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After a wet Friday and Saturday the weather cleared just in time for 11 people to enjoy exploring
a pony club’s grazing fields and a new boardwalk beside the Orakei Basin.
Four people left The
Bracken at 1:30pm and met up with the others in the carpark of the Orakei shops on Kepa Rd. Two cars
were taken to the Orakei Basin to ferry drivers back afterwards. Shortly after 2pm we set out and entered
the grazing paddocks of the St Heliers Bay Pony Club - this is public council land leased by the club,
and we were allowed to cross this provided we left all gates as we found them.
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We enjoyed views across to Purewa, Orakei Basin and beyond as we followed a farm track through the
fields, dropping down and following a level stretch before gradually climbing up to come out further
down Kepa Rd. Water gushing out of the Orakei Basin floodgates reminded one of the Huka Falls.
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From there we road bashed to the new boardwalk running alongside the railway line. This is the first
part of a new track that will completely circumnavigate the Orakei Basin. We came to the floodgates under
a railway bridge, that are used to maintain a constant high-water level in Orakei Basin, home to water-skiing.
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From there we followed a track to see if a new footbridge was already open, but found that it would
be accessed by a new boardwalk whose foundations had just been put in.
A patch of grass near
the floodgates and sheltered from the strong southwest winds made for our afternoon tea break. For our
devotions John shared some thoughts about the recent devastating earthquake in Christchurch. There were
four FAQ’s: (1) I God judging Christchurch? - no, He dealt with all sin on the cross of Jesus Christ,
and is therefore not angry (2) Is the earthquake an "act of God"? - no, God does not want anyone to perish,
but He does not control everything that happens on earth, and Satan’s mission is to destroy (3) Doesn’t
the Bible say there would be more earthquakes in the last days? - there may be a connection between earthquakes
and spiritual events, such as quakes during Christ’s death and resurrection, but we must not use fear
to preach the gospel, we need to show and reflect the goodness and kindness of God to others (4) What
message does God have for Christchurch? - He entrusts us with the message of reconciliation through Christ,
and of His everlasting and unfailing love, and we are not to condemn the people of Christchurch with
a false "gospel" of judgment, but to tell them about God’s unshakable covenant of peace. The Christchurch
earthquake has sown a sense of bonding and friendship among neighbours and strangers. We need to pray
especially for our friends in Christchurch, that they will remain safe and well, and return to normal
quickly, and for the unsaved ones that they will come to Jesus as a result of this disaster.
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