God's Love Letter to you

Do any of you remember what it was like to get a letter from the one you loved whilst they were away? How you would read it over and over again, and carry it with you everywhere to remind you of the reality of their love for you and that your separation was just temporary. After a while you didn't have to read it anymore because you knew it by heart, but still you kept it with you. Then your loved one would return and there would be no need to read the letters as you had that special person right with you.
God loves you more than any sweetheart ever could and He wants you to be reminded of how much He loves you all the time and He wants you to remember that, although we are separated for now, He is always with us and one day we will stand in His glorious presence. So He put together a whole book filled with His love. Have you spent even a fraction of the time reading His book of love to you as what you spent on those letters?
Don't think of reading your Bible as a chore, rather approach it as you did those love letters but with the knowledge that God can and will speak to you through His Word. He uses it to guide you, comfort you, teach you, provide hope and all the other things that we need to live our lives  and to bring Him glory until we can see Him face to face for eternity.

My silence

For the last year I have been battling to write. The primary reason for this difficulty has been you, my readers. The number of people reading this blog has grown and spread to all countries around the globe. This has absolutely terrified me as I realised that whatever I say has an impact, whether positive or negative, on my reader. So I went in to hiding, hoping to hear from God and to regain my old confidence, but He has been silent for a very long time. I have occasionally had the desire to put some thoughts down but never got further than thinking about it. God has shown me, however, that the reason for this is that I was starting to write for recognition and not for Him. So please forgive me for the silence which I hope has now been broken as I serve my God through the gift that He has given me. I thank you all for your support over the years and would love to hear from you. May God bless you.

Armchair voyager .... Homefront warrior!

I have recently been able to indulge in a long time passion, photography, and have become very active on Instagram. Through this exciting medium I have been thrilled daily by fantastic photographs from all over the world and am following photographers from some places I had never heard of!  The main joy I have had is connecting with people with a shared passion for the beauty and wonder of God's creation. Many of these people are Christians, many are not yet there is always hope for a person who is awed by what the Creator has made.
The other thing that has happened is a desire to travel has been stirred up within me. I too want to record these beautiful places and share them with others. I have never before longed to roam around the world and, quite honestly, I am getting a tad too old and I am definitely  too broke to travel, so I have had to wonder what God is really stirring in me? Am I going to be sent in some new direction? Has God got some way in which He can use me or my passion for His glory and to advance His Kingdom? I don't know really. All I can do is trust and listen for His promptings. In the meantime it is important that, from where I am, I continue to do His works. That I continue to reach out to those who do not know Him and let them see Him in me and spread His message of love and redemption through Jesus Christ.
Perhaps I will travel one day, perhaps not. Either way my main thing is to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus, to walk wherever He leads me and to do whatever tasks He gives me right here, in my own backyard!
God bless you all

WARNING! Not for Sissy's! - Follow Jesus

"Christianity is a crutch for the weak!" Have you heard that one? How about "Christians are shallow minded" and my personal favourite "Christians are judgemental" as they stand in judgement of us. What they don't understand is that it isn't easy being a Christian, especially if you are more than just a pew warmer! When we step out in faith to do God's will, Satan does not like it and so he comes against us. The weapons he uses most often are the things that are our weaknesses, which make the battle even harder. Society is against us. What is socially acceptable is so often contrary to God's desires for our lives that our life choices are frowned on or ridiculed - take the "no sex before marriage" example and you will understand what I mean. Let's face it, we are at war. However, what we need to remember is that the enemy has already been defeated. His battle is lost and all he is really doing is causing trouble as he heads towards his eternal fiery pit. His desire is to take as many souls with him on his way down as he possibly can. Which raises the question "so why are we at war?" If Satan has already been defeated and we are saved, Jesus has forgiven our sins and we are assured of a place in heaven, then why fight? Surely all we need to do is keep the ten commandments, go to church on Sundays and pay our tithes then we should be okay? We fight because God has commissioned us to do just that. We fight by showing God's almighty, unfailing love to those who don't know Him. We fight by awakening a hunger and thirst for Him in the hearts of those who are lost so that they too can be saved. We fight by living for others and not for ourselves, by standing up for the weak, the helpless and the oppressed. We fight by protecting this beautiful planet that God gave to us to care for and which is being systematically destroyed by man's greed and selfish stupidity. We stand firm. We do not allow ourselves to be shaken or to loosen our grip on God's hand as we walk through this life His way. We fight because God loves the lost so much that He died on the cross for us all. We fight because God has chosen us to be His children. We fight because somebody stood in the gap for us. Somebody prayed for us or stepped out in faith so that we could know Jesus and now it is our turn! Following Jesus is not easy. He never said it would be, but the rewards are greater than anything on earth!

Who Do You Trust?

I can’t believe we are almost through February 2013! The year that 'shouldn’t' have happened -according to many who believed that the world would end on 12 December 2012 (or something like that).  I can’t help but wonder about those people who put their trust in some ancient calendar and someone’s calculations…who are they trusting now? I couldn’t understand the logic behind the whole ‘pack up and run’ approach. Where were they running too? Was only a portion of the world going to end? Was it predominantly Americans who believed this? It certainly seemed that way, but that could just be because all of the television programmes were USA based. Was it perhaps just America that was going to end? Who really knew? It was all very confusing. 

Whilst I was last in hospital with a severe chest infection, I had the good fortune of meeting a very sweet, very young woman who was terribly confused about life. She had recently been declared dead for almost 15 minutes and yet had come back to life with no apparent brain damage or any other serious long-term side effects. She felt that because of her second chance, God (whom she previously had not really believed in) must have some purpose for her life. At the same time, she was convinced that all the stories about the Mayan calendar were true and that the end of the world was only a few short weeks away. She didn’t know where to turn and told me all of this between fear wrought sobs.

I was so glad to be able to introduce her to the One in whom I trust! Jesus Christ! In Matthew 24:36 Jesus tells the disciples that no man, not even the angels or even the Son (himself) will know the day or hour when He will return for Judgement day – only God. That was all I needed to explain. How can some ancient race, that have themselves been wiped out, predict what Jesus Himself does not know. 

I explained all this to her and was able to provide her with her very own Bible. I was also able to explain to her that our primary purpose in life is to bring glory to God. So we need to live our lives in such a manner that people see Jesus in all that we do. Our very lives need to reflect the goodness and love of Christ. This does not mean, I explained, that she has to become a missionary to North Korea or anything scary, but that God had given her skills and talents as well as put a desire in her heart for her career path and in that area, she could live out her purpose in life.

We had discussions late into the night, and as I was dropping off to sleep I realized why I had been hospitalized for a chest infection! I had felt that it was a bit of a dramatic decision, but if the doctor had not taken those steps and had sent me home, well then I could not have done what God needed me to do at that time.

Limited Visibility

How many times have you wished that God would just let you know what’s going to happen in your life? Particularly when you have decisions to make or when something unexpected happens. I know I have! I really cannot count how many times I have wished that God would just give me the “heads-up” on what to expect! I mean really, couldn’t he just send me an sms or an e-mail?  In fact, this was my only real gripe with God, after all, He is omnipotent, knows our beginning and our end, so surely…!

There is a particularly nasty bend that I have to take on my normal route home. The start of the bend is marked by a cross where someone was killed, and on the other side of the road, about six hundred metres on, there are another two crosses marking where two other people lost their lives. When I take this bend I find myself slowing down tremendously and hugging the inside lane, often driving into the yellow line, all the while my heart seems to be in my mouth.  However, one night I was coming home on the same road, around the same bend, when I realized that I was travelling in the fast lane, and not worrying at all about slowing down or being afraid! It was then that I realized that I always drove that bend more confidently at night and I also realized that it was because I couldn’t see the whole dangerous bend, just the portion that was lit by my headlights.

And that is exactly what God does! He lets us see only what we can deal with.  The bend was no more or less dangerous at night, I just wasn’t afraid because my vision was limited and I realized that if God was to show us everything that was around the corner in our lives, most of us would be too afraid to go there!   

Putting out Fires!

  

This past weekend proved to be a little bit more adventurous than I would have hoped for! Hubby and I were visiting his recently widowed sister in the Natal Midlands and had gone out with other family members for lunch at a popular local restaurant. On our return home with full bellies and everyone looking forward to an afternoon nap or laze in the winter sun, we received a phone call to say that there was a runaway fire heading directly towards my sister-in-law’s house!

Although we were still about 40kms away we were able to spring into action and all three of the local family members started phoning various neighbouring farmers to both warn them and ask for assistance. Due to the nature of the roads we were unable to travel too fast but hubby certainly made excellent time and we were there within 15 minutes. On our arrival we found that one farmer had already entered the property on the right hand side with a tractor and water tank. Those who couldn’t be of assistance with water, grabbed rubber “slappers” and started beating the flames in order to halt the rapidly advancing monster. Some of us joined hands in prayer, asking God for protection and His supernatural power. Within two hours they seemed to have the fire under control and the men returned to the house. However, no sooner had they finished a cup of coffee then another call came through to say that the wind was picking up and the fire had restarted in the valley and was advancing up the other side of the land. By this time it was dark and the terrain is extremely rocky, making the whole process so much more hazardous! Once more we called upon the Lord in prayer and watched as neighbours pitched up to fight a battle that was not theirs!

We watched from the sanctuary of the house, now safe since the earlier fire had been put out. All we could see was bright red marching flames, not a single firefighter could be seen in the surrounding blackness.  Slowly, while we kept praying, the fire-fighters started winning. The wind stopped blowing, for which we thanked God for His mercy, and after another three hours the fire was out. All this time we had included in our prayers, a request for rain. Winter in this part of our country is the dry season with very little rainfall at all, hence the danger of runaway fires! The men, once again, all trooped homeward, exhausted, dirty, but battle ready, knowing that if the wind picked up again, then any smouldering embers could be carried by the wind to a fresh location and they would have to begin again! Then the rain came! It bucketed down! And the men all breathed a great sigh of relief and many bowed their heads and thanked God Almighty!

If you are wondering why I told this story, it’s because it felt like a cameo of life. We all face ‘fires’ in our daily lives. Problems flare up, troubles that we may prepare for the eventuality of, yet are still caught unawares when they happen. It is in times like this that we can see God working. He equips us to deal with the problem – we create fire-breaks; we ensure that we have the necessary tools on stand-by; we have a support system and above all, we trust God to perform the miracles that we require to get through.  I learnt from this, that we cannot sit back and expect God to do everything for us. We need to take action in our own lives. He equips us with the skills and the tools that we need to get through whatever troubles we face. He surrounds us with friends and family to support us when we are struggling. He provides the miracles we need when we take action but ultimately trust Him to get us through.

When problems arise we cannot sit on our hands and expect God to do everything. He has the power, but how would we learn and grow our character’s if that was what we did? We cannot ask God to feed and clothe us if we refuse to get a job. We have to be pro-active in our lives and that means our spiritual lives as well. When we equip ourselves with God’s word, spend time in prayer daily and live our lives the way He wants us too, then we will be prepared for the attacks from Satan and life’s difficulties. We will not stumble and fall by the wayside, our faith will not falter, but we will be able to remain strong and trust fully in the protection and love of our Heavenly Father.

Judging Christians

Christianity is under attack. Of that we all have no doubt and we were told to expect it. However, I have had several discussions with non-believers only to discover that their biggest complaint about Christians is that they are very judgmental people.  My immediate reaction was to go on the defensive, but instead I chose to ask “in what way are they judgmental?”

I was told about Christian’s who have sent vitriolic messages to people, like Richard Dawkins, condemning him to hell and hoping that he gets there soon.  I have heard about Christian’s who condemn people with tattoo’s, piercings and addictions. Churches where people are not allowed in unless they follow a specific dress code or where unmarried mothers are unwelcome.

Now as much as I do not like what Richard Dawkins and those of his ilk are doing, I think it is far more important for us to pray for him than attack him! He is a man who is so far removed from God and His infinite love that his life is centered around trying to disprove the existence of God. How awful that must be to spend so much time and effort on something you do not believe in! To not know the awesome love of our Creator! If all Christians were to pray for him to have the scales removed from his eyes and see God for the loving heavenly Father that he is, imagine the impact his revelation would have on all the other unbelievers who are already hanging on his every word!!

As for those Christians who condemn unmarried mothers, addicts and people who do not behave according to their ideal morals and principles – have they forgotten who Jesus spent time with? Our precious Saviour did not spend time with the Rabbi’s and other religious people! Instead He spent time with the lost, the prostitutes, the diseased and all the other people that the religious leaders condemned. Jesus paid far too high a price for us to decide who can come to know Him.  We are not told to just minister to the poor and suffering, but also to those who are lost – spiritually lost! Spiritually destitute and spiritually suffering!

We are told not to judge, lest we also be judged. Matt 7:1-2 “Do not judge or you too will be judged. For in the same way as you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”  I therefore call for the church – the body of Christ, to stop condemning others, no matter how low in life they may have sunk, but rather to reach out a hand to them, to pull them up out of their darkness and despair and to lead them lovingly to Jesus!  Is that not, after all, what Jesus commissioned us to do? Matt 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”

One Pearl....One Plain...

Knitting is something that, I am sorry to say, I have never mastered. I just don’t have the patience and being left-handed in a predominantly right-handed society didn’t help much either (except as a useful excuse).  What I do know about knitting is that it is intricate, time consuming work. It is the process whereby a garment is made stitch by tiny stitch. So when I read Psalm 139:13 “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” I was amazed to come across the word ‘knit’.

For me this meant that God took time to make you and I. He spent time on each and every cell of our bodies. Every tiny detail that makes us an individual, He specifically designed and knitted together. Then when He had put the final hair on our heads and filled us with the talents and gifts that He specifically wanted us to have, then He sat back and smiled and waited for us to grow.

Realising this made me look at people differently. We are all drawn into the Hollywood idea of beauty and the majority of us are, as a result, never quite satisfied with the way we look. We constantly compare our appearance and our talents with others – and we always find ourselves lacking and therefore ‘not good enough.’  However, if God has created us, intricately and intimately, then surely He had a reason for making us exactly the way we are?  When God created us He had a specific plan and purpose for our lives and therefore provided us with the necessary skills and talents to complete His purpose. 

In God’s eyes we are all beautiful. We are His masterpieces. His creation.  He does not produce ‘junk’. We can only be thankful to Him for giving us life but, most importantly, He wants us to give our lives back to Him. Imagine how He rejoices when we do that! When we say ‘Thank You God, here I am, show me what You want of me. Let me live my life according to Your plan and purpose!’  Nobody spends days knitting a garment just to pack it away in a box. No! In the same way, God never created us to be ‘on display’, none of us are ‘useless’ or ‘worthless.’

Take a step back from your hang-ups and problems, think about your Creator knitting you together, to be just as you are, for Him, then give thanks to Him for making you as unique and special as you are.

Is God your 'Genie'?

 It never fails to amaze me how so many people approach God as if He were a “genie in a bottle”. They feel that if they do all of the “right stuff” then God will, naturally of course, “bless” them with health, wealth and all’s right with their world! I mean, come on!! Their entire attitude to God is one of “He owes them!”  I suspect that one of the reasons that this approach has crept into the minds of so many ‘Christians’ is because of the ‘Name it and Claim it’ preaching that gets done nowadays in order to help fill the empty seats in church buildings!

The fact that so many people have this approach to God, is, unfortunately, a by-product of our society. We are all encouraged to be strong and independent, to be a ‘self-made’ man or woman and that all the good things in life are ours to claim simply because ‘we are worth it’!  Just spend an evening watching the advertisements on television and you will see what I mean.  We are bombarded by messages that tell us that we can have silky smooth skin with blah soap, because we deserve it; insurance / investment companies taking care of our needs because we are worth it; vehicles that offer us luxury, affordability, and every little knick-knack that makes them special because we are.  So it goes on, a constant barrage of information that tells us constantly how much we deserve and how much the strong, independent, go-getter is admired for their success.

So when it comes to God, so many people find the Bible’s instructions very difficult to swallow. Obedience; submission; faithfulness; trust in an ‘unseen’ Saviour; and all the other requirements for a life fully immersed in doing the will of God. Therefore, large chunks of Jesus’ teachings are ignored and only the ‘good stuff’ is taught.  ‘Believe and you will receive.’  ‘Whatever you ask for in my name will be added to you.’  These are verses that people hang on to as they pray for a new vehicle, washing machine, a bigger house, and whatever else their hearts’ desire.  These people forget verses like ‘Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness…’

Yes, our God is a generous and loving God! He loves to provide for His children and to give them good gifts. God has on many an occasion provided a car, or other item that was beyond the means of the recipient, and He does this for His glory. But God wants our hearts. He wants our love and our trust. Yes, He does want us to give Him our troubles and trust Him to get us through them or miraculously solve them for us, but He wants us to love Him whether we live in a mansion or a shack. He wants us to trust Him when loved ones die, or when the doctor tells us we have cancer.  He wants us to be willing to walk with Him through every facet of our lives and not to just call on Him with our ‘prayer shopping list’ whenever we feel like it, and to then declare that we no longer believe just because He hasn’t provided us with the comfortable lifestyle we feel we deserve!!

So today, when you go to Him in prayer, firstly thank Him for what He did for you - the cross was not a walk in the park! Then praise Him for who He is because He deserves it! Finally, throw out your shopping list; lift up those you know of who are going through difficult times and then, thank Him for all that He has provided you with! Remember, that as He is the Creator, everything in this world belongs to Him – all you have is only on loan.    

Let GOD be your Hero!

How often have you made someone in your life your hero? Your spouse, a parent, sibling, or even your best friend? Someone whom you look up to more than anyone else for all kinds of reasons and you love to spend time with them whenever possible. You feel that when you are with them, all is right with the world even if only for a little while.  And the reason that this person is your hero is because they never put you down, they always encourage you, always make you feel as though you matter and that you actually do have something worthwhile to contribute to the world! They are there for you when your world seems bleak and depression throws its dank, heavy cloak around your shoulders, they visit you when you’re sick and always remember your birthday.

 But they’re only human and they will let you down inevitably and that’s when you get hurt and relationships get damaged.  Even if they never signed on for the role of hero in your life, you have burdened them with it and placed them on a pedestal that is not a safe place for them to be. These people, no matter who they are, your spouse, friend or family member, will suddenly find themselves at the receiving end of your pain or anger with absolutely no idea of what they have done wrong! It really is an unfair and unhealthy position in which to place anyone else – except for God.

Childlike adoration!

 Too much 'spotlight' can hide a person from you.

God will never let you down. He says that He will never leave you, or forsake you. He knows your very thoughts and every single thing about you and yet still loves you just as you are. You can go to Him with your problems day or night and it doesn’t cost a cent! You can learn from Him every day from the Book that He wrote for us, the Holy Bible, and discover new life lessons as He reveals them to you as you need them.  God will not grow tired of you, nor will He have other things on His plate that makes it impossible to get to spend time with you. He is always with you, always encouraging you and always strengthening you to run the race of life and finish it well. He wants you to shine for Him! He doesn't mind that you stutter, walk with a limp, or don't look like J-Lo. You are His precious child, He made you to be uniquely you and He is so proud of you! Make Him the Hero in your life – He will never let you down!

Then take the person you had made your hero off of the pedestal you had placed them on and let them be who they are.  Enjoy the wonderful way they treat you, but don’t see it just as ‘being nice’ on their part, consider that maybe they DO actually like you and consider you someone special in their lives as well – it could just start a revolution in how you think about yourself! 

Pray, Pray, Pray

Today I stand with head bowed down, troubles on my heart but at peace with the knowledge that I am powerless to do anything about them. I personally cannot remove the tumour on my sister's brain, I cannot make my friends in hospital heal any faster or suffer less. Nor can I heal the hearts of the hurting when they come to me for counsel. That is why my head is bowed. Not with the weight of troubles - but in prayer.
I cannot do the surgery my sister requires but I know that God has equipped others who can, and placed the right people in the right place to do exactly that. I cannot mend broken hearts and shattered dreams but I can help pick up the pieces. God has said that when we bring our prayers to Him he will listen and answer and that when two or more of us gather in His name - well then powerful things happen!
So I don't want to waste time imagining what could go wrong when I could use that time thanking God for that person and for the fact that He is taking care of them right at that very moment. As much as you or I may care for and love someone who is suffering, we must never forget that God's love for them is even greater and He has only what is best for them in His heart.  So today I bow my head, bend my knees and lift my heart to the most Almighty God, who created the Universe and yet loves tiny little us so completely.  I ask our heavenly Father to have His Hand on their lives to heal them, to make the Surgeons steady and sure in their actions and to keep these wonderful people with us here on earth for a much longer period. I thank God for the gift of life that He has given to each and every one of them and I ask Him to give them all a much longer time in which they can bring glory to Him and witness of His amazing love and supreme healing powers.
We are never helpless. We have prayer. The most amazing, awesome gift that you can imagine and yet which is so under-rated. God hears the prayers of the righteous. So when your heart is filled with the right intentions, and you present your requests before God, He will hear you and He will answer you. He may not always give you the answer you want but He will always give you the BEST answer.

A "Mighty Men" conference where men gather to worship and pray!
May God hear their voices - the voices of South Africa!

Out of the Ashes.......

"Out of the ashes, beauty will rise, and we will dance among the ruins, we will see it with our own eyes" so sings Steven Curtis Chapman in his song Beauty Will Rise. All I can do, is hope that it is true. This year has been a nasty one filled with death and illness and destruction.
I will be attending my third funeral tomorrow for the year that makes it one a month so far since the year began - I hope the trend now stops. The devastation that has wrecked Japan recently as well as Christchurch in New Zealand and the other countries that have been battered by natural disasters have numbered more in three months than what we generally get worldwide in as many years! Now the countries in northern Africa and the middle east are at the brink of civil wars, with innocent women and children getting caught up in the crazy political battles. I agree that it is time for the despots like Gaddaffi to be removed from power, such a pity though that so many innocent people have to die to achieve it.
To add to all of this there is the small day to day problems and hurts like finding out that a friend that you counted as really special, doesn't consider you important at all. Or the work you have been doing with such enthusiasm gets 'rubbished' by the people you were doing it for with one or two nasty comments.  I'm sure that you can add to the list, but I'm not  going to - it's too depressing and right now I want to put my hope in Jesus because I know that only by walking with Him, trusting Him and letting Him be my guide am I going to make sense of all the madness in this world....

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The True Friend!

John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

Friendship can be a tricky business, it’s not like marriage where you’ve made a commitment to each other and declared your love for each other both publicly and privately. No, friendship can be far more complicated and difficult than any other relationship. In fact, I’ve often wondered why Jesus used friends and not family or spouse. Perhaps it’s because the loyalty and love of a friend is a constant unknown, never declared, always presumed, always uncertain.

I know a few people (myself included) who have (or have had) a friend that they were totally committed too. If this friend was in trouble everything was dropped or put on hold while their needs were met; extra care was taken when buying them birthday gifts, but if they remembered your birthday you could see they’d just grabbed something and hoped it would be ‘okay’.  You’d make dinner arrangements and they’d casually cancel at the last minute because they were tired but if this friend called and said “lets meet for coffee”, after getting over the shock (because they were never the one to initiate anything) all other arrangements were quickly cancelled – even the urgent one that you’ve waited a month for! 

Not all friendships are like this, thank goodness! Most of them are more evenly balanced with a mutual amount of give and take and yet, these friendships are the ones that we never forget, the people that we pour our hearts into, that we want to care for, nurture, encourage, support, love. The problem with these friendships is that very often a time comes when we realize that we are putting ninety percent into the friendship, the other person is benefitting tremendously from all our attention and so, to keep us at their side, they will do their ‘share’, they will put in their ten percent just to keep us satisfied.  When the ‘ninety-percenter’ suddenly realizes what is going on, they very often confront their friend angrily and invariably walk away from the friendship feeling hurt, used and confused.

I have to ask myself ‘why?’ Why walk away from something that you have built up? Except for in a marriage, nowhere in a relationship with another person, is it demanded that what you feel for someone is what they should feel in return. If you have declared your affection for that person, have they ever reciprocated? Did you inform your friend that you had certain expectations of them in return for the things that you did for them? Under most circumstances people will respond in kind, but if they don’t after the first few occasions, you can be sure that they probably never will.  I am fully aware that in my own particular case hell would freeze over before my friend even made it into the ten percent bracket, but I am prepared to live with that as it is my choice and until such time as I feel God saying ‘enough’ then that person will continue to have my full commitment. 

I also cannot help feeling that many ‘Christians’ have a relationship with Jesus that is very much like the “ten percenter’s”.  They like to keep Him around for when they need Him in an emergency, but otherwise they never talk to Him, never visit Him at His house, never do anything that He needs done, but know that they don’t have to do anything at all, because He is the truest of all friends, because He laid down His life for us!  The other wonderful thing about Jesus is that, although so many Christians are ten percenter’s, He is always a one hundred percenter! He will never walk away from us no matter how badly we treat Him, his love remains steadfast and true. He never lets go no matter what we are going through or how we behave.

John 15v17 “ This is my command: Love each other.” 

No Limitations....

How many of us go through life saying “I can’t”.  No matter how big or small the “can’t” is, by saying this we are setting a limitation not only to what we can do with our lives but we are limiting God by stopping   Him from working through our lives.  Now I know that God is a limitless God, capable of doing anything, but God will not work through us if we are not willing to be open to taking the steps and doing what He wants us to, and that excludes the ‘cannot’s and will not’s.

We so often see stories of people who have overcome enormous obstacles of physical disabilities, serious illness, tragedy and loss to go on and become winners in life, the type of heroes that we can all look up to.  These people should make those of us with excuses for not doing things, look seriously at what we are saying – are the “cannot’s” not perhaps, in truth “will not’s”.  Is it not perhaps our own fears that are holding us back and preventing us from doing something rather than an actual lack of ability?

What would happen in our lives if we were to decide to change the way we look at doing things and say “Yes, I can”. You know, you don’t have to do everything perfectly but just doing it can make an enormous difference to how you face life, how you feel about yourself, and how you face life’s challenges when they come your way.  If you decide to throw out all your self-imposed limitations you would be amazed at how your life will change so you need to decide if you want to continue the way you are or would you like to start making a difference in the lives of some of the people around you?

When it comes to doing something that God is wanting us to do, you can be sure that He will be your strength, He will provide you with what you need to carry out His work and He will always be at your side as you step out to do His work.  All you have to do is say “Yes” not only that but “Amen” which means “So Be It”.  So do not put limitations on what God is wanting to use you for, say Yes Lord, so be it, and live a life of no limitations, filled with the joy of seeing what God does in this world as you let Him use you to do some of His work, as you step up, throw out your limitations and make the difference.

Being God’s Samaritan

Have you ever been in a situation where you have been helpless and had to be rescued by someone? Did you feel embarrassed that someone had to help you out or were you so filled with gratitude that you realized that nothing you ever did could fully repay this person for what they had done for you? So often the person who comes to our rescue in our time of need is a complete stranger. A person who, is in no way tied to us physically, emotionally or financially and thus has no 'reason' to stop and assist us. Admittedly there are people who make rescuing others their occupation and get paid to do so, but I am not talking about the firefighters, or paramedics, or police.

Our response to help another person is an indication of our true character, and if we are unable to walk on by when someone is in need then we are reflecting the heart of God. However, except for in the case of emergencies, we should not be dependent on strangers when we are in situations where we need to be helped. God has called us to live in community, not in isolation. He has made us a part of His family, we are His children. As much as we should feel honoured when someone calls on us in their hour of need, we should not feel as though we are a burden when we have to turn to someone when we too have difficulties to face. If we were to live in community as God has called us to do, there would be far less suicide, sickness, divorce and depression in this world than what there is now.

Rescuing someone is not always needed only in traumatic situations like an accident or illness. Very often a young mother may need rescuing with some baby-sitting or an elderly person may need a hand with some transport to get their shopping done. Situations are all around us but, unless we are in community with others we are not going to be able to see them and therefore not going to be able to be the hands and feet that God wants us to be.

Whenever we think of helping someone our first thoughts are always 'monetary'. Then we realize that we don't have very much of that commodity ourselves, and so we lose heart and give up. Most people would be embarrassed at a financial handout, but if you know someone is struggling, invite them around for a meal, or drop off a bag of groceries. I could type pages and pages of suggestions and still not have an ending, because there will always be a new need – but God's storehouse is always full and all He needs is willing hands to carry the 'supplies' to those who are in need. It may even be you who has a need to be met!

Recently my youngest son called me to find out if it would be okay if he brought home a kitten, if he could catch it! He had gone to the post office and found this tiny creature trying to fend for itself on a traffic island in a busy street. He was able to catch it by feeding it pieces of bread. The poor little thing was only 4-5 weeks old and in a bad way. However, she is now a lively and active part of our lives and is my son's little shadow. The funny thing is, my son has never particularly liked cats! However, he said he could not live with himself, or consider himself a human being, if he just walked off and left the kitten in the street. The changes she is making in him and in his heart are amazing!

JOY TO THE WORLD! (So then why’s everyone so miserable?)

Believe it or not it actually is that time of the year again! Christmas!! Quite honestly, I have absolutely no idea how it got here. Last time I looked, I'm sure it was July. Anyway, whether I like it or not, it's here along with all the craziness that accompanies it. Packed shopping malls, road-rage, drunk drivers, Boney-M belting out in the supermarkets, exhausted shoppers, crying children, Santa's on every corner ringing bells and encouraging you to shop in the different stores.

Yet how many of the people rushing around decorating Christmas trees and spending more money than they should on unnecessary gifts really understand what they are celebrating? Perhaps that is why so many of them are so miserable? They do not understand the great sacrifice Christ made for them. Lets' face it, would you give up paradise, come down to earth, knowing all the pain and suffering you would go through, for a bunch of mostly ungrateful people? Would you? Didn't think so! Nor do they realize the amount of love that He had for us to do that and for His father. What love, what sacrifice, what a gift!

The other day I watched a very brave man, a bell ringing Santa in a local mini-mall, telling everyone that God Loves Them!! Now that was a first! I realized then that that is exactly the message that we should all be taking to the world at this time. So when you sit down to your Christmas dinner tell everyone near to you that we celebrate this day because Jesus was born to demonstrate just how much God loves us! You never know, by spreading God's good news, you may actually put some real joy into someone's Christmas!



THE GIFT

Madness, mayhem, glitter and lies,

Roasted turkeys, gift-wrap and good-byes

Every year we do it again

And again

Round and around it never ends

We search for something

We don't know what

Unfulfilled, saddened

We try again next year

Buy bigger gifts, bigger tree

All the time - lost

Then one Christmas day

A friend hands a 'gift' to me,

A miracle occurs

My eyes are opened

My heart set free as I am shown

God loves Me!

Days in the Desert (or It’s Not About Me!)

I have been struggling lately with ideas on what to write about for this blog and felt like I was definitely having a 'desert' experience. The well of creativity had run dry, my mind was like the Israelites – wandering around in circles, and the possibility of reaching the promised land (or writing a new post) were as remote as landing on Jupiter.

So I shot off a quick "why God, why?" message, (He know's my attention span is limited so tends to tolerate short yelps and mini messages) and responded with a quick "BECAUSE IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU!" Now trust me, I didn't hear a booming voice or anything like that, just had this conviction that this was what I had been doing wrong – making the post about me! My idea, my feelings, my thoughts, when in reality it is and always has been about God.

I realized then that the reason the Israelites had to wander the desert was because they also kept making everything about them! God had performed miracles and rescued them out of slavery. It wasn't long though before they started complaining about the heat, lack of water, food choice, and just about everything else you can possibly think of! It became about them and not about the Awesome God who was present with them every day, who provided for their every need, who had saved them from centuries of slavery with miracles that the might of Pharaoh and all his magicians and armies could not stop.

Unfortunately, that is what we do in our lives as well. We lose sight of God and focus on our little day to day problems. We forget that all that we have comes from God and every breath we take is a gift from Him. If we realize that its' all about God, that we live our lives to bring glory to Him, then we will find that we are no longer wandering dry, dusty, lonely desert roads of life but adventuring through the lush lands of milk and honey that God has promised us.

Why Moses?

Having recently done a little trip through Exodus I couldn't help but ask the question "why Moses?" I mean, let's get real here. He whined, argued, made excuses and, to get his attention, God had to put on a full Hollywood production – burning bush, leprous hand, staff into snake – and even then he still had an excuse as to why he couldn't do what God asked him to! Now Aaron, on the other hand, God gives him an instruction – to go and meet Moses in the wilderness – and off he goes. Now bear in mind that Moses had been out of Egypt for about forty years, and Aaron, (still a slave at age 83 so hadn't done much in the way of travelling), had no idea where to find him; hadn't seen his younger brother for all those decades and didn't really have much to do with him at all from when they were babies! But does he argue? Nope, he just goes off and does as God asks him too! Which brings me back to the point, why Moses? Why not Aaron? Surely Aaron, who was already in Egypt, spoke well, and apparently trusted God, would have been a better candidate? I mean, Moses had grown up in the Pharoah's home, lived in the lap of luxury whilst the rest of the Israelites were slaves, then he killed someone, covered up his crime and ran away – hardly the ideal person to win the trust of the Israelites.

I must admit that looking at the two men, if I had been God, I would have chosen Aaron! Which is probably why God is God and I'm just little old, flawed me. And that's exactly what Moses was – flawed – just like you and me. Aaron also had his faults, but Moses certainly appeared to have the lead in the number of flaws he possessed. Therein, I feel, may be one of the reasons that God chose Moses. He was flawed. He had a speech impediment, self-esteem issues, a hot-temper, in fact, he was a regular guy and God was able to use him. He used him to manage one of the biggest, most important events in the history of the Israelites and yet he was just like you and me.

I cannot claim to know the mind of God, but I do feel that one of the reasons that He chose to use Moses, was so that we could realize that He can use us, with all our hang-ups and problems, to do His work. That we cannot excuse ourselves, because when He calls us, it is because He can use us just exactly as we are – flaws and all!

Your strength – or His Power?

Eph 3:16-17 'I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources, He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit.'

Being strong, independent, self-sufficient, are all characteristics that present day society applauds. Successful business people are lauded for being "self-made" men and women. The focus is always on financial success or super-stardom, never on the person's true character or moral values. In fact, if they do tend to be people with questionable morals and the personality of a villain, it is viewed with amusement or admiration. How the person achieved their success is also very often overlooked, particularly if their methods were unscrupulous and dishonest.

So why do we all strive to be what society wants us to be? God has created us with limitations and weaknesses for a reason. It is through our limitations, our inability to be "superman" that God's amazing power will shine through. This will give Him the glory, and not us. People will realize that if God can use someone as limited as we are, then He can use them to. Through our limitations we learn to depend on God and trust Him for the things that we, on our own, cannot do. This strengthens our love for Him and deepens our relationship with Him.

Consider how puny man is up against the forces of Nature – who can deflect a tornado, stop an earthquake or put out the fires of a volcano? Not one of us, and yet, God created all of these things! Shouldn't the very power and wonder of the world around us make us realize that He is far more powerful than us, but that since He loves us so completely, we can trust Him to give us His strength in troubled times.