NO LOOKING BACK

NO LOOKING BACK

I realized something phenomenal yesterday.
THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS LED ME TO A POINT OF NO LOOKING BACK.
if I can put what I am sensing into words,
IT IS THAT I HAVE PASSED THE POINT OF NO RETURN.
up unto this point I have had more days of fear and  weakness regarding going to China.
SLOWLY THE SPIRIT HAS BEEN HAVING HIS WAY IN ME
and on saturday I realized that I am having more days of courage and strength
AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, JOY
in going to China and serving Him.
AS MY HUSBAND AND I PROCLAIMED TOGETHER
"we are thankful that we are able to live out our destiny by
DEPENDING FULLY ON GOD TO BE A PART OF SOMETHING
bigger than ourselves".
TO MAKE MUCH OF GOD TO CHINESE STUDENTS.
there are still days that I know satan will make me feel that I cannot do this.
BUT AS I SOAK MYSELF IN HIS WORD
and remain listening to Him at His feet,
I KNOW THAT I WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE MORE DAYS OF VICTORY
than defeat.
THE SPIRIT HAS DONE SUCH A WORK IN ME THAT I AM EAGER TO GO
most days it is so hard to wait.
I HAVE A LONGING TO GO BACK TO CHINA!
the Lord often reminds me that He has things for me yet to do here
AND HE OBVIOUSLY HAS MORE EQUIPPING FOR ME.
He continues to encourage with Christian fellowship of our American and Chinese friends.
WHILE LEARNING THE LANGUAGE
and gradually scaling down our stuff.
HE ALSO HAS AFFORDED US THE TIME TO SHARE OF WHAT HE IS DOING IN CHINA,
and gifts us with time to spend with those we love and and also those we love and want to see
COME TO A SAVING KNOWLEDGE OF HIM!

GOD'S TIMING IS PERFECT IN EVERYTHING!

walking by the Spirit

Lately, my thoughts and focus have mainly been on living in the Spirit.  The scripture in Galatians 5:25, "If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit", resonates in me.
Being reminded each day that I have the Spirit of God living in me absolutely humbles me and amazes me time and time again!  I am totally in awe of God's love in many, many ways...although this truth is positively the most compelling. 


So I am asking God each day to equip me to walk by His Spirit.  Asking Him to give me spiritual eyesight, spiritual hearing, spiritually keen sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. I am waiting on Him and His perfect timing to speak in certain situations of relationships I treasure.  I am always asking Him for His strength in my "struggles in life".  I am totally depending on Him, to prepare me to JOYFULLY go to China
to impact those I will encounter, for Him!


I am also daily asking Him for the renewing and transforming of my mind.  Only by the Spirit working this in me can I break loose from the conformity of this world.  Offering myself as a living sacrifice to Him can only be done in the Spirit.  My mind is fallen, it has a bent - a mindset that is hostile to the Supremacy of God.  Not naturally seeing God as infinitely more praiseworthy than me.  My mind is not by nature a God-worshipping mind, it is by nature a self-worshipping mind.


So I have asked my God to ingrain in my soul and my mind the truth that I need to ask for daily renewing of the Holy Spirit.   That I will be radically dependent upon Him.  This is my only hope of desiring the Will of God.  My only hope of my life being worship to the glory of Christ!

Monday Moods (I'll second that!)

Today I am going to piggyback on my daughter's blog, The Marvelous Flight of Cara.  She inspired me today to be honest and real with what's going on inside of my heart and head today.


So ridiculously hard to get out of bed today.  Wasn't I just at work yesterday?  It sure feels like the weekend was just skipped over.  How can weekends go that FAST?  Really?


I too, am exhausted and sure you could guess that by just looking at me.  LOL
I too, am choosing to live the abundant life God is providing for me this side of Heaven.
I too, fall into that sinful trap of doubting the work of my King, and I know that I am mistakenly relying on my "untrusted", sinful emotions.
I want my daughter and son-in-law to have the marriage God purposes them to have and I am always going to be praying for that!  Just like I have for mine, all of these years.
I want them to also to not suffer, physically, every day of their life together.  Again, always praying for healing and relief AFTER God has had His way in them for His plan, while trusting Him. 
This week brings on a "yearly annual event" (yuck!) that I always dread.  Always relieved when it's done.
I have been listening to Matt Maher's "Empty and Beautiful" everyday, alot!  The words and peaceful music speak to my mind and to my heart so magnificently.
Relationships are work.  They take creativity, sensitivity, intensity, and vulnerability.  In healthy ones, the results are beautiful.
I like vanilla lattes...ALOT!
I struggle with being so separated from my daughter, son-in-law, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter, especially before I relocate to China.
I also plan on being more creative, especially in my relationships.  Being more pro-active, more often, and listening more acutely to other's hearts.
I rejoice in the confidence that God is my victory, and that my God is alive and not dead!


Thank you daughter, for nudging me today!

JESUS

From my Global Media Outreach leader:

"Is Jesus Enough" by Angus Buchan writes:

 

'God is looking for men and women today who will not detract from the written Word of God, allowing themselves to be sucked in by the crowds, ending up as 'crowd pleasers'.

 

I have some very special words on the wall in my prayer room.  I believe they were found nailed on the door of a Zimbabwean pastor's rural hut, after he was martyred for his faith.  They read:

 

"I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed.  I have Holy Spirit Power.  The die has been cast.  I have stepped over the line.  The decision has been made.  I'm a disciple of His.  I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.  My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure.  I'm finished and done with low living, sight-walking, small planning, smooth knees, colourless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living and dwarfed goals. 

 

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits or popularity.  I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognised, praised, regarded or rewarded.  I now live by faith, lean on His Presence, walk by patience, live by prayer and labour by power. 

 

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my guide reliable, my mission clear.  I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. 

 

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. 

 

I won't give up, shut up or let up until I have prayed up, paid up and preached up for the cause of Christ.  I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.  I must go until He comes, give until I drop, preach until He stops me.  And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem in recognising me, my banner will be clear."'

Divine Adventure

I believe that  the second most amazing and humble aspect of
being a child of the King is,
that when I desire for Him to change me, He does.
These days, in my heart,
He has given me a deep longing to
want to be transformed
as never before.

I have not prayed a certain prayer across my lips.
My Father does not always require that of me.
He knows my heart and my desires.
He knows that I want to be all He designed me to be.

I have this one life He gave me
 and I have vowed
that I will not leave this Earth without taking
the big steps He has called me to.
No matter how uncomfortable,
no matter how fearful I may be,
no matter how much strength I must draw from Him,
I do not want to stand, I want to walk.
I want to make much of God, here on earth.

My vow
takes my self-indulgence and pushes it into
the risky world of selflessness.
It causes me to learn to live
in surrender and obedience
moment by moment.
It causes me to continually
ask for the ability to
 dominate my flesh.

It makes me regularly draw my stake out of this world
and plant it into the Kingdom that is to come.

It gives me the desire to live authentically
and stand under the spout where grace pours out for me.
It demands a discipline
 to learn of the ability to listen deeply
with the ear of my heart.

It purposes in me, a will to live a life worthy of God.





...so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,
to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and
increasing in the knowledge of God.
Col. 1:10

Some Brass Tacks of China

I want to share about the country I will be moving to next year...China.
There are so many misconceptions of this land and I want to present some facts that are wonderful!
God has been doing a tremendous work in China since 1807, when the first protestant missionary, 
Robert Morrison, arrived in China.


In 1949, the Communist government took power and there were about 70,000 Chinese Christians. 
For the next thirty years no foreigners were involved in the development of the Church in China.
It wasn't until 1978 until anyone from outside of China could get back in to see what had happened
to the Church.  Under severe persecution and without help or support form the Western world, the
Chinese Church had grown to nearly one million Christian believers!


We continue to hear stories of the massive growth of the Church in China.   Some Chinese analysts 
have called it "the greatest evangelical movement the world has ever seen."  Estimates indicate that
there are over 70 million Christians, and the Christian Church in China is growing at a rate of 6% a year.  


In Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other cities, there are universities with Departments of
Christian and/or Religious Studies.  These departments have spread rapidly and have been a catalyst
for revision of government policy on Chinese Christians.  Their goal is to make Christianity a visible force as China searches for a new intellectual order in the 21st century.  


An increasing number of Chinese Christians have a heart to see the advancement of God's good news, and have found new ways to serve in China.  Some have started non-profis to help meet the needs of
the poor in their villages and provide services, like English, job training, after-school programs, medical assistance, and basic needs like shoes, clothes and backpacks for school children.  It is another step toward the Chinese Church's complete self sufficiency.


Since 1988, the Amity Printing Company has been printing Bible In Nanjing, China.   In 2007, they printed over 3.4 millions Bibles for the Chinese Church.  They continue to print a wide variety of Bibles, including study Bibles, pocket Bibles and large print Bibles.  They have the capacity to print over seven million Bibles a year and have completed a 1-acre printing facility that will have the capability to print one million new Bibles every month!


So when I hear of certain negative stereotypes of China, my heart is sad since I know that they are false as well as damaging to God's overall work in China.  I praise HIM for combining the best intentions and the worst mistakes of Western missionaries, and using it all to develop His church there to bring glory to Himself!

HEAVE HO!

I read Scripture this morning that I  felt just reached out and grabbed ahold of me.  

When my heart is open, the Holy Spirit will give me His Truth that will speak to me

in my current circumstance .

The wonderful truth was  I Peter 5:7: Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you.

I LOVE THIS! If I were to get a tatoo, this would, without a doubt, be the one I would choose.

"Casting" used in this verse is the Greek word epiripto, a compound of the words epi and ripto.  The epi means upon, as on top of something.  The word ripto means to hurl, to throw, or to cast, and it often means to violently throw or to fling something with great force.

The only other place this word epiripto is used in the New Testament is in Luke 19:35, where the Bible says, "And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus there on."  This passage correctly conveys the idea of the word epiripto, which in secular literature often pictured the flinging of a garment, bag, or excess weight off the shoulders of a traveler and onto the back of some other beast, such as a donkey, camel, or horse.  

The word "care" is the Greek word merimna, which means anxiety.

In principle it described any affliction, difficulty, hardship, misfortune, trouble.

Peter uses this word to assure me that Jesus really does care about me 

and the things that are heavy on my heart.  

When I saw these Greek words and perceived how deeply Jesus cared about the burdens that were on my heart, I realized I was carrying a load I didn't have to bear.  Jesus wants me to take the

difficulty I am carrying and fling them onto His back.  He will carry them for me.

"Jesus, I am yielding  my concern to You today. 

 I cast my burden on You, and thank you for 

setting me FREE!"