Jul
30
2007
Heh just on the side, we have finally jumped on the HDTV bandwagon, with the first new TV to be purchased in our house in the last 25 years.
It has also been combined with a spiffy little Home Theatre PC for other multimedia and iTunes goodness.
Jul
23
2007
Well after what was effectively a two week paid holiday in Melbourne, it is back to reality in Brisbane. The two weeks I had down there were an excellent chance to simply take a break and make use of the time through some good reading and reflection.
It was not very far into the course when my other course mates began to head out onto town and conduct themselves in a less than ideal manner. I was surprised at this seemingly mindless behaviour from the vast majority of the group given that I seldom encounter it in my normal environment at home. At first I came to the conclusion that this group, and the broader Army must be, in general, more “morally flexible” and prone to poor behaviour when compared to the rest of society. Towards the end of the course however I developed the feeling that this may not actually be the case (Even though I believe that Defence encourages seriously damaging social behaviour patterns).
My theory is that this is simply coming as a realisation that morality informed by a classical Christian worldview is becoming increasing counter cultural. This can also be seen in the continuing unwavering commitment that both sides of Australian politics seem to have to economic rationalism.
That said, if we take what is found in scripture seriously, this should not be surprising.
2 Timothy 3:10-17
You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance,
(11)persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.
(12)In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
(13)while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.
(14)But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it,
(15)and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
(16)All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
(17)so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Either way, it was a good break none the less and it is also good to be back to reality.
Jul
12
2007
I have been reflecting upon my weekend at Chrysalis and had the additional thoughts about the weekend.
In addition to what was written earlier, I really think that Chrysalis and my trip to Melbourne came an I time when I really needed them. Simply put, Chrysalis was an excellent chance to rediscover the first love, prayfully re-connect and recharge.
I have also found, with some of the books I have been reading down here, combined with the reflections on Chrysalis that this is a great time to recommit to maintaining a deeper and more committed spiritual life, seeking to be closer to God. It can be quite easy to get very tied up with the doing within the Church, such that simply “being” can suffer from some neglect.
Coming down here to Melbourne for Army has given me an excellent chance to do something else which I slowly been getting out of the habit of and that is to simply pause, be prayerful and to listen.
I feel that these simple things will be very helpful in moving into a more full time ministry job, because if left unattended could have lead to significant spiritual fatigue. I think that the following sums it up quite well.
Hebrews 12
(1)Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
(2)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.
Either way, I am very much enjoying this time down here as a break from reality and a time to stop, read, reflect and listen. (The listen bit being that which can suffer the most during a busy schedule)
Jul
9
2007
Well as I am on my flight to Melbourne I thought I would take the chance to reflect on my Chrysalis experience while it is still fresh in my mind.
Well after getting off to a bit of a false start last year with Chrysalis, I have finally experienced it. The bit of back story surrounding the false start is that I was asked to go (ie: someone offered to sponsor me to go) last year, but I had also been called to attend the 11th National Assembly, preventing me from going. While I felt bad for missing it at the time, with inherent guilt that is associated to saying no to sponsorship, when looking back over the last 12 months, I do believe that it was providential and that last year was not the right time.
The weekend itself is built around a combination of extreme service to the attendees, table group Bible studies and worship. There were also a number of additional times of prayer and periods of reflection throughout the duration, as well as a sharing of communion. The weekend also includes a candle lighting service as well as receiving of letters from friends and family at the end of the weekend. The thing that needs to be mentioned about Chrysalis is that it is (or I found it to be) a very experientially orientated event. Hence why it can be difficult to fully articulate exactly why it was very good. The letters from friends and loved ones coming at the end of the course were also very challenging and powerful, but I am unsure as to exactly why this was so. None the less, they were very much appreciated.
One of the other elements that was present in this activity that I believe to be very valuable is the fact that it is a lay run event, with only minimal guidance from clergy. I thought that it was fantastic to see people who have been impacted by previous Chrysalis experiences being given the chance to participate in the ministry over the course of the weekend. In short, I think that they will likely have gotten just as much out of it, if not more, than many of the actual participants for whom the weekend was being run to serve.
With the prospect of moving into full time service constantly on my mind, I think that this weekend came at an excellent time to simply stop, reflect and refuel. Simply put it feels very much like someone standing upon a mountain range looking out upon an unknown land into which they must enter, as opposed to staying put somewhere familiar. While I am very much excited and do feel that it is the only thing that I can do, there is the anxiety that comes with departing from the area of work in which I have studied for since the middle of high school, but also in choosing a separate path to those with whom I have shared so much of my life. While I know that they will still be there, it still saddens me greatly that I may not be there to share with them in their professional life, especially given that this has been a primary area in which I have been able to maintain contact with these peers. The same thing can also be said of those who I have come to know through my work in the Army Reserve, which it becoming increasingly apparent that will not be able to co-exist with the schedule of full time ministry.
At the same time I found this to be a valuable weekend of affirmation. The emphasis placed on showing Agape (the Love of God) was surprisingly challenging. I was constantly amazed by the love shown towards the participants, which when considered is also only a dim reflection of that shown to us every minute of the day by the Lord. The other unexpected surprises came from the interactions with the leaders those who were on course with me. I was further surprised and impressed with the actual Chrysalis/Emmaus community who were present to support us at various points during the three days. I think that remembering that these networks of supportive and loving people are present in the church is of great encouragement when moving into such community orientated work.
We were also given a considerable amount of little thingies throughout the duration, and and the end got given one of these: (which all those who had done Chrysalis prior seemed to have)
As much as I am loathed to be going straight to Melbourne after doing this weekend, I do think that having a break from busy life, like the break found when on course with the Army, will be highly beneficial. I get the feeling already that this is one of those camps/experiences which continue to have impact as they sink in over a period of time.
Fly with Christ.
Jun
29
2007
Well it was that time of year again where 200 odd of the primary school kids (and 100 odd other bods who are leaders for the week) descend upon the Allawah Scout campsite for Day Camp. It is also the time of year when many of the young people from churches between Ipswich and Indooroopilly all converge on a single location and continue with a conversation that they were having 12 months ago. It never ceases to surprise me how people seem to come out of the woodwork every year for this as there are many people who just keep coming back. Equally impressive is how quickly everyone seems to scatter after the event. Perhaps it is all a bit much and they need 10 months to recover.
That said, being the ecumenical idealist that I am, I really think that it is great when the people from the local churches all get together to run a local event. I really think that this whole deal of doing work within your own community in which you live seems to have been forgotten of late. It is also a great opportunity for the Youth of the area to network with others within their community (specifically those outside of their individual church) and be part of the wider church as opposed to operating in their own little world within their congregation. Furthermore this is an excellent example of a large scale even that is organised and run by the lay people within the churches, not just the paid staff.
What was equally impressive was the rain that we got on Tuesday, which lead to the main assembly tent breaking and needing to be replaced. In amongst the cars sliding sideways in the car park (thankfully no-one was hurt) and the kids getting a bit feral after being kept within a relatively confined space for 5 hours, the day worked out really well. The bonus from this rain is that we got to swap the usual dust clouds for mud, much more fun and less irritating (even if it can be a touch dangerous and slippery)
I also got a chance to give my shiny new car its first real use and also get rid of a bit of that shiny new-ness about it. Overall though it fared very well and still looks new.
Overall through, it was an excellent week and I very much look forward to next year.
Jun
26
2007
It is quite funny. About 3 years ago I go this idea in my head that I wanted to save up for a car. The problem was that I was still working at Pizza Hut and earning next to nothing. More recently I have working for the EPA which allowed me to save some money over the last 18 months.
What else is funny is that prior to the start of June, I was not actually looking to buy a car, instead looking to wait until about December to do this. It was pointed out to me however that if I were to make said purchase before the end of the financial year, considerable savings could be realised compared to if the purchase was made at the end of the year.
I had decided some time ago that I would very much prefer to get myself a diesel car, due to the increased efficiency and the fact that they are cleaner to run. I was looking at getting myself an VW Golf but the biggest problem with them seemed to be that they were in extremely high demand. Because of this, dealers were very resistant to any form of bargaining, because they obviously knew that they would simply sell it to someone else. So I ended up looking at the Astra diesels.
Anyway, the result can be seen here.
And parked in a dodgy shelter (made up of 2x $29 shelters 
)
Overall I am quite happy with the car so far and it is working very well. Apart from the wanky sounds that are associated with having a turbo, it doesn’t sound that different to a normal petrol engine once you start moving.
I will just have to make sure that I don’t accidentally fill it up with petrol.
Jun
23
2007
Well I have finally come to the end of my period of work for the Environmental Protection Agency. I have to say that getting ~18 months of work out of what was originally a 10 month QUT industry co-operative placement is not bad at all. Furthermore, due to my working full time for this period, I can now be deemed financially independent through Centrelink. (which can be handy)
Overall though I think that I have learned a lot during my time with the EPA, the sorts of things that you can’t really learn in lectures, but that all students should really know before they graduate and move into full time work. One concern that I do have is going back into full time study. The biggest advantage that I saw with full time work was that you didn’t really need to take your work home with you, very much unlike uni, and you were then free to do things in your space time. This was extremely useful for the voluntary youth work that I am involved in as I could easily commit to things well in advance and not have to worry about an assignment or exam popping up.
Despite this, I still really need to get around to finishing my course. I found that attempting to do full time study + army reserve + Youth Work + EPA part time didn’t really work very well. Hopefully this semester will be a bit less crazy. Either way I am still on track to start a ministry traineeship next year out here, which should be interesting. I just need to get as much of my degree out of the way as quickly as possible. (4/5 years through it would be a bit foolish to simply not finish it)
Oh yea and the other advantage of working full time for 12 months while still living at home is that it makes larger purchases, like a car, much more feasible.
Jun
18
2007
With all this rain that Brisbane has been getting over the last few days, our shiny(ish) new rain tank + system has gotten its first real use since about February this year. The biggest shame was that it only took about 1 day for the tank to full itself completely but it then took about 10 days to run itself dry. It will be interesting to see how much of an impact this has on the overall water usage for the quarter when that bill comes, given that our usage was effectively zero during the 10 days where the tank was full.
The tank + Rainbank system has so far worked really well, automatically switching itself on and off as there is water available in the tank. The UV steriliser + other filters should also keep the water all nice and clean.
Would be interesting to see how many of these systems the government could deploy into homes for the same price as it costs to build one dam….
May
24
2007
<p class="MsoNormal">I recently started using Vista Ultimate on my laptop. So far, I am very happy with its performance but there has been an ongoing issue that I have been experiencing with it while using it at uni.
This problem was that certain web sites or network resources would not load correctly over the wireless connection while at QUT (eg: pages like <a href="http://www.whirlpool.net.au/">www.whirlpool.net.au</a> would half load and then hang). It worked fine at home and on other wireless networks. I had seen similar problems at work and they were generally MTU related. The issue was however that the Vista uses path discovery to discover the required MTU settings.
I believe however something to do with the QUT network (possibly the use a transparent proxy ) was somehow stopping this from working correctly.
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p class="MsoNormal">The reason why this issue has never manifested itself until now is because the installation of the Cisco VPN client forces the MTU of all network adapters to 1300 upon installation.
The issue that was then found was that Vista doesn't allow you to edit the registry in the same way as XP did. However, after a bit of searching on the net, I came across the following commands that will allow you to set MTU under vista.
<strong>To view the status of your network adapters
(ie: to view the MTU) you use the following command:
netsh interface ipv4 show subinterfaces
<strong>And to set the MTU of the desired interface:
(setting my wireless adapter to 1470 in this case, this max MTU was found by performing a ping with the do not fragment flag set and finding the max packet size, eg: ping -f -l 1470 www.qut.com)
<font color="#ff0000"><strong>The following was run in an a command prompt that was run as administrator.
netsh interface ipv4 set subinterface "Wireless Network Connection" mtu=1470 store=persistent
After setting this, I found that everything worked fine. Happy days..
Hope that this can be helpful.
May
23
2007
Well after 5 days away up at the Alexandra Headlands camping and conference centre, Synod is over for another 18 months… well… sort of… I will get to that later. Either way, I am back and it is back to life as usual.
After attending the 11th Assembly last July, I thought that I knew approximately what I was going to be in for. This was found to be the case in some ways, but in others this was a very different experience to that had less than 12 months at Assembly. One major difference that was apparent almost immediately was that it would appear that the average age of those at Synod was significantly lower than what was present at Assembly; with far more under 40’s attending. The way in which proposals were brought to the Synod also seemed to be quite different to the way in which they were handled at Assembly, with those at Synod being much more report orientated.
I also found that another really great thing about Synod was that it was a great opportunity to catch up with others from throughout the state who I have met on various other Church events over the last year or so. In addition to this, it was good to meet others that I had not previously met.
One part of the Synod which was particularly good was the recognition of those ministers who had retired since the previous Synod meeting. I thought that this was really good to recognise those who had been preaching the word for multiples of my lifetime. At the same time, it was great to meet and talk to some of the ministry candidates and people starting doing ministry traineeships. It would have been a good lesion in Church Government for them but at the same time I thought that it was really good to recognise those who had come to the end of their ministry, while at the same time being able to see the next generation who are just starting out (or just about to). Very encouraging.
There was also significant time to be spent getting to know other ministers from throughout the state depending on which table you happened to find yourself at on any given day. I was lucky enough to sit down with two very interesting people, one a Minister of the Word and the other a Lay leader of a faith community (who happened to be sleeping in the same dorm as me too). This was an extremely valuable time as we shared about our local ministries and they offered their wisdom. I have to say that this would be easily the most significant thing gained from attending larger scale church meetings (ie: Synod and Assembly) because it is not often that you get to spend 5 days living in the company of so many in Gods ministry with such a broad range of experience and backgrounds. Spending this time sharing with such people and seeing what God is doing all over the state and country is a really significant blessing.
Getting back to that comment about no more Synod for 18 months. It is not entirely correct. Due to some of the decisions made, we will actually have to get back together for a Special Synod sometime in the next few months, which could be quite interesting in itself.
Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent at Synod. I found it to be extremely edifying and am thankful for the privilege of being able to experience it (and Assembly) and are thankful for that. Being under 25 though, there should be no issue attending the next Synod either.
In the mean time, might have to look into a period of discernment…
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