Just In Time

By a bizarre topic of conversation (onions), Bruce very briefly told me your story! I was deeply moved and have felt compelled to give you a word of encouragement and just share with you what’s on my heart and what I believe God would have me to tell you! I cannot for one moment begin to surmise or imagine the hardships you have had to go through and in no way would I want to try and analyze or minimize your experience but really just want to encourage and lift you up, because very often when we go through that valley or wilderness experience it is easy to think that God has forgotten us and does not love us anymore!! Friends desert us and forget us and we feel isolated and all alone!! Yes I too have gone through some difficult times (they pail in comparison) when I was the subject of some vicious slander attacks that left me bewildered, battered and bruised, most friends deserted me even family treated me different! I then went through an extreme financial crisis as I couldn’t get a job for over two years and lived on bare minimum. If it was not for the help of my beloved sister from time to time, I don’t know if I would’ve made it through that tough time? And then….thank God for Bruce, I have been with him for nearly 8 months now! Can I share this story….when I went for the interview with him – I took my C.V. thinking it’s hopeless but he didn’t even ask me any questions about previous jobs and just said “do you want a permanent job?” – I said yes…he said “well come back tomorrow!” I was amazed!! Then I walked on eggshells for a couple of months wondering when he was going to fire me as surely by now he must’ve heard some stories?? Shame I’ve given the poor man a hard time since then and I’m sure he doesn’t quite know how to take me?? Anyway I don’t want to dwell on my story but mainly on what God has done in my life as a result of all that – that is what is truly amazing!!! I used to be a shy and timid person but after going through this slander it has totally freed me from that and I have become bold and courageous – not caring anymore what people think of me (as they already think the worst) it is a truly liberating experience one that I am now grateful for, not that I would ask to go through something like that again – whew no thanks but the bible says in Rom 8:28 (my paraphrase) that God is able to turn any situation around, that the enemy has intended to destroy you with, and use it for your good in the end!! He never wastes any experience we go through! He is an incredibly awesome God of the second chance – wow He can make something beautiful out of something terrible!! Does that make sense? I love the story of Joseph, after all that he went through says to his brothers who sold him into slavery….”what you intended for evil God intended for good” Gen 45:5. There are many things in this life that make absolutely no sense and we will never know the answers to some things, this side of eternity, but can I quote something from Rev Elias Ndeda (I met him at a church conference a couple of years ago and got his CD “Shake it Off”) this is what he says-: “I challenge you to get positioned for the journey of life. There will always be a refining crisis that will bring us to a defining moment which will eventually empower us to step into greatness. You’ve got to make up your mind to stand out and to be counted. There are things that life will throw at you that you will need to break through then break out of, only then will you not break down. You don’t have to specialize your condition but to commonize it. For there has no temptation come to you but such as is common to all men. Whatever you are going through somebody, somewhere around the world is going through the same thing or has gone through the same thing. It is a destiny thing. The seed you carry has attracted what you are going through. Don’t throw in the towel in the battle of greatness, don’t give up now! You have come from too far to give up at this point! Put on the whole armour of God and go to war. Have your helmet of salvation, your breastplate of righteousness, your loins girded with the belt of truth, your feet shod with the gospel of peace, hold the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit because it is not over until it is over, there is a lesson in this and you have got to fight on because God is on your side”. “Even though you do not understand, even though nothing seems to make sense, even though everything falls apart trust in God He will make everything known. You know there are some things that you will never understand in life because destiny is a mystery and everything that happens under the sun God processes us into greater destinies. Your greatness is in the making so if you can just hold on there and learn to trust in God. Break every yoke and destroy every barrier do not allow this to stop you; you can break completely out of this. You are a hero and a hero in the making. One thing you need to know is that you will come out of this. If the devil can stop you where you are right now the devil would have won because gain comes out of pain…there is no testimony without a testing. Heroes are never born, heroes are made… you need to know that there is no glory without a story and if you are a hero you are going to have some bruises and you are going to have some scars. Even though you don’t catch what is really happening, and even though it blows your mind…even though everything is in pieces you need to just trust in God and He will make everything known to you. It doesn’t matter the kind of abuse you have gone through you just need to raise your head above the water because your tomorrow is greater than your yesterday. The devil does not chase empty vessels. Yesterday was your teacher, today is your opportunity and tomorrow shall be your testimony.” Rev E. Ndeda Like I said God is the God of the second chance and is able to make all things new and to restore all that which has been lost. Joel 2:25 says “And I will restore or replace for you the years that the locust has eaten…” as long as we leave the vengeance up to Him and not take it into our own hands (then we are on our own so to speak and He will not help us!) Then He can give us “double for our trouble” J.M. “instead of your [former] shame you shall have a twofold recompense…” Isah 61:7, 54:4, Zech 9:12. So when you keep your heart right before God He will actually repay you back double what you have lost – this is exactly what happened to Job! “And the Lord turned the captivity of Job and restored his fortunes, when he prayed for his friends; also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before” Job 42:10 this is what Joyce Meyer comments from this verse…”Have you ever been wrongly accused and thus deeply wounded by others? Like Job, pray for those who have hurt you, and forgive them. When we forgive, God brings restoration….No matter what you are going through, God still has the same good plan for you right now that He had the moment you were born. He has never changed His mind. From the instant the enemy attacked you, God has had your restoration in mind.” J.M. I had many opportunities to retaliate against those who slandered me but somehow had the sense to keep my mouth shut and to try and speak only good of them (wasn’t easy!). If I had retaliated I would’ve been just as guilty as them in God’s eyes! When we leave vengeance up to Him He then is able to set a table before our enemies and forces them to watch while we eat and while He lavishly blesses us!! Ps 23:5. Oooh wee that’s vengeance in itself and is sweet, in fact it even makes you feel sorry for them!!! Oh shame…I sure have been going on hey but just want to leave you with one last thing that keeps popping up in my mind – so I know it’s important!! Heb 13:5 amplified version says “I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]” And God has NOT forgotten you, (Isah 44:21, 49:15) He loves you more than you could possibly imagine!!! Yes life has dealt you an extremely hard hand but there is comfort in knowing that nothing we can go through can compare to what Jesus went through on the cross, willingly for us because He loves us!!! He took all our pain on Himself, He bore all our sorrows Isah 53. He was beaten beyond recognition, then whipped with leaded and spiked thongs – the 39 lashes (it is said that some men didn’t survive this lashing!!) and then nailed to a wooden cross naked, all bones pulled out of joint! He punished Himself and took our place!! Who can fathom so great a mystery??? Oh sorry Phil I thought I said I was ending but one last thing – I am an evangelist at heart and have to ask you one very important question – have you ever received or asked Jesus to come into your heart, to forgive you and cleanse you? For the bible says “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” and “for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” Rom 3:23, 6:23 (not one of us are worthy enough to stand before Him) also “for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” Acts 2:21 and “whom the Son sets free is free indeed John 8:36. You may be in a prison right now (others are legally free but in another kind of prison) but you can be free in your heart no matter where you are! I would encourage you to invite Him into your heart right now, right where you are – God is no respecter of persons – what He has done for me, He can do for you!!! I truly hope and pray you will receive what I have said (I know I have crammed in an awful lot!!!) and please know that you will be in my prayers…that God will bless and keep you, strengthen and restore you and may His light fill your heart and comfort you!!! God Bless Jane

Leadership Skills

You will find some keys in here that will be extremely useful and if put into practice give you great success – of course these principals are based from the Word of God and are His keys to success (mainly taken from Proverbs – King Solomon).
Ok before I get sidetracked and off what I wanted to speak about – which is “leadership skills!” Where do I start??

You have and manage a team of staff and keeping everyone happy and working effectively is a skill and task in itself, but I have noticed you get angry very quickly and that’s when you react in the wrong way!!

1/ First key to success – be slow to anger Prov 14:29, 15:1, 18, 16:32, James 1:19, Eph 4:26-27. This of course is an extremely hard thing to do and takes practice! Anger is one of those emotions that just explode forth uncontrollably sometimes but it’s those moments of anger that words are spoken that can never be taken back and can cause irreversible damage! Anger in itself is not a negative emotion – used correctly can be a very effective tool to move us in the right direction but used wrongly is extremely destructive!

Ok I love the “how to” – how do I be slow to anger? Take a step back, hold your tongue, take a breather, go for a walk or drive, count to 100 if you have to, think first about what you want to say – but most importantly ask the Holy Spirit to help you!!!

2/ Correct in love (1 Cor 13 – the love chapter). Second key – nothing absolutely nothing will work outside of love. Let me repeat NOTHING will bear fruit or be effective outside the parameters of LOVE!!! Faith cannot work where there is no love and when these 2 go – fear moves in… ok let me explain… yes of course there will be times when you need to correct someone or even discipline them (as a parent you already know this principal!) but if you do not do it in love you will only stir up strife, anger and contention! Give careful thought and consideration and ask God for wisdom in how to correct that particular person (as we are all different). Never correct harshly in a demeaning, belittling, condescending, demoralizing, disrespectful way! God never treats us this way – He hates the sin but loves the sinner – in other words He hates what we do wrong and has to correct, discipline and even allow consequences (Heb 12:6) because of those things but He never diminishes or devalues the worth and value of that person! I love this verse Ps 49:8-9 LB “For a soul is far too precious to be ransomed by mere earthly wealth. There is not enough of it in all the earth to buy eternal life for just one soul…” wow how valuable is that?? When you attack a person’s character and worth you are devaluing that person, instead of correcting the thing they have done wrong! When we can see the way God values and esteems even the lowest of us, we will never treat a person with disrespect (also a hard one… when it’s someone we don’t like!!!).

A key verse for me has always been (and one I have tried hard to live by as it’s foundational… but hey I’m no where near perfect and get it wrong many times!) “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” Matt 7:12 – my paraphrase “treat others the way you would like to be treated!” Hey I could write a book just on that ha ha…. to put it very simply… what Jesus was actually saying “treat others well – not only for their benefit but for your own benefit too”… i.e. “what you sow, that and that only is what you will reap” Gal 6:7 – this is called the law of reciprocity… “what you give out is what you get back”. Einstein but it this way “for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” So in other words be very careful how you correct a person as it will be the same way in which you will be corrected – whew quite a sobering thought???

3/ Concentrate on a person’s strengths – not on their weaknesses! Phil 4:8. Hey this works in all relationships! If you are constantly dwelling on a person’s weaknesses and faults you will become critical and judgmental all the time (and again remember what I have just said…) “Do not judge and criticize and condemn others, so that you may not be judged and criticized and condemned yourself… and in accordance with the measure you [use to] deal out to others, it will be dealt out again to you.” Matt 7:1

4/ Concentrating on a person’s strengths flows directly into this next point: - Encouragement. When you see and discern an area where that person does well in and then encourage them further by telling them that, it will be like pouring liquid fertilizer onto a pot plant, they will flourish, blossom and excel – the opposite is also true, to keep constantly criticizing and condemning a person is like pouring acid onto a plant! Prov 18:21. They will become bitter, scornful and unproductive. “Encouragement is the difference between giving up or going on!”

5/ Delegation: - all great leaders have learnt the art and skill of delegation. Moses being a great example, leading over 2 million people… he became exhausted and fraught with frustration and near collapse until his father-in-law showed him how to delegate. Dr. Paul Yonggi Cho is another good example – he runs the largest church in the world, in Seoul, Korea with over 1 million members! He too became so exhausted and would collapse while preaching until God showed him how to delegate! Hey I would love to add my very own Apostle Colin Nyathi, who runs over 120 churches (and is aiming for 150 this year) world wide – could not possibly manage or cope without the skillful art of delegation. The saying “if you want anything done properly… then do it yourself” I believe is erroneous… no it should be “if you want anything done properly… then teach and train someone how to do it properly.” Pride is the issue here, saying that no-one can do it better than you and not allowing the other person the freedom to try and learn to do it as good as you! No the bible teaches that we are to prefer the other person over ourselves and to celebrate them when they have success too! In actual fact, the truth is when they excel and do well it’s a reflection of your good leadership. Michael Armstrong put it this way “Autonomy – this is giving people the freedom they need to do their job most effectively. The right blend has to be achieved between autonomy and control.”

6/ Consistency: - remaining the same, consistent and constant, even in the midst of trails, persecution, troubles and afflictions! 1 Pet 5:8-9; 2 Tim 4:5. Hey this is also an extremely hard one!!! Keeping a balance and being stable and not being a yoyo – up and down according to your circumstances (e.g. house built on a rock not sand). Now I remember a quote from Kenneth Copeland “Consistency is the place where the power is manifested.” Patient endurance (James 1:1-2, 4:10; 1 Pet 5:6) under the hand of God during difficult times produces the fruit of consistency! Can I use a story here which I think fits into this? Two men working together had one of those terrible days, where everything was going wrong, and problems piling high. They went home and the one invited the other home for dinner and just before entering his house he went to a tree and rubbed it up and down with his hands – the friend was perplexed and asked what on earth are you doing? I am symbolically hanging my problems and burdens on this tree before I go in… and sure enough to the friend’s amazement – his family had no idea of all the problems he had faced that day!

7/ Humility: - the greatest leaders are humble leaders and are servants at heart. Remember leaders lead by example and no-one wants to be ruled by a tyrant with an iron rod, ask any Zimbabwean! It is easy to follow and respect a humble but firm leader, Mandela in contrast! Of course Jesus the King of kings – having the highest, exalted position of all is our perfect example and I think His example of washing the disciple’s feet is an awesome one of humility and servant hood. Humility as I see it is the outward expression that really in ourselves we can do absolutely nothing – it’s only our total dependence and reliance on our Father to help us and work through us, that we can accomplish greatness!!! As Paul put it… “as I become less He becomes greater”.

Ok that’s all I can think of for now – whew been going on long enough….but I’m sure you will agree there are some very useful tips here that we can use not only in the work place but in every area of our lives?

See I Make All Things New

SEE, I MAKE ALL THINGS NEW

Rev 21:4-5 “….for the old conditions and the former order of things have passed away…..see! I make all things new”

Isah 43:18-19 “Do not [earnestly] remember the former things; neither consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth…. I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert”

Matt 9:17 “Neither is new wine put in old wineskins…..but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved”

Josh 5:9 “This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you”
“the word reproach means blame, disgrace or shame….I am convinced that about 85% of our problems stem from the way we feel about ourselves…shame had poisoned my inner being…God wants to give us grace, and Satan wants to give us disgrace, another word for reproach…God’s action of rolling away our reproach means that we receive the forgive ness He is offering for all our past sins. Refusal to accept God’s forgiveness (by not forgiving yourself) will definitely keep you wandering in the wilderness. Your mind must be renewed…He earned your blessings by carrying your reproach to the cross. You can never deserve or be worthy of it, you can only humbly accept and appreciate it, and be in awe of how good He is and how much He loves you. Let God roll that reproach off you, and experience the freedom from shame that Jesus wants to give you” Joyce Meyer “Everyday Life Bible” taken from Josh 5:9

“We can release God’s plan for our lives by no longer thinking about the things of old, believing that God has a good plan for our future. Since what we think about eventually comes out of our mouths, we will never get our mouths straightened out unless we do something about our thoughts. I believe that if we stop mentally living in the past, we can begin to think in agreement with God. Then once we do that, we can begin to speak in agreement with Him. By so doing we can actually prophesy our own future.” Joyce Meyer “Everyday Life Bible” taken from Isah 43:18,19.

How do we prepare for the “New Things” God has for us? In all the above verses it says the old has to be done away with first. The past and the old way of doing things must be laid aside! All old mindsets, mistakes, failures, methods, experiences even old victories can cause us to become complacent, blinding us to the dangers of future battles! There are also some old relationships from the past, soul ties, co-dependents, naysayers, control freaks that need to be severed (pruned) to make way for new growth!

Do not dwell and meditate on the past, turn your focus onto the future and the new things God has for you Heb 12:2. Dwelling on the past becomes a weight that drags us down and hinders us and actually binds you to the past. We need to strip, removing everything that hinders us from the race set before us! Look at vs 2 “Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus…He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross…” notice His focus wasn’t on the cross and horrors He would have to face, but His focus was on the prize – the finish line! What things or people are causing you to be distracted and to lose your focus of what God has called you to do? Maybe it’s over committing yourself, allowing others to control you, becoming too entangled in someone else’s problems instead of keeping our eyes on our own goals?

The key to all of this is having a pliable and soft heart, one that is willing to change Deut 10:16 “so circumcise the foreskin of your [minds and] hearts; be no longer stubborn and hardened” also Ezek 36:26-27, Isah 1:19, 1 Sam 15:23. If we resist change and stubbornly continue to cling to the old, comfortable way of doing things we will never experience God’s new and better things! God is a ‘Big God’ and always has bigger, better, far more exciting things in stall for us, far beyond our wildest dreams and imaginations 1 Cor 2:9, Eph 3:20 but we have to do our part by jumping into the Father’s arms…Deut 33:27, total abandonment and trust and just like the four lepers said “shall we stay here and die?” so to stay stagnant, not moving forward or growing is death!!

Ok I always ask myself the “HOW” question?
1. I believe the first step is what I’ve already mentioned – lay aside stubbornness, rebellion and unwillingness to change but rather be obedient and willing to submit to His Lordship, no matter how crazy or difficult it may seem! Soften your heart and become pliable, teachable and humble! Lay down your own way, your own plans and your own selfish desires Jn 12:24-25, Gal 2:20, Luke 14:33. Easier said than done I know!! Probably our hardest and greatest, life long struggle is this very thing for the flesh does NOT want to be crucified!!!!

2. We’ve learnt that all decisions and then actions first start in your thought life! Change your thinking and renew your mind Rom 12:2, it’s when we renew our mind and thinking that God reveals His will for our lives! Are you struggling to find an answer or God’s direction for your life? Maybe the problem is in your thinking?? Are you listening to and allowing negative and critical bombardment of thoughts – the “I can’t do it”, “It’s too late”, “I’ll never succeed”, “I’ll never make it”, “I’m not good enough”, “I’m too old”, “it’s too hard”, “I’ve blown it” thoughts??? In fact it was exactly this kind of thinking that defeated the Israelites except for Joshua and Caleb who did not see themselves as grasshoppers! It was only when they had the “I CAN DO” attitude and shook off reproach and shame that God led them into their promised land! Ok there are a myriad of scriptures that you can use to counter attack negative thoughts, find the ones relating to the specific area you are having problems in and target that area by confessing them every day – over and over and over!! Make it your daily routine and habit. It’s this repetitive action that actually changes the old negative groves and ruts that were originally engraved into your brain cells!! Key scriptures are 2 Cor 10:5, Phil 4:13, Rom 8:31, 2 Cor 5:17 remember you are a “new creation, the old has passed away” you no longer need to wallow in the mire and the mud of the past and old stinking thinking, old mindsets and strongholds!!

3. Combat the giant “Fear”. Faith cannot operate where fear is! This strongman and giant is something we all have to face and overcome in life! Remember what David said to Goliath “…for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands” 1 Sam 17:47. Of course this is a huge subject but I think the key to overcoming fear is knowing deep in your heart that God is with you and on your side and holds you in His hands, and will never leave or forsake you, and is fighting for you, Rom 8:31-39, Jn 10:29, Heb 13:5, Josh 1:9, Deut 31:6, Isa 41:10,13, 2 Chron 20:15,17, Prov 12:21, Ps 91,121. When we stay in His presence, in His will, in His love and under His umbrella of protection no real harm can come to us! When we step “out of love” into fear, allowing fear to control us then we are in serious danger!!

4. Allow yourself time to adjust to the “new thing”, the changes! Yes it’s going to feel uncomfortable, awkward, unpleasant and difficult at first! Stretching is never comfortable, but once you have grown into that new position it will become easier and more enjoyable to you!!

The Power of Associations

Yes we all have strengths in certain areas but unfortunately also weaknesses! Funny yesterdays message at church was very interesting – he was saying how God has made us all unique and all with different “shapes” S = spiritual gifts, H = heart or passion, A = abilities, talents & skills, P = personality & different temperaments, E = experience – vocational, educational & painful experiences. “Your success in life is based on your response to the shape God has given you” that is with all your unique mix you are able to fit perfectly into certain areas and arenas in life! It’s when you’re not operating the way God designed you (i.e. not living your passion or trying to be like someone else) that’s where you can miss your destiny!

So one of my strengths is encouragement and something else I’ve only just recently been told and discovered is that I have the “Joshua” anointing! Joshua was Moses’ captain of the army and when Moses died Joshua took over. But his main purpose and destiny was to take the Israelites across the Jordan, out of the wilderness into the Promised Land, Canaan, to receive their inheritance! We all sometimes go through wilderness experiences and difficulties but God’s purpose in that is to develop and strengthen our characters so that we are able to handle the blessing He gives us and not squander it or lose it!! So my gifting is to help people to receive their inheritance, or to help them realize the dream or vision God has given them! (“Birthing Your Dream”)

Oh ok now I can see the thread that God is making here because the subject I wanted to speak on is “The Power of Associations” as it is impossible (I cannot overemphasize this) to receive your inheritance or dream if you have the wrong associations!!! It is also impossible to grow with the wrong associations!!

Wow this is quite a vast subject but will try to be brief and hopefully share on what’s important as it’s a subject I’m passionate about and feel very strongly about! Ok where do I start?? There are certain blessings that come by association with certain people or organizations. This doesn’t happen with casual associations but with deep, connected and committed associations! In other words to put it simply what they have rubs off on you! “Who you hang around with is what you’ll become!” Then there are certain principals that can invoke their blessing into your life i.e. commitment, accountability, humility, submissiveness, recognition, service & sowing (giving) to them will cause even more of their anointing to rub off onto you! 2 Kings 2:9. Ok these are good, Godly associations and if you want to grow spiritually you hang around with those who are on a higher level than you (be humble and submissive to resident anointing) so that by association you can learn and grow from their experiences and hopefully grow into that level! And also hopefully some of their anointing (the power of the Holy Spirit) and blessings will rub off onto you! This is where mentors play a huge role in our lives!

Now this exact same principal applies to bad associations!! “Who you hang out with is what you’ll become” Ps 1:1 “Oh, the joys of those who do not follow evil men’s advice, who do not hang around with sinners, scoffing at the things of God..” Proverbs is full of this advice but here is just one Prov 2:11-15 “you will be given the sense to stay away from evil men who want you to be their partners in crime – men who turn from God’s ways to walk down dark and evil paths and exult in doing wrong for they thoroughly enjoy their sins. Everything they do is crooked and wrong” 2 Cor 6:14,17 “Don’t enter into partnership with those who do not love the Lord…. how can light have fellowship with darkness…that is why the Lord has said, “leave them; separate yourselves from them; don’t touch what is unclean” (all quotes taken from the Living Bible).

You have seen this principal work in Jay’s life – bad associations and friends caused him to walk down the wrong paths, causing havoc and destruction in his life Deut 30:15-20 and you made a very wise and prudent decision to move him to another location in the attempt to break those ties and connections!!! When we are young we all make this same mistake by sometimes choosing the wrong friends, but we grow and move forward and learn from our mistakes and hopefully learn to make better choices of friends in the future, those that will not bring destruction and chaos into our lives!! I must say here and please forgive me if I’m offensive (as hopefully he has changed?) but I’m very shocked that you still have Matt as a friend!!!! Even though I was young and naive and inexperienced then, I still knew that he had a very strong and bad influence on you!! But like I say I hope he has changed and is now bringing a positive (& not evil) influence into your life??????

Another example I want to share is a friend of mine Sally. She had a very close friend Anne. They were always together but Anne unfortunately is an ardent gossiper, slanderer and loves to cause division among people!! And even though Sally would not entertain her gossiping she still could not help it rubbing off on her! She has since moved away from this friend, ( not long after this Anne even started slander that Sally was having an affair with someone they all knew – some friend hey???) making better friendships and wow since she has done this I can’t believe the growth I have seen in her!!! People have even said to her there is something different about you – you look different – wow amazing what God can do when we position ourselves in the right place and that sometimes means moving away from wrong associations. Yes that can be hard at times as we want to be popular and liked but in the long run it is far better to be popular with and have God’s favour in your life than man’s!! And yes sometimes following Jesus is not always easy and it means taking up your cross (Matt 16:24-25, 19:29) and being unpopular with man but from my experience it is WELL worth it! As in the end of it all we all stand and give an account of our lives to God – NOT MAN!!!!! And it is God who holds the eternal rewards in His hands – not man!!

There is something else I want to add here; sometimes God will forcibly remove you from associations, either by relocation or even death!! And sometimes He even removes good, wholesome relationships from you. This is what the bible calls pruning John 15:1-8. He prunes us or lops off things from us so that we can produce more fruit in our lives! So that we can become more productive – this by the way is a very painful process but will definitely produce very good results in us, making us far stronger!! Last year God removed 2 very close, godly friends from me within a month of each other!! I couldn’t understand it and it was very painful but it made way for even better and stronger relationships!! Also another reason God sometimes removes people from us is that they have become an idol, someone we have placed over and above God! They have become more important to us, than God Himself!!

Well take care my friend and may God’s light continue to shine on you! I know He has much install for you and as you learn to walk in His ways He will bring to pass those dreams and visions He has placed on your heart!! Of course the first step in that journey is one where you make a commitment to follow Him and invite Him to come into your heart! Have you ever done that my friend?? I really hope and pray that you will!!! Cos without that first step you will never really know of God’s plans and purposes for your life!!

Possessing The Land

Ps 61:2 “From the end of the earth will I cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed and fainting; lead me to the rock that is higher than I”.

As one of the declarations for this year is “Possessing the Land” and seem as this is a passion of mine, can I share some thoughts with you as I learn some exciting new things on this journey?

There are times in our lives when we are so overwhelmed by tasks or certain situations, problems or circumstances that we face, that we can be overcome with fear and doubt! This usually happens when we lose our focus, our spectrum has been widened and we are seeing too much at once! Get your focus back! First of all focus on God, turn your eyes upon Him, remind yourself that nothing is impossible or too difficult for Him! This is what Joshua and Caleb did – out of the 12 men that went to spy out the land of Canaan, they were the only 2 that believed that God was greater than the giants they saw Num 14:9. “when we become entangled with the giant-sized problems we lose sight and focus of what God has called us to do” J.M. And it was murmuring and complaining, self pity and excuses that defeated the Israelites, in fact God dealt very severely with them Num 14:27-37, that generation died in the wilderness and never entered into their promised land, their inheritance!! “Beware of complaining, instead worship God and keep worshipping Him until your breakthrough comes…Enjoy where you are – on the way to where you are going! Do not fear the giants; slay them with your faith. God is greater than any giant-sized problem you face” J.M.

Secondly turn your focus back on your dream, the vision God has given you. Do not look to the left or to the right Prov 4:27 “but only see your vision and begin to walk in it! Let it be so apart of you that you become it” T.D. Jakes. Never allow fear or doubt to creep in – set your mind and keep it set Col 3:2. As fear tolerated, will kill your dream and you will never enter into your Canaan but instead die in a miserable wilderness! “We think that an excuse relieves us of our responsibility to do what God has said. But God says “then do it afraid! As you go, I will help you conquer your fear.” J.M.

Woman of Ill Repute

You know yesterday was an incredible day at evangelism, I couldn't believe how God used me to encourage, heal and uplift several different people!!! But the most memorable is this story:-

My power cable for my computer had been fried by Zesa so I went to see Stephen (a computer wiz kid) to ask his advise and he told me where to go etc but he was in the process of moving offices (he had told me where they were moving to) and I felt the nudging of the H.S. to pray for him, but didn’t as I was in a hurry and late for evangelism! Then after evangelism, on the walk back to the church (also I was on my own, am normally with the girls!) guess what, I happen to see Stephen again, at the new offices – this was no co-incidence and knew God had me on a mission!! So I ran over to him as he was about to leave! We starting talking and I said I felt God wanted me to pray for him and his business and the move etc but he said no – a woman cannot pray for a man out loud, they can pray privately but not aloud!! I’ve known Stephen, professionally for years but didn’t know he was a JW. Now normally I wouldn’t even get into a conversation with a JW as it always lands up as a mind battle over doctrine etc but I just bubbled out the love of God and was just sharing how good God is etc (I think he was amazed?) and he kept saying I’m so impressed by your boldness and courage in sharing your faith and he kept saying there you go again you are preaching (presumably woman aren’t allowed to preach either?) then I left!

But on thinking about this I asked the Lord for an answer in the Word (did you know that there is an answer to every life problem and situation in the bible?) and I was reminded of when Jesus was anointed with oil and had His feet washed with her tears and hair Luke 7:37. This story has always touched my heart and I have written on it before in the light that Jesus values and treasures every person, having unconditional love and acceptance for them and this is what changed them forever!! Once they understood that He saw their value and worth, then they were able to see themselves for who they really were! Valuable and precious in His sight!!

But today I saw this story in an even more compelling, awe inspiring light!!! Jesus allowed this woman, who was not a woman of royalty, nobility or of high standing in the community, to anoint him for his death and burial! The climax and ultimate purpose for His coming to earth, the darkest and most extremely difficult trail and testing of absolute surrender, submission and obedience for an act He knew would be His ultimate test on this earth, in a human body, suffering excruciating pain, humiliation, rejection, the most difficult time of His entire ministry on earth and He was anointed, equipped and prepared for this mission, by a woman of ill repute, a prostitute, the lowest of lowest of all woman!!

Think about this for a minute, meditate on this, I mean how is this possible?? The King of Glory, the Most High, the Ancient of Days humbled himself unto obedience Phil 2:8 and then allowing a woman to anoint Him. What an act of humility, even more so, I think, in the washing of the disciple’s feet? What an example for us to follow and if Jesus can allow a woman to minister to Him, before His darkest hour, surely we as humans, or men can allow a woman to minister to them in prayer and supplication?? Anyway these are just my thoughts and one that will always stick out vividly in my mind and will always bring out awe and wonder in my heart!!

Birthing Your Dream

BIRTHING YOUR DREAM 18 June 2010

There are times when God places a desire or dream in your heart, it starts out as a seed and just like the seed of an embryo it starts to grow and develop until finally the child or dream is birthed and your harvest becomes a reality! This is how the process develops:-

“Dreams are made of this, seeds that I drop in your heart, water them, nurture them, feed them and they will grow into a harvest.” SJ

“When you have a big dream, small minded people will always be jealous and will criticize. Don’t be distracted by what people say and don’t waste time trying to win over your critics. The enemy fights you, not for your present but for your future and will try to get you to give up on your dream. You must be willing to press through opposition, remember the greater the pain, the closer you are to birth!” Joel Osteen

“Write the vision and make it plain so that the one who reads it may run” Hab 2:2. If you write the vision it will come to pass, you’ll make it happen! It’s not enough to think about it, you have to commit it to writing – if you write it down you will make it happen. Then confess your vision and rehearse it daily in front of the mirror, the mirror being the Word of God. Begin to read it as if it’s prophecy – begin to declare it and decree it “thou shalt decree a thing and it shall be established and light shall shine on your way” Job 22:28. You have got to rehearse your vision on a daily basis until it becomes so internalized and becomes such a part of you that you cannot separate yourself from your dream. If you will persist, confess, decree and declare there will come a day, because of the laws of faith, travail and attraction, that stuff will begin to show up in your life and you’ll start checking off every dream, every vision, every desire.” Mark Chironna


1. Conception - when God deposits His vision in our spirit.

2. Believe - this is the first trimester and is very fragile (just like when you first plant a seed you have to nurture it, watering it twice a day until it becomes stronger and more mature). In this period you will fight doubt, unbelief, double-mindedness (to keep changing your mind) and wavering (doubtingly question, indecision, divided interests, unsteady, to sway to and fro – going from faith to fear) James1:8, 4:8, Rom 4:20, Prov 4:27.

3. Envision - seeing your dream without evidence! This is the part where you have to focus on your dream and visualize it! Focus means to put blinkers on (like race horses) and place your concentration in one direction, not allowing any distraction Prov 4:25. Focus – “the point at which concentrated light, heat or sound-waves meet. When we concentrate and centre our attention and activity in one direction, light (revelation), and sound (inspiration), begin to make a clear and distinct image. Once the image is clear, visualization can now be effective, bringing the dream to realization! If you can see it you can have it! The creative power of God, He saw it first, in His imagination, then spoke it into being! Our focus must not be on what we are going through but on what we are going to”.

4. Position - who we hang out with! Make sure you stay very clear of negative, naysayers who are dream blockers! Negative and critical words, if you listen to them and receive them can make you lose focus and abort your dream very quickly!! Sometimes it’s important to keep the dream to yourself, especially in the early, fragile stages to avoid abortion!! Don’t share your dream with just anyone, wait for the right people that God will place in your path to be able to share your dream with! You will eventually need to speak your vision into being but wait until it is well and truly established in your heart first.

5. Endure - waiting!! One of the hardest trimesters as waiting and not seeing results can cause you to doubt, waver and faint (give up, cave in, lose heart or quit) Gal 6:9. This is where patience, endurance and standing firm are vital 1 Pet 5:9-10, James 4:7, Heb 6:12, James 1:3, Rom 5:3-4, 1 Pet 1:7, Rev 3:10. In Greek the word “Patience” means to be constantly consistent, the same way all the time. Consistency is the place where the power is manifested.” “The word is a seed, plant it and keep it in the ground with patience”. Creflo Dollar.

6. Enlarge - stretching and feeling very uncomfortable! Ps 4:1 This is where fear, panic intimidation and overwhelming feelings of inadequacies and insecurities will overtake you! Your dream is always much bigger than you and your abilities and this can cause you to retreat but “if you act (obedience and humbling yourself in yielding to the H.S. and allowing Him to do the work through you, not you trying to do it yourself.) on what God said fear finds if difficult to defeat you. Obedience is required to experience forward motion. See yourself as God sees you, go to the Word and meditate on what God says, cast down vain imaginations (what ifs) 2 Cor 10:5, Eph 4:23. Right believing brings right actions. Our greatest challenge is to let go and let God!” Ray McCauley. “Fear = False Evidence that Appears Real. Fear and faith are mutually exclusive and diametrically opposed and cannot exist in the same heart, mouth or mind, at the same time.” Rod Parsley. “Fear tolerated is faith contaminated. Faith works by love and fear operates by selfishness. Fear is perverted faith. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God Rom 10:17, fear comes by hearing the devil’s words which are contrary to God’s word. Faith and fear is a law which comes in through by images, words and through your mouth. The greatest fear we face is the fear that what God has said won’t work, we have no confidence in His word and also when we doubt His love for us 1 Jn 4:18, 2 Tim 1:7” Creflo Dollar. It’s very important here not to allow fear to come out of your mouth through your words, as we have seen that words are the second stage of creation – for the negative or positive. If you do slip in this area be very quick to repent so that your words will not produce a negative result! Sometimes fear will remain but we need to continue anyway “Doing it Afraid”, courage is doing something even in spite of and in the presence of fear Josh 1:9, Deut 31:6, 1 Chron 28:20, Isah 41:10.

7. Prepare - get ready for it! Action! Start taking positive action towards your dream. The second step of faith is action as “faith without works is dead” James 2:20. You need to act on what you believe and begin to move in that direction, despite negative circumstances, and unseen evidence Heb 11:1, until you see the result.
8. Labour - overwhelming feelings, great pain and travail, opposition, rejection and obstacles – you need to jump over your obstacles, the devil will try his hardest to get you to abort your dream with fear, distractions, persecution and trouble. You are to push through the pain of difficulties and remember the battle is not yours it’s the Lords 2 Chron 20:15,17. Don’t give up just before your breakthrough, as this is when it is the toughest, but persevere through the pain and obstacles and you will receive great joy! Isah 66:9, Ps 126:5.

9. Realize - Dream is finally born and becomes a reality! Take time to celebrate and honour God for you success. Remember to give God the glory and don’t forget to testify of His Goodness! Rev 12:11, Deut 8:17.


Something To Live For

You must have a hope to inspire you. You must
have a path to pursue. You must have an object
to work for, a plan and a purpose in view.

You must have a sense of direction or lost you’ll
go drifting along. You must have a faith that
will guide you when life holds no light and no song.
You must have a stake in the future. Though
swiftly the years may depart. You’ll always
have something to live for – if you have a
dream in your heart. Patience Strong