Holy Week Reflections

Our family and a few others from HXUCA have been attending the nightly prayer meetings this Holy Week.

On Mon night, Beth refused to join us, opting to sit outside and read. Dear Yvonne A took her in to her art class, and Beth happily worked on a canvas with Yvonne's help, painting the Good Friday scene. Jordanne sat with us and contented herself with flipping through her Children's Illustrated Bible, which impressed everyone.

On Tue night, Beth decided to bring along art supplies for herself and Jordanne, so they both joined us, sitting at our feet drawing.

But Pastor Paul had something else in mind.

On the table were several rolls of crepe: fuschia (I know this isn't fuschia, but for some reason, Blogger doesn't have more colour options!), green, cyan, purple, red, yellow.

We were asked to take hold of one roll at a time, hold on to one end, toss the roll to someone else, and pray. The idea was that eventually everyone would be holding on to a bit of each colour.

And that's what happened.

Such a simple, creative, powerful exercise, it intrigued my girls and got their attention.

Joined together in a rainbow of colours that represent our diversity and uniqueness, we are also intertwined and interconnected as God's family, God's representatives and as members of the community in Wyndham.

This is a prayer from last night's service:

We acknowledge Lord the reality of differences in our community.
We recognise that cultures are diverse, creeds are speaking of God in different ways and colours sometimes divide rather than unite.
But you are the God and Father of all people.
We are bound together as children of your creative love.
Use us to demonstrate the power of Jesus Christ.
He loved everyone, even those who rejected him.
Shape us in these days of preparation for his death by the abiding grace of his living and dying.
Amen.

Past The Midpoint - At Last

This is the longest I've sat on an assignment. Ever.

From Nov 2009 till Feb 2010 for Assignment 7 and the first resubmission, and from Feb till Mar for the second resubmission.

Truth is, I was MORTIFIED when my instructor asked me to redo the assignment. I'm used to getting things right, and I've been academically inclined all my life. To have to redo something - twice at that - is a personal insult.

And yet, I had so much trouble fixing this assignment, because I couldn't see where the two sentence transpositions my instructor wanted were, and the three places where I'd made errors in copyediting. Worst of all, I couldn't see why my copyediting marks were deemed "all wrong".

This week, I made myself sit down and go through the tutorial notes. Page by laborious page. I went through the copyediting exercise again. And finally - eureka! I figured it out. At least, I hope I did. Because I really don't want to do this again. I have given the resubmission my best effort and I just hope it comes back duly rewarded - with some positive comments from my instructor. It can't be fun re-marking an assignment twice either. :-p

I can't wait to move on to Assignment 8. My assignments are piling up faster than I can complete them. Not a nice feeling.

This whole exercise has been a humbling experience. The know-it-all discovered that she really knows very little, and the not-very-resilient has learned the value of persistence and trying One More Time.

What does it mean to let God judge?

"You are more righteous than I," he said.

"You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly.

You have just now told me of the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me.

When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed?

May the Lord reward you for the way you treated me today.

I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands."

I Samuel 24:17-20, where David spares Saul's life in the cave near the Crags of the Wild Goats

Introduction to Godly Play

In Sat, I attended Refresh 2010 on Sat with 8 others from my church.

Refresh 2010 is a children's ministry workshop for CRE teachers, playgroup coordinators and Sunday School teachers, and an opportunity to pick up great ideas for faith activities in schools, homes and churches.

The organizers this year were our brothers and sisters from Barrabool Hills Baptist Church, Highton. The church is set in the beautiful hills near Queens Park and Barwon River in a new estate with the most stunning views I've seen in my time in VIC.




I chose the following as my electives:

• Introducing Godly Play: because the title intrigued me. What does it mean to play in a godly way?
  
• Engaging All Ages in Worship: because I have often wondered how to heal the disconnect between Sunday School and the regular worship service which seems to be too long and boring for the young ones
  
• Using Music with Children: because I love music and believe it can be used in so many ways to pass on the faith e.g. Scripture memory through Steve Green's Hide 'em In Your Heart songs
  

The one most significant takeaway for me was the Godly Play workshop. Godly Play is a Montessori teaching that has been used in faith environments with great success by Jerome Berryman. He has written a number of books on the subject. Our presenter was Christine Rowntree, a dignified, arty-looking lady who immediately gave me the assurance that she knew her subject intimately. She moved in a slow, graceful, intentional way that suggested she was in charge of her surroundings, not the other way round. Wow.

What drew me and inspired me about Godly Play:

• the quiet, contemplative way it is conducted, so different from the sometimes rowdy atmosphere in Sunday School, when you have to struggle to keep the attention of the kids
• how it draws observers into the story with simple props (a golden gift box with wooden or felt figures representing people and objects in the story) and a powerful narrative,
  
• how it effectively engages all ages from preschoolers up to Grades 5 and 6 and all personality types, and
  
• how non-judgmental it is. There are no right or wrong answers, only "wondering questions" which the child can choose to answer (or not), and in the way that most speaks to his heart.
  

It strikes me as a method of sacred storytelling that engages not only the head, but also the heart - and helps the wisdom and the lesson stay there and take root.

I can't wait to talk it through with my fellow Sunday School teachers and to have a go at it myself. I can already see myself doing it.

Here's a You Tube video to help you understand how Godly Play is presented.

When is the right time to return to work?

I am coming to the conclusion that working in any other capacity save full-time work requires more effort, brain work, perseverance and resources than internet marketing ads promise.

Yesterday, CA and I discussed a recruitment ad in The Age for the position of complaints officer for the Commonwealth Ombudsman. He and I both think the job description suits me to a T.

The trouble, as usual, is that working in the City demands commuting time and distracts me from my family commitments. Maybe I am being too negative and perfectionist, wanting everything to work out perfectly before I will put a toe into the water. But I also know that I am not great at multitasking. I can't switch mindsets quickly and easily. I am not focused when I need to be.

Having this additional role in my life - full-time career woman - can easily cause a deterioration in the quality of my family relationships, which at the moment are my chief satisfaction. I won't be able to take Beth to swimming, go to the gym or hang out at home watching Veggie Tales with Jordanne. I will have to put Beth in after-school care, and I will feel guilty that I can't be as involved in her school life as I now have the luxury to do.

The consolation will be that our finances will be in much better shape, and I will also have an opportunity to re-engage with the corporate world. It's only been 5 years since I stopped "going forward" and "thinking outside the box", but if I wait another 5 years, I'll be 45 and it will be so much harder.