Looking forward to visiting the above in a few weeks!

My bible notes from U.C.B. are so apt.


Who belongs in your life? 22 Jan 2009
'"...Where you go I will go..."' Ruth 1:16
Ruth told Naomi, '"Where you go I will go."' You can spend your life anywhere with anybody doing anything, then suddenly meet someone and sense that there is a connection between you. It's what made Elisha quit farming and follow Elijah, an eccentric prophet; it's why Timothy hung out with Paul, an old man soon to be executed. You know intuitively, 'I won't reach my destiny without you in my life.' Looking back you realise if you hadn't met that certain person, or taken that phone call, or read that email, you wouldn't be where you are today. On the other hand, '...Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye...' (Ruth 1:14 NIV). Now Orpah's leaving didn't make her a bad person; it just meant her part in the story was over. Recognise when somebody's part in your story is over, otherwise you'll just keep trying to raise the dead. David pleaded with God for his newborn baby's life. 'He fasted...spent the nights lying on the ground...and...would not eat...' (2 Samuel 12:16-17 NIV). But when the child died he had to accept that there was nothing more he could do, so he 'got up...washed...changed his clothes...and he ate' (2 Samuel 12:20 NIV). Acknowledge when something is over. If God means you to have it, He'll give it to you. If you've tried to make it work and it hasn't, accept His will in the matter. Get up, go to the department store, buy yourself a new outfit, treat yourself to a good meal; start living again! Never beg anyone to stay with you against their will. Their leaving is no accident; it just means God has something better in store for you (and possibly them too), so trust Him and move on!

Psalm 139 was a joy to read today- one of my favourite psalms:


Psalm 139 (New International Version)

Psalm 139
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.

5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"

12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake,
I am still with you.

19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!

20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?

22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.

We sung 'Crown Him with Many Crowns' on Sunday. What a fantastic hymn. The following verse is just so poetic and so meaningful. Yes, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is in control of time. Everything is in His timing. He does not change, but by His grace we can change to be more like Him. Friendships, jobs, places can change. We change- thank God! Life would be incredibly boring if we didn't.


Crown Him the Lord of years,
The Potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres,
Ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail!
For Thou has died for me;
Thy praise shall never never fail
Throughout eternity


I've had a good week, and am back in the swing of work. I now need to focus and hone in on my research questions after reading so many articles. I pray that God will help me identify the gaps in the research I have been reading and that by doing this project, He can be glorified, as I can't do it in my own strength!

Looking forward to the weekend as my mum is coming down to stay with us for a few days. She is catching the train which she is anxious about. My sister will take her to the station and we will pick her up. We are looking forward to seeing her and spending time with her. We are going to a quiz at church on Saturday so she will stay in with the children which will be nice for them to spend time with their granny.