Cooma part 2

Monday 3rd May - Sunday 9th May

Monday: We got the opportunity to say goodbye to some friends that would be heading back to the South Coast today. We are not sure how long it will be before we see them again. It was sad but we are excited about what lies ahead. That night we made dinner for the household we are staying with, we all ate together and fellowshipped together. We are really enjoying the company of the family we are staying with. They are all very kind and generous, plus they are a lot of fun. Being the pastor of the church the father of the household is very wise with much life experience. Both Sarah and I are really enjoying lots of deep conversations.

Tuesday: Sarah went into the church to work. I stayed at the house and spent most of the day setting up Sarah’s new laptop. Unfortunately with anything new like a laptop it takes time to set up all of the necessary functions as well as sorting out little bugs and issues. It would be nice if everything worked straight out of the box.After work Sarah went walking with a group of girls who meet up once a week for exercise. She had a really nice time catching up with some old friends and also meeting some new people. Once they were done I came and picked her up we went home had dinner and relaxed after a long day.

Wednesday: Today Sarah and I decided to go into the church together to do our work. Her laptop is finally set up so she can work on hers and I can work on mine. I should mention that one of the issues I had spent hours trying to fix and couldn’t Sarah stumbled upon the answer after trying for a minute. This happens more often than you’d think. -sigh- To be honest I don’t really care I’m just glad it works now. Sarah got to work transcribing and I took the opportunity with my own laptop to catch up on my admin stuff. The first priority was to get this blog up to date. I was a month behind. One whole day and 5000 words later I had finally caught up. It was a very draining task and it reminded me of the ways I had once complained over 1500 word essays at Uni. Perspective is a beautiful thing.

Afterwards we went to a couple of small groups. The first was the youth small group of which we are friends of the leaders. We watched a video which we discussed afterwards. We all told various stories out of our various life experiences and it was a powerful night. After that we went to another life group which started later (life group junkies we are). It was about praying in the Spirit. The teaching was good but the most amazing part of the night was when we prayed for one of the people in the life group and the Spirit really moved. It was a very emotional moment for everybody and the man we were praying for broke through some really big stuff in his life. Anyone who has experienced a moment like this when the Spirit moves will know what I am talking about when I say there is nothing else on Earth like it. It’s breathtaking and truly awesome.

Thursday: At the moment we are struggling with our purpose here in Cooma. Sarah is really enjoying being around the church we are currently involved with and really wants to spend our time in Cooma committed to that church. We are also faced with the issue that once we get past Canberra we have no idea what we will be doing. We have had an invitation to do some ministry up in Newcastle and we are not sure what to do about Sydney as it is so big and we are not really sure how much of an impact we can have. Also we are trying to work out what we should do about our advocacy with Compassion. Due to all of these conflicting thoughts I decided to go for a walk and pray. I figure if I don’t know what’s going on maybe God does. For me going for walks is one of the times I feel closest to God. I committed all of these things to Him and declared that I trusted Him. The answer I received blew me away. I felt God saying to me two things, first was that our role at this point was to knock on doors and go through the ones He opens for us. This will not always be the way and one day there would be doors (situations) placed before us and we would need to discern the right ones to go through but we were not nearly there yet. The second thing was that as we had been showing ourselves faithful with a little that He was going to increase our ministry but that we needed to take some time in preparation, growing in our faith, understanding and skills required for the ministry. That we should take some time and work on growing towards what He has for us. Kind of like David out in the fields with his sheep wrestling the wildlife learnt the necessary skills to be the leader of Israel. I cannot say for sure exactly what all of this means and I am not sure I am supposed to but it helps me make some decisions now. We will reach out with our ministry and see who responds. In terms of what we will do whilst we are here, we will commit ourselves to growing. For me this means reading my bible, and working on my material to present in Churches.

I sent out an email to Compassion and they are keen to have us involved in what they do, in particular making presentations in churches. This now means that I need to spend some time preparing what I will say and researching to make sure I have my facts right. Possibly one of the most exciting prospects imaginable to me is being a part of getting a child sponsored and having them and their family freed from extreme poverty. I sponsor a child but am not in a financial position to sponsor any more. This is another way in which I can help. Compassion is an incredible organisation and if you want me to tell you all the reasons you should sponsor a child email me at matt.charlesworth@hotmail.com and I would be more than happy to explain. Otherwise go to www.compassion.com.au and check it out for yourself.

Friday: We spent today working at the church again. We figured that seeing as how we were already there we would hang around for Youth. The youth night is separated into two parts. The younger kids come first. For them we watched a video, had some discussion and did some activity. The activity was making jewellery out of pasta. I mastered the art of sucking a piece of string through a curly piece of pasta. Ahhh the things you do only ever at youth group. After that the rowdy teenagers came. Their night started with some hangout time. After that we watched the Quest DVD and had some discussion time. All in all the night was really good. It was interesting experiencing the difference between the two age groups.

Saturday: I got up really early this morning and went into the church. We were holding a breakfast for the women for Mother’s Day (even though Mother’s Day was the following day). A small group of men put on an incredible feast for breakfast. I cooked the bacon for the bacon and eggs, and might I say there was a lot of bacon! Of course once we had finished cooking and serving for the women we had our share of the food to. And being the wonderful men that we were we then cleaned up afterwards. The women were all really grateful and from what I hear they got to have some really good conversation.

When we got home I got set up to do an interview. The interview was with an old friend for a Vetamorphus retreat. We did the interview over Skype. It is the first time I have ever done anything like that. It was quite an experience. I quite enjoyed it and I think it will be quite a valuable resource in the future. It was something we had certainly never thought of before but it means that we can still do some forms of ministry over great distance without actually being there. It was strange though talking to a group of people that I knew could see me but I couldn’t see them.

Sunday: We went to church this morning. I played with the worship team which I really enjoyed, as always. The service was a special Mother’s Day service. Some of the women in the church shared about their favourite women of the bible. It was a really nice morning. We had some good old extensive fellowship after the service, chatting and eating with everyone. After that Sarah and I went home and relaxed for the rest of the day. It was a really good day. Unfortunately Sarah is starting to feel sick. We are both hoping that it will pass quickly.

Cooma part 1 (inc. Gippsland Youth Alive)

Sunday 25th April - Sunday 2nd May

Sunday: We made the trip to Cooma. Anyone who has done this drive will know what Brown Mountain is. For those who don’t it’s a really steep and winding road. We do so love torturing our car, needless to say it did really well pulling the camper up the mountain. We got into Cooma that evening and set up the camper. We weren’t quite prepared for the change in weather. That night as we slept in our little camper it got down to -1°C. It was so cold we turned off the fridge and opened its door. It was a real struggle feeling like we were going to freeze to death. But alas we survived.

Monday: Sarah and I began our work today. We are a bit of a way out from town however by some miracle we have managed to park the camper in the one spot for a 10km radius that gets phone reception. Well at least if you go onto the bed there is reception you just have to fight the temptation to lie down and have a nap.

Wednesday: Today was a momentous day. We went into Canberra to buy Sarah a new laptop. We did a bunch of other stuff whilst we were in there but that was our primary purpose for going there. Of course getting something that important that we would be investing into, for anyone who knows me knows that it was going to take all day. We went to every shop that sold laptops compared stock and prices, found the best store and proceeded to meticulously go through every laptop there. Eventually we made our decision and after a little bartering we left with a brand new laptop. This is a really significant thing for us, it means that Sarah will have an effective, reliable and up to date laptop to do her work on and I will get her old laptop which means I will have a computer to do my work on. It means that I will actually be able to start typing this blog again. Yes that’s right this blog is being typed up on Sarah’s old (and my new) laptop. Both laptops are an invaluable resource for us and this ministry.

When we got back from Canberra we went to small groups. We got to catch up with a lot of different people. For those who don’t know Sarah lived in Cooma for a number of years and she is really enjoying being back and seeing everyone again. At the youth small group we were asked to share about what we were doing and also our testimonies. It was really cool being able to share in that setting and Sarah and I probably listened to each other more intently than anyone else. You get to know each other so well but when you hear each other tell your own stories sometimes you remember things you had forgotten or you realise things you didn’t know. It was a special moment.

Thursday: Today we departed Cooma for a brief time. We had been invited to the Gippsland Regional Youth Alive. I had been asked to play out in the foyer as one of the pre-event items. So we made the trip back to Lakes Entrance. We decided that we would still work the full day so we left in the late afternoon. We were both very tired by the time we made it there.

Friday: Whilst Sarah was busy typing away I had a burst of creativity and I wrote a new song. The song is based on the book of Ecclesiastes. Although rather than making the song sound solemn I wanted to show people that there is life in the words of this book. The song basically explains that all of the stuff that you strive for in life, work, house, car, possessions, etc, really is meaningless. The words of the chorus are:“Everything is meaningless when all said and done, History is empty if it can’t change the heart,Everything is meaningless if it’s not done in loveTomorrow will be a memory but today is where it starts.”Hopefully it will be a song that inspires people to live a real life.

That night was the Youth Alive rally. My main job was to play before the event as background music, creating an atmosphere. This is essentially what I did. It was lots of fun and the atmosphere was relaxed but also very alive. I occasionally had some of the youth come and pretend to sing along or dance around, some even just came, sat and listened. It was really nice. I played for an hour straight and then the event started. Sarah and I had offered our services in the altercall room. The event was great, the band, the music and the speaker however I do have a pretty serious issue with the altercall. Most of the kids we met out in the altercall room either had no idea why they were out there or they just didn’t care. There were a few who seemed genuine in their desire to make a commitment or a re-commitment however the choice to become a Christian is not something you should do in the heat of an emotional whim. It is supposed to be a lifetime decision, one whereby you choose to accept the forgiveness of Jesus Christ and choose to live a new life in Him. This decision cannot be properly made from an emotionally driven message designed to get you to join a club. I know these are strong words but that’s what it felt like to be in that altercall room. It is my hope and prayer that each youth who legitimately made a commitment will realise that it’s an ongoing commitment and they need to seek out those who will disciple them i.e. youth leader/pastors. I have seen many youth make a half-hearted commitment to God only to give up on it never realising what it’s all about and the value of what they will ultimately miss out on because it was never properly explained to them.

Saturday: Once again we said goodbye to our friends in Lakes Entrance and made the trip back up to Cooma. Now that we know we are going to be around in the town for a while we really feel like we can effectively sink out teeth into whatever it is God has for us to do in Cooma. It is quite an exciting place to be.

Sunday: We went to church this morning and it was great. I joined in with the music team and there was other people visiting who played in the team as well. Apparently it was the first time the church has had a full worship team in a long time. Sarah was quickly volunteered to do the sound once it was discovered that she could do it. We both really enjoyed the service and also the fellowship afterwards. For Sarah it is especially wonderful to be back as she has and I imagine always will have a great fondness for this church.

South Coast part 2

Thursday 22nd April - Sunday 25th April

Thursday: Today we left Mallacoota and moved back to Merimbula. The rest of the week was going to be intense as we both had a lot of things to do.

Friday: Whilst Sarah was busy getting ready to work for the day so was I. I left for Bega in the morning with one of the people we were staying with. The plan for the day was to fix the churches sound system. This first of all meant pulling it all apart, I am going to speak tech for a bit so to anyone who doesn’t know what I’m talking about this is just going to sound like white noise, to anyone who still doesn’t know what I’m talking about it’s like when your TV makes that KSSSSSSSHHHHHHH sound. We pulled all of the cables out from under the stage they had been run under there some distance and couldn’t be removed without pulling apart half the stage. We proceeded to test them all. They all worked. We then tested the microphones, all of the mixing desk channels and the speakers, everything worked. From this we were able to conclude that the multicore was no good. This is fortunate because the other issue we were facing was that the multicore had been run under the floor for the length of the building and no one knew how to get under there to remove it. We attempted to pull it free but it got stuck half way. I kinda expected that was going to happen. We realised that the only way forward was to purchase a new multicore. This required the pastor so we were stuck until he was free. Eventually we got the new multicore and now we only faced the simple task of setting everything back up. It was a big job but I am glad to say that at the end of the day the sound system was fully operational, it had come a long way from what it was.

That night we went bowling with a group of people and met some of the Youth. I was terrible at the bowling and Sarah opted not to play. Fortunately the company was good and that made the night. After bowling we went to McDonalds and inevitably everyone began sharing their random McDonalds stories. It was a good night.

Saturday: Today was the day of the concert. I was very excited. We went in and tidied up the church setting it for the concert. The pastor of the church had very graciously been advertising it for me. There were about 20 people on the night, a turnout I was quite pleased with. I played two sets and everyone really seemed to enjoy the music. A number of people from the church brought food and in the end there was quite a feast. Both Sarah and I were really blown away at the generosity and hospitality of the people who came.

Sunday: This was our last day in the area and it was quite a pleasant way to finish out tine on the South Coast of NSW. We went to church in the morning, I led worship and Sarah did the sound again. We also had some of the youth join in with the worship team for the morning. It was really great to have a strong worship team for the morning. In the middle of the service the ANZAC day parade started so we stopped what we were doing went out and watched it. I was a good parade and there was a particularly touching moment as some of the veterans walked past. After it had finished we all had a cuppa and continued on with the service.

After the service we had lunch with the people we had been staying with and some of the people from the church. It was really nice and a little sad. We said our goodbyes and headed off for Cooma not knowing what awaited us there.

Mallacoota

Monday 12th April - Wednesday 21st April

Monday: Today we left for Mallacoota. We left with the friends we are currently staying with to their holiday house in Mallacoota. We wouldn’t need the camper as there was a spare room. We left in two cars both packed to the brink, it was a good drive. We arrived in the afternoon, put our feet up and rested.

Tuesday: This morning we went and had morning tea with the pastor out here and his wife. They were great people, very warm and welcoming. We chatted for a while and we got to know them a bit better as they got to know us. Once again Sarah got to explain what on earth Medical Transcription is. We came to understand that the pastor’s wife had taken on the role of worship leader. This was an amazing effort as she had had no formal training on an instrument and had mostly taught herself. She was desperate to learn more about playing and leading worship so I agreed to give her a lesson whilst we were there. We also discussed other things we might be able to do whilst we were there. Whilst we were discussing this one of the locals popped in to ask the pastor if he knew of anyone who could help her with her garden, she was fairly ill and her yard had become a mess. She explained that she was happy to pay for the work. What an amazing blessing, both myself and the friends we were staying with needed work and this woman desperately needed the help. We set a date for the following week. All in all it had been a very productive morning.

Wednesday: This morning I came around to teach the pastors wife keyboard. Sarah came also and did her work in another room. I don’t think I have ever met someone who was so desperate and hungry to learn. I taught her for six hours, we covered everything from rhythm, to worship leading and appropriate technique for playing on your own in a small church. She listened intently the whole time and did everything I said. She assured me that she would practice everything I taught her as much as she could. I was blown away by her determination and her willingness to listen and learn. If all that wasn’t humbling enough she went on to explain that she had been praying desperately for guidance in her playing, she said that she believed God had used us as the answer to that prayer. The very thought that we could be the answer to someone’s prayed is possibly the most humbling thing I have ever experienced.

That night we came along to the prayer meeting. It was a wonderful night, there weren’t heaps of people there but all of the prayer was heartfelt and genuine. After we had all finished praying I felt led to share one of my songs with everyone, Fall into God. It was well received.

Thursday: Today was just one of those days. I got up in the morning and was just in a stink. I was feeling really down and I wasn’t even really sure why. We were wrestling with our various issues, as does everyone, but this morning I was just particularly struggling for no particular reason. I realized that I had a decision to make, I could spend the rest of the day in a bad mood or I could try to rise above and not let my feelings get the better of me. I went with the latter and decided that if I was going to feel like an emotional retard I may as well use it to my advantage and write a song. The end result is a new song called “My Bad Day”. It was written to encourage people to rise above when they are struggling.

Friday: I went up to Eden today for the radio interview. It went well; I was warned however by the presenter that he was technologically challenged. This proved to be true and it ended up taking us about four hours to record a two hour program. The interview went really well though and we talked about a variety of things from the trip and the album to social justice issues. I really enjoyed the opportunity to go on the radio again.

Sunday: I was given the invitation to lead worship on the Sunday morning. It went really well and was really well received. After the service we spent some time fellowshipping and got to know a number of the people in the church a lot better. Mallacoota is a small town and the church is also very small. I have the upmost respect for these churches, they battle on in a small town where the resources are extremely limited. In many of these situations the pastor of the church is unable to be paid for their work and they often have to get a second job working up to six sometimes even seven days a week. If you would like to give in support to the work these churches do please feel free to email me (matt.charlesworth@hotmail.com) and I would be pleased to arrange it.

Tuesday: Today one of the people we are staying with and I went to work for the lady I mentioned earlier. We weren’t sure what to expect however we knew there would be some heavy lifting involved. Not much, only about 100 concrete bricks, several concrete slabs, some old futon couches, some fencing and a bunch of other stuff. We had our work cut out for us but I have to say it was a real blessing to be doing the work. We needed the work and she needed the work done, everyone was happy. We both worked hard and by the end of the day the yard looked significantly better, it was not finished but the hardest parts were done. There is a rewarding feeling that you get at the end of a day where you know you have worked hard and the people you have worked for are pleased with the job you have done.

That night we all went around to the pastor’s house for dinner. I spent some more time teaching the pastors wife and then we all sat down together fellowshipped and ate. There was lots of conversation, laughter and noise; it was a very pleasant atmosphere. In the middle of it all I was taught how to circular breathe. It took a little while but I got there in the end.

Wednesday: It had been a big couple of weeks and both Sarah and I were very tired. We were going to go to the prayer meeting but in the end we decided to stay at home and rest. We called the pastor and he didn’t mind and told us to rest well. Sometimes in this ministry there is a time for sacrifice where we should do the things we know we should even though we don’t feel like it and there are times to be responsible and rest so that we can be effective for another day. The important thing is to demonstrate the discernment to realise and acknowledge what the current situation actually is.

All in all we had a wonderful time in Mallacoota. It was wonderful to be blessed and to be a blessing. We look forward to returning sometime in the future.

South Coast part 1

Thursday 1st April - Sunday 11th April

Thursday: Today we left Lakes Entrance to go to Merimbula. Sarah is especially excited because we are going to be staying with her best friend back from when she lived in Cooma. It is going to be difficult to leave behind the family we have stayed with here in Lakes Entrance, we have really come to love and appreciate them. We headed off around lunchtime and the trip took a few hours. When we got there we came only to discover that they lived on a massive and steep hill. The poor car had its work cut out for it carting the camper up the hill. We got there in the end and have set up the camper in the driveway. Unfortunately it’s on a bit of an incline but fortunately we are allowed to sleep inside for a few days whilst some of the people that live in the house are away. This means that we can just deal with the problem later. There is enough reception here for Sarah to do her work. We are both looking forward to the weekend where we will get a chance to relax and catch up with some old friends.

Sunday: This morning we went to the church in Bega, the Bega Valley AOG. The reason we are going to the church in Bega is because there isn’t a morning service in Merimbula yet. There are plans to remedy this however it is going to take time. Both Sarah and I really enjoyed the service. We also really enjoyed being given Easter eggs at the door as it was Easter Sunday. We embraced the true meaning of Easter, the giving and receiving of chocolate. Afterwards we met the pastor of the church and explained who we were and what we are doing. In order to further discuss how we might be able help the church we arranged to meet for a coffee on the next day. I made sure to give him one of the albums.

Monday: Today I had lunch with the pastor of the Bega church. We had a lengthy discussion about a variety of things. He explained that he appreciated me giving him the CD as it demonstrated that not only we were serious about what we were doing but that I was presenting myself as a professional musician and that the quality of the CD confirmed that. At first I wasn’t sure if he was going to ask for our help in any way then all of a sudden the conversation went in that direction and it turned out there was a variety of way he was willing to receive our ministry. The first was to join in with the worship team on the Sunday, the second was to come in assess and fix the sound system and the third was that he would be willing to let me put on a concert at the church as an outreach event. I was really excited at the prospect of what we would be able to do. We proceeded to talk for a while about all different things and finished the meeting by attempting to arrange some times and dates. It is amazing how God works; you sit there and wonder if things are going to work out when all of a sudden he surprises you demonstrating that He has once again gone before you preparing the way. All we need to do is step out and be willing to do whatever we are given to do.

Wednesday: I decided to head in to Bega today to see if there was anything else we might be able to do. One of the main things I wanted to see was whether or not I might be able to get some work at the music shop or even help them out in some way. I had spoken to the owner of the music shop a couple weeks prior and he had explained that they were really struggling with business. I went in and met the owner. He was really nice but explained that he already had a guitar tech and that he didn’t really think there was anything else I could do. I think he was hoping that I might buy something however I didn’t have the money or need to do so, which is a shame because I really would have liked to help him out. I showed him the guitar that I made and he was really impressed with it. We chatted for a while and then I left.

That night Sarah and I went and had dinner with the pastor and his wife. They were both really nice and we talked about all different things. It was great getting to know them better, where they had come from and what they had done before they got to Bega. It never ceases to amaze me all of the history contained within a person’s story. These two were no exception. After dinner and conversation the pastor took us around to meet the church’s worship leader. The worship leader and her husband were also really nice. Between them they were the worship leader and tech director, unfortunately both of them felt significantly under-experienced for the roles they had acquired. This is a reality for many small churches, that people will step into roles they don’t feel experienced or gifted for. However sometimes God works best in these situations, “His strength is made known in our weaknesses”. All things considered I think they were doing a great job. Naturally we offered to help out in any way we could.

Thursday: The people whose room we had commandeered got back today which was fine it simply means that we have to sleep out in the camper which means dealing with the sloping issue. We lifted the lower end of the camper using a car jack and propped it up with the supports and some pieces of wood. All seemed well until we realised that you couldn’t open the door and Sarah was trapped inside. You see the thing about our camper is that it sags over the middle axel. Lifting up the one end had bent it back into shape meaning that we couldn’t open the door and a couple of cupboards. We got around the problem in the end, Sarah escaped through the side zip next to the bed and with a great deal of effort we pried the door open. All was well, we couldn’t close our door again but nevermind you just needed to pretend it was shut and that was good enough. Oh how I love our home on the road, our plucky little camper oozing with character and falling apart at the seams. I joke but in all seriousness I am grateful everyday for our camper and what it allows us to do.

Friday: By this stage I had attempted to make contact with the local Eden radio station. For those who aren’t aware Eden is a small town south of Merimbula, as the name implies it is a beautiful place. I had once been on the radio station two years ago and at the time I was told that if ever in town again that I should come and visit them. Due to the failed attempts to contact them I decided that the best way to get in touch would be to go to the station itself. Sometimes persistence pays off, I went in and just happened to meet the guy who does the Christian radio program. We had a coffee and chatted as he did another program. We would talk during the songs whilst he was doing a million other things. It kinda felt like that scene from Wayne’s World 2 for all those who know what I’m talking about. We organized a time for me to come in and do an interview. The Sunday morning show is pre-recorded so that its presenter can still go to church in the morning.

Saturday: Our Sabbath day. Today was really relaxing. We went to the beach for a while and played in the waves. Sarah and I decided to walk. It was about a 5-6km walk which was fine getting there but a challenge coming back after swimming in the ocean and accumulating sand everywhere. Either way we had a really nice time, the beach was beautiful and the waves were big. After we swam me and the one of the guys we were staying with made sand castles. I should probably mention that he is a builder therefore his sandcastle was considerably more impressive, never mind the fact that mine started out as a big hole.

One of the big issues I have been wrestling with is the difference between want and need. In order to address this issue I had decided that I would not buy anything new for 40 days unless I felt like I genuinely needed it. Even then I would commit it to prayer and see if it seemed that God agreed that I needed it. Every time I felt myself wanting something I would choose to thank God for something that I had instead. For all that time I began to realize how much I really can live without and how much I don’t actually need. However one thing came up and I was seriously wrestling with whether or not I needed it, a laptop. In Lakes Entrance there had been a computer I could use for all of my admin stuff, here there was not. We did have Sarah’s computer but obviously she uses it during the day for her work, this meant that the only time I would be able to use it was at night and I had a lot of work to do (e.g. this blog). If I was to use the laptop at night it would affect the time that Sarah and I get to spent together. It was a big struggle but I didn’t want to get a laptop unless God approved. Therefore I committed it to Him in prayer and said “if You want me to get this then please provide the resources as a sign”, we didn’t have the money to buy one at the time. Two days after praying this prayer, which was today, we got a phone call from Sarah’s mum informing us that she had sold Sarah’s car for $2000. We believe this is an answer to prayer and confirmation from God that it’s OK for us to get the laptop. We have decided to get a new laptop for Sarah for her work and I will get her old one.

Sunday: We went to church and I played with the worship team, this I was expecting, what I wasn’t expecting was to be asked to at the last minute to lead the service. It was quite a surprise but I didn’t mind. I actually really enjoyed leading the service as it has been a while since I have had the chance to lead one. On this same morning Sarah had offered to do the sound. The sound man hadn’t had a week off in quite some time so we thought it would be nice for him to get the week off. What should probably be explained at this point is that Sarah has never done sound before, she learnt it on the morning. Sarah did a great job, she was so willing to listen and learn, by the end of the service she was able to do it all, she even knows what an auxiliary channel is. All in all the service was quite an experience for both of us, however for Sarah she has learnt a new skill that will probably be invaluable at other churches we visit.

After the service we went down to the skate park with the friends we are staying with. It was a lot of fun and both Sarah and I learnt how to skate. We are a long way off being pro’s however we can get the board to move in one direction without falling off of it. I can even push myself along. For anyone who knows me you know that that’s a big deal.

Lakes Entrance part 3

Monday 22nd March - Sunday 28th March

Monday: We made the long drive from Ballarat to Lakes Entrance today... well almost. We had driven about 4-5 hours with a couple of brief stops. We stopped near Blackburn at a Maccas. We didn't actually eat there we just took advantage of the toilet and parking facilities. We sat and ate rolls in our car, much cheaper and more nutritious. Don't worry we weren't rude enough to actually eat our rolls in the McDonalds. Aside from that we stopped in Sale. About 30km away from Bairnsdale we noticed a smell like maple syrup coming from the car. Not long after that we were broken down on the side of the road, again. The RACV came out and had a look at the car. The RACV man said we had no water which didn't make sense because the car had water when we left. As he began to fill it with water the real problem arose and he informed us that we had split a hose and would have to be towed to Bairnsdale. As we sat in the car waiting to be picked up by the tow truck I began stressing about how we would afford to get the car fixed. I was swiftly reminded that God is in control and that He provides. We had two friends call completely out of the blue and ask for our bank details so that they could put some money in our account from time to time. I felt very humbled. The RACV very graciously put us up for the night in a really nice motel in Bairnsdale. So Sarah and I enjoyed the motel treatment, jumping up and down on the bed wearing the shower cap saying "What can I do in here?!" (This is just a joke and if you don't get it you need to see some Dylan Moran)

Tuesday: I love complimentary tea and coffee. We got up had breakfast and were actually ready to leave by the checkout time. We walked over to the mechanics carrying a few bags, a guitar and a laptop. The mechanics were still working on the car so Sarah and I sat out on the lounge and started our own work. That's the beauty of what we do, all we need is phone reception and we are set. Sarah did her transcribing and I did planning. It was nice to know we weren't wasting time. By about lunch the car was finished and we completed the rest of the journey back to Lakes Entrance. It was really nice to be back.

Wednesday: We worked throughout the day. That night we went to the bible study. It was good, very similar to the previous week but it was clear that the issues being discussed were very relevant to the people of that church. We will have times were what a church is wrestling with is not what we are wrestling with and we might not get much out of the teaching but what is always valuable is fellowship. We enjoyed good fellowship at the bible study, they are a very caring and friendly church. We stayed quite late and once everyone had left I shared a number of my songs with the people that actually lived in the house. It was quite nice and intimate and we got to know them better as they got to know us.

Thursday: We had promised the kids in the house that we were staying with that we would ride to school with them. This morning we made good on that promise. It was a lot of fun, these kids are really great. They stopped and started all the time, for a variety of different reasons, in particular halfway up hills. However Sarah and I were the ones on mountain bikes whereas the kids were on BMX bikes so I think they were making it hardest on themselves.

That night we went to the Easter workshop and helped out again. Sarah took photos until the camera battery died and I helped the kids make crosses out of horseshoe nails and a pop-up card. It was a lot of fun and again we were really impressed with the event itself.

Friday: I started writing a new song today. It is bluesy and rocking, probably one of the liveliest songs I have ever written. It is still very much in its infancy but we'll see what tomorrow brings writing wise. Sarah had a really hard client today, unfortunately it is the nature of her work, one day might be easy, the next hard. She had to come out to the camper to work when the kids got home from school. She is working really hard and I am so proud of her.

We went to youth that night. It was the breakup for the holidays. It was very relaxed and we spent most of the time chatting to people. Then the rip-sticks came out. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have a go. I have a bit of history with these things. I gave up on board like things from a young age after I stood on a skateboard and fell over. Last year at the age of 22 at a church camp I decided to take the plunge and have another go. Some of the young adults at the camp had rip-sticks and I was determined. After falling flat on my butt twice and several hours of effort I actually managed to ride around on the rip-stick. It was a momentous occasion for me. So back to the present, I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to have a go on the rip stick and see if I could still ride on it. The verdict: Oh yeah I still got it baby, that's right. Sarah had a go and did really well to. It was a good night.

Saturday: It had been a big week so we took our Sabbath and spent this day doing pretty much nothing. It's good to relax, very important actually as it gives you the energy to take on another week.

Sunday: We went to church his morning. I had been invited to come up and play a song. Before church I was feeling really emotional, not in a bad way just everything felt really intense. It happens to me sometimes, maybe it's because I’m a musician, or maybe it's because I’m crazy or maybe even crazier I’m normal. Either way spent I started praying about what I was supposed to play that morning. I had already planned it out of course but as per so often, God had other plans. I really felt like I was supposed to play Love Enough instead of Victory Song so this is what I did. The song was really well received. I had forgotten to bring my box of CD's so I only had about 3 copies on me in my guitar case. People were really enthusiastic about the music and actually bought CD's saying that they would pay for them anyway and were happy for me to get them to them sometime during the week. I was very encouraged by the reception and generosity of the church.

State Youth Games Launch

Saturday 20th March - Sunday 21st March

Saturday: In the morning I did a radio interview at Good News Radio. This would be my fourth now on the radio station. I have really enjoyed all of my experiences with this radio station. This was a particularly good interview. All of the questions were great and they played a number of my songs. I also got to promote the State Youth Games Launch a little.

That Night was the Ballarat State Youth Games Launch. The irony is that the other launches were at Frankston and Blackburn, the places where I grew up and lived as I did my study. However I ended up at the launch in a place I had never been before this year. The launch itself had three sessions including the main event in the middle and hang out time before and after. It was set up really well. During the hang out times there was a variety of things to do. These ranged from a jumping castle, Nintendo Wii, dance party and live music. I was the live music. It was really great to be a part of the event. There were tables set up in a café-like style and people wondered in and out. There were generally a few people sitting and listening at any one time. It was a really cool, chill out type of atmosphere. Still feeling a bit sick my voice struggled a bit but I made it in the end. The main event itself was great. The SYG band did a great job, one of the youth got displayed on stage getting the "State Youth Games" treatment and the main speaker was a guy name Phil Cann from Vancouver. All in all it was a great night and as a representation of SYG itself, has shown that the camp is going to be fantastic.

Sunday: In the morning we went to York St Church of Christ. We really enjoyed the service, as always, and we got to hear Phill Cann speak again. It was good to hear the difference between his sermons to youth and adults. I went up and met Phil after the service. He is a really great guy but definitely a little bit crazy.

Sunday night I had been invited to play a song and introduce communion at One2one Church of Christ. It was really nice showing up to the church and knowing a number of people. Some of the youth were especially excited to see us and greeted us with big hugs, exited shouts of joy and exaggerated waving of arms. I have to say we really love these guys and it is so cool to be their role models. Thanks Laura and Michele for the encouragement notes, you guys are great, along with all of the one2one youth. I jumped up on stage and joined in with the band for the duration of the service. It was heaps of fun. For communion I played "Hope in You" and gave a small message throughout the bridge of the song. The remainder of the service was really good and in particular I found the sermon really profound. It was about Judas and what brought him to the point of betrayal. After the service we hung out with a bunch of the youth. We will definitely miss these guys.

Tomorrow we take the long drive back home, aware that this will probably be the last time we come back to Ballarat for a while.

Lakes Entrance part 2

Monday 15th March - Friday 19th March

Monday: This week was mostly about getting used to a routine. Sarah was working and so was I. I have decided to split my time between doing 3 hours of admin stuff and 3 hours of practice. Admin stuff incorporates everything from doing the blog (which takes a lot longer than you may realize), contacting churches and schools, meeting with people and a whole lot of other stuff. Practice is fairly self explanatory, however I have written up a practice routine to make sure I utilize my time as well as possible. I believe it is important for everyone to work and even though my work is technically unpaid our ministry won't run by itself and takes a lot of organizational work. Also I believe I owe it to all the people who have supported us so generously.

Monday night we moved to another house up the road where there is a little more room. The family we are staying with has two kids. They are all lots of fun, very generous and hospitable. We were greeted by the words "make yourselves at home, what’s mine is yours."

Tuesday: The family we are staying with got a kitten last night. It is so cute and so distracting. Both Sarah and I are doing work. As we get absolutely no reception here, the family have very generously said we can use their wireless internet and their computer. Of course the computer is in the same room as the kitten. I still think I got a fair amount of work done, it was just interspersed with playing with and cuddling the kitten.

Sarah is doing really well with her transcription and has been told that if she does ok today that tomorrow she can move to paid work. All of her files will still be proofread by someone else which means that Sarah will be on a lower rate, however it's worth it for the peace of mind.

One of the wonderful things about the house we are currently staying at is that not only can you see the ocean but you can hear it occasionally, especially as you go to sleep at night. We have been and will be frequently visiting the beach, going for relaxing strolls. Oh yeah, life is good.

Wednesday: Sarah started work today. She is doing really well. Trying to adjust to some of the various challenges but she's getting there. We will be picking up a package later today with some programs that will make various aspects of her work much easier. We are both really grateful that Sarah is finally able to start working and that we will have an income.

We went to a bible study tonight. We got to fellowship with a bunch of people from the church up here. The study was about tithe. We heard a lot of amazing testimonies about how God had come through for people just when they needed it. At the end of the study I shared my song “Surrender” with everyone.

Thursday: I finally began the process of putting my songs up on iTunes today. They will be processed in two to four weeks, so keep an eye out. One of the biggest issues I have had is playing somewhere and having people wanting to buy a CD but not having any money on them at the time. It will be such a relief to be able to say to people don't worry you can get it later on from home. In a number of situations I have just given the CD's away, especially when it comes to youth.

That afternoon we helped out with an event the church was running. The event was an Easter workshop. I helped out as a leader and Sarah started out as a leader but then suddenly got delegated the role of photographer. The workshop was great. There were a number of songs which the kids really got into, unfortunately leaders also had to attempt to dance and be silly, not massively my forte but I gave it a go. They also had a play and then some activities. My group’s activity involved colouring in these really cool fold-out things which told the Easter story. I took great pride in my colouring in. It was wonderful to see Sarah hovering around taking photos, she did a really great job.

That night the kids convinced us to go out riding with them. It was a lot of fun. They showed us around some of the paths and where they like to ride. Of course we came inevitably to a massive and steep hill. So I did the responsible thing of riding down as fast as I could, setting an excellent example for the kids. Don't worry I told them not to try what I was doing, because that stopped them. For the record I managed to get up to 59kph. We all had a lot of fun.

Friday: Today mostly involved a nice little seven hour drive from Lakes Entrance to Ballarat. Sarah was wonderful and did most of the driving as I was still feeling a little bit sick and needed to do a lot over the weekend. We arrived in Ballarat and were really grateful to have somewhere to stay. We chilled out that night and went to bed fairly early, ready for the big weekend that lay ahead.

Lakes Entrance part 1

Friday 12th March - Sunday 14th March

Friday: Today was the day that we would finally set off in the direction we had always planned on going. We were both exited and there was a great sense of anticipation as to what lay ahead. We packed up the camper, said goodbye to parents and set off for Lakes Entrance. We arrived at about 5:00 to a very full house. Including us there were ten people staying at the house at once. The people we were staying with were old friends and it was wonderful to see them again and catch up on two years of happenings. We knew we were only able to stay there for a few days and would need to find somewhere else to set up, however by this stage we had experienced enough of this sort of thing and we were not even remotely worried. We have learned to trust God and know that he has prepared the way for us, including were we will rest our heads at night.

We were invited along to the youth group that night so we went along. It was heaps of fun and Sarah and I spent much of our time connecting and meeting the youth who were running around and being generally crazy like youth are. I got asked to play a song so I played "Hope in You." It went down really well and everyone seemed to appreciate the song. After we heard a brief sermon I helped lead worship and was blown away watching all of the youth really get into it. We both had a great time.

Saturday: This morning I went to a men's breakfast. It was at a floating restaurant which was a very different experience. Again it was great opportunity to get to know a number of people from the church in a different environment. The meal was really nice too. One of the men got up and gave his testimony, it was really powerful. Sarah went and had breakfast with the women. She also had a good time getting to know everyone a little better.

We both chilled out on the beach for the afternoon. We did that because the beach is practically on our doorstep, oh yeah. Sarah had fun playing in the waves and I collected some really cool shells, mostly smooth broken ones with really strong colours. Later on I made some necklaces out of the shells and gave them to the young girls from the family we were staying with.

Sunday: This morning we went to Lakes Community Church. The first thing we noticed was that the seats were really far away from the stage. The reason being is that during worship everyone comes up the front dances around, sings and really gets into the worship. It was a pretty amazing thing to witness and be a part of. After the service everyone stayed and we all had lunch together and fellowshipped. When I say everyone stayed I’m not talking about five or ten people but more like around 50 people. It was a wonderful example of good community.

Visiting Home

Thursday 4th March - Friday 12th March

Thursday: After a few more days in Ballarat, spent mostly catching up with people, saying goodbyes and preparing to travel again, it was finally time to leave. We packed up the camper and began our journey onto the next destination. We were planning for this to be Lakes Entrance however we got a phone call that very quickly changed that. My brother and his wife who were expecting to have a baby in about two weeks had decided to induce the baby due to some complications with the pregnancy. I was going to become an uncle, a prospect which I was quite excited about. For this reason we decided to go back to Somerville first.

At this stage I was feeling sick, with a cold. We drove home only to have to stop five minutes away from our destination because the car had overheated. We made the last tiny little leg of the journey on the back of a tow truck. I should probably mention that we did one of those things that you know you just shouldn't do but you just don't think at the time. After the car started overheating we pulled over and had lunch to give the car a chance to cool down. After waiting 15-20 minutes I had the thought that maybe the car needed more water. I went to check and Sarah having heard the cars can spurt a bit of water suggested we put a cloth over it before we open it. I was having difficulty opening the water cap so Sarah had a go. It certainly opened or rather exploded everywhere. It was like a volcanic eruption of water and coolant as we ran away from the car as quickly as possible to a safe distance. Sarah got a little bit on her hand and although it stung it didn't leave any scolding. I had to improvise pulling the lid off one of my toolboxes to put water in it for Sarah to hold her hand in. The man from RACV was very kind and drove Sarah to the doctors where they gave her an ice-pack. I stayed with the car waiting for the tow truck. We are very grateful that neither of us got more seriously injured. My advice is: don't ever remove the water cap off a car that has just or recently overheated, just don't do it, it's stupid.

To end the day on a better note I got a call back from Wes Jay who I had sent my CD to. He said that it was great and that he had listened to it twice, which for someone as busy as Wes definitely means something. We proceeded to talk for close to an hour. He basically explained that he believed that I had enough musical training, songwriting ability and talent to make it as a professional musician. He said that I had a good voice but that he believed it could become much better and that he wanted me to get some high level lessons and focus on improving my voice. He exclaimed that he felt I was not ready yet for his level of promotion and that he wanted me to acquire more performance experience and learn to bring out myself in my music. He also said that I needed to work on my appearance. Not for self centered reasons but because the reality is that people will judge first on appearance and I shouldn't allow this become a stumbling block to people hearing the heart of what I have to say. Wes explained that if I can work on these things and improve that in a couple of years he would be interested in working with me. This is a massive encouragement to me and positive confirmation that I really could pursue a career as a professional musician, something that I had been seriously questioning for a while. I now feel that I have something to work to. I should explain that I will never be a career or money driven person, my life is committed to following God and loving others, but this has presented a whole new direction and forum for me to be able to do that.

Friday: At 2:30am Lila Kate Charlesworth was brought into the world. I have a little niece, daughter to my brother and it's the coolest thing ever. We went to the hospital and met her. She is so small and so cute. I really hope I can be a good uncle. Both parents and baby are healthy and it is wonderful the two doting parents care for their baby like they are long time naturals.

Sunday: We went to church this morning at St. Andrews. It was good to be at our home church seeing familiar faces. We were even lucky enough to back on the Sunday when some good friends of ours were having their baby baptised. We got up later in the service and shared some of what we had been doing in our time in Ballarat. After the service we had many conversations with friends as there was much to tell and much to catch up on.

Monday - Thursday: I spent most of this time catching up with friends and family, getting the car fixed and attempting to recover from my cold. We have come to realize that in future when we come back we definitely need to allow for two weeks as one week is nowhere enough time to catch up with all the people we want to see.

Sarah has spent most of this time working really hard at her new job. She is still in the mentoring process however it is going really well. Most of the issues she is coming across are specific formatting requirements directly related to the company she is working for. Otherwise it’s mostly computer related issues. It will be great when Sarah can be paid for her work.

We are both exited about getting back on the road and seeing what lies ahead on the journey.

Ballarat part 5

Monday 22 Feb to Sunday 28th Feb

Monday: The start of a new week. Things are rolling along quite nicely. In the morning I gave a guitar lesson to one of the musos from the Delacombe Uniting Church. In the afternoon I met with one of the pastors from York St Church of Christ to discus playing in the service on Sunday. In the evening I got in contact with the family I stayed with in Eden. They are living in Lakes Entrance now and are happy for us to stay with them for a little while. This means that we are definitely going to make Lakes Entrance our next destination. Beyond all this we are simply trying to recover from the camp over the weekend. It was fantastic but very tiring.

Tuesday: I went to do a radio interview this morning at Good News Radio. The interview was conducted by an amazing man named Jonathan Jones. He is both partially blind and deaf, as evidenced by our first meeting where he stood about a foot away from me to see who I was. He serves the radio station diligently and has a book about his journey which I am looking forward to reading. The interview went really well and I even played a few songs live on air.

Later in the day I spent some more time working on the water tank, we can get it to pump water but it still leaks. This has become a major frustration and we have tried a number of things to fix it. Today I got Adrian, who we are staying with to help me with it. We ended up threading a new brass piece with a bigger thread and surrounded even that with silicone. If that doesn't work I don't know what will. We will need to allow the silicone about 24 hours to dry so it will have to wait till tomorrow to see if it worked.

Wednesday: In case you are wondering what Sarah has been doing, she has been working hard at a job interview for a medical transcription company for the last three days. The interview is more like an exam and involves a number of different sections. Sarah must maintain a 95% or higher average. They take accuracy very seriously when dealing with the transcription of people's medical reports. Today Sarah has completed all of the tests and she is feeling confident that she will have passed. They have said it can take up to five business days to find out the results.

In other news for the day: THE TANK WORKS!!! It has finally stopped leaking!! This means that we can finally have running water in the camper. There are still plenty of other things to fix between the camper and the car but this was a big one and it feels great to have finally done it.

We went to Ballarat City Church at night to see more of the seminar "Laugh your way to a better marriage." Again it was very funny and insightful.

Thursday: Up to five business days my foot, Sarah got an email from the medical transcription company already offering her a job! She can start as soon as she has read through the paperwork. From there she will move into a mentored position. This is where she will be typing up real reports however a mentor will check over all of her work. Sarah can also ask her mentor any questions regarding the work. The work is unpaid however and they have said that this process can last between 1 - 3 months. Basically until Sarah's mentor decides that she is ready.

I got up early in the morning had some time of prayer, reflection and bible reading and in the midst of all of this a song began to form in my mind. I instantaneously had a concept, a few lyrics and a melody, however I proceeded to spend the following two hours of intense concentration trying to write all of the lyrics. It did not come easily. I was worried that it was going to be just as hard to put music to... five minutes later I had worked out all of the music. I am very proud of the song and it is the first one of the trip. The song is called "Without Excuse."

Today I bought a new pair of shoes. I'm sure this doesn't sound like much but for me it is a rare occasion. I only buy shoes about once every three years and that is only when my previous pair of shoes is so worn that they are on the verge of falling to pieces. I find that there is only one kind of shoe that is comfortable so I always buy the same ones. The lesson I learned today is that prices go up in the course of three years, significantly. In short the shoes were very expensive but hopefully they will last another three years. There you go you all now know one of the more strange facts about my personality.

Friday: Tonight we had been invited to play at Ballarat Christian Fellowship youth group for their "Godspot." We had a lot of fun watching them play a bunch of different messy, youthy kind of games. We even got included in a couple of the games. I am the "eating a donut off a piece of string without using your hands" king. Later in the night I got up and played for half an hour. It was difficult playing over a bunch of rowdy youth without a microphone or P.A. but I managed. I tried to get everyone into the songs with clapping along and singing along where possible. The reward of a free CD went a long way in holding everyone's attention. Victory Song went down the best. I also told a few stories and spoke some, hopefully, life imparting words. All in all it was a great night.

Saturday: Today I had the privilege of doing a photo shoot with a very talented photographer I have met up here named Buzz. We went mostly around the outskirts of town looking for good locations and we found a few. Unfortunately the weather was not ideal, showers and overcast made for really difficult conditions. Still we managed to get a number of great photos. Buzz will need some time to touch them up on that amazing program called Photoshop, you know, make me skinny and all that. Only kidding. I can't wait to see the end result.

That night Sarah and I went to Delacombe Uniting Church again. We shared some music and some fellowship. It was a good night and a great church, we will miss them lots. I also gave them the piece of artwork I had made from the log we cut off the branch that was overhanging the prayer labyrinth. It was a cross made out of slices of the oak log with three surrounding blocks of wood with "faith hope and love" carved into them and a small dove. They really appreciated it.

Sunday: Today was all about playing at York St Church of Christ, which is one of the biggest churches in Ballarat. It was also the last church I would play at in Ballarat, this time around anyway. I showed up in the morning to the church and they didn't have a bass player or guitarist so I ended up jumping in with the music team and playing guitar with the band for the morning service. Later in the service I got up and played "Hope in You." I spoke a little in the bridge, relating the song to the sermon. We got an excellent response, meeting a number of people after the service and selling a number of CD's. I will never cease to be amazed at the generosity of people towards what we are doing.

We came back for the evening service to play again. Concerned about time, it was a very full service, and being at the end of the service I tried to be much more brief in questions I was asked and I didn't talk throughout the bridge. I have learned a valuable lesson in this, as we didn't receive the same kind of response after that service as we did in the morning. It is so important to convey the heart of what we are doing as that is the thing people will most respond to. The service still went great and we met more people after the service.

Ballarat part 4 (One2one Youth Camp)

Friday 19 Feb - Sunday 21 Feb

One2one Youth Camp

Friday: We showed up at around 6:00pm to One2one Church of Christ to a large group of youth and leaders, most of whom we didn't know at all. Sarah and I packed our bags on the bus and began meeting people and being presented with a sea of names and faces we would hopefully remember by the end of the weekend. We proceeded to the destination on the "2 hour bus trip" (yeah right Nick) and were exited at what lay ahead. The camp site was beautiful and best of all, we got our own room with a personal en suite. Needless to say it still wasn't enough to block out the sound of a group of girls chatting and giggling to all hours of the night.

Saturday: I got up early in the morning to go practice the songs I would play and warm up my voice. After breakfast we did a morning session. I played a bunch of songs and taught everyone "Hope in You". I was surprised how well everyone picked it up and seemed to really enjoy it. After the music Nick did a talk and we broke off into groups. Sarah and I both joined various groups. A wonderful thing generally happens after I play, people tend to open up and become a lot easier to get to know and talk to. This was definitely no exception as we proceeded to get to know both youth and leaders really well from that point on. After lunch we did a variety of activities including flying fox, water slide, canoeing and swimming. We really appreciated a long activity time because it enabled us to engage in a number of really good conversations. That night, after dinner, we did a few more games including a really cool new one for us called Hiaki, which involves running, forgetting peoples names and hiding in trees and ditches. We were then treated to a fantastic band called No Greater Sky, all the way from Nashville Tennessee, USA. When we eventually got to bed we were exhausted.

Sunday: Had to get up early again to warm my very worn out vocal chords. After breakfast we did another morning session and I led the worship for the morning including what had now become an old favorite "Hope in You". After the morning festivities, which mostly involved watching a bunch of teenagers attempt to operate on no sleep, we had lunch, packed up and left for the long journey home. We arrived back for the One2one evening service, which we also really enjoyed. We went home and got some much needed rest.

We had an amazing time on this camp, made some wonderful new friends, both youth and leaders, and were touched by a number of people more than they may ever know. Can't wait for more experiences like this.

Ballarat part 3

Friday 11.2.10 - Thursday 18.2.10

Things in Ballarat are going great. As doors are opening for us to serve and play in a variety of different settings, we are beginning to see why we were called to come here.

Friday: This morning I went to meet with a man named Justin Gall. He is the music director of Kardina Christian Fellowship in Geelong as well as the guitarist from the band "Compliments of Gus". We discussed various aspects of the trip and listened briefly to a couple of songs off the album. Justin encouraged us in what we were doing, particularly in the fact that we were supporting ourselves along the way. After listening to some of the songs, Justin stated that he thought they were good but not up to radio standard. As I left he complimented us on what we are doing exclaiming that he believes it will be a difficult but rewarding road. Also, he recommended that we contact a man named Wes Jay, who helped them (Compliments of Gus) get off the ground. I left the meeting encouraged believing even more that our trip will only succeed if God is behind us and what we are doing.

Saturday: Today we went into the city to explore a little. We found a fairtrade cafe called, "The Bean Barn", which to anyone who knows us, this is a very exiting thing for us. We had guilt free hot chocolate and hedgehog slice. Sarah also took some wonderful photos of Ballarat which we have posted on facebook.
That evening we went to Delacombe Uniting Church. It was a small church of maybe about 15 people. We had previously met the pastor of the church earlier in the week. After explaining who we were and what we were doing he asked if we would like to come and teach some new songs to the congregation. At first it was slightly awkward, not knowing the congregation or the musicians choosing a song was quite difficult. I chose Brooke Fraser's "Soon" to introduce, which didn't go down amazingly well. However I played one of mine, "Fall into God", as an item and people seemed to respond a bit to that. It was difficult either way not to feel like I was some random person trying to impose my way of doing things on this church that didn't know me. After the service people left fairly quickly however we had enough time to find out when the next music rehearsal was on and I asked if I could join in. Everyone was very receptive to us but in such a small church it was fairly obvious that we would need to establish a bit more of a relationship and a foundation before we could have any kind of impact. When we got home we proceeded to plan out what churches we would visit for the remainder of our time at Ballarat.

Sunday: This was the day that God would show us that He had His own plans for us despite what we thought we were going to do.
In the morning we went to York Street Church of Christ. It is apparently the biggest church in Ballarat. We really enjoyed the service and found the teaching to be very profound and confronting (in a good way). After the service they asked if I could play at their 2nd morning and evening services the following fortnight. We were both pretty excited about being asked to play at the biggest church in Ballarat, not to mention a church we had developed a lot of respect for.
That night we went to One2One Church of Christ, another good service. After that service the Youth Pastor asked if I would be able to play at their youth camp the following weekend. This was another really exiting opportunity and another example that we could only plan so much and beyond that we just follow God's lead.

Monday: Sarah's Birthday!!! We spent the day chilling out and having fun, it was great. I took Sarah out for lunch at the Pancake Kitchen. This much must be said, the pancakes were deliciously evil and we were left feeling very bloated. Sarah really enjoyed the day, as did I.

Tuesday: In the morning I went to the music rehearsal for Delacombe Uniting. It was an excellent opportunity to get to know some of the team better and learn more about the church. We made some music together, had coffee and learned some new songs. Also I offered to give one of their musos some guitar lessons. Later that day I got a phone call from someone from Ballarat Christian College. We met up and talked for a bit about what Sarah and I were doing. He asked if I could come and play at the school the following day. It was a bit short notice but fortunately I like to improvise so I figured it wouldn't be a problem.

Wednesday: Today I played at Ballarat Christian College. It was a fantastic experience both teachers and students were friendly from the moment I set foot in the college. I set up and played for 30min for their Chapel service. The song to receive the biggest response of course was my arrangement of "The Climb". All of my originals were also really well received and I gave away a number of CD's. Afterward a number of students came up and chatted. I really enjoyed meeting them all, although I probably shouldn't have been encouraging them to be late to class. One of the students I met was named Steve and he invited me to play at Ballarat Christian Fellowship Youth Group's once a month open night service.


Thursday: In the morning we went down to Bunninyong Uniting Church and helped out with a working bee. The work we did revolved around helping to make a Prayer Labyrinth. The Prayer Labyrinth is a pathway that moves around in circles gradually bringing you into the center. At the center of the labyrinth is a large circle with a cross in the middle. The idea is that you pray as you follow the pathway and at all times you can see the cross at the center. It is designed to create a more meditative style of prayer. It is a very beautiful sight and I would highly recommend anyone in the area check it out, it's visible from the road. We helped out by digging through a dirt mound for rocks and moving those rocks into place in order to create a rock wall on one side of the Labyrinth. In the process of helping I cut a log of oak wood from an overhanging branch that was cut down. It is my intention to see if I can make some kind of artwork from the log for the church to use with the Labyrinth.

Later that day Sarah received her exam results. This was quite a momentous occasion as nearly 12 months of work had gone towards her course and these results would determine whether or not Sarah would be able to get work in the near future. This was obviously a crucial element to our trip and ministry. Sarah needed 85% or higher to pass (no pressure). I am proud to announce that she passed with honors 93% on one section and a staggering 98% on the other section. She was contacted almost immediately by the organization in order to send there congratulations and explain the further steps to acquiring work as a medical transcriptionist. I have to say that Sarah worked extremely hard to make this happen and I am so proud of her!!

The day didn't end there (it was a good day). After much effort and many attempts to fix our water tank we were finally able to get running water in our camper. We were so exited we made little boats in the sink. The tank still leaks a little but it's a big step in the right direction.

Ballarat part 2

Thursday 4th Feb to Thursday 11th Feb

Matt and I came back to Ballarat on Thursday 4th Feb. After a brief navigational error we found our way to Adrian and Aimee's house. They are so hospitable and nice. It is such a blessing to be staying at their house.

So we still didn't have much idea why we were here or what we were going to do. I had been struggling a lot with this, but Matt said that he really felt like God had something for us to do here, so I chose to trust and follow my husband, but truthfully, I didn't have the best attitude. Matt kept trying to contact people and churches, and we both started settling back in to life in the camper. We still didn't have running water, which is a bit of a bummer, and our attempts to fix that kept failing. Also, our car's boot wouldn't unlock, but these were all minor trivial things compared to the the constant overhanging question "why are we here?" We prayed about this and Matt really started feeling like we were hear to help unite the churches of Ballarat. I was like "Wow! That's a bit more than what we were expecting to do," so I was a little skeptical.

Sunday
Apart from that, nothing much really happened until Sunday. We went to Ballarat City Church (BCC) in the morning. The sermon was on having a vision. It was really relevant to us and what we were doing. Matt had actually met up with the pastor a few days before, and he mentioned what we were doing in his sermon. I really thought about what he said and thought about different people and events in the bible and how they related to our situation now. Often when people followed God things didn't turn out quite the way they expect (funnily enough I was expecting that because I know that's how God works, but I wasn't expecting it to be different in this way, so technically I still wasn't expecting it :P). I also thought about (and this was one of the Pastors points) how the people of God in the old testament had God rescue them from Egypt. God did everything for them, and then when they came to the land of Canaan it was their turn to actually do something and fight the people there, but they bailed out. They didn't trust that God would do a miracle, just like He had been doing this whole time. The start of this trip wasn't what I thought it would be, but God had brought us here, and even if it wasn't what I thought it would be, it didn't mean He wouldn't use us. Also, God seems to be calling us to do more in Ballarat than I thought we could ever possibly do, uniting churches...what? But nothing is too big for God, and if He wants to use us to be part of that then what an honor. I guess we will see what happens.

That night we went to York Street Church again. The sermon there was really great too, and I felt really encouraged. We met some more great people. When Matt and I prayed that night we really did feel like God was wanting to use us for something different than we thought. It seems like we're not here long enough for anything of any real significance to happen, but God has shown me time and time again that He can do a lot in a short amount of time.

Tuesday
I went to a woman's bible study, and Matt and I went to a prayer meeting at BCC. We got the opportunity to get to know some people a bit better, which we are feeling is a very vital part of what we're here to do. It had been hot for the past few days and we were both having a really hard time dealing with it. It gets SO hot in our camper, so there is no escape from the heat. We found ourselves down at Maccas in the air-conditioning eating 50cent cones. Then when we felt like we'd been there for long enough we went down town to find out about getting some work. Air-conditioning everywhere :). And we just happened to park outside the Anglican Diocese for Ballarat, so we went in there and got heaps of info about churches we can visit and potentially help. How randomly helpful.

Wednesday
Wednesday turned out to be more interesting than we'd first thought. On the way to get silicon, to attempt to fix our water tank and get running water, we walked past a Uniting church that advertised a free lunch for anyone who wanted to come. We thought that might be a good way to meet people in the church, so we went along. I was really nervous going in, I guess because I didn't know what to expect or if we were the sort of people the lunch was designed for, but in we went. We met the Reverend (named Adam) who was super friendly. He's trying something really different with the church. They've gone a bit alternative with their worship and the way they do church, they are really big on hospitality and different ways of reaching/helping people in the community, and they promoted fairtrade stuff. Basically, first impressions, I thought they were great. They have a church service on Saturday evening, and Adam invited Matt to come along to play and teach some stuff to the team -they only have a small team of musicians who are still learning, perfect setting for someone like Matt to come into. I'm going to be helping them with their lunches on Wednesday. I am really excited about this church, just as a church and about what we can do to be a blessing to them. So after that Matt dropped me off at the library and I went about my various things. I was enjoying looking outside at the heavy rain, wind, and lightning, what a blessing the rain was to our country. About 1 1/2 hrs later I'm on the phone to Matt who is informing me that our annex is falling down, things are getting flooded, our camper is leaking, and everything is wet. So Matt comes and picks me up and we do the best we can to save our annex and put collecting devices under all the leaks in our camper. It was nice in a way, being out in the rain bashing away and tent pegs and straightening polls; we had been so hot for so long. It was a relief from the heat. Our washing was hanging up everywhere and there were containers filled with water all over the place. Our bedding was all wet, everything looked cluttered and messy, and things were a bit difficult in general, but nothing too bad had happened. Things would dry, and all would be ok. We had a good laugh about a few things which made all the difference. We had dinner and headed off to a bible study at BCC. It was about marriage, really good. It was the pick-me-up we needed after such a hectic and wet afternoon.

Thursday
Today we've been mostly looking for work. Nothing yet, but we're not stressed. If God wants us to work while we are in Ballarat then we will, if not then we wont.

A lot has happened this week, and we are looking forward to seeing what else will come of our time here. We've connected with 4 churches, 3 denominations, and this is just our first week back.

Prayer points
-Coping with the heat
-Running water
-Continued understanding for what God wants us to do here
-Work (doors to be opened if that's what God wants)

Ballarat part 1

Our trip was originally planned to be very different from how it started out. We were going to head anticlockwise around Australia to mostly smaller towns and Churches where we had contacts. However, we ended up in Ballarat, a city-type town (population of about 100,000), clockwise from our starting position, where we had really no contacts. So kinda random but going with the flow. Since we had nowhere to stay at first we just booked in to the cheapest caravan park we could find -which I thought was actually pretty good; we got our own little toilet and shower. How great is that?

So here we were at the start of our trip in a big scary town not knowing anyone. I was still studying so Matt went about making all the phone calls and trying to make contact with people. He managed to get on the local Christian radio station twice (and tag me along the second time). He also met with a few people. Not much happened in that first week, but we got used to living in the camper which was good. Never has it been so much effort to do things. We have to put away EVERYTHING right after we use it. When I finish typing on this laptop I have to wind up the mouse and the lap top cable, put them in their proper place, pull out my USB internet and put that away, and put my laptop into the laptop bag which I also need to put in it's proper place. And making meals! Never has this been so difficult. So we are now living on the most basic food, which is actually really nice. Mostly just fruit, veg, and rice or bread. No oven. No microwave. Just a hotplate (which also needs to be taken out when needed) and pots. But we love it!

So back to Ballarat. We had someone we may have been able to stay with, but that kinda fell through, so we were meant to leave the caravan park the next day but we had nowhere to stay. I had the idea of just packing up anyway and leaving by the 10am checkout time and just seeing what God did, but I bailed out, and we just paid for a few more nights at the park. Well of course we got a phone call at about 9am the day we originally were going to check out, someone was offering us a place to stay. However, we couldn't get our money back so we ended up just staying at the caravan park. I was like "aarrrh, I should have known that was going to happen." I realize that I need more faith.

On Sunday we went to York Street Church of Christ and met some great people. We met a really nice couple named Adrian and Amy who have generously offered for us to stay with them. So when we come back we have a place to stay! We also went to a church that has just been renamed OneTwoOne (pretty sure that's right). We met a bunch of people our age, and they invited us to hang out with them that night which was random but really great.

We came back to Melbourne for the album launch and for me to do my final exams for my course. Concert was really fun, and I think the exam went well. I will find out on about the 16th February. For now, back to Ballarat.

Pray points
-More faith
-To be where we can help best

In The Beginning

The date to leave was set, 19th January 2010. We were determined. We just had to sell our cars, get a new car that could tow our pop-top camper, and pay off our camper with the money from our cars. So a week before we left non of that was done, but we were trusting God that He would come through. If this was really what God had called us to do then it would happen.

I was madly trying to finish my course, and Matt was running around getting everything else ready. He was starting to get pretty stressed about the whole car situation. Obviously we needed a car before we left. That was currently the only thing truly standing in the way of us leaving on time. All the money we had went into Matt's CD, so we didn't have much. There was always talk of a check coming out of nowhere from someone, but I really didn't think it would happen that way. However, at Christmas a couple in our Church had very generously given us $3,000. We were going to use this for our car, but we needed a little more; cars powerful enough to tow are generally a bit more than that. Time was running out, so we decided to see what we could get for that price. And wouldn't you know it, Matt found a 97 Ford Falcon for $3,500. It was just put on that night, so we went to see it the next day. We were pretty sure it would do the job (I know "pretty sure" isn't really what you want, but at that point we only had a few days). So we put a deposit on it. Later we found out that Ford Falcons are the best thing after a 4-wheel drive for towing. How's that! A few things still had to be fixed up on it, so the guy said we'd get it either Monday or Tuesday (Tuesday was the day we were leaving).

Monday 18th: We really wanted to pay off our camper before we left, but we had to sell the cars. Although it wasn't such a stress now that we had a car. A Christian couple who wanted to be missionaries came and looked at Matt's car. They were pretty keen, and we thought they were great. They were waiting for a check to clear and would let us know by tomorrow. We got our car that day (day before we left). Things were looking good.

Tuesday 19th: We got a call in the morning; the car was sold! That day we packed up everything we had a drove off on our journey. It was last minute, but God does that.

The Journey

The idea for this trip started many years ago when Matt was trying to figure out exactly what his future was going to look like. He knew he wanted to follow God and play music, but he was looking for direction on what that meant. One day, when Matt was going for a walk and praying about it, he got a vision; the terrain in front of him kept changing, and he had a guitar on his back, and I (Sarah) was with him. That was the very beginning, and somehow out of that we've started on this crazy journey around Australia to do ministry and help people and churches.

Our mission statement is "To serve people and draw them closer to God, and do everything in love for our Father."

This will look like different things in different places. It might mean helping a church start a youth group, or teaching music to a small music team who don't really know many Church songs. In some places it might even be as simple as baby sitting the pastor's/vicar's/minister's/whoever else's kids so that they can take their spouse out for dinner and have some time out. We're pretty open to anything. We feel called to the smaller churches in the smaller towns, but again, we'll go with where ever God leads us.

Matt has a strong desire to bless and challenge people with his music. We both believe this will be an crucial part of our ministry.

Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 2:9 "...we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you." Like Paul, we want to be able to do what God has called us to do and not charge people for it. I have just painstakingly completed a medical transcription course, which I can do over the internet anywhere in the world. This guarantees us a set income. Also, Matt repairs guitars. While Matt's is not a guaranteed income, it pays well and is something he can do where ever he is if there is a need for it. This means that we can play at churches and serve without expecting anything in return.

We realize that this will not be an easy thing to do. We are relying on God for just about everything, but our lives belong to God, and He has called us to something so much more exciting than we ever hoped for. Through Him we can do this. This is truly living life to the full.