Wanna know a secret...

I don't know about you, and this is probably another one of those 'girl' things, but I absolutely love it when one of my friends comes to me and says 'hey, do you want to know a secret?'  And just to clarify, it is of course something about them and not about someone else otherwise that would be classed as 'gossip' which is something I do not like to participate in!

When a friend wants to tell you a secret it makes you feel special...because they trust you enough to confide in you something close to their heart...they know that you will also hold it just as close to your heart and not tell a single soul.  Girlfriend to girlfriend and no further... its a precious relationship.  As girls we all need this type of relationship in our lives.

But do you want to know something else?  Our amazing God, King of the universe, creator of the world... He wants to tell us some secrets too!  He desires a relationship with each and everyone of us that is close and intimate so that He too can whisper secrets to us... All we have to do is ASK! 

Devine Secrets... between Him and YOU!!

What a precious relationship that is... The God of the universe wants to tell us His secrets... AMAZING!!

I wonder what He will tell me... or you??

ASK HIM & HE WILL....

Jeremiah 33:2-3
This is what the Lord says - the Lord who made the earth, who formed and established it, whose name is the LORD:  ASK ME and I WILL tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come...

Sparkle...Sparkle...

Philippians 2:15&16

Do everything without complaining and arguing so that no one can criticize you. 

Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people...

I love that movie 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' with the gorgeous Audrey Hepburn playing the exquisite role of Holly Golightly.  My favourite scene is the very beginning of the movie where Holly has obviously been out all night and it is still early morning... the streets are quiet and the shops are not yet opened for business... Holly is standing in front of the Tiffany's window eating a croissant while gazing admiringly at all of those gorgeous Tiffany diamonds...

the ones that I can only dream of!

I don't know about you, but I love diamonds...

there is something about their 'sparkle' that just begs for my attention...haha. 

If you have a diamond, or possibly even diamonds, that you wear all the time, which I do in my engagement ring and in my wedding band, you will soon discover that the sparkle that you were so impressed with when you first wore that ring soon begins to fade and it becomes slightly 'dull'.  All the dirt and grim of everyday life begins to build up on and around that diamond and since a diamond can only reflect what is around it... it no longer shines as bright because the light that was once allowed to penetrate through the diamond is shut out and can no longer be seen.  However, if you take that ring and clean it all up, get rid of the grim and dust and build up of life, it once again shines like a brand new one.  You walk around with that flashy diamond on your finger wanting to display it to the whole world!!

Sometimes our lives can become a bit like a dull, not so shiny, diamond ring...

God has called us to live 'clean, innocent' lives like that of a child... but often we let the 'stuff' of life crowd us in.  We let little things start to build up around our shining light... things that people might say in innocence offend us... that movie we watched last week that we should have walked out of... we argue with our spouse about the smallest thing... we yell at our kids 'because we are tired'... and the list can go on.  It all starts to build up around us and we no longer reflect the light of our God.

We need to get rid of this 'stuff' and let our light once again shine in this darkened world...  

God has called us to be SALT and LIGHT. 

We need to shine so bright that we leave a pleasant taste in people's mouths...haha.

If we fill our lives up with the Goodness of God, with His Word, with His Love, with His Peace, with His Joy... If we let the Spirit of God work in our lives... show us where we need to change and let Him clean us up... we can once again be a diamond that SPARKLES!! 

A diamond that shines so bright... illuminating the lives of others... a reflection of God!

DON'T

LET

ANYONE

(OR ANY THING)

DULL

YOUR

SPARKLE

Don't give up...

In my kitchen...

So, I got home yesterday afternoon after a big day out with my little boy... we had been to Girls Church in the morning and then straight to Gymbaroo for some playtime fun for Jad...

I went to the pantry for something to eat because all I had eaten all day was a piece of chocolate cake and an apple (not good... I know!) and I discovered an opened packet of

 lovely, fresh, green rocket and thought

'What THE??!!!'

it is definately not something one expects to find sitting next to the Glad Wrap!

I'm guessing that in my seemingly perpetual state of absentminded tiredness, I must have put it in there instead of the refrigerator as I was cleaning up the night before!

It has been a very busy couple of weeks and we are entitled to make a few little mistakes aren't we??  I did need to have a bit of a laugh... that was one way to achieve that I suppose.

Anyway... along with the tiredness, I have been a little bit emotional and this week feeling quite not myself and I was thinking as I was running out the door to Girls Church that I feel like I have lost myself... all my independence and confidence seems to have dissapated into thin air... this faith journey we are on at the moment was again starting to take it's toll and I again felt like giving up.  I was saying to my husband only the day before that it's not meant to be like this... this is not what our life is about... going back to the same old, same old... back into the rat race... I want to make a difference in this world!!

Well...God must have been listening because a very lovely lady at Girls Church said that she felt someone was feeling 'fragmented' and 'crumbly'... I quietly said to God in my mind that if no one else responds to that then it must be me... and of course no one else responded... so I did. 

Isn't it just so amazing that when we are feeling at the end of ourselves, God steps in and picks us up and points us back in the right direction... the way that He wants us to go.

Then this morning... still feeling my perpetual tired self... He spoke to me again...

Hebrews 10:35-39

'So don't throw it all away now.  You were sure of yourselves then.

It's still a sure thing! 

But you need to stick it out, staying with God's plan so you'll be there

for the promised completion. 

It won't be long now, He's on the way; He'll show up most any minute.

But anyone who is right with me thrives on loyal trust;  

if he cuts and runs, I won't be very happy.

But we're not quitters who lose out. 

Oh, no!  We'll stay with it and survive, trusting all the way.'

I'm guessing that means 'don't give up' :)

It is LIFE...

There was a time in my life, which when I think about it actually wasn't that long ago, when reading the Bible, the inspired Word of God always seemed like it was such a chore, like it was just hard work and would never really get much out of it.  Occassionally I would pick up a revelation but most of the time I was doing it because I felt that I had to. 

I could spend ages listening to worship music and just being before God in His presence and worshipping Him but as soon as I picked up the Bible it seemed to become boring... reading the Bible was such an effort for me.

I don't know if anyone else feels like this sometimes... or is it just me??

I would try to make it enjoyable with a nice hot cuppa or lighting some candles and it would help to make me feel good but I still wasn't really getting much out of it.

However, during the past year or so, I seriously haven't been able to live without God's Word in my life every single day.  I don't know what changed or how it changed or what I did... perhaps it is just that I feel like I have more time and I don't need to rush... or that I pushed through without giving up... whatever it is, it is GOOD!!

I read something in the notes section of my Bible today which really spoke to me about how important God's Word is for our lives...

The Word of God will light your way;
it will help you make right choices;
it will heal your wounds and settle your heart;
it will protect you and cleanse you from sin;
it will lead you;
it will make you wise;
it is bread;
it is water;
it is a counsellor;
it is life;
it is satisfying;
it is sufficient;
it is supreme;
it is supernatural.

How absolutely amazing is the Word of God!!  It is everything that we need for whatever path we are on in life... wherever we are at... whatever we are doing... God's Word is all that we ever need.

Psalm 119:162
"I rejoice at your Word as one who finds great treasure".

Good Samaritan

As I was driving home from the beach earlier today I was a bit annoyed at myself for spending so much time enjoying the sun and the surf and I was having words with myself saying that ‘I should have been at home doing the washing’ or ‘I should have been organising my shopping list for tomorrow’... blah, blah, blah...

I was about to pull out across the highway towards home and I looked up to the right and ‘oh my goodness’... I saw a bicycle and a body go flying into the air and crash onto the side of the road. My heart started pounding and my first thought was... I have to help that person... but then I thought... but by the time I get up to the U-Turn section and turn around and come back... surely someone else would have stopped to help out. As it was I had already waited for about ten cars that had driven past the incident so that I could cross onto the other side of the road so surely someone else will stop.

I decided to turn around anyway, just to make sure that whoever it was, was ok. As I got closer I was surprised to see that there were no other cars pulled over and no one else had stopped to help. I mean, it is the main highway into town and probably about 30 cars had passed as I took the time to turn around and come back.

So, there she was, a hurt and shaking little girl on the side of the road without anyone except me stopping to help... I honestly couldn’t believe it. She was so shaken up that she hadn’t even thought to pull out her mobile to phone anyone until I suggested it! So I piled her now mangled bike into the back of my car along with my surfboard, which believe me was no easy task, and I drove her (shaken but relieved) back into town where she needed to go.

I am still in unbelief that no one else was considerate enough to stop and see if she was ok. But I guess that was why I just happened to be in the right place at the right time...

But I don’t believe in coincidences.... I believe that God knew I would spend too much time at the beach this morning and He knew this little girl was going to fall off her bike and that I would be the only one to stop and help.

In a world where people are too busy and so focussed on what they are doing, I believe we need to be ones who will be open to what God wants us to do and who will keep a listening ear out for what He is asking us to do.

I could have kept driving all the way home thinking that someone else would stop because I was on the other side of the road anyway... I shouldn’t have to be the one to turn around and go back. But I was the one and I am glad that I was the one who God used to help someone else today.

I don’t know this girls name and she doesn’t know mine... all she knows, in her words, is ‘a nice chick’ stopped to help and made her day a whole lot better than what it was at that particular moment.

Be the Change...

Whenever I return from a trip away from home, as I am preparing to go to bed that night, I am always completely amazed at how small this world has become because my previous nights sleep was spent in another city or in some cases an entirely different country… how cool is that I have been shopping in Sydney this morning and home for dinner with my husband tonight. And yes… my suitcase was slightly overflowing this afternoon!

But tonight my thoughts are also on those who are a lot less fortunate than I am… as I have been so aptly reminded over the past few days at Colour… even though our world seems so small when we can travel to the other side of it within 24 hours, the problems that exist in this world today, and probably have for hundreds of years, seem so very huge and almost impossible to overcome or to even make a small mark on…. issues like poverty, violence, famine, slavery, human trafficking, homelessness… and the list could go on.

However, I am also encouraged… even though in my mind these problems seem very difficult to solve… as we join together in unity and do our little bit… whatever that bit maybe…. whatever it is that God has asked us to do… or whatever you feel that you can do… we can in fact make an impact in this world… in our lifetime.

We are the answer that this world is crying out for… God is the answer that this world is crying out for. We just have to be the brave and courageous ones and step out to do our little bit… which will, because of the power of unity, make a huge difference.

I don’t know about you but I want to be able to make a difference in the lives of the people of this world who are less fortunate… I do not at all like to see children suffering or women being disfigured and I am willing to do something about it.

That is one of the reasons why over the weekend I welcomed another new addition to my family… a gorgeous little four year old Philippino girl named Kyla and even though she may only be a photo on my refrigerator… I will consistently pray for her and her family and I know that my support will make a difference in her life and she will have a better and brighter future because I was willing to do something about it.

Whatever it is that God asks me to do, I pray that I will always have the courage and determination to take the plunge and just do it… to be one who will BE THE CHANGE!!

Its whats on the inside that counts...

With a title like that you may have thought I was going to write about being beautiful not only on the outside but also on the inside… however… I have something different in mind.



As I am preparing to go to Colour tomorrow I am of course very conscious of what I will be wearing but not only that I am also very aware of my feelings of both excitement and apprehension at the same time.


Those of you who know me well will know me as someone who almost always looks very cool, calm and collected… even under difficult and challenging circumstances and I have recently been told that I am like the woman on the ‘Navman’… always sounding very cool, calm and collected… and I hope that was supposed to be a compliment!


However, underneath that oh so calm exterior, right now is a sea of knots created by thoughts like…


‘I have to fly alone… and in a prop plane… and its blowing a small gale… and its going to be rainy… and do I need another jumper… what if I forget something’ and the list goes on and on.


And so I ask myself… ‘Where is my faith?!’


I know that this is going to be an awesome and amazing conference and I truly am very excited and looking forward to going, especially considering that I have never been before… but what about these other feelings that keep getting in the way… how do I deal with them? I was thinking only a few months ago that I was really getting over this worrying thing that I have had a problem with for so many years but once again it has reared its ugly head!


And I know all of those Scriptures about ‘Do not worry… ‘Fear not… etc. so no need to remind me!


I know that I will be fine once I get on that plane and I am on my way and I can always buy something if I am cold or if I forget something… so really there is nothing to worry about at all.


My God is with me and that is all I need to know to have a good nights sleep.

Rise and Shine...

This morning I was awaken from my peaceful slumber by some very inconsiderate feathered friends having a little get together in the trees outside of my bedroom window. I stumbled out of bed and opened the shutters so I could close the window and at least try and get some peace to go back to sleep at this ungodly hour (cough cough)…. As I opened the shutters, in front of me was the most gorgeous sunrise.

I was so inspired I then opened all of the shutters and lay back down on my pillow watching the sunrise over the horizon. After about only a minute I couldn’t stand it any longer… I had to get up and go outside to enjoy this as much as I could.

As it was, it was only 30mins before I usually get up and it was almost like God was looking down, laughing and saying ‘You could be enjoying something like this every day if you weren’t lazy and got out of bed just that little bit earlier’.

On Sunday at church one of my new friends shared over communion about being distracted from God (*squirrel*)… well this morning was totally the opposite for me… because of God’s creative handiwork in the sky I was distracted toward Him!

It made me wonder…. How much do we miss from God because we are distracted by other things or because we are lazy, or because we are walking around with blinkers on? I have been missing out on an amazing sunrise every morning because I like my pillow… what are we missing out on when we stay home from church on a Sunday because we are tired or the surf is good? Or what about when we don’t give the whole amount that God has asked us to give?

I thought about the rich, young ruler… God asked him to give up every single cent that he had to come and follow Him but the young man was too in love with his money to do that… I wonder how much more money and favour God would have given him had he been willing to give it up for God in the first place?

I don’t want to miss out… I am going to make a concerted effort to get up just that little bit earlier so that I can enjoy the beauty that God has created every morning.

Answered...

This morning as I was reading my Bible I realised an awesome thing…

Over the past few weeks I have been reading a book called ‘The Richest Man Who Ever Lived’ which is about King Solomon’s secrets to success, wealth and happiness out of the Proverbs, and at the same time I have also been reading a chapter in Proverbs everyday.

As I was chatting with my husband over our romantic Valentine’s Day dinner the other night and discussing my ‘impossible’ dreams, I had a few questions about how I was going to achieve parts of them when I didn’t have a clue about what I was doing! My ever-so wise husband replied that God would show us the way to achieve the impossible. I didn’t really think anything more about what He had said until the very next day when I read a chapter of my book and it specifically answered one of the most difficult questions I had asked… AMAZING!

Again this morning before I started reading my Bible I was chatting with God about a personal situation that I am struggling with at the moment and asking what I could do to overcome in this particular area and as I read my Proverb for the day… there it was… the answer…. plain as day!

The Bible may have been written thousands of years ago but still in Twenty-Ten, as we commit our lives to Jesus and expect Him to help us in our everyday lives, He will provide the answers that we are seeking after.

Some answers may not come as easy as those I have described above but they will come... we just have to look to Him for the answer to begin with.

Inspired...

I have just finished reading a very short but inspiring cute little book called ‘Fish’. The story itself is quite fun and definitely gets you thinking and motivated about life but an extract included in the book is what I would like to share…

It is from another book called ‘Simple Abundance’ by Sarah Ban Breathnach…

Most of us are uncomfortable thinking of ourselves as artists…. But each of us is an artist… With every choice, every day, you are creating a unique work of art. Something that only you can do… The reason you were born was to leave your own indelible mark on the world. This is your authenticity… Respect your creative urges… step out in faith… you will discover your choices are as authentic as you are. What is more, you will discover that your life is all it was meant to be: a joyous sonnet of thanksgiving.

We only have one life to live on this earth and as Sarah has so greatly put it…. We were born to leave our own indelible mark on this world! Each of us has a purpose in life… God has a plan for us all and we need to make the most of every minute of our days because once it is gone… its gone!

I have been quite surprised over the past couple of weeks at how time really does fly when you are having fun… It definitely seems to go a lot slower when you are working for some reason!

I have been enjoying my morning swim or surf, doing a little bit of work every now and then, being a homewife (I don’t like ‘housewife’) and pottering around, as my mother would say, but it is definitely time for me to start working on those goals that I have set and get that schedule happening so that those minutes, hours and days don’t quickly slip away as they so quickly can and I am left standing there with an empty canvas.

I may currrently be a ‘lady of leisure’ but I definitely don’t want to be lazy!

Life...

Every now and again I am absolutely stunned at how quickly life can pass by, often without us barely even noticing and last night was one of those times... My husband Craig and I celebrated with one of our friends who turned 40 years old today. I honestly cannot believe I have friends who are that age and that I too have almost reached that point in life... the dreaded top of the hill! However, aren’t they now saying that 40 is the new 30?? What a relief!!



I remember when my mother had her 40th birthday and we had a huge surprise party for her... I was sixteen at the time and everyone else who was my mum’s age and my mother of course... seemed SO old. It kind of shocks me to think that I was there to celebrate with my mum when I myself who has only about 15 months to go haven’t even started a family yet!


But along with celebrating with our friend the big 40... yesterday he also buried his friend of many years who was a similar age... that is most certainly a wake-up call to me of how short life can be.


All of this rolled into one definitely makes you reflect again on your own life... my achievements, successes, failures, opportunities taken or missed... but it also encourages me to ensure that in the coming years I take every opportunity that I possibly can and strive that little bit harder to achieve all of those goals and dreams that I have in my heart.


Life is beautiful and a God-given gift but often life can be short or it can pass by so quickly that it comes and goes without a blink because we can be so busy doing EVERYTHING but I want to be one who will ‘seize the day’ and make the most of my life, live my life to the full with purpose and do God’s will for my life... because we have only one life to live on this earth... and I want to make it count!

Proverbs 19:21 Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.