King's Daughters

Back to my church story and this part is a really happy part of the story :) It comes after the terrible mess I made of my life, after my first marriage failed due to my stupidity and after I moved away from Crawley London to start over with my girls. Just a quick glimpse into the low point so that you can appreciate how high the highs were. This is an extract from my very first book, Hope's Journey . "During a very dark and confusing season, when I was living a shameful lifestyle and going through a divorce, God spoke to me.   I was sitting in the hallway drinking wine and crying my heart out.  Sadness, confusion, helplessness and total aloneness was closing in on me. The razor blade was already bloody as I had attempted to hack into my wrists.  Pain consumed me as life had become completely unliveable!   Whilst I sat there crying in agonising pain, I cried out to God to help me.  I said that I didn’t want to live anymore and couldn’t see any way forward except to keep tryin

"For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ." 1 Corinthians 12 - 12 Before I continue with my church journey I wanted to take a look at how awesome the body of Christ is. No matter where I have been geographically, emotionally or spiritually I have always been a part of the body of Christ. During a dark season as a backslidden Christian when I was about 19 I first discovered the beauty of the body of Christ. I loved Jesus, I always did and always will do, but I went through a patch of unGodliness where I loved other things more. I got caught up in the party scene through a Christian friend and started drinking alcohol through that same friend. Up to that point I was a good Christian girl trying to work out my faith. Being a teenager who grew up too quickly, the pull of parties and fun was too much and I gave in. It wasn't long before I no longer attended church and was out until silly o&#

That's what happened on 16th April 2000, my church had its final meeting and closed its doors forever. That season is a bit foggy in my mind, perhaps it's better that way, but I will do my best to recount someone of what happened but please keep in mind it is my view point, many others would share their version of things a little differently. Hindsight is interesting, looking back all the signs were there, well hidden most of the time but occasionally they did pop up. Being the pastor's PA and church secretary meant that I got to see a lot more than many and I quickly learned that what happens behind the scenes is very different to what you mostly see at church on Sunday. I learned how churches can run out of money and struggle to pay bills at times, a sad but very real  circumstance. Bills need to be paid and if people don't give generously and faithfully then where does the money come from? I saw how incredibly generous some of the church were and how about eighty per

Before we we pick up with the story from my previous post , let's pause and take a look at the church. What is it really? It's easy to say that you are hurt by the church but what is the church? How can "it" hurt us?  the dictionary defines church as 'a building used for public Christian worship'. If we speak of church in this context then we cannot be hurt by it - after all a building simply cannot hurt you! This must mean that this is not what we are talking about when we speak of church. The dictionary also describes church as  'the hierarchy of clergy within a particular Christian Church'. Hierarchy is a system which once again cannot hurt you. These explanations of church are partly true in that the church does meet in a building and does have a hierarchy but it does not describe The Church that Jesus died for. Jesus didn't die for bricks and mortar or for a particular system or hierarchy. Jesus died for people! Yes he clearly says in the Bibl

Picking up from my recent post , let's get back to my church story.  Oh and before we go there, what do you think of the new King's Daughters lilac logo? We are trying to keep the 'K' across all three areas just have a slightly different feel. Ok, let's go back to the church I was first saved at, The King's Lighthouse in Brits South Africa. It was a wonderful season where I was totally loved up by  my church family despite all my 'stuff'. I loved being saved and forgiven, I felt clean despite the many things I still had to work out with God.  I was baptised, filled with the Holy Spirit and passionately on fire for Jesus. I only listened to Christian music, burned anything that was even slightly unchristian (seriously!) and even wore Jesus t-shirts to make sure it was clear I was a Jesus girl!  About a year or so later we had to move towns for my then husband's job and so we were transplanted into a church recommended by our pastors. It was amazing t

I will continue with my early church journey in my next post but I need to interject with this letter to all the lovely ladies who are a part of our Girl's Nights over at King's Coffee House in Cheltenham. To all you wonderful women who have been on the Girl's Night journey with me for the past years. I write to you with a heavy heart but also with much love in my heart for you. We have grown to know each other and love each other and this new season in my life takes me away from you, which is not easy at all. I would like to say that it's all positive and that you should be happy for me but it's not such a simple story. For various reasons our family have left our church that we have called home for the past 18 months. Eric has accepted a job at another church and felt that he needed to do this to provide for his family, as being a full time student this past year has made life rather difficult. He had to leave his studies and cannot finish his degree to take this

It seems God is doing a deep work in me during this season and as with many deep works, He takes us back to childhood. So I find myself reflecting and going back to my earliest memories of church. I have always loved church. I don't recall my first visit but I imagine I was very young. My mother attended church from time to time when I was little and my father was an atheist. If it weren't for my mother I would not have the wonderful memories I have to treasure now. I recall how much I loved Sunday school, learning about the Bible stories, colouring in the pictures, felt board stories and just the way church made me feel. Church was always good and I don't recall ever being dragged to along, I was keen and willing. As I grew older I took myself to church when my mom didn't go, even though it was far away, as I really did love it! My earliest memory of loving Jesus was when I was school age and the wonderful Christian teachers at school did a brilliant job of encouraging

I remember one particular trip back from London to Cheltenham. It had been a long day of hard work, conducting interviews for our Women's Business Magazine , driving from one side of London to the other and back again. Lorah and I were travelling back late at night and were desperate to get home. My back hurt so much from sitting in the car for so long that I had to lean forward over the steering wheel in a funny position to relieve the pain. I was exhausted and the drive home felt like an eternity.  THEN IT HAPPENED! I accidentally  took a wrong turn on the motorway. I can't tell you how my heart sank! The worst part was that it was a long drive to the nearest roundabout to get back in the right direction. There was a metal barrier between the two sections of the motorway and no way to turn around and get back on track. I was stuck going in the wrong direction and there was nothing I could do about it except keep going IN THE WRONG DIRECTION!  I can't tell you how horrible

I don't know if what I am going to be writing about in the near future is going to make any sense at all. I don't even know if I should be publicly processing all this. You may have noticed that the tone of my previous post wasn't in proportion to the announcement. I realised after posting it that I was trying to say something without saying it, which of course didn't work at all. So I am going to attempt, over a series of posts, to share my journey with you - live from the heart, as it happens. This is not something that I have been through, come out of, got the t-shirt and can help others through. This is what I am going through and trying to figure out. You can expect it to be raw and real so please don't judge me. I have judged too many others in my situation in past years only to find out what it really feels like to be this side of the judgement. When church hurts You may recall a similar story that we posted in 2010 - When Church Hurts .  Now I will attempt

I have sat with my hands on the keys several times now, to write to you but never know what to say. So here it is, I am just going to let it come out, raw and real. You see, I have a choice, I can  pitch  what I have to say to you in a very positive, exciting way (which would be honest ish )   or I can pour out my heart and soul which could be overly negative and draining for you. For your sake and mine I will do neither, I am not pitching anything to you, it is not positive nor negative, it just is. This is where the journey has taken me and many of you have been reading my posts for years and have stayed with me through all the ups and downs, trials and tests, joys and laughter. Not A New Beginning I considered calling this post A New Beginning but realised that it is not a new beginning at all, it is the next chapter in our book, a new season in our life, perhaps even a turn at a cross road. I considered calling it Starting Over only to realise that nothing is starting over but this

I have sat with my hands on the keys several times now, to write to you but never know what to say. So here it is, I am just going to let it come out, raw and real. You see, I have a choice, I can  pitch  what I have to say to you in a very positive, exciting way (which would be honest ish )   or I can pour out my heart and soul which could be overly negative and draining for you. For your sake and mine I will do neither, I am not pitching anything to you, it is not positive nor negative, it just is. This is where the journey has taken me and many of you have been reading my posts for years and have stayed with me through all the ups and downs, trials and tests, joys and laughter. Not A New Beginning I considered calling this post A New Beginning but realised that it is not a new beginning at all, it is the next chapter in our book, a new season in our life, perhaps even a turn at a cross road. I considered calling it Starting Over only to realise that nothing is starting over but this

This past Sunday we celebrated our 140th anniversary at Charlton Kings Baptist Church . Wow what an amazing history we have and what amazing people have gone before us and worked hard so we can enjoy the church that we have today. It's incredibly and so easy to take for granted what we have today without realising that many have paid the price so that we can have all that we do. The message by Revd Dr Nigel Scotland  was on thankfulness and it was a powerful reminder of a very important foundational principle of our faith and that is plain and simply to give thanks in all circumstances. What really stood out for me what that he said that we don't have to and can't always give thanks for all circumstances but we can always give thanks in every circumstance. What a powerful thing to remember. Nigel went on to remind us that to give thanks is to be in God's will and not to is to be outside of His will.  How many times do we beg God to tell us His will and spend hour

Hello King's Daughters, I feel like it's been quite some time, in fact well over a year perhaps even two, since I have written anything meaningful to you. I have tried but words haven't come.  Many posts have been fillers or conference news.  I don't know what happened to me, I seemed to have come from a place and having life figured out to now not having a clue, from having much wisdom and revelation to share to having nothing.  At first I gave myself some time to grieve to loss of our church, D7 Church.  We met for the final time on Sunday 30th March 2014. Failure is hard, loss is difficult but when you have failed and lost in the things of God it seems harder. You feel as if you have let God down. One thing that no one tells you when you pastor a church is that it too, just like a business, can fail. If the books don't balance and your income is less than your expenses, you can fail. If you don't have a committed team to keep up with the work you can fail

" "Christianity in Mosul is dead, and a Christian holocaust is in our midst," said Mark Arabo, a Californian businessman and Chaldean-American leader. In an interview with CNN's Jonathan Mann, he called what's happening in Iraq a "Christian genocide" and said "children are being beheaded, mothers are being raped and killed, and fathers are being hung." "Right now, three thousand Christians are in Iraq fleeing to neighboring cities," he told Mann. Arabo is calling on the international community to follow France's lead and offer the Christians of Iraq asylum. "You're startling me with the severity of what you're describing," the CNN host said. "You said they are --- beheading children?" "They are systematically beheading children," Arabo repeated slowly. "And mothers and fathers. The world hasn't seen an evil like this for generations." "   >>> Read full artic

I love my new church.  It was scary at first to go from being a pastor to being pastored again but we have settled and simply love being a part of the family at Charlton King's Baptist Church .  This past Sunday Jason did a  life changing talk with our little ones, explaining the great commission to them. After explaining to them about Jesus and asking if they accepted that He died and rose again, he gave them a pack of stars and told them to go around the church and give everyone a sticker if they accepted the gospel.  It was a wonderful and practical reminder of what we are called to do, he said a the Great Commission is our co-operation with his mission!  Afterwards he played this video which sums it up perfectly.   Sue went on to preach a brilliant message as always and each Sunday I want to get born again again!  I feel so privileged and honoured to be a part of such a wonderful church family.

Madonna is one of Malawi’s most famous ambassadors. She said “ Despite horrendous life chances the children have a song in their heart and wear a smile .” On Sunday 6th July its Malawi Day and there will be live music, fun games and activities, stalls, live Wimbledon Men’s Final on a big Screen and a delicious afternoon tea for all the family to celebrate and raise money to keep Malawi girls in school. Dignity is a charity set up to raise awareness of the plight of girls; in Malawi an average girl misses one week a month of school because of the lack of menstruation provision. This problem can be solved and costs £10 per girl and will last her through her education. Come and join in the celebration at The Pavilion, Hatherley Lane, GL516PN. Tickets costs £5 per person or £20 for a family (includes afternoon tea). Tickets available on http://tinyurl.com/npbvkoc If you would like to be a stallholder email: Vicky@freerangechicks.net

I have never seen our nation's leaders stand up for Christianity as I have seen in the recent years.  David Cameron is putting his career on the line when he mixes his faith with his politics but yet he continues to be open about it.  Being a Christian is not easy, it comes with many challenges, preconceived ideas from others and opposition.  Being a politician is no easy either, again it comes with so much hardship and little reward. It seems that everyone has an opinion and Christians and politicians can do little right - if they make one mistake the are branded forever by it. People quickly forget all that they did right and hang on to their one mistake. Personally, I think being open and honest about Christianity is risky and being a politician is dangerous.  So, combining the two means multiplying the challenges, the risks and the dangers. For what? What is in it for the Christian or the politician?  There is little or no personal gain, they are merely public servants and

One of the many things that the Americans get right is their patriotism!  I often see American homes with their flags proudly hanging outside their door or hear them speak highly of their country.  It is a wonderful thing. Here in the UK I often see Brazilian flags, Polish flags and other flags from foreigners living here who are proud of the country they have come from.  NEVER have I seen a British flag displayed in front of a British person's home and all I EVER hear from locals is their complaints about this country.  COME ON PEOPLE!  The country is made up of you and I. Let's start off with being proud to be British.  Let's support local businesses.  Let's find good things to say about our country. Let's back up and support our leaders who are doing their best to do what they think is right for this nation. It is usually those that do the least that say the most.  Judge your own mouth and your own actions please. Until you are willing to step in 'their'

THIS MONDAY 7th April 2014 we launch our brand new event called Business, Ministry and Politics. King's Daughters has taken a very definite direction change into these three areas with an emphasis on how we use these areas to share the gospel.  We are called to be salt and light and it is our mission and obsession to get the salt and light into the places where it is needed.  As Christians we need to seek and desire places of influence within our communities so that we can be salt and light.  What good is salt if it remains in it's container and what good is light if it isn't in darkness?  We must position ourselves in places of darkness in order to be light but don't go alone .  If you are in business (either self employed or employed) then are you using your position to lead and shine?  If you are in politics are you using your influence in your town, city and nation?  If you are in ministry are you teaching and equipping those around you to be light and are you servi

Continuing on from my previous post , I wanted to look into the other side of depression.  The side where people use it to be lazy or to do nothing for the kingdom.  Yes there is a time when you need to slow down or stop in order to recover and get well but there is no reason to throw your whole life away and write off your future.  Depression is not a lifestyle it is a season. It can be cured and it can be managed.  If you are newly depressed or burnt out you may need to stop what you are doing and have a season of rest. What did God tell Elijah to do when he was newly depressed? Let's read about it in 1 King's 19:4-8 "Elijah  went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” Then he looked, and there by hi