He stills loves.[Jeremiah 31v3 ]

Verse 3 of Psalm 23, reads ,He restoreth my soul,there are two ways of looking at this, one the backslider, the person who has wandered away from their Lord.There are different reasons why people backslide, but whatever the reason, the important thing is to realize the fact that we are backsliden. We may have been hurt by a Christian ,or hurt by our involvment in a local church, or the worries of life,by difficulties in our marriage,or we may have yielded to some temptation,we may have turned our eyes from looking on Christ. Whatever the reason we are away from God, we need to be restored, for that to happen we need to bring everything to our Lord, be honest ,be willing, repent. William Cowper wrote,/What peaceful hours I once enjoyed. how sweet their memory still, But they have left an aching void the world can never fill/. Only the good shepherd can meet the deepest need of our hearts,He loves us even when we are away from Him, and longs to retore us.[ Dear Lord have mercy upon us when we stray from You, and in your great love restore us to Yourself Amen ]

Rest for saints [ Mark 6 v30-31]

Verse 2 of Psalm 23 .reminds us of how our good Shepherd knows that we need to rest,so many people are driven, busy, busy ,busy. Now of course it is good to be busy, but we do need to rest,both physically and spiritually,one great preacher said,that he did not tire of the work of God , but he did become tired in it.We read in Genesis 2 how God rested[not that He was tired] but it emphasizes the fact that we need to rest,God is not a hard taskmaster, He does not drive His sheep into the ground.In Mark 6v31, we have our Saviour speaking to His disciples, they are so busy and didnt have time to eat,[ I hear that often in my work],so Jesus says,/ Lets go off to a quite place and rest a while/. So today rest, dont feel guilty, relax, read a book, sit and listen to nice music, take a walk, and in it all, enjoy the the presence of your good Shepherd.[ Dear Lord we thank You that You are not a hard taskmaster,You do not drive us, but lead us gently beside the still waters. Amen ]

Rest for sinners[ Matthew 11v28]

We continue to look at Psalm 23, verse 2 reads,He maketh me to lie down in green pastures[av],the NLT version puts it ,He lets me rest in green pastures. We have in these words the idea of resting,very appropriate words for all of us, I am sure the universal cry of mankind is ,I am tired. There is a weariness in life, not just phyisical, but emotional, and spiritual, the unsaved are weary, with the burdens of life, and of sin, and it is the good shepherd , Jesus who says,/Come to Me , all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest/[Matthew 11v28].William C Dix wrote,/ Come unto Me, ye weary, And I will give you rest. O blessed voice of Jesus . Which comes to hearts oppressed. It tells of benediction, Of pardon, grace and peace, Of joy that has no ending, Of love which cannot cease./[ Dear Lord Jesus we thank You that there is a place called Calvary were we can lay the burden of sin down. Amen]

I shall not want.[ Romans 8 v32 ]

I shall not want, so declares the Psalmist[23v1],the NLT , puts it/I have all I need/, whatever way it is put. it is a declaration that the Lord will , and has met all his needs.George Muller is one of my heroes of faith, a man who proved God continually, he lived in the 19th centuary, he was led to start an orphanage. The question is where would the money come from? the answer was, from the Lord, George never made the needs of the orphanage known, he prayed and he prayed, and he prayed, and God supplied. It had its times of testings, but the work continued to increase, until there were 5 homes. In 1859 he wrote in his diary,/I cannot tell you how happy this service makes me. Instead of being the anxious, careworn man many persons think me to be, I have no anxieties and no cares at all.Faith in God leads me to roll all my burdens upon Him....In every way I find God is my helper, even as I trust in Him, and pray to Him in childlike faith , about everything./ [Dear God and Father help us to see that You who spared not Your dear Son Jesus, delivering Him up for us all, how with Him you shall give us all things that we need. Amen ]

My shepherd [Psalm 23 ]

One of my favorite books in the Bible is the book of Psalms , and one of my favourite Psalms is that old favourite Psalm 23. I have read it many times , and preached on it often. The whole bases of the Psalm is about relationship, David the author knows the Lord personally, he starts by saying the Lord is my shepherd. I often become concerned when people say, I am a , RC/ Cof E/ Baptist, and so on,because that often means very little, and avoids the fact that we need to know the Lord personally, and of course I mean the Lord Jesus. How do get to know the Lord personally?. Well it all starts when we see our need ,that we are lost,that we are sinners,and that we need Jesus to be our Saviour,having seen this we ask Him to save us, and when we do He becomes our Saviour, and then we can say with confidence, the Lord is my shepherd. [Dear Lord Jesus thank You that we can know You personally, when we know You as Saviour Amen ]

Dont anticipate [Ezra 8 v21-23 ]

I dont know if you are like me , you think about certain situations and you anticipate what may or may not happen, last week I was faced with a certain situation, and my mind ran amok.I must confess I imagined the worst, but it didnt happen, God had done His best to reassure me, but I still imagined the worst. Our Saviour very clearly taught , that we are not to live with worry,[Matthew 6 v34 ]but we do, what if I loose my job?, what if I become unwell?, what if?,our minds often are filled with, What if?. One of the things we must do is to train ourselves to not anticipate the worst, oh yes ,we will know difficulties, but we may not, but whatever we encounter the Lord is with us, to overrule and to undertake.Alfred Smith wrote the following,/ I do not know what lies ahead, the way I cannot see, yet,One stands near to be my guide, He,ll show the way to me. I know who holds the future, and He,ll guide me with His hand, with God things dont just happen, everything by Him is planned. So as I face tomorrow, with its problems large and small, I trust the God of miracles, give to Him my all./[Dear God forgive us for worrying,help us to be more childlike in our relationship with You, and have an attitude of simple trust, in Jesus name Amen ]

His way is best. [Psalm 18v30 av ]

Jesus said to Peter,/ You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from Gods.[Matthew 16 v23]/. Peter had challenged Jesus when He had told His disciples ,that He was going to suffer and die, and rise again, Peter thought this was wrong. Peter had a habit of thinking He knew best, knew better than Jesus, but he didnt, Jesus knew what was best, He always knows whats best, like Peter we may think we know best, but we dont. Like Peter our judgement is often clouded, we look on the immediate, but Jesus sees all things clearly, and sees the whole story, like He said to Peter, we see things from purely from a human point of view, not from Gods.On another occasion our Saviour said to Peter,/ you dont understand now what I am doing, but someday you will,[John 13 v7 ]/The Psalmist said,/ as for God His way is perfect [18 v30]/, from our point of view it may not appear that way , but it is, consider if Jesus had listened to Peter, and rejected the way of the cross, we would all still be lost, still in our sin, without God and without hope.[ Dear God we ask that You would help us to trust You in all things, to trully believe that Your way is best, in Jesus name Amen ]

Dont give up. [ Matthew 7v 7-8 ]

In Matthew 15v 21-28, we read of a woman, a non-Jew who had a daughter ,possessed by a demon, she believed that Jesus could meet the need. It is obvious that this woman was desperate, she does not recieve much encouragement from the disciples and even from Jesus. Many of us would have given up, and gone home, and would have thought , well we have just got to live with the situation,so much for Christianty, they are all hypocrites and as for that person Jesus, He didnt help. The thing is she didnt give up and go home, she believed with all her heart that Jesus could meet the need, nothing was going to put her of, and Jesus responded to her faith, and healed her daughter. Let me ask you, what is your need? salvation, that must always be first,healing , deliverance. provision, a way forward, are you going to be put of by Christians, or even it seems by a Jesus who appears to be ignoring your cry for help. Learn from this woman, her persistant faith paid of, she kept asking,seeking,knocking, and Jesus responded ,and answered her prayer.[Dear Lord Jesus we praise You that You can meet our needs, no matter how great they are, help us not to be put of, by others, or even when it seems You are ignoring our prayers. Amen ]

The sin virus [Romans 3 v23 ]

Unexpectantly my pc became unwell and I had to take it to a pc doctor, hopefully it has recovered, it had become infected with viruses.There are people out there who for whatever reason , take pleasure in destroying peoples web sites.Lets face it mankind,has likewise been infected, by a virus called sin, it manifests itself in many ways, in gross wrongs, in subtle ways, and will always be there.When my computor became infected , I was told by my system, in big words on my screen, so it is that the word of God clearly tells us, that we are sinners. The only cure for sin is the gospel, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, there is no other cure no other answer,ignor it , reject it and there will be a terrible price to pay.Take note of these very serious words in Romans 2 v5-6. /Because you are stubborn and refuse to turn from your sin, you are storing up terrible punishment for yourself. For a day of anger is coming, when Gods righteous judgement will be revealed/.[ Dear God we thank You that there is a place of forgivness ,that there is one who died for sinners, even Jesus. Amen ]

Pray [ 1 Timothy 2 v1]

I was out yesterday about to go into work, and a person hailed me,he asked was I a priest, I said I wasnt, I wear a small cross around my neck. I could see that he had a serious drink problem , he was also walking with the aid of a walking frame. He said he had a drink problem , he was very religious, could not read or write,I spoke to him about the Saviour, and he asked me to pray for him, so out in the car park he bowed his head, I put my hand upon his head and prayed , a simple short prayer, he then went on his way. Today you and I will meet different people, we may not know what difficulties or problems they have, we may not be able to pray with them, but we can pray for them.[ Dear God help us to be a praying people,to pray for our neighbours, family ,friends,strangers, in Jesus name Amen ]

A promise [ Psalm 84 ]

A promise came to mind, from my favourite book the Psalms, here it is,/For the Lord God is a sun and shield, the Lord will grace and glory, no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly.[ Psalm 84v11] We note a number of things [1]What the Lord is to His children. [2] What the Lord will do. He is a sun, when we walk with God we will not be in the dark ,[cp John 8 v12]. He is a shield, He will protect us, [cp Psalm 121]. Next what He will do,if we walk uprightly, [remember walking uprightly, it is very important.],/ God will give unto us grace and glory, and no good thing will He withhold from us.[ Dear God we ask that You will keep us walking in the light, that You will protect us,and keep us from all that would do us harm,that You help us to watch our walk, and that You would bless us with all that we need, in Jesus name Amen ]

Mental illness. [Psalm 23 ]

I must confess I sat up and watched the snooker last night, which I really enjoyed, but I suppose I will be tired today. As a young man I used to play snooker , so I know just how hard it is to play, and it makes one appreciate the skill those young men displayed in the final of the Masters. Two shots by R O Sullivan really stood out, a shot into the side pocket, and a snooker within the lip of a pocket. It is interesting to note that R O Sullivan suffers from mental health problems, and yet there he is one of the best players in the world. Mental illness gets a very bad press, yet it is but an illness, not a nice illness for often it does not go away, so thats why I suppose I admire people like R O Sullivan, people who inspite of their problems manage to cope, and even be successful. [ Dear God we pray for all who suffer from mental illness, that You would help them, to not only live a normal life but also to excel in Jesus name Amen ]

I had a dream. [ Daniel 6 ]

Last night I had a dream, I seem to be dreaming more , it must be my age[Acts2v17], in my dream there was a lion, I was not afraid, I even took up a pitch fork to defend myself,but the lion did not attack me.Lions are powerful creatures, this became clear to me last year when we visited a zoo, we came to the lion inclosure, we were very near them,and for once they were not docile, the male lions were fighting over a female. The whole thing was very impressive, their size, and power, made one realize how hard it would be to defend oneself even with a pitch fork. The word of God tells us that the devil is like a roaring lion that is on the prowl seeking someone to devour, but it also tells us, that we are not to run away[1 Peter 5v8-9]My study Bible says,/ Keep your eyes on Christ, and resist the devil. Then says James, he will flee from you. [James 4v7]/[ Dear God and Father,as we are faced with the enemy of our souls, help us by Your grace to not run away, but to resist Him, in Jesus name Amen ]

Man flu [John 14 v1-6]

I have man flu, my nose is running, will I survive? of course I will, it is only a cold, the sun shall shine again, my cold will go. One day all sickness will be no more, no more cancers, no more death, no more earthquakes, no more cheating,lying, hating hurting, one day.[Revelation21v1-4] All these things will be gone forever, what a day that will be for the child of God, when they will be changed,[ 1 Corinthians15].As my study Bible says,/ In this present time, we all face limitations. Some have physical , mental or emotional disabilities. Some are blind...some may be deaf, some may be lame./Let us all look up for our redemption draweth nigh, when all will be changed, a little chorus comes to mind,/ It will be worth it all when we see Jesus, lifes trials will seem so small When we Christ. One glimpse of His dear face. All sorrow will e-rase, So bravely run the race, Till we see Christ.[ Dear Father grant us grace to bravely run the race till we see Jesus our Saviour Your Son ,Amen ]

Oh come all ye faithful [Matthew 25 v 14-30 ]

The importance of faithfulness cannot be exaggerated in the Christian life, God wants us to reflect His faithfulness, He is a faithful creator,He is a faithful Father to His children.In John 6v66,we read how,/ many of His disciples turned away and deserted Him/, Jesus had told them things they could not understand,so they left of following Him. He then turned to the twelve and asked,/ Are you also going to leave?/,they didnt ,they continued on, but later on they did forsake Him in the garden [ Mark 14v50 ] .There are many things than can cause us to leave of following Christ, to forsake Him,or to forsake our appointed task.The challenge I would bring to all of us is to be faithful to our Saviour, that in that coming day we will hear ,/ well done , My good and faithful servant,/[Matthew 25v21][ Dear Saviour help us to be faithful to You in all things Amen ]

Dont be fooled. [Romans 3 v 9ff]

I read this morning about a taxi driver who returned 13.000 dollars to a lady who had absentmindedly left it in his cab. My initial thought was good for him ,he didnt even want a reward, but then I had a thought if sin had not entered the human race, this would be the norm. I dont want to take away from what that man done, but we need to be reminded of a number of things. For all have sinned [Romans 3 v23],even the most honest person is a sinner, there are no perfect people,we all come short of the glory of God. The reason Christ came was because of your sin and mine, let us not be fooled in thinking less of our condition,than the Bible teaches, and let us if we are not saved, trust in Jesus for the forgivness of our sins. If we have done this ,then let us raise our voice in thankfulness to God , for His great mercy. [ Thank You Lord for saving my soul. Thank You Lord for making me whole. Thank You Lord for giving to me , Thy great salvation so rich and free, in Jesus name Amen ]

Secure [1 Peter 5 v7 ]

Life is very uncertain, here today gone in the afternoon, I dont want to depress you or myself, but it is very important to remind ourselves, that we are secure in our God, whatever happens.If you are feeling insecure , get your Bible out, and read Psalm 23/27/46/121/, Matthew 6 v25-34/Romans 8 v 28[av],this is the word of God to you today.So often in my Christian life ,in moments of insecurity , God has spoken,when the shelves were bare, and the cupboard was empty, and you have children to feed, and He has assured me through His word that He would supply and He did. When unemployment was looming up , God has spoken and acted , a door has opened, and so I could go on, I am just simply reminding all of us , that our security, is in our God and Saviour.[Dear God we thank You that we are secure in You, in Jesus name Amen ]

It is alright to laugh.[Galations5 v22-23 ]

There is so much in the world that is sad, so many serious issues,sickness, poverty,injustice, hell, and so the list goes on, and yet God has also given us the gift of laughter, the capacity to enjoy a good book, a good movie, a lovely painting, a nice meal. The question is ,do we have to feel guilty if we laugh,and enjoy ourselves ?,we are told there is a time to cry, but there is also a time to laugh, there is a time to grieve, but also a time to dance.[Ecclesiasties 3v4] I was at a church on Sunday and the minister who is a godly man, said something that caused me to laugh, an elderly Christian took offence and walked out, he felt that what the minister said was inappropriate. I dont know if it was inappropriate, all I know is it made me laugh, and who knows mybe it made the Lord smile.[ Dear Lord we ask that you would help us to have a balance in our lives,to laugh as well as to cry, to endure but also to enjoy life, Amen ]

Circumstances. [ Romans8 v 28-39]

In this world there are many who feel they are victims of circumstances, sometimes I feel a bit like that, things happen in our lives and we feel trapped. I was thinking that way this morning, when my mind was directed by the Holy Spirit , to Joseph [ Genesis 37-50]. Here was a man who experienced so many hurtful things, hated by his brothers, think about it, how would feel if your family hated you?. The hatred was so severe that they wanted to kill him,instead they sold him into slavery, as a slave he prospered, but then he was charged wrongly with attempted rape, he was then put into prison. Was he a victim of circumstances? no ,for God was with him,permitting it to happen ,and working it all out for his good and even for the good of his brothers who hated him. If God is with us we are not victims of circumstances, He is in control, yes even of those painful things, we are experiencing.It may not seem that way but it is, your God is in control, He has not failed you, nor forsaken you, but is with you every step of the way.so let us all hold on to the truth of Romans 8 v28[av ] [Dear God we bring all our circumstances to You, those things that have happened, and are happening to us, we ask for grace, peace,and faith in Jesus name Amen ]

The way forward. [2 Corinthians 12 v9 ]

We all have fears,some are temporary others are permanent, and often it is the permanent fears that can cause us the most bother, because they affect our lives and of those around us. The question is what can we do to overcome our fears?,and we do need to overcome them, if we dont we will be ruled by them and they will increase their hold on us, and affect our lives dramatically. Joyce Meyer was abused as a child and so she knows about fear in the area of the physical, yet it appears she has a happy marriage. Joyce wrote a book with this theme ,/Do it afraid/. I believe there is a truth in this that we need to grasp, our fears dont go away automatically, we have to face them ,bear with them and move forward at all times relying on the grace of God, we may never fully lose our fear but we can overcome them.I am reminded of the movie the Great escape, one of those tunnelling had a fear of being closed in,it was overwhelming, but if he was going to escape to freedom, he had go down that tunnel, and he did.[ Dear God help us to face our fears, to not give into them, help us by Your grace to overcome them, in Jesus name. Amen ]

Froth and bubble [ Matthew 7 v24-27]

Continually our Saviour reminds us of what is really important, we so easily fix our eyes on the froth and bubble of life, build our hopes and aspirations on the trivial. So often we build our lives like sandcastles, and we are surprised when the tide of life washes it away, and we are left with nothing. Our Saviour said we need to build our lives on a good foundation, I read this in the Message,[Jesus said] /These words I speak to your life are not incidental additions to your life,homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words , words to build into your life on.[ Matthew 7v24ff] , Previous to this we read,/ Dont be impressed with charisma, look for character [v15ff].The challenge of the Christian life is great, it demands a godly reality and a godly character, in these lives of ours, froth and bubble will not do.[ Dear Saviour have mercy upon us and grant that we will build our lives on on You and Your word, and not on froth and bubble .Amen]

A kiss[ 1 Corinthians 13]

I was not happy with her, who must be obeyed and I told her, yes we are not the perfect couple, we do have disagreements, I suppose it is because we are not perfect individuals, we are a work in progress. So I went to bed but before I went to sleep I read a new devotional I had just bought, and I read the following,/Agree with one another, live in peace, and peace will be with you[2 Corinthians13v11] The writer Jonathan Edwards said this,/it is of vast importance that you should avoid contention. A contentious people will be a miserable people/. I felt challenged so I without saying anything give my wife a kiss on her forehead,we are at peace now. [ Dear God help us to at all times to be a peace maker,help us to live in peace and avoid contention,in Jesus name Amen]

A minefield.[ 1 Thessalonians5v23-24]

Two things happened yesterday, that caught me unawares, they were a bit upsetting ,when you are dealing with people , anything can happen, be it family, friends, neighbours or whoever.Where you have people you will always have potential problems, and you and I may be the cause of the problem.we may not be , but here is the challenge what would Jesus have us do ?. There are different things we can do, be forgiving, ask for forgiveness,be humble, pray about it, we need daily wisdom, ask for it, we need grace, ask for it. In the end there may not be much we can do, but just commit things to God,and leave it with Him .[ Lord sometimes life appears to be a minefield, so this day help us to walk with humility ,wisdom and love . Amen ]

Be careful [John 14 v6 ]

I mentioned recently that I saw the movie Avatar and I felt a bit of unease with it, so it was interesting when I saw a headline in the Daily Mail,/ A word on Avatars/. Seemingly the word Avatar originates out of Hindu tradition ,referring to the descent of the god Vishnu descending in human or animal form to restore righteousness on earth. There are ten Avatars , the most famous is Krisna,so read the letter to the Mail. I know we can see spiritual truths,in so much, but we must do so with much caution, there is no gospel according to Avatar. The movie I stress is there baslcally to entertain, not to promote the gospel or any other religion, If we want truth then we must turn to Gods word, and to Jesus who alone is the truth, so be careful in how you spiritualize things. [ Dear God in a world of much confusion , help us to judge all things according to Your word, and Your Son Jesus , Amen ]

Generous [ Matthew 5 13- 16 ]

I read these words in the Message, from Matthew 5,/Be generous with your lives/,, they bring a challenge first of all to be generous. Our Lord was generous ,when He performed the miracle of the loaves and the fishes [John 6]everyone was fed ,everyone,the good the bad ,everyone. Generous, there seems to me,that there is contradiction, in a Christian who is mean, the challenge is to be generous, but it goes further than that, it says be generous with our lives,this goes further than financial giving, a friend of mine works in a residential home ,she is past retirement age, yet she works long hours in caring for others. Being generous with our lives brings a big challenge,but as we take the challenge up, we are following in the footsteps of Him who laid down His life for us. [ Dear God we give You thanks for Your generosity towards us , in giving Jesus , and all that that means, and also You generosity to us in a multitude of ways each day , help us to be generous .Amen]

Disruption [Romans 8 v28 ]

A group of us went to take a service at a local hospice, only to find it was not possible, I was going to speak and sing, so a member of our group suggested that we pray for the patients in the hospice, this we did. Often as Robert Burns wrote,/The best laid schemes of mice and men, often go astray/,yes we make our plans, but none of us can be certain that everything will go as planned. So many people never invite God into their plans, yes even Christians, and James says such an attitude is evil [ 4v16]. Today let us acknowledge God in all our ways, and not after the event,and if disruptions come ,do what my friend suggested ,pray , bring God into the situation, Im sure what the hospice needed in the providence of God at that time was our prayers, not my preaching.[ Dear God we thank you for your over-ruling providence in all our lives, help us to be at peace when our plans are disrupted, and to pray, in Jesus name Amen ]

Simple faith [ Hebrews 11]

A friend bought me a book for Christmas,written by Professor Edgar Andrews called,/ Who made God?/, I am enjoying reading it, I am at page 69, so I cannot give a full accessment of it. The author appears to be challenging those people who say science proves there is no God,and the wider argument that is no God. Going back to my Bible college days I remember being told we could not prove that there is a God,for me personally as the apostle Paul points out, Gods creation,is an evidence,[ Romans 1v20]. It is right that the no goders are challenged,but in the end for us Christians it is simply a matter of faith, Hebrews 11v3, reads,/ By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at Gods command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen/, also v6 reads,/Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists/.[ Dear God we come to You in simple faith, we surrender our intellect to You, help us by Your grace to not give up our faith, but to trust in You with all our hearts, in Jesus name, Amen ]

Its only make believe.[ Proverbs 14v12. av]

I saw the new movie Avatar yesterday, it is a wonderfully made movie, but I got the impression the writer , producer was trying to get over some sort of message, I felt a bit of unease in my spirit, as I watched it. Still it is only a movie , its only make believe,it is only there to entertain, it is the real world that we live in that should concern us, a world that covers up so much, a world that loves darkness rather than light. A world that is full of idols, a world that is at odds with their creator, a world that wants to do it their way,a way that leads only to death.[ Proverbs 14v12] There is only one way that leads to life, faith in Him who is the life , even Jesus [John 14 v6 ], this is not make believe, thought up by some writer, it is Gods way, to ignor it, or reject it, has very serious consequences, to embrace it, takes us out of the world of make believe and into a world of reality. [Dear God we so often want to escape reality, and in so doing we accept the make believe things, help us to see ,open our eyes and enable us to open our hearts to Him ,who is the way the truth and the life, even Jesus Your son Amen ]

Onward ever onward, and upward.[Hebrews 11v13-16]

Tennyson wrote ,/Ring out the old, ring in the new/,whatever the new may hold for any of us it is vital that we keep our eyes on our ultimate goal. Someone once wrote of roads that went nowhere, we are not on a road that is going nowhere , we have a destination, our heavenly homeland. We are but strangers and pilgrims here, this world is not our home, we must not dwell on the past, or even the present, but the road that lies ahead, and eternal glory. We must,/strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.And [let us] run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith/[ Hebrews 12v1-2 ].[ Dear God help us to keep our eyes on Jesus as we head towards heaven and home. Amen ]