2012 Hopes: How I Went

Last January I listed my hopes for 2012.  These were things that I hoped to achieve throughout the year, but I neglected to call them 'resolutions'.  The word 'resolution' often inspires guilt trips.  I named 2012 The Year of Keep on Keeping On.  I am very big on finishing what I've started, and I find lots of unfinished little projects really bug me.

So, on the last day of 2012, it seems fitting to reveal how I went:

1.  Finish editing my book and start the search for a literary agent and publisher. Editing is SLOW!
Doh!  I'm up to Chapter 28 out of about 48 chapters.  It is indeed a slow process, but I need to do it properly since it is the final edit.  I did do a bit of a hunt around for reputable literary agents a few months back and have a few ideas.

2.  Finish my TAFE course.  I have started my final semester and should have finished my Certificate 2 in Business by early June (God willing).
I can tick this one off the list.  Done and dusted.  I blogged about it here.

3.  Do another unit in the Moore College correspondence course.
Nope.  I'm still keen to do one down the track once baby has arrived and things have hopefully settled down a bit.

4.  Raise money to support those in paid ministry, overseas missionaries, Compassion, and anyone/anything else the Lord leads me to give to.  Last year I felt my passion dwindling for this.  With all the work being done to our house, it seemed like we were collecting more stuff than getting rid of it.  I do not NEED so much STUFF.  I have a garage sale planned for sometime in January or February.  I'm also considering doing more beading and selling the pieces through the craft shop in town.  Expect more Acts 2:46 stalls.
We got our act together by April and had an Acts 2:46 garage sale which was a bit of a flop unfortunately.  At our baby shower, we had a box available for donations to Pregnancy Problem House rather than people feeling they had to buy us presents.  Otherwise I've just kept 'de-cluttering' and trying to sell stuff on ebay which can be a bit hit and miss.  I have a bag of beaded stuff I've made which I'm planning to sell through the local craft shop.

5.  Pray and explore new things to be involved in such as visiting the elderly in the nursing home in town, or taking on the missions role in our church in partnership with Duncan. I have a great desire to share the love of Jesus with older folk who don't know Him, and lately I've also felt a growing passion for overseas mission. When our church leaders asked us all to consider putting our hands up for the vacant role, Duncan and I BOTH felt God speaking to us. We've expressed interest, but that's all at this stage. It's nice to know you're on the same page as your husband sometimes. :)
Well, the nursing home visits have been put on hold for now, but Duncan and I did end up taking on the mission convenors' role at our church.  This involves letting the congregation know what has been happening in the lives of the missionaries the church supports through reading newsletters and letting them know the main prayer points for these people.  I decided that I wanted to do more than just read out letters, so I started making a powerpoint each fortnight, using Operation World to focus on a country that our missionaries live in and what the main challenges and prayer points for that country are.  I felt that I'm so far removed from their experience that it might help us all understand a bit more about the challenges they face (i.e. the population of that country, the percentage of Christians, the government etc).  So far, the feedback has been really good, and people seem more interested in what is happening overseas and how we can better support our brothers and sisters over there.

Part of the reason for summing up how I went was not to see where I've 'failed', but to know what is realistic and knowing that I need to keep relying on God for everything.

Stay tuned for my hopes for 2013 (which will be a lot more low-key).

What were your hopes for 2012, and how did the year pan out for you?

Happy New Year, everyone!

Diary of an Incubator: Which Trimester Was The Best?

Most mums I've talked to say they thought the second trimester was the best.

Well, with three weeks to go, I can honestly say there was no 'best trimester' for me.  They've all had their pros and cons.

First Trimester
Pros
I could still wear my normal clothes.
I could still play tennis.
I didn't look pregnant (well, I did start getting a bump quite early but, since it was winter, I could hide it more easily).

Cons
Morning sickness.
Trying to keep the pregnancy a secret until 12 weeks (apart from telling family and a few close friends).  This is hard when you're feeling unwell.  You have to soldier on like everything's normal otherwise some people get suspicious very quickly (especially in the country where some people are OBSESSED with asking you if you're pregnant every five minutes).

Second Trimester
Pros
I wasn't too large so the pregnancy wasn't too much of a strain on my body.  I was still getting a good night's sleep and wasn't in any pain.
I could be open about my pregnancy and people started making concessions for me (i.e. lifting heavy things).
I could feel the baby move.  This was comforting.

Cons
No immune system.  This is not everyone's experience.  The morning sickness ceased after about 13-14 weeks, but I seemed to catch every bug that was going around.  This meant the second trimester was not so enjoyable.
I had to start wearing maternity clothes.  It became more and more of a challenge to get dressed each morning as I'd discover I had outgrown more and more garments.

Third Trimester
Pros
I was forced to rest.  This can be a good thing.
When I ask Duncan for help, he can't accuse me of being lazy haha.
I knew if the baby was born now, he/she would have a high chance of survival.

Cons
Right now I'm struggling to sleep at night - aching legs, sore lower back, frequent toilet excursions, breathlessness, feeling faint etc.  Duncan isn't getting a good night's sleep either because of my constant tossing and turning.
I can't do all the things I want to do because I get tired so easily.
Some people stare at me when I'm out in public.

What were your experiences in each trimester?  Feel free to share.

Christmas 2012

It was my parents' turn to host Christmas this year and the lunch guests consisted of my brother Tim, Duncan and myself, and three Pommy backpackers who are friends with Tim.  They are all 19 and are having a working holiday and playing cricket in Albany for six months.  I find Christmas is always nicer when there are extra guests, and it was great to be able to share Christmas with them when their own families are so far away.

Tim decided to be Santa this year.

Lunch time!

Duncan's random photo of himself.

Duncan and I went for a drive to Whalers Cove in the afternoon.

Making the Most of the Cross

It's tempting to see the cross as the 'basic stuff' of Christianity.  In order to become a Christian we need to hear the message of the cross, but once we've heard and trusted it, we often feel like we need to move on to practical living applications.  That's true (we need to be growing, learning and maturing in our faith), but we must never lose sight of the cross.

This little book does a great job in reminding Christians of the significance of Jesus' death and resurrection.  In just 99 pages, it explores Jesus' death as:



bringing salvation
a substitute
a ransom
turning away God's anger
defeating Satan
the way God justifies sinners
the unifying force in the Christian community
bringing forgiveness and cleansing

Often the resurrection gets pushed into the background as the focus seems to be on Jesus' death.  John Chapman doesn't neglect the importance of what Jesus achieved in triumphing over sin, death, and the devil when He rose from the dead.  The resurrection means:

Jesus is God's King forever
Jesus is the judge of all people
Jesus' sacrifice was full, perfect and sufficient
Our fear of death is removed
We too will have resurrection bodies
Jesus alone can take us through death to life eternal

I could hardly believe all of this is covered in such a thin book!  It is highly readable and has prayers at the end of each chapter to encourage readers to thank God for all He has accomplished for us.

John Chapman was a gifted evangelist (who passed away when I was in the middle of reading this book), but I feel this is a book I would give to Christians to strengthen and reaffirm them in their faith.

It's not mind-blowing, but it will remind you of the core truths of the Christian faith.  Read it slowly and reflect.  My prayer is that you and I will never lose sight of the cross.

This book was reviewed for the Matthias Media Free For Bloggers programme.

It is available from the Matthias Media Australian online store here.

There is also a US store here.

Diary of an Incubator: Being a Country Woman

Yesterday, Duncan had to rush me down to Albany (one and a half hours away) for an ultrasound.  I've had aching legs for a while, but on Tuesday afternoon, I developed quite agonising pain in my right calf.  I could hardly walk.  Duncan tried to massage it and one spot was particularly sore.  He was concerned so he called the hospital where we plan to have the baby and spoke to a midwife.  She was worried that it might be a blood clot, so the next morning the obstetrician called me and told me he had got me an ultrasound appointment in Albany.  We were hoping to go to either Katanning or Narrogin which were closer, but their sonographers were either on leave or only work certain days.

In the end it all turned out fine.  I don't have a clot, but I do have to spend more time resting with my feet elevated.  This isn't as good as it sounds.  I have to keep fighting the urge to 'nest'.  However, since the pain is horrible, it is a pretty good deterrent.  I have been confined to the couch with my feet propped up on a chair and two cushions for most of today.

During my pregnancy, I have realised two things.  We are blessed to have such a good health care system in Australia, and being a pregnant woman in the country is a lot harder than it would be if I was in the city.

Here are some of the disadvantages of being in the country:

• The lack of maternity services.  Our local hospital has no maternity services and that's pretty normal for country towns.  Country women need to either go to Perth or their nearest regional centre.  Sometimes you can see your local GP for check-ups, but otherwise it means a lot of travelling - particularly if you haven't had an easy pregnancy.
• Distance (which kind of ties in with my last point).  Being on a farm, it can be hard to find someone available (and close by) to help if you need a lift somewhere.  Out here, most women have small kids at home which means they can't always drop everything if you need help.  Mobile reception isn't great which means it can be hard to contact Duncan.  Farms are very busy at certain times of the year which also means it can be hard to get hold of someone.  Country women usually go away to do their 'countdown' about two weeks before their due date in case the baby comes early (or sooner if they have complications).  This can be annoying.  My due date is the 18th January, but I have to go to Perth on the 4th January and stay there.  I really don't want to go.  Perth summers aren't pleasant.  I have to stay with other people which will probably end up being a burden on them and on me.  I deliberately didn't ask to stay with anyone who I suspected might be thinking I'll be their live-in nanny or cook for two weeks (especially since it's school holidays).
• You have to be tough.  I've lost count of the times people have told me to rest.  But sometimes you can't rest.  Things need to be done.  By that, I don't mean that I wish to start crazy projects like DIY house renovations, but I do have to feed myself, my husband, and my animals.  I have to go to town to get my shopping (there's no home delivery for groceries out here and no takeaway).  It's all very well people telling me to sit around with my feet up all day, but unless they're going to move in with me and do heavy lifting etc, they're just empty words.  Neighbours aren't right next-door like they are in suburbia.  There's no public transport or taxis.  You just have to soldier on sometimes.
• Less options for pregnancy exercises.  Last month, Duncan and I did an all-day antenatal class for first-time parents in Perth.  All of the women kept talking about the special pregnancy exercise classes in pilates or water aerobics they were attending.  There's nothing like that out here.  To exercise, I either have to go for a walk or go to the local pool (which is only open for six months of the year because it is outdoors).
• Less birthing options.  If you want a homebirth, it's discouraged out here because of the isolation if something goes wrong.  I don't want a homebirth so it isn't an issue for me, but it might be for some other women.

Despite all of these disadvantages, I am still blessed.  Many country towns don't even have a GP at all.  I take my hat off to women on stations up north, or those who live overseas with less access to quality health care.

5 Actors Who Are The Best At Playing Villains

These actors play the baddies so well. 

1.  Alan Rickman



Source

 

 

2.  Jason Isaacs

Source

3.  Anthony Hopkins

 



Source

 

4.  Jack Nicholson



Source

 

5.  Robert Carlyle
 



Source

 

Long Live The King

Cluckingham Palace has a new ruler.

Allow me to introduce.....

Solomon

Why Solomon?  I've been asked this question numerous times.  What is King Solomon famous for having a lot of? 

Wives and concubines, of course.

Solomon with five out of his eight ladies.



We brought Solomon home on Saturday (my now former boss gave him to me).  He is a vocal fellow who is quickly learning that his ladies are very bossy when it comes to mealtimes.  It's bog in, don't wait at Cluckingham Palace.

I still miss Russell Crowe.  I'm so used to seeing a large white bird strutting around the chookyard and it's still strange without him.   The hens didn't seem to miss him at all (they were more concerned with food and their pecking order).  I told them, "Girls, I'm going to get you another rooster."  They just looked at me with their beady little brown eyes and said, "Bok, bok, booook," (We don't need a husband), "Boooook bok bok," (We can govern ourselves), "Booook booook bok," (We were tired of him using us for sex).

Our dynasty of roosters
From left: Randolph, Russell Crowe, and Solomon

 

Does anyone have any ideas on what type of rooster Solomon is?  We're thinking he's mixed breed.  Duncan reckons he's got Rhode Island Red in him.

Diary of an Incubator: 35 Weeks

I'm definitely in whale territory now!

A Low Key Christmas

I did quite a bit for Christmas last year - entered Cathy's nativity scene challenge, hosted both families at our house, wrote lots of Christmas cards, put up our first ever large Christmas tree....

But this Christmas is going to be lot more low key.  In fact, it is starting to remind me a bit of the 2010 Christmas (except this time we're not moving 600km away and things are therefore nowhere near as chaotic).

We're not putting up the big Christmas tree this year.  We'll be at my family's house in Albany for Christmas this year so there's not much point.  I leave for Perth a few days after New Year's so we're getting ready for the baby's arrival.  One less thing to do...

Little Christmas tree can go up instead.

No Advent Calendars.
No craft.
I'm steering well away from 'Pinterest Christmas competitions' as Jenny puts it (that made me chuckle).

Nothing very much happening here...but that's ok.

Last year I had such fun doing lots of stuff, but Christmas isn't about 'stuff'.  It's about reflecting on Jesus coming to earth in God's great rescue plan for His creation.  Focusing on that is always a challenge regardless of how many activities are involved.

Diary of an Incubator: Hopes Deferred

Back in March, I wrote a post called The Golden Oldies about how I had (and still have) the desire to visit the elderly in the local nursing home.  I wrote about my situation of feeling like I was alone in wanting to pursue this, and deliberated whether I should just step out boldly and see what happens.  After receiving a number of lovely, encouraging comments, I spoke to a good friend of mine who is a carer in a nursing home.  She echoed what everyone had said on my post about the elderly needing structure, and not to commit to something if I couldn't maintain it.  Duncan encouraged me to wait until I finished my business course at TAFE at the start of June, so that's what I planned to do.

About a month after I wrote that post, I saw an ad from the Red Cross asking for volunteers in nursing homes.  This would involve meeting up with a resident once a week or fortnight and spending some time with them chatting, going for a walk together, having a cup of tea, or playing games....exactly what I had been passionate about doing.  I tore the ad out of the newspaper and planned to give them a call.

Then the pregnancy test came back positive...

This was not a total shock.  We hoped and planned to have children sometime around now.  Yet, because a few of my friends have struggled in this area and I have seen their pain, I had resigned myself to the fact that we may have to wait.  It turned out we didn't have to wait long at all.

By that stage the morning sickness had started.  While I didn't actually throw up, most days I constantly felt like I was on a boat.  Trying to keep the news quiet until we reached 12 weeks was a struggle as I had to pretend everything was ok when I felt so awful.  After the first trimester, I got the flu, gastro, and a cough. 

I decided that now would not be a wise time to start meeting with an elderly person.  The Red Cross programme wanted volunteers to commit to at least a year.  I couldn't do that when I would have a newborn less than a year later.  Also, to expose the elderly to my germs would just be cruel.  Duncan and my carer friend told me I had made the right decision.  They encouraged me that now was not the time of my life to pursue this, but I may have further opportunities down the track.

But when?  Would I have to wait four years until this child goes to kindy?  We might have other children by then.  Would it just be better for me to meet with an elderly person without the distraction of kids?  Or should I just take them with me?  I was very disappointed.  I wanted this baby, but I wanted to meet with someone at the opposite end of life as well.

I had also planned to meet with someone to read the Bible together and was praying for opportunities to pursue this.  This hasn't happened.  I still haven't finished editing my book.  My head space has mostly been taken up with preparing for our new arrival, finishing work etc.  I have felt bad that I haven't been pursuing relationships as much as I would like to.

This pregnancy has been a battle to learn contentment with where God has placed me at the moment. That my plans are not always His plans.  That I need to slow down and trust Him.  Please don't misunderstand this post: I do want and love my baby, and I'm looking forward to meeting him/her, but I'm finding the transition to be more difficult than I expected (and the baby hasn't even arrived yet).

My hopes may have been deferred, but they haven't gone.  I've been shown my weakness and my need to trust my Heavenly Father in all things.  Some women may be super mums, but I'm not.  I know that I don't have a very big life plate.  Right now I feel like He wants me to focus on preparing for parenthood and raising this little person to know and love Him.  While He hasn't given me an elderly person to share the gospel with, He has given me the task of serving my new family and raising them in the Lord.  Slowly I'm learning to be content and give thanks in each and every situation.

Please Vote For My Post

I've entered my post The Young Adult Body Part in the December edition of the Christian Blog Carnival and now they are having a competition where readers get to vote for their favourite post for the month.

Could you please take a minute of your time to vote for me by going here and typing 'I vote for The Young Adult Body Part' (or something similar) in the reply box? You will need a Google login to vote.

I'd be honoured.

They're going to announce the winner on Saturday 15th December so please vote ASAP.

If you're a Christian blogger, consider entering one of your posts into the next carnival on the 2nd January. It's a great way to get more exposure for your blog. Go here for more details.

The Pendulum: Service and Spiritual Gifts

Some churches are really big on every member discovering where their gifts and passions lie so they can serve Jesus and the church in those areas.  Often they run 'spiritual gift courses' so you can find out how God has wired you and where you should serve.

But many people in the evangelical circles I associate with sneer at such a view.  "What?  You need a spiritual gift for stacking chairs?"  They lean more towards the 'everyone can do everything' view.  If you see a need in the church, you should just step in and serve.  Don't worry about whether you're 'gifted' or not.

I sit in the middle.

I do not believe everyone can do everything.  I think Scripture is clear that the church is a body made up of many different parts.  Each part is needed to serve Christ.  While special emphasis is placed on teaching, all gifts are valuable in building up the church.  In fact, teaching is serious business.  Not everyone should do it.  There are special criteria for serving as an elder or a deacon.  It's not a matter of just filling gaps.  While it's true that there is no real talent or giftedness required for stacking chairs, not everyone can do it either (the elderly or people with disabilities, for instance).  If you start to believe everyone can do everything, then it can lead to people feeling used and like square pegs being cut to fit round holes.  I felt like that when I kept getting nagged to teach Sunday School.  In the end I gave it a go, but I found it very difficult and stressful.  I wanted to serve in other areas.

Yet, I also think that some churches place too much emphasis on possessing spiritual gifts and forget about what they're for.  The emphasis should be on using those gifts to build up the church, not the person with the gift using it for their own fulfilment or so they can feel superior to others.

The problem comes when churches try to build their congregational activities on a certain model.  The church up the road has a Sunday School, youth group, ladies' fellowship etc so we need to have those groups too.  They forget that there is no rule saying a church needs to have those formal ministries, and start to accuse members of being lazy if they don't want to serve in those areas.

I like what The Trellis and the Vine has to say about building ministries around the gifts of those in the church.  If there are a number of people passionate about reaching out to the elderly, for example, then let's get those people together and train and encourage them to pursue this, rather than forcing them into areas they are less suited to.

But I can also see that sometimes the church is presented with certain needs and somehow those needs need to be met e.g. there are all these kids in the church; who is going to teach them?  Although, having said that, my husband grew up in a church where there was no Sunday School and he had to just sit still and draw or something during the service.  He reckons if there aren't enough Sunday School teachers then it's perfectly ok not to have Sunday School every week, rather than overburdening the teachers.  He said he didn't think it did him any harm to learn to sit still with the adults (even though he is an 'outdoorsy' fellow).

Can people learn new skills, even if they feel they don't possess a certain gift?  Absolutely.  But some people are gifted by God and will find it easier.  Some people find it naturally easy to speak in front of an audience and have very little or no fear.  Others battle with nerves every week, but keep on doing it anyway.  The quiet 'behind the scenes' people can be encouraged to step out of their comfort zone and try something 'up front', while the leaders and teachers should not feel or be treated like they are above stacking chairs or cleaning.  But being more of a 'behind the scenes' person, rather than a leader or organiser, I am happy to take on the less flashy roles to free up the leaders to lead and teach.

God has given each congregation who He has given them for a reason.  Rather than lamenting over the fact that they need more musicians or service leaders or Sunday School teachers, congregations need to learn to give thanks for who they DO have in their midst, and encourage those people to serve and honour Christ in all that they do.

The Young Adult Body Part

One of the most encouraging sermons I've ever heard was on the 1 Corinthians passage about the body which I posted yesterday.  I literally cried tears of joy and relief when I heard it.

You see, in the lead up to that sermon, I'd begun to feel like I wasn't part of the body of Christ.  Well, I was part of it, but not REALLY part of it, if you know what I mean.  I felt like what I had to offer wasn't what others wanted.  They wanted me to be something I wasn't; to be gifted in areas where I was lacking.  Most people understand the body analogy.  They know that the church needs all of the parts and that God has arranged them just so.  But often Christians want to rearrange them the way THEY want them.  They want certain types of personalities with certain gifts.  They want to be 'strategic' so they try to cut people to fit into the mission plan they've made.  Their intentions are good (they want people to be reaching out to others with the gospel), but they end up wounding their fellow Christians in the process because they are not respecting how God made them.

I have felt this intensely as a young adult.  I was a uni student when I heard that sermon and I felt inadequate because I wasn't an uber walk-up evangelist.  I felt like I was being pushed into leadership positions when I'm not really a leader.  It was like there was this stereotypical Christian young adult 'role' I was meant to fit into.  I quickly got the impression that all Christian young adults were outgoing, extroverted leaders who thrived on buzz, people, late nights, board games and playing casual soccer.  They led Bible studies, youth groups, and beach missions.  I remember my now brother-in-law's reaction when I told him I wasn't going on 'Bustrip' - 30 uni students on a bus travelling across Australia pretty much non-stop to get to a conference in Canberra and mission in Sydney.  He was horrified.  He told me that I was missing out, that it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and that I'd regret it if I didn't go.  Well, guess what?  I haven't regretted it.  Not once.  I'm an introvert and the thought of spending three weeks with people CONSTANTLY gives me cold sweats.

I'm not saying people shouldn't ever step out of their comfort zones and try new things, or seek to be trained.  But some people are too pushy and I felt like I was trying to be conformed into a certain image, to be identical to other young adults instead of being encouraged to serve God the best way I could.

If we truly believe the body of Christ is a body, then we also need to realise there are different body parts within the demographics.  There are young adults who are loud, dynamic leaders, and there are young adults who help out quietly behind the scenes.

We need to accept that God has placed people where they are for a reason.  We need to celebrate the diversity of the body and support and encourage those parts we see as less flashy.

This post has been entered in the December edition of the Christian Blog Carnival. If you're a Christian blogger and would like to enter one of your recent posts, submit it here today.

Bible Verse of the Day

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body.  So it is with Christ.  For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.  If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.  And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.  If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be?  If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell be?  But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be.  If they were all one part, where would be body be?  As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!"  And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"  On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honourable we treat with special honour.  And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment.  But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honour to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.  If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Back To Bremer

I love visiting Bremer Bay!

In January, Duncan and I made plans to have a weekend in Bremer at the end of September with the same friends I went with last time (plus a heap of their friends we didn't know).  I was looking forward to sharing the weekend with the man this time (we both love four-wheel driving - even the baby loved it hehe!).

Usually we would see it as an excuse to get out the tent, but this time I really needed a decent bed, so we booked a chalet for three nights.

The road was like a river.  Such fun!

Mud, glorious mud!

A quick break before figuring out which track to go down next.

Such a beautiful beach.

What a handsome fellow.

Lunch break.  I look like a frump wearing Duncan's jumper, but, hey, I'd discovered
the ones I'd packed didn't fit anymore.

It was wildflower season.

Ellen sandboarding.

Rhianon and I.

Duncan borrowed the four-wheeler.

And he was off...

Some of the blokes and their bikes.  It was a morning full of noise
and petrol fumes.

View of the Stirling Ranges on the way home.