Inperfect persevering. [ Jude v 24-25 ]

We often judge dear old Peter for his weakness,in denying his Lord,of  his
rebuking the Lord[Matthew 16v22],of his lack of  faith or should we say his loss of faith[Matthew 14 v31],for his error .[Galations2 v 11]So there we have Peter one of the disciples,one of the apostles,yet still a weak fallible human being. I have a book,called ,Dangerous journey,the story of Pilgrim's  Progress,written by John Bunyan. Although it was written a long time ago,we can still learn valuable lessons from it.It is about a man called Christian,and his journey to Heaven.On that journey he does not always keep to Gods narrow way,but by Gods grace,he recovers and keeps on going,and finally reaches,Heaven.Peter,you and I ,who know Christ, are on a very dangerous journey, we will not always be obedient,faithful,loving,or consistent in our journey to heaven.Yet in spite of this we need not despair,for all his faults and failings,Peter is in heaven,when he denied his Lord , I believe he repented,and went on [Mark 14 v72],and was restored[John 21] We often hear people speak of Gods love being unconditional,and it is,if you have failed,reach out to him,tell Him, you are sorry,He will lift you up,and help you to stand,and grant you grace  to go on.
                                           A  prayer.
Dear God forgave us all our failings,and in your mercy help us  to continue following our Saviour ,in whose name we ask this. Amen

Original sin. [ Romans 5 v12]

He has no excuse,she retorts......He is healthy.He is white.He is rich,He is well born.well educated.He has grace,....He is at ease with the world.
He is amusing. Confident. Yet he destroys it.What is missing in him?.....
How does he come to be like this?.He was not dragged up in the back
streets. He is blessed/So reads the words out of a popular novel,the lady
is puzzled,as to why a person with all his privileges,could do such terrible things.Why did king Henry of England murder three of his wises?.Why did
king David steal another mans wife and then have that man put to death?
What did that same man mean when in his prayer of repentance , he prayed,
/For I was born a sinner,yes,from the moment my mother conceived me/[Psalm51v5] ?.Well it is called original sin,there is a natural depravity in all
of us,that no amount of privilege,education,wealth can eradicate it.J Calvin
declared,/David confesses that he brought nothing but sin into the world,and
that his nature was entirely depraved/.Extreme words but sin is very extreme,wherever it  is manifested,in a palace, or in a hovel.So God devised a extreme remedy,His Son would die on a cross,,that death would bring in hope,for all who put their faith in Him.
                                                   A prayer.
Dear God thank you for providing an answer for our sinful nature,in Jesus Christ your son Amen

Check mate. [ Luke 12 v 15-21 ]

Chess is a wonderful game ,but the words a chess player does not want to hear his opponent utter is,check mate,it means that they have lost the game. No one likes to loose ,no one enjoys being known as looser,a runners up medal is not much consolation. Our Saviour spoke about loosing something else,vastly more important than loosing a game,this is what He said in
Matthew 16 v26,/ For what is a man profited,if he shall gain the whole world,and loose his own soul?,  or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul/. Let me ask you, what value do you put on your soul?, perhaps you have never give it much thought,well think about it now.There are people
and, we describe them as poor lost souls,in other words their situation is dire.which means their situation is serious.To loose ones soul is the most serious thing that can happen to anyone,that is why Jesus used extreme examples.What if one gained the whole world?imagine that, the world,it would make Bill Gaiths look like a pauper.and yet all that would be no consolation if we lost our soul.Nothing can compensate for loosing ones soul,absolutely nothing,it is our choice,you have not yet heard the words check mate,the games not over,there is still time,to make that all important
decision.What is that decision?, it is to trust and follow Christ,as Saviour
and Lord.
                                  A  prayer.
Dear God open the eyes of all to see what is of eternal value,our very souls
grant us the grace to forsake all ,to trust and follow Jesus Amen.

I am too nice. [Matthew 5 v44-48 ]

I heard a lady on the radio say I am too nice,I  really don't thing she was
stressing being to nice,she was really saying people were taking advantage of her.Can a person be to nice?well I am sure we would rather have genuine
nice people,than those who are not.Let's face it, we have all, had to deal with people who were not nice,employer,neighbours,even family,and even fellow Christians.What does it mean to be nice? does it mean that we go along with everyone,we never challenge someone who is doing wrong.Most of us are nice to some degree,but unfortionately not all the time,I am sure we need more nice people on the road,more considerate,less aggressive,
refraining from using their car horns.Alright we are all going try to be more nice,but how are we going to reactive to those who are not nice to us ?that is the challenge. Here is what our Saviour said,/Love your enemies,bless them that curse you,do good to them that hate you,and pray for them which
despitefully use you,and persecute you[ Matthew 5 v44 ].
                                                   A  prayer.
Dear loving Father help us to be nice,and help us with the even greater challenge to be nice to those who are not nice to us,in Jesus name Amen.

Witch boy. [ Matthew 19 v14]

A little boy in Nigeria was found by an aid worker starving,and naked,he was such a tiny child,and was sure to die.This child was known as a witch
boy,seemingly there are many of them,but the good news this little mite has been rescued,and is being looked after.Many who heard about this on the net have sent money and his future is secure.A witch boy, we in the West
consider such a thing nonsense,but because of superstition,his parents cast him out,I suppose many such children are murdered, it is all very sad, Children are precious,thankfully we do not see them as witch boys ,or witch
girls.There was a time in this country when because of poverty,many children were abandoned,Dickens in his writings,sought to highlight this.We are grateful that God raised up people like Bernardo,George Muller,and other good Christian people, who  rescued multitudes of children.There are still many Christians who are doing wonderful things for children,they are supported by many caring people.As a Christian I see no child as a witch ,but I  do believe that children need Christ,for as a child,I know I did.
                                           A prayer.
Dear God have mercy upon the many children who are suffering in this world,abandoned by their parents,abused and misused,in Jesus name Amen.

The old paths [ Jeremiah 6 v16]

I heard an old Chinese,which goes,/Reverence the laws of Heaven,and the laws of the ancestor's/.I hope I got that right,but these word struck me,from a Christian point of view.Consider the society we live in there is much that's good in it,but there is much that's not so good.We have lost all reverence for the laws of heaven,and what our ancestors built we have torn down.When I was young ,to some degree there was a reverence for the laws of heaven,I am not sure what we thought of our ancestors.People have so much now,and yet in other ways they have so little,we live godless pagan society,were sex has become a god,pleasure has become a god,money has become a god.Many of our ancestors were godly people,who sought to live according to heavens laws. We have gained much,but lost much,we have sought much knowledge but are ignorant as to the reality of God, and it shows.The great prophet Jeremiah lived to a degree in similar times,he was called by God to challenge the people of his day as to sin,and its consequences,just like people now they had forsaken God,[Jer 2 v13]. So here is what he told them,/Thus saith the Lord,Stand ye in the ways,and see ,and ask  for the old paths,where is the good way and walk therein,and ye shall find rest for your souls.But they said,we will not walk therein/[Jer 6 v16] The result was absolutely awful,and tragic,as it will be for this nation and for all,who  like Israel .ignore Heaven,and the God of heaven.
                                          A prayer.
Dear God and Father,turn our nations back to Thyself ,before it becomes
to late ,in Jesus name Amen.

Mercy [ Ephesians 2 v 1-4]

I watched a new series on TV,called Dickensian,based on Characters by Charles Dickens. Bob Marley had been murdered and the police inspector
was Questioning Bob Crotchets wife,who confessed to the murder,she explained the circumstances,and it appears Marley had been sexually attacking her,and so she struck with a wooden object and had killed him.
The inspector is to torn between his belief that justice had to be done,which
would mean the lady in question would hang,and compassion for her and her family.He takes her to the police station to have her charged,again in keeping with time she was sure to be hung.But at the last moment he let's
her go free.As I looked at what was happening,the words flashed into my mind,mercy triumphs over justice.Yes she was guilty,mercy was shown to her,and I could not help but think ,there was moment in my life when I a
guilty sinner,facing the judgement of God,  was shown mercy.God was able
to show me that mercy,because His Son ,the just one,would die for me the unjust one. [1 Peter 3 v18 ]

                               Years I spent in vanity and pride,
                                Caring not my Lord was crucified,
                               Knowing not it was for me He died
                                              On Calvary.
                            Mercy there was great and grace was free,
                            Pardon there was multiplied to me.
                             There my burdened soul found liberty,
                                                At  Calvary.
                                 [Words by Wm. R. Newell]