I just had the most amazing conversation with one of the ladies who lives with me. She struggles with violent memories I would not even watch in a film. She also struggles to cope, everyday, with mental health challenges that I can only try to imagine. They have names, the things that complicate her mind and life: autistic spectrum disorder, borderline personality disorder, Obsessive compulsions . . . .
Routine is very important, controlling what she can as so many things in her life have been beyond her control.
Studying philosophy toward a PhD at a nearby university, she stretches me to think and process my theology and faith in new ways. We arrived at the point that the higher power can know us and be known by us. We’ve moved on now to referring to Him as God and she is comfortable with that, in spite of her history with authoritative and domineering men. We do theology as we try to put words around facts and faith and the feelings that sometimes follow.
We speak often of grace. Since she is prone to domestic accidents and nocturnal habits, grace is required in this refuge house. With such a disparity of backgrounds, cultures and worldviews, we must be generous with each other. Those of you who know me well, know that God is at work in me in this context even as I desire to minister to others.
My housemate exercises heaps to relieve some of the anxious energy that builds up and she tends to avoid too much social contact as it exhausts her. The combination of those things means that she is often cycling late at night, coming home from the university. In the wild winter weather of Auckland, she is vulnerable to crashes as drivers cannot see her through rain spattered windows. She’s had 3, or is it 4, collisions within the past few weeks.
A few weeks ago I left a published excerpt of What’s So Amazing About Grace on a table for another lady in the house, knowing she was interested in studying the book. Soon a note appeared on top of the booklet asking if the other lady could borrow it when it was free.
Today, after discussing a few housekeeping kinda things & clarifying a few boundaries, she mentioned grace and how the grace of God is so obvious in her life. She spoke of people who had harmed her in the past and of how, as she has nightmares of them, she wakes up screaming.
As we spoke, she said that the book was amazing in opening her eyes to what she needed to do with others! She said she is forgiving them! Just an excerpt of Yancey’s book was revelation to someone who had never read anything like it before! She said that, just as we forgave each other in the house, she must forgive those others because carrying the hate around in her heart was no good.
Upon offering her access to whole Yancey book when she wanted to continue, she said, “ I just want to stay with the bit I’ve read for now. It was so good. Can I read the rest in the future?”
I have room for a couple more ladies in the house, but I think God is doing what He wants right now with those of us who are here.
Routine is very important, controlling what she can as so many things in her life have been beyond her control.
Studying philosophy toward a PhD at a nearby university, she stretches me to think and process my theology and faith in new ways. We arrived at the point that the higher power can know us and be known by us. We’ve moved on now to referring to Him as God and she is comfortable with that, in spite of her history with authoritative and domineering men. We do theology as we try to put words around facts and faith and the feelings that sometimes follow.
We speak often of grace. Since she is prone to domestic accidents and nocturnal habits, grace is required in this refuge house. With such a disparity of backgrounds, cultures and worldviews, we must be generous with each other. Those of you who know me well, know that God is at work in me in this context even as I desire to minister to others.
My housemate exercises heaps to relieve some of the anxious energy that builds up and she tends to avoid too much social contact as it exhausts her. The combination of those things means that she is often cycling late at night, coming home from the university. In the wild winter weather of Auckland, she is vulnerable to crashes as drivers cannot see her through rain spattered windows. She’s had 3, or is it 4, collisions within the past few weeks.
A few weeks ago I left a published excerpt of What’s So Amazing About Grace on a table for another lady in the house, knowing she was interested in studying the book. Soon a note appeared on top of the booklet asking if the other lady could borrow it when it was free.
Today, after discussing a few housekeeping kinda things & clarifying a few boundaries, she mentioned grace and how the grace of God is so obvious in her life. She spoke of people who had harmed her in the past and of how, as she has nightmares of them, she wakes up screaming.
As we spoke, she said that the book was amazing in opening her eyes to what she needed to do with others! She said she is forgiving them! Just an excerpt of Yancey’s book was revelation to someone who had never read anything like it before! She said that, just as we forgave each other in the house, she must forgive those others because carrying the hate around in her heart was no good.
Upon offering her access to whole Yancey book when she wanted to continue, she said, “ I just want to stay with the bit I’ve read for now. It was so good. Can I read the rest in the future?”
I have room for a couple more ladies in the house, but I think God is doing what He wants right now with those of us who are here.
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