god's plans, nooooooo!!

heey!
last night at youth group we were talking about who we are becoming and god's plans for our lives. this is a topic that i had been avoiding. truthfully, i have almost been avoiding talking to god about my future because i was scared he'd tell me to do something that i didn't want to do. let's face it, i don't want to be sent to a far off country like egypt by myself, trying to teach christianity to muslims and having my life put at risk. it doesn't really tickle my pickle. i also don't really fancy being a nurse. i hate blood and disease and that doesn't really sail my whale either. essentially, i was scared that god would choose the thing that i least wanted to do and make me do it. no wonder i was scared.
last night was a fabulous night. god showed me that i had certain passions and talents for a reason, because he gave them to me. and he did have plans for me, but it was going to be better than anything i could have planned for myself, because he was going to utilize my loves and passions and gifts. he wants me to be doing what he designed me to be doing, which also happens to be what i love.
this way, we can be sure that the things we are doing because we love them are also probably what god wants us to be doing, unless you feel guilt doing them. god has instilled us each with some of his own passions and gifts, they have literally come from god. so now, like me, you can relax, knowing that wherever your future leads you, god will meet you there and fill you with life. what you love, you love for a reason. so keep doing it!
*prayer for this week*- that god might give you clarity as to where your gifts and talents lie, and that you won't be nervous or anxious about your future but instead you will rest easy, trusting that god knows what h's doing.

hope you are all well!
god bless,
love oliveanddaisy xx

on sunday, the fool was forgiven,

hello lovelies,

it feels like it's been a while! i hope you are all well :)
i had an amazing experience yesterday, i didn't expect it and i totally didn't think that it would turn out like it did.
see, for almost a year i have been a very silly girl. and stubborn, don't forget stubborn. foolish, you might like to call it.
i suppose you want to know what i'd done? sorry, classified information. but i will tell you that i had pretty much let go of one of the best things i'd ever had and tried to convince myself that i hadn't and that i knew what i was doing. but i didn't. and on wednesday, i realised that i was a silly silly girl. it's almost like when you'd been spelling the same word wrong for ages without realising that it was spelled wrong.

this foolish behaviour caused me to come crawling back to a friend with my tail between my legs, in fact, i'm pretty sure i was shaking, and say 'i'm sorry, you were right, i am a foolish little girl.' i honestly thought that they would play it a bit and have a little bit of a laugh, maybe tease me, because they knew they were right all along. but no, none of that. they took me in and loved me, even though i was possibly the biggest goose in the world.
this has been one of the best illustrations of god's love for me that i have experienced in a long time. even though he knew he was right, he still showed me more love than i would have ever hoped for. i didn't expect him to, but he showed me an overwhelming amount of grace and forgiveness. no judgement, just pure, raw love.
it's so comforting to know that as soon as we ask god for forgiveness, everything we've done is forgiven. this experience has truly helped me to understand god's love and mercy for us, and how much we need god's forgiveness. we are blessed to have a god that forgives us so freely, just like my friend did yesterday.

let's all be good examples of god's forgiveness this week, just like my amazing friend. let's shine a little bit of god's light, and show others the pure, raw love that god can give them.

*prayer for the week*- let's pray this week that god will help us to know what real forgiveness and pure love looks like, and that we might be able to put it into practice in our own lives.

i hope you have a lovely week :)
god bless,

oliveanddaisy xx

in love with love

helloooo,

okay. i have something to admit. i am a truly hopeless romantic. hopeless. everything about love, i adore. it's like my secret obsession. the whole concept of someone falling in love with someone else is just the most beautiful thing. yesterday i saw a man give his girlfriend a bunch of sunflowers, and i almost cried it was so cute. it made me completely weak at the knees and all i could say to my friend was 'ahh, ahh,' and point stupidly at the girl who was now holding a bunch of sunflowers and smiling as if she had just won the lottery. why? for no other reason than flowers are cute and romantic and she is probably just as hopeless as me.
my worst is proposal stories. if you ever want to shut me up, tell me a story about a proposal. the whole idea that someone would love another person so much that they would want to spend the rest of their life with them is so lovely.

and i know its embarrassing, but i also know that i am not alone.
i think inside us all is a love for sappy love stories, a longing for a loving, committed relationship, for someone to tell everything to and for them to love you just as you are. and i think it goes deeper than loving rom-coms.
here's my theory, tell me if you agree.
we are wired to find someone who will love us just as we want. perfect love. unconditional love. a love that doesn't change and doesn't fade. eternal love. why? because we were made for a relationship with god. he instilled us with this longing so that we might search for him like a man with his head on fire searches for water.  we need it because we are wired that way, because when god created us he added a part in our mind that longs for him.
it can be filled with stories, flowers, kisses, hugs, late night phone calls, walk on the beach (and all that stuff is good, don't get me wrong), but when all that passes away, what we need is the love of god to fill us up and satisfy our hunger for love.

what do you think?

god bless :)
oliveanddaisy xx

embracing the pain

hi guys,
today i came out of the dark dance room at school and walked out into the light sunshine and i got that annoying feeling where your eyes hurt because they've been in the dark. i just wanted to go back into the dance room or shut my eyes, but i knew that i'd have to get used to the light somehow so i kept my eyes open and smiled through the stinging pain. (im just a drama queen, it wasn't that bad, but you totally know what i mean.)
this got me thinking, light hurts sometimes. when we've been in the dark for a long time and suddenly a light is shone in our faces, it hurts. we reject it. we'd prefer the dark. but strangely, sometimes when we're in the light, we don't even notice the dark creeping up on us. it seems kind of natural. we let the dark in. our eyes accustom quicker to the dark than they do the light. stay with me.
in the same way, sin creeps up on us so super duper quickly, and temptation comes in so many forms that we don't even notice it happening. before we know it, we are in the darkness and we haven't even realised. but then god shines light on us and convicts us of our sin, and we deny it because we are much more comforatble in the dark. we are rebuked and we hate it because it hurts.
i had this experience the other day. i was pulled up for something that i knew inside was wrong but i didn't want to accept as sin. my first reaction was to deny it. i wanted to crawl back into the dark, but i knew it was good for me. so many times we don't though, and so starts a downwards spiral of darkness where you bag out that person and nit-pick the things that are wrong with them.
next time you are rebuked, think of this. i know it hurts initially, but in the end it's so much better to be living in god's light. have a check with yourself now. is there an area of your life where you are living in darkness? are you feeling convicted of anything? remember, the devil is out there for your destruction, but god is there to give you life.

*prayer for the week* - ask god to show you any hidden area of your life where sin might be creeping up on you and repent. say sorry to god for all the times you've rejected conviction and make it a priority to grow from conviction rather than spiraling down into sin.

i hope this week is fulfilling for you.
all my love

oliveanddaisy xx

good afternoon!

hi there everybody and welcome to my blog. i haven't yet decided exactly what it will be about, nor do i have a distinct writing style. i do, however, intend on sharing my thoughts with you about life, love, music and god. if you know me well, you will know that i am an avid journalist. i literally don't stop journaling. at the moment i have about six journals in use, all are just about overflowing with ideas, quotes, thoughts and stories that inspire me and fill my head. my friend suggested i write a book, but i knew that i am nowhere committed enough to write a book, so instead i'm writing a...blog :).
so who am i? i'm a fifteen year old northern beaches girl. i am completely obsessed with colour. i love rain, red lipstick and flowers. god in the centre of my life, well, at least i try to keep him there. i have the best friends anyone could wish for. my family is awesome, including my little brother luke. i love to write, anything. i think all the time, it's an addiction. i never use capital letters. i love sunflowers and the colour yellow. i love yoga and ballet, up until recently i was doing fifteen hours of dance a week, but i burnt out. it's not my passion anymore, but i still love it. my favourite show is the brady bunch, five thirty on channel 'go' everyday. watch it. i am addicted to chocolate. my secret indulgence is home beautiful magazine. i never leave home without a ribbon in my hair and a smile on my face. i wish technology didn't exist, i repel it, and seem to have broken every bit of technology i have ever known. my greatest dream is to visit two hundred countries before i die. i love christmas. i like cats and dogs equally. my textas are my prized possession. i love photography. i hate people touching my ears.

i think that's about me. this blog is written for no-one in particular and i don't even mind if no-one ever reads it. it's a creative outlet for me and i would hope that anybody who stumbles across it would find inspiration and encouragement in my words. i hope you are having a lovely day :)

god bless
 love oliveanddaisy xx