Taking time to see God's Greatness {stepping out of the boat}

This morning, something amazing happened.

I woke up EARLIER than the alarm, and I didn't feel tired!

Yes. You read correctly.

I am equally bowled over.  Maybe it's not a "thing" for you, and you regularly waken early, refreshed and full of vim and vigour.

How nice for you.

For me, it was incredible, and a perfect start to my "working" week.  I was able to get up, and spend loads of lovely time with just me, a large mug of coffee, and God - soaking up His Word, and learning precious truths.

On top of that, I even had time to read some more of Sally Clarkson's new book - Own Your Life.  I must admit, I had been struggling to find time for reading in peace and quiet.  Umpteen Sunday afternoons, I had attempted to read, only to have invading marauders. Yes, I have hit the stage of being unable to read fully without peace and quiet.  *groans inwardly at galloping aging process*
This morning, I had peace.  I had previously been reading it on my Kindle app, on the iPad, but I now have a "hard" copy, and hightlighter in hand, I got back to reading.

I have reached Chapter 6 - Resting in the Transcendence of God - Owning the Mystery of His Supremacy.

Oh, how this comes at the perfect time for me.

It's all about stepping away from the hectic madness of life, and seeing the wonder of who God is, as a little child.

My life has been super busy.  Crazy busy.  I had recently become overwhelmed with so many things I had to do.  Choices to make.  Direction to give.  Planning to do.  Schooling to oversee. Housework to fit in.  Discipline to administer.

I was tired.  I was worn down.

I hit a wall, and had to just step away from things, to get my head in the right place.  I am so thankful that I was able to come to my husband, pour out my heart (which had been burying things, thinking it would all just resolve by prayer alone.... alas, faith without works is dead! Action is always required!), and have him help me to find direction.

One of the biggest helps he was to me, was to see that I needed to slow down and remove a lot of unnecessary pressure from myself.  To take my eyes off perceived expectations from others (including what I THOUGHT was what HE wanted, which I was SO wrong about!), and to just focus on what was right for our family.

I cannot express to you, in words, how much of a load has been lifted from me since then.

I had more to learn, though.

As I mentioned, at the end of last week, I also realised that my focus was on doing, instead of BEING.  Being with my family, fully engaged.  Not rushing about from one job to the next.  Not focussed on academics and neglecting their tender hearts and personalities.  I needed to stop, take stock, and readjust my goals and priorities.

Imagine then, how perfect it was, to then read what I did this morning.  Sally giving wise counsel to my soul, about stopping and seeing how great God is.

She told the story of a night when she had opportunity to view the night sky through a telescope. Her daughter was enthralled, as they gazed at the sky was filled with incredible, twinkling stars.  A breath-taking sight.  Her mind was drawn to Job, and God's question to him.

"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding....When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"

Job 38: 4, 7

We are so small.  God is so great.

We need to become like a little child, awed by the things we so easily miss, because we are simply too busy DOING.  I have been rush, rush, rushing through life, trying to cram so much in, all the while missing so much.  I am realising, all the more, that time is precious, and every little moment I can spend with my family, when they need me, is so important.  Every moment I can spend soaking up God, and His Word, is crucial to my growth and peace.  Taking a break from busyness, and just enjoying life, is something I need to MAKE time for.


Sally also relates how she spoke, in a blog post, about taking time with her daughter, amidst the busyness of one day, to have afternoon tea. Tea, scones and candles.  Celebrating life in the busyness of deadlines.  One commenter on the blog chastised her for not understanding the busyness in the life of Mums. This poor, harassed woman suggested Sally was setting unrealistic goals for women who are pushed for time, as it is.

Poor Sally!  Poor LADY!

I can understand the lady's life - whiny children, time your enemy as you battle to get things done.

TOTALLY.  I get it.

What I was reminded of this morning, is the very thing that I so often forget.

It's up to us to FORGE that time out of our day.  To take a step back, and think about what REALLY matters, eternally speaking.  All of the pressures and duties will still be there, after taking time out for a breather. Without a doubt.  But the refreshment your soul receives, from stopping, and resting, and being with JESUS, will be a boost to your day.

No living thing can operate without fuel.  We take time to stop and have nourishment for our bodies.  Stopping, and having a break from the duties of life, is refreshment to our MIND and our SOUL.  They equally need nourishment, and I shouldn't feel guilty for seeing to those needs, too.  That's where I have been going so wrong! We have a responsibility to care for not just our bodies, but our mind and our soul, to God's glory.

If I am having a crazy, stress-filled day, I just need to stop, and soak up God's greatness and glory. To become like a little child, and dwell upon the big things of God, instead of the fleeting, burden filled things of life. Take the time to get my perspective upon heavenly things, and not earthly.

Sally wrote of the disciple, Peter, and how he walked on the water.  How easily, in life, we try to row our way, in our own strength, through trials.  We won't get anywhere in a hurry, if we are going in our own strength.  Peter had to get out of the  boat, take a step of faith, and then keep His eyes on Jesus.  The moment he looked around at the waves, he sank.

That's me.  Rowing, as hard as I can, in the direction I THINK I should be going.  Busy, busy, trying my best to keep afloat.  All I need to do is stop, and get out of the boat.  Step away from the "boat" of life, that's being tossed around by the winds of  circumstances, and step towards the Saviour.  We are able to do great things, if we step out in faith, and keeps our eyes upon God.  I need to "think big", and realise that God is able to do great things in my life, if I just trust Him.  Step away from the storm, and towards the one who CONTROLS the storm.

Humility - bowing our lives before God - was the other area that challenged me today, from my reading in the book.



As mothers, I think there's an incredible pressure placed upon us to "get it all done".  We end up steaming on in our own strength, and forget that our strength is nothing.  We are like tiny specks, next to the greatness of God.  I need to come, with  heart bowed in humility, and see God in His greatness and His control over my life.  I need to remove my focus from the details of life, and remember that *I* am not in control - God is.  He knows the way that I take - He planned it. He, in His greatness and goodness, has planned that my life should be EXACTLY the way it is - it's my cup.

I am nothing, and He has it all in His great plan.

We are having a "week off school".  What a perfect way to launch into it.  Remembering God is great.  Remembering I am nothing.  Focussing on my mighty, awesome God.  Enjoying the moments, instead of being on the go, ALL the time.

Are you living a busy life, and forgetting to stop and enjoy the moment?  Like me, are you so busy doing, that you are not being? Not treasuring the detail that God has blessed us with in life, or the lives that God has surrounded us with?

I trust you will seek to see our great God, as I am, and take time to enjoy the moments we can plan into our busy lives, to enjoy God and His goodness.

Women of the Word {Esther - For Such a Time as This}

When I was considering Esther, and what I would say about her, THIS is not what I planned on saying.

I had thoughts of husbands, and communication.  There's a lesson to be learned about that, and MAYBE I will return to it, but the Holy Spirit whispered a different message into my heart this morning, and that is what I will share.  Those quiet moments in the morning, when I manage to drag my tired body out of bed, to savour the stillness with my Saviour, are ALWAYS worth it.  Those are the moments when I hear His voice speaking to me.

Esther.   "Fair and Beautiful".  A girl, carried away in the captivity.  Her parents are dead, and she lives with her cousin, Mordecai.  They live in a foreign land, far away from all that they knew and loved - most certainly separated, by traumatic circumstances, from those they held dear.

Esther.  Taken into "custody" - a prisoner.  A year spent preparing herself for a glorified beauty pageant. All her days spent amongst those primping and preening - all for  the possibility of becoming the Queen of a mighty ruler. Paraded before a godless king, to have her beauty admired.

Esther.  The one admired by those around her  - her inward beauty most likely shining forth, even then, as well as that outward beauty.  The one chosen by the King, obtaining grace and favour in his sight, over all the other maidens.

What struck my heart this morning was this.

She was a woman who accepted.

She gently, quietly, without fuss and drama, ACCEPTED her situation.

Who would CHOOSE to be taken captive, as a young girl, far away from all you held dear?

Who would CHOOSE to be paraded, like an animal in a market - gazed upon, weighed up alongside the others - to be the potential Queen of a ruler looking only upon your outward appearance?  An ungodly King, apparently easily influenced by those he places in power alongside him.

Esther didn't choose the situation she was in, yet she calmly accepted it all, and MORE.

She became a woman who owned her life.  She became a woman who accepted what God had given her as her portion, and poured herself into it.  She emptied herself into the situation she was in, and redeemed it to the glory of God, by redeeming the people of God.

She quickly took upon her role of a supportive wife and helped to save him from the plotting of his enemies (chapter 2:21-23).  She didn't have to do that.  She could have sat quietly by, whilst the husband she didn't choose for herself, and a man who had so easily dismissed his previous wife, was assassinated.  But no, that was not in her nature, nor a reflection of the inner beauty she possessed. She owned her life by being everything that she should have been.

She placed herself in a place of potential sacrifice, in order to approach her husband.

"If I perish, I perish."

She was willing to die for those she loved.

Knowing the King, and what had happened to Vashti, she didn't admit defeat, and think there was nothing she could do. Instead, she immediately fasted and sought a solution to the dire situation. She found herself in a state of affairs that put those she cared so deeply for at risk, and she went about making sure that she saved them.  She set aside her earthly comforts, to seek heavenly counsel about her situation.  We are told she fasted, and this invariably, in scripture, goes hand in hand with prayer.  It's an assumption, but one that is not unlikely.  She put self aside, in order to live fully, sacrificially, and with compassion, in the situation she was in.

What lesson did the Holy Spirit whisper in my heart, this morning?

We cannot always choose the situations we find ourselves in.  In God's sovereign dealings with our life, we may find ourselves in a place not of our choosing.  We may experience heartache.  We may be thrust into situations that are hard. We may have to go through trials that test us on many levels. We may be in relationships that require patience and grace.  We may be in marriage that is far from perfect.  We may be far from those we love.

It's not right for us to fight the perfect plan of God.  It's not right for us to grumble, to complain.

God did not create us to live a mundane life, where we don't embrace the season we are in and live it with passion.

We are to be "Esthers".  Esther was the outliving of the words of Paul.

"For to me to live is CHRIST, and to die is gain".

He didn't say "For to me to exist".

He didn't say " For me to endure".

He said, "For to me to LIVE".

We can only live fully, to God's glory, if we do everything in our power to live it for HIM.

To honour Him.

To praise Him.

To obey Him.

To joyfully embrace and own where He has us.

It cannot be done in our own power.

It cannot be done for our own gain.

God has placed you in your situation "for such a time as this".  Like Esther, you have a work to do, right where you are.  The circumstances don't dismiss you from this delightful duty - they simply dictate the way you will live it out. Each with our own story, to HIS glory.

Our lives can be lived as ones of incredible influence, just like Esther. No matter where we are, or who we come into contact with, we can influence others greatly, for God's kingdom, if we accept our circumstances, and live fully devoted to God. I am sure Esther never imagined, as a child fleeing persecution, that she would be so greatly used in the wonderful plan that God had for the redemption of His chosen people. Esther, willing to be used. Not sitting by, simply existing. Willing to go, with confidence, to live a life of boldness. A life that would be recorded for the generations to come, to read of her willingness to serve in the hard places.

Am I willing to live that kind of life? To accept, with humility and a burning passion to see Christ glorified, RIGHT HERE?

I don't need to be in a palace.  I don't need to be on the mission field.  I don't even need to go outside of my HOME.

God can work in me, and through me, if I am willing to live a life that is bold and full - owning my life, glorifying Him, and faithfully following His lead.

Own Your Life {today's the day, for a GIVE-AWAY!}

Finally, the day has come.  Sally Clarkson's new book, "Own Your Life", has launched into the world of books.  Women, from all around the world, who have been waiting eagerly, now have it in their hands.

Except me.


I have it on my iPad.

I gave in.  I figured that having a digital copy is, well, handy.  I will, of course, need a physical copy.  I can write notes in the margin, and highlight to my hearts content, in that.  I also need a copy to loan out to other people, which, of course, you cannot do with a kIndle version.

Ok, I admit it.  It's simply because it was the instant way to get to read the book.  Having heard Sally give us a "taster" in Oxford, in the autumn, I knew it was going to be a "goody".

I have also been involved in the "Launch Team" (which makes me feel very Cape Canaveral), helping to share the news with the cyber world.  Most people spend a lot of money launching books, which Sally just hasn't got the funds to do.  So, she turned to online friends, who happily stepped up to help.  What a joy it has been - working alongside a group of women, all with the desire to honour God, and encourage other women. I know it's been a humbling and special experience for Sally, to see women pull together to help her.

So, here it is.  It has arrived, by mystical and mind-bloggling technical means, on my Kindle.  And, I had a scrummy breakfast, having my soul fed, whilst filling my bodily needs.

I can tell you, it's worth it.  No surprises there, given how used of God Sally's previous books have been.

Own Your Life is a book all about living for Christ, exactly where God has you.  God wants us to look at where He has us, and turn away from the emptiness that comes from trying to fill up with things that do not satisfy, to live full, Christ-centred lives.

"God has created you with the potential to live  a purposeful, meaningful life that is spiritually strong and vibrant... . But you have to choose to follow Him, to believe Him, to live for Him.  You must choose how to live every day.   Own your life.  Choose whom you will serve.  Live into Christ's love and the power of His spirit working through you.  If you follow hard after Him, God will make your life count in ways you can't even yet see."

Sally Clarkson, Own Your Life

I have only got a few chapters in, but it's already challenging me.  Challenging is GOOD.  I greatly respect Sally, as a Titus 2 example, and having her words, pointing me towards serving Christ, are just what I need at the start of a New Year.  Page after page is filled with words pointing me towards a life filled with service.  Giving up, to gain.

"We each have only one life to live to tell a story about Him, about His ways, about His love.  And if we are Christ followers, then God calls us to use our gifts, to exercise our faith, and to become salt and light right where we are."

Sally Clarkson, Own Your Life

If you want to live a life, fully and wholly for God, this book will help you on your journey.

The chapter I have just read hones in on the lives so many of us live tody - ones of busyness. Days filled with so much, we don't know which way is up.  So much to do, so little time to do it.  Our life cannot be one of focus and productivity, if we are just DOING all the time.  Sally gives some practical suggestions as to how to live a life that isn't empty.

I want YOU to be able to benefit from the blessing, so I am running a give-away, only until Saturday, to win a copy of the book!  You can enter by simply commenting on the blog, or by popping over to my Facebook page and leaving a comment there! Easy peasy! Better still, you can come back EVERY DAY, and comment, for further entries!  I am sure the Lord will use this book to bless whoever wins.

I KNOW you will find it a blessing, as I am.

Now, where's my Ipad, and my coffee?....

a Rafflecopter giveaway

"My soul doth magnify the Lord" {magnifying in the mysteries}

Mary, the mother of Jesus.

A title so known by those who know Christ, that we may hardly think of the deeper sense of this title.

Mary.

The mother of JESUS.

I was thinking about Mary, as I travelled last night.  I was bemoaning, internally, the horrible driving conditions - rain and spray, in a dark, road-works scattered motorway.

Yet, I was in the comfort of a minibus, surrounded by my children.

I got to thinking about Mary, travelling to Bethlehem, thousands of years ago. We think of her, often, on the donkey, of which there is actually no mention of in the Bible. Heavily pregnant, heading to the town in which her betrothed one was born.

Heavily pregnant.

Not married.

Going to get taxed.

Not three of the most ideal scenarios.

And yet...

She was living the life which God had planned for her.

God.

GOD!

HE had planned.

In His infinite wisdom, and according to His eternal purposes, He designed that a woman - sinful, ordinary, nothing saintly or divinely superior about her - would bear His son.  She would carry Him around within her body, feeling his every move and wiggle, just like any other mother with any other child.  Not only that, but she would do it with the shame and ignominy of a child borne out of wedlock.  She had an angel announce the mystifying news, of the child she would carry - no such privilege was extended to every other person she came across. Can you imagine seeing a woman, carrying a child under such circumstances, and her trying to explain it to you in terms of an angel's message from GOD? She would have been laughed to scorn.

Can you imagine how YOU would feel, given this news?

I would think it to be confusing, in the extreme.

And yet...

"Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word."

She accepted her lot in life - she took on board God's great plan, that would lead to the bearing of sin upon the body of the One she would carry - she humbly accepted the "cup" that she was given.  She knew God's plan, and accepted it.  No questions. No doubts. No arguments.

"Whatever you have planned, I humbly accept it to be perfect"

THAT'S how she took the news.

She had faith -  she believed that God's plan would be fulfilled in her.

After receiving the news, she rushed off to her cousin, Elizabeth, who was carrying her own gift from God. The words Mary speaks, in response to Elizabeth, are the words of worship that should come from our lips, no matter what God allows in our life.

It's often called "The Magnificat".

Why?

Because of the words that come from her lips, before any other.

"My soul doth magnify the Lord"

Her situation, humanly speaking, was a difficult one, yet she chose to magnify, praise, and glorify God, before anything else.  Lifting HIM high, above her circumstances, as the one who does "all things well".

How far from that the refrains of MY heart often are.  Trying situations do not automatically spring to magnifying God - rather, we so often jump to despair and doubt.  That is not the way God wants us to live! He wants us to see HIM in everything - His perfect, leading, guiding, and sustaining presence, no matter the circumstance.

She turns her focus away from the frailty of her own flesh, and the opinions and criticism of those around her, and onto the Lord God, and His blessings abundant.

"my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. 

For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. 

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. 

And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. 

He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 

He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. 

He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. 

He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever."

Nothing of self - all of God.

That is how God wants us to live our lives.  We need to keep our focus upon Him.  Taking the circumstances which He has allowed, in His infinite wisdom, and bringing praise and glory to Him through it all.   Although God's ways seem mysterious, rejoicing.

Turning our back on the dissenters, and keeping our eyes firmly upon the one who  planned it all.

His glory.  Our good.

Mary's life didn't get EASIER, humanly speaking.  The bitter sorrow of seeing your son - GOD'S Son - nailed to a cruel cross, is unfathomable.  Yet her faith and trust carried on - she KNEW He was the Saviour.  She knew it was why she had carried Him, and cared for Him.  It was hard, but it was necessary.

Our life is filled with hard, but necessary, things.  God's perfect way is filled with things often NOT of our choosing.  They are mysterious to us, and past finding out, so, so often.

The underpinning principle is the same as that of Mary.

God's ways lead us closer to HIM.

Mary was as physically close to Jesus, as anyone could be.

She carried Him in her womb - she birthed him amongst the filth - she nourished and tenderly cared for Him, as a babe - she provided for His physical needs as He grew from babe, to child, to adult - she followed after Him right to the cross - she formed part of the early Church, as they met together to pray and learn.

Our trials should bring glory to God, and draw us close to His side.

Our soul, no matter how mysterious His ways, ever magnifying God.