Waiting on the Lord

A beautiful song came onto my playlist.... Out of the Depths. A line from it says: I will wait for You.

It was talking about no matter what happens in life, we will wait for God. I sometimes feel like I've spent my whole life waiting for God. Thats not to say I think I know better than Him, or that I think He's not doing His job properly... I just sometimes get frustrated with waiting on God. Cos I've been doing that for a long time... and I'm still waiting. So that made me think.... what does it mean to wait on God? Well this is what Louie Giglio says it means:

"the Hebrew word to hope and wait means this: those who stand right in the midst of the craziness, right in the midst of the pain, right in the midst of the chaos, right in the valley of the shadow of death. And they don’t gloss over it; they’re dealing with the hardest stuff in life. But they’re standing in the middle of it saying ‘I don’t see what God’s doing. I don’t understand what the plan is. But I will tell you one thing: I am not going to give up on God. And I’m going to stand RIGHT HERE in the middle of this moment and I’m going to trust that God is sitting on a throne, that He has a purpose for my life and a plan for my life. And I believe that I’m going to see the goodness of God in the land of the living and I’m not going to stop believing that no matter what.’"

Thats pretty big. Waiting for God means trusting Him even when everything around you is crashing down. It means keeping your eyes on Him, not focusing on the problems in front of you. I find that pretty hard to do. It sounds easy in theory... focus on God; not your problems. But in reality? Thats hard. The problems seem SO BIG!! But we're forgetting something... God is BIGGER!

Joseph - to obey or disobey?

This may sound strange, but ever since writing down my heart in my last post, it made it seem more real. I'm a private person when it comes to matters of the heart, and I'm not sure what compelled me to blog about it, but... I did. And with the admission of what was on my heart came acknowledgment. And since then, came one main emotion: fear. I mean, am I crazy? Who spends 7 years finishing uni to then go overseas to teach the poor? Who spends 7 years chasing a dream, then gives it all up when its finally in her grasp? Nobody does that right? Right?

Well after I acknowledged the whisper in my heart, I became terrified. I know ONE person in all of India...! The thought of packing up my life here in Bundaberg, Australia and heading to an unknown village in India is... scary. But yet, it stays on my heart. Oh I could so easily stay here. Get a job in Bundy, teach music to many students, have a fulfilling life right here in my hometown. Easy done, right? Well... no. Here's one more thing you probably don't know about me... I've never been one to be satisfied with the ORDINARY life. Sure, my life is pretty normal: God, work, uni, family, music, water skiing. But I'm one of these people who want to change the world. I've always wanted to make a difference, to impact people's lives. I've always wanted to be remembered as someone who lived an EXTRAORDINARY life!

Today at bible study we were talking about Joseph and how he obeyed God even when he couldn't see the big picture. Its Max Lucado's take on the situation from a book called Cast Of Characters. Let me quote part of it.
Jospeh didn't let his confusion disrupt his obedience. He didn't know everything. But he did what he knew. He shut down his business, packed up his family, and went to another country. Why? Because thats what God said to do.
What about you? Just like Joseph, you can't see the whole picture. Just like Joseph, your task is to see that Jesus is brought into your part of your world. And just like Joseph, you have a choice: to obey or disobey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.

Did you catch it? Let me say it again: And just like Joseph, you have a choice: to obey or disobey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.

Did you get it that time? We all have a choice - every moment of every day. That really struck me. I have a choice... I can stay here... live a safe, ordinary life... and disobey. OR... take a risk, a leap of faith, and live the extraordinary life... and obey. God wants to use us... but we have to obey and trust in Him. I hope I can remember this for myself when my future seems overwhelming and terrifying. I hope some of you will remind me :) But I challenge you... what is your choice? You don't have to go overseas in order to live an extraordinary life... you just need to follow Jesus ANYWHERE He leads you. Trust Him - He loves you more than you could ever imagine!

Getting My Attention

Do you think God wants to get your attention? Don't you love how you plan your life out and then beg God for answers as to why your life isn't turning out the way you wanted it to? Well as I'm discovering, sometimes God's plan for your life is so much better. What am I saying - sometimes. Shouldn't that be ALWAYS?

I always had one plan: be an instrumental music teacher. I never wanted to be anything else. So I put all my efforts into chasing that goal. I did auditions at every university in Brisbane. Desperately hoping they would see my passion for music and how that would make me a great teacher. That's what Hutch and Rotar always told me: I'd be a great music teacher. Guess what. I didn't get in. No-one accepted me. Never mind, I told myself, just start on your education side of it and audition next year. So I did. Turns out secondary education can be really challenging. But then I found another degree "Bachelor of Creative Industries" that had music subjects in it. Fantastic! I thought. I'll get a head start so I'll have less subjects to do when the accept me! As you can see, I'm a very optimistic person, I believe its all about perspective. My passions were so strong I believed it was only a matter of time before the university could see that I'm perfect for the music degree. Guess what. They didn't accept me that year either. By this time, my optimism was failing. So I packed up and went home, my dreams shattered at my feet.

How could You let this happen God? You're the One who gave me my gifting of music. I know I'm talented, I see how You use me through my music, how it touches people's hearts and directs them to You. Why are you crumbling my dreams when You're the One who gave them to me?? My prayers went a little something like that. My mother, being the realistic woman that she is, wouldn't let me come home without a plan. So I began my primary education degree at a very regional university, which in my opinion, was so far below the big city uni I'd been to - it reeked of regional, backwards and dodgy. Well I've been at that dodgy uni for 3 years now... only it doesn't seem so dodgy and backwards anymore. At first I struggled a lot. I don't really want to be a primary teacher. Music is still my passion. I'm using it for a little piece of paper that will make my dreams come true. At least, I was.... until the start of last year.

Now its always been my experience that if God wants you to do something, He'll get your attention in several ways. Here are the first of these ways. Every Easter I go to a wonderful Christian music festival formally known as Australian Gospel Music Festival (AGMF) now known as Easterfest. I was at one of the worship mornings (one of my favourite events!) when I felt God speaking to me. He said: Shannon, will you follow me?
I'll admit I was a little confused by the question. I'd made a committment to follow Him many years ago. So I responded: yes Lord, I'll follow you anywhere... as long as You go before me.
It all seemed very confusing and I wasn't sure what it meant, so I didn't really dwell on it.

But now to attention getter number 2. During semester 1 this year, I was doing an assignment on literacy in the early years (P-3) and I came across an article about a man called Kasule who lived in Uganda and was illiterate. Kasule believes that without being able to read and write, he is destined to being lower class and unable to get a good job. He believes that people who are literate look down on people like him and despise them. Kasule's story touched my heart. Here in Australia, we take it for granted that we can read and write. For us, it is a given. Something we don't really think about, we just do it. Children learn it even before they get to school. But in some countries, in some areas, they do not have the opportunities to learn basic reading and writing skills. And then I realised. Having a straight education degree opens more doors than the path I wanted... there are so many teachers here... why don't some of them go overseas and help those who are in much greater need? And from here a... calling maybe? was born. I want to go overseas and teach people how to read and write which may just give them the skills they need to escape poverty.

Then this last Sunday I heard a sermon on missions and saw the huge number of unreached people groups in the world... then during the night service a man from OM (Operation Mobilisation) came and spoke about a very similar thing. So I talked to him afterwards and he has put me in touch with a lady who does exactly what I want to do. Do you think God has my attention now??? I still have 2 more years left on my degree... and who knows what might happen next? Perhaps in a few years I will be in India helping people escape poverty, giving them literacy skills that will enable them to achieve this.

Follow my journey, as I discover where God wants me. Life without God is empty.... but with HIM, you will embark on the most amazing journey of your life.

The Responsibility of Truth

I have realised something recently. With truth comes great responsibility. Perhaps I should have known this a long time ago. You'll have to forgive me, I sometimes take a while to figure things out!! I attribute this to being born blonde :)

So what, I hear you asking, are you on about???

I am, of course, talking about the great Truth, the truth of Jesus Christ. These last few weeks I have watched a friend have his world crash around him. He has had many bad things happen to him, and I can only imagine the depths of the pain this must have caused him. I have watched him struggle greatly to come to terms with so many bad things, and I have watched him fail in this endeavor. Meanwhile, I have all the answers he seeks. I have, living in me, the power he needs to overcome his circumstances. While I say this, I cannot make his life wonderful and perfect and easy, but this power I have in me, the power of Jesus Christ is the very help he needs to climb out of the pit of despair he finds himself in.

The truth of Jesus Christ. It is a very powerful thing. It has the power to overcome lies. The power to overcome death. The power to ease all fears. The power to love at all times. The power to see through the rubbish of this world and see to the wonderful world of Jesus Christ. Having this truth and this power changes your very perspective of life, and this, in turn, is often the greatest problem in life. No circumstance is too much if you have the right perspective.

And since I know this truth, and have this power, I have great responsibility. I have more responsibility than those who do not know this truth. I have a great responsibility to share this truth with everyone I meet, so that their eyes may be opened. Its almost like I have sight and those without the truth are blind. I have the power to open their eyes to real sight by sharing the truth. Jesus commanded His followers to do this very thing "Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)

I have always known this, but never quite realised exactly how important it is! I have a responsibility to share the great truth of Jesus Christ!

And what about my friend you may ask? Sadly he did not want to hear the truth. But hopefully I have made him think, and one day, who knows? Maybe he will realise the truth I spoke and turn to the Father. It makes me very sad to see him struggle so much and not reach out to the only one who can help him. But I guess that is one of the burdens of knowing the truth. And if I weep for him, how much more does the Father weep?

What about you? Have you taken on the responsibility of the truth? Do you KNOW the truth?? If you dont and want to know more, send me a comment :)

I'm a Good Christian

Do you read you Bible?

Do you pray?

Do you go to church?

That makes you a good Christian, right?

I think so many of us fool ourselves into thinking that's all we need to do to be a good Christian. That's all God asks of us, right?

WRONG.

I've recently discovered that I've fallen into this pattern of thinking. I go to bible study every fortnight. I read my Bible. I go to church every Sunday. I'm even on the worship team. And I pray. Go me! But then I realised... that's the kind of lukewarm faith that is talked about in Revelation. And what was God's response to such faith? "So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth." (Revelation 3:16) Wow. That's a strong reaction, don't you think?

But what will we do about it? You see, I believe God wants so much more for us. I believe that God wants an incredibly deep and intimate relationship with us, not just a prayer every now and then. God wants us to confide in Him with everything. He wants us to go to Him FIRST, not LAST. He loves us so much that He sent His only Son to die... so that we could have eternal life with Him. That's a pretty incredible gift and an incredible price to pay for an intimate relationship. In God, we have incredible power. If only we would use it. We have the power to withstand temptation. The power to resist satan. The power to LOVE.

What will your response be? Will you accept His invitation to an intimate relationship with Him? Or will you just stay where you are? Its difficult to be in an intimate relationship with Him. It is terrifying, because He will ask you to change things. It is difficult, because He will ask you to give up some things that perhaps you really love. It is painful, because He will chisel you and shape you into the person HE wants you to be. And that will include giving up some things and changing things. But it will also be REWARDING because there is nothing on this earth that is better than time with HIM. And He will take you on the most amazing journey of your life. But only if you'll let Him.

So what will you choose? A wise man once told me: there is no middle ground with God. Its either everything or nothing.

What will you give?

Everything?

Or nothing?

The choice is yours.

When you're sitting in school dreaming about the life you'll have when you finally graduate, they never tell you about what its like to live in the real world. They tell you to follow your dreams and to dream big... but they never prepare you for what happens if those dreams fall flat. The real world can be a daunting place... juggling university with work... doing a degree you would never have done if you had only gotten a place in the degree you always dreamt of. But learning to love that degree anyway, as you learn that sometimes you just gotta get that piece of paper so you can do the job you're truly passionate about. Finding a job that you love, but not getting enough hours, or having to leave it because it clashes too much with your degree. Life is tough. Dreaming of things like husbands and children, but knowing there's no one in your immediate future, so having to prepare a life for yourself in case those dreams never come to fruition. Having many futures to dream of and wondering if you'll have a chance at all of them.

Music has always been one of the biggest passions of my life. Its not always a passion that pays well, but it is an incredibly rewarding one. Most people pay to get a buzz. I get mine for free... or I get paid to receive it. Pretty good deal if you ask me! Playing gives me a HUGE buzz, like nothing else. I get that one for free. Sharing the joy of music with students, that one I get paid to do. Throw in a few ensembles such as playing for musicals, being in a church band and working towards your AMus (performance)... it doesnt get much better than that.

You gotta find your passion in life, and spend every minute pursuing it. If you dont, you will find yourself in an unsatisfying mediocre job/occupation and you will constantly question the purpose of life. Why are we here? What is my purpose in life? We'll answer that one next blog.

Life is interesting. Sometimes it goes as planned. Most of the time it does not. And alot of the time we spend our lives trying to figure out why on earth we're here! My life is VERY different to what I imagined when I was in high school... dreaming about the future. I'm not doing the degree I wanted, or even living in the town I thought I'd be in. And here comes the adventures of the life that turned out a little different that I'd planned sitting in the classrooms of St Luke's Anglican School, Bundaberg...