Silenced

I have been silenced before man and silenced before God. Lately I have had no words to pray in regards to my life and my future.

Instead I look up at my God with a limp tongue, he knows I trust him and he will lead me wherever he wants me to go.



Psalm 34:17-22
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
    he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The righteous person may have many troubles,
    but the Lord delivers him from them all;
he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked;
    the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
The Lord will rescue his servants;
    no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

My current work in Progress.

 An image of how I feel right now.

Many blessings to you all over this Christmas and New Year!

Bring on 2014 whatever it holds.

Speechless

I have been rendered speechless by my God.
But even in this time of uncertainty I lean on this truth:

Hebrews 6: 13-20

The Certainty of God’s Promise

When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.
People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

A Blessed Year!

So I've finished...

            

Teaching Scripture for the year and due to my University commitments and suburb change I will not be returning.

However, I feel so blessed to have been part of my class' lives. Being the first teacher to last a whole year with them.

Here are some links that helped me along the way:

Fervr.net

Biblegateway.com

My life is about the Change dramatically.

Last night I said goodbye to my Church of 12 years. I am attempting to change degrees and I will soon be in a completely different suburb quiet a trek from most of my friends.

              

Sometimes I don't understand God.

The first thing I thought about all this was - 'Why would God bless me with so much ministry and such close friendships and then take it all away.'

But then I remembered a conversation I had with a great friend of mine earlier this year. He said 'Heather, maybe God is preparing you for harder stuff later in life.'

At the time I didn't like the thought but now I understand.

           

God has blessed me with so much to leave that I can leave knowing that I am always loved and supported not only by these wonderful people but also by my Wonderful God.

We don't always understand what God is doing with us and often life feels like a random string of events but we can be confident that we follow a consistent, all powerful God who knows exactly what he's doing.

So as I attempt to cast my anxieties on God, I will leave this part of my life to start the next with sadness but also joy. 

God is in control, what more can I ask?

Some picture I created for me beach mission team this year. So blessed to be spending 10 days with people who Love God and who Love me before I begin my next phase of life.

Many Blessings!

The Widows Offering

This year I am off on a Scripture Union Family Mission down the south coast of Sydney.
Last year a lovely family from my church paid for me to go. However, this year I have been scrimping and saving along with a few very generous donations from my church.
I have been constantly reminded lately of this story:

Mark 12:41-44

The Widow’s Offering 

 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

I have been living like this - I however am lucky enough to live with parents who will pay for my food and my shelter but everything else - clothes, transport, outings, teaching supplies, camps, church service food - have been coming out of the small amount of money I receive from the government every fortnight. This amount has been growing smaller and smaller and now I am at the point where all of it goes to University transport except for $4.50.

So as I go to the bank in the next week or so to deposit my money and to empty my savings account I will be thinking of 'the Widow's Offering' and trusting that God will continue to provide everything I need as he has. I am also acknowledging that the things I want will not be coming my way but that is fine. 

God is all I need and God is who I trust!

Many Blessings!

Big Changes

I often have no idea what God is doing in my life. Most of the time I don't mind but lately I really have.
You see this year has been one of massive growth for me. For the first time I have attended church regularly for the whole year. However, I will be leaving my current and loved church (where I've been for the last 12 years of my life) because my family is moving house and therefore moving suburbs.

Here's something I say often: "Be careful what you pray for!"

I have once again not been taking my own advice.
Earlier in the year I was praying: "God send me wherever, I am your servant"
I was also praying for a feeling of safety, security and consistency in my life. Three things I haven't felt often.

But here's the catch...

God is giving me a sense of safety, security and consistency in this life but it's not the way I wanted. God is teaching me to find these things in himself only and NOT in my life situation. And God is obviously taking me wherever he wants me to go.

So instead of kicking and screaming  I will go with a sad but glad heart. I will allow myself to trust my creator, the most consistent being in my life and I will move house and find a new church with the knowledge in my heart that God is watching over me. God has many plans in store and though I can not see them, once again will I follow his lead.

I will also allow myself to feel sad, because sadness is an emotion and a proper one when you are leaving one church family to find another.


Romans 8: 18-30 (http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208&version=NIV)

Present Suffering and Future Glory

¹⁸ I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹ For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that^[h] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
²² We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³ Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. ²⁷ And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
²⁸ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who^[i] have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ³⁰ And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

Here is my current Work in Progress.

This one is for my beach mission leaflets.

The sand is made of raw sugar! 

You might recognise some of them from my previous post entitled "Breathless" which is also here: 

http://little-thoughts-on-a-big-book.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/breathless.html

Many Blessings to you all!

Envy

Lately God has been speaking to me.

Lying in bed last night I knew I had to read the bible. I do it every night before sleep. However I didn't know what to read. Then I thought "Psalm 23... wait no read Psalm 73!"
So I did, then after breakfast I jumped on my computer and checked my emails. I get a daily devotional by David Reay called Life Words. Todays devotional was on Envy and quoted part of the same passage of scripture I read last night.

Here it is:

Psalm 73: 1-5  (The Message)
 

No doubt about it! God is good—

    good to good people, good to the good-hearted.

But I nearly missed it,

    missed seeing his goodness.

I was looking the other way,

    looking up to the people

At the top,

    envying the wicked who have it made,

Who have nothing to worry about,

    not a care in the whole wide world. 

 

This is exactly something I have been struggling with lately. Envying those around me. I've Envied my friends for the supports they have in their families and the willingness of their parents to care for them. I've envied others for their good looks and for their talents, jobs, relationships and even houses. These small envies were eating me up inside. Causing sadness and heartache and have been preventing me from seeing God clearly. I have felt a small distance for a while and God has shown me why.

Praise the God of Heaven and Earth!

If any of you out there are struggling with this just look back to God and remember that he is Good. He looks after us. We may just be in a season of struggle and pain. That's fine, God will bring us through. And NEVER forget the blessings that await us in the new kingdom at the coming of Jesus!

Many Blessings!

Awake Oh Sleeper!

Recently I have spent a lot of time with people who sleep... A Lot!
Sleeping to the point that they have literally only been awake for maybe 4 or 5 hours in the day.

Now there is nothing wrong with sleep, it is something God has given to us to enable our bodies to function during the day. However, sleep can become an issue when you use it to escape from the world.

You may be thinking how is this person spending time with sleepers? Technically I'm not spending time with them because they are asleep. However, living in close quarters I have been doing my work around these sleeping people.

Here's the problem. When you sleep for so many hours in the day that you don't eat or interact with others there is a problem. This causes your relationships strain. Take it from someone who is up all day. I would love to socialise with you sleeper, but I can't. You are asleep.

Sleep is good but when you do too much of it you miss out on al the wonderful things God has made for us to enjoy. Like the sunshine, the sounds of birds outside and the sound of the beautiful rain we've had lately. You miss out on meal sharing with those who love you. You're life and your chores pile up to the extent that they are overwhelming. You also become a burden to those you live with.

Treat sleep respectfully. Use it as God intended. As something to enable you body to rest and recuperate so you can get on with life.


Do not sleep to excess people. How can you call that living? Do you really think by sleeping all your problems and struggles will fix themselves? Do you think that life will improve if you let is slip by? Is your dream land better than this world God has created for us?

Awake oh you sleeper. For God has many blessing for you in the day. He wants to love you and you to enjoy this world. And yes bad things will happen and life will be hard. But with God life is here to enjoy. So awake and be a blessing to the world!


Luke 22:46
"Why are you sleeping?" He asked them. "Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation."

Remember we follow a God who loves us and who has overcome sin. So do not worry but live a life to serve him.

Many Blessings!

Breathless

Sometimes when I read the scriptures the power of the words causes breathlessness.
This happened this morning when preparing my scripture lesson for this week:

John 5:16-30

New International Version (NIV)

(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%205:16-30&version=NIV)

The Authority of the Son

16 So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. 17 In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” 18 For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
19 Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.
24 “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. 25 Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.
28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. 30 By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.



Here's some art I've been doing for my mission this year. I'm on the art of our leaflets. If all goes well they will make it, if not I will have some beautiful art regardless.

Many Blessings to you all!

End Times

I'm really enjoying...

the New Living Translation of the Bible.
Today I got an email devotional which had the following section of scripture in it.

Revelation 22:1-5

Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.

No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.

The heading given for this section of scripture in the New International Version is "Eden Restored". Which is pretty awesome. I can't wait for heaven, its going to be mind blowing!


Here is a painting for yesterday, I've been exploring watercolour pencils and its turning out well I think.

Original Scan without Computer Editing.

With Computer editing.

Many Blessings!

Creative Days

So another semester is finished and I've spent the last few days just enjoying my paper, brushes, pencils and water. Experimenting and enjoying the small amount of down time I've had.
Here are a few things I've done. They are both my first attempts at watercolour pencils. After some YouTube watching I figured out it wasn't so hard.
 This is a dragon designed for a friend’s birthday gift at her request.

 This is a Jacaranda tree. Something I miss so much. There are a few around where I live but I miss the ones at my old house. There was a park that had carpets of purple flowers and I would enjoy them as I walked to and from the railway station. 

Many blessings!


2 Corinthians 5:15 - And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

Steady Feet

I got sick of drawing hands for now so I tried some feet instead.

Proverbs 4:10-15

New International Version (NIV)

10 Listen, my son, accept what I say,
    and the years of your life will be many.
11 I instruct you in the way of wisdom
    and lead you along straight paths.
12 When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
    when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Hold on to instruction, do not let it go;
    guard it well, for it is your life.
14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
    or walk in the way of evildoers.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
    turn from it and go on your way.

Blessings!

Astounded

I am astounded that God would choose someone small and weak like me to do his work in this world. But then I look at the bible and see he's done this for all of time. In our weakness he is seen strongest. Who else to choose but the worst to show his best.
I am in LOVE with God and no one can change this!

1 Peter 3:15-17
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

Blessings!

Something to Dwell on

It’s incredible...

that the relationship between God and Moses went from talking through a burning bush to face to face in a tent.

Exodus 3:2-4 -> 

There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.”

Exodus 33:11 -> The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. 

Our God is great!

A tired People

The last three days have been exhausting.
So many things have happened. The fires still blaze and we may not get rain until Tuesday.
Friend's have lost houses and some are still waiting to be evacuated.

However, these events cause me to be reminded that our time on earth is not all there is. I've been reminded of one of my favourite songs. Soon and very soon by Hillsong/Brooke Fraser
Here are the lines from it:

Soon and very soon
My King is coming
Robed in righteousness
And crowned with love
When I see Him, I
shall be made like Him
Soon and very soon


Soon and very soon
I'll be going
To the place He has prepared for me
There my sin erased
My shame forgotten
Soon and very soon


I will be with the One I love
With unveiled face I'll see
There my soul will be satisfied
Soon and very soon


Soon and very soon
See the procession
The angels and the elders
'round the throne
At His feet I'll lay my crown, my worship
Soon and very soon


Though I have not seen Him
My heart knows Him well
Jesus Christ the Lamb
The Lord of Heaven

Here is a drawing I completed tonight:

 

I began this more than a month or two ago but I came back to it tonight.

When I began this I was focused on the idea of growing old on this earth. I was yearning for it at the time as I see it as the time in life when you are truly cared for. When we grow old we can no longer care for ourselves. However, this is not the only time we are like this.

In this time of hardship God has reminded me that we are frail, fragile and unable to truly care for ourselves. Without God we are nothing.

So while my hands do not look like this yet and acknowledge that I will always need my God. He will always care for me and make my path straight. He will always do the best in my life and those whom follow him. Even if it doesn't feel like it. God is here always. He's the beginning and the end. The creator of all and I Love Him dearly.

Praise be to our God and Father!

Many Blessings and please pray for us in New South Wales, Australia as our land burns.

Prayerfully Trusting God

Walking through the supermarket tonight with my sister I noticed everyone around me looking tired and defeated.

My community were not directly affected by the fires. I have friends who have lost their homes and some who are still under threat.

Last week there was an explosion in part of my suburb and the other day someone was shot to death a few suburbs over and someone was hit by a train in another suburb nearby.

Its hard to think positively at this time and it shows on the faces of the people in my community.

However, I will still choose to stand firm in my God. I will still choose to rely on him and find my hope in him.

For it is not what happens here that matters in the way of possessions and riches. It is the relationships formed. Most importantly though it is our relationship with God that is the biggest concern we should have now.

As I pray for my family and friends most affected by these fires, and for those in and around my community affected by the recent tragedies; I will keep leaning on my God for strength.

Romans 12:12

Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and


keep on praying.



Many blessings and if you're reading this please continue to pray!

God's Strength in our Trouble

God will bring us through these flames. He will have glory over our lands.


Look up into the heavens.
    Who created all the stars?
He brings them out like an army, one after another,
    calling each by its name.
Because of his great power and incomparable strength,
    not a single one is missing.
27 O Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles?
    O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights?
28 Have you never heard?
    Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
    No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
29 He gives power to the weak
    and strength to the powerless.

Isaiah 40: 26-29


Someone who lost their house yesterday wrote this on facebook this morning.

A timely reminder this morning: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:19-20

A Day of Fires

I think this month so far NSW Australia has had some of the worst fires in our history.
We've had 3 days this month over 35 degrees and its not even technically summer yet.
I have many friends who live in the fire struck areas.
God has kept us safe so far and he is teaching us to remain solid in him in these times of distress.
Through struggles we grow in faith.
So while I pray that the fires end, I also pray that God will shine his love through all of this and people
will come to follow him.

Blessings in this hot weather!
Please pray for NSW and the fires.
So far no fatalities (that I've heard of).

Kids Ministry and the Story of Moses

So here's the plan I came up with for this term at Kids Club.
We've got 9 weeks so its set to that.
It's quiet vague because I wanted the other leaders to feel free to try different delivery methods.

Kids Club term 4

K-3 lessons

Topic: God saves his people – Exodus

Aims:

• ·         For the kids to understand/articulate the story of Moses and the exodus out of Egypt.
• ·         To be able to understand the link between Moses and Abraham.
• ·         To understand the beginning of God’s big story – to put the story of Moses on our timeline.

Creative ways to deliver a lesson

• ·         Get the kids to act it out
• ·         Act it out yourself while teaching
• ·         Create a colouring sheet or a find a word
• ·         Get then to draw a picture for you
• ·         Draw out the story in pictures – tell it without the pictures – then ask the kids to put the pictures in order (option of colouring the pictures after the story – have multiple copies)

Outline

Week	Topic	Passage	Lesson Content	Interactive tools
1	God saves baby Moses	Ex 1 – 2:9	Reminder of the bible story so far (timeline drawings)	Timeline drawing (already done last term)
2	Moses flees Egypt & Burning bush)	Ex 2: 11 – 3:22		Add to timeline Make a burning bush – cellophane and cardboard or paper – to take home
3	God’s Promise	Ex 5: 22 – 6:12		Add to timeline
4	Pharaoh’s ‘magic’/Plagues	Ex 7:8 – 8:15	Aarons Staff becomes a snake Plague of Blood/frogs	Add to timeline
5	Plagues	Ex 8: 16 – 9:7	Gnats/flies/livestock	Add to timeline
6	Plagues	Ex 9: 8 – 10:20	Boils/hail/locusts	Add to timeline
7	Plagues	Ex 10: 21 – 11:10	Darkness/firstborn	Add to timeline
8	Passover	Ex 12		Add to timeline
9	Crossing the red sea/Wrap up	Ex 13: 17 – 14 :31	Summary and wrap up of Moses story	Finalise the drawings on the timeline

Blessings!