Today is the next day of your life You have a choice It can be good. It can be interesting It can be wonderful Or you can cope with it or not Just because it isn’t what you wanted Doesn’t mean it’s not for you. A beautiful garden begins in the dirt. The destruction of what was previously there. The stones are removed, The grass pulled out The weeds killed and removed. This leaves a bare patch of ground. Then the planner comes in. He hears what the client wants. He goes away,

I’m walking in the cool of the evening, barefoot in the damp grass of a vast, gently undulating field. I’m wearing a long, white robe tied round my middle with a linen belt. I am carrying a huge backpack on my back, which is weighing me down, making walking a struggle, and I stumble frequently. My Father is walking beside me, he is leading the way. There is a stream babbling along beside us, cutting its meandering way through the field. Light is sparkling from the water as it

At the start of the year, our beautiful town was hit with tragedy. We all carried the heaviness of the heartache. In times of pain and shock, it is so easy to blame God and ask the question, "Where was God?" "Why did He not stop this from happening?" These are questions that are not easily answered. In my own life, tragedy hit my own family with the death of my sister in a horrendous car accident. Friends would say to me “ How can you believe in a God now?” My reply has alway

He sees you wandering and you're weeping, For He knows your heart, active, never sleeping. He stores in a bottle all your tears, He knows full well all of your fears. And each one in His book recorded, Awaiting the day, they’ll be rewarded. To the Father's help, you do turn, And see him, the enemy spurn. Know this for sure, God is on your side, His chosen one, His beloved bride. So, trust in the promises of His word, What you have been told and what you have heard. Praise him

Hello again! In the last few blogs, we’ve been looking at the subject of dreams and how, when you’re in a wilderness season, you can lose sight of your dreams. For me, the future became a scary, rather hopeless place. When you want to avoid any more disappointment, you will tend to shut down your dreams, goals, and any hopes for the future, and just focus on surviving one day at a time. That's what I did. I need to say at this point that, compared to millions of people all o

You hold me, and you know me You're ready and waiting for me to call You know my arrival and departure You have seen how I behave. You are aware of the poetry I write You cuddle me close and tightly You're aware of my learning capabilities You know that I can't outsmart you. You get me completely inside and out You're the search light in my darkness You personally created my shape 'n' form You're worthy of all my praise. You did not hide my character away You have my story al

One small step at a time; Taking time to meditate To hear the voice of the Lord Words spoken by the Holy Spirit A writer's gift given to me To be his witness in life In all I speak and write By faith, hope and love. There's a voice I love to hear The Voice of God speaks to me The inspiration for all I write Silences the critic's voice. For God's purpose, I scribe Telling of the good works he's done A testimony of his sacrifice When he died on a cross for me. Sarah Joy Holden

When you’re in a wilderness, the most natural mindset to adopt is one of survival. I talked about having a ‘survival mindset’ in my last blog, and today, we’re going to take that one step further. There is another way of thinking that is just as detrimental as a survival mentality, and which often goes hand in hand with it: a poverty mentality. These two negative ways of thinking are similar in that they both have an engrained mindset of helplessness. The survival mentality

Dear child, I’m inviting you to take some time with me. Life is so busy, and you quickly move from one thing to another. If your body isn’t moving, then your mind is racing with so many thoughts and worries I would love you to stop your hurrying and try and slow your racing thoughts and sit in a quiet place. Take a few moments and sit with me. Breathe in my peace. When we sit together, please don’t feel you have to say anything. Prayer isnt complicated. Just be still. Let th

“I Was Not Seen, Nor Soothed, Nor Safe, Nor Secure” is a deeply honest spoken word poem inspired by the four essential building blocks of healthy childhood development described by Daniel Siegel—being seen, soothed, safe, and secure—and a personal journey of growing up without them. This poem invites you into a story of restoration, hope, and grace through faith. I was not seen, nor soothed Nor safe, nor secure. I sought the treasure But could find no cure I heard try and

Hi, and welcome back. Last time I shared with you about a traumatic experience I had at a creative seminar I attended. On that day, I realised that I no longer had any dreams, and that hope had been banished from my heart. Everything came crashing down; I was in shock. How had I let myself get into such a mess? I asked Holy Spirit that question, and He told me that I had been living in ‘survival mode’. Everything I did was subconsciously designed with the aim of just surviv

January often feels like a year in itself(!), yet this one already seems to be moving quickly. Perhaps that in itself is significant. We are living in days of acceleration—days of crossing over—and the Church is being called to maturity. A Crossing-Over People The foundation for this talk begins in Deuteronomy 6 , one of the most important passages in the Hebrew Scriptures. These words were spoken to Israel just before they crossed over into Canaan to possess the land God had

The root of the word for wilderness in Hebrew is 'To Speak'. Wilderness seasons are not to be despised or avoided. God brings us into the wilderness so that He can speak to us there.

When the midnight meets the morning. When flora and fauna frequently congregate. When the land meets the mountain. When the earth meets the shore. When nature meets its season. When the heart meets nature. When the sun sets on the horizon. When creation breathes new life. When planets and stars align. When the wind fans a fire's flame. When a tiny seed produces great fruits. When the seasons alter the landscape. When we hear the mighty seas roar. When the harvest is in abunda

A spoken-word journey through brokenness, guilt, and the quiet ache of woundedness — yet it ultimately reveals the tender, restorative love of God. The shards of my shame, lay scattered and shattered, As I painfully sought, To piece together all that mattered. Those shards of my shame, The dregs of my dross, Sporadic and strewn, I kept account of my loss. I felt for those shards, As I groped on the ground, The needles of guilt, In a room with no sound. A room with n

Avoiding deception is about seeing correctly. Seeing with the eyes of Jesus. We can only see with the eyes of Jesus when we are IN HIM, otherwise we will see through the lens of human wisdom and empty philosophies. The Western church needs the remedy Jesus brought to the Laodicean church... to put on eye salve so that we can see correctly. Laodicean literally means people of the goddess justice. The Laodiceans appraised and judged themselves and thought they were rich because

I remember feeling sick. A stone lay in the pit of my stomach, along with a sense of immense panic. What was wrong? Why couldn’t I do it? I was at a creative workshop, in a session focused on the power of our imagination and our ability to dream with God. The speaker used an analogy based on C S Lewis’s book “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”, brilliantly brought to our screens in the Chronicles of Narnia films. In the film, a large wardrobe was the doorway that led to a

There are some good days They'll be those bad days Tears occasionally some days Smiles on the other days. Emotions don't choose the day Coming in waves, day to day There are happy or sad days Some more than any other day. For the Lord our strength He is our firm foundation In the deepest dark valleys Or standing on mountain tops. I will love on our good days I'll love on our bad days I will love you on beautiful days I'll love you on crazy days. Come what may, day to day Even