Happy Birthday to Roo

On Monday of this week we celebrated Ruth's thirtieth birthday. She had a really nice time and the community went to great lengths to make it a day to remember. We had our fellowship group meeting at the Volkofskys and Penny had created this amazing four course meal that we all really enjoyed. After this we went to the lounge for a party of sorts. We had some more great food and a great time. There was supposed to be an 'English' theme to the party so we had plenty of tea to drink and a few special guests, namely Dr. Who, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and a random Englishman in a peaked cap. We felt very honoured by their presence. Kind of.


You may remember that a few blogs back I reported that I had crushed my finger during the fateful trip to Swan Hill. Well, the fingernail is still black and ugly but doesn't seem to be doing anything. It's neither healing nor dropping off. It's like it can't decide whether to be dead or not. It continues to live, function and grow in a state of undeath but it's definitely not being 'normal'. It's my undead fingernail; my zombie ungula. An ungula, by the way, is another word for 'claw' or 'talon'. I looked it up on the Internet when I was searching for another way of saying 'fingernail'. So now everyone who insists that it's only a good blog when they 'learn something new' should be happy.

We've finally got some idea what we'll be up to next year. We think we'll be staying here in Dubbo for the first part of the year (probably anywhere between three and six months) and then being sent to a first-year centre. At the moment the favourite seems to be Swan Hill, but we'll see. Things can change in the course of a month. While we're here in Dubbo we'll be finalising things like our visas and how much of the course that I haven't yet done I can get away with not doing.

It's really hot here. It must be mid-thirties. And it's still only spring.

Calvin has been pestering us for a pet for a while. He's tried to convince us that a goldfish wouldn't be much work but I don't believe him. Or maybe I should put it this way, I believe that a goldfish is not much work but the point is that Ruth and I would be the ones doing it. Well, OK, mostly Ruth. However, we have now acquired two guinea pigs and they sit in a bird cage on our front lawn. The guinea pigs are sisters (I hope they are anyway because I gather than guinea pigs don't have the same qualms that we have about brother/sister relationships) and the boys 'possess' one each. Calvin named his little pet 'Sydney', which is quite a good name for a female Australian guinea pig. Reid showed a little less sensitivity but just as much imagination by naming his 'Spiderman'. So we have two new additions to the family - Sydney and Spiderman. Hmmmmm. I made it clear to Ruth that we could only take them on if I was not expected to have anything to do with them. I failed to get a similar understanding in place when Xanthe was born so I wasn't going to get caught out this time.

Have a good week. See you in a week and hopefully I'll have something worth saying.

Bored of the Flies

The photo above is how I looked before the Australia/England rugby game last week. There is no photo of how I looked during or after the game, but be assured that I definitely looked happier that I do in the photo above. The game against France is being shown at 4a.m. tomorrow morning. I think I'll be giving that one a miss. I'll have to check the score when I wake up in the morning.

Open Week has finished here at Cornerstone. I think that it went very well and it certainly seemed to make a positive impact on many of the the people who visited us. I enjoyed talking to people and hearing their stories - it's fascinating to hear how God is and has been working in people's lives. I also really enjoyed the first game of soccer I've played since arriving in Australia. Of course, regular fellow-players will not be surprised to learn that I dazzled the entire nation with my silky skills. However, I did discover that, despite the exertions of the mat run, I seem to be a bit out of shape. It also showed me that I do miss the games I used to enjoy as an integral part of HHBC FC. Maybe I can remedy that situation in the near future.

I've found that, pretty much without exception as far as I know, people who spend some time living here in community at Burrabadine are generally attracted to what we are doing and experiencing out here. Cornerstone is far from perfect, but the heart of what it is about is focused on mission, discipleship and whole-of-life spirituality. The general response from Christians who spend enough time here to get over the 'radical' nature of things can see the advantages and blessing of the way that we're doing things. I think it can be quite hard to be confronted with the example of a different way of living, especially as people can see that there's a lot to be said for it. There are things that could be a lot better here; things that other organisations will do very well, but I think that Cornerstone has made a genuine difference over the years and will keep doing so as it continues.


Eddie is back! No, not really. I haven't seen him in many months so have to assume that he's long gone and maybe been eaten by something. Possibly Reid. This lizard was spotted outside our house a couple of days ago in about the same spot that Reid saw the lizard with the black tongue a long time ago (I mention it in a previous blog, continuity fans). When we drove to Bourke was saw a few lizards just sitting on the road, sunning themselves. There is a lot more variety of reptilian activity here in Oz. We are not known for out scaly wildlife in the UK.


Speaking of which, the flies. THE FLIES! I've already mentioned the veracity of the flies here and I've been suffering for the past couple of weeks. Just stepping outside of the house is an invitation to be set-upon by a swarm of The Buzzing Death. They are either very brave or highly stupid as they seem to have no sense of self-preservation. They sit on your face until you try to kill them and then...then they fly off for a nanosecond before returning to your face. I'm surprised at how well I've adapted to them so far. Annoying as they are they don't bother me as much as they used to. However, I have a feeling that when the summer finally kicks in I'll be longing for the days when they only attacked in groups of ten. I have to say that I don't think I'll ever get used to the terribly horrible position of getting in the car and setting off only to find that you've trapped three flies in with you. You're totally at their mercy then as any attempt to swipe them away, open the door or even shoo them out of a window can result in sudden veering and / or potential death. You just have to sit and bear it as they proceed to lay eggs in your eyelids. Still, I suppose that life can't just be fun all the time.

Dubbo in the Spring

It's been a bit quiet round here. It's school holidays and last Monday was a bank holiday. There were no lectures last week so lots of people cleared off for a few days. A large group of Cornerstoners were away providing a Pizza Runners service at Black Stump, a Christian alternative music festival. I think it sounds like the name of an amputee reunion rather than a music festival, but that's Oz for you.

This coming week (the second week of the spring break) is the Cornerstone open week. There will be about thirty people joining us here in Dubbo to spend a week experiencing Cornerstone and deciding if they want to join us. It would be tempting to welcome the people with a big smiley face but then pass them secret notes during the week with things like "HELP ME" written in big red crayon. As I am a Christian I shall resist the temptation.

It's well and truly spring here, with temperatures reaching into the 30s. We're still waiting for rain but as I write big black clouds fill the sky and Ruth has brought her washing in. It's looking pretty hopeful.

I've been preparing some teaching sessions on Acts to prepare for the first week back in classes. We're doing a nationally recognised Training and Assessment course so we need to teach some classes to make sure that we're competent at teaching. This is in preparation for those of us who want to stay on at Cornerstone as staff members. I've quite enjoyed preparing the classes, though I see that a lot of work goes into each session. I'm looking forward to it though.

Tonight is a big night for me. At 10pm England shall be facing off against Australia in the Rugby World Cup. Things could go very well or very badly. I shall be watching it with a bunch of Aussies so it's not going to be my finest hour whatever happens. A friend suggested that I get there half an hour before kick off and just gloat over the fact that we're World Champions for as long as I can just in case it all goes badly after the game. By the time some of you read this it will have all been decided. Congratulations or commiserations will be welcome as appropriate.

100 Things to Do Before I Die

It's been a really warm week here though there hasn't been as much rain as we've needed. The warmer weather does have it's downside though. The flies in Australia are numerous and are specially bred as 'attack flies'. Ruth has found a way of avoiding being eaten alive - as you can see from this photo. It's almost as if we're intentionally trying to allow the locals to play 'Spot the Pom' or something like that. We'll be availing ourselves of the community swimming pool in the very near future, but we draw the line at wearing socks and sandals at the same time.


It's not been a great week for Ruth. She was tasked with looking after a friend's budgie over the holidays (today marked the start of a two week Spring break in Australian schools). He was delivered and it was decided that it would be a great idea to put him the aviary that we have on our veranda. A previous resident of this flat had converted part of the veranda to a luxury bird storage facility, so in went Buddy the budgie. He looks happy doesn't he? Well, he was - flying all around and having the time of his life. But all the time that he was enjoying a bit of space and exercise he was plotting anarchy in his tiny bird mind and within a couple of hours he had quite literally flown the coop. So Buddy escaped from a maximum security aviary where he had been imprisoned for a crime that he, quite conceivably, didn't commit. He may, and I stress the word may, have escaped to the Los Angeles underground and be working as a soldier of fortune. If you have a problem and if you can find him then maybe you can let us know.

So, I've promised you something special haven't I? Well I suppose I'd better deliver the goods.


Yes. It's this week's Dubbo Photo News. And guess what? A couple of weeks ago Georgina (a daughter of some staff members here) had her 18th birthday party. And guess what? There was a photographer from Dubbo Photo News there. And guess what? THAT'S RIGHT! I was in the one of the photos that was printed. Here's the page that I appear on. Can you spot me?



No? Here's a close-up for you. The quality's not great, which is probably the only thing that makes this photo bearable.


OK. It's a terrible photo in about every possible way, but I made it. So I had to go to Georgina's 18th birthday party in fancy dress to get in, but at least I made it. And when I say fancy dress then let me clarify that I was dressed...ahem...as a woman. A hideously ugly one at that. Let me explain how this happened. We were invited to Georgina's party and the theme was 'Fashion'. Ruth suggested that we go as old women and for want of a better or even more relevant suggestion I agreed. I left her with the task of securing costumes as I was in Victoria for the days before the party. When I returned from Swan Hill and prepared for the party I was given my costume of a dress and a wig. There was nothing 'old ladyish' about either of them. Even more puzzling was the fact that Ruth's 'We'll go as old ladies' suggestion had become 'You go as a woman and I'll go wearing only slightly less fashionable clothes than I normally wear'. So I went to this party dressed in a highly inappropriate manner. No-one else, and I mean no-one, had even touched the whole 'cross-dressing' thing. I don't know what's more distressing - the fact that none of the other guys in the photo are in fancy dress or the fact that I suspect I now know what Xanthe is going to look like when she's older and feel really, really sorry for her.

Still, appearing in the Dubbo Photo News was number 58 on my list of '100 Things to Do Before I Die' so we're getting closer to the number 1 spot. Now I just need to move on to number 57. I'll keep you posted as to how my attempts to turn lead into gold are going.

Another update.

This is just going to be a brief update to let you all know that we're still alive and kicking. This has been another week where there has been not much happening, so I've not really got any news for you. The 'something special' that I thought I might have for you this week didn't materialise, so you'll have to wait until next week.

I suppose that a lot of this week has been taken up thinking about the coming year and what it might hold for us. We're still not sure if we're going to be in Dubbo for another year or if we'll be shipped off to a first year centre in another part of the country. We're open to either option and there are benefits to both.

Matt and Jane left last weekend which means that Bill and I have been left with responsibility for the Mat Exchange. It also means that I have lost a Risk buddy. Oh, and if you're reading Jane then you left some tweezers in the flat. Ruth is going to send them on to you. Or maybe they're Matt's tweezers?

Spring is a really nice season. The flowers are in bloom and the weather is lovely, but we're still praying for rain. This week I was speaking to a guy who reckoned that he was going to lose about $15,000 worth of crops unless we have rain in the next week. Drought is a serious matter.

Congratulations to English pals Terry and Ruth who are expecting their first baby sometime in the next six months or so. Having babies is also a serious matter. Just as I've found so many Australians who are able to be positive about their future (regardless of the drought) so too can the birth of a new baby be and expression of hope for us Christians. There are a lot of things that aren't going too well in the world, but bringing children into it can be a practical way of demonstrating faith that God is still involved and going to do good things in the future. At least, that's what I tell myself when I catch Xanthe causing various degrees of havoc around the house. See you in six or seven (days).

To Swan Hell and Bourke

Hello all. Today I'm going to be telling you about my mammoth road trips undertaken this week. Firstly, on Wednesday I went down to Swan Hill in Victoria (about a nine hour trip) and then, after returning on Thursday, the Webb family took a trip inland to Bourke (a mere four hour trip). Let me tell you how it all went...

I went down with Matt to Swan Hill to help him move some stuff in preparation for his family's move there this weekend; I also wanted to check out a first year centre and see another Cornerstone set-up. There are some important things to pass on about this adventure.

i) Ruth told me that I had to tell you that Matt was pretty ashamed of his packing skills here. He told me that it was the worst packing that he had ever done. Nothing broke though, except for maybe a bit of a cupboard.

ii) Here's a handy hint - it doesn't really work too well to try and cook meat pies on a truck engine. It seemed like a good idea, but by the time we checked them out the bottom crusts were black and charred. I tried a bite of the unburnt bit but it tasted like I had put my mouth to an exhaust pipe and inhaled. Matt then chose that moment to tell me that he suspected that the truck had an exhaust leak. Not nice. In fact, I couldn't get rid of the taste of carbon monoxide for a few hours.

iii) Avoid the Hay Plains. Imagine a landscape that's totally flat and devoid of anything interesting. Now imagine this stretching on for about three hundred kilometres. That's about three hours of nothing but sky and flat scrubland. Yes, it may sound romantic but it was one of the most soul-destroying experiences of my life. By the time we got to the other end I was about ready to throw myself off a bridge - but that may have been a residual pie effect.

iv) Swan Hill itself is pretty nice and we noticed that there seemed to be an opening for a mat rental business. Maybe I can convince Bill that he needs to do a run down there - a sixteen-hour round trip should sort the men from the boys.

v) I hurt my finger. Ouch. It's gone a bit black under the fingernail.

Bourke is a different kettle of piscines. It's a town that is considered to be a gateway to the Outback - there's not much civilisation left inland after Bourke. In fact, in Australia the phrase "Back O' Bourke" is used to refer to something that's in the middle of nowhere. Bourke has suffered greatly because of the drought and the town looks very dry and desolate. However, it has something of a rich history by Australian standards and some of the locals are optimistic that tourism will replace irrigation as the lifeblood of the town. It was encouraging to find hope in such a place.

We stayed with John and Heather Buster on their farm. The Busters were one family who, I guess it's fair to say, were instrumental in making Cornerstone happen thirty years ago. The Busters are just one family who have really felt the impact of the drought but remain hospitable and generous. The boys certainly enjoyed the trampoline, swimming pool, rope swings and all sorts of things. It's certainly a great life for children out here.



Bourke is, of course, where Splashe Cola originated. It's no longer produced here but we were able to get a photo of the factory where it used to be made. Even this sight is not enough to dampen my addiction.


Paul and Robyn Roe took us out to Bourke to see where Cornerstone all started. We visited Pera Bore, the original Cornerstone Community site, and although the properties had fallen into a state of disrepair we spoke to people who were still influenced in one way or another by the impact that Cornerstone had on the town. It's really exciting to be a part of Cornerstone; you feel that you're a part of something that's leaving a lasting legacy. That's a pretty great place to be. No doubt I'll have more to share with you about these trips over the coming weeks but it's getting late and I wanted to get something up on the blog before the end of the weekend. Have a good week and I think that I might have something exciting to show you on the next update...

Youth isn't everything

Another week has passed and it's been another good one. Although it's been business as usual for Ruth and I it's been a busy time for the children. Xanthe has a little tooth budding up from her bottom gum. I'm of the firm opinion that (generally) teeth ruin children but Xanthe carries it off pretty well. Reid has been ruined for a long time now, but we've finally broken the back of the potty training with him. Like Calvin he's gone to being pretty much trained overnight. He's a very clever boy.


As it's a slow news week I thought that today I'd post an excerpt from something written by one of the teaching staff Peter Volkofsky; the Director of Mission at Cornerstone. It's something that I've found really encouraging and gives a glimpse into the sort of thing you can expect from Cornerstone. Read it and then think hard about how you're going to get over here and join us.

I sometimes think that we are too clever in Cornerstone at being flexible and fitting in. There are times when this is a great quality. But we make a habit of it and what with forgiveness and grace and restoration, we forget that there are oceans of could-have-been saints, could-have-been Mary Slessors and Amy Carmichaels who are sidelined by the cool scene and now are just warming pews in a cool church somewhere. Nightclub evangelism and party evangelism is usually a great way for the enemy to wreck the lives of Christian young people. If you read the books of those saints, you realise that the only reason they did not end up as fizzled pew-warmers is because when the others were at parties, they were running kids clubs, youth groups, preaching, praying or studying the scriptures. A lot of us have no idea - the books tend to make it look as if they just had great self control.

It was no accident that Jesus did not engage in the most risky and dangerous part of his life's mission until he was well over thirty. The reason many middle-aged Christian people are doing less dangerous things than they used to is because when they were younger, they disqualified themselves. Their Father in Heaven had no other option but to put them on light duties. Adventure will come! No fear of that. It is the dreadful lie of our culture that you must take the great adventures while you are young. Maybe so in abseiling and Bungee Jumping; but it is not so in the truly dangerous business of the Kingdom. Your youth is supposed to be a time of qualifying yourself for them, let the Father bring them to you in his own careful way. I believe he has allowed you to taste some serious failure because he knows that one of the biggest qualifiers for those later mission tasks is steely and patient obedience. You only get that after years of training your body and soul in lonely places. The enemy knows what you can do and that the Father wants to use you to do a lot of damage to the gates of hell. It's kind of like the way the opposition try to take out a talented sports star in a rugby team. A wise coach will not expose that young player too much at first. He knows that the player's very enthusiasm and passion is in fact a weakness at this point. It is only when that player has submitted to the boring and hard art of building strong defensive skills that he will be truly ready. The lesson of your experience so far is that your defensive skills are weak. It's often the case with talented people...