Painting god’s picture of eternity

Looking back since the last time I wrote a blog really helps me to see how quickly time goes. It is no secret, however, that we are here on earth for only a very short space of time. Some days I only wish it were longer, whereas, other days I wish I could go home to be with my Savior right now – and just leave the cares of this world. Right now I feel like the latter. Even though I absolutely love my very first year of teaching, I am finding things in my personal life quite difficult and tiresome.

As I went through some pictures to choose which one would be most appropriate for this blog, I came across this picture. As soon as I saw this picture, I knew it was the one. It’s piercing bright white lights set against the deep blue background of a crisp night sky, caught my attention immediately. I knew that there was more to this picture than the bright white lights speeding endlessly through time. I knew there was an analogy that could help me explain the way one views time and existence.

If you look closely at the picture you will most like see the following
- White lights speeding across a road
- Orange lights speeding across a road
- Road markings
- Deep navy blue background

But if you look at it again, maybe you might see the following:
- Lights brighter than others
- Lights that run into each other
- Lines that start and stop
- Turns that impact all of the lights

What this meant to me was:
- Some people live brighter lives than others
- Some people live shorter lives than others
- We all experience ups and downs, turns and winding roads
- Some of our lives cross

I know that I want my life to be one of those bright lights that attracted my attention when I first saw that picture. I know that when God looks over humanity at the light trails of our lives, I want my life to be one of those bright lights that he sees first; that lights up the darkness; that makes the picture worth looking up.

But how do I get that life? Taking every opportunity to tell others about His glory and goodness. Living my life in synch with his Holy Spirit – EVERYDAY. Concerning about other’s and not myself. Making the small moments count toward eternity.

Hope this helps.

Me Organised? Yes Indeed!

Well, two weeks down on my teaching prac 4 and I feel fantastic! During the weeks approaching my prac and internship I became quite stressed just thinking about the HUGE task that lay ahead of me…10 weeks in the classroom being judged and reported on by another person!!! How was I ever going to survive or cope? I new that this was going to have to be a task for my Heavenly Father, because I certainly lacked the strength or courage to do it. And, sure enough…He has prevailed!

My teacher has been absolutely wonderful and understands the fact that I am only learning, which is such a blessing. After each lesson we discuss how it went and she gives me verbal feedback. I was honestly not expecting the feedback to be as encouraging and supportive as it has been. Each and everyday I have been gaining confidence and I absolutely cannot wait to teach in my own classroom. Often by the end of the day my head is brewing with different things that I would like to do when I have my own classroom. I never anticipated having so much enthusiastic energy for teaching. When I first started my uni course, I only did it as a step of obedience. But now I am grateful for having been so obedient towards my Father in Heaven. I could never have anticipated enjoying it as I am right now.

But, not only am I enjoying this experience and desperately holding on until I get my own classroom to teach in, but I am learning so much and being stretched in every which direction! I have always desired to be organised and a forward planner, but never been very successful at it. No matter how much tried in the past, I have always been a last minute girl - and a very stressed one at that! No matter how hard I tried to get my uni assignments organised and in on time, they were always left until the last minute, no matter how hard I tried to plan Sunday school lessons before Sunday - they were always a Sunday morning thing. However, God knew what He was doing when He placed me with my mentor teacher. She honestly is the most organised person and teacher the world has ever seen! Each and every day I am amazed at how she operates - and how she has been able to maintain it for so long.

This has been wonderful for me, as it has caused me to pick up my act and work really hard to get myself one week ahead - AT LEAST! We have pretty much got the term organised already, we only have a few minor details still to go. And, even though I am absolutely exhausted from being up late (or should I say early) every night of the week - at least I am organised and not stressed to the max, trying to get things done at the last minute. My personal life is even becoming more organised - which I thank God for VERY much (and am sure that my friends do as well!!!). I am learning how to prioritise my tasks and to be self disciplined with my time. Each afternoon I right myself a task list, and then prioritise my tasks. The tasks that need to heaviest thinking (e.g lesson plans for tomorrow or creating task sheets) are on the top of the list and are preceded by tasks such as reflections, organising my uni folder or responding to personal mail. At least by the end of the night I know that I have the main things complete and then can go to bed and possibly get up early enough to get the other things completed. It has also meant that I have left recreational activities, such as blogging, to the weekends and AFTER I have completed everything else that I need to. Man, it feels so good!!

Well, on that note. I best be getting off here and on with those other small things need doing before the Monday Madness!

The Power of Worship

Last week I returned from the Hillsong Conference in Sydney. And, just as I was expecting, it was absolutely fantastic. I have come back from the conference feeling re-fueled, re-fired and reinvigorated.

To put it in picture format, I feel like I have had a steam bath in the spirit! If anyone has ever had a cold with a stuffy nose and then experienced a steam bath (where you put boiling water in a tub and place a tea towel over your head) then you will know what I mean. My head feels completely cleared and fresh -ready for what lies ahead of me.

Before heading out the door to Hillsong I silently wondered if I was doing the right thing. I knew within my spirit that God had provided the way for me to go and that he wanted me to be there - but, like most of us, I actually wondered if God knew what He was doing. Didn't He know that I had my internship beginning straight after I returned? Didn't He know that I was struggling to get everything done that I needed to? Well it appears as if he does, because I don’t know if I would have been able to cope with the pressure of everything on my shoulders if it had not have been for that week away. Obviously it was only God that knew I needed that break. Before heading down to the Hillsong conference I was crumbling under the pressure of the work load and trying to carry the burden of too many other things. But now, I can hardly put to words how good I feel. And now, I am determined to keep the fire burning.

While I was at the conference, a well known preacher by the name of Joseph Prince said that "Preaching deals with Concepts, while praise and worship deals with the power of God". In essence, it means that without the presence of God in our lives, all we have is our own strength. We need to spend time in God's presence - praising God's name, worshiping Him, getting down on our knees and fully surrendering our lives to Him - in order to receive His strength. We can listen to all the preaching we want to, but it's not until we actually spend time in His presence that we are going to receive the strength to be able to accomplish the tasks God has for us. I used to get so downcast when I failed to meet the standards preachers often used to talk about. I so much wanted to be "ALL that God called me to be", but each and every day I would find myself falling short of the glory of God. I would disrespect my parents, take offense toward someone, over indulge in food, say the wrong things - and the list goes on. But now I know the secret to developing a heart devoted to God - spending time in His presence. I have found that listening to pure praise and worship music draws me into His presence quicker - however, there are times when silence is necessary. It's really about finding what works best for you. It has taken me so long to work this out, so don’t get discouraged if the presence of God doesn’t come right away. Keep pressing in, praise His name, declaring His word - and He WILL turn up! Do you know how I know this? Because His word says "But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Protect them, so all who love your name may be filled with joy" Psalm 5:11

The lyrics to the following song really helped to inspire this writing. As I read the words to the song, it takes me back to some of the moments at the conference where God really moved upon my life. As I have talked about in previous blogs, song lyrics really speak to me. I often get revelation after revelations just listening tot the words of songs.

Desert Song: From "This Is Our God" by Hillsong

This is my prayer in the desert
when all that's within me feels dry
this is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is the God who provides

This is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flame

I will bring praise, I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice, I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

This is my prayer in the battle
When triumph is still on it's way
I am a conquerer and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

I will bring praise I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice i will declare
God is my victory and He is here

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

Be the Person you Want To Become

For so long I have battled with self condemnation and negative thoughts. They have been so great that they have completely plagued my mind and almost taken over my life. I would continuously set myself little goals “Ok, over the next three weeks I am only going to think positive thoughts, I’m only going to eat healthy foods and exercise at least 3-4 times a week”. But, sure enough, like many people I would fall short of this goal within the first few hours. However, I finally feel like I have broken free from this painstaking bondage that had captured my life and stolen my youth. And now, I look back on each time that I failed, not as a failure or complete waste of time, but as an opportunity to find out what not to do!
Paul writes in Philippians 1:20 -

“I live in eager expectation and hope that I will never do anything that causes
me shame, but that I will always be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past, and that my life will always honour Christ”

In this passage, Paul discusses the type of person that he wants to be or sees himself as. I have a certain feeling that when Paul wrote this, he would still have had in mind many times when he wasn’t all of this. And that is why he also writes “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (NAS) because he wasn’t all there yet. However, I learned something from this. Paul was declaring positive things over his life. He wasn’t focusing on the past failures, but on the person that he wanted to become. Change has occurred in my life since I have begun focusing on the type of person that I want to be – instead of thinking about the person I wasn’t! My Aunty actually coined a particular phrase which has helped me through this bondage it is:

“Be the person your want to Become”.

I want to become a person who is constantly moving forward, motivated, passionate and VERY fruitful. I want to see the success of my efforts, I want to be a humble and forgiving person, who is not easily angered. I want to achieve the goals that I have set out for my life.
So, if you happen to be struggling with self condemnation or comparing yourself with other people, I urge you, keep pressing on in this battle. You WILL get there, there is hope. His name is Jesus Christ. And even though your answer isn’t instant, the end result is worth it! Believe it from someone who has come through to the end!

Love Letters From My King

For sometime now I have been reviewing my walk with God. I realised that I had been trying to live a life for Christ…without Christ. How have I done this? By doing what I believed was what he wanted me to do, but doing it in my own strength, in my own way and not spending time with God in order to really know what he wanted me to do. For example, I new that he wanted me to be a witness to the world, so whenever any of my friends would ring up, and want to catch up I would automatically say yes. However, I know within my heart that I had not been using the time wisely. Even though a lot of the time I would be a silent witness, I would not honestly and whole heartedly stand up what I believed. When I didn’t agree with something I would not call upon the strength of the Lord to tell them why I did not agree with what they were saying. But, the biggest thing I didn’t do, was pray for them and tell them that Jesus really and truly loved them. I had let my Father down.

I have an absolutely beautifully crafted book called "His Princess: Love letters from your King" by Sheri Rose Shepherd. This book has blessed me so much and helped to repair my once strong relationship with Christ. There was a time in my life - as with most Christians, where I loved to spend time with my Lord and Saviour, where I craved His presence. I would sacrifice so much for His cause, and enjoy it (E.g. Fasting, saying no to doing certain things with my friends, not watching particular movies or listening to certain music). But, as time went by and I became 'used to the Christian world' my light began to fade and I became lax with spending time in His word and obeying His commands. This led me down some very hard paths and caused me a lot of pain. However, as I began to read the 'Love Letters from my King in Heaven' (By Sheri Rose Sheperd) I began to remember the passion and zeal I once had for my Father in Heaven. The feeling of belonging to such a great cause came flooding back and I began to feel a sense of justice once again. I began to recognise that God still loves me and still has a very special purpose for my life.

An so, Id would like to share with you, over time, just some of the "Love letter from Your King" that have so touched my life. Hopefully they will do the same for you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My Dearest Princess,

I chose you before the foundation of the earth to be My princess. You are royalty even when you don't feel like a princess. I will wait for you until you are ready to start living the amazing plans I have for you. I know you don’t know where to begin or how to become what I've called you to be, so let Me teach you day by day. Start by recognising who I am: King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The lover of your soul. When the two of us meet alone together everyday, I will show you how to let go of the things in your life that are holding you back from the blessings I want to give you.

Remember, My child, just as I have chosen you, I have given you a choice to represent Me to the world. If you are willing, I am here to give you all you need to complete your calling.

Love,

Your King and Lord who Chose You.

"You didnt choose me, I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce
fruite that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for,
using My name."
John 15:16

Getting Serious About God

Over the last couple of days God has been speaking to me about some very real topics that I would love to share with you. It’s about “Getting Serious About God”. For a long time now I have desired to change. I have wanted to be a strong woman of God and I ultimately new that one day I would be. Ever since I first committed my life to Christ, I envisaged myself being a powerful woman of God – set and ready to accomplish any task He had for me. The trouble was, I could see the finish line, but really didn’t know how to get there – a common trait among many Christians, I fear! So, for the past three years I have battled my way through many trials and challenges, experiencing some refreshing times of freedom, but then back into fight my way through the battle. And that brings me to right about now.

At this point in my life, I feel as though I am not where I should be in Christ. Even though I have ultimately desired to become like Christ, I have made some pretty poor decisions and committed copious amounts of sins, that I believe I could have easily fought off. But I didn’t – and, just the other day I asked God why. A VERY VERY bad question – but I did!

As I sat in the Church last Sunday morning our Pastor spoke about Christian conduct and how, being a Christian allows us to do something’s, but not all things. It calls us to different way of life. Elementary stuff I know – but as he spoke it, the words sunk deep unto my being. I knew that my way of life hadn’t set me apart from those that are in the world. Even though I was a Christian, I still had stayed in the room when swearing was blasting on the TV screen, I had sat in conversations when people had been speaking about topics and issues that I did not believe in – too afraid to speak up. I had not spoken up when I saw something that hurt my spirit or Jesus’ spirit and had not defended His name when others blasphemed Him. Even though many of these are only small, seemingly insignificant things, I know that they hurt the very heart of God, my Father.

When I was a little girl my Mum would say to me “Every time you sin, the thorns on Jesus’s head are dug in even header and blood rushes down his cheek”. When ever I did something wrong I often ran into my bedroom, knelt before my bed and cried out to Jesus “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry Jesus, I didn’t want to hurt you” and felt remorse for my sins. As I am older I see the significance in that depiction. It really does hurt Jesus when he sees us committing sin, because it not only compromises the Gospel message and make Him look weak to the world, but it also hurts us. Because, when we sin, we fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)and ALL that He had planned for our lives.

When I got home from Church I decided to go straight to my room and set apart that time to seek Him and pray. I started writing a list of all the areas where I have previously sinned and fallen short and what I am going to do to fix it. I am not going to sit around with sinners and mockers, I am going to keep myself pure, I am going to stand up for what is right and what I believe in and pray more often. I am going to “GET SERIOUS about God”. For, we only live once and only have one opportunity to become ALL that we can be.

Much love, and blessings,
Karine

SET APART

Ok, over the past couple of weeks I have been a bit slack with blog posting, but my good friend Natalie has encouraged me to keep it up. Her encouragement came at exactly the right time, because over the past couple of days I have been fiercely overcoming some issues that have kept me bound for quite a few years. I finally found the source of my depressive thoughts and actions. On and off over the past 6 -7 years I have dealt with fought with my self image. At some points I have had great self confidence, whilst at other points I have been as low as wanting to end it all for myself. However, whilst listening to a Joyce Myer preaching I finally realised what my problem was. I honestly didn't know who I was in Christ. I mean, I thought I did, but her preaching – and the prompting of the Holy Spirit made me realise that I really didn't. So, what now that I knew what the problem was, what was I going to do about it?

Immediately the answer came to me – I needed to quote scripture to myself daily, hourly, moment by moment. I needed to build myself up in the word of God. So, I ran into my room and rummaged through my cupboard to find a set of "I am Statements that I had been given quite some time back and began saying to myself "I AM a child of God" " I am an overcomer by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of my testimony" "I am made whole in Christ Jesus" "I am strong in the lord and in His MIGHTY power". As soon as I did this I felt a surge of energy go through my body. I knew that I had finally found the key. I was existing – but now I was moving forward. I am determined to continue with this breakthrough. I am NOT going to be overcome once again. Jesus is my Lord and Saviour and I am going to be a witness to His power and loving grace!

I have always had this great desire to dance for my Lord Jesus Christ, and I know that He created me with this purpose in mind. I see myself dancing in pure white, bring glory to His name. So, when I say the word of God over my life I see myself dancing for him - and speak life into the dream. I have recognised that Dreams dont just come true, we have to make the come true!

The words of this song continuously encourage me and let me know that I am SET APART for GREATNESS. My Lord created me for a special purpose. He created you for a special purpose to, do you know what it is?

"The Letter"

~Newsboys~

I wrote you a letter
Things could be better
Full of promises, every hope and dream
Did you get it
Have you read it
Talks about you and me
And the future, you see
Something no one can do
Is take the place of you
Can't you see you're....one of a kind

CHILD, YOU'RE LIKE A STAR
SET APART
SET APART FROM THE START OF THE WORLD
THIS IS YOUR TIME
RISE AND SHINE
CHILD, YOU'RE ONE OF A KIND

Sometimes every thing's too much
Like the deepest cut
You hurt to be touched
When you hear it
If you feel it
Don't let it have its way
I'm writing to say
Something no one can do
Is take the place of you
Oh can't you see you're...one of a kind

[Repeat Chorus]

I know it's hard to hear promises
When the blue has turned to grey
Nobody said it was easy
But I know you'll find your way

[Repeat Chorus]