Monthly Archives: February 2009

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Gaz Simmonds | February 13, 2009

So last night i came home. A little bit of a nightmare getting on the train! I planned to leave to catch the 5:06 train, at about 4:35, takes about 15-20 mins to get there and i needed a ticket! All ready, i look at the time… 4:50, no! So i quickly ran home got my bag and ran most of the way to the station, literally!

I arrived there at 5:07, it looks like the train is on the platform, i run up to the first station guy, and said please can you let me on to the platform and buy a ticket on the train (There are barriers in Oxford) He says no! So i thought oh man i missed that, and queued up for a ticket! Finally got there and said i wanted the next train to Chesterfield because i knew i missed the 5:06 one. He proceeded to tell me, really slowly that i might be in luck and the train looks like its running 20 mins late! By this time it is 5:15, so i said great I’ll get on that one then thanks! He continued to faff around looking at stuff, by this point i am thinking ‘You idiot give me the ticket or i will still miss the train!’ finally he handed me a ticket, and i made it on the train!

Katie didn’t know i was coming home until Friday, So when i turned up and she answered the door she was quite shocked!

So its been good so far! Off to Rileys with my brother in a sec…

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Enemies…

Gaz Simmonds | February 11, 2009

Last night at alpha the question came up on our table. ‘It says in the bible love your enemies, but why should we have enemies in the first place?’

Well, i must say this really made me think, and i think it’s very true. It says in luke 6…

‘But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.’

So this would suggest that you would have enemies, but you should treat them as friends, or neighbours. Which then would surely mean that they would then not be your enemies, but friends.

Though, dictionary.com tells me that the definition for enemy is a person who is hostile or opposed to a person, group, or idea. or a hostile nation or people or something that harms or opposes something. Which would maybe suggest that it is not you that makes them an enemy? but them…

Which leads on to a verse from Matthew 5 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,’ The line ‘pray for those who persecute you intrigues me, because that seems to be pray for those who do bad to you so don’t be bad back kind of thing. But it still says in the same sentance which would lead you to think it is slightly different concept ‘Love your enemies.’ In the footnotes of this verse it says ‘Some late manuscripts enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you’ So does this mean that we don’t decide who are enemies are, but because they hate us or curse us does that make them our enemies?

So basically, i have got no further this is just a page of thoughts! I pressume there are wiser people than me out there! Discuss…

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Alpha, Breaking News

Gaz Simmonds | February 11, 2009

So today was a cool day, lead worship this morning at Staff worship. It was quite funny over the past few weeks Charlie (The Rector) has been telling us all to be a little more punctual for the Staff worship meetings (Not just interns but all of the staff!) So this morning we decided to all get there early, so all 14 of us interns arrived at about 9:25, and took up the whole of the front row (Which the leadership usually takes), it gets to just gone 9:30, and Charlie hasn’t arrived. Previous weeks he has said specifically worship must be started at 9:30! So we did! ha! And it was all great, had a bit of a nightmare moment with a song that was kinda new to me, i had learned it, but then forgot it a little! But other than that it was cool i think

Had alpha this evening which was good, some good discussions n stuff, a full table again. So that was cool!

And also today, i found out. I am presenting Breaking News on Thursday, (The notices on a video for the students thing) So excited!! Mark and Alanna are preaching at risky so haven’t got time to do it this week, so they asked me if i could! Can’t wait, its also Marks Birthday on Thursday too so that will be fun, i have a plan for it. I will try put the video up on here when its done!

On a Serious Note…

Michelle Tepper spoke at alpha tonight, and she said something that i thought was really worth sharing. She spoke about the Jesus Light of the World painting, you may recognize it…

She started by saying how it was on display in one of the Oxford colleges n stuff. My family actually bought me this picture just before i came to Oxford, and i thought that’s cool. Then the very first sermon i went to at Aldates, where my family were also at, Charlie started talking about the very painting! So i thought, that’s even cooler! ha!

But anyway, basically apparently a guy was once talking to the artist William Holman Hunt. And said to him its all great, i get that the doors so overgrown, and Jesus is waiting to enter with a lantern, but you forgot one thing! The door doesn’t have a handle! To which, William Holman Hunt replied, ‘I know, the handle is on the other side’ And that just really stuck with me, something that i had never noticed or thought about the painting. But so true, God is waiting to be the light in our darkness. But we must let him in, and continue to do so day by day.

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Snow and stuff

Gaz Simmonds | February 8, 2009

So there was lots of snow It was nice, we made a big snowman… about 7 foot i think it was …

This was cool, Thursday night i lead worship at Risky, which was cool! The talk was all about taming the tounge and stuff, from James 3 mostly, so i guess it was something that really relates to everyone, so that was really good.

Friday had day off, i met Rich in the morning and we worked on a song called ‘You took the fall’ Which i wrote about a year ago, but i don’t think its finished yet, its one of those which kept nigling at me, so i took it to Rich which was really good to have a fresh pair of ears listen to it. And he had some ideas too, so already its sounding a lot better, which is good Really looking forward to how it will turn out. I have been writing quite a few songs lately, i just wish i had more time to work on them and perfect them and play them through with a band etc!

Friday night actually, went to Jenny Wards birthday party, so yeah, most of the 2 people that read this will probably know Jenny! :p So that was good, Sophie Stevens came up too so it was like being back in Chesterfield again, apart from the other 20 people that weren’t from Chesterfield, but if i squinted my eyes, then it was :s

Yeh So anyway, just got back from church, played acoustic in the band with Nat. And Lois the backing Vocalist brought us some chocolaty biscuit things for afterwards so that was lovely

Basically that is my weekend i think! ha! Not too sure whats really going on this week, School of Theology starts tomorrow, Alpha Tuesday, Fuel For The Fire Wednesday, Then my Weekend off actually So it’s all good!

So yeh! I’ll try write a more interesting one soon!

Posted in General, Other things | 1 Response

Alpha, No Pro Evo?

Gaz Simmonds | February 4, 2009

Last night was the night of alpha, which again i really enjoyed. Not all of our table was there this week, but hopefully they will be all back next week. But it was still really good to chat about everyones views and stuff, it was based on The Cross. Charlie Cleverly spoke, and played a clip from the Passion of The Christ, i had never seen this part before, as Jesus dies on the cross, when the tear falls from heaven and all goes crazy. I found it so powerful. So many times we talk about it, or sing about it. But man it must have been so scary to have been there, probably feeling like the world was falling apart, which kinda was what happened! I guess.

Also, Pete hall said in house meeting yesterday that he is going to give up Playing Pro Evolution Soccer for a little bit, as he plays on it too much. So we all replied, that’s cool Pete (But I’m not giving it up!) It turns out now, we are having Pro Evo tickets, and when we do something good around the house, the girls can give us a ticket to play a game with someone :s Not impressed… Looks like I’ll be sneaking to the lounge at night to get some footy in!

I’m Leading Worship at Risky Living tomorrow on my own. A little scary, but I’m very excited also

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