Annie's Blog

Just reading tomorrow's Sound Bite Ministry Note tonight...or is it today's tonight? A letter to a Pastor.   PREACHING CHRIST CRUCIFIED             Dear Pastor,             I am a congregant or lay person or member of your church.  I am one of the many faces you see during the week and in the pew on Sunday .  We know each other’s names, you may even know an outline of my background and how long I have been at your particular congregation.  We might even share a hobby.             You are a pastor.  You are my pastor.  And for that I must send my deepest apologies.  I hope we have managed to pay you a livable wage, but your budget will likely always be described as “tight.”  Your job is largely thankless.  The sheep in your care will ceaselessly come to compla...

 It has been nice to sit and watch the ships glide by down the passage to Brisbane  this building always intrigues me  It has been a little wet the last few days Northern tip of Bribie Island and the buildings of Golden Beach behind  what's this coming down this morning early?  an outlaw here tells me it is a container ship with its own loading gear? Guess I have to believe it. Off it goes to Brisbane. If only I could google the shipping news. I'll have to go buy a paper to see what it is/was! It has been fun to have fun with the sibling reunion..good to catch up with everyone again, especially a niece visiting from Geneva!! May life at your place be just as fun this week.

 from a wonderful sunrise  and a last glimpse of the orchid and house  on moving day  all done... focusing in on the new growth ... on Trinity Sunday.

An excellent reading for today from the Sound Bites Ministry , entitled  We Need A Guide.   God makes a promise, then tells Abraham to leave home and go where God will guide him. Ben Patterson tells of a common experience of westerners, particularly missionaries, traveling through jungle sections of the Amazon. They will ask members of a village to give them directions to where they want to go. "I have a compass, a map, and some coordinates." The villager knows precisely the directions to get them there, but he offers to take them himself. "No, that's okay. I don't want a guide. I just want directions." "That's no good. I must take you there." "But I have a map right here. And I have a compass. And the coordinates." "It does not work that way. I can get you there, but I must take you myself. You must follow me." We prefer directions, principles, steps, keys. We prefer these things because they leave us ...

the last photo is the fading end of a wonderfully spectacular sunrise that greeted me after 6am one very cool morning.

another lovely sunset..

 Fortunately this post had a flower in it, because I was intending to participate in Donna's photo challenge. A Personal Photo Challenge. Donna takes the most wnderful photos, and shares with us on her blog, Cottage Days and Journeys. Many thanks for hosting the challenge Donna. For the first time, I have only one photo. That might be because of the words below, that were originally written here for Mother's Day. These beautiful blooms have been cheering me on, as I pack to leave here after many years! Luckily the photo I took seemed OK for the challenge requirements. Please click on the link above if you would like to participate, or to look at and enjoy the photos from others who have chosen to join in the challenge this month. Strange to be packing and cleaning and sorting on Mother's Day, but  guess it has to be done  if I am to be out of here in time. Many thanks for the people who helped when I wasn't well a couple of days ago, and for telephone cal...

Noticed these autumn colors out early this morning.

Just as one sits wondering if one is doing the right thing, when a friend asks "have you prayed about it"? The answers come... the new blooms in the garden for moral support today a wonderful reading from Acts 16:9-15 13  On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14  One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. 15  When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us. and the comments from With Love to the World : Many of us consider church to be a settled place. Some have appropriated images of "journey" for their spiritual life, but may sti...