Knitting...

I love many kinds of needlecraft, but one I've recently gone back to is knitting.

I'm making a rather special doll for a special little person (mentioning no names), and all was going well. Apart, that is, from 2 rows. One piece of the dress looked kind of strange when I started to put it together, but I thought - "it looks OK, I'll leave it"

Well, when it came to making it up, it definitely wasn't OK. I tried a number of ways to make it right, but eventually decided that it would be a start-all over-job. I spent much of yesterday resting (with this rotten cough and cold), so had a chance to make a start on the new piece. Then when I had to get up at 3 am (lem-sip time), I had total quiet in which to repeat the particularly tricky section which had caused all the problem first time around.

How many times, I wonder, do I mess things up, trying to believe that it's not that important, and that I will be able to work things out when I need to? How many times have I settled for second best, when what really needed to happen was to let the failure go, and allow God to help me start over?

The beauty of it was that I realised that it was in the stillness and quietness that God helped me unravel and re-knit what needed to be done. It was not done in public, to add to a sense of failure and exposure. And this was only about a small piece of knitting.

How much more does God want us to be in close relationship with him, so that when problems come, we go straight to Him to sort things out, rather than hold onto worry and anxiety, hoping that things will work out, when deep down, we know it's only compounding the problem?

Pat's Thought for the Day:
When things go wrong with what you know of The Plan, go back to where it was last right. It's often the spot where something got dropped, ignored or forgotten that does the damage. Never be afraid to ask God for help to "pick up the stitches", and then carry on.

Not feeling so good....

This week I feel as if I've been put in for an MOT, and come out with a pretty poor report!

First, I needed new glasses, and it's taken me a while to get used to these new varifocals - poor Dave Stoneham almost got completely bypassed in Tesco, as he was in my peripheral vision, and I couldn't see him (honest! I wasn't really ignoring you!)

Then in town on Thursday morning I stopped for a cuppa, only to have one of my dental crowns fall out. Made an appointment with the dentist (yuk), only to be told that as the crown was 20 years old, it's not done badly, but what was underneath has decayed, so I have to go back in 2 weeks to have the stump removed completely (even more yuk)

And in the last 48 hours I've come down with a cold and very sore throat, and lost my voice. I had to spend most of today in a training session on Drug and Alcohol addictions (excellent teaching), but I'm feeling wrung out. John cooked a lovely meal to come home to, very soft on the throat, and much appreciated

Which means John has recommended I stay home tomorrow, and try to rest. But it's made me think; the dental crown appeared OK to me, but underneath, the tooth was simply dying, very, very slowly. It is possible for spiritual decay to also be so slow that we miss it altogether. Maybe it's worth checking on a regular basis - certainly more regularly than I go for dental check-ups! But it's also OK and quite human to feel run-down once in a while, espcailly as it's been a bit manic recently.

Pat's Thought for the Day:
When decay is exposed, it often has a foul smell. But God considers the prayers of his saints to be as sweet incense before Him. Which would you rather smell of?

The King's Chambers...

I loved the concept in today's 40 Days of Purpose chapter - that God wants to be our friend.

It is an awesome thing to consider - that He would ever want us to be that close.

I remember going on a visit to Hampton Court a few years ago, and we went on a costumed tour ( the Guide was in costume, not us!), and he showed us into The King's Chambers. There were in fact three rooms, all of them called Chambers, virtually identical in layout, and you had to pass through the first to go into the second, and through the second to go into the third. Each room had very little furniture in it, save for a large throne in each, backed up against the far wall. Over the throne was a canopy, and the rule was, that if you were "granted an audience", then you could approach the throne, but not go any further than the canopy. This was carefully measured to be a sword's width away from the king, in case anyone had any mad ideas about assassination.

The Second room was slightly more elaborate - the light was just that more sparkly, and the furnishings just a bit more ornate. Again, there was a second throne, in case the king wished to give his audiences here. And the third room was the most elaborate of all - totally over the top in the richness of the wall decorations etc.

But beyond this third room was a tiny room, which was in fact the King's Bedchamber, and from here only the most trusted of servants were granted the privilege of seeing the king. If anything, it was a little disappointing in its simplicity. But here, the king was himself, and invited only those he most trusted into his most important conversations.

John 15:13-15 says;
"You are my friends if you obey me. I no longer call you slaves, for a master doesn't confide in his slaves; now you are my friends, proved by the fact that I have told you everything the Father told me"

Pat's Thought for the Day:
Friends talk; they don't throw rocks at each other; they believe each other; they trust each other.
It's terribly basic, but sometimes I have to remember that this is how God treats me, and how I must treat Him

Jealousy and Envy

A number of folk have asked me to transcribe the word I gave in church this morning.


"I believe the Lord wants to talk to us about Jealousy.

It would be very foolish of us to think that as Spirit-filled believers, that Jealousy has no part on our lives. But I firmly believe that in this Season of 40 Days, Satan is going to get really dirty. We have to be on guard, because Jealousy is one of those strange things. In Galatians 5:19-21 it says quite clearly:

‘The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like’

Jealousy and Envy are not the same: Jealousy sees what somebody else has and says, “I want something just like that – I should have something just like that” (not from a sense of “Gosh, this is really good”).

Envy says “I should have had that instead of that person”, and wants to rob them of it. I believe that as God gives us new ministries, and re-distributes ministries, that there is the potential for Envy and Jealousy amongst us. We must guard rigidly against it. What I believe the Lord would say to us this morning is that if something in your spirit reacts to somebody else, saying “I wish I had that” or, “I should have had that, not them”, then you are to do three specific things;

First
You are to go to the Prayer Closet and repent of the thought, because until you’ve done that, God can’t use you. That’s where you start – in secret.

Second
You start praying in an opposite spirit, because this is of Satan. If Satan makes you jealous of a person, then you deliberately pick up the prayer burden for that person. Where Satan seeks to cause division, you start piling on the prayer. You turn it into a prayer burden, and intensify the other’s gift rather than seek to rob them of it.

Third
Once you’ve done that, you find a way of specifically affirming that person – make it personal, so that they know that you value them, and in so doing, Scripture teaches that you are piling coals on the enemy’s head.


I felt very deeply this morning that God would have us be on guard against this, so that where there is Envy and Jealousy, we completely turn it around, because Satan cannot work with that, and God can.

We are expecting God to bring new anointings, and we should possibly expect Satan to try and rob us of them. So as a Fellowship, be on your guard, repent, pick up the prayer burden, and then specifically affirm. We are blessed in this Fellowship – and we should be encouraging one another in their anointings."

Checking the turtle bot...

As my study is upstairs, it is my normal nighttime routine to check my e-mail there one last time before I go to bed. This has now expanded to include all my "link" blogs"! It's a great way to catch up on all that's happening with you guys, maybe add a comment or two, and go to sleep with a few prayer requests running through my mind...

My Supervisor at work would probably say that this is an example of me in "Mother Hen mode"! The need is strong to watch over things, and I know that I am "just checking". It's a phrase which infuriates my sons somewhat - they consider themselves far too grown up to need "checking" - and on the whole, they're right.

But I am reminded of one of the first times we were shown that Andy (our 18 year old) had a flair with computers. He was in Junior school ( aged about 10), and they were using a small PC to make a turtle bot (small robot with felt-tip pens!) move around a large sheet of paper, and draw very basic straight line shapes. Andy's teacher noticed that when the rest of the students entered some co-ordinates into the programme, they would type in one line of code, and then stop to watch if they'd "got it right", and then move onto the next bit, Andy was different. He would type in the whole code, and once in a while just glance over at the paper - to make sure that the bot was doing what he had said. The attitude was one of confidence and trust in his own programming, rather than a slight anxiety that he might have got it wrong.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could be trusted in such a way with God's commands to us? I know that Father "never slumbers nor sleeps", but what if he could trust us so much, that He really only needed to glance at us once in a while, confident that something he has left with us will be done without worry, questioning or rebellion?

Pat's Thought for the day:
"To obey is better than sacrifice". Let it be with joy, confident that what God asks us to do, he equips us to do

Letter from Father...

In prayer 11 months ago, I felt I needed to write the following down. It seems right to share it now, and here


Dear Child,

I am the Ultimate Completer-Finisher.
Every good work that I start, I intend to finish, and am able to finish.

I am the Ultimate Project-Manager, able to co-ordinate numberless permutations of resources, time-management and skills in order that My Perfect Plan for YOUR LIFE is completed, on time, and in My way.

Nothing takes me by surprise, and nothing can thwart My intentions towards you. And I intend to bless you, not to harm you.

I'm not going anywhere - You can rely on Me. I will be here with you, and for you, for the entire duration - which is eternity.This is because the Ultimate goal of The Plan is for us to meet face to face.

Do not be anxious.

You only see part of the plan at any one point. As Alpha and Omega, I not only see the whole, but have the whole plan in My hand.

Relax Child - It's all in control

Dad

This isn't covered in the Manual...

Yesterday we began reading the "40 Days of Purpose book", and I'm delighted to say, our son Chris is also reading it. Well, we got to Sunday night, and he "wanted a chat". His concern ( having read Chapter 1) was that he thought that any career he wanted to follow would be of his choosing, but having read the first few pages, he thought that this book was saying that God would "ask me to drop everything" at a moment's notice to do what God "demanded". He really wasn't too sure about that.

Well, part of me wanted to reassure him - to say that God "probably wouldn't do that".

But in all honesty, I couldn't.

I have no idea what God has in store for him, or for me - many's the time I wish I did. I like feeling safe, and I know I often feel nervous about new things. I was listening to a radio programme the other day about building materials ( much more interesting than it sounds!), and one of the contributors was saying that no-one wants to be the first architect or contractor to use a brand new material in a huge public building - but they're OK at being the SECOND ones to use it. Preferably, they'd like to be the first people to use something which has a 10 year proven track-record!

Oh, how human.

There are many manuals out there which claim to tell me how to be a better parent. Most of them say opposite things to each other. But nowhere in such earthly manuals does it tell me how to prepare my own son for the possibility of God's call on his life. The only manual that makes any sense of it at all is God's own Word. Thankfully, God's Word is full of encouragement to us as parents, because it tells us stories of real families - those who squabbled and fought, through sibling rivalry, unhealthy ambition and bitter disappointments. In the words of Scripture, parents are real people, often making mistakes, but having to throw themselves on the Author of The Manual to find a way through. No-one can know the full purpose God has for my life, or Chris's, or anyone else's, save God Himself. And I will always be the first one to tread this particular path, for it is unique to me. The "materials" along the way will always be new, and maybe at this stage, untested

But what I DID say to Chris, was that if God ever DID ask him to "drop everything", it would be because the thing which God would then place into his hands would be far, far better than anything he'd ever had before.

Pat's Thought for the Day
A longstanding Kennett motto has been "When all else fails, read the instructions". When it comes to God's Ultimate Manual, I think that maybe this should be reversed, .....

Quick prayer request...

Please pray for my friend Sue, whose father is in the last days of terminal illness. She is trying to be strong, but is finding things very hard

Thank you

Fragility...

I've cried a bit this week.

On three separate occasions in the last week I've had to handle personal criticism - some of it constructive, and some of it not. Some of it was justified, and I had to work hard to deal with the ramifications; some of it wasn't justified - but I had to work equally hard to deal with that, too.

In the end, I have to say, it hurt, whichever way round it was. I felt de-skilled ( lovely buzz word), threatened, and upset, but most of all, pretty weak. I wanted to kick myself for emotionalism, and maybe some over-reactions. I am my own worst critic.

And a small part of me said "How can God use you when you're so weak? You're supposed to be a woman of faith, a prayer warrior, and ready to do great exploits for God." Then the obvious verse came to mind:

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (2 Cor 12:9)

And also the list of heroes in Hebrews 11 talks about those "whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies". ( Heb 11:34)

But if you read about how such Men and Women of Faith got to that point, it makes sobering reading.

It just reminds me that our walks of faith can be easy or hard, but they are rarely without moments when we feel incredibly small, weak and fragile. But that is how we learn to be dependent on God. The moment this stops happening is when we need to get REALLY worried!

Pat's Thought for the Day:
One of the most fragile things in the Universe is a baby... so that's how He chose to come....

Time for a cuppa?

Tuesdays are a bit fluid for me. Sometimes they can be full, and other times I seem to have loads of time on my hands.

Take today, for instance... I had to go into town to bank a cheque, buy a new handbag on the market (old one shot to pieces), and pick up some milk, fruit and veg from Tesco. I had just paid at the checkout, when I heard my name being called. It was a lady from the church, wondering if I "had time for a cuppa"?

Well, actually, not really - I had 90 minutes in total before I needed to be at a Counselling appointment with someone else.

But do you ever get a nudge? A nudge that said " Make the time, Pat."

So I did. And this lady had met up with another lady, who looked as if she just needed a bit of fellowship. So there we were, in the cafe at lunchtime in Tesco's, sharing testimony over a cuppa, of how good God is; of how His timing is perfect, and that He never lets go of things we commit to Him. I really felt as if God turned up, too. As this (second) lady unfolded a little of where she is on her journey with God right now, I got the feeling that this was a God-appointment, set up for just 45 minutes.

And guess what? I got to the Counselling session with plenty of time to spare, and with a sense of God having worked things together beautifully.

Pat's Thought for the Day:
interruptions are often God's way of writing appointments in the Diary He writes on our behalf.

40 Days of purpose - pre-launch initiated....

Another great day in Church - tremendous worship from the first moments, with Tony kick-starting the "pre-launch sequence" to next Sunday's launch of 40 Days of purpose...through into a lovely Newcomer's Lunch -thanks to Bren and Malc for the cooking!...then into another great evening of worship, and Gordon teaching...

Feeling sleepy, but blessed.

It was a day spent in lots of prayer connections. A real privilege to stop for a few minutes and just pray one-on-one with folk, all over the place, with no great fanfares, but real connectons made. Never underestimate what can happen when you just sit down with someone, and "be" for a minute or two. They may never be in a position at that moment to explore huge theological debates as to what is happening; they do need to know they're not alone in the hurt. I gave up saying "I know how you feel" long ago. I can never know how someone else feels, how they hurt, how their hearts are being torn out without anaesthetic, how scared they are, how lost they feel.

But there is One who knows, who feels, who cares.

And the amazing thing is, He asks us to be His hands and arms, as well as His eyes. To hold someone's hand when they cry is profound. It's even more profound when you shut your mouth while you do it. To be able to hold someone in your arms on His behalf, that is not threatening, or intrusive, or in any way compromises someone else's integrity (or yours), is awesome.

Pat's Thought for the Day:
When Christ called the Church His Body, sometimes that means using our bodies to reach out in the way that He would. Satan has so polluted the gift of touch that we often shrink back, fearing that "people will think the worst" if we touch someone else.

Ask God for wisdom to reach out in a way that is truly sanctified, totally without reproach, and never compromises either of you - but then do reach out. Only God knows what an amazing difference it could make.

Jehovah Jireh....

One day I'm gonna be able to share the whole story of what happened to us as a family this morning, but I'm still reeling from the awesomeness of God's provision.

Suffice it to say, that when the Word teaches us that God knew of us, and prepared for all of us, before the foundation of the world, this is precisely what it means. This morning we have seen God at work in our lives, and a provision for a need that we could never have imagined - but God knew, and the timing was spot on.

When God provides, it is not stingy; it is lavish.
What He starts, He finishes.
When He says "Child, I love you" - He means it.

To coin a catchphrase (and with no disrespect intended whatsoever) - "He does what it says on the tin"

We have become so used to lies, so blase about spin doctoring, that it becomes hard for us to distinguish right from wrong - or sometimes we are so apathetic that we don't even care anymore. Satan would love us to believe the lies, that God doesn't care, or doesn't even notice us anymore. That we don't matter, and that all our service for Him is useless, pointless and meaningless.

But we MATTER - God not only has plans and purposes for us, but has made provision years ahead of time to ensure that those plans come about.

His name is Jehovah Jireh - God who Provides

A really old "Blast from the Past" says:

"He owns the cattle on a thousand hills,
The weaLth in every mine:
He owns the rivers and the rocks and the rills,
The sun and stars that shine;

Wonderful riches more than tongue can tell
He is my Father, so they're mine as well:
He owns the cattle on a thousand hills
And so I know He cares for me"

Pat's Thought for the Day:
In every journey this week - onto a road, in a relationship, through a conversation - make sure you consult the Ultimate Planner, The Only Guide who knows The Way Ahead, Because HE'S ALREADY BEEN THERE. He knows the way you should take, and has already made provision there. But remember - he will often provide "on the way" - not necessarily before you go!

Huddersfield...

Yesterday was a very long day.....

Started when the alarm went off at 4;30 a.m. (yes, that time of the morning does exist!), and we were on the road, heading for the M1, an hour later.

We were going on interview day (only they try hard not to call it that anymore) for Andrew to go to Huddersfield Uni in September. to study for a Degree in Computer Games Design. I am finding it hard (and wonderful) to believe that this is actually happening. For those who don't know, Andy has Asperger's Syndrome. It is a form of Autism, which means that he should be having problems socially, problems mixing with new people, and generally difficulty in doing things which are out of his routine.

Well, yesterday, he proved that he is fine.

He said that his reason for wanting to go on this day was actually to meet other students he'd be working with. No question of "IF i get here...." He has total faith that he will be here. He also now has a great motivation to go there, and is committed to working to make sure he can. He was happy to go and introduce himself to other students, chatting to lecturers, without a backwards glance at us

It was also interesting at the point of the interview. There were about 40 applicants, each with at least one parent, sometimes (like us), two parents, all waiting around for the applicants to be called in to go for interview. The first 6 were taken away, and the rest of us were left nervously waiting.

Except Andrew...

He took himself off to the demonstration set-up, where an eager tutor had given us a flavour of one student's work. It was a crude but passable computer game, shown on the big projector screen. Most people in the room just wanted to get the interview over, but there was Andrew, having a go at the game. I wandered over to him, and just said "What do you think?" " Oh, well, it would be better with a joystick, and this could be improved on a lot, and I would....."

As I stood there, I was full of peace - Andrew would be fine.

Absolutely fine.

And this from a child we were once told would never be able to relate to others, who would never be able to read, who would never be able to understand the perspective of someone else, and who would probably be locked into his own world forever.

But many years ago, God promised us that he would be fine, and that everything would be OK.

And it is.

And it will be...

Pat's Thought for the Day:
When God promises you something, there is no time-limit on when it will come to pass. If He says it will happen - then it will. In God's time, and in God's way.