Home | Articles | Poetry | About The Author | Contact Us |
Once upon a time as a little girl I enjoyed reading written works authored by Hans Christian Andersen. His books were my favourite out of all those I ever read because they were made up of stories with a moral message and emphasis. One of these was called “The Princess and the Pea”. Perhaps you have read it also? It is easy to find online and probably still part of modern day reading material in the children’s section of public libraries. As a youngster I didn’t fully understand the moral of Andersen’s story but found it fascinating nonetheless. Recently there was occasion to remember the words spoken by the Princess when asked how she had slept on the bed of many mattresses...not well at all!
This brings me to how I feel sometimes when sleeping on so many different beds and mattresses that are not familiar to me while travelling. A sore neck or back can be challenging when working so our pillows come along for the ride and our continental quilt too. Working life used to be in the metropolitan suburbs of Adelaide, but has recently changed to rural and remote areas of Australia, mostly within the confines of the South Australian borders. The nursing agency is very good to us by allowing my husband to accompany me on these trips and provides accommodation that is functional for our needs. At the time of writing this we are staying at Discovery Parks overlooking Spencer Gulf in Whyalla, which is the third largest city in South Australia. You may well ask where the second largest city is...Mount Gambier, and that is where we were last week. In Whyalla there is plenty of fishing here, especially Snapper, also many things to do and see, however our emphasis will be on sprinkling or spreading seeds for the coming Kingdom of God (Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, Luke 8:4-15, 1 Corinthians 3:6-7).
While contemplating all that may unfold during this day as we sat outside on our deck early in the morning a couple of days ago, under a clear blue sunny sky with not a cloud in sight, we have much to be grateful for. Daylight saving time has now reverted back to the standard time, and that is precisely the way we prefer it, rather than advancing one hour during warmer months. We had an extra hour which came in very handy for getting an early start on the road to chew up all those miles (387 km actually) from Adelaide to Whyalla. It took us nearly 4 and a half hours at 110 km for the majority of the trip with only two stops for restroom necessities. We arrived around 12.30 pm, checked into our accommodation and set up base. As per our custom we drove around the township looking for petrol, shops, laundromats, post offices, banks, and all those facilities we may need whilst here.
Meanwhile back at the holiday park our cabin #18 is opposite the communal laundry with several washing machines for use at $4 a pop and a handy ironing facility. Perfect place to put the Beyond Today magazine and leaflets that we also deliver into letterboxes, or so we thought...more on that later. The dryers are out of order but there are a few washing lines (clotheslines), some of which are already full at 8 am as life starts early out here in the mid north along the southern part of the Flinders Ranges. It is a stunning part of Australia and no wonder it is popular with holidaymakers, retirees trying to see more of their country, and tourists. We have a beautiful sea view in the central part of the park set back a little way from the multiple caravans hitched to their posts all lined up in neat parallel rows only a stones throw to the water.
The large shower and toilet block is placed alongside the laundry in a separate building and is to our right. Watching all the people enter both blocks to wash their clothes or themselves affords an opportunity to say a quick good morning or wave while some come over to chat about where they are from and what they have been up to. God's sense of humour once again reminds me of how He watches what we are doing all the time. Instead of being anywhere in this huge park God placed us right in front of the busiest, most useful part of the whole area ensuring we are visible and have ease of access to people because of where they needed to go. Looking up from my iPad now I see that the clothes lines are all completely full. The laundry has indeed been a hive of activity. It is quite exciting to think about whether a magazine or leaflet has been glanced at, perhaps read, even taken away for further reading. No doubt we will visit the laundry each day to check out the supply and adjust accordingly. Well, that was the plan until the following day I found all the material in the rubbish bin. At least it was still in excellent condition and so I was able to retrieve it all. Setbacks happen and we just can’t let these affect us. Most of the time things go well but there are hiccups along the way at various times.
Today the weather is so similar to yesterday — another warm day in autumn with temperatures around 27 and 28 degrees Celsius. Perfect for getting much needed vitamin D, plenty of sunshine and fresh air while spreading seeds. So while we are here over the next week we will enjoy every minute of this relaxed pace of living until we have to pack up and return to our suburban life again. We will be able to take more time along the way home to see local towns which we will explore when returning to Adelaide next week. The biggest of these are Port Pirie, Port Augusta, Snowtown, Crystal Brook, Port Germein, Lochiel, and one or two others.
The takeaway from this message is that no matter where we go along the way while scattering, spreading and sprinkling the seeds of God’s Kingdom, we may encounter many minor, even trivial hardships of discomfort and physical pain, but we continue on as the labourers in the field are few and the time is short (Matthew 9:37). The time is at hand and we know that with each passing day the times we live in are becoming more bizarre and full of crazy ways steeped in perverted depravity and evil. We are living in nutty times to say the least, so we best be spreading seeds despite all the peas or bumps in life that may prevent us from doing what we can easily talk ourselves out of.
If those who have gone before us can be successful and were despite their setbacks, then we can too. Finally, let me leave you with the example of the apostle Paul who went through such great hardships. Scripture in 2 Corinthians 11:24-27 states “From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness”. Reminds me of the scripture found in Hebrews 11:38 of those before us who were subjected to many things. An uncomfortable bed at the end of the day truly is nothing to compare to real hardships — and so I think I can at least get out of my comfort zone a little bit to spread seeds while journeying towards God’s Kingdom.