Grace [ Acts 20 v24 ]

I woke this morning thinking of the words of a song,/Only by grace can we enter, only by grace can we stand ,not by our human endeavour . But by the blood of the Lamb/. What wonderful words they are, because of the wonderful truth they express,the wonderful reassuring truth, that we are accepted by the grace of God, when we succeed, or when we fail.When God saves us it is by the grace of God,things dont change,we have been saved ,are being saved ,will be saved by the grace of God. It is grace all the way, every day ,every week ,every year, it never changes,never,if we are not a Christian we need to realize that we need to be saved by the grace of God[ cp Ephesians 2 v8-9 ].If we are Christians ,we will hear our Saviours well done in a coming day for works,and service, even though they are imperfect, yes we will recieve a reward, from the God of all grace. Let me finish with these words,from that song,/Lord if You mark our transgressions,Who would stand?. Thanks to Your grace, we are cleansed by the blood of the Lamb/[ Dear God thank You for Your saving grace, Your keeping grace, Your enabling grace, in Jesus name Amen ]

Such a little sin.[ Romans 1v 18 ]

In Numbers 15 v32-36 ,we have an incident of a man who was found gathering sticks on the Jewish Sabbath, and God commanded him to be stoned to death. I wrote this in my Bible,/ Such a little sin/,it appears trivial to us ,that is our first reaction, but what he did was not a trival thing.There is a branch of the Christian church that have two types of sin,mortal and venial,one is serious ,the other not so serious,and of course that is the way many of us think. But this is not how a holy God sees sin, to Him all sin is equally evil, in Romans 1 v18, we read,/For the wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness,and unrighteousness. John Owen wrote ,/We must hate all sin, as sin/. When it come to sin we must not make human judgements, we must rest on what is revealed in Gods word, which clearly teaches that all have not only sinned,[Romans 3v 23 ],but that all sin will ,and must be judged by a holy God. I stress the word all again,and that there is coming a day in which God will judge all sin, and that judgement will be an eternal Judgement.[Revelation 14 v11]. God in love and mercy has provided a way to escape such a fate ,through His son Jesus, through His death on the cross, all sin can be forgiven,and we will never be judged, when we accept Him as our saviour. [Holy God help me to see the seriousness of all sin, and its consequences,and to trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of all my sins, Amen ]

Nothing is wasted. [ 2 Corinthians 1 v 3-11 ]

When our Lord performed the miracle of feeding the 5.000 plus, he told his disciples to gather up the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted. Let us consider those words, of our Lord,/nothing is wasted/,and apply it into our lives, into the painful experiences. I purchased a book recently, by a puritan,John Flavel. [dont listen to those people who would despise the puritans, they were godly people, who have left us a wonderful legacy in their writings] Now John Flavel had a painful life, as one wrote of him, he lived a life acquainted with grief,three of his wives died, he was survived by his fourth wife, Dorothy,his parents died in tragic circumstances, he experienced the death of a child.How can one cope with such pain? bitterness,resentment, blame God,if we know of such people ,pray for them, that they may arise above their sorrow by the grace of God.Well J Flavel did ,through his writing, one of the books that he wrote is called , /Facing Grief/ first published in 1674. It was written to help those who are grieving, and it has instructed, and comforted many dear saints of God.If are called to experience trials, remember nothing is wasted by our sovereign Lord,try not to waste this experience, but use it to help others, as John Flavel did. [Dear Lord help me see that, nothing is wasted by You, even the painful experiences,help me to use the comfort You gave me, to comfort and help others, Amen]

An earthquake [ Acts 16 ]

It is just recently that I have become aware that New Zealand is prone to earthquakes,many people who were planning to live there ,will be having second thoughts. There is an account of an earthquake ,in the Bible, we read of it in Acts 16. Two of Gods servants, Paul and Silas, had been thrown into prison,after being whipped, and while in prison these two men started to sing and praise God. Then God sent an earthquake, all the prisoners chains fell of and the doors of the prison were opened. Now the man in charge of the prison,thought that all the prisoners had escaped,which meant that he would not only loose his job, but his life,so he decided to end it all, by killing himself. Then he heard a voice cry out ,do thyself no harm, for we all here,it was Paul, the jailer went into them ,fell down before Paul and Silas, and asked, what must I do to be saved?, and he was told , believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved,and he did just that.It took an earthquake to bring that man to the Lord Jesus, whats it going to take for you, before you trust Jesus to be your saviour?. [Dear God help me , to believe on the Lord Jesus Your son,to be my saviour, Amen ]

Am I a Christian?. [ John 3 v 1-16 ]

I came into contact with a person yesterday, and I asked him , was he a Christian?, he said he was, that he was a Catholic, now he may be a Christian,but he may not be,the lable we stick on ourselves does not really mean very much in Gods eyes. So let me ask the question to you ,are you a Christian?, not that you are a Catholic or a Baptist, or C of E,or a Methodist, oh yes there are many lables. The people our Saviour dealt with took great pride in their lable,that of being a Jew,of being an Israelite, a child of Abraham, yet they were not children of God, they showed this when they crucified the Son of God ,Jesus. [cp-John 8 v44]. One night a very religious person visited Jesus, surely he of all people was a true child of God, but no ,Jesus told him he needed to be born again[ John 3 v1-7]. No matter how religious we may be, no matter what religious lable we wear, it counts for nothing if we are not born again.In John 1 v12-13 we read,/But as many as recieved Him [Jesus ], to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name,who were born ,not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God./[ Dear God grant me salvation, through Jesus Your Son .Amen ]

The work of patience. [ Romans 5 v 4-5 tm]

I want to stress something that we need to be reminded of continually,patience, yesterday I asked someone ,what is God teaching me in a certain situation, she replied patience. Every day there are times when we are faced with frustration situations, if one is a driver,you are faced with, a lot of situations which can cause one to be impatient, the traffic lights, the learner drivers, the road works, the slow coaches. If you are a teacher,now there is a calling ,that needs a lot of patience,or if you work with difficult people. Then there is being a parent, my what patience one needs for that task,those little dears, can drive one to distraction. All these and many , many ,more situations, can really test us, causing us to loose it, which does not really help. So I hope you agree with me as regards ,to the need of having patience.The apostle Paul ,who had more than his share of troubles to cope with, wrote the following, /We know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue , keeping us alert for whatever God will do next./[Romans 5 v4-5 tm] [Dear God help me to be patient, and in that patience, work your good will out in my life , in Jesus name. Amen ]

A car crash. [Romans 8 v28 ]

Yesterday I stressed the important truth that God is sovereign, that He is in control of events,well what do you think happened. I got ready for work, set out in my car, travelled about 200yds and had an accident, a young lad who has a reputation for speeding overtook some park cars on the bend, and crashed into me. Is God still sovereign?, of course He is , will it all work out for my good? ,of course it will, God is looking after His children. Also let us consider the mercies in my accident, no phyisical harm,I am insured, I was near home, the young lad was insured.I have means to hire a car today to go to work, this will pass,God will sort it all out, for He is looking after me. If you are faced with a problem today, remember God is sovereign,and is working all things for your good,and in your difficulties look for the mercies, from a merciful God. [Dear God and Father we thank You that You are watching over us, even when the unexpected happens, like a parking ticket, a job loss, a car accident,an illness, or whatever, thank You in Jesus name Amen ]

He is in control. [ Revelation 19v6 av ]

Yesterday I was talking to another senior citizen about the changes that have taken place in our lifetime, many have been dramatic, politically, socially etc. Life by its very nature is one of change, and often we cannot do anything about the changes, king Canute who was a powerful king, he ruled Denmark,England, and Norway.He is best remembered as the king who is thought to have foolishly tried to stop the tide coming in,when in fact he was illustrating to his followers that powerful though he was,his power was limited.We cannot control the tide of change,that takes place in this world,and in our personal lives, but we can trust in one who is in control, our Sovereign God.Mens hearts may fail them for fear, but the person of faith,looks up beyond the the things of time, to the God who moves in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform, the one whose purposes cannot be thwarted,yes who is in control of the tide of life and especially in the lives of His children [Roman 8 v28 ] [ Dear God in the midst of this changing world, we rest in You, our sovereign God ,in Jesus name . Amen ]

Ravish our hearts.[ Song of Solomon 5 v16 av ]

It is my anniversary,yes my wife did have to remind me yesterday, at least I have an excuse ,I am a senior citizen, still an anniversary is important, a time to reflect. We take so much for granted, marriage can be like that, the ironing is always done, we men take a lot for granted, but having said that ,hopefully we still love our wives . The christian life is seen as a marriage [Revelation 21 v2 ], and it is in the Song of Solomon that we have a picture ,of the most personal kind ,shown. Love , what is a marriage without love?, a dry husk, an empty show,when it should be so much more. Likewise our marriage to Christ can be one of dryness,no heart emotion, when our dear Saviour met with Peter [John 21] , He asked him three times, the same question, do you love Me Peter?,how many times would He have to ask this question to us ,before He recieved an honest answer?. Love your wife/husband ,as Christ loved the church, but love Him, because He first loved you,like the hymn wrote, /My Jesus I love, I know that Thou art mine, for Thee all the pleasures of sin I resign/.[ My Jesus ,ravish our hearts, do what it takes , to make us wholly yours, Amen ] [ That term ravish is from a poem by John Donne]

The promise keeper. [ Joshua 21 v45 ]

As I begin to write my blog ,I am listening to a song ,and I here the following words,/ In this world of pain and sorrow, where a promise will not hold true/.That sad to say ,is so true, it need not be ,but it is,so many feel let down by their wives or their husbands,many are looking at their wedding photos, remembering that day they made vows,and all they are left with are broken promises.Hitler signed a document that promised peace, but had no intention of keeping his promise,politicians are good at this, breaking their promises. But I have a God who is so different, He always keeps His word, always, without fail, what He says He does, He promises to save all who call on Him ,He promises to forgive every sin no matter how bad it is, He promises eternal life to a world that is dying, He will fulfill all His promises to the sinner and to the saint. All these promises come through Jesus, through Him and Him alone, He can be totally relied on to keep every promise. [Dear Lord we reach out to You, for You are the one who can be totally relied on to keep Your promises, Amen]

Abramovich the billionaire[ Luke 12 v 15-21 ]

It is reported that the owner of Chelsea football club is worth more than 11 billion pounds, how much more, one is not sure, we live in the age of billionaires, not millionaires.Im sure many people envy them, as a Christian I have to remind myself ,that my security is in God, I dont know if I have reached the point of being content in want or in plenty[Philippians 4 v11-12 ], I have know the difficult times , and now I am experiencing the not so difficult, I am content with my lot. The whole subject of money, is challenging,we are told that we are the loosers in a big way, if we were to gain the whole world, and yet loose our souls [Matthew 16v26 ]. We are warned of the deceitfulness of riches [Matthew 13 v22 ], and the uncertainty of riches [1 Timothy 6v17],and the love of money being the root of all evil, and what it can do to us.[ 1 Timothy 6 v10] Let us not envy anyone for their material wealth, and let us set our affections on things above, not on things on the earth [ Colossians 3 v2 ][ Dear God help us not to make money an idol, help us not to make it our security,help us not to love it, in Jesus name Amen ]

One. [ Matthew 28 v19 -20 ]

I was watching a football match on the TV ,and what left a lasting impression on me was the vast crowd of people watching the match. I thought how few there are who know Jesus as Saviour, mulitudes going to a lost eternity,and it saddened my heart, and then I thought of the many people I pray for, and how few there are who are saved. Jesus said many are called few are chosen [Matthew 20 v16 ], millions of people, have, and are being saved, and yet untold millions are not.What can one do?despair, no ,pray and keep on praying,witness,and keep on witnessing,God has not forsaken this world, He still loves the lost,and He would call us to be faithful.A story is told which bears repeating, of a beach that was littered with starfish, a little boy was throwing some back into the sea, and someone asked him ,what was the point of what he was doing ,there were so many?he held one in his hand, threw it into the sea,and replied, it will make a difference to that one. If by our witnessing one soul trusts Christ, it will make a tremendous difference to that one, in time ,and in eternity. [ Saviour ,lead me to some soul today, use me ,to be Your instrument to bring them to You Amen ]

I am special . [John 3v 16 ]

I received an e-mail passed on by a friend which he had recieved called an Irish blessing, which is very lovely, the last part of it ends with these words ./ And may you come to realise in your heart,that in this vast universe, that you are an important part of Gods plan/. I wonder do you realise this?,that what concerns you, concerns God, that you are special, if you are not a Christian ,God loves you [John 3v16] so much He came into this world in the person of His Son, and died on a cross that you may be forgiven, and become His child. And if you are a Christian mybe you need to be reminded also that you are very special to God. Graham Kendrick wrote the following,/Im special because God loved me, For He gave the best thing that He had to save me.His own Son Jesus ,crucified to take the blame. For all the bad things I have done./ Yes thats how special you are to God.[ Dear God thank You that I am special to You, thank You in Jesus name Amen ]

Resurrection. [ John 11 ]

Consider the situation the dear woman had lost her son,he had died [1 Kings 17], many people, mothers and fathers are grieving over the death of a child. So much effort by mankind is taken up to try to beat death, money is poured into these efforts,but the fact is we may beat cancer, but no one will beat death. I will die you will die,and yet in this story in 1 Kings 17, we have a hint of something wonderful, resurrection, Elijah prayed for this child,and he came to life again.Let us go forward to another scene of death, a man called Lazarus had died,he had been dead four days,but into that situation, comes Jesus, who declares,I am the resurrection and the life,he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. Death as to this life is final ,but there is another time coming when the dead in Christ shall rise to enter into eternal glory. Because of Christ we who are Christians need not sorrow as those who have no hope[1 Thessalonians 4v13 ]. [Dear God we praise You that because of Jesus Your dear Son we have hope even when faced with death. Amen ]

Acting like our Heavenly Father.[ Matthew 5 v43-48 ]

Continuing on in 1 Kings 17,we have the death of the widows son ,in her grief she accuses Elijah of making her feel guilty,of bringing to mind her past sins,she saw the death of her son as a judgement. What does one do when people accuse us of all sorts of things?well what did Elijah do, he prayed for her. Our Saviour taught in Matthew 5 v44, that we are to love our enemies, to bless them that curse us,to do good to them that hate us,and to pray for them that despitefully use us, and persecute us. Who said being a Christian was easy, we are being told to act against our natural feelings,to act in a spiritual manner, and as we do this we are acting as our Father in Heaven acts, to the population of this world, day in day out.[ Dear Heavenly Father grant us the grace to act like You in every situation in Jesus name Amen ]

Now ,not later.[ Isaiah 55 v 6-7 av ]

We move on in our consideration of the life of Elijah in 1Kings 17,he is staying at the widows,and then we read that the widows son dies, she sees it as a judgement for her sin, now she does not mention what that sin was. Now let me ask the question does your sin bother you?so many are sinning freely, and yet there is always a price to be paid as regards sin.Sometimes it is only when faced with death do we begin to be concerned about our sin and the consequences . What are the consequences of sin ,judgement, yes even in this life, and most surely in the next,as the word of God reminds us,it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement[Hebrews 9 v27 ]Let us remember there is no forgiveness for sin in the next life, only judgement,but there is forgiveness for sin in this life, behold now is the accepted time, behold now is the day of salvation [2 Corinthians 6 v2]. God can and will forgive your sin, through His son Jesus,why not accept Him now,He will not turn you away, but freely accept and forgive you. [Dear God I acknowledge that I am a sinner,forgive me, I accept Jesus as my saviour now Amen ]

A throne of grace. [Hebrews 4 v14-16 ]

1Kings 17 commences with Elijah declaring that there would be no rain, and so it came to pass,it is in James 5 v17-18 we are told this came about as a result of Elijah praying. I remember reading of a situation in South Africa ,when there was a severe drought, a well known minister met with his church, and they prayed for rain, and as they prayed it began to rain, the minister ,spoke and said let us now give thanks for the rain. We must not see prayer as the last resort, nor should we look on our own weakness as an hindrance to our prayers. The scriptures tells us Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.So pray earnestly,pray with faith, God is listening, and God will answer, so pray , and when He answers give Him the Glory. [Dear God help me to come bodly unto Your throne of grace,in all my weakness, and trust you to hear and answer my prayer in Jesus name Amen ]

Let us pray.[ Psalm 34 v18 ]

Let us continue in 1 Kings 17, three people are saved from death, and then we read, that the son of the woman dies,in some way a strange turn of events. Was God playing with this woman?, she felt that she was being punished because of her sin, she turns on the prophet, asking why he had come,was it just to remind her of her sin.When grief hits us it causes us to think of all sorts of things,we may blame others, or even ourselves. I was told by a friend that it was reported in the newspaper in Ulster how 4 young people had committed suicide ,one as young as nine. One can only imagine what their families are feeling ,they will possible blame God, and even themselves. So today let us lift up our prayers for those who have been effected by such tragedies, there are no easy answers, even though God may get the blame, He is not at fault, but He is the only one that trully knows and understands how we feel, the one who can heal the brokenhearted, through His son Jesus. [ Dear God we lift up to You the families of those affected by the deaths of their children, have mercy upon then , in Your sons name we ask this . Amen ]

Miracles can happen. [ Matthew 21 v21-22 ]

Continuing on in 1 Kings 17, Elijah is sent to a poor widow woman, the situation for her was trully desperate, all she had was little bit of flour, and a little drop of oil. But suddenly she is faced with a prophet,who speaks a word of hope to her, the little she had would be miraculously blest, so that her need,her sons need, and the prophets need would be met. A miracle would take place,the natural would be suspended, and the supernatual would be experienced,I know we cannot make miracles happen,we cannot guarantee they will happen , yet they can happen. With God all things are possible,I look at so many situations and they are trully desperate, naturally speaking hopeless,but then I hear the words of my Saviour, that if we have faith, and doubt not, miracles will happen[Matthew 21 v 21- 22 ] [ Dear God there are so many hopeless situations, that no human resource can change,so dear Father help us to have faith ,for miracles to happen ,in Jesus name .Amen ]

Help of the helpless. [ Psalm 145 v19 ]

Elijah moves on from the dried up brook, to where God is now directing him, to a widow, so of he goes,he meets this women,only to discover that she was at the point of giving up.What little she had, was going to be her last meal, then she and her son would die of starvation,the situation was desperate, death stared ,and her son in the face she had come to end of her resources, no hope,but God had other plans. Can you identify with that women ?,I can, during our time living by faith,there were times when we had nothing in our home,no money no food, and three children to feed. I remember often we were in this situation,and all we had was the promises of God, who said He would supply our needs.We never did starve to death, nor did the widow women, or her son,God undertook.tomorrow we will see how,and what that means for you and me.[ Dear God help me to realise that You will not desert me in my hour of need,but will come to my aid in Jesus name Amen ]

Move on.[ Hebrews 11v 13- 16 ]

Following on with the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 17, from the brook Cherith he is told by God to go to a heathen town, to a widow woman,this woman would sustain him, so Elijah obeyed.The brook had dried up there was not much point in staying there, it had served its purpose, it is an unfortunate trait in the children of God, that they refuse often ,to move on, many of them are sitting at dried up brooks. Today ,Gods word to you is move on, leave that dried up brook, it has served its purpose. As God spoke to Elijah to move on , so God may be speaking to you, to move on, move on to a new place of service, a new place of proving Gods faithfulness. This is called walking by faith,obeying by faith, and as we obey by faith, God will guide, and lead , and provide. Fanny Crosby wrote the following,/All the way my Saviour leads me, what have I to ask beside?. Can I doubt His tender mercy , who through life has been my guide?. Heavenly peace, divinest comfort, here by faith in Him to dwell . For I know whate,er betide me Jesus doeth all things well./[ Dear God grant us grace to leave the dried up brooks,to move on ,in faithful obedience, in Jesus name .Amen ]

The brook dried up. [Proverbs 3 v 5 av ]

I was speaking on Elijah the prophet yesterday 1 Kings 17, in this chapter he declares a message of judgement to king Ahab, then he is told to go to the brook Cherith, there he would be supplied by God in a natural and unatural manner. He would have water from the brook ,and would be fed by ravens,but eventually the brook dried up,why? ,the natural explanation would be, because of the drought, but the more imporant explanation would be that God was teaching Him not to trust in the brook, but in God.What are we trusting in today?,has it dried up?,we are not meant to be trusting in our money, our jobs, our friends,or even our families, but in God. If we put our trust in the brook ,dont be surprised if it dries up,so today let us put our trust in God.[ Dear God help me to understand, that I must trust in You, not in myself or any means you bless me with, in Jesus name Amen]

Fortune cookies. [ Psalm 119 v9-16 ]

While visiting one of my sons, and his wife we went out for a meal in a Chinese restaurant, and at the end of the meal we recieved fortune cookies. These fortune cookies are a little like what one gets in a Christmas cracker, both are a bit of a joke. The fortune cookie usually says something like, /you are going to come into something that will make you very happy/. I wonder do we sometimes treat the Bible like a fortune cookie? which of course its not, for often what the Word of God tells us is very challenging.Read the prophets, the prophet Habakkuk, who was told of coming judgement,likewise Jeremiah,or Ezekiel, read the book of Revelation,with all its woes.No the Bible is not like a fortune cookie, it tells us ,often what we dont want to hear, yet what we need to hear. So today as you read the Bible, dont just see it as fortune cookie, but as a wonderful book,that needs to be listened to ,and obeyed.[ God we thank You for Your precious word, help us to read it regularly, and to not treat it as a fortune cookie in Jesus name Amen]

The darkness cannot win. [ John 1 v 5 ]

The Bible speaks much about light and darkness, now sometimes we fell that the dark forces are going to extinguish the light, consider the darkness, Islam, secularism,political systems,and so the list goes, and of course the other gods of this world, materialism,sexual obsession,pleasure,money.We must not be surprised at these things, because the word of God tells us that men love darkness rather than light [John 3 v 19],that is mans nature, a fallen nature.But it does not stop there, for we further read in 1 John 5 v19, that the whole world lieth in wickedness.It doesnt stop there for we read that there is a god of this world, who has blinded the minds of them which believe not,lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ,who is the image of God, should shine unto them [2 Corinthians 4 v4 ] . This is the world we live in, it appears hopeless, yet let us not despair ,God is sovereign , He is in control, He is in the business of rescuing men and women out of the darkness, Christ who is the light of the world cannot be extinguished [John 1v5], He will build His church .[ Matthew 16v18 ] [ Father in Heaven, help us not to fear that the darkness will win, help us not to despair, fill us with hope, faith and Your peace ,in Jesus name Amen ] [I will be away for a couple of days I will recommence Sunday]

Deception.[ Genesis 27]

I remember seeing an old movie called ,/The man who never was,/ based upon a real event that took place during the 2nd world war. The Allies were going to invade Europe, the Germans knew this, but they didnt know where, an idea by Ian Fleming of James Bond fame, was used to decieve the Germans into thinking that the Allies would invade Greece, when it in fact it was Sicily.The idea was to plant false information on a dead person,whose body would be found ,washed up on shore ,this deception worked, the landing took place was successful,and many lives were saved as a result of it. I suppose in war deception is acceptable, but not in life generally, we need to be open and honest in achieving our aims,we read in 2 Timothy 2 v5,/And if anyone enters competitive games, he is not crowned unless he competes lawfully[fairly ,according to the rules, laid down . [Amp v]. We see so much deception in sport, finance, and in relationships,unfortunately we also at times see it in the church , and this can never be acceptable.[ Dear God help us to be honest in all our ways, to strive for success, but always may we strive lawfully ,in Jesus name Amen ]

Scarey things.[ Hebrews 11]

Many many years ago in my far distant past my wife and I attended a missionary weekend,we felt challenged with the other young people, to give a weeks pay unto the Lord. This was an act of faith by them and by us, as a couple we had no savings, but we did it,it was a bit scarey when I look back on it. I was just thinking ,when was the last time I did something that was a bit scarey.We wrote yesterday of Daivd and Goliath, as David looked back he must have reflected, on what he did, a bit scarey. I am not saying we should act for the sake of it,but we do need to be listening to Gods voice,give occasionally more that we would ordinarily give, even witness to somebody, break out of our set ways.Let us all remember that we belong to another kingdom, a kingdom of different values, different aims,different.Although what we are called to do, may be a bit scarey, dont be afraid, God will not fail us, and in His way He will reward our efforts. [ Dear God grant me the grace to attempt scarey things for you in Jesus name Amen ]