Waiting [ Proverbs 13v12 ]

I would like to stress again the importance of waiting,and the importance of patiently waiting for the answer to our prayerful desires.Consider the time between Genesis and Calvary,one may ask why did God not act sooner?but He didn't. He did have His appointed time,as John points out in his gospel in relation to Jesus death[ 7v30/8v20],there we read how His hour had not come,but in/ 12v23/17v1,/ we read Jesus declaring His hour had come. God will answer our prayers and fulfil His word in His appointed time,there are many reasons why this is so.on our part it is often vital that we grow spiritually.God will perfect that which concerns us by causing us in our waiting to trust Him, and to learn patience,God works in us ,that we will manifest to this world lives that which will glorify Him. In Proverbs 13 v12 we read of hope being deferred, now the word deferred means putting something off until a later time, Gods later time will come. So in the words of that great hymn by Katharina Von Schlegel,/ Be still, my soul, thy God doth undertake,to guide the future as He has the past. Thy hope,thy confidence,let nothing shake, all now mysterious shall be bright at last. Be still,my soul the waves and waves and wind still know,His voice who ruled them while here below/.
A  Prayer...Dear God help us learn the lessons You are teaching us in our time of waiting,in Jesus name Amen /

Waiting. [Habakkuk 2 v3 ]

After I passed my driving, I was thrilled how God  had helped me, but I had no car ,nor could I afford to buy one, yes we prayed, but we had to wait. Prayers are often granted after a time of waiting, this waiting can be a trial,it requires prayerful patience. When Jesus was told that Lazarus was ill He did not immediately rush off to  Bethany,no He waited and permitted Lazarus to die. That may appear cruel,or at the very least inconsiderate,,but not so ,Jesus always acted with a God purpose,remember the words of Habakkuk 2 v 3,/though it tarry, wait for it. Mary and Martha had waited ,oh ,He is bound to come, one can imagine them looking ,time and time again,hoping He would come,but He didn't and Lazarus died, and quickly,the body was placed in a tomb. Jesus if He came would be to late,or so it appeared to Mary 11v32,but waiting was all part of Gods plan and purpose,as the sisters would soon discover. Now what about that car,well one day a widow women pulled up beside me as I walked to church, and said I could have her little Morris Minor, yes delay was not denial.
A   prayer ...../ Dear God grant us the grace of patience,knowing that delay is not denial, in Jesus name /

You will see the glory of God. [John 11 v40 ]

Many years ago my then wife Eileen encouraged me to take driving lessons,our resources were very limited ,we could just about afford 10 lessons. I completed those lessons ,but just before I had finished them I put in for my test,we could not afford any more lessons,my driving was not very good,so much so that when I told my instructor ,he advised me to not do my test. I had received a promise from God that He would help me, so I went ahead with the test. On the day of my test I was very nervous,my wife and children were praying at home for me,and the Lord I believe give me favour with the man who was testing me, and I passed. What a blessing that was,when I was thanking God, I received this verse,/ Said I not unto thee, that if thou would est believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God/[John 11v40 ]I had passed my test but I had no car, and no money to buy one, but that's another story I will share that with you later.
A  prayer ..../ Dear God we thank You for helping us in so many ways,we thank You will continue to help us and we wll see Your glory, in Jesus name Amen/

Deliverance. [ John 8 v 36 ]

Next Sunday will be remembrance Sunday in our country,a day in which we remember and honour those who died in so many wars and conflicts. Recently I have been reading the history of Nazi Germany, a cruel and very , very wicked regime,most of us know what they did to the Jews,but they committed so much evil in those countries they conquered. The plans they had for Britain where severe ,and so it is on this remembrance Sunday, yes we remember and honour those who died in defence of this country,but more than that we want to give unceasing thanks and praise to God, for preserving us as a nation. Sadly to say as with so many nations we are slowly and surely leaving God out of the equation,we are a secular society,not a spiritual society,a society that is threatened with a greater evil than the Nazi es,a forgetting about God, forgetting that our nation and all nations greatest need is deliverance from sin and its awful consequences,both for time and for eternity.
A  prayer.../. Dear God we thank You for preserving this nation,but we pray that You will forgive the sin of this nation in forgetting You, and earnestly pray that You would awake this nation to their great need to be delivered from their sin through Your son Jesus  Amen/

Envy [ Proverbs 11v30 ]

I  found myself saying to a lady called Rosie, that I envied her, now why was that?,she is in many ways an ordinary person, why should I envy her?. The reason being is she has been used by God to lead many people to Christ,as I was talking to her she mentioned someone ,she was going to meet,who had just come to Christ, this person had been a prostitute and a witch.Rosie had witnessed to her and she had become a Christian, I was introduce briefly and she said she  loves Jesus. Do you never have a desire to see people come to Jesus? I do,Rosie said to me, stop envying and do it. The Lord knows I have tried, am I just ever going to be a sower, and very seldom a reaper?. Yes I envy Rosie, the word of God says he that winneth souls is wise. [Proverbs 11v30],this brings to mind an old hymn,/He that winneth souls is wise in the home beyond the skies, Ti's a blessed message oh the wondrous prize,he that winneth souls is wise/ Now Rosie is not a theologian ,there is nothing wrong with being a theologian , but she has heart for the lost.It also appears to me that she is led to the most needy,those who are broken and lost, maybe many of us are looking  in the wrong place.
A  prayer..../ Dear God ,lead us to some soul today,help us Lord to know just what to say,use us for Jesus thy dear sons sake Amen/

Judgment day looms. [ John 3 v16 ]

I read these words in one our national newspapers, EU judgement day looms, now that they be true, I don't know, but what I do know is, that there is a judgement coming.A person I work with asked me the question, /why are you glad you are gong to heaven,/ and I replied,because I am not going to hell. Now of course there are other reasons why I am glad I am going to heaven,I will be with my Saviour I shall at last see Him,and will truly be glory for me. But there is a hell, there is a place of eternal judgement, Christ reminds us of it continually in His ministry,He spoke of weeping and gnashing of teeth[Luke 13v28]. In Luke 16 we read of a rich man who found himself in hell a place of torments, and in Matthew 8 v12,Jesus speaks of those who would be cast out into outer darkness,and in Matthew 10 v28, He stressed the importance of fearing God above all others, because He has the power to destroy both soul and body in hell. So I am very glad that I am going to heaven and not to hell,the vast majority of people are living as if there is no God and no accountability, and no judgement, Acts7v 31, tells us that there is a day coming  when God will judge the world  by Jesus,yes judgement day is looming,so believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved[ Acts 16 v31 ]
A  prayer ...../Dear God we thank You for providing a way in which we can be saved from judgement through Jesus . Amen /

Jesus is pleading [ Revelation 3 v20 ]

I have before me a little card with a picture of Christ standing outside a door and He carrying a lamp and He is knocking on the door ,waiting for it to be opened. It is of course taken from the Revelation of John chapter 3 v20, in this chapter Christ is speaking to the church at Laodicea. This church was a self satisfied church,materially they were prosperous ,but they had let this effect their relationship with Christ. Christ is pleading with them to open their eyes to their true condition,and once again see things with the vision of Christ their Lord. Along with His pleading there is a warning that their Lord will have chastise them,a sign of their sonship [ Hebrews 12]. Although they were in a deplorable state their Lord loved them and desired what was best for them, and graciously pleads with them  to respond. Consider the words of v2o ,consider what they are saying to you,/ Behold I stand at the door and knock, if any man hears my voice,and open the door,I will come in to him ,and will sup with him , and he with Me/.
 A  prayer......./ Dear Lord help us to be on our guard against anything that could exclude You,anything that lessens our love for You .Amen /