It's all the happening on the Strathalbyn Women's Team this week... we've had lots of guest over for dinner. Our new English nieghbours are finding themselves comfortable with us. The littlest one, Maddy, who's only four pops by whenever she feels like it. It is quite fun to have her about the place. Although some of the girls are getting quite chlucking, I won't mention any names! We are starting to get a regular attendance to Sonic Fudge and our girls group which is fantastic!


Some things to praise God for...
~that Mandie has just got a new job at Woolworths
~that Tab is able to go back and see her family who are going through a hard time at the moment
~that new prospects for work for Li Yean and Rach are looking promising
~that we are getting know parents as well as kids from Sonic Fudge


Please pray for...
~Tab as she goes back to a difficult situation in Ballarat
~Rachel's health to keep on improving
~that we don't fall into the trap of busyness
~that we will be intentional and selective with seeking out one or two disciples each
~that Mandie will make good decision with work and that her boss will be fine with it
~that Mandie will go well with her induction this Saturday


We greatly appreciate your prayers

The Strathalbyn Women's Team
21 South Terrace
Strathalbyn
SA 5255
Ph: 08 8536 2817

Here is the picture from our prayer letter below.

This week has been a great week for the Strath Team. Tonight we had our
Pastor, his wife and kids over for dinner. It was great fun to give Donna a
break from cooking and to talk to them out of a Church context. We had four
girls come to our girls group on Tuesday afternoon. We had fun eating
chocolate fondue, talking about what we wanted to do with the girlsgroup,
sharing some stories and having a great big pillow fight.
This week's photo is of the stuff we brought from the donation we received.

THANK GOD...
#For relationships within the community moving forward.
#For our girls group that went really well!
#For our new neighbours who have just moved in with three young girls.
#For the Murraylands (Christian school) meeting that went well.

Please Pray...
*for Tab's hand to get better.
*for the RI seminars coming up in the public schools.
*for Rachel's health.
*for us to get to know the new nieghbours better.
*for Rach and Tab's studies, that they will be able to put what they
learn into practise.
*for good time use and sustainablity for the team
*for Mandie's Chiropractic appointment next week (first ever!!).

Sporting fever run amock tonight. Tab and Mandie verses Li Yean and Rach in a game of 'hallway soccer'. Energy levels running high, bumping each other to get the ball, Mandie and Rach pegging the ball from one goal (the doors at each end) to the other. We finally decided to end the game after the ball came a little to close to the light for our liking, then off to do the dishers. Ealier in the night we had the Hodgeson's over for dinner. Great converstion was had and fun games with their kids. Friendships are really developing in town. We have just started our girls group, our youth group 'Sonic Fudge' is next Wednesday and we have had a couple of people over for tea. We also have new neighbours move in and we look forward to getting to know them. I'm really excited by the opportunities that are opening up and enjoying having people share in our team life. Well the night is getting on and we are all winding down. Sweet mellow gutair can be heard in the background.


P.S -Just as a random weird end to this post. If you like ridiculous silly stick in your head songs check out - The Llama Song

[Tab Edit 11:10pm]"a little to close to the light for our liking" means that the ball actaully hit the light and sent it swinging! Oh, and it was me playing the "sweet mellow guitar" :) I like that Rach, Thanx!!!

Well tonight has been a great celebration of St Patrick's Day. Strathalbyn is to much of a sleepy town to care about St Patty's Day so me and Tab decided to show them how it is done. Here is how we got into the festive spirit.

Tab and Rach's list of 'How to truly celebrate St Pat's'
-Wear green all day (must be unmatching)
-Curse the bloody English
-Drink Guinness from cans
-Sing Celtic Hymns
-Play pool on a green table
Sit on some green grass
-Call Erinn
-Rev Helen about Ireland
-Sit on green garden chairs inside
-Write down all the Irish things we could do
-Argue the finer points of AFL and Union footy, then agree that League is lame
-listen to U2
-Read CS Lewis
-Catch a leprechaun (oh no wait its just Rach)
-Eat potato products in commemoration of the potato famine (grr English)
-Search for gold
-Talk about watching Irish DVD's
-Try and figure out why Bono changed his name, without any actual facts
-Prank Pizza Runners
-Eat green icecream
-Teach Rach how to make the colour green

Let us know how you celebrated St Patty's Day

Love:

It’s worthless to be doing anything, to give my time to team, to give my income to team, to give my whole life for the Kingdom of God if I do it without love. There’s no point in understanding New Testament Greek, in the purest of exegesis and practical application, in the most sound of theology if I neglect love. If my worship is inspiring and my disciples multiplying, without love I might as well leave it all.

Who is love? She is my pattern of life. “This Love of which I speak is slow to lose patience - she looks for a way of being constructive. She is not possessive: she is neither anxious to impress nor does she cherish inflated ideas of her own importance.
Love has good manners and does not pursue selfish advantage. She is not touchy. She does not keep account of evil or gloat over the wickedness of other people. On the contrary, She is glad with all good men when truth prevails.
Love knows no limit to her endurance, no end to her trust, no fading of her hope; she can outlast anything. She is, in fact, the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen.”
I can stop trying to know everything, predict everything, and control everything. Everything here is unfinished, and will remain so until the consummation of God’s Kingdom.
Being childish, I think and act and behave like a child; no more of this! I am a woman, and must be rid of these childish things, they’re not fitting for my life as daughter of God. For the moment it’s all a bit blurry – reality that is. I can’t see it yet, but I will! At that time it will be splendid and dazzling in it’s perfection. I will see myself, my deepest soul, and the truth of God as easily as I see my face in the mirror – just how God sees me!
There are three things in life that are worth holding to; faith, hope and love. Without a doubt, the most prized of all is love.

The section in quotation marks is from JB Phillips Translation of 1 Corinthians 13. I have replaced “it” with “she” for the purpose of demonstrating to myself that I can actually, with God’s Spirit become this! When love is what I am, not what I do, it is no longer a result of ambition, or a vehicle to achieve success. Love will be my hero, my mentor, my tutor. The Spirit of Love, living in me can do this.

**This is a creative piece that I wrote for Christian Discipleship Assesment 1. It's challenged me.