Despite his technological ineptitude, Michael can string some great words together.
A timely post over at the Choco's blog caught my eye.
Well written Michael.

"Can I suggest the following “questions” to be used as a filter for the expression of our opinions towards and concerning one another (whether on a blog, from a pulpit, or just in casual conversation).
Will this communication build up the body of Christ?
Will this communication maintain the unity of the body of Christ?
Have I communicated to the person(s) or group(s) concerned and expressed my critique to them and given them opportunity to respond and correct or change their perspective before I communicate mine?
Have I judged the motives of the people / groups I am writing or speaking about?
Do I have the best interests of the other person or group in mind?
Am I speaking out of revenge / wounded pride / bitterness etc?
Am I free to not communicate? "

Rest of post at Choco'c blog

Email, once the bastion of youth, is now being confined to work and old people.
Young folk are much more likely to be quickly developing arthritis from SMSing or more likely using msn.

(Story)

I have recently started (I know I know, its been around for ages) using MSN.
Now all I have to do is get Michael Bullard to start using it and I will save him about $10 a week in stamps, yes stamps. Michael has been training up some pidgeons for a rainy day, just in case. His back is not getting any younger either, and carrying that laptop battery around is causing him to stoop.

After a fairly scratchy start Freo did enough in the 3rd quarter today to win the game against Carlton.
A dissapointing fourth quarter meant we did not get the percentage boosting win we wanted, but we won by 18 points.

Ryan Murphy was excellent with an accurate 5 goals.
Pav did enough, Farmer was hard working and Johnson was excellent, as was Sandilands.
Mundy was exceptional as well.

Thanks to the Roo's for knocking off Geelong and giving us a two game buffer in the eight.
If we get over the hapless Hawks, we should have done enough to make the finals this year.

Where to for Paul Medhurst? He could have been anything, but I cant see him getting another game this year.

With the weagles winning and the Bombers recording their second win of the season, who would be a bookie? Both entered their games as distinct underdogs, and both recorded emphatic wins.
As much as I would have preferred to pick up the Sunday Times and read the headline, "Shaky Eagles go down to Premiership Favourites Adelaide", at least it shows why the AFL is so enjoyed by so many people. It is a truly unpredictable game. Even the shape of the ball and oval is not 'regular'.

Three part series I am doing in August.....

From Rick Warren's mail out,

"If you're in a job with a bunch of bad people who curse and swear and tell coarse jokes, I don't feel a bit sorry for you. They're probably why you're there."

Neale Danniher, coach of the defeated Melbourne Demons, has come out and said that the home town crowd at the Freo Melbourne game was a major reason why Freo beat Melbourne.

Certainly crowd reports from the game indicate that this was the loudest crowd we have had all year. It was a record crowd for a game between Freo and Melbourne.
Maybe it was also the fact that Freo played really tight hard footy for four quarters. Maybe that is why the crowd was so appreciative.

Either way Neales comments indicate that having 36, 000 people cheering for you if far better for you as a team than having 36, 000 people not really appreciating you (!)

This should be great fun!

Prompted by the latest "50 most influential churches" I have come up with my own list.

The 50 most list was composed by Americans, and with obviously blinkered view, all 50 are American.

My top five in the world.
1. Hillsong Church Australia (Houston) More than any other church in the world, this church has got churches co operating as the walls have come down. Most if not all evangelical churches in the world use their worship. Yes I am bias, but I think I could mount a good argument for it none the less.
2. Willow Creek (Hybels) Started off a revolution
3. Saddleback (Warren) Caused us to rethink our mission
4. Yoido Full Gospel Church, Seoul, Korea (Yonggi Cho) (253.000 people)
5. Holy Trinity Brompton Anglican Church (Nicky Gumbel) All around the world, many churches use the ALPHA course of evangelism Holy Trinity Brompton


Now here is the top churches/people that have influenced me personally

1. Albany Church of Christ Mark Randall was a passionate speaker and inspired me to be a Pastor in my formative Christian years.
2. Saddleback Rick Warren inspires me with his integrity and purpose
3. Jack Deere God is not contained in the theological constraints I placed him in
4. Hillsong Lets be relevant and passionate okay?
5. Paul Borden Ministry is too important to get caught up in politics

The Weagles cant do anything right. I wanted them to win this week, for Freo's sake, and get Colliwobbles down to our amount of points.

But JW was outcoached by a fired up Malthouse.
Freo made Collingwood look ordinary last week, the weagles had no answers for the match ups this week.

Who is meant to kick goals for the Weagles?

Speaking about being the "Salt of the Earth" on Sunday.

Pretty challenging stuff, especially when Jesus says that salt that has lost its saltiness gets chucked away and trampled on.

This song from U2 is one that is good, I am using it to kick off the service.
Look at the last line, great thought. Do we understand with all the crap going on in the world, that the church is actually responsible? If we are called to be salt and light, we are not doing a good job.


The more you see the less you know The less you find out as you go I knew much more then than I do nowNeon heart day-glow eyes A city lit by fireflies They're advertising in the skiesFor people like us And I miss you when you're not around I'm getting ready to leave the ground Oh you look so beautiful tonight In the city of blinding lights Don't look before you laugh Look ugly in a photographFlash bulbs purple irises The camera can't seeI've seen you walk unafraid I've seen you in the clothes you made Can you see the beauty inside of me? What happened to the beauty I had inside of me?(cut) And I miss you when you're not around I'm getting ready to leave the ground Oh you look so beautiful tonight In the city of blinding lights Time...time...time...time...time Won't leave me as I am But time won't take the boy out of this manOh you look so beautiful tonight Oh you look so beautiful tonight Oh you look so beautiful tonight In the city of blinding lights
The more you know the less you feel
Some pray for others steal
Blessings are not just for the ones who kneel... luckily

Well the well known preacher was the recently departed
IOANNES PAULUS II.


Interesting that what he was saying was scriptural, spot on, challenging etc.
I dont know if there is a point to any of this, I just found it interesting.


Link

You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world" (Mt 5:13-14): The images of salt and light used by Jesus are rich in meaning and complement each other. In ancient times, salt and light were seen as essential elements of life.
"You are the salt of the earth...". One of the main functions of salt is to season food, to give it taste and flavour. This image reminds us that, through Baptism, our whole being has been profoundly changed, because it has been "seasoned" with the new life which comes from Christ (cf. Rom 6:4). The salt which keeps our Christian identity intact even in a very secularized world is the grace of Baptism. Through Baptism we are re-born. We begin to live in Christ and become capable of responding to his call to "offer [our] bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God" (Rom 12:1). Writing to the Christians of Rome, Saint Paul urges them to show clearly that their way of living and thinking was different from that of their contemporaries: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect" (Rom 12:2).
For a long time, salt was also used to preserve food. As the salt of the earth, you are called to preserve the faith which you have received and to pass it on intact to others. Your generation is being challenged in a special way to keep safe the deposit of faith (cf. 2 Th 2:15; 1 Tim 6:20; 2 Tim 1:14).
Discover your Christian roots, learn about the Church’s history, deepen your knowledge of the spiritual heritage which has been passed on to you, follow in the footsteps of the witnesses and teachers who have gone before you! Only by staying faithful to God’s commandments, to the Covenant which Christ sealed with his blood poured out on the Cross, will you be the apostles and witnesses of the new millennium.
It is the nature of human beings, and especially youth, to seek the Absolute, the meaning and fullness of life. Dear young people, do not be content with anything less than the highest ideals! Do not let yourselves be dispirited by those who are disillusioned with life and have grown deaf to the deepest and most authentic desires of their heart. You are right to be disappointed with hollow entertainment and passing fads, and with aiming at too little in life. If you have an ardent desire for the Lord you will steer clear of the mediocrity and conformism so widespread in our society.


Which well known preacher said this? I'll give you one clue, he is dead, recently.

My good friend has just given me an O2 XDA II Device.

Now I have actually thrown away my diary, literally, it is in the bin. And my wife has been given my mobile phone, and I still have my well worn NLT Bible, and so the title of this post was meant to shock, more than be accurate (I should work for the West).

But what a brilliant device this is. It has a great system, good memory with an exapandable slot, good media player (listening to Delirious at the moment) and I have also downloaded E Sword to it (Bible Program).

I used to think people with these devices were just propeller heads, maybe they still are, but it really is useful.

(PS Michael Bullard, you really should get one, it will save you lugging that desktop computer around and pretending to everyone it is a laptop. The battery alone needs its own trailer)

Here is an interesting article in the SMH

Rick spoke about this article when at Hillsong.
Interesting, but not much more information than we already know.
Obviously the money issue is the one the press are most interested in, not the lives being helped.
(Thanks to Bagga for the Link)

The story in the West and splashed all over the TV News last night was all about the plight of West Coast Ruckman Michael Gardiner.
The West's story this morning detailed his on and off field drama's over the last few years.

Michael set out last night to grab some late night takeaway in his V8 Commodore. Only problem was Michael had been consuming Vodka, was drunk and smashed his car and two others.

This is a sad story for many reasons.

Michael is a very talented player. Many Aussie blokes would love to have his talent.
Michael has thrown it away because of one foolish choice after another.
It has come to light that this was his chance. He had six weeks during Cox's abscence to prove himself, and with Cox out, and West Coast's excellent midfield, he could have done it.

Instead he has made another foolish decision. What is perhaps more worrying is his lack of responsibility about it. He claimed he was not drinking, and had not done much wrong.
Unfortunately the blood alcohol limit was well over .08 and his own teamates and coach expressed their view that he had let the side down badly, which he has.

There is a distinct possibility Michael will not be covered by insurance if found guilty of driving under the influence. This will cost him a considerable amount of money, in fixing his own car, and two others, as well as court fines.

I feel sad for the young man, who at 26, had the world at his feet. With one bad decision he has hurt himself and set a bad example for others.

Lets hope he can turn it around. With just a few good decisions that is possible.
Get stuck into his footy at Claremont, pay his bills, face up to his responsibilties. With all the terrible stories of young Aussie males harming themselves intentionally, lets hope Michael seeks help.

Just a brief thought I wanted to write down and think about.

We have all heard the cliche, if one door shuts, dont worry, another will open.

I dont think thats true.
Maybe God wants us to smash down the closed door. Maybe the door is put there by someone who does not have our or God's best interests at heart.
Maybe we give up too quickly and too easily, citing God's will, when in fact its us being lazy or wanting things to be easy.

"Let go and Let God" , what a crock. Life is hard and tough sometimes. We dont get what we want, or even what we think God wants for our lives. Sometimes we get the exact opposite of what we think God would want for us, and it does not seem fair.

I dont see Jesus stopping when the going got tough. I see him going and being flogged to death for what He believed in. No easy road for that Warrior. If that was one door shutting, Jesus allowed it to slam shut in His face.
There was no easy door opened for Him to go through, and I wonder if there are many easy doors opened for us.

Malthouse was comprehensively outcoached today by the positive Chris Connolly.
One interesting tactic which the team employed in the last quarter was long torpedo kicks into the 50. It has come out after the game that this was a tactic Chris instigated amongst the players, and it worked a treat. It kept the Pies defenders on their toes, and with Jeff Farmer running amok in the forward 50, we won a good quality game.

Special Mentions to Bell, 38 Possessions, Josh Carr, brilliant, tough and in it when it counted.
Drum played well for a young player, kicking a valuable goal, and his first in AFL.
Sandilands won it in the middle for us consistently, and it showed in the clearances.

Pavlich did not have his best game, and the defender on him played out of his skin, but Pav still managed to kick some goals.
Mc Pharlin played in defense and played well on Rocca.

Des Hedland got a rev up at half time and it showed with a BOG third quarter.
Shaun, my favourite player, also played well, without needing to dominate.
Go Freo!!
Next week against the Melbourne Demons will be a tough tough test, even at Subi. But the Demons do not fear Subi. But don't write us off, if we play like we did today, we are in with a chance.

Just one note on the umpires.
They played some very soft frees to both sides, and while they were consistent in their softness, it does not help the players, who were getting very frustrated from both sides.

Great game between the Saints and Dons.
Dissapointing from a Freo POV that Essendon could not win. But thats life.

Mc Phee does not look at his best either. That's what happens when a average player has to play as a key play maker.

Robert Harvey is a trooper. Defintely amongst the best players on the field today.
But overall St Kilda's effort, with such a talented side, was pretty dissapointing, they dont really have anything to be proud of, winning in the dying minutes of the game, having been behind most of the day to a team who have been terrible most of the year.
Essendon have never had such a bad season in my memory. Wonder who they are going to beat this season, maybe the Blues? How the mighty coaches of the AFL have fallen.

I am speaking from Jeremiah 33 tommorow.

6"Nevertheless, the time will come when I will heal Jerusalem's damage and give her prosperity and peace. 7I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel and rebuild their cities. 8I will cleanse away their sins against me, and I will forgive all their sins of rebellion. 9Then this city will bring me joy, glory, and honor before all the nations of the earth! The people of the world will see the good I do for my people and will tremble with awe!
10"This is what the LORD says: You say, `This land has been ravaged, and the people and animals have all disappeared.' Yet in the empty streets of Jerusalem and Judah's other towns, there will be heard once more 11the sounds of joy and laughter. The joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides will be heard again, along with the joyous songs of people bringing thanksgiving offerings to the LORD. They will sing,

In this passage the people of Israel, Gods only children find themselves in exile, being attacked, facing an uncertain future. Where is God in all of this?
Where is God when we suffer?

At the Hillsong Conference Delirious sung this song, listing some of the awful things we face, yet we are still able to cry out, in faith, Our God Reigns. Its a beautiful paradox.

40 million babies lost to Gods great orphanage,It’s a modern day genocide and a modern day disgraceIf this is a human right then why aren’t we free?The only freedom we have is in a man nailed to a tree.100 million faces, staring at the sky,Wondering if this HIV will ever pass us by.The devil stole the rain and hope trickles down the plug,But still my Chinese take away could pay for someone’s drugs.

Our God reigns, Our God reigns, Forever your kingdom reigns.

The west has found a gun and it’s loaded with ‘unsure’Nip and tuck if you have the bucks in a race to find a cure.Psalm one hundred and thirty nine is the conscience to our selfish crime,God didn’t screw up when he made you,He’s a father who loves to parade you.

Yes he reigns, yes you reign, yes you reign, For there is only one true God,

But we’ve lost the reins on this world,Forgive us all, forgive us please,As we fight for this broken world on our knees.

Written by Delirious? ©2005 Curious? Music UK

Here is the link includes some info and pictures of his time at Hillsong.
I took this photo from my 'cheap seat' on the side of the stage. Rick was dressed very casually, no ritz, no white suit, just the simple bu powerful word of God, spoken by a man who is as far as I can discern, a humble speaker and gifted by God.

http://www.rickwarren.com/

Been down south, Margaret River, Augusta, Cowarump (!)

Beautiful places, even during the colder months.
Melinda had organised a log cabin, right in the bush, which Clem and Ruby loved. Roasted marshmallows, red wine, slow roasted beef, long walks in the bush, lazy drives to the Margaret River Chocolate factory, games with the kids, expeditions down the Lake Cave in Augusta.

West Australia is a beautiful place, but back to work today.

Stuck in Sydney on a Friday night?
Want to watch the AFL Friday Night footy?
Good luck.

Guess what time the game is on? 5am Saturday Morning. Unbelievable.
Stupid channel nine. If they dont want to show the game at a reasonable time, let Foxtel take it. That way I could go down to the local pub, find a small tv away from the big screen NRL playing, and watch by beloved Dockers.
Listening to Wally (in name and nature) calling the game is just not the same.

Heading home tommorow after picking up some more presents for my beautiful wife and children. Having a understanding wife, who is willing to let me go for the week, and is such a competant mum really helps.

Reinhold Bonke 9.30am "How we make God visible"
Bonke spoke using various bible passages (Is 6, Mark 16, Exodus 14) on how God is made visible, despite being invisible. Obviously it is because we are to make Him visible. Bonke encouraged us to be like the disciple Peter who had to call out to Jesus, and then get out of the boat to walk on water.

Peter challenged Jesus, "can I come?"
The focus of the miracle was on the faith of Peter (despite his subsequent doubt)
In other words we are to understand that we have a responsibility to show Jesus and His power, it is through us He chooses to work.

Franklin Jentzen ""The seventh sneeze"
Have a guess where this sermon title comes from? Seriously, where in the Bible does it mention someone sneezing seven times?

Look up 2 Kings 4.32
This was the best sermons I have heard Franklin preach. Wonderful, insightful message on handling pressure and the contrast between the flesh and the spirit. He talked about how the sneeze is an involuntary expulsion of something unwanted. The boy came alive after sneezing seven times.

Franklin then went into the New Testament and then proceeded to give a wonderful overview of the difficulties, the hindrances, the early church faced. It was so interesting. Normally we hear how victorious and overcoming the early church was, but Franklin showed us how in fact there were 7 (at least) times the church was hindered.
Here are only some of the key ones....
Acts 5 Greed
Acts 6 "There arose a murmuring"
Acts 8 Fear
Acts 10 Racial predjuice

Franklin is such a passionate preacher, try to resist getting swept up into his message if you can! I could not. This was a moving and challenging message.

Bayliss Connor
Houston had his customary sore throat. (I have been coming for 6 years now, and he always gets a sore throat). Bobbie was not his fill in preacher (as she often is) but he called upon Baylis to preach.
He spoke on 2 Corinthians 6, Ps 119 and Is 54
His basic message was covered by Bruce Wilkinson in the prayer of Jabez, which Bayliss referenced and mentioned.
He called us to have a willingness to deal with manure (!), which provided perhaps a more balanced view than Wilkinson gave us.
It was a really encouraging message because he talked about the incredible difficulties his church has had in its relocation process. The council took them to court and they had incredible legal bills which were necesary because of some legal issue where the council try to take the property and do not need to give any compensation. The process of relocation was explained and was a four year process. With some churches only telling part of the story, it was great to hear the difficulties faced by this church.

One another incidental quote he gave was a beauty.
"God had a family before He had a church"
Yes, and important to remember what is most important.

Home and back to reality tommorow. Really refreshed and looking forward to preaching some of this stuff.

Franklin then

I started off today with a Gloria Jeans coffee. Its not the best coffee in the world, and not my favourite, but there is one right near our motel and grabbing one for the train ride to Accer Stadium is great on these cold Sydney mornings. With not much sleep happening, its also probably necessary.

Bill Hybels
Here is the 'big idea from Bill.
"What cant you stand? What brings tears to your eyes, what rises up a holy discontent within your spirit" This may be the area you should minister in. '
Another excellent and convicting message from a man who God has been seriously dealing with in the last few years.

Frank Damazio
Frank is perhaps a lesser known speaker to some of the others, but has a comprehensive book out on leadership. He is certainly on the more charismatic side of the church, which is fine by me, and challenged us to embrace the more spiritual side of leadership.
He said that spiritual leadership requires spiritual transformation.
Every idea needs anointing, needs spiritual empowerment.
Frank spent some time towards the end in 'ministry' by which he means praying for Pastors. It was a great time.
In his second session he said sometimes trials remind us of how there are times we cannot do anything but increase our faith and hope in God. Sometimes the trial is severe and we need to make a choice, to be bitter, or to grow in faith.
Frank also gave a stack of indicators of únbroken'leaders, 14 in fact.
One of the main indicators of an unknown leader is that they, "use manipulation to further their own agenda".

Reinholt Bonke spoke in the evening session and was his typical energetic, passionate and clear self. He used the parable of the talents to challenge us to be faithful over the little.
Another interesting aside, when asked by a TV reporter what he thought of women in ministry he replied, ïf I was drowing, I would not care if I was saved from death by a man or a woman"

Tiring yet inspiring day today.
I have spent a lot of time tonight in prayer and intercession for some men connected with our church. I pray God will continue to challenge me and refine me.
This has been a wonderful time of impartation, refreshment and renewal for me.
One more day to go!

Today was another great great day at Hillsong 2006 for me.

Brian Houston kicked it off with a message from Ex 18 on the need to "be one of a few"
1. Leadership is proven when we are able in the practical issues
2. Fear God, not man
3. Be able to see past the small matters, being annoyed or frustrated at people will only hinder you
4. Do not get sucked into anger about small things (Tit 3.5)

Bill Hybels 2nd session
Awesome! What a wise man. He talked about
1. Keeping the vision clear
2. Get the people engaged
3. Make your gatherings memorable
4. Pace yourself for the long haul

Charlotte Scanlon Gamblin
Charlotte is the daughter of well known Pastor Paul Scanlon from Abundant Life Fellowship
She talked about identity theft, using the story of Jacob, who became Israel. It was interesting, touching and helpful.

I went to the 4.30 and 7.30 sessions.

Bill Hybels 4.30 session
Bill shattered misconceptions some may have in this talk.
It was great. He was quite prophetic and said he was worried that while many churches were growing, they were not focused on evangelism. He told three stories of how he has led people to the Lord. His neighbour, a tattooed guy and a black man who was the victim of racism. It was excellent to hear him talk about the priority of relationships, friendships and personal love in leading people to Christ. He did not mention big services, seeker friendly sundays or anything like that. He said that stuff was needed, but was secondary to Christians reaching out themself. Bill also talked about the priority of listening to the Spirit's prompting in leading you to people who are open to God, seizing the divine opportunity.

Franklin Jentzen 7.45pm
Franklin is a very energetic and passionate preacher. He talked about the need to be balanced, and accept that we will always have Christians with different views on a whole raft of issues. He also talked about meeting with God in a covenantal relationship.
It was a very pumped up session.

SPECIAL MENTION
Must go to Darlene and Martin Smith (Delirious) who combined to do a duet of U2's "One". It was awesome. They did a great rendition and it was fantastic to hear U2 recognised for the passionate Christians they are.

Today was an awesome day for me.
God had some things to sort out in my spirit, a few strategically placed swift kicks.

Rick Warren kicked off the day with a rehash of the first four chapters of the "Purpose Driven Life" However I dont mean that in a disaparaging way. It was great to hear it from him, hear his heart and passion. Such simple principles, yet in their genius is found their simplicity. I think Rick has mastered the fundamantals of what it means to be a Christian in a way few before have been able to articulate. I was speaking to one of the translators (for the deaf) and they commented that he is a very clear and articulate speaker.

Next up was Brian Houston, and he spoke on being a leader of a small group of people, and the importance of every type of leader to the kingdom of God. It was a great message.

Thirdly we heard from Rick Goodwin, who also spoke in the evening. Rick was probably the most direct and convicting speaker so far. He spoke from Is 6 and said something which really resonated with me. He said, "its very easy to identify the problems, a potplant can do that. It is a lot harder to come up with solutions. So much of what we hear, particular on the internet, is problems people have with organisations, their own church etc. So what if you can identify problems, what good does that do. Value to the kingdom, and to Jesus is found in solving problems, seeing the Kingdom of Jesus grow."
Rick talked about the value of imparting authority to your leaders, making sure they were allowed to use their own intitve, in fact demanding this of them. Not moddle coddling people, but showing them respect. He talked about the important of principle over policy. In other words do what is right, not what the constitution says.

He also spoke at night, and was good. He talked about being the salt of the earth. At the end he had arranged for us all to be handed a mc donalds salt sachet and asked us to take it, and in two or three days, spill the salt out and pray about how God wants to use us as salt in the earth. I am going to do a similar thing at Bedford.

But I am saving the best for last,

DELIRIOUS WERE AWESOME
I love this band anyway, but to hear them live was just so good.
The sense of God in the place was incredible, and I found myself crying tears of joy, conviction, peace and ...... just plain joy at sensing God moving and speaking to me.

About three or four hours later, I am rejoicing at some conviction and renewed purpose God has put in my heart. He was able to speak to me, in the middle of a loud rock music concert. He spoke to my heart.

Can't wait! This is only really day one. Praise God and thank you God I can be here.

Rick spoke from Exodus Three where Moses approached the burning bush and God asked him some key questions. Of course God knew the answers, it was for Moses'benefit.
His question was, "what do you have in your hand" The answer of course was the staff, which represented his identity, as a shepherd.

Ricks'application was that we are to accept God's agenda for our lives, give up who we are to advance his kingdom. Rick's definition of The Kingdom of God is wherever Jesus rules, thats where the Kingdom is.

He talked, humbly, about the social and justice work him and his wife have been involved in, particularly amongst aids sufferers.

Rick has brought a humble, credible and prophetic voice to this conference. It was a moving and personally challenging time for me.

Ps 72, Exodus 3 and 1 Cor 9

That's right, come on down next week, while I am away..............

Its funny how we associate the known with the unknown. (Karyn is the known, her husband is still a relatively unknown)

Hopefully when I get back the church has not fallen apart and the members have not left in a state of dislusionment. :)

Actually I think he and the church will really enjoy it. From what I know of Karyn's husband he is a great communicator, biblically solid, relevant and I have it on good authority that he 'preaches from the heart'.

Praying for Karyn's husband and the church.

Packing suitcase, leaving tonight.

Cant wait,
should have internet access over there, will post about it right here.

If we lose next week against Essendon, this season is gone, and Chris might as well try and find another club, because he wont be our coach in 2007.

Actually I've got to think that our season is probably gone already.
I hope they suprise me, but they are failing to play as a team.
Without Pavlich and Josh Carr, we would be sunk.

Haselby looks out of sorts, Farmer is out of form, and needs to be dropped.
Marcus Drum (pictured) made his debut, and sounds like he went alright, and Johnson was excellent, keeping Barry Hall to one goal only.

I have always been a big Chris fan, but I am sorry, I am starting to lose faith in him, because I think the players have. We actually have a very good list. What is the answer? I dont know.
9 games to go, and we will see what happens. Lets hope we can do something.

Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling
there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those
selling doves. "It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be called a
house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers.

In my view, the money changers made Jesus mad for two reasons. They were taking up space which was meant to be for the God'seekers, those non Jewish folk wanting to worship God in the outer part of the temple. They were selling doves and other things for sacrifices at exhorbitant prices. While what they were actually doing was okay, the way they were doing it was wrong.

I put this forward because so many churches and Christian individuals are flogging their products nowadays. Maybe we need to be careful what we buy, and what ministries we support based on these two questions.

1. Does it help non Christians to come to Christ, or does it turn them away?

2. Is it a fair price for a product, or is it exhorbitant?

Reivoldt is one of the most frustrating players in the AFL. Great in his endevour, marking, leading, pack work.

Terribly inconsistent in his kicking accuracy.