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Well here we are halfway through the eighth month of the year as the world keeps the calendar. After having a gloriously warm Sunday and a nice walk in the park, it has been forecast for our temperatures to be in the low to mid 20s Celsius for the working week. This is meant to be winter until the beginning of September — meanwhile the apple and cherry blossom trees have budded in their magnificence while the wattle trees are displaying the green and gold that Australia knows so well. Spring is definitely in the air and I for one absolutely love it. The change from the cooler temperatures down under means something special…The Feast of Tabernacles is coming and Feast fever with it which brings a surge of purposeful motivation. This winter seemed to fly by so quickly this year with one local telling me it was colder and wetter which was surprising to hear as last year was a shocker. Perhaps this means acclimatization has occurred within 12 months — possible but previously thought unlikely.
There will be lots to do beginning with the new tyres and car service in addition to several medical appointments and various other purchases required. Instead of buying bottled water it seems sensible to invest in a portable Stefani water filter jug which will save on costs, space in the car, and is healthier. We have a large and very heavy Stefani ceramic water filtration system at home which works wonderfully to remove 99.9% of nasties in the water but it is by no means portable. Getting away from plastic is quite easy in some ways but not in others. Going back to glass again for food storage and ditching the plastic cutting boards has been helpful. What were we thinking cutting our food on plastic with all those microfibres? Yet I digress; back to the topic at hand. Our wall calendar is filling up fast as our to-do-list expands to ensure a planned and smooth transition into stress free travelling while having a couple of weeks away. It will be very nice not to have to drive so far and this year will only require one overnight stay on the way there and also for the return journey home again. This is another thing to book in this week while our main Feast accommodation was booked several months ago. It is quite exciting if done well and these days we need to pace ourselves as rushing about is not a good idea as sprained ankles and broken bones are a bit of a pain when traveling if you know what I mean.
How wonderful it is not to have to move house like we did last year just before the Feast which caused a few hiccups but nothing that couldn't be sorted out eventually. Also, having an elderly cat with mouth cancer was another thing that needed attention before we left. We miss our Kitty Ralph big time. Challenges can be hard and one thing I'm learning is that last minute or sudden changes that gobble up precious time are really not my thing. Simply put, nervous energy is too stressful for me. Actually, since somewhere between childhood and teenage years I've noticed that for me planning is important and even the process of thinking about planning is a very nice experience in anticipation. This is most likely why I loved having diaries and planners to fill in about all the things anticipated. Done well there is much more satisfaction as well as pleasure, especially for all the perfectionists out there. The next eight weeks will be planned out day by day to ensure all gets done and in order. Chaos and disorder is simply not allowed, unwelcome and to be avoided at all costs. Completely unnecessary and unhealthy. However, today, just at the time of writing a roadblock popped up as we have been advised that there will be no internet or phone service for this week due to some upgrades. This will now need to be attended to next week and swapped with something else in order to have a more manageable workload. This sort of hiccup I can cope with but it ordinarily would be stressful if careful organisation was not already underway.
Reading through the Bible each year between the Feast of Tabernacles has brought me to the end of 2 Corinthians with plenty of time to complete Revelation. Steadily eking away without hurrying through scripture is important and this year has given added bonuses through how God works with us individually. Paul's inspired writings have always been impressive, yet even moreso this year. I have needed to read some passages through multiple times to fully grasp the gist of his meaning and all the nuances behind the purpose and intention for the peoples, whether Gentile, Jew, authority figures, individuals in certain congregations, and groups of others dispersed throughout his travels via sea, and by extension to us. We are all so blessed to still be able to have as many Bibles as we want and read them without fear of persecution. Also, the sermons and the sermonettes from the member's site provide great study material and add different perspectives from Christian experiences, all there waiting to be listened to and viewed for our learning and edification. These opportunities are valuable and so incredible to have while we still have time before everything collapses into sudden chaos.
This past month there has been great encouragement with tending to our city and country stands for the Beyond Today magazines. The present edition with the faces of Biden and Trump on the cover have moved off the stand at a very brisk pace, more than hinting that people are interested in what happens in America and are concerned where things are going and what the future holds. This edition has been most voraciously accessed like no other since filling the bimonthly issues back when they were known as the Good News. This does seem rather remarkable after a decade and a half but reminds me that the world has changed so much over this time. People are realising that things are volatile and want to know and make sense of a very chaotic world spinning out of control with evil forces working feverishly to destroy the Western world and the English speaking nations. Yet, for the most part, people are busy, distracted and confused. Meanwhile we patiently wait for Jesus Christ to return to establish His perfect rule on Earth when there will truly be peace at last.
For us, we are to be busy about our Father's business. Each day we aim for our best to fill up on Christ and have less of ourselves in order to be ready as Christ's bride. This is a true labour of love listening to God's Spirit within and allowing His Spirit to lead us in order to change and hopefully get out of the way by relinquishing our faulty human nature which is so selfish and wants its own way (Proverbs 14:12 and Jeremiah 17:9). The only way we deeply desire is God's way as His way is perfect and leads to life as written in Deuteronomy 30:19-20; the other way is fraught with danger and evil and leads to death. It is at this time I am reminded of the apostle Peter's words to Jesus in John 6:68-69 which resonate clearly and bring great joy. Do you remember what Jesus asked in John 6:67? And so, it will be really lovely to have a very relaxing Feast and to catch up with brethren from different parts of our beautiful country. This is what we so eagerly anticipate, a great refreshment knowing that our brethren rejoice with us after coming out of the world navigating all those trials and things life throws at us whether physical, medical, financial, emotional, loss of loved ones, and many other experiences we must go through involving the spiritual and supernatural. For this is to which we have been called in these end times as we eagerly prepare in readiness for the very soon coming Kingdom of God.