God will act but not now .( Revelation 20 v 11 - 15 )

The blame game, and it is all aimed at God, why, is the question on those who blame God,the fact God is love,He has a big heart for this world, ( John 3 v 16 ),next ,He will always do that which right (Genesis 18 v 26) He is compassionate ( Jonah 4 v 2 ),next He is forgiving ( Psalm 51 ) next,He does not tempt anyone in relation to evil (James 1 v 13 ). One could state many more things as to the being of God, that would stress His goodness ,as to why evil is permitted to have its way,well lets go back to Adam and Eve, they were told plainly what they could do, and what they should not do, that means they were  given human responsibility. God choose to not interfere knowing what would happen ,they , Adam and Eve made their choice,and choose the path of disobedience and from that moment man has been responsible for the choices they make, We must stop blaming God for what we ,and others do. God has a purpose and a plan for this world it appears it must run its course,as regards evil,and many other things. What it shows us, so often ,is the sinful condition of humanity, God  is left on the outside, and so it will be, until that day when Christ  will return  as judge.It will be those who have rejected His love ,the love of Calvary,and continued on in their own sinful ways ,will be judged.

God is infinite ( Psalm 146 )

Its unfortunate that where I live, it is hard to see many stars, because of light pollution,but  sometimes in spite of that one can occasionally see more ,than usual. So I got my little binoculars out and looked up, and to my surprise I saw clearly three stars in a row.I was sure that there was a name for this formation, so I went in doors and looked at my little book called,'Stargazing with Binoculars', and discovered that they were called , Orion, my son said they were known as ,Orion's Belt. Looking up at the sky at night, has always fascinated me, but what astounds me is the vastness of the universe,billions of stars, hanging there in space.It is truly amazing that God made every last star and knows them by name (  Psalm 147 v 4 ).    He is a God of infinite knowledge in seeking to reassure His disciples, and us, He told them and us,'' And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid.'' The old Gospel song declared,'His eye is on the sparrow, and I  know He watches me''.A lady who was in dire straits  ,declared,'' You are the God who sees me''. ( Genesis 16 v 13 ). He saw Joseph when he was in prisoner,(  Genesis 39 )  and He saw Jonah in the belly of a great fish ( Jonah  1 v 17  / 2 v 1 - 10 ) He saw David in all his trouble ( Psalm 23 ). Now here is the wonderful truth, He sees everyone of His children, that means you, and that means me. We are never out of his sight, never to far from Him that He does not see us or hear us,we are never alone ,or forsaken,so do not be afraid.
                                                       Psalm 121 v 1- 2
                                 I lift up my eyes to the hills,where does my
                                 help come? My help come from the Lord,
                                  the Maker of heaven ,and earth.

Down memory lane. ( Luke 15 v 11 - 31 )

I am just in from my garden, and I can hear in the distance children at a local school playing ,and my mind is taken down memory lane, to my early childhood,when like those dear children we played in the playground,running here there and everywhere,burning of energy,that I wish I had now. The years have flown, I am grateful to those teachers who taught us the 3 Rs, but I also remember another school I went to, Sunday school, and the different Sunday school teachers I had ,were I learnt  about Jesus ,I will be eternally grateful to those dear people. Today the great stress is upon education ,  and rightly so, but more and more the spiritual realities are being pushed out. But it could be that what I am writing stirs a memory in your heart,of many years ago when you like me went to Sunday school and you heard about Jesus, but for whatever reason, you left it all behind.  Education,work,friends,      so many things can crowd out our souls deepest need, Jesus,remember it is only with Him, is the future brighter. Don't make it just a memory, what you heard about Jesus, make it a reality,ask Him to be your Saviour today

                                                       A prayer.

                                    Come into my heart Lord Jesus, come

                                    into today, come into stay,come into

                                    come into my heart Lord Jesus..

                                               

Why. ( Romans 8 v 28 )

Let consider a few more thoughts from Exodus, by Alec Motyer , and Israels  forty years in the wilderness,  ''Forty years- quick to say,slow to pass - (Forgive my humour on this,it was because they had no TV, sorry about that,but I hope you are not so self righteous,that you did at lest smile , now to continue on with the serious stuff) ,Israel found themselves in the vast and dreadful ( terrifying) desert, that thirsty waterless land , with its venomous snakes and scorpions' ( Deut. 8; 13 ). Let us consider A.Ms. application .''To the troublesome question, 'Why?', we may ask, when we face hardships and reverses, there are two fairly common answers ( or surmised) by Christians. The quick ' spiritual' answer is that our troubles are all down to the malevolence of Satan,who is ever watchful to find and exploit some loophole in our defences. The other answer is that , knowingly or unknowingly, we have strayed out of the will of God and somehow got our guidance wrong. In certain circumstances  there can be an element of truth in both these explanations, but neither of them tell the whole story. Nor are they the explanation that we find in Exodus, where the Word of God has something intensely important and fundamentally comforting to say to us- the Israelites were in the wilderness because the Lord had led them there''

                                               I,ll that He blesses is our good
                                               and unblest good is ill
                                               and all is right ,that seems most wrong
                                               if it be His sweet will.

Fear or faith .( Exodus 14 )

Have you ever felt that you must do something ,and yet there was nothing you could do.In chap 14 of Exodus  we read that Israel were fleeing from an army,that was seeking to capture them, and make them once again their slaves. Now they where directed by God to a place from which there was no escape,all they could see was the army,and they where very afraid.They felt that all they could do was surrender, and go meekly back to be slaves in Egypt, extreme fear took over,and faith was non existent. Out that fear ,they turned on Moses, blaming him for taking them out of Egypt, and saying the unthinkable, ''Let us alone, let us serve the Egyptians.'' ( EX  14 v 12 ) . After all, what could they do , against the feared chariots,and troops,the game was up, but it was no game,it was all to realistic, and threatening.They did not want to die a horrible physical death,but that was what awaited a great many of them. Then they heard that madman Moses talking,telling them,'' to stand firm ,and God would delivering them'',and Moses goes on speaking ,here is what he said, ''You will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today.The Egyptians you see today ,you will never see them again . The Lord will fight for you,you need only to be still''.Now the question what did they choose, fear or faith?, what about you?                                                                                                                                                                                     

The long haul. ( John 6 v 66 )

In his book on Exodus Alec Motyer on writing as regards the Exodus ,he has one section,called, 'God's curious ways,' and underneath theses words he writes,' Walking with God is no primrose path'.Lets mention a few other things he writes, as I feel we can profit from what this godly man has written, on Israels Exodus, and journey to the promised land,''They may have set out 'marching boldly', but soon they complained that Moses had brought them to the desert to die''Our Saviour tells us about the reaction of those who make a decision to follow Him,in Matthew 13 v 3 - 9 . Many years ago I knew a Christian who was  very earnest,he witnessed faithfully,but he fell away, I remember speaking to him,and I started crying. He may have forgotten what I said but I hope he remembers my  tears.People when getting married  stand in church, take a vow before God,'till death do us part'.What they are saying is that they are in it for the long haul, w.hen you trust Christ it is meant to be for the long haul.
                                                  I have decided to follow Jesus
                                                  no turning back, no turning back.
                                                       

Holiness ( Isaiah 53 )

Alec Motyer writes the following about holiness,''it is the essential attribute of the God of the Bible. Indeed ,it is more than an attribute, it is the very thing that constitutes His essential deity. His 'otherness' is His total, perfect,absolute, changeless- and dangerous - moral purity''Tozer writes,''We know nothing like the divine holiness. It stands apart,unique ,unapproachable, incomprehensible and unattainable.We have learned to live with unholiness, and have come to look upon it as natural and expected thing.'' The death of Christ tells us  how Gods holiness is offended by our unholiness, by our sin, unholiness must be punished, it offends Him, and shuts us out from knowing Him, God never has,nor will overlook sin, His eyes are too pure to look on evil,He cannot tolerate wrong, ( Habakkuk 1 v 13 ) . Pusey writing on this says,''All sin is hateful in God's sight,'' God because of His holiness must judge and punish it,we are told that the wrath of God abides upon us ( John 3 v 36 ). But the death of Christ tells us something else, that by His death we can be forgiven,accepted, by a holy God.Christ the righteous one bore the unrighteous ones sins.When we trust Jesus as our Saviour, we are free from all punishment, because Jesus took our punishment,so wrath is removed.
                                                  None of the ransomed ever knew,
                                                  How deep were the waters crossed;
                                                  Nor how dark was the night that
                                                  the Lord passed through,
                                                  Ere He found His sheep that was lost;
                                                       (Words  E.C. Clephane )

Feeling empty? ( Ephesians 5 v 18 )

My wife came in  with a bunch of roses,asked me to put them in a vase,which I did, and put water in the vase, as usual they looked lovely. But then I forgot to keep watering them, they exhausted the water I had put in,and where drooping badly,looking as if the best thing to do was to put them in the bin. But no, I put fresh water into the vase, and later when I looked at them they had recovered.I remember reading a book called Unbroken, and how the chief character who suffered so much as a prisoner of the Japanese. He somehow went to hear Billy Graham speaking,now it appears that dear Billy was exhausted, the good news is ,the man heard Billy preach,and trusted Jesus.Billy was exhausted,but he managed to preach.Yes even great men like Billy find things hard, there is a price in serving God,and living for God.George Whitfield said'' he did not tire of Gods work, but he did feel tired doing it,''.Often we are exhausted in our Christian life, like the roses we wilt,but it is then we need to look to God afresh, for a fresh anointing of Gods holy Spirit,
                                                 He gives strength to the weary
                                                 and increases the power of the
                                                 weak.Even youths grow tired
                                                 and weary,and young men
                                                 stumble and fall,but those who
                                                 hope in the Lord will renew
                                                 strength. They will soar on
                                                 eagles wings like eagles,they
                                                 will run and not grow weary
                                                 they will walk and not be faint.
                                                          ( Isaiah 40 v 29 - 31 )

Oh, not an other trial. ( Acts 27 )

Life is full of change, change which we do not have any control over, but that does not mean that things are out of control,no ,because as a child of God,we do not look at what is happening in our lives with our natural sight,no let faith take over. In  Acts 27 the apostle Paul was a prisoner being taken to Rome to be put on trial, that was a severe trial in itself,but  the little sailing ship, entered a very severe storm,it had lasted 14 days,and we read Luke who was writing this, he records ,''we finally gave up all hope of being saved''( v 20 ). It was then Paul stood up and told all on the ship,how an angel had appeared,with good news ,that everyone would be saved.Paul declares ,''So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God,that it will happen just as He told me.(  v 23 - 25 ).
                                                    Remember Gods is in control .
                                                    Have faith in God,hold unto
                                                     His word.

Equality . ( Luke 7 v 36 - 50 )

We where watching a DVD on equality, afterwards our home group,discussed it, we touched on many things,going back to ancient Greece.As one considers the subject of equality we see how wide spread it was and sadly still is. I remember years ago sitting in barbers having ,my hair cut.Then I heard the barber speaking to a man with his children, he was one of the travelling people.The barber saw them as inferior and treated them as such, maybe I should have said something, but I didn't but let me say this I did not look at those people like the barber.The whole of history is full of inequality, and of course  it will always  be somewhere. It is an evil that lies buried in the heart of all mankind, it is borne out of pride, we feel that we are better than the other person. pride wherever it raises its head is always a sin.How are we to look at pride, a pride that causes us to think we are better than others,the fact is we are not, for the Christian  never forgets that they are sinners saved by grace. Just imagine you lived in Corinth, now Corinth was a very wicked place full, sexually immoral,idolaters,                 male prostitutes , homosexuals,thieves,drunkards,slanders.Consider that someone witnessed to you in the street and you became a Christian,and then you went to the local fellowship, and the place was full of  people listed,and they have trusted Christ and turned from their evil ways,and you are told  they are your brothers and sisters,  how would you feel?.                                         
                                             Naught have I gotten,but what I received,
                                             Grace hath bestowed it,since I believed,
                                             Boasting excluded, pride I abase,
                                             I'm only a sinner, saved by grace
                                                     ( Words Dr. James. Martin Gray

He is with us . ( Matthew 28 v 20 )

I was listening to a gospel song, the theme of it was,that God is a God of the mountains,and of the valley's ,of the good and the bad times,of the day and the night.When we are told by our Saviour that He is with us always (Matt 28 v 20 ) He really means that,no matter if our circumstances change, no matter where we are,when we fail,and when we succeed, when we laugh  and when we cry,in captivity,or free.Hear the word of the Lord to you today ,''I am with you always'', when we move home,to another job,or school,Jesus says I am with you.The life of Joseph is very instructive, one moment he is under the care of a father who loved him,the next he is in a pit ,then into slavery,then into prison .but the scripture record these word,''the Lord was with him''.Let us go forward into this day with these words  residing in our minds,''I am with you always.''

                                                        A prayer
                               Lord we thank you for the words ,that You
                               are with us always,come what may,there to
                               help ,sustain us,undertake for us,you are
                              with us,thank you Amen

There is an answer. ( Luke 7 v 48 - 50 )

The writer Thomas Binney asks the question
                                             O how shall I ,whose native sphere
                                              Is dark, whose mind is dim,
                                              Before the Ineffable appear,
                                              And on my naked spirit bear
                                              The uncreated beam?
In simple terms he is asking how can he a sinner, hope to stand before a holy God?,when he considers his sinful state. People do not take this into account,they do not realise that as sinners we will not be able to stand before Him. The fact is one cant,in our sinful state we will never be accepted by God, our sin offends God, He who is holy cannot have fellowship with that which is unholy.Sin separates us from a holy God ,( Isaiah 59 v 2 ).So that is the dilemma that we all without exception face,is there an answer , a solution that can help us?.The hymn writer goes unto tell us,
                                               There is a way for man to rise
                                                To that sublime abode.
                                                 An offering and a sacrifice,
                                                 A Holy Spirit's energies,
                                                 An Advocate with God.
The answer is Jesus ,through His death on Calvary our sins can be forgiven,the moment we trust Him as our Saviour the barrier is removed,because of  Him we can be fully accepted by a Holy God, let me stress we must ask him to be our Saviour.

Power of truth. ( John 8 v 32 )

Continuing on at looking at the gods of Egypt, the chief deity was the sun god called  Amon Re, so when the plague of darkness fell, it was a challenge to this so called god,and a challenge to their belief in him.( A him of course, that did not exist ) It appears that  the Egyptians dreaded the night because it meant that the sun-god had departed to the underworld, leaving  Egypt unprotected ,the fact that the passover fell at night would have heightened their fears.Such are the gods that humanity  follow after, Our God is not someone we have invented, any god other than the God of the Bible is a god, that mankind has invented. This behaviour of inventing gods is borne out of mankind's darkened mind ,the God of the Bible is known to us,by revelation,without that we would never know Him. We are told that ,'' The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God for they are foolishness to them, because they are spiritually discerned. ( 1 Corinthians 2 v 14 ) When one attempts to reach any body with spiritual truth,be it the cults,or those of other religions we must always bear this in mind,they cannot discern spiritual truth . They are darkened in their understanding,and separated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.  (Ephesians 4 v 18 ) Yet as John Stott writes, ''Scripture bears an unwavering testimony to the power of ignorance and error to corrupt, and the power of truth to liberate , ennoble and refine. ''
                                                         Jeremiah 23 v 29
                                         '' Is not my word like fire,'' declares the
                                            Lord, ''and like a hammer,that breaks
                                           a rock in pieces''.

No other gods. ( Exodus 20 v 1 - 6 )

In studying the book of  Exodus it is interesting that one of the things plagues did was to challenge the Egyptian belief system ,They among other things identified their gods with animals,they also identified the river Nile,as divine because it was a source of life. Things have not changed Hinduism has it so called sacred river and their sacred cows plus a multitude more, Consider how dark spiritually the nations are,when they look to the creature rather than the Creator. That was the world that Moses lived ,that was the world that the early church faced, and indeed it is the world that we face,a world of darkness,that concocts religions out of their darkened imaginations.Let us make no mistake,this is not a trivial thing,they are deadly serious in their beliefs,and in many parts of the world they are killing those who would challenge their faith. Let us turn to a cross, there is a man hanging on that cross, what was He  guilty of? Challenging the darkness,for He was the light of the world, He was the Saviour of the world, but the word of God says men love darkness rather than the light, and so they  called Him a fraud , and had  Him crucified. So that was it , no, for that so called fraud, rose from the dead,His name is Jesus, the great 'I AM', who is the way, the truth ,and the life. John 14 v 6.

Lord save ,Lord send. ( 1 Timothy 2 v 1 )

I have just been asked to speak  at a small  church, I have been ministering there for a number of years,the request was made by email,the brother mentioned how they are considering their position because of the few in numbers attending, The fact is if a church does not grow it will not continue,the doors of  the building will close, the local church will cease. This is not a new thing, but it fills me with sadness, there are many reasons why this happening. In the book of Revelation ,the Lord speaks to local churches ,these were thriving churches , you can read about them in chap 2 - 3 .I visited the site where the church of Ephesus worshipped a number of years ago. All that remained was ruins ,no church no people, A church I used to attend is gone, the building is demolished, houses have been built on that site. it causes me concern, yet I pray for many churches every day.Do pray wherever God has placed you, for the people in your local area that God will have mercy, and send forth an outpouring of the Spirit of God. I am not despairing ,but I am concerned,for I know that people need Christ. What do you thing is the answer?, prayer witnessing, yes ,one thing we need to do is get in step with the Holy Spirit, and all that this means.
                                         
                                              Lord we pray that we may yet see
                                              an outpouring of your Spirit,into
                                              our lives,that we may be effective
                                              in reaching the Lost,in your name
                                              we ask this Amen.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Invictus. ( Psalm 27 )

I  read the following on the bonnet of a car on TV, ' I am the master of my fate,I am captain of my soul' ,these words are taken from the poem by English poet ,William Ernest Henly,( 1849 - 1903 ) It is known  by the title ,'Invictus ',meaning,' unconquered '. It is thought of as Victorian Stoicism, stiff  upper lip attitude, Those last lines where the motto of Nelson Mandela, and of course the poet who wrote this poem suffered a leg being amputated ,so out of that experience and other difficulties, he penned those words.  Are these  words  appropriate for a Christian to use,I do not think so, they indicate the power and ability for a person to withstand what ever life throws at them.Some people can I know from my experience withstand a lot,but I know that I am weak, and stoicism could not get me through all that life throws at me,what I need is Grace the grace of God. Are we masters of our fate are we captains of our souls, no, the child God bows in humble reverence, and declares to a Sovereign God,'' My times are in Thy hand ; My  God I wish them there'' ( Words/ W. F . Floyd )                                                               
                                                I could not do without Thee
                                                I cannot stand alone ,
                                                I have no strength or goodness,
                                                No wisdom of my own;
                                                But Thou, beloved Saviour,
                                                Art all in all to me,
                                                And weakness will be power
                                                If leaning hard on Thee.
                                                        ( Frances R. Havergal )

Paradise lost. ( Romans 5 v 12 )

In that very old song ,'Sonny boy', sung by Al Jolson, there is a line that goes,''You made for me a heaven right here on earth''. if only that where so. But it will never happen ,no matter how well you are off,no matter how healthy one is,no matter where you reside. The earth is Paradise lost ,what a wonderful place it must have been before that awful day which brought catastrophe upon that paradise called planet earth.Nothing would ever be the same , nature would no longer be in harmony with itself, and as for the jewel in the crown  of Gods creation.They were told what would happen if they sinned, but ignored what God said,instead they not only listened to Gods enemy, they obeyed him  .When asked why they had did it ,they blamed it on each other ,and then on that evil  being, we know as the devil,but it did not only affect them,it had consequences for their children, that is all of  us, for they are ,our first parents. So driven out of  the security ,and well being, of that place known as the garden of Eden,to live at a lesser level,to struggle against disease,dangers,and death.There are foolish people who put the blame on God, why did He not stop it happening?. What I would say to that, I do not know, but I believe the judge of the earth will not to anything evil or wrong. ( Gen 18 v 25) What we know for certain as Alec Motyer puts it, ''Adam and Eve were wilfully disobedient,to them it appeared a comparatively minor matter,......but to the Lord it was not.''Yes sin ,no matter how trivial it may appear, is not trivial to the Lord, and so paradise was lost
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        .

They do not listen. ( Psalm 95 v 7 - 8 )

I met a lady at a supermarket cafeteria ,she introduced herself and it took me a while before I recognised her ,it was a good few years since I last saw her. She attended a local church and I asked her if she was attending anywhere, she was not because she became disillusioned,mentioned a few reasons .I sought to say something to her,but there was not to much time,but afterwards I  thought she was not listening to me.,it appeared that her mind was fixed.Consider Pharaoh king of Egypt. he was faced with a prophet called Moses  ,and Aaron his brother, who spoke to him Gods word, and witnessed the power of God,in the plagues, yet he never really listened. We all have heard of wives who say to their husbands ,'you don't listen to me', she is not saying he does not hear her speaking, but that  he does not let it sink in,what she says. We may listen when we it is important   ,even then we may not,I believe God is speaking to us every day,Christian or otherwise.I cannot help think of Christmas and how many people hear the carols,see the nativity scene, and don't hear God speaking. The cry of God to mankind goes on the whole unheeded, I wear a little cross as a witness, but for the many who wear crosses it is nothing more than a fashion accessory,strange accessory, considering what it really means  .                                                                                                                                                                                         I spoke and they did not listen                                                                                                                   I healed the sick and they did not listen,                                                                                                   I raised the dead and they did not listen                                                                                                     I promised them freedom and forgiveness
                                                         and still they did not listen.                                                                                                                       I died for their sins and still they did not listen.
                                                         I rose from the grave but still they did not listen.                                                                                           

Faith and conflict. ( Revelation 2 v 8 - 11 )

An old Gospel song has the following words,''I go to church on Sunday,the vows that I make I break them  on Monday,the rest of the week I live as I please but come Sunday morning  I'm down on my knees'' . Our Christian life is not just an hour on Sunday it is to be lived out  24/7,most of us know this so what has this to do with ,''Faith and conflict'' ?. Everything ,for the child of God who sincerely  follows  his Master Jesus, is in a battle  ,I do not exaggerate ,that faith will be tested in one way or another , Gods word continually stress'es that there is no such thing as an untested faith .There is no good saying I do not know why these these things are happening to me .Alec Motyer writes ,''Testing has its place and purpose,and this applies not only to the outward trials of adversity and circumstantial difficulties but also to the individual realities of besetting sins, temptation and ceaseless warfare of the spiritual life''. A/M ,goes unto write,'' Israel ,having sheltered beneath the blood  of the Lamb , launched out into a pilgrimage ( Exod 12 v11 ) to face the wilderness ( Deut 8v15) in a divinely planned programme to test obedience, bring loyalty to light and prove the faithfulness of God ( Deut 8 v 1 - 4 ; cf. 1 Cor 10 v 6 - 13 ) Speaking of Israel , A/M, writes as ,''They had no expectation of trouble ahead,yet the word of  God was quite explicit. They believed ( Ex 4 v31) ,but they did not listen ,when God's word warned that there is no such thing as an untested faith. It could be said that the root of all disaster in the Christian life is the failure to hear and believe what the word of God says and to act accordingly''.

Disobedience is serious. ( Numbers 20 v 12 )

Yesterday we considered how Adam and Eve by their disobedience lost paradise,Alec Motyer writes ''Their disobedience lost the garden for themselves and their human posterity,and lost the manifold  perfections of the garden for the whole of creation. Disobedience is as serious as that. Moses'  obedience  brought Israel out of Egypt, as we might say, against all the odds and in the face of the then world's superpower; his disobedience lost him the promised land. The terms in which this  is expressed are telling; disobedience as Numbers 20 v 12/ 27 v 14 reveal, rebels against the divine word, deserts the life of faith, scorns the holiness of the Lord and provokes His anger. ( Deut 1 v 27 ) The Lord sometimes gives a signal demonstration of how He feels and reacts to disobedience, the plagues in Egypt the great flood in Genesis ,(  9 )the destruction of Sodom ( Gen 19 )  the striking down of Ananias and Sapphira  ( Acts 5 ) are all examples of the fact that the Lord sometimes gives a signal  demonstration of how He feels and reacts All these reveal His love of obedience and His revulsion of disobedience''.
                                              To obey God is always,always best.

Faith and conflict. ( 2 Corinthians 12 v 10 )

Alec Motyer is writing  about Exodus  about a people who had suffered under the Pharaoh's , when he came to them, he tells them that God is going to deliver them from the slavery of Egypt. They reacted favourable to what they heard, but when Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh requesting that he let Israel go,he acts unfavourably,refuses and punishes Israel ,they turned on Moses ( Ex 5 ) from faith to despair. A/M equates this to what our Saviour taught in Mark 4 v 16-17 .There we are told about those who heard Gods word, received it with joy, and turned away because of trouble and persecution .A/M says the following , ''There is no such thing as untested faith'', he goes on to say, ''When the word of God arrives in our hearts and lives, testings and trials comes to us as God's appointed way for His children to grow spiritually , and to come into the arena of Christlikeness . Even our poor understanding of such things can see that this must be so''.We will leave it there and look at it some more next time, but consider the following scriptures.  (  1  Thess 2  v 13- 14/ 1 Peter 4 v 12 - 13/ 2 v20 - 25/ James 1 v 2 - 4/ 1 Peter 1 v 6 7/ Job 23 v 10)

Helps to understanding Gods word. ( Colossians 1 v 9 )

At the moment I am studying the book of Exodus with the aid of  Alec Motyer's  book from the Bible speaks to day series, I am finding it very profitable.I have a thirst to understand Gods word , I have read the Bible  through many times in different translations, preached from it many times,been to Bible college,but I know that in a sense I have only scratched the surface of Gods word. I am seventy three but I still want to have a greater understanding of Gods. I have commentaries on all the books  of the Bible ,they have served me well,but the Bible speaks today has been a great help, the authors of this series of books, have worked hard to help those who  want to understand the scripture. They are  not expensive can be purchased on Amazon at a very reasonable price,the reason I am telling you this ,is because I believe they will help you grow in your understanding of Gods word.  My next message will be on a passage by A/M  from Exodus called faith and conflict.

I am convinced ( Romans 8 v 38 - 39 )

             As I was out on  may daily constitution a little children's chorus came into my mind.
             that blessed me,it goes.
                                               
                                               Wide, wide as the ocean,
                                               High as the heavens above,
                                               Deep, deep as the deepest sea,
                                               Is my Saviours love.
                                               Though so unworthy,
                                               Still  I'm  a child of His love,
                                               For His word teaches me,
                                               That His love reaches me
                                               Everywhere.

            As I continued to walk I began thanking God for being with me all the time,but then I
            took it a stage further,when He will take me to be with Him.

                                                 I am with you always  ( Matthew 28 v 20 )

                                                 And so we will be with the Lord forever.  ( 1 Thessalonians 4 v 17 )

Problems. ( Matthew 6 v 25 - 34 )

I am having problems with my computer, when  I print my blog,and then publish it,it appears distorted my son had a look at it and has pointed out the problem,if not I will take it to an expert,so bear with me.Problems come in many shapes and sizes, some ,you can sort out,others you cant,but whatever problem you are faced with,take it to the Lord in prayer. Pray about everything,ask the Lord to help you and guide ,He will not fail you,He is bigger than our problems,with Him all things are possible

                                                 God is the great problem solver

God gives the best. ( 1 Peter 5 v 7 )

    Not so long ago I read an article  by the present Archbishop's daughter,who suffers from
    ongoing mental illness. There are degrees of mental illness , I worked with a mental health
    team for 23 yrs, I loved my job, but often I felt so sad, as I cared for my clients, for most of
    them suffered from long term and enduring mental illness. That means they did not get better they could not work,some coped better than others,most were nice people,not all, but of course hat reflects life for all of us. Mental illness is what it says on the tin, an illness, many people
    don't understand this,  a lady sayed about someone who told her to pull herself together,
    she replied,'' I am not a pair of curtains.''. No she was not a pair of curtain, she was mentally ill.Years ago when talking to someone about mental illness which he did not appear to approve
    of  the medical treatment they received, said there must be some better way. Well there might be,,the Archbishop's  daughter mentioned the difficulties of those who want to pray with for
    healing,as often it just builds up her hopes, and effects her when nothing happens. People
    mean well and I believe God does heal in His will.,that goes for all things. We know without
    a shadow of a doubt ,that with God all things  are possible, but for many people, healing does
    take place. My dear niece wrote the following in a letter to me,I will share it with you.
 
    ''God gives the best to those who leave the choice to Him, and leave the choice  with Him.
     When I can't see through my dark times, I reach out, and He is always there to catch my
      hand''
                                                       My times are in Thy hand;
                                                       My God, I wish them there;
                                                       My life, my friends ,my soul I leave
                                                       Entirely to Thy care.

                                                       My times are in Thy hand,
                                                       Whatever they may be;
                                                       Pleasing or painful, dark or bright,
                                                       As best may seem to Thee.

                                                      My times are in Thy hand,
                                                      Why should I doubt or fear?
                                                       A  Father's hand will never cause,
                                                       His child a needless tear.

                                                       My times are in Thy hand.
                                                       Jesus the Crucified;
                                                       The hand my cruel sins have pierced
                                                       Is now my guard and  guide.

                                                                (H. F, Lyte)

                                               
     

 
 

Not wasted time. ( John 6 v 12 )

I read this recently , ''God is not in our kind of hurry, this does not indicate any delaying or dithering on Gods part''.There are many reasons why God does not act, or move,we read that Moses at the age of forty ,thought that he was going to rescue Gods people.  (Acts 7 v 25 ) He was right but he had to wait another forty years before this took place. why? well it was not Gods time.But the waiting time was not wasted time,this prince of Egypt had to learn what it meant ,to not be a prince. Alec Motyer writes ,''Did he know that the hand of God was secretly shaping his destiny ? If he did, he does not tell us so, but he certainly had to learn the lesson of being faithful in the ordinary humdrum routine everyday life''.He took on the role of a shepherd,and when it came Gods time, he left of shepherding sheep to shepherding a nation.

                                                            A  prayer.
                      Dear God we ask for patience as you prepare us for the tasks you
                      will entrust us to do, in Jesus name Amen.
     

The answer is already on the way. ( Habakkuk 2 v 3 )

 
                Just continuing on what I wrote about dear Sam. I remember him telling me what
                 his favourite  hymn was, here it  is.

                                                  Many times, I'm bowed beneath a heavy load
                                                  On bended knees To God  I prayed
                                                   As I knelt there on the floor,
                                                   He reminded me once more
                                                   That the answer was already on the way.

                                                   If there's a special need in your life my friend
                                                   And your seeking for an answer every day,
                                                   If by faith you start believing
                                                   Mighty soon you'll be receiving
                                                   For the answer is already on the way.

                                                  O yes the answer 's on the way, this I know,
                                                  Jesus said it, I believe it, and it's so
                                                  Our Heavenly Father, knows our needs before we pray,
                                                  And we can rest assured , the answer's on the way.

                                                              Delay is not denial
                                                                     



               

Amazing love ( Romans 5 v 1 - 8 )

 My mind goes back many years, as we walked to church,we saw a lady who attended our church she was upset,said something which I did not quite understand. When we got to church we found out that a dear Christian had died in an accident, his name was Sam . He was a leader in our churches youth organisation,he and some young people had gone away for the weekend,they where going up the famous mountains of Mourne. As they where climbing over some rock Sam's son went to fall Sam managed to stop him, but in the process he fell,  seriously injuring himself,he later went to be with Jesus , He died saving his son,paid the price, for he loved his son,because he died, his son lived. All this reminds me of what our Saviour did, on the cross He died that I might live, He died because He loved me.
                                                   
                                           And can it be that I should gain
                                           An interest in the Saviour's blood?
                                           Died He for me, who caused Him pain?
                                           For me, who him to death pursued?
                                           Amazing love, How can it be
                                           That Thou , my God,shouldst die for me?

                                                       ( Charles Wesley )

Help me Lord. ( Philippians 1 v 6 )

                                                        A prayer.

                                          Dear master,in whose life I see
                                          All that I would, but fail to be,
                                          Let thy clear light for ever shine,
                                          To shame and guide this life of mine.

                                          Though what I  dream, and what I do
                                           In my weak days are always two,
                                           Help me oppressed by things undone,
                                           O thou, whose deeds and dreams were one.
                                                         
                                                       ( Words by John Hunter )
                                       

They shrieked. ( Exodus 2 v 23 - 25 )

        After 400yrs of suffering in Egypt things did not improve ,the wicked Pharaoh died and
        a new one ruled,they may have thought that things would improve,but it didn't.A Motyer
        writes,''They had a new king  , but still the old sorrows''. So what could they do?,well here
        is what they did,''The  Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out,and their cry for
         help, because of their slavery went up to God'',and then we read, God heard (Exodus
        2 v 23- 24)   A/ M points out,they shrieked,and God heard,we read in James 5 v 17, that
        Elijah prayed earnestly,when our Lord was in the garden,we read in Luke 22 v 44,''And
        being in anguish he prayed more earnestly,and his sweat was like drops of blood falling
        to the ground''So many of us pray dead prayers,formal, and unemotional ,have we ever
        shrieked to God,how earnest is our prayers?.Could it be that our  unanswered prayers ,
        are a result of our lack of earnestness. We all have a lot to to learn about prayer,and one
        thing we need to know is that  the effectual  fervent prayer of a righteous man avails
       much ,or as J .B.Phillips puts it,''tremendous power is made available through a good
       man's earnest prayer.( James 5 v 17 )

                                                              James 5 v 17- 18
                                      Elijah was a man just like us,he prayed earnestly
                                      that it would not rain on the land for three and a
                                      half years. Again he prayed,and the heavens gave
                                      rain,and the earth produced its crop.
     
     

Faith and patience ( Hebrews 10 v 35 - 36 )

It is in Hebrews 6 V 12 , we read how the OT saints through faith and patience inherited the promises, that God had given them.God promised Abraham that his offspring would inherit the promise land  ( Genesis 12 v 7 ), this did not happen for a long,long time..So much had to happen before this would come into being.The promised offspring would come, again this would not happen at once,no Sarah and Abraham had to and wait.Faith and patience was called for in that,the promised Messiah ,Jesus, did not co me, for a long time but He did come,Abraham did have a son,Israel did inherit the promised land.The church of Christ is waiting for the return of Jesus,over 2000 years have taken place, He still has not come, but like all these things promised it will happen,we need to exercise faith and patience.These are very instructive  words for all of us,of course God often answers quickly ( Isa 65 v24 ). But often there is a waiting time, it is then we must hold fast to the promise given, and exercise patience.

                                                                  Psalm 40 v 1 .
                                       I waited patiently for the Lord ,He turned to me
                                       and heard my cry,

     

Show a little kindness ( Luke 16 v 10 )

I called in to buy a morning paper a friend was there, I was in the queue ,she was at the till when she took my paper off me and paid for it. It was a little unexpected kindness which brightened my day,We marvel at the wonderful things Jesus did, they leave us speechless but I \am sure he did many little kindnesses to  people that brightened  their days.Remember how He spoke of giving a glass of water,it would receive a reward, A simple word of encouragement can help a lot, a smile, a phone call a visit,a letter,a text,let us all show simple kindness to others,if we are faithful in that which least, who knows what God will trust us with.

                                                             Jesus said.
                                   ''Well done, my good servant,his master replied,
                                    Because you have been trustworthy in a small matter
                                    take charge of 10 cities.''
                                                     ( Luke 16 v 10 )
                               
                                   

A happy new year. ( Jude v 24 - 25 )

     An old professor would wish his students a happy eternity, the question this raises ,is there
    an existence after this life has ended ?.  Does it really matter? should we just live for the
    here and now.The one person who gives meaning to these things ,is the historical Christ,
    When He died many of his followers thought that was it, CP ( Luke 24 v 15 ff) and ( John 20 v
     24 - 29 ), The apostle Paul who met the Lord after His resurrection ( Acts 9 v 1 - 9 ) wrote
     of the many who met with the risen Christ  ( 1 Corinthians 15 v 1 - 8 ) The Bible teaches  that
     Jesus is the resurrection and the Life and that who ever believes  in Him,will conqueror
     even death ( John 11 v  25 ).With that in view we who have trusted in Him would never die.
     the moment our eyelids  close in our natural death , eternal life takes over, death is conquered.
     With Him as your Saviour death has been conquered,yes we can look forward to a glorious
     future.
                                                           A prayer.
                                 
                                      Dear God may you help us to live in
                                      light of eternity,in Jesus name
                                                            Amen.




















0