Marriage

Blogger is being so stupid, I've started this post about three times and tried to save it because I know it's going to be a long post, and it's lost it! Never mind, we start again.

I promised this post ages ago and promptly forgot my musings, but a good thread on the forum reminded me so here it is.

Marriage, in my humble unmarried opinion, is an amazing thing, and so much better and more serious than society portrays it. My family are a pretty good example of what seems to happen an awful lot. My parents were legally married, shared a house, parented two children, and yet my mum beleives that they were not truly married in the sight of God. Mum believes a lot of strange things, but the more I think about it, the more I agree with her on this one.

As a result, I set a lot more store by the spiritual union that marriage means, rather than the legal aspect. I can see how they work together, but they are definately not the same, and I don't think God is much bothered by our human legalities.

I've already written this bit on the forum, but it's worth writing again because God must be what makes spiritual marriage work. It's God's intention for us to thrive in community, and experience deep communion with him and each other. Father, Son and Holy Spirit all commune with each other within God, and we're created in the image of God. That's why the fall was so awful, it destroyed community/communion on earth:

- humans were cut off from God (Gen 3:8)
- humans were cut off from each other (Gen 3:12)
- humans were isolated from themselves resulting in loneliness, lack of meaning/purpose etc
- the relationship between humans and nature was destroyed (Gen 3:15, 17-18)

Marriage involves three poeple - man, woman and God - and that when all three are communing with each other, it's an amazing reflection of God and his own community within himself, and anything that reflects God is good. When I use the word 'to commune' or 'communing' I mean the kind of relationship that happens at communion (or the Lord's table, taking bread and wine, whatever you call it) - it's when we can come to God and have a harmonious, perfect relationship and interaction with him and everything is hunkydory despite our sin. (Read some of JB Torrance or Tom Smail for more on that).

I think Catholics have got the meaning of marriage pretty much right. This is from Wikipedia:

Catholic theology teaches that a validly contracted marriage is accompanied by
divine ratification, creating an indissoluble union; therefore, no divorce
is possible.

And I guess if the marriage is truly in the sight of God and has him involved, there shouldn't be any need for divorce, even if goes a bit wrong at some points. After all, loving each other isn't about being in love, it's about perseverance, forgiveness and all the hard stuff Valentine's Day doesn't tell you about.

In summary, marriage must take a lot of thought and even bigger doses of God, wisdom and commitment. I'm nervously but excitedly looking forward to it. Comments from experienced people welcome!

The after picture!

According to the seed packets it will look spectacular around June!

The evil monkies

Last week I was dreaming about work and how I hadn't done enough work for me to be given permission me to sleep, so I had to wake up. Several times. And then it got to dreaming about piles and piles of faxes to be sent but not knowing where to send them, and evil monkies biting me (NB never ever watch 28 Days Later again) and Ben quite rightly said maybe it's time to take some holiday. So I did, and I've spent the last two days at home doing nothing in particular, not even any housework, and I've internetted and pondered and painted and photographed nothing in particular. And it's been nice. (Except the going back to work today bit).

For the past week or so I haven't felt anything much at all, apart from getting overly annoyed at things that frustrate me, and being scared about the stupid monkies and the dark. I feel so helpless, and worried that people might be getting annoyed at me for not responding to them properly.

Have a look at www.caradillon.com. She's coming to the Norwich Arts Centre to sing soon so we might go and see.

Stillness 2

Stillness

Painting

The whale swam past the giant orange flower of sun

City view

C Laura 2006

Robert Frost is cool

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth,
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because is was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence,
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -
I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.

I like to read it as a metaphor for being a Christian and entering through the narrow gate and all that stuff, that each choice and each time in life can be like being a traveller seeing two roads ahead. Taking the path that is grassy and wants wear, that not many people dare to commit to. That is what makes all the difference.

Feminine

I've finally got my camera back in full working order, yay!! Even got a free set of Fuji playing cards... I'm sure we'll find a use for them some day.

Photo Friday topic for the week is feminine, so here's my offering. These things aren't feminine in themselves, but I think for them to be in my mind and on my mental to do list is!


Lots of ironing










washing up






and general messy mess.

However, I shall not complain for having a house of one's own is fanstically lovely.

This weekend we started the garden, which was much fun. We only have a tiny patch in which to do things, but hopefully it will be ablaze with colour in a few weeks/months (I'm not quite sure how long these things take).


Here's the before picture, the after will come after.









and specially for our cyclist friends, the alley has been all weeded n stuff because we love you so much :D