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Hope in the hardest places
By Tim Costello. A few months ago I was in Nepal, supporting World Vision’s extraordinary staff as they responded to a devastating earthquake. The earthquake struck on April 25, the very day we in Australia were marking the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli landings. Within hours the scale of the disaster started to emerge. Transport and communications are difficult in Nepal, and it took some time just to locate all our staff. But very quickly the relief operation began to swing into action. Though I have been in disaster zones on many...
read moreRise interview on Coffee O’Clock – 107.9 Life FM
Listen to an interview with Rise Managing Editor Wendy Rush on 107.9 Life FM’s Coffee O’Clock with Jayne and Sharon.
read moreHow many chances?
By Renee Kobelt. I visited a family the other day where the father, Joe*, had only been released from prison two weeks earlier. He had been inside for over two years. There were six kids, ranging from two-and-a-half to fourteen years, and as soon as I got there they turned excited-crazy and bounced off the walls. Thankfully, I had the genius idea to bring some lollipops with me to bribe them into staying still long enough to take a family photo. The mother, Sarah*, understandably, looked tired. Joe was quiet, stood to the back and greeted us...
read moreFaith and Deliverance
By Henry Olonga. Henry Olonga was born in Zambia in 1976 to a Kenyan father and a Zimbabwean mother. He spent the first few years of his life growing up in Zambia and Kenya before moving to Zimbabwe in 1981 just after independence was attained. At school he did well in athletics and had aspirations to represent Kenya at the Olympic Games. He also cultivated a passion for all things to do with the creative arts. Henry made his international cricketing debut in 1995, becoming the youngest player and first black cricketer to play for Zimbabwe...
read moreYour Passion is a Signpost to Your Purpose
By Wendy Rush. It’s so easy to live your life totally in line with other people’s expectations to the point where you lose touch with who you really are. If you’re doing the job you’re doing because it makes your parents proud; if you’re running from here to there to make sure your children get to sport, music, and sleep overs; if you’re careful about your weight, wardrobe and general appearance because you want the world to see you in a particular way; or if the only friends, interests and activities you have are someone else’s friends,...
read moreShalom When the Power Goes Out
By Will Small. Every morning, shortly after I force myself out of bed, I drink a cup of brown-gold goodness, extracted from hot water passing through ground-up grains that were roasted beans seconds ago, and the seeds of a bitter cherry at some point in the past. I pour velvety textured milk on top at the perfect temperature to maintain flavour and sweetness, and my heart leaps to life again. That’s an excessive (and obsessive) description of an everyday coffee, but my friends tell me I’m a little more zealous about the stuff than your...
read moreWhy we advocated for Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran
By Rob Buckingham. A few years ago Christie and I got to know Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, two of the Bali Nine. We weren’t looking for something else to do. We were actually taking a few days in Bali to rest after a particularly busy and stressful time. While we were there we met up with some old friends who told us about the work they were doing inside Kerobokan Prison. They asked if we would like to join them in the jail for a morning – which we did! Little did we know that meeting Andrew Chan on that morning would lead to all that...
read moreThe Most Priceless Gift of All
In a world where we are conditioned to focus on ‘Self’, Heather Packett reminds us that life is really all about ‘Us’. I remember as a child hearing the words ‘It’s better to give than to receive’ and thinking it was a load of hogwash. As a child, there was no better time than Christmas, when those presents would be loaded up under the tree over a few weeks – all different shapes, sizes and weights, each one bearing a surprise for the receiver. Even better than Christmas, when everyone got to receive gifts, was a birthday – when every...
read moreMatthew Glaetzer: on track for success
By Wendy Rush When 22 year old South Australian Matthew (Matt) Glaetzer was young he would build BMX jumps along a river near his house. As a child he dreamed of becoming a professional athlete and tried a variety of sports including soccer, basketball and pole vaulting, but it wasn’t until he was sixteen years old that he began to develop a serious interest in cycling. “I have been riding for six years now and came to the sport through the annual Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon held in West Lakes. It was the first time I had competed in sport for...
read more‘Because I said so’
A selection of my Mother’s sayings by Wendy Rush My mother had a lot of sayings, many of which are common to other mothers as well. When I took the time to consider them I realised how strange some of them actually sounded, but how many had become shorthand for whole conversations about life, identity and behaviour. Here are a few that I remember (not a complete list by any means!) In a way these sayings capture so much about my childhood and how I learnt to understand the world. And as an adult I also appreciate how they are signposts...
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