Tuesday 29 March 2011
Meditation, source unknown.
If you never felt pain, then how would you know I am a Healer? If you never had to pray, how would you know that I am a Deliverer? If you never had a trial, how could you call yourself an overcomer? If you never felt sadness, how would you know I am a Comforter? If you never made a mistake, how would you know that I am a forgiver? If you knew all, how would you know that I will answer your questions? If you never were in trouble, how would you know that I will come to your rescue? If you never were broken, then how would you know that I can make you whole? If you never had a problem, then how would you know that I can solve them? If you never had any suffering, then how would you know what I went through? If you never went through fire, then how would you become pure? If I gave you all things, how would you appreciate them? If I never corrected you, how would you know that I love you? If you had all power, then how would you learn to depend on me? If your life was perfect, then what would you need me for? Love, Jesus.
Sunday 20 March 2011
The Rest of God
A few years ago God gave me a short message, it was. "You will bow before me, you will bow in my presence."
For so long, I have have struggled to understand what He was trying to tell me.
However, now, I think I have a better understanding. Basically, it is to do with patience, humility and resting in Him.
Psalm 95 has given me some understanding. Verse 6:7 'O come let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before our maker. For He is our God and we are the people of His pasture. And the sheep of his hand.'
Worship is dear to my heart. For thirteen years I was privileged to lead worship in church. But since our building was sold and our church congregation scattered abroad, so to speak, I have felt lost, wondering in a wilderness.
Raising my voice to sing is hard. I feel stifled and bound. The freedom I once had is gone.
Sometimes I struggle to worship at all, but this psalm exhorts us to do just that. To realize who God is and what He has done. To worship in spirit and in truth. Worship through the pain and sadness.
To humble myself and bow in His Divine and glorious presence.
In verse 11 there is a warning, not to be like those who test God, they will not enter His rest.
We had a word from God just before we heard our building was sold. He said. 'Rest,' among other things.
Resting is hard to do when you are used to having a ministry and working with God.
It is even harder for my husband. I know he is struggling.
In the church we have been attending for a few months now, we were given a word from an elder. God told us through him, that we will not be staying there.
It has unsettled us. We are praying God will lead us out of this wilderness soon, and show us where He wants us to be and what He wants us to do.
In one way it's a blessing to know He has a work for us, it's not over. In fact from the word we received, it's only just begun.
One of my favourite authors F.B.Meyer explains psalm 95 this way. He says, this psalm is deeply woven into the life of the church, because of the worshipful strain which pervades it.
The works of God in creation are specially enumerated as incentives to praise.The sea, the hills, the deep places of earth have often inspired the minstrel, but how much more the devout soul.
There is a sabbath of the heart, when the will is yielded to Gods will, and the heart is cleansed from it's wayward whims. When the very peace of the Divine nature, settles down on the heart.
That experience is an entrance into Gods rest. It remains unexhausted for all the people of God.
Let us not miss it through default of faith!
I pray God, my hubby and I will attain God's rest, and have the opportunity to glorify Him.
For so long, I have have struggled to understand what He was trying to tell me.
However, now, I think I have a better understanding. Basically, it is to do with patience, humility and resting in Him.
Psalm 95 has given me some understanding. Verse 6:7 'O come let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before our maker. For He is our God and we are the people of His pasture. And the sheep of his hand.'
Worship is dear to my heart. For thirteen years I was privileged to lead worship in church. But since our building was sold and our church congregation scattered abroad, so to speak, I have felt lost, wondering in a wilderness.
Raising my voice to sing is hard. I feel stifled and bound. The freedom I once had is gone.
Sometimes I struggle to worship at all, but this psalm exhorts us to do just that. To realize who God is and what He has done. To worship in spirit and in truth. Worship through the pain and sadness.
To humble myself and bow in His Divine and glorious presence.
In verse 11 there is a warning, not to be like those who test God, they will not enter His rest.
We had a word from God just before we heard our building was sold. He said. 'Rest,' among other things.
Resting is hard to do when you are used to having a ministry and working with God.
It is even harder for my husband. I know he is struggling.
In the church we have been attending for a few months now, we were given a word from an elder. God told us through him, that we will not be staying there.
It has unsettled us. We are praying God will lead us out of this wilderness soon, and show us where He wants us to be and what He wants us to do.
In one way it's a blessing to know He has a work for us, it's not over. In fact from the word we received, it's only just begun.
One of my favourite authors F.B.Meyer explains psalm 95 this way. He says, this psalm is deeply woven into the life of the church, because of the worshipful strain which pervades it.
The works of God in creation are specially enumerated as incentives to praise.The sea, the hills, the deep places of earth have often inspired the minstrel, but how much more the devout soul.
There is a sabbath of the heart, when the will is yielded to Gods will, and the heart is cleansed from it's wayward whims. When the very peace of the Divine nature, settles down on the heart.
That experience is an entrance into Gods rest. It remains unexhausted for all the people of God.
Let us not miss it through default of faith!
I pray God, my hubby and I will attain God's rest, and have the opportunity to glorify Him.
Monday 28 February 2011
With God, all obstacles serve His purpose. We all have mountains in our lives. Problems great and small that seem insurmountable, hindering our progress.
That job we hate, the personal problem we can't seem to overcome. Relationship problems, all seemingly unconquerable.
Not so, God can remove all and any of our problems, but, He can also make us what He wants us to be through them. Sometimes He puts the mountain there. However, we know, God will never fail to keep His promises.
He understands the way we take, and when we come to the foot of the mountain, we shall find the way.
The meaning of trial is not only to test worthiness, but to increase it. As the oak is not only tested by the storms, but toughened by them. So the mountains in our lives test and toughen us.
That job we hate, the personal problem we can't seem to overcome. Relationship problems, all seemingly unconquerable.
Not so, God can remove all and any of our problems, but, He can also make us what He wants us to be through them. Sometimes He puts the mountain there. However, we know, God will never fail to keep His promises.
He understands the way we take, and when we come to the foot of the mountain, we shall find the way.
The meaning of trial is not only to test worthiness, but to increase it. As the oak is not only tested by the storms, but toughened by them. So the mountains in our lives test and toughen us.
Trees
Trees are beautiful, and so diverse. From them we receive oxygen, shelter, wood for homes, furnishings and so much more.
Some grow quickly, some more slowly. There are those which are shallow rooted and others with deep roots, equal to the size of their topmost branches. What is below, shadows what can be seen above.
There is a Chinese tree, that comes from a very small seed. When planted, for four years all that can be seen is a tiny sprig and bud.
However, in the fifth year, it suddenly grows eighty feet.
In those four years, it has been putting down an incredible root system, strong enough to support its amazing growth.
We too must be patient and make sure we are firmly planted in the word of God. The seed of life.
The trees with the deepest roots and the most flexible trunks are those which survive the storms of life.
Patience is maturity.
Trees are beautiful, and so diverse. From them we receive oxygen, shelter, wood for homes, furnishings and so much more.
Some grow quickly, some more slowly. There are those which are shallow rooted and others with deep roots, equal to the size of their topmost branches. What is below, shadows what can be seen above.
There is a Chinese tree, that comes from a very small seed. When planted, for four years all that can be seen is a tiny sprig and bud.
However, in the fifth year, it suddenly grows eighty feet.
In those four years, it has been putting down an incredible root system, strong enough to support its amazing growth.
We too must be patient and make sure we are firmly planted in the word of God. The seed of life.
The trees with the deepest roots and the most flexible trunks are those which survive the storms of life.
Patience is maturity.
A magnificent young eagle stood on the edge of his nest, stretching and flapping his mighty wings. He gazed into the cloudless blue sky and then launched out onto the warm thermal.
His parents followed, and as his confidence and expertise grew, the three of them soared together, enjoying the freedom their wings gave them.
The sky is the eagles home, and the heavenly heights their domain. They are safe, not flying too low, always keeping that skyward look' Created to soar above the winds and storms
We too must keep our eyes heavenward.
Keep our faith and hope strong in Jesus. He is the one who enables us to soar above the storms and trials of this life.
Soar like the eagle.
Keep looking skyward.
His parents followed, and as his confidence and expertise grew, the three of them soared together, enjoying the freedom their wings gave them.
The sky is the eagles home, and the heavenly heights their domain. They are safe, not flying too low, always keeping that skyward look' Created to soar above the winds and storms
We too must keep our eyes heavenward.
Keep our faith and hope strong in Jesus. He is the one who enables us to soar above the storms and trials of this life.
Soar like the eagle.
Keep looking skyward.
Sunday 23 January 2011
'Valley of Shadows' survey
Some of my writing friends have put together a survey of their latest book. I thought, "what a brilliant idea." So decided to have a go. They chose to leave out certain questions, I may well do the same, but anyway here goes.
Valley of Shadows
1] What's your word count? 70,645
2] How long until you finish? How long is a piece of string. Seriously though, I am finished, bar the editing process.
3] If finished, how long did it take you? I guess in all, around three years.
4] Do you have an outline? Not as such. I generally have a good idea of the story, where it's going, and how it will end. I do make a list of characters with their with their distinguishing features. Mind you, that often changes as the stories progresses. But on the whole, I like to write like a mad thing, and follow my imagination.
6] How many words do you write a day? I suppose, a thousand, maybe more.
7] What was your greatest word count for one day? About 5,000.
9] What inspired you to write? You will think this strange, and it's certainly sad. But it was the death of my sister.
10] Does your novel have a theme song? Not really, but if it did, it would be 'The Lord's my Shepherd.'
12] Which character is most like you? I guess there is some of me in Cyella.
13] Which character would you most likely be friends with? That would have to be Mary.
15] Who is your favourite character? Sunrise.
16] Have your characters done something completely unexpected? Not really, everything they experience is unexpected.
17] Have you based any of your novel on personal experience? My whole novel was born out of the tragic death of my younger sister.
18] What is the best line? The wide path panders to mankind's incessant desire to reach their destination as quickly as possible. no matter the consequences.
28] Summarize your novel in under fifteen words. What Cyella faced in the valley, messed with her mind.
29] Do you love all your characters? Goodness, no! some of them are awful.
32] Describe your main character in three words. Plucky, Strong Willed, Sensitive.
35] How many romantic relationships take place in your novel? Two.
36] Are there any explosions? No
45] Who has pets in the novel, and what are they? The Mistress, and Remstiss the Necromancer both have black cats.
46] Are there Angels, demons, or any religious references? No Angel, but yes, to the other two.
51] Is there humour? A little, yes.
52] Is there tragedy? Yes, I'm afraid so.
57] Has your novel provided insight about your life? In some ways I guess it has. Probably because I buried my grief over the death of my sister within its pages.
59] Has your novel inspired anyone? From what I have heard, yes.
68] How would you react if your novel was erased entirely? You don't want to know, and nor do I! But, such an horrendous idea is not likely, as it is backed up all over the place.
71] What advice would you give a fellow writer? Stay committed. Make it as good as is humanly possible. And don't allow rejections to put you off. Stay confident, and keep believing in yourself.
72] Describe the ending in three words. Romantic, Positive, Victorious.
75] Was it worth it? You bet it was!!
Valley of Shadows
1] What's your word count? 70,645
2] How long until you finish? How long is a piece of string. Seriously though, I am finished, bar the editing process.
3] If finished, how long did it take you? I guess in all, around three years.
4] Do you have an outline? Not as such. I generally have a good idea of the story, where it's going, and how it will end. I do make a list of characters with their with their distinguishing features. Mind you, that often changes as the stories progresses. But on the whole, I like to write like a mad thing, and follow my imagination.
6] How many words do you write a day? I suppose, a thousand, maybe more.
7] What was your greatest word count for one day? About 5,000.
9] What inspired you to write? You will think this strange, and it's certainly sad. But it was the death of my sister.
10] Does your novel have a theme song? Not really, but if it did, it would be 'The Lord's my Shepherd.'
12] Which character is most like you? I guess there is some of me in Cyella.
13] Which character would you most likely be friends with? That would have to be Mary.
15] Who is your favourite character? Sunrise.
16] Have your characters done something completely unexpected? Not really, everything they experience is unexpected.
17] Have you based any of your novel on personal experience? My whole novel was born out of the tragic death of my younger sister.
18] What is the best line? The wide path panders to mankind's incessant desire to reach their destination as quickly as possible. no matter the consequences.
28] Summarize your novel in under fifteen words. What Cyella faced in the valley, messed with her mind.
29] Do you love all your characters? Goodness, no! some of them are awful.
32] Describe your main character in three words. Plucky, Strong Willed, Sensitive.
35] How many romantic relationships take place in your novel? Two.
36] Are there any explosions? No
45] Who has pets in the novel, and what are they? The Mistress, and Remstiss the Necromancer both have black cats.
46] Are there Angels, demons, or any religious references? No Angel, but yes, to the other two.
51] Is there humour? A little, yes.
52] Is there tragedy? Yes, I'm afraid so.
57] Has your novel provided insight about your life? In some ways I guess it has. Probably because I buried my grief over the death of my sister within its pages.
59] Has your novel inspired anyone? From what I have heard, yes.
68] How would you react if your novel was erased entirely? You don't want to know, and nor do I! But, such an horrendous idea is not likely, as it is backed up all over the place.
71] What advice would you give a fellow writer? Stay committed. Make it as good as is humanly possible. And don't allow rejections to put you off. Stay confident, and keep believing in yourself.
72] Describe the ending in three words. Romantic, Positive, Victorious.
75] Was it worth it? You bet it was!!
Monday 3 January 2011
Editing
Well, the finish post is in sight. My part of the editing process is done. Pretty much anyway. My next move is to send the manuscript to my editor. Once I have followed her corrections that's it, I begin my hunt for a publisher, and that's when the fun begins. I am joking, it's about as much fun as chasing a Greyhound round the race track!
But with God, all things are possible. So, I keep hope and anticipation alive.
I have been busy putting together my proposal, I was dreading it, but thanks to a great book by Terry Burns "A Writers Survival Guide To Getting published." It turned out to be easier than I had anticipated, in fact I quite enjoyed it.
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