Forward be our watchword. [ Philippians 3 v 10-14 ]

Just a personal reflection,on Easter Sunday,fifty years ago I was restored to the Lord,in a church,in Belfast.Since then many things have taken place in my life,I have changed,but not enough,it is never enough,the old nature still clings to me,and I identify with Paul and what he wrote in Romans 7,that in my flesh there dwelleth no good thing[v18].These are not just vain words they are the reality,I am conscious that I do not always give God the glory,how important it is to not rob God of His glory. So I just want to say,to God be the glory ,great things He has done for me,there is a little chorus which starts with the following words,/stop and let me tell you what the good Lords done for me/.What has He done for me?,He saved me,that is the vital point,knowing that you are saved,that Jesus is your Saviour,he has restored me many times,to himself,we are inclined to wander from Him. I speak of my weakness ,but most of all I rejoice in His faithfulness,of the fact that I am kept by the power of God. He has blessed me beyond my wildest expectation, and I thank Him for that,but I have to be careful that I keep my eye,my affections on my Lord,the words of Jesus to Peter ,when He asked him, /lovest thou Me more that these[ John 21 v 15]/, are a continual challenge to me.So onward ever onward,upward,ever upward, pressing towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
A   prayer....../ Dear God we give You all the glory for all You have done in our lives,and ask for grace,in our onward journey toward glory, in Jesus name Amen/

Help my unbelief. [ Mark 9 v 17ff ]

But Thomas,one of the twelve refused to believe in the resurrection,as far as he was concerned it did not happen,no words would convince him.He just would not believe,no matter what,the person he had placed his hope in was dead,then Jesus came,Jesus did not rebuke him,nor reject him,no Jesus understood,that sometimes sorrow,can cause us to loose hope,to blind us.You see the death of Jesus was the most devastating thing that ever happened to Thomas,blinded by that loss,he refused to listen,to what anybody said.Jesus did not leave Him there,Jesus  loved Him, and He loves you.We are frail fragile beings,we withdraw into our shell,trying to protect ourselves from being hurt,but the hurt remains,the pain remains. So there came a moment when Thomas and the other disciples where in hiding,the doors were shut,there were two lots of doors of the home they where in,and the door of the heart of Thomas,he was the man with the closed heart.Jesus came and ministered to Thomas,and He said something very important,blessed are they that have not seen,and yet have believed[John 20v29].I have never seen Jesus,I do not expect to see Him until I get to heaven, because I know for me and you it is a walk of faith,if you are struggling,tell Jesus,faith is a gift ask Him on this resurrection day,to help your unbelief.
A  prayer.....Dear Lord,/Let me at a throne of mercy,find a sweet relief, kneeling there in deep contrition,help my unbelief, Amen/ [ Words by F.J.Crosby]

The in between day.[ Psalm 30 v5]

I suppose the day between Christs death and resurrection may be seen as the longest day,a day of despair for all of Christs followers,their whole world had it appeared come to an end. Faith had given away to doubt,confusion had set in,and sadness filled their hearts,and questions must have filled their minds.Questions of why Jesus had not stopped His death,after all He worked  miracles,calmed the raging sea,it must have appeared to them,that His power was so great that He could anything He wanted,so why did He allow Himself to be taken and crucified?.This in between day raised so many unanswered questions,I wonder are you in an in between day?, you may have experienced a terrible loss,or whatever,and like the disciples in this in between day ,you are devastated, and totally discouraged. Could it be that you feel that your Lord has failed you,after all you felt He could do anything,but it appears He did nothing, yes you prayed,read the scriptures,hoped and hoped. Well such was the disciples experience,let us remember this is but an in between day,it will pass,weeping may endure for a night,but joy cometh in the morning,[Psalm30v5], so hold on dear child of God ,Sunday is coming.
A  prayer...../ Dear  God  ,we thank You that our in between days, are not full stop days,they are but a pause.Thank You in Jesus name Amen /

Why good Friday? [ Philippians 2 v 5-11]

Why good Friday?, after all when one considers what took place, leading up to the event,Jesus being betrayed ,being arrested,the injustice,the mocking,the flogging,the crown of thorns,Peter deneying Him. Also the pain His mother experienced,and then the cross,a death that was slow and cruel, now none of those things are good,in fact they are absolutely awful. So again I ask the question ,why is it called good?, none of what happen ,would cause one to smile, or to get any comfort from.Why did Jesus go through with it, He could have escaped,he delibertly went to Jerusalem,knowing full well what that meant,the disciples never appeared to grasp what Jesus told them,but He knew . He knew that none of it could be described as good in itself,it was total evil,mans depravity was manifest in all its fullness.So again I ask the question,why Good Friday?. In one way all the badness,and evil that was being manifest on that day,was a clear indication as to the why,it shows us mans condition,if unrestrained ,is capable of depths of evil that makes one shudder.How wrong was William Barclay,when he wrote ,/Beyond a doubt Jesus did not believe in human depravity/,Jesus not only knew about mankinds human depravity,but on Good Friday He experienced  the full force of it. The cross shows our sinfulness, but it also shows us Gods answer,for Christ death was a sacrifice for sin,not His sin He was sinless,it was our sin,He died that we may be forgiven and go at last to Heaven,and that's why it is called Good Friday.
A  prayer...../ Dear God on this good Friday we give and praise You for Jesus and His death on Calvary,Amen/

Whats it to be? [ Galations 5 v 16]

In Galations 5 and Romans 8 the apostle stresses the importance of life in the  Spirit ,and in Ephesians 5 v18 we are exhorted to be filled with the Spirit.This is to be the ongoing nature of our lives,not walking in the flesh,what is the flesh mean?,it means a life that can be hostile to God,a life where are affections,purposes,thoughts,word,and deeds are controlled by our sinful nature.In Galations 5v 19-21,we have a list of the works of the flesh.sexual immorality,impurity,lustful pleasures,idolatry,sorcery,hostility,quarrelling,jealousy,outbursts of anger,selfish ambition,dissension,division,envy,drunkenness.Then Paul adds,and other sins like these,so that's quite a list,and if we are honest we will acknowledge our sinful failings and weaknesses.What can we do?,well we can listen to the Spirit challenging us as regards those sinful attitudes,and behaviour.David king of Israel listened[2 Samuel 12],and repented of his sin, many of the kings didn't,the result was disaster ,for them and the nation.We always have a choice to live in the Spirit or to live in the flesh,the question is,what choice are we going to make?, I end with a quotation by Billy Graham,/ It is never a question of how much you and I have of the Spirit,but how much He has of us/
A  prayer...../ Dear God we have experienced the flesh life ,and all its bitterness, help us to live in the Spirit, in Jesus name Amen /

I shall not want. [Psalm 23]

John .G. Paton, who served God among south sea cannibals,was born in Scotland,tells of his early childhood,his mum and dad had 11 children. He tells how a time of difficulties arose in the country,the failure of the potato,the badness of the crops,and the high price of food,and there came a time when there was little in the home to feed the children.So one evening before the children went to bed, the mother assured them,that she had told God everything,and that He would send plenty in the morning. Next day a present came from her father,which met the need,her father did not know of their difficulties. The  mother seeing the children's surprise at such an answer to prayer,gathered her children around her,thanked God his goodness,and said,/O my children,love your Heavenly Father,tell Him in faith and prayer all your needs,and He will supply your wants so far as it shall be for your good and His glory./
A  prayer..../  Dear Lord we praise You that You are our Shepherd and we Your children shall not want, Amen /

Spiritually blind. [ 1 Corinthians 1 v18- 31]

 1 Corinthians 2 v 14,reads ,/ The natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God,for they are folly to him,and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned/  Recently while speaking I used an illustration to help the people present to understand ,one of the benefit that come out of suffering.I have used in a recent blog,it was about a butterfly,that had to struggle to emerge from its cocoon,in order for its wings to develop, and how a lady tried to help it,but in fact ruined the butterflies life. After the meeting I conversed with a person,who appeared not to understand the point I was making,that was the spiritual application ,it appeared to be lost to him.Our Saviour was faced with this continually, He told a person that one needed to experience a new birth, and the very religious person had not a clue, My study bible tells me that the non-Christian cannot understand spiritual truths, it really needs the holy Spirit to open that persons mind and understanding.In John 3 v3,we read,/Jesus.....said....Verily, verily I say unto thee,except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God./Some people are born colour blind but all people are born spiritually blind,until they experience the new birth. We see this in writings of the philosophers,  all their writings, bears out mankinds spiritual blindness,and their total inability to understand spiritual truths.
A  prayer...../ Dear God help us to see the reality of mankinds condition,and grant as Your truth goes forth,that the Spirit of God may work in the hearts of the unsaved, that they may be brought to a saving knowledge of Jesus Amen /