Never be Thirsty Again

Life of Overflow

There is nothing better on a hot day than having a large drink of water!  Some of you, if you're anything like me, may enjoy a few too many cups of morning coffee.  For me, however a few hours afterwards, I will start longing for a glass of water. I'm feeling thirsty and I don't really want another hot drink, I want to feel refreshed. I don't want to become dehydrated so I carry water everywhere I go; to work, to the shops, on a walk (if a long walk), to church, as I never know when I might need a drink.  The benefits of drinking water span from; healthier skin, weight loss, a healthy heart, energy boost, less joint pain and aids digestion. The whole body is made up of roughly 60% water, so we know how vital it is for life.  We know that without it, life as we know would not exist. One glass of water usually quenches the thirst, but what would you do if others around you were thirsty too - would you be willing to share your vital water with others? 

But no one who drinks the water I give will ever be thirsty again. The water I give will become in that person a flowing fountain that gives eternal life.”. (taken from John 4, 14)

The kind of water God gives us causes us to be healthy spiritually. God can fill us with the fruits of the Holy Spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, self control and patience.  When our lives feel barren and dry, God can refresh us again, he can give us new energy and heal our hearts.  Living for God is like living next to a waterfall, the earth around the areas near the water continually receive nutrients and makes the vegetation grow well. When we walk with God, we are growing in our faith and receiving many blessings from the inside out rather than the outside in. The bible says, with God we can even have more than enough to share.  Are we going to be willing to share this overflow with others? We know in the bible that Jesus tells a Samaritan women at a well, John, 4 10-26, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water".  So, we know God gives us living water for our souls, to refresh us, to heal us, to help us, we also know that our souls will never be thirsty again...wow!  All we need to do is ask Jesus for this living water that gains us eternal life.  Are you willing to receive it?

Whatever we have, God wants us to share it with the people around us.  What has God blessed you with, not in material things, but things of ourselves, like our love, our time, our encouragement, our gifts, our advice?  When we are willing to give a small part of what we have to others, God says he will start filling us to overflowing, he will multiply what we give of ourselves!  Overflowing means to be blessed; to have so many good things in our lives that it will overflow in every aspect of our life.  It also says in Prov 11, 25, Those who refresh others, will also be refreshed'. 

Your life will be so blessed, that you won't be worried about having to share your glass of water, you will have more than enough for yourself and for others around you - it will be an overflow of all that God has given you and you will fully comprehend what is meant to 'never be thirsty again'. 

Lv Caroline x

Christmas - a time for faith, hope & love

Happy Christmas everyone.  I'm sure you are all looking forward to the celebrations ahead and having lots of fun with family and friends. Christmas is such an amazing time of year, spending time with those we love, usually involving lots of stupid games, laughter and food!

From a Christian point of view, Christmas is one of the most important dates in the calendar, without the birth of Jesus, there would be no point to our faith. There would be no good news to share, no forgiveness and the road to God would be difficult.

The Christmas story is one of the greatest stories ever written.  It staggers me, how God used completely ordinary people to carry out such an important task, as well as the unprecedented struggles they faced.  Don't get me wrong we know that Mary was highly favoured by God but on the other hand she lived and came from a very normal family living in Nazareth.  First of all, we see Mary having to deal with the fact that she was pregnant and not even married, the shame it brought on a family at the time was immeasurable, women were often stoned for such a crime. Secondly, Mary had to travel 100 miles to Bethlehem on a donkey whilst very pregnant (about a week's worth of travel) - God couldn't there have been an easier way? On top of this, as we know, when they arrived in Bethlehem there was no room for them.  Mary was out in the cold with nowhere to have her baby - can you even imagine it ladies!  Then Jesus, King of Kings, was born in a cold, smelly stable, no Hilton Hotel in sight I'm afraid.

If this was God's doing, then why was it so hard?  I think, we can be reminded that God often users very ordinary people  to carry out His work, so you never know, may be there's hope for some of us!  Don't underestimate what can be done through your life.  It also reminds us that we are not the only ones finding life hard.  Life is difficult and was difficult back then, it's not always easy, but it doesn't mean God is not with us.  God is often close, when we don't even realise it. Did Mary and Joseph feel God's love and beauty during that painful journey to Bethlehem?  Probably not, but their faith carried them through, they didn't fear as they remembered the words of the Angel.  Sometimes our life journeys can be like that, they can be difficult and demanding - we ask 'where is God now hey, if He's so real it wouldn't be this hard'!  You know what, God is with us in our very ordinary everyday lives....so don't miss it just because it's difficult. We sometimes have to go back to what God has promised us and trust in times of fear.  Remind yourself of the Christmas story, was it easy for the characters in the story?....no.  Was God still with them?....of course. Later on in the story, we read how God saved them from the perils of King Herod, by telling Mary and Joseph to go to Egypt - He was certainly directing their steps.

I always think when you look at Jesus' life, he was always there for ordinary people.  He often associated with the sick, dying, hungry and weak - those the world would despise.  He was the humble King in every way, giving up His Godly right to serve others.  He didn't come to the world for position, power or prestige like any other King would. The stable reminds us of the humility, grace and love God has for people.  What an example to follow......the love of Christ.

I trust you all have an amazing Christmas and New Year.  God bless.

Caroline x

Are you Experiencing Life to the Full?

We all have a sense of longing in life and to achieve great accomplishments.  We want our homes and families to be happy.  We desire the best for our children.  We want to have money; lots of it so we need not worry about the future.  We ultimately wish for the easiest life possible because we think if we attain all this it is going to make us completely happy and satisfied; nothing lacking & nothing wanting.

It is a human response to want many of the things given above. I agree, I want to achieve some of the these things on this list - do you?  There is nothing wrong in wanting good things for our lives, however, will they ultimately curb our longing for something more satisfying?  

Studies have suggested that winning the lottery does not help with our long term happiness.   Short term, there is euphoria but after an amount of time, everyday activities that were once enjoyed by the person become mundane and they start to live up to their new level of living.  It's not really giving the person deep satisfaction but an ever growing pursuit for more (known as hedonic adaptation). 

Many things in this world give us short lived happiness.  No matter what we attain, deep down in our hearts their is a deep desire for something so much more!  I've heard it said that even our children are only given to us as a gift for a short time to nurture and care for until they fly the nest!  Obviously, we will always be parents and love our children whatever age but the family unit will ultimately one day change.  

Even if we had everything we could ever want, would it honestly satisfy us, would we be truly happy & satisfied or would we just want more and more?  I don't know the answer but it's good to ask it. What and who is going to fill our longing above all other things and why is it important?  We certainly become more happy when we know a deeper purpose.  Can we even know a deeper purpose?

Let's hope it not so, but for arguments sake let's imagine everything we value is gone, our spouce, our jobs, our money, where does our satisfaction and value come from? What if we don't have any of these things?  Are we going to sink into despair and depression?  May be we aren't married or have a partner, may be we don't have trusted family members and may be we have broken friendships.  Is there still value or meaning to our lives when we are down to nothing?  

As a Christian myself, the bible tells us that Jesus came so that we may have life and have it to the full.  Jesus said, "My purpose here is to give you a rich and satisfying life". Wow, there must be something in this - God wants to give us the most satisfying life.  If we have everything or down to nothing we can find ultimate purpose and meaning - I love this! Psalm 34 v 10 says; Young lions lack and go hungry, but those who seek the Lord will never lack any good thing.  When our souls are tired, God can pick us up again.

Knowing God gives us purpose and meaning, despite our worldly failures and fantasies, we can have a deep meaning and satisfaction beyond things this world can ever offer us. Certainly, we can live a life that has a greater cause than just our own.  It becomes about God and about loving others, this includes obviously our families and friends.  A quote I love from a well known worship leader put it like this, "What does it mean to be a history maker, it's not about our riches, talents or anything else we can attain, but about our hearts; its about honouring our friends above ourselves, loving our families and walking humbly with the King of Kings".  It's about unfailing love! 

When Jesus died on the cross, God was saying, look I am doing this for you, I love you more than anything and want to build a relationship with you, it's not just religion that doesn't mean anything, it's a real life that you can live.  If I created the world, then I know what you need to live a full life and that is to be in communion with me.  Psalm 23, 5-6 says; My cup completely overflows with blessing, and God your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life.

This Easter as we remember the cross, don't forget the person on the cross; Christ.  Everything was done in order for us to live a great life with meaning and satisfaction, yes even when we are down to nothing, God is ever present with us.  Even when we face death, nothing, absolutely nothing can separate us from God's love - now that is true satisfaction.    

Romans 5 6-10

Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.9-11Now that we are set right with God by means of this sacrificial death, the consummate blood sacrifice, there is no longer a question of being at odds with God in any way. If, when we were at our worst, we were put on friendly terms with God by the sacrificial death of his Son, now that we’re at our best, just think of how our lives will expand and deepen by means of his resurrection life! 

To infinity and beyond.....thinking BIG

Ever tried to think about something beyond our human understanding? Could you try and think of something that has always been there, it's infinite? There is no beginning or no end, wow this is quite mind boggling and is difficult to get our heads around. As humans we only know things to have a beginning and an end; to think in terms of infinity starts to scare us somewhat!

Infinite, what is the definition?........Limitless or endless in space, extent, or size; impossible to measure or calculate, boundless, unlimited, without end, 

cosmic, measureless, immeasurable, fathomless, bottomless, extensive, vast, countless, inestimable, indeterminable, innumerable, numberless, enormous, immense and very rare!

It's interesting to note that cosmologists have suggested that parts of space, certainly within black holes, may warp time, causing time not to exist or exist in completely different ways. Therefore you may see time as one whole part rather than as we know it - past, present and future. Wow, can you image that - no time at all and being able to see everything from beginning to end all at the same time. So what may pass as 50 years on earth may only amount to 5 minutes else where in the universe; such a place would have a very small aging process (take me there please)!

This reminds me of what the bible says about God; that He is infinite and that He is timeless. Rev 1 v 8 - I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord God. “I am the God who is, and who was, and who will come". I can't help but notice that God puts the description in a way we can understand. I am the one who is - present / I am the one who was - the past / I am the one who will come - the future. He exits within all time frames, all at the same time and He is the beginning and end.  If God is infinite and timeless, then it makes sense that His home, heaven, would also be infinite and timeless, so now we can start to get an understanding of what God is saying when He talks about a life everlasting.  It also excites me to know from the bible that heaven is described as a place, where there will be no death and no more sickness, a place I believe where time or age are not important; a place of infinite time. From what we know already about space and time from cosmologists and what the bible describes as the third heaven, this heavenly place may well be somewhere else in the cosmos, in a different dimension and where time is non-existent; where earthly rules do not apply - something to ponder on don't you think?  I suddenly feel very small indeed against infinity and beyond! 

xxx

Will God listen to my prayer?

Does God really listen to us when we call out to him?  

It doesn't matter whether you practice faith or not, the act of coming to God with a sincere prayer, causes Him to act and do something.  He loves us and will help us if we are first willing to come to Him.  When we take this first step it shows God we have at least an ounce of faith (confident belief) in Him.  It says in the bible, faith as small as a mustard seed will move mountains.  I believe this is what God is talking about here; faith no matter how small means such a lot to God and is very powerful!  If faith as small as this can cause God to move imagine what big faith can do!

I recently read a book called 'Beautiful' by Katie Piper (the girl who had acid thrown at her face in 2007), here is a quote from her book: "For the first time in my life I prayed to God I'd never believed in: please help me, give me strength, show me a way through this. But even then I'd decided I was going kill myself - take an overdose or throw myself out of a car. But then all of a sudden the weirdest feeling crept over me. It felt like a warm hug as though I was filled with light. I heard a voice say: everything is gonna be OK. You're journey's just begun & you'll get through this. May be God answered me". 

Also very recently, we had a charity called Teen Challenge visit our church, the guys helped by the charity all had terrible issues of rejection, addiction and drug abuse.  One girl came from a family of drug users, she also did drugs because it was the norm.  She got herself into trouble many times, eventually losing everything she had, including her home, family, friends and possessions.   In her desperate need, she prayed for the first time; "please help me, get me out of this God, please do something".  A few weeks later someone invited her to church, but she very skeptical about it, however through this she then got introduced to the Teen Challenge programme.  She was able to go into rehab and is now completely free of all addictions; she has her life back again.  A quote from her: "God heard my prayer and helped me get in touch with people that could help rescue me".

On a personal note, I have prayed for 2 years now for God to provide a job for me to start this Autumn.  I was offered the perfect job only a few weeks ago, exactly at the right time, exactly in the right line of work when I needed it.

There are many other examples of God acting when we pray.  Two of the examples above are of people who had never prayed in their life before, but it still caused God to move and do something and help them in their circumstances.   With confidence we can call upon Him because the God of the bible is a prayer-hearing God!

It's never too late to pray, even if you haven't before.  You don't need to be a perfect person, we can come as we are!  We live in a very non-spiritual society today but it's better not to leave it so late in the day that when we pray, we are either in great distress or on our death beds.  God wants us to speak with Him when times are good too.  For those that pray regularly if hard times hit, you can guarantee God has already worked out your help - don't you just love that.

Lv Caroline xx

Bible Verses:
Psalm 18 v 6 - In my distress I cried to the Lord for his help, and he heard me from heaven.
Ex 22 v 23  - When they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. 
Psalm 34v 8 -  I call out to the LORD, and he answers me.
Psalm 31 v 22 - In my alarm I said, "I am cut off from your sight!" Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help.
Psalm 50v15 - Call on me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.
Psalm 66v 19 - God has surely listened and has heard my prayer.
Psalm 118 v 5 - When hard pressed, I cried to the LORD; he brought me into a spacious place.

I want I want I want......why these prayers are not always answered

I was reading the 'Lord's Prayer' only recently and one line that really struck me was 'Thy will be done'.

What does this really mean?  I believe it means that when we pray, although we should pray for the things we want in our lives (there's nothing wrong with this), we need to also think about what God wants to achieve through our lives!  For those of us who are mature Christians, what God wants for us should be a crucial aspect of our lives.

I know when my husband and I first started trying for a baby, we thought everything would go to plan and I would get pregnant fairly quickly.  Unfortunately, 2 years later and after some very early miscarriages, I still was not pregnant!!  We then turned to the professional doctors for help and had various tests done; fortunately they found nothing wrong.  After feeling defeated and disappointed on many occasions I suddenly came to a place of acceptance, where it was time to stop fighting the situation.  At this time, I recall praying a very difficult prayer, probably one of the most difficult I ever had to pray.  It went something like this:

God I don't understand the 'why' in this circumstance, but I now just leave it with you.  I know my desire is to have children, but whatever Your plan is for my life I ACCEPT it.  If my life is to be lived without children, I pray the extra time and energy I will have will be put to good use in serving You God.   I accept Your will for my life, and all that You have planned for me.  I bring it all to You and lay everything down.  I know You love me and I trust You above everything else.  Thank you.  Amen

Whatever situation you are going through today, sometimes God is seeing if we will lay it down.  Do we honestly believe our lives are in God's hands, do we really trust Him?  Do we really believe He is in control?

Yes you've guessed it, a couple of months after praying this prayer an amazing miracle took place.  Yes I was pregnant!!!!  At 7 weeks, I recall not telling anyone about the amazingly news; to be honest I was terrified of losing the baby again so didn't want to spill the beans until it was all confirmed to avoid disappointments.  At this time, a lady from our church said she wanted to see me and invited me over to her house.  She said she had felt me on her heart this last few months with regard to child birth and gave me a verse out of the bible.  It was this:

From Gal 4 - Rejoice, barren woman who bears no children, shout and cry out, woman who has no birth pangs.  Because the children of the barren woman now surpass the children of the chosen woman.

I believe this was a confirmation from God that all was going to be well this time - that there was nothing to fear.  I was so desparate to tell this lady I was already 7 weeks pregnant but I hadn't even told my own family.  I had to leave her home, although overjoyed, with a composed disposition!  At 10 weeks, after telling my own family, I did re-visit this lady; I was so excited to tell her about it and really wanted to thank her for her encouragement.  

About 6-7 mths later, I gave birth to a very healthy 8lb 11oz baby Son. I'm only very petite myself so this was quite a big baby for me, but he was a real blessing in every way, and still is!  We were overjoyed.
 
As Christians, sometimes we strive so hard for things and we pray and pray until we try and hear the answer WE want.  There is nothing wrong with believing and praying in faith for these things, however we have to be careful that we are not putting our own desires at the forefront and leaving God out.

Often when we put things on the alter (meaning placing it before God totally), is when we get our breakthrough and answer!  It is where we find our peace and where our faith and character grows. It is also when we receive a new blessing; just like my baby boy!

Jesus' life from beginning to end was all about fulfilling God's will. It was God's will that Jesus was to die for the sins of the world!  Wow....what a weight to carry and what obedience. 

Be encouraged to trust God today.

Lv Caroline x

Bible Readings:
Matt 26 v 39 - Before Jesus went to the cross he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” 

John 6 v 38 - For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.

Isa 55 v 8 - God says: For My thoughts are higher than your thoughts, and My ways higher than your ways.  As the heavens are higher than the earth so are my ways higher than your way and my thoughts than your thoughts.

WE RISE BY LIFTING OTHERS

I love the programme Secret Millionaire; where a random businessman decides to help out an unlikely neighbourhood.  They usually go in and find the same old story of poverty, lack of support and love which has led the families in the area to become heartbroken, helpless and sadly sometimes complacent with life!  From this, children and especially teenagers sometimes grow up with a lack of inspiration, no positive role models and little encouragement to push them forward with their lives; it's a very sad situation which can lead to all sorts of other problems.  

Growing up my Mum and Dad were such an encouragement and inspiration to me.   This engaged me and shaped me into who I am today; I can't thank them enough and realize I have been very blessed.  I understand that this is not the case for everyone and the world definitely needs more encouragers!   


I'm not likening most of us to the scenario described on Secret Millionaire, this is obviously very extreme and most of us support & encourage our own families.  However, we can all encourage others in small ways.  What about that teenage girl down the road who has just lost her dad?  What about the lady on the school run who's feeling low?  What about that child you meet who needs a bit of praise?  Are we the kind of people that encourage, inspire and support our children, friends and unlikely people in our town?  Is our attitude and outlook on life that which would help to inspire and encourage others?  I ask myself, how am I helping others in my world?  Does my attitude towards people help or hinder?

I work for a local Church in Nottingham in the UK and I know the heartbeat of its vision is to help and encourage people; to be positive role models, especially our work in the local schools and in our youth group.  May I encourage those leaders and say well done; keep going!  We are also launching another event soon called 'Love Eastwood' where we are going into some of the most deprived areas of our town just to simply bless people.  If you would like to help and serve others in this way, there are many churches and organisations running events in which you can get involved.

Turning to my faith, Jesus said, "I have come not to be served but to serve and give my life as a gift for many".  He was certainly big on giving and encouraging unlikely people (even those who didn't deserve it)!  If God was teaching us to be servant hearted then this must be a very significant part of life for us all!

Lv Caroline x

1 Thes 5v11:  Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Matt 20v28:  The Son of God, did not come to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many".

(Love Eastwood project - more info coming soon).
http://www.newhorizonchurch.org.uk

MASTERPIECE OR ORDINARY?

Our lives are like a huge jigsaw-puzzle where many small pieces fit together to form the bigger picture. There is much happiness to be found if things in our lives fall into place. However, along life's path we often meet dead-ends, unexpected circumstances, obstacles & struggles we must overcome.  This can be extremely difficult for us.  It is however, through these hardships we can add dimension & strength to our character; where we can hopefully grow into bigger people.

Sometimes we get frustrated because all the pieces of our lives don't seem to be coming together as quickly as we would like.  It's in those times when we simply need to have patience and wait - that is sometimes the hardest thing to do!  Many times I have had to trust God about what the next step is for me.

Our approach to life, attitude towards others & trusting God to guide us will determine whether the complete picture will be a masterpiece to be proud of or just ordinary; or even a jumble (hopefully we will avoid the jumble)!

If you feel you could be doing better right now and you're in a bit of a jumble, take heart in knowing we are all a work in progress.......so keep going.  The pieces will come together with time, even if it is hard to see right now.

Psalm 18:20-24
God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before him. When I got my act together, he gave me a fresh start. Every day I review the ways He works; I try not to miss a trick. I feel put back together and I’m watching my step. God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to His eyes. x