All tagged intimacy

Twelve months of Grace

My spirit adores spending time with God.  Over time my spirit has become increasingly alive and finds joy and God in the smallest of things.  There are nights when I cannot fall asleep because my spirit just wants to sing and proclaim His greatness, and many a day when I wake up already in communion with God, joyful and ready for the day.  This is not and has not always been the case, however, but when my spirit is alive I feel like I am experiencing heaven right now. I can’t wait to spend eternity with God and at the same time love his precious closeness here. Is it possible to live a life so alive and full of heaven now? Is it possible for heaven to be a greater reality here on earth than earth itself? ... 

4 Ways to Stay United

Now that you can see the prize and all the beautiful fruits that unity can bring, let’s talk about the price.  

My husband and I began living in community 5 years ago after moving from a neighborhood where nobody would talk to us! As well as getting to know our neighbours, we have gathered people around us who have become leaders of their own communities and students from our school of ministry.  There are lots of people and many leaders around us, who we work with and live life together with.  There are LOTS of opportunities for disagreements and misunderstandings and LOTS of conflicts and potential conflicts...

Good morning, Jesus, what are your plans for today?!

Good morning, Jesus, what are your plans for today?! 

My spirit was alive and ready to engage with Emmanuel and yet my body was still shaking off the night’s sleep.  I closed my eyes as my mind focused on Him and a vision appeared of a woman praying for me. Beginning to ask Jesus what it meant, the thought came that He wanted me to ask this woman at the conference I was attending to pray for me and pray a mother’s blessing over me.  

The day before at the conference, Isabel Allum had talked about waking up every morning and greeting Jesus and asking Him about His plans, and now I had, and now He had shown me, and now I was scared stiff...  

When doing the right thing is not the right thing

I am really excited about this new series because I am really excited about being in relationship with Emmanuel! It is what breathes life into my life! Without Him, everything I do is pointless, worthless, depressing, overwhelming, stressful and just hard and yucky.   Sometimes, when I forget I am in relationship with the Creator of the Universe it is still those things.   When I find myself in those moments, I find myself wondering how I can cultivate a walk with God throughout my whole day, throughout my whole thought-life and throughout all my actions.

What relationship-breathed habits and rhythms can I put into my day so I don’t forget the most important relationship I have, for even a moment? Yep, just a small task! Actually, so often my life has become about tasks which I complete, trying to do them in joy and so often not knowing if I am in God’s will.  Sometimes I wonder whether God’s will actually exists in what I am doing (does God have a preference here or is He totally content to inhabit what I am doing just as a father joins in a child's play?).  Other times I find myself living in a spirit of striving: striving so hard to be and do right, but failing to actually acknowledge Him and ask His opinion on things. 

When God makes me lie down

It is one of the most peaceful, satisfying and happy feelings to watch your child sleep.  After all the noise and activity of the day, to see them (finally!) at rest and knowing they will be restored and renovated in their rest.  

So why is it that we love seeing our children sleeping (not only so we can get a break!) but we think for some reason sleep is just a necessary evil for us as adults? ...

Journaling has become one of the main parts of my quiet times over the last month.  I had so many things I was seeking God about that I wanted to allow the time for Him to speak to me.  However, one of the main things He has said to me is to just lie on his chest and listen to his heartbea.

I am a doer.  I am a disciplined doer and I don’t just do things for the sake of it (having children and limited time has ensured that!) but even in my quiet times, I find myself trying to achieve something...