...

Stumbling through this life...making mistakes along the way.
You pick me up, dust me off and set me on my way again.
Your wings cover me, protect me from the hurts of this world.
Your promise is sure, your will is perfect.

You dont judge me...you only see me as your beautiful child
when all i feel is ugly, filthy, unloved.
You hold me tight and remind me that you created me...i have a purpose on this earth.

Beautiful things come from the pain, trials and temptations we are put through.
Not only do they make us stronger, they are there to help others go through the same things.

You remind me that you are my 1 true love...the one person on this earth who will never let me down.

Im trusting in you for deliverance, for freedom...i look to you.

Fight for what you believe in...

A recurring theme over the past few weeks for me has been this...dont give up fighting for what you believe in and what you want in life.  Too often I think we can easily give up on these things that are so central to who we are as a person, be it because it is just easier to or because Satan gets into our thoughts and makes us believe we are silly or wrong for wanting such things.  He is a deceiver and quite frankly, a wretched stink and I hate seeing the damage he causes in our lives! I hate seeing him tear apart relationships, bring down people's self-image and isolate people. It seems he will go to almost any lengths to win over you in these areas...but we need to be reminded that God wont let us be succumbed to any more than we can handle. Aside from this, we also have a choice to fight back.  If you are lonely, dont put up with it! Make that effort to connect with people - go out of your way! If you are struggling with temptation...FIGHT back...dive into God's word and allow Him to work in your heart to bring you back to healing and on the path to purity....If you are feeling worthless, ugly or depressed about life and what you are doing...remember God's promise that you are made in His image and HE has a perfect plan for your life. Trust in God for the desires of your heart, but remember also to get out there and help yourself! There are things you can do to make your situation better....but always draw near to God and He will make your paths straight and your heart whole.

 

An update...

I'm back! :)

After having some time off Blogging (not for any real reason apart from the busyness of life!) I thought i would come back for a quick update post!

We recently went on our first 4 week European holiday together and had a great time! There were some hiccups along the way...but they just made us appreciate how much we love and are blessed to live in Perth! We got to see the sites of London, Paris, Venice and Rome and all-in-all just enjoyed being in each others company for the 4 weeks!

  

Also... for those of you that dont know..we are expecting our first baby in November this year! I am currently 22 weeks along and enjoying every minute! I would say the first trimester was quite a scary time...with the unknowns that come along in early pregnancy, but i have been blessed with no morning sickness, or any of the other common pregnancy symptoms! I am loving my growing belly and feeling our little one kick and move around alot! We do know what we are having, and if you want to know please PM me as some of my family members want it to be a suprise! ;)

Matt has begun a new, exciting job that is looking to be quite promising for his future career prospects, and I am still enjoying working where I am (although secretly looking forward to maternity leave, too!). 

It's proving to be a busy 2011, with my beautiful older sister having her engagement party in August, my gorgeous little sister having her 18th party at the end of October and us having our baby (in amongst our birthdays and other friends/families) in November! This year is just going to fly by and be filled with wonderful family events and memories!

Through it all...we are learning to continue to trust in God and have faith that He will provide and He will look after us. No problem is too big or too small for Him, and He cares about every little thing we are going through. He wants to be there for us and carry us through the tough times...and He does that :) If it weren't for His love...i honestly dont know how we would get by!

Have a fantastic week everyone, and hopefully these posts shall become a bit more regular now! :)

Much love

He's calling out to you...are you going to listen?

Everywhere we look and listen lately there seems to be another devastating event in our world. Earthquakes, bushfires, tsunamis, landslides, war, hurricanes...you name it, you are sure to have seen/heard it frequently in the last 12 months. Alot of people have been asking, what is going on? Why is this happening? These people deserve a break - when will 'Mother Nature' let go? Is it the end times?

I believe we have been in the 'end times' for quite some time now. But i dont believe it is something to be afraid about. These events are awful and each time a new one is broadcast, it sends shivers down our spines. It brings fear into our hearts as we wonder if our family and friends are safe and ok, and as we think about the poor people who have lost everything.

But why are these events happening? 

I believe someone is trying to get our attention. For years we have ignored Him, denied Him, and gone on living our lives as the Kings of our own little worlds. He has had enough....He wants us to return to Him and recognise that He is God of all  - He gave us life and He can take it away. He wants us to lean on Him and realise that we are here for a purpose, we arent to live meaningless lives anymore. He desires us, wholeheartedly, and wants us to submit to His plan and purpose for our lives. He wants us to fall into His loving arms and rely on Him, instead of what we think is right.

God doesnt want this devastation to continue, but how else is He to get our attention? People are not listening and He is crying out to us through these events saying, when will you return to me and acknowledge me as the God of all creation? When will you call out my name and worship me, instead of the gods you so mindlessly follow? I created this world and I can destroy it, when will you learn?

Our time on this Earth is short, but there is eternal life with Christ in Heaven if we believe He is the One, holy God...if we believe He is our Saviour. There is going to continue to be more devastation, more natural disasters, and more bloodshed - it is written in His Word and it will come to pass. We should not fear this but instead continue to fast and pray for those that dont know Him, that they might give their lives over to Him for He is the one who can provide us with comfort, love and compassion. He is gracious and provides our every need. We dont need to fear.

He wants to carry our cross for us....when will you hand yours over to Him and walk in the light?
He is calling out for you....what will it take for you to listen?

Much love

Revelation 3:19-20

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

I cannot believe how quickly time slips by...we are almost in March and it has been awhile since my last blog...tut tut!

Since my last post, a lot has happened for us! I mentioned how God was teaching us the importance of tithing and being obedient, and so last week we took the plunge and restarted our tithings. The second it was done, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders...God is so good!

Leading up to that day, one thing after the next had been going wrong. Money was tight, unexpected bills aka: speeding fines :( had been coming in, plans we had made werent working out...it just seemed everything was crashing down around us. I felt this was the last straw and God just pleading with us to hand it all over to Him...they arent our finances to control, so to speak.

We have managed to get a budget underway (praise GOD!) as budgeting has been something we have struggled with understanding in the past. It has finally made sense to us both now and we have some really good boundaries set in place!

Some of the things we cut out of our budget for the short-term (to get on top of things) were clothing and alcohol (eg. wine and beer)! A few days after we begun tithing again, we had a little surprise delivery from our next door neighbours...completely out of the blue. At our door in a bag they had left us 15 bottles of white wine, of all different sorts! They no longer wanted them as they drink beer instead of wine....so they thought we would appreciate them more! DO we ever!!! :)

I also went to visit 2 of my gorgeous friends on Saturday and 1 of them had a whole bag of clothes she was about to throw away. She asked me to go through them, if I wanted, to take anything that I might like! We are the same size and the clothes are lovely - and such a blessing!!

We have been blessed financially as well which will mean that with a bit of extra work we should be able to enjoy our trip to the UK in May!!

I just know that our God is looking out for us! It is amazing how much He cares for us and our interests...He simply calls us to be obedient to His word and trust in His perfect plan!

Matthew 6:33

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Flat out...

This phrase just doesn’t even do justice to my past few weeks!

Uni has kicked back in, as of Monday! Its exciting, but right now is a lot on my plate! I am doing 2 units again this Semester, whilst working full-time in the City! BIG load...but I know ill be ok :) Work has also been flat out lately...a lot is going on in our little team which has been calling for me to work through my lunch breaks! Craziness...when I am usually so light on work! But, it is nice to have the day zoom by quickly in the office for a change!

I haven't even had time to think about updating my blog, and it has been a mission to sit down and actually spend some quiet time with Him, but I have managed to keep on top of that, which I am thankful for! Satan has been throwing everything possible in my direction to try and knock me off my feet and get me distracted and overwhelmed by everything, but I wont let him get a foothold of me anymore! Yesterday morning, I was doing really well with my time management. I was up, dressed and ready, dogs had been fed, kitchen cleaned and plants watered. It was 7:10am, and I usually leave by 7:30am, which meant I had 20 mins quiet time and I was off to work. I was just putting finishing touches on my hair when I spotted a spider, near my neck, under my dress! I flipped out! To make matters worse, the dress I had on was a button-up number with a little belt around it, making it very difficult to rip it off me in a quick manner! I stripped right down and was flailing my arms and legs everywhere - and thrashing my hair to make sure if that spider was still on me, it would have a difficult time hanging on! After checking that the spider was no longer on me, and wringing my clothes in my hands to make sure if it was still in there, it would be squished - the time was about 7:30am! The first thing that came to mind was, "I am not letting you take away my quiet time, just because of a spider...if that’s the worst you can do, try me!" Ha!

This verse gave me some strength to continue pushing through when times are tough and when I am running late and out of time for my quiet time! He always rewards me when I sit down and listen to Him, so I wont let Satan get ahead of me on this one!

Phillipians 3:12-14
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Much love

Getting my attention...

Malachi 3

Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me.

“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’

“In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty.“Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.

Ever get the feeling God is trying to tell you something? Get something across to you...shouting out with a big sign saying "HELLO...OVER HERE!"

Yes, well...for me it has been about this. When God calls, we should obey and answer. I came across this verse in my quiet time last week, but it is not the first time a verse on tithing, or a word about tithing has come to me. We cut back on our tithing some time ago as we were struggling to keep on top of life's many bills that were getting thrown at us left, right and centre. We still are. I look back now and think it was silly of me to cut back on the one thing that is so important...giving back what was never mine in the first place. We can whine about how it will make our lives so much easier to not pay that 10%...but when a verse like this jumps out at you, how can you ignore the fact that God wants to bless you and we are robbing him by not being diligent with our tithes.

I know this can be a touchy subject for some, and that some may frown upon me for doing this, but I am just being honest and out there about a lesson I have learnt. I feel guilty for ignoring His voice, but I know that He is wanting to bless us, wanting to make things easier and 'open the floodgates' in our lives.

Have you ever had an experience like this? When you feel God is kind of tapping His foot at you, waiting for you to answer His call? What about tithing - have you been thoroughly blessed for being persistent in giving back what was always His?

Much love