Name change

October 16, 2012 Leave a comment

After something of an absence from blogging (long overseas trip), I’m back!  The site has a new name too – Freed Eagle.  This is a reference to my personal journey over the last 3-4 years, but also pays homage to one of my favourite verses in the bible:

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.  They will soar high on wings like eagles.  They will run and not grow weary.  They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

It’s good to be back and looking forward to sharing more.

Filed under Pithy observation, This business of life Tagged with , ,

A fools’ paradise?

March 28, 2011 3 Comments

A shallow, experiential gospel

Recently a friend of mine sent me a link to a very interesting blog piece titled “My Prediction: The Coming Evangelical Collapse”. 

I’ll share and comment on some of the parts that really stood out to me as I read it:

The party is almost over for evangelicals; a party that’s been going strong since the beginning of the “Protestant” 20th century. We are soon going to be living in a very secular and religiously antagonistic 21st century in a culture that will be between 25-30% non-religious.

This collapse, will, I believe, herald the arrival of an anti-Christian chapter of the post-Christian west and will change the way tens of millions of people see the entire realm of religion. Intolerance of Christianity will rise to levels many of us have not believed possible in our lifetimes, and public policy will become particularly hostile towards evangelical Christianity, increasingly seeing it as the opponent of the good of individuals and society.

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Filed under Pithy observation, This business of camping, This business of faith community, This business of life Tagged with , , ,

R1202

February 16, 2011 1 Comment

 

Like a visual vision statement

At QCCC we’re piloting a new concept we hope will become the backbone theme of our programs, across our three camp sites at Mapleton, Tamborine and Brookfield (Brisbane). The working title for the concept is “R1202“, a reference to the biblical Romans 12:02:

 

“Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within.”

Also known as “The Hand” we believe the R1202 theme will enable us to partner with visiting groups to reflect on the key attributes and values required for a successful life.

As it is developed we will make it a flexible tool that can fit the objectives and outcomes of each group who visits us. We will also develop resources so that the lessons learned from R1202 on camp can last long after it concludes.

R1202 will become the major tool used by QCCC in our teaching and service to clients.  Our staff have identified approximately 70 object lessons that can be drawn from R1202 using colours, fingers and other concepts.

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Cache on dudes…

November 8, 2010 1 Comment

In splendid isolation. Can we let Silverton be the shape of things to come?

Two of the things that have caused me the most trouble in life are idealism and the tendency to try to push the envelope.  So I’ll admit to a high level of trepidation at suggesting something that combines both, but anyway …..

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Geo-caching and how it’s parallel universe very closely ties in with the sentiment of the Kingdom of God being a here and now reality amidst the morass of the present evil age.

Since then I’ve developed the geo-cache twitch, pulling out the iPhone whenever I’m on the road and seeing if there’s caches around to inspire a hunt.  Last week at a ministers’ fraternal meeting I noticed there was one 200m down the road so on the way home I was able to introduce my pastor to the joys of the cache hunt.

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The Kingdom of Geo (caching)

October 26, 2010 5 Comments

A few months ago a friend of mine mentioned Geocaching to me.  And I confess I tried to block it out of mind because it sounded enticing enough that I knew if I went down that road I’d probably become hooked and it might become an obsession.  I didn’t succeed and a couple of hours after reading this article I coughed up the $12.99 to download the iPhone application and tentatively entered the Geocaching sub-culture.

More than most things, Geocaching is very much like entering a parallel universe.  To set the scene I am going to do a bit of cut and paste from Wikipedia, save re-inventing the descriptive wheel.

Geocaching is an outdoor sporting activity in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called “geocaches” or “caches”, anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook.

Geocaches are currently placed in over 100 countries around the world and on all seven continents, including Antarctica. After 10 years of activity there are over 1.2 million active geocaches published on various websites devoted to the activity.

For the traditional geocache, a geocacher will place a waterproof container containing a log book (with pen or pencil) and trade items then record the cache’s coordinates. These coordinates, along with other details of the location, are posted on a listing site (see list of some sites below). Other geocachers obtain the coordinates from that listing site and seek out the cache using their GPS handheld receivers. The finding geocachers record their exploits in the logbook and online. Geocachers are free to take objects (except the logbook, pencil, or stamp) from the cache in exchange for leaving something of similar or higher value.

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