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Author: Chris

  • Another essay completed

    Another essay completed

    Another essay, another Wordle.

    This time I was writing an essay on Edwards’ idea of the Trinity, which is far more expansive in topic and depth than the 12 pages of original work which Edwards’ Doctrine on the Trinity would suggest.

    Really enjoyed the opportunity to dig deep into Edwards’ style of thinking, and his musings, and especially into the breadth of argument on the Trinity, both from Edwards and other scholars.

    However, like Edwards concludes, the waters are still a little murky:

    ‘I am far from pretending to explaining the Trinity so as to render it no longer a mystery. I think it to be the highest and deepest of all divine mysteries still’
    – Jonathan Edwards “Discourse on the Trinity”

     

  • Am I, You are, are We: Australian?

    Am I, You are, are We: Australian?

    On the weekend I was having a chat with a friend about some of the aspects of other cultures that contribute to making them unique. Take for example the pasata making day, and the other various food related gatherings, that contribute to creating a unique Italian culture. Or the various other customs that contribute to the uniqueness of other cultures, and it re-stirred some thoughts I was having around Australia Day earlier in the year about what makes us really Australian. It was with that thought that I ventured down towards Federation Square in Melbourne to have a look at what we celebrate as Australians on our national day.

    Is it the thought of wide open spaces, the family home, and the beach as so many Australians celebrate on Australia day? Or perhaps the idea of sitting on the beach in folding chair with a tinnie watching a band? Or is it the feeling nostalgia and romanticism while coming back to Australia on the national flag carrier as Qantas would desperately love for us to believe?

    Is it the idea of Ford and Holden roaring over the top of Mt Panorama for that annual gathering of the devoted? Or perhaps the all too common sight of an Aussie digger faltering home after serving their country overseas?

    We like to call ourselves the lucky country, but really what is it that makes us so lucky? Why do we consider our country as blessed as it is, and perhaps why don’t we believe that the grass is greener on the other side? Indeed, given that we pride and revere our Australian nature so highly, why do we at the same time seek to drape ourselves in the national flag?

    I, for one, am certain that there is something which draws us all together intrinsically as Australians, other than our national passports. But for all my years in and out of Australia, I havnt been quite able to pin it down to anything specific.

    Maybe you could weigh in on what makes us intrinsically Australian in the comment box below.

  • Essay Completion!

    Essays are wonderful things, an opportunity to be able to research a topic, assess the research and commentaries, and finally synthesise your own opinion.

    In my case I have just finished a major essay exegeting John 14:1-6, from a discourse analysis perspective (non traditional though). Soon ill be writing up a little summary of my research, and how it applies to us as 21st century Christians (because research without application is pretty dead), but until then enjoy a little Wordle I generated from the text of my essay.

  • Useful study tools: Part 1 – Zotero

    Useful study tools: Part 1 – Zotero

    Around college it is currently essay time, with everyone seemingly busy researching and writing, and generally scurrying about in a heightened state of anxiety with the upcoming assessment. So in this current busyness with essays due in the next week I figure the best thing to do is some Pro-crastination1

    Ive recently been asked by a few people how I do my research (according to Gill apparently I appear to do nothing and yet generate results), and as such I am using this period of pro-crastination to write a series of posts on how I “do” study. It has also been informed and motivated by a Studying Productivity post that a friend of mine wrote back in 2009 over on Goannatree.

    (more…)

  • Finding a Gospel Home

    Finding a ChurchAs part of moving cities there is always a lot of change which goes along with it. For many the prospect of a new city bears the stress of being away from family and friends, and the challenge of finding new friends to be in community with. However, for Gill and I, as we have no flesh and blood family in Adelaide the bigger focus is on finding a new community of believers to be a part of, and to really share life with.
    In doing this move I have been challenged several times, by friends and by God, as to what I/we consider of most importance in a church, and what aspects can be left by the wayside. As such I have just jotted some of these thoughts down, not necessarily in order of priority, into this post.

    1. Bible believing
    First and foremost is a simple one, we were after a church which handled the bible well, one which treated it seriously as the word of God. Pretty simple, right. Now I know that within this category there is a fair spectrum of churches, but if they get the basics right, its a good start.

    2. Community focused
    A big part of what we believe goes into a church is the community. We are keen to get integrated into a community quickly so that we can keep on building the community and doing life together. It’s pretty important to us that we go to a church where community is a focus, both for the building up of believers and as an avenue of welcoming others into the Christian family.

    3. Serving together
    The job of living for Jesus is not just the job of those people who get paid to do it. The bible is pretty clear that in becoming Christians we are all to take up our cross and follow Him. We are keen to be a part of a community that emphasises the responsibility of all of us to serve together, not just paid people to do the majority of the serving.

    4. Evangelistic
    We believe that the church is one of the main tools God uses to spread the news of himself around the place. So we’re keen to be a part of a church that is keen to reach out to the local community to tell people about Jesus.

    5. Messy
    We are pretty aware that Christians are not perfect. But sometimes churches like to look perfect in order to attract people. We are keen to be a part of a church that is full of human beings who are happy to share life together even if that means not having the perfect service layout, flashy music team and smiles on everyone’s face. It also means that we might be able to see how we can fit in a bit more easily.

    We have been pleased to find a church in Melbourne that has all of these elements and more. There are heaps of great churches in Melbourne, but we have decided to be a part of the community at St Matthews in Prahran. It is a great community of believers and a place where we feel that we can be involved in the work that God is doing. We have enjoyed getting to know some of the members over the past few weeks and have already had a few invigorating discussions with the minister Shane. This week we will be joining a gospel community, which is a smaller group of people who meet together and aim to do life together. We are excited about the way God is working at St Matts and praying that he will use us there.

    What do you guys value in churches, and what would you be looking for in choosing? Pop your thoughts in the comments below.

  • Unpacking the container

    As most of you would be well aware, we have been moving to Melbourne over the last few weeks in order to study at Ridley college. One of the biggest stages in this move has been the packing and subsequent unpacking of the container at the other end.

    What took us 4 days to pack, in a giant game of Tetris, into the container was unpacked in a mere 2h30m with our merry band of unloaders. Furthermore, through the powers of modern technology I have compacted that two and a half hours down into a nice couple of minute video for your viewing pleasure.

    [tube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHU5cjp6CLQ[/tube]

    However, there is still so much more to do, for the last week since the container was unpacked we have been slowly setting up house with the Urmstons who we are house sharing with (their blog is here: http://urmstons.blogspot.com/).

    For now though Gill and I are down at Victor Harbor for CMS South Australia Summer Encounter 2012, and being heartily encouraged by the speakers: Bishop Mouneer of Egypt and the Middle East, Lindsay Brown from Lausanne and formerly IFES, and the incoming CMS Federal Secretary Peter Rogers.

    It has been a great day and a bit of break from the unpacking, and we pray that it will rejuvenate us for what is yet to come, before college starts.

  • Hello everyone!

    Hi everyone, this will eventually be Chris and Gills blog, but for now its all a bit disorganised and messy.