MK forum

You would be most welcome. Bring your tramping boots and shorts (or you can buy shorts here, we wear them all the time). Sample our lovely wines and fresh produce.

Just a tip. Its a long flight down. The incidence of DVT's (clots in the leg that move, causing stokes or other serious ailments) on long haul flights is high. What happens is people jump on the plane, drink the free alcohol and then fall asleep. The alcohol dehydrates one, you can't drink when you are asleep and bingo the blood thickens. My advice, consider taking an asprin, pre flight, drink plenty of non alcoholic fluid and wiggle the toes if you can't go for a walk regularly. If you have a family history of strokes or are getting about with a zimmerframe, buy some anti clotting stockings (just make sure you take them off before you buy the shorts ) Of course if you are using a zimmerframe to board the plane, you may want to consider another option to tramping, it ain't flat down here.

It's a tricky one isn't it. I think your friend speaks with kindness and sincereity, which speaks volumes in the environment we find ourselves in.
Trouble is we aren't really going to know until we finish with this life, who is really right. Most of us aren't in that much of a rush to find out, so we have to go through life's journey with an element of uncertainty and that can be scary. Like going on holiday in peak season and forgetting to book a nights accomodation, you know more or less where you are going, just not quite sure what the arrangements are at the other end.
It is nice to be able to have peace with ones God, or ones Higher Power, but it is probably having enough peace to live with oneself and others with possibly different points of view that counts in the journey of life. The real world is made up of people of all walks of life and faiths, but those at peace with themselves are possibly the most fortunate.

I love this thread, I wish I could help all of you as my heart aches at what was so wrong when you were mks. I am 65 and I have had that peace since I was 12. I had it kind of rough when I was a kid, did not grow up in a Christian home, but at least my baggage isn't because of so called Christians. I really think that makes it easier to bear. I certainly am not a perfect Christian and I always want to do right but don't always do right and try to acknowledge it when I don't. When so called Christians do what they did to you mks, I don't envy their future. There is definitely a reckoning day. Full stop.

An interesting but slightly irrelevant piece of information.
C.S. Lewis's Narnia series have been made into a series of films. These were predominantly made in New Zealand. Which of course is another good reason for visiting this lovely country with one's tramping boots.
And what I hear you ask, have the Australians given us in the way of films. "Priscilla Queen of the Dessert" a dubious film about 3 transvestites roaming around in a bus. I leave the reader to make their own conclusions about this.
O.k. you are musing, what about the British? Well they've given us Harry Potter and someone called John Lennon, who sang "Imagine there's no heaven".

Hence my observation, keep the faith simple and go tramping, kayaking or ride a bike in paradise .

Thank you to those kind enough to respond. The free fall feeling is definitely uncomfortable. My husband thinks that because as a daughter growing up on the mission field, the only acceptable emotions were positive ones, that I over-react to all other emotions, and classify them as "bad" -- that sadness, doubt, anger scare me. Could be, I guess. So, I'm trying not to catastrophize this too much. I'm also just not ready for the people at church to plead the blood of Jesus over me, so I've been avoiding going . . .I'm just can't stand there as if everything's all right.

I can identify with the emotions side of things. We were constantly reminded how lucky we were to be MKs and certainly much luckier than the locals. Any expressed discontent was met with lines like "you have a bitter spirit".
Last time I heard that line was two days ago, when my father rang me and we had another difference of opinion. I'm 48, my father was forced out of NTM about 15 years ago, yet he contiunes to use the phrases he learnt. I am apparently supposed to be grateful for my wonderful childhood, the one where we were surrounded by child molesters and abusers and I have a "bitter spirit" for my ungratefulness.
Good luck in your journey, it will have its ups and downs, but as long as the general direction is forward, it will get better.

Welcome back, Arara Azul!