Glorify God.[ 1 Corinthians 10 v 31 ]

In the , Westminster Shorter Catechism,[ A cathechism is a hand book of questions and answers for teaching the pricipals of religion ], in this catechism there are 107, questions and answers. The first question is ,/ What is mans chief end ?, the answer- Mans chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him for ever. So many have different aims, many see lifes aim, is to be successful, to make money, to be happy, and so on, now of course there is nothing wrong with those things, but, ah that but again, most people, dont have a thought for God in their aims, or indeed for others, hence so much pain and hurt. Fellow Christians let us make it our aim to glorify God, by obeying His word, and the promptings of the Holy Spirit, that must be our chief aim in life. Let us always ask ourselves the question, is the thing I am going to do, say , or think ,is it going to bring glory to God?, if not decide against it.[ Dear God help us to make it our chief end to glorify You in everything, we ask this in the name of our precious Saviour, Jesus , Amen ]

I am going on holiday until next Saturday, keep that thought in mind of glorifying God, apply it to every situation ,the Lord bless you all.








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Obedience [ 1 Samuel 15 v22- 23 ]

In Proverbs 4 v23-27, we are advised to not be distracted, Look straight ahead, dont get sidetracked, guard your heart.The Christian life demands a singleness of vision, keeping our eyes on Jesus is vital . There was a prophet in the O T, we read about him in 1 Kings 13 who turned back, when God told him plainly not to, the result of his disobedience , he died. Obedience to God is not optional, it is vital, obedience to God is not a take it or leave it option. Consider that all the woes of life , have been caused by one thing disobedience. God made a perfect world ,imperfection came in when our first parents disobeyed. So dont run with your feelings, walk in obedience, dont yield to temptation, say an emphatic no, dont be fooled by the devil, and his lies, resist the devil and he will flee from you. [ Father it is so easy to loose sight of You, so easy to be distracted, and so easy to fall into sin, help us in the name of our Saviour your Son to have a singleness of vision, a vision of obedience. Amen ]

Debt [ Matthew 18 v21 - 35 ]

As I look at the credit crunch , it makes me realize how much the whole financial world is built on debt. Long gone our the days when people would only buy something when they had the ready cash, it is buy now pay later. It seems that every one owes someone,even the money people invest is used by the investors to grant loans to others. We all know how easy it has been to get loans, and it seems that the present credit crunch, has been caused by irresponsible lending to people who could not afford to pay their loans back. The bible uses the idea of debt in relation to our sins, and makes it clear that not one of us can pay that debt , years ago people who could not pay their debts, where put into the debtors prison,and there they stayed until their debts were paid, as far as God is concerned we are all without exception in the debtors prison , because we cannot pay that debt. The fact is unless that debt is paid we are doomed ,but the good news is Christ by dying on the cross made it possible for our debts to be paid, when we trust Christ , God forgives us our debts[ sins ] [ Merciful God we thank You for Jesus Your Son who died that our sins can be forgiven, Amen ]

What is the Lord saying? [ Revelation 2 v 7 ]

It is Jeremiah the prophet who says, / You should keep asking each other. What is the Lords answer? or What is the Lord saying?[23 v 35]. Look at the situation now in our lives,and ask what is God saying to us ?, this is very important, we are inclined to go to friends, mybe get a book on our particular problem , but the most important question is, what is the Lord saying to us?. Look at the financial situation worldwide , what is the Lord saying about it ?, one thing I am sure He is saying to all of us is, that we should not trust in our money, which is unreliable, we should trust in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment, to use money to do good. [ 1 Timothy 6v 17-18 ], these words are aimed at the rich ,but they have meaning to all of us. [Father thank You for money, help us not to make money a god, help us to be generous, and responsible with our money, and help us to listen to what You have to say to us, in Jesus name we ask this Amen ]

Let Him [ Psalm 47 v 4 av]

It was Eli the high priest who was told by Samuel, that God was going to judge him and his family, he replied,/ It is the Lords will, let Him do what He thinks is best, [ 1 Samuel 3 v 18 ]. The more I go on in my Christian life, the more I see the importance of letting God lead , guide, and choose. I see the importance of yielding to God in everything, of waiting on God , many godly people who acted out their own choice, have found themselves in hot water. Consider the words of Romans 8 v 26, /We dont know what God wants us to pray for/,it is the Holy Spirit, who knows, and intercedes on our behalf, the words of a hymn comes to mind,/ I loved to choose and see my path, but now lead Thou me on/. A Gerhard Tersteegem wrote these very meaningful words, Let Him lead thee blindfold onwards, Love needs not to know, Children whom the Father leadeth, Ask not where they go, Though the path be all unknown , Over moors and mountains lone/ [ Father God grant us the grace to trust You, to rest in You, to lead and choose what is best for us, we ask this in Jesus name , Amen ]

Making a vow [ 1 Samuel 1 v9 - 28 ]

Right throughout the Bible we have people making vows with God, Jacob in Genesis [28 v20 - 22 ]vowed if God would do certain things then he would likewise do certain things Making a vow with God is a very serious buisness, in Ecclesiastes 5 v4 -7 , we are told , it is better to say nothing than to make a promise and not to keep it. My study Bible says this, / In Israelite culture, making vows was a serious matter. Vows were voluntary, but once made,they were unbreakable/. In Matthew 5 v33-37 , our Saviour appears to be saying not to make vows, I dont think that is what Jesus is teaching, He was challenging the abuse of oath taking in His day,which was flippant in and insincere. So by all means make an vow , but be careful remember God is listening and He will expect you to fulfill it. [Father , You mean what You say, help us to mean what we say, help us to be people of our word ,in Jesus name we ask this, Amen. ]

Success [ Philippians 4 v 13 ]

The Psalmist prayed, /Please Lord give us success, [Ps 118 v 25 NLT]/, in the margin of my Bible I have written a number of things I want to succeed in. I am sure if you think about it there are things that you want to succeed in, stop for a moment and ask the question, what do I want to succeed in?. Then , why not pray for success, in those things , I realise that life is not all about success, but we can know real success in our marriages, employment, and many other things.Sometimes we give the impression that the Christian life holds no success, but it is not true, we can be successful, temptation can be overcome, we can make a difference where God has placed us. [ Father grant us success in these lives of ours, pour out your blessings upon us now, we ask this in Jesus name , Amen ]