Place God in the centre and all will orbit in order

Take God away from the centre, and you will suffer disorder

Moving through the end of July and the month of August, this beautiful quote personifies my journey over these past few months. What I have found, and learnt, is that ones journey or pilgrimage is not always easy or straight forward. There have been moments of stress, frustration, struggle, and conflicts of interest. Looking back in retrospect, and in reference to the quote above, these times have usually been when God has not been placed in the centre. But I am grateful because it makes me appreciate times when I have seen God at work.

Take fundraising as an example. We all have the outrageous task as pilgrims to raise the funds needed to travel to Sydney. At times it has been a struggle. What’s enviable about standing in blistering cold conditions selling sausages? Or cleaning Westpac Trust Stadium and picking up soggy eaten fries off the ground? As cliché as it sounds – it’s more than about raising money. I have had the privilege of getting to know more about my group, in it’s strengthens and weaknesses. Fundraising, with God in the centre, can be an opportunity to build team spirit and break barriers within the group. I have witnessed this in my group over the past few months – and I thank them dearly for the progress and growth we have experienced.

A highlight of my journey as Ambassador has been the amazing people I have encountered, and the friendships that have been forged. The month of August saw my good friend Jane (Palmerston North Ambassador) visit Wellington for our interview together as Ambassadors for our diocese paper Welcom. I was honoured to host Jane over the weekend, and was please to have the opportunity to share my family, community, and parish life with her.

If anything, it’s given me a taste of what a blessing we will have during Days in Diocese next year, where we can all have the opportunity to share our lives with other people and cultures. To all pilgrims, and those who will stay behind and support from these shores, my prayers are with you as you moves through the month of September.

Whether its fundraising, registering online, or having a group meeting, whatever you are doing on your journey towards WYD2008 always keep God at the centre – you’ll find everything will just orbit in order.

God Bless you all, Soifua ma ia manuia.