Uh, Hi?

Oh hey, I forgot I had a blog.

Hello, non-existent loyal readers!

I have been very busy playing minecraft and eating ice cream having a very busy life. You know, working and stuff. *cough*

Anyway, interesting content. Hmm.

I've been working on a few short stories lately, which I want to get published...but am too chicken to send to the publisher have not had time to. If you've known me personally or somehow stalked over to one of my really old blogs or my old myspace profile (yes, a very long time ago), I have for some years now been at a painstakingly slow pace writing a novel. Or five. I recently discovered that what I had originally thought were separate stories in separate universes were in fact all a part of the same world...just at different times. It's scary and exciting to think about the place that has been blossoming inside my mind for the past few years, I only hope that other people will one day find it as beautiful and amazing and breathtaking as I do when I drift off there in my mind.

I can't work on it at the moment though because my laptop fan is kaput....meaning that it restarts every ten minutes. Lame. So I am writing this at my friends' place, they are very generously letting me use their laptop lest I slip into internet/writing withdrawal so I can send some paperwork off to my boss.

No pretty pictures this post, except for this amazing staircase.

Trust me on this one.

Hello, pretty.

In the past 12 months my life has been completely flipped upside down.

It's scary sometimes, other times it's uncomfortable...

But for the most part, I wonder if it's possible to be happier than I am right now.

I'm saving the details for a post next year.

But in short, I want you to know: when an opportunity to change the way you live for the better arises, seize it with both hands and don't let go. It will be scary and uncomfortable, and even sometimes downright painful to begin with...but it's so worth taking the first steps.

Things I want to do with my life

Prompted by a conversation with a close friend today, I have decided to write down the things that I have stored up in my heart and share them with you lot. So, here you go...a nice condensed version. Each of these could be a giant blog post on their own, but I thought you'd rather no be subjected to that right now. Anyway, without further ado...

I want to write books and poetry and songs

I want to sing

I want to marry the right man and raise a family together

I want to do the things that God has called me to do

I want to travel - for missions and for adventures

I want to live in the country

I want to learn to play the guitar, piano, cello, ukulele and drums

...also lots of other things. But you get the idea.

Fragmented Shadows

I remember...
You were whole once,
Full of hope and the promise of a full life;
To find you now in pieces,
A shadow of the man you were then
Breaks my heart.

What happened?
One moment you are performing stunts,
Giving life to masterpieces.
The next, an angry fragmented image
Of the scallywag I knew.
I don't understand.

---
A friend. Someone I went to school with. He got sick overseas, nearly died...and since then he has never been the same.

Please pray for him.

A Life On Purpose

 1 Peter 1v3-12
³ All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, ⁴ and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. ⁵ And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see.
 ⁶ So be truly glad.^[b] There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. ⁷ These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.
 ⁸ You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. ⁹ The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls.
 ¹⁰ This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. ¹¹ They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward.
 ¹² They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.

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A Life On Purpose

When we give our lives to Jesus, it is not just the commitment to love Him. That is a huuuuge part of it, and it fills me with giant amounts of joy, thinking about how much He loves me and that I love Him. That's not the part of our walk with Jesus that I'm talking about right now, though. When we give our lives to Him, we also become a part of God's Kingdom: we are heirs with Jesus. Because of this we have been saved and promised an inheritance in heaven - a promise of awesomeness (in the truest sense of the word) beyond human imagination that is eternal life with Daddy God! We are to live expectantly because of this. A life on Purpose.

When you're expecting something, you usually prepare for it, right? Like a mum prepares for a baby or you prepare for exams (usually, anyway). Peter goes on through this verse explaining some ways to live purposefully, preparing ourselves for the day when we get to go and be with Daddy for ever.

Firstly, he says to be glad, despite our often retarded circumstances!!! He has all these good things stored up for us in Heaven...so even when we face the usual awkward moments of life and the persecution that often comes with living so differently, take heart. In the same way that fire refines gold, tough times here make us better and often more effective parts in the Church. Everything that we endure for His sake can be used to bring glory to God and to set others free! And don't ever forget -  Daddy in Heaven is preparing an unimaginably amazing place for you in His Kingdom.

Secondly, keep on loving and trusting Him. Everyone gets hit with doubt. those are the times when it's most important to stand strong, get more into the Bible (the BEST way to discover more about God and understand just how much He loves you and is cheering you on), and lean on Him. Doubt is one of the devil's oldest and most favourite tricks. People fall for it so easily. Remember what you have seen God do in your life, remember His promises. Keep trusting, keep loving. No matter what. (Eph 6:13-15)

Finally, as it said in the beginning of this passage - Praise Him!!! He is so good. He loves us so much. Even while we were doing stupid things and lacking His guidance in our lives, being selfish...He gave His all for us. (Rom 5:8) When we were worthless, He gave us priceless value by wiping our debt of sin away with the sacrifice of his body and blood!! He heals us and sets us free from disease, sin and condemnation!! How could you not praise Him?


There is so, so much in this passage. I'm trying to keep this short for a quick talk at youth...but 1 Peter 1 is definitely worth doing a more in-depth study on. I'll say it again - There is so much in there!! It's so good!!!