Trials of a fourteen year old Tim.

The other day I found this written in the sleeve of the Manic Street Preachers album, 'This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours'.

"Today is Thursday 22nd November 2001.  Missed 1 paper in round, I'm annoyed.  I don't think I did, I just miscounted.  Doing revision for modular tests.  Doing 2nd Science investigation.  Need to do Food Technology project.  Have peer education lessons to take for year 8 coming up.  Got Maths and History homework tonight as well!  Tim."

Looks like I was pretty busy at 14!  Reading that made me glad that I am here in 2008, seven years later, doing other things and being busy in other ways.  But at the same time, pleased that I was that busy at 14, it was clearly good training.

New Look, Books, and Sounding Like Other People

I decided to update the image of the blog.  I quite like the new look, especially the continuous nature of the lists down the right hand side... subtle but nice.

Listening to snippets from Jon Foreman's E.P.'s - he is the Switchfoot front man, and has released four E.P.'s over the last year.  They are good, chilled out, stripped down tunes.  Check him out here.

I have been attempting to write a number of book reviews, reviewing the numerous books I have recently read.  It has only happened in skeleton form, and already I don't really like what I've written.  I seem to end up sounding like the many, many book reviews I've read - and not sounding like myself.  Which I suppose is bound to happen to some extent, but I'm not a big fan of it.  So for now my reviews will continue to be skeletons - one day I may post them up here.

The books I have read have brought up numerous things to talk and think about.  The most prominent are epistemology and postmodernism.  But those two subjects will take up another post (or indeed posts), once I've come to a decision about them or build up enough courage to air my questions and limited understanding.

The Right Mentality

To quote Francis Schaeffer:

"Do not minimize the fact that in reading the Bible we are living in a mentality that is the right one, opposed to the great wall of this other mentality that is forced upon us on every side - in education, in literature, in the arts, and in the mass media."1

What a truth.  We often don't perceive the massive effect that the "other mentality" has upon us.  Only recently have I realised just how much I was sucked into the education system of the UK - learning to pass exams, not learning to think.  Having come out of it, I find it not at all surprising that the education system is failing so many.  The current trend is to blame the lack of understanding teachers have for different people's 'learning styles' - but that has little effect in a system that teaches us to scrape through, instead of teaching us to think.  

I have great admiration for teachers who teach people to think.  I don't remember much of the politics that David O'Dell taught me during my A-Level politics course.  But I do remember that he began to teach me to think.

On another level, it excites me that I have friends that are passionate about the arts - and are seeking to have an influence upon the world of art.  Sticking true to God and his revealed Word, they are not afraid to make the hard choices over their art, knowing that God will provide.  That is exciting, that is inspiring.

1  Schaeffer, Francis A., He Is There and He Is Not Silent, Illinois, Tyndale, 2001.

Are We Theology Students Losing Focus?

A reminder to those who, like me, can all too easily lose the focus of why we're studying Theology.

How To Waste Your Theological Education

A running theme throughout these reminders is the fact that it is all too easy to love the subject of Theology and all that it entails - the essays, the reading, the arguing and debating, the refuting, the thelogising and philosophising - and forget that at the end of it all, is Christ.  And it is our love for Christ that should shine through, and it is our love for Christ the likely brought us to study Theology in the first place.  

That's a sobering challenge.

Murray, Whisky, and the Year Just Gone

It's a quarter to midnight on Monday 30 June.  I'm sitting in my lounge watching Andy Murray's incredible comeback against Gasquet, whisky in hand, Steve Carter playing Football manager on the other sofa, and I begin to contemplate the past year.

It took me a while to realise that the year at LST had ended.  It was a good few hours after I got home from Graduation that I realised that there are some people that I will not see again for a very, very long time.  The oddness has been extended in that I live with a number of graduates now.  They are looking for jobs - looking forward to marriage - looking for houses to rent or buy.  A number of things that seem a long way off for me as yet.  But a year is only 365 days, and then I will have graduated.

And I think it is this realisation that is the most shocking - I have to be thinking about my long term future soon... very soon.  My time at LST is nearly over.  

There have been some highlights this year:

• Freshers week
• 24/7 Prayer week
• Spending my Easter Vac in India
• Crazy juggling ball wars 
• Holidaying in Cornwall over New Year 
• Having a lounge
• Successfully passing exams and assignments
• Forming part of the new Student Committee
• Committee Coy Carp
• Committee Weekend Away
• Late night library sessions
• Early morning prayer sessions
• God's faithfulness.  Unfailing, unmoving faithfulness.

It's been a good year.  It's had challenges and hard times.  But the overwhelming impression that I and many others are left with is that it has been a year where God has proven his faithfulness again, and again, and again.

For that, we offer praise.

Goodbye Guys.

India Diaries Have Moved

I have moved my blogging about my trip to India to another location, in order to keep it together as a coherent whole.

India's Annex

Do have a read.  It will soon be completed, now that my term at London School of Theology has finished!

Flying Away

At this moment in time, I am eating jam on toast and drinking Lady Grey tea in an odd degree of calm... For in 40 minutes I will be leaving my Northwood home to commence my approx. 18 hour journey to Dehradun, India.  

I am staying with a family and doing some work with them, as well as just experiencing the country. Please pray, that I may not get ill, that I may know God's grace and peace.  

I will hopefully be putting up a record of my travels on this blog - so do keep checking!

See you all soon!

A Compendium of Thoughts

A numbers of thoughts have been thought in my mind of late... my intention here is to jot them down briefly, in order to return to them later - when I may more fully dwell on them so as to do justice to both your readership and the thoughts themselves.

Barak Obama has become increasingly interesting when it comes to his seemingly erratic policies and beliefs.

Much of the outworking of theology depends upon language.

There is never enough time to fully do all that we wish to do... and indeed, we must fit ourselves into God's time - not insist on time fitting our own, often misguided and messy, lives.

Our society is generally lazy. It is very interesting reading critiques of our culture.

Integrity and holiness are hugely important... like you wouldn't believe.

Don't Steal Music.

Check this article out...

The Pirate

Has piracy become an acceptable sin among Christians?  Poignant question from Justin Taylor.