Radagast's Third Blog

In a great sermon this morning, my brother reflected on Ephesians 3: "His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord."

In the Old Testament, the construction of a Church across the world was prophesied (e.g. in Malachi: "'My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations,' says the LORD Almighty."), but the details were a mystery, even to the angels.

Peter says that "Even angels long to look into these things" (1 Peter 1:12).

While in NZ, I picked up the latest album by the fantastic Hayley Westenra, with two nicely juxtaposed songs:

Summer Fly

In another younger day I could dream the time away
In the universe inside my room
And the world was really mine from June till September
And if it wasn't really so I was lucky not to know
And I was lucky not to wonder why
'cause the summertime is all that I remember.

A summer fly was buzzin' every night
When I was young
In the gentle world my childlike senses knew
And the world was just my cousin
And the wind was just the tongue
In the voice my lonely moments listened to.

And I look at me today all the dreams have gone away
And I'm where I never thought I'd be
Seein' things I never thought I'd see happen to me
And I lie awake at night till the darkness turns to light
Hearin' voices callin' out my name
Callin' over and again the same message to me.

Cryin' who's your partner, who's your darlin', who's your baby now?
Who wakes up at night to pull you in
It don't matter, you'll just make her lonely anyhow
Don't know why you even try to win.

Whispering Hope

Soft as the voice of an angel,
Breathing a lesson unheard,
Hope with a gentle persuasion
Whispers her comforting word:
Wait till the darkness is over,
Wait till the tempest is done,
Hope for the sunshine tomorrow,
After the shower is gone.

Whispering hope, whispering hope
Oh, how welcome, welcome thy voice,
Making my heart
In its sorrow rejoice.

I'm enjoying Auckland's harbour, and relaxing now that my conference is over.

And, no, I didn't climb the tower. It seemed too pricy. I climbed a hill instead.

UPDATE: A hill? Millions! The whole city seems to be built on dormant volcanos.

I'm off to another conference, this time in Christchurch. I've been involved in the organisation, but I can relax when my bit is over.

UPDATE: the conference went well, now I'm off to NZ's North Island for the rest of my trip.

I've just acquired a new computer, and am slowly turning it into a useful writing tool (in spite of Vista).

I'm living off dialup Internet, which is painful... and together with work deadlines, it means I won't be blogging much or facebooking at all for a while.

I'm travelling again... to Sydney, for a conference. It's at Luna Park, so promises to be extremely serious.

UPDATE: My talk went well, so I can relax and enjoy the rest of the laughing clowns conference.

It was good to catch up with colleagues, friends, family, and the good people of Scot's Church:

I'm currently visiting Melbourne, recently voted the world's fifth best university city behind London, Boston, Paris and Tokyo. Also, most of my friends seem to be here...

I've been reading Kierkegaard recently. Sometimes he sounds a little like a backward Yoda (Try... or try not -- there is no 'do'), but sometimes he makes good sense.

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Strange! His only concern is lest there be a single one who labors and is heavy laden who does not hear this invitation. Neither does He fear that too many will come. Ah, heart-room makes house‑room; but where wilt thou find heart-room, if not in His heart? He leaves it to each one how to understand His invitation: He has a clear conscience about it, for He has invited all those that labor and are heavy laden."

This is for all those (US) flower children that became corporate lawyers. It seems to be begging for a Country and Western tune.

Back in the day we were hopeful,
Back in the day we cared,
Back in the day we were gonna change the world,
Back in the day, long ago.

We were young in the day,
Way back in the day,
Way back in the day,
Long ago.

Back in the day we were happy,
Back in the day life was fine,
Back in the day every morning broke with joy,
Back in the day, long ago.

We were young in the day,
Way back in the day,
Way back in the day,
Long ago.

I have finished chapter 2 of my magnum opus. People who read chapter 1 will get a copy of the sequel shortly. It's all about Pride and Prejudice.

For those following my brother's travels in Africa, he should now have visited Victoria Falls in Livingstone, Zambia.

On the way his church team will have taught at local theological colleges, met African brothers and sisters, and helped put a new roof on a church building. They should all be flying home from Lusaka tonight. Please pray for their continued safety in travelling.