To be His hands and feet...

I am so proud of my eldest daughter... I thought I would share her decision with you!
She has decided to go to YWAM DTS - Youth With A Mission Discipleship Training School.

In her own words she stated that she would like to start her life the right way with God at the steering wheel.. We are so excited for her as we are fully aware of how rewarding it is to serve God with our whole self. It is very hard to share this excitement with most of our friends as their children are all young, however we could not be happier or more excited, I tear up just thinking about it!

I must admit I am just a little bit envious that she gets to GO and answer the call, while I still have to stay to meet the needs of my family - which is my current call, and I am sure she will have to face this 'stay at home Mum' one day.. but for now she gets to walk out her faith by learning and serving.

If you would like to know more about YWAM DTS... check it out on You Tube! She is doing the MAD program (Music, Art & Drama) at Brisbane QLD. Such an awesome opportunity for young Christians to find out who they are & who they are called to be - but mostly to get personal with The ONE who calls! Jesus...

I look forward to cheering her on as she walks in the valley :)

http://youtu.be/zwQq6Mfz6IM

If your life is stagnant... choose a different path!

Born With A Fatal Wound

As I placed my head on my pillow last night at 11:53pm.. this is what popped into my mind! I am learning to be ready with pen and paper to capture the things I want to remember.

I was born with a fatal wound and am now on the road to recovery.

Though it is inevitable I will die as a result of this wound, it is also plausible that I will 

live due to the nature of the recovery.

The wound is sin, in which I had no say or control over the contagion on my soul. 

It will inevitably kill me.

But the recovery is in the union I have with the Creator, and in the provision He made for cure.

It too, will only be made complete in the surety of my Earthly death. 

The only condition is that I accept it.

This, however, IS within my control.

If we are not tempted beyond that which is common for man (1 Co 10:13); then it is fair to say that the things we do on an everyday basis has the potential to be sin and us not know it.

I am not sure what the answer is in this except to pray and ask the Lord to open our eyes and reveal to us our own distance from His purity & Holiness. It may mean we look at the simple things we do each day and question if they fit with His original blue print for our path. 

Some examples of this would be watching TV and what we are viewing...Or what words we are saying when we sing songs. Perhaps how much food we eat or how we relate to the people whose paths we cross. 

When you have finished reading this small blog of mine - don't be like the man in James 1:23.

Chew on it a while.. and have your cup filled by His word. Bec

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 

Perhaps the answer is in our actions....

²⁵ But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Will There Be Shadows In Heaven?

Driving along, stuck behind a slow car... My mind was blank as is quite often the case when I drive into town numerous times through the day, . I noticed the shadow on a guide post and asked 'why are all shadows black?"

Wow where did that come from... Why ARE all shadows black? I understand dark and light, and when the sun shines it casts a shadow, but why not colourful shadows based on the object being shone upon.

Have you ever seen a dog discover his own shadow? It is very funny to watch, they try to attack it!
Children are scared of their own shadows, and petrified of others.
Teenagers play with their shadows.
Adults never think about them again.

I wonder....

Could shadows be the oppression of the enemy in the world? In that we are all tainted by it in one way or another..and the shadow just gets darker the more the light shines on it. Perhaps when we stand directly in the light of God, there will be no shadow?  Could shadows be sin as in Peter Pan - where it is attached to us....and alive...perhaps like the sin we were born into?
My creative mind just kept going!!!

I don't really have any answers here.. it was just food for thought that I am still pondering. I just thought I would share it with you out of curiosity!

Ps 36:7 - Even God has a shadow - but in His we can hide.....

(Revelation 21:21b 'The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass...' The walls and roads of heaven will be clear, transparent.. see through - perhaps to not hinder the Glory of the Lord shining onto everything? 
Anywaaaays...

Hope you are feeling full to overflowing. Bec

The Prodigal Me???

I love it when the Lord pops a message in my head, from out of the blue - BAM - in a split second a whole sermon!

So in the famous words of my previous Pastor Barry, I have 10 x 'R"s for you!

Recall the story of the Prodigal Son - Have you read it? If you need a refresher then please read Luke 15:11-32 before you go any further.....

Two Sons, one Father. 

One Son did what he wanted to do and Regretted it.

One Son did what everyone else wanted him to do - what was expected of him and he later Resented it.

The first Son did what he wanted to do. 

He wanted the world and all it had to offer. Perhaps he had heard all the stories, perhaps he looked at his family and their way of life and decided it wasn't for him. Maybe he was sick of being asked to contribute to the family and he just wanted to grow his wings and fly away - sounds like a Rebellious teenager don't you think?

He Realised (vs 17) how foolish he had been and Repented (vs 18), he Returned (vs 20) home where his father Rejoiced (vs 22) in him and Reconciled (vs 24) him back to himself and his family. This made him more grateful and wiser.

The second Son did what everyone else wanted him to do  - what was expected of him.
He wanted the world but was never game to push for it (vs 29).
He Resented (vs 28) his own obligated obedience and all the attention his brother was receiving. He Rebelled (vs 29) , threw a tantrum and Rebuked (vs 30) his Father. However, his Father pleaded with him to be a part of the celebrations and see the life in the son who returned (vs 31).

The Father, not only rejoiced in both his children, but he reconciled them to himself with sin and without sin, proving His love for His creation.
One Son had to ask for forgiveness and Received love, the other Son felt righteous and justified in his attitude and Rejected love.

When it all boils down - which Son are we? Which son are you?

Sometimes I feel righteously proud and justified in my opinions... I believe this steals from me the joy of accepting Gods love and forgiveness and hinders me being reconciled to Him. Other times, I realise how wrong I have been and turn from my ways which in turn helps me to accept the Love of my Father in Heaven and realise how much I need him.

I am sure there are many ways to look at the Prodigal Son, but I am thankful that the Lord chose to show me that there is always a decision.
One Son decided he was wrong, the other decided he was right.

Matthew 5:45 (NLT)

In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.

Joshua 24:15

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. Let me leave you with these words - Your choice..... Jeremiah 6:16

“Stand at the crossroads and look;
    ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
    and you will find rest for your souls.
    But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

I hope you are feeling full! Bec

Don't Walk - Run!

I just finished doing a Bible study - Becoming A Woman Of Simplicity by author Cynthia Heald.

I have the next study right here beside me (Becoming a Woman Of Purpose); turning the first page to the Preface I start underlining all the things that stand out... most of the first page! 

WOW! 

I have been in a drought for the last two years. Our previous Pastor was so gifted at bringing the Word that I had something to chew on for a whole week. Then the change, and I discovered how empty my cup was without someone else's leading. 

Have you been there - your cup is not being refilled after giving all week?

BIG MISTAKE to rely on another to feed us spiritually. 

I have learnt so much, I hope my lessons can encourage you.

There is a season for everything.. I had a season of not being involved at Church. I went from extremely busy (Sunday School, Youth Group, Music team, Co-ordinator of certain events) to not being involved at all. I did not withdraw from my lovely friends, just from offering.

This season left me dry, I felt guilty, I felt like I had nothing to offer anymore. At first it felt like a break, then I began to ask the Lord for understanding and guidance.

We are to 'run the race set out before us'......Hebrews 12:1

1. To 'run' is to take action.

2. The 'race marked out for us'.

1. After two years, I took action - lead by the Holy Spirit of course - God obviously heard my prayers and decided my heart was fertile & ready to grow. Sitting at the computer and perusing the Koorong catalogue, I skimmed past the Cynthia Heald Study on Simplicity and that was it - it stood out, I had done most of her studies before but had never seen this one. I ordered it and it changed my life. 

I seem to go through waves of busyness and then take a break, I would have said that it was 'seasons' in my life, however, now I understand that I basically take on too much and make the decision to do it myself - I stamp it with God's approval and end up getting burned out due to reliance on my own strength. Then I withdraw for a period.

Answer: To have a simple and pure devotion to Christ, making it my ambition to lead a quite life and only ask the Lord for His direction and will. 

(2 Co 11:3; 1 Thess 4:11)

2. To run the race marked out for us - If you do not know the race track you will get lost - it's that simple.

The first Bible study has bought me back to searching the Word for myself based on my relationship with Christ Jesus and not dependant upon a Pastor. It has cleared the way for me to draw nearer to the Lord on a daily basis, and it has been exciting to get to know Him deeper by simplifying my days. 

Now, however, I am ready to know the race track - to learn of the proper path for me - this will be different for all of us of course, but knowing the path He set out for us has to make the race a little bit easier to run wouldn't you agree?

Becoming A Woman Of Purpose covers topics like God's Purpose, Our Purpose & My Purpose.

I am so looking forward to it.

Be encouraged that you have a path that has been set out for you by your Creator, who loves you and wished only the best for you. It is not an easy path to walk, there will be suffering along the way but there will also be blessings and victories. This is a path well worth walking but we will need the Lord's strength, and we will have to make sure we do not clutter our lives with so much 'stuff' that we cannot see clearly.

Through Prayer you too can simplify - Jeremiah 6:16..

 “Stand at the crossroads and look;

    ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,

    and you will find rest for your souls. 

Be encouraged! Bec

What's Milo got to do with God?

As we were sitting around the table discussing the Word, we came to 1 John 5:14-15.

We were told to make some notes on God's gifts.
We threw around some of our individual 'understandings' of what it meant, when suddenly a picture of a Milo tin formed in my mind followed by a whole message! I found myself sitting there smiling, thinking "Really Father? Milo? You really want me to share that?"..

So I proceeded to share the message I had received...

It was not about taking time to rest in God's peace whilst enjoying a warm cup of Milo; nor was it about the nutrients found in one sip as in one sip of the river that flows from His throne.... we can see parables  in almost anything.. but this just popped into my head out of the blue during a deep theological discussion.
Verse 15 'And since we know that He invariably gives his attention to our prayers, whatever they are, we can be quite sure that what we have asked for is already ours.'

It's like Milo.
As a parent I buy Milo when I am shopping, because I want to give it to my children as a treat.
I think ahead, I go down the isle and deliberately purchase it. I take it home and place it in my pantry for the perfect time to bless my children.
When my children came and ask me for Milo, I consider the time, the circumstances, the fairness between siblings, the child and whether or not it is right for them right now. Before they even ask, the Milo was set aside for them.

This taught me that it was always God's intention to bless me. He is ready and willing. In our relationship He wants to bless me (it took me a long time to not feel selfish/greedy saying this). He planned it and set about to make it happen.

I need to ask Him as he hears every request that is made in accord with His plan. I can have confidence that the blessings are there ready and waiting.

Though I ask in confidence, I still need to 'wait' for the answer, as my Father considers what is best for me. Waiting...is a completely different message!

I loved this analogy! It helped me to understand that He set aside blessings in advance for me. Perhaps this message was a word just for me, but I do believe that when we share the word we receive, it can then be clarified for us and/or a blessing to others.

Thanks for reading my blog and persevering with me while I navigate the path that is my life's journey. I hope that my lessons are in some way, a blessing to you.

Relinquishing Control.

Another wonderful message for me to understand how much I am loved - had to share this YouTube clip with you all.

God is the perfect creator isn't he? When you take a good hard look at yourself do you ask "Why did you make me like this?"

Does not the potter have the right to make out of the clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use? In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common.

There may be times you do not like your life, however if you do exactly what you were called/created to do/to be, you will find perfect peace....

I could not say this any better than the following Skit Guys - They are AMAZINGLY gifted! Enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhfUzodLRvk