There is a bumper sticker that reads "Life is fragile, handle with prayer". Though I've never been a big fan of bumper stickers, nor does my car boast any cheesy sayings or words of wisdom, there is still something so profound about the immovable truth that this particular phrase holds...

Japan has once again awakened us to the fragility of life, the power of a day and the uncertainty of these times we are living in. Our hearts have been stretched and continually broken as we watch the Earth around us respond with great power and destruction. The most recent earthquake and subsequent tsunami has killed hundreds, it has ruined entire towns, thousands are missing and the aftereffects and consequence of this natural disaster are still unfolding before our very eyes.

Psalm 90.12 says "Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom." (NLT)

Hey Gorgeous Girls,

It is only 8 days till the opening night of COLOUR 2011 in Sydney and we are so excited about not only hosting you but hopefully your team and friends. We are bathing the conference in prayer (and crazy preparation) and have great expectation that God will do what only He can do in your personal world and in this growing and maturing SISTERHOOD.

My big son (Joel) just posted the above picture of NYC from the air. He's been on the USA/Aftermath Tour, but took this past Sunday to race home to NYC to be at church. When I saw him tweet this picture, it prompted this thought.

When Brian and I were flying over that same air space last October (for the official launch of Hillsong NYC), I suddenly felt different about the city. I've been to New York a couple of times, but flying in that night, the skyline and all it represented felt different ... it suddenly felt like Home because of what was about to be planted there.

Dear friends,

I am amazed at the anticipation that is mounting around our plans for the upcoming Hillsong Conference // ONE DAYS across Australia.  This is a one-time celebration, with some of the most significant contributors to 25 years of Hillsong Conference.  The best of our team will all be gathering at one time – a minor miracle in itself - and I am excited, because this rarely happens! 

For 25 years, we have done what we can to faithfully champion the cause of local churches everywhere. We believe that the church in AUSTRALIA has played a vital role in Hillsong Conference, and the grace of God on this journey is a story that we are ever grateful for. This year, the story continues, and we are going where we have never been before! Our team is strategising, preparing and praying as we plan ONE DAY conferences in BRISBANE (10 May),  PERTH (12 May), MELBOURNE (17 May) and ADELAIDE (19 May) – all pointing towards a crescendo at the 25th annual Hillsong Conference in July - which, for the first time we are celebrating in Darling Harbour in downtown SYDNEY (5-8 July).

Ever heard that saying... "All dressed up and nowhere to go!".

I’m writing this on a Monday morning, I'm still in pjs and it's now only two and half weeks till I step onto a platform that (I know without a shadow of doubt) truly belongs to God (ie Colour). I say this, not because I am nervous or anxious ... but rather just very mindful of the magnitude of all it represents.

On the surface it's a fabulous womens conference, with all the dynamics of a great weekend out for anyone attending. Hopefully there'll be plenty of light and shade, laughter and tears (the productive type), "ah-ha moments" and space to breath and relax (with maybe a little therapuetic downtown shopping thrown in for visitors). If there is anything that our house is anointed for, it's worship ... and any X-factor on this years gathering, will again be His Presence manifest and felt. No matter how thorough our preparation is, the One who will make sense of it all is Jesus!

The crumbled steeple of the Christchurch Cathedral, once a proud monument that towered above the city, lies in ruins - a symbol of the devastation we have seen over the past week. Growing up in New Zealand, I remember standing high above the city in the steeple lookout, as so many others have since its construction. It has been a place of worship, a place of refuge and a symbol of the strength of the New Zealand people for over 150 years.

On Tuesday, 22 February, a powerful earthquake struck the picturesque town of Christchurch, and the tower of beautiful stone that we once knew, now lies among the wreckage. New Zealand is my country of birth and our hearts ache as we watch the aftermath of this recent tragedy unfold on the news. Today, the death toll has reached 145 people and hundreds are still missing. More than 600 rescue workers have worked around the clock for six days - hoping and praying that they might still get a miracle and pull survivors from the wreckage.

Roughly 10 hours from now, Hillsong New York City will hold the first of four weekend services. Life-changing, history-making services that - God-willing - will become a local church refuge, a home for many New Yorkers for generations to come…

We are blessed with an incredible team in place (some still yet to have VISA breakthroughs and arrive on American shores) and hundreds of faithful locals who have put up their hands to get involved. Hillsong New York City is taking shape and these are exciting days…

“When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll,
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say
It is well, it is well with my soul.”

What a great promise and hope we have in knowing that God is above all circumstance and that regardless of our lot in life, we can be steadfast knowing our soul has an eternal purpose and destination.

This week we were blessed to receive two letters of commendation from both the Premier of Queensland, Anna Bligh, and the Opposition Leader, John-Paul Langbroek; thanking Hillsong Church for supporting both the Premiers Appeal and clean up initiative, after the floods in Brisbane. I was even told that Mrs Bligh listened to the Hillsong Music recording in her office before ‘penning’ this letter!

Okay, my team are so fun!

Last week they loaded onto the web EVERY COLOUR BROCHURE they could find, which probably wasn't easy because you'd think we'd have comprehensive and beautiful files of each year, with lovely journal entries logging the lovely things that have happened, but alas, we don't really (smile).

Anyway, whatever graphic files they could find, they found ... and for the rest they took photos of whatever they could lay their hands on (no doubt) in the storeroom.

The "wave" gets me every time!!

The 45 second clip attached is another ad for Colour that we showed at church this weekend. It's kind of "signature Colour" ... the big beautiful dove (symbolic of the Spirit) that has majestically "flown over us" for the past two years ... and then gorgeous Lisa Bevere almost prophesying what she says ... AND THEN THE WAVE, where I get the SYDNEY conference to send a huge wave to what will be the LONDON and KIEV conferences!!