The Sabbath

So I chose to not go to church this morning.
*GASP*

But you know what? It was kind of refreshing.

I love Sundays, and all they afford me in terms of time, relaxation and few demands. I like them that way. And when I am tired and it feels like a chore to go to church, it is nice to sleep in.

Now, I'm not saying that you should just not go every time you can't be bothered, because sometimes it is important to get out and just go. And God honours that.

But we need to remember Mark 2:27 "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."
The Sabbath is a rest day. God gave it to us as a gift. Not as a law that we must follow.

We need to remember that even though to keep the Sabbath holy is one of the Ten Commandments, those commandments were given to a bunch of people who were slaves - they had to work seven days, no breaks. And then God said "Hey! I'm going to give you a day off!" They weren't thinking that it was going to be a hard thing. The Israelites would have been excited!

But we have twisted it into something that it is not.
Let's take it as what it is. A gift. A day where we are allowed to take a break, but also do what is necessary.

God of the Uncomplicated

The other night I was out at the Robert Burns pub with my local swing club crew for a bit of a dance.
The cool thing is is that once a week they have a live jazz band, which is so different to dancing to a cd, so definitely worth it!
I danced with a number of the gentlemen who were there - Lindy Hop, Blues Swing, Ceroc.
But when I came home, I noticed something - I didn't entirely smell like me anymore; I had a sort of guy smell about me. Obviously this was because I was dancing with guys, but still, I tried to figure out the significance of this:
You become like the people you hang around.
Do I really want to become like these people?
Do I really want to smell like them, to become as they are?

But the more I thought about this, I didn't like it. I like dancing. God knows this. Why would this one simple observation lead me to think that I shouldn't hang out with them?

Perhaps we just like to complicate things. To notice things and then attach BIG, DEEP meaning to them, and blow them out of proportion.
But if we take it back to the simple things - maybe God is in it, but in a more subtle way.

I love to dance - especially swing.
And I'm sure that God loves to see me dance - He gave me this talent and the Joy that comes with it.

Why do we like to complicate things? Why do we like to think that God doesn't want us to have fun and to do things we enjoy?

I don't know, but I think we need to take a step back and uncomplicate things.
God is the God of the complicated, but I know God is also the God of the uncomplicated

Whose Burdens are You Carrying? Pt 2

So last week I started sharing a bit about how God is our Burden Bearer. I still love it!

But you know what? There is more. There is always more with God.

Matthew 11:28-30 reads "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Here Jesus is telling us to come to him with our burdens. So not only is He keen to take our burdens, He is going to exchange them for something better. But I guess it is more like a parent with a child who has something that they shouldn't have. The parent has something good in their hands, but won't give it to them until the child surrenders what they have.

It is an exchange that takes place, a marvellous, marvellous exchange.

So I encourage you, take your burdens to God, tell Him all about it. And then, just rest in the notion that God will only give you as much as you can handle, and that He really is just doing the best for you.

Whose Burdens are You Carrying?

So a while ago I was attending a Preaching 101 thing at church, and it was really cool.
The thing was was that at the end of the time, we all got a chance to get up in front of 'rent-a-crowd' and preach for 5mins.
For me this was kinda awesome, I like getting the chance to get up and talk to people, tell my story a little bit, and talk about what God has been talking to me about. I guess that is also why I like to blog. So here goes:

Psalm 68:19 reads "Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour, who daily bears our burdens."

This verse has been just circling around my head the last few weeks, and when I stumbled upon it, I was just like WOW. When I found it, I found it to be so revelatory in that that was what I was experiencing in my life - A God who bears my burdens.
While on practicum there were a number of times when it just seemed like there was so much to do, and so little time to do it. But it always got done, with me remaining sane, and not being really really freaked out about it.

Burdens can just seem to overwhelm us, to try to overtake us, so that we can't think or do anything else but look at it - we stand there dumbstruck. Whether they are in our homelife, our work, our family, in making ends meet, all these parts of the puzzle can build and build until they become an overwhelming force to knock us off our feet.

But that isn't what the Psalmist is saying here - He is saying that God, who saved us, God, who is Lord, is always here to carry our burdens for us. Not just today, not just tomorrow, but daily.

Thank you God for being amazing!

Languages and Risks

Kia Ora!
For those of you from around the globe, that last thing is Maori for hello. Presumably (or maybe not so presumably) you know that I come from New Zealand. And one of the official languages in New Zealand is Maori. The Maori are the indigenous peoples of New Zealand, and I think they are pretty cool.
But one of the other official languages of New Zealand is New Zealand Sign Language, or NZSL. With Maori, most people make some sort of effort to be able to pronounce Maori names and to understand Maori customs. But very few of us actually acknowledge that sign language is just that - a language. It has its own intricacies and idioms, but very few of us in the hearing world ever bother to learn it.
I know, I know, I haven't learnt it either (even though I want to). I have't even made the effort to go looking for where I could learn it and also to engage with non-hearers.
But don't we all do that? Don't we, who fit into the 'norm', just ignore all else who do not fit into the same category? Ever wanted to break free of the restraints of the norm? I know I have. And sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't.
But it is only ever ourselves who hold us back. It is only our minds that persuade us to do it, or to not do it. We cannot blame busyness, or our parents, or anyone.
Today I started at my new school for practicum. It was a good day, and I can see that I will be stretched and taken to the limit at times. But you know what? I am ready. Let's take a leap, do something different. This time around I can take risks, when it is my class, will I be so willing? I don't know.
But this is my challenge to you: Take a risk, get out of the norm. Wear odd socks! Be a bit of a rebel.
Then:
Tell me about it. I'd love to hear your stories!

Disney and Spirituality

So, where I am at the moment there has been a flurry of snow!
Therefore, me and my flatmates have decided to just have a movie day :D
We have watched Mulan, Wolverine, and Anastasia so far.
Since watching these things, I have come to note a common theme among Disney animated movies... There always seems to be some kind of magic, or spiritual thing that happens in the movie.
Take Mulan, for example. Mulan is helped by a magical dragon who was sent by her ancestors.
Anastasia was running away from a curse made by a (really creepy) dead guy.
Lion King, Simba talks to his dad in the sky.
Beauty and the Beast - creepy curse again.
Cinderella - Fairy Godmothers.
Aladdin - Genie
And the list goes on!

I'm not necessarily saying that this is a bad thing. It is just interesting to see how spirituality seems to be a common theme in Disney's movies, whether it takes the form of local beliefs (as in Mulan), or magic in numerous of their other movies.
I think it would be rather interesting to see how Disney's movies have impacted on a generation in regards to their spiritual lives.

So, let's take a straw poll:
Do you think Disney's movies have impacted upon your spiritual life? If so, how? If not, why don't you think so?

Reversing

Gah! I hate reversing!!
In a car that is. It is one of the things that I can do if I have to, but if I don't, I will just avoid it. *sigh*
I was reminded of this just tonight as I was at my grandparents house dropping off something for my Dad who is staying there tonight. Anyway, they have a reasonably long driveway, so I went all the way down it and then had to reverse back out of it (of course!).
Anyway, I probably would've put some lovely paint on the corrugated iron fence if it hadn't been for Mum and Dad, but I was frustrated that Mum was talking to Dad, and Dad was talking to Mum, but it felt like no-one was talking to me and telling me what was happening! Plus, it was dark, and that wasn't making it easier.
And so I have been thinking tonight that sometimes (though we don't like it!) we actually need to reflect, and 'reverse' as it were into our own lives in order to be able to move forward again. I know it is not a novel idea, but it is still a good one none the less.
Recently, I was talking to a pastoral friend of mine, and he was asking me about Vanuatu, and what the main thing was that impacted me about the trip.
You know what? I don't know what it is! I know that it was a God thing, and that He was very faithful in it, but I didn't know what to tell this person when the question was asked.
For me, Vanuatu was a long time ago, even though it was only at the start of this year!
Sometimes we really do need to take time to reflect, and to remind ourselves of the past - even the recent past! - to give us direction for the future.
That one lunch with my pastoral friends was really good for me - God timing - to remind me that what I was doing was the right thing to do to honour the dream that I have.
So reflect, look for the God timing and:
HAVE FUN!