I have to write a 10,000 word dissertation on a topic of my choice by March 12 2007. The date is still a long way off, but we're supposed to start the project over the summer and do the research we need. I did start, but found that my project was not feasible, so I had to change - and then the same thing happened again! After those two disappointments I was feeling downhearted about finding a new topic. I'd been praying for guidance on a new project, but felt that time was ticking by - so last week I prayed fervently (I think of it as banging on God's door) and then on Friday I talked to the professor of one of my courses, and he gave me some great guidance on a new dissertation. Praise God!
It was supposed to be the CU's houseparty weekend, but the booking for our venue fell through. We already had Roger Carswell booked to speak though, so we merely relocated to Southampton for a day of activities on Saturday, as well as Friday evening's meetings. You can download his talks here. The ones I heard were really excellent, and very applicable to student life - as you'd expect from Roger. Praise God!
I had other things to do than stay in Southampton, however. Every year Carey hosts a barbeque/bonfire/fireworks evening with a short evangelistic talk to mark Bonfire Night, which everyone is welcome to attend. I got back to Reading at 3pm and headed almost straight for the farm where it's held. Sadly I got there a little too late and had to cook vegetarian "burgers" and "sausages". Yuck. After the fireworks were over (and they were excellent this year) Frazer and I stood at the gate counting people out. We normally cater for 500, but this year there were (about) 680 people there - praise God!
On Sunday a group of us had been invited to a friend's house outside Reading for Sunday lunch to celebrate his 21st birthday. We left in several cars to head there after church. The road to his house is quite narrow and winding, and we were all several minutes apart... well, I don't want to over-egg the pudding here, but the first car with five people in (not me) crashed at about 50mph. Its driver had to swerve to avoid an oncoming car on the narrow lane, and then got the wheels caught in the bank at the side of the road. The car spun, flipped, and rolled 1 3/4 times, ending on its side. The aftermath looked like this:
Incredibly, all five of my friends climbed out of the car with only a stiff neck and a bumped head between them. Praise God! We arrived (in the red car above) 2 minutes after the accident, by which time they'd all got out of the car, but were pretty shocked by the ordeal. As you can see there were other vehicles around, and the emergency services were raised immediately. Within 10 minutes 4 police cars, 2 fire engines and an air ambulance all arrived!
We were all able to continue eventually to our friend's house and enjoy a (slightly subdued) lunch. But what a lunch... three joints of roast pork and four desserts - praise God (for Acts 10)!
I'm blessed with a great friendship group at church. Many of us are away much of the time, but we keep in touch, and in praying for the salvation of those of us who aren't yet Christians. On Sunday night my friend James told us he'd been saved! He had previously prayed for the Lord to save him, but didn't have assurance of it until yesterday. In any case... praise God!
I had to get back to Southampton last night for a 9am lecture this morning (praise God...) so went to the station to catch the train - only to discover that there were no trains to Southampton all night! Great. It just so happened that my friend Steve was driving back to Portsmouth - also for a 9am - so he could give me a lift. Praise God!
WOW. How much do we have to give thanks to God for!? I've been feeling very aware of God's grace and providence this weekend, and I pray that it continues through this week and beyond, so that I can worship Him wholly with my life.
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