Closing the Door on a Life Season

After 15 months of living in state of flux, we finally completed on the sale of our house in Chester on Friday last week. It was a bittersweet moment when I received the telephone call from our solicitor telling us that we had completed.

We were no longer owners of the home that has housed our family for the past 5 years. In those four walls, we built memories, cried tears, experienced loss, dealt with health issues, faced uncertainty and change. 

It was the home that saw the end of our home educating journey, a safe haven for our girls to return each day after university lectures, a launching pad when they finally fledged the nest.

As I wrote a little "Welcome Home" card and placed it next to a box of chocolates and a bottle of wine for the new owners earlier on in the week, I prayed over the house. 

"Lord, may this be a safe and happy home for the new owners. May the experience every blessing and create a myriad of happy memories together. Bless this home and this family".

I'll be honest, over the past 15 months I really could not understand why it was that the door kept closing on our sale, why we experienced such an uphill battle to pass it on.

Three of my friends sold and bought houses in that time with very few problems, it was disheartening.

But there came a point when I realised that God was working out His good plans in our lives, directing our paths, and showing us that His way was infinitely better than our personal plans.

Our plans had us moving to the Lake District, further away from our children and our community. God's plans placed us in the Welsh hills, within easy commutable distance of our children.

Our plans had us downsizing to a small 2 bedroomed cottage. God's plans placed us in a sizable home with 4 bedrooms. Our children and their boyfriends and friends have spent a significant amount of time visiting and staying with us. More so than when we lived in Chester. This home seems to invite people to stay. It's inviting, warm, comfortable, spacious enough for everyone.

Our plans had us moving closer to my husband's place of work. A job that made him deeply unhappy and stressed and was having a very real impact on his health. God's plans had my husband step back from his job, retire from the hotel industry, and move toward finally opening his dream business. Since leaving full time employment he is happier, healthier, has lost weight as he has time for regular exercise. I am no longer fearful of him having a heart attack. We are looking forward to opening our own little coffee and artisan food shop - a long held dream.

Our plans were for a quick and easy sale so that we could push on with independence. God's plans forced us to depend on Him and His timing. That process restored my trust in God, trust that had been severely shaken after the untimely death of two close friends. 

I have since been able to let go of my own plans that seemed "the sensible thing to do" and am trusting him to lead me along a different path, a path of a ministry which He placed in my heart when he asked me to trust Him and home educate our daughters 20 years ago. I'm grateful that my training allows me to work in a freelance capacity right now, allowing plenty of time to step out in faith as He leads me down a new path.

My angst has faded. I don't have any assurances as to what the future holds but I do know that I am back on the path that God has planned for me, for us, because I know God's peace that suparsses all understanding (Phil 4:7), and I have not had that peace since our home educating days came to a close. 

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways", says the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. " ~ Isaiah 55:8-9

While hindsight is a wonderful thing, the process of walking through difficult times is a refining and necessary process if we are to grow in our faith. 

While I couldn't see it at the time, am grateful that our journey was not a smooth and easy transition. It was not what we needed and our Heavenly Father knows best. He knew exactly what we both needed, and for all our kicking, screaming and tantruming - He patiently loved us and revealed His good and perfect way for our lives.

Whatever season you are in, lean into God and trust His ways. He loves you deeply and wants good things for His children. Sometimes our understanding of what 'good things' are may not be the 'best' things.

Wishing you every blessing this week.

Counting My Blessings

A Heavy Heart

The past few days have been heavy. I did not know Charlie Kirk personally, but I was familiar with his work. While I did not always agree with his political views, he was first and foremost a brother in Christ, a husband, and a father. To hear that he was so brutally murdered simply for speaking, debating, and seeking to shine light is both horrifying and deeply troubling.

What shakes me even more is witnessing people publicly celebrate the violent death of another human being. Such cruelty, such callousness—it reveals something very dark about the state of our society. My heart grieves for his family and friends, for our Christian brothers and sisters in America, and for the wider world in which hatred is allowed to fester so openly.

On Community

After sharing a simple Instagram story—a photograph of Charlie Kirk with a few words of sorrow—I immediately saw my follower count drop. A sharp decline, just like that.

Now, let me be clear: I have no concern for vanity metrics. Numbers on a screen do not define me, nor do they measure the worth of my life. I come from a time when relationships and real connections meant far more than “likes” and followers.

What I do care about is the kind of community I nurture around me. If those who unfollowed me are people who would celebrate the violent death of a Christian man, then it is best that our paths diverge. We clearly do not share the same value for life, compassion, or truth. Circumstances such as these always reveal the true heart of people.

Drawing Nearer

And so, I turn my gaze back home and count my blessings. In a world that feels increasingly fractured, I am reminded of the importance of surrounding ourselves with people who share our values, who offer encouragement, and who seek light over darkness.

Even in sorrow, we can choose to draw nearer to God, to hold fast to His truth, and to be grateful for the community of faith He gives us.

Counting My Blessings

In times like these, when the world feels harsh and unsettling, I find myself cherishing even more the peace and beauty I can create within my own home.

Home is where we practise gratitude in the ordinary, where we nurture our families, and where we remind ourselves that God’s goodness is still all around us.

One of the small yet meaningful ways I mark this season is by showering our home with autumnal touches—simple decorations that speak of warmth, abundance, and the comforting rhythm of God’s creation.

My hops garland arrived from Huskin Hops on Friday. I absolutely love decorating my home with natural material, usually gathered from nature on my walks.

I had seen hops garlands in various places over the years and really wanted to have one for my own home. However, our previous home just did not lend itself to a hops garland. We didn't really have a natural place where it would hang.

Our new home has a lovely inglenook. The moment I saw it I knew that I would be ordering a hops garland for my autumn decor. It has not disappointed! I absolutely LOVE it!

Of course, I have added a few other autumnal touches because September 1st is autumn for me. There's no waiting until the autumn equinox in my home. I want to get every ounce of autumnal goodness from the season before we transition into the festive season.

So the candles are out and the house fills with the scent of apples, cinnamon, pumpkin and spice each evening.

Autumnal pictures have been hung...

Corners of my home are lit with fairy lights and adorned with garlands and much loved homespun decorations have been brought out of storage and now take pride of place for another autumn season.

Books are being gathered in preparation for longer nights and cozy days. I'll share my autumn book basket in another post. I have added some lovely books to my home library over the last few months that I am excited to share with you.

I love the changing light at this time of the year, it comes in gently and pools in little puddles of warmth throughout the house at different times of the day. What a lovely small blessing!

I have always paid attention to the simple, small things and I love making my home a haven for my family and for those who cross the threshold. Last night, I overheard my husband telling my daughters boyfriend that after a long day at work, he always got excited about coming home because it was his 'happy place' and it was made so because of the love lived within its walls and the care taken in making our home a haven. 

I was so touched by that. That is exactly why I do everything I do, and why I place such value on the simple things that go into running a home.

I want my Biblical womanhood, love and faith that I hold in my heart for my Lord and for my family shown in practical ways through the canvas of my home and it appears that my husband has felt that. It touched my heart hearing those words. 

Thinking about it later on in the evening, I was reminded of the importance of the woman in the home. We set the tone, we are the thermostat to the atmosphere of our home. We can bring blessings in so many ways. Be encouraged. I know it can often feel like a thankless and overlooked task. But what we do matters. It brings blessings!

Before I go, I wanted to share a beautiful playlist that I came across the other day. I hope you enjoy listening to it as I have and may it be a blessing to you.

May your homes be filled with faith, love, peace and joy this next week.

Making Home with Your Hands & Your Summer Peace Plan Printable

There’s something deeply comforting about crafting with your hands—especially in summer, when the days stretch long and golden, and the pace of life invites us to slow down, savour, and make space for peace.

This week, I’ve been leaning into that sense of intention and simplicity—creating with joy, prayerfully preparing for the seasons ahead, and grounding my days in gentle rhythms. I’m delighted to share a few of those things with you today: a cheerful handmade rag wreath to brighten your home, beautifully decorated candles ready for gifting, and a free printable to help you map out your own peaceful summer.

✽ Creating a Home that Whispers “Welcome”

I started the week with a simple, satisfying craft: a fabric rag wreath. This is the sort of project that feels timeless and comforting—no fancy tools required, just your hands, some fabric scraps in soft summer hues, and a bit of time to tie and tuck.

Each scrap carries a story—a memory from an old sewing project or a remnant too pretty to part with. As I knotted them around the frame, I found myself praying quietly for my home and those who pass through its doors.

✽ Preparing for a Season of Giving

While the warmth of summer wraps us in sunshine, my thoughts often stray to Christmas. Yes, really! I love to use these quieter months to prepare small, thoughtful gifts that can be wrapped up with care when Advent arrives.

This week, I dressed a few candles with a collar of brown craft paper and seasonal trims—tucked away for December gifting. There’s such peace in this kind of quiet preparation. It feels like sowing seeds of love in advance, ready to bless someone months from now.

Perhaps you’d like to make a few too? Pop on a hymn or soft music, brew a cup of something soothing, and let your hands create beauty.

✽ A Printable to Help You Plan a Peaceful Summer

To accompany your slow summer days, I’ve created a Summer Peace Plan printable, designed to gently guide your heart and home toward peace. It's a one-page resource you can tuck into your journal, pin on your fridge, or keep near your Bible.

It includes:

• Daily Anchors for Peace like prayer, time outdoors, and creative moments

• Soul Prompts to reflect on what God may be inviting you to release or embrace

• A Gentle Summer List of soul-nourishing ideas—from pressing flowers to reading under a tree

This is not a to-do list, dear friend, but an invitation to slow down, breathe deeply, and dwell in the quiet, nurturing presence of God this season.

✨ Click here to download your free Summer Peace Plan printable

PS. You can download this plan anytime from the FREEBIES page on this blog.

✽ Homemaking as Worship

Whether you’re stitching, baking, tying ribbons or simply sweeping the kitchen floor, I believe these acts can be a form of worship. When we make our homes with love and intention, we reflect the heart of our Creator—who made all things good, and called them beautiful.

So as summer unfolds, may you find peace in the small things. May your hands be blessed in the work they do. And may your home be a haven of grace.

With every blessing...

Beginning Again: Reclaiming Your Quiet Time with the Lord

 There’s something deeply comforting about beginning again. I often think of how the seasons gently turn, always arriving in their own time, never rushed—never scolded for being late. And perhaps, our hearts are much the same. They, too, move in seasons. Some are fruitful and focused. Others—well, they drift a little. And that’s okay.

I’ve found myself in one of those drifting places lately. The quiet rhythm of meeting with the Lord each morning had slowly unravelled. Not in a dramatic way—just a slow slipping of intention. The Bible sat unopened on my desk. The journal gathered dust. And my soul began to feel it.

But here’s what I’ve also found: the Lord never turns away. His invitation to come away with Him remains open, unchanging. No matter how far we’ve wandered, we are always welcome to begin again.

A Gentle Return

I’ve started to return, slowly. Not with strict routines or grand intentions. Just small, meaningful moments—like lighting a candle before the house stirs, whispering a prayer as the kettle boils, or sitting quietly by the window with an open Bible and expectant heart.

No guilt. No pressure. Just grace.

I think that’s the key, really. Coming back to the Lord isn’t about performance. It’s about presence. It’s about remembering who we are, and whose we are. And often, it begins with one small choice—a simple act of turning our heart back towards Him.

Little Touches of Beauty

As I ease back into a rhythm, I’ve been drawn to creating a little space that feels peaceful and lovely—a quiet corner with my Bible, a notebook, and my favourite mug. Nothing fancy, just comforting.

A candle flickering nearby. A vase of garden flowers. Even the gentle hum of a hymn playing softly. These small touches speak deeply to my spirit, drawing me into rest and worship without words.

It reminds me that beauty and faith are not separate things. They are woven together in the fabric of daily life, gently pointing us back to the Creator.

When Quiet Time Isn’t Quiet

If you’re in a season where quiet is a luxury, I understand. I’ve had many of those years—years of nappies and homeschooling, full sinks and full hearts. And I know that quiet time with the Lord doesn’t always look like sitting serenely with tea and Scripture.

Sometimes it’s praying while pegging out the washing. Sometimes it’s listening to Scripture on audio while doing the ironing. Sometimes it’s just pausing in the middle of a messy kitchen to whisper, “Lord, help me.”

And that counts. More than we know.

No Shame, Only Grace

If, like me, you’ve been feeling a little distant, I hope you’ll hear this: you are not behind. You haven’t failed. You are simply human. And you are beloved.

There’s no need to fix everything overnight. Just begin again. One verse, one prayer, one moment of stillness at a time. The Lord is already there, waiting to meet you.

With You in the Starting Again

So today, I begin again. Not perfectly, but prayerfully. With a quiet heart and open hands. If you’re in a similar place, know you are not alone. We can begin again together.

May this be a gentle season of remembering, of drawing near, of basking once more in the beauty of His presence.

With love and grace,

A Journaling Freebie For You

Hello my lovely friends!

The weather has finally broken in our neck of the woods and we have had some lovely rain which is a welcome relief for the garden. I have to say that I have missed the lack of rain! I love listening to it falling and the way the earth smells as the rain hits the soil. Don't get me wrong, I have loved all this sunny weather. It means we have had no slug issues this year and it looks like we are going to have a bumper strawberry and apple crop this year!

I've noticed that the Elderflower is out already so I plan on taking a walk along the nearby canel tomorrow after church to collect flower heads so that I can make a lovely Elderflower Cordial, a seasonal activity that I love to do each year.

Following my post earlier this week (Finding Your Way Back Home), I have continued to focus on the little things that lead me back to a life of peace, contentment, purpose and grace. I have realised that it is easier said than done as we humans tend to operate on the established 'tracks' forged in our brains.

Charlotte Mason spoke about the physical tracks that are created in our brains when we establish a new habit. It is what makes breaking a bad habit so difficult. We physically have to choose to take a more purposful course of action and do so repeatedly until a new 'track' is forged. This is definantly a topic I will come back to on this blog.

I have always found the process of journaling through any challenging times to be very helpful. It helps me to take swirling washing machine of thoughts in hand and pick them out one by one to create some sort of order. So I created this little journal with 10 prompts to help explore a gentle return to the slower and sacred rhythm to my home and life.

The prompts are designed to encourage reflection, to pause and return to the heart of your home and heart. I am using one prompt a day to allow time to really ponder on the topic and examin my heart.

I am finding the process so theraputic and helpful that I thought you may like to download my A Gentle Return Journal to use if you wish. This is a resource aimed at the Christian woman so I appreciate that it will not be helpful to everyone. But if you would like to use it please do.

I'd love to hear if you are in a season of change or just pondering on what it is that truly brings you peace, contentment and joy. Perhaps you have already travelled this road and have some thoughts that would be good to consider. Please do let me know in the comments.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and I shall see you back here next week.

Sunday Reflections: Make It Your Ambition To Lead a Quiet Life

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you - 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 NIV

God gave me this verse and Deut 6:7 in 2006 when He led us on a journey that was very much 'counterculture' and not the norm. He blessed us and gave us the great privilege of homeschooling our children. He showed us how to live a quiet life that left the hustle-and-bustle of the world outside to a large extent.

This verse as long been one of my favourite verses and the desire of my heart and soul which I know was planted by God and very much in line with how He created me. I have always found fulfilment and peace in the simple things, in God's creation, in my home and role as a wife, mother and as a Christian.

It's funny, because I have been on this academic journey and done quite well (I passed the Bar Course BTW with a High Distinction!), yet I have felt a sense of disquiet over the past couple of years about pursuing a career in law.

Why? I wondered. 

Well, because it goes against my innermost being and who I was created to be. I absolutely believe that God has a purpose for each of us and some of us are purposed to be lawyers, doctors, teachers and so on.

But if I examine closely my nature and the inclinations displayed in my childhood, and if I pay close attention to the things that bring me the most peace and joy - those things which make me a better person who is able to reach into the lives of others and share God's love, then I can see where I should be placing my efforts and where I should be working.

Oh, God is faithful! He closes doors, opens others, gently places things in our paths and leads us along the way that we should go. We don't always recognise it when we see it. We try to take matters into our own hands and attempt to make our own way and shape our own destiny, often settling for so much less than what God has in mind for us.

We can be blind to what really ought to be quite clear. 

But once we are sure about the path God wants us to take, we will need to set aside all our 'but how's' and our 'but what if's' and our fears and step out in faith.

Stepping out in faith reminds me of that scene from the 'India Jones: Last Crusade' movie. He stands on the precipice of a great chasm. He needs to cross it to get to the room where the grail knight guards a room full of chalices, one of which is the Holy Grail, the cup of life.

He closes his eyes and steps out in faith. His foot lands on a solid rock bridge which could not be seen with the naked eye, and he safely crosses the great chasm.

Sometimes we need to step out in faith, even when we cannot see how we will make it to the other side and the unknown seems terrifying.

Isn't that what it means when we as Christians 'live by faith'? 

We trust God to show us the way. We trust Him to lead us, to make it clear so that we understand, and we surrender ourselves to Him in all areas of our lives, not holding on to the bits we feel we are better equipped to control.

I wonder what it is that you are grappling with right now

Is God calling you to something that appears impossible?

Are you standing on the precipice of a chasm, and you are not sure how you will get across to the other side?

Are you scared to step out in faith?

"I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." Jer 29:11

We have all been there. We have all wondered if the decision we are making is the right one. Sometimes it is easier to keep the status quo and stay in our comfort zone, to stick with what we know works even if it makes us unhappy, even if it means we will not experience the wonder of seeing God's hand in our lives.

"Be strong and courageous" For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." - Josh 1:9

I want to tell you that this promise from Joshua 1:9 is true. 

In my own life I have seen God make a way where really...by the world's wisdom, should never ever have happened.

We stepped out in faith and obedience when God called us to homeschool.

We stepped out in faith and obedience when God impressed on my heart to keep teaching them in the way He had shown us which was absolutely not the way the education system works in the UK.

And He opened doors! You can read about it HERE.

Sometimes, we are like the Israelites

We forget God's goodness.

We forget God's provision.

We forget that He loves us and has a plan for us.

Instead of trusting Him, we wander around the desert surviving, but never fully living in abundance.

By not stepping out in faith, we deprive ourselves of seeing His mighty hand at work in our lives. We deprive ourselves of seeing a way being made where there shouldn't be one. We deprive ourselves of growing in faith and experiencing His peace and joy.

I don't know what decisions you have to make today...

But I want you to know that God is big enough to handle whatever it is. He is big enough to make a way, but you need to reach out, put your hand in His, and take the first step.

That is exactly what I will be doing today and every day (for faith is not a single action but a daily sacrifice).

Blessings in Christ,

Shirley-Ann

A New Bible Study and a Walk Back In Time

A week ago today I wrote my final exam and it feels so SO good to be done. I've been spending this past week getting stuck into the things I've put aside for so long. 

My husband and I also took took two days to visit the Yorkshire Dales which was wonderful. I am feeling refreshed!

I have also started a new Bible Study which I am loving so I thought I would share it with you because when you find a great, biblicaly sound resource, it's too good not to share!

Years ago, I came across Melanie Newton of Joyful Walk Ministries. She writes the most wonderful Bible studies which are Christ-focused, grace-based and scripture rich rather than just commentary filled.

Instead of her studies really depending on a flashy speaker, her studies really encourage the reader to dig deep into the Word for yourself and to depend on Jesus to help you apply what you learn.

The other thing I love about her studies is that she offers them for free. Oh yes, you can buy them printed etc but she offers them free because it's the Word of God! 

Currently I am working through the God-Dependent Woman: Life Choices from Second Corinthians. In my last podcast I spoke a little bit on empty next and seasonal life changes and how, to my deep regret, I forged on ahead with my own plans. I really want to get back to being a God-dependant woman and not to just rush headlong into things. 

This study is inspiring me to better understand God's character and inspiring me to trust in Him, to let go of my need to control everything and let Him work in and through me.

So I'll leave that there - if you are looking for a solid Christ-focused bible study, check out her website and pick a study that is relevant to your own life circumstances right now. Let me know which one you choose!

 Now that I am no longer chained to my desk and computer, my daughter and I have decided to take a day each week or at least every few weeks and visit some of our favourite National Trust properties.

I have to say that it is rather nice going out during the week - the weekend's can often be very busy. We also like to re-visit properties and I think my husband finds that a bit boring, so I have the perfect companion when we set out on our adventures because she is just like me and loves to re-visit places we love.

This property is the industrial revolution property Quarry Bank Mill. We have visited this property at least 3 times prior to this visit and honestly, I'm going again when summer is in full swing! I love the gardens, the trees, the space. 

My favourite part of this property has to be the Apprentice House built to house the child workers who were given food and board in exchange for their labour. 

Up to 90 children stayed in this house so things would have been very cramped and certainly not as idyllic as it looks like now.

There is an orchard just along the path and to the left. It's not a large orchard but it has at least a dozen fruit trees. Off to the side of the orchard is a little pond where ducks can take a dip.

I love the veggie patch in front of the house. Being an enthusiastic gardener myself, I have to say that I am envious of the space to have such a lovely kitchen garden. I particularly liked this sign - it reminded me that wanted to make a little Peter Rabbit blue coat for my garden for the summer months. I think it would add a bit of whimsy to my English cottage inspired garden.

Across the way from the Apprentice House is this lovely field which was full of wild grasses, dandelions and clover. We just stood admiring the field and trees in their early spring splendour resting under a pretty impressive skyscape!

Isn't it just beautiful, peaceful and soothing to the soul! I do love being out in nature.

As usual, I found the most interesting and best room in the house to be the kitchen. I just love a good kitchen! I find them to be quite simply, comforting and inspirational. I'm sure I say this everytime I share a National Trust visit with you - but it really is the heart of the home. 

From this room people are nourished, loved, cared for. 

Conversations happen, caring happens, loving happens, living happens.

And of course, I could not leave Quarry Bank without some of their very own woven cotton woven on their heritage looms. 

I think that I'm going to use this fabric in a little wall-hanging quilt. I will combine it with some of my own little stitchery designs which speak of hearth and home. If it works with any degree of success, I will share the little stitchery designs with you.

Well, that's the end of our little trip to Quarry Bank Mill. I hope you enjoyed coming along. Until next time... may you have a peaceful and blessed week.

Homeschooling Help & Encouragement

 Hello my lovely friends, I hope that your year is off to a GREAT start! 

I wanted to pop in and have a little chat about homeschooling. As you know we have completed our homeschool journey. Both our daughters are now studying at university after having graduated from our homeschool. One took the American SAT route and the other a slightly different route, gaining university entrance through an art and design course she did at college. Both girls are happy and doing well in their respective courses.

But I digress...you see just before Christmas I had the privilege of being able to come alongside another homeschooling mum who is trying to navigate her way through the high school years of homeschooling. What a blessing! My heart was just so happy to be able to share with her our journey and how to progress along a path that is different from the traditional English way of gaining entry to UK universities. 

In sharing with her I was reminded of the beautiful journey that our Lord led us on. Of the privilege, I had to raise and educate our daughters in a way that was God-led and as a result to see Him open doors for our daughters in the most amazing way. I will always have a heart for homeschooling and honestly, I wish that I could have had many many more years of homeschooling. I should have had lots more children 😄. Being a wife, mother and home educator has been and is the most blessed calling I have had.

I realized in speaking to her that although our own journey has concluded there are others who are following and need guidance, help, and encouragement. So you will still see posts of that nature here on Under An English Sky. I hope that now that we have successfully completed the journey that my insight and experience will prove to be of some use to those that follow. If there is anything, in particular, you would like to know then please do leave questions in the comments and I will work on posts addressing those things.

The other thing I wanted to talk about is the heart behind this blog because for the longest time I have felt very much 'at sea' with some of the huge life events that we have lived through. Nothing awful but things like house moves, the girls graduating, you know...seasonal shifts. They are not comfortable and for a long time, I have not felt at peace. For all that 2020 brought, one thing it did bring was the space I needed to reconnect, to ponder, and get comfortable with this seasonal shift.

My outlook on life is returning to the pre-seasonal shift as I am learning to accept the changes and growing comfortable with them. So back to the heart behind this blog...it is very much a heart for the Lord Jesus and for my role as a Christian, a wife, a mother, and a homemaker. I write about ordinary moments and of things that warm my heart and home and will continue to do so.

If you read this this months newsletter you will have noticed that 'Hope' is a bit of a theme for me going into this new year. And hope is something that encourages us and gives us something to look forward to.

"For I know the plans I have for you", delcares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~ Jeremiah 29:11

Isn't that such a wonderful thought? That our Lord has plans for each one of us that will give us hope and a future no matter which life season we are in. 

Well my lovely friends, that's about it for today. See you back here very soon!

Trusting in Him

Hello my lovelies! I hope that you are feeling happy, at peace and content. I have to admit to not always feeling so this week. I can't really put my finger on why but I have generally felt very unproductive. I feel like I should have done more than I actually have! 

I also made the HUGE mistake of taking my daughter to IKEA this week. Although there were no long queues I'm afraid that social distancing inside the store was just about impossible making the whole experience a little stressful. I will not be doing that again in a hurry!

I have been finding peace in God's Word. Those quiet moments in the morning with a cup of coffee, the Bible and a notebook help me to find calm in a turbulent world.

I have purchased 'Making Your Home a Haven' off Amazon. This study is written by Courtney Joseph of Women Living Well. She generally runs this study each autumn but I felt that while I am at home full time it seems the right time to do it. This study encourages you to slow down in the midst of the worlds craziness and to drink deeply from God's Word - again, a good study for this time.

One of the things she encourages you to do is to light a candle daily and when the flickering flame catches your eye to be reminded to pray. This week there has been much to pray about not only in with what is happening in the world but within our extended family. My sister-in-law's husband fell gravely ill (not Covid related) very suddenly last week Monday. He has been in ICU and the prognosis is not good. If you can please will you hold this family up in prayer while they navigate this very difficult time and say prepare to possibly have to say goodbye to a wonderful man, husband and father. We are still praying for Paul's healing and miraculous recovery and would appreciate you joining with us in prayer.

I am reminded to keep my eyes fixed on Christ for He is the author of all life. It's not always easy is it? As Christians we face the same difficult situations that others do, at least we have the hope that is in Christ but sometimes that can feel wobbly and I think it's okay to admit that to God. 

Each time I lift someone up in prayer since losing two dear friends to cancer last year I find the niggling voice of doubt pop up and voice my inner thoughts...'Why bother? Your prayers didn't make any difference to your friends why should it now?'

Isn't the enemy crafty! 

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" ~ Isaiah 55:8-9

This world is tough. Good people get sick and die whilst it seems evil continues to thrive. We live in a fallen world and we would do well to remember that. It is because we live in a fallen world that Jesus came, died for us and rose again. 

So I will continue to hope in the Lord and I will continue to pray and lift up those who are ill and suffering. I will avert my gaze from the world and it's faults and instead focus on the beautiful face of Jesus and allow that to soak deep into my soul so that I can love the broken, the suffering, the sick of mind, body and spirit for that is what we are called to do.

I think that it is even more difficult now with our churches being closed and our fellowship with others having been cut off. All the more reason for us to keep delving into the word of God and praying. Let's keep praying for one another, for our families, our friends and for those who we don't even know but so desperately need to know the love of God.

May the God of all hope keep you all in perfect peace today.

Blessings in Christ.