Do you want a big year or a small year?

It's New Years Eve and I find myself feeling a little philosophical... perhaps nostalgic. This time last year we were on our way to Cambodia on a trip that I think changed the trajectory of our lives. I mean we've always been different, many of our friends can attest to this. But I always felt we wouldn't be living a 'normal' life, whatever normal is.

So in 2012, we went to Cambodia. We said that we wanted to be open to whatever God wanted us to do. We assessed some job offers that I had and in the end decided to move to Newcastle. I left my job at Child Protection where I'd worked for over two years and Em left her job high school teaching which she had been doing for seven and a half years. I took up the role of Youth Pastor here in Mayfield (and chemical pourer/bottle labeller) and Em began as an admin assistant in HR at Compassion.

I don't think we're any better or worse than anyone else out there. All we did was say 'yes'. The following things happened and you may put them down to coincidence but I put them down to God (as in God of the bible, Jesus, Christian God) having a hand in our lives:

• Applying for the initial job - I saw the job advert before we went away and upon returning home the advert was gone. I assumed the position had been filled but I had a niggling to follow it up. I phoned the pastor and of course he informed me it was not filled.
• When we'd decided to move Em started looking for work and came across the position at Compassion which she obtained and incidentally had to start before my start date!
• I completed a number of house inspections. There was one house that stuck out for both of us but it was not available for a number of weeks. Some of the inspections I did there would be 50 people queuing to get in, or the inspection would finish before it was due to start. The house that we got was 10 minutes walk to the church, to Em's work and a 6 minute drive to the factory. This in the end was the only house we applied for.
• A week or so after we moved in the landlord popped around and said if we needed anything to just let her know. She went to a local Uniting Church and when she saw we were a young couple and I was going to be working at the church she said, 'I had to have you (move in)'. I know, coincidence that a Christian landlord saw our housing application!! ;)
• Actually having some existing connections in Newcastle - Geoff my mentor from Bourke and his family live here and Tish, one of Em's childhood friends also. So even though our Church family has been extremely welcoming it was nice not to have to start from totally from scratch with regard to friendships.

These things amongst a lot of other little signs that we get daily. 

As 2012 draws to a close I'm just incredibly thankful. I'm thankful first and foremost to God. He has been with us every step of the way, affirming our decision and blessing us more than we could have imagined. I'm thankful to my wife Em - for her support and her encouragement, for her passion for life and adventure. I'm thankful for our families for sending us despite missing us terribly. I'm thankful for friends - some old and some new.

I just want to leave you with two things.

I watched the movie War Horse today and there was a quote from one of the characters, Ted Narracott (as he bids on a horse that he well and truly cannot afford).

“There are big days and there are small days – which will it be?... Most days are small days…this, this is a big one.”

I guess it got me thinking, that it's been a big year. But I would say it's probably been the best one of our lives. So I just want to encourage you with the big decision, the big change, or the big whatever your contemplating... to go for it!

And the other thing... This quote I love from Theodore Roosevelt:

It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.

My prayer for you is that you'll have a blessed 2013. That you will put aside what people think, those people who sit on the sidelines ready to shoot you down at any opportunity and that you go for whatever is planned for you (if you're not sure just ask your maker). I hope every day is a big day.

My prayer for us is that we keep living out whatever it is God wants us doing wherever he wants us doing it.

God Bless.