What is it to be? [ Colossians 1 v27]

John Newton said,/ I  am still in the land of the dying. I shall soon be in the land of the living /,I wonder what you think of these words.There is an old gospel hymn which goes,/I am going to a  city where the roses never die,here they bloom but for a season,soon their beauty is decayed, I am going to city where the roses never die/.In spite of medical advances we are all without exception going to die,yes we live in the land of the dying,but as John said we will soon be in the land of the living.I think for many of us there are so many things that have dulled our vision of the eternal glories that shine afar.For the unsaved the devil has blinded their minds as to death ,heaven and that great unmentionable hell,for the many it is, win the lottery and then we will have the security we desire. Yet all around us people are dying ,the undertaker will never go out of business,for we live in the land of the dying. Yet it does not cease there as John said,/I will soon be in the land of the living/,there is a land where no one will die,where there will be no need of doctors ,hospitals,undertakers,graveyards. It is a land that is fairer than day,a land when God will wipe away all tears,and there shall be no more sorrow,nor crying,neither shall there be any more pain.[Revelation 21 v4 ]At this time there is an opportunity for all to gain an entrance into this land of the living, by trusting in Jesus as their Saviour,as Colossians 1 v27 tells us,/ Christ in us the hope of glory/,if Christ is not in us then there is no hope of glory,no hope of entering the land of the living.
A prayer.../ Dear God in this land of the dying,we thank You there is hope for all who trust Your Son Jesus. Amen /

Be still my soul. [ 1 Kings 19 v 11-12 ]

I was listening to that well known peace of music by Sibelius, Filandia, it starts quite loud and then all of a sudden you have this soft peaceful refrain like a that still small voice that Elijah heard ,that followed the fierce wind,the earth shaking earthquake,and the fire [1 Kings 19 v 11-12].That still small voice that stilled the fearful prophets heart, now that peaceful refrain has been put to a lovely hymn,Be still my soul.Sibelius of course wrote that music as a tribute to his home land Finland,but I cant help but think that God had him write it for that lovey hymn.I remember listening to the radio,and people spoke how this lovely hymn just hit the spot, and blessed then.We really do need to hear the still voice of God, for life can throw so much at us,the world is full of noise,and sometimes it can be a very fearful place,and we need to realise that God is the God of the still small voice . I remember a  person saying that God loves noise,no, God is the God of the still small voice. so let us consider some of the words from the hymn, Be still my soul by Katharina A. D. Von Schlegel.
Be still my soul, the Lord is on thy side. Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain. Leave to thy God to order and provide. In every change He faithful will remain. Be still my soul, thy best, thy heavenly Friend. Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end. 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 wind still know. His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.
A  prayer...../Dear God we confess that we are easily frightened,at times all we can hear is the wind,the earthquake ,and we see the fire,oh  God speak to our hearts with that still small voice, that our souls may be still and know that Thou art God, we ask this in our Saviours precious name Amen /

I shed a tear. [ Isaiah 9 v6 ]

Last night I  went to hear a choir sing of the Christ event,there was  also a computer display on a screen ,that enhanced the singing. As I listened to the choir and watched the screen, I was touched,I didn't applaud, I just shed a tear,for it brought home to me afresh the wonder of the incarnation. We all need moments in our lives when what what we believe, touches our hearts, and causes us to weep,not tears of sadness,but tears of wonder ,tears of gratitude, such where my tears.Christmas is many things to many people, family,friends,presents,food,but of course it is more so much more,it is about the greatest mystery ever manifested,and it began with a babe. Who was that little frail child?, non other than God with us, Immanuel [Matthew 1 v23 ],and why did He come?why should such a thing take place?. The answer is very profound, and yet so simple,love,yes love for you and me,yes a love that brought Him from heaven. Yet that was only the first step, the ultimate fulfilling and meaning of His coming, is in His name,Jesus,for it means saviour. What or who would He save?,sinners,that means you and I,how would He save?. Again we have a great mystery ,He would become a sacrifice on a cross.
             O how I love Him, how I adore Him,
             My breath my sunshine, my all in all.
              The great creator became my Saviour,
             And all Gods fullness, dwelleth in Him.
              [W. E. Booth- Clibborn ]
A  prayer..../ Father God we worship You through Your dear Son Jesus,we are touched when we consider Your Love Amen /
             

God is. [ Psalm 46 ]

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble[Psalm 46v1]Are you troubled today?are you worried about your family,your job, your health?,the list could go on and on and on. So today consider this lovely Psalm,these opening words,it starts by telling us that God is a refuge.What is a refuge? it is a place of safety,we have women's refuges,where they can go to escape abusive husbands.Maybe you feel threatened where you live,yes even in your home,where can you flee to?,the answer is to the Lord who will keep you safe. Next the Psalmist  tells us that the Lord is our strength,are you feeling overwhelmed by the challenges of life?,are you feeling you cannot go on?are you feeling weak and inadequate?,well today spend time with your Lord,look to Him ,He will grant unto you the strength you need. Next are you in trouble?, troubles come to us in many shapes and sizes, look to God in your trouble, He will help you,it says so in His word, so it must be true. Verse 2 declares , Therefore will not we fear, we are told not throw away our confidence,it will be rewarded [Hebrews 10 v35 ],today trust Him, He will not fail you.
A  prayer...../ Dear God we praise You that we are not on our own,that You are with us,You will keep us safe, You will give us strength, You will help us,we thank You in Jesus name Amen /

Are we up to the challenge? [ Acts 10 ]

I heard something recently that goes like this, a couple were seeking to take bibles into a strict Muslim country, and their car broke down.As they were figuring out what to do, nomads came along,and the nomads approached them and said, are you the ones who are bringing us the book of life. Here is a similar story,a Christian lady was in an Muslin  country,she pulled into a petrol station,and standing near by was a man carrying a gun,and the Lord spoke to her ,go give that man a bible.She thought that it was to dangerous,so she drove of, but the words she had heard persisted,so she went back and prayerfully went to the man,,and offered him  a bible, he told her that he was told to wait there, and someone would bring him the book of life.It is more and more difficult to reach people with the gospel,in Muslin countries,it has become like it was under Communism, this presents a tremendous challenge. But God is up to the challenge, the question is are we?
A  prayer...../ Dear God in a world that is becoming more and more intolerant to Your Gospel,help us to arise to the challenge of telling others about Christ,use us in what ever way it takes to rescue the perishing,in Jesus name Amen./

Being confident. [ Psalm 138 v8 ]

The apostle wrote,/Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ[Philippians 1 v6 ]. I thought on on this ,this morning, and was encouraged,  because often one looks at others,and mostly ones self,and one can despair. As to others well we can pray ,sometimes that is all we can, but as I said to someone who told me that he prayed and fasted for a particular person he was concerned about, your prayers have not been wasted. You see it appeared that his prayers were not bringing the desired effect,I am sure we have all that experience,but I believe they will, our prayer requests are like uncashed cheques,they are lodged in the bank of heaven,God has not forgotten them, or  like a bill that people refuse to pay.God will in his way and in His own time cash in that cheque. The apostle Paul did all he could to build up the church at Philippi,as indeed we should do with our churches, our families , and ourselves,but Paul's confidence was not in Paul. His confidence was in God, in the Lord Jesus Christ,and that is were our confidence should be,we can change no one, but He can, He will not leave the job half finished,nothing is to hard for Him.
A  prayer...../Dear God Grant us the grace to not despair as regards the imperfections we see in others, and ourselves, help us to have faith to trust You to perfect that which concerns Your children , in Jesus name Amen /

I speak at small gatherings of believers, they are but the remnants of former days,the folk who attend are lovely Christians. The thing is, unless God chooses to intervene,the gatherings will cease to be, and all  that be will  left is the building. Those folk have prayed as indeed I have that God would intervene,I often passed one particular church and would pray for it,but now it lies redundant. So what can one do?well let me tell you,and in telling I hope we will be guided by God the Holy Spirit.Recently I could not find one of my favourite books,I have a lot of books,but yesterday I found it,it is called the Sovereignty of God by A.W. Pink, and in finding that book I was reminded again of that great truth, the sovereignty of God.Jesus our dear Saviour said He would build His church.[ Matthew 16v18]. Yes He will build His church ,and we must bow always to that reality,He is building His church,in the most difficult of places,in places one would never imagine,we need not fear as regards His church, in the end, it is His church,not ours, we are but part of that church.He can if He chooses revive even small gatherings. So let us not despair ,but by faith look unto Jesus the one who is our Sovereign Lord,who will build His church.
A  prayer....../Dear God let us to hold unto the fact that You are sovereign,over the world, over us,over Your church ,in Jesus name Amen /