and a new day dawned..

Your  kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and your dominion endures throughout all generations. Psalm 145:13
 I wonder do we grasp the reality of a new day?  We wake up, we get up and engage with a new day but how often do we stop and say I am standing in a new creation, a new day just created by God. Its not yesterday, its not tomorrow, its just a newly created day for today. The birds are singing a new song, the frost is just that little bit thicker than yesterday. The last of the autumn trees have shed some remaining leaves and no one has walked today where you are putting your feet. Its not a new day arriving, its not just another day, its a new day created. I read this thought: Some days it is enough encouragement to just watch the clouds break up and disappear, leaving behind a blue patch of sky and bright sunshine that is so warm upon my face  that it is a glimpse of divinity, a kiss from heaven.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

A new day is created.

You are loved.

I am his and he is mine, here in the power of God I stand: (Hymn, How deep the Fathers love for us)
I   think these words make for a great mantra: 'I am his, and he is mine here in the power of God I stand'.Think of all the times you could grasp hold of that line as a lifeline, a means of strength or to express the power of God's saving grace. At a seminar I went to some time ago just at the foot hills of the Blue Mountains where peace and quiet, except for the 'ting' of the bell birds, was  so powerful and I heard a chaplain tell this story of a very frail elderly lady  with severe dementia and her conversation amid silences seemed to have no meaning. As the chaplain sat with her gently massaging her arthritic hands with fragrant oils the silences seemed at times  to be long and uncomfortable. This particular day the chaplain had brought with her a CD for background music. In the song was a repetitive one liner: 'You are seen, you are loved you are doing very well.' Then  the elderly lady looked up into the face of the chaplain and said as clear as the ring of the Bell Birds: 'You are seen you are loved, you are doing very well.'
Serve God with confidence in all you do for you are seen, you are loved, you are doing very well.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

The light of Christ shines in the darkness.

Not I might be, not sometimes.

I am with you always. Matt 28:20
It is so wonderful to know that God is with us always. That is where his peace comes from. I love sleeping with the blind open during the night so I can see the star studded sky. The glorious expanse of the canopy of the night and often the words of  the hymn that comes into mind is: I see the stars,( I hear the mighty thunder,) thy power throughout the universe displayed. Jesus said. I am with you always.' not just I will be, not I might be, not sometimes, not perhaps,but I AM with you always. How blessed are we when our thoughts  immediately go to God, in the day, in the night. How blessed are we to know his presence always. I recall this verse I read in a little pocket book. It said:
'O Jesus, make thyself to me, a living bright reality! More present to faith's vision keen, than any outward vision seen'
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Sometimes we may not see him clearly, but he is there.

I see him here, I see him there

You will find him if you seek him with all your heart. Deut 4-29
In everyday life there are wonderful opportunities  to catch the presence of God in the big and small things around us. He shows his true colours in the beautiful rainbow, in the magnificent night sky that leaves you in awe and wonder when you just stand under its canopy and look upwards. And the incredible breath taking grandeur of a magnificent desert landscape such as the Breakaways out of Coober Pedy where you catch a glimpse of the ancient. And then there is  the tiniest little wildflower growing beside the walking path. What a wonderful, glorious, spectacular creator God always before us, always around us, always with us in the big and small of our days and you will find him if you seek him.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Catch a glimpse of the ancient - Coober Pedy.

Awesome God.

Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds among mortals. Psalm 66:5
At times when we reflect on God there is no other word than awesome. He and he alone parted the sea for the Israelites to walk through on dry land, he and he alone created the birds of the air and the fish of the sea. He packed the flower with perfume and the acorn with a mighty oak tree. He put the laugh into the kookaburra and the quack into the duck -  and all that is beautiful before our eyes and we should find ourselves forever praising his name and rejoice with singing. Walk in the light of his presence and see, truly see, all he has to offer us. Come and see, come and see what God has done for us.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ,
Anne, servant of the Lord.

He put the quack into the duck

coincident or God?

Clearly you are a God who works behind the scenes. Is 45:1
Have you ever been surprised by joy?
Think about things like a chance meeting of a friend you haven't seen for ages or the phone call that was unexpected yet most welcome and the time you turned a corner and your breath was taken away by a beautiful autumn tree full of glorious, colourful leaves and the melodious solo of the Rufus Whistler, which draws you to just stop and listen and be blessed. Coincidences or the hand of an invisible God?
Lessin says: A coincidence is a small miracle where God prefers to remain anonymous. 
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne,servant of the Lord

A glimpse of God.

Trusting God

Nearer my God to thee,  (Hymn)
When I hear this hymn I often think of the little bird that sat on a tiny twig and sang and sang while the storm raged around yet this little creature held fast. What do we do in the storms of life that threaten to dislodge us, to cast us to the wind? Do we shout as the disciples did - 'save us Lord we are sinking' or do we sing in our trembling trust of Jesus, our Lord and our savior? Remember when the Titanic sank? The orchestra   refused to leave its post as water engulfed the sinking ship continuing to play 'Nearer my God to thee.'  What courage, what trust, what faith.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Stormy Seas.

Great love

Wide wide as the ocean, high as the heaven above, deep deep as the deepest sea is my saviours love. (Hymn)
When I look at the ocean I cant help this song rolling of my lips. I see  God's love as wide and as deep  as the ocean. We can look at the sea, a vast expanse of water and see as far as the horizon but if we were to sail to that horizon it will keep moving to another great expanse of water and another horizon.That is what God's love is like. You think you know how much he loves you - how vast his love is but then there is more and more, and more.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Gods love. Wide and deep and full of promise.

pearly shells

What are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them Psalm 8:v 4.
All the grains of sand - all the stars of the sky - all the beauty of the earth. We cant count it, we cant grasp its fullness and  we stand in awe of its magnitude and beauty.  Yet God says we are his greatest creation. Can you grasp that? When you look at things of beauty such as the  bold yet soft and beautiful fire red leaves on the Maple tree in Autumn that takes your breath away, do you realise you are more beautiful in God's sight. He gave us a world of wonderful creation for our joy and pleasure because he loves us.  O Lord, our sovereign, how majestic is  your name in all the earth. (V9)
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

Even all the pearly shells

My Lord and my God

The Lord is my rock and my fortress. Psalm 18:2
So many times when I visit this coastal town  my eyes have been  fixed on a huge rock protruding from the sea looking like nothing would move it.It was solid. It was firm.It was steadfast. It was a shelter place for the birds. A solid rock cant be moved. We can climb it. We can push it, we can dig around it. We can ignore it but it will stand firm. God is our solid rock,  a place we can lean on, lean into and he wont move, he wont fade away. He will always be there .He will always hold us up in the calm or stormy seas and that reminds me of  the childhood Sunday School song : 'The wise man built his house upon a rock.'
grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

The Lord is my rock and my fortress.

No exceptions.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, Jesus Christ, so that whoever believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. John 3:16
These words, O so familiar to us all carry so much comfort and power. They say,whoever believes. It doesn't say you have to be perfect, beautiful, complete and  are not excepted if you are otherwise. It say, whoever believes. I held a perfect rose in my hand. It was full of beautiful perfume . I passed it around the group of older, frail people and each person removed a petal until there was nothing left but one limp petal, a broken stem and a withered rose head. There was no longer anything beautiful about it. It was broken. God loves us all, we only have to believe. And what a message to take to the world. Pack that in your spiritual memory bank and take it out when someone needs assurance of the love of God, even if they are broken.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Beautiful, and packed full of perfume.

come fly with me.

The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1
That has to be one of the most comforting passages of scripture for life's journey. No way can anything be a threat or a risk when we know deep down we have salvation in Christ and his guiding light. We know we can trust him. Sometimes we might be in danger: he is there. Sometimes we need to take a risk in something that is on our heart: he is there. We need this reassuring passage of scripture to enable us to function fully as Christians in our personal life and in ministry but above all we need to trust its utmost truth. When we do, blessings often abound. Guillaume Apollinaire said this: 'Come to the edge' he said. They said 'we are afraid.' 'Come to the edge' he said. They came. He pushed them - and they flew!
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

Soaring high and free

And a new day dawned.

This is the day that the Lord has made. Psalm 118:24
Stillness and silence go hand in hand at dawn. There seems to be something mysterious and magical about it. Its a different silence to any other in the day and perhaps that is because it is 'still in the making' and things are slowly coming together in its formation like kaleidoscopes of colour in the sky and wakening bird calls and people stirring . It can all be dotted with personal experiences, with 'God moments'. Experiences like I saw this morning as I watched a single golden leaf fall from a tree, ever so gently, ever so slowly until it came to rest among a carpet of other golden leaves. I don't know what it was but it stirred something within me. It gave me a feeling of wonder, and peace even.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

Ever so peaceful, gently, falling.

A great millstone

If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. Matthew 18:6
I clearly remember sitting on some rocks around the ruins of the synagogue  of Capernaum and reflecting on its importance for Jesus as a place where he taught. I looked  alongside it to a very large mill stone that was lying on the ground. That image has not left me. I hadn't realised that they were so big and  this passage from Matthews Gospel came to mind. I looked hard and long at it and  prayed that God would keep me close to him in strength and integrity. Marcus Aurelius said: 'Never esteem  anything as an advantage to you that shall make you break your word or lose your self respect.'
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

It wouldn't be a case of swim with around your neck.

Certainty brings peace

In the Lord I take refuge. Psalm 11:1
It is so still and quiet at daybreak. Its like all the birds are still tucked up in their nests, asleep. Except one that sent a lone song  across the morning light. It is melodious, and beautiful and I believe its the Rufus Whistler. I read a quote from J.H.Jowett which said:  I heard a bird at daybreak sing from the autumn trees. A song so musical and calm, so full of certainties. No person, I think could listen long except upon their knees. Yet this was but a simple bird, alone among dead trees. That gave me such a sense of God's presence that I knew I was standing on holy ground and the space between  God, the bird and me was paper thin. It also gave me a sense that we are never alone even if we think we are because where we are, there God is also.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Sing a beautiful song to the Lord..

worship and wonder

 O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever. Psalm 30:12
There is a cactus near the front step of my office, just an ordinary round cactus that has some fine fur like growth all around it. It is nothing spectacular, nothing awe inspiring until suddenly you can see all around its top  tiny pink buds and a day or so later they turn into the most exquisite, most beautiful tiny pink flowers so beautifully crafted, so beautifully shaped and made.It catches the eye and draws the words on my breath to thank God for such beauty out of the ordinary. It somehow reminds me of our lives. Just ordinary lives that God has come to dwell in and change it from the ordinary into the beautiful. This quote from Lessin says: It is the light in your spirit that brings you into worship and wonder.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord

Beauty out of the ordinary

.

Christ is risen!

No one has greater love than this, to lay down ones life for ones friends. John 15:13
It would be so easy to now move on from Easter as we have had the celebrations on the day but in fact it will go on for more weeks yet and for now, its mingled with Anzac day. Two events which we reflect deeply on. There is the reflection of the ultimate sacrifice of  Christ and the sacrifice of thousands of  men and women in the war. I recall visiting the Somme some time ago. Heartbreaking, numbing,emotional, utter grief and disbelief  at the 1000's of lives lost and yet I felt a spirit of peace hovering over the Somme. Its almost sacred ground I was walking on. Indeed it was sacred ground.
I felt that day, as I looked  at 10,000 names of soldiers who had no known grave, of hundreds of cemeteries that lined the roads and battle fields that Christ was deeply  present. Because of Easter,  he knows our sacrifice, he knows our suffering, he knows our grief, our desire for peace and he is forever in it.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

The Villas Brettonneux Cross in the Perth Cathedral

Easter love.

God has poured out his love to fill our hearts, Romans 5:5
We have seen the great love of God at Easter. A love that caused Jesus to die on a cross for us, A love that goes on and on in our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit. But what do we do with this love?  Is it just within us to fill our hearts or is it there for us to share and keep the love of God flowing, a love that brings with it compassion and loving care and life that can be shared around, given away, 'hugged'onto  another.  Its  love with action. Its like a river that keeps flowing  and traveling and nourishing, a river of God's love. Its  not like a pond where the waters go nowhere, where the waters are like a dam, contained and held within.This Easter love that we have received needs to bubble over, keep flowing outwards and  sharing it with others. What are you going to do with this Easter love?
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Is God's love in you a pond or a flowing river?

Good Friday

So Jesus came out wearing a crown of thorns and a purple robe. Pilate said to them. 'Here is the Man.' John 19:5
Let our minds transport us back to a part of the world that throbs with the words and wonder of Jesus himself.

In the 1800's William How wrote this hymn:
It is a thing most wonderful. almost too wonderful to be true.
That God's own Son should come from heaven, and die to save a child like me.
I sometimes think upon the cross and shut my eyes and try to see.
The cruel nails and crown of thorns and Jesus crucified for me.

let us gaze on the wonders of the day and see Jesus pinned to the cruel tree, not by nails, but by love for you and me.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ
Anne, servant of the Lord

A heel bone of a crucified person with the nail driven through. Museum in Jerusalem

Seek God first.

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through the generations. 
Psalm 145:13
I was humming a tune last night that has stayed with me into this morning. 'Seek ye first the kingdom of God  and his righteousness.'(TIS 745) It goes onto say. Ask and it will be given unto you, seek and you will find, knock and it shall be opened unto you .  When I think of this song I am projected back in time to when I worked in the Pitjantjara community of Ernabella in South Australia and the rich harmonious voices of the aboriginal people at day break singing these words from their camp. Sung in their language with these timeless words that hold no bounds, no discrimination, no barriers. Every morning was a spine tingling God experience.  Having been given the gift of a new day how do we welcome it in the name of the Lord?  By song? by prayer?  Or perhaps by just sitting in the garden in the stillness with  God working the new day  around us, creating.  Any one of these will ensure our day is in God's hands.
Grace and peace from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Anne, servant of the Lord.

Their voices rang out across the morning sky.