Finding joy in the everyday

I have just finished reading "Mighty be our power" by Leymah Ghowee, 2011 Nobel Peace price winner. Leymah is Liberian and at the tender aged of  17 war came to Liberia and  changed  her  life forever. She witness death, her family ripped apart with many dying or becoming refugees in neighbouring countries, destruction of her city and the loss of everything she held dear. To add to her misery, she found herself in an abusive relationship that caused her much grief.  Her life was turned upside down leading her along a path of hopelessness, fear and despair.   But in her darkest moments she remembered this hymn which  reminded her to "count her blessings". Can you imagine being in a war zone or being beaten up by your husband and still wanting to count your blessings?  Our lives are so comfortable, we forget to count our blessings when they are starring us in the face. I sometimes think it takes loosing ...

The story of the author of this hymn is both sad but inspiring.  Joseph M. Scriven (1819-1896) was 25 years old, in love and to be married. The day before his wedding his fiance died in a tragic drowning accident. Heartbroken, Joseph sailed from his homeland to start a new life in Canada. While in Canada working as a teacher, he fell in love again and became engaged to Eliza Roche, a relative of one of his students. Once again, Joseph's hopes and dreams were shattered when Eliza became ill and died before the wedding could take place. He never married, but spent the remainder of his life giving all his time, money and even the clothes off his own back to help the less fortunate and to spread the love and compassion of Jesus wherever he went. At the time of Eliza's death, he received a message that his mother was ill, he sent her a letter enclosed with the poem "What a Friend We Have in Jesus".  Many years later a friend was sitting with Joseph, as he w...

Art Friday: Neil Hollingworth Hope you enjoy these very beautifully crafted artworks.  *****

Guest reviewer: Bets Life Management for Busy Women:  Living Out God’s Plan with Passion and Purpose by  Elizabeth George  For my birthday this year, I had a long list of books on my wishlist, so here is my review of one that I enjoyed! Elizabeth George makes life simple by listing seven major areas of a woman’s life and then going into detail about God’s guidelines for managing them. These areas are: your spiritual life; your physical life; your home life; your financial life; your social life; your mental life; and your ministry life. Reading the book it was amazing to see how although Elizabeth has separated this areas of a woman’s life, it is quickly obvious how overlapping they really are. I really enjoyed the fact that the first area that she covered the spiritual life first. Without this vital area of life being managed, there is no hope that any of the others will work as well as they can!  Elizabeth writes the book as a true Titus 2 ol...

A while ago I wrote about  Christians isolating themselves from what was happening in this world, literally placing themselves inside a bubble. This concerns me as only focusing on our ('comfortable') lives can quickly make us inward looking and ignore the plight of those far less fortunate.  We need to be aware of their struggles and not put our heads in the sand (but of course that doesn't mean going overboard in the opposes direction).  With this knowledge we can  pray for others and perhaps make a small differences to just one other person. Two of my cousins (thankyou) suggested I watch the " Dispatches from the Front " series by Frontlines Missions International.  I was able to borrow six of the seven DVDs and I loved them. They are excellent and I would highly recommend them to others.  Tim Keesee takes you on a journey to different parts of the world and shares with you the stru...

Oh! that gentleness! how far more potent is it than force!   ― Charlotte Brontë  Gentleness: 1. kindly; amiable: a gentle manner. 2. not severe, rough, or violent; mild. 3. moderate: gentle. 4. polite; refined; respectable. Gentleness  no longer popular, its gone out of fashion like good manners and being feminine.  Gentleness is considered a sign of weakness. Women who are gentle are seen as passive. Training a daughter to be gentle is seen as anti-feminist. Modern women are taught to be tough like men, stand up for themselves, domineering, speak their mind, be forceful, loud, willing to fight. You won't find too many gentle women in positions of power.  What was once  considered  a strength is now  considered a weakness.   Let your gentleness be known to all men. ( Philippians 4:5) Along with the death of gentleness, we have also seen the decline in meekness, kindness, caring, goodness, faithfuln...

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY So much emphasis is placed on the role of mothers in a child's life we sadly forget that dad is just as important as mum. Both bring special gifts to the role of parent and both are equally as important.  Dads shouldn't be away from home so long each day that he doesn't have time to play with his children. Dad shouldn't be so exhausted from all the hours that he puts into his job that he hasn't got time to read to his children. Dad shouldn't be so stressed with financial matters that it makes him sick and misses out on special moments with his children.  As wives and mothers we need to take care of our husbands (our children's daddy) so they can be the best father ever and create the most precious memories for their children.  Wives and mothers - take your role as helpmate seriously and share the load with your husband so he can be the dad your children deserve.  Fathers need all the support they can get in th...