Go Forward

Ok Michelle...this is for you. Sorry that I havn't kept up with my posts. But busy doesn't even begin to describe my life. It has been a difficult summer but God has allowed me to expierence joy in the midst of it. Spending time on the Island with my kids and parents was wonderful. The weather was horrible but the time away was heaven. I also did manage to read "The Shack" by William Young. I will add this read to "The Best books I have ever Read" list. And then I had the priviledge to attend the Joyce Meyers conference in St Louis. Filling up on the "Word" was just what I needed. And then the worship...togther with thousands of women...it is so hard to put into words. But it left me breathless in a good way. The theme of the weekend was "Being a Relentless Woman of God" and "Never Give Up". So I will press in to Him and run on towards the prize. This last two weeks God has been speaking to me out of Exodus 14:10-31. The Israelites had just left Egypt and were on their way to the Promised land. But they could see the Egyptians in their chariots close on their trail. They were struck with fear and began to murmur..."Moses, why have you treated us this way and brought us out of Egypt, let us alone; for it would be better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness". But God had a plan. God told Moses to tell the people to "go foward". It didn't matter that the Red Sea was in front of them. So per God's instructions Moses lifted up his rod and stretched out his hand over the sea and divided it. I think the words GO FORWARD are very signifigant for me. The dictionary meaning of forward is: advance, encourage, onward, being in a condition of advancement, ready, eager, prompt, applies to any movement towards a goal, to promote, to start on a journey. All of these are very positive words. So I know God you are telling me that I am begining a journey, a journey of faith towards a goal, towards promotion, towards advancment in the Kingdom of God. God never tells an individual to quit. He has one command, Go Forward. It is the only means of getting ahead. The promised land is always out in front of us. It is more than a place, it is God's destiny for us. We have three choices to make. #1 We can turn back, #2 We can stand still (frozen in fear) or #3 We can Go Forward. It is never enough to stand still. We must go forward in spite of seemingly impossibilities. When we position ourselves to go forward God gets the glory. We must Go Forward in the light of divine promises. Have you ever tried to go forward in your life but found something blocking your way? Something you could not find your way around, a way over, or a way under? Did you think that maybe you were just stuck in that place forever? Then remember how the red sea was parted that day long ago. If it is God's will that you go forward, then God will open up your way. All you need to do is stand still and have faith. Doors will open, obstacles will move aside, if necessary even the sea itself will part. God can bring His people through the greatest difficulities, and force a way where none can be found. It was an instance of His wonderful favor to Israel. This was done in order to encourage God's people of all ages to trust Him in the greatest of straits. So Lord, I surrender to Your will for my life. I lean the whole of my trust on You. I will not look back and be swallowed up with fear but I will go forward to where you have called me...the promised land. Thank You for the favor on my life and on the lives of my family. We put ourselves in Your capable hands. We place ourselves today in the position of advancement! In Your name Jesus...Amen

New Song

I woke up one morning with a beautiful song being sung in my head. I receive these songs every once in awhile as a reminder from my Lord that He loves when I worship Him. I ran immediately to get paper and pen to write it down as the Holy Spirt sang it to me. I am so humbled at these times because I know that this is not my doing but solely the work of the Holy Spirit. It will be hard for you to hear the beauty of the song without the music...but I sing it often as a reminder of Who I follow and what he has done for me...His Name is Jesus.

I follow a man who carried a cross on His way to a mountain top.
I follow a man who carried the scars of all my sin.
A man of no wealth
denying Himself
just so that I could be free;
I follow a man who gave up His life...all for me.


His name is Jesus, King of Kings,
His name is Jesus, Prince of Peace,
His name is Righteouness
His name is Holiness,
Jesus

I am thankful for these little gifts that Jesus loves to give to His children. He is a giver of good gifts.



James 1:17 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.[a] He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.(New Living Bible)

My Little Musician and Pirate

Noah has turned into quite the guitar player.

Here is Noah at his Piano Recital. Noah placed first this year in his category at the Kwanis music festival in Halifax. BRAVO!

Noah tuning up with his "instaband" before his guitar recital.

Noah practising with his guitar teacher Ryan.

Noah in practise mode to give us a good show.

Noah and his "instaband" soloist.

Noah just before his play "Pirates of the I Don't Carribean". He's standing with one of my little babysitting scallywags...Tyler. Both are cuties!!

Healthy Diets

Wow, June already. I can't believe that we are in the month of June. That means for me that the end of another school year is upon us. I'm happy to spend time with my youngest but I am sure my teenage daughter will be spending time with those of her friends who are not employed. I have asked her on several occaisions to look for a job but I think she is stalling. I won't be forking out money this summer for her fun activities (movies, beach outings, etc.) Maybe it is time for her to experience a little pain in this area so she will hit the pavement and get that all elusive job!! I see Wendy's is hiring. Can't be that elusive! There are also babysitting jobs during the day. All she has to do is check the want ads or Kijiji. Well another week is starting in the daycare. The kids have returned from a weekend with their parents but now it is my time to pour into their lives. Hopefully wisdom and not to much OJ. The morning was beautiful so outside they went. They stumbled across a centipied and that took their interest for a while. And thank goodness there was no crying over a certain toy today, that will happen tommorow when two more little ones get added to the mix. Lunch was french toast sticks with cheese and strawberries. I know this is always an attention grabber. The days when I have hot roast beef dinner and all the trimmings is a no go. But I like to shake it up a bit every once in a while. Plus I know the parents like to have a variety of healthy meals. It is surprising how much I can get them to eat here in this environment compared to their own homes. That is much the same as my relationship with the Lord. When I am at church or bible study I am gung ho when it comes to worship or reading the word. But in my own home it is harder to make a meal of the "word". A lot of distractions! But then God comes in and likes to shake it up a bit. That really grabs my attention and then I run for the word. I am learning though. A daily feast on the word is what keeps us healthy. You know what they say; you are what you eat! Just as food is healthy for the body so is God's Word necessary for our soul. Just as I try to supply a healthy diet for the my daycare kiddies so God has provided a healthy spiritual diet for our spirits. But we must come to the table and partake. Dear Lord, I thank you for providing the Bread of Life for my spirit. I come against all the distractions that keep me from coming to your banqueting table. I pray that I would come and dine at your table daily and feast on the Word that you have richly provided so that I could lead a healthy spiritual life. I pray that all who read this today will be blessed by You Lord and that You will become their "Daily Bread". Amen.

Giving Birth

Ok God. I know you are doing something big and I have to surrender to let you do it your way. I had a dream back in December. I was pregnant and in heavy labor. I remember pushing and pushing on the delivery table to no avail. That baby would not come! The pain was tremendous. And as hard as I pushed the baby still would not come. I woke up in the morning remembering the dream and the frustration that came from not giving birth after all that work. So Lord, what are you saying? I am even today frustrated by that dream. But I know that you are in control. I remember Joel Osteen one Sunday this spring, he gave a sermon about not being limited by the system. He said the pain was an indication that the birth was getting closer. He said the enemy would not fight so hard if he didn't already know that God was about to do something great in your life. The enemy was not coming against you because of where you were but because of where you were going. The enemy comes to distract you from your dreams. And believe me he is doing a job in my home! The enemy knows that I am about to give birth. When things are getting difficult, when you are uncomfortable, when you are tempted to give up...you are getting close to birthing that baby. The greater the pain the closer you are to giving birth. So when things are coming against you, and everytime you turn around you face opposition, that just means your contractions are getting faster and faster. You are going to give birth before you know it. I have to have God's promise deep inside me so that nothing is going to cause me to quit or give up. The promise may be for your health, your ministry or even "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord". And that is what I am believing for. Even if the more you pray the worse your family member gets, that's ok; that is just another contraction. Your getting closer! With God all things are possible. When you look at your situation it is sometimes tempting to say " I don't see how God can straighten this out". But God is saying I can go outside the system if it is necessary. Outside the scope of our understanding. He is saying that He can heal you without a certain med that is too expensive for you, or I can give you a loan even though the bank officer said no. The system does not set the limits. God does!. You may have a dream in your heart that is bigger than your finances, bigger than your education, bigger than anything that your family has ever done. It is easy to think that I don't have the expertise, I don't have the right connections, I don't have the right people behind me. But be encouraged, God can go outside the system and do extraordinary things. Your dream is not dependant on other people. Stay in faith. God loves to take ordinary people and use them to do extraordinary things. What is the Holy Spirit birthing in you? What new level of commitment or character is he asking you to stretch to? It may involve some pain, but the pain of labor always fades and pales compared to the new life that comes after delivery. Spiritual growth, like the labor pains of delivering a baby can involve difficult pain, but it is always pain with a purpose. God will not abandon us. Give birth to what he has planned for you. Nuture the new life that God stirs inside of you with regular times in the Word of God. Our walk in Christ is ever about growing and giving birth. God is more concerned with our character than our comfort. James 5:1-5. So Lord, I surrender to your will for my life even though it is painful at times. I see now that the joy of giving birth far surpasses any pain. I am believing today for a miracle for my family, and that you can go outside the system to do it. Amen.

HAPPY 2008

Blessings everyone. I pray that you have arrived safely to 2008. We had a great Christmas even though my oldest son Evan was away from home "again". We miss him a lot but we know he is about the Lord's business. My friend Gina joined us for Christmas. She stayed overnight Christmas eve and helped us celebrate the birth of our Saviour. We all had a wonderful time together. And in the middle of our stockings Evan called from Addis Ababa. What a joy to hear from him. Now he is heading back to Koffele in Ethiopia to continue his mission there. We had a quiet New Years Eve. I like it that way because I know that the coming year will be busy once again. My prayer for 2008 is to allow the Lord to work through me. Whatever that takes then I give the Lord full permission. I am not sure what He has instore for me and my family, it is just enough to know that He has great things instore for us and that He loves us. I pray health, blessing, provision and passion to each and every one of you. May the Lord richly bless you with His presence. Call on Him daily! Love Him with open arms and open hearts. And Give. Give to others. Give to bless. Give of yourself. That is how Jesus lived His life. He was a giver. So bless you as you give in 2008. Love Cathy