Passed!!

Good evening, my fair blog readers.

This blog brings us to the beginning of our final week of holidays before Semester 2 at Ridley begins.

We've had a blissful 5 weeks off so far, and have managed to find great ways to use it, including a trip to Philip Island with classmates, a road trip to Adelaide, and running a holiday program from kids at Wattle Park (eastern suburbs of Melbourne).

The best news of today is: We Passed Semester 1!!

This is great encouragement to both of us as we head into Semester 2, knowing a little more what to expect, and at the same time, knowing it might possibly get insanely busy!

This Semester our subjects are:

Stephen
New Testament introduction (part 2)
Old Testament introduction (part 2)
Early Church History
Greek

Sarah
New Testament introduction (part 2)
Old Testament introduction (part 2)
Intro to Theology
Gospel, Church and Australian Culture


As you can see, in a change from last Semester, we now only share 2/4 subjects - instead of 3. Sarah's Theology subject is specially tailored for Grad Dip students, because it assumes that they will not be studying any further and aims to give a broad overview of theological issues, etc.

Stephen has decided to enrol in Greek B at Melbourne School of Theology. This is for a few reasons, but mostly, will allow him to go over material he has learned, to consolidate it, and still be able to finish Greek by the end of the year.

News on Sarah's front is regarding decisions for 2013....(me speaking now!) I have found the subject matter that I have been learning to be life-changing, having deepened my faith and understanding of God, and would love to put this new-found knowledge to use in some way. During a subject last semester, we were assigned the task of putting together a 3-5 year plan for the future in regards to ministry. In thinking about this, and coupled with my enthusiasm for what I'm learning, and my desire to pass it on/use it in some way, I decided that I would like to do a practical apprenticeship in an area of ministry to see if this would be a possible future occupation for me. So, I've been speaking to campus directors at various university campuses around Melbourne to pursue the possibility of a 2 year traineeship with AFES (Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students). The talks have been great, and I've got one more to go before I decide which campus to do the traineeship.

These traineeship positions require self-funding, so expect to hear more about that in future blog posts - for now, please see the prayer points below related to this exciting development!

In other news, we've both secured some form of paid employment. Stephen is working casually at the local Video Ezy (yay! cheap movies!) and Sarah is doing some marketing work for the Melbourne Mission Week in September. This income has actually been very helpful in getting us through some of the extra spending that holidays bring, as well as every day bills and expenses.

Also, this week, we begin a Marriage Course being held at St Jude's on Tuesday nights for the next 2 months. No need to panic - things are fine! But we thought this would be a great opportunity to have a marriage 'tune-up' and reminder about the important ways to look after our marriage, so that we love each other fully and glorify God in our relationship.

And now for the most important part of this blog!

Please praise God with us for:
- Academic success in Semester 1 (passing!) and, more importantly, the knowledge we've gained, and opportunities to use this knowledge.
- The long but productive break from study that we've both enjoyed.
- Safe travel during the breaks
- His daily provision of everything that we need!

Please pray with us for:
- Wisdom and direction for Sarah, as she makes ministry plans for next year
- Focus in Semester 2, as we will be busier than the first semester, but with equal amounts of study to be done!
- Stephen's continual learning of Greek, that this knowledge would sink in and he would gain confidence by switching to MST for this subject.


 

Exams done!!

Thanks for your prayers and support over the last two weeks, as Stephen and I have been studying for and writing exams.

The official season ended at 12pm today when I, Sarah, finished my exam for the Fourth Gospel subject.

We're pretty tired, but pleased to have gotten through, and even more pleased that we learned stuff - moreso, God taught us stuff! Now to make sure it sinks past our shoulders and into our hearts, that's the main thing!!

I'll probably do a more detailed post tomorrow (would love to share some stuff I learned!) but for now, here is a picture of a happy post-exam face:

Exam Week Starts Now!

Dear friends,

The week has arrived. Exams!
All the learning, studying and discussion over the last 12 weeks culminates in this week.

Those of you on Facebook would already know this, from the astronomical rise in the number of inane procrastinative and study-related status which spewed forth from our profiles. For this, we are kind of sorry.

With the aid of a study scheduler that has been 80% successfull, and 95% effective for Sarah, and desire to learn and pass for Stephen, we've spent a solid 7 days holed up at home/in the library, consolidating what we learned.

I (Sarah) can only speak for myself, but I think this status says it all;

Sarah Urmston

Feeling mildly prepared. Not under prepared. Not over prepared. Not quite adequately prepared. Just mildly prepared for now.

Our exam schedule is thus:


Tuesday: New Testament (Stephen and Sarah).
10am-12pm: 3 questions.

Wednesday: Evangelism (Stephen and Sarah)
9.30am - 12.45pm: Oral presentation & written questions.

Thursday: Old Testament (Stephen and Sarah)
10am - 12pm: Three questions.

Friday: Gospel of John (Sarah)
10am - 12pm: 2 exegesis + 1 theological question.

Please pray for:
Good health
Clear thinking
A good memory!
Remembering that the goal is to transform our hearts, and equip us for ministry, rather than feel puffed up with knowledge and pride!
We'd love to pass....really!!

Thank you for all your support and prayers through this Semester. We're so pleased to have made it this far, and amazed at all that God is teaching us through our short time at Ridley so far, and looking forward to more (after a holiday of course!!). 

Some pictorial evidence of the effect of exams....

Everything seems ok....

Oops...hit a roadblock that can only be solved by getting REALLY close to the text...

Nothing to worry about here folks, just studying away...

Wait...what....they start the day after tomorrow???!!!

 

May May May

Hello our bloggity blog friends!

We hope you're all keeping warm and well as winter well and truly winds its way into our midst.

A lot can happen in a month! And here's where it's at:

Ridley
It's a pointy end of semester, having just completed week 11/12!
Tomorrow, Sarah has her final classes for Gospel of John and then we roll into our final week of Semester 1, 2012.
Following this is a week of SWOT VAC for some mad exam revision time, after which come the EXAMS. As you may have already guessed, this is a big prayer point! But more on those later (just to keep the suspense going....)

Apart from classes, Stephen and I have continued to be involved in other ways at Ridley. Most notably at the moment is Stephen's role on the Ridley Student Committee (RSC) as First Year Rep and Social organising person. He's organised a 'Studying Well Encouragement Lunch' for during swot week, as well as a 'Celebrate End of Exams' with a night at a local pub (which also has karaoke. But that's totally unrelated...).

Sarah is currently tossing up whether to do four subjects next semester...or three. Another prayer point for the list! One of the considerations is the workload. Being the possibly only year I'll spend at Ridley (unless God opens other doors), I really want to make the most of what I'm learning, and enjoy time and space for it to sink in. Cutting back to three subjects may be a solution to ensuring this happens. But on the other hand, there is a tidy 'finality' to finishing the Grad Dip in a year and not having any further subjects to do... If anyone reading has wisdom, please do leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Church
Last blog, we talked about how we were finding our time at St Jude's, Carlton. Since then, we have visited their church plant which meets at Ridley, St Jude's Parkville. Of the two times we've attended so far, we have found the community to be very warm and friendly, and have felt that this church seems to be a natural fit for us. Of course, there are plenty of families around - many with very young children - which means there is opportunity for growth in the children's ministry. Being a church plant, there are also many opportunities to serve as needed.

Other
We had a wonderful time in Adelaide on the mid-semester break, and while the time was busy catching up and travelling from one end of Adelaide to the other some days (literally! Hallett Cove to Andrews Farm!) we so enjoyed being in what I call the prettiest city we know!

Not long after that, Stephen celebrated his 29th birthday on 28 April. We spent the day at the Ridley graduation ceremony - not ours! We were invited to play/sing in the band. It was also the debut performance of our acapella quartet, and our performance was warmly received! Following graduation we enjoyed dinner with Stephen's family at a family favourite restaurant - Lazy Moe's.

Our house-sharing situation continues to be a great one, and we're really enjoying getting to know Chris and Gill better, being on the receiving end of their culinary flair and having good chat when there's procrastination in the air!

Until recently we had a visitor staying in our home....of the small, furry and squeaky variety. Yes! A mouse! This update from Chris and Gill's blog shows the announcement of its arrival (http://www.porterblepeople.com/2012/04/cold-weather-sets-in/) while this one describes its defeat, at the hands (or should I say the feet?) of Chris' well-timed kick - http://www.porterblepeople.com/2012/05/vermin/. We're glad to have such brave and valiant housemates.

A few weeks ago Sarah also enjoyed an afternoon at the netball with the Urmston girls (plus Chris, Ellice's husband). The game was close the whole way through, and the buzz of the crowd when the Melbourne girls got in front in the last 30 seconds was amazing! 

Finally, and certainly not leastly, Stephen and I were overjoyed to meet our niece, Emily Patricia Cowl, who was born to Ellice and Chris, on the afternoon of 16 May, 2012. We were so privileged to be able to see her and mum and dad just a few hours after she was born. I may have shed a tear or two upon seeing this gorgeous newborn. We praise God for a safe delivery, for the health of Emily, and pray for the speedy recovery of Ellice, and for both Ellice and Chris as they adjust to their new 'normal' - being parents!

Please praise God with us for;
- making it this far during Semester! The wonderful friends we've made at Ridley and the encouragement we receive there.
- Ridley College, and its commitment to encouraging students to be formed by God's word, both in head and heart.
- Emily Cowl's arrival into this world, for the staff at the hospital who delivered her, the support of Chris (husband) and Chrissy (sister) of Ellice, and celebrating the joy of new life.
- Mutually enjoyed living arrangements with Chris and Gill, and their friendship.

Please pray with us for;
- Exam preparation. Pray that we would use the time we have wisely and God would calm our hearts and help us to revise what we've learned.
- Starting to attend St Jude's at Parkville, that we may serve the community, and fit in quickly.
- Ridley College, new staff are sought and other staff are farewelled.
- For wisdom for Sarah, to decide on how many subjects to enrol in next semester.

An update of late proportions. Introducing; April Update!

Dear friends,
We come before you to humbly confess that we have been negligent. We have failed to love you through communicating via this blog as we should have. Accept our confession and grant us the reprieve of your reading eyes, thoughts and prayers once again.

Whew! With that out of the way (we really are sorry about the delay!) let's get on with the task and share with you where things are at.

Ridley
Can you believe that we have already had 7 weeks of class? Insane!
In that 7 weeks we have written and submitted our essays for our New Testament class, and I, Sarah, have also written and handed up an exegesis essay for my Gospel of John class - focussing on ch13:5-15 (the footwashing). Now, our attention turns to yet another essay, this time for Old Testament, which is due on 19 April.

We are still loving being at Ridley and being a part of the community within.

One of my favourite times of day is Wednesday lunchtime. There's no officially 'community lunch' in the dining hall, like there is on Tuesday and Thursdays. But, head into the Student Lounge, and it's hard to get a seat at the table, because of the great bunch of (mainly) first years, who sit down and chat and reflect. It's really wonderful.
Recently, one of our classmates organised an afternoon picnic across the road at a park. It was very casual, but a very fun time of relaxing and chilling out over food, on a picnic blanket, enjoying the delicious weather that Melbourne has been offering to us (thanks God!).

Another highlight was the recent Chapel service, held in 'hip hop' style. Every Tue-Thur, the College community meets from 9.50am - 10.50am for a Chapel service. There is a group of students doing a subject called 'Christian Worship'. Every so often, they take control of Wednesday's chapel service, at do the service in a particular style, or with a particular theme. Congregational singing was replaced with congregational rapping, and 'Amen' was replaced with 'Word!', among other things. It was good to try something different!

We've also been getting to know some of our classmates over meals, which I have now dubbed 'Friday Friendship Meals'. What better thing to do on a Friday night than to relax over food, and get to know people better, and maybe even play a board game or something. I'm hoping it's a tradition we'll definitely continue!

Church
We have been attending St Jude's church, in Carlton, the 11am service, since we moved to Melbourne. We're keen to get to know people, have been attending a fortnightly homegroup and at the moment are considering how we might serve the congregation in the near future.
As great as the people at St Jude's are, we are finding the transition somewhat difficult. We blame Trinity Bay for this, in every good way! Our time at the Bay was very special, and we were very quickly integrated into the congregation, and from very early on, we had a wonderful sense of belonging, and of community. We got to know people over shared meals after the service and other mid-week activities. One factor for this was that, when we entered the community, Stephen had a role on staff, and a special one at that, of directing the learning times for the children. In that sense, there's a natural progression of integration. The other factor, we believe, is that the people at the Bay had been well-trained for a culture of welcome, particularly of hospitality, and this shone through.
St Jude's is a very differently shaped community and church. I'm being careful not to compare, or hold one congregation up and better than the other - naturally human bias will make this impossible, so I do acknowledge it. But I believe that it's because we had such an amazing experience at the Bay, that there is some difficulty, on our part, to grow to love St Jude's, as we did the Bay. The integration is far far slower than we would like, and this is really causing us to struggle. For this reason, please keep us in your prayers especially on this point, as we accept God's timing and wait upon him.

Other
God has been incredibly gracious to us, in making this transition so smooth. We feel privileged to be living where we are (Coburg), sharing with great housemates, being set apart from full time work for awhile to be able to study, and getting to know people in this city.

It's great to be close to Stephen's family, and exciting times are just around the corner, with our niece/nephew due on 2 May! Ellice (Stephen's sister) and Chris had a baby shower a couple Sundays ago, and I (Sarah), had a great time attending, participating in the games, and staring at Ellice's gorgeous belly, in awe that we'll soon be meeting this new life within. Amazing.

As I write this, I'm sitting in the campervan at Belgrave Heights, at their annual Easter Convention. This is a convention that has shaped and formed Stephen's faith and growth in knowledge and love of God, as his family would come up every year for Easter and Christmas. I love sharing in this tradition, and the fact that we're now only 50 minutes away (not 7 hours!). The teaching here is excellent, thought and heart provoking, the singing is hearty and heartfelt and the surroundings tranquil (if not a wee bit breezy today!!), and a great time to unwind and focus our thoughts on Jesus, this Good Friday.

On Easter Sunday, we will jump in the car and be on our way to Adelaide of a week-long getaway and reunion with my family, our church family and other friends.

Ps - when I'm back in reach of a PC, I'll post some photos as well, for those of you for whom this block of text really was a block to push through! And, pictures are more fun, anyway!

Please pray with us for;
- Continued diligence in completing assignments, whilst keeping up with the ongoing reading and requirements.
- Stephen, to work out a good study routine, and be able to focus on his study for appropriate lengths of time.
- Sarah, as she considers, in light of what she's learning, how she might continue to serve God next year, and whether investigations into full time ministry, of some sort, could be on the cards.
- Continued faith and trust in God and his provision, to follow his lead one step at a time.
- Patience with church, and community, and that God would show us what we are to do.

Please praise God with us for;
- His care for us over the semester so far, that we have been able to learn, listen, and complete assignments on time!
- The joy and privilege of being close to Stephen's family, and for the impending arrival of our niece/nephew.
- The gift of his Son, who so loved the world that rebelled against him, that he made the ultimate sacrifice for sins, that we, along with all of God's creation, could be redeemed into a loving relationship with our Heavenly Father.
- The caring staff at Ridley, and the community, in which we feel so blessed to be a part of, and the work God is doing in people's hearts and minds through the College.

Marching on....

Dear friends,

Here we are, at the start, nearing the middle, of March.

Study
For Stephen and I, it's the end of Week 3 of College. (Excepting the three weeks of intensive Greek Stephen has already completed).

Our first assignment, an essay for New Testament will be due on a couple of short weeks. (Hence why I'm now writing a blog post. What better way to procrastinate let the creative juices flow?).


On Monday Stephen sat his Greek exam (end of Semester 1 exam). Thanks for those who have been able to pray for him. He's been working hard, and we're delighted that his efforts have paid off - he passed, and passed very well!

On Friday and Saturday last week I (Sarah) had classes for my fourth subject - Gospel of John. The class ran from 9am - 5pm on both days. I have another two weekends like that. The course shape is called an 'extensive', so rather than weekly classes, or three weeks of one subject, it's spread out through the semester. While I came home utterly zonked on Saturday evening, it was a good way to soak up the subject matter and get some good theological and exegetical discussions going. (See, I'm at College, I can use those big words now!!)

On a personal reflection note - Sarah - while I didn't come into study with a particular ministry goal, I'm absolutely loving what I'm learning. I'm also appreciating more fully what a unique opportunity this is, to spend 12 months devoted to learning more about God's Word. I'm somewhat surprised at just how excited I am. I don't think I was expecting to love it this much - but I do. And thank God for that!

Church
We started home groups a couple of weeks ago. As the group meets fortnightly, we're looking to join another group in the alternate weeks as well, to ensure we have weekly fellowship and encouragement, and get to know more people from the 11am congregation.

General
The biggest news so far is that Centrelink have approved our applications and, praise God, we have received our first payment. Sarah's payments have begun straight away; Stephen's are subject to a waiting period. But at least we now have money for rent! Always a good thing.

Again, feeling the sting of being far away from close friends and family is going to be a recurrent theme. On of Sarah's close friends celebrated her engagement last Saturday night, and it was hard to miss that.

Please praise God for:
- Provision of Centrelink payments.
- What he is teaching us through our classes at Ridley and the richness of this learning.
- Sarah's enjoyment and excitement at learning big words, and what God has to teach her through them!
- Continuing integration into St Jude's community.

Prayer points:
- Diligence with study, especially for planning essays and exams.
- Comfort in times when we miss family and friends, and some of the important occasions in life we can't be there for.
- Making a decision about home group, that God would make it clear to us where to go.

Mid Feb update

Dear friends,

Well, time keeps flying by. 20 Feb has arrived and with it, the start of semester one at Ridley.

So, what have we been up to?

Church
On 12 February, we were officially welcomed to the 11am community at St Jude's. It was actually nice to be pointed out as 'newbies', as it afforded people the opportunity to come up and have the 'so, you're new!' conversations. The service was followed by lunch on Lygon St, where we enjoyed getting to know more people.

Connected to this, we attended out first home group on Thursday night (16th). It's a young adult (or young adult at heart) group and we spent the time sharing dinner and getting to know each other. Of course, this couldn't happen without the good old 'Two Truths and a Lie' game. I found it more fun to think up three lies, personally!! This home group meets fortnightly, so this Thursday we'll attend another homegroup to be part of in the alternate weeks.

Ridley
While today marks the first day of Semester One, it also marks the end of the Greek A Intensive, which Stephen had been doing. He still has a couple of classes before a end of 'semester' test on Monday 5 March. This is a big prayer point, especially as he now needs to juggle 3 other subjects and still keep his Greek practice going daily.

For this semester, Stephen's subjects are; Greek, Old Testament, New Testament & Evangelism & Ministry Foundations.

Sarah is doing Old Testament, New Testament, Evangelism & Ministry Foundations and a Gospel of John extensive. Extensives are held over 3 weekends.

We have also just come back from Launch Camp, where ourselves and 70 other students + faculty spent time meeting each other, sharing meals, and hearing talks from the faculty about what we can expect at Ridley and some of its values and aims.

It was a fantastic time, in the beautiful setting of Upper Plenty Conference Centre. We did laugh that we ended up sharing, not just the same lodge, but WALL as our housemates. Clearly God wants us to get to know each other quite well!!

We're so pleased about what we heard on the weekend. The returning students were very generous in their praise of the College, in particular, the emphasis that's placed on community life and the integration between academic studies and personal transformation. We're excited about what God is going to teach us through our subjects and look forward to experiencing and contributing to the community life at Ridley through Chapel and shared lunches, prayer triplets and other student activities.

General
Overall we're settling in well. I (Sarah) have enjoyed filling in for Stephen's sister's netball team and having time to organise the house and write blog posts! But also very much looking forward to my first class tomorrow!!

On another note, we had to resubmit some paperwork to Centrelink after it apparently appeared in a black hole. This has further delayed the outcome of our application for financial support for another 2 weeks. We'd like to think we're reasonably patient people and this is certainly testing that belief!!

Please praise God for:
- Settling in well to St Jude's community, enjoying home group and meeting new people.
- The values of Ridley College, the excellent launch camp and our excitement to begin full semester together.
- This opportunity to spend time getting immersed in God's Word, studying it and allowing it to transform our lives.

Prayer points:
- Stephen's Greek exam on Monday 5 March.
- Patience with Centrelink!
- Diligence with study, especially for planning essays and exams.