Tired. [ Matthew 11v28-30 ]

Sometimes I feel weary in spirit, facing lifes challenges can take it out of one,as I thought about this the words of Isaiah 40v29-31 came to mind, so I will pass them on to you./ He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. But they that wait upon the Lord, shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run, and not be weary, and they shall walk, and not faint./ [ Dear God sometimes a weariness comes over us, we struggle to cope,we feel it difficult to go on, so today as we wait upon You ,renew our strength in Jesus name Amen ]

Coincidence. [ Revelation 19 v6 av ]

I believe God is involved in all of life, things dont just happen, God rules and overrules, I often stress the sovereignty of God, because I know the devil would undermind this vital truth. I believe there are no coincidences in our lives, what may appear a chance happening, is God,overruling, protecting His children, providing for His children. There are many examples of this in the word of God, the life of so many of His children are a testimony, to Gods ruling and overruling. The doctrine of the sovereignty of God covers all events in life, even the Hitlers,and the painful and the joyful experiences ,in His childrens life. I have just been told of a dear child of God who died, leaving a family, cruel chance, no , a loving God is ruling and overruling, and causing all things to work together for their good .[ Romans 8 v28 av]. Dear Child of God let us consign the word coincidence to the bin, and let us hold on ,with all that is in us ,to the truth ,that God is sovereign [ Dear God there are so many things that we do not understand,sad things ,painful things, help us to hold unto the truth, that You are in control, in Jesus name Amen ]

Pray without ceasing.[ Luke 18 v1 ]

I pray for parking spaces, there is nothing wrong with that, some people are critical of people who do, but whats wrong with praying for a parking space, if we need one, God says He will meet our need[ Philippians 4 v19]. I think we should pray about everything, why not , the main thing is that we pray, in 1 Thessalonians 5v17, we are to pray without ceasing., that means as E Hopkins writes,/ to observe a constant course of prayer at fixed and appointed times/. We need to be in an attitude of prayer, as we attend our duties, again as E Hopkins writes,/Praying without ceasing is keeping our hearts in such a praying frame that we are always ready to pray....to have the habit of always freely and sweetly breathing out our requests unto God./ So today pray for a parking space , but also pray without ceasing. [ Dear God we thank You that we can pray about everything ,even parking spaces, and we ask that You would fill us with the spirit of prayer, that we would pray with out ceasing, in Jesus name Amen ]

Be prepared. [ Proverbs 27 v1 ]

Life is very uncertain ,here today gone tomorrow, this is borne out in the story our Saviour told in Luke 12v 13-21. A rich and prosperous farmer , he had his plans, he was going to retire , and eat drink and be merry. He had his plans , but God had other plans, he was taken up solely with this life,he had no thought of God or others, God called him a fool, and that night he died, leaving everything behind. My study Bible says,/Planning for retirement- preparing for life before death is wise-but neglecting life after death is disastrous/. The only way to prepare for life after death is to have a right relationship with God, by accepting Christ as Saviour, and to live for Him. [ Dear God help us to see that the most important thing in life is to know and to live for Christ Amen ]

Escaping death. [ 1 Thessalonians 4 v 13-18 ]

Let us continue to consider Enoch, this man who walked with God, in Hebrews11v 5 we read he was taken up to heaven without dying- he disappeared,because God took him. We read of only two people in the Bible who never died, Enoch and Elijah, why they were spared from dying, I do not know. Most of us will die, I say most of us, but there is coming a time when our Lord comes back again, millions of believers will suddenly be translated into His presence , without dying [1 Thessalonians4 ]. The hymn writer H L Turner,thinking of that day when the Lord returns, wrote,/Oh joy, oh delight, should we go without dying, no sickness, no sadness, no dread and no crying, caught up through the clouds with our Lord into glory, when Jesus , recieves His own./[ Dear God we we ask that You would hasten the day of Your Sons returning, in His precious name we ask this Amen ]

Walking with God. [ Hebrews 11v 5 ]

In Genesis 5v22 we read, Enoch walked with God, what does that conjure up in your mind?, why does it highlight this one man ?.The new living translation puts it like this, /walking in close fellowship with God/, that implies many things, it involved a very personal relationship.It also implies a seperation from wrong relationships [Psalm 1], a life that is holy, seperated from evil and seperated to holiness. It involves following Jesus and not the crowd, choosing Gods way , and not ours, it does not mean we lock ourselves away in a monastery, it means living as light, and ,as salt. Enoch was a man of faith, [Hebrews 11v5], it is impossible to know God, without faith in His son Jesus, and likewise it is impossible to have a close fellowship with God, without faith.[ Dear God help us to know You, and to walk in close fellowship with You , in Jesus name. Amen ]

Encouragement [ 2 Chronicles 35 v 2 ]

I recieved a compliment, I must confess Im never to sure how to react to compliments, and yet it is nice when one recieves one. It was said that the Duke of Wellingtons butler left his service because the Duke never once,expressed any appreciation,or complimented him. When our Lord spoke to the seven churches in Revelation [chapters 2-3 ], He pointed out the positive things within the churches , oh yes they were not perfect . Many people feel unappreciated, taken for granted, so today as we rub shoulders with people, let us encourage them, by a complment,a thank you, a phone call.[ Dear God we thank You for all the encouagement we recieve from You , help us to to follow Your example in Jesus name Amen ]