Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Don't let them break your spirit.


Dassie and the Restless Rock have been motorbiking. And what adventures they have had and will have - I am jealous and pleased. So I'll refer to scripture: The book of Seuss. (see below.)

But it got me thinking... Am I too cautious? I won't get a motorbike 'cos I think they're dangerous (chicken I know); and my wife will never ever let me get away with it ('Whipped?' I hear you ask.)

Although I won't go motorbiking; my friends have inspired me to try and live a little beyond the boundaries I have been carefully erecting for myself. (Maybe I will one day drive that landrover I always wanted.)

You see, I am becoming a nerd, I am letting the bigger system get the better of me - I am towing the line: When I was a teenager I used to stand up and challenge and argue for a different point of view. Now I couldn't be bothered with the conflict, in fact I sometimes argue for what I once so vehemently challenged! Sometimes I think and let think - a good policy, but like all good policies, only good in appropriate quantities.

If I carry on like this - what will happen to me?

I'll let them break my spirit.
And I will break other people's spirit in turn (whether I like it or not.)

Remind me; when I tow the line, when I settle for mediocrity, that God challenges me to challenge.
Remind me that when I was called to this work I felt as if God was saying to me, "I made you just the way I like you." And for God's sake I better stay that person.
Remind me that this work is not about this work but it is about me being who God created me to be.
Remind me to take more risks - risks of failure, risks of pain, risks of insecurity.

Don't let me forget who I am and who God made me to be.
I think I need to go on a road trip in my nice safe car with airbags and ABS brakes.



Dr Seuss inspires me too:

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself
any direction
you choose.
You're on your own.
And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to
go.

You'll look up and down streets.
Look 'em over with care.
About some you will say, "I don't choose to go
there."
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you're
too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any
you'll want to go down.
In that case, of course,
you'll head straight out of town.

It's opener therein the wide open air.
Out there things can happen and frequently do
to people as brainyand footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,
don't worry. Don't stew.
Just go right along.
You'll start happening too.

Saturday, March 25, 2006

After a threatening email...





The time has come! You can no longer put it off....

Update your blog or the Ninja's will come for you!

I look forward to killing.... sorry reading your blog... soon!

Ninja Dion


I guess I better write something on my blog... Heather and I have been working hard - Heather has been working harder though. As I mentioned I'm enrolled at the University of Pretoria for an Honours in Theology, specialising in New Testament Studies.

I've been thinking about the line I would like to go down as far as assignments etc. go - and this is the plan... not the whole plan, just an idea of the plan.

A comparison of the development of the Christology in the gospel of John and St. Paul's letter to the Romans taking into account the historical, philosophical, social and theological backgrounds of both works.

Something like that for the propeller heads among us who can give me some ideas? Some suggestions? Some creative insight? The goal of the paper is to lead to a Masters which will look deeper at New Testament Christology and the development of an African Christology... hmmmmmmm Ideas.

This is why I haven't blogged anything... studying will make a bored man out of you. Except for one thing, we went to the Zoo for Zulu class the other day and I saw the emperor penguins you see at the top... I think they may have sent the threatening e-mail.