DAY SEVEN

The good news is that Paper Dreams can become a reality!  There is so much diversity of what can be created with paper, pencils and scissors.  There is so much opportunity and creativity in what can be brought out of what we have in our hands. The guidelines in the bible are an instruction manual that can support us in this journey, the Holy Spirit can lead us into the next step and God is here with open arms when we show him where we are at.  As you sit in this moment let me encourage you to share with Him your Paper Dreams!

My prayer…

Today I choose to commit my pencil to the page and if todays’ efforts end up being hurtled towards the bin so be it.  But there is always a blank sheet ready for tomorrow and I shall try again.  Nothing is wasted because the contents of my bin tells you more about me than anything else.  I’m just grateful that you God, will help us empty it out and sift through the rubbish and find what is worth salvaging.  The one thing I have learnt is that with your strength I can try again tomorrow and let you craft me into your vision of Paper Dreams.

May I fly, despite being grounded.

May I dwell in His shelter, not cower in the shadows.

May my joy be complete in reaching out to others.

May fresh vision fan into flames not fade in the embers.

May I find blessing in the season we are in and hope in the season to come.

May I know that I am no longer a slave to fear but a child of God.

Amen

DAY SIX

Whether it was for a birthday party or as a Christmas decoration, the joy of linking together strips of paper was a simple pleasure and just needed the dedication of time.  I didn’t even need to overthink the preparation…I just had to be willing in the moment to decide on the next step. These paper shackles were not restrictive but created for connection.  One loop inside another, connecting together created more strength than existing alone.  The fact that all I needed to think of was the next step is a good illustration for the times we find ourselves in…because by taking one step at a time, over a period of time, we can look back and see how long the chain has become.  Staying connected to others regularly enables us to continue to build together even when we feel life has got us in shackles.

Galatians 4 v7

You are no longer a slave to fear but God’s own child.

DAY FIVE

As a child it came to the colder months and everyone was locked indoors protected from the changing climate and storms outside I remember cutting out snowflakes.  The fascinating thing about them was the fact that each and every single one of these could be folded, cut and crafted to be something truly individual.  The same is reflected in nature when you put a snowflake under a microscope.  The final product of each snowflake is truly individual. 

The journey from the clouds to the ground has formed each one in different ways to create something of beauty in its own right.  As we travel through this time, each with a different journey, a different storm, a different climate so we are being shaped and formed.  The process at times can be painful as parts of our story are being cut into but this is what shapes our existence. In time we can unfold our story. Each part of the pattern which has formed is part of the beauty of what makes us individual. So take time to reflect on your journey and be bold in unfolding and sharing your story. By doing this we can find connection with others and not feel left out in the cold!

Ecclesiasties 3 v1

There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the sun.

DAY FOUR

The marvellous thing about paper is that it can become 3 dimensional.  It can be folded, crafted and re-formed to become something new.  If only I was so easily adaptable!As a kid there was nothing better than being able to create a makeshift fan…a quick fix to a situation that had become over-heated by putting together a few folds.  Also as an adult this has been a valuable skill! The regularity of its concertina shape could bring light relief to those tetchy moments.  By inviting a little breeze into the situation, the overwhelming ‘get-out of the kitchen’ heat was dispersed and order was resumed.  Right now we are in stressful times and the temperature has been raised in family lives, between colleagues and in friendships.  So now is the time to allow the breeze of the Holy Spirit to do a little work at reducing the temperature in tricky moments! Instead fan the flame on those things which can help us ‘grow more’ rather than ‘moan more’!

2 Tim 1 v 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

DAY THREE

When I was little I remember being shown how to make a paper doll family.  It was something reserved especially for those rainy, stuck at home days! It is a craft which I have carried out many times and has come in handy recently! The magic moment of making a chain of paper dolls was when the cutting out of a profile could be unfolded to reveal hands holding each other… all linked together.  The skill was in making sure they weren’t separated or pulled apart as they were opened up to their audience! Then came the opportunity for each dolly to be individually decorated to make it different to the rest. The fun of making choices over styles and colours … if only decision making as an adult was quite so eagerly awaited and enjoyed! Yet the fun thing about these paper dolls was that they never let go of each other.

In a situation where we are all in this together let’s not let go of who we are in our own right and the strength that we can have if we stand together as one.  Let’s keep holding on to each other by sharing and caring and let’s hold on to God and he reaches out to us.

Phillipians 2 v1-2

Make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.

DAY TWO

I’m a talker…so it’s no surprise that one of my favourite things to make as a child was a chatterbox; you know one of those pyramid type squares which you put your hands into and open and shut.  Chatterboxes always followed a set of the same instructions for creation with folding and labelling colours and numbers but a wonderful excitement at being able to have your own statements hidden beneath its surface.  In truth I know that mine ranged from loving statements to cheeky comments!  Yet the effect was the same every time…the build-up of the journey through colours and numbers to the culmination towards a finale of a punch line.  Yet these days I am following the instructions of the ‘game’ maybe even going through the motions of how to get to the next level or take the next step…but the messages below the surface this time are those that I take time to seek out…in conversations with friends, reading books and taking note of what’s between the lines and listening to what God wants to say in the unknown space we find ourselves in. So rest in Him and listen to what he has to say…you could be in for a pleasant surprise.

Psalm 91 v1

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the most high will rest in the shadow of the almighty.

Maybe you are feeling a little trapped where you are at…but stay hopeful…better days will come.

“Do not cling to events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago. Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already—you can see it now! I will make a road through the wilderness and give you streams of water there” (Isaiah 43:18-19).

Little Fish loved her fish bowl.  She had arrived there as an even littler fish some time ago and the eyes which appeared from outside the bowl would marvel at how much she had grown and how big she was now.  However she wasn’t so sure this had actually happened because everyone else still looked the same size to her!

She liked her bowl and she was content.  From the ornaments which decorated her swimming space to the hazy and strange shapes outside of the bowl which ebbed to and fro as she swam by.  She was so content in fact that she kicked up a fuss whenever something came in and upset her routine…moving something to a different place or removing any silt or dirt which had muddied the waters.  The only thing she looked forward to was being fed.  Her excitement grew when the surface tension in the water was broken and her needs were provided for, until she was full to elegant sufficiency.  All of this helped little fish become a big fish! But very soon her little bowl became a little cramped and a little less joyous to swim round in circles.

Being a big fish in a small pond was a great place at face value. She was valued by the giant pair of eyes which stared at her from beyond the glass bowl.  And the eyes would share their stories of happiness and sadness for Fish to listen to.  Fish would think of all kinds of advice and guidance to offer. And Fish would think to herself how her little bowl was first-class because nothing was different in her day to day life and everything became agreeable every step of the way.

However this was indeed her problem…very soon the water became the wrong temperature and while she felt a little uncomfortable she persevered by swimming in circles with purpose etched on her fishy face.  But very soon another thing began to bother her…that the water was becoming clouded…she used to be able to see through the glass to the world outside and now it was not so clear cut…just hazy movement in the distance.  Lastly she began to have a feeling that it was time to move on…you see for some time Fish had known that she was growing too big for this fish bowl, she just hadn’t wanted to admit it to anyone else.

The trouble was she didn’t feel she had the strength to propel herself out of her own bowl and into the unknown.  However, she had secretly tried in her own strength in the past with limited success and bashed herself several times on the clear glass to no avail.  Furthermore, if she tried to catapult herself out she might become a fish out of water! And this frightened her more than anything and wasn’t a risk she was willing to take.

“The Lord is near to the broken hearted and saves the crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18)

As the days passed she knew she was meant for something bigger but couldn’t see how this could ever happen, not with everything working against her like it was.  So she sat at the bottom of her bowl and sent up bubbles of lamentation; she bubbled about her situation (where he was right at that moment), she bubbled about the fear of moving out of her comfort zone, and she bubbled about her hopes for the future.

She felt like nothing would change; but she couldn’t stay where she was.  Then something stirred through the surface of the water. A gentle hand scooped through.  Not sudden and brash but gentle and calm.  She was lifted from the watery depths.  Of course she felt a sudden panic but this was soon replaced with the peace and calm of knowing she would never have been able to make the leap into the unknown without the helping hand.  As Fish took to the air she suddenly saw clearly where she had been and even though she didn’t know where she was going to she felt safe in her masters hand.  The journey was over soon enough as she was gently placed into fresh clean water with no glass wall to stop her travels.  As the hand let go she felt the fresh water of a new start surround her.  A little unsure at first she did little splashes…not big splashes! 

Now I can’t tell you what was in store for Fish but what I can say is that things changed for her from that day on and no matter what, she knew that her masters eyes would see her, his voice would speak to her if she listened, and His gentle hand would guide and rescue when she called out to him in bubbles.  Fish had learnt that being out of her comfort zone wasn’t so bad after all and from now on she would try to become a fish that was ready for ever INcreasing circles…

Psalm 145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfils the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.”

I don’t know about you but when I feel like everything has slipped a bit out of control and it’s a downward spiral, a ‘to do’ list helps regain a grip on reality.  I can’t help but feel a sense of deep satisfaction at working my way through a list and being able to regain control of a situation again!

In more recent years the Lucas family have progressed to a special version of the traditional ‘To do’ list in order to manage family life more efficiently.  We have to a ‘To Do diary’ and I write things on a list for the day on which we might have a hope of completing things!

However having done a bit of research on the ‘to do list’, I found I’d already broken the first rule by having an entire diary of ‘To Do’s’ rather than an amalgamated list…Oh well…at least I try… Sometimes I glide like a swan and no-one’s any the wiser:) But the reality is that I often fall short!

Well, I have penned a story about ‘Beaux the bow’, who might be able to help us understand how to deal with trying to hit targets in life…

Beaux was a bow, who was always willing to try new things and embrace adventure.  Her most valuable prized possessions were her arrows and everyone around her knew that she was an experienced ‘professional’ at archery.  She was well trained in performing and had great poise, dignity and confidence oozing out from all over.  She had a great self belief and full of self confidence.  Believing that if she thought she could … then indeed she would!

Regular exercise and training helped her to keep up standards and keep a good record of ‘hitting the target’.  In fact she was a record breaker, a champion of champions and even though she was modest in her own achievements others were keen to praise her efforts.  She was careful not to become too big headed but couldn’t resist smiling when that small glow of pride began to blossom inside.

She was particularly good at helping others…like the arrows…glide through the air and enjoyed the feeling of helping others feel the wind in their face …What’s more she was always confident that with her help they would never miss the target. 

Beaux was particularly good at hitting the target when the summer was here and the world was sunny.  But she had seen how others struggled to always hit the target in horrible kinds of weathers and seasons.  Beaux liked to think that she would be able to manage no matter what the weather threw at her.  She liked to think herself as resilient and couldn’t bear to think of failure; for if she missed a target she would not only be disappointed in others, she would be even more disappointed in herself. 

She could just imagine being sad about falling short and sad that she wasn’t able to make up the gap all by herself.  Yet she pushed all these things from her mind, for one had to keep a clear head if one was going to be a winner!

To Beaux, using the right technique was the most important thing you could do.  She knew that there were a few key steps to take in order to hit the target.

For Beaux the greater the effort, the greater accuracy!  Or at least that’s what she thought! Having a formula for success meant that she had something to hang onto that would help her to try and get it right.

When Beaux met a new arrow she would happily explain the few simple steps to making sure you made a good shot, but she was also clear that messing up one of these simple things could have you missing by inches…and if you miss an inch you might as well miss by a mile.

However she encouraged every arrow she met to aim as straight as possible and was always excited when yet another arrow hit the target spot on.  While taking the aim and shooting all sounded fairly easy in principle, in practice it meant remembering a few steps:

Number one

Was to remember to keep your anchor!  A solid and consistent anchor was the key to a well-placed shot in the bulls eye. Without an anchor, shots could become unsteady and inconsistent in other words ‘they miss’. She would explain how an anchor keeps the archer solid and sure.  Without one the arrows would go flying in different directions each time they shot.  An archer had to chose a solid point to build their anchor on like a jawbone or cheek. Beaux had seen many a time when an archer was indecisive and then be off balance and the arrow would fall short or even miss all together.  For Beaux this was the worst thing to witness.  She often replayed these events in her mind and often in slow motion.  Which not only made it worse but made the agony last longer!

So firstly she would try to remind the archer to stand firm. A solid foundation would mean a stronger shot, which would mean hitting the target! 

In her tips for success the next steps were:

Number 2: Keep Level. Don’t look to the left or the right and keep on track.

Number 3:  Keep your grip.  Don’t let go too soon but don’t hold on too tight.

Number 4:  Relax and release.  There is a time to let go and when that time comes do so as smoothly as possible.

Number 5:  Follow through.  Keep your eyes open to see the end result. 

However when it came to the big competitions Beaux knew only too well that watching what happened next could be a joy to lift you to the great heights or be a disappointment that could crush you.   When competition came anything could happen.

Indeed one day Beaux had to face competition of her own…to start with she had faired well in the warm up, where she had been able to flex and stretch to show a range of skills and abilities.  The others looked at her, admiring her natural talent and appreciating all the hours she had obviously spent in getting things right.  Yet this day was unlike all the other competitions where success was guaranteed … the weather closed in… first the clouds gathered, then there was a strong breeze and lastly some drizzle and yet none of these were enough to stop the big event taking place but they were enough to cause Beaux to be off her game and lose her focus. 

Before long it was Beaux’s turn to step up…She was quick to position herself… The first arrow flew…weeeee…straight past the target altogether…nowhere near…Beaux was in shock…she couldn’t believe what had happened…she could blame it on the weather…she could blame it on missing out one of her steps to success…or she could blame it on the young gentleman with a tickly cough in the audience who interrupted her at a crucial moment…but the fact remained it was her arrow that missed and nothing could change that now…Beaux could feel the pressure rise and her confidence sink…

Second arrow…Thud…boing…This time the arrow had landed not on the target but at least on the board…only to spring out again and land on the ground below…Beaux could feel the pressure rise …even higher…and her confidence sink…even lower…She took a moment to steady herself, hopes and fears running through her…

This third and final arrow was her last an only chance to be a winner…the crowd were quiet…anticipation filled the air…this was the decider…winner or loser…the question hung in the air on the breeze, fell from the air like the drizzle, clouding her judgement.  Suddenly the third arrow flew through the air…time went slower somehow because Beaux watched every second it travelled…carrying the desperate hope of hitting the target.  THUD…the crowd paused…and Beaux could see why…she had fallen short…the arrow piercing below the centre at a jaunty angle.  The crowd commiserated with her…no one liked to see someone miss and yet, as these things happen, the crowd would soon move onto another competitor leaving Beaux to think on her own failure and attempt to pick herself up again.

The trouble was Beaux adored success but she did not fair well with missing the target or falling short.  What she failed to understand is that sometimes an arrow and indeed each one of us can fall short.  Sometimes we can’t make up the gap but sometimes we need to understand that we don’t have to.  You may fall short but God will hold you steady to try again.

And so Beaux learned in time not to be crushed by the weight of responsibility of missing the target but in acknowledging the way in which she had fallen short she was able to maintain her peace and try again.

So Beaux, while still feeling some disappointment, challenged herself to remember this in the future…For with God on our side as we shoot the arrow, even if it misses the target… God still holds you… For God is your anchor… and from that point on Beaux hung on to God and came home with a trophy of a lifetime: her peace and her freedom.

Finally…

Romans 3 v23 ‘For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’

The word for ‘sin’ here is Hamartia and Hamartia means ‘to miss the mark’ just like when someone fires an arrow from a bow and misses the target. If you ever need any encouragement remember we all fall short!  But God doesn’t require us to have a perfect target hitting record.  In Jesus the gap was bridged and God made up the short fall. 

Matthew 5:13-16

Salt can enhance: Light can illuminate

When people light a candle, they don’t hide the light, instead they place it where it may be of use. When you add salt, you do so to add flavour or (in O.T teaching) bring healing. Likewise our faith is given that we may benefit others. It is not to be hidden, but to give flavour and shed light within our spheres of influence.

So what do you think of when you hear the word transformation?

Is it when Clark Kent changes to Superman?  Is it when you mix eggs and it becomes meringue?! Is it when someone undertakes a makeover?

The word transformation itself in Greek is Metamorphosis. The process by which a caterpillar goes into a cocoon and becomes a butterfly. Transformation from one state into another. Going through a significant change and coming out the other side different because of it.  How many of us recognise that!?

Transformation in the bible has several references…Romans 12:2 it says ’Be transformed by the renewing of your mind’… Ephesians 4: 22-24 reminds us to put off our old self and put on our new self. In these scriptures God promises to transform us as we surrender our lives to him but he also wants to equip us to be transformative within our ‘Spheres of influence’. God wants to use us to where are at as an agent of change to bless the world and those around us. However, this is not a call to DO more but to BE more.

So when we talk about implementing transformation in our spheres of influence we might look at where our influence might lie and some people may feel that they have a very limited sphere.  For example when I had my second child and I was experiencing health complications. I felt that my sphere of influence significantly shrank…I wasn’t able to get out and about or be with my work network…I didn’t see as many people but thankfully I had a close network of family and friends.  I certainly was bunkering down in a difficult journey rather than striding forwards. However that sphere of influence needed me right there where I was at that time. I was building essential foundations rather than branching out.  Subsequently I’ve realised how much God was doing at that time!  Some of you may work within an enormous sphere, where everyone you come into contact with could be affected by what you say or do.  Now days, the spheres I work, rest and play in are much more far reaching. Yet the truth is no matter how many people we come into contact with…it is the quality of those transformative relationships and transformative moments that can potentially make our influence greater than we may ever know. Remember it’s quality not quantity!

The reality is that I can be an agent of transformation by my example, by my words, by my willingness to make myself available.  I have an opportunity to influence others and show the transformative power of Jesus. But am I taking full advantage of these opportunities and pointing people toward Christ?  But equally I’m not called to beat myself up every time I fall short! It’s a tough balancing act!

How do we invite transformation?

1. Surrender

Surrendering to his will day by day and in the challenging moments we can reflect Jesus and the power of the holy spirit.

2. Seeking

Seeing our Spheres of Influence through the lense of the Holy Spirit and keeping our responses in check.

3. Serving

By bridging the gaps when we see them! That one act of kindness could make all the difference to someone elses entire outlook. Even loving others when it’s the last thing we want to do!

4. Determined (Stubborn!)

Hanging on in for real change and even when that moment of transformation hasn’t come yet doesn’t mean it never will…hang on in.

Just a final word of hope…If you are feeling that you lack power for instigating transformation within your spheres of influence …and you are feeling a bit of a caterpillar in a world full of butterflies remember when the butterfly was in the cocoon it was in the dark and didn’t know about the goodness that was coming. You are in transformation and God isn’t finished with you yet!