Creative God

 Psalm 77 :14  You are the God of great wonders.

Oh the creativity of God. His imagination is beyond our understanding. As I watched from my sacred space I could see a flock of Sulphur Crested Cockatoos looking for a feast in the nearby cedar tree picking twigs, holding them in their claws and cracking open the berries that dangled from them. From God's imagination and his paint palate he has created these amazing birds - pure white with a sulphur  crest and I wonder why the touch of a bright yellow crest on an otherwise pure white body? Its like his paint brush has just done a 'swish' of yellow in fun. I love God's imagination and creativity.

 In the stillness and quiet of any sacred space God will reveal his awe and wonder.   

 May the God of life bless you and keep you today and always.     Anne, servant of the Lord.                                                             

                                                                        Magnificent.

Colours of God

 I come to the garden alone while the dew is still on the roses -  and he walks with me and he talks to me and he tells me I am his own and the joy we share as we tarry there none other has ever known. (Hymn)

I love the colours of God that are so breathtaking in autumn. In this season of mist and dew laden grass the trees are drawing our attention. Sometimes its a single scarlet leaf  on the end of a twig or  in rich red, orange and shades of yellow adorning the entire tree. Breathtaking, heart warming colours - each a gift from God. I hold one and I feel blessed. As for those already fallen to the ground they bring a lightness to my step and I can't resist kicking them up with childhood glee. Everything from God is such a gift. Today, hold a leaf, pause at a tree that's a kaleidoscope of colours, look about at the beauty that is in clear view and give God the glory.

May the God of life bless you and keep you todays and always. - Anne, servant of the Lord

                                                        Breathtaking beauty.

Into the eyes of God

 ...and to  know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fulness of God. Ephesians 3:19

The sacred space is such a wonderful spot to meet with God and reflect on things with him be it the beautiful magenta Pelargonium in the old garden pot or the glorious crimson rosella on the edge of the bird bath, drinking the fresh water I had not long ago added and that reminded me, have you ever looked directly into the eyes of a rosella?  Our eyes met one day and for a few seconds we were locked into each other, neither moving and I had this deep spiritual feeling that I was looking into the eyes of its creator, God and we were one with each other and God. Moments  such as this do not happen in the rush of the busy day or running between meetings or appointments. Moments like this come back to us with their original spiritual impact when we seek our sacred space, a space where we can deep dive into all that is and  has been on our journey with God.  

May the peace of  Christ fill your life every single day.    Anne, servant of the Lord                         

                                  
                                            God's beautiful creation

 

A lent reflection

 This is love: 1John:4-10

(God) 'You never stop loving, its all you ever do, a wild, unabashed, unbelievable love. Your love never gives up. It lifts and flings me into weightless exhilaration and it always catches me.' ( Clare Locke) What a description of God's love, a love that puts me on my knees and gives me a great sense of security - 'he always catches me,' wow! God's love for us is all of this and more. It's the love that holds our hand when life is tough. The love that walks beside us day by day, that watches over  us while we sleep and it's the love that causes the flowers to grow, bud and bloom into great delights that can take our breath away. A love profound yet at times so simple. A love that comes from the  sacrificed body of our Lord Jesus Christ.   ' Sit with me awhile,' says God   'and feel this love.'

Mane Nobiscum Domine -Remain with  us Lord.    Anne servant of the Lord

The body and blood of Christ shed for you.

Meet me in the early morning.

 Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our maker. Psalm 95:6 

'Meet me in the early morning splendor, I eagerly await there.'(anon)  I love those words because to me its the voice of God calling, calling, 'Come and be with me. Join me in the breaking of the day. Come.'  As I sat with God the first and only sound I hear was that of a small bird with a melodious call. It was soft, and sweet, singing its greeting to God  from a small twig on a large tree.  It doesn't matter where we are when we come to God, it can be out walking a bush track, or the sandy beach, in a busy shopping mall, behind an office desk or on  a seat in the garden.  I like these words of Helen Steiner-Rice:' I have worshipped in churches and chapels. I have prayed in busy streets, I have sought my God and have found him where the waves of the ocean beat.'   Where do you find the Lord your maker? 

May the peace of God fill your life every single day.     Anne, servant of the Lord.

A small bird on a little twig

Just be!

 May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord. Psalm 104:34

Mindfulness  is to me is the time I spend in my sacred space wherever that may be. It can be in my garden or  leaning over a paddock fence  looking at a field of sheep with the flat plains flowing to the mountains that  rise up  into a cloudless blue sky or pondering on a waterfall, free flowing and coloured with the layers of a bright rainbow. Mindfulness is something that comes to meet you where ever you are and it can be that special New Year gift to yourself  that can last the whole year through. What is mindfulness to you?

I read this Buddhist saying: Looking for the perfect cherry tree blossom isn't a waste of life.

May the peace of God fill your life every single day.      Anne, servant of the Lord.

The perfect  blossom could be here.

Treasures uncovered.

 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. Matthew 13:45

I was reflecting, as I enjoyed the early quiet and cool of the sacred space, about uncovered treasures and there are many in the garden as flower and vegetable seeds rise from beneath the soil into things of beauty and value and some are the real 'pearl of great price'  There are many treasures to uncover in daily life if we have our eyes fixed on our surroundings. Even a long line of sheep walking in a paddock towards life giving water can uncover 'the pear of great price, as our mind goes to the shepherd of the sheep, Jesus, and how he is 'living water.'  Then there is the long, regimented looking vines in the vineyard that  speak of Jesus saying: , I am the vine you are the branches.' and there are so many more. As we go out into community today let us keep our eyes and minds open to the presence of God. May he show us many a 'pear of great price' in the ordinary.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.     Anne, servant of the Lord.

I am the vine, you are the branches.

There you are again, God

 Let us see your face Lord. Psalm 79:2

The beckoning I get to go to the sacred place is so powerful of an early morning. Its like God says: 'Come, sit quietly with me,  open your hands and your heart and  take this day, its a gift for you.'  O there is so much to see of God from the sacred space today. The petunias of deep purple and those striped yellow and red (isn't God clever?) The glorious blue of a blue flower, the magenta pelargonium  and the fuchsias, always in a pose of prayer. The kaleidoscope of colours just go on and on. Let us see your face Lord - let us see your face.  Alice Carwardine said: There you are, again, God the creator. God of all beings. There you are again.

Jehovah-shalom. The Lord is peace.      Anne, servant of the Lord.

                                                Fuchsias, head bowed in prayer.

Wonderful creator, mighty God

 Have you not known, have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. Isaiah 40:28

Time does nothing to dull the awe and wonder of the greatness of God. Such is his creativity that at times it leaves us speechless - the acorn so bright green with its little brown cap has the potential to grow into a very, very large tree. The little egg in the nest that is anxious to burst out and be what its meant to be - a little bird, and the glorious coloured butterflies on the Buddleia bush. What a wonderful God we have who showers us with delights. A Rennie says: 'Let us seek and find the small joys that are the 100 and 1,000's scattered on our daily life.'

May the God of life bless you and keep you today and always.    Anne, servant of the Lord.

Wonderful creator. 

Christmas

 How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion ,'Your God reigns.' Isaiah 52:7

I thinks I have already received the most treasured Christmas present. One of the small children in church came to the communion rail and holding out her hand she placed a small red star into my hand and said. 'This is for you,  to remind you that Christmas is coming.' She is all of 4 years old. I read this saying today. Christmas is a gift from God  that we cannot keep unless we give it to someone else.

                    Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.  Anne, servant of the Lord.

                                              Plaque in the church of the Nativity Bethlehem.

God's love

 God is love. John 4:8

From the sacred space beauty hovers in colours of summer through the garden. The first glorious flush of the summer roses has passed leaving behind memories of colour, of perfume, of shape, of revelation of miraculous  openings - of joy and delight, and I think of how nature is full of  things of love  - God's love.

How does God's love flow into you? What gives you life and a deep inner  peace?

May the God of life bless you and keep you today and always.     Anne, servant of the Lord.

                                        A vase of God's love, fresh from the garden, to give in love.

Windy days

 Wind wind blow on me, wind wind set me free. ( New Harvest songs)

I thought of this song when the strong wind was blowing  the past few days and reflected on how God is present in every action of his creation, even that wild wind which we often dislike so much. I read this little verse by Christine Rossetti:

'Who has seen the wind? Neither I nor you. But when the leaves hang trembling, the wind is passing through. Who has seen the wind? Neither you nor I. But when the trees bow down their heads - the wind is passing by.'

Creator God of all things, there are some days when we might want to pray, just calm it down a bit, but then I think, others need the wind, and remember, remember, the wind of the Holy Spirit.!

May the God of all things, bless you and keep you today and always.   Anne, servant of the Lord.

                                                            We need the wind!

Look out and about

 For the beauty of the earth, for the beauty of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies, Christ, our God, to you we raise this our sacrifice of praise.  (Hymn TIS 137)

It was a pink and orange  and purple dawn that offered the promise of this new day. A new morning, a sacred time, when all things are made new and, as Annie Rennie would say, 'the world around us is full of small wonders.'  How true is that when I look at the garden that adorns my sacred space that is dressed in magnificent roses of many colours, spotted and stripped petunias, colourful geraniums, cheeky johnny jump-ups peeping their heads through every available garden space and  the beautiful colourful sweet peas are throwing their sweet perfume over it all. The place is filled with the presence of God. Joyce Rupp said:' Even though I know only a tiny portion of who you are God; I love what I do understand and experience of you in my life.'

Look out and about - lift up your hearts - for God is here in this place.  Anne, servant of the Lord. 

                                                                 Sweet Pea.

Pack peaches or grow an orchard.

Psalm16: You will show me the path of life, the fullness of  your presence.

Sometimes the people I walk among in daily life have no hope. They see no purpose in their lives and struggle to exist. I love this thought by John Gardner: When people are serving, life is no longer meaningless. We can see more in our lives than what it seems. It's like this: some people spend their days sorting peaches or cutting out pockets to sew onto pants and they do this all their lives and never feel the exhilarating sense of creativity that comes from within such as growing an orchard or  designing a suit for the pockets. The meaning and the blessings that accompany our life come not from achievement but for what we do for others out of how we live. Gardener goes on to say, if  we are lovers of beauty , then beauty will fill all our days and if we are committed to justice, then justice will drive us ever beyond fatigue. My prayer is that we all see more in our lives than what it seems to be.

May the God of life bless you and keep you today and always.     Anne, servant of the Lord

                                              A bird dose not just build a nest but makes a home.

And he showed his face.

 Come my heart says, seek his face. Your face, Lord, do I seek. Psalm 27:8

Many a time I would take to the walking track, not just to go for a walk but to seek the Lord and it is there surrounded with creation,  that I would ask God to show me his face. On one such walk I laid my request before him and then, right across my path came this most magnificent echidna, shy and nervous, hesitant but trusting as he walked across the path before me. Then, within meters of me, was a mother wallaby grazing, and from her pouch the tiniest face of her joey looked at me with great interest through long dangling legs. God continued to show me his face as he pulled down the shutters on the day over the  stone faced, magnificent mountains before me, lit in awe inspiring colours of the sun set.

I asked the Lord to show me his face and he did.

                                 As you go into this day, ask the Lord of no more, than to show you his face.

May the peace and presence of God fill your life every single day.   Anne, servant of the Lord.

                                                                   Mother and joey.

The aroma of God

 Beauty from brokenness, hope for despair, Lord in the suffering, this is our prayer. (TIS690)

Ah yes, the glorious roses have come into bud and bloom again amidst a garden full of countless 'God miracles' and their sweet aroma, the aroma of God, fills my sacred space where there is quietness of the soul, peace reigns, and conversations are had with God. Its here I reflect on the broken world, God's world, our world. Oh, if only this beautiful aroma of God could fill our world. If only it could waft over Israel, Gaza, Russia, Ukraine, Africa and all the other troubled places ,what peace it could bring, what multitudes it could put  on their knees.

 Take our broken world into your sacred space with God and pray like never before that God's aroma will cover the earth.

Mane Nobiscum Domine -remain with us Lord.   Anne, servant of the Lord.

God's beauty

Awakening

 Then their eyes were open and they recognized him. Luke 24:31

Sometimes I wonder if we are a bit like the disciples who were walking along the Emmaus road and were startled to find their companion was the risen Lord Jesus Christ and likewise the disciples on the Sea of Galilee when Jesus walked towards them on the water and as for us, we can be startled also when we recognize the Lord is with us and this is often a wave of recognition for me and particularly I sense this from my sacred space where I am surrounded by the beauty of creation and colour in my garden. It is there I see him and there is almost a 'thin space' between us in this real awakening.

Friedrich Buechner said: Lord, catch me off guard today. Surprise me with some moment of beauty so at least for the moment I may be startled into seeing that you are here in all your splendor, always and everywhere, barely hidden, beneath, beyond, within this life I breathe.  Where is it that the Lord catches you unawares?

May the peace of God fill your life every single day.   Anne. Servant of the Lord.

Here in all your splendor.

As they open we are blessed.

 All good gifts around us are sent from heaven above, then thank the Lord, Oh thank the lord, for all his love. Hymn by Matthias Claudius.

You can almost see the full buds on the plants in the garden  bursting to come forth with their colour, shape and beauty. They are little unknown pockets of beautiful colour and perfection, a mystery to us  until they burst and open and we are blessed. The sacred space is  just where I want to be these sunny mornings surrounded by God in all his creation and I believe that anything which  brings such joy and delight is surely from the Lord. I mean, just imagine the size of his painting pallet. Imagine the variety of colours on it. Imagine his thinking as he raises the paint brush to begin these delights for you and for me and I can almost hear him saying: 'This one is for you, your favourite colour and shape.' 

Oh thank the Lord, Oh thank the Lord for all his love.    Anne, servant of the Lord

Made by God.

Astonish me again!

 So we have come to know and to believe the love God has for us. 1 John 4:16

It is such a delight to be in the sacred space, in the warm sun of early morning, where the garden is alive, as Annie Rennie would say, 'with small wonders and ordinary joys.'  You can feel the love and presence of  God and his work  and as I gently touch the petals of the variety of flowers and encourage the new buds of the yet to bloom roses I silently whisper, 'God, you continue  to astonish me.' Oh, may we never see the things about us as common place and ordinary, but open the eyes of our heart, our mind, our spirit to see you God, in all things.

May the love of God fill your life every single day.          Anne, servant of the Lord.

God's beauty.

Gold, silver and grey.

This is my fathers world  (Thanksgiving hymn)

 I came over the rise of the hill and there before my eyes as far as I could see were fields of brilliant, golden canola, coming to life with the creative spark of God, even more brilliant  in colour by the sky shrouded in silver and grey rain clouds - the contrast was amazing and reminded me in a strange way of the Sunday school song, 'Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee.' It was Maltbie Badcock who said: 'This is my fathers world, he shines in all that's fair, in the rustling grass I hear him pass and he will speak to you everywhere.' - even in the golden canola!

May the peace of Christ be with you.    Anne, servant of the Lord.                                         

                             

                                                    Gold, silver and grey