He loves to put us to the test… so that our faith and hope is always increasing...
Late last week I had an urge to make a new commitment to God. Given my present situation I felt I had to renew my commitment. So the Holy Spirit guided me to prayer this prayer: Lord, guide and lead me into your path and your direction. Draw me to walk into opportunities and situations where I can fulfill your call and destiny over my life. I don’t want to walk and do my own thing and walk in my own strength for I know that that will only lead to failure. So Lord I pray that you bring me into opportunities that allow me to fulfill your purpose.
And then the Holy Spirit reminded me to also pray for my future partner. That this is not the time for me to involved in any relationship other than a relationship with God and God only.
And I made these commitment prayers will a clean heart and spirit, being fully aware that all I wanted to do was just be alone with God and do His will.
And of course whatever God says He proves right away. Just in this week God has led me into His path where I can walk in His purpose. His purpose in terms of media and television.
And what comforts me even more is that just a few days after I made my commitment, my daily devotional reading was this:-
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11
And the message was:-
Hopelessness is just an illusion, My beloved Warrior.
I am your hope, and your future is in My hands. Just as I parted the Red Sea of hopelessness for Moses and My chosen people, I will part your sea and you will walk in the promises I have for your life. Don’t allow the illusion of the enemy to become reality. Fires will never burn your out; raging waters will not drown your dreams. I am bigger than any challenge you are facing.
Now, My Princess Warrior, fight the temptation to give up, and allow Me to walk you into a life filled with indescribable hope for your future!The statements that I highlighted in bold were just statements that really got my attention and spoke a lot to my heart. I truly believe that I am beginning to walk in the promises that God has for my life and I’m not going to let the enemy deter me from what God has promised me!
So my encouragement is, may you too find hope and faith in God alone who will walk with you as you fulfill His promises! Let’s not just walk but run this race!
Went on my first "date" with Him!
From my previous post you can read how I've had an interest in writing a children's book. And after work last Thursday I didn't want to go straight home. The weather was beautiful. Sunny but not too hot so I decided to ride the bus all the way to Maroubra Beach. I love this beach because it's quiet, not many people come to it so you definitely get to feel like you're alone there.
So I sat myself down in a nice little cafe right by the beach. It's called Marini's Cafe. Nice little place especially when I had got there it was practically empty so it was good to have quiet.
It was here while drinking my latte and muching on some hot chips did I start to converse with God and brainstorm as to what this book should be about. I had no idea or vision for this book. No picture at all. But that's the beauty of walking and pursuing God's will and destiny. When He says go! You just go even though you don't have any clue as to where or when to go! But because we don't have any idea, any expectation or restrictions that is when we are most surprised by the beauty of God's plan! We are opened to surprises and sponaneity, which makes our journey with Him much more enjoyable, rich and vibrant!
So this time I wasn't holding back. I was just going to let Him take me on this ride to somewhere I have no idea but let myself be drawn and surprised by His greatness!
And the outcome of my ride with Him was this:
- though my "date" Him with regarding this book was pretty short. Less than 1 hour but it's a great start! I will definitely do it again.
- what makes the difference between one book over the other is one's experience with the content. If you can't 'feel' the material then it most likely will not touch anyone else.
- being true to yourself and the Creator will bring true justice to your writing and other's reading of it. I can't be anybody else but me. And so I have to be true in what I feel is needed to be written so everyone who reads it will experience the full expectation of it. (I know this may not make sense but I hope one day when I reflect upon it, it will.)
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I am a blank paper, the Holy Spirit is the pen and You Lord is the writer. Let Your ink Lord fill the blank pages of my life and may it bring hope, peace, joy and love to those who read it.What is the target market:
6-10 years old boys and girls.
Possible (?) Title: My God is My Everything.
About: life experience, making children's faith journey real. Describe who, what God sounds, looks, feels like.
Make it personal: our God is peace in every storm, comforts in time of need, He is like a tissue the wipes our every tears, He is my warm jumper in my cold nights, He is my safety net when I feel like I'm falling, etc.
Appeal to senses, daily life, things children cannot live without.
Visual: The visuals are photos of children exemplifying the statement.
Layout: 1 statement per page. 'Our God is...'-> layout like Judah Smith's book. Simple, colourful, interactive, appealing to childrens' eyes. I'd like to use real situations and mordern, edgy photography for this.
Sign off each statement with: From your Father, your God, your protector, your... (whatever that suits the statement) This is to create a personal relationship between the child and his/her God.
What I hope to achieve from this book:
- to invite every child who reads it on a personal journey of their own as they learn to discover who God is and what He is capable of doing in their lives
- God is as real as they allow their faiths to take them
- He is their everything
- there is no force from my part for them to see and feel and experience God the way I do but rather to encourage them to see that there is no limit to God. This is just an inivitation to see that God is... But when they start to feel and hear God themselves they will know who God is to them. This is like "baby steps" to know your God.
But for further research I need to talk to kids and see what appeals to them:
- what do you like to read?
- what would you like to know about God/Jesus?
- what can you not live without?
This is very raw material. Only some notes and a fair idea of what I want in this book. The road ahead is still quite long but at least now I have something in my hands that God can use to make something awesome because truly at the end of the day it's all about Him and hence all glory be for my God, my life, my Jesus.
^Thursday 14th October, 2010. Maroubra Beach, Marini Cafe. The start of something big! First day of inspirations for children's book. Got a great feeling about this. Thank You Lord. All glory and honour to You, my inspiration.^
Sometimes it's just not about playing it safe!
I woke up this morning with a sudden urge to write children's books.
I know God wants to use me in this area and has prophesied it but I haven't taken any steps in fulfilling it or at least opening myself to situations that will help me pursue this.
I reflected upon this as I was on my way to work. And and as I do I was reading my daily message book. This morning it was about courage. The words I was reading were like fire blazing in my heart. It talked about courage to change, how He had paid the price on the cross for me to have a better life but I am the one who has to make the choice to become all that He has called me to be. It says "nothing will change without your effort and obedience to My Word." And this statement just shook everything within me. As I read it I knew the Holy Spirit was questioning and reminding me: God's Word over your life will not be fulfilled if you do not open yourself to situations or conditions that will allow God's miracle to work in you. You have been so busy trying to 'play it safe' by working 5 days a week, saving money for who knows what and thinking that you got all the bases covered to lead a 'safe life.' But Steph is this really the life God has intended for you? To lead just a 'safe life'? You have to give God something so He can give you everything!
So with this in mind I chose to let go of one of my jobs that will give me two free days in the week to write this children's book.
And I guess what contributed to my 'reignited' fire to write children's books is when my older cousin who is like a brother to me shared his wonder news to me. His news basically confirmed into reality everything that had been prophesised ino His life during our Indonesia trip in July. He is begining to live the reality of it and that caused me to not only be happy but also make me see where I am at with God's Word over my life hence the story above.
And please don't get the wrong impression when I talk about these prophesies. I do not take them for granted but rather I believe and know that they are confirming what I already know to be true for my life.
And as a side note: I have no idea or inspiration as to what the book should look like or what will be in the content. But I am sure that I am a paper and pen and God is my writer!
Jump every mountain.
I was at Maroubra Beach having a quiet one alone reading a book. The sun was gorgeous as it just heated my back.
As I was reading a boy ran past me and asked his mum if he could jump off these steps. And mind you these steps were big. And surprisingly the mother encouraged him to jump. All I kept on doing was watch him and think 'what if he hurts himself?' But the mother was totally calm and kept on giving Him positive remarks as he jumped the steps.
I reflected for a moment and came to the realisation that we, being believers, should be like the boy. Who has no worries about hurting Himself in doing what He wanted (within reason) and that the mother was God who knew that we could do it.
Our walk is often like this. God has given a task for us to do but we just say 'no God it's too hard, I'm going to hurt myself, this may cost me alot of money etc' But really in hindsight is it not God who knows us more and knows our capabilities so we can achieve the best?
Just the boy asking his mum 'do you think I can do it?' The mother simply and confidently replies with 'I know you can do it!'
So whatever mountain or obstacle you're facing today be sure to know and be confident in that God knows you can conquer it and be the victor and not the victim!
God’s Promise in Action.
I was working yesterday in the City. It started off to be a normal day. I got ready, left for work, read my daily message, got to work etc. I did the exact same thing I always do everyday but yesterday there was a difference.
During my shift, to be precise it was during lunch time. I was working with my cousin in the store but around 1.15pm I had left to get some lunch. She was alone in the store. When I had come back I noticed 2 young boys in our shop. Mind you the shop I work at is a high end female retail store and these two boys were not our typical customers. So once I had laid eyes on them I was cautious as my heart said “watch these boys.”
So dressed in sneakers, shorts and caps I was weary for them. I quickly put my wallet and phone in my bag, which is in the backroom and came out into the shop. I heard one of the boys talking to my cousin about purchasing a gift for his mother with $50. And I saw the $50 in his hand. And of course my cousin attended to him, while I was standing behind the desk where the cupboard door to the till had been left opened and my cousin’s phone and handbag with wallet was in hand reach of the boys.
I knew what they were up to. They were interested in stealing. But for some reason I had peace in my heart and knew confidently that we were going to be ok.
As the boy with the boy with the $50 tried to distract my cousin, the other boy was standing very close to the cash register and poking his head around to look for something.
I glued my eyes to him. In the end after several clever attempts by the boys to distract us by asking us so many questions and asking us to get things they knew they couldn’t get anything so they left.
After that thank God nothing had been taken! But 10 minutes later we hear a lady scream out “get him, get him!” And I knew it was those two boys.
It turns out the two boys went upstairs to the newsagency and went into the backroom and stole the staffs’ wallet, phones, iPad, and some cash!
It was then I realised not just how lucky my cousin and I were but also how blessed we were to have God protect us and our belongings!
And to top it off I that morning’s daily reading reminded me to not have fear! That God did not design me to live in fear of anything or anyone but Him. And sure enough that morning I had prayed for God to let fear consume and dictate my life as that is not His wishes for me.
So yesterday’s events just served to remind me a few things:
- how important it is to pray and read and meditate His words
- believe that God will protect His children
- the enemy will not get the better of us if we completely trust Him
