Friday Friends & Faves #12

A Favourite...
Check out A Social Network Christmas for a more modern take on an old Christmas story. Imagine if Mary & Joseph were your friends on Facebook?! In an age where many people broadcast their good news far and wide via FB and Twitter and the like, perhaps we could use those social networks as a forum for broadcasting God's good news this Christmas.....He loves us and made us; We destroyed that precious relationship by rejecting Him; He gave His Son for us - to rescue us; We can respond with our hearts and minds and lives....And in process, reignite that precious relationship with Him. That's what makes our Christmas MERRY!

A Friend....or 2 or 3 or.....
To all readers of this blog....thanks for reading! And for encouraging me. Your words and comments mean a great deal and keep me keeping on. Merry Christmas friends! Hope tomorrow is a special day for you and yours. Praying for you all! And we'll talk again, sometime soon:)

Friday Friends & Faves #10

Friends....
I made a new Facebook friend this week, thanks to my sister. Hello Kate! (Her name is Katelyn but she prefers Kate:) Here's a few things about Kate before I tell you about the GREAT thing she is doing. She turns 21 in January.  Her Dad is a pastor and her Mum is a midwife and has recently been through a battle with cancer. Kate is currently deferring her uni studies and is a huge sports lover, keen hockey and soccer player. She took up photography as a hobby and stress relief in high school. Her dog Nala just had 9 puppies. (Thanks T for the details:)

Now, the reason Kate makes it onto Friday's Friends & Faves is because she is doing something terrific with her photos.....31 Days of Gratitude. I hope that if you click the link, you'll find and enjoy the photos and comments that she has creatively put together. Thanks Kate for reminding us to walk through life with our eyes wide open to see the blessings God has placed in our life and to be thankful for them...even the rain!


Faves...
I guess Kate's 31 Days of Gratitude is a favourite. But I also wanted to post a couple of links to Christmas ideas that I really like. This is a great time of year for celebrating with friends and families and we can make it even more special with some of these clever, inexpensive ideas.
Question Jar....although we would probably NOT do this cozying up with a hot chocolate on the couch in front of the fireplace.
"May your Christmas be Merry & Sprite"...a little bit of festive fizzy:)
Christmas Decorations recipes...from one of my favourite on-line recipe websites.

Have fun being festive my friends!

Friday Friends & Faves #9

Friends:
My friends Heather and Cam work for Student Life - a Christian group at work on a number of university campuses throughout Australia. God used time in Student Life small groups and one-on-one with SL staff, way back in the mid-90s, to change my life forever. And Heather and Cam were at uni with me and involved as students with SL.

Now, years later, they continue to share the love of God, the salvation gift of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit with new generations of uni students. They do it on campus...and off (as you'll read below). And it is their heart to share the life-giving and changing message of Christianity that has challenged me in the past couple of weeks since I read the email below.

I hope that as we head into December...a time for remembering Jesus' birth and all that event sparked....we might take to heart Cam's example and have a real boldness and passion for sharing the faith we have.

A recent trip to Victoria by Heather and Cam was marked by this little gem in their journey. They shared it in a recent email:

Well, we’re not even in Victoria yet (still staying with friends in Sydney) but Cam has shared his faith multiple times – with servo dudes and a guy we met on the bus on the way to see the sights of Darling Harbour. Cam’s still dripping from the apartment complex pool where he shared his faith with residents Athol and Zumi. I’ve learned to substitute prayer for panic whenever Cam is taking longer than I thought in the shops, or down town or even in the toilet. He’s just sharing his faith (or in the case of the toilet, reading apologetics books). But Cam would be quick to remind you not to be in awe of his gift of evangelism (or ablutionary reading), but to ask God to give you courage to step up to bat. He would say that remembering to ask the Golden Question – have you had much to do with Christian things? – is a matter of practice and courage. So fresh from the pool, here’s how the conversation went 5 minutes ago...

Cam: Hi I’m Cam. Do you guys live here?

A&Z: yes. What about you?

Cam: I’m from Toowoomba and I’m on my way to Victoria to help Christian uni students reach out to schoolies and see if any of them want help connecting to God. What about you? Have you had much to do with Christian things?

A&Z (positively): we’re Hindus, but we’ve just been to Hillsong Church, our first experience of Christian things.

Cam: was that a positive experience for you?

A&Z: it was great!

Cam: what did you like about it?

A&Z: people were so alive and enthusiastic and loving. And we’ve got Christian friends now.

Cam: how does that affect what you think about Christianity?

A&Z: we like it, but we don’t think it’s right to just follow a religion.

Cam: you mean a religion where it’s all about following rules?

A&Z: yes. It doesn’t seem right to have to follow a lot of rules to get something.

Cam: I’ve got good news for you: the essence of Christianity is actually relationship, not rules. It’s all about having a friendship with God. Following rules can lead to problems like pride and thinking you’re better than others because you’re following rules well. But Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” So I had a close look at Jesus to see if what he was saying was true, and I learned that the way we go through Jesus to God the Father is through Jesus’ forgiveness for things we do wrong. This leads to us being humble, which puts us in a better position to extend friendship to others.

A&Z: wow! That makes sense. It would stop a lot of wars and things.

Cam: now, because I’m grateful for forgiveness, I make choices to do what God wants, not because it’s a rule, but because of my friendship with God. So are you interested in finding out more about a friendship with God through Jesus?

A&Z: yes!

Cam: do you have an iPhone?

A&Z: yes!

Cam: go to the Apps Store and get a free application called Knowing God Personally (gospel presentation developed by Campus Crusade for Christ)

A&Z: Great! I’ll do that!

Favourites:
My sister Megan has put her talents to work this year and been very creative....with material. I really admire her efforts, particularly as Home Ec was not my strong suit in school and I spend way more time unpicking than sewing if I ever do it. Megan's on-line store has lots of cute items for kids and if you're looking for a special Christmas gift, check out Tail Endz Even if you're not in the market for kids' clothes and bags, have a look anyway, just for the "Awwwww....cute" buzz:)

You are just making it up

I laughed when I read my 4 chapters of Nehemiah this morning.
You may find that surprising, considering the subject matter of that OT book.
But check out ch 6 v 8 in the NIV.....I sent him this reply: "Nothing like what you are saying is happening; you are just making it up out of your head."
The context is Nehemiah replying to accusations his enemies had written to him.
I laughed because the wording sounds pretty funny and I can just imagine an old man in a long robe with a flowing beard saying these words with the shake of a finger.
But then I thought more about Nehemiah's words and got the feeling that you and I could probably have those same words said to us many times in a week. Not that people actually say them out loud to us, but perhaps it's what they and God would like to say.


And we give them reason to....Do any of these thoughts sound familiar?
There's just too much to do today. I won't be able to do it all.
I can't believe they said that about me.
I'm terrified of letting my kids out of my sight...they won't be safe.
I'll never be as good as her.
The doctor will have bad news for us.
Ahhhh! Christmas with his family...it'll be chaos!
Why bother applying for that job...I won't get it.
My husband just doesn't love me, otherwise he would do/say......
They all must think I'm an idiot now...
I always worry/fail/put my foot in my mouth/go off the deep end/get sick/etc...that's just what I do.
Teach RE / Sunday School God? But I'm not good with kids.
I have nothing interesting to say.
God could never forgive me for that.
And there's no doubt 13 or 57 or 189 more thoughts we have in a week that come from a similar place.


Isn't it tragic that we give so much of our thought-life to things that a) will never happen or b) simply aren't true? We worry and we fret and we get frustrated and in reality "we are just making it up out of our head." Silly us!


How about being really conscious of what you're thinking today and asking God to help you get a good dose of reality regarding those thoughts. Pray that your thoughts would be His...life-affirming and positive....joyful and true. 

Maybe then you'll be able to laugh often, love more and live long!

Friday Friends & Faves #8

Friends....
Did you know? You are not alone in reading this blog?
I found that surprising! 

This past couple of weeks I have been HUGELY blessed to receive emails from girls all over the place who have told me how much they enjoy reading Keep It Real and how much encouragement they receive from it. That blows me away, even though it has been my prayer. I guess what it says is "Once again, God has answered my prayers." Thanks Father!

I also just wanted to let you know about the journey of some of your fellow readers...your 'Friday Friends' so to speak. Here's some of what's been happening...

• a baby growing in Mummy's belly
• lots of babies born....scales definitely tipped in the boys favour
• resignations
• new jobs
• an engagement
• divorce papers signed
• injuries
• recovery
• travel
• moving house
• children graduating
• attending new job interviews
• birthdays
• farewells
• buying land
• 'welcome home's
• funerals
• last days at work
• assignments done
• marks received
• prayers prayed...some answered 'yes', others 'no' and I guess there's a couple 'wait awhiles' too

And in between the BIG stuff, everyone's been doing all the little stuff that makes this thing called LIFE happen.


Isn't it an encouragement to know that so many people are living and loving, just like us? Hope you feel a little more connected to them today.


PS: You are more than welcome...any of you (even ones who have already done it!) to make contributions to Friday's blogs. Anything you can write...from a few sentences to an essay....is welcome. Tell us a bit of your story. What's God been doing in your life? Teaching you? What have you learned lately? Just email them to me, via my personal email or through a Facebook message. Thanks.


Faves....
This one won't be everyone's cup of tea...it's a bit too specialised for that. But a website I stumbled across in a Google search that has become invaluable to me is Chronicles of a BabyWise Mom.
Jam packed with solid advice on baby and child raising, it has been a help when I have had questions...BIG ones and little ones. It covers soooo much about child raising...as the topic list on the right side of the home page shows. Some of the topics I have read about include: E.A.S.Y., playtime, nappies, cluster feeding, schedules, sleep, baby food, wrapping, "The Happiest Baby on the Block", toys, etc.... And you don't have to be a subscriber to the Baby Wise philosophy to get some good ideas from the website. Anyway...for those of you in the baby/child years, perhaps you'd like to have a quick visit and see if it's of any use.

Surviving Singleness #7

Risky Business

No! I am NOT going to be talking about singing songs in your socks and jocks aka Tom Cruise. But I wanted to start by saying that putting yourself out there to start and grow a relationship requires a certain amount of risk and as a logical consequence, the potential for failure. That was my experience anyway.

When I began to acknowledge a desire to be married, I set in motion a few steps to try to help that process. Some were successful and some resulted in absolute, abysmal, embarrassing failure….

One of the first things I did was tell trusted family and friends that I was interested in meeting men….they had to be Christians and preferably, not absolute dorks. I asked my friends to keep an eye out for me and if they thought it appropriate, invite me and him over so we could get to know each other in a relaxed, surrounded-by-friends atmosphere. That way it would be casual, low-key and I would have the chance to see him interact with others. Also, since I trust my family and close friends and I know they love me, I knew they would make a good choice of who to invite over. So how'd that plan go? Well…a failure really. Some Brizzy friends followed through for me and invited me and 'the chosen guy' to a soccer match. Even strategically had us sit near each other. Hmmmm… should have known things would not go well when he arrived ½ an hour late and did not speak to me throughout the whole first half of the game. Later, my friend told me he'd heard 'the chosen guy' was interested in someone else. And then followed up with the heart warming - but not very helpful - statement, "We really don't know anyone good enough for you K."

Next, I got the guts to call a guy and put a friendly invitation out there for us to get together for coffee next time he was in town. I coached myself before hand….be friendly, light, funny. I even had a script outline so I wouldn't stumble and fumble and sound psycho. I planned a good time to call and said a quick prayer before I did. Ok… I knew this would go well. Hmmmmm…maybe not…..
Ring ring ring ring
He picks :"Hello? Bob here." (name changed to protect his identity)
Me…calmly (but with heart racing!!!): "Hi Bob! It's Kirsty L.... here… how are you?"
Him: "Fine thanks…and yourself?"
Me….feeling in control and like this was going well: "Really well… thanks for asking. So I hear you've been working in town lately. And I was just wondering if you'd like to catch up next time you're here.
Maybe we could grab a cup of coffee or something? It'd be fun, coz as you know there's not too many people our age around and not too many things to do in this little town. But only if you want to of course."
And then the response that devastated me then, made me cringe for months afterwards and makes me laugh today…
Him: "Sorry? Who is this???"

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Another failure! And we never got together for that coffee…or anything else.

Another risk was entering the world of internet dating. Potentially a dark and dangerous world, I thought if I signed up on a Christian dating website I would at least make it a less dark, but possibly
still dangerous, experience. Hmmmmmmm….

Three days into the 10 day trial, I deleted my profile from the website. At that time I just didn't feel right about putting myself out there and I certainly felt overwhelmed at the prospect of being contacted by weirdos and having to sort through a multitude of guy's profiles and hope I found the right one. Yep! Failed again.

But you know, considering how badly each of these plans went, I would do it all again. Because in that process I learned a few things about myself and what I wanted. I also grew a bit more confidence…risk
taking can do that for you. I admitted my desires. I enlisted the help of a team of trusted people, realising that even though it would ultimately be 'my' relationship, I needed the advice and support of community to get me there. I tried not to take the failures personally. I guess if I did, I would have given up after the soccer game flop and who knows….I might still be spinstering.

Finally, a thought from a brilliant little piece of theatre written by Qld girl Joanna Butler. In "I Want to be in a Jane Austen Novel," teacher Ellie tells her best friend Jen some home truths: "We're waiting for Mr Darcy to rescue us from all our problems – ride off with us on his white horse to Pemberley…What if he doesn't come?"

I guess I had that thought in mind as I set out to do things intentionally and differently regarding relationships. Sure my plans didn't have the desired results, but at least I was having a go… opening myself up to possibilities; realising the fairytale may not happen and I certainly couldn't just sit and do nothing and expect Mr Darcy or Mr Right to find me and sweep me off my feet. So risks were what I needed to take…and I did.

Next time…I'll tell you about the success story. Yes….after all those embarrassing failures, there has been a happy ending. And I pray there will be for you too.

Friday Friends & Faves #5

Friends:
My sister Taryn had a little 'oopsie' a couple of weeks ago. As she was helping her 2 yr old with the potty, she collapsed on the floor and by the next morning the ambos had to carry her off to hospital!
Here's a little bit of follow-up since that event:

Taryn and her beautiful family...although little R joined them all this year too

I don't know about you, but sometimes I get caught up in "me" so much that it takes something radical to make you realise it's not necessarily the way it is!! I often lament, "Oh I have no friends, or really how many really know me, blah, blah, blah."
Well last week I ended up in emergency in the local hospital as I was unable to get out of bed with a ruptured disc in my back. I spent all day in emergency and all that time I almost felt as though I was being protected in a bubble (maybe it was just the drugs!!) Since then I have found out that I had many people praying for me and my family. Our pastor came up to the hospital within an hour of me being there and prayed for us too! By the end of the day - I was still sore, but was able to walk and came home. Since then, I have been overwhelmed with meals, people dropping in to hang out my washing, people folding my washing, people offering to take my kids to the park, others just holding the baby (something I couldn't do for a while there!), someone cleaning my house, just dropping in to see if there was anything they could do. I have been blown away. So your blog the other day about encouragement..... having been on the receiving end of such outpourings of love and care have restored my faith in humanity.
As I jokingly said to my hubby earlier in the week - "Maybe I should injure my back more regularly" Just jokes!! So to all those who have given of themselves in some way, you have blown me away. Thank you seems so inadequate. I love youse all! 


Thanks T...for reminding us of a few things this Fab Friday...
1. We need to have an 'others' focus. The old Sunday School song taught us "JOY" will be ours when we put Jesus first, Yourself last and Others inbetween. Hmmmmmm....how you going with that??
2. Prayer...it's got power! Don't just pray for yourself today...pray for someone else.
3. Generous friends are heavenly. It doesn't take much. If you're not sure what to do to help, just ask. Or check out yesterday's blog post. That stuff applies no matter if there's a new baby in the house or not:)
4. Saying 'thanks' and 'I love you' is so important. Make it your mission in life to always have 'an attitude of gratitude' and vocalise it...often!
5. Be careful around pottys! Say no more:)
PS. A phone call to T yesterday reveals she is on the mend in a 'miraculous' way. Can even cross her legs again. Thanks God...see? Praying and saying 'thanks' in a matter of 2 words and 2 seconds! Easy as.


Faves:
3:50 of 'must see' Compassion message. Absolutely LOVE IT! Just think, ONE ACT can change a life....doesn't matter if you're a teenager or not!
Please watch it.....Compassion One Act

Enjoy the weekend my friends xo

Liked it...Borrowed it...Thanks!

My sister sent me a link to a website that had the post I have borrowed and added below. I saw it, liked it and thought I'd borrow it. (Thanks to http://www.glorialemay.com/blog/?p=34) 

Why? 2 reasons...

1. Because I know a number of people who have had babies in 2010 and I am sure they can relate....and will probably read this nodding their heads and with a wry grin.

2. And more importantly, I know lots of you know people who have had babies recently, or are about to, and you want to be a helpful friend. So...here's how you can be.....

After the Birth, what a family needs

Posted on October 28, 2008 by gloria

 “Let me know if I can help you in any way when the baby is born.” … “Just let me know if you need a hand.” … “Anything I can do, just give me a call.”

Most pregnant women get these statements from friends and family but shy away from making requests when they are up to their ears in dirty laundry, unmade beds, dust bunnies and countertops crowded with dirty dishes. The myth of “I’m fine, I’m doing great, new motherhood is wonderful, I can cope and my husband is the Rock of Gibraltar” is pervasive in postpartum land. If you’re too shy to ask for help and make straight requests of people, I suggest sending the following list out to your friends and family. These are the things I have found to be missing in every house with a new baby. It’s actually easy and fun for outsiders to remedy these problems for the new parents but there seems to be a lot of confusion about what’s wanted and needed…

1. Buy us toilet paper, milk and beautiful whole grain bread.

2. Buy us a new garbage can with a swing top lid and 6 pairs of black cotton underpants (women’s size____).

3. Make us a big supper salad with feta cheese, black Kalamata olives, toasted almonds, organic green crispy things and a nice homemade dressing on the side. Drop it off and leave right away. Or, buy us frozen lasagna, garlic bread, a bag of salad, a big jug of juice, and maybe some cookies to have for dessert. Drop it off and leave right away.

4. Come over about 2 in the afternoon, hold the baby while I have a hot shower, put me to bed with the baby and then fold all the piles of laundry that have been dumped on the couch, beds or in the room corners. If there’s no laundry to fold yet, do some.

5. Come over at l0 a.m., make me eggs, toast and a 1/2 grapefruit. Clean my fridge and throw out everything you are in doubt about. Don’t ask me about anything; just use your best judgment.

6. Put a sign on my door saying “Dear Friends and Family, Mom and baby need extra rest right now. Please come back in 7 days but phone first. All donations of casserole dinners would be most welcome. Thank you for caring about this family.”

7. Come over in your work clothes and vacuum and dust my house and then leave quietly. It’s tiring for me to chat and have tea with visitors but it will renew my soul to get some rest knowing I will wake up to clean, organized space.

8. Take my older kids for a really fun-filled afternoon to a park, zoo or Science World and feed them healthy food.

9. Come over and give my husband a two hour break so he can go to a coffee shop, pub, hockey rink or some other r & r that will delight him. Fold more laundry.

10. Make me a giant pot of vegetable soup and clean the kitchen completely afterwards. Take a big garbage bag and empty every trash basket in the house and reline with fresh bags.

These are the kindnesses that new families remember and appreciate forever. It’s easy to spend money on gifts but the things that really make a difference are the services for the body and soul described above. Most of your friends and family members don’t know what they can do that won’t be an intrusion. They also can’t devote 40 hours to supporting you but they would be thrilled to devote 4 hours. If you let 10 people help you out for 4 hours, you will have the 40 hours of rested, adult support you really need with a newborn in the house. There’s magic in the little prayer “I need help.”