Going about your business

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. Psalm 8:1
Do you recall a moment that filled your mind with awe and wonder?  Its one of those moments when God reveals himself . There you are going about your business and suddenly there is God....in the beauty of the wild flower by the walking track. In the beauty of the one bright red autumn leaf on a tree of fading green. A friend was telling me about the moment she saw the most beautiful butterfly in a most unexpected place. A butterfly with colours like she had never seen before and it filled her with awe and wonder that has stayed with her even to this day.  These moments are moments of precious discovery, discovering  deeper, our God, and they stir our spirit. Howitt wrote:
When forth I go upon my way a thousand  joys are mine, the cluster of dark violets, the wreaths of the wild vine.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ,
Anne, servant of the Lord

wildflowers by the wayside.

God's embrace

Yes I have loved you with an everlasting love, and it is in this love that I embrace you. Jeremiah 31:3
If I could paint a picture of the morning it would go like this: The soft light of dawn filtered through the leaves of the ghost gum, sending shades of gray and light through the window of my  room  as the wind played  with its leaves.  A Currawong, a true sign of autumn, called from among its branch breaking into the silence and as the dawn parted like a curtain to let in the light of day I hear God's call to 'come walk with me'.  What a precious moment it is when we realise that God is with us always, embracing us with his love, even when we wake up in the morning. I often say 'Have you been there with me all night watching over me since we said our good night prayers together?  (I sometimes think that is why I have an empty chair in my room, so he can rest while watching)
God's love, his everlasting love surrounds us always. Embrace it with him.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

God loves us with an everlasting love

All day I thought of God

Morning by morning O Lord you hear my voice. Psalm 5:3
My grandson, in his first year at 'big school' was telling me that every morning they say prayers and on Friday morning they go to the big church and he said it was there he saw 'God on the piece of wood!!' ( Oh to be 6 again)  He said: 'I couldn't stop thinking about God all day.' Isn't that so true. If we meet God in the morning he is with us all through the day. Gariepy says: As the grass and flowers of the morning are refreshed by the dew that comes before dawn, quietly from  above, so the soul that waits upon God on the first hours of the day is refreshed and nourished by the heavenly dew of God's grace. Besides the wisdom of a 6 year old who says he saw God in the morning and he thought of him during the day,  it is Jesus great example of morning prayer we model: 'Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up and went off to a solitary place where he prayed.' (Mark 1: 35) That morning dew of prayer is what sustains our day and keeps us 'God focused.'
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

God on a piece of wood!

Creative hours with God.

He was going there on foot. Acts 20:13
There are times in our day when we just want to journey with no one other than God. It might be a quiet spot in the garden,a comfortable chair by a window, or  on the bed.  My morning walking is one such time. Its a time of just 'me and he' alone, chatting, pondering, listening. Its a time that I feel God very near and the conversations are real. I ask him about the beauty of his creation, about helping Mrs Smith to get back on her feet and to comfort the lonely and isolated. Its a time to ask about the plans he has for me and how best I can serve him.  Moses was alone when God showed him the burning bush and his commission. Joshua was alone as he walked around the walls of Jerico  and  the Lord of hosts stood before him. Mary was alone when she encountered the angel who came with Good News.
I was alone when the Rosella in its suit of blue and red came so close I could have touched it and the Glory of the Lord was in it as one soft, quiet, blessing. So special, so revealing are the times alone with just 'me and he'. Journey with no one at some stage of the day and God will join you.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Morning walking . Central Australia

Talk to the shepherd

The Lord's my shepherd I'll not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures: He leads me beside still waters. Psalm 23: 2
I love nothing better than seeing a mob of sheep in a paddock. It says something to me about God. They draw me to biblical verses such as in Psalm 23 and John 10. Loved and memorised passages of scripture that have been a part of my life. Recently I saw a mob of sheep all in a line  and I was compelled to stop the car, get out and just watch them.  The sheep didn't seem to have a care in the word. Is that because they are cared for, have food, have water, have a 'shepherd' a farmer, who takes care of all their needs? Jesus, our shepherd provides for us in this way and I always remember a line from a Max Lucado book which simply said: ' If you cant sleep - don't count sheep - talk to the shepherd.'
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

Mob of sheep along  Cooma Road

Where are you.

God, creator of the ends of the earth. Isa 40:28
So many times we find ourselves in places of wonder. Wonder at the beauty, wonder at the creation, wonder at its beginnings. I recall one such place when I sat between the two huge 'centennial 'like cliff faces in Simpson's Gap in Central Australia that flanked the life saving water hole. I came to that place. I paused. I wondered as I gazed at the scene before me set in the arid red sand of the desert and I asked God.' Where are you?' and a voice from within the rocks said. 'I am here - within every grain of ancient sand. I am here-in this pond of living water. I am here - in the tree roots clinging to the rocks. I am here - even in the 2 meter span of the cobweb that swings gently in the breeze, its ends attached to the rocks by the silk like threads'. Friedrick Beauchner said: When God created something where before there had been nothing as the author of the book of Job puts it: 'The morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy. Its the sheer and shimmering novelty of things,' (38:7)

At Simpson's Gap

The most beautiful sweet song

Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.  1 Chr 16-:25
I could not resist the childlike play when I was out walking, stomping on the fallen acorns and hearing their caps crunch under foot., marveling at such a small capsule that can grow into such a big tree. I marvel at this like I do with many things, especially the sight of a flowering plant growing out of a crack in the pavement, or on a rock face. Or a tiny bird, safe in the thicket, singing the most beautiful, sweetest song. And  God comes near . Mary Oliver says:  When I was thinking these things a wren in the privet began to sing and I thought, what could this be if it isn't a prayer.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord.

an inheritance of joy.

The good person out of the treasure of their heart produces good. Luke 6:45
Somethings just stay with us all our life. Special things that are given to us  by family or friend and they are real treasures. In many ways they can shape our lives because they travel within us like a treasure in a clay pot. One such special treasure is the verse that my father wrote in my bible which was  a gift at my confirmation in 1957. It is from Psalm 119 V 105. 'Thy word is a lantern unto my feet; and a light unto my paths.'  While buried in my heart it has carried me through life.  John B Gough, a Temperance lecturer was given a text by his godly mother, which indeed became like buried treasure, for it lay hidden in his heart for many years.Treasure those godly people who have set your path in the right way.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord.

rooted in living water

Its roots may grow old in the ground and its stump die in the soil,yet at the scent of water it will bud and put forth shoots like a plant. Job 14:8-9
I looked at the tree stump in the ground of the dried up river bed . Broken and burnt from the traumas of its life yet from its base was coming this green, vibrant and healthy new growth.  Though unseen from its arid bed, it must have had its roots deep down in water.   Day after day we go out into a new day often with the same rhythm, the same movements, doing the same things yet we still carry a skip in our step because we know that deep down within us we are fed by the everlasting streams of God. Its a valuable mantra to say in daily life........'keep your roots deep in the living waters.'
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

Todd River Alice Springs

stopped in our tracks

For your steadfast love is before my eyes. Psalm 26:3
Numerous times in a day we have God encounters be they through people or creation. Sometimes they just stop us in our tracks  and we feel we are on sacred ground. Other times its in hindsight that we felt God had just been walking with us. God encounters. God moments. How precious. I was coming home from my walk and stopped to chat to a lady. She was taken by my 'Genna' dog. She patted her and talked to her and said.' Look at that lovely colouring, the waves in her hair, and her ears, those lovely curls all over them. What a beautiful creature......only God could create something like this.' I was in the moment of her admiring my dog, like a mother with a child and not expecting God to come into the conversation from a near stranger and there he was, right in the conversation, present.  Such encounters just lift our spirits up a notch and draw us into awareness.
Sr Stan says: 'God, teach me what is sacred within my day as I tread on holy ground.' 
 Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne,servant of the Lord.

Genna has a ministry of her own.

Suffer the little children.

This little light of mine I'm going to make it shine, make it shine, make it shine. (Children's chorus)
I just love the innocence of children yet they hold a wisdom as if they have been here on this earth before. My grandson started school this year and was very excited about that. He is enrolled in a Catholic school, his family wanting religious education , uniforms and all that goes with those principles so there he is, first day at school. I asked him did he have a good day. He was very excited. 'Loved the new friends he can make, loved his teacher, loved every bit of it. Then he said with double the excitement. 'The best bit of all. Do you know what that is?' I  said 'no.' The best bit is they know about Jesus. He is here at this school as well as at your church!!.'  I thank God for that timeless blessing that he is safe in God's care. How precious it is to nurture the children into faith. Life's path will have many valleys and mountains but the strength of the Lord will be their stay.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Baptism day.

glimpses of mystery

May all who seek you rejoice and be glad. Ps 40:16
There are many things in life that give us joy. Often we don't see them because we are either too busy or worrying about the matters of life. But what delight when we do see them. Yesterday a sulfa
crested cockatoo sat on my fence, staring at me through the window and when he flew off he left a long pure white feather on the garden, almost like a calling card, a gift. And I marvel at the long summer grasses that come to the very edge of the walking track. There is nothing much of beauty about them but tucked away amidst is a tiny pink wildflower , doing its bit to bring joy to anyone who sees it. And I heard before I saw, the bright green acorns with their little caps, falling to the ground from the great oak tree. I watched in wonder as they fell, one by one and wondered, if I wasn't there to hear them would they still make a sound when they landed on the ground?
Sr Stan says: Joy comes in little whispers in sudden unexpected glimpses of mystery.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

acorns in their little caps on.

you and God together

Every day I will bless you and praise you. Psalm 145:2
The morning gift was wrapped in the soft pastel hues of pink and orange against a blue sky. It reminded me of the colours of ribbon tied around a present.  I found my first words for the day were good morning, good morning, good morning as I reflected on a prayer  by Stanislaus Kennedy:

Through you I rise
and you through me
into this new day
we are making together.

Blessings on your day.....you and God together.

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

Sunrise on the sea of Galilee

no drum roll

My mouth is filled with your praise. Ps 71:8
Stillness is a powerful thing. Many things are born in stillness. Many things happen in stillness.Stillness is a mystery. For example I placed 3 stems of lilies in a vase, they were just buds on a long stem and then later that day I was taken by surprise at the full blooms they had turned into. Glorious, perfumed filled cluster of colour.  There was no fan fare, no orchestra playing the alleluia chorus, no drum roll, no shouting, just stillness.So often stillness is filled with God.  Sister Kennedy says: A flame burning, a  snowflake falling, bud opening, wheel spinning - the dynamic of stillness.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

In the stillness - a new day is born.

never underestimate God!

Let all who are faithful offer prayer to you. Psalm 32:6
I smiled to myself when I was out for an evening walk and got caught in the rain. I smiled because earlier in the day a friend had said to me as she looked at the weather map, (which showed all the coming rain missing our area.) 'Do something', she said. I made some comment like the prayers of 2 or 3 may be better than one.  As I walked away I said to God. 'Some rain would be lovely, send some our way!' Macrina Wiederkehr said: Rain fell gently on the thirsty ground. Slowly, carefully,steadily it came to an earth parched with waiting. Through those holy raindrops I walked, unafraid - without an umbrella. I knew it was God.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Parched earth...... waiting.

Come sit with me.

All praise to thee, my God this night, for all the blessings of the light. TIS 558
On these hot summer evenings I sit down outside and in the silence, think about God and all the lovely things about me. The beautiful purple rose, perfectly formed from a bud to a full flower over the day and a petal falling softly to the ground. The white cockatoo on the bird feeder, silently feeding and joining me in the delights of the evening. As he leaves to join his family  a white feather falls   silently onto the paving at my feet as if to say, 'here is a memory of me.'  And joy of all joys a crested pigeon comes and sits on the chair opposite me and just looks straight into my eyes as if to say I know what you are thinking about. In the silence we look at each other in admiration and wonder and I say to him. 'How is it you keep your feathers so neat, so tidy, so immaculate and as for that top knot on your head, I am sure you have a stash of brylcream in your nest, it sits so beautifully straight on your head! Ah God, what a creator you are, what love you have to share but Oh how it takes us moments of stillness  to see it it.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

Not a feather out of place.

The great I AM

He leads me by still waters. Psalm 23
Every morning at 5am I wake to the beautiful melodious chorus of the birds and they seemed to be singing in harmony with one another. I think God deliberately wakes me at that time so I don't miss this morning blessing  in the stillness of the breaking day. The chorus is soft, melodious, beautiful and full of peace. Its a prayer just lying in the bed and listening and I am  every so thankful to God for this mode of prayer.   Joan Chittister would say: Prayer is not a magical act; it is a relationship that calls the spiritual dimensions in us to life, that attunes us to the universe, that hears the sound of the great I AM everywhere.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

A sound of the great I AM

Not just any gate

I am the gate. John 10:7
There is something about a gate. Is it its invitation to go through and see whats on the other side? Is it a sense of mystery about what is on the other side, the unknown, the unseen? Or is it because in the back of my mind I hear the words of Jesus, 'I am the gate and who ever enters by me will be saved.'' Perhaps that's why I feel many a gate has a sense of invitation about it.
I like these words (author unknown) At the side of the road is a garden gate, which is always open, early and late....just over the hill and up along. And inside the gate is a place of rest where the host will give you His very best...just over the hill and up along.
Grace and Peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne,servant of the Lord

The Gate.....Come!

Everyday Genesis

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth........and all that is in them. Genesis 1 (paraphrased)
I marvel almost daily without ceasing at the beauty and 'magic' of God's creation of this earth.
 Sunshine and snow
 rainbows
 sunsets and sun rises
 delicate little wrens and BIG red kangaroos
spring blossoms and autumn leaves
                  and my darling little dog
                                        all is an everyday genesis.
Creator God may we appreciate and be blessed daily by your creations. May we see your face in all we see.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne,servant of the Lord.

Crested pigeons enjoying a shower under the hose on a very hot day

Lead me O thou great Jehovah

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year.; 'Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown' and he replied.' Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be better than light and safer than a known way.' (King George V1 Broadcast 1939)
Here we are well into the start of the New Year and I wonder where it will take us. I wonder what our thoughts, feelings and apprehensions might be as we venture 'into the unknown' There is one thing I know for sure and that is whatever is before us  all will be well if we hold the hand of God. I woke up today with this hymn in my heart.
Guide me O thou great Jehovah, Pilgrim through this barren land; I am weak but thou art mighty. Hold me with thy powerful hand. (Hymn)
Many blessings for 2018 as we go 'into the unknown.'  May we all be 'lit' with an inner sureness of the path we tread.
Grace and Peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord.

path into the unknown