Friday 30 January 2015

No One Helped - Not one.

My husband came in the door, his quick dart off to the shop took half an hour, so I instinctively knew something must have happened. "I have been in an accident."
I'm pretty calm in crisis situations, I thank God for this often, and I dont panic, all I could think of was "are you okay!" My mom had just arrived to spend the weekend with us and I was just getting her settled in, but I needed to hear what happened first. My husband shared all the details with me and we took a look at the car. Badly bumped but still okay, praises to Yeshua! How was he, sad and upset. We drove down to the police station to report the accident scene, the other driver had demanded my husband pay for the damage but it wasn't my husbands fault and we dont have insurance. But as we drove home, I prayed a heart felt prayer of faith and depth and as I prayed I saw God's Hands reach out and pick up our entire situation.. It was a clear vision and I knew God is in control here. I went with my mom to the shops to get groceries for the weekend but all I could feel in my heart was incredible sadness for my husband. He has been through so much this past year and it really hurt me.


When I finally returned home, my husband turned to me in quiet reflection and the only words he could say was "no one even helped me. No one. No one stopped."


These few words may seem insiginficant to some but it deeply resonated with me. No one came to help, what a sad tragedy. I was a trauma counsellor for a number of years, I know what trauma does and how it works. And I found that trauma opens up our hearts to the need for help and love. When a person faces a trauma they really need help - in the form of a loving hug, a gentle touch, a reassuring word - anything. And God I pray today to not miss out on when someone needs my help. As believers in Christ, I pray we will not miss out on the help that is needed wherever and whenever. Yesterday in the mall there was a lady carrying a crying baby in her arms and the child dropped his train on to the floor. It was hard for mom to bend down with baby and pick up the train and as this scene unfolded, I watched as no one bothered to help. Again today in the police station a very old man (maybe in his 80's) hobbled on two crutches towards the turn - stile that was at the entrance to the police station. How was he going to swing in to this turn - stile door when he was balancing himself on two crutches and again no one went to help him. So I opened the side door to aid him, but he didnt hear me so he hobbled in to the turn stile but because of my getsure, a young man standing behind him saw me and began to help this old man. And I realised that help can be contagious, if we only seek to help others. 

This week I have been reading and meditating on 1 John 4 - and it is so rich and deep... It made me think of this today ....

And then as we sat and prayed this afternoon, about our car and all the bills and everything else. Our phone rang unexpectedly, a fellow friend and believer came from out of nowhere and dropped off some goodies at our house, just to bless us this weekend. Again, I realised just how much we need to help one another in the body, with maybe just a hug or a blessing, or a gift or validation or understanding, or maybe a listening here.

Again God I pray, not to miss what others need me to help them with in Yeshua's Name.
Sharing with Velvet Ashes...

Thursday 29 January 2015

Finding His Breath in Rest

It's beautiful... Listen.... To that Sound.
It's the sound of God. For me the sound of God is the sound of absolute still silence when I can just hear Him breathing. Breathing through the birds outside, the leg - clapping green things that roam out of sight on the leaves. The sound of His breath in the air and its just Love - filled silence.
I confess in years gone by I never took the time or made the space for this place. I filled it with words of prayer, with Godly deeds but I never took what Bonnie calls White Space .

I never needed a book to teach me about this place, because no book can teach me that, books and authors, spiritual friends and teachers can entrust me with that message but people could never give it to me. My journey to rest, started in 2012 with a breakdown and illness. And then recovery and the greater sense of rest and space then ever before. I remember sitting with a wonderful friend over a cup of tea and describing my journey of breakdown with her. She turned to me and said "you can talk about it with authority and you can walk in it with authroity because you have lived through it." I loved what she said, it was eye opening. Rest and peace. 

Many times I have had to learn how to rest, and I believe rest in its raw natural God breathed state looks different for everyone but there are some unique qualities about it that are the same. For me, returning to a place of wonder, the kind of wonder I enjoyed as a child, has helped me rest. Also, I have had amazing friends to encourage along the way. Together, we have learned abour rest and the restoration of God's healing within. It's not something we can teach, its something we have to learn with Yeshua, step by step. There have been scriptures that helped me along the way and that continue to help me... Here are two of them....

Rest is something amazing, when we can just sit in God and let His breath be heard all around us. It's like joining a friend on top of a water tower and watching the sun set and just enjoying the togetherness. I am also learning that rest comes from the sense of love. We can rest because we know we are loved, but to feel loved we have to open ourselves up to being Loved by the One who made us. God speaks your love language - and He wants to love you. Love opens the heart to rest. Here's another scripture that encouraged me and still does daily...

The other thing God is teaching me is that rest and work are not opposites, in fact they were created to be one. Sometimes we think resting is the absence of working but it's not. Resting is the absence of striving. Striving involves fear, pushing through anxiety to get done or to get over something. Bringing Gods rest in to something makes that thing enjoyable, it makes it in a way, sanctified. Like if I am writing a book fro example, in the process God does not want me to rush through it just to get down amidst sleepless nights, pills and anxiety. Rather, He wants me to enjoy it, to get lost in it, to have that sense of holy wonder about it, to experience it with Him and to feel His breath upon my skin as I write each line. This is rest. 
I am still learning, but I have begun. My journey is unique and Gods way of getting you to rest will be different from the way He does it with me, dont compare your journey to someones elses, your journey is unique because you are uniquely designed. 

May God bless you and keep you as your seek to know Him more in the blessed sanctity of rest... Sharing with Playdates!
 
 Beloved Brews Linkup

Female Ritual Servitude - Don't be ignorant about it!

In July of last year, my husband and I went on our first ministry trip to Ghana. The country of Ghana is afflicted with wide scale poverty--road surfaces are often poor and food sellers are everywhere.Yet, the landscape is striking, untamed and unkept. Still, the true beauty of the country lies in the hearts of the gracious people who live there. It was within their hearts that I found powerful stories of both hope and sorrow. 

Ghana is situated in West Africa, and for 150 years, it was the epicenter of the British Slave Trade. Some twelve million slaves were shipped from Ghana to the Americas and over 7 million of them died before ever reaching the new world. Today, Ghana is committed to the abolition of slavery and many Ghanaians turn with shame and pain away from their slave history. Almost seventy percent of the Ghanaian population are confessing Christians and the country itself has worked hard to promote freedom and abolish slavery.

However, a sad reality of female slavery known asTrokosi or Female Ritual Servitude still exists in areas of Ghana, Togo, Benin, and parts of Nigeria to this very day. I first learned about this reality from a young girl who stood on the terrace of her home and shared with me the stories of the "stolen"Trokosi girls.....

This month I was blessed to contribute a special article on this tragedy, please read it over at Arise - Female Ritual Servitude

Wednesday 28 January 2015

Let's Share Space!

I've met my share of online criminals, bullies you would call them in real life and they scare me. I'm a word person - all about words and how they connect feelings. I use them sparingly, and sometimes over sparingly. But words matter and how we say things are just as important as what we say. That's why my thesis was all about the reality of verbal abuse in the lives of women. When I first presented the idea to my supervisor in my research proposal, he looked over at me questioningly and asked "do you think this is really a problem for women?" TO say I was dumbstruck is an understatement. Anyhow I lose the point here. 

       (Thanks to my friend Lyn for allowing me to use her pics! These are her pugs!)

I dont like bullies, or people who shout over others to get their opinions heard or their theological viewpoints across at the expense of someone else's feelings. Nah, I stay clear of these in life and online. True story.
But just yesterday as I was taking some time out to rest in a space, I was led to browse some blog places I never venture in to and through the browsing there was blessing. Beautiful artworks and blessings, pictures and personal encouragement with my name on it. I don't spend hours online, I dont blog hop too often either but the people who I have met online, that have stayed around - are special. Truly. They make me smile and I know they are family, even across the seas. Women who's hands I can hold across the sea. It is amazing. So, my final conclusion is this, if you looking to be a bully - keep on going, this aint your bus stop yet, but if you are a Jesus Freak and you are real with a sincere heart, let's share the space. I love hearing what is happening, and sharing virtual space is connection and it matters. God has shown me that blogs can be safe too, the virtual world is often painted as unstable, rotten and crazy but He has shown me the opposite. To all the wonderful ladies I have met through blogging - you are special and thank you for being around!

Tuesday 27 January 2015

Wonder in the Wanderings

A few days ago I was battling with my quiet time. God's tender presence is always close but I was just not able get in to this sitting down, quiet time as usual stance. So in my frustration I headed down to the pool. I am a water baby, I love the cool water of the pool, the cool womb - like comfort and closeness of the water. When you sink beneath the surface, you hear silence, there is no sound, its just beautiful to me. So when I got to the pool area I was abit bummed to find someone else there. But she was reading her book and ignoring me, so that was pretty good in my opinion. I plopped down in to the water with my back towards her and just sat. Why am I struggling today Father? I questioned in my mind. 

As I allowed the question to roll over in to the water, I looked up at an overhanging tree stump and suddenly noticed a very bushy squirrel staring at me. I was startled and then I started staring back at him. He was (I kid you not) staring me straight in the eyes in the very catatonic way that squirrels often stare. He was so close to me and I marvelled at him and then he turned to his side and I got a better look at his posed side profile. He then turned with his back towards me and shook his tail. I really started laughing (the woman behind me must have thought I was mad) and then he turned back towards me and jumped down the tree and he was gone. Just as he jumped down, a struggling butterfly bristled in front of me and landed on a bush next to me. It seemed as though it had just emerged from a chrysalis as it was resting and stretching out its wings and it was so beautiful. I watched her ( it must have been a girl in my opinion) for some time and I was just caught up in the wonder of it all. Next to her I suddenly spotted my old familiar friend - this bumble bee who works daily on the lavender brush next to our pool. He is a daily visitor there and he is too cool. God has really taught me many lessons through Mr (I assume he was a boy) BumbleBee. I love him, he seems like a tame pet. And then I watched him and suddenly felt like I had been transported in to a world I never knew existed. Like I was suddenly in Narnia and watching Cabby the Cab - horse speak!
The presence of God rolled in to that place where I was, I felt it like a cloud and I just began to cry. Me on that top step in the waters of the pool, with the beautiful world around me just beaming in beauty. As God's tangible presence settled in my heart and all around me, I noticed another squirrel on the grass just in front of me. He was standing up on two legs and he looked crazy, just standing there like a MeerKat. And then a beautiful white and green bird started flitting around on a branch at the far end of the pool. I swam slowly up to where it was and just admired this whole new world.



This was what God wanted to share with me and if I has continued to struggle with myself in the four walls of my house, I may have missed it. In a sense my frustration served a purpose and I am learning a lot through these experiences, as God is really on the move teaching me something new, about wandering in His wonders. God has seasons on His Mind and I will say that He has used Laura's book to reach out to me. Yeah her experiences are different - but it's not so much about the words as it is about discovering yourself. I am journeying to myself, and she has been a helpful vessel in God's Hand during this season. I am now a dandelion drifting on the wind - flung out in to the wonders of God. Prayer I am learning, is for me in this season, a wandering in to the Wonders of God. Like walking in to a big house as a little child and hearing "Pssst! Come over here I wanna show you something!" And when you follow the Big Guy in to the room He wants to show, there's magic you ain't never seen before and it's Real! Thank You Father for this New Season, I'm a kid lost in wonder all over again and it's Heavenly! 

*On a side note, I have a friend who I send whimsical messages and vice versa. This morning I sent her some crazy emoticons and said I am throwing sparkles of heaven over you today! (That was really on my heart for her). I can really be a kid around her and she is really a big kid herself and she replied with "I am catching them Yippeee, you make me smile!" She also told me that months back in a prayer meeting, she saw herself playing as a little girl with sparkles that were coming down from Heaven. It was amazing for her for me to say that. So you see, there is a reason for everything and everything is there for a reason!* 

Linking up with Beloved Brews tooo!!!!

Friday 23 January 2015

Let's talk about these Beautiful Gifts!

I love the beautiful prompt over at Velvet Ashes this week. It's all about giftings, this is one of my favourite topics. Giftings. I love discovering and recognising the gifts in others, it's something God just quickens in me. Part of my husband and my calling in the body, is to help build and train up leaders, we love seeing people discover and use their gifitngs in the Holy way God created them to. I just love it when someone can honour something that God has created within them. What God created from the breathe of His mouth in the very beginning, He declared - this is very good. So too with our giftings, He declared this within you is very good because it's from me. We have heard so many times about how others have used their giftings for selfish gain, and because of this we are quick to hide away our gifts and abilities. When someone compliments something we do, we downplay the compliment, or sometimes we just dont accept it. This is not good, when we receive something good about ourselves and we can accept it as truth, then we honour God. Because He made us! 

I remember last year June, a few of us poets got together for a poets afternoon. An amazing poet stood up to speak with the most intriguing voice. His voice just resonates, it stands out as something transcendent, because its a gift Father has given him. Strangely enough, he ran away from his gift for years, until finally he surrendered and declared "I love my voice." While others loved his voice, he was never able to say it himself and when he finally received the gift of his voice, he was finally able to seek Gods purpose for his life. This is beautiful!

This is the general thought of my post, but the prompt this week requires me to mention one gift that I have. So the one gift I honour in myself this week is the gift of compassion.
I don't know if i was naturally compassionate growing up. I don't believe I was, there was a part of compassion within me for sure but the enemy tried to destroy that in me, through much hurt and pain. However compassion and strength are two attributes central to my purpose. I know for a fact that it was Yeshua (Jesus) Himself who restored my heart and infused it with the spiritual gift of compassion. It's not a worldly type of compassion but a Heavenly one. My husband loves to tell me that he learned compassion through me and I praise God for that. When I met my husband he was very hard through years of hurt and although he has a powerful gift to prophesy and pray for others, he lacked the compassion many needed him to show when he ministered. God's gift of compassion is so deep that it is unexplainable. It moves you in ways unimaginable, it allows you to feel God's Love and Gods' heart for others. I am so grateful for this gift, it blesses me so many times and I honour it within me. It is interesting how our gifts build on each other - like compassion aids the gift of healing or even servanthood. The gift of compassion can aid counselling or writing, speaking or small group ministry etc. Don't ever overlook the gifts you have within you, no matter how small they may seem to you, because they are not small! They are beautiful, pick them up and honour them and ask God how you can use them for His kingdom!
 Ephesians 4:8

Wherefore he says, Having ascended up on high, he has led captivity captive, and has given gifts to men.

Hey, if you are reading this please share with me in the comments - what gifts do you have!

Thursday 22 January 2015

Lost in Your Wonder

I am so happy, so in love, so inspired, so sated, so filled with joy. All because I am Loved. This is a journey, a life, a walk of being away from everything so as to find the arms of God. I stand, I smile, people ask me why - and I tell them, because He reigns because He lives. And because He is good He gives me grace for another day, the grace to smile, the grace to dance, the grace to be me and wander around, get lost in His Maze of Grace. Because He is my Dad, my ever present help when I am hopeless, weary or sad.

Because He is Dad, I can face my tomorrow's. Sometimes when I feel like a mess, when I feel like I'm sadly less then my best, He picks me up and crowns me again, tells me child let's talk about it, I'm your friend. Then i rest my head against His chest, feel His heart inside His breast and I know, that I am valued, I am loved and together we are the Best.

I am His, He is mine, He lets me wander in His garden of untamed Love and delight. I can joy at the squirrels, feel the air greet me with warmth, laugh at the birds, play with the rainbows of butterflies that long to savour His joy in His immense garden of Love. There is so much to find here, so much to receive here, so much to gain here, so much to give. Alone, with only Him.

So in love, so in awe, so sated with only You. Yeshua You are all, the wonder in everyday, in everything. In Your Hand is Love unexplained and the fullness of Joy unknown. This is where I am, come let's walk this path again and inf delights in Your wonder, joy unexplained and in the end of it - it's You in it all, You as I have never known You before <3

 

Tuesday 20 January 2015

Dirty Paint Brushes!

Tomorrow all the schools finally go back after the long summer holidays - like my granny always used to say this makes for "happy mothers, sad children." My favourite part of going back to school was getting to buy stationary, I was (still am!) a stationary fundi. 

So today I started cleaning my paintbrushes, because I start art class again tomorrow! Yippeee! Joy! It's been a long summer break from my once a week playtime of zoning out to simply pour some great oil on canvas. I have been painting for about 10 months in total now and I truly enjoy the time out. My teacher is really awesome too, she had a sabbatical for 3 months last year and I can truly say I missed her class. She is a great believer who has this amazing studio and although she does not try to hard, she has created this space. That is how I see her class, a space to just come and be. I am not interested in being Van Gogh or Monet (although I wouldnt mind if this natural ability just oozed out of me!) so I like the space where we just get to explore, no perfection no pressure, just learning and enjoying. My kind of place.

So while I was smiling away and cleaning my paintbrushes, a task I dont usually indulge in, I learned some amazing truth. I used a natural soap comprised of only lamb fat to wash the brushes and it really worked well in getting all the old, hardened paint off. I had to really work with some of those paintbrushes because they were so hard. But as I scrubbed them and wiped them and scrubbed them some more, I started to see which colours were still stuck on the bristles and clogging up the hair. The harder I worked the more came off and I was amazed at how the colours ran out, even though it was difficult to tell beforehand what colours were actually clogging up the brush. This is often how it is with a believers life, wounds clog up the flow of an individual's calling and design in God. 



In 2010 I wrote a bold quote in my journal and underlined it. "Healing is a necessary part of every believers journey, it is not optional, it is essential."
Many believers try and skip out on actually allowing God to uncover what is lieing beneath the surface. If you actually allow God the chance to wash you correctly, you will be suprised at what is actually undergirding so many of the decisions you may be making. Just as surprised as I was to discover what colour paint was clogging up the brush. I will confess - some brushes were just plain stubborn and I felt like I had to give it a good talking to! The easy to clean brushes became my best friends, I just wanted to kiss them, I love those "I'm letting it all go" brushes! They just wanna be clean, they just want to be used to create beauty, they want to be helpful and fruitful in the hands of the painter, they want to live out their purpose - to be used to create. They want to touch the paint and feel it all over them, oh boy are they cool!

You know that scripture in the Psalms where God actually says - cast your cares on me because I want to care for you? (psalm 55) Well He means it, He wants to heal your wounds, He wants to wash you in the Blood of the Lamb daily, so that you can be used to in the hands of the Master Painter to fill the world with the salvation message of deepest Colour. Truth can paint over a thousand lies, and correct a thousand wrongs. Justice and Righteousness are the foundation of His throne of purest light! But He cannot and will not used a clogged up pipe, because the water of His Holy Spirit wont flow freely. Healing is a necessary part of this journey and both you and I need it daily and forever into eternity.

How have you gone to God for His Healing Touch? What is God wanting to touch in your life and heal? Let go and let God, the process is sometimes hard but the end result is worth it! Dont be afraid to let go and heal! Yeshua is the door to the greatest Healing possible!

What kind of Fragrance am I smelling?

(This was yesterday's post but my hubby started chatting to me halfway through and so I put the computer off and had a good chat with hubby. It's these meaningful moments that I want to live in. So tonight I will share the post!)
 
Last night I watched a "faith - based" movie that turned out to haunt me long over the hysterical mass of actors had finally quietened down. I will confess that I did not turn my computer on today, my mind seemed to plead in prayer all day long for some answers to how I felt about what was portrayed in the movie. 

Let me come right out and very sincerely say that I do not believe it is a good thing to exploit every detail of your life on the internet. I also dont believe that our identity lies in being a parent, a father or mother, or being a wife or husband, or a dentist or artist. Our ultimate identity lies in who we are as children of God. The faith based movie I watched was about the reality of momy bloggers, while I believe it is good to share online and meet new people who can inspire and encourage, this phenomenon of mommy bloggers (as it is called) has opened up a somewhat scary and crazy world that makes little sense. Women who share intimate pictures of their births, details of their (and their family members) private areas, crazy habits and frequently employing the use of words like "guilt, failure, pathetic mess etc" is not the best God has in store for any of us, no matter who we are and how much we fall and make mistakes.It is good to share how human we are, but not good to be voyeuristic in our approach to something as beautiful as our families and the intimacy and privacy that should surround the most holiest of things. In Judaism there is an amazing belief in the sanctity of privacy. You will not find religious Jewish women speaking about their sex lives in intimate details because they believe that that type of relationship is intensely personal, beautiful and private. And I value this in such a deep way. I believe that privacy is Godly, so is vunerability, we just have to learn to discern between the two realities.

The wonder of life is how Yahweh creates beautiful openings for us to experience Him and the answers He wants to share with us. I walked down to the swimming pool but when I stuck my foot in the water it was freezing cold, so instead I got my Bible and went to sit with my feet in the water and just read at random. I opened my Bible and landed on a meditation about the Holiness of God and many things fell in place for me, regarding how I felt about what was portrayed in the movie. The Holiness of God is not a characteristic of God, but Holiness embodies who He is and He requires for me to become one with Him and grow in His Holiness. That is why He continually tells us to be holy as He is Holy. It is in fact a commandment, not a suggestion. Therefore if we are truly spirit - filled children abandoned to Yeshua, anything and everything we do even in the blogging world and beyond, should be holy. To use our gifts, our words and energy for reckless self indulgence is not okay in God's sight. 

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

1 Corinthians 10:31 

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

I stand up with conviction and declare that I want to be all I can be for my King. I want to have nothing else but the fragrance of my Beloved on my Skin. I am sold out, wretchedly - sick at the worlds antics and committed to Holiness through obedience to my Saviour who gave it all for me. I love Yeshua and as an ambassador of His Kingdom and a princess in His realm, I walk with the authority on my shoulders that demands that I bring Honour to the Kingdom of Light and not seek out selfish gain or buy in to the world's sloppy standard. I am here for justice, it's a huge part of the reason I blog and I believe in equality, for everyone and for all. I am committed to my call and I am learning that no one needs to understand that or even accept it, only I have to accept it and embrace it. 


There are too many bloggers out there who confess to be Christians but don't live a Christian lifestyle, especially on line. This is a sad reality but while I will not go in to too much detail about my own feelings on certain issues, I will say that when I did switch on my computer to write this post, I got some amazing notifications from a handful of blogs I am subscribed to and these posts refreshed me again. I was encouraged to be shown again, that people are not just online to make a name for themselves or to paint an unrealistic picture of themselves for others. I was encouraged again to know that I can connect with like-minded believers who love God and want nothing but Him. Who speak up for justice and who are as real as mud. And that is refreshing! 

Father, help us be people who reflect You in everything that we do. Help us live in the moments where we find ourselves, help us enjoy the sunset without always feeling the need to capture it for everyone online. Help us revel in all we have so that we can gasp at Your Wonder and feel Lovesick at Your Precious heart of Love. Help us move away from that which dishonours You, even as we would choose our friends with caution in real life, help us choose our online "friends" with discernment as well. Help us be committed to the mission before us, both online and in living colour. Lift up the heads of my dear friends today who may just need a Hug and encouragement from You today. You love us all so much Yeshua Messiah, help us know that we are uniquely crafted and uniquely designed - for so much more then worldly lies of fame. Help us be a wild flower in the field, ready to turn our backs on everything else and just lie outstretched towards the Son! We pray this in the mighty name of our Saviour Yeshua! HalleluYah!

Thursday 15 January 2015

Someone Needs to Hear your Words

Are you slipping, peering through the empty glass believing your voice is not needed? That cyber space swallows up the whisper of your heart beat, in the words you have still to share on empty pages? Doubt creeps over so many some times, do my words matter? Does what I have to say mean anything? IS my story so great or so small that it means anything to anyone? Well I need to tell you tonight, that it does....

There is nothing that can convince me otherwise. How many times have we remained silent, believing it doesnt matter whether we speak or remain silent. But today God wants me to tell you - that dear heart your story matters. Your words are not always fashioned to fill a thousand hallways or to boom across certain fields. Oh no, your words were fashioned to create and encourage life in another heart. To encourage and blow breathe in to anothers. Success to the world means blog stats, pins, huge viewerships and ratings. Success in God's Holy eyesight means obedience. When you fulfil Father's call on your life, that is success, nothing else matters.

Tonight my husband and I randomly found some very interesting Josh Groban videos on YouTube. At his concerts, he lets audience members ask him questions and at his concerts he always has some young people wanting to sing with him. What blew us away was, how these young people could sing. Some could even sing spectacularly! It made me realise again that it is not always about the big voices, but about the everyday voices. Many people will never know a stage as big as the one Josh Groban gets to perform on, and that's okay, perhaps it is not their purpose, but anyone who gets to hear these guys and girls sing - whether in a local show, at a school, at church or anywhere else - well they will be super blessed. Because it is not all about the bigness of it all, it's about the quality of it all. I would love to sit in a room full of "unknown" men and women and hear them sing, more then the "seasoned" (often lip-syncing) men and women.

Life is not about the crowds, its about dancing for the Audience of One. It's about letting Him hear your words, your heart words. He believes in your story and the power of it. So much so that He left Heaven's throne and died on a Tree so that your story could be redeemed. This week I was reading some of Paul's words before his own story came to an end. At the end of his life he was imprisoned for the second time and he wrote to Timothy. In his final words he tells Timothy that everyone in Asia deserted me (2 Timothy) this was how Paul felt, I can only imagine how deep and how painful this must have been for him. He had given his life to serve Messiah by serving others and many had grown weary of him and his message and had deserted him. While he must have imagined that his words had fallen on deaf ears - he never realised how his life's story would impact generations to come, even 2000 years later. Here is the truth: we never quite know what God can do with a surrendered Life and Heart. Don't keep quiet precious heart, find the courage, the joy, the enjoyment and speak....

Little Quotes that made me Smile Today












Tuesday 13 January 2015

A New Adventure

I sat this afternoon writing a piece on a horrific atrocity facing young girls in West Africa. I wont go in to it, I will share the link when it is posted but again my heart was moved with such depth at the reminder of what we are fighting for. The Bible tells us that we are not to be silent, we are to speak up for the oppressed and the hurting, the broken and the weeping (Proverbs 31). This reminder to all of us to speak out is found in the chapter known as the Valiant or Virtuous woman. In our modern Bibles there is a heading that separates the beginning section of 9 verses from the last 21 verses. However in the original text it was never split up because chapters and verses did not occur. That is because a woman of valour, is a woman who speaks up for injustice. I find it interesting how it was king Lemuel's mother, who taught him to speak up and pursue justice (verse 1).


Many of us are on this journey. The journey God has placed in our hearts. The journey to speak up for others, even if we dont know how. The journey to raise funds for suffering orphans or to share Bibles with those who dont have. The journey to climb Mount Everest to give a voice for human trafficked victims and rape survivors. The journey....
And now a few of us are bringing our journeys together in a God - ordained Book!
This book is a big punch in the spirit realm, that I know for sure. So let me give you a little snippet.... Women from around the world - Switzerland, China, Mauritius, South Africa, Finland, America, Ghana and India, have put their pens and hearts down on to paper to share their stories of oppression and hardship. These stories are vulnerable, they are real, stories of drug addiction, abortion, gendercide, brokenness, sexual trauma, human trafficking, food addiction, stories of hope and stories that end with Christ's redeeming Love. HalleluYah!
While we are working behind the scenes to dive in to the places God has led us to go, we are prayerfully holding up every word to the King of Kings Yeshua (Jesus) and saying Father let this be for Your Glory and for the women in this world who are being oppressed. At the heart of this book, is the women of India. From the very corner of God's watchful, loving eye He is broken for the women in India. So this book entitled "Windows across Oceans," will be released on the 21st March on this blog. The three weeks leading up to the release, some of the writers will be featured here and you will get a glimpse of their hearts and beautiful faces. So that we may take hands with our sisters in India, the book will be made available for a donation fee and the funds raised will go to Gospel for Asia's women's programs (but more on this when we get there!).
For now I want to encourage all of you to go out there and do as Amy Goodman suggested "Go to where there is silence and say something!" We have the greatest thing to say, the greatest message to bring, the message that the Bridegroom Warrior King came to earth as a Man, He died so that we could live. He took our place and wept for our chains, His tears undid our shame, He came to set the captives free - the ones chained - you and me. He died that day on that tree but rose again to Life, so that we could be forever changed and alive in peace and love, eternally. 
Spread the word, don't be ashamed - the time is now so that all the world may be saved!

(Sharing over at The Loft / Grace & Truth this week!)

Monday 12 January 2015

One Word 2015 - "Spirit-Birth Expectancy"

WOW! I have been waiting so long to write this post and with a lot of others things going on, I have finally got to it! Besides, blogging is suppose to be fun isn't it and so here is my "one word" or rather "one phrase" Yeshua has given me for 2015.
Let me just say that I was really reluctant about this one word vibe. Yeah, I dont like to be confined, I like the dynamics of life but then Father started prompting me a big smile, and whispering "hey I got something for you!"

I had a beautiful vision of the Messiah standing over 2015 and birthing something new in to this time season of Life. Something in the Spirit Realm first - a new time, a new season, a new reality on this earth. The old way of doing things, with religion, oppression and bondage is passing away. It is like the time period that Saul and David lived in. King Saul was part of a time period that was passing away, so that the new established way under king David could come in to being. Swiftly, we are moving to the time where Messiah will return and establish His Kingdom here on earth. After the passed few years I have seen and heard about the depth of change that intercessors and intercessory groups have undergone. God has been placing something new in the hearts and lives of His true followers and He Himself is about to change things up. I am really excited, because we as a people can collectively be expectant for the spirit birth newness that is coming. That is the greater vision and for many of you - I know you are sensing the newness too. 

On a personal level, I have walked a journey with this Beautiful King and He is telling me much for my own life, which is personal. But I am to live with the expectancy that all He has birthed spiritually in my own life, He will indeed bring to fulfillment. Much dreams, much step - ups in the passed years, much growth and much depth of change. I hold these dreams in my heart that He has given me and I live to serve Him faithfully for His Kingdom Glory. Spirit - Birth Expectancy.
Yip, not one word, not one meaning - but dynamic, with so many meanings on so many different levels and truly I proclaim it because when we speak out things, it echoes in to the atmosphere! 
With this in mind, Father has also given me a fresh, renewed vision for my blog. It was a vision always there but at times got clouded, I will share His heart on here and I will share the messages He tells me to share and I will share the things I feel to share. This is Yeshua's space and it is mine - for fun and for Love! Part of this refreshing was revamping my blog too and I am so happy to have done it! This is my word for this year! truly He crowns the year with abundance.....


Thank you so much to Traci Michele for offering to do our One Word Design Signs for so many of us bloggers. I love it when we use our giftings to bless! Thanks Traci!

Saturday 10 January 2015

An Overview of Gendercide

Shalom All!


Part of my purpose is sharing truth about Injustice! Gendercide is one such injustice.
I am blessed to be part of a wonderful organisation that works towards teaching and equipping believers with the truth about Biblical Equality.

This week, I shared about Gendercide! Please take the time to read the the article, along with the prayer points and scriptures!  

An Overview of Gendercide