Well, I'm home again. Back in Australia, suffering from jet lag. It's five o'clock in the morning here and I've been awake for a few hours. I'm hoping to push through the tiredness and force myself to follow normal hours. I was very tired yesterday, my first day back.
My journey home wasn't too thrilling. By the end I was willing it to be over.
So, how was my trip to the UK? Great. I had a really good time and it was very special to catch up with family and friends. It was also an excellent time of reflection. Having the opportunity to revisit places that have been signficant for me on my journey with God was hugely beneficial. I simply spent a bit of time at each place reminding myself what I learnt while I was there. It gave me a profound sense of perspective and awareness of the fact that I have been moving in a good direction over the past fifteen years. It was helpful to see how the things that I experienced ten or more years ago have shaped me in such a way that I am able to do well what I do today. There is great power in pilgrimage.
I have no regrets about the past, and no conviction other than that Australia is our home now. We are in the right place doing the right thing. For this I am extremely thankful to God.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Friday, January 14, 2011
Back in the UKKR
My time in the UK is coming to an end. Just this weekend to go and then I'll be bundled onto a metal bird and face a potentially unthrilling twenty hour flight (plus five hours by surface once I land) before I get home.
I say 'potentially' because it might turn out to be thrilling. I'm not talking about hijackings or anything like that, though if movies have taught us anything it's that there's always a retired Marine somewhere on the flight and he just needs to be coaxed gently back into action so that he can come to terms with the death of his buddy on that disastrous black ops mission from five years back. I'm not even talking about the opportunity I'll have to watch seven six-month-old films in a row (plus an episode of The Simpsons). No, rather the potential thrills come from the fact that there will be people there, and wherever people are there is the potential for thrillage. It's a big thing for a misanthropic introvert like me to say that, but I mean it. I wouldn't have really thought like that once, but this is one of the ways that Cornerstone has changed me. God is always at work, and He works in people, so consequently wherever there are people, there are potential thrills.
I've had a really good time while over here, and I've fulfilled my objective of reflection and pilgrimage. I feel like I've found some solid footing again, but uncertain ground is not really going to stop me from moving forward anyway. It's written into my contract with God.
It's hard to be here and see the flooding in Brisbane on the news. I don't know anyone who lives in Brisbane, at least not directly, but Australia is my home now and I feel sensitive to her struggles and hardships. After so many years of drought, I wonder how much more her spirit can take. I tell you something, Australians are a wonderful and resilient people.
Thank you to all the wonderful UKites who have accommodated me (literally and otherwise) while I've been here. It's been great to see you all again. The next time I blog I'll be back Down Under, and will probably offer a review of my time here.
I say 'potentially' because it might turn out to be thrilling. I'm not talking about hijackings or anything like that, though if movies have taught us anything it's that there's always a retired Marine somewhere on the flight and he just needs to be coaxed gently back into action so that he can come to terms with the death of his buddy on that disastrous black ops mission from five years back. I'm not even talking about the opportunity I'll have to watch seven six-month-old films in a row (plus an episode of The Simpsons). No, rather the potential thrills come from the fact that there will be people there, and wherever people are there is the potential for thrillage. It's a big thing for a misanthropic introvert like me to say that, but I mean it. I wouldn't have really thought like that once, but this is one of the ways that Cornerstone has changed me. God is always at work, and He works in people, so consequently wherever there are people, there are potential thrills.
I've had a really good time while over here, and I've fulfilled my objective of reflection and pilgrimage. I feel like I've found some solid footing again, but uncertain ground is not really going to stop me from moving forward anyway. It's written into my contract with God.
It's hard to be here and see the flooding in Brisbane on the news. I don't know anyone who lives in Brisbane, at least not directly, but Australia is my home now and I feel sensitive to her struggles and hardships. After so many years of drought, I wonder how much more her spirit can take. I tell you something, Australians are a wonderful and resilient people.
Thank you to all the wonderful UKites who have accommodated me (literally and otherwise) while I've been here. It's been great to see you all again. The next time I blog I'll be back Down Under, and will probably offer a review of my time here.
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