January Day

A reflection on the way we look at things and convey our feelings about them.

It would be easy to look out from my sitting room on a grey day in January and see everything as grey! But, as the artist can see, light changes and brings many different shades of colour. The sky is full of different layers of light and patterns. Trees and shrubs and grassy fields and gardens have so many different textures and layers. I suppose you could call this “ a tone poem”.

I wish I could paint. It’s such a gift 
To look at clouds - a tree - a hill
Then squeeze and mix those colour tubes 
And brush white paper with such skill 

Yet I can use the shape of words
To bring a little scene to life 
So, sitting here and looking out
I’m reaching for my palette knife

The clouds are dense and mostly grey
But light is breaking out above
The hill beyond, creating wisps 
That fly along like little doves 

The hill is green, but it’s not bright 
Dulled by the greyness of the sky
Outlines of trees and bushes dark 
Create a mournful winter sigh 

Patches of white that still remain
From many days of frost and snow
Streak highlights into sloping fields 
Down to the valley road below 

And in my mid view there are trees
Dark skeletons against the clouds 
A patch of light behind them shows
Thick trunk in dark green ivy shroud 

The foreground is my garden view
A brighter green of bush and lawn
The grey of winter lavender 
The brown and copper of the thorn 

If I could paint a picture now 
I’d reach for yellow, blue and grey 
And green and black and white and brown
To bring the colours of this day. 

And so I hope you see by words 
The picture of my outside scene 
A January day, in grey
Yet still the many shades of green…

January 2025

Dear friends, it’s been a while since I’ve published a poem or reflection on here. I do hope that your January in this New Year has begun well.

I’m not very fond of the winter months. I prefer light and warmth to darkness and cold. But I draw comfort from the fact that days are getting longer again.

I do pray that there will be a lot more true Light in 2025. And I bless each one of you and your families to have new revelations of God’s goodness in the days ahead.

With love, Kate

Ladies’ Garden Party at Grace Church, Fredericksburg VA – April 2024

A special thanks to the Ladies at Grace Church – and especially to organisers Michelle and Letha – for preparing a wonderful Garden Party on 27th April 2024.
I was privileged to be part of it.
When Miriam and Doris and I arrived to help with some preparation on the morning, we were the first to arrive and the Worship Center was in darkness. It was a “let there be Light!” moment as Miriam found the light switch.
What we then saw was really beautiful!
As Miriam drove me home later she said, why don’t you write a poem?!
I hesitated ……but then said I would certainly think about it. Writing poems to order can be hard!
But this Sunday afternoon 28th I’ve had a go. Here’s the finished poem. Once again a huge thank you to those who put in such hard work and creativity to make the Ladies’ Garden Party a day to remember!

Garden Party – Grace Church – A Poem 

We gathered in the morning, when it was cool and grey
But as we looked into the dark, we saw a bright array
For through an arch of flowers - as we switched on the light Appeared an indoor garden - unfolding to our sight

The hall inside had been transformed, into a special place 
Small trees stood high above us, and flowers filled the space 
And on the white clothed tables, more floral notes were seen 
Such beautiful arrangements, in colours white and green

We went into the kitchens, and started to prepare
The banquet of delicious food, that later we would share 
It was a place of busyness, but with such happy chatter 
The sounds of preparation - the clinking and the clatter!

And then the giant plates of food, the salads and the sweets 
The endless trays of tasty things, that we had come to eat! Arranged upon ceramic leaves - an elephantine ear
Created for this garden feast - through its preceding year

Then - at the very centre, of this delicious mountain
The sound of trickling water, from a stupendous fountain 
With flowers all around it, and flowers at its base
We feasted on God’s goodness, and celebrated Grace

And later we remembered, the gardens in God’s Word
The places where our God was seen, the places He was heard
In Eden’s pristine beauty, where in the cool of night
His Presence walked with man and wife, in undiminished Light

Jesus prayed in a garden, the night before He died
Then by His tomb, dear Mary saw - a “gardener”- and cried 
And we await a garden, with everlasting Light
Beside a crystal river, where there is no more night

And in that final garden, where Eden is restored
God’s people will behold His face, as their eternal Lord 
Beside a crystal river, His Tree of Life will grow
Its fruit and leaves will evermore, bring His own healing flow

So thank you for the garden, where we could celebrate 
And thank you for the beauty, that those on earth create 
High praises to our Father, His Spirit and His Son
We shall forever thank Him, our Mighty Three in One!

Let there be Light!
Elephant ear platter – hand made with love!
Simply delicious….

Pursue Love

We’re back in Fredericksburg, Virginia, but many of you already know this. It’s now very much Spring here with a fullness of white and pink blossom and the bright yellow of forsythia and daffodils.

I do love this time of year with lighter evenings and the sound of birdsong in the mornings.

Prophetic School

Last Saturday morning we were blessed to join a Prophetic School at Grace Church of Fredericksburg, led by Dylan Standridge of Iris Ministries. This ministry was founded by Heidi Baker, who lives much of the time in Mozambique. It is primarily a ministry of God’s love to the poor and disadvantaged.

https://www.irisglobal.org/

Dylan has a remarkable prophetic gift from God and he led us by teaching from I Corinthians 12-14.

As he highlighted the blessing of prophetic ministry, and encouraged us to receive this gift and prophesy, he emphasised that prophecy must be a ministry of love.

While chapters 12 and 14 of 1 Corinthians speak of the spiritual gifts given to the church, he reminded us that those chapters are either side of the central chapter 13 which is all about love.

Prophetic Ministry

Dylan focused his teaching on the importance of always pursuing love as the primary focus.

”Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.“
‭‭

I Corinthians‬ ‭14‬:‭1‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/114/1co.14.1.NKJV

This really helped me to refocus my own understanding of the value of the gift of prophecy.

In fact I had the opportunity to speak prophetically to two people on Sunday evening. One was a member of staff at a diner called Taco Bell. It was a simple conversation, asking his name and telling him that Jesus loved him deeply. Just a moment in time but my prayer is that John has been impacted by that interaction.

The other was our female Uber driver, who turned out to be a Uyghur and was deeply troubled by personal issues arising from persecution of her people. If the Holy Spirit had not caused me to hear His promptings and speak into her life and the life of her people, we would simply have had a car ride.

As it turned out, the 20 minute ride became a time of personal ministry with each of us telling the other “I love you” as we arrived at our home and stepped out of the car. We were really blown away by the power of His Presence in that car!

Pursue Love

I also want to thank Dylan Standridge for ministering personally to me and my husband Roger on Sunday evening before we went out to eat at Taco Bell and get our ride home that night.

It was a great blessing to have such an encouraging personal word over our lives, which resonated so strongly in our circumstances. It brought such a sense of God’s love and plans for us. We could sense the joy of God’s Spirit as we received His words.

A Poem 

Pursue Love 

What is love? Ah, God is love. 
And we do well to contemplate 
The love He shows. The love He is. 
For God is love and He is great

We see His plan to bring His love 
To earth in Eden’s garden 
It wasn’t long before man’s heart 
In self began to harden 

A lack of trust. A fear of loss 
And we grasped for our will 
It broke His heart, but as we fell
Our Father loved us still 

Yet He is just in every way
For love must justice bear 
And so our God sent forth His Son
To find us where we were

This Son is love. He’s perfect love
Reflecting here true God 
Yet in the darkness of this world 
We cursed the earth He trod 

And so He trod it to a cross
Upon a barren hill
And gave His life, so we might live
And do His Father’s will 

As Jesus rose up from the tomb
Where we had made our bed 
He broke the curse of lovelessness
So we find love instead 

It wasn’t us. We couldn’t do 
What He had always planned 
To bring His love to earth in man
By His all-loving hand 

The only One who could do that
Was Jesus, God’s true Son
Pure-born of love to rescue us 
From all that we had done 

And what a cost. Oh what a price
To pursue that love on earth 
For God Himself has ransomed us
For what He says we’re worth. 

Pursue God’s love, His deathless love
Through justice, truth and grace
And praise Him for the loveliness 
Upon His lovely face…

Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!
Listen here to a reading of the poem….

Returning

We’re home in the UK again.

It was a long journey but thankfully I was beginning to feel better after starting some sort of virus/infection on 1st January. Not the best way to start 2024.

It always takes a while to adjust to the 5 hour time difference and the slightly damper climate but it is a blessing to come home and enter a warm house. Our dear neighbours switched the heating on a couple of days ahead of our arrival.

Baking across the Atlantic!

Home for me involves getting back to baking. Strange, but true.

In fact I enjoyed my baking in America, too, despite the challenges of a differently milled flour. It’s also home…

This morning, back in Shropshire, I decided to try out a recipe for a crusty white cob loaf which I found on the internet.

https://bakerjo.co.uk/simple-white-cob-loaf/

If you’re in the USA, buy fast acting yeast and use proper bread flour. All Purpose won’t work properly! And you’ll need to convert measures to cups unless you have kitchen scales. Just Google it!

Here’s my finished result.

PS. It’s really yummy!

Couldn’t wait to slice a bit!

Poem: Returning

As the dough for the bread was taking its time rising, I rested a bit myself.

As I did so, I asked the Lord “will You help me write something to express how I feel about returning home? And in the wider context of “returning” in Kingdom understanding?

He graciously gave me the first lines – which I was challenged to scan poetically – but I later decided that they were a preface to the verses that followed.

Here’s the poem.

And if you enjoyed reading this, please scroll to the bottom of my website page where there’s a box saying “subscribe”!

Returning 

Here I am again - 
Familiar place, familiar time
My heart freshly stirred 
To write down a rhyme.

A rhyme of returning 
And finding things well 
For praising my Saviour - 
A poem to tell..

To tell of His goodness to tell of His love
To tell of His Presence, come down from above
To live with His people, to tell them “draw near” 
For He is returning - His Kingdom is here 

Yes, He is returning. He comes when we seek 
He comes as we listen, for He comes to speak
His Words have His Life and He wants us to live 
And when we receive Him, His Life freely give

And so the familiar becomes something new 
Returning is joy filled when we come to You 
Eternally changing, yet ever the same 
Our present is held in the power of Your Name

And into the future where You hold us,too
A place still unseen, but safe within You 
Yet now - as we live out our lives here today -
We’re called to “ascend”, to be with You and pray.

You come down. We ascend. There’s mystery there
But all is expressed on the wing of a prayer
For we are returning - to You by Your Spirit  
And You are returning - for those who inherit

Your Kingdom. Your glory. Your will brought to earth.
Your sons and your daughters by heavenly birth
And - when we are turning from unholy things -
You give us a priesthood anointed for kings

Yes, You are returning and we long for You
We’ll see the clouds open in breathtaking view 
A brilliance of glory, a dazzling array 
As You lead the armies of Heaven’s new day!



All the glory, honour and worship belong to you - O, Lord God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - now and forever! 

I began this blog/website a few years ago now. I wanted to find a way to publish the poetry that the Holy Spirit has been graciously inspiring me to write since 2020. 

If it was indeed a gift from God then it was meant to be shared. 

So, if you would like to receive the blog when I post it, please go to the subscribe button at the bottom of the 
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www.poems-and-reflections.com

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Thank you, dear reader.

A Christmas Reflection and Poem

This Christmas 2023 Roger and I are in the USA. It’s become our second home now. A big thank you to our new and special friends here!

And a big thank you to all our dear friends and family at home in the UK, too.

We are blessed to have you all.

As we would have difficulty sending cards this year, we decided to make a video together. It started with me writing a poem. For us it had to be about the true meaning of Christmas, even though this season is largely a secular holiday now.

Many Christians believe that Jesus was probably not born in the month of December….more likely in September or October.

Christmas in December was a replacement for a pagan winter festival and it seems to be returning to its roots.

However, there are many who still say that “Jesus is the reason for the season!”

Here is the link to the video we have made to celebrate this season and to send our Christmas love and blessings to you all. The words following the video are the script, based on selected Gospel accounts and my poem.

May 2024 bring new blessings to us all.

The Christmas Story

The Christmas Story

The Magi

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.

Matthew 2:1-2

The Shepherds

And there were shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. This will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.’

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.’ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.”

Luke 2: 8-16

A Christmas Poem 

As I reflect this Christmas and worship who You are
I think about the Magi and that bright shining star
Wise men set out to follow and make a journey long
The sky was dark and full of stars, but one star sang Your song

Then, in some fields, near Bethlehem,great singing filled the air
The brilliance of angels - God’s host had gathered there
Where shepherds heard amazing things, as music to their ears
And left their sheep to journey, in spite of all their fears 

So, to both wise and simple, God’s signs were in His sky 
By sight and sound for all to know His glory coming nigh
And, in a darkened stable, God’s Word had come to earth 
His Light and Love were shining forth the glory of His birth 

A birth of great redemption, to free the hearts of men 
From all their darkened thinking, so they could live again 
As if in Eden’s garden, where once with God man dwelt 
Their God had come again to earth - and so the humble knelt 

They knelt in adoration - yet he was so, so small 
A weak and helpless baby - one born to save us all 
How could this gentle Mary, with Joseph at her side
Know in her heart that He was God, while in her arms He cried

She nursed our world’s Redeemer and called You by Your Name
Jesus, Jesus, she loved You - she couldn’t be the same
Once she had looked into Your eyes and tried to understand
What majesty she’d brought to birth by God’s Almighty Hand

Oh Father, perfect Father, we thank You for Your Son
Your Word who spoke this world to life, before it had begun
The Magi recognised Him, the shepherds bowed the knee 
Your Word made Flesh in Jesus for all the world to see

And so we, too, adore Him and open up our hearts 
That we might still receive the Life that He alone imparts 
Oh Jesus - please forgive us, for we have gone astray 
Come once again Lord Jesus - come to our world today.

Jesus – God’s Living Word

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 1:1-5, 14

God’s Heart

Alignment

During the last month I have been consciously aligned with Israel. The Jewish New Year began on 15th September 2023…the year 5784 in Israel’s chronology. Why I have sensed this increased identification with her High and Holy days I am not sure. Except that it may be the Spirit of God, Israel’s Jehovah, who has drawn me. I was born in 1948; the same year that modern Israel was born. When I was truly born again in Jesus in 1990, I was immediately spiritually aware of the importance of Israel and her spiritual significance in the earth today.

Two Poems: Yom Kippur & The Heart of God

YOm kippur

I was in Kefalonia, Greece on Yom Kippur. This most Holy day for the Jewish people is the Day of Atonement. This year it was from sundown on 24th September to sundown on the 25th.

Atonement is about Israel’s collective awareness of sin; sin against their Most Holy God. All have sinned and fallen short of God’s holiness. The day called Yom Kippur is about repentance – personally and as a nation -and remembering the atoning sacrifices that used to be made by the priests for those sins; cleansing away the stains of sin for the year ahead.

The poem I wrote on Yom Kippur was my thankful response for the once and for all sacrifice of Jesus, the Messiah of Israel, who has not yet been recognised as such by most Jews alive today.

Jesus is my Saviour; the One who has rescued and redeemed me from sin and death and brought me into God’s Kingdom of eternal life, through His personal sacrifice of Himself on the cross some 2000 years ago. He is my Messiah by inheritance. Though I am not of the Jewish line, yet He has grafted me in to the rootstock of God’s people Israel, by His own blood sacrifice. This is my poem:

Thank You, Lord: On Yom Kippur 

You are worthy of all honour, glory and worship. 
You created all things. 
You sustain all things. 
You are the Lord of Love and Life. 

Glory is Your hallmark, Glory is Your Name 
There’s no honour great enough, for You are not the same 
You’re greater than creation, You’re Holy and You’re Other 
And yet You breathed Your life in us; gave Jesus as our brother 

To us who now believe in Him, Your pure and perfect Son 
You give Your Spirit freely, and in Him make us one 
One with your own perfection, one with Your glory here 
We give You all our worship; You call us to draw near 

If we were not in Jesus, we dare not seek Your Face 
For Holy is Your Countenance and we approach by grace 
The grace of His atonement, Your pure and perfect Lamb 
That sacrifice in blood was made by Him who is I AM 

And now on this most Holy Day, as we remember sin 
We grieve that we have been the ones who brought the darkness in 
So, as we thank You, Holy God, for brilliance of Light 
We worship You as David did - and dance with all our might! 

Originally written on Yom Kippur 24/5 September 2023

The Heart of God

After the Day of Atonement there follows, a few days later, the seven days of Sukkot – the Feast of Tabernacles – a time of rejoicing for the Jewish people. And, at the end of that week, a further two days holiday of rest and happiness. God’s Word – in the law given to Moses -is also celebrated.

It was at this latter time that the horror attack was perpetrated against the Jewish people in their homeland. Terrible reports of unspeakable atrocities; the worst since the Holocaust. Israel is in shock. The world is challenged. Christians and Jews, who pray to the same God, are crying out for justice, help, mercy. The whole earth is shaken. War is declared. Innocent people – children and babies included – are dead, injured and suffering.

We are all still in shock. Today, as I was joining with other Christians throughout the world, asking the Holy Spirit of God how to pray, I started to write a poem. I’ve finished a few verses. This is my way of trying to understand how to align with Jesus, in God’s own heart, to pray for God’s people Israel and, indeed, for the world in which I live.

The Heart of God

Your heart is not divided, Your heart is always One
You love this world we live in - as Father, Spirit, Son -
You hate the sin we perpetrate; the sin that stains this earth
You give us everything You are; that we might have new birth

And in the bloody conflict, when hatred fills man’s heart
Jesus we look upon Your cross - salvation You impart 
Your blood atones for everything and shows the power of love
The perfect love of sacrifice; our Father’s heart above

And so today we seek Your heart, to show us how to pray 
We ask for revelation - Your wisdom for this day 
Speak Light into great darkness; bind evil, horror, fear 
We ask for hearts of righteousness, to loose Your Kingdom here

September Song

What an amazing blessing to have a sudden reprise of summer as the season is about to change!

I’m sitting in my garden enjoying the sunshine and the stillness of late afternoon.

View from my garden chair

I actually began this poem a few days ago, before the weather changed. As I wrote the poem I was consciously holding on to summer, not wanting it to pass prematurely…

So here’s the poem plus some photos to go with it. 

September Song - Shropshire, 2023

September is now here again; a change up in the season
But my garden still displays creative rhyme and reason
Though summer is now passing, for days are autumn bound
Here everything is singing, with a September sound

Our God ordains the seasons and marks them with His time
And He selects the rhythms and He notates the rhyme
The flowers are still growing; fruit ripens on the trees
The butterfly still dances and hums precede the bees 

We note the chilly mornings and dew drops on the grass
The sun is slow arising; we wait for clouds to pass
It’s taking time to warm now, we clothe against the chill
But, as the sun climbs higher, we feel it’s summer still

A symphony of movements, the seasons sing a song
And notes begin to soften when this month comes along
A tempo change expected, as summer time must pass 
When music will drip mellowness as mists upon the grass 

Let’s thank God for September, it’s full of its own tune 
We won’t drag autumn in just yet; don’t bring it in too soon 
Enjoy the muted summer sounds, sustained upon the breeze
And note the green of leaves -still fresh -on flowers and on trees

So this is my September song, while sunshine gilds the days
I’ll hold the notes of summer still, through early morning haze
I’ll give God all the glory for beautiful key changes
And thank Him for His music, which heaven still arranges

Then just as I had written this, some warmer notes arrived
The sun rose bright and golden, in blue and cloud soft skies
An encore of hot summer days - with breezes light and sweet  
And all the flowers clapped their hands and danced to a new beat!
Roses in September
Light and shade
Anemones

Relationship

Relationship is central to who we are. We were created to be in relationship – with God – first and foremost – and with each other, too.

Family in God

Yesterday Roger and I watched and listened online to a service from Grace Church in Fredericksburg, Virginia. It is our home church when we are living in the USA. The Family Pastor spoke on why believers need to be connected; each of us as part of the Body of Christ on earth – God’s own family. His words, based on Romans 12:3-8 moved me very deeply.

I was moved, because I knew deep within me, by His Spirit, that the Lord is calling His family on earth together even more closely for the seasons ahead. So, for me, the message wasn’t just teaching – it was prophetic. We will – if we enter in as His people – be connected at even deeper levels in His love.

Estrangement from family

Estrangement is very, very sad. I read an article this morning about the dislocation that is occurring in our UK Royal Family right now between two brothers and their father and the wider family. It’s constantly in the news.

Estrangement is a pain that we know well in our own personal families; separated from the ones who don’t believe in the God of forgiveness and grace who we know and also fundamentally don’t like the truth of the Spirit who dwells in us.

Jesus brings separation and division

Some years ago, when feeling the deep sadness that estrangement from those we love brings, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit of prophetic words spoken by Jesus and recorded in Matthew’s gospel:

Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.

Matthew 10:34

I wrote a poem some time ago called the Sword of Separation:

The Sword of Separation

The sword of separation
So painful, yet of God
To bring about division
On earth, where man has trod

Through centuries of compromise -
Of holding things together -
Suddenly life falls apart
In very stormy weather.

The sword has cut right through now
The split is clearly seen 
And Truth and Justice are twin blades
On which man vents his spleen

"My truth is right. I'll rule the roost"
There's no objective line.
But there is One Who watches man
And has earth's grand design.

And God who sits in heaven
Allows man in his pride 
To suffer consequences
That once He held aside 

The sword of separation
His sword of Truth and Love 
Has come upon the nations 
Through Jesus Christ above

And through His great division
Great houses will now fall 
Yet many will confess the Truth
That Christ is Lord of all!

18th February,2021

As I have been writing this post today I have been led by Holy Spirit to dwell further on the way that our loss of connectedness and relationship is part of the division that we are experiencing on earth through the cultures of peoples and nations who have rejected God; His Love and His Truth and Justice.

And I also found these words in Luke’s gospel which speak not of a sword but of fire! And these words are clear: Jesus says that He came to bring division on earth, rather than peace…

I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed! Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.

From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three.


‭‭They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’”
‭

‬‬Luke‬ ‭12‬:‭49‬-‭53 NIVUK‬‬

Reconciliation and restoration

While Jesus is clear that there will be both separation and division when He is present with His sword and His fire, He also talks about His Father’s heart of love which feels the pain of estrangement through broken relationship. Luke records what Jesus said in Chapter 15: 11 – 31

Jesus told us about the sadness a Father felt at the loss of a profligate son and then the joy that He demonstrated when that lost son ultimately decided that he couldn’t live at peace without his Father and the blessings of his family home and returned. The son is described as a prodigal – one who had previously been in relationship as a true son of his Father, but who had taken his family inheritance early and squandered it by deciding to follow the ways of the world instead.

His Father – who was constantly watching out for his return – ran to meet him, spotting him when he was still a distance away. Their hearts met. There was repentance followed by great joy and celebration – but quickly followed by another sadness, too, when the elder brother estranged himself from his family through his own bitterness, envy and resentment of his younger brother being so lavishly restored to the family fold.

True forgiveness

I believe that the hardest steps in reconciling with someone are swallowing personal pride and being willing to forgive and be forgiven. This is very difficult, especially when we believe we have been justified in our actions and we have been deeply wounded by the other person. I also believe that it’s not actually possible to have true depth of reconciliation without Jesus, because we cannot truly forgive in our own strength but only through the forgiveness Jesus purchased for us on the Cross.

I am very thankful that Jesus is my big brother! What a life – and death – of love, forgiveness and selflessness is His. I can’t begin to express what it means to know that, through Jesus, I have been repeatedly forgiven and welcomed home by my Father in heaven. I have tears in my eyes as I write this. This is a very deep revelation of God’s love – for people who don’t deserve it. And that definitely includes me.

A prayer

I just want to finish with a prayer.

Father, I thank You today for bringing me home to live with You and for the amazing revelation that Jesus is my older Brother, who actually came out to look for me when I was lost in my own mess. He – my Brother who is full of grace and truth and who is perfect love in every way – laid His own life on the line so that I could be restored to Your family and Your home. I ask that I will never take this for granted.

Today I ask for many more lost, messed up children to be rescued from estrangement from You, their true Father and to be reconciled to You and find their true family home. I ask this in the Name above all Names – Jesus – and for Your glory.

Streams

We are blessed to have a home which backs on to a small river – in fact two small rivers; one called the River Clun and the other, the Unk!

We are also blessed that we are situated significantly higher than both those streams of water, with a very large flood plain beyond them to mop up the overflows that happen after prolonged rain, usually in the winter.

This is the River Unk at the bottom of our river bank.

Psalm 1

When we bought our home, some 14 years ago, we had to follow the leading of the Spirit to make sure it was the new place that the Lord wanted to plant us in. I distinctly remember a number of ‘words’ given and fleeces laid down to confirm that this was His place for us! One of those confirmations was Psalm 1, which the Lord brought to our attention through a song based on that psalm, written by Ian White. Here’s a link:

Jesus in the Psalms

Actually, if you’re listening to and watching the You Tube video of Psalm 1 by Ian White, you will get links to more tracks on his album. I love his Psalm settings.

I was further blessed this morning with another video on Psalm 1 which popped up as I was looking at YouVersion – The Bible App. This is by a ministry called Spoken Gospel:

Resting in Jesus – the Stream of Life

I was so excited by the conclusions drawn in that second video. Draw His living water into the root systems of your life. We can all be planted by the water of Life if we focus on deepening our relationship with Jesus.

Not striving, though – ‘rest humbly in Jesus and you will live! ‘