Good Friends

It has been so great having the Taskers with us since last week. Seeing close friends has been a great encouragement- lots of fun- and has reminded us how good friendship is. We have been excited to hear more about Nath and Cass's work and life in Nashville- and it has been great to share with each other about change and starting a fresh in a new place. Again the world seems smaller and as Nath played at our church, it was a joy to think sbout being united in the same purpose- even when a long way away from each other. We had some great chats- it's so good to talk to people when you know each other's history.

The kids loved seeing Nath and Cass- F has added a new word to his vocabulary- "AWEsome"- apparently learnt from his god parents! He also told me he was feeling 'a bit sad' this morning because 'I miss Nath and Cass'. Thanks guys for hanging out with us and for enjoying our family with us.

Nath and Cass are doing amazing work- they are telling the good news of knowing God where ever they go- 'in and out of season'. We felt inspired and spurred on and hope and pray that they continue to be faithful to the Lord Jesus.

Some for the Grandparents

Dressing Up

John 9

I have just come home from Bible study and thought I would jot down a few thoughts- for my benefit as much as anyone else's. We have been studying John- which has been a big challenge- and I feel like I have been seeing Jesus a fresh- and being encouraged and challenged to 'look Jesus in the eye' rather than have him sit in a box that I have made for him. The pharisees have always been the bad guys- but it's amazing to be challenged by the ways that I so often fail to see Jesus for who he really is, and wholly depend on him for my every need- and so become pharisaic.
Today we looked at the blind man in chapter 9 whose eyes were opened by Jesus in more ways than one. It was so obvious in looking at this whole passage- the intimate involvement that Jesus had in bringing this man to himself. It is humbling, as well as uplifting to know that everything we see and understand is because of God- showing himself to us. The moment we become dependant on ourselves- self righteous in any way- we are losing sight of Jesus- and become lost in the same darkness that the Pharisees were floundering in. I am so thankful that Jesus has opened my eyes and is continuing to help me to see and understand new truths about himself. I have also been challenged afresh to pray for those I know whose hearts are hard- that God will do the softening and that I won't feel like this is my job. I guess I just pray that God will use me to display his great work (Jn 9:3,39)- and that I will be bold- knowing that it is he who does all the work and that he is far more powerful than I.
Very simple things- but refreshing. The Holy Spirit is amazing- the way he works in our hearts and minds.

Visitors

It has been so great to see friends and family from Australia over the past few months. Ally, Chris and Jono from Kellyville dropped in for lunch in January, and Marty came to stay for a while. It was great to catch up briefly with Ken and Julie- their visit came at just the right time. Amy and Rory came up from London for the weekend- and we enjoyed catching up with them.
We have had Andrew's folks and mine stay which was lovely. It was so good for the kids to see their grandparents again- they loved it and seemed to pick up where we had left off.



We have a day bed which converts to a double in the playroom in the loft- so the kids have had lots of fun invading their visitors in the early hours of the morning!!
The Taskers are arriving this week- can't wait to see them.

The Last Few Months

Thought I would just post some pics which give you an idea of some of the highlights since January for our fam. Someone said we needed more photos! Does anyone know how to turn the photos??


Fun in the snow!

Andrew on his way up to the church.

Winter Sunshine.

A walk with Granny

The ruler says it all (super tool)! Andrew and Geoff have been doing some DIY- very handy.
As for the Vegemite- Andrew mentioned something in one of his sermons about Vegemite- and we now have about 8 jars of the stuff in our cupboard- including jars that were bought for us on ebay. Wish I was more keen on it. I have since discovered the availability of such Aussie treats including Tim Tams in Sainsbury's- our local supermarket.

Happy 3rd Birthday!




Holiday in North Wales

A New Family

Making a move to the other side of the world with your family is far less daunting and scary when you come into a new community of God's people. While we are missing the depth and history of or friendships and family relationships back home, I have begun to make friends at church quickly and we have felt welcomed and accepted. It's so great to have people around you who you know have such a big thing in common with you. It makes the world seem smaller somehow- and reminds you of God's hand in this world- rather than just in our little bubble.

I thought I'd mention a few things about our new church.... Christ Church Fulwood.

We are part of quite a big evangelical Anglican church- there are about 400(??) people at each of the morning services and more in the evening. There is a plan to plant a new church in 2009 and they have just employed a new minister to get this underway.
Andrew has been doing heaps of preaching- So far this year he has looked at Ephesians, 1 Kings, John, Life Without Jesus (work and relationships) and a few other one offs. His sermons are on the website. One of his other main responsibilities is small groups- and there are about 40 of them which he has been out visiting most nights.
For the first time in a long while I have been hearing the sermon and sitting right through the service without interuptions from kids which has been fabulous. I have been so encouraged and challenged by the teaching- and the kids are loving singing and playing in Toddler creche. With so many kids- the children's work here is runs like a well-oiled machine. It's exciting to hear F & J come home from creche singing 'God Created Me' and chatting to the man in the shop about Jesus dying on the cross. That's what it's all about!
There are lots of groups for me to fill my week with. I go to a women's Bible Study group Tuesdays and a Toddler group on Wednesdays. And I have just started in a book club/reading group- which is more of a social thing- to chat and think about books we're reading- with some girls from church. F has just started going to Playgroup (preschool) which is run by the church and is great. He is loving it- and the ladies who teach him are wonderful.

I am just starting to get involved in things at church. It has been fantastic to have a few months just to settle in and not to have any other responsibilities other than our family- but I'm looking forward to preparing Bible studies again soon and helping out with Toddler's group.
In summary- so far- we have found the people and staff here to be really great. The hardest thing has been just having SO many people to get to know and having most of our spare time filled with dinners and lunches- which are all great- but it's hard to fit it all in sometimes. We are getting there though- and we have worked really hard at remembering names. I think the first year is just going to be a bit crazy and we are just riding it at the moment.

New Year

Well... I can finally see the benefits of the 'blogspot'. No promises here- but for those in Oz who are interested in where we are and what we are doing- I hope that this will keep you updated slightly better than my rather sporadic and often less than informative emails.

In January this year, our family moved to Fulwood, Sheffield in England. Andrew is now an 'associate vicar'...and you can catch him in a dog collar at least once a week! Will try steal a photo and post it soon!

We have settled into our new church really well. We have had an amazing welcome from the people at Fulwood and are really enjoying starting to make friends. We have had moments of homesickness- but we feel that God has really blessed us with a smooth start to life here.

We have a new home- which is different to Kellyville in many ways- but is quickly becoming a place of family warmth and memories. The kids are loving life here, and as usual make us laugh and amaze us with the ease in which they have adapted to the newness of it all.

We arrived in the dead of Winter- dark and damp- but apparently fairly mild... and have moved into Spring which seems to raise the spirits of all. I am determined not to rant about the weather as most of the British do...but I can see why they do. The sunshine and daffodils make the Winter worth the wait.