Some times the weight of all of life’s demands cause you to ‘feel heavy’. It is times like these that one is reminded of the need for support. I am reminded of this as I stand here looking at this very old tree by the river. It is not what you might call a ‘tall tree’, but it is healthy. It is also a haven for all sorts of life. I reckon it has seen a fair bit of change over the decades… perhaps longer. With these supports, I reckon it will be here for a while yet. Inspiring.
Saw this on the South Perth foreshore today.
Fruit trees blossom and rose bushes sprout new growth while magpies sing through the night. Flying ants flood the evening sky and the days get just that little bit longer. Paper wasps build new nests and the chooks start laying again. All these things point towards the coming of a new season. But despite these signs, the new season still catches us by surprise. I mean, today it is winter …tomorrow it will be spring. 
Having said this, for some reason, this year I have noticed the change. One thing is for sure, we can’t stop the coming of the new season. We have no choice in the matter. It comes. We can accept it or not.
All this reminds me of what Jesus said in Luke 10 when he sent out the 72 disciples into the towns and villages. He told them to say, “…the Kingdom of God is near.” Regardless of whether or not the people accepted or rejected this message, the reality was that Jesus was coming and so was the New Kingdom. Imagine hearing of the coming of a new kingdom, only to reject it and miss out.
My prayer is that I might not ‘miss the signs’ of how God’s Kingdom is being revealed around me… in my own life and in the lives of others.
Have you ever seen a citrus fruit this big before? Me neither. It is a pomelo and it smells like a grapefruit. Interesting.
My first bubble tea. Peach with sago. Nice. Different. Interesting.
Recently, as a part of our learning at the Big Picture Academy, we have been playing with stop motion animation. A couple of observations…
But then, that’s what the word animation means; the act, process, or result of imparting life, interest, spirit, motion, or activity. It can also be defined as the quality or condition of being alive, active, spirited, or vigorous. One of the things that I noticed as we spent a couple of days exploring this process, was that in many ways, stop animation is very much like life. Often, we only see the frame that we are in at the time. A lot of work goes into each frame (well maybe not in our case) and often you can get totally absorbed in the moment. All your focus and attention, all your energy, a whole heap of emotion and passion goes into making that one frame work. Every detail and every movement is carefully planned and executed. And then ‘click’… the image is captured. And the then the whole process starts over again. We move onto a new frame. It is subtlety different, slightly changed. It is one more part of the whole… and yet we put as much effort into this one as the one before.
As in life, stop motion animation never makes much sense until you start viewing all the frames together, in sequence. For me, this is what makes the whole process interesting. Even though I have a plan of what I would like to see happen, and even though I know what the outcome might look like… I am always amazed as I look at the finished scene. The ‘animated’ frames really do come to life.
But is more that just our ability to create that makes humans different from all the other animals… we have the capacity to enjoy what we have created. It helps me to understand just a little more about how God might of felt as He looked at all He had made. So here’s to the the greatest animation of all time… Planet Earth.
You can’t beat the smell of steak cooking on a camp fire. Pure delight.
There is something magical about waking up in the morning to discover that your campsite is shrouded in fog. Looking forward to a great day exploring a spot I have never been to before.
Last night, we had a most wonderful experience at church. We called it Immerse Overflow. Basically, we had an Immerse style service, where we looked at four scenes from the Presence episode. After each section of narrative was read we paused for a few moments to reflect, journal and contemplate the story. After the four narratives were done we had people move around four stations. Each station had further thoughts, questions and reflections to consider. We then all met back together to share what we had been hearing, thinking and wondering about. I loved the fact that people could ask questions of the passages and that others were free to share their insights. Many others saw things in the passages that they had never noticed before. Some discovered deep and wonderful truths about God, His nature and His love… Which they shared with us. I know I came away refreshed, built up and keen to explore these passages more deeply. A community of learners sharing in God’s great story together… what a concept.
