"Innocent as doves" – Christian conduct as evangelism
"Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone." (Colossians 4:5-6, NIV).
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Beautiful Passivity
There is something amazing about being a child. They don't have any of the worries that we acquire as we grow up. Their minds are not consumed with finances or schedules necessarily. They take in life day by day. There is a minimalism and a security in the way they approach and interact with reality. I can see this when they come into my work, being escorted around in their strollers, taking a turn to order the drinks or to collect the change or choose the seat – life itself is interesting to th
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Facing the challenge of sharing the Gospel
I have the pleasure of knowing a very kind lady that always welcomes me as someone who is part of her family. The first time I met her was when she came to my church to give a testimony of what God had done in her life. Maggie (alias) had a brain aneurism many years ago, and she told us how it was a miracle that she could stand in church that day to tell her story and praises God for healing her.
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Feelings vs Facts
As a woman with an abundant flow of feelings and emotions, life has been a roller coaster ride, as mistakenly, I have used them as my guide most of my life. Feelings and emotions fly up and down depending on the amount of sleep we obtain, hormonal influences, fleeting circumstances and I would also suggest family and spiritual conditioning can play a part.
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A friend's report from Christchurch
Recently, Rapti Dezoysa, a very dear friend of mine, a General Practitioner, who works in Christchurch, New Zealand, shared with me about life there since the large earthquake of 2nd February 2011, along with the ongoing challenges that present themselves to this day. Christchurch, according to the 2006 census had a population of 348,235 and the local press estimated the population had grown to 379,000 by February 2011.
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Maid for God
Over the last fourteen months my sister and I have fought constantly over HER wedding (as you may have noticed I have placed 'her' in capital letters so that both you and I recognise that the wedding is indeed HERS and not mine). According to my sister I have been pushy, over opinionated and kind of demanding. While I would like to openly reject these charges, in truth I have been a bit of a maidzilla (a cross between a bridezilla and a maid of honour). These are the worst kind of bridesmaids an
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Good Grief
Recently I listened to an indigenous lady speak about the process of grief she had to go through after the passing of a close blood relative. The process of grief was not a short process. She was comparing it to the grief process another family member experienced who described the white-fella way of "passing away one week, the next week – cremated". The \'formal\' grieving process in that situation was completed very quickly.
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Gold Coast Suns: 2011 AFL Premiers!
What?! The Suns winning the AFL Flag? It doesn't make sense: The last team on the AFL Ladder given the flag.
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The colour brown is OK
"Mum, why is my skin brown?" asks our 5 year old son from the back seat, whilst examining his arm closely. I was quite surprised and asked him what he meant. He held up his arm next to his younger brother's arm and said, "Look, my arm is brown and his is a whitey colour".
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Spreading cheer for sick children at the Ronald McDonald House
Sometimes we find ourselves in places where our eyes are suddenly opened to the different types of life challenges experienced by others. The Ronald McDonald House is certainly a place where people's lives intersect for a period of time as medical help is sought to address challenging medical conditions.
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My personal tribute to the Island Koh Phan Gan
This wonderful little island located in the Gulf of Thailand has been misunderstood, mistreated and a recent documentary on national television has strongly participated in these misconceptions. I spent two of the last five years on the Island. This is my tribute to the place that changed my life forever.
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MUSIC - Practice makes better
There was once a brilliant pianist who travelled the world; he performed at prestigious events with large orchestras in front of thousands of people, and when he played audiences were mesmerised. It was as if his fingers danced upon the keys, each note gliding upon beautiful melodies that flooded through your entire body. His music would tell you different stories of love and of loss, each song delivering an entire experience that un-caged the listener's imagination to explore fantasies previo