Towards the end of 2012 i like to take a look back at what my goals and aspirations were back at the beginning of the year. These were my thoughts – these were my goals. I wonder when you reflect back on this article whether you’ve made INTENTIONAL steps towards the goals you created? If not, maybe it’s a great time to discover why so you can develop your understanding ready for 2013!!
Great development too!

rootesnp

My focus for 2012 is to live intentionally, making choices and decisions that will further my personal discipleship and my purposes in the Kingdom. We need to be a generation that CHOOSES to walk with purpose, that makes plans and strategies on how to develop our characters and design and create the steps needed to achieve our God sized dreams!

God has given us a mission, He has also given us all the skills and gifts we need to achieve that mission, but if we don’t live intentionally we run the risk of leaving those skills and gifts in their boxes, untouched, unused. There is so much potential inside of you, don’t leave it in its ‘potential’ stage – Be intentional – Start cultivating the gifts that are within you!

Paul discipled Timothy to ‘Fan into flames the spiritual gift that God has placed within you’ 2 Tim 1v6. God…

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Think Differently

At Rootes link group this Thursday we’re going to be discussing our role models in Church and outside of our walls. Don’t forget to think of one person from each side!

I’ve been away on holiday this last week and started reading a book I’ve been meaning to start for a while, Steve Jobs: A Biography by Walter Issacson. It is the compilation of several years worth of interviews with Jobs as he was dealing with cancer and recounting the story of his successes and failures.

Steve Jobs, created the Apple computer company out of a garage with a friend of a friend who knew how to code computers and build small circuit boards. While the builder, Steve Wozniak, wanted to give away his ideas for free, Jobs saw a chance to change the world.

Abandoned and adopted from birth, Jobs was a rebel, a hippie, a drug taker, a father at 23 but in denial, awkward to work with, rude, argumentative, obsessive, emotional and unable to run and manage a company. But he managed to take this mess and coin it into a phrase, a philosophy: Think Differently.

Apple Computers were the pirates of Silicon Valley, a small band of misfits who dared to be different and invent the 21st Century. The mouse was created. A graphical user interface (like Windows) was created and made personal computers affordable and available to everyone.

Jobs later went on to start Pixar, which changed the way animated movies would work forever.
With the iPod and iTunes, Jobs changed the way we buy and enjoy music.
With the iPhone, what we consider a telephone to be capable of changed.
With the iPad, creatives are already inventing new uses by the day to bring powerful equipment into the hands of everyone opening up a whole new realm of opportunities.

Now, you may not be into Apple, or even computers – but one thing is undeniable – those who dare to dream and think differently are those who do make a difference. I can think of countless examples of people I admire who have changed their lives and those around them. I have even met a few of them and high fived them, at my own pleasure.

At the cinema earlier, I watched my 5 year old niece attempt to grab objects as she watched an animated film in 3D.

We cannot be limited by what we can see in this world. There is so much more to be created, so much more that is possible, and so much more that we can accomplish.

If this world is not different for us being in it, then what is the point?

Believe the impossible.
Imagine the possibilities.

Here at Rootes we want to enable and encourage you to have a vision and carry it out.
This starts with dreaming and realising what effects others have on us.

So, on Thursday, let’s share openly and be inspired afresh.

Find a Source

One of the prevalent thoughts that came out of Thursday’s link group was the idea that as we are planted in a church, we should allow our roots to spread out and seek nourishment to grow and develop.

Our faith becomes more fully formed when we see how God acts in other’s lives. When we are downcast, frustrated or desperate for an answer for prayer; we should look around and be encouraged that God is alive – simply by seeing others rejoice in that week. There are people in our church who have faced persecution, loss, divorce and life threatening illnesses. I haven’t faced those yet – but I know that my God is capable and has pulled them through it.

Because of their testimony, we can be reminded of God’s vastness and become less selfish. We find perspective by seeing things in 3 dimensions.

Together, as the body of Christ, we can connect the dots about who God is and what wonder and power He possesses. It’s a bit like connecting the dots, but with every star in the universe and more.

The psalmist wrote:

“Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked…they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.
They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season.
Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do.”
Psalm 1:1-3 NLT

Find people who can be a source of life, light and truth.
Find people who can be a source of fun and encouragement.
Find people who have walked difficult paths and listen to their stories.
Find people who can pray with you and support you when you find yourself in hard times.

But of course, God is our ultimate source. Lean on His wisdom and power.

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit”
Romans 15:13

Craziness in Life ‘v’ Life in Craziness

So, i’ve been doing a bit of clearing out in preparation for a house move and i found something i wrote back in July 2009 whilst spending time in a prayer room. It’s always strange when you re-read something you wrote a long time ago… but this just really put some crazy times into perspective!

“Outside of all the craziness, craziness that entangles our lives physically through family life and work situations. Craziness that suffocates our spiritual life through excessive and often condemning self destructive thoughts. Craziness that surrounds our emotional life making us feel like we’re drowning on dry land. Craziness that causes us to think, and not only think but aim to logically prove why the craziness exists in the first place. This ‘outside’ craziness so effectively becomes ‘inside’ craziness.

This craziness eventually weaves it’s way into every area of our lives. Some of it’s processes provide us with a journey to travel on, a walk to climb or an overseas trip to discover a new adventure. This type of craziness is beneficial even if it challenges us beyond what we think are our limits. Why is there this much craziness in the world? Why do we allow ourselves to get so overwhelmed? Why do we need to keep re-analysing our lifestyle? Why do we seem to live within this cycle of craziness, where we spend weeks running at full speed then find we need a full week to recover. 

Does God allow this to happen or is it just the enemy trying to distract us? To blame one or the other shows our lack of involvement in our own lives. A lack of interest or motivation, a lack of faith or belief in something better or maybe a lack of confidence and belief in ourselves. This lacking confirms how little we care about the way we live our lives, and how little we choose to understand.

The Keys are yours!

The  biggest revelation ever given to me by God was the realisation that everything i did, everything i do and everything i dream of doing is my choice. That i actually hold the keys to my own destiny.

He has provided the best life for me, one where i get to live connected with Him, one where i get to make a difference. One where there’s a plan and a purpose, one where any dreams i have of furthering the Kingdom are not only attainable but achieveable.

What has become the key to unlocking this power in my life was the realisation that i can actually have it. So the craziness, the craziness that captivates our physical, spiritual and emotional life carries weight. It’s the ability to experience the craziness and actually choose to benefit from it rather than allowing it to tear you apart and pin you down. Why does the enemy fear this?

Because he knows that if you figure this out, if you realise that every part of the craziness is able to enhance and further your walk with God and your work in the Kingdom YOU ARE UNSTOPPABLE!

You then become a history maker, a foundation shaker, a dream catcher, a fire starter, a revolutionary ready for action.”  

Hope this brings a boost of perspective for where you’re at right now, it’s definately given me a boost!

Sammi

What ya reading??

Need refreshing, restoring, encouraging? Looking for guidance, growth, discipleship?

I cannot tell you how important reading is to your personal development. It literally is one of the most important, most influential skills you have, and it’s the skill everyone needs to develop. We’re not all natural readers, we don’t all like to work our way through book after book making notes as we go. But if you’re looking to move forward in your walk, realise your purpose and potential  and make steps to achieving your greatest dreams – Reading is your greatest ally!

Ask some questions!

I am always asking people what they are reading, I look for books that provide me with development in numerous areas, particularly those areas I am passionate about. I research authors and listen to their recommendations, I ask leaders about books that have transformed their way of thinking. I intentionally seek out blogs and articles by authors I respect and admire so I can challenge and disciple myself ‘outside of church hours’. There is such a wealth of knowledge, experience and wisdom out there and it’s up to us whether we utilise these resources.

Recommendations!

I’ve lost count of the number of books I have read that have touched, transformed and inspired me. But here is a list of great reads that I would highly recommend you read…

1. The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson – I bought this book in January, and I have read it through back to back 3 times, it’s a must read for anyone who is ambitious with their faith, anyone who has big dreams or big expectations on their purpose in their world. This book will literally transform, inspire and encourage you to pray more! I get chills reading it still! This is what I would describe as a ‘constant’ read.
2. Jesus Culture by Banning Liebscher – This is the vision behind the youth and young adult ministry ‘Jesus Culture’ from Bethel Redding, California (and the well know band Jesus Culture). This is an incredible read, I have just started re reading this book for the third time because it cultivates a lifestyle that I want to see develop in me and those around me. It’s definitely a ‘culture’ book, you will be challenged but fully equipped to run with the vision of the Gospel!
3. The Divine Mentor by Wayne Cordeiro – Great book for those who are looking to learn from our mentors in the Bible. An inspiring read for those who are committed to personal discipleship.
4. Visioneering by Andy Stanley – This book is all about engineering your vision, how to recognise a God thought from a human thought, how to develop it within you, how to release it in its proper timing, and how to cultivate and establish this vision in the heart of your church, community, university, work place etc… I’m currently still reading this book as it’s a ‘process’ book, it gives you practical  application within each stage of development and gives you questions to answer at each stage. A great book for those wondering how to develop what God has placed inside of you.
5. God on Mute by Pete Greig – I have read all of Pete’s books because prayer is one of my big passions, but this one just hits home in a really relevant, unique way. He discusses unanswered prayer, how to react to it, what to do with the unanswered questions and how to keep your faith alive when things don’t go according to our plan. At some stage in everyone’s life this book will be relevant and life altering.
6. Drawing Near by John Bevere – This is a great resource to help fuel your daily walk with God, John takes us through a journey of creating that intimate lifestyle where we realise how God greatly desires a personal walk with each and every one of us. John’s writings are always very relevant, very easy to grasp and completely saturated with the Word of God. Brilliant read!
7. The God Chasers and The God Catchers by Tommy Tenney – These books changed the way I thought about spending time collectively with God as a church, and how important those times of worship and fellowship are to the atmosphere around our lives. He talks us through stories of how God invaded these meetings and challenged everyone present to seek Him, to respect Him and to stand in awe of how amazing He is. It leaves you questioning your approach to His presence and how you subsequently display your response to those you encounter in your world. These books are a must read!
8. Rees Howells Intercessor by Norman Grubb – This book floored me! I remember spending a considerable amount of time questioning whether I was even a Christian after reading about Rees Howell’s life. His stories, the way he discipled himself and fully submitted to God’s calling on his life, how he served as a missionary in South Africa and established a bible college in Swansea all flourished from an inspirational lifestyle of prayer. There’s miracle after miracle and story after story of how he impacted both the UK and South Africa through some of the worst times in history and in turn fuelled revival. Whether you are interested in prayer and intercession or not, I would highly recommend you read this even if it’s just to give you some incredible stories of faith to remember.

So those are just 8 out of the many influential books I have read within the last few years. I really encourage you to develop your reading skill, create a habit in your life that will not only sustain you where you’re at but that will equip you for where you are going!

Happy Reading!

Sammi

Living Intentionally!

My focus for 2012 is to live intentionally, making choices and decisions that will further my personal discipleship and my purposes in the Kingdom. We need to be a generation that CHOOSES to walk with purpose, that makes plans and strategies on how to develop our characters and design and create the steps needed to achieve our God sized dreams!

God has given us a mission, He has also given us all the skills and gifts we need to achieve that mission, but if we don’t live intentionally we run the risk of leaving those skills and gifts in their boxes, untouched, unused. There is so much potential inside of you, don’t leave it in its ‘potential’ stage – Be intentional – Start cultivating the gifts that are within you!

Paul discipled Timothy to ‘Fan into flames the spiritual gift that God has placed within you’ 2 Tim 1v6. God leaves the intentional living to us – it’s our decision whether we become all God has created us to be.

So how can we cultivate an attitude of INTENTIONAL living?

• Get a good strong grasp on who you are in God – Know what the Bible says about you!
• Has God given you a vision/dream/mission that he wants you to plant and flourish in? If he has, take time out of your week (every week) to get that dream IN FRONT of you. Write it down! Habakkuk 2v2 says to ‘Write it in big block letters so that it can be read on the run’ If you can’t articulate what it is or where you’re going, you will find it difficult to intentionally put down the foundations to plant it. If God hasn’t given you a specific dream or vision, ASK FOR IT! He is a BIG God with a BIG plan, and He wants to use you to make it happen.
• Pray circles around your life – I am reading an AMAZING book called ‘The Circle Maker’ by Mark Batterson, I highly recommend this book to inspire you to have the faith to dream a big dream and how to support that dream in prayer. ‘God honours bold prayers because bold prayers honour God!’ Every area of your life needs to be fuelled and saturated in prayer – if you need a prayer boost – Get this book!!
• Get inspired – This is one of my favourite ways of keeping Kingdom goals in mind throughout the general day to day traffic of a normal week. Subscribe to great authors’ blogs, it’s really easy to do! Find people that you admire and look up to, people in the same ministry or mission field that you’re being drawn to – follow them on Twitter, check out their ministry website, these are invaluable, free resources that will support and inspire you to keep moving forward with your vision. Why take a long time trying out different ways of building when you can learn from someone who has been there and done it? That’s why God tells us to share our stories, so we build up those around us – remember the phrase on the edge of a two pound coin – ‘Standing on the shoulders of giants’ Find a giant and stand on his shoulders!
• Keep talking about it! When you are passionate about something, everyone around you knows! You can’t keep these things in because as you intentionally disciple yourself you allow God to pour in, and we know that the best way to keep that passion fresh is to pour it right back out – so you become a stream of living water not a stagnant pond! So when you’re having a coffee with your friend, chat about where you’re going, and what your plans are. And remember to turn the focus right back round and encourage them to talk about their passions and dreams. Putting a voice to your passion is powerful!    

Where are you in relation to where you want to be? Are you going after your purposes with intentionality? What seeds are you sowing now that will influence the structure of your God designed future?

Proverbs 29v18 states that ‘Without vision, people perish’

Clearly God wants us to be focussed, to have something to aim towards and develop. Intend to find out what that is, if you already know, then choose to start living intentionally towards it – you will be amazed at the results of a life lived with purpose!

Sammi

You Have Died

You have died.

It sounds like the dramatic climax to the thrilling movie you’re starring in. Its a shocking twist that nobody saw coming. – not even those who’ve watched every single M Night Shymalan or Hitchcock film.

The theatre sits in stunned silence.

It’s a funny world adjusting to the world when you’re dead. Reality as most clearly perceive it is about living. The struggle to survive, the desperate will to keep breathing and be as happy as possible while doing so.

The dead are shunned, outcast, buried.

Horror movies feature the dead walking amongst us – and it’s a fearful thing.

So when Paul says “For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:3 NLT)
We shouldn’t take this lightly.

Death is a very real and present danger but it is not our ultimate destination – it is a stage that we all must go through.

But to die to the world? To be dead and yet more alive because of it is an incredible thing to wrap your head around. No wonder the world often reacts badly to those who have ‘died’. Jesus told his disciples to expect a negative reaction, because the world hated him. The disciple John also wrote in the first chapter of his gospel that “the world he created did not know him”.

But what does all this mean?

I guess it means we start the resurrection life now. We start to live as citizens of Heaven here and now, embracing all that is good and alive. We live without fear of death. We live, simply and completely.

You have died.
The old patterns and habits you had can be forgotten and redeemed. Yesterday is history, and it’s about time we remembered that.

What else do you think about this? Leave a comment below.

-A

15.5 Billion Light-Years!!

If you haven’t guessed by now I am an avid reader! I tend to have several books on the go at the same time. Mainly because I like to have a variety of thoughts going through my head which are developing different areas of my life. I always start my day off with the Bible though, because without that inspiration my mind, heart and imagination wouldn’t be able to receive all the other things I read throughout my day.

My lunch time slot is currently being filled with one of the best books I’ve read in a long time, The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson. I’m likely to refer to this book a lot throughout this year, it’s one of those life changing books! So I won’t give it a review here yet, I’ll just give you glimpses along the way but if you’re after a book to transform your prayer life – this is it!

Today’s inspiration was MIND BLOWING! I just had to share it… We all need this sort of perspective when we’re busy stuck in the every day traffic of our lives.  

“While God’s power is technically measureless, the prophet Isaiah gives us a glimpse of God’s omnipotence and omniscience by comparing them to the size of the universe. The distance between His wisdom and ours, His power and ours, is likened to the distance from one side of the universe to the other.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

The universe is so large that it requires an awfully long tape measure. The basic unit of measurement is a light-year. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second, which is so fast that in the time it takes to snap your fingers, light circumnavigates the globe half a dozen times. To put the speed of light and size of the universe into perspective, the sun is 94.4 million miles away from the earth at its farthest distance from us. If you could drive to the sun travelling 65 miles per hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, it would take you more than 163 years to get there.

The light that warms your face on a sunny day on the other hand, left the surface of the sun only 8 minutes ago. So while 94.4 million miles may seem like a long distance by earthly standards, it’s our next door neighbour by celestial measurements. The sun is the nearest star in our tiny little galaxy known as the Milky Way. There are more than 80 billion galaxies in the universe, which, for the record, equates to more than 10 galaxies per person! I don’t think you have to worry about running out of things to do when you get to heaven. It’s an awfully big sandbox!

In one minute light travels 11 million miles. In one day, light travels 160 billion miles. In one year, light travels an unfathomable 5 trillion, 865 billion, 696 million miles. But that’s just one light-year. The outer edge of the universe, according to astrophysicists, is 15.5 billion light-years away! If that seems incomprehensible, it’s because it’s virtually unimaginable.

Yet God (I just love those 2 simple words!) says that this is the distance between His thoughts and our thoughts. So here’s a thought for you: Your best thought on your best day falls 15.5 billion light-years short of how great and good God really is. Even the most brilliant among us underestimate God by 15.5 billion light-years. God is able to do 15.5 billion light-years beyond what you can ask or imagine!   

Gives a whole new perspective to Ephesians 3:20 doesn’t it!!  

God = Awesome!!

Written by, Sammi

 

Persistent Prayer Shapes Culture!

I’m currently re-reading ‘Jesus Culture’ by Banning Liebscher, a phenomenal book describing the culture that is being expressed and developed within this generation. Revivalists that are marked by their honour for those who have gone before them, their passionate love for Jesus and their dedication to a life of prayer!

To say i am inspired every time i pick this book up is an understatement – it’s fuelling a hunger inside of me to see more people connect with and release their full potential in God’s purposes for their life!

This quote jumped off the page while i was sat dwelling on the amazing mystery of God’s plans for us and the potential for even greater exploits: “Persistent prayer shapes our character, reinforces our tenacity, focusses our trust on the Lord, and increases our capacity to carry the authority and anointing that the Father has given us.”

What an amazing sentence! Unpacked it looks a bit like this:

Persistent prayer – Knowing that prayer is all about communicating with God how can we walk in the fullness of his purpose on our lives without spending time with him? We can so easily make prayer out to be difficult or daunting, a task that is to be perfected and completed before we can declare in public that we can in fact ‘pray’!! Whereas the best way to get to know God is to talk to him. It really is as simple as that!

Jesus prayed persistently, in times of solitude and out amongst the crowds. His day was filled with prayer because he knew how important it was for him to be in CONSTANT COMMUNICATION with His Father! So if Jesus needed to do it, im even more convinced that we need to adopt his lifestyle!

Shaping our Character – This prayer then begins to shape our character! Those who you spend the most time with become your biggest influencers. So for us to become everything God intended us to be, we first need to make sure our greatest influence is in fact God Himself!

Reinforcing our tenacity – A tenacious person is someone who holds firm to what they believe, someone who is persistent in their character! So our constant communication with God forms our tenacious character to be able to hold firm to what God has asked us to do.

Renewed and Focussed Trust – We then gain a renewed, focussed trust in the Lord, because we KNOW Him! So we wake every day with a renewed trust that our God is for us, and that we can do immeasurably more than we could ever ask for or imagine, because we’ve spent time being empowered and strengthened.

Increased Capacity – And if that wasn’t enough we find ourselves capable of being this Kingdom hearted history maker, because God has increased our capacity to do more for him! We exceed even our own expectations because we have a limitless God living inside of us!

WOAH!!!!!!

All of these amazing gifts which will fuel EVERY area of our lives – all because of PERSISTENT PRAYER! No wonder 24-7 Prayer and Worship spaces are taking over the world! God simply needs us to spend time with him in order to release this MASSIVE potential inside of us!

Such an incredible, (yet simple) revelation!

Written by, Sammi

A Colossal New Year

New Year is often a reflective time. It’s a time when I often look back and see what I have [or have not] accomplished. It’s also one of tradition. There’s the friends, the food, the bells, the fireworks, the late night, the songs.

“Songs?”, you ask? Well, apart from Auld Lang Syne there’s two songs I always listen to around New Year.

“This is a New Year
This a new day to rise, shine, lift up your eyes
This is a New Year
This a new day to rise, shine, point the way to God’s great life”
~Charlie Hall, “New Year”

Worship Leader Charlie Hall offers the sad, but triumphant New Year song. He sings “the joy of Jesus carries pain” amongst other lines of pure hope. New Year is not a time of despair, but one where everything is new again and everything is possible.

The truth is, this could be the year where your life changes. You could meet your new best friend. You could taste that dream a little more tangibly. You could meet the love of your life. Almost certainly, there will be a fair few bad days too – but now you’ve got an extra year’s patience and wisdom under your belt. This year, we can react better.

31 556 926 seconds.
525 948 minutes.
8 765.8 hours.

That’s all it takes for us spinning on this Earth to hurtle through space doing another lap of the Sun (a 93,000,000 mile trip!)  doing a colossal 66,500mph.

This time next year, where will you be?
Who will you be?
Who do you want to be?

-Andrew