John Piper

Parking at the BCEC $15
Ticket $35
Hearing John Piper's message - priceless :)

Starting from:
Only one life that soon will pass
Only what's done for Christ will last
.. he spoke on the topic "Don't waste your life" - where a wasted life is one that doesn't reflect God's magnificence. My life should at all times magnify God to a world full of people who can't see him clearly (or at all) for their own sin and the broken world we live in. "To live is Christ and to die is gain" - God made me, he owns me, everything I am and have and do belongs to Him. My life should demonstrate that I consider God worth more than anything else - riches, food, rights, freedom, even my life.

Ok, so what does that look like in my life?

Well, I'm reflecting on my teaching. I have been learning over the last few years how to be a good teacher, and how to include God's priorities in my teaching - both topics and practice. But am I reflecting His glory in the way I teach, in the way I treat my students, in how I respond to dishonesty, misbehaviour, rudeness? Does my teaching show that I value God above my subject, above my own desires, above my job, above assessment items, above school rules, .. above everything else?

Hard questions. Watch this space. I know God can do miracles - as those who knew me as an arrogant teenager also know! What will God do with me next?

Prayer updates for Laetitia's heart surgery

Laetitia's heart surgery is scheduled for Thursday 22 September at Epworth Private Hospital in Richmond, Melbourne. We're going there because it's the only place in Australia where they offer robotic repair surgery. This will hopefully mean less trauma and therefore a quicker recovery than going through the front of the chest.

We know that God responds to the prayers of His people; we would love to have you praying for Laetitia. I will be posting updates about her progress through surgery and recovery to a blog I've set up called "Laetitia's Heart", at http://laetitias-heart.blogspot.com/. If you would like to receive these updates by email instead, you can do so from that blog page (or click here). You will receive a confirmation email address; respond as directed in that email, and you'll be subscribed.

Red Dog

Saw a movie tonight, thanks to a friend's generous gift of a pair of tickets. We chose Red Dog, and loved it. Very cute, sad, romantic, very Australian. Beautiful scenery and witty cinematography. And of course we now want a kelpie!

Highly recommended.

A busy semester

Well what can I say? Sorry it's been so long. It's been a very busy first semester.

As I wrote earlier, this year I'm teaching Year 11 and 12 Maths A, and Year 10, 11 and 12 Physics. The Physics classes are going much better this year, since it's now my second time around—especially since the start of term two (I only started teaching Year 12 Physics in term two last year). My revised and extended Year 10 Physics unit is definitely an improvement. I'm even collecting and marking the assignments electronically now. I wonder if I can figure out a way to get them to do their exams online too…?

I am missing the Year 10 Prep Maths A, though.

Other than that, I enjoyed my lecturing at CHC, although it was a lot of work. That's finished now; I didn't even have to create a supplementary exam! (Which is not the same as saying that all the students passed…)

So far this semester has been much less stressful. I hope it stays that way.