And the guns, they went boom...

During WWII New Zealand was guarded against invasion by a number of guns along the coast lines. Oamaru has the remnants of some of the old gun bunkers in a lovely park over looking the harbor. Since my Dad said I had to go see them (thanks Dad!) I went, and had a wonderful hike around the hills. There are more bunkers and gunports, but these were the best ones, I think.

Ye Olde Gun Port(e)

Yon olde bunker


Ye lovely view from the Gun Port(e)

They walk slow because they only have little legs

A sign here in Oamaru, home of two penguin colonies...

Beautiful...as it should be

It always seems that God is present where there is beauty. He seems to be most at home, or perhaps more evident, in the fresh air and rolling waves, in the bobbing heads of long grass, in the kindness of helping hands, in the stunning views from, and of, a tall mountain. God is beauty and lives in beauty. Being here in New Zealand is a eye popping glimpse into rugged, pristine beauty.

Being on a team who will be presenting God to people who may not believe in Him will be a challenge, and I cannot wait to see that ways that Beauty reveals Himself.

We will be meeting in one of the most lovely buildings here in Oamaru - The Opera House. Built out of Oamaru stone and recently restored, this is going too a fitting place to share God, His grace and the plan of salvation with a world yearning for more.

Signs are everywhere

I was today reminded that no matter where you are, you are always far from somewhere!

New Zealand has begun winter. It is cold and wet here in Oamaru, but the bright yellow signs made me smile.
(The note that the South Pole was so close was a bit scary)

No matter where I am, in Oamaru or Texas or Italy, I will always be too far from where I want to be! I always want to be with those I love and with God, and that place isn't even listed on this sign.

Onward to Heaven!

Maybe I forgot, Maybe I never knew...

The wonder of the crashing waves, the feel of itty bitty rocks squishing between tiny fingers, the sharp tang of wet, salty air in the mouth. The piercing cry of gulls woven into the hum of the wind. Every sight is new and wonderful. Every smell is strange. Each moving creature invites adventure and a quick scurry to investigate.

After spending a couple of hours at the rocky northern Californian coast with my niece, I was amazed at her wonder of being outdoors, in such a wild composition and the awe with which this young child embraced every experience. Every rock needed to be patted and every wave watched. She ogled the birds and the flowers. She squealed in giggly glee at the creeping curled legs of the hermit crabs and oohed over the rough skin of the starfish.

Watching her play and gape and wonder (and wander!) was exhilarating. In some ways I felt like she was showing me how to experience the world again. How to laugh. How to cry and recover when told NO!. How to touch the world and absorb it. How to encounter something and be fascinated by whatever it was.

Somehow watching her learn to love the world she encounters reminded me that I need to love it too. Maybe I did. Maybe I forgot in my rush and bustle. Maybe, in some ways, I never learned.

And perhaps now is the time to learn.

The internal life of animals

As you open your eyes, what do you see?

When you turn old who will you be?

Will you splash in the ocean, swim in the sea?

When you close your eyes, what do you see?

the God i don't understand - A Book Review

Christopher Wright has done it again!

(If you missed Mission of God go get it!)

His latest book, the God i don't understand, is a cut-the-guts-out-and-examine-them look at faith and the questions people ask about God and the world around them.

Why do we hurt, and hurt others?
Why do some of us believe in something called 'evil'?
What on earth was God thinking in His actions recorded in the Old Testament?
And how is this world really going to end? Really???

Wright uses scripture artfully and wisdom prudently to peel the layers of faith back and look into a sometimes mysterious, often misunderstood, sometimes confusing core. The mass of material and open attitude to learning and finding answers is refreshing. Rarely does a book ask the hard questions and then offer explanations and possibilities with the encouragement to keep seeking more answers and solutions.

Again and again i was reminded to head back to the Bible, to dig in, struggle with the questions that do pop up and then hold on to my hat as more of the world and God are pulled into the light.