How green is your lifestyle? - CFN newsletter 80

CHRISTIAN FAMILY NETWORK NEWSLETTER 80

> Challenge: As the Earth Summit takes place, maybe it's time we assessed how 'green' our families are ...
> News:
> School uniform costs leave poorer families feeling 'stigmatised'
> New job for children's specialist Captain Alan
> Summer youth prayer event success
> Shrek director to take charge of Hollywood's take on Narnia
> Sites:
> Reasons to believe - see your sceptic convinced!
> blogs4God - get into online journalling
> Marriage MOT: Absence makes the heart grow fonder?
> Events: Alive for God in the autumn
> You've got to laugh: Meditations on golf ...
> Members' Zone latest

How green is your family? If the weather cuts up nasty on our forthcoming ferry trip, then we could end up greener than Kermit the frog!

But seriously, there's a timely challenge in this update's lead article. As global leaders meet to discuss sustainable development in a stricken world, there's plenty you and I can do to help. Check out some of the sites linked in the article and see where you could change your lifestyle to benefit the planet.

And let us know your 'green' tips by posting them on the Bulletin Board.

Oh, and does anyone have any good cures for travel sickness ... ?!

Shalom

Russ Bravo
Christian Family Network
info@cfnetwork.co.uk
http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk

INSIGHT

HOW GREEN IS YOUR LIFESTYLE?

• JOANNA WATSON reports on issues affecting children around the world
  

Take a moment and jot down 10 needs you have in your life. Do any of your listed needs conflict with one another? For example, you might have listed that you need clean air to breathe, but also a car to get around in. If you had to make a choice, how would you decide?

It is not easy to choose between competing needs at a personal level. Neither is it easy when we look at a whole community, city or country. For example, a company might need cheap labour, but its workers need a decent wage. Or a country’s need for electricity might cause acid rain, which would impact a neighbouring country’s need for clean lakes and rivers.

When such challenging situations arise, difficult decisions are needed – which is why world leaders are taking part in the World Summit on Sustainable Development (also known as The Earth Summit), currently taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Sustainable development can be defined as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Amongst other things, it is concerned with improving people’s lives in the here and now, whilst also conserving natural resources for the future.

When, in March 2000, Rositha Pedro was born in a tree above the floodwaters of Mozambique, we were shocked by the image brought to us by the media.

Flooding, storms, landslides and droughts ... The evidence suggests they are increasing. In its World Disasters Report the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent says that: "Recurrent disasters from floods in Asia, to drought in the Horn of Africa, to windstorms in Latin America, are sweeping away development gains and calling into question the possibility of recovery."

For the rest of this article - with tips on what you can do to make a difference - go to our Resources section at http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/resources.asp

> THIS WEEK'S NEWS

> School uniform costs leave poorer families feeling 'stigmatised'

The cost of getting kitted out for the start of a new school year means that children from low-income families are often anxious about their appearance and fear teasing and bullying - says Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG).

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/news.asp for the full story

> New job for children's specialist Captain Alan

Captain Alan Price, formerly of Captain's Crew and the Teknon Trust, is to become the Children's Resources Editor for publishers Kevin Mayhew Ltd.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/resources.asp for the full story

> Summer youth prayer event success

A weekend to pray for the numerous Christian residential holidays for young people has been described as an overwhelming success.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/news.asp for the full story

> Shrek director to take charge of Hollywood's take on Narnia

Andrew Adamson, director of Shrek - the Oscar-winning animated film about an ogre who finds true love - has been named as the man in charge of the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe's big-screen adaptation.

Go to http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/news.asp for the full story

> MARRIAGE MOT

> Check out our archived marriage tips in the Members' Zone, plus stacks more marriage resources at http://www.2-in-2-1.co.uk .

Absence makes the heart grow fonder - how to cope with travelling on business

How can we cope with the disruption of frequent business travelling? I don't know how long distance lorry drivers keep their relationships flourishing. Perhaps someone will write in and tell me. There's no doubt one partner being away puts pressure on the other, especially if there are children. Then there's the temptation to find company elsewhere, or the lurking fears of what he or she are getting up to in that hotel all on their own.

If you're reading this, then you will have e-mail. My husband and I write to each other when he's away for a long time, especially if he's abroad. Of course he has to have access to e-mail wherever he is. The time difference doesn't matter and it's cheaper than a phone call. You can also think carefully about what you want to say.

We also find it helps if we make a highlight of the homecoming, setting aside some time and space for each other to adjust mentally and emotionally. Sometimes that won't be the moment the traveller returns as they may have sleep to catch up on, but it does make the point that you're glad to be back together again. It also gives you space to talk about expectations. One of you may have a strong desire for sex, after being apart and a time to show your care for each other may give the other one the chance to catch up with that.

There are probably lots of other issues around this subject, which are specific to your own relationship. Why not find time to sit down and talk about your views, emotions and expectations at these times? You may well discover something new about each other and fresh ways to help each other cope with the pressures at these times.

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> EVENTS

• Wimborne: Monica Acton, Merry Hill Cottage, Long Lane, Colehill,Wimborne, Dorset BH21 7AQ (Tel 01202 885589)
  
  
• Birmingham: Maxine Pitherson, Birmingham Christian Centre, 1 The Parade, Birmingham B1 3QQ (Tel 0121 236 2997)
  

If you haven't discovered blogs yet - they're personal journals compiled online - then check out blogs4God (www.blogs4god.com/linker/index.php), billed as a "semi-definitive list of Christian blogs". From journalling to random thoughts, they're always intriguing and might encourage you to start 'blogging' too!

"Whether you're looking for scientific support for your faith or answers to questions about God and science, Reasons to Believe exists for you" says the blurb at www.reasons.org and that sums it up pretty well. Point your sceptical academic friends at it, or visit it yourself to deepen your apologetics skills ...

> YOU'VE GOT TO LAUGH ...

Thoughts on golf ...

• If you really want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age.
  
• Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of the next group of three.
  
• When you look up, causing an awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again.
  
• Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.
  
• When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one more club or two more balls.
  
• The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.

Selected from Pastor Tim's CleanLaugh newsletter: http://www.cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh/

> CHRISTIAN FAMILY NETWORK THIS WEEK
(MEMBERS' ZONE) - http://www.cfnetwork.co.uk/members/default.asp

> Advice

> In the final part of our series J John has some definitive advice for Christian couples on handling marriage conflict

> Resources

> Columnist Elisabeth Corcoran agonises as her daughter starts playgroup ...
> How dangerous is the fiction of Philip Pullman? Vicar Simon Coupland gives his assessment
> Did you know - 10 more amazing facts you'll want to tell someone
> No more rejection ... a tongue-in-cheek answer for all those companies you didn't get a job with

> News:
> Traditional games 'too dangerous' for playground?
> Jesus 'had a beard like Beckham' say kids
> Cartoonist in hunt for British 'Simpsons'

> Top sites this week

> reasons to believe - convince your sceptic
> blogs4God - get into online journalling
> oneworldtv - giving a voice to those whose stories you'd never hear in the western media
> mission resources - check out a global directory to help you reach others with the Gospel

> Events: More of what's on near you

> Webwatch Index: more than 500 sites at your fingertips
> Site Search Engine: the easy way to trawl our 500-page plus archives

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