20170414- Friday- First Study, Neville Clark On Job.

When I left the Viewpoint Cafe and the “Rather be Riding” bikers, I drove down to the ferry crossing and found a huge line of cars waiting to cross. It took about 3 crossings before I was finally on board and ready to go. I drove to Glenlock and then to my camp near the river. I had lunch and then drove my car to the front of the hall and parked under the gum tree there. I have saved seats right at the front for Ali and Trev, so she will be happy.

I am now sitting in my seat right in the front row of the hall. Roger Gore came up and sat down. Haven’t seen him for so very long. He used to live not far from where we used to live years ago and I we saw a lot of Roger and Helen in those days. He tells me he visits American now twice yearly to see his son Simon who lives over there.

After that, Brian Mee came up. He looks so fit! I would not have expected that after the accident he had some years ago. He tells me that he has short term memory loss. I asked him how he remembered me and was happy to be told that I was definitely in long-term memory. We discussed short-term memory loss and how to best overcome it. He has a program that alerts him about tasks he has to do. He says his major problem is not physical exhaustion but brain exhaustion. We all need the time when we will all “have eagles wings” as it were, and rise up on them.

Martin Pitt just passed by. He is Lance and Alison Pitt’s son and goes to Kersbrook. It is so easy to pick which family most of the people come from, a Pitt, a Mansfield. Brian Luke walked by and I was able to tell him that his daughter stayed overnight at Wagga Wagga on way to Rathmines, but that she has fluey sort of cough and is not feeling 100%. Bruce Gurd stopped to say hello. He has lost a huge amount of weight on the Michael Mosley diet, same one that I am on, so it has worked and is working for him and Rosemary. Deb will be pleased to know this. She is the one who introduced me to it and I have lost 7 kg. If Rob Thiele keeps on it he will lose too, I am sure. Robert Pickard came by. He is brother to one of the Piecart family but his family changed their name to Pickard His son is married to Kim who has children Nick, Abbi and Mathilda.

The hall is beginning to fill up for a 2.30 pm start. I am so happy at how things are working out. I am pretty sure I will get to see plenty of people as well. NC’s first talk was magnificent and I enjoyed it so much. I had transcribed his Job studies that he did once before in Houston Texas, and so I had printed out the material for Ali and she was able to read his notes and add in any extra material that NC had added since he last did the study. He is not only a good student, but he presents well and his delivery is excellent (all with a NZ accent!!) It was a definite plus and not a minus for me to know pretty much everything he was going to say because it just helps cement it all in my mind. I love the book of Job and I am so grateful to NC for the incredible amount of work he has put into his studies. His overheads are nothing short of brilliant too.

Afterwards I sat and talked with Amanda It is the first time I have met her but as soon as I knew who she was, I recognised her blue eyes as being – eyes. I also chatted with a young guy, Jordan, not sure of his last name but he comes from the Douperousal family, (Spelling?), WA. Ali Gore came in my car to go back to her campsite because I didn’t know where they had parked. Wherever it was it was certainly in a crowded part of the flat. Wow, the mossies are bad here too!! Hope I don’t get Ross River virus (Meg!)

I went to Ali and Trev Gore’s “place” for lunch and spent it also in the company of Leigh and Sherree Samwell who are parked together with Ali and Trev. Had a lovely break and then back to the second Study at 7.30 in the evening. I had made the mistake of parking under a tree earlier and my car is splattered so badly with bird droppings. Study 2 was just as enjoyable as Study 1. I have no idea how many people are at the camp, but the whole of the hall was full and also on both sides of the hall had squillions of people too, maybe 1,000 to 1500 people??? I never could count very well, but that’s what it looked like anyway.

After the meeting Neville was called back and “handed over” to the audience for them to ask any “personal” questions that they wanted to know. Of course, everyone wanted to know his history and how he came into the truth. I will not endeavour to tell what I remember of what he said tonight but will tell the bitsand pieces that I already know about him.

When Nev was 13 years old and at high school, he had a friend, a boy the same age as he was. This boy’s parents had friends who were Christadelphian, and this boy heard his parents discussing what his parent’s CD friends had told them about CD beliefs. His friend then recounted his parents conversation to Nev, and it was all about the beliefs Daniel’s image, the head of gold, belly and thighs of brass, etc. To Neville, what his friend told him made sense, and so Neville decided that Catholicism was “wrong” and Christadelphians were “right.” Well, that was all that happened for some years. His friend went out of his life and Nev went to University and finished when he was about 20 years of age. At that time his family received a leaflet in their letter box and it was a lecture on (surprise! surprise!) Daniel’s image and who was giving it? The Christadelphians. Neville went Alison to that lecture, and the rest as they say, “was history.” Well, not quite.

This all happened at Xmas time and all the CDs were at a Bible School, and so Neville was faced with six weeks at home with nothing to do. He decided to read the whole Bible from cover to cover. He did it in comfort, he climbed into the family swimming pool onto the lilo there and with sunnies on and determined to gain a tan, he lay there and read, and read, and read. He got up to Ecclesiastes, and what he read there he found riveting. He read the whole of Ecclesiastes right through, and then jumped out of the pool and rushed into the house where his Mum was peeling potatoes at the kitchen sink. “Mum,” he said, “I’ve just read the book of Ecclesiastes in the Bible, and the guy who wrote this book has the answer to “the Meaning of Life.” If he can answer that question, then he can answer anything and everything.” Neville was so excited he was just about jumping out of his skin. His mother turned slightly to look at him and said, “That’s nice dear,” and continued peeling potatoes.

Well, it wasn’t long after that that Nev was baptised and then he married Anna Evans, Mary and David Evans daughter, and finally they both left, tornado torn, earthquake riddled, freezing cold in winters, New Zealand and came to Adelaide and now attends TTG.

I went back to Ali and Trev’s camp for supper around a beautiful camp fire, drinking copious cups of coffee. Graeme and Patty Mee shared our fire and we enjoyed their company. Finally I went back to my own little trailer and slept blissfully until 4.00 am. Then I sat up and facebooked for an hour or so, finding information that Leigh Samwell had wanted to know and finally, got up, dressed and went to Waikerie for a beautiful breakfast of bacon and eggs and coffee, read the Advertiser and wrote up my diary, ready for the new day and its studies.