Pray for peace to Jerusalem.

So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. Rom.1:1-2 [MSG]

How easy it would be to be adjusted in the culture, without noticing. So please, don't.
Do not become adjusted to culture (i say, even "church" culture) without thinking.
All we seek acceptance and that's often why we try to adjust and fit in. Mostly unconsciously.
Another thing is that media has more power on us than what we even think of.

I'm preparing to talk about sabbath as a spiritual discipline tomorrow morning.
And I also want us to pray for and bless Israel.
I think that both are probably quite against main culture at the moment.
Atleast I found that even preparing, I felt that these things are even more important
and deep than what I thought in the first place.

I would love you to read Romans 9-11 and especially that chapter 11,
to see what Paul had to say about this subject. He puts it so well that
it is perfectly relevant today.

cloud of witnesses.

Something i really enjoy about
Springboard and living in Guildford,
is having people around. After
a period in "the wilderness" it is
refreshing to meet everyday
people who are walking on the same
paths and ways
and asking the same questions.
Just loving it!

Today's illustration is a "Icon" i made
for our mini project on the Saints.
It is fascinating to find out
who have been these people
who have gone before us, on whose
shoulders we stand, who have
finished the race before us.
Still not personally very keen on the Saints though.


Heb. 1:1-3

past midnight ramblings and longings.

It was again a truly wonderful day.
A treat and a treasure for a sabbath day.
In the beams of sunlight, in the steps on
pathways, in the conversations, in the mist which
covered hills fading to the horizon I felt this
call, this deep longing and desire for something...
Something bigger than me, something that
I can't do by myself and definitely not alone.
I want to see a community,
community that has set it's heart on
corporate destiny,
on search and adventure.
A community that is a family,
band of brothers and sisters,
living loving eating laughing.
A community that wants to be
and actively takes steps in training to be
servants of justice,
servants of passion
and servants of God.

When God, when?

We were watching a movie called 'Kingdom of Heaven' tonight...
It reminded me of this quote by John Eldredge:
"A man must have a battle to fight,
a great mission to his life that involves
and yet transcends even home and family.
He must have a cause to which he is devoted
even unto death,
for this is written into
the fabric of his being."

beaming with happiness.

I have this overly silly feeling that
I will soon explode because of
all the inspiration and information!
Day after day i have found myself thinking
"...it can't get much better than this.."
And then the next day, despite of
tiredness, struggles with the language,
lack of knowing how 'small talk', and
growing consumption of tea and sandwiches
I feel that I have learned more
enjoyed more heard more than the day before.
And all these stories, all this knowledge,
all these revelations, the nuggets of wisdom,
I would love to cherish and remember and revise
and see growth and transformation through them.
I would like to see it all bear fruit that remains,
in my life and lives of others.
...
I was reading today this bit from Ephesians 6:
"...Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS..." (verse14)
And it occurred to me that we have this entertainer/ tv show host
in Finland who had like a motto that when you shake your hips and say positive
things and so you become more relaxed and therefore successful - it has
sounded a bit funny but i really think there is some truth in this.

We are physical beings.
All day to day I felt like I wanted to dance and worship my Lord
with all my physical being and bring thanks to Him.
Why does this entertainer guy talk of shaking our hips and
speaking positive things over us?
When 'shaking your booty' :D you move big muscle groups.
When you add these positive things to the movement,
it somehow becomes more true,
message sinks in deeper
adrelanine and 'feel good'-hormons start kickin' in...

So gird your loins with truth,
bathe in the word of God,
surround yourself with his laws and love day in and day out
Worship and love Him
with your heart and soul,
mind and body.

Let Him take delight in you.

I have made it art...

...blogging without the articles.
Haven't I?
Feel free to add all "a"s, "an"s and "the"s needed
when reading!
xx

You did not choose Me but I chose you,
and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit,
and that your fruit would remain,
so that whatever you ask of the Father
in My name He may give to you.
This I command you,
that you love one another.
John. 15:16-17

Good evening...

On contrary to my general bad habit of being a tad late,
i actually got ready an hour early and now i'm sitting
on the lounge waiting...
Thought that I'd share with you this time
of waiting by letting you know where i'm heading...
Tonight we'll be launching of
Guildford House of Prayer
2009!

Last year, 2008, they had "in total 1,680 hours of prayer across 10 venues with an estimated 200 different people entering into these spaces. There were stories of healings (physical, spiritual, emotional), people praying for the first time (even those who wouldn't say they believed in God), others who had heard God speak to them and some of who had rediscovered the joy and life that comes from spending time with their creator."
(quote from www of GHOP)

Song Lyrics | Casting Crowns lyrics

Home is...

*ajatusten virtaa...flood of thoughts...*

This morning I woke up feeling slightly homesick. Everything was fine, I am happy, with people i like, been eating lovely food, had inspiring and generous company around me all week, a lot of new interesting and exciting things to learn and to think about... I have a sweet warm house to live in, nice bed to sleep in... Everything is fine, even better.

Last week we talked a lot about cross-cultural living. And when we came across a terms like "hidden immigrant" and "third culture children". I love to think about these terms and ponder over their meaning.

And i have come to conclusion that us, children of God, are forever just
travellers here on earth, immigrants on a land of not our own,
and on a journey, on a way to our true Home...
And while traveling, we have amazing opportunities to see
glimpses of His Kingdom come
and will be done on earth...
And when we see these things happen,
Kingdom of God expressed,
it is when we most can feel at home.

If you have time today,
read Ezekiel 36 and ask yourself
if it is relevant to happenings in middle East
or your life today...

"I'll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I'll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's God-willed, not self-willed. I'll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands."
Eze.36:25-27

"Minä vihmon teidän päällenne puhdasta vettä, niin että te puhdistutte, minä puhdistan teidät kaikesta saastastanne ja epäjumalienne kaikesta iljettävyydestä. Minä annan teille uuden sydämen ja teidän sisimpäänne uuden hengen. Minä otan teidän rinnastanne kivisydämen pois ja annan tilalle elävän sydämen.
Minä annan henkeni teidän sisimpäänne ja ohjaan teidät seuraamaan säädöksiäni, ottamaan varteen minun käskyni ja elämään niiden mukaan." Hes.36:25-27

Stoughton, Guildford, Surrey, England.

What a wonderful feeling to wake up
in a new day of new country, new adventure
and to know, that i can't do anything but
with all my heart and being to jump on
board, enjoy the ride and
trust that all has been prepared,
that i'm ready for this
and ...
well more later, off i go now!
:D <3

xx

on a go.

i should be packing and cleaning up right now,
but had to chill down or something after
day at work. Day felt a lot longer than it physically were,
just the fact that today sun rised 9:13am and sets 3:25pm.
I left to work 9.48am and saw sunrise and finished 3.15pm
and watched sun set on th ehorizon on my way home.

More thoughts but here is funky translator tool which i have
to use sometimes when want read longer texts in spanish or
dutch and want to find out little bit better of what is going on.

http://translate.google.com/

:)

sountrack of the day.

new year's resolution...?

Is multitasking a value by itself? Why do we think someone as a hero if they are very efficient and multitask? Always busy and never stop? Thousand irons in a fire...
Is being busy being efficient? I guess it could be.
But could overly busy and multitasking have a danger of living skindeep,
leading into a process of shallowness and leaving meager but vital details without enough attention?
Do we also tend to multicommunicate? If you spend time with friends, family and colleagues, do you chat, check your messages or text sms's, answer your phone etc. at the same time? How do you feel when someone else does this to you when you are in a midst of an intriguing conversation or working together?
Are you there but not present?
I must confess being guilty on mentioned above.
But i would like to change and pay more attention on people who i am with,
to listen more carefully what they have to say or leave unsaid,
to look in their eyes and try to communicate how valuable they are to me.
And do one thing at the time and do it as well as i can.
Next i'd like to have look what did Jesus teach about efficiency...

And here few pics of my mobile phone for you to see:

mobile uploads..

To know. To be known. To be loved. And to know it.

"I hope you are loved and know it."
There is something in these words that feels deep and somehow... dangerous. There is something very powerful in a person who knows that they are loved.
It is said also that women look the most beautiful when they know that they are loved.
"...when they know..."

will be missionary or chef.

I loved today's weather, it was just the most amazingly beautiful winter day.
I haven't really written anything worth while in here for a some time, wondering
if someone would read it if i wrote something.

Anyway, i might just write something tomo, i have few thoughts that have been
cooking up recently...

Now my feet hurt little from skiing and walking trips and i'm getting way too
tired to write anything sensible, i should tidy up my room and go to bed.
Exactly a week from now i am 11 hrs away from getting into a plane and new
adventure, a new world.

Be safe you loved ones near and far.