Lent. Life. Relaxed.

This last week and a bit has been totally different to the whole of the last two years.  I've done absolutely nothing at all with Noah's.  It's been quite odd as well as strangely good.  And today I've tidied up all the Noah's paperwork from the various places around the house and put it all in my office at home.  And I'm not going to be going back to it until the end of Easter.  Originally it was going to be end of March but I've decided that I'm going to give it the whole of Lent.  Of course, if someone wants to know what it's about then I'm more than happy to talk about it :0)  And if an opportunity for a property comes up then I'll make a decision at that point what to do.

Lent is one of those things that's not really been on my radar at all.  It's not had any particular meaning for me at any stage of my life.  For some reason, it's got some meaning this year.  Seemingly it's a time of self-denial, fasting & becoming closer to God which lasts from Ash Wednesday though to Maundy Thursday (the Thursday before Good Friday).  All sounds good to me and I want to see breakthrough in a couple of areas of my life.  I know as I make myself more available to God then breakthrough will come.

So what am I giving up for Lent?

Firstly, Facebook.  I love Facebook.  I love the connection with friends and their connection with me through it.  I love that Noah's gets some good publicity through it as well.  But it can be a distraction.  I deactivated my account this evening.  I'm fairly sure I'll pick it up again after Easter but for now it's freedom from Facebook.

I'll also be staying away from anything chocolatey.  I am a sucker for a Creme Egg and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups.  It's also part of seeing breakthrough in the area of my weight.

I also decided I'm going to take some time over the next few weeks to re-discover my love of listening to music.  My iTunes playlists need a re-vamp and there are so many songs that I haven't listened to in what seems like forever.  Tonight I re-discovered this song:

It reminds me of dancing quite a few years back now.  I love the mellow, laid back music.  I'm not so bothered by the lyrics but love that it's easy to dance to...even with two left feet! ;0)

Anyhoo, it's nice to feel relaxed and to have some time to clear up my emails, sort my calendar, read and listen to music.  Oh, and the last two nights have been going out nights just having fun with no business talk at all!  Now that's a change :0)  In fact, I got ID'd on Friday night along with my friends.  For a 37 year old that's a fabulous compliment! LOL! ;0)

More importantly though it'll be good to have time to get closer to God.  That's what Lent is all about.

Hopeless Romantic

I am an unreservedly and unashamedly romantic.

I love movies where boy meets girl and by the end of the movie they're together.  I cry every time at the end of 'You've Got Mail'.

I don't like movies where boy meets girl, they fall in love and then tragedy strikes.  'Devastation' is the only word I can use for the ending of 'Message In A Bottle' and 'Nights In Rodanthe'.  How can they do that to an unsuspecting movie watcher?!  Sorry if I've just ruined two movies for those reading this...but I've saved you from the devastation I had ;0)

Valentines is one of my favourite times of the year....and yes I'm single.  I love what it means.  I love that it's a celebration of love.  For me, it's not a celebration yet (did you get that 'yet'...I'm working on it) of romantic love but a celebration of the love I have in my life and I am blessed to have a lot of love in my life.  I have the love of my family.  I have some pretty wonderful friends around me who make life so much fun & have walked with me through some dark times.  And how can I not mention the love of my fabulous nephews!  I will never forget the moment my youngest nephew (he's 5) walked into the kitchen and said 'Aunty Ruth (little pause) I love you' and then walked away again.  Makes me teary just thinking about it.

Love is a truly marvellous thing.  The pain of the past hasn't dampened my love of love.  I read this very recently:

"The most precious possession that ever comes to a man in this world is a woman's heart." Same can be said of a man's heart to a woman.

As I enter this next year between Valentines Days, one of my deepest desires is to enter into the one relationship that leads to marriage.  I love that I'm not afraid of that anymore.  While saying that I am always reminded of Proverbs 4:23 "Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, for out of it flow the springs of life".  My heart is a very precious gift and the man who gets it will be responsible to tending carefully for it.


Don't you just love LOVE! :0)


I've realised I've written a blog entry on Valentines for the last couple of years which brings some more personal insights.  If you want to take a look then here are the links:


2011
2010

I wish you a very 'HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!'

Taking A Break

In the last few days the news I hadn't expected came....the property for Noah's has fallen through.  I am disappointed (more than I thought I was)...and I'm mentally & physically drained too.  The adrenaline has gone on holiday.

So, I'm taking a break from the physical work...the nitty gritty...I've been doing with Noah's.  Don't panic!  The dream isn't dead, it's not finished, it's not over.  It's very much alive & I am more passionate about it now then ever before.  The plan is to return to it week beginning 26th March unless God clearly opens a door before then.

The break I'm taking is one so I can gather my thoughts & some energy but more importantly spend time praying.  Prayer & faith are the bedrock of Noah's.  I'm just going to spend some more time seeking God and His wisdom for me & for the dreams I have.  I'm circling His promises to me in prayer and daring to ask for even greater things.  I've been timid in my prayers and will be building up my boldness to ask & believe for greater things.  I believe that more will become clear as I seek God.

For those in the Bracknell area, if you'd like to start holding prayer meetings for Noah's then I'd love to come along and can share some of where it's at, what I believe God is saying and the dream for the future.  My desire would be that there are pockets of prayer happening all over.  I'm very thankful for the 'pockets' I'm aware of in other parts of the country.  People listening to God and praying for Noah's.

The bright side (a little selfishly) to not getting the property is that I can plan a longer holiday later in the year, I get to stay for longer in my day job (which I love), I get to remain part of my band 'Thin Places' for longer, and my diary is a little lighter too.

In the next few weeks I'm looking forward to getting through the mountains of unread emails in my inbox (for those who know me well, this is a pressure) and getting my calendar sorted out (I've missed a couple of things planned with friends because I didn't put them in my calendar & forgot about them - again, another pressure).  I'll be learning to put my time management skills into practice! :0)

Just to be clear, so there's no misunderstanding, Noah's is not dead, I've not lost the vision or the passion or the faith for this remarkable & wonderful dream God's given me.  I'm just taking the opportunity to have a rest and seek God.

And to start with some rest, today I'm having coffee with a friend, then tea with another friend and then I'm going to the movies :0)