The Lord Looketh on the heart.[ 1 Samuel 16 v7 ]

I am glad I attend a church that is imformal,it was not always so,I remember hearing of the former minister being criticised for taking his coat of  when preaching,but thankfully things have changed.When I was a minister I used to wear clerical garb ,I still try to look my best when I meet with Gods people, at one time I used to wear a bow- tie,yes that was my bow tie period.I remember  people making a great deal out of women wearing jeans,and if they wore make up, they were labled a Jezebel.I remember a speaker telling how a preacher was challenged by lady for wearing perfume[after shave],and he replied ,yes but it is obvious you dont wear perfume. Again I remember a pastor I knew who had a beard, being told by someone as they left at the close of the service,pity about the beard.A number of years ago I went to minister at a church, who had called a new minister, he was a young man , and he had an ear ring in one ear,which was a bit different, and for some not acceptable, and I remembered a scripture, /The Lord seeth not as man seeth, for man looketh on the outward appearance,but the Lord looketh on the heart[ 1 Samuel 16 v7]/
 A  prayer...../ Dear God forgive us for judging people,as the old saying  goes,judging the book by its cover, thankfully, the outward appearance is  not important,  with You, in Jesus name Amen /

It is not natural . [ Hebrews 11]

The way of faith does not come naturally to us, for it is not  natural ,it is a spiritual concept,we will not be applauded for walking, and living by faith, there is every possiblity that people will despise you. I wonder how many people thought my wife and I were going to fall flat on our faces when we stepped out by faith, with our young family. But God honoured our faith ,oh yes we where tested, faith will always be tested,was not Abraham and Sarah severely tested, tell me a saint of God who took a step of faith,and was not tested. Yes faith will be tested,but it will not be found wanting,God will honour those who honour Him, for He delights in those who trust Him, when the chips are down.In the midst of a life threatening storm. Paul boldly declared a message of hope,God had spoken,that all those in the ship in the storm would be preserved,so he declared, /I believe God. Acts 27 v25/, and so it came to pass.
A prayer..../Dear God help us to live by faith, to not be afraid, to take a chance,knowing that You will not fail us,in Jesus name Amen /

True riches [ Philippians 3 v 8 ]

Proverbs 23 v4 - 5 /Labour not to be rich.......for riches certainly make themselves wings,they fly away as an eagle toward heaven./ Now there is nothing wrong with being rich, but we are warned that the love of money is a great evil,we read of a rich young ruler, whose love for money was greater than his own soul Matthew 19 v16 ff. All the people who are going for gold are not in the Olympic games, there are literally millions of people who are clutching their lottery tickets, for we are told there shall be 100 millionaires, and as I was leaving my place of employment,I overheard a number of people expressing the hope of being one. It was the apostle Paul who reminds us Christians that we should never be fooled by earthly values[ cp  1 Corinthians9 v25],if God should bless one with riches, then use those riches to bless others,and above all else, to not let  our possessions possess us.
A  prayer..../Dear God help us to not be fooled by worldly values, that we are to love You,that our service may be as unto You,our worship may be always focused on You,in Jesus name we ask this Amen./

A good name.[ Philippians 2 v 5-11 ]

Proverbs 22 v1..../ A good name is rather to be chosen rather than great riches/ Here we are thinking of having a good reputation, the bankers have a bad reputation, the salvation army has a good reputation.I am having some work done in my home,and the man who is doing the work ,has come with a good reputation, and he has lived up to it.As regards buissness a good reputation is very precious, destroy that reputation and your buisness will suffer. One wonders will the Roman Catholic ever recover their  reputation, in the light of the sex scandles?. We all like to think of our reputation,as important and rightly so,we are told we should value a good  name rather than great riches. And yet we read about our Saviour that He made Himself of no reputation,and this can only be fully appreciated when we understand who He was and what He became, equal with God, for He was God, and yet He became a servant,becoming a man, and then to die,the most humiliating death on a cross. In the light of this profound happening there is a challenge which we all have to face ,in our work places,in our schools ,or wherever God has placed us.
A prayer..../ Dear God help us to hold fast to what is important in Your eyes, even if that means putting our reputation on line, in Jesus name Amen/

Not acceptable [ Isaiah 1 v10ff]

Proverbs21 v3..../ To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice/ Now of course Solomon was dismissing sacrifices  cp  1 Kings 9 v 25,but it is the folly of religious people who thought that God would accept them while they committed injustice,and oppression.cp Isaiah 1v 10ff.Religion if it is to be meaningful and acceptable must be acceptable to God, which means, just, and merciful.Yet it is sad, that history reveals so much injustice,many slave owners were Christians,apartheid was given sanction and credibility by the religion of white South Africans,and those who owned those dark satanic mills in England,professed  to be Christian.So let us appreciate that if we are oppressing our wives,our children or those we employ, and we hide all this behind a religious front, remember God sees and is not pleased,it is not acceptable.
A  prayer.../Dear God help us not to be a hypocrite in Jesus name Amen /

An affair of the heart[John 21 v 15-17]

Proverbs 23 v26..../My son, give me thine heart,and let thine eyes observe my ways/ I remember hearing a preacher telling how those words,/My son give me thine heart/,spoke into his heart, and he surrendered his life to Christ. It is Charles Bridges who writes./ Many are the claimants for the heart. Heaven and hell contend fot it. The world with its riches, honours,and pleasures, and science with its more plausible charmes,cries , give me thine heart./The question is who or what has our heart? our Saviour was asked, what is the greatest commandment?and He replied,/Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul,and with all thy mind[ Matthew 22v37] The non Christian knows nothing about this,for this goes further than,doing our best,it goes further than legalism,it is surrendering our heart to Jesus,and in that ,we forsake all lesser things.Jesus asked Peter, the failure,three times ,/Do you love Me? /[John 21 v15-17 ] ,the question is how many more times does He need to ask you this question ,before you respond?
 A   prayer...../Dear Lord Jesus today I  give You my heart,I forsake all other lesser things, I confess that I love You Amen/

Run to Him. [ Psalm 121 ]

Proverbs 18 v10./The  name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth into it and is safe/Names  have meanings, Gods name has a meaning,in the NT we are told to ask in Jesus name,whats in a name?often a name reveals the character of that person, be it good or bad.So what does Gods name conjure up?,a protector ,Psalm 50v15 reads,/And call upom me in the day of trouble, I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. Whats in a name Gods name?a place of saftey c p.....  Psalm 4 v8 I will lay me down in peace, and sleep, for thou Lord, only makest me dwell in saftey./. Whats in a name Gods name?a place of security , Psalm 27 v1 The Lord is my light and my salvation,whom shall I fear?the Lord is the strength of my life, whom shall I be afraid, the answer to that question is no one.The righteous run into it and is safe,we note two things in these words , what we are being told is very simple  these word are spoken to those who have put their faith in Jesus , He is the only way to God [John 14 v6 ].Next we see that they must run to to God, run ,not dilly ,dally all the way,if we are to be safe then we must be urgent,how often Israel sought false gods, to their destruction.But when we run to the Lord, we are guaranteed a place of saftey, a place of deliverance. W.O. Cushing wrote../How oft in the conflict,when pressed by the foe,I have fled to my refuge, and breathed out my woe. How often when trials like sea billows roll. Have I hidden in Thee ,O Thou Rock of my soul/
A   prayer...../ Dear God in our difficulties help us to run to You ,not from You,help us to make You our first port of call in Jesus name Amen/