not enough paper can fray ones nerves.

3. Wrap the presents and hide the presents, because curious children who do not have enough to do, will go in search of the presents. If children, big and small find a wrapped present the hope is that they can resist the temptation to unwrap the presents on finding them. The waiting is important, we should remember the generations from Adam to Joseph, their hope was waiting for a promise to be fulfilled.

4. Decorate a Christmas Tree, if you are Lutheran you can claim that Martin Luther was the first to decorate a fir tree, Luther used what was available, but now we can choose between real or artificial,

small

or large.

5. The Menu. Once there was only one choice. The custom for Australian families was

turkey,

with vegetables.

but if you decide to pardon the turkey, or you just don't like turkey what else can you have?

Seafood,

this is so much better on a hot day and easier to cook on the barbecue eaten with

salad, is delicious.

6. Drinks, there is not much celebrating without drink, what to get, water .... soft drinks... or.... yes we have to get something nice, a good wine perhaps

7. Remember, I remember the years when I took two young children to visit a man in a red suit

for a photo, one was enthusiastic the other not so, at the age of four he could not see the point of having to sit on the knee of a man in funny clothes. At age five he said no, that was that. But is that all there is to this season of festivity?

8. I need to take a break to recover from the list of things to do. Have a coffee and sit down for a while, admire the view and think about the question I asked in point seven.

Yes, that reminds me of what all this preparation is about; that God's promise was fulfilled, not in elaborately decorated buildings but in a stable. The first to see the promise given were the animals in the stable, then the shepherds came; responding to an amazing message given to them by angels.

9. Light a candle,

Advent has begun, we prepare and look forward, remembering the promise that God's gift to man is with us.