The Real Nicole.

Often in my life I feel like there are heaps of people who are telling me they see a great plan for my life and that I would make a good youth leader, lawyer, youth worker, children’s pastor and the list seems to go on. At school and even at church we are told that our futures are bright and that there is so much we can to in the future and that God has a plan for us. In Jeremiah 29:11 it says “For I know the plans I have for you” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” I think this verse talks about how God does have control of our lives and he does have a plan and that plan is good even if at first we are unsure of what’s being asked of us it wont harm us and it will grow us. God wants what’s best for us and he wouldn’t give us a plan that didn’t agree with our talents. We just may be unsure to start with. But I also believe that when we talk about God having a plan for us I think we feel that that plan is for the future...

What do people what to do in their life? this is a question i've been asked many times this year and even this year its changed so much. there ar eso many things i could do and so many opportunities avaliable. noone wants to go through life unnoticed. i know that i want to make a difference and impact someone elses life. at easter camp in 2008 God spoke to me and told me that i would do amazing things in my life and impact others but to do that i first had to think about me and grow in my faith and think about me. one of the most important in that is not just about making a difference, it's about growing in faith and my understanding of God. to be able to grow as christian we need to be honest about where we stand with God. we need to be honest to each other as well as to God about where we stand. its okay to have worries and questions and doubts but God wants us to bring them to him. ive been challenged to openly and honestly say who i am and where i'm struggling, alt...

I've been coming to HVUC for about 10 years now, 8 of those years regularly. So i've kinda always known about church and God. At first to me God was someone that I could blame for the problems in my life, in particular the break down of my family. But through the pain I felt when my parents broke up and the support Lisa and others gave me I was truly shown Gods love. My understanding of Gods everlasting love grew as I saw how God was working in other peoples lives. In the Christmas holidays before I started high school I made a promise to myself that I would speak out about church and why I believed what I believed in high school. This proved to be a lot harder than I thought and had seen done in the movies. Somethings were easy like saying 'I went to youth on Friday' instead of I hung with mates. But when people asked deeper questions like why I believed in Jesus i didn't know how to respond. In year 10, I was all about making a difference in the world and helping ...