Over the rainbow

On Tuesday evening after my massage, I drove to the gym to to have a quick swim and a steam to soothe my muscles after the massage. As I drove there a beautiful rainbow appeared in the sky and it was a full, complete rainbow, end to end. God has always blessed me with signs when good things are about to happen and a complete rainbow most certainly heralded the fulfillment of a promise from God.

On Wednesday evening my first copy of my book arrived :-) I was absolutely delighted! I was just surprised as I had been expecting to get a copy of each format, i.e. soft cover and hard cover and only the soft cover arrived.

Tonight however as I arrived home, the security guard came to me and handed me the second package, they had been packaged seperately. There it was, the beautiful hard cover I had been waiting for... oh what joy!

I feel that God has said that this will be the first of many books in the future and I hold on to that promise in faith! God is good and when we commit ourselves to do what He has lead us to do, He will keep His promise and bless us!

Hold onto God's promises to you!

My favourite 30 minutes

My favourite 30 minutes of each month by far are the 30 minutes that I get to spend having my back and neck massage. I used to struggle with Migraines a lot and since I started with the massages they have really become less frequent and less painful. The secret is not allowing the stress to build up for too long before it is treated. It is a feeling of being cared for.

Caring for others is a vital part of our Christian walk and especially when we know someone who is hurting due to difficulties or trials that they may be facing. When we come along side them and help them through the difficult situation they are facing, we prove God's love for them and help them to see the reality that God is real.

Some people are afraid to get involved in those situations because they are scared of being sucked into other peoples problems, but what they don't know is that when we do offer love and support we allow the Holy Spirit to flow through us to the other person like an electric chord carrying electricity to a piece of equipment. The wonderful blessing of that is that it means that at the same time you are helping others you are also recharging your own spiritual batteries.

If you know someone in need of love and care, don't be afraid to give of yourself. God will bless you richly for your kindness and the Holy Spirit will come along side you to strengthen you as you minister to others.

Stumped

I'll admit that Revelation 8 had me stumped. Between all the seals and the trumpets and all the doom and gloom I was struggling to find something positive. Ever the optimist though I determined to dig until I found it.

Then Revelation 8:4 caught my eye, “And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.” Imagine that! Our prayers going up to God like incense. Notice one word in particular.....ascended.

What are some of the laws of nature? What goes up must come down. It requires more effort to raise an object than to lower it. Don't we often wonder why it is taking God so long to answer our prayers? Excuse the creative license if I must, but could we not assume that the reason it seems so long is because it takes longer for the request to ascend than for the reply to come back down?

I'm not stating this as a spiritual law but rather a creative way to see what happens during the process of our prayers being answered. We should take heart and not loose faith when it seems that the solution is taking a while, but rather patiently wait for God to receive our request and to find the best solution before sending the answer back down to us.

Have faith in God!

Rings of kindness

There can be no greater joy than seeing two people that are so wonderfully suited to each other getting married!  So to Paul and Karren, congratulations again on your nuptules!

The sermon was interesting as the Pastor not only spoke about love and patience, which are pretty much what you'd expect, but he spoke about kindness in marriage too.

I think the role of kindness in marriage has been so ignored and it really got me thinking.  How often in a fit of anger have we spoken words that cut and hurt, whereas had we taken time to cool down and think things through we may have been able to put things a little differently and may have avoided a lot of hurt.

Let us try to learn to stop and remember how to be more kind in our relationships.

Growing with God by Ronwyn - Everyday God

Praise God, it's here!
Growing with God by Ronwyn - Everyday God has been released online and can be purchased from a number of sites.

www.authorhouse.co.uk
Search for Ronwyn Hughes  OR  ISBN 9871491882955
Format available:  Hard cover & Soft Cover

www.amazon.com
Search for Ronwyn Hughes  OR  ISBN 9871491882955
Format available:  Hard cover & Soft Cover
Currently offering free deliver for orders over $35 which would apply to the hard cover copy

www.kalahari.com
Search for Ronwyn Hughes
Format available: e-book - under R50
You can also purchase gift vouchers if you are wanting to sponsor an e-book for a friend.
You will need to install Adobe Digital Edition, but you will be guided through the process by the Kalahari site.  Look for the Digital Library icon once your purchase has been confirmed.

I hope that you will consider popping one in a stocking for your loved ones and friends.  I will also be posting links to these sites on Facebook and Twitter!

Thank you to all of you who have been following my blog for the past few years, I have valued your support and interaction.  The book has much new content to it so I pray that it will be a blessing to you!

If you have any problems or queries you can write to me at: GWG.Ronwyn@gmail.com
Please note that I only read these mails once a day, so please be patient. 

Early Merry Christmas everybody and much love from me!

Ronwyn

Take it

So it happened again, my garnet ring has disappeared. Worst of all I can't remember when last I actually felt it on my hand and I made MANY stops along the route home as well as playing in the garden at dusk. Chances are this time it is lost for good.

Strangely, this time although I feel sad and concerned I have decided that I am not going to let my emotions get dragged down the rabbit hole of worry and anger. That is what HE wants me to do and I'm not going to give the LIAR a moments mention.

If I do find it this time it will be by God's grace and design and if not, then I pray that someone will find it and that it will bless them as much as it did me. Honestly in the grand scheme of things considering the loss that thousands of Filipino's have experienced in these most recent storms, this is a small loss.

Whatever you are going through right now, stop and take a deep breath. Don't allow the deceiver to steal your strength and joy. Rejoice in God for He has planned every day and every trial, big or small, is no competition for God's great love and providence towards you!

Almost chucked

I have a favourite little black skirt that I have had for some time. After a particular wash load I think I foolishly tried to iron the thing and it ended up with some shiny marks on it, which I thought would not come out. I chucked it into my wardrobe on the 'throw away' pile.

Some time later I spotted a similar spot on another garment. In agitation I rubbed it and would you believe it but the mark came out! I was so surprised! Wondering if it would work on my black skirt too, I dug it out of the cupboard and gave it a good rubbing. Wow again, it also lost its shiny spot.

Well gee there are two morals to this story. 1 – Not all friction is bad, sometimes it can end up rubbing away nasty stains in our lives that we just could not have gotten rid of any other way. 2 – Be careful what you chuck away in life. It may be a friendship, relationship, faith, patience, trust, belief or almost anything valuable here counts. You may well be chucking out something that could still serve you well for a very long time.

Kitty Sitter

After all the years that I have stressed about having people look after my babies when I'm away, I finally got to return the favour when my neighbour went away this weekend.  Baby Leila came to be with her new mommy a little sooner than normal as she had been rejected by her birth mother, so she is now only about 6-8 weeks old.  My goodness what a feisty little thing.  Each time I popped in for a visit, which was quite often, she would only cuddle for about a minute or so before the claws came out and it was time to start play.

She tumbled and chased anything that moved and I was reminded of how energetic and playful kittens are.  I remember many nights waking up to the sound of... Ka duf ka duf ka duf, as my two chased around the room in the wee hours of the morning, leaving me rather grumpy the next day!  :-)

What really surprised me though was how truly self sufficient this little thing was even at this early age.  The one thing I did realize that really warmed my heart is how much my cats have learned to not only receive love and affection but give it back too.

I think we are all like that when we first accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour.  At first we claw and jump to get out of God's arms simply because we have not yet developed the capacity to love Him yet.  As we grow we learn to receive His love and give it back in the form of worship.  That is all part of spiritual maturity and Growing in God!

Approved

Approval is such an amazing blessing!  My thoughts today turn to the image of Jesus rising from the waters of baptism and hearing the words, "Well done, thy good and faithful servant."   

Today was a day for celebrating! The final proofs on the book were approved today and now the publishing process can begin. Sending the mail to say 'Approved' was one of the most joyous moments I've had in a long time and knowing that three years worth of work has now resulted in a product I can be proud of is the most wonderful and amazing feeling ever.  In that moment so many of memories flooded my mind of the road I've walked on as I have shared my life and thoughts with colleagues, friends and family. I now know that there will still be wonderful moments ahead as we get the book to go live online.

I'll be honest, hard copy books aren't cheap and paying for a print on demand service is not the most cost effective, but the e-book is very affordable and I am hoping that many of you will make use of that option.  The roll out will first commence with the book going online with the Authorhouse website and then later other local sites like Kalahari, but I'll ensure that I keep you updated along the way. God is good and His mercies are new every morning, so let us celebrate together with the hope of good things to come. 

Wild things 1 – Ronwyn O

My poor garden hasn't quite had the amount of attention from me this year as it had last year, but I intend to catch up soon. The problem now is that the weeds and grass are taking over again in an area I thought I had eliminated them from.

Mmpf! Sound familiar with anything else? I find the weeds in my emotional life are the irritations I allow my mind to brood over for hours on end. My preference would be to blow my top and be done with that, but lost tempers help no-one, nor are they socially acceptable these days.

Can this problem be solved or beaten? Sure, remember that nothing in life is permanent and a time will come when you will not have to stress about them any more. I think if Revelations 7:17 could well apply here.....”and God shall wipe every tear away from their eyes.” We usually think of this as only applying to sorrow and grief but I think this applies equally to anything that causes emotional pain or hurt as well.

When we are able to let go of the tribulations of our past, which includes all incidents 7 seven seconds ago, then we will be able to join the multitudes of nations and angels and bow before God in worship.

All of the horses

Mention horses and warriors and images of gallant solders in iron clad suite waging war with shields, swords and spears comes to mind. I'm pretty sure that is similar to the pictures that John was seeing in the events that unfolded in Revelations 6.

We cannot with absolute certainty declare the meaning of the many seals mentioned, but one thing is clear and that is that there is a battle for souls taking place on this earth. None of the calamities mentioned are new to the human experience. What we can see for sure is that there is one horse and rider with a crown who is waging a war for our souls. His name is Jesus.

How does that help me if I'm stuck in traffic, late for work and feeling stressed out? It helps because I know someone else is out there fighting the real spiritual battles for me so I can put my head down, work hard and do my utmost to deliver my best and hopefully with as little complaining as possible.

We are told in life to pick our battles and this is where it counts. When the chips are down, you can easily get discouraged, frustrated and down right angry, but going down that path does not lead to victory. If we make up our mind to focus forward on what is important then we can rise above all, deliver our best and conquer our world!

Got my ear

Ouch!  When God decides to put a finger on your heart you'll definitely know it!

He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.  It is so easy to preach to others about what they should do, so when the Spirit of conviction comes, the experience can be rather painful!  Hearing and listening are most certainly two different things.

I'm sure we have all heard it said at some point that it is not what you say but how you say it that is important, so why do we forget this so quickly?  I think it is because deep down inside we are all hurting in one way or another and one of our biggest defensive weapons is talking.

When we don't learn to listen and be truly interested in others and what is best for them, nothing you say will mean anything to them or ring true to them.  That makes it very hard for us to communicate the truth of God's love for the world.

So I bend a knee and pray for forgiveness from my arrogance and selfishness. As the song writer said, "Open my ears Lord and help me to listen."

Tinsel and lights

The sight of tinsel and lights brings with it the hope and joy that Christmas is once again drawing near and I'll never forget how that felt as a child. The school calendar was winding down and break up day was getting closer and closer.

My biggest joy in Christmas is that somewhere there is always a carols service and my favourites are the ones with little kids being dressed up as biblical characters and playing out the Christmas story. One message that rings out with a great chorus is, “Peace on earth, goodwill towards men.”

This Angelic chorus is repeated in Revelations 5 and is in essence the truth of the Christmas story and why Christ came to earth in the first place. Rev 5:9-10, “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”

Let us rejoice today that all nations are called to be children of God and let us spread this message to all who will hear!

Bedazzled

At first I was surprised that Jesus jumped into the letters to the seven churches so quickly at the start of Revelation but I guess it is much the same as when you are having a fight with someone. If you decide to get together over coffee to chat about the issue you seldom engage in small talk before diving straight in and getting the issues at hand.

With the air cleared Jesus immediately takes John into the throne room of God. The sight described before him are more beautiful than words could ever hope to describe. John's best efforts to describe God probably fall miles short, but images and colours of semi precious stones of Jasper, Sardine and Emerald are the closest descriptions he can find.

John continues to describe creatures which he had never seen before which to us sound rather frightening but I am sure they must have been majestic. Once again we hear words of worship before God. In truth the book of Revelation is more about worship as it is about predicting any future events.

As I have mediated today on my late father's birthday, my thoughts turned to these scriptures upon which I am gazing. I know that our time here on earth is a mere shadow of the time we will spend in eternity together and with images of beauty like these I can hardly wait until it is my time to get there.

Let us do whatever is in our power to do to ensure that our family and close friends will be with us in eternity so that we may all worship God together.

Dedicated in loving memory of Desmond Victor Hughes! Happy Birthday dad!

Amongst the ranting

Amongst what may seem to be more ranting, for God rebukes Sardis for they are dead and rebukes Laodiceans for they are neither hot nor cold, it seems as if God pauses over the church of Philedelphia. To them He proclaims that He will make the hypocrits bow before them and He declares His love for them.

Then God speaks a word that should give is all hope and direction, for He says that a door which He opens, no man can shut and one which He shuts, no man can open. Wow! I wish we would learn to pay close attention to that statement.

How often in life don't we come to road blocks, doors in our lives that are shut so tight that we couldn't open them ourselves if we tried, and what do we do? We stand and knock, bash and cry at the door as if by this behaviour we would change God's mind. No! It is time we recognize the intent of God in that situation and simply walk away.

Don't waste any more time bashing on doors God has shut. Look up, ask God for direction and move on to the next door. Believe in your heart that when God is fully satisfied that you are on the right path, He will open the right door for you and when you go through that door, you will walk in the full blessing of God!

Straight talk

We all those friends, the ones who will look us in the eye and tell us straight to our face exactly what we need to hear, whether it hurts us or not.  We often wonder how they can be so brutal but in hind sight we learn that they had our best interest at heart.

In Revelation 2 we see Jesus doing this in His message to 4 of the 7 churches to whom He instructed John to write too.  He is careful to give them praise for the things that they have done well but He also speaks bluntly about the areas that they are failing in.

What were these failures that angered the heart of God?

To the Ephesians, it was that they had lost their first love for God.  To Smyrna He spoke of their blasphemy and serving Satan. To Pergamos it was their following of false doctrine. To Thyatira it was their sexual immorality.

To all these offenses we may quickly claim that we are innocent but the same warning is given to each of these churches at the end of their message:  He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

We would do well to check our hearts carefully before dismissing the word of God.  Let us rather draw near to God and repent and allow Him to do a new work within us.