Canada Log 4

Well here is the next installment.

Now last time I blogged I hadn't been camping in a long time - that is no longer the case - I also had never been snowboarding - that is no longer true - and last time both my knees were in good condition - this also is no longer true.

Wednesday 31st of January

That night we had small groups again - and yes like my former small group buddies it is on a Wednesday just like it was for us. This fact I was quite impressed with. Their small groups naturally run differently to ours. Such as they do not do a Bible study, but there is always an element of teaching or encouragement involved in it such as the previous week where Dan D gave his testimony which was really cool. I thouroughly enjoyed it. This week though it was a competition between England and the Colonies (ie Australia and Canada, the majority of which were Canadians seeing as there is only one Australian amoungst the group. Which often means I have to extend a lot of grace and understanding to my English friends when they pay out Australia, and myself for being Australian, for while they honestly believe England is the best in the world we all know otherwise). So we had the school gym booked and played a game of basketball and soccer (the guys would stone me for calling it that) where England thrashed us at soccer; 7-1, and then lost horrendously to Canada in the basketball - no one kept score on that one, but it was a hiding. Then it was a game of floor hockey. The teams mixed up for that one.
Twas a fun night.

At this point in the journey of Soul Edge I have been reading a book called Wild at Heart by John Eldridge, which has taught me so much about masculinity and who men are called to be. And for just a taste of this amazing book, there is a powerful and life changing message in it that men are not called to be "nice christian guys". Yes there is nothing wrong with it, but that is not our ultimate calling. The humble servant that Jesus was, was also the man that went into the temple and turned over tables saying "You brood of vipers!!". Jesus was a powerful man, but also sensitive to every situation and knew what was required of Him in every circumstance. This is also what every man is called to be. We are to draw our strength from God, and are to step out and be powerful men that do not conform to the world's idea of a man, but embrace what God has intended us to be. And in that we find our identity. This has been my challenge.

Thursday the 1st of February
(For Luke a sleep in - but for everyone else...) An early start!!!

It was up at 6am for our trip to Elkwater for snowboarding - Hoorah!
It wasn't hoorah for very long though for after the long 6 hour journey we discovered that they were closed due to extreme cold. It was -35 degrees and -30 is their cut off point. So we drove a bit past and found a nice place to do a hike and start a fire. Paul at this point decided that for a laugh he would run 100 metres in shorts and shirt in -35 degree weather, while it was snowing. I don't know about you but "for a laugh" would never be enough motivation for me to do such a thing. Well.... maybe... So we had the hike in the cold, and in the snow, and in the wind, and we built a fire and it was good fun. The thing that made it worthwhile - apart from the cold - was the amount of snow that the area had recieved recently. So when we got there, we were walking through massive snow drifts at least knee deep. The beauty of all the pine trees was also wonderful due to the snow that had collected on all of them.

When we were done there it was back into the van and onwards to a bit of on-the-spot evangalism. But before we got to our destihanation we found some hay bales that were surrounded by big drifts of snow. So with a van full of young guys, with time to kill and always looking for adventure what did we decide to do? You guessed it- jump from the hay bales into the drifts of snow. After what transpired next ended up spending most of the day in the hospital. The other Tim went second, after Joel jumped first into a spot next to where Tim jumped, and he hit a big block of ice, slipped, landed on his butt and crushed a vertebrae in his lower back. For the next six hours we were in the hospital waiting and receiving an X-ray and Cat-scan for Tim to see the damage, if there was any at all. There was. What did the Doc tell us? Three weeks of recovery while the pain subsides, and continued rest. If it hurts - don't do it. He subscribed Tim some pain killers and sent us on our way. So while Tim is injured he will be ok, and in the mean time he is still with us here in Canada and his travel insurance will cover the hospital bill.

What the Doc was most concerned about was whether when the vertebrae was crushed pieces of the bone when braking moved into his spinal column and caused further damage. This was not the case - Praise God!

When that was all done we headed onto our hosts that were giving us a place to stay the night. They were Ric and Cindy, and were a wonderful Christian couple that had a wonderful dinner and breakfast planned for us. This is also the place where Josh and Joel's younger sister was staying while she is a University. Her name is Hannah and all the guys warmed to her. She wasn;t really all the impressed when the guys jsut before they headed to bed started walking around in their underwear, the worst case being when one of the guys towelled it across an archway between the shower and his room. Sorry Hannah.

Friday the 2nd of February

So this morning we wake up and are welcomed by Ric and Cindy and Hannah with a wonderful breakfast, including my sorely missed friend pineapple.

Oh and I forgot to mention that we were staying in Lethbridge in Alberta.

Today was a special day for we had to make a decision on what we wanted to do for the following days. Stay here for another night and go snowboarding tomorrow, or meet our missionary friend and then head on home. Before we reached a decision we had a time of sharing and confession where any false faces that were in place came crashing down and a much greater sense of unity and deeper friendship arose amoungst the group. We decided to go snowboarding.

Then it was off to lunch and to meet Daniel our missionary friend in Kenya. Daniel is married to Marlies and they have a 9 month old baby boy. Daniel was the only one we met for he is doing some travelling around at the moment to do with speeches at conferences, and meeting up with friends to talk business about how people can help and problems and all sorts of other stuff. Canada was one stop over, so Josh and Joel snached up the oppurtunity to meet with Daniel. So there we are sitting in a place - I have no idea where - in a board room sitting there listening enraptured by the amazing stories that he had concerning his work and the amazing things he has seen God do. Oh and if you are wondering why these people see God move and perform amazing miracles and why we in Sydney do not it is due to the simple fact that they need God much more then we do. God is their source of everything. Finances, food, and their protector. They have completely surrendered themselves to God and His will for their lives and they know without God they will not live much longer. This is a place that I wish to find. A place where I am completely surrendered to God, and depend on Him for everything. Whether that be going to Uni, or working in the mission field (I am not hinting at anything, it is merely an expression) I want to see God speaking to me daily, and guiding me in everything. Just as Brother Andrew saw 'his job in the chocolate factory as his first mission field, I wish to take that same attitude towards anywhere I am.

Daniel told us about the construction project of another orphanage in his area that we will be building, as well as the church planting he has been doing, that we will also be involved in.

Then we headed off to a chinese restaurant for lunch with some beautiful food, and then dropped Daniel home and headed back to Ric and Cindy's for chill out and eventually dinner, and sat back and watched Star Wars number III. Truly and great film.

Saturday the 3rd of February

Snowboarding!!! Finally!!!

Well this is kind of a climax but there really isn't much to say.

We got up early, packed up, had breakfast, loaded the van, and headed out. Got to Cyprus Hills and went snowboarding. A lot of fun, pretty hard, but you start to get the hang of it at the end of the day, and fall on your butt a lot, and I had a couple of good spills where I caught my front edge where that sent me tumbling end over end, but no serious stacks. Pretty sore at the end of the day and then we started the long drive home. Cypruss Hills is really pretty though, and it was really good to have some fresh powder, which was really kind to me throughout the day whenever I fell, and is always the best stuff to be boarding on.

We got home and were very happy to be sleeping in our own beds, but it was only for one night before we headed out into Alberta again, except this time out to Kananaskas Country, and this time it was camping.

Sunday the 4th of February

Well it wasn't an early start today for we went to church because once again worship was great and Richard Myers gave a talk on love. But dont worry it wasn't cliche, it was wonderfully challenging and fresh.

Then eventually onto K Country. But before that it was onto a friends place (not one of mine at this point in time). This friend was Mike, he is a pastor at a church in Calgary and came to this camping trip to do a couple talks. We went to his house to have dinner and the family had prepared a wnderful lasagne and despite their very busy day they made time to have dinner with us. It's a lesson that I am taking note of. If you want to humble someone, don't elevate yourself and show that what they do is not that amazing by saying you do more or better, but humble yourself and serve that person with your time, and/or show great generosity in anyway possible in an attitude of service and love. With all the generosity and grace shown to me of late I am ever taken down notches in my sometimes arrogant opinion of myself and I am ever humbled. It's the same as Jesus washing the disciples feet. Peter did not wish to be shown generosity and grace in his arrogance and inability to receive gifts, but he was soon humbled something amazing by his Lord and Saviour's amazing grace and generosity.

So then it was onto K country and the lodge that we would be staying in. For those that have been to my house and can remember the cabin was the size of half our lounge room and all 9 guys were sleeping in it. It was a nice adventure to trying to get the van up a hill that had fresh snow on it for the van never had a hope getting up there on its own. So bakc the van goes to get a run up, Joel floors it gets near the top slows down with wheels spinning and 4 guys run up behind it and push it over the crest.

Then it was sleepy time and we wake up the next morning.

Monday the 5th of February

Well it was up at 8:30 and we had a session with Mike where he talked about rushing ahead of God and and what we called "making Ishmaels" such as Abram did with Sarai's servant girl Hagar after God promised a child through Sarai even in her old age. And making sure that we did what David did when he didn't murder Saul, and we wait for His timing in all curcumstances.

It was on this day that we went rock climbing. I as the other guys did to a lesser extent was dress lightly as it was a wonderful day in K Country with very warm weather of 15 degrees at the max. Of course what happens is when we get there it is a huge freezing cold wind that froze everyone. It was a pretty good rock that we climbed and really pretty view. But before we got to the rock it was a steep walk up a hill.

Once again its back to the lodge and that afternoon we had a really good worship session where a lot of the guys including myself were prayed upon and were given real words of encouragement through Joshand Joel from God, that have really inspired and encouraged the group about the plans that God has to empower and equip us.

Than sleep and wake up.

Tuesday the 6th of February

What do we wake up to this morning? Dan D literally banging on pots and pans - well maybe not literally; it was a wooden spoon and a lid off a pot, but aside from that - it was a wake up that really does not inspire you to get out of bed. Then he reminds the group of the bacan and egg breakfast that was very close to ready. That got me out of bed pretty quickly, especially since canadian bacan is amazing and Josh and Joel are amazing cooks.

Then a session with Mike again. This time he talked about Jesus' temptation and ensuring that we were always walking in step with the Spirit, and in our excitement of doing work for God's kingdom we don't rush ahead in the flesh. That was the main part where he was continuing the them from the other session, but there was also other stuff natuarally and arose a great discussion about Satan and his methods to trick, deceive and lie to us.

The activity was to be a hike and camp b'ut the conditions were such that we were deterred from doing so. Instead the fort that Paul, JJ and Tim (not me) had started was now completed by the entire group. An amazing piece of work by the boys really. I had a great time contributing to the construction. I was weilding an axe like a mad man creating plenty of fire wood and by the end of the day had felled a couple of trees (dead ones) and had increased my masculinity rating by a couple of points......

It was this that the group worked on for the day and such was the room and quality of the for that the majority of the boys slept in the fort overnight. With the fire going and such they commented that it was luxury accomodation and that they slept really well. That is except for Cody who spent most of the night loading logs onto the fire.

Then sleep and wake up.

Wednesday the 7th of February

Today we woke up with Dan D, Josh, Joel and myself out and about cooking breakfast while waiting for the guys from the fort to get their stuff together and come down to pack up and get ready to head out to the hike and camp. Twas a wonderful breakfast for we had waffles (sorry luke they weren't danish) and sasauges and ham. I thoroughly enjoyed eating all of that wonderful food. And doing it with a room full of hungry guys with hige stomachs means that everyone doesn't mind going back for more and more food, as long as there is enough to go around. When there is an excess of food it is truly a wonderful experience for you can gorge yourself and no one wil think twice.

Well after the pack up it was packing the van to capacity then dropping off Mike which was sad because he realy offered and contributed a lot to the group. So after the goodbye and wishing him well with his church and work we headed onto the heart of K Country and began our hike. I was immediately blown away by what the wonderful country in Alberta presented to us. A wonderful breathtaking scenery that shouted glory to God in all aspects of it. It brought home the power and magnificent nature of our powerful and majestic Creator. It was so raw and so real. It really is where man is supposed to be. In nature. We are not meant to solely live in clasrooms, and offices. We are not meant to be caged. We are to be free. And in nature - in the wild - we are allowed to be that. So throughout this hike I did all that I could to embrace this. I embraced the side of me that was looking for this all along, and God took my breath away and filled me with a wonderful joy to be out here and doing this.





The chatter of the group was a real bonding experience and filled memories I shall do my best to hold onto. On this amazing hike though it was also the place where my knee began to deteriorate. By the end I was in a lot of pain but fortunately it was where I could take a moment ot rest it and get off it. So we set up camp and collected plenty of fire wood as swiftly as we could before it got dark. We did so successfully - well I would like to think so. Josh had to get up in the middle of the night and get more. Kind of unfortunate. But with that amazing heart of his he really didn't mind.

The first photo is near the end of the hike where we are a couple hundred metres from the campsite, thenthe next one is further away where we had a couple gorup photos, and then at the campsite its about -15 and paul's in shorts posing in front of the fire.

Then sleep.


Thursday the 8th of February

So we wake up and find out the events of the previous night all of which I had slept through.

Joel's hiking boots had melted completely off at the back, utterly destroyed. Paul's sleeping bag had frozen over during the night, so he stayed up the second half and just layed the logs on the fire, taking over from Joel.

We had a great morning apart form the dehydration that I experienced in the morning, that drew to nearly bringing up my dinner. All good though, I was fine in n hour after being rhydrated.

But I only lasted a couple of km before I caved to the pain in my knee and the guys insisted on placing me on the sled and dragging me most of the way back to the van. 5 guys pulling the sled, with their own packs as well, left them a little buggered at the end of the hike. Again I was bathed in a lesson on humility. It also showed me that despite how much we may hate it we must allow God complete control in some situations and just sit back and enjoy the ride, no matter how much we would rather prove ourselves.

Back to the home base and have a nice healthy relaxws dinner and get to recouperate from the hiking. Not me so much though.


Friday the 9th of February

An amazing pancake breakfast that I was really proud of. There was sausage and hama nd pancake, and pineapple, and maple syrup and butter in abundance. It was amazing. The Canadians know how to do a pancake breakfast. The Aussie's I am afraid to say are in second, but not by far, mind you the English have really got no idea when it comes to this kind of pancake breakfast. In their defence though they do do it very differently, and they do their very well. It's not as good though. (And it's ok to slag them off. They can handle it, they give as good as they get, and I'm pretty sure they don't read this blog. Mind you I'll prob ably get found out eventually.)

We made it back and on the ride home I finished Brother Yun's amazing, touching and powerful book. We all have a lot to learn from that man.

The long ride home was great, I am starting to really enjoy being in transit because things can always be acheived during that time. It doesn't have to be wasted. And we should always be trying to accomplish something with every moment that we are alive. Time is too precious to be wasted.

It was absolute bliss to get home (excuse that) and be sleeping in my own bed again (any chance you can let that one slide too?). Finally we get to settle into a little relaxed routine again, with the oppurtunity to recouperate and be ready and refreshed to go when the trip to Banff comes around.


Saturday the 10th of February

A wonderful day where sleep and rest abounded in a land filled with milk and honey.

There was also a dinner on at the school where a famous speaker came to talk to the older generation about getting laughter and fun back into their lives. To start laughing again because the average middle to older aged generation has forgotton how to laugh. He did a wonderful job and getting everyone laughing, and to inspire them to make sure they went away doing more of it. The man was a true genius when it came to jokes. Really funny. Here's one.

His mennonite neighbour has apparently the best mennonite jokes, and I would agree with him.

"Did you know there is substantial evidence that supports Adam (Garden of Eden Adam) was a mennonite? Who else would while sitting next to a naked woman be tempted by an apple?"

Twas a good night.

Sunday the 11th of February

To church to hear the story of two missionaries who have dedicated their lives to work in Indonesia. They have been their temporarly working, and have currently got people covering their positions, but they do plan to head back their to work indefinately. At the moment though they are waiting on money which God will supply. So please be praying for this unnamed couple. But don't fret, God know's who you are talking about.

Monday the 12th of February

It was back to daily routine. The funny moment was when Dan and Dan decided to tie either around one of their ankles and then ran in opposite directions. It was a good moment and a great example of boyish nature and stupid adventure. They did get polaxed. twas funny. Good to see that Tim's incident hasn't hindered us.

There was also Joel's challenge to us to be reflectors of Christ and to really ensure that what comes off our tounged is never pulling each other down, but that we are always edifying each other. For in this situation, and this environment the enemy is always going to look for oppurtunity to tear us down. But is this not always the case? Isn't the enemy always looking to take each one of us out? Will he not take simple and trivial disputes and blow them out of proportion? Hence why James urged us to tame the toungue, and why Paul emphasises the need to ensure that no unwholsome talk comes out of our mouths, but that we must look to build each other up, and to never tear down, even when we do it unintentionally. It is something that everyone must always be looking to do.

Tuesday the 13th of February

Then came another day of routine.

There were also called made to the family, and it was a really good oppurtunity to catch up and edify in all that is happening here and there.

We also made Sausage as we did yesterday. Deer Sausage. Ones that Cody killed himself, and gutted, and deboned. He's a real man.

Ever wondered what the skin is made of? In this case - Pig intestine. Yummy...

I also got to go to Simon's Club which is similar to Kids Club except this was all for young guys. This for me and Dan D and Cody was instead of Cell group. It was amazing to see some of these kids really seeking God and wanting to learn mre about him and his nature. It was really good to see such innocence in young kids. You see it less and less in Sydney.

Thursday the 14th of February

The main event for today was to meet up with the young guys we are mentoring. Really exciting stuff, and I was really eager to see if I could have an impact in my mentoree's life. It was a test to see if I had what it takes to support, encourage and exort an young bloke to go after God with everything he had. Alas today for me it was not to be. He was doing a science test - as admirable as that is - because he has a basketball tour that he's participating in. A little dispointing yes but by no means the end of the world.

Well that's the end of the blog. The next one will be a new post.

Have a good week everyone, and God bless

Tim

From Top left:
Tim (Vircilles), Josh, Cody, Joel, Dan (Clifford), Dan, Paul, Josh (JJ), Me (Melvin, or the Aussie)
On top of a mountain. See my lack of muscles.
This here is Paul. "Lance armstrong is amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! he has nice calfs, uuuummmmm mens calfs. (btw im not a gay.)" It's true he's not; but you do wonder sometimes...


End of a long day of hiking, with a lovely sunset.

Canada Log 3

Hello everyone, i do hope that yopu are all keeping well, and I hope that you are living on the Edge, in abandonment for your Creator.

There is a lot going on here in Canada, and as I hear a lot down under as well. I will really miss Steve and I hope that everything that he learns and goes through will glorify our wonderful Lord and Saviour.

Now onto the stories...

On the 25th - a thursday - the gang plus one more, headed out to a local town, called Moose Jaw about one hour away from Herbert. The plan there was to take $500 and simply by the Holy Spirit's prompting go out and bless people. we were to do whatever we thought was a good idea, or whatever God told us to.

So the first thing that we did was get a breifing on the situation. I will now go through the same thing with all of you because the stuff that has been happening is incredible.

The $500 comes from a Bible College in Moose Jaw, where they hold an event called Youth Quake. This is an event that packs out 6000 people into a chapel where the college gets huge bands playing at this event. This includes Switchfoot and Jars of Clay. This time round though they could not get the bands booked to play. They tried but it did not work. So the board sat down and thought about what theyw ere going to do with this situation. They came to the conclusion that in the past they only booked the bands because that is just what they did. They didn;t book the bands that God wanted or because that is what he wanted to do with the event. They did it because it was merely so. So this time they decided to do something else. They decided to go with what was happening in the town and college in this point in time and follow the Spirits leading. I'll come back to the event in a moment.

So at the moment God is doing some serious stuff in this college. He is moving in some amazing ways, and people are being saved left right and centre. This is an example. In comes Keith, one of the lecturers at the college, and is an amazing man of God that is profoundly gifted with Prophecy. And one day he comes into class absolutely drunk on the holy spirit. This man is doubled over and shaking with the Holy Spirit. The only man in his class that hasn't just been filling his head with knowledge on the Bible and God but actually intimatley knows God is the man that I labelled "plus one" before. He turns and says to Keith "your having a great day aren't you ey?" Keith's response is "Yep, (and under his breath as he's walking to his desk) praise Jesus". He is just having an amaziung experience. On top of this is the fact that there is an exam on during this class, and Keith eventually has to get himself together, focus and get on wiht the exam. But before he does this he asks the class if he would have their permission to hand them on a piece of paper something that God wants them to know when they hand in their exam. Their response is 'yes'. And so essentially what Keith has done is handed each one of his students in his class a written prophecy when they have handed in their exam.

Another thing that has happened in the college, is the hospital down the road has been sending every patient that they cannot nurse back to health or fix to the Bible College to get the people there to heal them. Whether the Dr is a christian or not, they are sending their patients to the college and people are being healed.

So the college board decided to go with what God has been doing in this college and the town and are giving people $500 to go out and bless people in the town and college. They also take out a video camera and film what happens to be shown at the Youth Quake event that is still on.

So the Soul Edge team and Jake (Mr "plus one") head out into Moose Jaw to Bless the town. It was an amazing experience. We first headed over to a bike store because we felt that God wanted us to speak to someone there. God pointed out an employee there that He wanted us to speak to but because He did not give us anything to say to him we said nothing. This apathy would be corrected throughout the rest of the day where we would not not pray or talk to someone that crossed our path.

So then it was onto the Hospital. We decided we would buy lots of toys and teddy bears to bless as many children in the childrens ward as we could. So we spent $400 on the toys and teddy bears to give to the sick children, and a really big pink fluffy dog to give to a little girl that had just gone through knee surgery and was with her dad. The guys that went up there did not get to see the toys handed out to the rest of the chiuldren because of a virus that was going through the ward at the time. But the dad of the little girl really appreciated the charity - We know that much.

Then it was onto A&W for dinner. We had dinner and then ?Jake told us to go pray for all of the staff. We only asked and they all said yes. So we did and they all loved it. It was all realy positive stuff and they all loved it. We ended up praying for two girls with a high 5 prayer with all the guys reaching over the counter and then Jake prayed for all of them.

Great stuff.

The next day Richard Myers talked to us during a session about vision and where we want to be and why and what we think God wants us doing in the future. I'm really excited about it all and pumped about what i could be doing in the future.

Then the next day is Saturday and we went hiking all day long. Got the pictures.

Then Chgurch on Sunday and God moved someting amazing with the song worship where The song Freedom Reigns by ____ larson. Firget the first name. God freed some people that nmorning and I got to play bass. Yay! Woo!

Thats all to report for the moment.

Oh and the nickname i have been handed by the group is Melvin. See if you can figure out why.

Tim

Canada log 2

Hello everyone, i hope everyone is keeping well.

i got to stay on my toes, a couple of the guys have fallen sick with a cold that has temporily knocked them off their feet, and seeing as i am not the fittest or strongest of guys a cold is something that i really dont need. in the mean time though i am fine. Doing plenty of physical activity which has not made my calves my best friend, as every time i straighten my legs they scream at me.

The reading is really beneficial - i am learning heaps. it is fantastic. While i may not be at school, my brain is being forced to stay sharp and alert. There are some amazing things that i have learned about various disciplines such as solitude which was todays and simplicity was yesterday's. They have made me aware of makiing sure we keep things simple, stay focused and always have our eyes on our God.

The morning sessions that we have together are amazing. We pull out one guitar, and ten guys in the room are singing their lungs out in praises to God. Hands are up and out, and there is usually at least one person kneeling, completely overwhelmed by the Spirit's movement in this house in a tiny little town called Herbert.

i am finally starting to get my bearings in this place, and am starting to relax around the guys. i am feeling more free to be myself, and let my sense of humour come out, despite one of the guys declaring how he hates aussie humour. Actually most of the time the guys can't keep up with me and spend time scratching heads wondering what i meant by that last comment and where the joke lies in it. Meh... makes for something different, and they are starting to get the sense of humour. n the meant ime though bi have to make sure i dont offend anyone ( not that i would set out to do something like that).

The timne spent at the ranch is really good. it's a 10 minute drive to the ranch and then its usually on to the feed lot where the cows are. about a 5 minute drive. There its out in the elements (the cold that is - usually about 0 degrees) and feed the cows and at the moment we've spent some time fixing a tractor. Then back to the house there and its coffee time! There we sit back and chill out with the food that Josh, and Joel's mum has prepared for us. That lady can teach us all a thing or two about hospitality. Her heart and joy to do what she does for all the guys is amazing.

The meals that are cooked are always great, and the guys never go hungry - except when we're fasting.

The physical exercise is great - we go for a 2 mile run most nights, and everyone comes away absolutely stufffed and sore.

The boys are all bonding really well, and are all top blokes. Not an annoying one amoungst the group. Josh and Joel are setting an amazing example and i am really trying my best to learn from them - and yes they are easy to tell apart. The uncanny thing about the group are the names. We have two Tims, two Daniels, and two Joshuas. i have no idea how that worked out.

The guy that i am rooming with is an amazing man of God. am only just becoming aware of the impact that he may have amoung the group when he starts spending more time wth all of us. He is a leader - literally, a leader on this course - and lives in Herbert. He hjas other things on at the moment, so he is only here part time at the moment, but he wl be coming to Kenya with all of us, so we will see much more of him.

Well small groups are starting - my first one - so i have to go.

Tim

First update from canada

Well I have safely arrived in Herbert Saskatchewan Canada.

It is good here. Very cold. It's about 2 or 3 degrees outside at the moment - and they call this beautiul weather... Actually the other week it got to -47 degrees celcius. im sure we'll have a day like that before i leave.

It is really beautiful over here. Wonderful white and dry and powder snow.

The craziest thing is going in the entire house ta the moment. A masive tea towel fight is ocuring. I think someone may come away with visible scars. One of the guys Dan is lethal with them. I tried but it was never going to work.

Dan just screamed in pain.

On the flight over i got stopped by Canadian immigration due to myself being scome kid appearing unable to self sustain while I'm here. but i got it sorted without lying. Dan not being able to do so. He said he was here to see family.

And there is another Tim staying here. So I think they will be calling me by my middle name edward.

we have what we are calling sessions. This involves some worship music led on guitar, and i tell you what there is something inspiring just singing like that with a room full of guys and a guitar. it is an amazing place to enter into with the Lord.

Well its currently lunch, so im going to have to suspend this blog and finish it later.

Tim

this is tim reporting from los angeles airport at terminal ttwo.

will in a cuple ofshours board a fkight onto calgary and yes tom you were right i have to go through customs there.
all safe andsound and have alrady been to starbarks.

out of time

cya

tim

The trip to Canada

Well hello blogees, glad to see that you are interested in the trip that I will be taking overseas, and that you wish to find out more by reading this blog.

By clicking the link it will take you to the website of the course that I am undertaking. It will tell you what the course is about, why it is being done, and what it hopes to acheive. It doesn't actually tell you what I will be doing on the course. So what follows is some the speech I gave at my fundraiser. It goes into detail about everything that will be happening on the course. Please don't be discouraged about the length.


When is it?
I shall be getting on a plane for Regina, Saskatchewan on the 19th of January. I will be picked up from the airport by the guys running the course and shall be driven to where we are staying in Herbert – a town north east of Regina in central Canada.

So what is happening in Canada?
Canada is where myself, and the other six guys undertaking this course will be trained and equipped for work in Kenya. We will be sharing a house together and living there for the following three months. There will be work in various ministries and disciplines so I will come away trained and equipped. This includes daily sessions and adventure trips.
The Daily sessions include immersing ourselves in the Bible which we must read in the following five months. We will focus on the inward, outward and corporate disciplines.

The inward are:
§ Meditation
§ Prayer
§ Fasting
§ Study

The outward are:
§ Simplicity
§ Solitude
§ Submission
§ Service

The corporate are:
§ Confession
§ Worship
§ Guidance
§ Celebration

As we work through those things we will be going through topics covered in various books including things on leadership, how to go about reading the Bible in order to get the most out of it, the Holy Spirit, and the Kingdom of God.
Reading the Bible in five months is going to change and grow my self-discipline. I will grow vastly in knowledge and wisdom as well as falling more in love with God as he reveals so much to me through His Word.
This in conjunction with the books that will be read my head knowledge will be ever greatly expanded. This of course is no use unless this is also matched with heart growth and action. These things will be addressed through the general challenge of adapting to a very new environment where I will be sharing a room with a couple other guys and sharing a house with nine guys all of which are between the age of 17 and 21. You can feel the testosterone already!!! That of course is a minor challenge in comparison to what this course is also offering – I will get to these other aspects of the course in a moment. The Daily sessions also include much prayer time among the group and many bible studies. These things will create unity among the group where we will learn to support each other in the challenges we face, as well as learning to become attuned to the needs of other people. The group will also spend time with the father of the two men running the course who is the pastor of their local church. This time will be spent to help guide the group during our training time and focus us in what we are trying to achieve and get out of the course and the time we are spending there.
What I have just outlined is the day-to-day activities of the group. This will become our routine, and what each day will generally involve.

The next thing to address is the adventure aspect of the course.
The Weekly Adventures will include but are not limited to:
- Snowboarding
- Paintball
- Hiking Trips
- Day Hikes/Camping
- Boldering
- Ice Fishing
- Sledding
- Bow hunting
- Night hunting
- Night Hikes
- Survival camping
- Night Hawk training adventures (that is surprise training sessions)

We will also go on Adventure trips. There will be three of those. These will be:
- Snow Boarding In the Rocky Mountains
- Hiking In the Rocky Mountains
- Snow Camping in Northern Saskatchewan

There will be two main adventure trips. These trips include traveling somewhere a distance from the base for a more extensive adventure. One of these will be a trip to Banff which is located in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta Canada. This trip will take place in mid January as a break from the intensive training as a team building time. The group will be staying in a family Cabin located in Banff. Most of the time there will be spent snowboarding and hiking.
The other main adventure trip will be a trip to Northern Saskatchewan for a snow camping expedition. The group will be outfitted with gear from Steve Maier who is a certified wilderness and mountain guide. We will be staying in wall tents with wood stoves. The group will be camping up in the bush of the rugged country of Northern Sask. This trip will take place in February; and even if it is cold it is still on…. That is; cold for a Canadian winter; ie around -30 degrees Celsius.
The weekly adventures aim to provide opportunity for team building and to experience new things in the outdoors as well as having fun. Some of the weekly adventures will include trips to places a few hours drive away where others will take place closer to the base.

In Canada there will also be times of ministry to various communities in Canada. There will be a ministry trip to Northern Saskatchewan to minister to the indigenous people in Pelican Narrows. This trip will take place later on in the course in the month of February. This will be a long week end trip, as it is an eight hour drive up to this part of Sask. The ministry will involve outreach to the First Nations young people in the area. Outreach will be done on a real practical level building relationship with the local youth, Drama, and music.

We will be ministering to these people due to this area suffering from alcohol abuse and high suicide rates, and many abusive homes and dysfunctional families. There is a lot of opportunity to bring the Kingdom of God into their lives, and the guys really believe that the Lord is moving among the First Nations people. The trip to minister on a reserve will be a completely different experience and life changing time.

There will also be ministry opportunity to inner-city Regina a city that is a two hour drive from Herbert. One of the opportunities in Regina is to serve on the Love lives here Bus, which is a bus that goes out at night to serve the homeless and Prostitutes in the inner-city. There will also be opportunity to do street evangelisms, which I am really looking forward to due the simple matter of having such a great opportunity to bring the love and grace of God into their lives.

We also hope to do some prison ministry, which would involve speaking to the prison inmates and doing music, drama and building relationship. Many prisons are set up for Christian organizations to come in and be able to speak with the inmates. This would be a great opportunity to reach out to the lost and provide opportunity to minister and be changed.

So what is happening in Kenya?

The trip to Kenya will begin in London when we board the plane to Nairobi Kenya. The Soul Edge team will travel together. We will arrive in Nairobi where we will meet up with the arranged transport. The main contact in Kenya is Daniel and Marlies Hoogteyling who are running an orphanage outside of Nairobi. Daniel and Marlies formerly led Soul Survivor Holland and have been in Kenya for a few years now.

Much of the work and the things we will be involved with will coincide with the needs of Daniel and Marlies; serving them in any way that we can. As they have been working in Kenya and know the local people our contacts will come primarily through them.

Projects will include, local ministry to the community we are staying in; clean up projects, music and drama. There will also most likely be some building projects and possible renovations and painting. Much of the details of the projects have yet to be planned as we are working with Missionaries. More details will follow as we work that out with the Hoogteylings.

My UAI

This is my UAI. This is good. I quite like this. I really didn't think I would get in the 90's with my marks, but I guess they scaled me. Good luck to everyone, and I hope your HSC was also a success.

My HSC marks

These are my HSC results for those that are interested. Hope everyone got the results they wanted, and got what they needed to acheive.

U2

Today I found an interesting article on the nine msn site about Bono and U2, concerning Bono's involvment in Make Poverty History. Apparently Bono has caused a stir in the band with his work in this area. But things are never easy when you are doing God's work. Satan will attack and will do his best to bring you down. And sometimes he will attack what means most to you. And for Bono that has been pressure placed on him by his band members.

The thing about the article though is that no dates are listed. The comment that Bono said he thought he was going to be forced out of the band does not carry a date on when he said that, and when he thought that might happen. So this whole thing may have happened a very long time ago.

Another interesting thing that I saw on TV was a small snippet of Andrew G's interview with U2. Bono was talking about the voice he has recently acquired. Since the passing of his Father he has become increasingly aware of the improvement in his voice, and how recently his voice has dramatically improved, and that now he is able to hit notes that he ahs never been able to before. What he put this down to was God.
'When you look after God's stuff he looks after yours. Can't be sure but that's what it feels like.'
That's not an exact quote but it's pretty close.
As obvious as it is, I'll still say it. Because of the fan base that U2 has, Bono has gone and worked for the poor on a very large scale. He has answered the calling that God has on his life, and it would appear that God has rewarded that to an extent. He has blessed Bono with a gift of his voice.

I think that's pretty cool.

Personality

Now apparently I'm a Cocker Spaniel...


Cocker SpanielNo bones about it, you're a perky, loving Cocker Spaniel. (Think Lady from Lady and the Tramp.) Playful and energetic, you're a real people person — er, dog. People can't help but fall hook, line, and sinker for your friendly, well-rounded personality and natural charm. It's a subtle thing, though — being outgoing and flirtatious, not showy, is the name of your game. Friends, co-workers, and potential dates can't help liking you. How could they not? Your winning-yet-humble ways make you popular, admired, and a joy to be around. Woof!

Cake

I have cake in my desk, been there for a while now, dunno how long, haven't kept track. Oh well, guess I'll eat it sometime. Seems to keep pretty well, so you know, oh and its yummy too.

Mmmm...

Yr 12

Right, well here's the update.

I recently did a physics assignment on scientists that contributed to the exploration of space. It was 18 pages long. *jaw drops here*. Yes it was silly, and it was ok, none of it was completely irrelevant, it was all on topic, and if I crack the 90% range with it, it will all be worth it. Plus now I know heaps about these really cool scientists.

Did you know that the father of rocketry Robert H. Goddard invented the bazooka?

Now I have a modern history, chemistry, and 2 maths tests. So you know, got a bit of work ahead of me.

Yr 12 jersey's came in. WOOHOO!!! We are the first year 12's to get their jersey's in the 4th term of yr 12, the earliest any pervious year has gotton jersey's. We're special.

Well, God Bless, WWJD, and have a good week.

Tim

U2

Well it is official, and has been confirmed on their website; U2 are coming to Sydney on the 31st March and will be playing at Telstra Stadium. This will be the first time they will have played in Australia in eight years.

This is a very exciting time, for the have also released a DVD of "Live in Chicago" which would be a lovely christmas present for any of you friends.

Oh and the tickets go on general sale on December 5th.

Well on the study day I went to the other day concerning the western front in WW1 had some interesting information on howitzers and the other gun that i can't remember the name of*. Well the gun you see is a howitzer. It fires long range shells over the horizon and gives off an explosion. They are technological wonders; pity about their destructive purposes. They are awesome machines though.

Modern History Study Day

Today I went to the city to learn about the Western Front in WW1. It was really good and interesting because the speaker knew so much and was really good at communicating what he wanted us to learn and get out of the day.

Shrapnel shells, howitserzs, trench warfare, tactics and all the generals in command of their forces.

First time the Aussies and U.S fought together in battle, they were under the command 0f Monash the Aussie commander.

And Curry the Canadian general - made a stand against the British General Haig. - After the offensive that was launched by Canadian and Aussie force Haig said to press the attack when the forces were starting to meet some resistance. Curry said to Haig 'No. We will not press the attack, men will be killed and little gained.' Haig told him again to press the attack; but Curry remained steady and said no, and he said that if you continue to order me to attack I will talk to my government and tell them to pull my troops out. This is because while Haig was in charge and in a real powerful position Curry was in control of his troops. So Haig went 'oh ok no need to get so upset' and so the troops were pulled out and attacked another position. and through this the secret to winning the first world war was discovered.
I thought that was cool. Canadians rock!

music is good. i like music. bass is fun, thouroughly enjoyed it on Sunday night in band. But apparently I shouldn't sit down, people didn't like that.

Oh and I would really like to see more people reading my blog, really would, cos currently no one does. Oh well, what are you gonna do?

Teachers go on strike tomorrow as well as a lot of other public servants. Someone called what people are doing tomorrow as illegal, and they shouldn't go off the job unless their bosses are ok with it. But the way I figure it is that the employees bosses that let them go off the job in the morning have nothing to fear from those bosses, the ones that don't let them go off work are the ones that will reduce wages and sack people under unfair grounds.

Australia has a lot of interesting things going on in the government at the moment, some policies are really not immpressive; on the grounds that many people seem to have a very big problem with them. John Howard and many people with a lot of influence in the area of these laws have a lot to think about and a lot to consider. I just wonder what their motives are for the laws they are trying to push through.


But none the less Paul had some wise words:
"Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceful and considerate and to show true humility toward all men."

Titus 3:1-2

Yr 12 is a lot of work. I got so much, it's all I got time for at the moment. And yes that is a hyperbole.
God's cool, does a lot of nice things for you.
My rooms good, very convenient. And I'm getting a couch.
Here's a photo.

Room

Well it has finally happened!!!
I have my own room.
I can now turn out the light when I wish. Read before I go to bed, listen to my music alarm and continue to once it has gone off. I can construct my room as I wish. There is currently photos and posters all over the room, with more to be added over time.
I have more room, so my guitar stuff can come out of the closet. I have my own chest of draws, so I can place my shoes in the bottom two draws. A draw for my sox, and another for my boxers. So much closet space. Got no idea what to do with all of it.

Well have a nice day
Cya

Well long time since I last blogged. Went on holidays and got out of the routine.
So I dunno, guess my blogs will be kinda sporatic* from now on.

Fran is ok for the moment. She has kushings disease, which means she has a tumour on the petuitary gland. So for the time being she is ok, but it is going to shorten he life span. She is on medication, so its just life as usual for the time being. So she still gets in trouble for barking at the ironing man.

I have had two driving lessons now, and I have got my hours up past 50. So I am on track to get my P's by the end of the year.

Year 12 is going well so far. We are getting into some really good stuff in all my subjects.
Physics - Universal gravitational law and projectile motion.
Chemistry - Nuclear Chemsitry, and carbon chemistry
Maths - applications of calculas
Modern History - WW1 ie. Battle of the Somme, Haig, Trench Warfare, and the Stalemate
And since dropping Hospitality i got a bit more time on my hands, which is good, and my study and the amount of work I am doing is improving.

Also I am going to the Roseville girls formal. Should be good fun.

Mind you not everything can be good.

My standards of what is right and what is wrong are coming under great scrutiny at the moment.
I didnt wag classes on the last day of school last term, and that is being questioned.
I stay completely away from alcohol. This is because I am under age and it is illegal for me to drink because of this.
God asks us to submit to authority and this is what I am doing. But some of my christians friends do not seem to understand this concept, and decide to get drunk, one plastered. I have put up these standards, because I believe in them, I stand by them because I see that they are things that must be done, that they are things that God asks us to do. But appently some of my christians friends choose to ignore them and do their own thing when God's standards for us become an inconvenience!!! Is this what God wants for us, is this how he wants us to look upon the standards he sets for us?! Please could someone inform me that I am doing the right thing! and tell me that some of my friends are not, cos I care about them and don't want to be the only person that sees their actions as wrong. I do not want to stand alone in this place, cos it is awful lonely.

Its just that there are things that God asks of us and I am doing my best to do that. I have motive for my actions, and that motive is God and his standards. So when other people, that are my age, that are christians - when they start to choose a different path, and decide that my actions are too literal, and that I am taking the word of the bible too seriously, and that when they said "submit to authority", they didnt realy mean it. So when they decide to act in a way that suits them at the time. They mock and insult my motives, they insult my knowledge of God, and therefore; from where I see it, they mock God.

Time will reveal all things

Well some interesting days ahead.

Year 12 will start
Fran my dog is sick (very)

only two things, but they will create some interesting days.
Year 12 is year 12 and the days ahead are predictable.
My dog Fran though; well when you find out your dog is sick initially, it's the knowledge that something is seriously wrong, serious tests must be done to find the problem, and you just pray that it is something relatively minor and can be sorted out with some medication and will go away in a month or two. The other way it can go though is that by the time you find the problem your pet has been suffering and that the best thing for them is to put them down. The in between is that you find the problem, do the medication and treatment thing in the hope that it will solve the problem. What you get is an extention to the life of your dog but the treatment does not work and your pet is put down after any where between a week to 3 months. I believe though the treatment can work if the life of your pet is extended without suffering for a year. I that case the treatment has been successful.

We'll see what happens. Thing is though; Fran could have liver cancer. But that is with the emphasis on could. It is just a possibility; but also a possible reality.

Prayers would be appreciated.

My Dog Zac

He started howling again last night; this time I ignored him.

And Today in grand final day, where Sydney and West Coast will go hammer 'n' tong to fight for the glory in the biggest game of the year. Sydney are sentimental favorites and now the favorites to win the game and are set to take home the flag for the first time in 72 years. West Coast have been the best team all year round beating Sydney as well in the forst game of the finals; ubt this has been disputable with some pretty crucial umpiring decisions towards the end of the game with Sydney less than 2 goals behind.

Everyone but a few are trying to predict the outcome of the game; but I see it as anyones, where it can go either way.

Last night Ben Cousins was awarded the Most Valuble Player of the Year, while Glen Archer took home Most Courageous Player for the 5th time, and Brent Deledio took home best first year player.

Well its anyones guess to what is going to happen today, Sydney vs West Coast, guess we'll know who wins when it happens.

My Dog Zac

Last night was so incredibly weird. I went to bed around 10:30 and was looking forward to a nice night of sleep without dreaming of exams when My Dog Zac started barking. He has never done this before and this behaviour seemed incredibly odd. So I went down stairs to hopefully find the cause to his barking. So I saw him in the kitchen and and he saw me, and he walked right to the back door completely intent on going outside. But this again seemed very strange because dad always puts the dogs out every night for their chance to go to the bathroom; and our dogs are very indoor dogs. So out of sheer curiosity and desire to know what was going on I let him outside. So he walks out onto the patio and doesn't go any further. So he clearly does not need to go to the bathroom and his wasn't about to be sick. All of a sudden I hear a faint bark from another dog somewhere in the area and this is followed up by Zac barking and howling as loud as he can. He stopped pretty quickly and went to do it again, but I called him to stop him. He was about to wake up the entire neighbourhood.

So I had to go up into the backyard in nothing but my boxers and get him. Brought him back in, and headed off to bed only to smell something absolutely rancid. So I checked my foot and it smelt like poo!!!!!! oh man, just my luck I ended up treading in poo. So I put my foot in the sink and washed it and finally got to go to bed.

Night...
I am that tired and its 11:40 in the morning.

Yay for rain and friends

Today had many emotions attached to it.
I got up this morning and stayed in bed. I was really tired cos I stayed up doing Modern Hisotry study till 10.30. I finished and went to bed and still hadn't studied concepts. But I went to bed anyway. So when I got up I stayed in bed and I think I ended up going back to sleep with my eyes open. But then my back-up alarm went off and I got up. I got up and watched T.V while eating my standard 5 weet-bix with honey, this breakfast was a bit radical. This time at the adivice of the teacher I had a hearty breakfast to help with my exam; so I also had some orange juice and a cuppa tea. I then studied my concepts, basically memorising them word for word. And then before I knew it it was 8am, with my exam at 8.15. So I quickly brushed my teeth and put my shoes on and off I went. I got to school with two minuted to spare and before I knew it I was in the middle of a 3 hour exam.

So the first part of the exam was concepts. How disciplined I was to study. I got the concepts down without any worries, matching up the terms with their correct definitions and giving the definitions of Industrialisation, Imperialism and Capitalism. I was kinda helpful memorising them 30 min before the exam started.

Well then the exam finished and I went away feeling a bit bad about it. I am not very confident about my result, which is unfortunate because I would realy like a really good result. I mean there is a lot of really smart people in the class, and it would be really nice to do as well as them. I would really prove a lot to myself and it would be a really nice result.

Well I headed home with a nice walk with Jimmy-Jo-Jo and we talked about the World Wars. Stalin, Hitler, and the tactics they used. It was really quite an interesting conversation. Well after I arrived home I had some lunch (5 weet-bix with honey) and I watched a bit of T.V to relax after a hectic exam. I then went and had a shower listening to John Butler Trio, which I thouroughly enjoyed.

I then went and had a very nice long walk up to church, and lay down the park with the grass under my hands and rain falling into my face. It was some really nice down time after a really hectic week of exams and study. I have never in my life done so much study and work. But it was all very good for me and I'm glad I had this week as a learning experience.

Kids Klub then happened where I learned of my costume for the Yr 11 formal, which you will find out about in due time. I'll surprise you with a photo. So today was a lot of fun, and also pain; I mean the writers cramp that I got in my hand from the test today was something chronic. I started to struggle to hold onto my pen.

But all in all today was nice.
Have a nice day all and I'll cya soon.
Tim...

exams

Well I am in the middle of my exams at the moment. It's Wednesday afternoon and I had an English exam today where I had to talk about Sylvia Plath and Othello and Proof. They went ok, i thought I went alright. Seeing as I wrote 4 pages for Sylvia and 5 and a half for Othello and Proof, where as others wrote a lot less, I guess I didn't do too badly. Yesterday I had a Chemistry practical exam where I didn't do well, but I did get two assignments back that were 40/40 and 37/40 which I was happy with. I had a hospitality exam too, where because I studied a bit, meant that there were a few questions where I knew a bit more to talk about. Also on Monday I had the first of my 2 Enbglsih exams, in which i went ok, thought I didn't dot oo badly, and there was a Physics practical exam which went bad. But oh well, can't do much about it now. Gonna just have to do a bit more thourough study next time round.

Tests which are yet to come are
Modern History
2 unit maths
3 unit maths
Chemistry theory
Physics theory

Oh and friday week is slave day, so I will stock up on shaving cream and other things and have a good day.

You might even get photos

oh and may I bring to your attention some very wise words from Tom French back in December of last year.

"May I encourage U2 buying. U2 are the Bomb."

I so whole heartedly agree...
they really are.

sigh, trying to do a physics assignment all afternoon, and i have done what could have been done in an hour. it makes me feel ill when i think how much time i have wasted. I havw got so much study to do, and i just cannot focus. sigh


well get this next bit done, and maths study/homework

be up to about 11 i'd say.

way past my bedtime.

anyways, cu guys l8a...

tim

I have really missed people's company recently, quite a few people have gone away, and I miss them. Can't wait till I see them next.

oh and i have lots of exams.

oh and this is about all that has been running through my head recently.

ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams ams exams exams exams exams

so life has been a bit stressed recently, and i am not coping as well as i would have liked.

cya

Inspired by Luke

ok well Luke has given me an idea that I think would be great to start up.
Luke well done for being so self-disciplined to at least give what your doing a go.

We could start a fundraising thing... week by week, or a fortnight maybe. People give up luxuries they think they couldn't live without. In the process we raise money for example; the RSPCA, or Youth Alpha's trip to Japan

ideas that i have thought of would be:
Beth going two weeks without coffee.
Gemma giving up sleep ins. ie: not sleeping past 8am on any given day for several weekends
Myself giving up listening to music for a week or two.
Monty giving up visits to Glenrose for a couple of weeks.

Well i think its a good idea, it'd be kinda funny too.

Ciao

LOVE IS (all around us)

wow... i cannot express how privilidged I feel to be apart of St. Stephens. I am so proud of all my friends that were involved in the production of 'Love is'. Guys you were all incredibly awesome. The choreography of the dancers was amazing, grabbed everyone's attention and had everyone's respect from the moment Jodie walked on stage for the first dance of the night. It set the atmosphere for the rest of the night. Everyone was completely consumed by the performances of everyone involved.

I was a big fan of Pip Rasmussen's one line in the production. Delivery was great, and everyone laughed. Big congrats to Tom on that line.

One thing that i really thought was top notch out of the film was the camera work. It was really good. It conveyed the atmosphere of the scene, it showed emotion and feeling. It kept you involved and it was a film, not a theatre production. The changing of views, the audience saw everything, the expressions on everyone's faces. How nothing was lost, everything that needed to be visible was, and anything that didn't need to be there wasn't, there were no distractions in the scenes. What was meant to be scene was, and that was where the attention was put. Top work guys.

Dancing... what can I say. Not a lot unfortunately seeing as I'm not a dancer. But i did get to see it all from an audience's view. If there were mistakes, I didn't see them. Be encouraged girls you were brilliant, and you should be very proud of yourselves. Sally, Helen and anyone else I have missed. The choreography was exceptional, you were wonderful. Conveyed messages and atmosphere through great techniques and such graceful movement.

Then when it was all over... there was Tom.
This was inspired. There was the Holy spirit written all over this sermon. God has gifted Tom immensly and was with him every step of the way tonight. Guiding him with tone of voice and choice of words. It was clear people's prayers were with him tonight. I was sitting next to an elderly lady tonight who was absolutely rapped in Tom's sermon. She sat there the entire way through nodding, saying "mmm... hmm" as well as a couple of "yes" and a "definately" as well. Tom did magnifcently and if i could get an 'Amen' it would be appreciated.

To everyone involved in the production of 'love is' you have done exceptionally well and all the hard work and effort you have put in has come off to no end. Prayers were answered in full tonight, and as a church we should be praising God for the wonderfully gifted people that we have working with us, that we are friends with, for God has guided and gifted them to no end and they have given those gifts back to God, they have served us and blessed us in the production that was performed tonight....

---------- ------------- ------------ ------------- ------------ Love is

lets see here

I am so tired. despite the prayers of friends and some organic sleeping assistants, I still do not sleep deep enough at night. I just don't get it. Do i have little faith, is it my own fault that prayers are not being answered? I know I could go on forever about how tired I am. But I think an event that occured this afternoon will suffice.

After school finished I walked home. I got to the door, opened it, went inside. Said hello to my two dogs. Put my two bags down, lay down on the floor right there and then and fell asleep. I woke up 30 mins later and decided to let the dogs out, and put my bags away.

I am that tired, it has been going on for too long, i fear i am about to burn out. I need your prayers guys, please.

I will lie down and sleep in peace for you alone O God make me dwell in safety - Psalms

cya later guys
tim

injury
Well to the few people that read my blog, here is the news you need to know. I have successfully cut my finger off in hospitality... no not really, my apologies for those that I freaked out. But i did deeply cut some skin clean off my knuckle on my left index finger of my left hand.

i did it in hospitality class todaywhen i was sharpening my knife. slipped and took a lot of skin off. it bled a lot and the people in my class were very supportive. Will and Jasmine were currently studying first aid in PD, so i was in good hands. It was apparent that it was quite deep, so once i was a little bandaged up, the lovely Mrs Ferguson (not the science one teacher) took me down to the office so they could check me. They called mum and dad (as you do) and put another dressing on. This one was a lot better.

So dad arrived and took me to the doc accross from forestway shopping centre. The lovely Chris Lee looked after me. He took me into their little surgery and undid the dressing. Again. well he said he would do a little exploring first of all to see what i had done. Then he said that i would have to go down to the hospital if i had damaged my tendon in my knuckle. Because then he just wouldn't be able to stich me up. So he got this antiseptic that was the colour of poo and he cleaned away all the blood and then applied the poo. He then went exploring. he didnt touch or cut or doing anything to my finger. he just asked me to bend and strighten my finger while he looked at it under a magnifying glass. A big proffesional one that had lights around it, and was mounted on the wall. He then told me that i hadnt damaged the tendon, cos he could see it, and could see that it wasnt damaged. He told me that bone was visible.

So i think that I did well to cut the skin off my knuckle, right down to the bone without damaging anything apart from a minor amount of flesh being removed. PRAISE GOD!!!

So i had an eventful day, and in the end im alright. Mind you... i think i will sharpen knives a bit more carefully from now on...

cya's all l8a

and so you know, i have a new email as well.

timothymccloud@gmail.com

Making Poverty History

Well to the few people that read my blog, here is something that everyone can do to help make poverty history. We can send the Prime Minister an email!!! It's ok, the make poverty history team has made it easy for us, and they have email content outlined for us. just copy and paste, change it if you want; but be polite... and then head to this website to send John Howard an email. http://www.pm.gov.au/email.cfm?sssdmh=dm16.151591

Now the email to send if you wish is as follows:

Dear Prime Minister,

As a supporter of the Make Poverty History campaign in Australia, I ask you to attend the UN Millennium Summit in September. I have been encouraged at the recent commitments of extra aid and debt cancellation by the EU and G8 countries. Australia can and should match them, with a timetabled commitment to increase our own aid giving and a plan to target this increase towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

In light of our generous response to the Asian Tsunami, I wish to see Australia in the forefront of countries responding generously to the ongoing tragedy of poverty. At this time of economic prosperity and budget surpluses, we have never been better positioned to increase our aid budget and enhance its focus on the poverty-reduction targets of the Millennium Development Goals.

Please also continue to support and fund debt cancellation mechanisms for the world's poorest countries and speak out in favour of reform of unfair international trade rules - including ending farm subsidies among rich countries and letting developing countries decide the pace and extent of trade liberalisation of their agricultural markets to protect the food security, livelihoods and environment of the world's poorest people.

Being Christ-like

Well I am in the middle of my Modern History Assignment and I couldn't help but take a moment to show something i found while I was doing some research.
As you may know I am doing my assignment on Nelson Mandela and as i was going through some interviews conducted about him I came across one interviewee by the name Desmond Tutu... no wait, it's Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He also is a recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize. Great man and a great christian. Now as he was being interviewed one question was asked of him; naturally of course concerning Nelson Mandela, and here it is:

Do you see him as a, forgive the heresy, Christ-like figure?

and this is what Desmond Tutu said in response:

No, I don't think it would be a heresy. There is no harm in saying, because our Lord wanted us to be Christ-like. Christ-like doesn't mean not having faults. It means that you do actually have a capacity to draw out the good that is in others. You make people slightly better than they would have been without your influence. It is helping people to move away from what would have been the normal reactions and responses that are destructive and move them in a direction where those forces are transmuted, and they become forces for good. So I wouldn't be appalled that you say he is Christlike ...

I really learbed something today... Christ-like isn't about being perfect, or even near perfect; it's about being a good influence on others, helping others better themselves in Christ, and build them up in their walk with God. And that is what being brothers and sisters in christ is all about, it is why we go to church.

kool...

well if you wanna check out anymore of that interview here's the website:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/mandela/interviews/tutu.html

love

Interesting concept... I mean love is the most basic of human emotions and the most central... yet such a basic concept. everyone feels love, loves others, loves themselves, and sometimes is in love with someone... sometimes themselves... But what is it about love that sometimes makes life hard?
(Just a warning... it's gonna get really fast paced in a second so try and keep up) There's when someone you love is hurt; and it is because of that, which makes you hurt aswell; because you care, and this makes life harder. But it is not because of love that makes life harder for you it is the reason that the person you love is hurt, that has made life harder for you. So... how did that come to pass? why is this person that you love hurting?
Chances are it is because of something that someone has done. So does love make life hard? Is love a complicated concept? Or is it just us that makes life hard, that make love a complicated concept? I believe through our sin we have taken something so primitive, so simple, and construed it and made it something that it isn't - complicated.

Just the other day I found out that Bob Geldolf had been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. I was very happy. It's was for the work he has done and is doing for Make Poverty History. Organising the concerts and the 'click' advertisements. I really do hope that he gets the award, he really does deserve it, but then again I'm not on the panel that decides these things. So my apologies for being cliche but i do hope the best man wins.

Hillsong

On thursday night, I went to hillsong conference evening with Hannah and Matt Stanton, we went up to the Superdome out at Homebush and met up with Dave, Steve, Jamie, Ben and Beth.

The conference caused massive traffic jam all the way up to Homebush. I was pretty hectic. Then we parked and headed down to the stadium. We got lost but thanx to helpful volunteers they directed us to a bus, and we got to the superdome. The amount of people there was quite ridiculous; this of course being a massive surprise to me because I haven't been to a hillsong conference before.

Well we were some of the last to get on to the end of the cue and we were about to be taken up to the very top of the stadium where you can't see the stage, but all of a sudden we were directed away from the escalators and taken straight into the Superdome. We had killer seats and were able to watch a great show.

It was really interesting to watch though. There were people leading everyone in worship but these people were also providing a bit of a disrtaction at the same time. All these guitar solos and such were great to listen to but I found myself listening to a concert rather than worshipping God. There was so much hype, I kinda wish they would have toned it down a bit. all in all though it was a great time, and Micheal W. Smith was awesome, although some would disagree. I liked him though.

It was also this night that we found out that London had been the victim of a terrorist attack. You could feel the shock of it fill the stadium.

Well they kept going, and all of us along with a lot of other people left on a high. It was a great night, we all had a good time. Can't wait for the next one.

the queue...

lots of people

this here is fatso the wombat, the infamous unofficial mascot of the 2000 sydney olympics... someone thought it would be funny to put some underwear on him. it was

I'm a Heffalump!!!

today was a lot of fun. me and jared, and cathy and megan and peter and anika and sarah went to the mall and saw pooh's heffalump movie. IT WAS AWESOME!!! i recommend that everyone go see it, and ask anyone else, and they'll tell you the same thing. lumpy was great, so cute and roo was cool, jumping everywhere he went... hee hee. oh and tigger was great... hes my favorite.

also i got a haircut, you can see the awful photo below where you can hardly see my hair...

well have a good day

and school holidays still have a little longer to go!!!

well at 7am today something very interesting happened. my sister is off to do another youth alpha seminar, and my mother broke her leg... went out to the post, get the mail. and slip, landing on her leg. spiritual attack? mmm, i would say so. this was a bit hectic, 2 ambulances!!! hmm, well mums in hospital, and she'll be ok, but this was all a bit daunting.

over and out

tim

tigger

it is my sad duty to announce that the original voice of tigger, from winnie the poo died. yeah, i know, its so sad. i really liked tigger, and now...?

well he will be sadly missed, goodbye tigger.

BEING SICK

hmm... i predict in the next week i will fall ill.
how do i know this? my sister is recovering from a stomach bug and it looks llike my brother (which i remind you all i share a room with) has the flu...

yippee!

bring it on!

oh and i am posting thus blog on the day in which there is a half day teacher strike. yay. see how i am using this time so wisely? hopefully there will be many more to come...
but hopefully the teachers will get what they need, cos they are underpaid. but by striking they are doing a good thing for themselves and the students.

ooh i feel so happy.... i started some holiday h/w last night. how disciplend is that? especially for me!

tim

Good book... Good man

School and miscilaneous

wow, lots of work, ye 11 is pretty full on, and the holidays are so close and i have got a stack of work to do. their not holidays anymore. sad, very sad. and guess what, i have sed to myself that i wish to get it all done in the first week of the holidays. yeah right. but we'll see and hopefully i will.

stuff, lets see.
God is good, very good, having little 'chats' more often these days which is good. of course on top of the usual quiet times.

school prayer group started up, well into these days, but it would be nice to see more people there, so it would be appreciated if you guys could be praying for that.

year 11 jindabyne camp is coming up, should be fun, apart from the fact that i have never been skiing bfore in my life, so i dunno, could come home with a broken bone or two... hehe that would be fun.

well chances are that you have already heard from me about this next topic...
FOO FIGHTERS!!! WOOOOOOOO!!! got their albumn, it is sick.
had a funny comment from someone the other day... foo fighters obsessive compulsive, yeah you could put it that way if you wish... oh and i got a mad badge. got their albumn pic on it. its great
but U2 still rock.

new hobby at recess and lunch at school at the moment... this is a great one.
punching each other. you stand their face on with your friend, and you take turns to whack the stuffing out of each other. of course not in the face, front of the shoulder, or the side of the chest depending on what you hit. still hurts like anything. if you get lucky you might get to see a mighty bruise from me.
yes i am sorry i did participate for one with a friend, and it was a mistake. i'm as soft as an avacado at the moment. you could poke me and i would yelp.

cafe church coming up... should be good, seeing as davo has got a prayer group going at the moment, cant wait to see who comes.

coldplay... think i will be getting two of their albumns. not sure which ones though.

wow this is a long blog...

modern history assignment due tomorow, think i will get started now...

wow... my first blog after my announcement of returning... this is going to be fun.

cya... tim

lead singer from jet and bass player as well as the drummer and guitarist from spiderbait...

xmas eve

well, xmas eve, the church service today was great, i was actually quite impressed with the drama performances, top quality acting. seriously.

and may i just say that U2 absolutely rock, and i will make it my buisness to start collecting lots and lots of their stuff, cos it is top quality.

and yes the bar of chocolate will be awarded to beth, even thogh she cheated by using the internet, but seeing as i did not specify to not use the internet, it will be accepted.

oh and i will run more competitions with good prizes.

just have to think of some...

this would be Takizawa... mad ey?

where in the bible is this passage found?

the eleventh to Eliashib
the twelfth to Jakim
the thirteenth to Huppah
the fourteenth to Jeshebeab


oh alright i figure.... lets see.... a prize, that'd b fun
hmm...


big bar of cadbury chocolate....
first one to comment on my blog with the correct answer, gets a big bar of cadbury milk chocolate.

oh make sure you got the whole correct answer.

U2

ok today music max has got a day entirely devoted to U2. oh my gosh. they have a DVD "live at Boston" and they are freaks, my gosh. brilliant performers. then they showed antoher concert or a couple of songs at Slate Castle in Europe. they performed Elevation and Beautiful Day. there was at least 100 000 people there. and they were all jumping up and down, twas an incerdible sight to see. i mean, wow.

anyhoo, last night was also really really good. Ernie's Xmas party. lots of fun. lots and lots of fun. food, farewelling ernie for the year. tsall good mate.

i took that photo.
it's over the road from my place.
i like photography, tis good fun.

why dont ppl like sarsparella?
it is KING!
why dont ppl like it?
*humph*
its depressing to think, these ppl dont know what they are missing out on.
man... why?

ok so today i organised sumthing to do again cos no one else will. thus pete h, monty, and beth came around and we watched movies and ate pizza.

then we made a dire mistake... left my dog fran downstairs with the pizza. now you may have read a specific log on my sistas blog, and if you have, you would know what happened next, she ate it. not all of it, fortunatley i realised what we had done, and got down there bfor she ate it all.

well here is one photo from the formal. only one though, otherwise it would take forever for my site to load.

sigh

there are a lot of cd's that i need to get. see i still have lots of bday money so thats needs to be spent and xmas is coming up. the cds that i want at this point in time are

• U2- how to dismantle and atomic bomb
• U2 - all that you cant leave behind
• black eyed peas - elephunk
• powderfinger - vulture street
• Green Day - American Idiot
• Switchfoot
• three days grace? maybe

please, more suggestions would be appreciated

Welcome to Tokyo

Life

man i tell you, sometimes you can be cruising with God, no problem, then all of a sudden you find yourself in a routine, and i tell you now that is one of the worst places to be with God, you cant ever let it happen, man i found it so incredibly hard to get out of it. cos i mean if you are in a routine all of a sudden God doesnt mean as much as he should. so all of a sudden your falling into pits with problems that you never thought you would do or go back to...

but

then you find yourself again. it all comes flooding back to you, everything, the wonder the beauty, everything that God meant to you before, but you find even more, discover even more about God, before you never read the bible, then all of a sudden you discover something you never knew before. and you cant put it down, your reading all sorts of books out of the bible, philipians, psalm, even Jesus' sermon that he gave in the desert... or was it on a boat... maybe it was those and many more, might have to go back and read it again... think i will... I'd like that.

and then

you wonder what pulled you out of this rut...
you realise you had been trying for so long to get out of it, and then....
it just hits you
you find that it was when it was one of the very rare occasions you sat in your sister's room, on her bed with her and listened to a CD. on that CD was a guy named Brit. from America. now the topic that he had been talking on was dating, but the thing that he talked about in his sermon was being content with God. what he said was that people want a relationship with a girl or a guy. thing is though is that God is not going to place someone in your life when you are not first content with him. why? because if he did put someone in your life that you were to fall in love with the relationship with that person would become more imprtaqnt thatn God. it would be idolitry. and that just pulls you away from God. now i dont think that God puts specific people in your life when the chances are very high that you would break up with them anyway, but i do think that God when the time is right for you does open up your eyes to a relationship. now feel free to correct me on that one. but if you are serious about God then i do believe that he does protect you from just falling for some random. and i do believe he did that for me. i had wanted a relationship with girl for so long. but from the wise words of a great friend. its just how we are structured. its nothing special. but i firmly belive God protected me and i got through that stage and i am better for it.

and now...

i am so content with God, i am really loving my life at the moment. and just in time for the holidays.

hehe...

now onto work experience...
luved it
every moment of it!!! Tom Helen Belinda Steve Rachel K and especially Barb were all marvelous.
i ran part of a prayer meeting, designed a flyer, did a little talk at the 8am and 10am services last sunday, scripture services at mimosa and belrose, went to various meetings, bible study groups, ate lunch, and the big one...


PHOTOCOPIED, CUT, AND ORGANISED OVER 4100 FLYERS FOR BACK TO BETHLEHEM!!! and that was on my second day. now of course i had a heap of help from Belinda, and together we got the huge job done. cootoes to us.

well i think thats all...

tim

well the reason for the fact that there are no formal photos on my blog is bcos the file sizes are really big. thus they are not there.

but... there are cd's that are floating round that have all the photos on them. so if you want a copy, there are various people that you may ask to see if they can give you a copy, including me. they are, beth, luke, ashley bennet, ross spicer. i think thats it. anywho

blogging off
tim

Formal

man aint this exiting its the day of the big formal and i have spent $20 on a white tie and about to spend another $30 on a haircut. why? cos my hair is terrible at the moment. absolutely everywhere
now lets see, what am i wearing?
black suit
blue tshirt
white tie
polished black shoes with wire spaghetti shoelaces

man i am going to be so sexy!!! hehehe... chill out im just joking.
well you will all get photos v. soon
for those that didnt know i am taking mel amon, luke is obviously taking beth, ross is taking pip w. and monty is taking ash bennet.

now is there anything else that i have missed? oh yeah no school today or tomorow, unfortunately no after parties for me, shame that, the guys wanted to see me get pissed.

well thats all for now, shall give you updates about what happened l8a, oh as well as photos.
cya
tim

man i am so evil. i went ahead and picked on mel and told her i really liked her
hehehehe.... she bought it too!!!
sorry mel, i was just looking for a laugh, thought it'd be pretty funny... and well... it was

IM BACK

well in case you didnt notice i am back to blogging!!! YAY!!!
more photos from japan will be coming your way

they got funny cars in japan... ever heard of a Nissan Cube...? didnt think so.

another masterpiece from brendon... i personally think its his best yet... oh yeah, and to put your mind at ease, thats ocha ... green tea.

yeah.... i know what your thinking.... what the..?

see those little dots at the bottom of the temple... if you havent figured it out yet.... those are people. yeah.... its big

it is a well known fact for all of those that have eaten Mr. Donuts... you dont know donuts until you have tried to Mr. Donuts... trust me.......... 30 times better than K.K's will ever be, and i am not exaggerating...

more fish than people... if you were lost there... or even there... you would find that hard to believe... wait... if you were there, you'd know how many bloodyh fish there were, so in actual fact you wouldnt find it hard to believe... ahh bugger it, there were lots of fish as well as people, ok? good.

the streets of japan...

wow... says it all dont it? (this is in japan right? yeah it is.)

...................yeah... we were all a little shocked too....

1 of the many poses (funny ones might i add) that we got from brendon.

well what can i say? i'm an idiot... gotta luv it!

fireworks are good fun. now thats ashley coward on the left and nat buckley behind her, then vanessa (chick from school) to the right.

man people talk about going to canberra for fireworks... (or at leadt they used to). think you can get anything like this in canberra? even with a license? hehehe...

streets of tokyo, our first night in japan. we had gone to so many different places in the one day, we didnt even get time to rest after a (well must have been something like) 10 hour flight, it was on the train to ryokan, where our japanese hotel was, meaning traditional style japanese living. (if you want a photo of that let me know and i shall put those photos up). err... now lets see. what else?... we went to the oldest temple in tokyo. got plenty of photos of that too... and well after everything we needed dinner so the teachers sed that we would go walkies and get an obento dinner, it turned into a massive hike which was a couple of km. massive trek. with all of our luggage too... nah just kidding. but it turned out to be a really nice dinner and on the way bac we saw some really kool bands busking or something, they were really kool. of course all the singing was in japanese but that doesnt matter, we could understand them (insert coughing and spluttering here, and if there is any food in your mouth bring that up too.) but it was really nice we ended up having dinner there.well many more photos to come

on the plane, coming into japan, the sunrise out the window.

randoms

Things happen, lost of things happen. what do you do? not that there's anything wrong at the moment but there is lots of tings happening at the moment. and i just find myself quite busy at the moment. japan, this time next week i am going to be in tokyo. will have gotton off the plane about 7 hours ago. and i'm sick. really sick. this cold just wont go away. and the lung infection. i think combined they equal a serious pain in the ass.

the carrols are going away. how sad. i'm really going to miss them all. well they'll have fun in N.Z. its a very kool place.

next... what next... umm...there is currently a rainbow lorrikeet sitting in our bird feeder. it has been for the last 5 to 10 mins. doing nothing. just brooding.

2 nights ago our dog got its first possum. brought it to the back door as a present.

err... next item on the agenda... home work and lots of it... japanese and english... damn; oh well such is life.

well dinners for life went well, our schools year 10 formal is coming up... the formal should be good fun, we're going to darling harbour for that... i still need a date for that too... gotta hurry up its like on the 16th nov. if i'm not quick all the girls are gonna be taken... whatever will i do!? lol.

oo the lorikeet just start moving. spreaded its wings and chirped a bit.
now its flown off, oh it was so beautiful too.

well i'm gonna do the same... cya

japan

oh gosh... man the last time i blogged was more than a week ago.
well i am going to japan on the 18th sep. dont know what the hell i am going to do. but as long as i dont miss a plane or train or bus i shall be bac here on the first saturday of october. and it will be bac to the usual routine... and with everything finally out of the way i can get my drivers license.
well we're getting to japan by qantas getting to the airport by 7:15. dont worry, thats in the evening. arrive in japan in 6 in the morning.
we get to go around in a bullet train to other parts of japan after being in tokyo. so tokyo, and more importantly tokyo disneyland!!!
wonderland sydney was good while it was around, but it never had a huge long steel rollercoaster. but when i get to tokyo disneyland i am going to go on all of them!!! i will have gone on some of the biggest rollercoasters in the world. WOOHOO!!! yeah! nice. very nice.

think i am excited? you got no idea! well in the next week and a bit its preparation. got to get some things together. oh well, it'll only make the trip better.