I am saddened at the way our beautiful country Great Britain is being handed over to Europe and other dark forces. The country my grandfather and great grandfather fought and died for. And it is being done without a squeak of protest from its indigenous people. It's as if we are all in some sort of induced trance, being led like sheep to the slaughter. Like Gods precious people the Jews in the last war, herded like dumb defenceless cattle to their deaths.

The Trojan horse in standing in the heart of this great nation. In time the evil in its belly will be disgorged to take this nation over and it will done without a shot being fired, through the corrupt political system, using the councils and government.

Islam will succeed where Hitler failed.

Is it Gods will. Is it judgement on a nation which has turned away from its Christian heritage and roots? Yes maybe it is. But I believe the God I serve is also loving and merciful and if we who are Christian pray for our nation. Then I believe God will hear and save us.
The time is coming and is nearly here, when Christians need to stand up for their faith and be counted.
I have nothing against Muslims, I know many just want to get on with their lives. But I do struggle with their beliefs. And as a woman I am right to be concerned, all woman should be concerned.

However, if there is one good thing to come out of all this religious and political upheaval, it is that I am seeking to move ever close to my beloved Abba Father, wherein I will find my peace and safety. Praise His Holy Name.

The Making Of A Prophet.

Prophecy is a subject close to my heart. Many times during my Christian walk I have been privileged to hear from God. At times what He said was for my own personal growth. Whereas on other occasions His words were to be shared for the edification of the church.
Do I have a prophetic gifting? Yes I humbly believe I do.

So when I received this paperwork on 'The Making Of A Prophet' written by T . Austin-Sparks
I decided it was well worth sharing. What he says is so true and it is something I have felt strongly about for some time.

Part 1

Prophetic ministry is not something you can take up. It is something that you are. No academy can make you a prophet.
Samuel instituted the school of the prophets.....But there is a great deal of difference between those academic prophets and the living anointed prophets.
The academic prophets became members of a profession and swiftly degenerated into something unworthy. All the false prophets came from schools of prophets and were accepted publicly on that ground. They had been to college and were accepted. But they were false prophets. Going to a religious college does not of itself make you a prophet of God.

My point is this- the identity of the vessel with its ministry is the very heart of Divine thought.
A man is called to represent the thoughts of God, to represent them in what he is, not in something that he takes up as a form or line of ministry, not in something that he does.
The vessel itself is the ministry and you cannot divide between the two.

A Tragic Vision

Once a week my mother and I would pray together. During one of these prayer times God gave me a powerful vision.
If you have ever watched something like a royal wedding you will know there is always a commentator who explains what is happening, who every one is, what they are wearing and so on.
Well this is what it was like for me, I was the commentator speaking out the vision as it happened and it was not easy as I was overcome with Godly sorrow. I had to try and explain what I was seeing through my tears, it was so hard.
My mother was was as distressed as myself. Afterwards she told me that as I was speaking she could see and feel as I did.
This is what I saw and I really believe it is a vision for the days we are in now, it has never left
me.


I was at the back of a huge glorious cathedral with a fair sized congregation sitting in the pews, their eyes glued to the front of the church.
At the alter there were three priests dressed in sumptuous clothes with mitres on their heads, waving incense around. However, like the congregation I only saw their backs.
On the right hand side of the building was a small wooden door. It opened and a man dressed in sack cloth entered. Instantly I knew it was Jesus.
Slowly He began to walk up and down every pew, tearfully calling each person to follow Him, it broke my heart as I watched. Most ignored Him their faces frozen, their eyes glued to the front of the church, their only interest the three priests ministering at the alter.
By the time Jesus had walked up and down all the pews, He was at the back of the church with just a handful of people who had followed Him.
I watched as He walked slowly down the centre isle followed by the few who had responded to His call. He turned right towards the small door He had entered through. As His hand reached out to open it, instantly His appearance changed. Gone the humble sack cloth. Now He was glorious and awesome, shinning with holy splendour. By this time I was struggling to keep going, I was in bits as I tried to explain what I was seeing.
Jesus left the building followed by His little flock and the door closed.

I then looked to the front of the church, the three priests turned around and faced the remaining congregation, and to my horror, it really did shock me, all three priests where skeletons.
I then found myself looking down on the church from the outside and I could see it was not a glorious building at all, but a ruin, It had no roof, the windows were broken, and everyone in it was dead.
It is a vision that will never leave me, and I feel it is a warning to us all. God is calling His true followers out, calling them to follow Him. The Christian walk is not about religiosity, tradition and ceremony. It is about Love, Truth and the Lordship of Jesus Christ and our relationship with Him.
The Bible speaks of remnants, let us all pray that as we seek Him and stay close to Him, we will be a part of that remnant.

Christmas snow

I can't remember the last time we had snow over Christmas, and it was serious snow too. We have had light smatterings over the years but nothing this heavy.

Every where looked so pretty. Our barren and rather dull garden, was transformed into a winter wonderland.

Granted it is a bind trying to get about, but still I like it.

I found the birds very amusing too. Our little feathered friends are brighter than we realise.

The bird bath was frozen solid so they had no water to drink, but that didn't bother them. They tucked into the food I put out, and washed it down with a mouthful of snow, bright or what?

It lasted nearly two weeks, but now it's gone washed away by the rain.

At least now we can get around without skidding all over the road, I suppose that's a positive.

Maybe it will return, who knows? it's cold enough. At least I have my photos to remind me.

Due to the white stuff, Christmas 2009 will not be easily forgotten. Not least for the traffic chaos it caused.

Why does Britain come to a standstill when a little snow falls ? Ah well, at least we give the country's used to heavy snow fall a good laugh.

Patience

Just lately God is showing me that though I have improved, I still suffer from a severe lack of patience. He has reminded me of the vision I had when I was a young Christian, which I will share. However first I need to remind myself and any who read, this just how important patience is to our spiritual lives and walk with God.

The word Patience biblicaly means=Endurance, Consistency, Forbearance, Long Suffering.
Patience is that calm and unruffled temper with which the good man bears the evils of life from what ever source they come.
It manifests itself in a sweet submission to the providential appointments of God, and fortitude in the presence of the duties and conflicts of life.
God of patience means that God is the author of patience in His servants Rom 15:5.

Patience is one of Gods many attributes and as such it should be something I strive for also, and believe me I do. I am His servant and made in His image, so I should reflect Him in my life. But as I said earlier, patience in its fullness has been sadly lacking in my life. Even as a child I was always way ahead of myself. If it didn't happen yesterday I wanted to know why, and there would be tantrums and tears. But when I became an adult that lack of Patience and impetuosity threw me into periods of frustrated anger and depression.
Okay, I am far more patient than I used to be, nevertheless it is an ongoing battle and one I sadly lose more often than I win.
Patience is of paramount importance to God, and we need to desire it, as we desire Him. He knows that without it we will rush into things, that are not His will or desire for our lives, and so find ourselves in all sorts of trouble. Whereas if we had waited patiently, and trusted Him, we would find ourselves in the place of rest, which is His plan and purpose for our lives.
I dread to think how often in my Christian life I have preempted God and because of that damaged and hindered my walk with Him. Our lives are short on this earth, and if we are going to fulfill the plan and purpose He has for us, then we need to be patient, trust Him and allow Him to lead us, knowing that His way is perfect and He will give us clear direction.
If we wait patiently before Him and allow Him the opportunity to speak into our lives, we will find the fulfillment we all seek.
I am so grateful that in my life, He has been a God of patience and mercy.

In Nov 1981 I became a christian and it was the most wonderful day of my life.
All questioning and searching was over and I was madly in love. For the first time in my life that word love had real meaning. Everything was perfect, and all I wanted to do, was go to be with the one who had changed my sorry and sad existence, so amazingly. I would cry and pester God constantly, my impatience knew no bounds. I had an expression I used, and believe me I meant it. "My bags are packed and I want to go home," how selfish and in a way arrogant.
But you have to understand, my life before meeting Jesus had been an unhappy mess. So when I realised He was alive, all I wanted to do, I guess like every other Christian before me, was to opt out of this world and go to be with the one I loved. And being young in my faith and naive, I could not understand why He ignored my request.
But I am not one who gives up easily, and even though I have had to remain here to grow spiritually and do the work God has planned for me. I believe that my constant pestering allowed me a vision that I have never forgotten. It was a spiritual and not a physical vision, but it was powerful, and enabled me to understand what God is trying to do in my life, and why going to heaven was not an option at that time.
As with all Gods children I will go when my work on this earth is finished, and only God knows when that will be.

This is the vision as I remember it. I had been a christian just a few months and was attending the morning service at church. During the meeting I was overcome by the presence of God and helped to the front of the church where I knelt alone at the alter rail.
God was heavy upon me and I leaned my arms on the rail, my eyes tightly closed. I had no idea what was going on I just knew I should wait. In front of me slightly to the left was a raised pulpit of dark wood, as I knelt there a glorious form appeared to come out of it. At first what I saw spiritually was a bright light out of which came the shape of a man, it was Jesus.
He stood in front of the pulpit, He was amazingly tall, He held His arms out slightly to the side, his palms towards me.
He was enveloped in a golden light and yet I saw Him quite clearly. He was dressed in a white gown with a pale blue gown over it, the garments shimmered. He was glorious the light coming from Him was so bright that in His presence it became harder and harder to breath. I reached for Him quite sure I was going to die and go with Him.
He was looking at me with such love, and at the time I was convinced that I saw His face, but I didn't, only spirit to spirit.
His love radiated over me like waves, each wave stronger than the last, it was the most wonderful and intense feeling, but so powerful my body was struggling to cope. And I became convinced He had come to fetch me.
Nothing else existed it was as though I was in another world, the silence was almost tangible and yet the church was still going on around me.
As I knelt there in His wonderful presence He spoke, just one word, but that word was soaked in His love. Rather like coating a nasty tasting pill with honey, so that the child will take it, and that word was, "PATIENCE"
Once the word had left His mouth He disappeared, much to my distress. But the joy and privilege of being in His presence has never left me. Even though in a way I suppose He was rebuking me, while trying to help me understand just how important Patience is.
I am still trying to get to grips with it, some times succeeding, some times not.
But one thing I do know I serve an Awesome, Merciful and Gracious God, and He has promised, He will never leave me, or forsake me. And I love Him.
I will finish with one of my favorite scriptures. Isiah 40:31, 'They that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not grow weary they shall walk and not faint.'
Teach me Lord I pray to be patient and wait. That I may find your good and perfect will for my life, and that you would be glorified.
Amen

I Did It. 50,000 words in a month.

Taking part in Nanowrimo has been the most amazing experience. The sense of freedom was liberating, not having to worry about spelling and grammar, but just letting the story flow was an incredible experience. I enjoyed it so much I think I may choose to continue to write this way.

Having achieved the 50,000 words I shall continue with the novel and when it is finished, tidy it up and edit, edit, edit.

To be a winner is wonderful, a real confidence boost. That's not to say I found it easy, there was an element of pressure that I found tiring, but at the same time it drove me on. I was surprised at how much I wanted to win.

I am well aware that having a definite story line was a huge advantage, at least I had some idea where I was headed. I know without it I would have struggled, and dare I say I might even have given up, but I didn't and I am so glad.

Now I can look forward to the day my Nano novel 'The Crystal Rose' is completed and published.

To be reviewed, or not to be reviewed. That is the question.

Why would someone ask people to submit their books for a free review, and then not give each book the time it deserves.
If the person is not going to give their full attention to a book why bother in the first place? Or if they find themselves inundated with books from authors keen to have our work reviewed. Why not just get in touch with the authors and explain that there are a lot of books to read, and so it will take longer than expected.
I would rather that, than read a review of my book that is at worst inept and at best moderately encouraging.
To me it was blatantly obvious that the reviewer did not read the book properly. In fact they admitted at the time, they were trying to read and review two books at the same time. Personally I don't think that was fare to either the books or the authors. We invest a lot of time and love into our writing.

Am I annoyed? you bet I am. I honestly don't expect everyone who reads my books to like them. But I do hope they will actually read and review them fairly.
Is this reviewer saying that they are right and that every other readers positive review is wrong, I don't think so.

One conciliation I suppose, is that all reviews whether good or bad, can be helpful. Because in many cases people will buy the book just to see if they agree with the bad review. I know myself if a new film is slated by the critiques I will go and see it anyway. And more often than not I love it, and I find most of my friends are much the same.

Those who review aren't always right, after all it is just their personal opinion. And thank goodness they don't always have the last word.