In the right spot

I wonder what your thoughts and feelings are as you look back on the past year. Recently, someone shared with me that most people they spoke to seemed to have had a difficult 2023 in all sorts of ways. Yet, whatever this past year has brought us, here we still are. For all of us, 2024 lies before us, filled with all sorts of possibilities we are yet to discover. What joys will the months ahead hold for us? What challenges perhaps too? Only God knows.

For me, the one thing I do know about the future from past experience is that I want to live it the way God wants me to. I want to do the things God still has for me to do on this earth – and I want to face whatever hurdles I may happen to strike in God’s strength and with God’s help. To do that, I know I need to stay close to God at all times, taking note of those wise words of guidance I find in Scripture and hear as I listen to the Spirit’s voice. In other words, I want to step into 2024, facing the future in the right way, with hope and joy in my heart, whatever is happening around me.

Perhaps that is why I noticed an interesting phenomenon in the garden area around our unit recently. Directly outside our windows, I can see various pretty shrubs and flowers that have been added to as our lovely neighbours have planted a few extra things they like. Slowly, two slightly taller plants began to grow there. At first, I wondered if they were in fact weeds, until I discovered our neighbour had strewn some sunflower seeds around in various spots. Sadly, though, the spot where these two sunflowers are trying to grow does not see much sun, situated as it is between two buildings. Just around the corner from this garden, however, in a different spot, another of these same seeds took off and is now flourishing. I thought it was huge enough and cheered it on as it grew – it looks as if it will flower very soon. But then I rounded the next corner of our garden area and came across its older brother or sister, almost as tall as some nearby trees – and already sporting the beginnings of a huge sunflower. Its seed had indeed found the right spot, exactly where it flourished best and was able to face the sun easily.

Noticing all of this so close by caused me to ask God what I needed to learn as a result. Surely it must be that you and I need to find the spot where God wants us to flourish in 2024 – the best way we can use our gifts to bless others, serving both them and God? Surely too, it must be that you and I need to keep our faces turned towards the Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, throughout 2024, loving him with all our hearts, listening to his voice and following where he leads?

May we do exactly that in 2024.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5–6 NLT

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You never know

I wonder if you have ever run into someone you know in a most unexpected place. When I was a teacher, I well remember encountering one of my more troublesome students in the middle of my weekly supermarket shop. ‘Mum, there’s my teacher!’ this girl blurted out in a shocked voice. I suspect she wanted to see me about as much as I wanted to see her that day!

On another occasion, however, I came across a pastor friend in a bookstore. While we chatted, several folk from her church came by, which perhaps could have disconcerted her. Instead, she seemed to enjoy the moment. ‘It’s like I’ve died and gone to heaven!’ she exclaimed, beaming at everyone.

Recently, I headed to a nearby medical facility for an injection into a troublesome shoulder. I was certainly not expecting to see anyone I knew there—or anyone who knew me. All I was thinking about was whether my scheduled injection would help alleviate the pain I was experiencing. Eventually, a young woman called my name and ushered me into a small room. We chatted together as she prepared the injection for the doctor to give. A few moments later, it was all over, and the doctor left. But then the young woman suddenly said, ‘You must be the author, are you?’

I was stunned.

‘Um … yes, I am, but … how did you know?’ I eventually managed to ask.

‘Oh, I’ve read some of your books!’ she told me then. ‘I borrowed them from my mother.’

So that was it! She must have recognised my name from the patient list—mystery solved. But I was still curious.

‘What would your mother’s name be? Perhaps I know her.’

Sure enough, I did, from two or three occasions in the past.

‘Well, it just shows we have to behave wherever we go, don’t we?’ I joked as I left. ‘You never know who you’ll meet!’

Beneath my joking, however, I was also trying to remember what sort of comments I had made to her. I was so focussed on myself that I had not put much thought at all into anything I said. Had I been polite and considerate towards her? Had I listened well? Had I honoured God throughout our conversation?

It was too late now anyway. The exchange was over.

I came away from that experience realising again that, wherever I go and whether I feel like it or not, I am God’s ambassador (2 Corinthians 5:20). I never know whom I will meet. I never know who will recognise my name, even though I am not a famous author—yet! And I never know who will be listening or watching. But I’m so thankful God does. And I’m so thankful too that God’s Spirit is with me and in me, ready to give me those words of grace to share with others and the wisdom to act in a godly way. But I need to listen, to keep any unwise words in check and then to say those things that will bless and build others up.

May I remember to do that next time, because you never know …

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Colossians 4:6

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The things we bring

One recent rainy afternoon, we pulled up in the courtyard of a gracious, old B & B where we had booked to stay. The owner, a well-dressed, older lady, greeted us warmly and proceeded to give us a guided tour of the property. We chatted pleasantly and she then began telling us about another couple who had come to stay. Because they had booked late via an online site, she did not know they were coming, so had gone out for the day. As soon as she arrived home, however, the wife of this couple accosted her.

‘We’ve been waiting for you for five minutes!’ this lady said in an angry voice. ‘This is no way to run a business!’

According to our host, it then went downhill from there. The angry guest continued to fume and criticise, until our host had had enough and told them she did not want them to stay.

‘But I’ve paid!’ the angry lady objected.

‘Oh no you haven’t!’ our host told her firmly. ‘I have not authorised the site where you booked to accept any of my payments—my guests pay when they arrive here. This is my home and I don’t need to let your anger in here. Goodbye!’

With that, she closed the door in their face!

I immediately had visions of this couple trying vainly to find somewhere else to stay for the night, with no success. Yet I suppose our host had every right to deny them entry. Why should she let such an angry spirit affect the calm, peaceful environment she had created in her beautiful B & B?

At that point, I decided I needed to reassure her we at least were not angry guests.

‘Well, we certainly come here with joy and not anger,’ I told her. ‘And I hope we bring peace as well.’

I would have liked to say more, but our conversation ended there, as the owner had to go. However, as I relaxed in our lovely accommodation, this whole story kept buzzing in my mind. And soon I found myself wondering what kind of baggage I take into any place I enter. As a child of God, I have God’s Spirit in me, so hopefully I would carry something at least of the love and grace of God with me wherever I go, in some sort of tangible way. Hopefully too, at least some of those fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—would also be evident in the words I say and the way I treat others. Yet… surely there have been many times when I have entered someone’s home or business with anger… or judgment… or plain old grumpiness in my heart?

It’s a sobering thought that we have been entrusted with carrying God’s peace and light into the places we go, isn’t it? We can choose to open our hearts and joyfully do this—or we can decide to close them and, in the process, only add to others’ burdens. We can bless—or we can curse. The choice is ours.

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26

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Farewell, dear friend

This past week, I received the news that my lovely ‘soul friend’ of previous years, Joy Crawford, had passed away at age ninety-one. On my last visit to the nursing home where she had been for some time, she did not stir or recognise me. Wondering what to do, I wrote her a little note which was eventually found on her bedside table by her daughter. And I sat and prayed and remembered, just as I have this week, after hearing of her death.

Joy and I met together once a month, first during my time at theological college when I needed a mentor—or spiritual companion, as Joy much preferred to be called—and then on into my years in local church ministry. After that, we kept meeting when we could, until she became too frail and unwell. Joy made a huge impact on my life, so much so that the dedication in my very first novel, Heléna, published in 2007, reads: ‘To Joy Crawford—my lifesaver’. I still also have a card Joy sent the day I finished the very first draft of that novel where she wrote: The Book! Well done, dear Jo-Anne. Congratulations—and my prayers and love for the next phase. Joy. Joy always believed in me, encouraged me and supported me in prayer and practical ways—and it was an absolute delight when, in 2012, she was able to share in the launch of what we called ‘our’ book, Soul Friend: The story of a shared spiritual journey, an account of our years of meeting together and the many ways Joy helped and encouraged me in that time.

Joy was doubtful at first about putting parts of our many conversations into print, but I think she would be delighted to know Soul Friend is still selling today and ministering to those who read it. Just last week, a friend told me how much Soul Friend had impacted her and how glad she was it had been written. I am so thankful Joy’s voice can still be heard in this way and that her gracious wisdom can go on blessing others.

On occasions, Joy would email me, although she was much more comfortable sharing face-to-face in her beautiful study at her home in the Blue Mountains. I included some of these emails in Soul Friend and have just glanced through them again. Even her greetings there speak such love and grace to me—‘Very dear Jo-Anne’; ‘Dearest Jo-Anne’; ‘Dear friend’.  What a privilege to be called a ‘dear friend’—especially by someone who we know truly means it. Joy would also use these words often as we parted at her front door. ‘Go well, dear friend!’ she would say in her gentle voice, as she gave me a warm hug—words of blessing, words of comfort, words of love.

Yes, Joy was my lifesaver, in the midst of some choppy seas in my life. But above all, she was my dear friend—a friend who truly mirrored to me the deep friendship Jesus offers each of us.

Lord, may I be such a friend to others too.

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. 1 John 4:7

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. I John 4:11

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The little things

It’s amazing how some little word or act of kindness can lift our spirits and change our day, isn’t it? Perhaps you may feel you have been lifting others up quite a lot instead lately, in this challenging, lockdown time. Yet we all need to receive as well and experience those special moments when our hearts feel a little lighter.

Recently, I dashed to our local fruit shop to buy some ingredients for our dinner, including parsley. But as I paid for my items, I fell into complaining mode.

‘I can’t believe I’m having to buy parsley,’ I told the girl at the checkout. ‘Right now, our daughter has heaps of it growing in her garden on the other side of Sydney, but of course that’s further than five kilometres away. And her parsley’s so lovely and flavoursome too.’

The girl smiled sympathetically, then looked thoughtful, as she adjusted her pretty, pink headscarf.

‘Um … would you like some fresh parsley instead?’

At first, I didn’t understand what she was saying. Her accent was quite strong—and I was puzzled too, as I had hoped the parsley I had bought was fresh. But then she went on to explain further.

‘I dropped into my dad’s place this morning to give him some sweets I know he really loves and he wanted me to come in, but I said I wasn’t allowed. So he said, “Well, at least take some of the parsley from my garden with you!” We use it to make tabouli, but would you like some?’

At that point, she picked up the parsley I had bought, put it back in its display stand rather disdainfully and hurried to the rear of the shop. After a short while, she re-emerged and handed over a huge clump of her father’s beautiful, fresh parsley to me.

‘It’s good—and it’s organic too!’ she told me proudly.

I know it was only a bunch of parsley, but I was so touched.

‘Wow, that’s wonderful!’ I told her. ‘Thank you so much—and please thank your father too. God bless you!’

She looked a little stunned at my final words, but, somehow, they had just burst out of me. I truly did want God to bless her. She had done something so kind and unexpected for me—and I felt her actions had pleased God’s heart too.

That evening, as I chopped my lovely, fresh parsley for our dinner, I realised this girl’s actions had not only blessed me but taught me something too. We all need those kind words and actions right now, even more than usual—and I needed to remember this more often. I need to be part of the solution, rather than add to the problem by complaining and feeling hard done by. Besides, surely this is what God wants us all to do?

Be kind and compassionate to one another … Ephesians 4:32

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. 1 Thessalonians 5:15

An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. Proverbs 12:25

Little things are so important, aren’t they? Especially those kind words and deeds that reflect God’s own kindness and build us all up.

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Paying it forward, passing it on

‘I can’t believe I’m getting a piano!’ our daughter commented at her recent birthday celebration.

A piano of her own was something our daughter had wanted for a long time. There has always been one in our home and, as a child, she had music lessons. Then as a teenager, she had chosen to have more, this time just to enjoy learning to play certain songs she loved. Soon, however, she moved out of home and eventually married and had children, yet she still loved to sit down at our piano from time to time when she visited and play.

Then one day recently, a friend of mine put a post on Facebook, asking if anyone would be interested in having her piano, as she planned to move and could not take it with her. At first, I hesitated. I knew our daughter could not afford to pay anything for it. And surely my friend would not be prepared to give it away?

Yet that is exactly what happened.

‘I just want my piano to go to a good home,’ she explained. ‘Someone kindly left it to me in her will, so I’d like to pass it on now in the same spirit it was passed onto me.’

Eventually, a removalist was engaged and that piano wended its way to our daughter’s home, where it fitted in a corner of her living room as if it belonged. After a tuning, it will sound even better. And one day, our grandchildren will hopefully learn to play as well.

Recently too, I witnessed another happy moment in our daughter’s life when our daughter-in-law passed on several boxes of girls’ clothes to her that her own daughters had long grown out of.

‘Oh, that’s so good!’ our daughter exclaimed. ‘The other day, my friend passed on lots of excellent boys’ clothes to us too.’

As it happens, many of these have hardly been worn and are designer label clothes our daughter could not afford to buy. So, once her son and daughter have grown out of them, she passes them on in turn to other friends who are always grateful to receive them for their children.

Seeing these events unfold in our daughter’s life caused me to reflect on my own attitude towards passing on not only material possessions that may benefit others but also all those spiritual blessings I have received. Sometimes, I suspect I like to cling to things that have been and are precious to me, rather than think of others’ needs. Sometimes, I can be stingy rather than generous. In particular, sometimes I can forget how someone bothered to share the good news of Jesus with me, rather than keep it to themselves. And sometimes, I can even forget how freely God’s love and grace were poured out on me and how this love and grace needs to flow on through me to others.

May I always remember that generosity of heart I witnessed recently and pay it forward myself with joy and gratitude.

Freely you have received, freely give. Matthew 10:8

The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller. The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped. Proverbs 11:24-25 The Message

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