Now that you're all curious about how work could have any 'wonders' attached to it, I'll know you'll finish reading this at least.
Seriously though... I have a job in the country, with a really good boss, half the time my fiancee works with me, I have plenty of flexibility with getting days off when I need them (At least at the moment), and I'm learning new things... How much better can work get?
And I'm very thankful for how I've been blessed with work. And not just this job, but with my previous job in the Lockyer Valley in QLD too. I had a good boss, and enjoyed my job fairly well (There are always good days and bad days, but in general it was good).
And I've really enjoyed learning how to run and maintain an olive oil press, what is involved with pickling olives, and even surprised my boss sometimes :). Six years of experience in agriculture come in handy sometimes. Having two brothers who are very mechanically minded comes in handy too.
And I've found out that nothing is quite as daunting as it seems. When I walked into the oil pressing shed on my first day at work, I was sure it would take me ages to learn how it worked. Needless to say, my fears on the subject were unjustified. Within a few days I had to run the press entirely on my own. Everything looks worse when you are nervous or stressed. An important lesson I need to remember more often......
Wednesday 31 August 2011
Thursday 25 August 2011
No! Never Alone!
I just wanted to share the words of this song... Whenever I feel worn out or lonely, or just down, I love to sing this song...
No! Never Alone!
I’ve seen the lightning flashing, I’ve heard the thunder roll.
I’ve felt sin’s breakers dashing, which almost conquered my soul.
I’ve heard the voice of my Savior, bidding me still to fight on.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
Chorus:
No, never alone, no never alone,
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
I’ve seen the lightning flashing, I’ve heard the thunder roll.
I’ve felt sin’s breakers dashing, which almost conquered my soul.
I’ve heard the voice of my Savior, bidding me still to fight on.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
Chorus:
No, never alone, no never alone,
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
No, never alone, no never alone.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
The world’s fierce winds are blowing, temptation sharp and keen.
I have a peace in knowing, my Savior stands between.
He stands to shield me from danger, when my friends are all gone.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
When in affliction’s valley, I tread the road of care,
My Savior helps me carry, the cross so heavy to bear;
Though all around me is darkness, earthly joys all flown;
My Savior whispers His promise, never to leave me alone.
How many times discouraged, we sink beside the way;
About us all is darkness, we hardly dare to pray;
Then from the mists and shadows, the sweetest voice e'er known,
Says, "Child, am I not with thee, never to leave thee alone?"
O soul, hast thou forgotten, the tender word and sweet,
Of Him who left behind Him the print of bleeding feet?
"I never will forsake thee, O child so weary grown;
Remember, I have promised, never to leave thee alone?"
Take courage, wayworn pilgrim, tho' mists and shadows hide
The face of Him thou lovest, He's ever at thy side;
Reach out thy hand and find Him, and lo, the clouds have flown;
He smiles on thee who promised, never to leave me alone!
The world’s fierce winds are blowing, temptation sharp and keen.
I have a peace in knowing, my Savior stands between.
He stands to shield me from danger, when my friends are all gone.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
When in affliction’s valley, I tread the road of care,
My Savior helps me carry, the cross so heavy to bear;
Though all around me is darkness, earthly joys all flown;
My Savior whispers His promise, never to leave me alone.
How many times discouraged, we sink beside the way;
About us all is darkness, we hardly dare to pray;
Then from the mists and shadows, the sweetest voice e'er known,
Says, "Child, am I not with thee, never to leave thee alone?"
O soul, hast thou forgotten, the tender word and sweet,
Of Him who left behind Him the print of bleeding feet?
"I never will forsake thee, O child so weary grown;
Remember, I have promised, never to leave thee alone?"
Take courage, wayworn pilgrim, tho' mists and shadows hide
The face of Him thou lovest, He's ever at thy side;
Reach out thy hand and find Him, and lo, the clouds have flown;
He smiles on thee who promised, never to leave me alone!
He died on Calvary’s mountain, for me they piercèd His side.
For me He opened that fountain, the crimson, cleansing tide.
For me He waiteth in glory, seated upon His throne.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
For me He opened that fountain, the crimson, cleansing tide.
For me He waiteth in glory, seated upon His throne.
He promised never to leave me, never to leave me alone.
Isn't He just amazing!? All we have to do is reach out to Him, because He is already there, walking beside us, waiting for us to turn to Him!
Tuesday 23 August 2011
Trust
I know... I need to learn to trust more. In particular, I need to learn to trust God more. Whenever I stop to think about what He has done for me recently, I stand in awe of His power to bless. It has been nothing short of incredible. His timing has been perfect, and His blessing have come in such rapid fire fashion that it makes me ashamed of the way I stress and worry about things sometimes...
See... I am a worrier. I like to have things planned and organized well in advance. I really dislike last minute preparations, etc... And so wedding planning has tested out my trust in God quite a lot. And often enough, it's found me sadly lacking. But that's something that I am determined to change, and by the grace of God I will.
I could not count the number of times in the last 8 months or so that I have spent days or weeks stressing about something only to find that God has the perfect answer waiting for me at just the right time. It is mind boggling. And it makes my heart overflow with gratitude for Him and for His goodness towards me when I don't deserve it. He is watching over it all, guiding everything into place like a master artist painting a picture... Only I've been impatient because I couldn't see the finished picture at the start.
It reminds me of a quote I read recently... "We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us..." And it's so true. If we call to mind the ways that our Saviour has guided us in the past, we would be filled with wonder at His ability to bring blessings from the most unlikely places, and His wonderful love towards each and every one of us.
So here and now I want to challenge you. Trust God. Even when things don't seem to go the way you would expect. He knows what He is doing. And he only does what is best for us. After all, "we know that all things work together for good to them that love God..." Love Him... Trust Him... He knows, and He cares.
He really does.
See... I am a worrier. I like to have things planned and organized well in advance. I really dislike last minute preparations, etc... And so wedding planning has tested out my trust in God quite a lot. And often enough, it's found me sadly lacking. But that's something that I am determined to change, and by the grace of God I will.
I could not count the number of times in the last 8 months or so that I have spent days or weeks stressing about something only to find that God has the perfect answer waiting for me at just the right time. It is mind boggling. And it makes my heart overflow with gratitude for Him and for His goodness towards me when I don't deserve it. He is watching over it all, guiding everything into place like a master artist painting a picture... Only I've been impatient because I couldn't see the finished picture at the start.
It reminds me of a quote I read recently... "We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us..." And it's so true. If we call to mind the ways that our Saviour has guided us in the past, we would be filled with wonder at His ability to bring blessings from the most unlikely places, and His wonderful love towards each and every one of us.
So here and now I want to challenge you. Trust God. Even when things don't seem to go the way you would expect. He knows what He is doing. And he only does what is best for us. After all, "we know that all things work together for good to them that love God..." Love Him... Trust Him... He knows, and He cares.
He really does.
Saturday 20 August 2011
That's life so far
All right... So I've done what I never thought I'd do, and started writing a blog. It's not so bad. Hopefully this will be interesting and encouraging to all who read it, and maybe it will help people keep in touch with what is happening in life at the moment... And that's a story in itself
You see, only 16 months ago my life was very different.
To begin with, I am an introvert (Yes, an introvert writing a blog... Miracles do happen) Work, sleep, read, and church on Sabbath was most of what my life consisted of... I was happy, single, and hard working... And then, Facebook wreaked it's havoc on my life :)
It was through Facebook that I got in touch with a childhood friend named Cherith... This isn't the place for the story of how we chatted twice a day for hours at a time, or how we sometimes spent 14 hours at a time chatting, but during that time, we got to know each other remarkably well. After 3 months of chatting we were best friends. After 6 months we were officially courting, after 9 months, we were engaged, and now, 12 months later, we are 8 weeks away from being married. Seem like a whirlwind? Well, let me tell you, it was. But looking back at how everything turned out, I have to say that God was certainly leading us.
In that time, both our lives have been turned 'upside down' in a number of ways. I moved interstate, and Cherith has had to put her studies on hold. In the meantime, I was out of work for 2 months, followed by two months of work with some very long hours. Moving house for work, a lot of travelling, a lot of living out of a suitcase, and not having a fixed address, has made life rather interesting and challenging. But it's amazing what you can get used to if you are determined to do something... After all, "with God all things are possible". Even the impossible. You see, I had been interested in Cherith in my younger years, but always written it off as impossible... Once I had visited her family when I was 16 and she was 15, and remember getting the distinct impression that she would make someone a very good wife. But I never dreamed it would be me! I forgot something. "With God all things are possible"!
In any case, life as it is at the moment is really special. And even though there have certainly been difficulties in the last year, God has been incredibly good to me. Even the difficulties have been so perfectly placed to teach us something or to point us in the right direction, that it just makes me stand in awe of God's providence.
I know life won't always be sailing on smooth water, but if we always stand on the Lord's side, well, what difference do problems make? The Lord is putting them there for a reason, and His timing is perfect...
You see, only 16 months ago my life was very different.
To begin with, I am an introvert (Yes, an introvert writing a blog... Miracles do happen) Work, sleep, read, and church on Sabbath was most of what my life consisted of... I was happy, single, and hard working... And then, Facebook wreaked it's havoc on my life :)
It was through Facebook that I got in touch with a childhood friend named Cherith... This isn't the place for the story of how we chatted twice a day for hours at a time, or how we sometimes spent 14 hours at a time chatting, but during that time, we got to know each other remarkably well. After 3 months of chatting we were best friends. After 6 months we were officially courting, after 9 months, we were engaged, and now, 12 months later, we are 8 weeks away from being married. Seem like a whirlwind? Well, let me tell you, it was. But looking back at how everything turned out, I have to say that God was certainly leading us.
In that time, both our lives have been turned 'upside down' in a number of ways. I moved interstate, and Cherith has had to put her studies on hold. In the meantime, I was out of work for 2 months, followed by two months of work with some very long hours. Moving house for work, a lot of travelling, a lot of living out of a suitcase, and not having a fixed address, has made life rather interesting and challenging. But it's amazing what you can get used to if you are determined to do something... After all, "with God all things are possible". Even the impossible. You see, I had been interested in Cherith in my younger years, but always written it off as impossible... Once I had visited her family when I was 16 and she was 15, and remember getting the distinct impression that she would make someone a very good wife. But I never dreamed it would be me! I forgot something. "With God all things are possible"!
In any case, life as it is at the moment is really special. And even though there have certainly been difficulties in the last year, God has been incredibly good to me. Even the difficulties have been so perfectly placed to teach us something or to point us in the right direction, that it just makes me stand in awe of God's providence.
I know life won't always be sailing on smooth water, but if we always stand on the Lord's side, well, what difference do problems make? The Lord is putting them there for a reason, and His timing is perfect...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)