The Journal Begins

As part of Year 13, one of the things we have to do (or at least is strongly suggested that we do) is have a daily journal. While buying a book to write this journal did have some advantages, the blog seemed the better option for a few reasons:

* If I was writing it down, there's a good chance even I wouldn't be able to make out what the writing says.

* I think I'd probably find it harder to write to an audience of only me.

* Chances are I'd lose the journal at some point.


Blogging it also provides an easy way for people to find out what I'm getting up to at Year 13 if they are interested.


There are a lot of new things to get used to this year - one of them is finally accepting the need for a diary. School always tried to get us into the habbit of using our 'Homework Diaries' and even if I did try to use these as a means to remember what homework I had, having to actually get it out of my bag each time some new homework was given seemed much more effort than it was worth. I could usually remember what homework I had anyway, whether I did it or not was another matter entirely.

I've found that working at the church means that there is a need to remember when many different meetings are on, when you are giving talks at certain programs, times that certain things need to be done by, etc. Currently I have remembered everything but I know I won't be able to keep it up for long. So I'm getting a diary. A nice A4 one. If I can find a nice A4 one.


One of the things we are doing at Year 13 is a 'Bible in a Year' course, in which we read the bible cover-to-cover in the time that Year 13 lasts. This means about four chapters a day, with notes relevant to what we have read written by Don Carson. I'm loving it, I hadn't been too devoted to daily quiet times in recent weeks, and its great to have a system going that will keep me reading each day. I felt amazingly refreshed when we had our first quiet time on Saturday at the Year 13 Orientation House Party.

Don Carson's notes give great insight into what the bible is saying. On Sunday our reading included Genesis 5, which lists the family tree of Adam and Eve. There are many of these family trees in the bible, and I think most people would find it hard to find any relevance in them at all.

Not Don Carson.

Good ol' Don pointed out the repitition of 'and then he died' throughout the chapter. While each man did live a very long time compared to today, it still always ended in their death. This is a problem that wouldn't have happened at all if human kind didn't sin. Yet the eight people who have 'and then he died' following their names make it all to clear that the problem is very real.

However, there is one exception, and it is very easy to just skip over it like I had. 'Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.' (Verse 24) Even this early in the bible God displays his grace in saving someone from death.