Pop Idol?

When I think about 'idols' I tend to go immediately for the obvious - money, possessions, fame and the like, but God has been challenging me very hard recently about what my Isaiah 44 idols really are..... If we are prepared to wrestle honestly with this, it asks big questions of us:

What do we spend precious time investing in?
What do we spend the most money on ?
What can we always fit in even when we're tired, broke or busy?
What are we really living this unique life for - and why?

What would it mean to live a life totally invested in God - making him our 'all in all' - and seeking to see others do that too? Would it bring joy, excitement and fulfilment?

The answer is of course 'yes' - but conflict, pain and struggle may come along for the ride too.........

So maybe the most important question is not 'where are the idols?' - but am I prepared to trade them for a different kind of life - whatever the 'cost'?

Nearer..................

"Jesus came near and started walking along beside them."
Luke 24:15

Christ the stranger, who walked alongside friends in their sorrow and shared their bread, give us grace to walk with others on their journeys and so become true companions.

Reblogged from here

Wii Church?

As one who is about to enter the world of Wii I couldn't help but giggle at this.........

Loved......................

I heard this story a couple of weeks ago written for children by Max Lucardo which touched my soul........

There were once wooden people called Wemmicks. Each had been carved by Eli, a woodworker. "Every Wemmick was different. Some had big noses, others had large eyes. Some were tall and others were short. Some wore hats, others wore coats. But all were made by the same carver and all lived in the village. And all day, every day, the Wemmicks did the same thing: They gave each other stickers. Each Wemmick had a box of golden star stickers and a box of gray dot stickers. Up and down the streets all over the city, people could be seen sticking stars or dots on one another".

Stars were for things that Wemmicks thought were good - like being beautiful, clever and getting things right, "Some Wemmicks had stars all over them! Every time they got a star it made them feel so good that they did something else and got another star. Others, though, could do little. They got dots". Dots were for those who didn't fit in, who didn't look right.......................

"Punchinello got dots. Everything he tried to do seemed to go wrong, and when it did the others would gather around and give him dots. "He deserves lots of dots," the wooden people would agree with one another. "He's not a good wooden person." After a while Punchinello believed them...........

To cut a long story short, one day he meets Lucia - who doesn't care about stickers - infact nothing sticks to her, which makes Punchinello curious so he asks her why. "It's easy," Lucia replied. "Every day I go see Eli."

After agonising for ages because he was convinced someone as amazing as Eli would never want to see him, Punchinello plucks up the courage to go and see Eli. When he gets there Eli knows his name! He knows everything about him! Eli explains that dots and stars don't matter to him. Punchinello is special because Eli made him.......

However badly we feel about ourselves today - we can hang on to the fact that we are special because our 'Eli' - God the creator of the universe, made us, loves us and like Punchinello's Eli 'doesn't make mistakes'.

But there's more............ When Punchinello asks Eli how to make the dots not stick, Eli replies "simply come and see me every day, and let me remind you how much I love you again".

How often does the time we spend with God become about study, preparation, routine, or duty? How different would our lives be if we could simply come to God each day and let Him remind us how much he loves us again?

"May all your dots fall silently to the ground, for if given by man, they matter only to other men" Max Lucado

Life in all its to-do-lists?

I wonder whether one of the foundational beliefs that many of us carry in our lives is that God somehow wants us so that he can simply put us to work & give us a long 'to do' list'?

That lingering belief that God loves me "but he's most interested in how I'm doing with my job-list of "do's and don'ts" now that he has me....." One of the major "do's" being how well we're doing at sharing him with others........

The problem is, that if our day to day experience of God is just a dry list of jobs - then that is what we'll share with others - perpetuating the myth that a life with God is little more than a divine to-do list..........
Is it any wonder then that so many people find their faith is nothing more than a dry, unexciting, task orientated half-life rather than the amazing richness of the life promised here?

Of course God has, and indeed is, the purpose for life and he has amazing things for all of us to do - but just as importantly, God wants ME and YOU. He delights in us, he wants us whole, he wants us to spend time with him exploring who we are, and what this thing called 'life in all it's fullness' is really all about.

He has made a life for each of us to explore - full of pleasure and delight, richness and reality, relationships and growth, challenge and struggle. That is the life that he wants us to experience and live to the full - that is the life he wants us to share with others, sharing from our desire that they find this rich kind of life too not simply inherit a list of rules.

How often we get so stuck in a list of jobs, restrictions and rules that we forget the fact that real life is about 'God and me' and 'God and you'?

When did we lose sight of the fact that real life - life in all its fullness indeed- is the love story between God and us?

Ordinary People..................

Zechariah was an ordinary priest who was faithful to God, living a fairly ordinary life. (find him here ). He was on the ‘priests rota’, so when he was on duty he would go off to the church and do whatever jobs he had been given – decided by ‘lot’ so it could be anything and everything. Until one day when it all changed.

Zechariah was in the inner sanctuary doing his thing, when an angel appeared and told him that he would have a son who would be ‘a great man in God’s sight’.

As he was very old, Zechariah was quite surprised by this (both the angel and the news, one would assume) - “are you sure?” he replies “We’re both past it”.

Then - just to be sure – he asks the angel for a sign. The angel strikes him mute – which probably left Zechariah wishing he had been a little more specific in the sign he asked for.........

“God regularly works through ordinary people, doing what they normally do, with a mixture of half-faith and devotion, holding themselves ready for whatever God has in mind” Tom Wright

Zechariah would have known the stories of others like Abraham & Sarah, and Rachel & Jacob who had been in the position of being too old to conceive children, and yet being given sons by God - but he doesn't seem to be able to believe it could happen to him.

How many times do we think we are too ordinary? That the riches of God are for the more gifted, more talented, more obvious people..........

But throughout the bible, God lavishes his love on, and uses ordinary people for amazing things – so why on earth not?

Been away...............

Took a break from this blog for lots of reasons - but haven't been completely idle! Catch me here and I'll be back on this blog soon!

Shaken and Stirred......

Too often the people who we expect to be inspired and challenged by are the 'obvious' - the great speakers, amazing worship leaders, and 'celebrity Christians' - but there is so much to learn from those who are alongside us, but don't fit the 'Christian' mould. Those who experience the hardest of circumstances and toughest of lives - those who struggle to hold on to their faith in the most challenging situations - for whom to simply says 'yes' to Jesus is a huge deal.......

When Jesus choose his disciples he didn't go after the most obvious choices - the rising stars of the area or the 'brightest & best'. He chose the ordinary, the outcast and the sinners - the strugglers and those who most people passed by without a second glance.......

May God shake us out of our stereotypes, and stir us into seeing with his eyes...........


"I'll tell you who'll laugh last: the people who don't think too much of themselves; who know their spirituality scores are poor - their ticket to heaven is already in the post (special delivery). " Matthew 5:1 from 'The Liberator' by Rob Lacey

Food for thought................

I read this today........

"How do we welcome home our lost brothers and sisters? By running out to them, embracing them, and kissing them. By clothing them with the best clothes we have and making them our honored guests. By offering them the best food and inviting friends and family for a party. And, most important of all, by not asking for excuses or explanations, only showing our immense joy that they are with us again. (See Luke 15:20-24).

That is being perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. It is forgiving from the heart without a trace of self-righteousness, recrimination, or even curiosity. The past is wiped out. What counts is the here and now, where all that fills our hearts is gratitude for the homecoming of our brothers and sisters."

Made me think............

All for Jesus......

Jesus - all for Jesus. All I am, and have, and ever hope to be.
Jesus - all for Jesus. All I am, and have, and ever hope to be.

All of my ambitions, hopes and plans - I surrender these into your hands.
All of my ambitions, hopes and plans - I surrender these into your hands.

For it's only in your will that I am free.
For it's only in your will that I am free.

Jesus - all for Jesus.
All I am, and have, and ever hope to be.

One of the many fundamental questions that we must ask ourselves if we claim to follow Jesus is 'do I really trust Jesus or not?' We say we trust Jesus for our salvation and all that brings - but do we really trust him with our life right here, right now - or do we think we know better?

Do I take the risk of trusting him totally - being prepared to abandon my 'ambitions, hopes and plans'? Will I seek his voice, his lead, his his way - even if it doesn't fit my wants, my desires, my 'rights'?

The irony is that when I think I know what is best for me - when I seek to create my life in my way but then creep to him and ask for a blessing on what I have created - it doesn't bring peace at all - quite the opposite........

The beauty is that when I am brave enough to surrender all into his hands, however reluctantly, painfully or costly - then I get a taste of the 'peace beyond all understanding' which I crave..............

" ......in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. " Philippians 4 (New International Version)

Every year at YFC we pray this prayer -
maybe once a year isn't enough though -
maybe it's an every day thing..................

I am no longer my own - but yours.
Put me to what you will - rank me with whom you will.
Put me to doing - put me to suffering,
Let me be employed for you - or laid aside for you.
Exalted to you - or laid low for you.
Let me be full - let me be empty
Let me have all things - let me have nothing
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal
And now - glorious and blessed God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit
You are mine, and I am yours,
So be it.
And the covenant made here on earth,
may it be ratified in heaven
Amen

Dirty Fingernails

"God looked over everything
He had made;
it was so good, so very good"
Genesis 1:31

I have spent today transforming my garden. After weeks of procrastination an impromptu visit to the garden centre was all it took for inspiration to strike, and now what was once a dull square has become a riot of colour. I am tired, grubby and have very dirty nails, but the garden now makes me smile every time I look at it.

If I get this much pleasure from creating a tiny garden - how broad was the smile of God as He created the universe and everything in it?

Sneak Preview............

I read something this week that made me realise that I’d never really thought about how big the place that we call the ‘garden of Eden’ must have been.

“God blessed them and said, 'Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.' Then God said, 'Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.'”

God gives Adam and Eve the run of the whole earth – not a small confined space that restricted their lives – an amazing choice of food and surroundings. Even the special garden that God plants and asks Adam to look after must have been huge as it contained many trees to choose from and a river flowed from it, there’s no indication it was small!

“Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit........ The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.” Genesis 1 The Bible

God gave Adam and Eve loads of trees to choose from – an ‘eat all you like buffet’ of amazing variety and choice. Only one thing was off the menu. You’d have though that with all that choice it wouldn’t have been a problem. The forbidden tree should have been quickly forgotten as Adam & Eve indulged in all the other amazing things on offer. But no – even with all those other options that God had provided for their good – Adam and Eve ended up wanting only the one thing they couldn’t have.

How often are we like that? Even though we know God has provided so much for us, we would rather mess with things that we know He doesn’t want for us. How often do we go after what is ‘off the menu’, rather than enjoy all that God provides for our good?

Why do we always want what we shouldn’t have?

Sometimes it’s obvious - too much drink, sex outside marriage, drugs, pornography or other people’s things. But other things are more subtle – we’re jealous of what other people have, their responsibility, their partner, their respect, their life.........

Instead of enjoying and exploring the unique life we have been given – our ‘garden of Eden’- we trade it for envying what other people have.

We may not go as far as eating from the forbidden tree – but we’d actually really like to and spend too much time thinking about it, plotting to get it or being angry that we don’t have it...........

God has given you your own unique ‘life-garden’ to explore, enjoy and live out

What is it for you that destroys your delight in what you have, by tempting you to seek after what is not yours to take?

ps - why 'sneak preview'? Because you got to see it before it appears here!

Caught in a trap.............

"We can't go on together
with suspicious minds.
And we can't build our dreams
on suspicious minds"

Suspicious Minds
Written by Mark James sung by Elvis Presley

Sometimes I get quite suspicious of God...............
I hope you're not too shocked by that - because actually I think we all do. Although we hear God speak of his amazing love for each one of us in the bible, we often struggle to accept it for ourselves.

Although I know God has provided for me in the past, I too often worry about the future.
I say God is my joy, but too often I struggle to believe he will make me happy in the future - so I look to myself and others to make me happy.
I believe God is the great healer, but sometimes I feel my present hurt is too big - even for him.
I call to him about specific things, and then get suspicious when he answers and provides........

Me: I can't do this.....
God: I know - let me.
Me: Help me.....
God: Yes.
Me: I can't.... will you do it?
God: It's done.
Me: Oh you've done it - but have you really done it? Am I just imagining it? Is there a catch? I should really have done it....

Which is of course all nonsense!
I'm in good company though - an entire generation of Israelites missed their chance in the promised land because of their grumbling and lack of trust. They became suspicious towards God and the end result was more wandering.
Totally trusting God is often a daily decision rather than something that comes 'naturally'. Each day we need to refuse to listen to the thoughts or emotions that cause us to doubt God’s heart of love towards us and instead commit ourselves to resting in his care.

God loves me - he shows me every day how much he loves me. All I have to do is turn again to the crucified, risen Jesus - heaped with my sin, my shame, my mess to regain my sense of perspective. Transformation is done one day at a time - and one battle of trust at a time.

Knowing God proclaims “Not Guilty!” over me and my messy life is the thing that holds my trust together. It's already done, it can't be undone, changed or withdrawn. God won't get tired of me - he knows and understands where, when, how and why my trust wobbles........

So instead of giving in to our suspicious minds, why don't we decide every day to hang on in there - let's just get on with living out the lives of infinite possibility God has prepared for each one of us!

Bumpity Bump..............

I do a lot of driving in my job - which gives me time and space to listen & think. Driving can inspire, soothe & speak to me in all kinds of ways.

Cars provide a 'safe space' - my own little bubble of being................ usually................

Today I was rudely reminded that the 'bubble' of my car isn't as protective as I would like to think it is, and that it is possible to connect with the world outside in an unexpected and very unwelcome way....... That I'm not so totally safe............. because I had an accident on the way home. A timely reminder that sometimes our 'safe spaces' aren't always as safe as we would like to think they are.............

We create 'safe spaces' in all kinds of ways - some of them good and helpful - where they provide rest, restoration and the opportunity to reconnect with God and others. But we can also create 'bubbles' that are not so good - C.S Lewis puts it well

"Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket-safe, dark, motionless, airless-it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable."

Bubbles that we retreat into to protect ourselves feel safe. They come in all kinds of shapes and sizes: silence, withdrawal, lack of commitment, inconsistency, 'self-destruct', independence, - we all have our individual ways of putting barriers up. But these bubbles of safety are just illusions - all they really do is disconnect us from God and others. Safe - but dying inside...........

Today I was jolted out of my safe feeling in a car. Too often I need to be pulled away from my desire to hide, protect and run away from the people and things in my life that might hurt me. Every day I need to be reminded to lay down my self-protective habits and learn more from the Master about the sacrificial, unconditional love that leaves me very vulnerable - but truly alive...........

Stop the world..............

...........I want to get off!

Sometimes life is very complicated..............
Perplexing, painful, confusing or just plain busy.
At times like this we need to retreat to that deep inner place
from which it is possible to say 'everything is all right' - even when it's 'all wrong'.
That inner place where God dwells one-on-one.
The place he invites me to often, but I am careless with my attendance.
The place I lose my way back to, but know I will find again.
The place only he and I know.
The place of Mary not Martha, where I can sleep in the storm.
The place created by him with love - just for me.

“.....every time there are losses there are choices to be made. You choose to live your losses as passages to anger, blame, hatred, depression and resentment, or you choose to let these losses be passages to something new, something wider, and deeper”
Henri Nouwen

25 Lesser known things..............

I have been tagged with this in several different ways - eventually I surrender! Have combined different versions -
so to stop the nonsense - here goes..................

1. I love 'kids' sweets, but have never understood the attraction of sherbet
2. The sound-track of my life would be 'Blue Monday' by New Order
3. I remember the first time I trod barefoot on a slug
4. I have always wanted to be Lorelei from 'Gilmore Girls'
5. I rarely get enough sleep - I'm a night bird who never wants the day to end. I can be irritatingly chirpy or the grumpiest grump in the morning
6. I love opera & classical music. I wish I knew more about them
7. I am fussy about coffee, tea and chocolate - a good Chai Latte is my current soul soother of choice
8. I can explain the offside rule - I learned it to impress a boy.....
9. I wish I had learned to read music - I can play the violin, trombone and sing - but only by ear
10. I believe life is too short for bad wine, cheap chocolate, boring conversation and wasted moments
11. I hate things like this so I'm not telling you anything else
12. There are many other interesting things about me, but I'd rather you discovered them by getting to know me better..............

Birthdays.............

are beautiful things, and this year I have been particularly spoiled by people who love me - for whom I am very grateful...........

Dirty..................

"Just then a woman of the village, the town harlot, having learned that Jesus was a guest in the home of the Pharisee, came with a bottle of very expensive perfume and stood at his feet, weeping, raining tears on his feet. Letting down her hair, she dried his feet, kissed them, and anointed them with the perfume." Luke 7

This woman broke all the rules. She wasn't perfect, she didn't fall in with convention, and she hadn't been invited. She braved the disapproval of those who made and monitored the rules. The ones who thought they knew what was right, who you can almost hear tutting in the background. She cries because she is broken and bleeding. She knows she is in a mess, but in Jesus she knows that she has found the one who will accept her at her very worst even though she has broken all the rules.

Sometimes how we feel breaks all the rules. We don't feel what we 'should', or we feel what we 'shouldn't'. Sometimes rather than admitting what we really feel, we decide to make ourselves fell differently, or if we can't - we decide to feel nothing at all.

Sometimes we need to be like this woman, and trust that 'keeping the rules' matters less to Jesus than pouring out perfume and tears at his feet, ignoring the tutting and the disapproval of the rule makers. Sometimes we need to simply come and let Jesus deal with our mess............

Sometimes we need to tut less and love more.............

Memories are made of this..........

Today I have smiled all day at the memory of a sweet moment from over 25 years ago when I 'met a boy'.

Not that I hadn't met any boys before, but this was one of those significant boy-moments that stay with us girls for life...............
I went to an all girls school, so boys were something of a mystery.........and frankly still are....

My school organised a sponsored 3-legged marathon followed by a disco to raise money for charity - not unusual in itself, except that in order to take part you had to be in a 3-legged couple with a boy! A clever ploy to raise interest - and clearly it worked - I have no idea what charity was involved, or how much we raised, but even now could tell you exactly what I was wearing..............

My sweet moment wasn't about my 3-legged experience though - it was with a total stranger I met later - who I spent the entire evening with. A boy who was supposed to leave at 9 0'clock - an hour before the disco finished.......... A boy who at 8:55 wound his watch back an hour so that he could stay with me until the end of the evening even though he would be in trouble for being home late......

I can still remember that sweet feeling of realising that this boy wanted to spend a whole extra hour with just me, the sheer romance and delight in that moment.

That is the delight that we can know every day from our Jesus - the total delight in our company, the sheer romance of knowing ourselves loved by him - the many different ways every day that he breathes love into our lives - in the beauty of a quiet moment, a word from a friend, a 'laugh out loud' that comes deep from our soul, a glimpse of his presence in another, the sound of a bird, the sight of a sunset - so many things remind us in every moment that "God's loyal love couldn't have run out, his merciful love couldn't have dried up. They're created new every morning. " Lamentations 3:22.

God loves me big and new every morning - and every day I learn more about truly loving him back.........

God falls in love with me all over again every day of my life - and I am learning to do the same.............

Why do we..........

..........struggle so hard to 'take Jesus to places' - and miss the fact that he's already there?

..........often find ourselves doing what Jesus never did - and rarely doing the things he always did?

..........often try to 'travel alone' when Jesus sent out two by two?

Sometimes.................

Sometimes our struggle is not so much loving God and others more - but more letting ourselves be loved.......

Sometimes we need to set aside the things we try to do and be to prove that we are loveable, and just let ourselves be loved.......

Sometimes this is the greatest battle of all............

Get up & Grow.....

We are never meant to be 'static' on our journey with God. There is always more - more to know, more to feel, more to experience, more to do - more, more, more. That's one of the things that makes the journey of faith such a thrill.

How often do we settle for just 'chugging along' though?

How are often are we happy to say that everything is 'ok' rather than looking for more ways to plunge headlong into the adventure of getting to know the creator of the universe each day? We are created for constant growth - which is why the absence of it eventually leaves us bored, dry and asking the question 'is this it?'

“The general human failing is to want what is right and important, but at the same time not to commit to the kind of life that will produce the action we know to be right and the condition we want to enjoy. We intend to do what is right, but we avoid the life that would make it a reality.” -Dallas Willard

If we really want to grow we've got to be prepared to put effort in. If I want to grow things in my garden I need to prepare the soil, create good growing conditions, water and look after the young plants and keep the weeds down.

If we truly want to grow with God, we need to create the conditions that enable the growth God so longs to see happen - which takes effort, genuine commitment and trust that God will do the rest.

“There are very few people who realise what God would make of them if they abandoned themselves into his hands, and let themselves be formed by his grace.” Ignatius of Loyola

What is God growing in you at the moment?
What ground do you need to pay more attention to?
What weeds need dealing with?

In and Out..............

"Every little action of the common day makes or unmakes character" Oscar Wilde

We all have an 'outer life' and an 'inner' one. Outer life being the one that people see most of the time because it's on display for all to see; our inner life holding our true feelings, beliefs, desires and motivations - generally more hidden away - in fact we can fall into the trap of thinking that no one sees it at all - even God....... Psalm 139 reminds us how foolish we are to think that though...... "God..... I'm an open book to you; even from a distance, you know what I'm thinking. You know when I leave and when I get back; I'm never out of your sight. You know everything I'm going to say before I start the first sentence."

Usually our inner life remains hidden, but in times of stress, the state and integrity of that inner life becomes the thing that can drive, sustain or trip us up depending on what shape it's in at that particular moment. If our inner lives are in good shape and our external world goes a bit pear-shaped, we can be confident that we fall back on internal capacity and strength to see us through.
If our internal life is actually a mess - then we are in trouble........ How many times have we been suprised to see people with great looking external lives buckle under pressure?

Jesus asks in the storm 'where is your faith?' He knows when our external world is under seige and wants to know whether our investment in our internal world will lead to strength & belief that will weather the storm.......

Does my inner world strengthen and support a my outer life - or is how I live my my outer life suffocating my inner world?

What am I feeding with my thoughts, actions and energy today?
Godly destiny, healthy relationships, obedience, more like my maker, dreams and vision - or selfish ambition, idle fantasy, instant pleasure, laziness and junk?

What do I really need?

A long holiday somewhere hot?
New car?
Less month at the end of the money?
Wii Fit?
More chocolate?


I could name loads of things that I really, really need right now!

In a very familiar story (Mark 2), Jesus gets stuck in a house because the whole town has rocked up to see him. A group of friends are so desperate to get their paralysed friend near the front of the healing queue that they rip the roof off the house and lower the poor bloke down on a stretcher right under Jesus' nose.

I've read this story so many times - and even made houses with holes in their roof out of shoe boxes at holiday clubs! But today I was struck again by Jesus' understanding of what the man really needed, rather than what he thought he had come for. He was after healing -and why not - he was paralysed after all........
But Jesus knew what that man really needed - restoration to his heavenly father - 'son your sins are forgiven'. The man got what he really needed - and later what he was originally seeking as an extra bonus.

What would it be like to really live my life truly dedicated what I need - rather than what I think I need? What would change, what would grow, and what would need to die?

We think we need 'stuff' - we need Him.
We seek happiness - He offers joy.
We chase cobwebs when we could be seeking Him.

We cry 'heal me' - He answers:
I have..............

Resurrection..............

This weekend I've thought a lot about the question

"What does resurrection mean to you?"

Firstly, and most obviously because it's Easter, secondly because I've been part of a blogging project run by Slipstream that you can see if you click here, and thirdly because at church on Sunday the question of the day for me was.......

"What would it really mean for me to choose to follow Christ every day rather than to just say I do?"

Big questions.............

What do I need to be resurrected to? What dreams am I dreaming with God for the future - how does the way I live my life this year, this month, this week, this very day take me one step closer to our dreams becoming a reality?

What do I need to be resurrected from? What habits, attitudes, behaviour and thinking have I drifted into (or run towards) that take me further from the life God intends for me and the dreams we share?

I sense the begining of another adventure for me.......

You?

Paper, scissors, stone...................

Truth whips falsehood,

good beats evil.
Love wipes hate out.
In my place.

God is for me,
death defeating,
Life imparting.
Face to Face.

God indwelling.
Resurrection.
New each morning.
Such is Grace.

Lost art of living.........

Hopes and dreams are wonderful things - they inspire and give vision for the future.

But to live only for future hopes and dreams runs the risk of living with bits of our present lives 'on hold' while we wait for whatever it is that we dream about............

The risk is that we miss everything that the present offers for the sake of the future we hope might be. Living this way can leave us hearing the promise of 'life in all it's fullness' (John 10:10), frustratedly asking 'is this it?' because we're living a half-life -
half committed to the present, half waiting for something else.....

To truly live out life in all it's fullness surely means to live fully rooted in the here and now, making the most of every minute of every day - inspired rather than distracted - by the possibilities the future holds.....

Everything.........

God in my living
There in my breathing
God in my waking
God in my sleeping

So often we get caught in the trap of thinking we need to see or feel God to be assured that he's there - when actually of course he is there - because he says he will be - in our every breath, in our every moment.
God watches as we sleep - sometimes prevents us from sleeping because he needs our attention......
God is in every second of every day - we don't need to struggle to find him, or strive to see him - however we feel, what ever kind of day we're having - he is there. Of course that also means that in our foolish times, when we think we can hide what we've let ourselves become, what we're thinking or the true desires of our heart he is present in every breath then too. ........

God in my resting
There in my working
God in my thinking
God in my speaking

How do we find God in our resting, rather than seeing resting as a time to rest from him too?
God never takes a day off from us.
God wants us to acknowledge him in every thought we have - would God think our thoughts, or use the words we choose - sometimes miraculously, sometimes in simple normality, but sometimes I think not............

Be my everything
Be my everything
Be my everything
Be my everything

Everything........ rather than an add on to our life or a hobby.......
We so easily say we want to put God first in everything, but how often do we actually put ourselves and our needs first and then try to find a way of justifying our choices. Sometimes to truly say that God is our everything, we need to think less about what we 'deserve' and more about God's best for us - which will always be greater than what we think we have found.

God in my hoping
There in my dreaming
God in my watching
God in my waiting

God knows which of our dreams and hopes will grow and be good - he also stands alongside us in that thought life that is deliciously inviting but brings the opposite outcome.
God invites us to turn over all our hopes and dreams to him.
God knows our hearts desire - for good or ill............
God knows what we wait for..............

God in my laughing
There in my weeping
God in my hurting
God in my healing

God stands alongside us in times of hope and promise that become pain and tears.
God delights to hear us laugh and catches every tear.
God alone offers futures full of hope and promise.
God prods, encourages, draws, drags and welcomes us from hurting into healing.

Christ in me
Christ in me
Christ in me the hope of glory
You are everything

God gets to everything before us - before we even think to look for him, he is there.
In every present moment, in every second of the past, in every minute of the future - God is there.

Christ in me
Christ in me
Christ in me the hope of glory
Be my everything

Words from the song 'Everything' by Tim Hughes