Christmas Day (Things to Remember)

Remember to wake up early
Remember to turn the oven on.
Remember to put the turkey in the oven.
Remember to wear surprised and delighted face as stockings are unwrapped
even when the gifts were dealt with late last night.
Remember to email friend/relative you forgot to send a card to.
Remember to dig gifts out from under the guest bed where they were hidden from rummaging hands.
Remember to smile and nod as aged relative arrives and repeats a tale you have heard before
several times.
Remember to ring family scattered across the globe
trying not to wake them up.
Remember to remember the cooking in all the excitement.
Remember to thank everyone for all the gifts
welcome or not.
Remember not to start an argument while playing Monopoly
It can end badly for all concerned.
Remember not to eat too much
you will regret it.
Remember to ask for help with the clearing up.
Remember to be thankful for the blessings of the day
and let go of anything else.

Remember Jesus

Remember Jesus

Remember Jesus

It's His birth we are celebrating!

Fulfilment (Revisited)

There is a sense of fulfilment that people search for their entire lives
but can never find
because they are looking in the wrong places
at the wrong times
with the wrong people.
Life is full of tragedies that come from this
frantic
destructive
searching.
Some seek fulfilment in noise
some in pleasure
some in hard work
some in fame.
We look at the richly famous,
the very attractive people,
ambassadors for all that is desirable in the world.
We hang on their every word,
until the day they fall from their shiny pedestal,
leaving others to rake through the ashes of their lives.

There is a fulfilment
so simple
so profound
that everyone can receive it.
It's the fulfilment of a promise made to the first of humankind.

Grace and truth lived among us.
It's what we celebrate at Christmas.
God was born as a baby.
His name is Jesus.

Waiting (Revisited)

How long do you wait
for someone to return your call
for a friend to make an expected visit
for a bus or train or plane that's been delayed?
Waiting can be
frustrating
even for those mastering the elusive art of patience
in this instant gratification world.
You can look at it as a waste of your precious
ever
running
out
time.
The Bible says that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength.
How long am I meant to wait?
And what will I do if
He arrives in a way
I'm not expecting
and I don't recognize Him?
How many of those waiting
for the Messiah
didn't recognize Him?
How many still wait?

Longing (Revisited)

God longs for you to know Him better.
Do you know that?
Do you believe it?
Does it change the way you behave every day?
Can you imagine why the Creator of the universe would want you to know Him better?

Some talk about relationship with God
and then act
like it's just another religion.

I wouldn't talk to my best friend on the phone
and not expect her to say something back.
I wouldn't ask her to help me with something
and then not expect to see a response.

You might say
God must be busy with bigger issues than my life.
I don't even like myself sometimes.
How can He be interested?
Why should He care about me?

So you say to yourself
I will just stay busy trying to solve my own issues
and pretend I know enough about life to get through it
so people think everything's okay with me

but I've got this longing

deep inside.

Expectation (Revisited)

There was an expectation that the Messiah would be born
 King of the Jews.
 So many words foretelling
 signs in the heavens.
 A star moved across the night sky,
 watched intently by those who had studied the words and signs,
 and thought they knew the meaning of them.

 The shepherds were expecting a pay rise soon.
 There had been grumblings and mutterings,
 voices trying to be heard.
 Some had taken the matter into their own hands,
 and flocks had been miscounted
 several times.
 Well sheep have a way of disappearing
 now and again.

 Mary was expectant
 heavy with child.
 She hadn't expected the tedious donkey ride to Bethlehem for the census.
 Did they really have to be there in person?
 Not yet the future days of forms to be filled in with black ink
 within the boxes so a computer program can read it.

 Joseph was expecting...
 he didn't quite know what.
 It had all been a bit of an emotional roller coaster
 for someone like him to process.

 The angels were not expecting such a small audience
 to their heavenly choir.
 Great practice had gone into the harmonizing
 and there didn't seem many to appreciate it fully.
 If humans ever can appreciate angelic sounds.

 Jesus was expectant of his own birth.
 He had seen down through time,
 and now the time had fully come
 to be born as a baby.
 He was ready to be
 the Saviour of the world.

Meditation on Psalm 23 Verse 3

"He leads me in the paths of righteousness"

I don't have to worry
or stress
or work it out
or pace back and forth
till my brain explodes.
I don't have to figure out
complex riddles
or mind bending equations.
I don't have to have a degree
in advanced moral ethics.
I don't have to fear
that I'll make the wrong choice
or fall at that hurdle
or come up short.
I am not the one who has to understand
everything
hold every possibility
weigh every fraction of opportunity.

He leads me.

He knows the way.

He knows the paths of righteousness
because He formed and laid them down.

What is my call?

To follow as He leads.

Word Received 3.10.2014

Prepare for battle
Raise up the standards
Sharpen your swords
for the Commander of the army is coming
to raise His army for battle.
Get up and get ready
for My Holy Spirit is coming to anoint
those who are ready
to anoint them with wisdom and understanding
to anoint them with revelation and insight
to pull down strongholds
and to create an open heaven
for God's glory to flow down freely
and bring blessing to many.
Raise up My standards
Raise up My banners
and rejoice for My Spirit is coming
upon you in these days.

Word Received 26.7.2014

Prepare your lives as living sacrifices
for my fire is going to fall
on those who have prepared their lives
for My Spirit to come
and rest on them
and live through them.
My Spirit is looking for ones to consume
with My love
for My love to flow out of them
in an extraordinary way
which will touch many lives.
It will be like an avalanche of love
going out into the community
sweeping away established preconceptions
of what the Church is like
breaking the lies of the enemy
and bringing My truth
and My Church to the world.
Sanctify your hearts and lips
and let My fire fall.
Let My fire fall on those who are hungry and ready.
Let My fire fall on the living sacrifices of My people
says the Lord.

Birthday Girl

I turn forty-five
in a few days time.
Forty-five.
I used to think that sounded old,
not any more.
Birthdays are often
recollection times
of former years.
Sifting significant memories.
Parties of my youth
where the treasure hunt prizes
were brightly wrapped toothbrushes,
which only a dentist's daughter
wouldn't think of as strange.
Baked creations by grandparents,
unique masterpieces every year.
My six year old tear stained face distraught
as a ladybird cake was cut up
before it's official photograph was taken.
Summer barbecue gatherings of relatives.
Raspberries, strawberries and chocolate cake
Gifted sweet scented soaps,earrings and more chocolate.
Time treasured cards
too precious to throw away.
Kind words written by loved ones
who genuinely care.
Exchanging English mid summer
for the depths of New Zealand winter storms.
Missing far away parents who made me possible.
Yet glad
so very glad
to be alive.

Flood

We live in Northland
New Zealand
and we are flooded.
Not in our home or our street
but throughout the whole region.
Sixty or more roads closed
East and West
travelling North or South
blocked by slips
or under water.
We're cut off
from the rest of the country.
You see this sort of thing on the news
beamed from different places
around the globe.
Now it's here.
Four days of storms
high winds
torrential rain.
Another "once in a hundred years" event
so soon after the last.
Civilization grinds to a halt
reading by candle light comes back into fashion.
Thousands of homes without power
for hours or days.
Road blocks and warning signs
There is no way through
however hard you try.
I'm thankful
we are safely
at home
in this
flood.

Another Word Received 9.5.2014

I have purposes for you in these days.
Do not draw back.
Do not miss them
for some of the windows of opportunity will be very brief.
Do not slumber or sleep for now is the time for action.
Do not compromise with the world
but stand firm on my word.
Be alert for the enemy is prowling around
seeking those he may destroy.
The battle is going to become fiercer and less compromising
so people will see their spiritual choice more clearly.
Do not rest in these days but actively fight in the spirit and with my word.
My word has not lost its power
though many in the world think it has.
My word is alive and active
sharper than a two edged sword
so wield it in the lives of others
and allow it to cut in your own life to remove
that which is dead.
Rise up and go forward.

Word received 9.5.2014

 Be still for my presence is coming
 in a way that you have not experienced before.
 I want to bring freedom to my people
 and I am going to smash down the doors
 of every man made religious tradition
 that would stop people coming to me.
 I am not a respecter of persons
 and if people want to be respected by others they will miss what I am doing.
 If people want to stay in control
 they will miss what my Spirit is doing in people's lives
 for I want to bring freedom to my people
 so that they in turn can bring freedom to others.
 My people are so bound up they can hardly breathe.
 They cannot dance and sing and praise me
 because they are afraid of what others will think of them.
 The religious spirits have authority in so many places
 where my people are gathered
 and I am going to come and smash down the doors
 so people can breathe my fresh air and dance in freedom.
 He who withstands me I will sweep aside for zeal for my house consumes me.
 I am the Lord of hosts who will do these things.

Mother's Day

 Mothers

 know you are loved

 know you are cherished

 know you are honored

 know you are cared for.

 Every smile that spreads across your face is seen by your Father in heaven

 every tear that you shed

 every sacrifice you have made for your children is seen

 every sleepless night

 every weary day

 every sock mended

 every knee patch sewn

 every sticking plaster applied

 every piece of clothing washed and re-washed.

 Every busy day seen with the countless things that make up motherhood;

 carer, chef, nurse, adviser,cleaner, financier, counselor, peacemaker, teacher and so much more.

 Every evening spent waiting for a child to return safely home

 every anxious thought, every struggling prayer, every deep sigh of relief.

 Every proud and deeply satisfying moment as your child's flourishes and excels. Every moment of

 anguish and pain as they choose the wrong path.

 Mothers know you are loved

 know you are cherished

 know you are honored

 know you are cared for

 know that in all that it means to be a mother

 you are never alone.

Elephant in the room

There was an elephant in the room of my mind
 It stood and watched me silently.
 When I introduced myself to people it looked up
 waiting to be introduced.

 But
 it's my socially unacceptable secret
 my conversation killer
 my secret past
 hidden but huge
 like an elephant in the room of my mind.

 Imagine if I said to someone
 Hi I'm Sarah. I was abused as a child by someone I didn't know, my family unaware.
 And they would say...
 well what would they say?
 So I didn't say it to anyone
 but that abuse had twisted my mind and my soul so I was walking dysfunction.
 For a long time unaware of how broken I was
 thinking the tormenting demons were normal
 normal for hell maybe
 but not meant for a princess of the King
a precious child made the image of God.

 Sinned against yet consumed with shame and guilt
 as if it was my fault.
 If you've broken your arm or leg you get sympathy, understanding, an encouraging smile.
 When your soul's been broken and you limp on the inside
 you want to say the fact you're broken
 so someone can help you.

 But you stay silent
 looking at the elephant in your own mind
 and wishing someone would take it away forever.

 Then someone did it for me.
 It was Jesus.
 He appears in different forms
and he came in the form of an older woman in my church
who was filled with the Holy Spirit.
 And she gave hours
 and hours
 and hours to me
 listening to my brokenness
 understanding my pain
 bringing God's word to my life through prayer
 hugging me when words just wouldn't do.

 Unlike coffee healing wasn't instant
 when you've been hurt over a long time
 it takes time for healing to come.
 But it came
 and gradually I realized
 Jesus had gently but firmly
 led the elephant away out of the room of my mind.

 This is what healing looks like
 the effective,
 comprehensive,
 complete removal of any elephant that fills the room of your mind.

Word received 12.2.2014

Do not waste time this year
but take every opportunity that I place before you.
The door is open to the Gospel of my Kingdom this year
and the hearts and ears of people are open.
Do not miss the opportunities that I place before you
for the doors will not remain open continually.
Respond to my prompting and whether it is a big task or a small task
respond to it immediately by faith
and watch me work in people's lives.
I love this nation and I will not let the enemy consume it completely.
Rise up my people in these days.

New Year's Resolution

 I resolve to be firm in my determination.
 I have made my New Year's resolution and it will happen.
 I resolve to be resolute in my resolution.

 What had I resolved to do?

 The turn of the New Year seems so far away.
 Already February looms
 with the rest of the months chasing its tail,
 and I am left wondering about my resolute resolutions.
 They reflect and hold hopes, plans and dreams,
 yet they have a frustrating habit of getting lost in the headlong rush of life.
 What do you hope for this year?
 What lives in your heart that you would like to make more substantial?
 Will you rest in the fading memory of your own resolutions,
 or will you step out in creative faith?
 This year what will you do?
 What will I?