Here's a few family pics:
Friday, July 28, 2006
Jetlag
Its almost 12:30am. I've tried to go fall asleep for about 1 hour...no luck. Hopefully a litte internet time will knock me out. :)
Here's a few family pics:
Here's a few family pics:
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Some pictures from the trip
The beginning of the adventure...boarding the plane in San Francisco...
Together in the Gong - Aussie lunch of meat pies and sausage rolls
City Beach, Wollongong
Overlooking the Harbour in Wollongong
The Crown Street Mall
More pictures to come later...
Together in the Gong - Aussie lunch of meat pies and sausage rolls
City Beach, Wollongong
Overlooking the Harbour in Wollongong
The Crown Street Mall
More pictures to come later...
Memphis
Greetings from Memphis, TN. After a long journey from Brisbane-Sydney-San Francisco-Denver-Memphis, we finally arrived home at about 11:30pm last night. Somewhere on our journey (we think my Mum's house), we misplaced our house keys and i-pod. The i-pod didn't pose a problem...but no keys at 11:30pm last night did. We couldn't seem to wake Justin and Erin (who had the master keys), and we didn't think Danny (who also has the master key) was home. As we walked downstairs though, wondering how we could 'break in', Danny walked out of his apartment. It was the perfect deliverance from a potentially ugly situation. (you know...the whole lack of sleep, jet lag, weary traveler, needing-a-shower, 'why-did-you-lose-the keys?' scenario etc...). Thanks Danny!
After a shower and a little unpacking (had a weird surge of energy around 1am), we finally put our weary bodies to bed. Sleep never feels better than it does after a long trip!
We will post more soon....we just wanted to say hello, and that we're back in Memphis, TN.
After a shower and a little unpacking (had a weird surge of energy around 1am), we finally put our weary bodies to bed. Sleep never feels better than it does after a long trip!
We will post more soon....we just wanted to say hello, and that we're back in Memphis, TN.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Wollongong to Brisbane
Greetings from Brisbane, Queensland. We are enjoying time with Nicole's family. We have been so blessed during my 7 + expatriate years to come home on an average of once a year. We're so thankful for these opportunities.
It has been good to see each member of my family. Saturday night we will celebrate my younger sister's engagement. Melissa and Vaughn Hughes will marry on Dec 28th this year. The engagement party will also be a good chance to catch up with other relatives and family friends.
Our last couple of days in Wollongong went smoothly. After our school visit, we visited with Dale Hartman. Monday evening we ate together as a team (we have fine culinary skills!) and then walked to the beach for a devotional. The lighthouse gave us some light and we enjoyed trying to sing over the roaring of the ocean. Wollongong is one beautiful place.
Our last full day in Wollongong was spent enjoying its beauty! We spent some time at Symbio Wildlife Park, did a little bushwalking, and drove the Great Ocean Road. In the evening we drove west to Campbelltown (Jason's old stomping grounds) and fellowshipped with our spiritual family there. We were able to share with them our plans and preparation process to this point. It was definitely an encouragement to Jason and I.
Wednesday morning we said Goodbye to Wollongong. As I walked down Crown Street that morning I smiled as I thought 'the next time I walk here I will be calling this place home.' I have no idea what the next 18 or some months will look like...but I find great comfort that God promises to take care of our every need.
More pictures coming once we land in Memphis.
It has been good to see each member of my family. Saturday night we will celebrate my younger sister's engagement. Melissa and Vaughn Hughes will marry on Dec 28th this year. The engagement party will also be a good chance to catch up with other relatives and family friends.
Our last couple of days in Wollongong went smoothly. After our school visit, we visited with Dale Hartman. Monday evening we ate together as a team (we have fine culinary skills!) and then walked to the beach for a devotional. The lighthouse gave us some light and we enjoyed trying to sing over the roaring of the ocean. Wollongong is one beautiful place.
Our last full day in Wollongong was spent enjoying its beauty! We spent some time at Symbio Wildlife Park, did a little bushwalking, and drove the Great Ocean Road. In the evening we drove west to Campbelltown (Jason's old stomping grounds) and fellowshipped with our spiritual family there. We were able to share with them our plans and preparation process to this point. It was definitely an encouragement to Jason and I.
Wednesday morning we said Goodbye to Wollongong. As I walked down Crown Street that morning I smiled as I thought 'the next time I walk here I will be calling this place home.' I have no idea what the next 18 or some months will look like...but I find great comfort that God promises to take care of our every need.
More pictures coming once we land in Memphis.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Wollongong
Today is Monday, Day 7 of our survey trip. Tomorrow will be our last full day, and then Wednesday we the Grizzles head back to the US, the Griffiths to Canberra and beyond, and the Whaleys to sunny Queensland. Bring on the Sunshine State!
This morning we visited West Wollongong Primary school. This is a very small school of about 180 students. The administrative manager was so kind and gave us an informative tour. It was good for all of us to see a local school and be able to ask questions. Even though I went to school in Australia, I was schooled in Queensland, and I am sure we will discover differences between the systems. In fact, we already discovered one big difference. This is that non-Aussies must pay even for public schooling in the state of New South Wales (NSW), and it is quite a significant amount (about $4500 AUD per year). In fact it might even be possible to be educated in a private school for less money. Good to know!
We ventured into Sydney on Saturday. The weather was miserably cold and rainy. We still had a good time. I always love Sydney. It doesn't matter to me how many times I see the Opera House or the Harbour Bridge...I still love it. I love the cosmopolitan feel and the big-city-rush. But it sure is good to leave it behind, too. We visited the Rocks Markets which are set in an historical area of Sydney. That night, Binh Troung cooked us a wonderful Vietnamese meal and had invited about 6 friends over so we enjoyed fellowship with Aussies, Japanese, Filipinos and Chinese. The diversity here is just amazing.
We have enjoyed visiting with Christians and non-Christians. Yesterday we worshipped with 16 people in Windang (just south of Wollongong). The 16 includes children. I was encouraged greatly by their committment to God and to each other. I was especially encourage by our visit with several of the members at lunch and during the afternoon.
God is teaching us many things. We have found answers to many of our questions, but have also a whole new set of questions. I guess it is impossible to know everything.....I must pray for greater faith.
A highlight of our survey trip has been worshipping daily with our team. Singing and sharing and praying together. And of course, it is wonderful to finally be here in the Wollongong area and to experience for ourselves the sights and the people.
Here's a few pictures for you to enjoy.
This morning we visited West Wollongong Primary school. This is a very small school of about 180 students. The administrative manager was so kind and gave us an informative tour. It was good for all of us to see a local school and be able to ask questions. Even though I went to school in Australia, I was schooled in Queensland, and I am sure we will discover differences between the systems. In fact, we already discovered one big difference. This is that non-Aussies must pay even for public schooling in the state of New South Wales (NSW), and it is quite a significant amount (about $4500 AUD per year). In fact it might even be possible to be educated in a private school for less money. Good to know!
We ventured into Sydney on Saturday. The weather was miserably cold and rainy. We still had a good time. I always love Sydney. It doesn't matter to me how many times I see the Opera House or the Harbour Bridge...I still love it. I love the cosmopolitan feel and the big-city-rush. But it sure is good to leave it behind, too. We visited the Rocks Markets which are set in an historical area of Sydney. That night, Binh Troung cooked us a wonderful Vietnamese meal and had invited about 6 friends over so we enjoyed fellowship with Aussies, Japanese, Filipinos and Chinese. The diversity here is just amazing.
We have enjoyed visiting with Christians and non-Christians. Yesterday we worshipped with 16 people in Windang (just south of Wollongong). The 16 includes children. I was encouraged greatly by their committment to God and to each other. I was especially encourage by our visit with several of the members at lunch and during the afternoon.
God is teaching us many things. We have found answers to many of our questions, but have also a whole new set of questions. I guess it is impossible to know everything.....I must pray for greater faith.
A highlight of our survey trip has been worshipping daily with our team. Singing and sharing and praying together. And of course, it is wonderful to finally be here in the Wollongong area and to experience for ourselves the sights and the people.
Here's a few pictures for you to enjoy.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Light
We had such a good send off from Park Ave Church. We were so encouraged as we walked out of Dana's sermon. (Ironically, he was talking about casting anxiety on the Lord from 1 Peter 5.) Thank you for the support and encouragement and teaching.
Today (Wednesday), the question was: How can I engage a total stranger in conversation?
We spent some time talking about what we were looking for in terms of what real estate agents could show us . . . but we couldn’t get them to show us anything. “Oh, that one’s about to be sold.” So we just drove to the addresses and took photos of the rent house and surrounds. We want to be prepared to rent when we first move to Wollongong, so we wanted to see what neighborhoods looked like and the typical house or apartment. The women (and baby, Jack) drove north and the men drove south. Us men saw houses (boring), but we also saw two boys throwing rocks or, hopefully, dirt clods at a minivan across the road. I yelled out the window at them: “Oi!” They looked at me. We drove on but I wanted to have a conversation with them. We were trying to find a pay phone so we could call a travel agent and say, “Meet us at the house on such and such,” but we couldn’t find a phone card. But, we found lunch in a little convenience store. The two men working there were cool. I wish we could have had a deeper conversation with them, but they had work to do and we had to go see some more neighborhoods. Then, we met the women back at the house on Smith Street. From there we drove up Mt. Kiera for a beautiful view of the city. We engaged a couple of older friends in some conversation. We were almost hurting ourselves laughing while taking our own picture. This new grandmother, Natalia, and her “friend,” Joseph, eventually offered to help. Joseph’s hobby is photography. He moved to Wollongong from Ireland several years ago. Jon and Sara were really good at engaging Natalia in conversation. Joseph was a little stand offish, but eventually we were all talking for a bit. “What’s your favorite thing about this city?” Natalia said, “Oh, the beaches!” Joseph said, “I’d have to say the harbor.” The harbor is old and rather small. There are still canons there from WWII, I think, and there are two lighthouses. The interesting thing about the lighthouses, I think, is that they no longer shine light into the darkness to save ships from destruction. They merely shine light on themselves as historical monuments. Isn’t that like God’s people? Sometimes we shine light on ourselves rather than piercing the darkness with the light of the world.
“You are the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:14)
After talking with the folks on the mountain and overlooking the city, we went to Wollongong University. We saw people from all sorts of ethnic backgrounds graduating. The University is set in the shadow of the mountain in the middle of a Eucalyptus forest (difficult to find, but thanks to Shawn’s navigation, we got there). We did find two young women, student workers, I think, and we said, “We’re here trying to see what this place is like and what goes on here. Where would you go and what would you do if you were us?” They answered pretty enthusiastically and seemed really glad to help us. “Go to the Uni Bar. But really classes start back Monday, so maybe come next week.” We will probably go back there and try to speak with more students and hopefully we can bond more with some students.
Well, we have prepared for spending most of the day today (Thursday), at the Macquarie School of Biblical Studies (MSOBS) annual lectureship. We’re excited about meeting some long-time brothers and sisters in the Sydney area. The lectureship takes place in a small building about the size of a four-bedroom house . . . in a city of 4.5 million souls. The churches of Christ form a small but strong group in the city. There will be a devotional at 10, Frank is doing something at 10:15, morning tea at 10:45, Dale Hartman is doing something at 11:00. Then we’ll have lunch, then Roy Courtney is doing something. I don’t know how the day will end, but we’ll probably leave there to do some shopping back in Wollongong and prepare for the next day here.
It might be a while before our next post. WiFi is hard to come by.
“Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” (Romans 15:21)
Today (Wednesday), the question was: How can I engage a total stranger in conversation?
We spent some time talking about what we were looking for in terms of what real estate agents could show us . . . but we couldn’t get them to show us anything. “Oh, that one’s about to be sold.” So we just drove to the addresses and took photos of the rent house and surrounds. We want to be prepared to rent when we first move to Wollongong, so we wanted to see what neighborhoods looked like and the typical house or apartment. The women (and baby, Jack) drove north and the men drove south. Us men saw houses (boring), but we also saw two boys throwing rocks or, hopefully, dirt clods at a minivan across the road. I yelled out the window at them: “Oi!” They looked at me. We drove on but I wanted to have a conversation with them. We were trying to find a pay phone so we could call a travel agent and say, “Meet us at the house on such and such,” but we couldn’t find a phone card. But, we found lunch in a little convenience store. The two men working there were cool. I wish we could have had a deeper conversation with them, but they had work to do and we had to go see some more neighborhoods. Then, we met the women back at the house on Smith Street. From there we drove up Mt. Kiera for a beautiful view of the city. We engaged a couple of older friends in some conversation. We were almost hurting ourselves laughing while taking our own picture. This new grandmother, Natalia, and her “friend,” Joseph, eventually offered to help. Joseph’s hobby is photography. He moved to Wollongong from Ireland several years ago. Jon and Sara were really good at engaging Natalia in conversation. Joseph was a little stand offish, but eventually we were all talking for a bit. “What’s your favorite thing about this city?” Natalia said, “Oh, the beaches!” Joseph said, “I’d have to say the harbor.” The harbor is old and rather small. There are still canons there from WWII, I think, and there are two lighthouses. The interesting thing about the lighthouses, I think, is that they no longer shine light into the darkness to save ships from destruction. They merely shine light on themselves as historical monuments. Isn’t that like God’s people? Sometimes we shine light on ourselves rather than piercing the darkness with the light of the world.
“You are the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:14)
After talking with the folks on the mountain and overlooking the city, we went to Wollongong University. We saw people from all sorts of ethnic backgrounds graduating. The University is set in the shadow of the mountain in the middle of a Eucalyptus forest (difficult to find, but thanks to Shawn’s navigation, we got there). We did find two young women, student workers, I think, and we said, “We’re here trying to see what this place is like and what goes on here. Where would you go and what would you do if you were us?” They answered pretty enthusiastically and seemed really glad to help us. “Go to the Uni Bar. But really classes start back Monday, so maybe come next week.” We will probably go back there and try to speak with more students and hopefully we can bond more with some students.
Well, we have prepared for spending most of the day today (Thursday), at the Macquarie School of Biblical Studies (MSOBS) annual lectureship. We’re excited about meeting some long-time brothers and sisters in the Sydney area. The lectureship takes place in a small building about the size of a four-bedroom house . . . in a city of 4.5 million souls. The churches of Christ form a small but strong group in the city. There will be a devotional at 10, Frank is doing something at 10:15, morning tea at 10:45, Dale Hartman is doing something at 11:00. Then we’ll have lunch, then Roy Courtney is doing something. I don’t know how the day will end, but we’ll probably leave there to do some shopping back in Wollongong and prepare for the next day here.
It might be a while before our next post. WiFi is hard to come by.
“Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” (Romans 15:21)
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Why Australia?
Saints and Supporters,
Thank you for sending us on this survey trip. We want to let you know some of the main questions we are seeking clear answers for in the next few weeks. Here they are:
Why Australia? Are people receptive to the Good News?
Why us? Is this the best place for our team to plant churches?
What's our plan? Why will it work?
We ask these questions because we want our future and the rest of the world's to be directed by God's desires and values. His Son, Jesus, is the reigning champion of the world! (even though people can't see that reality yet.) Blessed be your name now and forever. Amen.
In Him,
Jason & Nicole Whaley
Thank you for sending us on this survey trip. We want to let you know some of the main questions we are seeking clear answers for in the next few weeks. Here they are:
Why Australia? Are people receptive to the Good News?
Why us? Is this the best place for our team to plant churches?
What's our plan? Why will it work?
We ask these questions because we want our future and the rest of the world's to be directed by God's desires and values. His Son, Jesus, is the reigning champion of the world! (even though people can't see that reality yet.) Blessed be your name now and forever. Amen.
In Him,
Jason & Nicole Whaley
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Survey Trip Preparations
As I blog, Shawn and Kendra are en-route to Sydney via Denver and San Francisco. Jon, Sara, Jack, Jason and I will follow in their footsteps three days from now. It is hard to believe the time has come for 'the survey trip'. I've always used these words kind of loosely until now. Now they're much more meaningful to me, and this time next week, 'survey trip' will probably mean more than I can begin to imagine!
We feel as ready as we can. We are excited to know that we will have the opportunity to gather so much information while we are in Wollongong. We will meet with a real estate agent and make school visits, make price comparisons and so on. We will spend time visiting with the Christians who are already living and ministering in this area. But most exciting to me is the chance to talk to local people and gain some insight into their impressions and thoughts on God...spirituality...theology...to learn about their struggles...their needs...their day to day lives...
When we wrap up our survey trip on 7/19, Jason and I will fly to Brisbane to spend some time with my family. There have been some changes since we were there in July last year - my two nieces have grown so much, my sister got engaged, friends have had babies... We're excited to get 'caught up'.
I'll spend the next few days checking things off my 'to-do' list. I've decided that 'ready' is relative, and 'ready' or not, Sunday is just around the corner. Thanks for your prayers. We can't wait to share Wollongong with you!
We feel as ready as we can. We are excited to know that we will have the opportunity to gather so much information while we are in Wollongong. We will meet with a real estate agent and make school visits, make price comparisons and so on. We will spend time visiting with the Christians who are already living and ministering in this area. But most exciting to me is the chance to talk to local people and gain some insight into their impressions and thoughts on God...spirituality...theology...to learn about their struggles...their needs...their day to day lives...
When we wrap up our survey trip on 7/19, Jason and I will fly to Brisbane to spend some time with my family. There have been some changes since we were there in July last year - my two nieces have grown so much, my sister got engaged, friends have had babies... We're excited to get 'caught up'.
I'll spend the next few days checking things off my 'to-do' list. I've decided that 'ready' is relative, and 'ready' or not, Sunday is just around the corner. Thanks for your prayers. We can't wait to share Wollongong with you!
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