Is He Listening

http://odb.org/2016/01/04/is-he-listening-2/

Christingle

On Wednesday we attended Dylan's school Christingle service which was most disappointing, it was held in the parish and led by the parish priest.

It was pure chaos, very disappointing, children were screaming, parents were talking, it was crowded and u couldn't see anything and it went on much too long.

I love Christingle services and was most disappointed.

Miracle on 34th Street - Week 4

On Tuesday it was our final Bible Study based on Miracle on 34th Street, I found the discussion and the presentation much better, thoroughly enjoyed the evening.

Harvest Festival

Harvest Festival is a celebration of the food grown on the land.
Thanksgiving ceremonies and celebrations for a successful harvest are both worldwide and very ancient. In Britain, we have given thanks for successful harvests since pagan times. We celebrate this day by singing, praying and decorating our churches with baskets of fruit and food in a festival known as 'Harvest Festival', usually during the month of September.

Harvest Festival reminds Christians of all the good things God gives them. This makes them want to share with others who are not so fortunate. In schools and in Churches, people bring food from home to a Harvest Festival Service. After the service, the food that has been put on display is usually made into parcels and given to people in need.
.

When is Harvest Festival?

Harvest festivals are traditionally held on or near the Sunday of the Harvest Moon. This is the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumn equinox (about Sept. 23). In two years out of three, the Harvest Moon comes in September, but in some years it occurs in October.
Unlike the USA and Canada, the UK does not have a national holiday for Harvest Festival.
The harvest festival of the Jewish religion is called Sukkot or 'Feast of Ingathering' or 'the 'Feast of Tabernacles'. It is celebrated at the end of the year, after Rosh Hoshanah, the third of the great Annual Festivals.

Why is there a need for foodbanks?

The Trussell Trust runs a network of over 300 church-led foodbanks which provide emergency food to people in crisis, and signpost people to other services able to help them address the underlying cause of the problem.
Redundancy, sickness, reduced working hours, benefit delays and domestic violence are just some of the reasons people turn to UK foodbanks.
Recently, squeezed incomes and rising living costs have caused more people across the UK to struggle to make ends meet, and The Trussell Trust is concerned that April’s proposed welfare and tax reforms will see numbers needing emergency food increase further. We’ve just launched an urgent Easter Appeal to help meet the anticipated demand.
We’re already seeing families whose incomes are stretched to breaking point turn to foodbanks because they cannot afford food. Almost five million people are in food poverty in the UK, and any further rises in prices or reductions in incomes will hit people in poverty hard. Numbers helped by Trussell Trust foodbanks are expected to top 300,000 this financial year, and April’s tax and welfare reforms will squeeze finances even further, making it easier for people to hit a crisis that forces them to go hungry.
There’s a misconception that UK hunger is about homelessness, but the reality is that one in every five UK mums regularly skips meals to feed her children, and less than five per cent of foodbank clients are homeless. Foodbanks are seeing working people come in on their lunch breaks.
Recent research commissioned by Kellogg’s shows that the UK’s poorest are spending nearly 25 per cent of their income on food, and that people are spending 20 per cent more on food than five years ago – but eating seven per cent less. Many of the poorest have cut back on fruit (20%) and vegetables (12%) to make ends meet.
The Trussell Trust partners with local churches and communities to run foodbanks providing three days’ emergency food to people in crisis. The Trust is also working hard to raise the profile of UK hunger, especially amongst policy-makers, so that the public and politicians of all parties are informed of the reality of UK food poverty.

Answer to a Prayer

Within a 2 week period the following occurred and i consider it amazing and the answer to a prayer.

Me - 2 New Jobs - Sunnymead Holiday Park and KH Homecare
Steven - Job at Goblins Pantry
Andy - Job at Manor Park
Micheal - Agency work potentially leading to a permanent Job
Hana - 3 Interviews and offered all of the Jobs.
Jon - Job at Norse, temporary and could lead to something more permanent.

If this is not God working for us i do not know what is.

The Judas Tree

In Hell there grew a Judas Tree
Where Judas hanged and died
Because he could not bear to see
His master crucified
Our Lord descended into Hell
And found his Judas there
For ever haning on the tree
Grown from his own despair
So Jesus cut his Judas down
And took him in his arms
"It was for this I came" he said
"And not to do you harm
My Father gave me twelve good men
And all of them I kept
Though one betrayed and one denied
Some fled and others slept
In three days' time I must return
To make the others glad
But first I had to come to Hell
And share the death you had
My tree will grow in place of yours
Its roots lie here as well
There is no final victory
Without this soul from Hell"
So when we all condemned him
As of every traitor worst
Remember that of all his men
Our Lord forgave him first

D. Ruth Etchells

Difficulties

Thursday 8^th November 2012

My quality of life and living is so  bad I don’t know what to do or where to turn.

Knees and Hip - I am in constant pain in my knees and left hip, at times my legs become hot and throbbing like they are on fire and running a temperature on their own.

Mobility and Balance - I have little mobility every movement is stiff and painful, my balance is very precarious and I am always bumping into things, tripping over and nearly falling over.

Right Hand - I often have very painful numb tingling right hand, which leads to pain in my right arm and shoulder, this can be caused by repetitive jobs like sewing, ironing etc and is often bad during the night.

Weight  - I am seriously overweight, and nothing seems to work, I have fought this battle for many years with little help and support.

Exercise – You need to exercise to lose weight, but the more exercise I do the more pain I am in, and the pain could last for several days.

Cold – I get very cold, this could be because we have no central heating.  But when the pain is at its worse I get very cold.

Teeth - I have broken, falling out teeth which makes my mouth uncomfortable, as well as making me self conscious about my appearance. We just can’t afford the dentist and I am nervous of attending.

Exhaustion – I am completely worn out and exhausted, I have never felt this tired.

Depression – I am depressed and lonely, I am miserable, lethargic and cannot concentrate, tears, anger and frustration are becoming part of every day life, I lack coping skills, I miss doing the things I used to like going for walks.

Doctors – I know I should go to the Doctors more, but am afraid to do so.

Home – I have a lot of difficulty getting up and down the steps to get in and out of home, I put off going out, because I know I will have to go up the steps again. To manage the steps I lean heavily on the step rail and when it is wet, it is very slippery and is an accident waiting to happen.  I also have difficulty opening the van door when holding a bag. It is a long walk to get to the shops, it is too much for me.  The Council will not house us as we are too young and have no dependants.

Work – Work is a struggle, some days I do not know how to cope with the pain and agony and getting through the day is a trial.  I suffer badly when I get home from work, and the pain lasts for several hours after work and at times can last for days.

Finance – We are living below the breadline, we cannot afford to realistically live and are not entitled to benefits, either housing or income support.

Potential solutions

Give up work – I enjoy work it keeps me active gives me purpose, I meet people – alternative sit at home feeling sorry for myself and my worse nightmare watching daytime TV, however financially we just could not cope.

Faith – Put my Difficulties in Gods hands, through prayer and Faith.  This is what I want to do and should do, but I find this difficult when coping with the here and now. However, it does not undermine my commitment to my Faith.

To sum it up

Why Live when my quality of life is non existant and there is not likely to be any improvement.

As part of my morning routine I take the following Supplements

Soluable Vitamin C

Multivitamins

Glucomsomine Sulphate

Cod Liver Oil

Vitamin D

Apple Cider Vinegar

Prescribed Medication

Naproxen 500mg

Co-Codamol 500mg (Solpadol) as and when needed

Footprints in the Sand

My favourite reading

Recipe for Life

Church this morning was by Keith Kirkham form King's Lynn Baptist Church.

During the family talk he illustrated that like cooking Life needed a recipe/instruction book, and the Bible is an instruction book for life

BIBLE

B = Basic
I  = Instruction
B = Before
L = Leaving
E = Earth

1tsp

Today
Start
Praying

Keep in mind 3 things when starting to pray.

Thank-you
Sorry
Please

Holiday at The Oakes

Sophie, my 12 year old grandaugher, has Dyspraxia, including verbal Dyspraxia, and so with the support of Jean and Andrew we encouraged her to go to The Oakes Holiday Centre, with me going as her carer and support network.


Monday 27^th August

This morning I went to work, I left early at 2pm, to get ready to take Sophie to the Oakes Holiday Centre.

Andrew and Jean Holland, collected us at 3.30pm in the Docking Community mini bus, with Courtney  (Monica Burtons Granddaughter) and Jude and our only boy JJ, we stopped at Wisbech to pick up another girl Lucy.

After an uneventful journey we arrived at The Oakes just past 7pm.   We were shown our room,  Sophie had a bunk in a 6 bed en suite room with Courtney and Jude.  I was the only person in a twin bedded en suite room complete with kettle, mugs, tea, coffee, hot chocolate and biscuits, as well as ear plugs.

We unpacked and the girls introduced themselves to other room mates, then we went to the dining room  and enjoyed Pizza for tea.

The theme of the holiday is the Olympics, surprise surprise, where they could win Bronze, Silver and Gold Medals, they were put into teams.

There were 4 teams

Spain

Brazil

Australia

Canada

Sophie was in Spain, they were given lanyards with their ID on.   The leader of their team was Chloe and Holly.

After tea, they got into their groups to get to know each other, then followed an Olympic quiz. I thought quiz was a quiet activity but oh no, the noise you wouldn’t believe.

It seems the tradition during meal times that they all sing a song to a team leader, changing the name each time,

Sing a song Chloe

Sing a song

Sing a song Chloe

Sing a song

We won’t shut up

Till you stand up

Sing a song Chloe

Sing a song

This gets louder and louder, until the leader in question stands up and sings a short song, if the song is a popular one they chant

Encore

At 10.30 I went up and said good night to Sophie.

Tuesday 28^th August

The day started with CBS (Campers Bible Study), complete with hot chocolate to go with it.

Then we had Breakfast of cereal and Bonus Breakfast Pain au Chocolat.

We then had a bible meeting with Andy, which was very noisy and vibrant, where there were bible readings, songs and prayer.

They then split into five activity groups, 

Beijing

 Sydney

Barcelona

Athens

Atlanta

 Sophie was in Beijing.

They then went off to take part in 5 activities

Rope Course

Climbing Wall

Rafting

 Archery

Craft

Sophies first activity was the rope course, I didn’t stay with her , because I felt she needed the challenge, I later learned that she took part in some of the course and was so proud that her trainers got muddy.  Sophie was introduced to a young man named Pete who was a volunteer, and he had dyspraxia, dyslexia and was blind in one eye, and he told Sophie he had done all the  activities.

After a short period of free time we had lunch of  Wraps, chicken, salad, and crisps, with a chocolate bar.

This after noon they had Dorm Time which is where the dormitorys got together in a group to fill in a workbork called Jesus Lives discuss and ask questions of the bible.

Then came Activity Two this time Sophie’s activity was the Climbing Wall, when I spoke to her later, she said it wasn’t too high and she did some and enjoyed it.

Then they played a game David and Goliath, which consists of them running around and avoided being hit by soft frisbys, it was nice to watch Sophie joining in.

Then we had Tuck Shop in the Cellar, where they could spend pocket money on sweets and drink.

Shortly after that we had tea of Fish Fingers, peas and chips followed by ice cream sundae.

Then there was another bible meeting time, with some more noisy bible study, followed by Water Balloon Volleyball, and a variation of the game, rock, paper,  scissors.  We then had a bonfire with songs and stories, accompanied by hot chocolate and marshmellows, it was a lovely night for a bonfire, a clear sky, full moon, and bright shiny stars.

Camper of the day’s prize was to choose 4 leaders, who knelt on the grass in a row , the winner had a bucket of water and a cup and from behind could pour water on the leaders by sprinkling with fingers, using the cup or the bucket.

Then at 9.45pm it was bedtime.

Wednesday 29^th August

We started off with CBS (Camper Bible Study), then we had breakfast of cereal and Bonus Breakfast of Pancakes and Toffee Sauce.

It was then time for the Bible Meeting, then was supposed to be Activity 3 which for Sophie was Rafting, but because of torrential rain this was halted, and substituted with indoor games.

We then had lunch of DIY Sandwiches and yoghurt.

This afternoon we had Dorm time to discuss and ask questions of the bible.

Followed by the postponed Activity 3, where Sophie  took part in Rafting, she wasn’t keen on the canoeing, so paddled in the pond and was proud of getting wet.

Then the game Diving 4 Gold was played, there were 4 paddling pools with gold medals in that they had to try to get, and they all got extremely wet.

However, after rafting, Sophie disappeared, apparently she was having a shower and couldn’t get out.

Then came FREE Time  with Tuck Shop and Ice Cream for sale.

This was followed by Workshops, there was a choice of 5 sessions

2 Ways 2 Live

Suffering

Bible Overview

Active 4 Christ

Peer Pressure

Sophies choice was 2 ways to Live, which explained about Why to follow God, they were given a booklet Who will be King,  after the session Sophie went into question mode and was asking one of the leaders, how can she speak to God and hear him, then somehow it moved to what Heaven and Hell is like.

Then we had Dinner which was Pasta Bolognese and Mars Bar Mousse.

Then being our last night this followed with Party Games and a Cocktail Bar, with fruit drink concoctions.  They went to bed about 11pm, and then had a Midnight Feast!!!!

Thursday 30^th August

Once again the day started with CBS (Camper Bible Study), then we had breakfast of Cereal, Toast and Breakfast Bonus Chocolate Donuts!!!

Then we had our Final Bible Meeting.

And moved on to Activity 4, which for Sophie was Archery, which she had looked forward to doing, and she managed to hit the target.

Then it was time to clean up, pack our bags and take downstairs.

We then had lunch of Hot Dogs, Potatoes and Salad followed by Ice Lolly.

After lunch, the children all filled in a postcard, which asked them to fill in,

Who to pray for (Sophie said Uncle Steven)
What did they like best (Sophie said Food and Rafting)
What did they learn about the Bible (Sophie said That Jesus is King)
What friends did they make

This postcard will be posted in about a month to Sophie.

Then they had another Dorm Time, followed by Looney Olympics Competition.

Then came the time for Goodbye, the competition winners were

Australia

Spain (Sophies Team)

Brazil

Canada

We visited the shop and Sophie bought a Purple T shirt and a book called Sophie’s World.

And another safe journey home with thanks to Andrew and Jean.

We got home at about 8.15pm.

During the holiday i decided to give Sophie some space and interfere as little as possible thus challenging her out of her comfort zone, Sophie succeeded in tackling some of her gremlins while i caught up with lots of cross stitch and did some reading

It was a good holiday all the children including Sophie thoroughly enjoyed it, and i have to sincerely thank Andrew and Jean for making it all possible.

About 9.15pm this was posted on Facebook by Sophies Mum - Sophie Smith has just got back from the oakes i think she may have enjoyed herself she hasn't stopped talking yet.