Difficult people. [1 Corinthians 13 v 4-7 ]

Here is a challenge, it is to do with people who we find difficult, people we want to avoid, people we would like to choke, we all have met then, and wish we had,nt. They may be part of our family,members of our church, or someone we work with, you know them and I know them. The question is what are we to do with them, how are we suppose to cope with them? the answer from Gods word is simple this,/ Be patient with difficult people 2 Timothy2v24/. We are being asked to do something, that God is continually doing, think of all the difficult people God has to deal with, and of course we can include ourselves in that number. I know that I can be difficult, what about you?, so today when we are faced with some difficult person, let us be patient. [ Dear God we thank You ,that are ever so patient with us difficult difficult people, help us to follow Your example in Jesus name Amen ]

Gods agender . [ 1 Timothy 2 v1-8]

Praying for others pleases our God and Saviour, so we are told in 1 Timothy 2v3, we have a new goverment, a coalition, the party we voted for, may not have got in , we may be very critical of what has come about, and even anxious. What we are told to do is pray, 1Timothy 2v2, in these secular days, those in power may not pray, but we can , and we need to, our prayers can make a difference. I am concerned that Christians are being marginalised,let us pray that we may be able to live in such a way that will enable the Gospel to spread . Whoever is in power need not concern us , they may have their agenders, but God has His agender the salvation of men and women, that is what we need to focus on, and pray to that end. [ Dear God we bring our goverment to You ,in Thy mercy guide and direct them in all things,and help us to stay focused on Your desire to see people coming to know our Saviour. Amen ]

Telling others. [Matthew 28 v18-20 ]

I must confess I am not as bold at witnessing as I once was, I remember times when some Christians, criticised me for witnessing in a certain way,they may have been right, mybe I did get it wrong, but then people are going to hell. Our Saviour said we were to as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves[Matthew 10v16], and so we should,but that is not meant to intimidate us from witnessing,let me tell you this from experience,the offence of the cross has not gone away. We will need a certain amount of boldness , we will not always get it right, we might become unpopular, but ours is the task of telling others about Jesus, and this is not optional, and to neglect this ,is just downright disobedient. [ Dear God help us to tell others about Jesus, with our lives and our words, Amen ]

Be prepared [ 1 Timothy 6 v11-14 ]

Be prepared is a good motto, yesterday our speaker did not turn up ,he was unwell, fortunately I had started a message the night before, I was sort of half prepared.I had an hour to finish it of ,which I did, and so I was able to preach. I have had a life time of experience in preparing sermons, hours and hours of studying, been to Bible college, many years ago, but one still needs to be prepared when one comes to preaching, I love preaching,but one has to work at it,so it is with the Christian life, one has to work at it,praying ,reading the word of God, reading godly literature, and in all things have a deep reliance on the Holy Spirit. [ Dear God help us to do all we can to equip ourselves as Christians, for service in Your Kingdom in Jesus name Amen ]

Feelings. [ Matthew 16v24 ]

I must confess I felt it hard to pray this morning,usually I dont struggle, but for whatever reason I did this morning. Here is the important thing ,I did not give into my feelings, I still prayed, it would be so easy to go down the road called feelings, to feel hatred and go with that, to feel that life is not fair,and of course often it is not. Our Saviour was not ruled by His feelings,nor should we be,the challenge of being a Christian, is so often the opposite of how we are feeling. Consider the words of our Saviour in Matthew 16v24/If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow Me /. We may not feel like doing what Jesus said, we may feel so far from what He said, we have a choice, we always have a choice, feelings or obedience, whats it going to be?.[ Dear God help us to not be ruled by our feelings, help us to press on in our walk with You, to realize afresh that it is the way of the cross that leads home, in Jesus name Amen ]

Breaking and making.[ Jeremiah 18 v1-4 ]

I want to tell you something ,I am not perfect, well those who know me, are aware of this already, but then none of us are perfect. There is still much land to be conquered,so much dead wood to be cut off, as I think of my imperfections, I could so easily despair, sometimes I do, yet God is in the business of making us what we should be. When He saved us we were imperfect, we are still imperfect, but we are a work in progress, He is the potter we are the clay, [Jeremiah 18 v1-4/ Romans 9 v21].I read a poem by John Donne ,here is a verse from it,/ O Saviour, as Thou hangst upon the tree. I turn my back to recieve, Correction, till Thy mercies bid thee leave. O think me worth thine anger,punish me, Burn off my rusts, and my deformity, Restore Thine Image so much, by Thy grace./ One day that process will be complete, one day we will be like Him [1 John 3v2], no more rust or deformities.[ Father we bow before You, we acknowledge our many imperfections,grant us grace to accept , Your breaking and making,in these lives of ours, in Jesus name Amen ]

This changing scene. [ Psalm 121 ]

We live in a world of change ,this especially applies to the political scene,yesterday was an election day , who will be in goverment?. Whatever the changes in goverment, or in life, the important thing to remember that there is one who does not change, our sovereign God. When I think of change,change of job, change of circumstances,or whatever ,I can become unsettled, and anxious ,God is in control of our world , and our lives. Frances Havergal wrote a wonderful hymn, the chorus goes like this,/ Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blest, finding as He promised, perfect peace and rest/.So today in a world of change, remember,in the words of that same hymn,/We may trust Him fully, all for us to do. They who trust Him wholly, find Him wholly true/. [ Dear God it does not take much to unsettle us, so help us to fully trust You to undertake for us, whatever the changes in life, in Jesus name Amen ]