Learning to Surf
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Throughout the first term we here at EBC have been challenged to grow in our faith in Jesus. The illustrative analogy is “Getting out of the swimming pool and into the Ocean.” This Sunday morning we will be hearing from several EBCers who have been stretched by God to grow in trusting Jesus more each day.
The following is another testimony of applying the truths of discipleship in Jesus.
"Life’s definitely been no swimming pool lately - nothing comfortable and relaxing about it whatsoever! Funnily enough, I’m not necessarily doing anything new or different particularly – just being dramatically stretched and shaped in all my everyday commitments and relationships.
Ironically, I’ve recently decided to try my hand at surfing in this “stepping out into the ocean” season. I’ve always wanted to learn to surf and watched it on TV for many years – in awe of all the pro surfers who know how to handle the waves and unpredictable conditions. But the ferocity, unknown dangers and a bad experience in the ocean at a younger age has had me a little scared off. Lately I’ve been a bit more adventurous. A friend said he’d give me a lesson, so I thought I’d give it a go. He leant me his wetsuit and surfboard and was out in the water with me the whole time. I felt protected wearing the wetsuit, and it was assuring having him alongside me in the water to show me what to do. But it still took actually getting out in the ocean to overcome my fears.
I found the hardest (and most tiring) part was paddling past the little waves, and overcoming the tow of the water back into the beach to be able to get out to the bigger waves that were better for surfing. While I was still getting the hang of it (and also later when I was getting tired), I needed my friend’s help to pull me out past the little waves and overcome the back-tow.
By the end of the lesson, I’d been pounded by the waves, and my hair was a complete mess! But you know what? It was so much fun! And it was exhilarating when I actually caught a bigger wave in. I liked it so much I even signed up for a proper surfing lesson to get some more tips and pointers – cos now that I’ve had a go, I want to know how to improve my skills! But my friend helped me get past my initial fear.
The obvious analogies that relate to my spiritual life, have made me think about who the people (like my Lifegroup and mentors) are that God has given me; to equip me, get me in the water, and get excited with me when I catch the big waves! And who has He given me to come alongside and do the same for?
There are always so many little life “waves” that hinder me from getting the bigger ones, tiring me out & pulling me back in before I get to experience the best waves God has to offer. I know the constant busyness of life has thrown so many at me lately that if it weren’t for a few strong people and mentors in my life, I’d lose sight of those bigger waves God wants me to experience!"
Remember this Sunday night is our special pre-Easter Service "BROKEN" at 6pm. Our creative ministries team has been working hard at putting together a fantastic production presenting the restoration Jesus offers all who come to Him in faith.
Joe.
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Khattala one of the ringleaders of the Sept. 11 attack on the American diplomatic mission here. But just days after President Obama reasserted his vow to bring those responsible to justice, Mr. Abu Khattala spent two leisurely hours on Thursday evening at a crowded luxury hotel, sipping mango juice on a patio and scoffing at the threats coming from the American and Libyan governments.Enlarge This ImageEsam Omran Al-Fetori/ReutersA man near the American Mission in Benghazi, Libya, after the attack last month.elatedClearing the Record About Benghazi (October 18, 2012
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Attack on U.S. Mission in Benghazi Becomes Subject of Strongest Words (October 17, 2012)World Twitter Logo.Connect With Us on TwitterFollow @nytimesworld for international breaking news and headlines.
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Libya’s fledgling national army is a “national chicken,” Mr.
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offered insight into the shadowy landscape of the self-formed militias that have come to constitute the only source of social order in Libya since the fall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.A few, like the militia group Ansar al-Shariah that is linked to Mr. Abu Khattala and that officials in Washington and Tripoli agree was behind the attack, have embraced an extremist ideology hostile to the West and nursed
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with the government, which have so far declined to take any action against suspects in the Benghazi attack.Although Mr. Abu Khattala said he was not a member of Al Qaeda, he declared he would be proud to be associated with Al Qaeda’s puritanical zeal for Islamic law. And he said that the United States had its own foreign policy to blame for the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “Why is the United States always trying to
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protect its claim to have brought the group to its knees.Mr. Abu Khattala, 41, wearing a red fez and sandals, added his own spin. Contradicting the accounts of many
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witnesses and the most recent account of the Obama administration, he contended that the attack had grown out of a peaceful protest against a video made in the United States that mocked the Prophet Muhammad and Islam.He also said that guards inside the compound — Libyan or American, he was not sure — had shot first at the demonstrators, provoking them. And he asserted, without providing evidence, that the attackers had
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found weapons, including explosives and guns mounted with silencers, inside the American compound.Although Mr. Abu Khattala’s exact role remains unclear, witnesses have said they saw him directing other fighters that night. Libyan officials have singled him out, and officials in Washington say they are examining his role.
But Mr. Abu Khattala insisted that he had
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said he had not noticed anything burning.At the same time, he expressed a notable absence of remorse over the assault, which resulted in the deaths of four Americans, including J. Christopher Stevens, the American ambassador. “I did not know him,” he said.
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of view, it is hard to say whether it is good or bad,” he said.In Washington, a Republican member of the House committee investigating the attack scoffed at Mr. Abu Khattala’s account. “It just sounds fishy to say you are on the scene and not participating,” said Representative
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