Life Begins ...

Recently, I received an email from a friend that stated life begins at 65. There are many people who believe life begins at various ages of their lives. Some say 30, 40, or 50, and others say 60. I've often wondered why they might choose these ages. It appears an important milestone or event happened around these ages that changed their life for the better: a job promotion, birth of a baby, lotto win, retirement, or seeking change in life because they have more time. They embrace that new freedom to enjoy something they've always wanted to do.

I believe life begins from the moment of conception. We're called to live every stage of our lives with joy in our hearts. Of course, life doesn't always throw good things our way all the time. There are struggles and challenges to overcome and sometimes those mountains can be mighty big and seem insurmountable. It's those life experiences that shape and develop us into the people we are today.

When we break through one of life's dilemmas we can never be the person we were before. We've had to call on our resources to tackle the problem and overcome it. We've broken through the barrier and in doing so we've added a new skill to our resource bank to call on next time when the unexpected happens. This is life. Even though we may feel life is beginning at a particular age, it's important to reflect on what got us to that point. What struggles have we had to work through to get us here?

Life doesn't begin...life means we've conquered mountains and we've developed resources to take us to the next level of life's challenges.

Never be afraid of challenges. They come at us every day. They're going to bend our mind, test our physical strength and resilience, help us understand our emotions, and mature us spiritually. Next time life throws a challenge at us, let's say "bring it on". Take a deep breath, go to our resource bank and choose the tools we've used before and sharpen them for the next lot of challenges that are sure to come our way.

Life is about living and growing in every moment of every day.

Let's live, and let's grow with each challenge, no matter how big it is.

I dare you...

Go on, climb that mountain...today.

For the Children...

As I've been travelling this vast country during recent months, I've thought about the freedom and choice of lifestyles we have in Australia. I imagined what it must be like to live in a place where tomorrow doesn't have the certainty we take for granted.

I wandered in my imagination to a country that had been destroyed by war. Buildings razed beyond recognition. People huddling against the rubble with a sheet of cloth protecting them from the weather. No toilet, no water, no bed, no kitchen, a couple of pots and pans, if I was lucky.

I became one of those people....

All my possessions gathered at my feet, my toddler huddled close to me for security, trusting me I will provide a meal for her. I know her belly is empty. I see hunger in her eyes. 'Please Mummy can I have something to eat?'

I pull her closer. Her skin is cold. The rag that covers her body offers no warmth.

My stomach aches. We haven't had food for over a week. My energy is low and all I want to do is lean against this wall of rubble and slip away from the poverty, but I can't. I have six children depending on me. The eldest, a daughter, who is ten years old, rummages in the bins for scraps of food, while the youngest sucks on my empty breast hoping for a drop of nourishment. But there is none.

Another daughter dawdles toward our home, searching for food her eyes full of despair. No shoes, a ragged dress that is held on her shoulder by a mere scrap of fabric, her skin caked in dirt. A son carries a small bucket. Brown liquid splashes over the sides. He slows so the liquid will be contained. There is water for us to drink...maybe. My other sons, six and eight come back empty handed. All we have for today is a cup of water each to drink. The water is dirty, but it is all we have.

The smell of death is all around me. Anguished cries of desperation reach into the human parts of me. I want to do so much for them, but I have nothing to give. I'm struggling to keep myself and my family alive.

A cold wind blows and fills my nostrils with a mixture of human excrement, decaying meat and sulphur fumes. Death is coming, too quickly. I draw my children closer. I have to get my family out of this wasteland. I must do something before the last of my energy leaves me. Bombs explode in the distance. I am powerless, but I have hope. Tomorrow will be a new day, but each tomorrow becomes the same as yesterday.

Tomorrow has come and with it comes a ray of hope. A man approaches me and says he can help us leave the torment tomorrow. He promises an education for my kids, a home, employment and a future. 'I have no money', I say. 'Why do you want to help this woman who can't pay?'

'I have a way to get you to Australia. You can pay when you find your future in Australia. I will keep a record.'

Is this my new hope? Dare I believe it to be true? What choice do I have? None. Staying means certain death for me and my children. I see others around me packing their meagre possessions. They are in search of hope and a future, just like me. I know nothing about Australia, but perhaps it is good there.

For the children I will do anything...

This is what I imagine the life of a refugee is like before they come to Australia. How can we deny these desperate people entry to our country when all they want is an opportunity to have a little of what we have?

The Power of Prayer

During the past couple of months, I've been busy with book signings.

Because of spinal fusion, the bending and standing for lengthy periods has caused me much discomfort. Last Sunday night my right hip felt so weak I feared it might give way, so I went up for healing prayer. By the end of that prayer, my pain had eased to a dull ache. Next morning, I was pain free! Jesus is indeed the great healer.

The promise is in Psalm 103:2-3 "Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits--who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases".

What a promise from the great creator. I believed, and I have received and been healed. All praise goes to him.

Sometimes I doubt the power of our almighty God. I'm wondering if my doubts hold me back from receiving the healing he wants me to have. Jesus performed healing throughout his ministry and we learn about the many successes he had. God is with us through the holy spirit so there shouldn't be any reason why we can't receive his healing today in all areas of our lives.

Do you believe in God's healing power? Are you receiving strength and grace that is freely available to you?

If you're struggling emotionally, physcially or spiritually, I encourage you to ask for healing only Jesus can give. You'll be amazed at the results.

Paula Vince ... Award Winner

A couple of weeks ago Aussie author, Paula Vince, won the Fiction: Religious Fiction category of the 2011 American International Book Awards with her novel titled, Picking Up the Pieces. It's an exciting time for Paula and I congratulate her on her award which will no doubt lead to a re-release of this terrific novel.

Best Forgotten by Paula Vince

Her latest book, Best Forgotten, has recently been released and is a book not to be missed.

Protagonist, Courtney Lockwood, gets amnesia when he is hit by a car. When he returns home from hospital he is confused and unsure of whether he liked the person he was before he got amnesia. When he finds out his best friend, Joel Connell, mysteriously disappears he's concerned his friend, Jasmin, and he may have had something to do with with their friend's death, but he can't think how he might have been involved in the incident.

Courtney's girlfriend, Jasmin, doesn't want to talk about their relationship before the accident and she does everything to remind him they aren't to discuss their relationship before amnesia. His parents have divorced but he wants to re-connect with who he used to be, but as he reconnects with the people who mean so much to him the mystery of Joel's death escalates until Courtney's and Jasmin's lives are threatened by a person Courtney least suspects.

Amnesia is a very difficult theme to write about. Paula Vince has skillfully kept her reader engaged with the characters in the story by adding mystery that rushes the reader along to the end.

In the beginning, I felt the pacing was a little slow and Jasmin's character wasn't as well-rounded as I liked for such a major character, but I'm glad I continued because once Courtney began to get his memory back, the pace picked up and had me wanting more. The ending left me feeling good and satisfied the right people got what they had coming to them.

Take time out to read Best Forgotten. It's a great read where you can lose yourself for a few hours.

Paula Vince's blog can be found at http://appleleafbooks.com/pages/paulas-blog.php

African Hearts Confirms A Reader's Future

Sydney is a city that goes, goes, goes. It's a place I really enjoy visiting to catch up on family and friends, and find the new and interesting things I hadn't done when we lived there about fifteen years ago. It's a vibrant and exciting city, and full of the unexpected.

We did book signings at West Ryde and met some wonderful people who really wanted to get to know me at a personal level. One of the most surprising moments was when three people approached me with quizzical looks on their faces and asked me if I'd been to Africa to have written African Hearts. I wish! But I was pleasantly surprised when the young lady said seeing my book was a sign that she had asked God for to encourage her to go to Africa and work with the orphans. I became so excited for this young lady and her husband. The looks on their faces was a mixture of pleasure, relief and a little anxiety. They also told me they nearly didn't make it to the signing. They'd arrived half an hour before I was to finish. They saw this as another sign that they were meant to be there to speak with me.

After much excited discussion they left feeling they were to follow their hearts and go to Africa to work with the orphans. This was an extraordinary experience for me that God would use me to encourage young people to understand what God was saying to them. Some authors say book signings are not their favourite thing to do. After this experience, I believe it's a very important part of the marketing process to connect with my readers in so many ways. No matter how tired I might be at the end of the day, I believe the time has been well spent. Encouraging others is what I love to do to see them reach their potential in their chosen field. If part of the process means standing for four hours in a book store I will. Connecting with my readers is what motivates me and helps me get through the days when the writing is not going so well.

Thank you Koorong, West Ryde for your commitment in helping me help others and fulfill God's purpose for my life.