Church this week was one of those awesome God moments where I caught a fresh glimpse of what the Kingdom looks like as it's worked out among us.

As you know my husband Alan and I pastor the Causeway Coast Vineyard here on the North coast of Ireland. It's such a privilege! I love living my faith out with a community of people around me who challenge and encourage me. We are real people trying to figure out a real faith in the face of the hard stuff of life – just like you ☺

On Sunday, Alan was talking about money. He was reminding us that when we have something, the idea is that we share it with others that don't have enough. He reminded us that WE are often the answer to someone else's prayer.

At the end of the service he invited anyone up to the front who was in serious debt.

No one moved.

After a few moments, he made the invitation ag ... Read More »

I'm at a wonderful conference just now - Break Forth Canada in Edmonton, AB.

It's so exciting to be here - I love this side of what I do too!!!

I'm here to do a little teaching, and to lead some worship - along with some fantastic others - people like Paul Baloche, Robin Mark, MercyMe, Third Day, and many more!!!

If you live in the area and you would love to spend some time connecting with God along with several thousand others - please come along - it's at the Shaw conference centre in Edmonton. I think you'll love it!

Conferences can be the most wonderful way to 'refuel' and 'refocus' - there's something that happens when we get together as church, and as the wider church - that does our hearts good - helping us to remember just how huge God is, and how incredible He is!

Then of course, there is the wonder of going home again at the end ... Read More »

Church this week was one of those awesome God moments where I caught a fresh glimpse of what the Kingdom looks like as it’s worked out among us.

What’s the weather today (understanding the seasons)

I live on the rather blustery North coast of Ireland – and you can’t always tell the season by the weather (that’s largely because it rains nearly every day) – but the fact remains, that the seasons change with reassuring regularity – and so it is in our lives too.

I’m just starting what feels like a new season of taking a little more on than before.

I’m learning that when God says He’s going to do something – He’ll just do it! We don’t need to engineer it, or short circuit what He’s doing in us now because we don’t think it ‘fits’ with what He’s said.

I’m learning to trust in the abundance of God – His favour isn’t going to run out because I chose to say yes to looking after my girls, and helping pastor my local church, rather than pursuing the call to lead worship in other parts of the world at that time. But there were days when it did fe ... Read More »

Mum’s the word

I have two beautiful girls – one is 6 and a half (very important ☺), and the other is almost 4.

They are the joy of my life – and they are a huge part of the reason I’ve had to learn the juggling act. (All of you who have kids will know this feeling).

I had just started to become known for recording ‘Hungry’ when I got pregnant with my eldest. At the same time, our little church started to grow – in fact, it doubled in size twice over the next two years. It was possibly the most bonkers time of my whole life.

For the first time I was being presented with opportunities at every turn, and yet here I was with more responsibility than I knew how to handle – much of which meant I needed to be at home.

I found myself saying no to almost everything that involved being away from home – (and some of those things were things I’d dreamed of ... Read More »

Great expectations (dealing with disappointing others)

Learning to say no is an art! We are brought up to say no to bad things, (we get pretty good at it ☺) - but we aren’t always brought up to put in boundaries when what we are being asked to do is good!! It seems rude ☺

I think I found this the hardest thing of all when we started being asked to do all sorts of ministry all over the place – whilst at the same time trying to plant a church at home, and starting to raise our own little family.

I want to tell you something that I heard right at the beginning of this journey though, that I’ve come back to time and again as I’ve walked this through.

It was something that Brian Doerksen taught us way back in 1998. He told us how in a real vineyard, the gardiner knows that a vine can produce over 60 branches with hundreds of grapes per branch – and behind each grape that grows, there is an embryoni ... Read More »

Just say ‘no’

I get asked all the time about this – how do you balance being a Mum, a pastor’s wife, a songwriter, and a worship leader both at home and away. I smile, and then think for a moment about all the parts of my life that are full and at times a little crazy. The truth is that thanks to a very sensible husband, I’ve learned to say no to a lot of what I’m asked to do. What we need in life is a ‘balance buddy’ – someone who loves us and understands what we are called to do, yet won’t shy away from telling us to stop and reassess where we are at periodically. I wouldn’t even know where to begin without the wisdom of my husband.

These are the questions we always ask when we’re approached to take something on – is this a good thing to do right now for our family first; next does it work for our church; and thirdly do we sense this is something that’s just part of what we’re called to do.

If it’s yes to all t ... Read More »

I am so delighted with this album!

I loved the writing process - both thinking through what we (as a
church family here in Northern Ireland) needed to be singing about;
and working with some of the people I respect most as worship leaders
and writers - my Mum, Paul Baloche, Brian Doerksen, & Tre and Tori
Sheppard - it's been such a rich journey thanks to them!

I've loved the challenge of taking concepts that I find hard to
articulate (issues like the Kingdom of God; how to live out justice
to the poor...), and wrestling them through until I have a grasp on
them that I can live my life by - and words that I can put into songs
others can take and use in their own worship. It always feels so
difficult at the beginning - and yet, so rewarding at the end of the
process.

I so hope ... Read More »

For such a long time I've wanted to write a song that 'explains and expresses' the Kingdom of God.

There are times when the only thing you can do is stop and say thank
you again. At those times, it doesn't matter how hard life is. At
those times, it doesn't matter where you have 'won' and where you
still have the taste of failure in your mouth. At those times, all
you can see on the horizon of your soul, is the wonderful love of
Jesus - His indescribably mercy - His tenacious grace.

There is nothing more breath taking; more life giving than stopping
to remember again what He has done for us. There is nothing that
leaves us more aware that we simply have nothing to offer that will
ever come close to repaying, or adequately saying thank you for
that. I love that feeling - it reminds me again, that the awesome
King of Heaven - who is SO much bigger than me - who is SO far beyond
the circumstances I find myself in - is on m ... Read More »