Just A Reminder

Fairtrade Fortnight is coming up, so do what you can in those 2 weeks. Raise as much awareness as possible.
Check out these retailers and cafe's that sell fair trade.
http://www.fta.org.au/locator - make it easy for people to know where and who to buy from, then there is no excuse.

Also visit Orphans Aid International's Trade me page, not only are you purchasing something, but helping out a child as well.
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Members/Listings.aspx?member=1121462

And last of all visit Oxfam's upcoming events, such as a camp for climate change, and the human rights film festival.

Raise the Bar - Dont drop the Standard

Sometimes in life we have to make decisions about what we do. My prayer for me and for readers of this forum is that our decisions reflect the words of Micah 6:8, that we decide to Act Justly, Love Mercy and Walk Humbly. If we realise out actions are out of line with this standard, lets change the action, rather than lower the standard.

Who knows what could happen if we managed to live closer to the call of this verse? We could change the world? Or at least part of it. Go on give it a go!

PS - Great effort by Amie and the team for the Trailwalk, i'm inspired. I'm thinking a sponsored Run, Bike, and Kayak across the South Island, next Feb, any good ideas of worthy projects?

We came, We Saw, We conqured. Thank You!

The Oxfam Trailwalker- in my books, a grueling experience! We completed 100km over 32 hours on 4/5 April in Taupo. Our team, through its highs and lows hobbled to the end with the support of a crew who supplied our every need. This walk, I labeled 'epic' by the end. Epic for many reasons. The physical demands on our un-athletic and inexperienced bodies and the sheer mental determination that edged us on was overwhelming (and still is). More over, Epic, in the way that this event went far beyond ourselves, it was the partnershpip we had with those all over the country who encouraged us, sponsored oxfams work, and thought of us over that weekend. I feel as though, I am just one in a team of over a few hundred who have journeyed through this experience with us. You, our team have raised over $5000 for Oxfams work. Priceless.
This is what happens when we are connected, when we simply give what we have, when our values override our financial concerns. Thankyou, keep going, we have work to do!

Organic Food vs. Junk food

I was standing in the organic section of the grocery store looking at what biscuits they had to offer to give as a treat to my son. On the one hand I was amazed at the expanding range that you could get, this to me shows a movement in better quality of produce, but on the other hand I was a little disappointed at how much you had to spend to get quality biscuits. For a former stay at home mum who use to be on the benefit and who is also a student, this is very unfair to have to pay that much so that my son can get to eat biscuits that are healthier and of organic produce. These biscuits were nearly 7 dollars, I also noticed that Scarborough Fair had a new chocolate out; it was organic, so had been put in that section and it was $6:95 dollars for a block.

As much as someone might want to do the right thing by buying products that are organic and fair trade, it becomes difficult when you have mouths to feed and so little money. The only alternative is to buy what’s cheaper and usually they are full of unnecessary things that just shouldn’t be in our food, where organic or made from natural doesn’t. It seems unfair that this is the option for most people, why should some children be given a better quality than others and as we step outside of our own Country, it just gets worse for children who don’t even have this option.


I brought the biscuits, and I will probably at some stage buy the fair trade organic chocolate too, why? Because it gives me peace of mind to know my son has the best choice in food and because I want to support Fair Trade and do what is right.

We're All in This Together

After a pretty average game of 10 pin bowls with the youth group tonight we ended up at McD’s for some pretty average food. As we left, I held the door open for a couple of guys, one of them starting singing “We’re all in this together”. I suspect the big red shield on my t-shirt was a giveaway to my connection with the Salvation Army and the guy must have seen our ads a few times.

As we drove home I thought about the song, and a couple of verses I read during the week, these verses always challenge me. Matthew 25, where Jesus describes the final judgement.
“35When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, 36and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me."

While the world leaders try to solve the global crisis with cash injections, and trying to maintain systems which keep the poor poor, and the rich rich, I wonder what would be achieved if the same world leaders took the words that Jesus spoke into account, and realised we are all in this together. I wonder what they would do if they spent some time together with those most in need.

And then I thought I cant control the world leaders and what they do, and a scary thought crossed my mind, when I wake up tomorrow, what will my actions say, how will what I do show those around me that we’re all in this together?

Somehow I suspect wearing the t-shirt isn’t enough.

Question: What can you and I do to show the world that we’re all in this together? What can we do to help feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, and stand up for those who others don’t?

Say no to plastic bags

Their have been talks about putting a 5cents charge for every plastic bag used when shopping at supermarkets, this idea brought forward by the minister of enviroment Nick Smith, is to try and reduce the billions of plastic bags used every year. Some places such as Pak n save and soon to follow, Warehouse have already begun to charge, but in a couple of months times it may be all supermarkets and many other places following.
I think it is a great idea, whenever i shop at Countdown the number of times I have heard them broadcast about using material bags, and to look around and see the vast majority walking out with plastic bags ignoring what they just heard. This is very frustrating when you know of the serious consequences, and where that plastic bag is gonna end up.

Hopefully we'll follow Ireland and the tax charged from the plastic bags, go to enviromental projects.

A desperate call for change.

If we change the way we live to a point of total transformation, we may cut in half all of societies problems after all many of our problems are linked to another.

I was browsing Google news (Friday 13th march 2009) when I cane across this article.
It’s a report by the Guardian on the emergency summit in Copenhagen on climate change.
Scientist’s such as Nicholas Stern, economist and Katherine Richardson, a climate scientist at the University of Copenhagen, who organised the three-day summit, concluded with this summary:
“The climate system is already moving beyond the patterns of natural variability within which our society and economy have developed and thrived. These parameters include global mean surface temperature, sea level rise, ocean and ice sheet dynamics, ocean acidification, and extreme climate events. There is a significant risk that many of the trends will accelerate, leading to an increasing risk of abrupt or irreversible climate shifts.”
The Summit concluded:
“There is no excuse for inaction. We already have tools and approaches – economic, technological, behavioural management to deal effectively with the climate change challenge. But they must be vigourously and widely implemented.”




What do you think? What’s the next thing you could do?