And this is my prayer...

What do I pray for and why?
Have you ever bumped into a friend or neighbor in the store and, after they updated you about their current drama, you left them with the words: "I'll pray for you."
I've done it! And to be honest with you, if I don't write these things down immediately, I sometimes forget to follow up on my promise. And that leads to feeling embarrased about myself, about treating such a promise lightly and not being more considerate about the trouble the other person is going through. I don't want my words to be meaningless or an empty cliche, so I have decided that either

1. I have to pray with the person on the spot, or
2. write it down immediately and pray later, or
3. ask the person what I should pray for and get specific so we can agree

The last method I learned from the apostle Paul; he told the believers at Philippi: and this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight... (Philippians 1:9-11) He did not adress the people casually, 'oh, I'll pray for you...' He told them what he prayed for and why he did it, he expected certain results because of his prayer. He wanted them to gain a greater understanding of love and he clarified why, so that:

• you may be able to discern what is best, in other words you will be able to make the right choices and always act in love, and love never fails (1 Corinthians 13:8)


• you may be pure and blameless until the day of Jesus Christ, because love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8)


• you may be filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, you will have peace over the situation because the fruit of righteousness is peace (Isaiah 32:17)

Paul ads the ultimate goal of his prayer -to the glory and praise of God! Wouldn't this be a great way to practise effective prayer this week?

GRACE OF GIVING

Pre-sales GRACE OF GIVING starts today!

This morning I came to the conclusion that 2010 has only two more months left… Two months in which we celebrate two major holidays. One day to give thanks and one day to give gifts. It seems that ‘giving’ is the theme for the remainder of each year we live.

I guess it keeps us balanced, because we are programmed to spend most of our lives accumulating possessions which we think will make us happier and give us a more fulfilled life, whether it is the house, the car, the boat, the job, the money or the mate we desire. How can we shift that all too human attitude of gathering into an attitude of giving? Is it truly possible to become a cheerful giver?

In my fourth book Grace of Giving, turning the key to enter and experience fullness of life, I have tried to answer these questions by taking an in-depth look at the commandment do not steal. I share how we can leave behind the way of the thief, which always cries for more, more, more, and how we can adapt the way of the Master, which is cheerfully, abundantly and costly giving that will lead us into a life in all its fulness!

The official nationwide release date for Grace of Giving will be January 25^th 2011, so the book is not yet available at major book sellers. It is, however, available at the publishers’ website! If you want to learn more about the blessings of giving, please go to this link and order your own copy of Grace of Giving:

http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61739-078-4

If you prefer the audio version, and don't mind listening to my foreign accent, or if you rather have it as an e-book download, please go to this link and order there. In the coming weeks I will be giving away several copies of GRACE OF GIVING, so keep an eye on my blog!

Inspirational art!

Jesus is sitting at the place of highest honor next to God, pleading for us there in heaven

Romans 8:34

Last Saturday night we attended a fundraiser dinner organised by Messianic congregation Elohim Hu Ahavah to raise money for a mission trip to Israel. It was a wonderful evening under the stars with music, dance, great food and many interesting people to talk with. There was also a silent auction and we purchased an exceptional oil on canvas by local artist Michelle Honles. It is an absolutely stunning image of Jesus praying....

It was her unconventional use of yellow and orange in His prayer shawl that really caught our attention. The fact that she painted this in one day, in an artistic flow of the Holy Spirit makes it even more special! What an awesome piece of art!

We LOVE it!!

Without Warning

He stilled the storm to a whisper

Have you ever received a phone call that shattered your world? A call that made your stomach turn in an instant? The kind of call that made you say 'this cannot be true'? At some point in life we might all receive a call like that, without warning. A loved one passed away, a family member had a terrible accident, you are being laid off at work... well, you can fill in any scenario that would shock your world.

I remember the few times when I received bad news, without warning. It made the world stop and at the same time years and years of memories would flash through my mind, like time didn't exist. The storms of life can come upon us just like that. Unlike the natural storms and tornado's we experience here in the USA, which are being foretold by the weather channel. In Jesus' time there was no weather channel and when He was in a boat with the disciples on the Sea of Gallilee they encountered a natural storm. Matthew 8:24 says,

Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat.

Without warning! They did NOT see it coming. That is how the storms sometimes hit our lives. The only preparation we can take is to make sure we have Jesus in our boat! He knows how to calm a storm, better yet; He teaches us how to speak against the storms in our lives! Speaking peace into troubled situations is no more crazy than speaking to a mountain or a mulberry tree! Jesus didn't talk ABOUT the storm, He calmed it down. Psalm 107:29 says it beautifully,

He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.

I want to use my words the way He did it!

Life of Sorek

Don't forget to visit Sorek's blog!

Saturday, October 2nd 2010, was a great day at Westminster Gardens! More than 50 authors presented their work to the public. We had a slight drizzle in the morning, but by the time the volunteers started the bbq, sun came out and so did most of the visitors. I think we had a great turn out, lots of super friendly people, interesting speakers and very helpful volunteers, all at a beautiful location. I participated on one of the panels and got a chance to tell a little bit more about the life of Sorek, the character in my book Breath of Life. If you have never visited Sorek's blog, please be so kind and come on over! Feel free to leave your comment about 'life before conception'.