Every year my student focus group goes away for a week of fun and bible study...a few years ago they decided to split into seperate girls and boys holidays. This year was the first year I could go (last year I was in America) and I could only go for half the week because of placement....however it was some of the best few days ever :D
We learnt about Ruth & Boaz and their story and how it reflects the gospel message. We all decided that we wanted our own Boaz's- men who seek God but also are real men who have jobs and are planning for the future and who want Ruth's. There were lots of discussions about marriage and I realised that I'm not the only one who longs for God to send me my husband!
Another huge thing we looked at was idolatry and this analogy that we came up with really stuck with me:
Imagine that your daddy comes home and you open the door and say 'sorry but I've found another daddy'...that would be devastating to your daddy. But on top of that you haven't just replaced your daddy with another daddy, you've replaced him with a stuffed animal...that would be a huge betrayal. And yet he comes back day after day...
That analogy just really hit me that when we choose other things above God it really hurts him and yet He stills comes back to us constantly! Such love :)
Alongside all the God stuff we also had some brilliantly fun times :) we were staying in one of the girls houses in Tenby, West Wales and it was right by the sea! I missed the first two and a half days but the time I spent there was beautiful. I swam in the sea, which was freezing but I loved it! We played Lions (a game you might remember from this blog: http://space-kitten.blogspot.com/2008/10/major-update.html) which involves running around in the dark trying to hide and avoid being caught...hugely fun, especially when you're in a huge house spread over 3 floors!
Mostly it was just some good times with some great friends :)
Now I've got a nice long bank holiday weekend to just chill with family before placement all week which feels weird because I've only got 3 weeks left! It doesn't feel like long at all...
That's all for now I think, I'll try and keep blogging, particularly as the end of my degree draws nearer!
Much love xxx
Sunday, 29 May 2011
Sunday, 22 May 2011
Christian Union
So a few weeks ago I wrote a note/blog thing about my Christian Union experience and posted it on facebook- here it is:
So this week is my last ever Christian Union as a student at Oxford Brookes. And those who have seen me in the last few weeks know that I've been a little emotional about this, so I wanted to take the time to explain why this is. Although I do have a blog, I wanted to share with people what Christian Union means to me and Facebook felt like a much bigger forum for that.
Being a Christian doesn't mean that your life is easy. Having a personal relationship with God doesn't mean that you therefore follow a bunch of rules and you become a goody-two-shoes and nothing bad happens. Life isn't always good and you need people around you to lean on during that time.
University is a huge time of transition and change. For me it included having panic-attacks in halls, learning how to be a student whilst still living at home, it involved multiple placements both good and bad for a course that by nature is very hard emotionally, learning to leave the world of social work behind at the end of a work day.
It has also been a time of discovering what an amazing support Christian Union can be.
In my first year I had a small group of friends within CU, friends that I'm still incredibly close to now, and as I learnt to stand on my own two feet at uni there were some great older members in the CU who guided me and supported me.In second year my friendship group widened and I made an effort to pass on the guidance to the new freshers. I also joined the exec committee which was exciting.
In third year I made new friends still. I worked hard to try and bring glory to God by helping to organise events and pastorally support the CU, before handing over to a brilliant new exec who I know will continue to serve God through this work. I learnt alot and had a good time doing it.
Throughout it all I have gained some wonderful friends. Friends who were there every Wednesday and lots of days in between, who I knew would be there any time I needed to talk, who I could debate big questions with and go for drinks with and would be there and accept me no matter what.
Friends who were there to laugh with me, friends who backed me up when I was trying to talk to non-christians about God, friends who held my hand and hugged me when I cried...friends who held me up when I could not hold myself.
I hope my friends, old and new, know how much I value them and how incredibly grateful I am for their unwavering friendship.
Churches are there for teaching and guiding, Christian Union is there for friendship, support and doing mission together.
Oxford Brookes Christian Union is great. They have more members every year, their mission is growing and their faith is astounding. If you aren't part of this family then please let me encourage you to find out about it for yourself.
Christian Union is a group of christians who share the same faith as I do, who are there to support each other and socialise with each other. I am so grateful for the group I have known- they are genuine, kind, generous and loyal, and that is why I am sad to leave them.
They have encouraged me, held me accountable, and loved me unconditionally.
I LOVE Christian Union and I will never forget them.
So this week is my last ever Christian Union as a student at Oxford Brookes. And those who have seen me in the last few weeks know that I've been a little emotional about this, so I wanted to take the time to explain why this is. Although I do have a blog, I wanted to share with people what Christian Union means to me and Facebook felt like a much bigger forum for that.
Being a Christian doesn't mean that your life is easy. Having a personal relationship with God doesn't mean that you therefore follow a bunch of rules and you become a goody-two-shoes and nothing bad happens. Life isn't always good and you need people around you to lean on during that time.
University is a huge time of transition and change. For me it included having panic-attacks in halls, learning how to be a student whilst still living at home, it involved multiple placements both good and bad for a course that by nature is very hard emotionally, learning to leave the world of social work behind at the end of a work day.
It has also been a time of discovering what an amazing support Christian Union can be.
In my first year I had a small group of friends within CU, friends that I'm still incredibly close to now, and as I learnt to stand on my own two feet at uni there were some great older members in the CU who guided me and supported me.In second year my friendship group widened and I made an effort to pass on the guidance to the new freshers. I also joined the exec committee which was exciting.
In third year I made new friends still. I worked hard to try and bring glory to God by helping to organise events and pastorally support the CU, before handing over to a brilliant new exec who I know will continue to serve God through this work. I learnt alot and had a good time doing it.
Throughout it all I have gained some wonderful friends. Friends who were there every Wednesday and lots of days in between, who I knew would be there any time I needed to talk, who I could debate big questions with and go for drinks with and would be there and accept me no matter what.
Friends who were there to laugh with me, friends who backed me up when I was trying to talk to non-christians about God, friends who held my hand and hugged me when I cried...friends who held me up when I could not hold myself.
I hope my friends, old and new, know how much I value them and how incredibly grateful I am for their unwavering friendship.
Churches are there for teaching and guiding, Christian Union is there for friendship, support and doing mission together.
Oxford Brookes Christian Union is great. They have more members every year, their mission is growing and their faith is astounding. If you aren't part of this family then please let me encourage you to find out about it for yourself.
Christian Union is a group of christians who share the same faith as I do, who are there to support each other and socialise with each other. I am so grateful for the group I have known- they are genuine, kind, generous and loyal, and that is why I am sad to leave them.
They have encouraged me, held me accountable, and loved me unconditionally.
I LOVE Christian Union and I will never forget them.
endings
A friend told me that she'd been reading my blog and it prompted me to realise that once again I've been pretty rubbish at writing in it this month :s
Apologies for that! But as I said to this friend- in the past I have tended to use my blog to get out my stress and upset. I think that the lack of blog postings are maybe a reflection of the lack of stress in my life at the moment which can only be seen as a good thing I think!
I also think I've grown up alot since I started my blog in 6th form...I still have the odd stress-filled rant but perhaps over slightly bigger issues rather than small things that I've blown out of proportion!
I've also realised that my relationship with God has grown massively since I started this blog. Not that my relationship with God was bad or anything, I just think that as I've matured so has my faith and that means that I am more likely to go running to God with my rants rather than on here. And I think that leaning on God can be no bad thing!
Aside from my lack of posting- in 3 weeks and 5 days I will have finished my degree. Which is absolutely mind-blowing to me- I'm sure I'll write a more sentimental blog when I actually finish! But for now I'm hoping that when I do finish I'll have more time to blog about life and my insights into the world :)
Even if hardly anyone reads it, I enjoy writing it :) so I'll try to be better at it!
Much love xxx
Apologies for that! But as I said to this friend- in the past I have tended to use my blog to get out my stress and upset. I think that the lack of blog postings are maybe a reflection of the lack of stress in my life at the moment which can only be seen as a good thing I think!
I also think I've grown up alot since I started my blog in 6th form...I still have the odd stress-filled rant but perhaps over slightly bigger issues rather than small things that I've blown out of proportion!
I've also realised that my relationship with God has grown massively since I started this blog. Not that my relationship with God was bad or anything, I just think that as I've matured so has my faith and that means that I am more likely to go running to God with my rants rather than on here. And I think that leaning on God can be no bad thing!
Aside from my lack of posting- in 3 weeks and 5 days I will have finished my degree. Which is absolutely mind-blowing to me- I'm sure I'll write a more sentimental blog when I actually finish! But for now I'm hoping that when I do finish I'll have more time to blog about life and my insights into the world :)
Even if hardly anyone reads it, I enjoy writing it :) so I'll try to be better at it!
Much love xxx
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