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I’d always felt it was important to set goals and write them down. Something ‘magical’ happens when you take them from your mind and begin to visualise them in words and images.

This devotion from The Word For Today again emphasises the importance of goal setting and bringing them to fruition - with God involved in that process.

Eight principles to live by

“Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity…” Proverbs 21:5 NLT

People who set goals accomplish much more than people of equal education and ability who don’t. With that in mind, build these eight principles into your life. (1) Decide what you want. But first consult God. “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Pr 19:21 NIV). (2) Think on paper. Writing your goals down gives them a sense of permanency, plus it energises you. “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity…” Wishy-washy objectives won’t get you where you want to go. (3) Establish a deadline. Without a definite beginning and ending it’s easy to procrastinate and get nowhere. (4) Make a list of what you need to do to. Keep it before you at all times; it’ll give you a track to run on. (5) Convert your list to a plan. Decide what you need to do first and what you can do later. An organised plan is always better than trying to carry stuff around in your head. (6) Act immediately. “Be very careful, then, how you live - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity…” (Eph 5:15-16 NIV). Do something! A mediocre plan that’s implemented beats a brilliant one that’s not. (7) Do something every day to move you forward. Build it into your schedule. For example, read systematically through your Bible, call a specific number of clients, engage in physical activity for a given time. (8) Have a goal you’re willing to devote your life to. And keep your eye on that goal at all times. “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps 90:12 NIV).

Soulfood Bible Readings (Pentecost) Lev 23:15-22, Acts 2:1-18

I had a speaking engagement coming up. I was to be the keynote speaker and was being paid well for it and the audience would be larger than most audiences I’d spoken before.  It was an honour to be asked and I was excited about it.

But the day that dawned found me not in a good state. I wasn’t feeling very well in the morning and as the day progressed I found myself to be teary and anxious.  Clients were ringing and demanding my time and I just didn’t feel like I was in control.  I was getting easily upset and watched the clock anxiously.

I had my stuff packed - books, order forms, magazines, one of my awards in a frame to show, my presentation had been written several days before.  I had everything ready, it’s just that I didn’t feel ready.

I sought prayer from a couple of women’s groups I belong to and my husband prayed for me in the morning before he left for work.  He rang me about a half hour before I was due to leave.

The trip was almost 100kms and I allowed 2 hours to get there - I had thought it should take about 1 3/4 hours.  It should have, but didn’t. The traffic was bad, the wind very strong and I got lost in a town that I don’t know very well. I had instructions and had looked it up in the Melways but somehow I was looking for a street on my right instead of on my left and before I knew it I was heading back out of that town so did a u-turn and was heading back in the direction I’d come. Where had I gone wrong?

I sms’d my husband to say I was lost and then rang the Telco company to get connected to the venue and the receptionist there talked me in over the phone. How embarrassing! By this time I was crying and in a real state.  Hubby rang me just as I was finding the venue and wished me all the best.  As I walked up the steep hilly road from the nearest parking spot I could find I hoped that my makeup hadn’t streaked and that things would get better from hereon.

I couldn’t even unpack my display of books properly for sales or anything - only a few things on the space they’d left for me on the table and then I was rushed to my seat so they could start the proceedings.  All I could do was sit in my seat and think I hadn’t even been able to grab my prepared notes or anything and God, what am I going to do?

Well, I calmed down and was on after the main meal, nearly an hour and half later.  I had a brief opportunity to grab my notes but didn’t get to read them  I did get to listen to the other speakers (it was an awards night) and I found a common theme amongst all of those who spoke briefly and even the women at my table.  I prayed briefly, got up and opened my mouth to speak and before I knew it I was being signalled there were only 10 mins to go, 5, then 2 and I finished. Where did that time go? I was able to refer to those others who had been up before me, engaged the audience in answering questions and shared information I’d learnt from the woman sitting next to me less than an hour before.  It seems the whole night was the perfect match for what I knew I needed to talk about.  I spoke about dreams and visions, and passions and how your passion is really your vision for life.  I quoted from Proverbs 31:10 at the end of it. I had people laughing in the audience, people looking thoughtful, nodding their heads in agreement when I spoke of the value of women being in the home and how our children benefit from that.  At one stage you could have heard a pin drop - it was awesome being up there in front of over 100 people and not a person was moving or talking - all were listening.  What an amazing experience that was.

Afterward a young teenage girl in school uniform came to ask me if I am a Christian and she was excited as she thought I was. We had a lovely conversation about her plans, dreams and vision.  Others were inspired to come tell me they’re going to pursue their dreams - one woman in her 40s who had always wanted to tap dance. I told her to go for it!  Another spoke of how she’d always wanted to write.

God was there and it went well, and it had to be from Him because I was in a mess leading up to the event. Isn’t He good?  Just goes to show you have to let Him take the lead and when He does, no matter how well prepared you are, or how badly things seem to be going, it will turn out in the way He had planned. You have to let Him take the lead.

For God that is.  Today’s reading in my perpetual calendar relates to Numbers 1:1 where God came to speak to Moses and issue instructions.

The calendar writer suggests that if we’re too busy to do the things we know that God wants us to do then we are busier than He intended for us to be.  We need to consider what should we be doing in order to honour God with our use of time.

I haven’t written here for awhile and you may, or may not, be aware that’s because my husband and I lost a daughter late last year.  I’ve slowly been picking up the regular activities in my life again but it hasn’t always been easy and I often find myself wasting time doing nothing.  That isn’t normal for me - I’m one who always likes to keep busy.  And I often find myself feeling guilty for not being as busy as I used to be or as busy as I think I should be.

Conversations with two of the Pastors from my church during my time of grieving have indicated that I should be taking time out for myself and that I shouldn’t be pushing too hard. That I’m allowed this time of reflection, sorrow, thinking, staring into space and not being as productive as ‘normal’.

Perhaps I need to establish a new ‘normal’.  Not long before we lost our daughter I had determined to spend more time with all of our daughters, whenever their time permitted. Since her death I’ve also been spending more time out in the open instead of my office, using a new digital SLR camera my husband gave me for Christmas.  I have begun to appreciate (all over again) the beauty of the nature of God outside and capturing that in photo images.  And part of that time has included having this daughter or that daughter come along with me on my photo shoots in the parks and wildlife areas, some of which have now been touched by the awful bushfires we’ve been having in Victoria, Australia.

You might like to see some of my photos by clicking on the image below.

God, too busy, honouring God, grief, reflection

A recent discussion with my husband made me realise just how much people who work behind the scenes are not recognised or even ’seen’.  And there are times when they do need to be acknowledged, especially at times they are hurting.

We’d been having a discussion with our Pastor and his wife about a family matter and they were asking about things they knew I’d been doing (my new book being one of those things) but they didn’t have a point of reference for asking my husband about things he does.  They did ask about his job but because it’s very ‘techy’ it tends to go over most people’s heads.

I’m very proud of my husband and although I don’t understand all the technical aspects of all he does I do appreciate and understand that there is a lot that people all over our country use online and via phone which my husband plays a part in making sure works properly.

At church once again my husband is someone who works behind the scenes. He operates a TV camera on roster or works the CCU (Camera Control Unit) which is completely outside of the auditorium and not visible to anyone in the church. There he monitors the camera activity on 4 screens and has a big panel board of switches and controls, ensuring that the services are being recorded to DVD with correct lighting, sound and other aspects of recording.

What he does is important to the end result of being able to produce a DVD and down loadable video from the church website so that those who could not attend the services for whatever reason can still watch the services from their computers at home or work.

Whilst it’s important we don’t blow up the importance of who we are and what we do, the reality is there are always going to be people in the front line who are visible to the public and get a large portion of acknowledgement for what they do.  We need to remember though, those who work behind the ‘front line’ and frequently ‘behind the scenes’ and are not visible but all the same still very important, so that the whole picture of what takes place is seen and appreciated.

In Corinthians 12:12-31 we are told about how we’re all part of one body made up of many parts. And that no one part is more important than the other. Think about how our eyes and ears and mouth are more visible to others and that many pay attention to how we look or use those visible portions of our bodies. But what about our mind, our hearts, and those internal organs that are not visible but just as important and possibly even more so, in order for us to operate?  Often people are assessed on ‘face value’ at first meeting and it’s often not till a relationship has been developed over a period of time that the lesser seen aspects of someone (their heart, their mind, etc) become something more visible to the unseen eye.

At our church they have a monthly event called ‘unsung heroes’ where they do applaud those who work behind the scenes in the church and make sure those who are usually invisible to the congregation at large are recognised for the part they play in helping our church to run smoothly.

Have you considered who are ‘behind the scenes’ and are ‘unsung heroes’ at your church, or your workplace or even perhaps amongst your friends and family?  These people don’t seek the limelight but deserve to be recognised, and particularly if it’s at a time when something has happened in their lives and they need extra special care.  Why not think about that today and pay someone some special attention just because of who they are?

Our senior pastor has been preaching a series on ‘church without walls’ but I hadn’t thought about it a great deal in my own daily activities.   I had thought about it with respect to reaching out to local community and outside of our church building but let me explain what I mean.

Recently some friends of ours at church were unwell and the wife had been in hospital.  I received a call from our church office asking if I’d be willing to make a meal for their family.  I accepted quickly and was delighted I’d been asked.  Whilst I’ve been involved in leadership and departmental activities I’d never been asked to take on a pastoral role like this one before and I was thrilled at the prospect.  Such a simple thing to do but it means so much to those who have need.   For me it was a short-term commitment and because I was home and available, it was easy to organise.

When I delivered the meal I didn’t want to stay long and intrude on the family but I was invited in to chat with the husband and wife for a time. They were delighted to see me and very grateful for what I’d brought them.  They asked me how my business was going and I told them about some recent events that had taken place.  And then Janet said something that I later repeated to my husband and didn’t fully comprehend until I said it.  She said ‘Some women return home to escape from the outside world.  You returned home to reach the world’.

Graham and I discussed this and he said he felt that Janet often had very insightful comments.   It is true that through my business, my writings and through speaking at churches and seminars that I have reached many, many people and yet that had not been my goal or my intention when I first came back home to work over 14 years ago.  I was fed up with the corporate world and was anxious to be home for our 5 daughters.  But God turned that into something far beyond my dreams.  All those years of experience, trial and tribulation have brought with it lessons I can share with others.

As mentioned above, our senior pastor has been preaching a series on ‘church without walls’ and I can truly say that through my working at home, and in sharing with and caring for others online I have truly reached out beyond my own walls.

As you are reading this right now it means you have internet access.  How many people do you think you can reach and touch through the ministry that God has planned for you?