Holiday time

We're now looking forward very much to our trip back to the UK in 2 weeks from now! Someone asked me today what I was looking forward to most, and I couldn't say - unless I'm allowed to say 'all the people'. This is a piccy of when my good friend Anna came to visit in October, and we had such fun together, and such good chats. It was so encouraging that although we hadn't seen each other for 2 years, and hadn't even talked on the phone all that much, we could pick up just where we'd left off, and it didn't feel as though so much time had passed at all! Hurrah! So it will be very interesting to see the M25, and compare it to SH1, and Mothy can't wait to taste the beer... but the main thing...?

I'm told there's an old Maori saying that goes:

He aha te mea nui?
He tangata. He tangata. He tangata.

What is the most important thing? It is people, it is people, it is people.

Glad rags II

While Mothy was strutting his stuff in Parparaumu, I got to wear a sari at church for a morning, while the missions team were doing a focus on Freeset bags in India. Check out www.freesetbags.com. My friend Joan (formerly from Malaysia, and now neighbour across the road), had to dress me though! I must say I felt very beautiful, and putting jeans back on was very dull. I can see that wearing a sari would be surprisingly practical - once you got used to it. Apparently Joan didn't do me enough pleats - so I waddled in mine a bit!

Glad rags

Mothy was recently at SLC, (Student Leadership Conference) which was inspiring and encouraging and a great time! Here's a picture of him, showing his farmer tan! Various TSCF staff got to take part in a fashion show, and wear different items of clothing with the new TSCF logo in regional colours for where they work, and then the clothing got auctioned off. Mothy thinks he got the biggest cheer!

LUCF leaders 2006-7

It's now the end of the undergrad academic year here in Lincoln (some other NZ unis are still going), and I realised I ought to blog about the LUCF leadership team. Last week one of the team asked me for a reference for a scholarship application, which I was happy to write. When they read it, they said 'Are you sure that's about me Mothy?'. It made me realise that I might not be enthusiastic enough about the group of people with whom I plan and pray for the gospel on this campus.
Here's a picture of the team, at a weekend away on Banks Peninsula, a time to pray and plan big picture stuff for the year ahead. We stayed in a bach on Rue De La Mer, which is quaint if a little odd (Akaroa, the French settlement is over the hill).

They're a great laugh, even if some of the lads did insist on sleeping on the cricket outfield in bivvy bags with a fire in the morning to warm up.


They are all dedicated to the gospel in Lincoln. There's some gifted leaders, administrators, ideas people and evangelists. Sure, some lack boldness and confidence as many do, and some need to learn to have more confidence in the Bible as complete and sufficient for faith and in evangelism - but I'm pleased to be in Lincoln with Jess, Teresa, Saki, Will, Pete, Nicole, Cam, Phil & Rhys.

I pray that their summer season, on farms, in mines, in seed companies, with family both in NZ and Japan - will be a time that they continue to become more like Jesus and that the Holy Spirit will encourage and excite them about the gospel in 2007 - in every area of the campus. I pray that they will pass on vision to new students, and that they'll be excited about TSCF nationwide.

Skiing

The extremely professional - looking skier in the orange coat is none other than yours truly! I know, hard to believe, but I kid you not! The slightly wobbly looking person in front of me, was the instructor, Sabine. She wasn't doing too bad either, but had a head start, being Austrian, and was skiing from when she could walk.

This view is from the very top of the big scary slope, that Mothy skied down!
Hmmm, looks a bit more impressive than mine, but he did slide a lot of the steep bits on his bum apparently. Of course I was still very impressed he decided to give it a go. That's the kiwi spirit, that is.

Maybe next year, I'll progress to such giddy heights...

My birthday cake!

Judy (left) and Junita made me this truly stupendous cake for my birthday. I had a great birthday weekend in Tekapo, where it was very beautiful, and I learnt to ski... more photos maybe later on that one.
But in the meantime, take a moment to marvel at this glorious cake. The attention to detail is what really made it. There are small Jelly Baby Lizzy and Mothy's by the front door, and even a Hugo by the gate. The path is fruit n nut - my fave! There is a plane flying overhead and a turtle and fish swimming in the pond. So beautiful!

A fun Saturday

This is us at the wedding of our old flatmate Serkan, and Yuana. On the right are John and Shirley Bright, a wonderfully wise and generous couple from our church.
It was good to celebrate with Serkan and Yuana, especially as they're both away from their homes (Turkey and Indonesia respectively). It was our first Muslim wedding too, so that was interesting. The Qu'ran was read in Arabic, Indonesian and English, and we all sat on the floor for the ceremony, but in many repects it wasn't so different to most weddings I've been to. (Yuana didn't get to say anything in the Muslim bit of the ceremony, though she did in the civil bit, but she didn't seem to mind).


That same evening we went to a mid-winter Christmas party with our home group. This picture is of our equally wise and generous home-group leaders, Mark and Robyn. They're great, and invite Mothy round to watch rugby when important matches are on!

Phanfare & Rodrigo y Gabriela

Back in April we bought our first digital camera, a Pentax Optio E10. If you're in the market, don't bother, it's only average (but if you'd like to buy ours let us know!!). But we used it to snap away as it's more convenient than our 25 year old Canon A1 SLR and various lenses. So, in June, I took the Pentax to Minty training. Stupidly, I left it at the bach, but David (the owner) found it and returning it to me, for which we're very greatful. Consequently, I tried uploading some of the shots to www.timliz.phanfare.com, our online photo album. Failed miserably. I was blaming Telecom, as usual. But we tried this morning and it worked a treat. Do look at www.timliz.phanfare.com and let us know what you think.

Lizzy rang her sister in London last night. She tells me they spoke for 104 minutes. Wow. They talked alot about last week's Cambridge Folk Festival (www.cambridgefolkfestival.co.uk). I don't care for EmmyLou Harris, but I would have loved to hear Rodrigo y Gabriela, who are busy re-writing acoustic guitar rules. Have a listen to www.rodgab.com. Good stuff. Shame they're busy touring Europe (mostly Ireland and UK) and Australia but not NZ.

For the first time in days, so it seems, the sun is shining so it's time to get out and enjoy it.

Gore Bay

We went to Gore Bay at the weekend and did not much. It was beautiful, the bach we stayed in had a stunning view of the ocean, and we drove home on Sunday via a wine tasting winery and beer tasting at Brew Moon.
I've (Liz) been feeling pretty bleugh after that though - that's the trouble if you have a nice holiday - going back to work is pretty pants.
Just been reading a book by Amy Orr-Ewing It's great. She says, and I 100% agree, that Christianity is 'intellectually robust and existentially satisfying'. Yeah!!!
So why, I ask myself, do we as Christians sing such rambling rubbish in church? That's my latest rant. Actually my second to latest rant. The very latest rant is linked to it though. People keep saying, (when I embark on afore-mentioned rant - that we keep singing songs all about me me me) that Jesus loves me so much that even if I were the only person who needed him to, he would have still died for me. Maybe that's true, but it's a kinda pointless thing to say cos I'm not, nor will ever be, the only person in need of God's grace and Christ's death. We all are in dire need, together. Surely.
Grrr.