port waikato

We spent Thursday and Friday of this week about an hour and a half south of Auckland in a place called Port Waikato. We went down there with our friends Peter and Margaret for a bit of a break and a chance to hang out with them. We spent our time talking, playing card games, talking, enjoying creation while walking, consuming good food, talking, some more walking, and even a little bit of rest. Did I mention that we spent some time talking?

Peter and Margeret are Kiwi friends that we met while at Covenant. I led a small group with them for the last two years and have enjoyed getting to know them. They are back in Auckland to begin a counseling centre (NZ spelling) and teach some counseling courses at Grace Theological College. They are great examples to us of what it looks like to follow where God is leading even when it means experiencing great personal sacrifice. We also appreciate the fact that they continue to grow, learn and change even after many years of ministry experience. I hope we are as teachable as they are when we're their age.

Port Waikato was beautiful. On Thursday Brooke and I walked on the beach for over three hours and enjoyed climbing on and exploring the rocky portions of the coastline. The visual diversity was incredible. Black sand and white sand. Sandy beach then craggy rock. Jagged sharp rock and extremely smooth rock. We also saw at least four or five different types of crab. There was something new around every bend. At night we were able to hear the crashing waves from our bedroom. Awesome! On Friday we got more exercise as we walked down to the Waikato River and followed it to where it meets the mighty Tasman and then walked back along the beach to where we were staying. I don't remember how long it took but we figure we walked about 10k.

This overnight trip was a good chance to process a lot of thoughts with friends who truly understand the cross-cultural experience. We were able to talk through a bit of our vision (or lack of) for the future. This was especially nice since we are about to begin the busiest portion of our time in New Zealand.