Guy leads, lady follows

Had a fabulous time Ceroc dancing tonight, despite the fact that I can't dance!! At one point in the beginners class I had to dance with the instructor and he pulled me up for not following his lead... whoops. He then highlighted the fact that the guy leads, the lady follows. I like that. My job (following) should be much simpler than the guys, but for some reason I really struggled with it.

One of the guys I danced with later said something that made me realise perhaps the core of the problem for me is trust (or lack of). The girls had been asked to close our eyes while the guys led us. He could obviously see I was a bit uncomfortable and said, 'It's OK, I can see what's going on, just trust me'. Hmmm.

I think another issue for me was that if I was waiting, I felt like I had to be doing something, and so tried to anticipate what the guy wanted me to do next. As one experienced guy said, 'relax, keep breathing'. Think I need to do that more often in life generally.

What a great night. Lots of laughs. Lots of learning.

Looking forward to next week - a two week trial before I decide whether I continue. At this stage thinking I probably will.

lost dreams

reality hits. many lost dreams. needing to trust that God's got the future under control - He tells me that in His Word, but I too often forget it.

Commitment

This morning some friends had their little boys dedicated - they wanted to express publicly their commitment to teaching their little boys about Jesus and encouraging them to know Him personally, and to seek our support as their broader church family to support and help them as they do this.

I have no idea why, but as Sarah and I were heading back to the car, it suddenly dawned on me that commitment, or a lack of it, is one of the things that frustrates me most about this stage of life with little kids. It's so hard to be committed to things! There's usually someone who's sick, or needing to go to the toilet, or just unsettled...

Perhaps instead of worrying about my inability to be committed in the same way as I was before I had the girls, I should be realising that at this point in time my top priority and commitment is to my girls and their wellbeing. This morning also challenged me that I should be talking more about Jesus with the girls, reading Bible stories with them, and talking to God with them.

Rudd's Reaction to Tragedy

While Australians were looking on, waiting to hear from the country's first female Prime Minister, one of the presenters on channel 9 (didn't pay attention to who it was... meanwhile the girls were running around making noise) commented about Rudd, 'People are judged by the way they react to tragedy'.

I thought Rudd's reaction to what could be viewed as a personal tragedy was impressive - the media described his speech as dignified. That it was. Personal political views aside, I think it is ridiculous that he could be 'voted' out by his party, but that's the way it works here, like it or not.

I also felt for his poor son Marcus in particular - seemed so cruel to make him stand there while his Dad made his final speech. Must be a very difficult time for them all.

Years ago when I went to the National Student Leadership Forum I recall being impressed by Rudd, it was well before he became Prime Minister. He seemed real and down-to-earth, he shared about meeting regularly to pray with other Christians in both parties. Yes, this is politics, and most politicians are good at saying the right thing, but I thought he seemed like a nice man. At that stage he was quite open about his faith. From what I've heard, Julia's view of Christianity is less than positive. Wonder how this will impact the decisions she makes.

Interested to hear other people's reactions to the news - already seen some. Seems to bring out the best and worst in people.

Why do different things float?

This morning when I met with my Kids Hope girl, her teacher mentioned they were looking at 'explanations', and that they were all about to 'explain' why different things float. He was keen for me to work on that with Tanvi. So in my usual style I nodded along and said no worries. Then as we went to do what he'd asked, it occurred me to that I had no real idea why different things float. I asked what she thought and she suggested their shape might make them float.

The more we discussed and thought about it, the more confused I became. I told her if I was at home I'd be looking it up on the internet. We thought about surfboards and I suggested maybe what they're made of may help them float. I asked what they're made of and she said wood. I explained that surfboards aren't made of wood but some boats are... suddenly my idea was blown out of the water.

I then thought we could look at the colour of the object and asked her whether the fact that a surfboard is a particular colour might make it float. Thankfully we were able to agree that the colour wasn't a factor, but it didn't really help in answering the teacher's original question. So we wrote a couple of things down like, 'I think things float if they don't have a hole in them'. That was about the best I could come up with. I suggested she wait to hear what her class and her teacher came up with.

;-( What a great teacher I'll make!!!!!

The Three Second Rule

I wonder how many people were taught the three second rule when learning to drive? I'm not usually very good at expressing my anger - it tends to come out as tears rather than anger. But this morning, I was rather angry as I drove through Galston Gorge and the car behind either didn't know about (or didn't want to follow) the three second rule. It had been raining not long before so the road was fairly slippery. I ended up pulling over and tooting my horn - if I'd needed to break suddenly at any point she would most likely have crashed into me.

The girls and I had a big discussion about driving safely and leaving space between your car and the car in front. I was probably more cranky too because they're both not well and haven't been sleeping particularly well. It was worth the trip though, we visited my Aunty and her granddaughter. Perhaps it's the protective mother coming out too?

Drivers beware - don't ride my tail!!

What's changed?

I can't figure out what's changed, apart from the obvious things. Ten years ago I had quite a few male friends - people to share life with and to laugh with, most of whom I had no 'attraction' to as such. But people whose friendship I really appreciated. So when asked whether a guy and a girl can just be friends, I previously thought they could.

But now I find myself in a different place. But I don't know why. I can't figure out what's changed.

Found a DVD on the table this morning that Lucy had pulled out of the cupboard. The girls at Hornsby Baps gave it to me with a box of goodies last year. 'How to lose a guy in 10 days.' I think I could add to her recommendations: share too much too soon, and try to rush ahead, don't be content with just getting to know each other and building a friendship.

Certainty amidst Uncertainty

Yesterday I caught up with a good friend who I hadn't seen in years. I love that after all that time we can just chat openly about life and start where we left off. They're the best kind of friends.

She shared with me something Andy Stanley said in a sermon on temptation that she'd been watching the night before on DVD. This is what stood out to me: 'Jesus was tempted to do something on his own instead of trust God'... 'The issue is can I continue to trust my Heavenly Father?'

Thought I'd take a look on the web to find the sermon, and came across this brief part of a sermon he gave on Dealing with Uncertainty. Good stuff. 'Although life is uncertain... God is not uncertain.'

Growtivation

Last night Dad and I visited another church. I was reminded how much of an introvert I am. But I was also challenged by the passage we looked at. Overall I think they were seeking to glorify God and to help others see Him and be transformed by Him and by His Word.

My brother found this short clip about 'growtivation' on the web and after last night's experience, thought it was amusing.

Closed doors

Not sure who first said it, but they say that when God closes one door He opens another. I've also heard that sometimes He opens a window.

I do like it when He provides clarity, but I think I prefer the clarity that comes with the open door (or window) than the clarity that comes with the closed door.

Remembering back to the verse the girls from Hornsby Baps gave me with a box of goodies last year, Jeremiah 29:11-13. Through Jesus we have a hope and a future better than anything we've imagined. Oh to seek Him with ALL my heart!

Trusting His Plan is Best

'The Lord will work out His plans for my life - for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.'

Psalm 138:8a

Perfect Peace

You will keep in perfect peace
him whose mind is steadfast,
because he trusts in you.

Trust in the LORD forever,
for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal.

Isaiah 26:3-4

So hard to do sometimes though.

No Prizes

We've been doing a series on Psalms in Bible Study and taking it in turns to run a study on our favourite Psalm. Last night was my turn, so I thought we'd do an activity to start off. I was asked whether there were any prizes, and everyone was very disappointed when I said no. Big oversight!!

Laughter

I visited an older friend who's like a Grandma to me in hospital this morning. There were a few periods of silence where I thought it would have been good to have a couple of jokes (appropriate ones of course) up my sleeve to take her mind off the hospital, though she seemed in pretty good spirits considering what had happened. She's a woman who trusts God and loves Him, so I shared a verse that's been special to me of late and we prayed together. She loves her food and she was eating when I arrived, so I guess that probably helped. Maybe spare food in my pocket might be better for when I visit her? ;-)

Anyway, thinking of laughter, on the way home I was thinking about stuff and on came this song that's often playing on 103.2 - One Step at a Time. I reckon God has a sense of humour - after all He was the one who created laughter.

I was looking up laughter on Bible Gateway to find the Proverb that mentions it being like medicine, and came across these verses in Genesis 21:

5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

6 Sarah said, "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me." 7 And she added, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age."

Just thought it was interesting that she used the word laughter. I also realised the verse I was thinking of actually says a cheerful heart is good medicine (Proverbs 17:22). Oh well. Still think laughter is good.