Little sticks, big logs

^           For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. ^But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; ^and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, ^that no flesh should glory in His presence.

                                        1 Corinthians 1:26-29 NKJV

Imagine you are camping, and attempting to start a fire. I've never done it myself. My husband is normally the fire junkie who loves to start our campfire. And we normally use matches (cheaters...I know!). I have always found it interesting to watch the process of how you gather the sticks and arrange them just so, in order to create the easiest platform for creating a campfire. I have noticed that most people go and find a whole heap of little twigs and sticks first. 

When God wants to start a fire, He doesn't always use big logs to start it. Quite often, it will take ages before these big logs catch on fire. So He gathers all those little twigs and sticks that may seem insignificant to many people; those twigs which most people would normally crush under their feet and forget about it. But when you are creating a fire, it is the little insignificant twigs that catch fire the quickest. Without these little twigs, you will have difficulty in creating a large fire.

It is the same with God's people. You may feel as insignificant and useless as a small twig, but it is that very position that God will use to create a big fire. Remember the feeding of the 5000? Do you know how they were fed? They were fed by small child with a big heart, who brought his five loaves of bread and two fish. He was what we would consider a small twig, but look what God used him to do?

So always remember, you may think you are an insignificant twig. But small twigs often start big fires.

A dog's tale: A story of miraculous provision

A bit of an encouraging story I read in my time with God this morning, and I thought I'd share it with you as well.

A Dog’s Tale

August 19

God both guides and provides. He leads and feeds his people, and sometimes in ways unusual—as John Craig once learned. Craig was born in Scotland in 1512, studied at the University of St. Andrews, and entered the ministry. While living on the Continent, he found a copy of Calvin’s Institutes and in reading them found himself becoming a Protestant. As a result, he was arrested by agents of the Inquisition, taken prisoner to Rome, and condemned to death at the stake. On the evening of August 19, 1559, while awaiting execution the next day, dramatic news arrived that Pope Paul IV had died. According to custom, the prisons in Rome were thrown open, the prisoners temporarily released.

Craig took advantage of the opportunity, escaping to an inn on the city’s outskirts. A band of soldiers tracked him down, but as the captain of the guard arrested him, he paused, looking at him intently. Finally he asked Craig if he remembered helping a wounded soldier some years before in Bologna. “I am the man you relieved,” said the captain, “and providence has now put it into my power to return the kindness—you are at liberty.” The soldier gave Craig the money in his pockets and marked out an escape route for him.

As he made his way through Italy, Craig avoided public roads, taking the circuitous route suggested by the captain and using the money for food. But at length Craig’s money was exhausted, and so were his spirits. He lay down in the woods and gloomily considered his plight. Suddenly the sound of steps was heard, and Craig tensed. It was a dog, and in its mouth, a purse. Craig waved the animal away, fearing a trick. But the dog persisted, fawned on him, and left the purse in his lap.

Using money from the purse, Craig reached Austria where Emperor Maximilian listened to his sermon and gave him safe conduct. He thus returned to his native Scotland where he preached Christ and abetted the Reformation until his death many years later at age 88.

Elijah was a prophet from Tishbe in Gilead. The Lord said to Elijah, “Leave and go across the Jordan River so you can hide near Cherith Creek. You can drink water from the creek, and eat the food I’ve told the ravens to bring you.” Elijah obeyed the Lord and went to live near Cherith Creek. Ravens brought him bread and meat twice a day, and he drank water from the creek. 1 Kings 17:1a,2–6

Morgan, R. J. (2000, c1997). On this day : 265 amazing and inspiring stories about saints, martyrs & heroes (electronic ed.) (August 19). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

rrrrrr...writers block...anyone out there say amen?

Hey guys,

I'm having trouble writing the book, so I thought I'd ramble on here instead. It's been a real challenge writing this book, as well as an incredible blessing. It's funny how that kind of thing happens hey? It is amazing the amount of times I have heard somebody say to me, "You know, its about time somebody said something about this." I didn't realise how many people were thinking about this, and how popular the topic is. I was just minding my own business one night, trying to get off to sleep (as you do). I don't know why it is, but God seems to give me my best ideas at the really inopportune times for me. I have had ideas come to me in the shower, and covered with soap I rush to grab a pen and paper. Or at other times, I am just about asleep in bed when it feels like God hits me with a tonne of bricks and suddenly gives me this really awesome idea. Both my former book (Watch Out! Godly Women on the Loose") and my current manuscript were 'conceived' that way. So for the time being, my pda is always with me, and my awesome God can wake me up at any time of the night and get me to write....just means taking around an extra piece of bulky technology with me everywhere I go though. I mean, just yesterday my husband and I were hanging out with my dad, and suddenly an idea hit me and I had to excuse myself to write it down. That is the life of a writer...but if it works, it works you know?

Friday was an interesting day for me. I decided to take my pda instead of my whole computer...and will you guess it?? Shortly after beginning work, the file was corrupted and wouldn't let me open it again. Thankfully, I still had the original on my computer. So when I got home, I found the original file on the computer, and transferred it to my pda. But lo and behold, when I opened that file on my pda, it wouldn't work either. So both the pda file and the computer original refused to work. So I had to copy and paste the entire 7500 words into a new document and save it as a new file. After that fiasco, I took a break from writing for the weekend. Things like that can be incredibly frustrating, especially when you are in the middle of writer's block. What is worse, I had just begun to actually get some work done when the file died. Well, let me tell you....the devil will have to do more than that to keep me from writing this book.

I can write other things fine (as this post suggests), but when it comes to the manuscript...nada. Are there any other writers out there who can feel my pain? Especially those who do it for a living. What are your experiences of writers block?

Motivational rap you just gotta see!!

This must have taken a lot of skill to write, and such a good summary in such a short space of time. Please watch it :-)

dilemma...writing is not so simple anymore...

Today, I'm writing about the impacts of divorce on people in their future marriages. Its fairly unchartered territory for me, and I'm assuming for some other people too. As some of you know, I've been recently married myself, and just when I thought dealing with my past was over, a whole new host of issues have decided to surface themselves. Now I know why God wanted me to write this book...too many people face this, and its time something was done.


Writing, and putting things I'm thinking into words, has never been much of a problem for me. I've always found it quite easy to 'put pen to paper'. But when I came to this current chapter I'm working on, I find myself really struggling. The words are there inside my head, and inside my heart, but they just won't come out. You writers will understand...you can feel what you want to say, but can't say what you want to say. So for the time being, my pda is ever at the ready beside my bed, just in case God should choose to give me inspiration in the middle of the night (hey, He has done it before, so why not be prepared.. both my published book and current manuscript were 'conceived' that way). And when I had a rather emotional night the other night, my husband pointed out my pda sitting next to the bed and said to me, maybe you should write something... He offered to get my computer from downstairs, but I didn't want to lose the moment. I lay down to sleep, and just waited for God to give me the words to speak. This is what came out, which I fleshed out at a later time (the fleshed out part is in normal text):

******************

They will not want to put themselves a place of submission, because submission was always a place of extreme pain. Those to whom they were called to submit have hurt them deeply. In order to protect themselves from being hurt again, whether they know it or not, they refuse to place themselves in a position of vulnerability. Submission is such a place. Anything that resembles or serves as a reminder of a place of extreme pain is avoided at all costs. This can be manifested in behaviours such as extreme anger, mood swings, irritability, self centredness, amongst others. I've had plenty of these, and for months and months I had no idea why. I couldn't pinpoint the source of all these feelings of anger and frustration. As soon as my husband required me to submit to an opinion that I didn't agree to, all these feelings of rage and anger would begin to surface that I just couldn't understand. I felt beat down and defeated, and fairly angry. But I had no way to explain why I felt this way.

******************

I'm still not exactly sure where God is taking this book, but He's certainly taking it somewhere. The amount of interest that people have already shown in reading it makes me really begin to think...maybe God is showing me there is a real need in this area. I am amazed at the amount of times I have already heard the phrase, "It's about time..." from people. More than one person has told me that its about time somebody wrote something about this area. It's about time somebody tried to do something about it. Maybe God is trying to show me something, hey? Maybe God is trying to encourage me to keep going, even though certain sacrifices have to be made to do it...money, time, freedom.... But I can't just leave it alone. The idea just keeps drawing me back to write...and write, and write, and write. Its a book I just can't put down. I can't get it out of my head. It just keeps gnawing away at my heart, and won't leave me alone. I think there's a point in this!

God, what are you doing to me?

Doing things for the wrong motives

Photo courtesy of PDPhoto.org

I have been reading about Baalam and Balak in my time with God the last few days. I have found it quite interesting, and there was one particular point which I just couldn't understand, and kept 'chewing on', trying to figure it out. Basically the story goes, there was a king named Balak, who lived in a country called Moab. He saw how the people of Israel had conquered nearby nations. When the Israelites wanted to pass through a neighbouring province on their way to somewhere else, the king of that province refused them entry, even though the people had promised not to use their water, food, or fields, but would stick only to the king's road. Still he refused, and set out to attack the Israelites. The king and all his men were killed, and nobody was left. The Israelites then took over the land and lived there for awhile (Numbers 21:21-35).

So the king of Moab saw this and was very scared of the Israelites. Then he decided to call on Baalam, the diviner, to curse the people of Israel. A diviner is like a sooth-sayer, or a false prophet. Nobody really knows a lot about Baalam. Some say he is a non-Israelite prophet. Whatever he is, he features quite strongly in this story.

So Balak sends men to Baalam, asking him to come and curse the Israelites so they will leave the land. When the men arrive, they bring what was considered a traditional fee/payment for a diviner. Baalam asks them to stay the night, at which time he would enquire of the Lord as to whether he could go with them. God comes to him later and asks him who the men are. Baalam replies, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, ^‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the face of the earth. Come now, curse them for me; perhaps I shall be able to overpower them and drive them out.’ ” (Numbers 22:10-11) God then says, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.” So he's not allowed to go, and tells his visitors.


Not long after this, the king sends more important men to try and convice Baalam to come. Knowing full well what God has already said, a great big NO!, Baalam still asks these men to stay the night, and he would enquire of the Lord. Now this is the point we come to. Baalam, knowing very clearly what God's will is, seeks to see if there has been any change of mind. So God concedes and allows Baalam to go, but only to say what God tells him to say. What follows shortly after is what confused me for awhile. The Bible says that God became angry at Baalam for going (Numbers 22:22).


Until this morning, that verse had me very confused. I thought, if God told Baalam to go, then why was he getting angry at Baalam for going? Wasn't Baalam just doing what he was told? My husband and I mulled over this last night as we were getting ready for bed, and neither of us could come up with a probable answer. So this morning when I sat down, I naturally turned to this passage again and discovered something interesting. 


Yes, Baalam did go. Yes, God did give permission. But what God was really angry at was Baalam's attitude. He should never have questioned God in the first place. What God said is what God said. 2 Peter 2:15-16 outlines Baalam's true motive, They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; ^but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet. Baalam's true motive for wanting to go was greed. He wanted the money and prestige for the job. He wanted an excuse to gain benefits for himself. Yes, he was initially doing what God told him, but I don't believe that when he went, he intended to say what God wanted him to say. He was going to say whatever he wanted to please the 'highest bidder'. His motives were totally wrong.

So what does God do to make sure he obeys? He uses a donkey to speak to Baalam. As Baalam journeys toward Moab, his donkey decides to keep turning off the path and go another way. His donkey just refuses to take him to Moab. What Baalam cannot see is that an Angel of the Lord is preventing Baalam and his donkey from continuing on in their journey by standing in the donkey's way. Baalam keeps whipping the donkey in order to get it to move. Finally, the donkey has enough, and God opens the donkey's mouth to speak to Baalam.

Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”

^And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”

^So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to you?”

And he said, “No.”

Numbers 22:28-30

God was making it clear to Baalam that since he insisted on going to Moab, things were going to be done God's way, and only God's way. If Baalam was going there to pronounce a curse on the Israelites, then God would not allow his donkey to go on any further.

This story shows the importance of doing things with the right motives. It is so easy to get caught up in wanting to get things for ourselves that we forget what life is really all about. It is about following God, and doing things God's way. We need to be so careful that we don't do things for the wrong motive. We need to also be careful that we do not question God when he tells us a reason for doing or not doing something. If someone said to you, don't touch the fire, its hot, then we need to trust that they know what they are talking about. Two lessons can be drawn from this passage: don't question God, and don't do things with the wrong motive. It just isn't worth it.

P.S. A short 'LOL' for you. After posting this, I had an attack of, am I doing the right thing? Did I really hear from God? What am I doing here? I am 25, nearly 26 (in 7 days time), and writing full time. Shouldn't I be out there in full time paid work like so many other people my age? BIG LOL!!!! Why didn't I just take my own medicine and remember Baalam, not question God and just do what He told me to do?

You know, this takes sacrifice. Its not just something you do on the spur of the moment. Financial sacrifices are a biggie. We don't have as much as we would like. But that's okay. Contrary to popular belief, IT'S NOT ABOUT MONEY! I would rather be in the will of God than have all the money in the world. If the reason I went to Bible College was to go out and earn lots of money, I would have doing it with the wrong motives, just like Baalam. I went there to serve God, period. If God chooses to bless me with money for it, then great. But until then, I'll keep writing. If I make a few enemies, so what? I'm in God's will, and that's all that matters.

Why does God allow pain and suffering?

You know, sometimes we have pain in our lives that we just can't explain, and we cant reason away. Today I came across this story just randomly, and it really encouraged me, so I wanted to share it all with you. I don't know where it originates from or who wrote it, but it is a beautiful story.


A man went to a barber shop to have his hair cut, and his bread trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a conversation about many things, and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said, "I don't believe that God exists." "Why do you say that?" asked the customer. "Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist."

"Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving God would allow all of these things."

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barber shop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair, and an untrimmed beard. The customer then turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber, " You know what? Barber's don't exist." "How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber. "I am here and I am a barber, and I just worked on you."

"No," the customer exclaimed. "Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty, long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."

"Ah, but barbers DO exist. That's what happens when people do not come to me."

"Exactly," affirmed the customer. "That's the point. God, too, DOES exist. That's what happens when people do not go to HIM, and do not look to HIM for help."

"That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world"


When you have pain, you need to turn to God, because He's the only one who can help you. It's just the plain truth of it.

A short preview

I decided to post one or two paragraphs of the current chapter, so that you may all get an idea for where the book is heading. Here you will get to see what this busy little beaver has been doing over the last few months. These excerpts are from the almost complete chapter one. All text is Copyrighted and may not be reproduced.

"Divorce can be a nasty thing, especially for a child. You see, a child often has no choice in the decisions their parents make on their behalf. Many children suffer in silence, because they believe there is nobody out there who really understands exactly how they feel. A child feels neglected, alone, and scared, all because their world is completely out of their own control. They are scared, and feel like they have nobody to talk to. After all, when their parents get a divorce, they have their own concerns to take care of right? Unfortunate as it is, some children seem to get lost and forgotten in the process. Nobody has ever asked them how they feel about divorce, and they feel like nobody cares or even notices. In the turmoil that is divorce, children can feel lost and confused as their parents desperately try to adjust to living life on their own. Parents have a lot to deal with when there has been a breakdown in the family. They are quite often swamped with court procedures, paperwork, custody battles, moving, life change adjustment, emotional issues, anger, frustration, and hurt; in the craziness, children can sometimes be forgotten. Whether or not it is intentional, children quite often bear the real brunt of divorce, for it is something that happens to them without their permission, and often without any explanation. They are just told,"Mummy and Daddy are getting a divorce." Some kids may be too young to even understand what this means. But before they know it, their whole life is turned upside down, and nothing will ever be the same. In this, children become innocent bystanders and casualties of war. It is these children that need our help."

"As a child, I struggled in school, both academically and socially. I felt like an outcast and found it difficult to make friends. I was incredibly shy and insecure, and had an extreme lack of confidence. Academically, I was doing quite poorly, and needed special assistance from the teachers. As I got older, I still found it a struggle to feel as if I 'fit in' socially, and always felt on the outer. There wasn't much change for me academically speaking either. When it was time to begin university, the only way I gained entry was through a program for disadvantaged students. Most of my insecurities and lack of confidence was due to the issues I suffered as a result of divorce. But through God's help, I was able to turn it around, and not only graduate, but go on to complete a Master's degree and also become a published author.

But not all people have endings like mine. Some people spend their whole lives feeling the same way as they have always done. Many people never get over divorce, and that is indeed a sad state of affairs. Divorce is hard on children, full stop, whether they show it or not. What is even harder is when they reach adulthood and are suffering all these problems, but can never find the root cause of them. When you don't know the root cause of an issue, how can you possibly hope to overcome it? It just isn't possible until you first address the real problem; it is this problem that we want to avoid, before it becomes a problem."

© Corallie Buchanan 2010

Official post for divorce questionnaire

Hi all,

Here is a repost of the divorce questionnaire, along with an explanation for those of you who missed my last post on the topic. For those who don't know, I am a full time writer (see my website and online portfolio), and author of "Watch Out! Godly Women on the Loose". I have recently begun to write a book on children and divorce. I have had a few people express interest, and just so you know who I am and what I do, I decided to update this post and provide a permanent link on my blog page.

The book talks about divorce, and its effects on children. I want to hear your stories of your experiences with divorce. What are some issues that you have had to deal with? What have you found hard as the result of divorce? I know there are a lot of people out there for whom divorce has effected them in all different ways. With your permission, I would possibly like to include these ideas in the book. Anonymity will be maintained, and any information will be brought together in general comments concerning different issues (ie what adults generally dealt with as a result of divorce in their childhood). No personal details of identity or location will be given. I know each person feels it differently, and I don't want the book to be just about the issues that I dealt with, but a general broad spectrum of people's experiences. Example: "Many people I spoke to said that they found ________ to be a really hard issue to deal with, and it seems to be quite common amongst those whose parents were divorced..."

If it helps to understand the perspective the book is taking, then here is a sample from the introduction:

"Let me make it clear to you now exactly what I am doing in this book, so that there can be no misunderstanding. Firstly, I will tell you what I am NOT doing. I am not speaking to you as a parent who has experienced divorce. I am not speaking to you as a parent attempting to give advice to another parent. I am not a parent from a divorced family, so I do not have the authority to give such advice. I am not telling you whether or not you should get a divorce, because it is not my place to make such a judgment; that is your decision alone. I am not speaking of how to work through blended families, because even though I spent most of my life in a blended family, I am not in a position of authority to be able to advise parents of how to create and maintain a blended family. I am not trying to provide you with a quick fix to your problems, or to tell you how to run your family. I am not telling you that your children will definitely experience serious issues because of a breakdown in the family. Not all children have problems as a result of divorce."

© Corallie Buchanan 2010

From this, it is clear that I am not offering criticism or condemnation of those who have been, or will be divorced. I come from a divorced family myself, and would never tear down anyone in that position. I am merely helping parents to understand things from the perspective of their children. If you feel your story might be of use in this endeavour, please feel free to email me @ corallie.buchanan@gmail.com with your stories and ideas.

Here are some questions to get you started:

How old were you when your parents were divorced?

If you can remember back to when your parents were divorced, how did it make you feel? What emotions did you experience and why?

Looking back, what were some of the hardest adjustments you had to make when your parents divorced?

How did it feel growing up without a father? When you hear the word, does it mean anything to you?

Did the other parent have an involvement in your life after the divorce, and if so, did this impact you positively or negatively? Do you think only having one parent was detrimental?

(for men specifically) As an adult male, how do you believe the lack of male role models has effected you now?

Do you remember the economic situation after your parents divorced? How did having less money make you feel?

Do you think your parents ability to cope with divorce impacted how you were brought up? If so, are these issues still impacting you today, and how?

Was there a lot of conflict in your family, and how did this make you feel?

Do you still have a sadness/regret about your parents divorce? If so, why? Are there still some painful memories associated with the divorce?

Do you think divorce has impacted your ability to understand the marriage relationship? If so, how?

Do you think the divorce has inhibited your ability to feel close to God? If yes, how?

Imagine yourself as a child again, and what you might have said to your parents then, knowing what you do now? What advice would you give other parents considering the same course?

What is writing really, but speaking through your fingers? Advice for those wanting to write a book.

Recently I was asked by someone how you can start writing a book if you don't know where to begin. For anyone else who may be asking that question, I would give them the following advice. 


"The best way to write is from the heart, and to not be all fancy and wordy, but true to who you are. If you don't know how to write, just speak it out loud, and then write exactly what you say. I generally write as if I was speaking to someone directly. If you can tell someone your story verbally, then you can write it. Just don’t think of it as writing. You are speaking through your fingers. That's all writing is really.

The best thing I can encourage you to do is start small, and just relate your earliest childhood memory. It could be the time you made a mud pie, or stubbed your toe. And as I said, write as if you were verbally telling me about it. If it helps, physically speak it out loud. Record it, and then transcribe what you said. The best way to write a book is to start at the very beginning (and please pardon the reference to the sound of music)."

Just because you feel intimidated by the thought of writing a book, that doesn't mean you shouldn't write one. The best advice I can give you is don't set out to write a whole book. If you do that, you will get so intimidated that you will never ever write a book. Don't think of it as a book...think of it as a memory. Start out by reliving one small memory from your past. Funny advice is to think small...I know its strange, but if you think too big, the idea will seem too big for you. Keep focused on the small things.

This, and other advice, will be part of my upcoming seminar at The Word Writer's conference in November at Capalaba. To register, visit http://www.thewordwriters.com/. Hope to see you there.