One small step,read the words ,followed by,the epic race to build a humanoid robot.I have no objections to robots .As a Christian I just become concerned when they equate a machine with a human being,let me stress
,I have no objections to robots.We live in momentous times, mankind is advancing more and more in so many areas of life.As I look around my home I see so many amazing things, I have a kindle which will hold thousands of books, likewise there are gadgets that hold vast amount of music,my camera can hold thousands of photos. There are cars with navigational systems ,blue tooth, radios, cars that do not need a driver.All
these things have come in,in a very short time ,I am 71 years of age, I have witnessed so many changes,many of them for the good,the only problem is
with mankind's knowledge ,one becomes concerned as to the potential for
for evil.Mankind's advance can lead us into so many paths,were moral restraint can be thrown aside, if ones leaves God out,then one can be assured,perceived dangers will become realities.As a young lad the Lord graciously,brought me to Himself,through Jesus,and as I look back I rejoice
how I have been preserved ,and kept from so much potential evil.
A prayer.
Dear God,in our pursuit of knowledge,help us to see our need of your controlling,and restrain power, in Jesus name we ask this Amen .
Saturday, 13 June 2015
Friday, 12 June 2015
God can. [ Ephesians 3 v20]
I like Jim Reeves singing,I recently purchased a CD of him singing hymns,
the words of one touched me,,/He can open up a doorway you never thought was there/.It reminds me of another Christian song,/He can
make a way where there appears to be no way/,are you in difficulties today
not knowing which way to turn?, you need a job,need money,yes even need healing. Remember the people in the Bible were just like you and I,often
they found themselves in desperate situations.In 1 Kings 17,we read of a widow ,she and her son, were at the point of starvation.The country was suffering from a famine,they like the people in the condemned cell were
about to have their last meal. It was then God spoke to Elijah the prophet to
go to this lady,she told him all she had to eat was a little flour,and a little
oil,the prophet answered.for this is what the Lord ......says.The jar of flour
will not be used up ,and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord
gives rain on the land.The Israelites were trapped the Egyptian army were breathing down their necks,many would be killed and the rest would taken back to Egypt as slaves,no way out humanly speaking,but God made a way.Moses spoke these words,/Fear ye not,stand still and see the salvation
of the Lord,and God made a way.[Exodus 14]
A prayer.
Dear God we thank You,that You have not changed,You still work in wonderful ways,You can meet our needs,and make a way were there appears to be no way,help us to believe this in whatever situation
we are facing,in Jesus name we ask this Amen.
the words of one touched me,,/He can open up a doorway you never thought was there/.It reminds me of another Christian song,/He can
make a way where there appears to be no way/,are you in difficulties today
not knowing which way to turn?, you need a job,need money,yes even need healing. Remember the people in the Bible were just like you and I,often
they found themselves in desperate situations.In 1 Kings 17,we read of a widow ,she and her son, were at the point of starvation.The country was suffering from a famine,they like the people in the condemned cell were
about to have their last meal. It was then God spoke to Elijah the prophet to
go to this lady,she told him all she had to eat was a little flour,and a little
oil,the prophet answered.for this is what the Lord ......says.The jar of flour
will not be used up ,and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord
gives rain on the land.The Israelites were trapped the Egyptian army were breathing down their necks,many would be killed and the rest would taken back to Egypt as slaves,no way out humanly speaking,but God made a way.Moses spoke these words,/Fear ye not,stand still and see the salvation
of the Lord,and God made a way.[Exodus 14]
A prayer.
Dear God we thank You,that You have not changed,You still work in wonderful ways,You can meet our needs,and make a way were there appears to be no way,help us to believe this in whatever situation
we are facing,in Jesus name we ask this Amen.
Thursday, 11 June 2015
Mistakes . [ Isaiah 1 v18 ]
We all make mistakes,well I made a mistake recently,I was given the responsibility of measuring our windows for new net curtains,after buying
them we brought them home,only to discover that the measurements I
had made were wrong.Initially this upset us and my wee wife was not to
pleased,but then bless her,she took charge ,made good my mistake,we
now have nice curtains hanging in our window.Some mistakes can be
be righted,some cannot,Judas made a terrible mistake when he betrayed His
master Jesus,the rich young ruler made a terrible mistake,when he choose
his temporal wealth,instead of eternal life [Matthew 19. v16-22],the very thing he wanted,or thought he wanted most of all.Samson the strong weak man made a mistake,when he choose the wrong partner Delilah [Judges 16 v4ff].He ended up blind,bound,and in bondage,yet God I believe restored
him and used him to destroy the enemies of His people.Samson in our eyes
was a very imperfect human being,but do not make the mistake of thinking
we are better,we are all imperfect,as M Wilcock writes,no one is free from
the infection of sin,not even one. That is why Christ came, He the perfect one would die for us the imperfect ones,that our sins, no matter how bad they are can be forgiven.The biggest mistake anyone can make is to ignore
this,and to live and die without Christ,to do that is to commit a mistake
that cannot be remedy.
A prayer.
Dear God we praise You for your saving mercy,that through Jesus we can be forgiven all our sins,no matter how bad,in Jesus name we thank You. Amen
them we brought them home,only to discover that the measurements I
had made were wrong.Initially this upset us and my wee wife was not to
pleased,but then bless her,she took charge ,made good my mistake,we
now have nice curtains hanging in our window.Some mistakes can be
be righted,some cannot,Judas made a terrible mistake when he betrayed His
master Jesus,the rich young ruler made a terrible mistake,when he choose
his temporal wealth,instead of eternal life [Matthew 19. v16-22],the very thing he wanted,or thought he wanted most of all.Samson the strong weak man made a mistake,when he choose the wrong partner Delilah [Judges 16 v4ff].He ended up blind,bound,and in bondage,yet God I believe restored
him and used him to destroy the enemies of His people.Samson in our eyes
was a very imperfect human being,but do not make the mistake of thinking
we are better,we are all imperfect,as M Wilcock writes,no one is free from
the infection of sin,not even one. That is why Christ came, He the perfect one would die for us the imperfect ones,that our sins, no matter how bad they are can be forgiven.The biggest mistake anyone can make is to ignore
this,and to live and die without Christ,to do that is to commit a mistake
that cannot be remedy.
A prayer.
Dear God we praise You for your saving mercy,that through Jesus we can be forgiven all our sins,no matter how bad,in Jesus name we thank You. Amen
Wednesday, 10 June 2015
He is up to his old tricks again.[ Matthew 4 v1 -11 ]
I read this in an old devotional, /The Devil has two masterful tricks.The first is to tempt us to become discouraged, for then we are defeated and of no service to others,at least for a while.The other is to tempt us to doubt therefore breaking the bond of faith that unites us with the Father. So watch out,do not be tricked either way[G.E.M]/ It does not take much to discourage us,are you discouraged today,what can you do,well you can look
back and remember how God has helped in the past,He has not changed,He
is still the same loving and caring God. As to doubt,well this is nothing new
,the disciples had times when they doubted,the Devil works on our weak-
ness,He tempted Jesus ,after He had fasted for 40 days,he is aware of when you we most vulnerable and is quick to move against us. Let us recognise
our enemy for what he is, a liar whose only purpose is to destroy us,to cause us to doubt,and to act in ways that can cause us great harm. We have a choice to make ,either we believe what the Devil says or believe what Gods word says,the choice is ours,let us choose wisely.
A prayer.
Dear Lord ,You where tempted in all ways as we are,help us in all our weakness, and vulnerability , Amen.
back and remember how God has helped in the past,He has not changed,He
is still the same loving and caring God. As to doubt,well this is nothing new
,the disciples had times when they doubted,the Devil works on our weak-
ness,He tempted Jesus ,after He had fasted for 40 days,he is aware of when you we most vulnerable and is quick to move against us. Let us recognise
our enemy for what he is, a liar whose only purpose is to destroy us,to cause us to doubt,and to act in ways that can cause us great harm. We have a choice to make ,either we believe what the Devil says or believe what Gods word says,the choice is ours,let us choose wisely.
A prayer.
Dear Lord ,You where tempted in all ways as we are,help us in all our weakness, and vulnerability , Amen.
Tuesday, 9 June 2015
The glories of heaven. [Psalm 49]
M. Wilcock in the first vol of his book on the Psalms,wrote the following,/
God's people do not sing much about the glories of heaven,More's the pity.
Once upon a time they did.He goes on to quote a C . Wesley hymn,though he points out ,one may need a dictionary for the sense,/
How weak the thoughts,and vain,
Of self-deluding men,
Men who,fix'd to earth alone.
Think their houses shall endure,
Fondly call their lands there own,
To their distant heirs secure.
Consider the suffering of present day saints who are experiencing terrible
afflictions,many will die,yea have died,slain by their enemies.How awful,
they have lost everything,they have witnessed their loved ones suffer.So what has helped then to endure?,thoughts on heaven.Likewise our blessed Saviour,who for the joy that was set before Him,endured the cross,
despising the shame,and is now set down at the right hand of the throne
of God.[Hebrews 12 v2]The black slaves in America were helped to
endure their slavery,as they sang spirituals about heaven.I used to speak at a
particular church,where it was said, they sang with a far away look on their faces,that far away place was their homeland heaven.What did the rich man leave when God took him in death,? the answer is everything.[Luke 12 v20]Dear believer think much upon heaven,dear unbeliever think much about hell.
A prayer.
Dear God we thank You for the hope of glory we have in Christ,oh Lord help us not to become to comfortable here,in Jesus name Amen.
God's people do not sing much about the glories of heaven,More's the pity.
Once upon a time they did.He goes on to quote a C . Wesley hymn,though he points out ,one may need a dictionary for the sense,/
How weak the thoughts,and vain,
Of self-deluding men,
Men who,fix'd to earth alone.
Think their houses shall endure,
Fondly call their lands there own,
To their distant heirs secure.
Consider the suffering of present day saints who are experiencing terrible
afflictions,many will die,yea have died,slain by their enemies.How awful,
they have lost everything,they have witnessed their loved ones suffer.So what has helped then to endure?,thoughts on heaven.Likewise our blessed Saviour,who for the joy that was set before Him,endured the cross,
despising the shame,and is now set down at the right hand of the throne
of God.[Hebrews 12 v2]The black slaves in America were helped to
endure their slavery,as they sang spirituals about heaven.I used to speak at a
particular church,where it was said, they sang with a far away look on their faces,that far away place was their homeland heaven.What did the rich man leave when God took him in death,? the answer is everything.[Luke 12 v20]Dear believer think much upon heaven,dear unbeliever think much about hell.
A prayer.
Dear God we thank You for the hope of glory we have in Christ,oh Lord help us not to become to comfortable here,in Jesus name Amen.
Monday, 8 June 2015
The blessedness of being little. [Philippians 2 v 5-11]
W Shakespeare wrote of the ,/blessedness of being little/,I am sure many who find fame ,wish that they had not,because of the intrusiveness it brings.
The prophet Samuel spoke these words to king Saul ,/When thou was little in thine own eyes, [1 Samuel5 v17] /unfortunately, Saul lost his littleness,for we read in v12,that he set up in a certain place a monument
to himself.This is what dictators do they have monuments erected of themselves,they do not come under the blessedness of being little,they begin
to have grand ideas about themselves. I recently watched an interview of a very famous actor ,who has being knighted by the queen,when he is addressed ,he is no longer a plain mister,he is to be addressed as Sir.but this great actor preferred the sir to be dropped. Is there a blessedness in being little ?,titles,and wealth blind us, to our common humanity . The Christ event is mind blowing,most nights I look up at the stars,in the hope of seeing a star filled sky ,and yet in doing this I am reminded of the one who created the universe,became a little babe and grew to be a man, who stood among us as one who served,He made himself of no reputation,was made in the likeness of man,humbled himself,and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
A prayer.
Dear God forgive us for the sin of pride,because of birth,class,wealth, race,
power,education,forgive,help us to see the blessedness of being little,in Jesus name we ask this Amen.
The prophet Samuel spoke these words to king Saul ,/When thou was little in thine own eyes, [1 Samuel5 v17] /unfortunately, Saul lost his littleness,for we read in v12,that he set up in a certain place a monument
to himself.This is what dictators do they have monuments erected of themselves,they do not come under the blessedness of being little,they begin
to have grand ideas about themselves. I recently watched an interview of a very famous actor ,who has being knighted by the queen,when he is addressed ,he is no longer a plain mister,he is to be addressed as Sir.but this great actor preferred the sir to be dropped. Is there a blessedness in being little ?,titles,and wealth blind us, to our common humanity . The Christ event is mind blowing,most nights I look up at the stars,in the hope of seeing a star filled sky ,and yet in doing this I am reminded of the one who created the universe,became a little babe and grew to be a man, who stood among us as one who served,He made himself of no reputation,was made in the likeness of man,humbled himself,and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
A prayer.
Dear God forgive us for the sin of pride,because of birth,class,wealth, race,
power,education,forgive,help us to see the blessedness of being little,in Jesus name we ask this Amen.
Sunday, 7 June 2015
Who did sin? [John 9 v 1-3 ]
In John 9 the disciples in seeing a blind man, asked Jesus ,who did sin ,this
man,or his parents.It does appear that they believed that his blindness was
caused by some sin he had commited,or because of some sin his parents had
committed. M Wilcock,/Jesus teaches on two occasions that suffering is not
necessarily a consequence of sin,/but it may be/[ Luke 13 v1-5/John 9 v1-3]
Because Israel had a terrible history,of continually rebelling against God
and, suffering for it,at the hand of God,they had developed a one sided doctrine,and so they failed to see,as in the case of Job,that there are different reasons for suffering.My wife did not die because of any sin she had done,
she was a very godly person.The reason the man was born blind was that God would be glorified,in his being healed. Job was allowed to suffer,
to see whither he would curse God,he questioned God ,argued with God,
but he never cursed God. I pray for people everyday,who are suffering all
sorts of terrible things,they are not suffering because of sin,but for righteousness sake.What I am writing is a brief explanation,as regards
suffering ,Whatever you may be suffering,I leave you with what M. Wilcock,writes as regards this aspect of suffering,that bad things do happen
to us not as a result of our sin,/It is not that God has made a mistake,He really is in control.It is simply that unaccountable things do happen in this world,and either He will not give,or else we could not grasp,the explanation
of them./
A prayer.
Dear loving heavenly Father grant us grace to cope with whatever we may be suffering,and that we trust in You at all times in Jesus name Amen .
man,or his parents.It does appear that they believed that his blindness was
caused by some sin he had commited,or because of some sin his parents had
committed. M Wilcock,/Jesus teaches on two occasions that suffering is not
necessarily a consequence of sin,/but it may be/[ Luke 13 v1-5/John 9 v1-3]
Because Israel had a terrible history,of continually rebelling against God
and, suffering for it,at the hand of God,they had developed a one sided doctrine,and so they failed to see,as in the case of Job,that there are different reasons for suffering.My wife did not die because of any sin she had done,
she was a very godly person.The reason the man was born blind was that God would be glorified,in his being healed. Job was allowed to suffer,
to see whither he would curse God,he questioned God ,argued with God,
but he never cursed God. I pray for people everyday,who are suffering all
sorts of terrible things,they are not suffering because of sin,but for righteousness sake.What I am writing is a brief explanation,as regards
suffering ,Whatever you may be suffering,I leave you with what M. Wilcock,writes as regards this aspect of suffering,that bad things do happen
to us not as a result of our sin,/It is not that God has made a mistake,He really is in control.It is simply that unaccountable things do happen in this world,and either He will not give,or else we could not grasp,the explanation
of them./
A prayer.
Dear loving heavenly Father grant us grace to cope with whatever we may be suffering,and that we trust in You at all times in Jesus name Amen .
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