The day with dianne Louise

2 Timothy 4:17-18 (MSG) the Master stood by me and helped me spread the Message loud and clear to those who had never heard it. I was snatched from the jaws of the lion! God's looking after me, keeping me safe in the kingdom of heaven. All praise to him, praise forever! Oh, yes! God is able to keep safely all I have given Him. As I throw myself on Him He is my healer, my provider, my reward. I am His and He is mine and I can trust Him to be gracious to me. I must prove His word and cause His enemies to become His footstool. As I trust His word and defy all that comes against me I cause Him to be Lord in my life. He must be Lord over all. As I take the word, hold it up to Him and say 'You word is great and I call it to play today in my life. Your word says 'by His stripes I was healed', the cross finished all the works required, there is no more I can do but trust You.' Today I defy pain and say I am healed, my God is not a liar, His word is true. Amen!

Genesis 27:28 (AMP) And may God give you of the dew of the heavens and of the fatness of the earth and abundance of grain and [new] wine; Abundance is sought and spoken in blessing yet there are principles that govern it. Seeking abundance for abundance sake is empty and futile and carries great cost to the seeker. Frustration, disappointment, sickness are a few characters that co-habit with striving for abundance. Even if God has promised in prophesy or we have a revelation in His word we cannot assume that we can therefore go out and be prosperous. Taking our eyes off the Lord will cause us to drift away from the fountain. However, keeping our eyes fixed on Him will keep the flow open. John 10:10 (AMP) The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). Fear and disappointment are enemies of blessing as are arrogance and self-reliance. Daring to bel...

Isaiah 27:5 (MSG) Let that vine cling to me for safety, let it find a good and whole life with me, let it hold on for a good and whole life." Grape vines are not strong enough to stand on their own and carry their branches in their own strength. When I was growing up my grandmother had a grape vine running along a wire mesh fence outside the laundry which was in a separate building. I don't remember my grandmother pruning the vine too heavily but I knew, even then, that it could not support itself without the wire frame. Vines are made to cling, so are we. However, we tend to cling to the wrong things, things that are not good support structures, things that move, things that perish quickly, things that consume us, much like weeds. If we finally 'get it' and learn to cling to the Lord and see Him as our safety, our provider, our life source we do well. A vineyard still faces the elements, extreme heat and cold, fire, hail, storm. However the vine will stay rooted...

Isaiah 26:3 (MSG) People with their minds set on you, you keep completely whole, Steady on their feet, because they keep at it and don't quit. This scripture embodies what Christianity is all about. Jesus Himself said 'seek first the Kingdom and all these things will be added to you'. Having a mind set is being fixated, resolute, undeterred. It is like having a magnet in the core of our being. We can be twisted around, totally disoriented but our magnetic centre finds true north. Keeping at it and not quitting talks of determined faith. It says 'this is what I am all about, for me there is no other way.' There is no room for being fickle, nit picking, negative. If God's word gives a promise then He has to perform as we hold Him to His word. We need to know His word so that we can bring it out and say 'God You said, therefore I believe.' God's word is constantly being challenged by our enemy, he will present it in plausible language but we need t...

Isaiah 21:12 (MSG) The night watchman calls back, "Morning's coming, But for now it's still night. If you ask me again, I'll give the same answer." There are seasons in our lives and no amount of constant badgering or whining can change the time and the season. However what we can do is assess it rightly and handle it correctly. For example relational strife can lead to separation or can be used to bring a tighter bond. The outcome is determined by our attitude, our humility and willingness to find truth. I am watching several relationships being tested at present, the commitment and willingness to fight for the future and the heritage are being challenged. Isaiah 22:4 (MSG) In the midst of the shouting, I said, "Let me alone. Let me grieve by myself. Don't tell me it's going to be all right. These people are doomed. It's not all right." I have a friend who is a real pessimist , he gives up easily and the outlook for anything difficult i...

Isaiah 18:5 (MSG) And then, just before harvest, after the blossom has turned into a maturing grape, He'll step in and prune back the new shoots, ruthlessly hack off all the growing branches. Pruning is a biblical concept as well as a natural concept. I garden and also enjoy pruning my bushes, especially roses as it encourages them to continue flowering. Once a year I heavily prune them, severely prune them because I know it is good for them. As much as I don't like it God prunes me. As with any bush there is continually an accumulation of dead wood, especially after a successful flowering season. Dead wood has to go. Dead wood may be something that was once a fruit in my life but now has to go as it has served its purpose. People are a form of dead wood and as much as we like to hang onto certain relationships there are times when they and us have to separate, I am not referring to marriage by the way. We must go where God is leading, not where our emotions are heading or our...

1 Timothy 6:20-21 (MSG) ..... guard the treasure you were given! Guard it with your life. Avoid the talk-show religion and the practiced confusion of the so-called experts. People caught up in a lot of talk can miss the whole point of faith. Excitement can lift us out of sensibility, while it is thoroughly enjoyable to be excited it is not a good place to live. If we stay too long we start to build another world made of lolly papers and sugar. Being a woman I know excitement, but being older I know how to not let it infect my whole being. Being excited does not mean I am on the right path it just means I am excited. In God, when He overshadows me with His goodness and I am blessed in someway I am overcome with gratitude, I prefer this feeling of thanks to any other because humility is there to keep me grounded. I have a friend who is bi-polar and I watch the mania take over as he becomes excited, not a good look. As a young person I found it easy to be excited. You would hear me s...

1 Timothy 5:24 (MSG) The sins of some people are blatant and march them right into court. The sins of others don't show up until much later. If we are prone to point the finger then perhaps we are the ones who's 'sins don't show up until later.' The meal of the critic is a plate full of iron filings. What demon did Hitler have sitting on his shoulder whispering insane thoughts about the Jewish race? What gives one human being the right to lift themselves up over another and judge them worthy of extermination? Do you have a noisy neighbour? Do you have a smelly neighbour? Do you have a loud and unseemly neighbour? Is your attitude being severely challenged? I have neighbours who constantly let their dogs out because they are too disorganised to walk them. These dogs run straight up to my front door and bark to incite my dogs, which they succeed to do every time. I have other neighbours who let their dogs loose and they terrorise the neighbourhood. I have a flat op...

Isaiah 11:3-4 (MSG) He wont judge by appearances, won't decide on the basis of hearsay. He'll judge the needy by what is right, render decisions on earth's poor with justice. His words will bring everyone to awed attention. A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked. I am reading another book called 'The Howard Years', my fascination with politics lives on. In the book I read many instances where Mr Howard (our former Prime Minister) did not keep his word. Conversley, Mr Howard's core beliefs about family, free enterprise, self- actualisation propelled him. He bears the title of Australia's longest serving prime minister, an ordinary man has achieved 'great' status. I serve one greater than Mr Howard, Buddha or Gandhi. (I understand there are those who I would offend by putting Mr Howard in the same line as Buddha or Gandhi, however it is to merely illustrate a point). Jesus kept His word, He knew the power of the spoken word, He kne...

1 Timothy 4:16 (MSG) Keep a firm grasp on both your character and your teaching. Don't be diverted. Just keep at it. Both you and those who hear you will experience salvation . I am surrounded with friends who are appearing to now walk into their future. I know mine is right in front of me and I want to be careful how I proceed. It is as if I am being challenged to wait for the unfolding of the gift itself and not rush in. My character is being challenged, severely. The above scripture along with direction carries a promise. 'you and all who hear you will experience salvation.' This was written to a young man, Timothy, who was in the faith and zealous for God. Yet, here he is being admonished to be patient and consistent. It seems in the bring to pass of any dream the are steps that must follow, sequentially, or the provision is missed or dysfunctional. Today I am applying my artistic skills to do a painting I have been commissioned to do. I have spent time researchin...

1 Timothy 3:16 (MSG) This Christian life is a great mystery, far exceeding our understanding, but some things are clear enough: He appeared in a human body, was proved right by the invisible Spirit, was seen by angels. He was proclaimed among all kinds of peoples, believed in all over the world, taken up into heavenly glory. I am sure that the general view of Christians is taken by those who do not know Christ by the behaviour of the noisy few who do not act Christ nor live out of relationship but out of some misguided set of man-made ideas. Yet, true Christianity is a different animal. For the non-believer I say look for those who abide in Him, live out of Him, act like Him , live in relationship with Him. A true Christian has all the power of the Godhead behind him, he cares for widows and orphans, he lives humbly before his God, he knows his God. Jesus himself said 'by their fruit will you know them'. Words alone are not good enough, what do they do? Is holiness arou...

1 Timothy 2:4-6 (MSG) He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we've learned: that there's one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me. Jesus was not accepted by the religious lot who wanted to earn their salvation. The whole of the old testament shows a mankind given the opportunity to earn their salvation, they couldn't. I know many who still try and insist that they know the better way. I have a fax, copier, scanner. When I wanted to know how to work it, I read the manual. The maker of the machine had definite plans as to how it should be used. I have a life and I have a manual. The word of God is my manual. His word is sharper that any two edged sword, it is mighty to save. To come ...

Isaiah 2:7-8 (MSG) a world rolling in wealth, Stuffed with things, no end to its machines and gadgets, And gods—gods of all sorts and sizes. These people make their own gods and worship what they make . Funny thing the above was written about a people thousands of years ago. They didn't have electricity or modern technology yet they still had gadgets. I love technology and science. I think of all the possibilities that could be, I have said for years 'one day we will fax parcels'. Science fiction is a welcome fit in my brain. However, gadgets and machines are tools to use not to live for. If I only work to earn money to buy stuff and my whole world revolves around stuff then it is pretty narrow, would you not say? Rather stuffy! There is a cause greater than accumulation of stuff, there is a greater enjoyment than the latest game. If we are herded into the carrel, boxed into a very small existence then we lose out on all there is for us. There is more than a diet of ...

Song of Songs 7:5 (MSG) The feelings I get when I see the high mountain ranges —stirrings of desire, longings for the heights— Remind me of you, and I'm spoiled for anyone else! When you know the best, why settle for less than this? Now that I have found my God as He wanted to be found, not as some religious leader told me He was, but the loving, ever present God, why would I leave? If at the core of my being is a heart open to truth, His truth then I will be totally satisfied. However, if I control truth by my broken experience then I have distorted it. Last night I watched a portion of an ABC show on the life of Gandhi . He was a rebel with a broken experience. Inside of him was a fire of rebellion against injustice. However, he interpreted the truth by his experience. At the base of a stature of him in the home where he was born was a plaque that stated truth, truth drove him but did he find the author of truth? If I stop short of meeting the one who created truth then I wil...

Song of Songs 4:16 (MSG) Wake up, North Wind, get moving, South Wind! Breathe on my garden, fill the air with spice fragrance. Oh, let my lover enter his garden! Yes, let him eat the fine, ripe fruits. There have been times when the Lord's presence has entered my living room and I have been watching the news. I have wondered why He came....just then. Should I have turned off the TV and prayed, should I have asked Him, 'what can I do Lord?'. I remember one time I was watching football and He stayed through most of the match. I wondered 'why would God watch football?' When He does come I am aware of intense love, pure love, 'no strings' love. We struggle with believing that God would show up and just 'hang out', with us, but He longs to. Being aware of the Lord and His presence is important, acknowledging Him is a courtesy, enjoying it is another and being prepared and eager is something altogether different. Yet this is His desire! He comes to w...

Song of Songs 1:7 (MSG) Tell me where you're working —I love you so much— Tell me where you're tending your flocks, where you let them rest at noontime. Why should I be the one left out, outside the orbit of your tender care? The Song of Solomon is a love story, full of unbridled passion of a young woman and her lover, Solomon. There have been many parallels drawn between the Lord and His passionate love for us. The above passage reminds me of my prayer, at times. 'Lord, where are You, what are You doing, I want to be involved, I want to be with You.' Passion for the Lord never goes unanswered. When I long to meet Him and hear His word, I will go to church and hear the message as if it is just for me, a letter from Him. Last night I went to a birthday party for a woman who had been in DivorceCare last year. The Lord had reached out to her and her children with His love. At this stage the woman has settled for another earthly man. As I read the Old Testament I se...

2 Thessalonians 2:1-2 (MSG) Now, friends, read these next words carefully. Slow down and don't go jumping to conclusions regarding the day when our Master, Jesus Christ, will come back and we assemble to welcome him. Don't let anyone shake you up or get you excited over some breathless report or rumored letter from me that the day of the Master's arrival has come and gone. Conspiracy and doomsday theory abound and as time progresses they are found false. At the turn of the century the computers were all going to crash, and nothing happened. When cataclysmic events happen, especially worldwide, perhaps like the weather at present they are plenty of doomsayers ready to expound their stuff. At the moment Australia seems to be melting, we are awash with an abundance of rain. Our water tables are saturated and cannot hold any more, our dams are full to overflowing our rivers have become inland seas. In another time this would be considered plenty, a blessing. I know far...

Ecclesiastes 8:1 (MSG) There's nothing better than being wise, Knowing how to interpret the meaning of life. Wisdom puts light in the eyes, And gives gentleness to words and manners. While wisdom is very good I think even better is having a blossoming relationship with the one who gives wisdom. Solomon oscillates between being wise and sprouting verbal garbage. Possibly the reason for this is he gave himself totally to pleasure of all that is natural and unlike his father David he did not know the Lord. Solomon's wisdom was natural, lacking relationship. He had many wives yet I don't see him mention friends. Physical beauty is only good as long as it lasts. Sexual pleasure lasts for a time but all natural pleasure birthed in good relationship is way better. The wisest thing I can do is love the Lord and know Him as He is, not how I interpret Him. I can sit and talk all day about God but talking to Him is so much better. Jesus said to the rich young ruler 'one thi...

Ecclesiastes 7:18 (MSG) 18 It's best to stay in touch with both sides of an issue. A person who fears God deals responsibly with all of reality, not just a piece of it. Ah now here is wisdom. A quiet spirit does not rush with the first piece of news but waits until the full picture is born. Again and again I have the intemperate come along to tempt me, incite me to react. I have to be vigilant not to join in the frey or I will later regret it. Do all things work together for good for those who love God? My bible tells me so in Romans 8. What is truth in my life? Some manipulating, mouthy , greedy person or the word of God? If God be for me..... then who is this? What is their authority? If the only emotion I give reign to is a sense of peace and quiet who can fluster me? I can't do it in myself I must invite the Lord and His strength to take me past reaction. I have a friend who is struggling to keep it all together in her own strength, I am watching her grow tired. Our ...

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (MSG) There's an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth Song: Hosea's wife - Brooke Fraser I just spoke silence with the seeker next to me She had a heart with hesitant, halting speech That turned to mine and asked belligerently : 'What do I live for?' I see the scars of searches everywhere I go From hearts to wars to literature to radio There's a question like a shame that no one will show: 'what do I live for?' we are Hosea's wife, we are squandering this life Using people like ladders and words like knives CHORUS: If we've eyes to see If we've ears to hear To find in our hearts and mouths, the word that saves is near Shed that shallow skin Come and live again Leave all you were before To believe and begin....... We are surrounded with loss and devastation, souls are crying out and time is short. How many will we take with us? Open our eyes and ears Lord, cause us to see what You see. Amen!

1 Thessalonians 4:1 (MSG) One final word, friends. We ask you—urge is more like it—that you keep on doing what we told you to do to please God, not in a dogged religious plod, but in a living, spirited dance. A living 'spirited dance' indicates we are having fun, rejoicing. As part of my daily reading I first read Ecclesiastes and Solomon is bemoaning the fact that he had built much, did much, pleased himself and found it all empty. Living for self is empty yet living for the one who created us gives us reason to dance. One of my latest discoveries in music is Brooke Fraser and her album Albertine. In one of her songs called C S Lewis she sings 'if I find in myself desires nothing in this world can satisfy, I can only conclude that I was not made for here...' Brooke has a way with words and a love for the Lord that is fragrant. It is her music that I try to play on the ukulele , note the word 'try'. I am enjoying the experience. When we really do 'get...

Proverbs 29:18 If people can't see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; But when they attend to what he reveals, they are most blessed. 'Hath God said?' has been a question that has been used over and over ad nauseum since the days of the garden of Eden. Self-doubt and others doubting are the challenges that any worthwhile vision faces. As I watched my son's determination to succeed and continually see 'the deal' disappear into thin air I had to wonder 'is he on the right track?'. Now that he has succeeded his sights are on me and now he wonders about me. When those we love suffer and struggle we worry and want to help make things right. Right now God is quiet and I know I am being sifted. Yet, I will wait on Him, walk with Him, stay with Him. If God be for me, who can be against me? If God leads then I can follow. I am happy to be sifted because I want what is right and true. I know that I am safe with Him. Amen!

Proverbs 28:19-20 (MSG) Work your garden—you'll end up with plenty of food; play and party—you'll end up with an empty plate. Committed and persistent work pays off; get-rich-quick schemes are ripoffs. I currently have a veggie garden and I make sure that I water it daily. I have an abundance of tomatoes growing, so much so that I have been able to sun dry some and give the rest away. It is a real pleasure to have an abundance so that I can bless others I have a cucumber plant that was not producing so I asked my knowledgeable neighbour and he suggested I cross pollinate as perhaps there were no bees in my garden. He was right, so I took a cotton bud and went from flower to flower and did the bee thing, with result, I now have cucumbers. This is a lesson in life. I can't just sit and do nothing, I have to tend my relationships, my business. When not producing, I need to look at strategy, what am I missing, talk to knowledgeable people, it will bear fruit.

1 Thessalonians 2:3 (MSG) God tested us thoroughly to make sure we were qualified to be trusted with this Message. Testing is something God is good at. God looks at the heart and knows it intimately more better than we know ourselves. We can live with illusions about our motives, our level of obedience, our willingness to follow the Lord but He sees things just as they are. During difficult times He watches our responses, do we abuse others, do we spit the dummy out? During good times do we take the glory, walk over others, indulge our flesh? How do we live our lives, what motivates us, who are we looking at? These are all gauges of truth inside us? Truth hurts but is cleansing if we allow it.

Proverbs 22:17-18 (MSG) Listen carefully to my wisdom; take to heart what I can teach you. You'll treasure its sweetness deep within; you'll give it bold expression in your speech. This is a foreign concept, listening, truly listening and taking to heart what is heard. There have been several movies, one that comes to mind is Karate Kid. Even this young boy had a mindset, that is scary . Mindsets are a part of us, they form through our early years and cause us to believe ourselves to be what we have been moulded to be. Rarely are the moulds a correct representation of who we are really meant to be. The challenge lies is breaking the mould and believing another truth. If we have been abused we have been mortified and our faith, trust, love have been badly mauled. What God does is come along, and if we allow Him to, He loves and woos us, firstly, gently coaxing us to open up and eventually allow Him to lift us out of our prison . He knows how to love because He is patient ...

Proverbs 19:23 (MSG) Fear-of-God is life itself, a full life, and serene—no nasty surprises. Fear of God is more a respect that He is who He says He is and that He is quit capable of being God, that is, holding all things together. I am learning that the fear of God extends to slowing to trust. Trust is not fast. Trust is found in rest. Trust is quiet, it waits for the Lord. When I see a glimpse of a fulfilled promise my emotions go 'Yes' and want to chase it but I have learned to go slow and let the Lord bring it to pass then it will truly live. I am reminded of watching a chickling break out of the egg. If I help it, it will be disabled, it I allow it to struggle then it is strong. As I let provision come to pass in the right time then it is strong, it stands. All the feathers are there, the wings work, the legs are strong, they can run, they can endure. Trust is friends with discipline and self-control. Trust lives with wisdom. Trust knows the provider and works with...

Proverbs 16:6 (MSG) Guilt is banished through love and truth; Fear-of-God deflects evil. For the longest time Guilt help me captive, perhaps it was my catholic upbringing. I was forever responsible. The enemy knew how to word the accusations so that they sounded like truth and I kept swallowing them, but no more. Now I can stuff up and repent and know that's the end of it. No more do I have a voice, with a long memory, pointing a bony finger at me saying 'it's your fault.' As love has been revealed to me, God's love, I have been able to see the lie. As God's word became real to me I started to see scripture from the view of Grace and not Guilt. I know know that as I run to my God He protects me, He deflects the evil intended to harm me. If God be for me who can be against me? Last night I went to see The King's Voice at the cinema. A powerful movie. King George VI had to overcome a stutter cause by childhood abuse. The King had a man who believed in him and...

Colossians 3:1-2 (MSG) So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that's where the action is. See things from his perspective. Yesterday I had a wake-up call. Last year I had a vision and all hell broke loose against it. It was tested, tried, turned up-side-down, heavy weights were thrown on it from a great height, it was stomped on, hordes of hell rode chariots all over it, it almost died. It barely breathed. I was ready to give it up, but........ Of all people God uses in my life my son challenged me. It offends him that I am still where I am when I am a visionary. 'Is this vision from God?' he asked. By his challenge I awoke out of slumber and knew what God had shown me had to live. The word of God this morning challenges me...

Colossians 2:2-4 (MSG) I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God's great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we've been shown the mystery! I'm telling you this because I don't want anyone leading you off on some wild-goose chase, after other so-called mysteries, or "the Secret." Our minds are enticed by mystery, conspiracy theory, intrigue, 'secrets revealed'. Sinful self-will causes us to follow any mystery other than the truth because the truth is so simple. We complicate the gift of love freely given so we can manipulate in our own lives, we seek to control God and others by our own mindset. We would do will to stop and face truth about ourselves, the real truth and then listen to His truth. Jesus said the truth will set you free. The only 'truth...

Proverbs 9:12 (MSG) Live wisely and wisdom will permeate your life; mock life and life will mock you. Wisdom is a choice, it is a higher road, it costs something, the laying down of self yet the rewards are great. This morning I had a call from a friend who wanted to complain. I have told this friend what to do in the past. Don't complain, seek the Lord that He might give you a wise answer for the offender. We have a choice, either we will let out flesh loose and let it whine or restrain it and go to the Lord for His reply. One brings death, one brings life. I was not prepared to eat death with my friend so I quickly re-directed her to the source of life. Complaining is horrible, selfish and destructive. Seeking God's answer brings life. We must choose life each day or our end is nigh. We must choose each day to allow the word of God wash our spirits and minds. Today I go to church looking for the power of God. What about you?

Colossians 1:5 (MSG) The lines of purpose in your lives never grow slack, tightly tied as they are to your future in heaven, kept taut by hope. Purpose holds me together it is fueled by vision and that is kept taut by the hope that fills me. I cannot back down, become slack, walk away because the more I know Him the more I am drawn forward. I am surrounded by all those who have gone before and who know Him. Paul, in the above passage, is writing to a church in Colosse , way back when, but because I am hungry for more of my God I am a part of what he is writing. I see the Holy Spirit in the words, the letters, the content, the heart of the message and I love it. As I look at Him, all things come together, all things. It is when I look away that disappointment lurks wishing to capture my heart. Away foul beast! As I quieten my heart and wait on Him, trusting Him, enjoying Him, He brings abundance my way. Yesterday after I had returned home from babysitting I had a call, 'mum...