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Mark Thompson: Hello, my name's Mark Thompson. I'm the Principal of Moore College. Are you considering theological study? Why not join us at Moore College's September Open Days and explore what studying at Moore might look like for you?

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Hear about our courses, our curriculum, community life, the application process, fees, pathways into study and from study into ministry, meet our faculty and students, tour the campus, and above all, ask your questions. Whether you're considering full-time or part-time study, applying soon or thinking further ahead, come and discover how Moore prepares men and women to serve Christ and his people. We'd love to see you. Find out more and register at moore.edu.au/events.

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Jono Mills: Welcome to To This Point..: conversations with students about how God has brought them to Sydney's Moore Theological College. I am one of your hosts, Jono, and today we're speaking with Lucy Strongman: Lucy Strongman. Jono Mills: Ooh, Lucy Strongman.

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Yeah. Uh, yes. Uh, only recently Strongman. Um, always a strong lady, but now strong Strongman out.

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Uh, so good to have you here, Lucy. Thank you so much for coming onto the podcast. Uh, To This Point., ask three questions about how God has worked in your life. Where have you come from?

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Why are you here? And where are you going? Uh, we'll start off of course with where have you come from? Can you tell us, uh, where you were born and what life was like growing up?

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Um, I was born in Lismore, in the northern rivers of New South. So proud blues at state of origin. Jono Mills: Yes.

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Lucy Strongman: Uh, but I did move to Southwest Queensland while I was fairly young in primary school. Mm. Um, so I do at most other times of the year identify more as a Queenslander than a blue, sadly, Jono Mills: the state of origin New South Wales. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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I come back to my roots. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, so yeah, I, once we moved to Queensland, I spent most of my time growing up on a farm in country Queensland about dairy. Five Dairy farm,

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Jono Mills: or was it a, like a Lucy Strongman: cattle and crop cattle. Crops and crops. Cattle and crops, yeah.

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About five hours west of Brisbane. Mm. Wow. Um, in a little town near miles, but nobody's ever heard of Miles, so I don't usually bother saying the name.

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Jono Mills: Yeah. Cool. So out west, um, surrounded by the cows, uh, having a good time. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Well family life was a good grown up. Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Yeah. I was really blessed to grow up in a solid Christian family.

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Um. Even an extended Christian family for the most part. Um, yeah, my parents were wonderful in teaching us how much God loved us and yeah, I don't really remember not wanting to follow Jesus as a kid. Oh, wonderful.

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Um, which is really beautiful to be able to back on. Yeah. Jono Mills: What a great testimony to, of the, uh, extended family. Lucy Strongman: Mm-hmm.

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Jono Mills: Yeah. Yeah. Something we can't take for granted. Um, did you travel somewhere for school?

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Was it far away? Lucy Strongman: Uh, school, primary school was in the town that was actually nearest Okay. To us drill em. But that was a primary school of 30 kids all up.

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And for high school we had to go to the next town along, which was Miles. Wow. And that was a school of about 200. Jono Mills: Okay.

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah. So a lot of kids did go to boarding school, but Okay. But. But me and my siblings, they

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Jono Mills: able to stayed. Lucy Strongman: Most of us, we all stayed out there. Jono Mills: Yeah. What was church like for you growing up then?

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah, when we were living in the northern rivers, um, we went to, I think it was called Ballina Gospel Hall. It was an open BRE church there. Um, really great faithful. Church taught the Bible.

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Um, once we moved to Queensland, we were an hour from the nearest brother church. So, um, my kind of uncles and aunts and their parents had started a home church on the farm. So I went to church at my cousin's grandparents' house. Wow.

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In their living room every Sunday. Jono Mills: There you go. Lucy Strongman: Just on the other side of the farm. So fun.

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Yeah. Just very different from the Sydney Anglican churches. I've joined since coming here. Jono Mills: Yes.

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Uh oh, how wonderful. But you grew up surrounded by, by the gospel. Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Jono Mills: Um, and you always need a Lord Jesus.

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Lucy Strongman: Mm-hmm. Jono Mills: Um, uh, did you move away for uni? Was that when the climb came to move away from the farm? Lucy Strongman: Yeah, I did.

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I moved to the Sunshine Coast to go and study nursing straight out of high school. I followed my sister there. She was already studying. Jono Mills: Nice.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, and that was great. Um, I. I'm not a lover of study itself, but I find human biology fascinating. So I enjoyed that course for the most part, and also got really involved with, because you studied nursing? I studied nursing, yeah.

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Yeah. Um, also got really involved with AFES while I was on campus there, which was a very great idea. In hindsight, I, yeah, I grew a lot in learning to read the Bible for myself and maturing in my faith, which Jono Mills: Oh wonderful.

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Lucy Strongman: Was great. Jono Mills: Um, and presumably joined a church that wasn't related. Didn't have people related to you Lucy Strongman: as

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Jono Mills: well? Lucy Strongman: Not a church full of my cousins. This time though, I joined a Church of Christ in bedroom called Lake Shore. Jono Mills: Wow.

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Cool. So AFES, uh, big influence upon you. Um, uni for, uh, how long a nursing degree? Three years.

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Four years? Lucy Strongman: Uh, it can be three years. I did it in four. Okay.

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'cause I started midwifery as well, but dropped that one. Jono Mills: Yeah. Cool. And then did you go and serve.

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As a midwife? Oh, no. As a, as a nurse somewhere. Yeah.

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Lucy Strongman: I went and did a grad year in nursing between Kingaroy and Wanda, so kind of rural towns in Queensland. Um, had great fun with that. Yeah, nice. And then moved back to the Sunshine Coast to keep working as a nurse.

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Mm. Um, after doing that for two years, I decided to come back and do an MTS with the uni ministry, but I kept nursing part-time still. Jono Mills: Oh, wow. Lucy Strongman: During that. Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Okay. Well, and that kind of segues into the the next question of why are you here? Um, so doing MTS, was that something. Long planned.

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You started, started College, did that join a PS and thought, oh, I want to come back here straight away. Lucy Strongman: Absolutely not in no part of my plans. Jono Mills: Oh, wow. Lucy Strongman: Was there an doing MTS going into ministry, doing bible College or anything?

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When I started uni, um, I, I. I say I was conned into MTS by one of my friends. Okay. Um, shout out to Catherine. Great head.

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Um, she, we were going to uni together at the same time on the sunny coast, and she was thinking about doing MTS there, and as she would ask questions that she was trying to wrestle with to figure out if she would do it, she would ask them to the group as a whole, and she hit us with the question of why not one day? Why not? Do an MTS, why not do Christian ministry?

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And the only answer I had was, it sounds terrifying. So yeah, she kind of made me think about it to start with and then, but yeah, it wasn't until I'd been out of uni for a year thinking about it more and praying about it, that I decided I would even do MTS. Music: Okay. Lucy Strongman: Um, but at that point I still wasn't thinking Bible College or full-time ministry.

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Mm. Um, I was gonna use it as a training experience to be equipped for lay ministry, um, work a few less hours in nursing each week, and to be able to give it to the church more. Jono Mills: Okay. And then go back to, to nursing full time and Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Or go back to nursing. Yep. Like maybe three or four days a week. Jono Mills: Okay.

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Lucy Strongman: And just be really stuck in, in church. Yeah. Lay ministry. Jono Mills: That would've been great.

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So yeah, would, that's like a really good path. But, um. Obviously something happened. Lucy Strongman: Yes.

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Jono Mills: What, uh, what was that process like? What, why, what, what brought you to Moore College? Lucy Strongman: Yeah. God very slowly and very patiently

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Jono Mills: Mm. Lucy Strongman: Convicted me. Jono Mills: Okay. Lucy Strongman: Throughout my MTS

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Jono Mills: Mm. Lucy Strongman: That his call to obedience in my life was gonna be full-time ministry. Jono Mills: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: So it wasn't really through. One big epiphany moment or anything like that. It was through lots of small niggling things all the way through those two years of MTS.

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Music: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: Um, yeah. Partly the recurrence in all the different, um, context of my life of, uh, the call from the gospel to, if you wanna be my disciple, take up your cross, deny yourself and follow me. Um.

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I think I said that in the wrong order, but you know what I mean. Yeah. Um, and I. After a while was just convicted that I was holding onto nursing. 'cause it was comfortable for me.

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I'd gotten used to it. It wasn't terrifying anymore, like ministry would be. Um, so it was partly that that just kept arising everywhere. Mm-hmm.

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Um, partly people's encouragement to me, like my MTS trainer, that I could do ministry. It was possible. It's Jono Mills: not as terrifying as you said.

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah. You're not as incompetent as you think. Um, yeah. Um, but also one of the, well, no, there were two more things also in nursing.

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I got more and more convicted as I was doing that three days a fortnight that what I was offering people, there was a very temporary bandaid for their problems. Um, yeah, I could, as people came in with their sicknesses, I could. Help them get better in the moment. I could offer them maybe a few more years, a few more decades of life with what I could do for them as a nurse.

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But we're all gonna die at some point. Yes, yes. Um, it was just prolonging. So yeah, I was more convicted that I wanted to be part of a more permanent solution.

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Mm. An eternal one. Mm-hmm. Um, and probably the last straw that got me, I was still just resisting and Jono Mills: Okay.

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Lucy Strongman: Really? Yes. Not wanting to for most of NDS, but the last straw that got me was my last AFES apprentice conference. Mm. Uh, where Seth Fellows was preaching on the book of Jonah.

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Ah, Jono Mills: yes. Lucy Strongman: Uh. Very convicting, but I saw God's heart for his people, his heart for the lost in the Book of Jonah.

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And I knew that. I didn't feel that, and that was one of the big barriers that was stopping me from wanting to do Bible College and ministry. Um. So I started praying from that conference

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Jono Mills: Wow. Lucy Strongman: That God would give me a heart for the lost, such that I would want to do ministry. And tremendous, he really graciously answered that prayer. Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Oh, that's so good. Uh, I remember, yeah. Also being at that conference and being really convicted. Um, so it wasn't just you.

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Music: Yeah. Jono Mills: But I think that. At that point, a lot of people who might be listening, who are thinking about College, uh, you know, doing other, other good jobs like nursing or being a doctor or a teacher, and it can be quite a real struggle to, yeah. To think through and to wrestle through whether or not ministry is something for you.

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Um, so yeah, what a good reminder that no matter what they do, the eternal work is the work that lasts. Even if that's part-time leading Bible studies, um, or full-time in ministry. Lucy Strongman: Mm-hmm. Jono Mills: Um.

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Yeah, so good. When did you know you were coming to College? Was it quite close to the end of the year? Were you one of the last minute

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Lucy Strongman: It was, yeah. I was definitely a last minute application. Jono Mills: Wow. Lucy Strongman: I think it was, well, that, that conference was probably six months out from finishing.

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Yes. It wasn't. Yeah, and I think it was another month or two after that. Okay.

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Until I decided that I would do Bible College and then I had to decide which Bible College. Jono Mills: Which one? Yes. Yeah.

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Yeah. So why, why more College? What was the, Lucy Strongman: yeah.

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I was tossing up honestly, between QTC in Brisbane, which was much closer to me. Mm. And more here. Um, QTC is a really great College. Mm. And, um, like I love Gary Miller, who's a principal there.

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Um, he would be a great person to learn off. Jono Mills: Much love to any QTC folk listening. Lucy Strongman: Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

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Um Jono Mills: hmm. Lucy Strongman: I think the, the things that got me to decide on more in the end was partly just who had opened the Bible with me and discipled me. Jono Mills: Yes.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, so the AFES workers who had read the Bible with me and helped me through uni and MTS, they'd been through more. So I just had a bit more of an idea of what more College popped out at the other end. Yeah. Um, and I really respected their ministries.

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Music: Yeah. Lucy Strongman: Um, but also just I think some practical things. Hmm. I knew I'm, I've never been someone who loves study and by the end of my nursing degree I was so sick of it.

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You done? Yes. I was never coming back. Jono Mills: Yeah.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, so I knew that going back to study a second degree I would need. A lot of people motivation to keep me going. Jono Mills: Yes. Lucy Strongman: So partly the size of more College, there'll be more people, probably more women specifically studying here as well as the opportunity to live on campus.

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Yes. With everyone. Jono Mills: Uh, you came to College, uh, you chose more College. Um, good choice.

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Uh, but it's a big change from Lismore and from, uh, out West Farm and also from the Sunshine Coast. Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Jono Mills: Um, how did you find that change? Yeah.

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What was the, or any surprises, a co church being quite different as well. Talk us through that. Lucy Strongman: Yeah, it was pretty overwhelming for the first few months. I've never been a city gal. Yeah, yeah.

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Grew up on a farm. Jono Mills: Yes. Lucy Strongman: Moved to the sunny coast. Jono Mills: Yeah,

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Lucy Strongman: like at the beach, um, Jono Mills: like you believe me on King Street in Newtown. Lucy Strongman: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Jono Mills: Yes.

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Lucy Strongman: So if you had asked me before I decided to come to College Mm, what was the least likely place I would ever live in Australia? I would've said Sydney or Melbourne. Music: Yes. Lucy Strongman: Um, yeah.

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So the first few months were pretty overwhelming. Like just, just with city life being surrounded by concrete, so many people and cars and constant noise and. Lack of horizons. I missed horizons.

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It felt quite claustrophobic. Um, yes. So that, uh, took much prayer and just time Yes. To get used to.

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Music: Yeah. Lucy Strongman: Um, yeah. I was thankful for the little College bubble in the midst of Newtown where I could escape, um, the noise and the traffic and have a little bit of sunshine on the green. Music: Mm-hmm.

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Lucy Strongman: Um. Also, it took me, I think, three months to actually step foot in the library. Jono Mills: How, Lucy Strongman: and but the day I did, and I realised how silent it is in there.

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Jono Mills: Ah, Lucy Strongman: yes. It was such a relief. Jono Mills: Yes, yes.

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They built it well, didn't they? Lucy Strongman: Yes. Jono Mills: Um, Lucy Strongman: but no, I, I gradually have gotten more used to Sydney the longer I've been here.

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Mm. Um, it's gotten less overstimulating. I've found some silver lining places to escape to. Yeah. When it's getting too much.

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Um, yeah. And the people at College kind of make it worth it anyway. Mm. Like the people I was living with at Chapo was so much fun. So.

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It felt like there were places I could escape the city and yeah. Oh Jono Mills: yeah. Lucy Strongman: It was worth it even though it was so hard.

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Jono Mills: Yeah. I feel that's probably a helpful sometimes. People can come to College with all these expectations of how good it's gonna be, but it can take a bit of time. Um, but it does get, it does get really good, doesn't it?

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Jono Mills: How did you find that, like the cohort, particularly cohort of women, women around you helping helped you study in first year? Lucy Strongman: Oh, they are glorious.

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Not just in first year. Jono that in first year still going. Jono Mills: Okay. Right.

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Some of the best times at College have been either sitting around the table in Sherwood, uh, in that place where I lived with the other girls, just. Having each of us motivating the others to study. Jono Mills: Mm-hmm.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, or under the grapevine. Yes. At College here. Yes.

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Yes. It's Jono Mills: often a group under the grapevine. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Yeah. Studying you. I can always find Lisa there to help me get into a bit of work. Yeah.

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And, but not just the girls either. Everyone is really great. When I don't understand things in class, I generally turn to my neighbour. Go, you know, what are they talking about?

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Yes. Jono Mills: Yes. Yeah. Yeah.

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I think that's a great blessing of College is there's people from such a range of backgrounds, um, and no one, well, no one is, is an expert in, in everything. Yeah. Some are, some are close, but no one, everything. And so we're all learning from one another as well.

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And um, yeah. What a great blessing that is. Um. Yeah, sorry.

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You did hint that, you know, something's changed about your living situation. You, you met your husband at College, um, but you're still studying. You're still studying here, um, together. Um, which is very exciting.

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Um, yeah, let's just think about the last question then. Uh, where are you going? Do you know where you and Steve hope to be going? After College?

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Lucy Strongman: Nope. No. We have vague ideas. Jono Mills: Okay.

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Yeah. Yeah. Lucy Strongman: The only thing we've really locked in is that we don't wanna stay in Sydney. Um, not just because we're not lovers of Sydney, um, but because we've seen that there are some much less gospel resource places in Australia as well as in the world.

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Uh, and we wanna go to them. Jono Mills: You were saying that you were sick of study. Yeah, when you did your nursing degree, um, but you, you came to College, uh, I feel like there's a lot of people who come to College who didn't expect to be studying again. Uh, do you have any advice for, for how, how to get back into study or for those who might be thinking about College but are a bit nervous about.

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Getting back into study. Lucy Strongman: Mm Gosh. I don't know if I'm the best person to come to for advice, Jono Mills: but you got, you're doing, you're gonna do four years now, Lucy.

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So you obviously something went well. Lucy Strongman: Um, honestly. I figured it was worth it, even though I was terrified of coming back to study again. Mm-hmm.

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So, I don't know. I just sent it. Yeah. I just turned up and figured out how it would go.

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Jono Mills: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: Once I got here. Jono Mills: Yeah. Lucy Strongman: And.

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Yeah. Studying with other people has been really helpful. Jono Mills: Yes. Yeah.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, finding a friend to motivate me each afternoon, even if it's just studying within the vicinity of each other. Jono Mills: Mm. Lucy Strongman: That's been really great study groups for particularly. Jono Mills: Um,

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Lucy Strongman: particularly Jono Mills: for languages I found. Lucy Strongman: Yeah. For you

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Jono Mills: as well. Lucy Strongman: Yeah, yeah. Reading languages together. Mm-hmm.

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I would've given up so much earlier if I hadn't had friends for that. Jono Mills: Yep. Lucy Strongman: Um, but yeah, study groups in the lead up to exams as well. Just talking about what we'd learn over the term and making sense of all the things I didn't understand as we went.

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Mm-hmm. Has been really helpful. Jono Mills: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: Um.

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Yeah, Jono Mills: I feel like having those friends who are with you to when like you're reading some dense theological essay, not just to explain it to you, but to help you remember, uh, how good it is to be studying, studying theology full time and actually realising that this is something of eternal significance. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Um, I benefit from that. Ly. Lucy Strongman: Yeah. It's such a trippy sensation as I'm in the midst of an assignment.

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Jono Mills: Mm-hmm. Lucy Strongman: And everything in me just wants to grumble and complain. Yes. And I'm so sick of it.

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Yeah. And then I realise, oh wait, hang on. I'm diving incredibly deeply Yes. Into the book of Corinthians right now.

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And I'm learning Jono Mills: what a, I'm Lucy Strongman: learning about our creator. Jono Mills: Yeah.

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It's not a waste of time, even when it sometimes can feel like it's just a lot of hard work. Yeah. It's just so valuable. Um.

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Yeah, let's just think about the last question then. Uh, where are you going? Do you know where you and Steve hope to be going after College? Lucy Strongman: I've been a part of uni ministry for MTS.

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I've done some church stuff now while I've been at College doing student ministry. Um, I haven't really, there's not been any kind of ministry that I've said. Definitely not. Music: Yes.

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Lucy Strongman: Um, but I have been really loving kids over the last couple of years. Yeah. Kids are so much more fun than adults. You can have fun visuals.

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Yes, fun skits. You can act it out. Um, yeah. So I've been really enjoying that.

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So potentially that might be something is Yeah. But it'll also depend on the practicalities of where we end up. Jono Mills: Yes. Yeah.

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Yes. Yeah. And isn't it a comfort to know that the Lord knows, even though we don't. Lucy Strongman: Yeah.

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Jono Mills: Uh, but it's just so exciting, like. I was just thinking, just from the sound of it, when you were so reluctant to go into MTS and so reluctant to go to, to College now, to hear you've been so open to so many things, uh, what an answer to the prayer that, that you had Lucy Strongman: Yeah. Jono Mills: Of, um, of God convicting you about the loss.

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Lucy Strongman: Yeah. God Jono Mills: is Lucy Strongman: good.

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Jono Mills: God is very good. Um, and think we, we can be praying for you guys. Lucy Strongman: Ooh, yeah. Wisdom in figuring out where to go.

00:21:50.330 - 00:21:54.980

Yes. Jono Mills: Yeah. Lucy Strongman: Um, but also. We only got married in January.

00:21:55.010 - 00:22:11.060

Mm. So figuring out what ministry together looks like as we've kind of both been on ministry traject trajectories individually up until this point. So yeah, figuring out whether we're both in a church somewhere, whether it's Yeah. Really alongside each other or Jono Mills: Yeah.

00:22:11.120 - 00:22:17.210

Lucy Strongman: In working in different things. Um, yeah. Jono Mills: Yeah. Cool.

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Oh, those are great things to pray for. Uh, dear Father, we thank you so much for Lucy. We thank you for, uh, bringing her to know you as her Lord. Thank you for her family.

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Preaching the gospel to her, um, surrounding her with, uh, with grace from an early age. We thank you as well for the AFES fellowship at, uh, the Sunny Coast Uni, um, that really helped her grow in her love for your word, but also, uh, grew her conviction, um, to be serving you. Lord, we thank you so much for the way you've been at working in Lucy's life. Um.

00:22:50.910 - 00:23:08.530

Changing her heart, um, to be more compassionate for the lost, uh, answering that prayer from a few years ago, um, helping her to, um, do the unthinkable of, of first of an MTS and then College. And now, um, stepping out in faith to serve you. Uh. Into the future with Steve.

00:23:08.530 - 00:23:38.830

We thank you for both of them for their marriage. Lord, please give them wisdom to know how to serve you together and where to serve you. Lord, we pray that you be at work through them and that many will grow in their love for you and your word through their ministry. Nathan Hutchinson: You've been listening to To This Point., a podcast from "Societas", the student magazine of Sydney's Moore Theological College.

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To find out more about the College and to listen to past episodes, head to moore.edu.au. That's moore.edu.au. This podcast was edited and produced with assistance from the Communications Team at Moore Theological College, and our music was provided by Moore College graduate Zaneta Neal.

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Disciples proclaiming Christ.