I didn't stop...

I don’t know if you can tell from my Facebook posts or if you have even seen them, but I am very BAAH HUMBUG when it comes to The Melbourne Cup. For weeks anything to do with the spring racing carnival has been plastered on our TV’s and within the past week it has really ramped up in readiness for today’s race. The catch cry for the event is ‘the race that stops a nation’. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a ‘good news ‘ story as much as the next person, and with all the wrong that goes on in our world today its nice to see people out and about in the sun being happy and enjoying a day off if they are lucky enough to get one. But if you take a minute to look through all the fancy dresses the horses and the alcohol, it is not a good news story. What we are not shown on the TV is the dark side to this race, the fallout from the pretty girl all dressed up who got way to drunk and embarrassed herself, the guy that got into a fight and taken away in a divvy van, the gambling addict that lost all his money and potentially his family because he had promised that he would never do it again. Imagine if Tom Waterhouse didn’t care about what the ‘punters’ wanted, but instead what the families of the punters want. They want to be able to eat, they want to be able to go to school, and they want to be able to have a life. What a difference this nation would make if we invested the time and money this event uses every year into our schools, hospitals and aid organisations. What a different nation Australia would be, and what about the real good news stories we would have!

Was going to be a Facebook status... but it got too big.

Know what I don’t like?? Christians that say or write OMG.. in the letters just like this. Why? Well to them it just might mean oh my gosh or oh my goodness. I know that that is what they mean by it but, too much of the rest of the world it means ‘oh my god’, it means taking the Lords name in vain. It means using my Gods name as a swear word. Taking Him down to nothing as it falls off their tongue without them even thinking.  I have been thinking about this for some time. Sometimes I cringe, sometimes I sigh but mostly I do nothing. Nothing until I had a small discussion with someone that I used to work with. This person was from an Indian background and would ‘Oh my god’ at the drop of a hat. When something was good, when something was bad, when something wasn’t even something. Now I work in a very confined space and am with the same people in the same room for 8 hours of the day, so by about the 10^th time they ‘oh my godded’ this one particular day I had had enough. Firstly I realised that they probably had no idea how much it was it was getting to me, yes they knew that I was a Christian, but they were pretty new to work so we never really shared what our beliefs were. But then I started thinking that if I started using their gods name in vain. How would they react. They would probably not hold back in any way in telling me that they didn’t appreciate it. So why couldn’t I do they same?? Why did I feel like I had to hold back as to not upset them, when what they were doing themselves was upsetting me. So I did, I asked them if they could stop saying ‘oh my god’. They didn’t really get it, I even used the example of their god (although I wasn’t really sure which one to use J). Even if they didn’t understand, and yes they pretty much said it in the next sentence they used- I had done something. It’s a hard gig to turn people to see your view on things- especially a big to me but little to them thing like OMG – but as Christians, if we continue to let other Christians use OMG and oh my god, then what do we expect the rest of the world to think. We need to start with ourselves before others will even start to take us seriously.

Exodus 20:7 “you shall not misuse the name of your God, for the lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.”  

I NEEEEEEEEEED Something...

When my sister and I were younger we use to storm the grocery cupboards for something exciting to eat. There were always dry biscuits or something but they were never what we actually wanted. Mum would point out that a Salada with Vegemite would be good, or a piece of fruit, but it wasn't going to cut it. We would always end up calling out "But I NEEEEEEEEEEEED something". Meaning something dirty and junky to put in our tummies.

 Right nowI want some chips and an Ice Break. I want the salty goodness and sweet yummyness. But these are things I don't need. I am surviving perfectly ok with not eating junk. Although I am finding it hard to draw the line at what is junk and what isn't.

I work for a major confectionery company, we make chocolate and part of my role is to perform sensory analysis on the products we make... So does that count as junk or not? In the last 16 days I have also been offered by someone to buy me a coffee or a hash brown, because technically I'm not spending the money on junk, they are, and can you knock back a gift?  I get stuck in the greys areas. As these people are offering I have been able to tell them what I a doing, and some sponsorship has also come out of these discussions.

For me it's about the foods I go to when I can't be bothered or I'm just looking at filling in some time till tea time. So its the KFC and the Ice Break and the Light and Tangy Chips that have gone. I have also held my self back on the chocolate, free or not free.

Right now I want some chips, but I am having an apple and a glass of water. If anything out of eating no junk, I have been eating better. I have even spent some time in the kitchen, much to the kitchens surprise. But more importantly it has saved me money, which in turn I will donate to building wells in Uganda.

Hungry or Bored?

I find it extremely hard to tell the difference. To me they are the same thing. Except when I'm really hungry then my stomach begins to growl. But honestly I have never been really hungry. I have never gone a day without food, or ever had to wonder where or when my next meal will come. There are millions of people in the world that go hungry every day, day after day. My biggest food struggle is not knowing what to have.


No Junk for a Month has really got me thinking about the food I eat and how much money I actually spend on junk. Tonight would normally be a KFC on the way home from Physio night, but instead I'm boiling up some rice and steaming some vegies. Pretty healthy hey?! Rice is such a staple in developing countries. When was in Thailand we ate rice for breakfast lunch and dinner. It came in so many different forms, from fried, to boiled to porridge (was never a fan of the rice porridge). One thing I remember every time I eat rice now, is how thankful the children were, that we spent time with, for their meals. To not only to have sufficient amount of food to eat, but also because they knew of the hard work that went into growing that rice and what it means for the rice farmers and their community. I heard someone say on day that they didn't like to waste a single grain.

A Step of Justice has been taken...

So today October 1st marks the first day of 'No Junk for a Month' and 'Justice Awareness'.

For Justice Awareness today was an action day. Shoes were the focus, as many children in developing countries don't have shoes. This not only can be a health concern as diseases can be easily transmitted through the feet, as well as infections from cuts and sore. But no shoes can also mean no school as many schools insist on shoes as part of the uniform.

The action today was to go barefoot for the day if possible, or spend part of the day barefoot. As I work in manufacturing I couldn't go barefoot, so I went to work without my Orthotics.  Now this may not sound like much a a big deal, but when you have worn Orthotics for the past 10 years, then your feet get used to them, without that support my feet are not happy, especially when I'm on them all day. By 9am this morning my feet were yelling at me... Each time I heard them yell, I would shift my thinking from my own feet, to those who not only don't have shoes, but also access to foot care like I do so that may feet can be made happy.



"No junk for a month" - my lack of snacking on yummy treats hit me at about 3pm this afternoon, normally I would smash down some chocolate at this time to get me to 4:30 and then get into my chips once I got home. Not today- instead I had a glass of water and a Mandarin. Fruit does no trump chips but I have been good so far.

It's time for action..

So I have been pretty quiet in Blog land since I left Canada. In fact no blogs at all. A lot of things have changed since I came home. Some friends have moved away, my sister and brother-in-law have moved away and I'm still trying to work out a little bit where I fit. And at the same time trying to stay excited about what I learned while I was away and how also that fits here back in the "normal".

I'm finding that I am doing a lot of talking about what I want to do with my life and where I feel God is taking me, but I am lacking a lot with the action part of it. So October is where it is all going to take off. October is going to be full of action, starting with two projects.

The first... no junk for a month.

This is a fundraiser I am taking part in that a girl from church is organising. We are raising funds for The Water Project to build wells in Uganda. The idea is to not eat junk food for a month and send the money that you would normally spend to the water project. For me giving up junk is pretty huge. I love my Light and Tangy Chips as well as my Ice Break, plus all the other rubbish I eat. Ice break and chips alone a week is about $10-$15 depending if I go the 2lt or just lots of 500mls.  If you would like to sponsor me of make a donation that would be fantastic. We take how easy it is for us to have clean water for granted and anything we can do to help those without is a massive.

The second.... Justice Awareness Month through Steps of Justice.

In June I had the privilege of going to Cambodia for two weeks with an organisation Steps of Justice. While we were there we not only saw what injustice the people of Cambodia are dealing with but we also got to play a part in starting to make things right. It's no easy task and it will be a forever type thing to undertake but there are people out that are making a difference.

Making people aware of the injustice in the world is important. For 30 days starting on the 1st of October I will be following Steps Of Justice through 30 days of action, prayer, education and encouragement to not only develop my own knowledge and awareness but also those who I interact with everyday. Want to know more?? Check out Steps of Justice, it's not to late to get involved.

Goodbye Canada, It's been great!!

So here I am at the other end of my journey. I started this blog a little over 6 months ago at the Sydney Airport to keep you informed of my adventures with YWAM Nexia. I am now at the Vancouver Airport awaiting for my flight home.

It has been an exciting 6 months, and a time that I do not want to forget. At the moment it all seems like a blur. It's hard to believe what I have seen and experienced in the past 6 months, and especially in the outreach part of that time. I feel like I have grown so much in my relationship with God, and also in my own confidence, and have so many amazing stories to share that I have not posted in this blog.

I'm not really sure what going home is going to be like. I am totally pumped for seeing Mum and Dad and Em and Tim and Gran and Mog and  the rest of my family and all my friends. I am also sad that I don't know when I will see my amazing YWAM friends again. What I do know is that I want to continue to grow in my relationship with God, and not go back to the 'shy-ish is different circumstances Meg' that I was before. I really want to know God and make Him known- and if I can do that once I get home-then the past 6 months has been more than worth it.