That's Pinteresting...

Hey!

So, this week I quit Pinterest and here's why. 

This isn't a condemning post at all, it isn't a rant about 'today's society', it isn't about trying to make you feel bad if you use the site; it's about me just wanting to explain what God is teaching me about and how this involved the website. 

Basically, a man in my church read aloud Psalm 23: The Lord is my Shepherd. He spoke only about the first line. He was saying how he had known this Psalm practically his entire life, but he had gained new revelation from just those first 11 words...

"The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want."

Especially those last 6 words. 'I shall not be in want.' It provoked me to read and reread this Psalm, and a beautiful one it is too. That first line just stuck in my heart. God was saying to me that if I truly believe Him to be my everything, like I sing or pray about, if I really believe it in the nitty-gritty of everyday life, where things are messy and complicated, I actually would not be in want for anything.

God's been challenging me on it ever since, and I love it. 

What I found was that my 'browsing' of Pinterest could quite easily turn into wasted time, but most of all, it was harbouring a spirit of want in my heart. I would see something and pin it onto a board that I had neatly arranged, but with every pin what I was really doing was saying 'Oohh, I'd like that' or 'I want that' and then creating a board plastered with a variety of things, most of which whispered 'want.'

I do think the website can be utilized in a positive way though, especially for ideas of crafts or recipes or exercises and the like, however for me, I personally felt that God told me to quit the website. Having an account and spending time 'getting ideas' didn't really work for me, and this was a practical way of cutting out that spirit of want, just through obeying Him. 

So, in conclusion, if you feel you identify with what I'm saying then pray and see if it's a practical way that God can teach you things through too. If you don't feel convicted to leave it alone, then all I would like to say is that I encourage you to utilize it for ideas and inspiration and to actually do what you find (I hardly ever did any of the workouts I regularly pinned! :P) because I honestly found that it didn't take long whilst 'browsing,' to begin to feel disappointed or discouraged, unhappy or even in want of certain 'things' for myself or my life; and I believe that feeding those kinds of feelings or thought patterns can be quite dangerous.

Now,  please bask in this wondrous scripture...

C.

The Lord, the Psalmist’s Shepherd.

A Psalm of David.

23 The Lord is my shepherd,
I [a]shall not want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside [b]quiet waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He guides me in the [c]paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the [d]valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no [e]evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You [f]have anointed my head with oil;
My cup overflows.
6 [g]Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will [h]dwell in the house of the Lord [i]forever.

Surrender.

surrender.

So, recently I've been struck by this song by Kim Walker, (link down below!) I've heard it hundreds of times and loved it, but just recently fresh revelation has come from these lyrics. Especially these two chunks below...

All to you, I Surrender…
Everything, Every part of me.
All to you, I Surrender…
All of my dreams, All of me.

...

No turning back, I've
made up my mind.
I'm giving all of my life this time
What does it mean to surrender everything? What does it look like to 'lost in love for You'? 

These two questions were provoked by these lyrics, (it's amazing how God can reach and touch your heart through something you've heard before! There's always more to learn!)
Well, those two questions are what I'm currently embarking upon learning with God. 

I know for sure I haven't got this surrendering thing down to a T, and I'm not sure I ever will completely. I think it's an on going thing to consciously decide to do! (Atleast for me anyway!) But what I do know, is that recently I've been learning a little bit more about how to surrender more to Him each day.

Let's add some context. I've been thinking a lot recently about future plans, and how if what I'm doing at the minute is directly preparing me for those plans, and how if they're not, maybe I should change things? But then I think... maybe I shouldn't change things because that involves big decisions, (and we all know I don't really want to face those beasts in case they'are the wrong choices!)

You know those kinds of thought battlefields? The ones where you want to have a complete direct plan, that you know you can check-up on every now again and feel satisfied you're sticking to it? Those niggling thoughts that can sometimes be buzzing around too loud in your mind it is hard to silence them?

Well I certainly do. Listening and worshipping God through this song has brought me an unbelievable peace in this situation of surrendering decision making to God, it has been a release of anxiety. Knowing that when surrendering ALL of me, (including all those plans and dreams!) to God means that I can have peace in the decision making, because I know my God has my back. And I'm sure that if in surrendered obedience to Him, He wouldn't let me go so far 'off the plan' that He couldn't reach me. My lovely friend put it this way, ' I know God has a plan and I can never mess it up so badly that He can't fix it.' Wow.

In surrendering control, and trusting God it makes decision making easier! He's SO BIG. And SO LOVING! And plus, His ways are far greater than ours, it's safe to make decisions and take that leap of faith until the next one comes along. 

Ephesians 3:20-21

^20-21 God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

Glory to God in the church!
Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus!
Glory down all the generations!
Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes!

He's got us.

Check it out! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSgn-nmBpNY

C.

Be loved.

Hey,

Matthew 22:36-39

New Living Translation (NLT)

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

³⁷ Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’

A while back God told me to read through the gospels and I haven't been able to get out of Matthew yet, it's just so good! 

This verse is just pure and simple. Loving God first with everything we have and then loving others as we love ourselves, incredible.

This evening we had a worship time with the students in our church and one guy said to ask God how you can sacrifice and commit yourself completely to Him. He asked us what were the things that we were filling in the gaps of our lives with, instead of Jesus. 

It was so interesting to ask God that question. I know for myself, I'll commit myself to Him in a moment, and then in the middle of the week, when I'm still beating myself up about something that happened like the week before, I think to myself, 'I am not putting God first in this situation, I've clearly taken back control' and I've wondered, why?

I think there are many reasons it can be easy to do this, but one that I've just figured out with the Holy Spirit is that I often forget to live everyday as His beloved. I recognise God as my Heavenly Father, the All Mighty Creator, but sometimes I can forget how much He actually adores me, (and you of course!)

I know that sounds crazy, how could someone forget that? 

But so easily performance mentality weasels it's way in and you can go right back to listing things off to God that you've done right or wrong, or how you could have done this better, or what that person must have thought when you said this, and so on, when actually all He wants is our hearts. 

It reminds me of Galatians 3, where Paul says, "^2-4 Let me put this question to you: How did your new life begin? Was it by working your heads off to please God? Or was it by responding to God’s Message to you? Are you going to continue this craziness?" (The Message Version) 

Jesus has the victory. He paid for it all on the cross. That is the best demonstration and act of love ever. It's not about us at all, it's not about what we can and can't do, what we fail or succeed at. It's about His overwhelming love for us.

All I know right now is that that is an outrageous love, it's wonderful, it's perfect and it's freeing. And it makes me want to know Him and love Him and serve Him more and more, because He is so worthy.

The worries and the fears (although they seem huge) pale into insignificance next to Him. I choose to live as His beloved, a life full of love. I choose to give Him everything like the widow's offering in Mark 12: 41-44 

One last thing that struck me, the same guy also said this evening, that these choices are daily, there are significant times to recommit yourself, but there are daily choices too. 

To choose not to worry if your prayer is shorter than everyone else's, the choice to sing with all your might even if you get the words wrong, the choice to volunteer to read, the choice to wash up other people's dishes, the choice to speak up to injustice on the street, the choice to forgive yourself for being late, the choice to turn the TV off and get on your knees before Him. 

Sometimes they can seem insignificant, but they never are to Him.

Check out this video, it will rock your world.

WE ARE HIS.

C.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtZUNf0Yt54

Produce of His Perfume - [Poem]

Hey!

So this is just a short 'story' (if you could call it that!) inspired from a word a guy gave me this evening. To some it might just be wacky-weird and nonsensical. But... I'm okay with that! Please take from it what you will, I know for me right now, it means something pretty great and important. From the metaphor in this 'story' I felt it needed to be shared, and I hope you feel peace from it.

C.

P.s Also at the bottom there is a link to a brilliant song, which might make this post make more sense, it's still wonderful, check it out?

Matthew 5:8-9

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Upon the shelf of her disorganised dresser sat several glass containers, each holding within themselves a liquid of senses. They stood about an inch and a half high, with bottled tops ready for spritzing. She prized them all. For within each was more than just a different smell, it was a different evoked thought, a different gift, a different feeling, yet none ever last for long.

In her disarray of Monday mornings, she would save herself time to choose wisely of her aqueous ally. Each day was marked by her early expectations, as she attempted to arm herself for today’s battle through the feuding field of puppetry.

One day when she awoke from her slumber, a dusty glint caught her eye. Upon the wooden windowsill stood a different glass bottle, a bottle of esteem, and exuding with vintage flair, caught the glare of the sun through the window, which in its focussed beam immediately lifted the dust from the glass in a clear haze.

There, was her old perfume, in its old bottle, with its withering atomizer, the liquid inside mature.

She walked over and lifted the bottle from its bondage with the saturated ring mark upon the glossy sill, and enclosed her fist around the pump as if she were holding the hilt of a sword. She breathed the colour of maturity in, and heard the shape of the droplets sing into her lungs.

This is what she had needed, all of what she needed was contained within this bottle of life. It wasn't just a scent; it was a fragrance that marked her future. The longer it was left, the more it would temper to become what she needed for the next day and then the next.

Yet it never ran dry.

Long gone now are the superficial spritzers, the tiny testers. No longer does she need them. She knows now that what she has comes from a greater understanding. Within that mix of liquid she found upon the windowsill that day, was enough for her and another, and another. Within it all, there was something different to be felt by each individual.

A greater source was found, greater than her own collaborations of attempts.

Now she was ready for the battle field.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvUam7OQ-kw

His embrace - [Poem]

This is my attempt to convey into words the sense of security and devotion we experience when in His embrace even if only for a second.


His embrace is like a paper clip,
tangible and closing in.
It holds the A4 of me together,
even the margins of my awkward limbs.

I fit into His arms, like a built in wardrobe,
where everything has it's eternal place
shelved and organised, when I look to His face.

I can see things differently
from the warmth of His chest,
The smoke finally clears,
I'm no longer left to guess.

His arms fold around me,
more tightly than origami.
But, here in this folding
He knows I'm still withholding.

So, 
as I breathe out the ashes of my striving,
He lifts up my head with attention undivided.

He whispers in my ear and I almost
don't hear,
as my blood performs, it's attempted escape
from it's venous constraint.
But still through the bloody uproar His words pierce
the surface of my core.

"I. Love. You."

There. It is finished.
8 letters, and I'm undone.

I'm the island
in His sea of arms
and there's nowhere left to run.

In His acceptance, more gratifying than speech,
He is my shore of certainty, and hope is now 
my beach.

Forever will He hold me up,
like a hanger on a coat,
and constantly He will whisper:

"No, you did not misquote."





 © 

The truth is. - [Poem]

Sometimes when I say ‘You alright?’

I know that you are not.

And I know that you know, that you are not.

So when did we become so vague and insecure,

Never saying what we feel, but always acting so ‘pure’

Of heart and mind

Always wanting to be kind

Yet failing blindly.

It’s all because we've forgotten who we are,

We’re focussed on what we do,

So God seems so distant

 and afar.

But the truth is

He never left.

When you felt pain that time?

He felt the same.

When you spoke those unkind words,

He loved you all the same.

When you left that person out and sought out

The attention for yourself

He knew that He could help.

But why didn’t we let Him?

Why?

Because we were too hung up,

 on trying to do it for ourselves,

Never wanting to seem

 needy,

lonely

or in doubt.

But God looks at our heart and He knows us so well.

So next time that I ask you, ‘You alright?’

I’ll stop and I’ll sit tight,

And I’ll wait and I’ll wait until you say

Actually

How you feel.

And when I say ‘I’ll pray’

I’ll do it there and then.

Shout it out loud or whisper it in my head,

All the same.

 I know that this mandate,

To Love everyone is real and

It’s never too late.

So next time you ask me, if I'm ‘alright’

I’ll answer you honestly,

I’ll not put up a fight.

I’ll not put up a façade,

Or hide my cards.

I’ll let you see what God is doing, has done and is yet to do,

Because after all  He is,

The Only One,  

The Beloved Son,

The complete wholeness of love,

To whom we’re all undone,

We’re all His works in progress yet complete at the same time,

So let’s stop pretending

And share the truth of our lives.

Apologies.

Hey! 

So... it's been a heck of awhile. And a lot has changed in that while, one thing that hasn't? My God. 

Since moving to another city to study there have been a lot of uncertainties, however God's really used this time to develop my trust in Him, He's been there all the way through - which is one of the many lessons I'm learning with Him at the minute, when it says 'He will never leave you nor forsake you' (Deuteronomy 31:6) He actually means it, and it is amazing.

However, one of the lessons I'm learning most about at the minute is something about myself I didn't even realise. Since moving, a couple of friends pointed out to me, how often I say sorry. It seems really trivial and insignificant, (and slightly annoying for others!) but God's really been teaching me about things related to this.

I didn't even realise this about myself, but it was so true! I would say sorry for the silliest things, (and then when told I needn't be sorry, I'd usually apologise again!) 

God told me that it was a habit I had gotten into through... yes, the 'p' words... 'people pleasing.' However one thing that I realised, was that the more I said sorry unnecessarily, the less value I felt it would have when I really meant it, when it really was necessary. 

For example, in apologising for jumbling up words or not completely understanding something, showed me how I was actually apologising for thinking differently. This struck me as absurd, apologising for the way you were created doesn't seem to quite fit? 

Now, by no means am I saying that it is never necessary to apologise. Or that we should all just liberally say and act as we feel and not care for others feelings. Of course not. We always need to care and love for one another, the Bible clearly tells us to do this. 

However, there definitely comes a point where you can apologise too much, for things that really don't need an apology.God created us all to think and act differently, that's why we are unique and why Psalm 139 speaks to our spirits. 

He made us all different so we can learn from one another, and that comes in all forms of: loving, rebuking, agreeing, disagreeing, conversing and so on. To live in a community and to live as a family means when those times of hurt or wrongdoing do come up, we apologise heartily and forgive. 

But in the meantime, if you're learning about this (as I still am!) don't apologise for who you are, what you believe in, what you stand for, things you have no control over. Express your love for your God to those around you, and if people misunderstand or misinterpret you, as long as you are right with your God in your heart, and you have apologised for what is necessary, don't apologise yourself away. Give Jesus away.

"To love means loving the unlovable. To forgive means pardoning the unpardonable. Faith means believing the unbelievable. Hope means hoping when everything seems hopeless."
G. K. Chesterton

C.

Giftings.

Hey!

Recently mine, and a couple of good friends' creative juices have been flowing! Today I actually spoke to one of them, as we were discussing how exciting it is to create art, music and literature, with our King, God fired me up. He reminded me of something He placed on my heart back in March, and that word was simply... creativity.

I'm really loving and enjoying how recently me and some friends have been intentionally tapping into our creativity with God. This gets me so excited. God is our ultimate creator, and He enjoys doing this with us! He has said to me before how significant creativity with Him is, in that it actually forms part of the movement of bringing and enjoying Heaven on earth.

To add even more excitement into the mix, is the fact that we get to share in one another's giftings. It's so important for us to cheer each other on in our particular gifting, encourage and support the process of what God is doing in each individual, because there is always something we can learn from the other persons walk... always. (Plus it's just really fun to be involved in what God is doing in and with them!)

What comes with this building up is... responsibility. My friend said this to me, (she blows me away with her wisdom!) "It's just using what God's given us and then exploring it, but also accepting it as well, we've got to use our own gifts and not try and be someone else." 

This is so true! It's so necessary for us to recognise what He's already put inside of us, and exploring it with Him, rather than looking at our friends, leaders, parents, whoever, and trying to fit their style and giftings.

God said to me awhile ago, that we often compare ourselves to others and we can end up spreading ourselves too thin.We try and be a bit like everybody. The danger in this is, even though we're trying to be like people we respect, we can actually miss the giftings God's put inside of us for this season, because our attention is elsewhere. God's not saying that you can't have more than one gifting, but what He pointed out to me was that we can miss out on what He already has for this season, which could actually unlock other giftings later on.

God has given us giftings to use in worship to Him, to bless one another and to glorify His name wherever we go. We don't know where our giftings with Him could take us when we let them, rather than trying to control them.

Picking up on something else my friend said, she used the word 'accepting.' We've got to search our heart with God and ask Him to show us what He's placed there for us to use with Him at this time, and then... we've got to accept it. Even if it's a challenge, out of our comfort zone, well into our comfort zone, however it makes you feel, God's put it there for a reason, and He will help you in exploring it. Acceptance is something as humans we so often crave and strive for, but accepting what God has placed inside of us has no strings attached or sneaky terms and conditions, they are gifts. 

God summed up like this: "Being a Christian doesn't mean you're good at everything, it means you depend on Me for everything."


"I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives, and I have watched your people offer their gifts willingly and joyously." 
(1 Chronicles 29: 17)

Blessings, enjoy exploring the gifts God's given you!

C.

Just another day, but with roller blades. - [Poem]

She asked me, if we could go,
those brown eyes pleaded, how could I say no?
With curls in her hair and her socks pulled high,
I remember when all she needed was to hear a lullaby.

So off we went, the journey went swell,
she looked gleeful, like she'd struck a wish from a wishing well.
The music was loud, and she came to life.
I know one day, she'll make a loving wife.

So here I am, with my granddaughter in toe,
putting on these roller skates, trying to 'go with the flow',
within minutes she's off, but always returns to my side,
there's people moving every where, like a sea with a tide.

She holds my hand, and giggles at my steps,
She smiles with her heart, revealing such depth,
I know this is special, I know it has purpose,
How can people dismiss this relationship as surplus?


Hey,

So today whilst I was shopping in town, there was a make-shift roller blading party going on! (I know right?!) As I walked by, two of the skaters caught my eye, and old man and a little girl, to whom I presumed was his granddaughter. 

Watching the pair of them skating around this rink in the middle of town inspired this poem. Its not the most technical or polished poem, but the scene provoked something in me. God reminded me how powerful and important family is; especially this idea of our church family. This old guy, at times to be honest, looked terrified; I'm sure he was the only one there over the age of 25! But what struck me was his ability to push aside his own wishes and to bless this little girl, just by spending time with her. It revealed to me just how important and necessary we are to each other. 

Being part of your natural family, but also your church family is such a blessing. There's so much life to be found in playing our part and getting involved, from the smallest to the biggest task. We can learn new things about ourselves and others, in how we relate, serve, honour, respect and treat each other.

"The eye can never say to the hand, "I don't need you." The head can't say to the feet, "I don't need you." (1 Corinthians 12:21)

I hope you'll be encouraged in your obedience to God to play your part, because we do each have a part to play in the bigger body of Christ. So, let's step up our game and put some roller blades on. Be ready to offer a helping hand, or a helmet to your neighbour, we need to get skating.

Praying peace and prosperity over all of you inspirational skaters.

"If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each another." - Mother Teresa

Blessings.

C.

"Here it is, as it is for now." [Painting]

Hey!

So today I painted this... it's not finished yet. But I felt like God wanted me to put it up now already; for numerous reasons, but one being because of a work He is doing inside of me about control.

So this is:  "Here it is, as it is for now."

I know, bit of a weird title, but it's a phrase God reminded me I said to Him ages ago when I gave my heart over to Him on a specific situation. I actually remember saying that to Him all that time ago.

Whilst painting this, I had no clue what it meant, whether it was for me or for someone else. But literally just after I showed a friend, God reminded me of that.

So now whenever I look at this, I'll remember His faithfulness in that specific situation, that time when I gave him control; so when something rears it's head again, I can cling onto every word He speaks because I'll be reminded of His goodness.

I encourage you to step out in whatever way you're wired to with God. Even if you don't understand the call, the reason why, or even if you only hear the faintest whisper. Be obedient and pick up the paintbrush, the pen, the microphone, absolutely whatever, and bring your King glory.

The blessings of creativity are coming your way!

C. 

Focus 2012 - Love and be loved.

Hey!

So I've just returned from an epic week away in Wales at a summer camp for children to be ignited with a passion for Jesus, and... it was immense. God moved so much, and worked out such a lot in everybody's lives that it's almost impossible to do a post on it, but...I shall try to capture some of His glory into words. 


The three things God spoke to me most about this week were dreams, brother and sisterhood and loving people.

Dreams
This is such a popular topic for Christians to preach about, I've heard numerous talks on 'dreaming big' with God. But this week was different. I gained a deeper revelation because God had to change my thinking from a 'survivor mentality' to a mindset of one who is 'privileged.' I hadn't realised I actually wasn't living in the fullness of God because I wasn't thinking big enough; I would worship Him but then continue listen to that defeatist whisper in my mind, that had little expectations of God and declared things like, "God couldn't provide that much for me!" 
A very wise man preached about mindsets this week and he came out with this beauty of a quote: "When you give your life to Jesus, you become the privileged." So why if we've already given our lives to Jesus do we still live half measures, when there is SO much more? I asked God this and He said it's because we need to learn to be loved. He said we need to learn to receive His love, stand in the truth of who He says we are, and then ask for what we desire. At the end of the day, He placed those desires in our hearts, so of course He can and wants to help us out live them. So I encourage you to find something you are passionate about and allow your sold out, uncompromised love for Jesus to be the power and source behind your idea, your plans and your future; step into the world and be a warrior for His Kingdom in whatever way that looks for you.

Brothers and Sisters
Not having any siblings has meant that I haven't had a daily tangible way of analysing how to be a sister in Christ. However this week God has really developed in me a deeper love for my brothers and sisters, and He has revealed to me just how important it is to invest in these relationships, especially with the opposite gender. 
The whole week God has challenged me to talk to different people, of different backgrounds and ages, and to learn more about Him through them. He's shown me that we really do need each other. The advice and insight I've received just this week has truly blessed me because it has always come out of love for Christ, and has had the sole purpose of building me up. 
The reason I've found it's important to invest in our relationships with our brothers (or sisters if you're a guy!) is that we actually think very differently. I know it seems obvious, but it actually means when it comes to perceptions or revelation, prophesying or praying, the opposite gender are wired differently; therefore they can hear God differently, and hence can provide a different outlook/expression of God. So it is so important that we value each others lessons learned with God, and soak in all the varied expressions of Himself, and take the time to sow our own revelation into each other to protect one another.

Loving people
This is a massive one. This is one of those on going processes that there is always more to see and think on. God this week has taught me to love intentionally, to continue to ask Him what people need to hear or need doing, and to just do it. My favourite thing to do with God at the minute is to call things out of people in general conversation.
The Bible says in Luke 6:45 that: "What you say flows from what is in your heart." If we have asked Jesus into our heart, and the Holy Spirit is inside of us, our actions and our words especially, should overflow with His love. So, my lesson with God at the moment is to make this a lifestyle change, that what I speak to other people encourages them. I've been asking God to show me their heart and what they need to hear from Him.
God has also reminded me this week of the wonderful Heidi Baker's quote of 'stopping for the one.' Stopping for one of God's children, to intentionally love them and show them God's love is all that it takes. Amazingly simple, or simply amazing.

I'm sure I could go on for ages longer, but that's all for now.

Blessings of joy!

C. 

Living art - [Poem]

You are more than a number.
You are more than a few letters tied together with the thread of loopy hand writing and labelled a signature, as ink on a page.

You are an expression of truth and beauty that walks in the light.
There is life in your veins. You are not surface deep.
You do not exist as algal bloom on a stagnant lake or skin on the surface of curdled milk.
You have life in you, flowing through you.

No margins or punch-holes define where your feet can or cannot go.
You are bigger than the lines of the pages that trail
across the book,
you can divulge information so freely it dances from your lips.

You are a permanent marker, you can leave permanent marks of passion on lives.
No rubbers or tape can mask your expression.

You are a living piece of art.
You are a living work of art, that The Creator worked into existence.

You are a mirror of the Almighty One,
every inch of your body, your heart and your mind reflect
someone greater.
The One who looks at you and smiles is seen, everywhere you go, in reflections of pure light.

You live.
You breathe.
You have unyielding power stored inside the chambers of your heart.
You can unleash His power by beating your heart to the same rhythm of His.


You know true existence,
but what it more

you live it. 

Chasm Chasing - [Short verse!]

"There's a chasm of difference between what you know you want and what you think you want.
There comes a point where you have to sit yourself down, interview your inner mind, and find these subtle differences. Only then will you truly know yourself."

Just a short quote I thought of today with God! Hope it makes sense...

C.

5. Spontaneity

Hey! So as promised, I'm going to do a mini post on each of the few bullet points of 'spiritual awakening' that God is really teaching me about.

The first is number 5.
"A tendency to think and act spontaneously rather than from fears based on past experience."

This has been a tough'y, and only recently have I found that I'm beginning to come out of the time of learning this, (of course it's always an on going battle that needs to be kept in check!) but I've never felt more free. 

When I read this I started to try and be spontaneous, like it says. However I actually didn't realise that I was doing exactly what it was saying I didn't have to do. I was still acting out of fear; fear that I wouldn't actually be able to be free. Once again I was striving. This took a long time to realise, and it seems so simple to see now, looking at this revelation in black and white on a computer screen.

But in my head destructive thoughts circled leaving me undirected and stationary. Thoughts such as that being spontaneous wasn't actually spiritual, it was...unreliable and fickle. This I've learnt is so not true. Being spontaneous in the way we think and act, is liberating in that it frees us of locked down mindsets that everything has to have been scrutinised carefully with a pro's and con's list before we actually get off our bums and do something. (Because lets be honest, half the time we do this, we seem to find more con's than pro's and then never do anything, except waste the time in the first place scrutinising it!)

I've now discovered with God that being spontaneous in our thoughts and actions is a product of intimacy with Him. When our relationship with God and the Holy Spirit develops, we begin to fully understand that "we have the mind of Christ." (1 Corinthians 2:16) and then we do become free to be spontaneous, because we are acting in the Spirit.

The passage then goes on to say, "for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means.¹⁵ Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others."

We don't have to analyse our decisions with a pro's and con's list any more, in the Spirit we can evaluate all things and be free to act upon them with God. The last part of that Bible scripture is a little gem, don't miss it. It tells us that as a people of God we can not be 'evaluated' by the world, The Message translates this verse to "we can't be judged by unspiritual critics." The world doesn't define us. A freeing phrase! We can think freely without the constant conveyor belt of anxiety and paranoia over other people's perceptions or opinions of us.

In fact the whole passage of 1 Corinthians 2 is all about our access to God, and how we can know Him because of the Holy Spirit inside of us. God is the God of creativity, of course He enjoys being spontaneous. All it takes is for us to lift our eyes from our structured regimes and look to Him, and be led by Him. 

"Spirit can be known only by spirit—God's Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God's Spirit is doing, and can't be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah's question, "Is there anyone around who knows God's Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?" has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ's Spirit." ( 1 Corinthians 2:14-16- The Message)

Be open to communion with The Almighty King.
Blessings!

C.

Spiritual Awakening

Hey! So the story of today...


I spent most of today with a gorgeous family, just playing with kids, joining in conversation, basically being totally blessed by this family. It was MEGA fun. Then when I came home I just couldn't stop smiling, I was so happy. God had just rained down a spirit of joy into my heart, that even amongst so many challenging things that are going on right now, He just interceded with peace and joy. And that was enough. It's so funny the way God handles our relationship with Him sometimes, we can be so proactive and wanting to do things for His Kingdom when actually sometimes He just wants us to stop. So today he made me stop. What comes with stopping is reflecting. The two are almost partnered together; like the absence of actions almost ironically 'acts' as a permit for our minds and our hearts to rest, reflect and renew. The 3 R's.


So today God did this with me, and it was a blessing just to take a step back with Him and let Him shape my perspective so it begins to look more and more like His.


Then, I decided that I wanted to spend some time with God by writing a new post, so He reminded me of this picture above! I was browsing Facebook the other day, and one of my friends had 'liked' this, so it caught my attention; it's pretty amazing.


I chatted with God about these 12 points, and it was interesting the ones I thought I needed to work on, and the ones that God thought I needed to work on! (Again with the perspective thing?!) 


So, this is my little intro to this for now. I feel that God's got more to say to me personally through these twelve points, but also that He's going to use these lessons that I will learn to inspire some more blog posts! So watch this space! 


I encourage you to read the 12 points, and have a chat with God about them too!


C.

Walking in Kingdom Culture

You don't have to strive, or struggle through tough situations in life, because you don't have to work for it, you have to walk it with Him.

Trust Him.

Short and sweet.

C.
p.s I hope you get my drift, with God everything's about journeying together. Remember you were created to thrive, not just survive.

Power of Words

Power of Love


Nope, not the song! But the power of words.


I was thinking whilst walking home today about the power of words, that we actually speak to ourselves. In effect...our thoughts are actually like a conversation with ourselves. (Hang in there, it will make sense!) The amount of times we say something along the lines of: 'Gosh, I'm so bad at that.' or 'I can't do it the way [insert name] does!' is astonishing.


If we were in a conversation with somebody and constantly said those sorts of phrases to them, they would probably end up believing them themselves, causing hurt, pain, and even disappointment.


We know it's not right to do it to others, so why do we do it to ourselves? 


From today, I've taken up the challenge to speak positively into myself; believing that the power of words will have an effect upon my life. 


I've started by writing a note and sticking it on my mirror, telling myself that I'm good at something, so when those thoughts creep in I can rebuke them, and say, 'No, I'm choosing not to believe that lie.'


Hope that's encouraging, give it a go if you like! :)


C. 

"Do it anyway."

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.


-Mother Teresa