Exams ...

Well at this stage, I have had four exams and have three to go - two are tomorrow and the final one is on Monday. My brain feels fried, too much information in too short a time.

Mind you, it has been life-changing information crammed in because it's the Word of God. The Word of God is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, joints and marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). According to Joshua 1:8, meditating on the Word of God day and night makes me prosperous and successful in all that I do and Proverbs 4:22 tells me that it will fill me with life and divine glowing health.

I have learnt the value of reading the Word of God out loud because "faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17) and angels hearken to the Word of God (Psalm 103:20). If we don't speak the Word of God, then how are the angels meant to hear it and perform what it says?

For the first time in my life, I have tasted that deep peace that surpasses all understanding. It is in my soul and my heart. I finaly know without a doubt that I'm walking in the will of God. Praise God.

Wolfy

This is a piccy of Wolfy as a one-year old toddler ... it will be interesting to see how similar his baby photo looks to mum's first grandchild ...

Don't be sent to far away places

Last Friday Phil H said the funniest thing. He said someone came up to him and said they felt that the Lord wanted him to go to Russia. He said that the Lord had not said anything like that to him, but he would gladly go if someone gave him the airfare - not for the Lord's work, but for a holiday.

His advice to us was that we need to be careful that we can hear God properly because people who don't like us will try to send us far away!!! ;-) hehe

100%

College is going well. I got 100% for my assignment in for a unit called "New Creation Realities". The funny thing is, I really didn't like this unit at the start because it seemed way too heavy and I really didn't feel it was something that I could grasp well, so I was pleasantly surprised to see my grade. Just for the record, here's what i wrote....

New Creation Realities Assignment

1) - What the spirit, soul and body consist of and how they affect your growth.

The spirit (i.e. "heart" of man, hidden man and inward man) deals with the spiritual realm. Prior to salvation, a person is in the process of dying spiritually. However, after they make the decision to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, a miracle takes place and spiritual death is driven out of them and their spirit is recreated to enable them to communicate and have fellowship with God. They become a new creation, old aspects of their life pass away, and all things become new (John 4:24, Romans 2:28-29, 1 Peter 3:4, 2 Corinthians 4:16 and 5:17).

The soul deals with the mental realm and is comprised of the mind (reasons and thinks), the will (makes decisions) and emotions. It receives information from the physical realm through the five senses of tasting, touching, seeing, hearing and smelling. Prior to salvation, a person's soul is unable to understand things of the spirit and is a servant to the body (1 Corinthians 2:14). However, it was created by God to be a servant to the spirit. After salvation, it undergoes a process of transformation by the renewing of the mind, restoration and purification through meditating on God's Word (Romans 12:2, Psalm 19:7 and Kenyon, 2000).

The body deals with the physical realm (through which it makes contact using the five senses mentioned above) and is effectively a temporary, fragile home in which the spirit lives, prior to dying on earth (2 Corinthians 5:1). Because the body was derived “of the flesh”, it is flesh, meaning that it is a slave to sin (John 3:6). Without Jesus, a person dies spiritually, and in parallel their body physically perishes as they surrender to cravings, lusts, evil passions and wickedness (Genesis 2:17 and Romans 6:11-14).

When a person makes the decision to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior and to serve Him, their fleshly desires are nailed to the cross and crucified and, in the case of those who decide to invite the Holy Spirit to live inside them, their body is transformed into a temple in which the Holy Spirit resides (Galatians 5:24-25 and 1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

We (Christians) are not instantly cured of our sinful nature. Therefore, we need to make a conscious decision to present our bodies as living sacrifices to God and to resist temptations to embrace acts of sin, i.e. things which dishonor God and separate us from Him (Romans 12:1). We need to discipline our bodies by maintaining an active prayer life, reading, meditating and declaring God’s Word and being selective in what we listen to, and with whom we have fellowship (1 Corinthians 9:27 and 15:33 and Mark 4:24-25).

Kenyon (2000) tells us that when a person has the Holy Spirit inside them, it acts as a Teacher bringing revelation about the Word of God and developing God-like attributes inside them, which causes them to be a blessing to those that they come in contact with. The Holy Spirit helps them in their weaknesses by giving them the strength to overcome obstacles (including temptations) and by guiding them and directing them into a life of victory (Galatians 5:16-17). The spirit and soul work in agreement to overpower the flesh and produce a change in the natural realm. When the Word lives in them and they live in the Word, they become the Word made flesh (John 1:14 and 15:7). Their flesh reflects the life within them. For example, the Word on healing will result in their body being redeemed from all sickness (Galatians 3:13) and being filled with strength and vigor (Kenyon, 2000). The Word on peace and love will result in their hearts and minds being free from anxiety and fear (Philippians 4:6-7 and 2 Timothy 1:7).

2) - Explain the effects on the fall of man and how this has impacted your life.

Prior to the fall of man, man was flawless and without sin. As the first inhabitants of the earth, Adam and Eve were created in the image of God with authority over all the earth and its inhabitants. They were subject to God, blessed, fearless and acutely aware of the spiritual realm. Their spirits were in control and they had no awareness of their bodies, nor did they have any knowledge of good and evil (i.e. they were not conscious of sin and had no condemnation). They had the freedom to make their own choices - to obey or disobey God (Genesis 1-2).

Adam and Eve made a detrimental decision to disobey God, which enabled satan to gain a foothold in their lives. Consequently, after the fall, they lost their awareness of the spiritual realm and their spirits were separated from God. They became more aware of their bodies, fearful, conscious of sin and cursed. This was reflected in Adam’s attempt to hide from God – he no longer felt free to enter into God’s presence. Adam and Eves’ disobedience has had significant repercussions on the entire human race because the curse of sin was passed on to all mankind (Genesis 3).

This impacted my life because prior to accepting Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I too was under the curse of sin (Psalm 51:5). My life was without hope, I was powerless to overcome my inward condition and unable to discern spiritual truths (Ephesians 2:12-13 and 1 Corinthians 2:14). I had negative thought patterns and embraced destructive behaviour because I was a slave to sin (Ephesians 2:2-3). This had a negative effect on my physical, emotional and spiritual well-being as an unsaved teenager. I was spiritually perishing.

Now, having accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, I can recognise thoughts and behaviour that are reflective of the sinful nature. Consequently, among other things, I put on God's armor, take evil thoughts captive and ask the Holy Spirit to help me to overcome areas of weakness to prevent the devil gaining a foothold in my life (Ephesians 6:11-13 and 2 Corinthians 10:5).

3) - Explain the spiritual significance of the new birth and how this understanding affects personal growth.

Jesus came to reconcile us to our Father God. He did this by being born through human flesh into the world and then shedding His own blood as a living sacrifice for our forgiveness and justification. When we confess with our mouths that Jesus is our Lord and Savior and believe that God raised Him from the dead, we are “reborn” or “born of the spirit”, which means we are, in a way, resuscitated from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive (Romans 10:9).

We become a miraculous new creation because we are recreated from a state of being sinful, corrupted and alienated from God, to one in which we are righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21). We are given a new heart and spirit and become alive to God and filled with desire to do His will and to serve Him, just like Adam prior to the fall (Colossians 3:10). We are unable to habitually practice sin because we are born of God and are His children. In contrast, those who do habitually practice sin reflect the nature of the devil and are his children (1 John 3:8-10).

Having this understanding affects personal growth because it causes one to measure their own thoughts, words and actions against God’s standards to ensure they comply with His standards. As children of the Most High God, we are delivered from the authority of darkness and have authority to bind and loose things on earth as in Heaven (Colossians 1:13, Acts 26:18 and Matthew 16:19). We are also able to identify whether those around us are serving God or the devil and to show discernment in witnessing to unbelievers.

4) - Explain how you become the righteousness of God and what this means to your self development.

Kenyon (2000) tells us that righteousness is the ability to stand in the presence of God without a sense of guilt, condemnation or inferiority, as if sin never existed. From another perspective, he says righteousness is an ability to stand before satan and his works without a sense of timidity, fear, or a sense of inferiority. Essentially it is becoming superior to satan. If we are not right with God, we will not be able to have faith in Him to fulfill what we ask of Him. This is the key to authority in the spiritual realm.

In Hosea 4:6, we are told that God’s people are destroyed through lack of knowledge. Some Christians are held in bondage by their lack of understanding of righteousness. Righteousness cannot be earned. It is not the product of good works, nor can it be gained by obeying the law, reading the Bible, praying, fasting, attending church, etc… and neither is it something we become gradually. Rather, righteousness is a position in Christ, a state of being, which we receive as a free gift in its entirety.

In order to become righteous, a person needs to firstly confess with their mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in their heart that God raised Him from the dead. Then, they need to simply believe in their heart that they are righteous (Romans 10:9-10). Righteousness comes through faith in Jesus (Romans 3:22).

It is important to understand righteousness and grow in our understanding of it to improve our self development. In order to maintain righteousness, we need to: be quick to repent of our sins, walk in love and renew our minds to the Word of God (1 John 1:9, John 15:12 and Romans 12:2). In doing so, we will produce a Godly lifestyle and live a victorious life where we experience peace and fellowship with God, confidence in ourselves and our ability to minister to others, spiritual strength and maturity and answered prayer (Romans 5:1-2, Proverbs 28:1, Hebrews 5:12-14 and James 5:16). We will reign in life and have victory over religious legalism, feelings of guilt and unworthiness (Romans 6:17 and Colossians 2:9-10).

My nephew turned into a girl!!!

I think it was on Monday last week that i drove Jules to her appointment with her gynacaeologist in Joondalup to have her 22 week scan.... and boy did we get a shock. Upon close examination, our little baby boy had transformed into a girl!!! For the last couple of months, we have been preparing loads and loads of little boys clothes .... ho hum!!!

This morning i had the idea of naming the baby Grace, seeing Joshua is obviously no longer appropriate. It means "goodwill", but my real reason for choosing it is because I really feel that it is because of God's grace that she is pregnant and still carrying a healthy baby. Afterall, she has lost six babies before this one. Both mum and Jules think the name is lovely, so fingers crossed that it will remain as Grace. Not sure about a second name yet. I don't think mum is completely convinced it is a girl yet ;-) I think we're all still in shock.

At the Well

Last night at the Well, Kristin and I caught up with the usual guys. While we were sitting there, it suddenly occurred to us that Jelli and Joanne, who are great mates, happen to look quite similar to Kristin and I. Joanne and I are both Eurasian with straight brown hair and brown eyes, while Kristin and Jelli both have blonde curly hair and blue eyes! How funny that we would each make friends with someone who looked quite disimilar to us, but that another pair of friends reflect our looks!!!

We were all impressed, so we got the boys to snap us. Joanne and Jelli are also three years apart, like Kristin and I, but they are like ten years younger than us!!! Mum doesn't reckon you can tell we are so far apart in ages, cos she was saying that people only look old when they get to their 40s ;-) haha ... so the piccy directly below, left to right shows Joanne, me, Kristin and Jelli. The fellas shown below are, left to right, Dusty, Mike, Phil, Dan and some mysterious guy whose name i didn't catch ... haha, next time.

Even further down, we have Jelli and I admiring Heidi's lovely locks and below that is Elyse, Clayton, Jelli and Jo.

I am a child of the most high God

In class the other day, Ps Ginny told us about three incidences which proved the power of declaring God's Word over our lives.

She said she heard that a young female student was in Oral Roberts' bible college class one day when he found himself repetitively emphasising to his students that they were children of God. He said he kept thinking to himself, 'why do i keep saying that?'. Anyway, on the same day, this young student left the college campus late in the evening to walk across the car park to her car. All of a sudden she was attacked from behind by a man. Instantly, she found herself screaming "I am a child of God!!!". Apparently, the man was absolutely startled and said "Oh, are you?, I'm so sorry" and ran off!

Another college student was waiting on the side of the road at a bus stop and a car pulled over and opened the door for her. Thinking it was a friend of hers, she leapt into the passenger side of the car. When she looked over, it was a man who she didn't know. She mildly freaked out and then started to pray. Then the man made a turn down a dark bush track and she suddenly interrupted him and said with authority: "Excuse me, Sir, I am a child of God, please turn the car around now".... and he responded in the same surprised manner, apologised and turned the car around and took her home.

Finally, she told us about another college student who was having a shower when all of a sudden, the curtain was drawn to reveal a naked man standing in her bathroom. All she could think of was the word feathers, which she had read in Psalm 91, so she kept screaming "feathers, feathers, feathers". The man apparently freaked out and ran out of the house!

Wow, the power of declaring God's Word ;-)

My first assignment at college

We had to write a 400-word commentary on Mark 4:24-25 and explain why listening is so important, using our own examples. This is what I wrote:

Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. [Mark 4:24-25] NKJV

And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure [of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you - and more [besides] will be given to you who hear. For to him who has will more be given; and from him who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away [by force]. [Mark 4:24-25] Amp

My understanding of this passage is that I need to be extremely selective about the type of information I expose myself to, both consciously and sub-consciously, and how I apply the wisdom I gain from different sources. The consequence of poor choices is ultimately inner destruction, which leads to the loss of spiritual wisdom, and death.

As defined in our course notes, hearing describes "the physiological sensory processes by which auditory sensations are received by the ears and transmitted to the brain", whereas listening refers to "a more complex psychological procedure involving interpreting and understanding the significance of the sensory experience".

Listening is vital because it has a significant impact on my physical, emotional and spiritual well-being, the quality of my relationships with friends and family members, my relationship with God and my success and prosperity in life.

Prior to accepting Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, I used to listen to a lot of heavy metal music with lyrics about the devil being inside me. I also watched horror movies, read gruesome novels and magazine articles and often visited the cemetery to read the gravestones. In hindsight, I realise this had a negative effect on my health because my sleep was not peaceful, I was often unwell and my ability to concentrate in classes and perform well in school, was compromised. I also remember having feelings of intense hatred and bitterness for life in general, which was reflected in many horror-themed pictures I painted in art classes, my choice of wearing mainly black, torn clothes and having half of my head shaved. I had no joy in life and I didn't relate well to people. My many attempts to end my life as a teenager were a further reflection of the enemy's strongholds in my life. The devil gained many footholds in my life through my poor choice of listening material!

Following God's mercy towards me and my introduction to God's kingdom, my choice of audio and visual material gradually changed, in addition to the type of people I had spent time with. Praise and worship music, Godly teaching (through church sermons, home group meetings, tapes, literature and movies), on-fire prayer meetings and reading God's Word have dispelled the darkness from my life. Every day, I verbally declare and confess the Word of God over my life, put on God's armor and spend time in prayer.

Today, my life is a testimony to the benefits of listening to spiritual wisdom. I am fit and healthy and I have a sound mind - the mind of Christ - which allows me to concentrate and receive more wisdom, and, in turn, blessings. In claiming God's promises and asking the Holy Spirit to lead me and guide me, He has granted me precious friendships with like-minded people, and made my life prosperous. Through Jesus I am able to crush satan beneath my feet and live a victorious life. Praise God I now know how to listen well.

I got 80% for this one ... not bad.

Prayer warriors

These guys came around to my place last Friday for coffee, before heading to Dan's house for prayer. Clockwise from top left - me, Emma, Phil, Dusty, Matt, Jelli, Jo & Dan

Renovations in progress with Julz

Jules bought a little 3x1 duplex in Stirling about a year ago, but has only just begun renovating it. The street is filled with the most amazing Italian homes - very grand, towering mansions. I think she bought it as an investment property, but now is contemplating living in it because she has just installed a brand new bathroom and will be also revamping the kitchen ;-) Great work!

Victory Life tips

College has been great so far. On Monday, Ps John shared how one day he was working as a pharmaceutical rep and saw his competition – a guy selling similar products to him – and immediately negative feelings began to well up inside him. Then he paused and heard the Holy Spirit say to pray for the guy, so he did. He prayed the Lord would bless the works of his hands and his business and make everything he touched, prosper. Shortly afterwards, the guy offered him a great job and he worked for him for the next seven years!!! He said often we may miss our blessings if we don’t listen to God and seek his counsel.

Mark 4:24-2 Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.

Today, Ps Mandy told us about a little Aboriginal boy up north who had been diagnosed with a rapidly disseminating form of bone cancer. She had been given orders to meet with the boy’s family and tell them that the doctors had told her that the little boy only had six months to live. She had to obey. However, after she told them, she emphasized to the family that this was what the doctor has said, however, God had something different to say. She then told them about how God’s words are life to those who find them and gave the little boy a book of healing scriptures with some strict instructions to quote healing verses every day before every meal. So the little boy took the scriptures everywhere – fishing, hunting, playing sports, etc… it was always in his back pocket. He also complied with the doctors’ orders and took medicine from them and had regular scans. To the surprise of the medical staff, his cancer totally disappeared and today, he is a healthy little boy ;-) Praise Jesus.

Prov 4:21,22 - I will not let the Word of God depart from my eyes for it is life to those who find it and health and healing to all their flesh.

Flat out!!!

My life has been incredibly busy lately.

I think it was the week gone by that Jules received confirmation that her little baby is a boy. PRAISE God, cos we now have a lot of things more suited to a little boy ;-) hehe

Last week i also attended orientation for bible college. It was great. I actually rocked up ten minutes late for the first session on Thursday cos i didn't know anyone and i felt a bit intimidated because bible college is not at all like a year of uni because it's really more a year of spiritual development with a small group of people who will get to know eachother on a more intimate level than your regular non-bible college study buddies! I had all sorts of silly thoughts, imagining what it would be like if there was absolutely no one that i clicked with, and being stuck there for a year because God had told me to go there! .... fortunately, He sent me some buddies.

As soon as i rocked up, an older lady shrieked out my name in a loud joyful tone and leapt out of her chair and hugged me and smothered me with kisses. It turns out that i met her about four months ago at a prophetic prayer conference and she told me that at the time, she believed God had told her it was His will for me to do bible college this year. I think i just dismissed it, as it was the last thing i had in mind! Anyway, she totally put my mind at ease by mothering me for the two days. She was just lovely.

Afterwards, i propelled myself into a very busy weekend. On Friday night, Dan, Dusty, Matt, Elisha, Kristin and I went to Giardinis in Leederville for dinner, followed by "the Well" in North Perth. I dropped Kristin home and it was quite a late night.

Then i got up early to go to the house of my new bible college buddy. She is older than my mum and less fit... though that will change with my planned fitness sessions ahead! On Saturday morning, we walked up Mount St, down Jacobs ladder, back up and down. Then i had to take her home because she was sure to pass out! Then i drove all the way to Mindarie to see my sis. We travelled up to the Wanneroo markets to get our hair done. That took all arvo. When i finally got back home, some five hours later, i caught a quick snooze, then grabbed Kristin from Leeming and we gatecrashed a combined 50th ad 30th duo-birthday party at Mad Monk in Freo. It was awesome because afterwards, we walked down to the park, stood in a large group of prophetic prayerful Christians and prayed over Freo for a spiritual revival. It was a late one.

Then i got up early Sunday to go to church, had lunch there, then raced home, had a quick shower, did my washing, then opened the front door to an awaiting Damien, who had dropped around for coffee. At night, Kristin came over and we headed up to City Beach to celebrate Relle's birthday.

What a weekend!

Today i had my first proper day of bible college and afterwards, i raced into the City, picked up Kristin and we tackled Mount St and Jacobs Ladder in 35 degree heat!!! It was very hot and almost killed us.... we may do it again tomorrow, but only if it rains cos need something to cool us down ;-)

Last night

Last night Dan, Dusty, Phil, Jeremy, Joanne, Kristin, Naomi and I headed to Sharky's (in Hillarys) for dinner, before going to the Nodes, which is a beautiful place overlooking Hillarys. At the Nodes we met Siobhan. We had an awesome night of fellowship, especially seeing Naomi and Joanne are hapas like me. I felt like i was with my cousins!

Picnic at McCallum Pk

Dan, Kristin, Jo, Johnny and I went on a picnic last night. It was so lovely. I felt really at ease with them all. They are all like brothers and sisters to me. Praise God for great fellowship ;-)

Juliet's shoes

Getting Joshua's clothes ready

Mum's first grandson

This is Joshua at 12 weeks old, getting ready to enter the world in July 2008.

Outwitting Marshall

For the last week or so, Jassy has been on heat, which has been really frustrating because Marshall has been racing aroudn the house trying to mate her. It was, therefore, absolutely hilarious to find her in the bath tub one night. We have all discovered that Marshall is unable to get to her when she is in there! She climbs in there every night to have a break from him and to catch a bit of sleep ;-) What a clever dog. In the meantime, Marshall just sits beside the tub waiting for her to climb out. Haha

Victory-filled year

Today i received a letter in the mail saying i had been accepted into Victory Life Bible Training Centre for 2008. It wasn't all that big a surprise, seeing i did an interivew yesterday morning and it was a very positive experience .... and also, the day before, i felt God speak to me in a dream.

The dream occurred in the early hours of New Year's day - what a day to tell me! I had been contemplating my future and trying to discern what the Lord's will was for me this year and then i had this dream in which i felt without a doubt, that God told to do it. I know it's not my own will because i hate studying and i have never wanted to do full-time bible college, especially not for a whole year. When i quit my job last year, i thought i was quitting to go into an elite job in the private sector ... not so!

So, this was my dream. I was in a massive building, that was sort of like a very fancy renovated heritage-listed concert hall, with many rooms. The place was absolutely breathtakingly beautiful with very high decorative ceilings, grand marble staircases, sparkling floors, chandeliers and at the time, there was an awards ceremony taking place with thousands of people sitting in a very huge hall, listening to speeches. Somehow, i found out that i would be receiving an award and that someone had arranged for me to receive a lovely bunch of delicated long-stemmed flowers! Upon hearing the news, i looked down and realised i was in some very shabby, dirty clothes, perhaps the sort i would paint in? I felt this deep feeling of dismay come over me. I knew i could attend the ceremony and receive the award, but i certainly wasn't dressed the part.

So i hurriedly began to search in boxes at the back of the hall for some more appropriate clothes. I moved from box to box and as i did so, the floorboards creaked and a few people in the audience turned around with very irritated expressions on their faces. I could feel the tension rising within me and a feeling of anxiety coming over me as i realised i didn't have much time to find something. I began to run around the venue and as i ran up grand staircases and around the periphery, i caught glimpses of this huge audience from different vantage points, all waiting expectantly for the end of the ceremony for the presentation of awards and the recognition of success.

Then i felt the Lord say that He wanted to bless me, but i had to go through a time of preparation, being trained and equipped and I felt as though He said i could go now as i am and enter into what He had for me, but i would not be well-prepared. Rather, it would be better if i went to bible college and received what i need to in order to be at my best. I suddenly realised the benefit and importance of devoting my year to Him and putting aside my dreams and desires for a year and obeying Him.

So the very next day, i drove to Victory Life Centre, filled out an application form and they asked me to attend an interview on the spot with Ps Ginny. We had a wonderful chat and we both felt a deep peace about it. I got my confirmation today.

The number seven is symbolic of completion and the number eight is symbollic of new beginnings. How funny that i should end my career after 7.5 years in Government in 2007 and start my next cycle of pressing into God and learning what His purpose and plan for me is, in 2008.

Over the last few months, i have had a lot of people tell me how great bible college is. In fact, at almost every service, i have walked in and sat randomly with people, only to then find they they had attended bible collage at Victory Life Centre. Every one of them said it was the best time of their lives - they had amazing fellowship and just soaked in God's presence every moment of every day. One of the pastors, Marika, sent me a message just two weeks ago saying she was praying one morning and felt that it was God's will for me to do bible college. At the time i dismissed it, because i had my own selfish desires.

I think i would have spoken to at least about 30 ex-students so far. Many said that they couldn't help but hear God's voice so many times because they were so immersed in the Scriptures every day. Others said their lives were turned inside out as God led them through inner healing in all aspects of their lives. They said they formed special bonds with their bible college mates and learnt invaluable skills.

My friend Justin, who i used as a referee, said when he did bible college many years ago, he learnt how to deal with difficult people in the work places he subsequently worked in. He said that was one of the most valuable lessons for him. He also learnt a lot about team-work. He cautioned me though, to be selective in who i shared personal things with. He said one of the greatest blessings for him was when the college director (he went to Rhema and Tabor bible colleges) took an interest in him and committed to helping him become all that God has intended for him. Mum is warming to the idea.

I haven't told many people yet.... still getting used to the idea of full-time study and hanging out with students again, living cheap, trying to make each dollar stretch as far as it can so i don't have to work.

The day Rhys came to church

Last Friday, i got a message through Facebook from my friend Rhys, saying he wanted to catch up because he was in Perth for a few days. He lives in Melbourne now. I know he isn't into church at all, but i suddenly had this bright idea that i would invite him to Victory Life Centre..... and to my utter amazement, he said "why not"!!!

I rang him up Sunday morning to see if i could pick him up in time for the 10.30 am service, but he was in a hangover state, having been partying hard and drinking til the wee small hours of the morning! He was in no state to go to church in the morning, but he said he was going to a party at 2pm and would take a break from the party to come to church. Fat chance of that happening, or so i thought! I sent him an SMS at 5.30pm saying "don't forget about church", seeing he said he would prefer to drive himself there.... then at 5.40pm, he asked where i was, because he was at church early!!!

As soon as i saw him, he jumped up and gave me a big hug. It was my old buddy Rhys, brought forward into the future some six years since i saw him last.

We sat right up the front. During praise and worship, he looked around with sheer curiosity and he said the musicians were very good and that i had a good singing voice. During this time, Margaret Court decided to get the church to pray in tongues - Rhys said he had never heard of this before, but just went along with it all. It really cracked me up watching him, because he saw me clapping, so he started clapping, then when there was a song about surrending our lives to God, everyone lifted their hands up, so he did too. After about 3o mintues of clapping, he said he was tired of clapping....

Then Margaret talked about the gift of prophecy and i explained to him that it was sort of the Christian version of a clairvoyant, except that it was God speaking through us. Margaret then said we were going to do something a bit dfferent this time. She asked everyone to pair up with someone they didn't know - there were strictly no friends to be paired together. Rhys freaked out a bit, then an old lady said she waned to be my partner.... i said "but Rhys needs someone". No sooner, had i said that, then a BIG Samoan guy appeared and said to Rhys "you, come with me". The look of terror was in Rhys' eyes as he obediently followed the guy right up to the front of the church. He turned around and i poked my tongue out at him ;-P haha

Margaret then said she wanted everyone in church to pray in tongues for their partner and after five minutes to prophecy to them - saying whatever it was that we felt God was saying, even if it was just one word. My old lady partner said she felt God say He would make me as bold as a lion and then she had a vision of a fine-toothed comb and said she felt the Lord was saying i would be able to comb things in the spiritual realm with greater discernment. How interesting.

When Rhys came back, he said God spoke to him about forgiveness. It turned out that six years ago, his sister's boyfriend was murdered by a Samoan guy and since that day, he has held an intense grudge against all Samoan people. However, he said that when this guy started to pray in tongues for him, it melted his heart and he realised he had to let go.

Later, he said he really enjoyed the service. He was surprised the church didn't mention sin, apart from the time when Margaret recalled a story about an old lady on crutches who had had a person come up to her in church and tell her she was not healed because she had sin in her life. Margaret rebuked the lady for saying such a wicked, ungodly thing. Rhys was very impressed.

Afterwards i drove Rhys to the Bellisimo restaurant where we had pizza and turkish bread and coffee..... and where i paid the $29.10 bill because Rhys was grumbling about not having any money and i couldn't be bothered arguing. He was very appreciative. Urrrggghhh - i guess it was just one isolated incident. Once in six years!!!

I stole these piccies off his Facebook account. He plays in a band called Fourth Floor Collapse, which is really famous... just do a Google search and you'll find HEAPS of stuff on them. They have won a lot of awards and recognition for their music. Unfortunately, I don't like his music cos i feel that the singers mumble and sing ungodly lyrics.... but he can still be my friend and i know God loves them all ;-)