Forsaken by God. [Psalm 22 ]

A friend of mine described his very painful experience recently in hospital, when the surgeon carried out  a procedure, it was the finish of his treatment. He described what he went through and it sounded pretty awful,but hopefully it is all over with, and he can begin to recover.Suffering does not come easy to any of us,be it in the dentist chair,or on the operating table.  There are so many ways we can suffer and do suffer,the list is endless,some of it is necessary, some unnecessary, but it is part of the human situation. It is in the  OT that  we read of the suffering of Jesus, in graphic details Psalm 22,starts with the words that Christ would utter on the cross,My God , my God why has thou forsaken Me?This is a very difficult thing to appreciate,how can the God man be seperated from God?.My study Bible simply says,/ it was not a cry of doubt,but an urgent appeal to God,/ R H Ryland  writes,/ these words of Christ expresses a suffering that never at any other time was felt in this world, and never will be again- the vengeance of the Almighty upon His child/ We can only knell and worship at these words ,their mystery and majesty ,remember He experienced such suffering ,that we may never be forsaken,for He has said I will never leave you or forsake you[Hebrews 13 v 5 ]
A  prayer...../ Dear Lord  Jesus it is with humble hearts we come , and thank You that You were prepared to suffer untold agony for us. Amen /

Dont let the reins slack. [ Psalm 122 ]

A friend of mine was talking of his concern for his children who were neglecting meeting for fellowship with other believers,the church they attend have changed things,which has not helped. Yet this should not be allowed to hinder our making every effort to attend a fellowship with other believers,if a local church is acting in ways that are not helpful, then we need to seek out another fellowship. In our present age in the west, we have so many things that can entice us away from the fellowship with other believers,Sunday sport,the easy means of getting away from things in our cars,also  our tiredness,our employment is so demanding,likewise our family responsibilities,the result is we begin to let the reins slack,and we find ourselves going nowhere.I know that the local fellowship is far from perfect,mybe if I left, it would be,no, the local church is full of imperfect people, but they are Gods people,and I love them. So dont let the reins slack,determine to attend a local fellowship,where we can be encouraged ,and also to encourage others,by our prayers and our love.
A  prayer ...../ Dear God help us not to loose sight of the importance of fellowship,in Jesus name Amen ]

J Ws.[ Jude 3 -4 ]

 As I was going to church ,there was a crowd of J Ws, where going round the doors,this saddened me, I read that 80percent of converts to the JWs came from mainstream Christian denominations.The JWs do not believe in the trinity,Christ is not  accepted as the God man, this is not a new thing,at the time of the early church a false teacher called Arius challenged the Christian belief af the trinity, as John MacArthur writes in his book,12 unlikely heroes ,that Arius was the origional JWs..It was a man called Athanasius who contended for the faith , as John McAuthur writes,/He kept the flood tide of heresy back,it is thought that a saying came into being,/Athanasius against the world./It is sad when we see the cults making headway within our community,we do need to hold fast to the truth, this is what matters,without truth people willl remain in the darkness of error.Everybody believes something,but it is vital that people believe the truth,if we dont we will never know Him who is the way,the truth, and the life[ John 14 v6 ],even Jesus the God man, the Saviour of the world.
A  prayer..../   Dear Lord keeps us from being drawn into error, help us to hold fast to thev truth, and to contend earnestly for  it, in Your name we ask this /

Let faith triumph. [Hebrews 11 v 6]

The book of Isaiah is a wonderful book,it is full of of so much that is a blessing,wonderful promises ,41v10,is a wonderful word of encouragement,mybe it is the word that you need to hear today,/ Fear Thou not, for I am with thee,be not dismayed,for I am thou God, I will strengthen thee,yea I will help thee,yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness./This verse can be divided up into 7, and can be used each day.It commences,/ Fear thou not/,are you fearful today,well here is Gods word  for you, from God, I met a lady yesterday who is having a cataract operation this Wednesday,she is fearful. And yet here we have God saying fear not,it is possible to not fear when we are facing an operation or whatever, because the verse goes unto say,/for I am with thee/,here we have a wonderful truth we are not on our own,the Lord is with us,the words of Psalm 23v4 , emphasizes this wonderful truth,but there the writer,expresses his faith, I will fear no evil for Thou art with me/ Let faith triumph over all our fears,with God all things are possible.
A  prayer...../ Dear Lord ,we bring to You our fears,and ask that we have faith to overcome,in all that we facing,in Your name we ask this Amen /

Keep me calm. [ Psalm 23 ]

 I was in my garden this morning and I noticed the gardeners enemy, the dreaded slug, I dont know much about them other than they eat my plants,and that they are slow moving creatures. I mentioned in an earlier blog how so many of us are rushing about,mybe like the slug we need to take things a bit slower, that our soul can catch up with us.I cannot stress enough how we all need to slow down and take time not so much to stop and stare, but to listen to God,and to just be renewed by the Holy Spirit.We so badly need to come out of His presence into each new day,mybe you are facing a challenging situation,and you are feeling overwhelmed,or there are deadlines you have to meet,what I am saying may not make sense, but you need to slow down,I didnt say come to a full  stop. In the word of God we are told God will meet our need [Phil v4v19 ],this does not only mean our financial needs , but all that we need.I have seen myself ,facing so many challenges,and my Lord has never failed me. Today have confidence in your God to undertake ,just bring Him into your situation,get alone with Him,and then rise up ,and dont be driven be led. The pressures of life can so easily drive us into the grave, or mad, and I joke not,so today slow down,enjoy this day, knowing that your loving heavenly Father is looking after all your affairs.
Let us make this our prayer today ./Calm me, my God,and keep me calm,
                                                          Soft resting on Thy breast,
                                                          Soothe me with holy hymn and psalm,
                                                            And bid my spirit rest.
                                                           Yes, keep me calm, though loud and rude,
                                                             The sounds my ear that greet
                                                             Calm in the closets solitude,
                                                             Calm in the bustling street.    In Jesus name we ask this Amen./
                                                         [Horatious  Bonan]

Wait upon the Lord. [ Isaish 40 v 31 ]

I must confess I am in a rush this morning ,I do get up early,so I have had my quite time,but I am trying to get out early for work,rush, rush,rush. Many of us wish we had more time, I do feel for mothers who work full time ,and also have to manage the children ,and the home,hopefully their husbands help them. Then what about those single mums,with no one to help them,my old mum was a single mum,she left my dad,and  had to manage the home,and a full time job,I wish I had helped her more.I suppose the thing I am trying to say is,we need to somehow , meet with our God. We need to spend time with Him, to come apart and rest a while,or we may end up coming apart. So today in all the rush of life stop, and pray,and read Gods word,we all need to. Speaking from a life time of experience,I have found that if I neglect my relationship with God, then my relationship with Him suffers,and I suffer.So in the words of that old hymn, /Take time to be holy, the world rushes on. Spend much time in secret with Jesus alone. By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be. Thy friends in Thy conduct His likeness shall see[W D Longstaff]
A  Prayer..../ Dear God help us to wait in Your presence,in order that our strength will be renewed,so that we can cope with all the demands of life,in Jesus Amen /

Suddenly. [ Proverbs 27 v 1 ]

Suddenly something happens, the red light comes on the dashboard of our car,or we cannot find our mobile phone,or something more serious , like a friend of mine who was told in an oft handed way that he had cancer,then being told he hadnt got cancer. There used to be a TV programe called tales of the unexpected, life is a bit like that,suddenly,our well planned day is disrupted by something that grips us and causes us to fear, and to panic. In Isaiah 38 king Hezekiah suddenly is told that he is going to die,we do not know the reason, but God did. Was this a case of God being cruel? no for God is never cruel,we are but He isnt, so why did He let it happen?.The fact of the matter is, we are very independant beings,and the unexpected  happenings, are Gods wake up call ,as it was for Hezekiah when suddenly he was told he was going to die ,he did not turn away from God , no he turned to God,and He wept and prayed,and God heard and answered his prayer. Now here is the important thing if he  had not turned to God , he would have died, prayer is vital for all of us, 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 help us when sudden trials arise, to seek Your face,in Jesus name Amen/.