The promise of the Spirit through faith!

A working holiday!

Though we are on holidays, at the end of the day we are pretty tired. We knew that we had lots of things to sort out here and as the days go by, there is a time to relax and a time to work physically. We enjoyed the company of our friends who came to visit us all the way from Limoges and Bordeaux! Also, we managed to have a break most days sitting down at the terrace of a cafe in the center of Civray, meeting up with our expat friends and basking in the autumnal sun. We love walking by the Charente river and biking to the house and back to the campsite. Time to work physically, I must confess that Steven did all the hard work, mowing the lawn seemed to be a Herculean task, then trimming the palm tree seemed dangerous, finally treating the wood was messy. I battled with ivy and wasps that we find in the kitchen. We can't figure out where they come from! We had an appointment with the Edf engineer to sort out our outdated French electricity meter and he gave us another appointment as there was so much to do. As we can't be there, our neighbour kindly agreed to be around. Choosing a cooker was easier once we found But in Ruffec, the equivalent of |Comet. Finally, we spend another hour with 'our' chosen electrician double checking the details of the 'earth wiring' renovation..

Tuesdays and Fridays are market days and we bought some pink garlic, pink pears and goat cheese. 

Here are more photos. Have a blessed evening. 

Walking by the Charente at dusk

Goats by the edge of the campsite of Civray

Un grand creme s'il vous plait!

St Nicholas Church in Civray

Rabbits don't like the rain, true or false?

Dear friends, I have been posted a few videos on my You tube channel, do visit and comment. If by any chance you like what you see, you may want to subscribe.
Let me know the url of your You tube channel and \I will visit it too. :)

Looking for mushrooms near Ruffec

Pruning the palm tree

Pruning the palm tree

The christian barber

The Christian Barber

here was a barber that thought that he should share his faith with his customers more than he had been doing lately. So the next morning when the sun came up and the barber got up out of bed he said, "Today I am going to witness to the first man that walks through my door."

Soon after he opened his shop the first man came in and said, "I want a shave!" The barber said, "Sure, just sit in the seat and I'll be with you in a moment." The barber went in the back and prayed a quick desperate prayer saying, "God, the first customer came in and I'm going to witness to him. So give me the wisdom to know just the right thing to say to him. Amen."

Then quickly the barber came out with his razor knife in one hand and a Bible in the other while saying "Good morning sir. I have a question for you... Are you ready to die?"

Tidying our house to be!

Dear friends, we have been very busy those last days looking after our house in Civray, south of France. First Steven had to mow the lawn or should I say the 'field'. It was a big job because the grass and weeds became thick and long, in fact it took him ages to do one part of the garden and now we are waiting for some good weather to do the rest.
Then woodworms; we knew that there were some in the shelves in the basement so Steven bought the gear and the spray in England, getting ready for the onslaught!
...later
the lawn s been cut, and the woodworms hopefully exterminated
I battled with the ivy only to realise that this poor bush was really struggling under the sap sucking ivy so we were wondering if it was worth 'saving' one of the main branches was covered with thick layer of ivy all around it..
Hope you are having a blessed day..
A few photos

We went to Ruffec, a lovely town not far from us and on the way back we stopped in a wood full of sweet chestnuts trees and we had great pleasure to pick them up, they were pretty easy to open up and we were grateful to the Lord for this unexpected bonanza.
Much love. N.

Why do you spend so much time on Facebook...?

Well, it could be for fear of missing out! Whenever I don't go on it, I hear my hubby or my daughters telling me something they found on it...sad I know but why not.
The only problem is you need to sort the weeds from the good crop!
Tonight here is a gem that my hubby shared on his profile!
So if you like the following message, would you share it? 

An amazing week!

Dear friends, I hope that your week went well. What did you do?

I have spent most of my amazing week doing those:

- getting up early, not fun! It would be fun if I went to bed earlyish but as don't, I feel exhausted...still I love going to work and I can drive to Leek now without the satnav! 

- reading the Bible, this is a joyful time. I have also been pondering about memorising verses better  and as I was talking to my friend Lilly, she mentioned the 'writing' and 'reading' method. I almost dismissed it to start with because I have done that for a while and I am not sure it works. Then thinking about it again, I realise the time I spend on a passage is not repetitive enough, what i mean, is that instead of reading a passage on Monday and moving on, I decided that I am going to spend two or three days on the same passage i.e. last week, I practised on Galatians 5 and this week I am reading Luke 6..guess what? it works! 

- meeting up with my friends on the days I'm not working; that's great and I feel so blessed

- having great fellowship at Milwich village hall for another session of the Pilgrim course. 

-  baking brownies, I managed to do one lot following a recipe without butter or oil, replacing them by low-fat yoghurt (only 6% fat) and they came out nice and gooey. Let me know if you want the recipe! 

- looking after our rabbits, mainly stopping them from visiting the neighbours' garden hopping through a protected hedge! It's hard work, the minute you fill up a gap, they find another one!

-  listening to worship music on my YouTube channel and you may want to subscribe to my channel! 

- I've just added a Po.st sharing button on the right side of this blog. It was not too difficult! Sharing the good news using sharing buttons..

A prayer now, Abba father, thank you for the many blessings this week your pour on our lives lavishly. Though we don't deserve any by our own merit, you surround us with your tender love and you look after us day by day. When we fail, we cry out to you and you hear us and pick us up because you are full of compassion. We ask you to bless us and to protect us as well as our family and friends in the powerful name of Jesus, our saviour and redeemer. Amen.

Have a blessed week-end and good night. 

Let us give thanks to the Lord

Perhaps the most difficult thing to do in life is to thank God in difficult times. Ephesians 5:20 says we are to be "giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." 

Here are seven things that trouble may do to you and for you.

1 Trouble may bring a correcting ministry.

Hebrews 12:6 says, For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives. And Hebrews 12:11 tells us, "For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."

2 Trouble may bring a deepening dependency.

Troubles bring us to Jesus so that we might depend more upon Him. The apostle Paul had a thorn in his flesh and he said, "For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:8-9). If your trouble causes you to depend more upon God, can't you realize why we are to thank Him for it?

3 Trouble may bring a confirming testimony.

Paul knew much sorrow and he said, "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God" (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). If you didn't have tribulation, you wouldn't need comfort and God so graciously gives that comfort.

4 Trouble may bring an increasing maturity.

God's Son was without sin, but not without suffering. James 1:4 says, "But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing." The word "perfect" does not mean sinless, it means mature. The word "patience" means endurance. You're not going to be mature until you learn patience. And the only way that you can learn patience is to have something to endure. You don't sharpen an axe on a pound of butter.

5 Trouble may bring excelling glory.

1 Peter 4:12-14 says, "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part He is evil spoken of, but on your part He is glorified."

How would you like the Spirit of glory and of God to rest on you? How would you like to undergo a fiery trial? But, you see, it is the fiery trial that brings the Spirit of glory upon you. Acts 6:5 describes Stephen as "a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit." While he was being stoned, the Bible says that his face shone like the face of an angel (see Acts 6:15). If your trouble causes you to know God's glory, shouldn't we thank Him for it?

6  Trouble may bring baffling mystery.

Isaiah 55:8-9 says, "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts." God will give you enough to know to obey Him. Friend, there are some things we may not understand and we don't have to understand them in order to thank God, because God is good.

7 Trouble will bring eternal victory.

Romans 8:18 says, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Paul was not saying the glory offsets the sufferings. Instead, he was saying that there's no comparison. What a day that will be when He turns every tear to a pearl! And then we understand that He has not forsaken us. Now since all of these things are true, then can we not give thanks in everything?

Did you enjoy reading this article written by Adrian Rogers, click here to find out more. Have a blessed week. 

Jesus, Holy and Anointed One

Jesus, Jesus
Holy and anointed One, Jesus
Jesus, Jesus
Risen and exalted One, Jesus
Your name is like honey on my lips
Your Spirit like water to my soul
Your Word is a lamp unto my feet
Jesus, I love You, I love You

I love this song written by Brian Doerksen!
.

Have a blessed evening.

Numbers 6:22-26

Aaron's Blessing
22 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,
24 The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Who is Jesus?

The Bible says
He’s the King of the Jews
He’s the King of Israel
He’s the King of Righteousness
He’s the King of the Ages
He’s the King of Heaven
He’s the King of Glory
He’s the King of Kings
and He is the Lord of Lords

Now that’s my King!
David says
The Heavens declare the glory of God
And the firmament showeth His handiwork
No means of measure can define His limitless love
No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supply
No barriers can hinder Him from pouring out His blessing

He’s enduringly strong
He’s entirely sincere
He’s eternally steadfast
He’s immortally graceful
He’s imperially powerful
He’s impartially merciful

That’s my King!
He’s God’s Son
He’s the sinners’ Saviour
He’s the centrepiece of civilisation
He stands alone in Himself
He’s august
He’s unique
He’s unparalleled
He’s unprecedented
He’s supreme
He’s pre-eminent
He’s the loftiest idea in literature
He’s the highest personality in philosophy
He’s the supreme problem in higher criticism
He’s the fundamental doctrine in true theology
He’s the cardinal necessity of spiritual religion

That’s my King!
He’s the miracle of the age
He’s the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him
He’s the only one able to supply all of our needs simultaneously
He supplies strength for the weak
He’s available for the tempted and the tried
He sympathises and He saves
He guards and He guides
He heals the sick
He cleansed the lepers
He forgives sinners
He discharges debtors
He delivers the captives
He defends the feeble
He blesses the young
He serves the unfortunate
He regards the aged
He rewards the diligent
And He beautifies the meek

Do you know Him?
My King is the key of knowledge
He’s the wellspring of wisdom
He’s the doorway of deliverance
He’s the pathway of peace
He’s the roadway of righteousness
He’s the highway of holiness
He’s the gateway of glory
He’s the master of the mighty
He’s the captain of the conquerors
He’s the head of the heroes
He’s the leader of the legislators
He’s the overseer of the overcomers
He’s the governor of governors
He’s the prince of princes
He’s the King of Kings
And He’s the Lord of Lords

That’s my King
That’s my King!
My King
His office is manifold
His promise is sure
His life is matchless
His goodness is limitless
His mercy is everlasting
His love never changes
His word is enough
His grace is sufficient
His reign is righteous
His yoke is easy
and His burden is light
I wish I could describe Him to you
He’s indescribable
He’s indescribable
He’s incomprehensible
He’s invincible
He’s irresistible
I’m trying to tell you
The heaven of heavens cannot contain Him
Let alone a man explain Him
You can’t get Him out of your mind
You can’t get Him off of your hands
You can’t outlive Him
And you can’t live without Him
The Pharisees couldn’t stand Him
but they found out they couldn’t stop Him
Pilate couldn’t find any fault in Him
The witnesses couldn’t get their testimonies to agree
And Herod couldn’t kill Him
Death couldn’t handle Him
And the grave couldn’t hold Him

That’s my King!
He always has been
And He always will be
I’m talking about
He had no predecessor
and He’ll have no successor
There was nobody before Him
and there’ll be nobody after Him
You can’t impeach Him
and He’s not going to resign

That’s my King!
Praise the Lord
That’s my King
Thine is the Kingdom
And the power
And the glory
The glory is all His
Thine is the Kingdom
And the power
And the glory
For ever
And ever
And ever
And when you get through with all of the forevers
Then
Amen

Whoever believes in Him!

For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only son, 
that whoever believes in him
shall not perish
but have eternal life.
John 3:16

Quantum physics agree with the Bible

Christian Newswire/ -- Author Mark Hicks has made a stunning and compelling connection in his new book, "Surprise: The Agreement of Quantum Physics, Relativity & the Bible / Modern Science and the Bible: They Say the Same Thing." 

Hicks has found that the "strange" world of quantum physics, when looked at from a spiritual perspective, may not actually be all that strange to Bible readers. In fact, says Hicks, today's physics actually confirms what the Bible says about the nature of God, His creations and "reality."

Hicks reminds the reader that relativity and quantum physics have led to innovations that have transformed the planet in the past 100 years. The central discovery of relativity is that light (not space and time) is the single constant in the universe. Similarly, the Bible says that God is light, the single constant throughout the universe.

Both Biblical teachings and quantum physics say that light is the mechanism through which everything exists (or "seems to" exist.) Every atom emits or absorbs light, therefore every thought, word, deed and object occurs through this process as well. Everything is energy, and the elemental foundation of the universe is pure potential. The Bible concurs that light is the means by which God created the universe and light (God) continues to hold all things together.

Quantum physics finds that atoms exist in a semi-real, pure potential, virtual state until a conscious observer looks at them with an expectation. It is the expectation of the observer that determines their actual, "real" nature in that moment. Similarly, the Bible says that faith -- i.e. what a conscious observer believes and expects to see -- determines the nature of that person's reality.

Says Hicks:
"Whatever the truth is, it is not going to change regardless of who is trying to find it. Is there really any reason for secular science and theology to regard the other as counterproductive when they are both seeking the same thing?"

In his book, Hicks uses accessible language to guide the reader to the same realization he has come to: that quantum physics and the Bible are actually saying the same thing.
The chasm between religion and science is rapidly closing, and with this book, Hicks makes a powerful contribution to the movement.

Real or not? Vote now.....

What a big owl? Real or not? I am not sure it's real. What about you?

Bye to the bags!

It's about time!

A 5p tax on plastic bags must be extended to all shops to prevent further damage to the environment, campaigners have warned.

Without the participation of smaller shops, and not just those employing more than 250 staff, the impact of the tax will be limited, they said. Friends of the Earth said ministers should extend the scheme after surveys showed that convenience store owners were supportive of extending the scheme to all retailers.

English shoppers face a 5p charge for plastic carrier bags from today as part of a government scheme to reduce litter and protect wildlife.

What friends, alcohol and smoking could not do!

Umit had no peace or joy. It seemed everywhere he looked, it was missing. If at a moment he found peace, it lasted only a breath; then his life went back to the same feeling of unrest. This restlessness overshadowed any source of joy. If the peace his young heart yearned for wasn't found in his religion, his friends or in the alcohol he consumed, where could he find it?
Seeking to Fill the VoidUmit had grown up in a very religious home. Every month, he visited the local religious institution in hopes of finding blessings and peace. As time wore on, however, Umit felt all his pursuits of peace were fruitless. He stopped worshiping his god and began filling the emptiness with friends, smoking and drinking. But the happiness and momentary fulfilment he felt would inevitably sweep past him, leaving the void more prominent than before. Slowly, Umit began to cling tighter to alcohol. His parents tried to guide him and counsel him away from his bad habits, but he wouldn't listen.

Aside from the time he spent with his friends, Umit enjoyed listening to the radio, which was the latest technology in his village. He liked listening to music. As he was skimming through radio stations one day, his fingers suddenly stopped turning the dial. The words of a radio speaker speaking his language quickened Umit's ears. A message of eternal hope and peace echoed in the air. Umit listened intently as the speaker hit on the very points he felt his life lacked. The program touched his heart, and from that moment, Umit's life would never again be the same.

Umit lifted up his voice in prayer with the radio speaker. Weary of his disobedient, miserable life, he longed for the hope that Jesus promised to give. After he prayed, peace immediately filled him. The drinking and smoking Umit once indulged in then became a thing of the past.
He wanted someone to tell him everything about Jesus and answer all his questions. But no one around him shared his faith, and he had no Bible to read. The only source he knew of was the radio program. Umit called the station, and on the other end of the line he heard the familiar voice of the radio broadcaster. Pagat, a Gospel for Asia-supported missionary, listened closely to Umit as he poured out his heart and told his story of pursuing peace
Read on this beautiful true story, click here!

Friday verse of the day!

By the canal!

 This afternoon, Steven and I went for a walk by the canal from Hixon to Great Haywood and back. On the way, I picked up some blackberries while Steven was taking photos. It 's been a beautiful day and lots of barges were about with a few  fishermen tackling perches while swans and cygnets were parading gracefully. 

Faith is....

Take a look at @LoveYvonnie's Tweet: https://twitter.com/LoveYvonnie/status/573632320789430272?s=09