Hello all! Amanda here, I hope you had a great weekend and a wonderful Mothers Day! I have another "WOW God!" story to share with all of you (the picture is a little hint). So lets jump right in!

I have to start by saying the spiritual journey God is taking me on as a mother is nothing short of amazing. I have hard time finding the words to describe it sometimes (which, if you know me, is unusual haha!). I feel it is all at once joyful and solemn, fun and difficult, peaceful and chaotic! I am sure that is how most mothers view raising their children. I am so VERY aware that God chose me to steward these little warriors that sometimes it takes my breath way! And the event I am about to share with you was one of those breath-taking moments.

Almost every night since December we have read one chapter of the bible. It started with Luke as a way to celebrate the birth an life of Jesus nearing Christmas and we just kept going! We are in the book of Acts now and they love it! The three of us (my son, my daughter, and I) snuggle up on my daughters bed and start reading, stopping for questions and discussion along the way. It does tend to make for later bed times, but we love it! Our faith walks and connection to each other has grown deeper because of it.

On this particular night, after we had read our chapter, my daughter was looking particularly thoughtful. I could tell she was rolling something around in her mind. She has a very big imagination and she is very curious kid, so you never know what she might say! Anyway, she looked at me with the widest eyes and said "Mommy, do you ever think about how Jesus is like the stem (trunk) of a tree, reaching all the way to the top; how the disciples are the branches, and the rest of us are the leaves?". After I picked my jaw up off the floor in surprise at the wisdom my seven year old was spouting I said, "Wow June! That is very cool!'. Then she went on saying, "Yeah! And God is like the roots of the tree, and the ground is that 'thing' that separates us from God!". Again, jaw dropped haha!

Possibly the COOLEST thing about this whole conversation was the moment we all turned and looked at the tree I had painted on her bedroom wall EIGHT years ago, when I was pregnant with her, and counted the main branches coming off the trunk. Want to take a guess how want there are? Twelve...TWELVE! With a 13th that reaches the ceiling! When I painted this tree I was not attempting for it to symbolize anything! I was just planning on making a forest-themed nursery but stopped after one tree! haha! How interesting is it that it has suddenly become a symbol of something so powerful?! The three of us sat in silence for a few moments staring at the tree in awe. My son fell back on the bed giggling and saying his mind was blown, haha!

For me, this felt like a reminder, like the kindest wink and smile from Him, that He truly is in everything we do. We may not even be aware of the true significance of something we are doing at this moment, but years down the road we may see it for what it truly is! We could be lighting fires and fanning flames with no clue to what we are doing! I was simply painting my baby girls nursery, big and pregnant and so excited to meet her. I had no idea that in my joy, I was planting something so important! Now we look at that tree differently. My daughter sees our Father in her room now, and every time she looks at it she feels safer. 

God never stops amazing!

I have to wrap this up but, but I want to end by suggesting you go read John 15:1-8...Really the whole chapter, I feel, is relevant to this! I pray that our story blesses you all as it has us! God is in every detail of our lives, and He sees you beloved one!

My friends, I am interrupting the series on church because something really crazy happened yesterday. Settle in for a good story!

OK:

The last two weeks, I have had an unusual spiritual battle. I've been wrestling with a weird spiritual weariness I've not had before.

Now, I'm normally bouncy when it comes to God. I'm completely ruined for him, and I hope with every fiber of my being that I stay HIS for the rest of my life.

Amen!

BUT the last two or three weeks I've struggled with a weird lack-lustre. God has felt like a distant 'fact', rather than a vibrant presence. I've struggled to read the Bible, which is unusual. And, this past Sunday I felt like I couldn't be bothered going to church. That's no good, is it, when I'm writing a series on that very topic!? Uggh, no fun. And a bit freaky. It's especially difficult to have something like that happen when you know you have a community to keep writing for.

Anyway, my response was this: I have to just keep going. I know that Christians sometimes experience dry patches. I also know that God does not promise that we will always feel his presence, even though he is surely there. So I determined to do that: Keep going. I made a deliberate point to keep reading the word, keep showing up for time with God in the morning, and get prayer for the issue from a couple of people.

Have you been there too? I know a few of us have. It's been a strangely difficult couple of weeks, and that's the backstory to what happened yesterday. 

Now for yesterday:

I was standing in the kitchen. My house was a little untidy, I was in my most unflattering clothes, and my hair hadn't been brushed yet even though it was lunchtime. We have a cyclone going on here in New Zealand, which you might have seen on the news, so I did have an excuse: I was settled in for a full home day while the wind and rain roared outside.

I texted a friend, "I am having a weird time ... feeling spiritual lacklustre." The friend texted back, "I'm praying for you." And no sooner had that message arrived than there was a knock at the door. Two people stood there who I'd never seen in my life: A boy and a girl in their early twenties.

Two knights in shining armor.

"We're here the prayer meeting!" they said.

"Prayer meeting?" I paused for a minute. "Ohhh! Yes, I WAS going to have a prayer meeting today, but cancelled it because of the cyclone."

I then hugged them both as if it was the most natural thing to wrap my arms around two strangers and said "COME IN!"

(Side note: I have no idea how these two found that there was to be a prayer meeting at my house.) 

Having hugged them I said, "Sit down. Let me just go and comb my hair .. and then I will be back." My hair definitely needed a taming before I sat down in front of these two again.

Two minutes later, with duly neatened hair, I plonked myself down in front of them, and we started to talk ...

Me and two strangers. This could be awkward? No, it wasn't.

We proceeded to talk .... about GOD. We talked about fiery things. The boy was 23, a traveler from California. The girl was 20, an Aucklander who lives an hour away from me. We connected deeply. We talked about what we were each wrestling with and hearing from God. In fact, I began to share quite a lot of my heart with them.

At this point I started to feel completely refreshed, like 'This is just what I need right now,' and 'How is it I can talk to these two like I've known them forever?' 

The effect these two were having on me they might as well have been angels.

It got better though....

The boy was from California. "California?" I said, "I've been there. Actually, I work on a ministry for Christians married to non-Christians, and that ministry was set up by a lady who lives in California."

And this is where it got particularly interesting, but I've gone on too long now, so will continue this story on Friday.... Be sure to tune in because this next part is a goody. Till next time!

Ann

Photo courtesy of Cottonbro and Pexels.com

Having just read Ann’s Monday post on guilt I thought I’d share a post I’ve shared a couple of times over the last 10 years. As this month, it’s my 10-year anniversary of finding this community.

It was September 2012. I had always wanted to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference and having a publisher for Angelguard  I thought it a useful way of building some momentum for its release a few months later.

My wife and I combined it with a holiday to the US with the plan to attend the conference in DFW on our final leg before heading home. The conference had started, and I was having a ball meeting lots of fascinating authors including some of my heroes plus gaining a lot of useful information. There was one workshop titled “How to Market Your Fiction Like a non-Fiction Pro” that featured four presenters.

It was an excellent workshop spread over two sessions. One of the non-fiction authors shared a little of their journey on writing a non-fiction book about being married to a pre-believer. All of a sudden, this workshop now had added meaning.

That author was none other than our own, Dineen Miller, who for those who are new, was one of the original founders with Lynn. Dineen, is a rarity in publishing, being both an author of non-fiction and fiction. Her award-winning novel, The Soul Saver, is tremendous.

On the workshop ending, I was on my way to an appointment with an editor when I happened to notice Dineen waiting in the same area. She was by herself so I introduced myself and shared how I too was married to a pre-believer. We chatted very briefly, Dineen mentioned the SUM community and to my delight gave me a copy of “Winning Him Without Words”. She only brought two to the conference and I was the fortunate one to receive the second one. Talk about a blessing.

The Lies of the Enemy

Up to that time, one of my struggles in church life and faith was a belief that any ministry I undertook including through my writing would not be blessed because I was in a spiritually mismatched marriage.

As I sat in the workshop listening to Dineen, I was struck by the revelation that what I’d believed for so long was a lie. The scales of deceit shattered on reading the first few chapters of Lynn and Dineen’s book, “Winning Him Without Words”.

A few weeks later having read both books and explored this community’s blog, I genuinely felt a changed man. Have you ever experienced that? Having a lie that you convinced yourself for years being zapped.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
 and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Prov 3:5-6 NKJV)

The above verse took on new meaning and continues to. Our perceptions can be so misleading. I continue to meditate on these verses most days.

I’d carried that chestnut around for many years. In some ways I had come to believe my marriage and I didn’t deserve to be blessed.

In addition, I hid behind my SUM status, so I didn’t get involved in a lot of Christian activities, fearful of being rejected by believers. And so my walk with the Lord stagnated as it simply relied on my own initiative. As we’ve shared before, we need each other and fellow believers to walk with us. That is how we are made, whether we’re single, married to a pre-believer or a believer.

What About You?

Are you at a point in your life and marriage that you wonder if you and it can be blessed? May I encourage you to share your concern with the Lord. He wants our heart and wants us to want to share everything that is in it. Talk about it and spend time listening to how He responds. You might be surprised with His words.

Do you not get involved with others out of shame or guilt?

As we’ve discussed before, it can be a lot harder for we SUMites to get involved as often we find churches are full of couples and we’re one of the singles. I’m currently in this situation with my new church, as I venture back to in-person church after a year away due to COVID and caring for my parents.

Once again, may I encourage you to give it over to Jesus. He is passionate about connection with others and the church. He will make a way as long as we present ourselves willing to participate. For so many years, I hid away in my home making excuses and wasn’t allowing God to do His thing.

God is good. Meeting Dineen ten years ago at the workshop and witnessing how He used our meeting is still a moment that I cherish. As is our continued friendship. Dineen is in St. Louis at this very moment attending this year’s conference as she’s on staff. I so wish I was there too. Because one never knows what the Lord will do in such moments as long as we choose to take a step and believe He will step with us.

He certainly is mysterious.

When was the last time you experienced a moment or touch of mystery or wonder from our Lord? We’d love to read about it in the comments below.

Grace and peace, dear friends

Happy 15 years dear SUMites. Ian here from Sydney, Australia. I thought I’d share how I found this community that is very dear to me. Some of you may be familiar with my story but for all of you newbies you might find it interesting how a man from Down Under stumbled across this safe place.

It was September 2012. I had always wanted to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference and having a publisher for Angelguard I thought it a useful way of building some momentum for its release a few months later.

My wife and I combined it with a holiday to the US with the plan to attend the conference in DFW on our final leg before heading home. The conference had started, and I was having a ball meeting lots of fascinating authors including some of my heroes plus gaining a lot of useful information. There was one particular workshop titled “How to Market Your Fiction Like a non-Fiction Pro” that featured four presenters: an agent who I knew of, an author who I was a fan of and two other authors who I didn’t know.

Divine Appointments

It was an excellent workshop spread over two sessions. One of the non-fiction authors shared a little of their journey on writing a non-fiction book about being married to a pre-believer. All of a sudden this workshop now had added meaning.

Yes, you guessed it that author was none other than our own, Dineen Miller. Dineen, of course, is a rarity in publishing, being both an author of non-fiction and fiction. Her award-winning novel, The Soul Saver, is tremendous.

On the workshop ending, I was on my way to an appointment with an editor when I happened to notice Dineen waiting in the same area. She was by herself so I introduced myself and shared how I too was married to a pre-believer. We chatted very briefly, Dineen mentioned the SUM community and to my delight gave me a copy of “Winning Him Without Words”. She only brought two to the conference and I was the fortunate one to receive the second one. Talk about a blessing.

The Lies of the Enemy

Up to that time, one of my struggles in church life and faith was a belief that any ministry I undertook including through my writing would not be blessed because I was in a spiritually mismatched marriage.

As I sat in the workshop listening to Dineen, I was struck by the revelation that what I’d believed for so long was a lie. The scales of deceit shattered on reading the first few chapters of Lynn and Dineen’s book.

A few weeks later having read both books and explored this community’s blog, I genuinely felt a changed man. Have you ever experienced that? A firm perception or belief that you've carried for years being zapped by the Lord as a lie of the devil?

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
 and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Prov 3:5-6 NKJV)

The above verse took on new meaning and continues to. Our perceptions can be so misleading. I continue to meditate on these verses most days.

I’d carried that chestnut around for many years. In some ways I had come to believe my marriage and I didn’t deserve to be blessed.

God is good. Meeting Dineen and the Lord using her in that workshop and enabling us to bump into each other so soon afterwards was one of those moments I so cherish. It really was a divine appointment.

He certainly is mysterious.

15 Years

I joined (do we join?) the SUMite community almost eight years ago. I’ve always believed there is a special anointing over Lynn and this community. Even though we see less of Lynn these days, I feel Ann has received a similar anointing to carry the message of SUM into the future.

Reading the posts through the week is like an oasis. We all experience that loneliness of being the “single” one, not only in our church communities, but also often within our other various friendships and associations. Even though we’re mostly a virtual family it’s always special being able to hang out in a warm and safe place where there is much love, understanding and discernment.

On behalf of your SUM family, dear Lynn (and Dineen) and Ann, thank you. Thank you for honoring the Lord through your obedience in caring for us these 15 years. We love sharing this journey with you and each other and look forward to what the future holds.

And to all the SUMites, thank you for sharing your heart with us all. This family wouldn’t be what it is without all of us.

I so look forward to what the Lord has in store for each other of us in the years ahead.

Photo courtesy of Multipedia and FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Hello, Ian from Down Under here. I was fascinated to read Ann's Monday post about the history of SUM. And it brought back so many memories for me that I thought I'd go back in time and share my SUM beginnings.

It was September 2012. I had always wanted to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference and having a publisher for Angelguard I thought it a useful way of building some momentum for its release a few months later.

My wife and I combined it with a holiday to the US with the plan to attend the conference in DFW on our final leg before heading home. The conference had started and I was having a ball meeting lots of fascinating authors including some of my heroes plus gaining a lot of useful information. There was one particular workshop titled “How to Market Your Fiction Like a non-Fiction Pro” that featured four presenters: an agent who I knew of, an author who I was a fan of and two other authors who I didn’t know.

It was an excellent workshop spread over two sessions. One of the non-fiction authors shared a little of their journey on writing a non-fiction book about being married to a pre-believer. All of a sudden this workshop now had added meaning.

Yes, you guessed it that author was none other than our own, Dineen. Dineen, of course, is a rarity in publishing, being both an author of non-fiction and fiction. Her award-winning novel, The Soul Saver, is tremendous.

On the workshop ending, I was on my way to an appointment with an editor when I happened to notice Dineen waiting in the same area. She was by herself so I introduced myself and shared how I too was married to a pre-believer. We chatted very briefly, Dineen mentioned the SUM community and to my delight gave me a copy of “Winning Him Without Words”. She only brought two to the conference and I was the fortunate one to receive the second one. Talk about a blessing.

The Lies of the Enemy

Up to that time, one of my struggles in church life and faith was a belief that any ministry I undertook including through my writing would not be blessed because I was in a spiritually mismatched marriage.

As I sat in the workshop listening to Dineen, I was struck by the revelation that what I’d believed for so long was a lie. The scales of deceit shattered on reading the first few chapters of Lynn and Dineen’s book.

A few weeks later having read both books and explored this community’s blog, I genuinely felt a changed man. Have you ever experienced that? Having a lie that you convinced yourself for years being zapped.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
 and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Prov 3:5-6 NKJV)

The above verse took on new meaning and continues to. Our perceptions can be so misleading. Hey, I’d carried that chestnut around for many years. In some ways I had come to believe my marriage, and I, didn’t deserve to be blessed.

God is good. Meeting Dineen and the Lord using her in that workshop and enabling us to bump into each other so soon afterwards was one of those moments I so cherish.

He certainly is mysterious. I was struck reading Ann's post that it was only a few weeks after my meeting with Dineen that both she and Lynn had special revelations about SUM. 

Look Up for those Divine Appointments

Interestingly, I've now attended that conference four times and each time I experience some sort of divine appointment with another person that I wasn't anticipating. It's one of the reasons I continue to want to go back each year. Besides the entire event being bathed in prayer, the Holy Spirit is always moving and I get excited seeking to participate in some small way in whatever He's doing.

“Earth's crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God, But only he who sees takes off his shoes; The rest sit round and pluck blackberries.” - Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I heard this quote the other day and it made with reflect on the fact that, like Moses (I presume that's the inspiration behind the burning bush reference) we all need to 'look up' (or 'take off our shoes') because God is continually at work all around us.  When you get a little nudge that might or might not be from the Holy Spirit, may I encourage you to 'look up' because it's a good chance the Lord is inviting you to participate in something He's doing. I'm continually amazed how often when I pray the Lord puts specific people on my heart, so I pray for them and then usually text or call them, even if it's a simple word of encouragement.

May I encourage us to share in the comments any divine appointments or moments you've experienced (especially if they're SUM-related) by listening to the nudge and choosing to 'look up'.

Grace and peace, dear SUMite friends

Hi friends, Ann here!

We can walk through this SUM path feeling weary, right? But there are moments where God brings us a surprise gift to cheer us up. Today I want to encourage you with a little story: It's about the day I discovered Bryce’s favorite friend had unexpectedly become Christian. If you need a boost I hope you enjoy this one!

Now, this guy was unusual in that I never would have imagined it. Not because he was off the rails. I just wouldn't have picked it. I’ll call him David.

Bryce and I were friends with Dave in our early twenties. He was one who lived life hedonistically and he became unusually successful in the business world. He is very funny, with a dry wit that my Bryce particularly enjoys. Over the years the two of them would laugh their way across the golf course, squash court and pub.

Eventually, he moved away. Then, a spiritual earthquake hit our home: I turned to follow Jesus, Bryce wasn't thrilled, and our spiritually-mismatched situation began. Aggh! In those years, I desperately craved Christian friends but had few. It was in this miserable condition that God landed me with a surprise: Dave had converted.

I found out on the day of Dave’s mum’s funeral. His mother was a lovely Christian, and we set out that sunny morning to farewell her. Dave lived in another country by then but had come home to nurse his Mum; and now on this day he gave her an honoring eulogy. He took to the podium and in true form had us even laughing at points with his humor, but then I nearly fell off my seat at what came next:

“I know I will see Mum again because she is in the arms of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour. And that is all that matters.”

What?

My wide eyes followed Dave as he left the podium and sat back down, head heavy. I watched the back of his head, curiously, wondering about what I’d just heard.

Later, Bryce and I stood opposite Dave and his wife, cups of coffee in hand. The conversation was light and warm, but suddenly Dave cut across us with a strange focus in his eyes: “Ann, are you still reading the Bible?” My eyebrows raised, and I was just about to answer when Bryce spoke for me: “Yes she IS! She certainly is!” He followed this by saying: “And she can’t put it down.” Perfectly cheerful, he was, biting into a sandwich. Given our tension about faith I was pleasantly surprised, even by that. Dave’s eyes stayed on mine and he said quietly: “I’m so happy about that, Ann.”

There was no opportunity to say more. But did I possibly have a friend there in Dave?

After that, I so wanted to text him. I badly wanted to know more. What's more, I wanted to text him to say ‘Can you convert my husband please?’ (I’m laughing). But no. I didn’t. I left him be.

It was months before we saw Dave again. There at a dinner table one evening he shared his conversion, his wife by his side chiming in just like Bryce did at the funeral. Bryce and I sat listening. We talked about church. Dave’s wife piped up at that point: ‘I hate going to church!’ I cast her a sideways glance and thought ‘Ok, I know all about that.’ Clearly they had the exact same dynamic as us. And hard as it was for Dave it made me feel a bit better. I guess I saw it was a normal outworking of this difficult situation.

Since then, Dave and I have snatched the odd faith conversation. He moves in a friendship group that is entirely non-Christian; and in his professional life he is a rare believer. It is not easy being an adult convert: You end up being lonely in your social world. But I look at his conversion story and know he will make a difference to his wife, colleagues and friends. It's easier to see that bigger picture in someone else's life than it is in your own.

As for Bryce, well, it's all part of God's planning. I imagine the two of them walking across the golf course or at the pub sharing their faith as friends someday. Wouldn't that be interesting? For now, I just enjoy it as the gift that I know will keep on giving.

Photo supplied courtesy of imagery majestic and FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Hi! Ian here. Lent began last Wednesday with Ash Wednesday. I’m observing this season once again as I enjoy being intentional about seeking more of God and Lent and Advent seem to help me do that. Yes, I ‘give up’ something (sugar and Instagram this year) as it helps me focus on the wilderness element of the season; Lent, of course, mirroring the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness.

But this isn’t a post about Lent rather a sense I’ve had in the past week about stirrings within me that I thought I’d share. Recently, I’ve read a couple of short passages on the supernatural happenings of God. Abraham and Sarah only birthed Isaac through supernatural intervention. Mary and Joseph birthed Jesus only through supernatural intervention. Paul and Barnabas’ ministry work that took the Gospel to the Gentiles is attributed to supernatural means (Acts 14: 27)

And here in SUMite land we read in Ann’s previous post of some of our tribe’s spouses experiencing a revelation of God in being saved. Hallelujah! Yes, salvation requires a supernatural happening as it is not something that will occur in the natural.

How Does This Happen?

If we look at the lives of Abraham and Sarah, Mary and Joseph, Paul and Barnabas, what can we glean?

Deep intimacy with God

They all had their wilderness experiences. God uses these times to clear everything else away so we can be with Him. He wants us to let go of control so He's in charge. Interestingly, in Mary’s experience it was after she was impregnated supernaturally as we really didn’t know about her prior to her angelic encounter.  Similarly, Paul’s wilderness time was after his miraculous Damascus experience. God had to deal with his years of being a Christian terrorist before unleashing him on the Gentile world.

As frustrating and painful being in the wilderness can be, step into it. It’s a clear tactic of God’s to draw people closer to Him, so He can equip them for something more. Such seasons can involve unemployment, illness, relocation, sabbaticals and more.

Remember God wants deep intimacy with each one of us. It’s why He made us. For Himself.

This is why I love Lent because I get excited about being with God. Like one of our kids gets excited when Dad or Mom arrives home from work. Remember those days?

What do I do?

1. Soak in His Word – look at Psalm 1:

“Instead you thrill to God’s Word,
    you chew on Scripture day and night.
You’re a tree replanted in Eden,
    bearing fresh fruit every month,
Never dropping a leaf,
    always in blossom.” (v2-3 MSG)

I love that idea of the Word thrilling me? I want it to thrill me everyday. The Word is alive with supernatural wonder desiring to reveal Himself to us. Reflect on Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness and how He batted back the temptations Satan put before Him: He used the Word. Don’t just rely on wonderful devotionals where it’s someone else’s interpretation that fills most of the page; read God’s word in the Bible. If you’re not sure where to start, start with the Gospel of John and/or the Psalms. I’ve been reading the Psalms repeatedly for the last three or four years; I just can’t get enough of them.

2. Spend time Adoring God

Talking about the Word thrilling you, there's a lady who helps us bring the Word alive. I’ve mentioned Sara Hagerty’s before. She's been on this “Adoration” journey for over five years now. She provides a monthly one-verse a day adoration prompt. It’s how I’ve started my day for the last five years.

Sara says: “Adoration is finding a pulse behind that Word and then saying that Word back to Him, in our own dialect … it all starts with a simple conversation, a friendship that ends in our destiny: falling in love with God.”

Try it for a few days, a month. Sit and speak the daily verse back to God. Thank Him, praise Him, adore Him using the words in the verse. 

3. Spend time Listening to God

My hunch is that the modern church lacks listening skills. In some ways it goes hand-in-hand with a lack of Bible awareness, we ‘listen’ to the Word when we read it. I discovered recently that the word, obedience, comes from a Latin word which means: “to listen attentively”. My logical brain tells me that if we lack listening skills, we’re lacking in obedience. And what does Jesus tell us is the way we demonstrate our love for Him?

“If you love Me, keep My commands” (John 14:15)

Jesus tells us that the sheep know His voice. But it takes time to learn to discern His voice and that’s why knowing and meditating on the Word is so important.

May I encourage you to use some of the time you wait, perhaps it’s in the school pickup line, at the grocery store, in the medical clinic, etc just to be quiet and invite God into this moment and say hi! And ask him a question or two. He may not answer immediately, especially in the beginning, but over time you’ll be surprised to find how many times He does give you an answer.

Let me stop there.

Believe the supernatural will happen. Think how often Lynn finds balloons on her prayer walks.:) Keep being intentional connecting with God. He wants it more than anything. Believe that deep in your heart. He made each one of us so we would fall in love with Him. I'm praying that we all will develop greater intimacy with the Lord and that He is indeed birthing something in each of us and our spouses that only He can bring to life!

Anyone else observing Lent this year? If yes, what are you doing to be intentional in drawing closer to the Lord? Please share in the comments.

Image courtesy of BlueSuedeBallroom.com

Hello, dear SUMite friends. Ian from sunny Sydney here. I returned this morning from a whirlwind trip to San Antonio to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) annual conference. This is now my fourth conference and the reason I keep returning is that each time I go I experience a significant God-moment, writing and non-writing.

My first experience of this was at the 2012 event where I met our dear friend Dineen Miller who introduced me to SUM. I’ve written about our meeting a few times but in a nutshell prior to this conference I doubted I could ever have a ministry role outside my small little world as a result of being a SUM. Dineen both at the conference and, later through her contribution to SUM, clearly demonstrated otherwise and it dawned on me that I’d allowed myself to be deceived by the enemy.

Clearing Obstacles

I had felt the Lord’s nudge to attend this year’s event. It surprised me because it’s a fiction event and my energies this year have been focused around a non-fiction project. Surely, there was a disconnect. But the nudges kept on coming.

But there were some clear obstacles, the biggest being a financial one. We simply didn’t have the money for flights, conference and hotel accommodation. I kept saying to God, well, if you want me to go then you’ll need to clear this obstacle.

Six weeks before the event, mid-August, I received a completely unexpected financial gift from my parents. They were unaware of my desire to attend the conference. I was amazed. The Lord said to me, ‘well, that’s no longer an obstacle’.

I left chatting to Fiona about it for a week or so until she asked me what I’d like to do with the gift. And so I told her. She was kind enough to let me attend and when booking flights I was able to use frequent flyer points to get me across the Pacific meaning I didn't have to spend as much as first thought.

I’m continually amazed at God’s goodness.

Expectant Heart

I boarded my flight last Wednesday still unsure of why I was attending. I had set up some meetings but there was no guarantee they would provide anything of any great value. However, my heart was expectant both because of my three previous experiences but also because of how God had made it possible for me to attend.

It didn’t take long for things to start bubbling. The first worship session included the mention of a verse from Revelation that had been important to me during the first half of the year. Aha … is this it, Lord?

Even though I was able to share the significance of this verse to the two people who mentioned it and had a lovely moment with both, it soon became apparent it was simply a minor precursor to what the Lord had in store.

Feedback

The second day proceeded uneventfully until an afternoon appointment I had set up week’s prior. It was with a man whose counsel I admire and on discussing my non-fiction project with him, it wasn’t long before I realised this was the ‘gotcha moment’ and the reason for my attendance. The feedback wasn’t exactly what I would have liked to receive but it was exactly what I needed to hear. Two subsequent meetings with agents confirmed the same.

I felt pretty flat and a little discouraged by the time night came about. I thought my project was headed in the right direction but it was clear it wasn’t.

Worship clears the cobwebs of discouragement

The conference always has a late night worship session where writers can sit and write as they listen to worship. I didn’t want to write. I wanted to worship. I needed to because it’s something that always lifts my spirits. And the worship band at ACFW is one of the best I’ve sat under.

The enemy hates worship. I reckon it’s like a persistent jackhammer banging away at their heads. They have to flee – remember Paul and Silas in the jail set to be executed the next day? What did they do? They “were praying and singing hymns to God” (Acts 16:25) What happened next? An earthquake happened, cell doors opened, chains fell off, freeing the two heroes.

Ephesians 5:18-19 is even more clear: “Be filled with the Holy Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody to the Lord with all your heart.” The Holy Spirit is the one who changes the atmosphere and being filled with the Spirit through singing and praying weakens the enemy’s power.

The discouragement I had soon lifted even though I was unsure of the next steps in my project. I woke the next morning feeling refreshed and energized. The morning’s worship was tremendous even more so as the Lord’s presence was thick as He touched a number of people in a very gentle healing way.

The Dance of Dependence

God never lays out the blueprint of the future, does He? It’s always one step at a time so we continue to trust in Him to lead us. We have to depend on Him. I was reminded of how a dad dances with a young daughter. She places her feet on his and as He steps, her feet automatically follow. It’s a wonderful picture for how we can follow His lead don’t you think?

When was a recent time you followed one of the Lord’s nudges out of obedience even though you were unsure of what was to occur? Be great for us to encourage each other in the comments below.

Blessings, my SUMite friends.

Image courtesy of Sura Nualpradid at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I was reading the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 the other day and was challenged to reflect on it from the eyes of the boy who had the five loaves and two fish. If you wish to read along I used the version in John 6.

I don’t think I’ve really even considered it from his perspective and with the SUMite Gathering this weekend I thought there were some wonderful insights to encourage all of you who will be attending. And especially for those of you who might be nervous or a little apprehensive as is very normal before such an event.

Jesus asked the boy for his loaves and fish. Conceivably the boy could have refused the request. But he didn’t as I suspect Jesus, like he was with every child he met, was kind and considerate in making his request.

The boy as an act of love for both Jesus and all the other people hands over his goodies. He shares what is his to participate in Jesus’ mission: to feed the masses of people.

This boy’s ‘little’ gift produced over-abundance as Jesus got a hold of it and we all know what happens – twelve baskets of leftovers. Amazing.

Parable for our Lives

I was struck by how the boy’s action is a practical demonstration of what Jesus calls us to do. The strongest command in all of the gospels is simply to love.

Let’s go now to the night of the Last Supper in John 13. Jesus is sharing his last meal with the disciples in the Upper Room on the night of Maundy Thursday. A few hours later he would be arrested. Jesus starts the night by washing his friends’ feet and encourages them to do likewise in demonstrating one’s love for others by performing such menial tasks. Soon after, Judas leaves having been ‘found out’ by Jesus as to what he was about to do. Immediately thereafter Jesus states once again that he is leaving and shares with his much loved and very confused friends these words:

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13: 34-35 NRSV)

Now back to our boy. Like Jesus, his act of handing over the loaves and fish was an act of love. For Jesus and the community. And Jesus used them to fulfil his mission to feed the community.

God’s in the Multiplication Business

Love is an action. Jesus commands us to love. Very little else, in fact. To love Him and others. If we continue to abide with Him we will come to understand His mission. I suspect the boy knew what Jesus wanted to do with the loaves and fish. It would have been very normal for Jesus to tell the boy when he asked for them: “Would you help me feed all these people by giving me your loaves and fish?”

This weekend some of the SUMite community will come together in one place. Yayyy! What a blessing and an answer to so many of us who’ve prayed about it for a long time. There won’t be 5,000 but a group of people where Jesus will be amongst you fulfilling his mission. Be like the boy and simply respond to Jesus with love for Him, the Sumites who are present, those of us who can’t be there (I’m one of them) and our spouses. 

And believe that your gift (you!) will reap an abundance that will be felt around the globe in all of our homes. Expect the unexpected and step into 'our' community full of faith and boldness.

Blessings for a wonderful couple of days together, may the Lord’s presence be thick and may His Kingdom come over Southern Cali this weekend.

Grace and peace.

SUMite Nation:

Sorry for the radio silence. I’ve been balancing three speaking engagements this past week and I have laryngitis. Yesterday afternoon I was going to cancel my talk: Maintaining Your Healing Following Prayer. But at 2 pm, (the meeting began at 4) the Lord said, “Get up and I will heal you as you are speaking.” WOW!

Suddenly I was filled with energy. Jumped in the shower and gave a powerful talk, equipping believers with tools to walk further into their healing. I was able to speak clearly and then prayed with several and watched God release His love and fire!!!  It was awesome.

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I want to let you know that the Lord said that I should hold off with the SUMite Summit registration until January. He said the momentum will be lost in the busy of the Holidays.

Following our community fast on January 14th, I will open registration. I will also provide airport information, travel websites, hotel accommodations, a Facebook travel group to coordinate airport pickups and more. I will also have the tentative agenda and the catering information. I’ve already confirmed a worship team… We are confirmed for April 5 & 6, 2019. And already most of the SUM Leadership has committed to attend Woo Hoo!! If you must make arrangements prior to January, please email me and I will give you the airport information.

The Lord said to ask each of you to be aware of how He will be bringing the funds into your life to pay for your journey (Christmas money, birthday, a gift of air-miles, ask your mom. Ask your Dad, Ask Jesus!!!!!

Already, Ann Hutchison, has a powerful story of provision that she will share in the future. Ann lives in New Zealand!!  Say what????

And, if you think it’s impossible to attend, then just listen to this story. This is Gillian Russel Meisner. Her story will blow you out of the water. She traveled from Nova Scotia to Houston, Texas, 2,499.3 mi. She traveled with a baby. She left her home and trusted God to get her there.

YOU MUST LISTEN. This will break every lie that you can’t get to our spring summit. Hallelujah!!

Also, Diane Woody, we acknowledge the passing of your husband over the weekend. Please know we are surrounding you with love and with our prayers of support and compassion in your pain. Love, Lynn and SUMite Nation

Hello SUM Family, Tiffany Here!

The last couple of months I have been sharing a bit about what I have learned from reading a book called From Dream to Destiny by Robert Morris. I was assigned to read this book in class and I am so glad that I read it! This book has been truly amazing. To read the previous two posts I've written in this "mini-series" click on the links below.

This Is Just The Pits!

Do You Want Evidence Or The Truth?

In September I began to take steps to transition into a new church. As you read this, I have now been at this new church for 3 weeks. Each and every week has been so powerful and effective. Today I want to share with you a recent experience unlike anything I've ever had. It happened a little over a week ago on October 14, 2018. The following is what I posted the next day on Facebook (sharing here as well since a lot of you may not have Facebook or seen it because we aren't "friends"):

 Worship at Hub is amazing. God is there. Holy Spirit presence is thick and tangible. We were singing a song I had never heard before. The lyrics were powerful and the words that floored me at the time were talking about laying my whole life down before Jesus our Savior. I was already worshipping on my knees but I couldn't help but crouch face down before God. I felt so heavy and overloaded. I was just crying and crying before God. My words spoken in tears and sobs. All of a sudden it was like God said, "get up." Not in an angry way but an empowering way...if that makes sense. I sat up and it was like I saw myself in the place of the woman caught in adultry that was brought before Jesus. The crowd, stones in hand set to stone her. Jesus calmly and matter of factly said, "He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone." Slowly, one by one the people left. Once everyone was gone, I pictured Jesus lift up my chin so I would look him in the eyes. Crouched on the ground seeing His eyes intent on mine. Looking into my soul. Just like He did with the woman that day, He said, "who condemns you?" Looking around I reply, "No one Sir." In that instant...I felt all the weight of condemnation lifted. It was like I had an hour long deep tissue massage. Every fiber of my  being, relaxed and stress free. I realized later after worship and after the service...reflecting on what happened in that moment. Those people standing and surrounding me so quick to condemn and judge...were different versions of ME. How often I have shot myself down, I have stoned myself for a mis-spoken word, a harsh tone, a forgotten task, a wrong thought...I have been stoning myself for years and as God clearly told me to get up - it was giving me my life back. It was His GRACE UPON GRACE. His mercy. His true love. He doesn't keep record of wrongs...and neither should I. NO LONGER DO I. This morning, as life went on as usual...I reacted in ways I am tyring to change (short with my daughter when she cries about everything she wears - meltown after meltdown this morning and my shortness with her, attitude from tired children, etc) but the major difference was this. No one condemns me...not even myself. I made a mistake, asked for forgivenenss and moved on. The first instance my flesh tried to condemn me I heard the words "no one Sir." Loud and clear and it reminded me of the freedom that I was given. Once and for all. I will never go back. Once that transaction was finished Jesus said, "Go and sin no more." Can you image the freedom, the joy, the apreciation she felt with that moment? I can...because I do.

 You may have to click on the picture to better see but I found the moment in worship where this exchange happened. Today I stand free from years of mental torment. As I think about this moment it still brings tears to my eyes because every moment since then has been a blessing. Please know that it doesn't mean that I am perfect or care free. I still have some struggles that God is working on in me. Holy Spirit is still pruning and I've got a lot of work to do. However, I am no longer hopeless.

I've gone a little long this time so let me wrap up with this:

I have been blessed to be a blessing. So today, I bless you with joy unspeakable; freedom from weight (even YEARS worth) of torment - mental, emotional, spiritual, physical; victory beyond belief; confidence in your Daddy; hope to weather the storm; faith, life, salvation for your spouse and loved ones; light in the darkness; advancement in the Kingdom where you feel backslidden; fire shut up in your bones; fight and fierceness; and love beyond compare.

Below is the song that brought me to the feet of Jesus and ushered me into freedom.

See you in the comments. I would love to pray over you for your own deliverance.

Hey SUMnation! Tiffany here.

Some of you have heard me talk about this unique journey that the Lord has me on right now with my job. I shared this on the SUM sisters in Christ group on Facebook but wanted to reach out and share here as some of you (especially the men) may have questions about what I do as a job and how God is gifting me for ministry. I wanted to give you a quick snap shot into where I spend 40 hours a week and when my heart is prepped right and my mind focusing on the Lord I am given insight that can only come from the Holy Spirit.

Welcome to my fingerprinting station (picture left). There are two other girls that I work with in my office and we each have our own computer/desk and our own fingerprint station. For the most part my day is split between this view and the view of my desk and computer. This machine has become my "buddy" over the last year. We spend a lot of time together. Maybe I should name it. ::grin:: I have to say I have done a lot of contemplating and talking with the Lord here. In thinking of Moses and the burning bush...if I had the ability to take my shoes off here...I would. This is holy ground. Before I begin to sound sacrilegious I will continue the tour and you will see why I feel this way.

Step on up to the machine! I tried to capture this as best as possible but just imagine this view from your own eyes (picture right).When I fingerprint people we are up close and personal so to speak. The customer stands in front of the fingerprinting machine called Livescan and I stand to the left of the machine. I use gloves during the time of fingerprinting someone but I essentially am holding hands with each person I print. I wish I could tell you how or when this started but my first conscious recollection was feeling a tingling sensation in my hands when fingerprinting someone when I first started doing this job over 2 years ago. I didn't understand at the time. There wasn't any actual guiding from the Holy Spirit at that point just a realization that this feeling in my hands was different than I'd ever experienced before. Eventually I had caught on that it wasn't with everyone I printed and so in the secret of my mind I would pray for those people.

Placing hand on the Livescan brings a digital print onto the screen

I began to be amazed at how much a stranger would open up to someone like me - a fingerprinter who spends maybe 10 or 15 minutes with you. The crazy thing is they had no idea that I was willing to pray for them and yet the Holy Spirit would open up this close space and meet us there. Where 2 or more are gathered together in Jesus' name - He is there. In doing this job (please let me know if this is not biblically sound) I am beginning to feel as though the where 2 or more are gathered together in His name doesn't have to mean consciously. I mean look at our community. Some of our spouses are willing to allow us to gather together in Jesus name - when our spouses let us pray over them and with them. But, for those of you who have to be more secretive about your prayer life because of hostile spouses - when you intercede on their behalf and they are in the room...my friends...Jesus still shows up whether they know it or not! As I have grown and matured (though only a small amount) in my job I have begun to view this as a ministry. When people open up it could be as simple as they need fingerprinted because they just got a new job that requires a background check. It can also be as complicated and broken as a man getting fingerprinted for a step-parent adoption. He married the love of his life who happened to be a sex abuse victim in her teens from her step-father (close to home or what??). Cancer and chemo. Military veteran who was having a second surgery on his shoulder. Widows. Gender-identity confused individuals. A man with a tattoo behind his ear with the number 666 and cartoonish devil horns and tail. Sex offenders who have been convicted of some really atrocious things. I could go on and on...and that is just from either conversation that was opened up or earthly (physical) observation/knowledge.

I have seen some really amazing things during this fascinating season of work but I have to be completely honest with you. I am sure you can relate when ministering to others that it can be really exhausting. You know that God has called you to help and has brought people into your life that you are supposed to pour into and be a light and example to...to train up and disciple...to intercede for - even for just a moment in time. It is so hard to be vulnerable because it opens up your heart to rejoice and mourn with those around you (Romans 12:15). In the past having issues with depression and anxiety I often times get overwhelmed and it is almost like a defense mechanism goes off inside of me and it says - back away, you aren't equipped to handle this. I get in slumps where I think if I avoid God than He won't ask me to do it anymore. I know this is ugly and wrong. I am the only one (that I know of...it's not like I talk to fingerprinters other than my co-workers) equipped to THIS calling. I have to press in and keep fighting. I have to keep leaning in to the Father who has gifted me for such a time as this and such a WAY as this. I have to stand in the gap for those who come my way because I may be the ONLY one who will.

I've gone a little longer than anticipated and so I want to stop here but next time I will continue on with this #fingerprintrevelations story. So much more to share as God allows. I want to talk about the amazing post and work from Libby recently.

In the comments, can you share some tips that help you overcome the heavy burden of ministering to others? Any Bible verse(s) that keep you going? Also, how has God positioned you in your own specific, unique, and powerful way to minister to those around you everyday?

See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.

--Isaiah 43:19

Photo credit: Herald Sun

By Ian Acheson

The passing of Billy Graham two weeks ago brought back a flood of memories for many people. No doubt you’ve seen the many tributes for Mr Graham over these past couple of weeks. And I wanted to take a moment to express my own small tribute to him.

The Year 1979

The photo at left was taken in 1979 at one of Mr. Graham’s crusade meetings held at Sydney’s largest racecourse. 1979! Oh what a year. I think back on it with great fondness. I was in Year 10 at school and I particularly loved that school year. I even did well at Science that was a first for me. It gave me a boost especially as I wanted to follow in my Dad’s footsteps and study medicine. When it came to selecting my subjects for the final two years of school, I ignored the vocational guidance tests that indicated I was more suited to arts-style courses, and chose to study physics and chemistry so as to give myself a chance of qualifying for medicine. I soon discovered in the early weeks of Year 11 that I really wasn’t cut out for either of them. Darn!

But more significantly in 1979 I met Jesus. Because of Mr. Graham.

I had been attending youth fellowship and church for about nine months when Mr. Graham’s crusade came to town. So many of us from church attended that we had buses ferry us to the other side of Sydney to Randwick Racecourse to attend each night. We had a lot of fun on those bus trips.

I attended five nights. To hear Mr. Graham speak. To hear more about this person, Jesus Christ. I responded to his alter call invitation on the first night. I remember that stirring in the gut, will I/won’t I, and then having to make a long trek from my seat in one of the stands to the front of the stage. I was met by a man, one of hundreds of volunteers, who said a few things and gave me a small book. I never heard from him again. But that didn’t matter. I’d accepted Jesus into my life. I was born again.

Just the beginning

Soon after the crusades finished I enrolled in confirmation classes at my church. Yes, we had eight to ten weeks of classes in the home of one of the great families in the church to learn more about what being a Christian meant. In addition, we were given an overview of various disciplines like prayer and reading the Bible.

I also needed to be baptized as my parents didn’t baptize any of us when we were young. This created a bit of angst with my Dad. He challenged me to consider ALL the alternatives to Christianity and even asked me to read a book written by Carl Sagan who was a recognized God-skeptic. I read it but it didn’t discourage me in my decision. Dad appreciated the fact I read the book and even though he still questioned my decision he allowed me to proceed.

The journey

It has only taken me another almost 40 years to begin to better understand who Jesus is and how much He loves me but gosh I’ve loved the journey. Certainly, there have been many valleys where I’ve struggled in my walk but I’ve come to realise the importance of communicating with the Lord, reading His Word all the time, and being in community with other believers is so important to moving forward. Most of my valleys have been times of when I’ve tried to do life on my own terms. It’s been in learning that God made us to be dependent on Him that I’ve discovered the victory we have in daily walking with Him.

Grateful

Thank you, Mr. Graham, for introducing me to Jesus. There have been so many wonderful and much deserved tributes dedicated to the great man but it’s kinda special for me to know that I’m one of the many millions who carry the legacy of the incredible life he lived. I’ll always treasure his memory.

Now your turn SUMites. I'd love it if we all could share a little in the comments of someone who has played a key role in your faith walk.

Image courtesy of nuttakit at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I sat chatting with my publisher. We’d only just met face to face for the first time and here we sat, an Englishman and an Aussie, having a cup of tea (as in hot) in a café in a Nashville hotel. We were attending a Christian Writers Conference, he prospecting for new content and I hoping he’d give me an update on my manuscript that I’d sent through to his employer three months previous.

Unfortunately, Tony knew nothing about my manuscript. He was now a contractor to the business and so wasn’t involved in the day-to-day. I thought we’d end up having a nice chat about nothing in particular until he quickly changed the subject with the question: “Have you thought of writing non-fiction?” (for those of you who don’t know I write fiction).

My heart jumped a little. I’d come to the conference having played around with an idea for a non-fiction project to discuss with some of my writing friends and one in particular, our very own Dineen Miller. But I didn’t plan on pitching it, as this was a fiction conference so I naively thought who’s going to be interested in non-fiction? Well, Tony was.

Not being prepared, I babbled out an idea and it was clear to both Tony and I that all I had was a general concept. He kindly agreed to my suggestion of sending him a proposal in the next month.

As soon as I finished with Tony I sought out Dineen and with much excitement shared what happened.

I’ve attended two of these conferences now and both times the Lord has surprised me.

Mary

We’re all familiar with the story in Luke 1. Last week we looked at Gabriel surprising Zechariah with the news of a baby. In verses 26-38, Gabriel appears a second time to a poor Galilean peasant girl. Most commentators believe Mary was 13 or 14 years old. It was relatively common in those times for girls of this age to be married and pregnant and I’ve always loved the innocence of Mary’s question to Gabriel: “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” (v34 ESV)

This was only the first of a lifetime of surprises for Mary. God turned this girl’s life upside down in an instant.

Mary and Elizabeth

The surprises continue. And we’re still in Chapter 1. Mary’s now pregnant and she visits her cousin, Elizabeth who is now almost six months pregnant.

“and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit ”” (v40-42 ESV)

The babe inside Elizabeth, ie, John, leaped when Mary greeted Elizabeth. The spiritual electricity is hot. The baby senses the presence of the Messiah. And then Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit! Wow.

After this initial Holy Spirit-charged greeting, Mary, we’re told remained with Elizabeth for about three months. (v56) Here we have a 60-year-old woman, six months pregnant, with her fourteen-year-old cousin who was in her first trimester. Both women no doubt supported each other in very practical ways through their respective pregnancies. Just imagine some of their conversations! 

Can we presume Mary was present at the birth of John? Did she assist in the birth? Did she hear Zechariah speak his first words after being mute for nine months?

And then Mary went home. With a baby bump. Surprising her betrothed, their families and communities. I expect Mary would have been dreading that day of departure. 

How has God surprised you recently?

It didn’t take long for more surprises. Chapter 2 starts by telling us that the Romans are planning a census and everyone needed to go to their own towns to register. Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem “the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David” (v4) only for Mary to soon go into labour then giving birth to Jesus in a barn because the inn was full due to the influx of people registering.

The Messiah! Born in a barn? Another surprise.

As we journey closer to Christmas, now only 14 days away, may we all be surprised by our Lord. May we all have expectant hearts as we keep our eyes on Him.

When was the last time the Lord surprised you? It would be lovely for us all to share in each other’s surprises by adding them in the comments. I trust this will fill us with even more hope as we wait upon the Lord in this season of Advent.

Grace and peace,

It was September 2012. I had always wanted to attend the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) conference and having a publisher for Angelguard I thought it a useful way of building some momentum for its release a few months later.

Fiona and I combined it with a holiday to the US with the plan to attend the conference in DFW on our final leg before heading home. The conference had started and I was having a ball meeting lots of fascinating authors including some of my heroes plus gaining a lot of useful information. There was one particular workshop titled “How to Market Your Fiction Like a non-Fiction Pro” that featured four presenters: an agent who I knew of, an author who I was a fan of and two other authors who I didn’t know.

It was an excellent workshop spread over two sessions. One of the non-fiction authors shared a little of their journey on writing a non-fiction book about being married to a pre-believer. All of a sudden this workshop now had added meaning.

Yes, you guessed it that author was none other than our own, Dineen. Dineen, of course, is a rarity in publishing, being both an author of non-fiction and fiction. Her award-winning novel, The Soul Saver, is tremendous.

On the workshop ending, I was on my way to an appointment with an editor when I happened to notice Dineen waiting in the same area. She was by herself so I introduced myself and shared how I too was married to a pre-believer. We chatted very briefly, Dineen mentioned the SUM community and to my delight gave me a copy of “Winning Him Without Words”. She only brought two to the conference and I was the fortunate one to receive the second one. Talk about a blessing.

The Lies of the Enemy

Up to that time, one of my struggles in church life and faith was a belief that any ministry I undertook including through my writing would not be blessed because I was in a spiritually mismatched marriage.

As I sat in the workshop listening to Dineen, I was struck by the revelation that what I’d believed for so long was a lie. The scales of deceit shattered on reading the first few chapters of Lynn and Dineen’s book.

A few weeks later having read both books and explored this community’s blog, I genuinely felt a changed man. Have you ever experienced that? Having a lie that you convinced yourself of for years being zapped.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
 and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Prov 3:5-6 NKJV)

The above verse took on new meaning and continues to. Our perceptions can be so misleading. Hey, I’d carried that chestnut around for many years. In some ways I had come to believe my marriage and I didn’t deserve to be blessed. But no longer! 

God is good. Meeting Dineen and the Lord using her in that workshop and enabling us to bump into each other so soon afterwards was one of those moments I so cherish.

He certainly is mysterious.

10 Years

I joined (do we join?) the SUMite gang less than four years ago now. I’m a little envious of all of you who’ve been with Lynn and Dineen for longer. Our two dear friends are anointed. They share their anointing with us each and every week.

Reading the posts through the week is like an oasis. We all experience that loneliness of being the “single” one, not only in our church communities, but also often within our other various friendships and associations. Even though we’re mostly a virtual family it’s always special being able to hang out in a warm and safe place where there is much love, understanding and discernment.

On behalf of your SUM family, dear Lynn and Dineen, thank you. Thank you for honoring the Lord through your obedience in caring for us these ten years. We love sharing this journey with you both and each other and look forward to what the future holds.

And to all the SUMites, thank you for sharing your heart with us all. This family wouldn’t be what it is without all of our contributions.

I so look forward to reading more of your stories in weeks ahead.

Dear friends, I feel like I'm on a treasure hunt through the Bible and the Holy Spirit keeps revealing these nuggets of wisdom and knowledge. In fact, I shared this verse on Facebook last week because it keeps showing up:

In him [Christ] lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. — Colossians 2:3 NLT

I have prayed into this for myself and for you, SUMites. Jesus wants to give us these treasures! We just have to ask for them.

So, this latest treasure is one that the Holy Spirit showed me builds on a truth we have talked about in the past, but builds upon it in regard to our authority in Jesus, the authority spoken of in Luke 9:1-2 and Luke 10:17. Our authority given us through our salvation in Jesus. 

But this nugget is revealing that we have specific authority, which I find fascinating. First let's start with 2 Corinthians 1:4:

He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. — 2 Corinthians 1:4 NLT

I've always loved this verse, because it reflects God's heart for us individually and corporately. He is our comforter and we are to pass the comfort on to others. He intends it to work that way. That is why we encounter others who are going through the same trials and difficulties we have gone through. Sometimes even as we are going through them. Abba wants to comfort us so we can comfort others, and encourage each other. This is the body of Christ working in love and unity.

But did you know that the very places that you have overcome give you special authority? Take a look at 2 Corinthians 4:17:

For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. — 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 ESV 

That word "weight" in the original Greek is baros and it means weight, burden, authority.

What does that mean? It means that the sicknesses and trials that you have overcome are now places of authority in which you can pray for others. You are essentially passing a blessing you have received to another person. It doesn't take it away from you at all or lessen its affect or presence. You are sharing it with another, which honors God because you are being obedient to His Word. And God always increases His blessings in these times.

Guess what else? It's a form of worship. An "eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison"! 

 That which we overcome gives us authority to pray for the same breakthrough for others and in combination with the glory of Jesus, it becomes an act of worship and praise.

My friends, I believe we are called to boldly pray and believe for others the very same things we have received. Remember the story of healing I shared a while back about praying for a friend's thyroid to be healed because my thyroid had been healed. And she in turn was healed! I simply passed on the blessing I'd received and was doubly blessed to see God do this in another person. See the increase?

And don't be surprised if Jesus sets you up with divine appointments to encounter people who need your prayers. It is a beautiful set-up, my friends. One that will bless you even more profoundly than the first. It's absolute nonsense to the world, but it's exactly what God will use to make Himself known (1 Cor. 1:27-30). 

My friends, I thought this post was done when I wrote the above paragraph but this morning I had an experience that so profound shows how this works. In my last post, Waiting in the Delivery Room, Holly shared an amazing encounter she had with God. I asked her to pray for me to have an encounter like that too. And she did! 

I DECLARE that you will have an encounter with the God of all creation that will be even greater and more profound than that which I testify to!! Holy Spirit please fall on Dineen with power and fill her to overflowing with Your liquid love and supernatural peace! Get her good Lord so that she is forever changed by the love of her Father!!! You are a good good Father and worthy of our praise!!! In Jesus name....AMEN!!!!!!

That prayer was answered today in a most unexpected way. I was walking around the nearby park, listening to worship music, praying and praising God. I needed this terribly too, my friends, because I’d let in some “stinkin’ thinkin’” recently. God revealed to me that my heart wasn’t thankful. 

So, I chose to walk in my authority over my heart and feelings and turn that frown upside down, to use a cliche. Halfway into my second lap, I felt something…different. I looked up at the magnificent sky and it was like the presence of God fell on me!

And guess what happened next? You won’t believe it… I burst out in laughter. Big laughter. Belly laughter. Holy laughter… And I couldn’t stop. Right in the middle of the park. My friends, I kid you not. 

Holy laughter is something I’ve been asking Abba for for a while. And today was my day. I continued to laugh the rest of my walk around the park—in sudden bursts that doubled me over! I haven’t a clue what other people there thought, and, honestly, I don’t care. 

Today, my Papa God made me laugh! And I believe that was in part a result of Holly passing on her blessing to me (thank you so much, Holly!), which came in an unexpected (and foolish to the world perhaps?) way, and I believe this was also Abba’s way of honoring my decision to be obedient to rejoice in Him, to choose joy, and to walk in that attitude. No more stinkin’ thinkin’! 

And now, my dear friends, I pray for you to experience holy laughter. 

Lord Jesus, You came to set us free and to know Your peace and joy. I ask for holy laughter for our SUMite family. You know best when and how to bring it, Holy Spirit. Do what You do best! In the JOYFUL name of Jesus, amen!

Laughing with you, my friends, and rejoicing in Him!

This week something supernatural happened that made national news. I will say that I'm not surprised as I have expected that the world is going to see more and more of God's supernatural intervention in our world. What so great about this story is that four men corroborate the story.

A mother and baby were in a car that careened out of control and cashed upside down in a river. The mother was killed on impact and the baby survived for 15 hours strapped upside down in her car seat. That is a miracle in itself but what I'm interested in is what happened when the fire and police arrived to initiate the rescue. 

Rescuers Heard A Voice

Then, suddenly, they started hearing the distinct sound of a woman’s voice, calling to them to help.

“We replied back ‘hang in there, we’re trying what we can.’ ”

The voice motivated them to push harder because they believed there may be someone inside who was still alive. With their adrenaline pumping they pulled the heavy, water-filled car onto its side and discovered the driver was dead.

The officers had no explanation for the mysterious voice that appeared to come from inside the car. Beddoes said he said he wouldn’t believe it really happened had not the other officers heard it, as well.

“I don’t know what I thought I heard,” he said. “I’m not a typically religious guy. It’s hard to explain — it was definitely something. Where and why it came from, I’m not sure.”

Listen to this video and share your thoughts in the comments. Hugs, Lynn

PS. You know I'm just seeing the title of this video and NO I don't think the voice is the mothers. Just sayin'.

So glad you're back, my friends. The end of this series is so near and dear to my heart, because it's written with a deep love and desire for you to live in the fullness of Jesus and all He has for us. I believe we will see great tremendous breakthroughs individually and as a community in 2015 and I don't want you to miss any of it. I don't want to miss any of it either!

Now for the final part of this series. Scroll down to part one if you need to catch up. The links for the previous parts are there as well.

As I shared in part one, this journey was so unexpected for me. I had to face some dark places in my heart and mind and allow the Holy Spirit to peel back layers of lies and pain so that He could bring the healing Jesus wanted me to have. And as I faced the additional challenge of being patient in the process, the Holy Spirit gave me this prayer:

Lord, help me to be patient so I can focus on what you're doing right now instead of what You haven't done yet.

And just this week I found this nugget in Romans:

But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.— Romans 8:25 NLT

God's process will entail whatever is necessary to stop the enemy's ultimate plan to destroy our faith by stealing the one thing that he can never attain—hope.

Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and my God! —Psalms 42:11 NLT

In a dark moment of despair, David recognized his disappointment and saw that his hope needed to be placed again in God. And with it came his decision to praise and thank God, no matter what the circumstances around him looked like. Sadly, by destroying our hope, the enemy keeps us from being the aroma of Christ to our prebelievers.

Dear friends, we have powerful tools to fight the three Deadly Ds of doubt, disbelief and disappointment and they are:

• God's Word
• A thankful heart
• Praise and worship

These are also keys to kingdom living, to the abundant life, to sustaining our hope, joy and peace.

The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness;
His mercies begin afresh each morning.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
therefore, I will hope in him!” — Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT

No matter what, choose every day to read God's Word, to thank Him for everything (even the bad stuff—for the good He Will bring out of it) and praise Him for what He has done, is doing and will do in your life. Jesus will meet your needs in astounding ways as you do this, because you're diving deeper in intimacy with Him.

And when your mind begins to race again with all the doubts, disbelief and disappointment, return to this place of rest and wait patiently for Him to act (Psalm 37:7). You will find yourself entering this place more frequently and easily until one day you will realize that not only have you persevered, you are now stronger than you have every been. You have defeated the enemy. You have moved to a whole new level of faith. God's anointings and gifts for you are growing stronger. You find yourself in situations (divine appointments) to now bring all that you have learned to others.

Just as I am doing right here, my friends, sharing all this with you. For that I give Abba Father, Lord Jesus and Holy Spirit all the praise and glory! As this community prays and waits for our prebelievers to come to faith, my heart and prayer for you, SUMites, is the same as Paul's was for the Philippians:

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return. May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ—for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

— Philippians 1:3-11 NLT

With deepest love and admiration for you in Jesus,

Photo Copyright: 72soul / 123RF Stock Photo

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The Spirit Of Confusion

Precious Message from a SUMite

Back in October I shared a story about one of the divine appointments I had at the writers conference I attended. My new friend, Jacqueline’s words of wisdom seemed to peek some interest and Ian even suggested another post to explain. Great idea, Ian! Thank you!

And what was that wisdom?

"Don't live the life you think you are supposed to but live the life God is leading you to.”

I think this is one of those words of wisdom that can mean different things to each of us, depending upon our experiences and situation. So, I will unpack a bit what this has meant to me. I know it helps me to learn and apply things like this by example so here goes.

Jacqueline’s sage advice helped me see how I’d pursued certain aspects of my faith walk and life based upon what I saw others doing and my own expectations. There’s nothing wrong with learning from and being inspired by those around us—that’s a benefit of being part of a community. The danger is when it runs into comparison.

I assumed my “results” would or should be the same, but when they weren’t, I assumed I’d somehow messed up or failed. Or even worse, that God didn’t truly love me and withheld His goodness and gifts from me.

Yes, all lies that the enemy had craftily shot into my soul. And sometimes God has to shake us up to unearth those embedded lies to expose and dig them out. Not fun, but so very necessary if we are to walk in the fullness of the freedom and inheritance we have in Christ—to live our diving destiny.

So what did my friend’s wisdom teach me?

First it affirmed that the path I’ve been on this year is the right one. I’m learning that even in the similarities of our gifts, we still function uniquely. If I try to use my spiritual gifts the same way another person uses theirs, I’m not operating as the person God created me to be. Therefor I am trying to live my life as I thought I was supposed to instead of how the Holy Spirit is leading me.

Does that make sense? I hope so. Because, as I said, we can find many ways to apply Jacqueline’s wisdom. I can even think of one from my past, when I was around 30 and my plan was to go back to art school to get my next degree. That is the life I had been pursuing, thinking that was the direction I need to go to use my talents.

In the midst of this, God caught my attention and showed me He had another plan in mind for me. I really and truly wanted to pursue college, but it was based upon what I thought I should be doing, which was also based upon very worldly expectations.

The direction He took me? Not at all what I expected and I have never regretted my choice of letting go of the art college plan to follow Him. He’s way more creative anyway. ;-)

Amazingly, God’s plan for me didn’t mean I had to give up my art. He’s placed many artistic opportunities in my path, the latest one, designing book covers—a dream I held as a teenager and had forgotten about.

And I think part of this wisdom is being present, being alert and aware of what God is doing and communicating to us. I love this piece of wisdom from Proverbs:

Know the importance of the season you're in. — Proverbs 10:5 (Passion Translation)

Every season is important and part of God’s plan and direction for our lives, even the tough ones. And God has this amazing ability to take those difficult places and turn them into moments of beauty. How else could my youngest daughter walk through brain cancer and six years later have such sweet memories of the moments that were fun, comforting and full of love? And such a big heart to help others?

Sometimes moving forward with God means letting go of ourselves. Just. Let. Go. Perhaps that’s what Jesus meant when He said we must lose our lives in order to gain our real life in Him.

How about you, my friends? Do you know what God's divine destiny is for you? Are you unsure? This is an area He leads me to pray for people often when I work in the Healing Rooms here. It would be an honor to pray for you so please leave a comment so I can pray for you.

My SUM family, I’m so glad to be on this journey with you. I’m so grateful God’s plan for my life has brought me this amazing place full of fun, comfort and love. I love your hearts, my friends. So very much.

Copyright: maridav / 123RF Stock Photo

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Our Transforming Influence

From Monday’s post…….However, before we leave I want to go and give a hug and thank you to each of the trio of the prayer team. I start looking all over. I can’t find them. 

Ahhhhhhh, now that is an interesting story in itself. I haven’t been able to stop considering the trio of pray-ers since I arrived home a week ago…………… 

Let me pick up the story from Monday. The girls and I has sufficiently wiped our faces and we are still all smiles from ear-to-ear and remain pretty-much in shock by what has just transpired. However, we must make our way to the airport shortly. We stand and start toward the exit of the main room where there are still tons of people. 

And as I stand I’m compelled to want to say thank you one more time to the praying trio before we leave. After all, it’s not every day three people pray with you and miracles break out. So, I start looking. And looking. Head turning left to right. I turn around. I look all throughout the crowded room as I expect they are now praying with another person. 

“Where did they go? I want to say thank you again?” I ask Caitie and Gina. “I don’t see them anywhere. Do you?

“No,” Gina replies. 

“Mom, they just left.” 

“What, all three of them?” 

“Yes, I saw them go out the side door into the hallway.” 

“What? That can’t be.” 

“Why?” 

I’m in shock and puzzled. I proceed to explain to the girls, “It doesn’t make sense. I’ve worked in healing rooms myself. You volunteer. It’s only for an hour and a half. You pray and move on to the next group.” 

“Well, they probably needed to go to the bathroom.” 

“All three of them at the same time?” I respond as the preposterousness of the thought rises in me. Remember, two young men and an older, pristine white-haired woman. Would they go to the potty together???? Seriously????? 

“Well, maybe they took a break.” 

“Well, maybe but when you volunteer in the Healing Rooms with this many people waiting for prayer, you don’t break, especially since the Rooms just opened. You pray.” 

My puzzlement begins to turn to something else in my heart as if the dawn of the sunrise is happening in that moment. 

We emerge into the hallway to head to class and they aren’t there. They’re gone. 

Just like that. We never saw them again. 

Now I’m convinced that this amazing trio might be something more than three ordinary people. My daughter remains skeptical. 

But even now, I hold the possibility, the astonishing possibility, in my heart. And like Mary, the mother of Jesus, this is another treasure I will store and ponder in my heart for the rest of my life.

Gang, on Monday on want to visit the reasons why God does not heal. And my suprise will have to wait another week as I'm not quite ready. Hugs.

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Jesus Heals! In Front of My Eyes!

If you missed Friday’s post, go back and read it now. Here is the link. Now let’s pick up the story. 

Okay, remember my daughter who is 19 just received word that Jesus launched her into a new journey. And my friends, already so much has happened to her as she returned to her college campus. But, let’s not get sidetracked. Oh and I should mention, Dineen was not with us as she had to return to San Jose early that morning for a family get together. Bummer! 

Onward. 

The trio of pray-ers move on to Gina as Caitie is sitting next to me telling me about what she just experienced. We are both teary-eyed and overwhelmed. If you stop for a minute and think about what we are experiencing, it’s a Holy Mind-blow. I mean really. Angels are in the room. Jesus is launching teens into His Kingdom, people are being healed. My head still wants to explode today just writing about it all. 

Well as my daughter and I are talking, all of a sudden Gina starts shouting, “It’s loud in here. It’s loud in here.” The two young men have even broader smiles, if that is possible. They are laughing and jumping. Gina is practically dancing. I shoot out of my chair again screaming, “You’re healed. You’re healed.” 

We have become a public spectacle in the giant room packed with people but who cares? Gina’s hearing has been restored because Jesus loves her. AMEN! 

I run to her and practically break her neck hugging her so hard. Caitie runs at the same time. She’s almost tackled right there in the prayer room. The young men are clapping. I’m clapping, Caitie and Gina are teary and all smiles at the same time. 

Wait!     Did you hear me? She can hear!!!  I can’t hardly even now grasp what I experienced. She is healed and her ears were opened!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Joyce is somewhere writing on a paper. 

“Gina, what happened?” I ask. 

“They began to pray and ask Jesus for healing. After a few minutes I felt heat and then heard pop, pop, pop. My sinuses drained and then everything got very loud.” 

Andrew grabs Gina and takes her to the stage and places her up next to give a testimony on the microphone to the room. Right before her is a woman also giving a testimony. And get this. She also just had her hearing restored. Whoa! 

Gina approaches the mic. Gives her testimony. I’m still a blathering woman in search of Kleenex as we watch. All I can mutter over and over is, “Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus.” 

She finishes her testimony and returns to us. I see Andrew once again and hug his poor skinny neck. I practically want to throw myself on him in giant hugs of gratitude for his faith and prayers. He then goes to hug the girls. 

The three of us sit back down to wipe our faces and talk some more. If you have seen deer in headlights, but happy dear, that would be us three *grin*. We sat there for a few moments in the atmosphere. Finally, I say, “We should head over to the after class as we need to get to the airport soon.” So off we went. 

However, before we leave I want to go and give a hug and thank you to each of the trio of the prayer team. I start looking all over. I can’t find them. 

Ahhhhhhh, now that is an interesting story in itself. I haven’t been able to stop considering the trio of pray-ers since I arrived home a week ago. I will tell you about that on Friday my friends.

Woo Hoo!!!  It’s a blast living the believer’s life!  Pray BIG. Dream BIG. Our God is all about answering faith-filled prayers. 

Oh and on Friday, I have something special to share with you. Have an amazing week in His Presence. Hugs, Lynn

My friends, this is an astounding testimony to how far a divine appointment can reach. Our dear friend, Rosheeda, is still impacting lives through her legacy of intentional love and service to God. It is because of Rosheeda's love for us that we carry the name of "SUMites." Sometimes, perhaps more often than we realize, we discount how the smallest of opportunities to love on someone can ripple out beyond our own lives. Thank you, Kindra, for sharing this with our community! As you were blessed by this, we are too. Thank you! ~ Dineen & Lynn

Hello Ladies!

I just returned from the Designed For Life Women's Conference in Springfield, MO. There were over 7,000 women gathered to worship and praise God! The Holy Spirit was working full force and many lives were transformed. PTL! I am writing to you because I have a story from the conference that I know you will want to hear. Priscilla Shirer spoke at the conference. Priscilla is a dynamic speaker who is eager to share God's Word with her audience.

She shared a story with us about a young woman that she met at her church. The woman felt she had been called by God to quit her job in the "corporate world". Without knowing God's plan for her, the woman stepped out in obedience and did just that. While waiting for God's leading, the woman began babysitting for families at her church in order to make some money. After a year of waiting and still not knowing what God wanted her to do with her life, the woman began to get very frustrated. She shared with Priscilla that she did not understand why God would call for her to quit her job and seemingly not have a "grander" plan for her. She was still babysitting, but was desiring more from God. Then one particular evening, she went to a families home to babysit the children for the evening while the parents went out for a much needed night away. As the worn out, frazzled, hard-working mother answered the door that night and expressed her appreciation for being able to get away for the evening, the woman knew that she had been blind to God's plan for her. She realized that His plan for this season in her life was for her to be a blessing to children and their families. Her eyes were opened to God's purpose. The Holy Spirit's leading told her that she in fact had been "chosen" not "cheated" in her assignment!

Through this story Priscilla shared, we were blessed with the understanding that God has divine appointment's for all of us. In God's kingdom, no job is more important than another. God leads us where he needs us and we must be open to wherever that may be!

Now the part that gave me goosebumps....As Priscilla wrapped up her story about this faithful woman she told us that sadly she died in a car wreck last year. She also shared that her name was Rosheeda. I knew immediately that this was the sweet Rosheeda from the SUMite community. Rosheeda was a blessing to me when she was a guest writer on your site. Today, she once again blessed me and thousands of other women through the story shared by Priscilla!

Rosheeda's legacy lives on. Isn't God amazing!?

Blessings! ~Kindra

SUMites, 

Where to begin. Let me ask you a question. Do you believe God still heals? Can He cure cancer, heal the blind restore hearing in the deaf? 

If you are a SUMite, I know you said yes. I know you said that because we MUST believe in great miracles of God’s love and kindness. If we had little faith, we could not walk this unique walk of the unequally yoked. 

Today, I’m going to step out and share with you what transpired on Saturday. I may stumble through the story as I’m still processing it all. Get a cup of coffee or tea. Pull up a chair and I pray, I pray with all that I am, that you feel chills run all over your body as the Holy Spirit confirms His power and love for God’s people. 

You met Gina, right? We prayed for her several years ago when she was facing a melanoma diagnosis. And since that time she has recovered as is in remission. Hallelujah! Can I get a hallelujah? 

And I believe on Friday night she was further delivered from that nasty cancer right before my very eyes. That’s a story for another day. OHHHHHHHH, and it’s a good one. Stay tuned. 

Back to Saturday. Myself, my daughter, Caitie and her best friend, Gina, went to the church to receive prayer for healing. For myself, healing of my injury to my right wrist. I injured it rototilling the garden in March. Caitie wanted prayer for more of God. And as for Gina, she was complaining in the car on our way there that she couldn’t hear as my daughter was talking. She said, “Caitie, you know I can’t hear very well so talk louder.” 

I chime in from the back seat, “You know Gina, you should ask for healing of your hearing while we are here.” I didn’t think another thing about it. 

Yep, I bet you know where this is going. But let me share how this happened. 

We arrived in the sanctuary and there are people all over the place. People praying and being prayed for and those waiting for prayer. For some reason, I didn’t follow the crowd into the seating area but took myself and the two teens down toward the front of the room. We waited for only a short time and then a prayer team moved over to talk with me. I was seated, Caitie was next to me and Gina next to her. 

The prayer team approached and I stood. Before me were two young men who I think were in their mid-twenties, Andrew and Chris. With them was an older, round woman with pure white hair, Joyce. The young men made introductions. Joyce said nothing. (Remind me later to share my thoughts about their names) I explained I wanted prayer for my wrist. Christ began to share a story of a man healed of a broken arm right in front of him. I grow completely excited and shove my hand, writs, arm out to Chris and practically scream, “Oh, please pray for me.” Poor guy couldn’t even finish his story because I’m already on board and can’t wait for a touch from God. 

Chris places a hand over my wrist and a hand under. The three pray. I FEEL HEAT. At that moment, I feel a fire come over my whole body and I burst into a sweat and right behind that I burst into tears like a blathering baby girl. I’m so overwhelmed. Crying and sweating all over the boys who are now likely uncomfortable because I’m practically sobbing a river on their sleeves. Sheesh! They hand me off to Joyce. Then Chris asks me, “How does it feel?” 

Gang, I begin to move my wrist in full motion and with—out—pain. A first since March of this year. 

I start screaming. People are watching. The young men have a face full of gleeful smiles. Joyce is writing on a paper. I don’t think I ever heard her say a word. Hmmmmmm 

“No pain. No pain. Look I can move it and no pain.” More snot sobs. Andrew asks if I would give a testimony over at the testimony table. So my snot nose, healed wrist and I cross the crowed room and speak with a sweet girl who records my testimony. 

The trio leaves me and moves on to my daughter, Caitie. She is holding out her hands in front of her like you do when you want to receive something when I return from the testimony table. She is teary. I’m still freaked out and watching. Thankfully the snot subsided. I see them praying “more” for Caitie and then the four of them break. 

All smiles. Hugs all around and Caitie walks over to me. 

“What happened?” 

The trio moved to Gina and are praying with her. 

“Mom, I felt heat on my hands when Chris touched me. And as they prayed, Chris asked me again what I felt on my hands, as my eyes were closed. I told him more heat from his hands. He said to me, “I’m not touching your hands now.” 

“What? Oh my goodness, you had an angel touching your hands. Caitie, this is so amazing.” More tears now from the both of us. Where’s the Kleenex? 

“Mom, Chris said that as he prayed for me he saw Jesus. And Jesus was holding a bottle of wine and christening a ship. He was christening a ship because I was being launched onto a journey.” I looked into her eyes and she into mine. After what happened to her the night before we had a knowing that this was in fact — true. More on that story later. 

Oh good grief. I’m already way long on this story and I haven’t gotten to the good part yet. So, tune in on Monday as I tell you what happens next. 

My friends, I know Jesus. He is the healer and it is His purpose in our lives to give us healing in every area, health, soul, body. I give Jesus all the honor, glory and worship because He still heals His people today. 

So I have a question for you today? Do you believe? 

See you in the comments. I love you SUMites. I really love you and am praying for your full healing.

Dear friends, as I walked and prayed Tuesday morning, I asked Abba for the words to share with you what I experienced at Bethel. I really wasn’t sure if I had anything definitive as God kept this visit very personal, which makes sense for this year of intimacy He’s called me to.

But as I walked the memories and words began to flow (thank You, Abba, You are so good), like a kaleidoscope of images and colors that stood unique but together created the complete story of God’s intentions.

Where to start? At the beginning of the journey. I was a bit anxious about making this trip on my own (I love road trips when hubby is in charge) and my car had been acting up a little. (I should share with you that I call my little VW Bug by the name of Gracie as she is a gift from God and never lets me down. Why did I doubt?)

I had five hours of road ahead of me each way (thankfully Lynn road with me from Sacramento to Redding on the way up) and knew I would wind up stopping frequently for breaks out of necessity. I kid you not, both up to Redding and on my way home on Saturday every place I stopped had Christian music playing. In California?!?!?

As I walked into each place, I noticed it right away! And smiled…God uses music frequently to minister to my heart. I was never alone. My Gracie carried both me and Him on this trip.

At Bethel the first evening I noticed a woman near us. Not sure why but she just stood out to me so I took notice. The next day we were introduced by a mutual friend. That seemed significant too, so I ask Abba if there was a reason, did I need to know something. I heard the name “Amanda” over and over again. Wasn’t sure why, maybe that name meant something to her. I asked Abba who this Amanda was. He said “her sister.”

Well…I wasn’t sure what to do with that, but I have seen God do this enough times to trust Him to put it into motion. I wouldn’t track this dear woman down. If I was supposed to share what I heard, I’d leave it to Him to bring her to me at the right time (just like my new friend at the ACFW conference).

The next day I was sitting on a bench and there she stood. I waved her over and asked her if the name Amanda meant anything to her. She said no, but then shared how someone else had told her she looked like someone they met in Montreal, almost identical. What stunned me is what she shared next. She’s been searching for her twin sister. They were separated and given up for adoption when they were very young.

I gave her my business card and asked her to email me when this all falls into place as I had no doubts God was hearing her heart and leading her to her sister. When that story unfolds, I will sharing it with you, my friends. God is so amazing, so good!

On the last day, Friday, I found this verse waiting for me in my inbox:

Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. — Psalm 37:7

Later that afternoon, I wound up in the prayer room. It’s a small octagon shaped building that stands part from the rest of the campus and has the most stunning view of the surrounding hills and mountains, including Mount Shasta.

Immediately I felt the peace of Jesus in that room. About a dozen or so people were there either sitting by the fountain or in chairs or on the floor by the windows. I wanted to stay in this place forever. Remembering the Scripture I received that morning, I rested by the fountain for a while.

And then it happened. Words, words, and more words. It was like my creativity had suddenly been unleashed. I couldn’t stop writing in my journal. Page after page. I wasn’t sure what it all meant though.

Not until I finished. I realized I had written the ending of the book I’m going to be working on. It was not at all what I expected, but it was very much the heart of God—tender, powerful, full of love and purpose.

God had told me He had something at Bethel this time. He told Lynn too. What He gave me was His heart. So unexpected, so gentle, so quiet.

So, my friends, God was my divine appointment this trip. What’s so amazing is that He longs for us to meet with Him each day. He has so much for us. For you.

Which brings me to the end of this story. My final “divine appointment” was with you, dear SUMites. This is the prayer God lead me to pray for our community as I sat outside and looked over the hillside.

Based on Psalm 67:

Lord, be gracious to Your SUMites and bless us and make Your face shine upon us so that Your ways may be known in our homes, that your salvation will rest upon our pre-believers.

Let all those in our home praise You, God; that our pre-belivers would praise You. Let us, your SUMites, be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge righteously and govern our hearts and homes.

Let us, Your SUMites, praise You, O God, let every single one of us praise You and bring You glory. Then our homes shall yield increase. God shall bless us and our loved ones. God shall bless us, and all those in our home shall fear Him.

In Your mighty name, Jesus, amen!

Rest in His promises, SUMites!