Hope.

this seems like an appropriate anthem to close out 2011 and usher in 2012.

There's a song that's inside of my soul

It's the one that I've tried to write over and over again

I'm awake in the infinite cold

But You sing to me over and over and over again

So I lay my head back down

And I lift my hands And pray to be only Yours I pray to be only Yours I know now You're my only hope

Sing to me the song of the stars Of your galaxy dancing and laughing and laughing again

When it feels like my dreams are so far

Sing to me of the plans that you have For me over again

So I lay my head back down And I lift my hands And pray to be only Yours I pray to be only Yours I know now You're my only hope

I give You my destiny

I'm giving You all of me

I want Your symphony Singing in all that I am

At the top of my lungs I'm giving it back

So I lay my head back down And I lift my hands And pray to be only Yours I pray to be only Yours I pray to be only yours I know now You're my only hope

-Only Hope, Switchfoot.

the marriage of the old & new.

there’s a glory on the dawning of the new. the first break of light. even though there’s a sadness to that which is passing. old things falling to the place where they should. to make room for the new. to hold the new.

Fighting off the grip of sleep each morning is aided by the prospect of that first flash, that first glimpse of dawn. Light. I love watching it expand across the sky. It captures the transformation that He does within, as more rays of His light rip through the strongholds of faulty mindsets.
I’ve been thinking a lot about newness. new things. new seasons. It ‘dawned’ on me this am as I was driving to work....something feels new. Something feels different. Fresh. Not sure what it is yet as its still draped in dew. But its here and I cant wait to see what unfolds.
A friend and I were having a conversation about closure recently. Especially as it pertains to positioning/placement.
It generated a lot of thoughts in my head....Often, when moving into the new, there is a natural closure that happens of the old. Sometimes it can feel sad, because we are closing things out, ending things. Finishing.
But then I had this thought. Closure is often an opportunity or an invitation to take old things to new levels. To elevate them. To raise the standard of them. At times it is a walking away, a division, a separation. Moving into different directions. But it can also be an opportunity to go deeper. to go higher. to go lower. In the midst of the dawning of the new, and the closing or finishing of old things....I feel this draw, this pull, this invitation to take some of the old things with me for the very purpose of going deeper.
Vulnerability is a buzz word for me in this season. And I feel one of the glories of the new that I am stepping into, is in inviting greater vulnerability into some of the existing (old) relationships I have.
I guess part of the new that I am sensing, as I process it, is in old/existing relationships going to new places and levels in my heart. in my life. in my time. in my schedule.

He makes even old things new, or why else would He promise to renew our youth like the eagle?


Suddenly, in the midst of this all.....closure, finishing, endings have become beautiful. They represent opportunities for new stories to be told, sometimes with the same characters. Much like a sequel. One of the things I love most about sequels are the history of the characters and journey's that they convey. It makes my heart inexplicably happy.

You dictate your own Hope level!

"Any area of your life that does not glisten with hope is under the influence of a lie"-Steve Backlund.

After a very honest convo with my roomie and a healthy dose of truth from her we came to the conclusion that some of the things we are going after that are really close to our hearts have to be grounded in right belief systems. In the course of my convo with her, we uncovered a faulty belief system in my thinking. After feeling like my hope level was bouncing up and down and spinning all over the place so that I couldn’t keep track of it, I realised that my feelings of powerlessness were based on the fact that I was allowing circumstances and people to dictate my hope level. But the truth is I set my hope level based on the thoughts I think. The reality is that regardless of what is happening in my circumstances or in the relationships around me....God is bigger and able to meet me where I am at especially as I cultivate and operate out of a renewed mind. So its the practice and execution of renewed thinking that sets the tone for my hope, which then in turn influences my atmosphere, circumstances and relationships.

Vulnerable moment: I am not excited about this whole online thing....but I am doing it in response to His invitation to take risk and to learn how to be powerful in the midst of what feels like limited options or opportunity. At time’s I’ve struggled with feeling like this is a last resort kind of deal (cue laughter now-thats a lie!) but the reality is my hope is in God and His unswerving goodness and faithfulness to meet me where I am at and to fulfill His promises. I’ve had a bit of a propensity to stick all my eggs in one basket when it pertains to a particular situation or person....but the issue that’s really at hand with this is a belief system. When I would do that, I realised that I was actually operating out of a wrong mindset where I was hope impoverished. I was reacting to a blatant lack of His hope....and trying to take matters into my own hands to produce a certain result because it appeared that this was the only option available to me or that if I didn't put all my eggs in this basket it wouldn’t work out. And because God wasn’t demonstrating/manifesting His goodness (in my faulty perception) in this area of my life, so it called for me to take action into my own hands. (ugh, I want to throw up!) Again, another lie. Ha ha ha.

So I refuse to let man or circumstance to set my hope level....I am the one who dictates it! And the truth is, even when it feels like I am living in the land of starts and stops, things happening and then pausing, and options and opportunities appearing to be in lack....God is bigger than all of that and it’s EASY for Him to bring options and opportunities my way and to cause my dreams to be realised.

He is more committed to my dreams and desires than I am-He is that good. And He never ceases to be good even on this journey to find love. Because that was the lie I was believing-He is good in every other area of my life except this one. But that’s just not true. He is ALWAYS good. And He is better than I think He is.

The process of becoming powerful...

Caveat: Please honor the huge risk I am taking at being vulnerable about the journey I am on and respond, if you feel so led, with sensitivity.

Here it goes. The misadventures of a twenty something female into the wacky world of online dating. Yes. You read that correctly.

But it’s more than just that. This entire process is more about learning how to be powerful in any and every situation, but especially in those places where its feels and seems and looks like you exist within limited options.

Let me start at the beginning.

Last December I turned 28. And the following occurred to me: Here I am, 28 years old, the healthiest, happiest and most whole I’ve been in my entire life. Yet, SURPRISE! I am still single. WHAT!??? How is that possible? (Lets not go into that right now folks, but I will give a nod to the place of divine timing) Ok ok ok. It’s not that I haven’t been asked out, or pursued, or dated....I have. It’s just that they never went very far, had no future or were not the kind of lads I wanted to say yes to or go on a date with. I am a woman who knows what she wants. And that’s not a crime! And just in case you are wondering....I have said yes to a few opportunities to try something different even when it’s not what I seemingly want, in the spirit of giving lads a chance. Just covering my bases.

Ok so I am 28 and asking why I am still single. THat question in turn, unfolded and exposed some wrong mindsets that had been deeply embedded within my thoughts for too many years to count.

Suffice to say what was revealed in the process was that whilst I felt powerful in every area of my life, relationally, I felt powerless, overlooked, frustrated and downright mystified as to what was going on. I had great friendships marked by quality people. Not only that, but I had started to live my life magnetically, drawing others to the life, joy, fun and goodness that flowed from heaven through me. So how in the world was it possible to not attract some quality potentials? I still don’t know the answer to this and have opted to embrace the mystery of this unanswered question.

BUT, it was clear, that there was a huge discrepancy in this area of my life that was screaming to be addressed. In asking God about this, I realized that I had believed a lie that as a woman in the church I had to sit, wait and watch passively until ‘the one’ surfaced and began to pursue me. But it finally hit me like a ton of bricks. The reality check I mean. Which just happened to arrive on my 28th birthday.

“The one’ ‘the one’ ‘the one’. Hmmmm, that's an interesting phrase. What does it mean? ‘The one” idea started to unsettle me deep within my spirit for some reason. The more I talked to God about it the more He began to underline how He created me, how He created us, to be powerful individuals operating in empowering ways in our lives. Powerful people have choice and options. That’s why there were 2 trees in the garden. It meant there was choice to exercise the freedom and power of decision. Love is like that. It’s a choice. It’s so much more and so much bigger than merely a feeling. Love chooses to love and keep on loving even when love isn’t deserved. That’s making a powerful choice right there. We were made in His image. So it follows that we live life powerful, free and full of options. That we have the power to choose to love like He does. He loved us before we ever loved Him. But it was His choice. He choose us long before we ever choose Him. That wrecks me every time.

The more revelation He gave me about being powerful and having options, the more I felt LIMITED by my mindsets centered around the idea of ‘the one’. Ok, let me clarify at this point-I am NOT endorsing Polygamy or infidelity by having multiple relationships....I only want ONE husband...what I am saying is that my mindset about ‘the one’ created a sense of powerlessness and passivity in my life that was inconsistent with every other realm of life where I was taking action, taking initiative, moving forward, deciding between multiple options, exercising the power of choice and living empowered. Something was wrong with that picture. The more I asked God, the more He began to renew my mind about this issue, the fruit of which has been new thoughts, yielding new action, which it is my hope will ultimately yield fruitful results. Anyway, I suppose the conclusion I am trying to hint at is that in this initial process my mindset about ‘the one’ has been totally deconstructed. I actually don’t believe that there is ‘the one’ because that is so limiting, in so many ways. Mainly because it undermines our power to exercise choice, since ‘the one’ isn’t really about us choosing or working through the process of discovering who we choose to spend our lives with-the man or woman we will choose to love when they have their unlovely moments because we chose to love them because we made a choice for covenant. Not only that, but that mindset also puts a ton of pressure on a relationship to operate a certain way and to produce a certain outcome, which if it doesn’t, leaves us distraught because we’ve blown the only chance in the universe to love. Let’s just laugh at that! Side note, like some in my circle, I like to laugh at lies. The more blatant they are, the funnier it seems. But it's true that that kind of mindset can doom a relationship from the start because of the unhealthy pressure that false expectation places on it.

We were made to have options and choices. Sometimes though, it feels like we are in seasons, situations, positions or places where options and choice are limited. But I am learning that actually, with God there are always more options than I can see...it just takes a bit of creative vision, wisdom and discernment to behold them. So join me on this journey of discovering what it looks like to find the options that lie just beyond my line of sight...and how it’s possible to be powerful in any situation.

I concede to the season...

Last weekend, I received one of the funnest prophetic words I've had in a long time. It was pretty accurate too. Ha ha. It was kind of ironic as I was serving at our church prophetic time that night, prophesying over others. In a break, the overseer of this ministry began to prophesy over me. She said I reminded her of one of the characters in the movie Julie & Julia (see pic above, Amy Adams is the actress she was referencing). It was so fun! There was some really amazing stuff she said that spoke of some of the deepest parts of me.

One of the funniest things that stood out, was her word about my writing and creativity. She said I needed to write. To make time for writing and to switch off my responsibility (fyi: responsibility is my top strength in the strengths finder test!) which steals my time to write (again yet another truth). The reason this resonated so powerfully, is that it was confirmation to what I was feeling Holy Spirit speak to me about recently. To document, to write, to record some of the unique (and lets be honest) vulnerable experiences I am currently going through, but which I have been somewhat hesitant to share because it's not something that is my first preference or something that I signed up for. But it's my response to His invitation to say yes to risk. And to learn how to be powerful in any and every situation. Especially in the pursuit of dreams and desires, when it feels like NOTHING is happening. Despite your faithfulness and your efforts at co-laboring. So since 'there is a holiness to the heart's affections' I ask that you would be gentle with me in my vulnerability as I share with you about some new things I am taking risk in and learning how to be powerful in the midst of what seems like lack, delay and unfulfilled desire.

I finally concede to the season. It's time to write.

Superflous Grace

I've been so focused on transition as of late, because of how it has interacted with my emotions. Things have felt rather swirly.

Last night, revelation came. I've been so focused on transition that I've let it distract me from His gaze.

As I got realigned last night, I was able to see Him and also the excessive, over the top, abundant, superflous Grace He has made available to us in this season.

So transition...you will not be featuring in my conversations as much as you have. Instead, I am looking at Him and His grace.

Lets talk about grace.

transition...again!

Curious. What are some of your coping strategies for transition? I wrote a few of mine in my last entry, but I would be interested to hear what ones you implement in your life as you navigate transition.

Lately, I've been feeling off kilter with all the transition in my life at present, which encompasses what feels like almost every area. Housing. Relationships. Job/income. Desire. Dreams. Direction.

Typically, I am an organised person who plans ahead. I execute very well...

However, this is a season, as I am discovering, where there just isn't a grace to plan. How do I know this? Because each time I try....it doesn't work out. Ha ha ha. So, I am learning how to work well and adjust in the midst of the last minute, the up in the air, the not yet, the I don't know, the wait and see.

What's fun about this is seeing the fact that there is OPPORTUNITY in transition.

To demonstrate: this is my second trip to LA in a month! Both of which transpired very suddenly and without me planning ahead for them. FUN. I love it.

This transition has also exposed some of my vulnerabilities that I need to address and overcome. One of them being allowing circumstance to unsettle me. Ha ha ha.

Just because I don't know what's next or what or who lies ahead, doesn't mean that I HAVE to feel unsettled or lack rootedness. My inner structure/world is actually more substantial than my outer. Yet, (vulnerable moment) I've let my outer structure (ie circumstance) interfere with the stability of my inner world as of late. It's time to change my mind.

So although transition isn't my favorite right now, it actually creates opportunities for me that I would not have planned for or envisioned, and it exposes vulnerabilities and wrong mindsets that need to be changed. All in all, its a great opportunity to be developed and to grow.

Don't forget to laugh.

How do I even begin this post? I've had so much processing time lately, that much has been stirring and surfacing. Thoughts about hope, expectation, anticipation, relationships, community, desire.

Getting real with myself and asking "what do I really want"?

Getting a deeper revelation of just how powerful I am.

Understanding that powerful people have options and multiple choices.

Having multiple choices underlines the power of choice that our creator gave us.

I'm in the most intense time of transition right now. So here are some thoughts about how to navigate it successfully.

1. Process with community. In transition, a lot of things can feel off kilter. Even simple every day decisions. When I connect within community, it helps bring focus and clarity to my life, because I am receiving input and wisdom into my life. NB: isolation is a recipe for failure, but I've noticed how easy and tempting it is to disconnect in transition, particularly when you can't entirely articulate all your thoughts and feelings.

2. Press into community even deeper. I am making it a point in this season and especially in the midst of transition to be even more intentional with my relationships than ever before. I can't do life alone, nor was I made to. In a time of so many unknowns....I think some of the answers, solutions and clarity I am searching for actually lies inside of some of the people I do life with.

3. Plug into the Presence. With things feeling so swirly, my need for peace and focus has been higher than usual so I know if I miss my opportunity to make time in my day to go to my happy place....I am going to regret it later and it will undermine the integrity of my thought life. Not a fun outcome.

4. Laugh often. His joy is my strength which is what I need when I feel so vulnerable.

5. HAVE FUN! Keep things lighthearted. Spend time hanging out with those you love with no set agenda other than to laugh and have a good time. Transition can often pull me into serious over drive, ruminating over the things to come and the unknowns...often creating a serious, weighty atmosphere in my thoughts. Engaging in fun and laughter punctures that and puts life back into perspective.

6. Dare to dream. Dream about what you want to do next or now, in this season. Write down goals and monitor and measure your progress. Sometimes, it's easy to feel 'stuck' in transition, like nothing is moving or progressing. When you make goals to go after the dreams you want to accomplish and then measure them, you can keep track of your progress and see how you are actually moving forward even in a somewhat unsettling season. Inaction, can often heighten the instability and unsettling nature of transition, increasing the negative effects of it. However, action is a good distraction from it and helps you to create a momentum to move forward and onwards into something new. God inspired activity birthed from a dream or goal setting session can often set a trajectory for us into something new.

Stay tuned for some thoughts on relationships and dating. hahaah. yes. I am going to go there.

Transition

Oh transition....I am growing wearisome of that word. but never has it been more fitting. sigh.

Typically, I'm the plan ahead type...BUT what a funny season it has been of it being the time of the up in the air and last minute and unexpecteds. And God showing up in the eleventh hour with an entourage of ridiculous goodness.

My roommate heads north this week. I have no idea whether I am staying in this place or moving into somewhere new. The thought of moving is not inspiring. Yet somehow the status quo seems strangely unappealing too.

It would be lovely to have a sense of the next step...but I don't. So for now in the midst of transition, uncertainty and unknowns...I am following peace.

I know there is a sweetness to be found in every season... and every now and then I catch glimpses of it. but not going to lie. it would be nice to know the next step instead of having just enough light for the step i am on.

I've been thinking...what is it in the human spirit that as we press in for breakthrough and then experience it in specific ways, that can at times cause us to grow dissatisfied with what we've just tasted and cause us to hunger deeply for even more or greater breakthrough? i think its both dangerous and yet commendable. truth in tension.

I think the rain has turned my thoughts melancholy. Something that a good nights sleep should be able to remedy.

Simple Pleasures

I really enjoy life a lot.

I had several meetings today and to do lists to accomplish. But in between all those things and even in the midst of them, I am learning to savor each moment. Even the seemingly small meaningless ones we all have when we are driving in the car, windows rolled down, sun beating in, wind messing up your hair, music blaring...you know, the kind where you just get to pause and savor the goodness of that moment. Because in that moment another wave of thankfulness hits your heart as you experience His fullness and goodness surrounding you and responding to you in every and any situation. Life has been so fast paced the last several weeks, that in all honesty, I've bypassed some of these moments, much to my own disappointment.

As things have quieted, its been nice to reacquaint myself with the wee moments and to tap into the joy of simple pleasures like driving in your car with your windows rolled down and your fave song blaring from the sound system where another revelation of His goodness floods your being. Or like getting up extra early, brewing a cuppa to go, hopping in the car, in order to sit on the dock (aka my happy place) whilst the quiet is still lingering, just to hear Him and be. His voice is on the waters.

Lately, its been the simple things that have been so life giving to me. And I think there is something really lovely about that. If you can't have joy in the small things, then how can you celebrate the large?

I have such a rich life. And I am so thankful that I get to live it.

Baal Perazim-God of the breakthrough.

Its May already! And almost the end of it.

I graduated Second Year....and a ton of other things since my last post.

There's so much I could say, but for the sake of brevity...I will sum up my second year experience as one phrase: Baal Perazim. God of the breakthrough. That's the most prominent way He has shown Himself to me in this time.

Second year, for me, has been one of such immense personal breakthrough. For the sake of discretion and time, I won't go into all the details of breakthrough...but the goals I wrote down for what I wanted to see established, have for the most part, manifested. He has broken through for me time and time again. And especially strongly when there have been mountains of opposition or challenge-my health and car issues being some of the most obvious. But sometimes, its the subtleties, the little things, the unobtrusives that are so easily overlooked, that signify such significant change-my heart being one of them. I've been wrecked beyond what I thought was possible. I've been restored to something bigger than I ever dreamed.

So I end this entry with this: I love ministry. I love life. I love Love. I love the church.

If you knew me, you would understand the level of healing, break through and restoration He has brought to me these last 2 years. When I left Scotland, I vowed in my heart, to never do ministry again, I was so burned out. Yet, 2 years on...behold, He makes ALL things new. He has broken through. And continues to come to me as Baal Perazim. My God of my breakthrough.

I release my breakthrough over you-family, car, finances, health, favor, healthy relationships, love for life....take it all. You were made to taste, see, hear, smell, experience, know, live the goodness of God in the here and now.

FYI: 2 Sam 5:20

And David came to Baal-perazim, and David defeated them there. And he said, “The Lord has burst through my enemies before me like a bursting flood.” Therefore the name of that place is called Baal-perazim.
[1] 5:20 Baal-perazim means lord of bursting through

Oh Europe!

i just returned from an epic ministry time in Europe. six nations in 11 days. paris, switzerland, italy, austria, lichtenstein (we didn't leave the car but it still counts right?), germany (we didnt leave the airport, but it still counts right?)

What can I say? I am still processing.

I loved our time in Paris. That city is stunning. And the people. sigh. Captured my heart.

I can't believe the journey I've been on, that I am finally able to come back to a place where I can say with such sincerity-I truly love ministry.

This trip was amazing. For a number of reasons.

Some of my girls and I are praying, planning and plotting a return trip to Europe this summer for some ministry in the churches. God loves Europe so much.

More from me soon.

Meditations

We are reading a new book in class. It's Kris Vallotton's latest book Heavy Rain. He said something in the text that got me thinking about relationships that I've been musing on and also seeing manifest in my own life personally.

Ultimately, authentic relationships expose our vulnerabilities/insecurities, but without relationship our access to revelation and the power to transform are severely limited.

So there's this tension of do I really want others to see my areas of weakness, insecurity and vulnerability for fear of rejection? But if I don't open myself up and make myself vulnerable and fail to risk the prospect of being rejected, I don't get to access new revelation that brings transformation so that I can walk into even greater wholeness.

I choose wholeness. Even when it hurts to get there.

freedom from introspection and the fruit which follows

I've been experiencing a lot of breakthrough in this season from introspection that leads to condemnation. I finally came to the conclusion that self assessment is not my responsibility, but Holy Spirit's who leads me into all truth.

Anyway, my point is this: when you get free from introspection, you begin to EMBRACE who you are and LOVE who you are. And the fruit is this: When you love who you are, You love who others are, and the unique expressions of their personhood that God made them with.

I just love watching others express the fullness of who they are and encouraging them on towards that end. It releases so much life. We are all works of divine art. Isn't it about time we started admiring that? There is no one else on the planet quite like you!

Anticipation and Hope.

Wow, what a crazy couple of months. It all started out with a message that was stirring in my heart in response to an exegetical sermon assignment we had for school back at the beginning of Second Semester. My message is called: Anticipating the goodness of God regardless of season or circumstance. In summation, it is centred on Psalm 27:13, where David is able to declare in the midst of warfare, threat, betrayal and despair, an unflinching confidence in seeing the manifestation of God's goodness in the midst of those situations. David's life, in this Psalm, to me, is the perfect illustration of how we experience what we anticipate. Or what we anticipate, we experience.

Talk about testing coming to the word given or the word received. Shortly after I preached on that and how I felt in the midst of cultivating anticipation of God's goodness even when all hell is breaking loose, and how God wanted to release a supernatural ability to hope for His Goodness, some unique challenges arose in my life that were testing my word.

My faithful 1993 Subaru legacy died on me. I was sad that it had been such a short lived legacy of my owning my wee car. It was going to cost more to fix the car than it was worth, and not only that, there was very little chance that anyone would actually compensate me for parts from the car. As you can imagine, this was sad news to receive. Instantly, I started to think "how on earth am I going to have a life without a car to get around in? How am I going to get to school and do my relationships without transportation?" Anxiety set in. I was snowboarding that day and after getting off the phone to hear of the bad car news, I grabbed two friends who were up on the mountain also and asked them to pray for me. When they finished praying this is what came out of my mouth: "God I thank you for this opportunity to anticipate your goodness in this situation!"

2 Days later, I had a new car. And a seriously upgraded one at that-a 2009 Kia Spectra, thanks to the generousity and love of amazing grandparents. I couldn't believe how powerful an illustration this was of experiencing what you anticipate.

About a month later, I end up in hospital with a ruptured appendix, which I do not recommend. This has taken me out of school for 2weeks and meant I couldn't go on my missions trip to England which I had been having dreams about since last summer. Disappointment definitely set in. Another uncertainty also arose recently in my life that is challenging me to declare in the midst of these seemingly lost opportunities "God thank you for this moment to increase my capacity to anticipate and hope in your goodness being made manifest in these areas of my life. You are always good".

I started thinking about this some more and decided that I really have such an amazing opportunity with these challenging circumstances to lean into Him and develop an even firmer, more concrete conviction of just how good He is. Thus, my grid for what is true only increases and strengthens. That is so good!

On reflecting on Psalm 27 and how David responds in the midst of extreme difficulty and discouragement, I love what he states in another bible translation of verse 13: I would have fainted had I not hoped to see the goodness of God in the land of the living. One of the products of anticipating God's goodness, is hope and strength. David confesses without hoping to see God's goodness invade his current circumstances he would have caved under the pressure of the afflictions. He would have given up and succumbed to disappointment and heartache. And so, as I anticipate and hope in His goodness invading my disappointments, I am being strengthened and reinforced to press past the craziness and uncertainty of what confronts me. Strength is being released to me to overcome what lies in front, that I might taste and see that the Lord is good and that He has good plans for my life, which are for my well being and prosperity. Let hope arise in your challenging situations. Anticipate His goodness, knowing that it is His will that mercy and goodness stalk you all the days of your life. They never leave you alone! He wants to set us up for victory so badly! Psalm 23 tells us that he prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies. Wow. Despite being surrounded by conflict and challenge, God has a place for us in that moment where we can be nourished, nurtured, energised and strengthened. Its a place of feasting and banqueting, showing that no matter what difficulty or disappointment confronts us, we can still find a place of joy and gladness in Him, simply by hoping in His goodness and then experiencing the manifestation of that which we have anticipated. Can you see how good He is?

Thank you God for this amazing season and these unique situations in my life to be stretched in new levels to anticipate your goodness invading these specific areas. You are always good.

Art for England!

I am also taking orders for prints of my popular rainbow painting called "Promises Fulfilled" which is at the top of the page.

Latest Edition:

Trees of Hope. I felt like God was saying that 2011 was about Trees of Hope being established in our midst! Prints of this are for sale. Get in touch if interested.

Profits all go towards my march missions trip to England this year March 9-21. Buy my art and help send me to the Land of Hope and Glory.

DREAM BIGGER!

I have to dream so much bigger. So so so much! What nations, movements, people, cultures do I want to shape?

God break my small mindedness when it comes to dreaming. No limits. No boundaries. Anything is possible!

If the sky is the limit, what would you dare to dream?

2011: LIFE IS GOOD!

NEWSFLASH: LIFE IS GOOOOOOOOOOOD!

Its January 1st 2011....the start of something new.

I have been back home in the UK for the last 2 weeks visiting over the holiday period. Its been somewhat of a significant trip-my first visit home after moving to Redding 18 months ago. I've made some interesting observations and have had some positive confirmations on this trip.

As I look ahead to the new year I am so overwhelmed with EXPECTANT HOPE. POSSIBILITY. And a firm conviction that no matter what, God is good, and LIFE IS SOOOO GOOD! I love my life.

I realised today-you know you love your life when you miss being away from it whilst on holiday. Ha. So true. I think this is the first time that I can actually, authentically say that this is the first 'holiday' I have been on that I did not actually need-in terms of refreshment or a need to get away. And that right there folks is indicative of the kind of life giving culture I am a part of at Bethel. Don't hate.

What's my current anthem? Fix you by cold play. I am mesmerised by "lights will guide you home and ignite your bones". Sigh. That line resounds in my spirit so strongly. And the way the music is arranged. Stunning.

New years resolutions?

I have one.

I am done with introspection. I will not self examine myself anymore, because NOTHING good ever comes from that. And anyway, thats not my job. The helper is the one who convicts and leads me into all truth, so I just decided I will leave all that up to Him, rather than taking it on myself.

2011. My name is Michelle. Its so lovely to meet you. I can't wait for all your promises to unfold. Heres to loving well, living well and laughing much.

SELAH.