Travelling & all that...

Lots has happened in the last few weeks since I left Perth. After spending a week with Drummoyne Presbyterian Church (see below), which was really enjoyable & a great time to grow in all sorts of ways, I headed to the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students (UCCF equivalent) 'National Training Event' (Word Alive/Forum equivalent) in Canberra. We heard talks on eschatology (the end times) by Phillip Jensen - a very clever man who spoke for well over an hour each night in great depth on complex issues. Richard Chin also gave talks on the book of Colossians - he is the director of AFES (Richard Cunningham equivalent!).

However, possibly the most rewarding thing of the week was attending a 'strand' small group that did an in depth study of the systematic theology of the resurrection in the Bible. This included considering every reference to resurrection (Jesus' in the past, the Christians in the present & everybody's in the future) in the Bible & marvelling at the centrality of this belief to the Christian message & all Christian belief. So, may sound a little heavy to some of you, but an amazing privelege to consider in such depth. The week was so good because there was such a focus on the training & growing in faith through the studies, so it really was transforming. Other highlights of the conference was hanging out with Perth people, meeting loads of new people, & playing 'stingers' - a new version of frisbee... for men only.

After NTE, I headed to a place called Campbelltown (no kidding - very ironic, should have got a picture) just west of Sydney with 20 other students from universities in Perth. We were again joining with a local church to do some Christmas based outreach. I only knew a few of the team beforehand, as most of them were from other universities in Perth so it was great to get to know another new group of people. I stayed with a really great couple from Northern Ireland whilst there, called Phil & Gayle. It was cool to spend time with them & have some good chats! The 20 of us on our team then met with another team of 20 also from Perth & we spent some time in Sydney, then went to the Blue Mountains & hiked through luscious canyons & creeks littered with waterfalls. I returned to Sydney after this & stayed with a guy called Joey who is a Leicester lad in Oz for a gap year.

Joey & I headed north of Sydney on an overnight bus to Byron Bay - a surfer/hippie hang out. On the way we stopped at the 'Big Prawn' & took the compulsory touristy photo's. Byron was very cool, if a little cloudy & wet. That didn't stop us from getting amongst it with some surfing action. It was a very good thing to be back on a board again, after a fair few weeks dry... I totally enjoyed that & didnt't want to stop even when my body had had enough. We then stopped off at Surfers Paradise a night, where we didn't surf. It isn't really a paradise for surfers, but more a Blackpool style resort in the Gold Coast theme of things. All bright lights, shopping malls, & quite a bit of tack... mind you, not half as much as Blackpool. Brisbane was our next stop, where we cultured ourselves in the various free museums & art galleries. It was really good to do, & something I should try to do more often as I see various different places.

I am now in Hervey Bay, Queensland - a few hours north of Brisbane. I'm staying with a great family, the Hoole's, with 3 cool kids (8, 9 & 11). They are the relatives of some friends from Bratton & have very kindly taken me in for several nights just before christmas. It is nice to be relaxing in an Aussie home, & seeing how they celebrate Christmas. We have just come back from the annual drive/walk around various parts of their town where house after house clothes itself in Christmas lights. It is a real attraction with half the town turning out to look at the lights. One street is even officially renamed 'Christmas Street' in the month of December due to every house bar one going overload on the lights! I will be here for the next few days, hanging with the family, playing with the boys, swimming in the pool, & hopefully reading lots!

So that brings you up to date. Sorry its a long one. Lastly, I hope you have a great time celebrating Christmas this year. Remember to take some time out to think exactly what is worth celebrating this year that will last beyond Boxing Day! God bless.