On being a transparent freak of nature..

Today I am quite tired from being uncomfortable when trying to sleep, the baby doing circus-like acrobatics all night and then me waking up hungry, trying to go back to sleep and then finally succumbing to the need and going to get some cereal (see point 1 under excited by). Tom claims to be even more so due to my pregnancy-worsened snoring which has developed into something resembling a low-flying aircraft from the way it was described this morning! I think it's to the spare room with him!

I also have a gazillion thoughts to process, which means that this has now been re-written 3 times. Too much going on inside my head! Here's a condensed summarised  version...

Excited by:

1. my re-found love of Special K red berries cereal - bought haphazardly because it was on special offer and now making a welcome return to regular purchasing.

2. our housegroup: last night a select, very special few went out to the train station in the city centre to give out free cups of tea and coffee to taxi drivers (I stayed in due to knackeredness). they had a great time and met the people who God gave them pictures of beforehand and chatted with them. Most of the taxi drivers around last night seemed to be muslim believers and cool conversations about God were had. So good.

3. autumn freshness and crunchy leaves to walk through

4. being on maternity leave

Challenged by:

1. the notion once again of God's utter reality, that although theologically he is with us, that he actually REALLY IS WITH US, here, right now, interacting, challenging, loving, changing. really. here.now. ask him and i'm sure he'll let you know!

2. the subsequent consequences in my life of this being reality.

3. a talk by Rob Bell that I just listened to about being who God made us to be, even if that means challenging the norm and pushing for what other people might not want and being truly authentic, transparent and the freak of nature God made us each individually to be. My favourite phrase of his talk was 'are you smoking what you're selling?'

I like that phrase. How can we tell possibly conceive of telling people of a loving God when we don't know we're loved; or a healing God when we've never let ourselves be exposed to his healing; or a God of grace and mercy when we beat ourselves up; or a God of Life when we aren't free? Clearly everything is a process and we're never going to have it all totally figured, but we can at least be on the road. 

So an exciting and challenging day of thinking and living and interacting ahead. I'm off to go swimming - and it's only 11am!!