Mo'Money

Money.

Man, is there a word that is capable of stressing out more people with just the mere utterance of it? Well, I know it stresses me out anyways.

I just wanted to share a brief God moment I had this week.

Wednesday was a very stressed out day for me. I received an invoice for my overseas health insurance from school that I'd have to pay them for, as well as for a college community fee. Upon receiving those I checked out my credit card status to realize it was pretty much maxed out.

Stress set in...and maybe even a few tears.

I have just gotten permission to work, but I am getting busier with school as essays are due soon (as soon as 6 days for my first one) and the next month proves to be a busy one with Easter, friends visiting from Canada (yay!), a couple weddings, and a mega squad that I'm in charge of planning for about 30 kids from Resi to attend. Needless to say, there aren't many jobs that I have the time for at the moment.

With all these thoughts flowing through my mind as I sat on my bed looking at my two invoices...stress and worry very nearly got the better of me. I finally took a deep breath....cleared my head...and just said "God, I'm putting this in your hands. That's all I can do."

An hour or two later, my friend Katherine rang me. She was ringing to ask if I wanted a babysitting job in the city. I nearly cried on the phone. Turns out, Thursday afternoons (which is the day I finish school at 1, and I am about 10 minutes away from the city) are perfect and I'm starting next week. It's for a 18 month old and a 3 year old, for a few hours a week, so that the mum can have some time to herself. It's perfect.

Even more perfect was when I got off the phone and my Godspell soundtrack was blaring out "thank you Lord....all good gifts around us...." Yah, I cried. What can I say? God is good.

It's nothing huge, and I'm still pretty much broke and having to take it one day at a time to work things out...but if nothing else it was a reminder to me that God's got it under control. He's got me this far, he won't leave me abandoned now.

~Big deep breath~

God is good.

Yes, I'm alive...

Well I haven't posted in quite some time so I thought I should..even though it is nearly 1am.

I am very happy to be back in Melbourne, and it feels like a home away from home now. I've settled into my new home, where I'm living with 3 great house mates. You can check out my new digs by clicking here.

I've now survived three weeks of Bible College, though it feels like its been heaps longer. I'm learning lots and getting challenged by a lot...and man, do I have to do a lot of reading!

Nothing else too exciting is going on. I'm getting into the childrens team at Shop 16 (my church) and loving being around all the Reservoir teens and kids again.

I'm still waiting on the government to tell me I'm allowed to work before I seek out some part time employment.

I guess just to finish off this blog I'm just going to post up a devotional I had to write in my first week of school, for my communication principals class. I had to present it and hand in an oral text, and it was worth 20% of my mark. I was heaps nervous about it, as I'm not one for public speaking. As well as the fact there are some very brilliant biblical minds in my classes, so that's intimidating. Anyways, I got an 'A' on this, which made me very happy indeed, so I thought I'd share it. (if it reads weird its because I had to write it in "oral" format, so writing how I read it out.)

Oh, and P.S. Uncle Brad...both the Bible and the flash drive you gave me are coming in VERY handy!! Thank you so much!

P.P.S Only one month until Jenn and Heather visit!! Yay!

Time

I have some trivia questions for you. Feel free to shout out the answers.

How many minutes are there in an hour?

How many hours are there in a day?

How many days are there in a year?

So, what do all of those questions have in common?

Time.

Time governs our lives.

Time tells us when to get up.

Time tells us when to go to bed.

Time tells us when to eat.

Time tells us when classes are starting.

And time tells us how long until a project is due.

Sometimes, impatience becomes our middle names as time slowly passes at a red light.

Sometimes, we hit a birthday of a significant age and wonder, where has the time gone?

Time.

Time is continually passing.

Time brings us moments.

Some moments that are a cause to celebrate,

And some that break our heart.

Time brings us life experiences.

Time brings us knowledge and wisdom.

Time brings us old age.

We live our lives according to time, without the ability to stop or control it.

Now, I have a question for you.

What are you looking forward to achieving as time is passing?

A diploma?

The man or woman of your dreams?

A career that will set you on the path for the rest of your life?

I have another question for you.

Are you living in the time and moments that God is giving to you right now?

Or are you in a constant state of waiting for the next big moment yet to come?

The big moment when life will really start?

Donald Miller in his book, Through Painted Deserts says this.

“I don’t think we can really understand how time passes.

We can’t study it like a river or tame it with a clock.

Our devices only mark its coming and going.

I dropped an anchor three months back but time didn’t slow.

Some things have to end, you know.

You feel like life is always leading up to something, but it isn’t.

I mean life is just life.

It’s all happening right now.

I only say this because I am trying to appreciate everything tonight.

I will be leaving soon, and I want to feel this,

Really understand that it is happening because God breathed some spark into some mud that became us, and He did it for a reason, and I want to feel that reason, not some false explanation.”

God has a purpose for our lives.

Jeremiah 29:11 says

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.

Plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future.”

That hope and future that God has promised, has already started.

Life is meant to be lived, not just gotten through.

Time is fleeting, and it’s not going to slow down.

You, have a choice to make.

Will you wait for the moment when all the pieces fall into place?

Or will you take every breath that God gives you,

as an opportunity to live out His purpose for your life?