Colourful Dreamer

just a very quick update the week before christams last year was spent with my family tamping around Lake Waikaremoana. Excellent! Christams services here at the mount, and then off to New plymouth for the rest of Christmas with Bonnie's parents. Then back in time for a freind from Levin (with a very nice new Alpha Romeo and navman technology) to come and spend a few days with us. Then New Years ar freinds and then down at the Mount. Very nice! We ahve a Swiss border, and his father came over and took him off touring in a noce Mercedes convertable. It was really nice to meet Rudolf. Michael and I then went off to the Colgate North Island Atheltics meet, where he ran in the 100, 200 and 400 14 year old age group. It was a great expereince except our van was broken into twice. Teh second time my laptop went so that has added to my silence. Tomorrow I am off to Dunedin for a Master block course on the Pastoral Function of Christian Doctine. I ahve been trying to read allteh I need to,

Was Jesus born in this Bethlehem spot? Was Jesus born in this Bethlehem spot? Not a nice stable at the back of an inn, but the animal end of an ordinary house-cave among the dung and the feed? Did Mary breathe deep, hold and push in this underground smoke darkened shrine? Did Joseph stand helpless among the men safe away from the blood, pain and tears around a fire warmed against the winter chill? Did the whenua of God lie on this star shaped spot where millions have prayed? Is it here God inhaled that life giving breath and exhaled that first joyful cry? I don’t know! And none of it matters… Unless Jesus is born in me this Christmas Unless I breathe life afresh with God Unless I leave the helpless men at the safe end of my cave and join the woman in the messy hand dirtying work of giving birth to God’s world today. I pray that this Christmas was a time of finding the life giving breathe of God in you, and those you love. May this new year be filled with God’s blessings and new challen