The first episode of Serial Drama Movie #2: When Chess Pieces Attack* is officially released! After the award-winning box office release of Serial Drama Movie #1, the latest installment is looking like it'll completely blow The Dark Knight away**.
* May or may not be a false title.
** Based on general estimations***.
*** Give or take several million in ticket sales.
Well I'm back from my second year at Peninsula (formerly McCrae*) SUFM. Just as with last year, and most things of this nature, there are some really great bits and some really big challenges.
For pretty much the whole year, I haven't been sure why I would go back to mission, apart from the very weak reason that I didn't want to be 'soft' and quit after just one year. For the last month leading up to mission, I just was really reluctant to even think about it. In the final week before, I still didn't want to go.
The mostly negative feelings were there for the first half of mission. I think I was even going out of my way to find reasons to not like being there. I definitely had some struggles that weren't just self-inflicted, and some of these were the same as last year. Personality clashes are something that come with working in any team. I think, being the idealist that I am, that it gets to me more because we're meant to be living in a 'Christian community', but still can't get it right. I know that that's a very naive thing to think. You just seem to forget that when you are not thinking properly about it.
On one of the days in the middle, I hit the point of getting past all the rubbish and starting enjoying myself, and working out better ways to face the challenges. There was one day when JV and I were just play fighting against all the little boys and then some of the ones who were in my small group last year arrived and were really excited to see me and remembered me. That was an encouraging moment, which was also followed by a great teens program that night.
I feel that teens was a good move for me. I got the feeling the day after last year's mission that if I was to get more out of, and more importantly, give more to mission, I would be better suited for teens. I'll tell that story in another blog. There were four of us leaders, and we made a great connection with one teen in particular, but had quality interaction between all the teens over the time we were there. The real challenge for us is to make sure it's not all lost and forgotten about for the rest of the year.
Another thing that I really enjoyed about mission this year is the structure and organisation of each day. My usual day is extremely unorganised and I do things mostly at random. It was really good to schedule in things, especially specifically making time for God. I loved being forced to read the Bible everyday and having alone time (in which I would do physical things, as a balance for the 10 days of spiritual things). I want to try and make myself be more organised this year, and in doing so, make many aspects of my life healthier. On a physical level, I was worried how my skin would react to mission, since it was 10 days of stress and heat - things that usually flare me up - but it actually improved there, and I think it was partly to do with being organised and knowing exactly what I was doing at all times, and having scheduled time for myself or for relaxation or reflection.
That's about all I can spew from my head at the moment. Tomorrow I'm going to being my trying to be organised. There is some more stuff that I will write about later this week. Peace.
* It should be spelt McRae. Or McRay.
The first episode of the McCrae SUFM Serial Drama Movie is now online! Look out for the sharpest and most colourful characters. Then come back here and comment on how good that joke was!/...Just kidding./But seriously. I am totally. Cereal.
These here are some passages I made the effort to find when I was on Beach Mission over the summer. We were asked to say our favourite Bible passages, but to be honest... I have none. So I went to try and find things that I really connected with.
Galations 1:10: Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Romans 1:16 - I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.
1 Timothy 4:12 - Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.
Ephesians 4:1 (thank you Digger) - As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you received.
Matthew 7:7-8 - Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
So how do you even write a good blog anyway? I have no idea. I don't think the secret is being deep, because as much as I like doing it, or like the idea of people seeing my thoughts as deep, I'm fairly amused by nonsense rambling blogs. I don't really have the consistency to keep people interested. Maybe it's just not very interesting. Anyway, it's 1:37 AM, and I can't sleep. I've turned fairly nocturnal in this 'Post-VCE' stage.
So. Today (by which I mean the 24th. I measure days by between when I wake and when I sleep) I woke up late, ate five sausage rolls for breakfast and lunch, and watched three episodes of South Park. What a sophisticated life I lead. Later, mum and I went to Monash Uni to do the fancypants enrolments. I got to see the common room for us supposed smart ones, although I think I'm a pretender.
Tonight I had dinner with friends. I was amused that I chose a $16.90 meal over a $17.90, partially on the fact that there's an extra dollar saved. Clearly, I need a job.
Finally, I did nothing after that, and now I sit writing this nonsense. Which I hope will lead to inspiration of something profound, but probably not. I am going to do this to see if it leads me to ideas of future blogs:
Things I Like:
Things I Dislike:
Things I Am Proud Of In My Life:
Things I Am Not Proud Of In My Life:
Things I Am Looking Forward To This Year:
Well this has been a long post. Maybe tomorrow I'll get up, look at what I wrote at some ridiculous hour last night, and be ashamed. Or maybe I'll like something, and write a bit more, we'll see. For now, I think I will sleep.
Just got back from 10 days at McCrae SUFM Beach Mission. Here's some stuff about/to do with it.
It's like a Christian mission for families who camp by the beach, most of whom are non-Christians. We put on skits, dramas and events for everyone like movie nights and an amazing race night, but also do small groups, etc. But to be honest, what I got the most out of Beach Mission was living with the team.
There were about 31 one of us, living all together and working together to do something for others. I don't know what it is, but I guess it's the 'living in Christian community' that did it. For the first days, I didn't really like it, because there were some teammates I wanted to hurt for being annoying and strange. But as the days went on, it got way better. The friendships I already had actually became better I think, I had some good chats, had fun with hypotheticals (which aren't really very clean... Digger), and I made some new good friends. Which leaves me at this...
Do I do Beach Mission next year? Maybe. Pros: mad team, got a few good relationships with some of the kids, the beach is pretty cool. Cons: I find some things strange about Beach Mission, and some parts of it I don't like, even though I'm just a new person who doesn't really have a right to come in and want to change anything. There's just some stuff that happens that I reckon presents a more negative view of Christianity than a positive. I also need to work on how easily I find it to get annoyed at people.
Well we'll see. Also, I got into Monash Arts/Theology at Church of Christ Theological College. Some nonsense with scores happened, my score went up, and I got a scholarship. Which is cool because now I don't have to pay mum and dad back for uni. Also, I have some uni buddies now haha.
