Sunday 22 July 2012

re-appearance

Hello lovely friends!

It's been a long time since you've heard anything from me. You might even have been wondering if I'd dropped off the face of the earth. I wouldn't blame you if you did! Needless to say, I've returned to the blogosphere at long last. Lots has happened in the time since I last wrote here. I'll be sharing about some of those things soon. But I'll be doing so from HERE.

Wednesday 18 April 2012

a whisper


So I slipped off, into the quietness of rest. The beautiful sort of rest that is a season of hiding in Jesus. I'm not quite ready to come back. My heart is full of unsearchable things.

But I am coming back. I'm working on a relaunch of sorts. And I'd like to start off a little bit prepared rather than on a whim of my very flighty fancy. So keep an eye out.

Wednesday 4 January 2012

into the quiet

Hello friends,

It's been a while.

In the time since I was last here, I've been swamped at work with nary a chance to catch breath before finishing for the holidays. On my final day at work I found out that another earthquake had hid my home town (again) and the airport had closed for two hours. So my flight was delayed and I spent an agonizing five hour wait hoping and praying that they would not cancel my flight. When I finally did get onto the plane and it was a thankfully uneventful hour in the sky. I made it home and I was so relieved!  All I wanted right then was just to be at home. I'd been counting down the days for weeks. Earthquake or no, it was good to be back.

And in the time since, I've done nothing more than what's been absolutely necessary. The rest of my time has been dedicated to reading, thinking, watching TV, sleeping, praying, sleeping, baking, sleeping, going on walks oh and did I mention sleeping? Seems no matter how much extra sleep I get, I can't seem to catch up. So even though my days have been my own, I've just not had the energy to think of writing here. The weariness of life has caught up with me and it's time to take a step back and rest. I've sensed this shift for quite some time now. Maybe you've noticed too. I've been more than a little quiet and my last post was about rest. You know, I'm always amazed when that quiet little something God whispers to me in the first place is exactly where he wants me to go. Silly how I complicate things and put it off and seek God about it when I actually already know. And at the end of the search I reach the same conclusion which I thought was just an unreliable feeling. But that's a tangent all of its own.

It does bring me to the reason for writing this though. I won't say outright that I won't be blogging anymore, but I won't really be blogging so much anymore. Actually, I'm not sure what this next season will look like. But I'd like to spend more time writing privately. Going deeper, exploring with an honesty that I'm not completely able to do here. As much as I enjoy writing here, my time is divided and I'd like to focus my energy on writing a little more introspectively. Which will mean that you'll be seeing less of me here. From now on, I'll be blogging if and when I feel like it.  However inconsistently.

So till next time, I'm going to slip unobtrusively into the quiet.

With love, Jo-Ann

Wednesday 16 November 2011

rest

Whenever I even think about blogging, my words shrivel up and die an immediate death. My brain is working on overdrive and can't slow down enough to process and digest. Time to process and digest I think. While tings (yes, I did just write tings and I'm actually tired enough that I can't be bothered to correct it) around here have been rather quiet lately, life has been anything but. Sometimes I feel the need to pause everything and just stop for five minuets.  When did my life take on the desperate need for balance like so many others out there in the world? Note to self: Welcome to the life of a working adult with commitments and adult responsibilities!

Yet in the midst of the whirlwind, where it's so easy to get carried away, I need to keep focused. Keep my eyes on Jesus. Keep on fighting. Keep on walking. Keep on keeping on. Life doesn't stop. And I'm beginning to realise more and more how important it is to rest. Not just the kind of rest that means stopping what I'm doing but resting in Jesus. Pursue rest as actively as the commitments that fill my time. I've discovered that if I don't, I just don't rest at all which means that I can't handle the things that are on the daily to-do list and therefore take on the air of a slightly crazed woman who is paranoid 24/7. Remember to keep Jesus in the centre. Because even though everything is so busy it's crazy...

[God] is in the midst of the whirlwind and the storm,
and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
Nahum 1:3

Take some time to sit at His feet. Find rest for your soul. (Jer 6:16, Matt 11:29)

Wednesday 2 November 2011

the daisy

I want to be a daisy
unassuming, humble,
Willing to share my joyful face
wherever I am found.

In a prairie of grass
Unseen,
And alone,
I will tilt my face toward the Son.

Bordered by peonies showy dresses
or the scandalous red of poppies
I'll not be intimidated.

I won't droop in the rain.

I will stand tall
and outlast them all.

I will pretend nothing

I will smile.

And be content to be me:                                                
A bloom,
A delight to my Maker.

I want to be a daisy.
Washed pure white
With a heart of gold.


Written by Kristina from A Joy Walk
Used with permission