GIVING AN ACCOUNT

*Post by Amy from “Building the Blocks”.  It’s hard-hitting, but don’t switch off!

It has affected me deeply and there are things in my life that definitely need to change. How does it speak to you?

 

Sometimes, we find it easiest to look the other way.
Sometimes, we believe He isn’t talking to us.
Sometimes, we figure someone else will do it.
Sometimes, we blow it off as someone else’s responsibility.
But what if… God meant for you to do it?
As we were talking to someone the other day about support for our mission work we heard the all to common comment of ‘go ask this church- or go ask that church’.
But what I sometimes think we forget is WE ARE THE CHURCH.
And often times we use the church as our excuse to not have to do what we are called as individuals to do.
We hide behind the title ‘the church’ and forget the church is made up of individual Christ followers who are all to do their own part.
Because after all, He is a personal God.
Personal to me- and personal to you.
While the church as a whole is powerful enough to knock out the orphan crisis- it’s going to take all of us to do our part to make it happen- or it never will.
And yet all too often we sit and we wait…
For someone else to take care of the problem…
For someone else to give…
For someone else to serve…
For someone else to do something about it…
And we excuse ourselves of our individual responsibility.
When perhaps He was talking to us all along…
In the past I have talked a lot on my blog about our ties to money- and what the Lord has been teaching us. As we are raising funds for missions, more than ever before, our eyes are being opened to our cultures connection to the almighty dollar.
And more than ever before- I see how clearly it is the one thing that is bringing us, as a nation, down.
Our love for things…
and our love of self…
Over our love for Him.
I came across this picture the other day and I felt like someone punched me in the gut. I wondered how someone could just look the other way and go on without doing something to help?

But then it hit me..
Aren’t we, in essence, doing this exact thing when we- choose that $6.00 latte over giving to missions?
When we choose to take a family vacation instead of giving our tithe?
Choose to have a pedicure over sponsoring a child in need?
Choose to look the other way as the homeless man sits on the corner begging for our help?
Choose a bigger house over adopting a child?
Choose to do nothing- when we could do something?
Choose not to respond.
Roman 14:12 tells us “Each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
Belonging to a church isn’t enough.
Each one of us, individually, are accountable to God for what we have done for the poor, the helpless, the widow and the orphan.
I once heard someone say the only thing worse than being lost- is being lost and knowing there is no one looking for you. As the body of Christ I believe the Lord is calling each one of us- as individuals- to open our eyes and LOOK. Look for the need and act.
Give.
Serve.
Love.
Take it personal-
Because He does.

{Amy Block}

busy fingers

 

With a large family, comes a large table. And none of the store bought tablecloths fit ours. They shrink and we end up with no cloth on the edges, and big gaps at either end. I end up using a couple of cloths, layered over each other, which is a shabby-chic kinda look and works well.

I wanted to try making my own tablecloth and have never tried ruffles before. So after checking out a couple of blogs – Miss Mustard Seed and Homemade by Jill have so much info in them for anyone wanting to learn just about any craft (seriously skilled women!!)

I cut up an old single sheet to use as the base for attaching the layered ruffle skirt, and found a bit of white fabric that I cut into strips with my rotary cutter. It’s incredible how many metres of material the ruffles take!!! The table is 3.1 metres long and 1.4m wide, so I kept the entire width of the fabric including the selvedge piece (I don’t care that it has the manufacturer’s info on the side).

I will post an after shot when I’m finished (dinner was calling and the children were climbing the walls so I figured it was quitting time!)

I don’t have an overlocker, so the edges aren’t finished off, good thing I like the frayed look huh?!!!

It’s definitely looking like a girls tea party tabledress to me!!

Every day God wakes us up with His singing…”Enjoy Me”

I wanted to re-post this from a while ago, I needed the reminder and I believe there are others who visit here that need it too!

Enjoy HIM today.

 

 

We live in a love story.  We are created for romance and we have an insatiable capacity for it. Now, God gave us such a heart; it was one of his first gifts to us.

Then he gives to us this world that is so breathtakingly beautiful.

You see it in the fact that he made grass just firm enough that it stands up straight like a carpet, but not too firm that it hurts you when you run on it with bare feet.

And he makes snow just firm enough for snowballs and sledging, but not so firm that it hurts us when it falls; it falls so softly.

He makes birds and their songs just loud enough to be delightful and he creates our ear to delight in the sound.

Do you begin to see the

tenderness and love

of God through all creation?

And then he gives to each of us those unique and particular things that capture our hearts, those things we loved when we were young and those things we love even still – horses, the wind, playing and instrument, the laugh of a child.

He gave you all the things that you have ever loved, and all those joys that are unique and particular to you – the puppy you got when you were seven, your favourite bike, running barefoot on the grass in the summertime in the evenings when the dew was on the grass and the day was still warm but the grass was cool.

All of this is the love of God wooing you.  Some of you found the romance of God at the beach.

Some of you found it on the rivers or in the meadows. Some of you found it in books.

All that has ever stirred your heart, that was God romancing you.

Turn your face into it…that is what HE wants. Turn your face into the things that bring romance to your hearts.  Give it over to Him.

That is how you experience the love of God.*

*extract from Love and War by John & Stasi Eldredge

A STAKE IN THE GROUND

 

Those from among you
Shall build the old waste places;
You shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.

{Isaiah 58:12}

I couldn’t put any more effectively what we are aiming to do with Restor’d than this! I was led to this verse today in my quiet time.

May we be found faithful.

Stepping out in faith we have placed an offer on a parcel of land that we can build the Restor’d shop and offices. Believing God for BIG dreams!

OPENING DOORS TO DESTINY

Sorry it’s been a while between posts….but it’s been pretty darn exciting around here!! 

We’ve been planning, dreaming and planning some more. We’ve had weddings, funerals and everything in between. Life, in all its fullness, has grabbed a hold of us in 2012!!

And this is the big thing we’ve been working on….

 

We are still aways off yet. We need to find retail space (doors of opportunity are opening as we speak!), we need to source product to sell!, and then, to get the word out that this is going to be one AWESOME place to volunteer your time!

The ONLY REASON I share this with you today is so you will hold me accountable! Don’t let me give up on this dream friends!!!!!

I am counting on you to keep me focussed.

Because there are 147 million orphans out there, and we need to do our part to seeing them RESTOR’d!

In the meantime, head over to www.restord.com.au and take a look around (and please let me know what you think!!)

 

Blessings,

Shani