Confidence. [Psalm 23 ]

Lets continue thinking of the words of Psalm 31, lets consider v5 /Into Thy hands I commit my spirit/let us remember the context , these words reveal the seriousness of his situation, he felt he could possible die, so if this happened, he was committing his eternal well being to his God. This is a statement of faith, a statement that our Lord Jesus declared on the cross,just as He was about to die [Luke 23 v46]. Death for many is the great unknown,and for many it is something that they dont thing about, we hear that many people are living longer,and we all expect to live longer,this can lull us into a false security.Death may be the great unknown for many ,but for David it held no fear[ Psalm 23v4]. David had no fear of death because His faith was in the Lord [Psalm 23v1],and so with total confidence He committed His spirit to God.Jesus came and died that we could have eternal life, so with the apostle Paul we can with confidence declare, that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. [1 Corinthians 5 v8 ]. Henry F. Lyte wrote,/Where is deaths sting? where grave thy victory? I triumph still, if Thou abide,[ I love the closing verse of this wonderful hymn] Keep Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes. Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies. Heavens morning breaks, and earths vainshadows flee. In life, in death, O Lord abide with me./[ Dear God we thank for Jesus Your dear son ,who died that we may live,and that when we trust Him ,we can face even death with confidence. Amen ]

Close to Thee. [ Psalm 23 ]

I thought on those wonderful words from Psalm 31v 14-15, which read ,/Thou art my God. My times are in thy hands/. These words were written by David in a time of trouble,David had to contend with so many things, lions, bears, giants, king Saul, a disgruntled wife, a rebellious son , the death of his three sons. Inspite of all of these things, David had a relationship with God , and that relationship sustained him, there where times when he was overwhelmed by sorrow,but in his God he found comfort and strength. Whatever we are facing let us take encouragement from David, that the one thing that will sustain us is ,our relationship with our God,and our Saviour. Anna L. Waring wrote, In heavenly love abiding ,no change my heart shall fear,and safe in such confiding, for nothing changes here. The storm may roar about me,my heart may low be laid, but God is round about me, and can I be dismayed?. [ Dear God help me cling to You,to walk with You, to talk with You ,come what may,in Jesus name ,we ask this . Amen ]

Understanding the scriptures.[ 2 Timothy 3 v15- 17 ]

It is so vital that we have an understanding of what the scripture says, it is not enough to read the scriptures, there must be an understanding of them. The Bible is not just a telephone book, it is the word of God,it is not just enough to memorise the word of God. The religous people at the time of Jesus ,knew the scriptures, but failed to understand them,they did search the scriptures, but missed the most important part, that Jesus was the Messiah. [John 5 v 39 ]. In Psalm 119 v27, we read ,/Help me to understand the meaning of your commandments/,when I am going to preach I study the scriptures,seeking to convey the meaning of the scriptures to my hearers. I have many commentaries on the bible, written by godly people,they can help us ,understand Gods word. I attend a church where Gods word is taught ,and explained this is very important, but the person in the pew , must attempt to feed themselves. [ Hebrews 5 v12-14 ] This may appear a difficult task, but we have a helper, the Holy Spirit, who will guide us into all truth. [ Dear God help us to read,and study Your word,and above all else ,help us to understad it, in Jesus name. Amen ]

Consider your end. [ Psalm 1 ]

So often the Psalmist contrasts those who know God and live for Him,and those who dont,it acknowledges that the latter may prosper, cp Psalm 73, and that the former may suffer loss. Today there are godly people and they are suffering,they are poor, they are persecuted, they are hated ,and despised, you will not see them in Hello magazine. Our Saviour said ,Blessed are they which are persecuted ....blessed are ye ,when men shall revile you, and persecute you,and shall say all manner of evil against falsely, for my sake [Matthew 5 v 10-11]. In Psalm 37 v37 -38 the two groups are highlighted, /Mark the perfect man[ those who know God and are seeking to follow Him]and behold the upright,[ they are seeking to live a godly life ] for the end of that man is peace. [Glory, eternal life] . But the transgressors [ those who live without the fear of God ]shall be destroyed together,the end of the wicked shall be cut off./ We should always take into account the end of a thing, so many dont, and the end ,sadly of the many ,will be a lost eternity. [ Dear God open the eyes of us all ,to our end,so teach us to number our days,that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom, in Jesus name Amen ]

Charlatan [ Matthew 23 v14 ]

We are told that in 1 Timothy 6 v10, that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils, and as I watched a TV programme last night on faith healers, the reality of those words came to mind. I know how easy it is to exploit people who are vunerable, to play on their emotions, guilt, and fears. One of the things that sparked of the reformation under Martin Luther was the selling of indulgences, and of course even to this present day the Roman Catholic mass is a means of exploiting peoples vunerability, as a friend of mine who was a devout R C, and lived in Dublin, told me , no money no Mass. These things and many other things emphasize a love of money, beware of those who are religious , who have a emphasis on money, and who would seek to emotionally blackmail people.One story last night told of a young girl aged 14 ,suffering from a life threatening illness, she heard one of those faith healers, who promised if his hearers would pledge 1.000 dollars, they would , be healed, somehow the young girl raised that money and sent it to the faith healer, but she grew worse, she phoned the so called faith healer, and told him, he replied that she had sin in her life, thats why she was not healed. Later that youngster , went into her garage poured petrol over herself , and set herself on fire. [ Dear God we cry unto You against those who exploit the vunerable, for money,we pray that You would deal with such ,expose then for what they are, in Jesus name Amen ]

Forgiveness. [ Matthew 6 v14 - 15 ]

Yesterday I spoke on, unforgiveness ,and its serious effect on those who hold unto it, one of the things I said was this,/ If we dont forgive then we put something else in its place, and what that something is,can seriously effect our lives/.Not only our lives but the lives of those around us, there are so many people,who are carrying unforgiveness, is it the ultimate sin?. I say sin ,although I realize someone reading this may have experienced terrible hurts, so let me make it clear ,that I am not judging anyone. The fact is God is the forgiving God,He forgives, and forgives, and forgives, in order to enable Him to forgive,He had to send His Son into this world to die, He had to let His dear Son,be crucified. So God has experienced that pain ,yet He forgives all who seek His forgivness by coming to Him,and accepting His son as Saviour. He fully understands 0ur pain when we have been hurt,or those we love have been hurt,and His words to us is , as I forgive so must you forgive.[ Dear God grant us the grace we need to forgive those who hurt us, or even those we love, in Jesus name Amen ]

With Him we can make it.[ John 21 ]

Well it is Easter Sunday,my mind goes back to when I was a young man, it was Easter Sunday,I was a young and lonely man, I was standing on the corner , when a neighbour and his wife walked by,on their way to church. I asked them could I go with them, and they agreed,and so I ended up at church. And that night something happened ,God spoke to me,and that evening I returned to my Saviour. This is over 47 yrs ago, 47 yrs in which I have sought to follow my Lord, at times the path has been difficult, I have made many mistakes, I still feel lonely at times, I was never the perfect ,husband, or father. But then when we trust Jesus it is the beginning of a journey,a journey when we are being changed, to be better people ,there is still much change that is needed. Our Saviour will not give up on us inspite of our imperfections, because He loves us, and will always love us, I could have not made it this far,without that knowledge ,without His presence. [ Dear Saviour continue to keep us ,sustain us ,strengthen us, without You we cannot make it,so very simply we commit ourselves to You Amen ]

Friendship [ John 15 v 13-15 ]

It is nice to hear from old friends, friendship is important to most of us, it must be sad to have no friends, to feel that no one cares. I think of the story of the prodigal son , he ended up friendless, yes it was his own fault. In Proverbs 17 v17, we read, a friend loveth at all times,many so called friends fail in this,they are no longer our friends,mybe they were not really our friends. I give thanks for the many people who have been my friend,I still pray for some of them,even though they are no longer around, and I wonder how they are keeping.In Proverbs 18 v24 we read , there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother, we would all like a friend like that, well the good news is ,we can have one, His name is Jesus, in the words of a gospel song,He is my forever friend,and He can be yours to. To have Him as your friend, He must first of all become your Saviour,and Lord,then you will have a true friend who will, never leave you,who will always have time for you,who will always listen to you, will protect you,provide for you, sometimes tell you when you are wrong, and put you right. If you want Him as your friend,then here is a prayer you can pray. [Dear Lord Jesus come and be my Saviour and my forever friend Amen ]

Good Friday.[ Colossians 1 v 12 - 14 ]

How on earth can the day in which a man died on a cross be called good,not just a death but a horrible ,and cruel death, a humiliating death. Surely such a day is not good, and yet it was a good day,because it was the fulfilling Gods purpose. A day in which the greatest problem that mankind was faced with, not an natural disaster, not unemployment, but sin, would be resolved. Consider sins effects upon mankind,everyday every moment, sin is being committed,it is a self destruct button, which mankind is continually pressing. Sin affects our relationship with each other and more importantly, affects our relationship with God who is holy.The only answer that God could come up with, was the death of His son on a cross,on that cross the hymn writer declares, /Heavens love and justice met/,when on Jesus the iniquity of us all was laid.when His soul was made an offering for sin. Sin ,satan , and death ,met their match, and were overcome, on Calvary . In the midst of all of Christs suffering, God was doing something wonderfully good, for you and me, so let us rejoice on this good Friday. [ Dear God we thank You for the cross of Your dear son, that made it a good Friday,for You, and us sinners. Amen ]

It is finished. [ John 19 v30 ]

One of the many things that amazes me about my Saviour is, how He never give up ,or allowed anything ,or anyone to distract Him from His ministry ,or mission. He even ministered on the cross to the dying thief, and inspite of all He had to suffer, He also fulfilled His mission ,the work of salvation,for you and for me. His final cry from that cross was a victory cry,it is finished[John 19 v30] Yes the work of salvation is finished, it is not what we do, but what He has done that saves. Have you trusted in Jesus and His finished work on the cross ?, or are you trying to save yourself?. The Gaithers wrote a song called it is finished, it depicts the battle that took place on Calvary, indeed the greatest battle of all time, everything depended on Jesus winning that battle,if He lost that battle then we would be lost, but praise God ,/It is finished the battle is over. It is finished there will be no more war. It is finished, its the end of the conflict.It is finished, and Jesus is Lord/.[ Dear Father we give You praise for Your dear son Jesus, the victorious Jesus, who finished the work of salvation Amen ]

Lost .[ John 10 ]

In Luke 15 we have a chapter dealing with being lost, to illustrate this ,our Saviour speaks of a sheep , a coin, and a son. The three had this in common they where all lost, in Isaiah 53 we read ,all we like sheep have gone astray, or as the Message puts it, /We,er all like sheep who,ve wandered off and gotten lost/.I was speaking to a person , and she said she did not see any point to life. What she was in fact saying, was, I am lost,sadly she does not see that ,and it is a fact that so many people do not see this , blinded by pride and stubbornness. The son who was lost ,had to experience ,loneliness,and humiliation before he came to his senses before he was willing to admit that he was lost, and before he could be found. When he did he was welcomed home by a loving father,who embraced him, clothed him, and restored him into his family, he even threw a party for him. Jesus said that He was not come to destroy lives, but to save them [Luke 9 v56 ], the hymn writer wrote, I once was lost but now am found, if you realize that you are lost, ask Jesus to save you, and He will. Here is a prayer that you could pray,[ Dear Lord Jesus, I admit that I am lost, come and save me now, be my Saviour. Amen ]

Mercy [ Habakkuk 3 v 2 ]

I was struck by something I read recently by D. A. Carson in his book ,Scandalous, he said that one of the hardest truths to get across to this generation ,is what the Bible says about sin. This could be because so many people do not take into account what the Bible says,the spiritual needs of our younger generation ,have been ignored, and neglected by the older generation. As I consider the street I live in, and indeed the area I live in, so very few are Christians, so few go to church,so few consider that they have a never dying soul. Again on the subject of sin,D.A.Carson ,writes about the culture we live in,defining its own sin, this is so true, the result of this, is becoming more and more serious. What can possible change this ?,I believe the answer is prayer, a prayer for revival, a prayer that will cause God to pour out His Spirit upon our land,a prayer that God will show mercy, to this nation that has forsaken God,and turn them to Christ. [Dear God ,You who are holy,and righteous,have mercy upon the many who are blind to their spiritual needs, have mercy upon the many who have chosen their way,and forsaken Your way ,in Jesus name Amen ]

How long. [2 Peter 3 ]

When I was young ,and at school ,there where times when the teacher left the room,and we didnt know when he was coming back,and then we would hear a cry ,he is coming,and suddenly we looked like angels, and butter would not melt in our mouths.This morning I have been thinking of one who has left the room, He has been away a long time, and you know , I wish that He would return, I am talking about Jesus. In the book of Revelation,we have the suffering saints calling out, /How long?,/ [6 v10 ],is this is the cry of your heart ,how long?,when will be that midnight hour ,when we will be going home, how long?. We do not know ,how long ,but may we never loose sight that He is coming. This could be dawning of that great and glorious day, when the face of Jesus we behold,the Bible calls it that blessed hope,that glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. [Titus 2 v13 ][ Dear Father sometimes we become impatient ,and we cry out how long, before Jesus returns,help us to never loose sight that He is coming back again, help us to live in the light of that great and glorious day . Amen ]

Shine [ Matthew 5 v 13-16 ]

In our garden we have a lot of solar lights, but some of the solar lights are not shining, because they need new rechargeable batteries.These lights were made to shine ,but they are failing to do this,and just like those lights we as Christians are meant to shine.Consider what Jesus said in Matthew 5 v16,/ Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven/. Are we shining in our homes,jobs, communities ,and wherever God has placed us?, for that is what we are to do. Our Saviour says let your light,yes we have a choice, we can choose to, not let our lights shine, we always have a choice. The shining is linked to good works, there is an awful lot of need in this world,a need of financial help, practical help, help of all kinds, shine. And in shining our motive must always be to bring glory to our heavenly Father.[ Dear God help us in the name of Jesus to shine, Amen ]

Tears. [ John 11 v35 ]

As I grow older I appear to be more emotional,us British are known for our stiff upper lip, a sort of stoicism,so I am not being typically British. As I prayed this morning ,I felt a certain emotion in relation to,two families in Vietnan, who are suffering for being Christians, I mention their names ,and mybe you could pray for them,Pastor Y Yu, and Pastor Y Co, and their families. Both these men are in prison, they have experienced violence, their families lack food, and medicines, and one family is living in a dilapidated house. Consider the words of Hebrews 13 v 3, Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies. And as you remember them dont be ashamed of shedding a tear, God is pleased when we shed tears, for those who are suffering, let us remember our Saviour was a man of sorrows.I will close with a prayer written by Graham Kendrick. [ Soften my heart Lord, soften my heart, from all indifference set me apart, to feel your compassion, to weep with Your tears, come soften my heart , O Lord , soften my heart. Amen ]

Grace will always win . [Romans 5 v 20 -21 ]

As we near Easter my thoughts have been on the cross, and the people surrounding it, Judas the dark deceitful traitor,Peter the weak coward,the other disciples, who all forsook Him. These were our Lords friends, with friends like them ,who needs enemies,and of course you have the others ,the religious leaders baying for Jesus blood,and the mob, and the soldiers,and the awful cruelity ,inflicted on our dear Saviour. No wonder the sun refused to shine,on such a dark sinful scene, sin in all its fullness was trully abounding.But as Paul wrote in Romans 5 v20, where sin, abounded, grace did much more abound,and of course that amazing grace triumphed over all the darkness, and won the day,I like what the Message says,/ When its sin versus grace,grace wins hands down/.In that darkest situation of Calvary, grace triumphed, grace will always triumph,so let us not despair, as we witness,the darkness of sin in peoples lives ,the grace of God is greater.[ Dear God help us not to despair of situations that appear so dark, help us to lift our heads up to view the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, where the grace of God triumphed to its fullest degree. Amen]

Easter cards. [ Luke 12 v49 -53 ]

I was annoyed yesterday, I was in an Asda,s store , and was looking for an Easter card, but all I could find was cards with the Easter bunny on them,and other rubbishy things. I supposed they are trying to be politically correct, I wonder what is political correctness?, is it trying to mould us into a society that accepts what everyone does,and seeks to play down our differences,yes and to put down, any who appear to create waves. Where did this political correctness come from? not from God, thats for sure, but then the times we live in ,is a secular age. As a Christian I am called to be tolerant, but not tolerant of sin , or error,not tolerant of those who would try to stop me sharing my faith. Jesus is Lord, not political correctness, and it is Him we must obey, even it makes those around us uncomfortable. [ Dear God help us not to be squeezed into the mould of the society we live in,help us to live for You, to be light in this dark world, to be salt in this corrupt world, in Jesus name. Amen

Sacrifice. [ Revelation 5 ]

His dad cleaned loos to fund his dream,so read the words in a national newspaper,referring to the sacrifices Rory Mcllroys parents made for their son, in order for him to play goal. Rory who is only 21 nearly won the Masters,nearly, but in time I am sure he will. To succeed in life it takes sacrifice, success does not just happen, it involves sacrifice, if you want to be concert pianist, or a ballet dancer, or even an artist, there are no short cuts, practice, practice ,practice, work ,work,work. Rorys parent made sacrifices for their son , why ?because they loved him. We are Christians because someone made the ultimate sacrifice for us, His name is Jesus, why?, because He loved us, as Rory things of his success, he looks at his parents, and thinks I owe it all to them. As Christians we are blessed with so much,we have been forgiven,welcomed into the family of God,and one day we will stand in glory,transformed , exalted, and for ever blest, and we owe it all to one person, Jesus.[ Dear God we thank You for Jesus who sacrificed His all for us. Amen ]

An antidote to fear. [Psalm 91 ]

Recently I have had a few near misses when driving,only yesterday a car could have crashed into me, yes driving is a hazardous activity.But of course many aspects of life are dangerous, there are many accidents in homes, in work places, one wonders are there ,is there, any totally safe places?. If we dwell to much on the dangers ,we would not get up out of bed,and yet consider how many people die in bed. Let us not be driven by such fears,or controlled by fear, of anything ,save the fear of the Lord. Is there an antidote to fear?, yes trust in the Lord,we read these words in Psalm 91[ Do read this Psalm it will quell your fears], in verse 2 , /I will say of the Lord ,He is my refuge and my fortress ,my God, in Him will I trust/. Here we have a statement that declares his confidence in the Lord,let us follow his example, let us declare this,and let us trust and not be afraid. [ Dear God let us not be controlled by fear, grant us grace to put our confidence , and trust in You , in Jesus name, Amen ]

Do it. [ Matthew 7 v21-29 ]

The word of God continually stresses the importance of ,not just hearing ,but doing,and acting on what we hear. As a preacher who has preached many sermons,it is nice when one recieves a compliment, a word of encouragement,but if the person who gives you the compliment, or word of encouragement does not act on what they have heard, whats the point.James in his often misunderstood epistle puts it like this,/but dont just listen to Gods word. You must do what it says. Otherwise you are only fooling yourselves.For if you listen to the word and dont obey, it is like glancing at your face in the mirror. You see yourself, walk away and forget what you look like. [ 1 v22-24 ] Our Saviour said,/ blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it/. Forget about whither the preacher gave a nice sermon, or he used the right translation,concentrate on obedience,not just being a good listener, but one who acts on what they have heard. [ Dear God help us to be a doer of Your word in Jesus name .Amen ]

Brain food.[ Philippians 4 v 8 ]

Food for the brain ,oily fish,fruit, vegetables, cocoa, nuts,seeds,and green tea,all these are supposed to be ,food for our brains,so read the article on the inter-net.Now I am not an expert on the things that may be good for our brains, but I do believe that the word of God is good for our brains. I believe that there are a lot of things that are not good for our brains.It would be a good exercise for us all to write down a list of things that we think on,that are in fact damaging to our brains.Let us be severe with ourselves,let consider what our minds take in ,the wrong thoughts that we dwell on,there are millions of people who are feeding their minds on sexual perversion, hate for others, covetousness ,self-centredness, etc. In Psalm119v78 we read, I will meditate on your precepts, the question is ,will we make that choice?,he says, Iwill, it is an act of the will, we are responsible ,for what we think and dwell on,it is our choice,what will you choose, what will I choose today?.We will end with the words of a hymn by Benjamin Beddome./ O grant us grace,Almighty Lord,to read and mark Thy holy word. Its truths with meekness to recieve,and by its holy precepts live, Amen/

Thank You Lord. [ Acts 16 v31 ]

In 1709 the home of the Rev Samuel Wesley,the father of Charles and John was set on fire, he was not liked. This was the second time this had happened, but this time young John was in the house, and it looked like he was going to perish in the fire,but fortunately he was rescued. Later his mother had a painting done of him with the words from Zechariah 3 v2,on it, which reads /Is this not a brand plucked from the burning/. These words can be written over the lives of every Christian, they are solemn reminders ,that God in His great mercy has saved us from everlasting burning. Today let us lift our voices in praise to God ,for saving us from a lost eternity,Oh to grace how great a debtor, daily I am constrained to be. Let the words by ,Seth and Betty Sikes be our daily prayer./ Thank You Lord for saving my soul, thank You Lord for making me whole,thank You Lord , for giving to me ,Thou great salvation so rich and free. Amen/

I wish. [Genesis 50v20/ Romans 8 v28 ]

I wonder have you ever heard yourself saying ,I wish, in relation to to some action or decision that you made,and you think ,I wish I had not taken that decision ,or action. Take Joseph there must have been a moment when He may have said,I wish I had not found my brothers,that fateful day,when my father sent me to see if they were well [Genesis 37v14]. Or on that other occasion when he went into his masters house,and was propositioned by his masters wife.[Gen 39v11],he did the right thing, and yet ended up in jail. I am certain that there are many of us and as we look at our lives, we see occasions when we think ,I wish . The fact of the matter is we cannot change the past,those actions ,decisions we have taken, but what can we do?. Well if we are a child of God, let us not despair,let us not act in a way that may cause us more pain, and take heart, from the words of Joseph, when speaking to his brothers, God meant it unto good[Gen 50 v20 ].[ God and Father,help us not to keep wishing our lives away, because of the past,help us to trust You to overrule in all things for our good, in Jesus name Amen ]

Consider. [ Psalm 100]

Psalm 100 is a brief Psalm ,only 5 verses,although v1/2 can be seen as one, short though it be, it is full of blessings, and truth. It is known as the old hundredth and has been a favourite Psalm of Gods people, down through the ages.Let us consider v3, Know ye that the Lord is God, there are not many Gods,there is only one, know this, believe this, do not be swayed from this truth. Next we are told,it is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves,this goes against evolution,which teaches that we made ourselves, we did not make ourselves, God made us in His image, and for His purpose. Next we are told, we are His people,we who were not a people are now the people of God,once we were seperated from Him by our sin, having no hope, and without God, now we are the people of God.[Ephesians 2 v 11-13 ] Next ,and the sheep of His pasture, [consider Psalm 23/John 10],As a shepherd cares,provides,protects, his sheep, so Jesus our good shepherd will, care, provide and protect, those who are His.[ Dear God thank You for Your grace that has opened our eyes and hearts, to Yourself, in Jesus name. Amen ]

A sweet tooth.[ Isaiah 40 v 28-31 ]

Since being diagnosised with type 2 diabetes , I have to watch what I eat, I am forever looking to see the content of the food I eat,to see the fat and sugar content. It is amazing how much sugar is in the food we buy,which is not really helpful to all of us, but of course we love things that are sweet, most of us have a weakness for sweet things,even Samson [Judges 14 v8-9 ] I was singing about something that was sweet this morning, something that is really beneficial to us all without exception, it wont rot our teeth, or cause us to put on weight,now I wonder do you know what it is?. Well here is what I was singing, /Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer that calls me from a world of care.And bids me at my Fathers throne. make all my wants and wishes known. In seasons of distress and grief, My soul has often found relief. And oft escaped the tempters snare. By thy return, sweet hour of prayer/ [Dear God we thank You from the bottom of our hearts ,for prayer,when we meet with You, they trully are sweet times, we thank You in Jesus name Amen ]

The cross.[ 1 Corinthians 1 v23 ]

I am sure we all get offended at times ,I do ,for different reasons,a number of years ago while visiting my son and family in Ibeza, I bought a cross. Now I have worn that little cross ever since,I was very self conscious about this as a Ulster man and with me being an evangelical,it may seem a small thing to openly wear a cross, but to me it was not. Generally people dont say much about it,although a few people if truth were told where offended at me wearing the cross. I think it is because they see me ,an evangelical doing something that evangelicals dont do. It is a strange thing that Christians become offended as regards me wearing a cross, It was the apostle Paul who wrote, God forbid that I should glory ,save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.[Galation6 v14] Why did he say that?,because on that cross Jesus died for our sins,that cross tells us we cannot do anything to save ourselves, and I stress anything. The death of Christ on the cross, was a saving act,it means that when we trust in Jesus, He will save us. Today look to what the cross really means, a Saviour dying for you, and ask Him to be your Saviour.[ Dear God we rejoice thank You for Jesus Your Son who died on a cross to save us Amen ]

Look to Jesus. [ Hebrews 12 v2 ]

I wonder who or what you are looking to ,the football fan looks to their team and certain players, as a football fan ,I see all my football on the TV, I do my own bit of shouting,and criticizing. In my living room I dont have to listen to swearing ,that was until Saturday, when a certain person swore into the camera, after he scored a goal. Who am I looking to? not these imperfect individuals, let me ask the question again ,who are you looking to?. We have a choice ,we can look to imperfect people ,and if we do,dont be surprised if they disappoint us, or suddenly they are no longer there. Let us realize that the one we need to look to, is Jesus, what I am saying may seem very obvious,but so often we forget this, and so let me remind myself and you today ,look to Jesus, if you are not a Christian ,look to Jesus to save you, if you are a Christian,look to Jesus, for your needs,and friendship,if you do, I am sure you will not be disappointed. [ Dear God thank You for your dear son, who is with us all the time,help us in every situation to look to Him. Amen ]

The best book to read is the Bible.[ Psalm 119 v105]

This is a very special day, it is my birthday, I am 67, I will not be having a party,I have recieved cards, and presents, I dont know when I am going to read all the books I have recieved. I do love books,and love to read, yesterday my young daughter-in- law was showing me one of those electrial gadgets with books on it, I may be tempted to buy one, the only problem with those gadgets I cannot underline it, and refer to it. While out during the week I notice a lady reading the Bible,and I said as I passed her, thats a good book you are reading, she seemed pleased at my remark. The fact of the matter is ,the best book to read is the Bible, for in that book and that book alone , do we find the answer to life, and to eternal life. Today read your bible, and if you have not got one ,buy one,you will find in that book , the one whom you need the most, Jesus. [ Dear God thank for Your word, that lightens our darkness, and reveals unto us Jesus, Amen ]

Jesus. [ Hebrew 4 v14-16 ]

I saw a young lad yesteday as I drew up in my car and I noticed that he was smoking ,and my heart went out to him, I got out of my car and called after him, I spoke to him of the dangers of smoking, I was not judging that boy, no I was concerned for him. You see I remember when I was a youngster and I smoked, I had walked where he had walked,but I remember how the Lord had delivered me, the path that one has trod,should change us for the better,and not make us bitter. It should cause us to have compassion on those ensnared in habits,sins,difficulties, our Lord manifested this continually, and was angry with those who lacked compassion,and lacked mercy,our Saviour was perfect in holiness, but also perfect in mercy, and love. That is why we can come to Him, for forgiveness, for understanding, and comfort, it is true, no one understands like Jesus.[ Dear Saviour our hearts go out to in praise to You for your compassion,love ,mercy, and forgiveness, Amen ]

But ,Jesus said.[ Luke 6 v27-49 ]

I must confess I am inclined to help deserving cases, in the church where I was an elder on a couple of occasions we have helped strangers,they have spun us yarns,and yet one feels thats all they were doing ,spinning a yarn,and you know the punch line will be,they want money. What does one do?what would you do? ,what would Jesus do ?,on both occassions we have given them what they asked,money. It is obvious that everyone Jesus helped was not deserving,or even thankful cp Luke 17v11-19. Everyday God helps heals ,protects,provides , and blesses untold millions of underserving people. Consider what our Lord taught in Luke 6,/Love your enemies,yes even do good to them,bless them that curse you, pray for those who despitefully use you,give to them that ask of you,and in v36 He declares, Be ye therefore merciful , as your Father also is merciful. How can I possible live up to such teaching?, and I must, well in ourselves we cant, but the one who taught us is the one who will enable us.[ John 15 v 5] [ Dear Saviour we hear what You say, and we struggle with it in our hearts and minds,helps us Lord ,Amen ]