Jonah, The big picture.

It's early morning, 5am to be precise. I put my Joggers on, earphones in and off I go for a walk.

I cannot see in front of me due to the morning mist, but I know the sun is shining.

Jonah. Who are you? Time to listen to the 4 chapters that tell a story about an incredible man of God. 

Not unlike our own stories, the book of Jonah starts by him running away from God  - or more easily explained as making a deliberate decision to disobey an instruction. Boy! Can't we all relate to that.

Most people see Jonah and a whale, but I have to say this morning that I got far more out of this reading. I was left pondering. These thoughts are not in order.

The first chapter rang through my ears and mind so fast that I started it again and again. 4 times to be precise!!!

Reflection 1:

I am not sure of the time frame between when God gave Jonah the direction to go to Nineveh and when Jonah ran away, but I am going to assume that it caused Jonah to miss sleep, and probably more than one nights worth. I can't begin to imagine the turmoil and fear of going to Nineveh that caused him to jump on a boat with strangers and attempt to cross an ocean in the complete opposite direction. A deliberate choice of rebellion.

Reflection 2:
Amidst unbelievers, Jonah identifies as a Hebrew. That means he knew that he could not flee from God, because he knew God as Abba. This was deliberate rebellion to the God he identifies with. He even partook of a game of chance with the crew - the drawing of lots which God used to communicate to the uncircumcised that it was Jonah's God who was causing the storm due to his rebellion.

Reflection 3:

Jonah fell into a deep sleep. He slept through the boat tossing and turning in a violent storm, so much so that the crew fighting for survival above deck had exhausted all their means to survive - prayed to their gods, threw things overboard and finally querying if that other man below deck may be able to pray to his God for help - so they woke him up! How can any man sleep through that. Eventually these men came to believe in the God of the Hebrews Yehweh.

Reflection 4:

In one word Jonah's identity was realised. 'I am a Hebrew'.... That is all it took. These foreigners had done trade with Hebrews before, they knew what it meant. They were not going to hurt a Hebrew so they tried to throw things overboard to spare his life but in the end, they begged the God of the Hebrews to forgive them for what they were going to do to one of His children...
The storm calmed.
The men believed in the God of the Hebrews

Reflection 5:

Jonah tried to hide amongst unbelievers - as if God wouldn't be able to find him! We do this! Have you heard Christians say that sometimes it is better to do business with unbelievers because they are nicer? It does tend to be true that the body of Christ want's things cheaper, more discounts, service for nothing... But shouldn't it be that way anyway??????? If all things belong to our Father, and we truely are provided for by Him, should it be wrong to charge our brother or sister for things that rightfully belong to our Father anyway? And thus in turn rightfully belong to us? I struggle so much with this one because everyone just wants money......... you give and give and give, and people just take and take and take....
Jonah paid his way, stayed out of the way as a passenger, and owned up to the truth when it was required. He did what was right when in the presence of the uncircumcised.
A bigger magnifying glass may be needed the next time we 'take' from our Family in our Heavenly Father.

Jonah was such a good read that I expect to be feeding on this word for a while.
Be blessed! I know I am.

Mentor? Me? Yes you...

Throughout my life I have had many, and I mean many women impart their wisdom and life lessons into me, mentoring and inspiring me. Of special mention would be the long suffering women of the Emerald Christian Fellowship in Emerald, CQ - you know who you are!

Forgive me if I waffle - skip to the end if you just want the main point of this blog :)

A little about my mentoring journey.

From a strong confident young adult, a bit confused about life at times and just at the beginning of finding freedom in adulthood, I grew to understand the human condition and the hold it had on me (namely my own freewill and the sin that comes with it)

My testimony may not include addictions and abuse, however rebellion was bound up in this soul and opinion ran high. In my struggles I recall people telling me I was from Satan and others saying that my strength was from God. These viewpoints of myself confused my identity even more and concreted a self despising that I was to carry for decades, stealing my confidence around other people and in my abilities.

                      Constant comparisons with other women had me questioning myself - 'Can I?'; 'Can't I?'; "If they can then I can.'; 'If they approve then it must be ok'...... I weighed myself and my character up against others and therein sort acceptance within my own skin.

It wasn't until I was in my early 40's that I started to be the real me...

Though still lacking in confidence and identity, I began to ask ME what I was like rather than relying on other people's analysis.

                      I had a realisation one day. Just before my 40th birthday, it dawned on me...If God my Father had not seen fit to change me even though I had tearfully begged him, perhaps this is the person He had created me to be. So within that revelation, my journey of self discovery within the safe confines of my relationship with Jesus, I started to settle.

What does it look like to accept who we are? Can I be the created design of myself and still grow and change?

I now know that my build is a patented and unique design, not to be duplicated. I have heard comments on my abilities to do this or that, and I do believe that I have been created fearfully and wonderfully, what that looks like though I am still trying to figure out. 

I get on with most people if they could be bothered to sit and talk a while. I have encountered people who don't like me from the 'get go', and those that don't even want to meet me, fair enough. I understand now that I have an effect on people that I cannot control, but mostly I have grown to be aware of other people around me and work at loving.

I am so thankful to the likes of Mary S, Narelle P, My Mother-in-law, Jenny H, Pam, Ricki, Sheila, oh how that list can go on.. There are women who don't know they had an effect on me, Jan, Christine, Vera, Patty, Carol, Carolyn, Ruth.... And then there are those who have imparted so much to my life, yet would think otherwise - Esther, Elisha, Sarah, Jacky, Wendy F, Sue, Jenny, Jo, Helen... 

I simply can't mention them all.

I have held for a couple of decades that mentoring is a critical component of ministry. We could easily replace that word with 'discipleship'. To do as Jesus did, to be an imitator. There is no collective thought in Christianity as we are all unique and special, but there are the same guidelines and standards to which we have been called. Discipling is one of those directives and needs to be deliberate.

'Let the older women instruct the younger women how to...'

Some actively obey, some simply have open hearts/lives/arms. 

Here it is...

I want to call on those who are tired, lack confidence and feel they have nothing to offer. The enemy has stolen from you the joy that should be yours as the daughter of a King, to train up those who are yet to learn.

I sat in front of a dear lady at Church recently. She had a running commentary throughout the worship session and sermon. She commented on how it was done in her day and mocked and mimicked. It was sad, how could anyone have an open heart to hear Jesus while they harp on so much. If we have a strong opinion about everything how can we learn - a closed book or an old wine skin!

The Lord feeds us daily with new wine - but the old wine skin will burst as the new wine expands. Older people generally cannot cope with changes, however older Christians who should be renewed every morning seem to forget that when they were young they had to fight to even clap in Church, let alone pray! They hold on to the 'good old days' but seem to forget the lessons they also had to learn.

Let me finish with this - until your last breath you will be serving the Lord by loving others (or at least that is your calling), If not to receive and impart love, then what is life but existence. 

Answer His call to love - share deliberately. Mentor....... you can change a persons direction with your words, and their lives with your love, the love of Jesus.

Chocolate Cake & Sin

Would you eat a little piece of chocolate cake if I told you I put the tip of a teaspoon of 'poo' in it? Of course not!
But that is what sin is like - a little piece of 'poo' in a chocolate cake.
We were fearfully and wonderfully made. That's right, hand crafted. Loved so much that our Creator sacrificed Himself to eradicate that little piece of poo, that part of us that should not be there... sin.
We disobeyed an instruction, though we had the world we needed more. That disobedience led to disappointment, shame, fear, broken relationships and a changed path.

Though I am talking about the Garden of Eden, I am focusing on parenting. Our children do exactly that. They sin (as do we), and their hearts are also full of the same disappointment in themselves. As a parent it is important that we catch our children doing the wrong thing, because a little bit of 'poo' can contaminate the whole cake, we need to help them by taking off our rose coloured glasses as far as their cuteness to us, and putting on the belt of truth (as in the first part of the Armour of God) calling our children to account.
If we do not deal with our children's issues, they grow into adults with bigger issues.
Greed, mean speech, stealing, deceit, selfishness...... It is obviously not just our children that struggle with these things, clearly we do as well, however, it is our responsibility to teach our children and train them in the way they should go.
I love my children dearly, and because of that I want to give them the best that I can, in order to do that I need to hold them accountable, and in turn, grow them into lovely people so they can become the person they were meant to be..
This is a hard, tiring job, but rewarding. I love my children.

Be blessed today