The Memorising God's Word Assignment - week 1

Welcome to week one, scripture one of the 'Memorising God's Word' assignment. I'm so excited to be embarking on this glorious challenge. For a while it's niggled me that I haven't been able to quote scriptures correctly as often as I'd like, so when God spoke to me and lay this 'project' on my heart I was RARING to go. Hallelujah!!

If this is your first time hearing about this assignment you can read my introductory post here. Our first scripture is taken from the book of Hosea:

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:
because thou hast rejected knowledge,
I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me:
seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God,
I will also forget thy children.
Hosea 4:6 (KJV)

I personally wouldn't have chosen to kick off with this scripture. It just seemed too harsh. But the Holy Spirit wouldn't leave me alone on this one. I really felt God impressing on my heart heavily to use this verse as the starting point and when God tells you to do something let's face it you may as well do it. Of course you have your own free will, but His way is better than our way. What he calls us to do works together for our greater good, so even though we may not understand the reason behind what we have been asked to do, rest assured there is a perfect reason He has as asked us to do it.

So without further ado. Hosea 4:6 is this weeks memory verse.

Admittedly this scripture isn't the most comforting passage in the Bible, but then the truth often isn't. People will be destroyed for lacking the knowledge of God's word and ignoring the salvation which is available to us through the crucifixion of our saviour Jesus Christ. This rejection not only affects the rejectors, but also their children and their children's children

Meditate on Hosea 4:6 when you wake up, before you go to bed and throughout the day if possible. This is all in addition to the time you spend with God in prayer and reading the Bible. The aim is to internalise God's word and impress it onto our hearts, so we are able to speak life into our own lives and the lives of others correctly and consistently.

This assignment is all about fellowship too so you can follow me on Instagram and twitter using the hashtags #MGW (Memorising God's Word) and #MGWA (Memorising God's Word Assignment), where we can all support and encourage one another whilst we feast on His word. Amen!

The Memorising God's Word Assignment - Introduction

Do you, like me love God with all your heart, read your bible diligently but still struggle to memorise scriptures? Yes? Well this assignment is for you. 'God's word is quick and powerful and sharper than any twoedged sword' Hebrews 4:12.

His word speaks life into our own lives, so it is important that we are able to quote scriptures and speak His word into our situations and the situations of others.

Before I was born again I could easily recite secular song lyrics, word for word within a matter of days, if not hours *hangs head* lol, so I know I hold the capacity to learn God's word by heart. I know you do too, so why don't we?

How it'll work.
Every Sunday, for 90 days I will post a scripture that the Holy Spirit has laid on my heart. Throughout the week it is then our job to meditate on the verse every morning when we wake up, and every evening before we go to bed. (This is in addition to the personal time you spend with God praying and reading the bible). You could probably also write the scriptures on post it notes and place them around your home or write the verse down in your journal, if you have one and meditate on it throughout the day, whichever helps you to learn and internalise God's word the most. I also encourage you to pray to God for his help and his guidance to open you up to the power of his word, because of course the enemy will try and attack us when we are doing something that glorifies our heavenly father, but we have no time for that. 'Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?' Luke 2:49

So after the 90 days we will have a total of approx 12 verses that we should know off by heart. I may even throw in a quiz at the end so we can test ourselves. I still have to figure out how that will work, so please bear with me.

I'll be kicking off with the first verse shortly, so if you're on board just follow me on Instagram, Twitter or this blog and use the #MGW hashtag, so we can build a community, encourage one another, witness and testify to one another and above all share the love of our saviour Jesus Christ. God bless you all and LET'S DO THIS!

KCCM Castor oil challenge - week 5

Excuse the creased top.
Ironing isn't my strong point lol

Week five of the KinkyCoilyCurlyMe castor oil challenge and it's length check time. I'm enjoying this challenge not only because I love Jamaican Black Castor oil, but because it's really allowing me to closely monitor the progress of my hair growth and thickness.

Styling still isn't my strong point. On Christmas day I achieved my best ever twist out, but I'm still not convinced my hair is thick enough to carry it off.....so needless to say I ended up throwing it into an updo/ mum bun.

I must say I am definitely noticing a difference in the thickness of my hair and my length check photo below certainly shows some growth. That was exciting to see, one of the great benefits of all the diligent photo taking.

In the coming weeks, I'll probably be putting my hair in twists to protect it and promote growth around my edges and at my crown; areas where I've been having issues with breakage.

The end of January will mark two years of being natural. I can honestly say making this decision has been one of the best I've ever made.

It's too late to join the winter challenge now, but if you want to discover more about all things involving natural hair just hop on over to the fabulous KinkyCurlyCoilyMe blog here.

Growth

Friday reflections - week 11

My Friday reflection posts are a bit sporadic. Sorry about that. It's not my intention. Things seem to be so topsy turvy in my life at the moment. What's up? You may ask. Well a lot of things really. God is making some big changes, which although seem hard to bear are very necessary. And you know what? He is giving me the grace to keep smiling, rejoicing and giving thanks throughout it all.

In years gone by, I would have been an emotional, depressed, stressed out wreck having to deal with what I'm going through now, and that was without having kids in the equation. I am telling you God provides strength in weakness. I am a witness to this fact. On my own I am weak, but by casting ALL my burdens on Him, I can soar high like an eagle. Hallelujah to my provider Jehovah Jirah!

My situation is hard to explain at the moment because I'm still trying to discern it all properly for myself, but I know what is happening is for my greater good, so I continue to keep the faith and press on.

I follow some truly godly pages on instagram and came across this post from @godquotes which pierced my heart and I really felt God was speaking to me through it. Needless to say it bought some beautiful clarity to my situation. Thank you Jesus.

Without a shadow of a doubt God truly does bring indescribable peace in the midst of life's most crazy storms.

"6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
Phillipians 4:6-7

Seek Him out today, He can give you strength in your brokenness. All you need to do is call on His name and He will meet you at your point of need.

An amazing Christmas

Christmas 2012 was completely glorious. We spent it with the OH's sister, her fiancé, their son and Grandma.

They have recently moved into an apartment just a stones throw away from Canary Wharf and it is GORGEOUS.

Unfortunately the OH caught the lurgy, so he spent most of the time throwing up, drinking diarolyte and lying down. Poor daddy. It was a shame because OH's sister always puts on an amazing spread and the food did not disappoint. It was completely scrummy. I even fell in love with Christmas pud, which I'm not really a fan of but it was so tasty, especially when steaming hot and topped with a generous squirt of whipped cream.

We were truly blessed because there was a moment when we thought we wouldn't make it to her house. Our car is kaput, so I had to borrow my mum's car. We picked up OH's mum in south London, then the car wouldn't start and it was pouring with rain. We were all too embarrassed to ask the neighbours for a jump start, but thankfully after a call to my mum, the car started. At that point my mother in law said she'd sent up a quick prayer, I'm telling you PRAYER WORKS. In the heat of the moment I hadn't even thought to do that *slaps forhead and hangs head in shame*. Well at least one of us was on the ball. Thank you Jesus.

I'll leave you all with some pics from the day, can you spot the insane shoe collection? I always knew OH's sister loves shoes but this was something I'd never seen before, plus this was AFTER she'd got rid of 70 pairs 0_o lol....

I can truly say I had a wonderful Christmas and it really is the simple things, Jesus, family, love and thanksgiving that make it what it is. I hope you all had a beautiful, blessed Christmas too.

A pattern emerging....

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It would be quite nice to be here right now.

I'm not sure if it's just me (I sincerely hope not), but I have begun to notice that things get chaotic in my household as the school term draws to a close.

Admittedly my girls have only been going to school for two terms, but already it has become rather apparent that at the beginning of term I'm super bright and breezy, getting the children up early, having a leisurely breakfast, strolling to school and generally being well ahead of schedule.

As term time draws to a close, it's like all my energy has been zapped. It's a struggle to get up in the mornings subsequently I'm rushing around like a headless chicken trying to get everyone washed, dressed, fed, hair done, teeth brushed. It is such a contrast to how the term begins.

I thought last term was maybe a blip, but these last few days has been precisely the same. We've either been late or running to the school gates. It is a bit rubbish, but what can you do if you're completely exhausted? I guess the fact we're getting over this bug doesn't help.....

Oh well my youngest daughter has her last day today and my eldest tomorrow, so two weeks of festive rejoicing, good cheer and battery recharging should do the trick. Please God.

Melting hearts

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Last week I blogged about reaching out to others and giving more here and here. God has really been working on me in this area and the Holy Spirit has filled me with a heart that just wants to GIVE. I am a stay at home mum of three, but I can honestly say that I give more now than I ever did when I was career girl without kids and a disposable income. It's crazy to think that back then I used to want more, but nowadays I just want to give more. And you know what? Whilst I give, the good Lord provides for my every need. Seriously my kids do not go without. Don't get me wrong, we are by no means well off, we live in a one bed flat and the kids and I split our time between the flat and my parents home, but somehow it all works out and I am at peace, despite the situation being very far from ideal. I'm telling you it is only God that can provide you with that kind of peace when everything around you appears to be so completely hopeless.

So as I was saying, in my previous post I talked about how God led me to a home for disabled and mentally ill children that is virtually on my doorstep but I didn't know existed. I got talking to the director a few days later over the phone and asked him if there was any need that my church or I could assist with, like donating clothes, supplies, anything to support the residence and staff. He couldn't think of anything off the top of his head, but said we could come in and sing Christmas carols. FABULOUS. That was until my whole family and I got super sick with the winter vomiting bug..... *sigh*

Undeterred, I bought a few boxes of mince pies and a big tin of chocolates stickered them up with some messages about Jesus and love, wrote out a card and delivered them this morning. I got the idea for the stickers from this wonderful blog here. (Thank you for the heads up Jules. Jules is the creator of The Year blog. Another fabulous read which I thoroughly recommend.) The receptionist was chuffed to receive the gifts and I let her know they were for the staff and residents. It felt so good to do something nice for people I don't know.

As I made my way to the Home, God spoke to my heart and told me to make a similar gesture for an estate agents that used to manage my flat when we lived in Leeds. The relationship ended on a sour note nearly a year a go (you know what estate agents can be like), but God said it was time to forgive and make amends and He is always right. I promptly popped into Tesco and bought another tub of chocolates and delivered them to the estate agents. The guy I used to deal with no longer worked there but I explained the situation to the new person and said there were no hard feelings and I wanted to give the chocolates as a gesture that I have moved on. I wished them all the best and told them God bless. He was really thankful and said he'd pass the message on. It was smiles all around. Wonderful..

It is so amazing how God will change your heart if you let Him. Years ago I would NEVER have imagined doing half the things I do these days. I never thought of myself as a bad person and I always thought I was the kind of girl that would go that extra mile for people and although I would, I never actively looked for it or was fully aware of the need on my doorstep. Since giving my life to Christ, it is like I have been rewired. I see need wherever I go now and I so want to help as much as I possibly can. 

By opening my spiritual eyes God has revealed to me the areas of my life that needed to change in order to be pleasing to Him and it is such a wonderful revelation. He wants us to love others as we love ourselves, even more so, and that's what I am striving to do every day with His help and guidance. God really can change you from the inside out. He is in the business of melting and renewing the hardest of hearts. 

'A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh'

Ezekiel 36:26

His way sets you free. He is perfect. 

Thank you Jesus for your grace, wisdom and mercy. Praise your holy name forever. Amen.