Discernment .[ Acts 17 v11 ]

I recommended a certain book to a friend by one of my favourite authors,in
reading that same book again,I read something,that I found difficult.I then thought of the couple I had recommended the book to and wondered should I have recommended it .A minister friend of mine had a person who attended his fellowship and became a Christian,that person was very enthusiastic,but then he read some ,what we could call liberal books, he is not attending the fellowship now.He has been caused to stumble,by reading those books.Of books there is no end,the important  thing to do is in reading any so called religious book ,is to be discerning,the word of God exhorts us to test everything[1Thessalonians 5 v21]As long as they keep to the truths taught  in the scripture,accept them,that goes for preachers. I have read many books I have those I could call my favourite,but I must not be swayed by that,no I must read with discernment.Consider the following words,from Acts 17v11,the apostle Paul visited a place called Berea,there he ministered to them,we read this,''Now the Bereans ........received the message with great eagerness''but they did not stop there,for next we read,that they,''examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true''
                                       A  prayer.
Dear God grant unto us all discerning hearts ,and minds,in Jesus name Amen.

Persistence. [ Philippians 4 v 4-9 ]

I wonder what you think of the following''Ask and it will be given to you,
seek and you will find;knock and the door will be opened to you.For every
one who asks receives;he who seeks finds,and to him who knocks,the door will be opened.[Matthew 7 v7-8 ]Our dear Lord applies this to prayer,and how as our earthly fathers give to their children the best,so our heavenly
Father will give us the best,our Lord calls them good gifts.How do you
view your heavenly Fathers giving?well He is not a miser,some people
think He is,but He is not.Oh yes He will supply our needs,but often He gives more than we need[Ephesians 3v20]. Often our prayers are answered
quickly[Isaiah 65v24],often there must be a persistent asking,Elijah prayed,but his servant was told to go seven times to see is there were any sign of rain clouds[1 Kings 19 v41ff ]D.Martyn Lloyd- Jones, writes,of the
importance of persistence,''Persistence ,continuance in well -doing,' always to pray and not to faint'.Not just pray when we want a great blessing and then stop;always to pray.Persistence; that is the first thing.The realization of the need,the realization of the supply,and persistence in seeking after it.''
                                           A prayer.
Dear heavenly Father,help us to be persistent in holiness,love,righteousness,
and all things concerning your Kingdom,especially in prayer,in Jesus name Amen.

Moral not material. [Jonah 3 ]

In Proverbs 14 v34,we read ,''Righteousness exalts a nation,but sin is a disgrace to any people''.I read this recently,Biblical scholar Alec Motyer writes,''We are conditioned by our whole inherited cast of mind and our
education to look for political,social and economic causes of the rise and fall of nations and empires; the Bible would help us reform our thinking
and seek the cause of things in the moral and spiritual realm upon which
all else is consequent. To the Bible, history is the areas of moral decisions,moral conflicts and moral consequences''. Selwyn Hughes writes,'' This statement deserves to be given front-page prominence on every daily newspaper in the world.'', he goes on to say,''The worlds
greatest problems are not material but moral''. Recently our Prime minister
in offering his resignation,spoke of the things he had achieved,one of them was self same marriages.As I listened  it made me wonder as to the moral dimension in our country,and indeed in many countries ,who have done the same thing.Let me stress again,''Righteousness exalts a nation,but sin is a disgrace to any people''.
                                        A  prayer.
Dear God have mercy upon the nations,who appear to think anything goes
help them to see the truth that righteousness ,not unrighteousness is vital
for any countries well being,in Jesus name Amen.

Forgive [Matthew 6 v 14-15 ]

I am at war,everyday I go into my garden looking for slugs,the gardeners pest,they may be my enemy,but I don't like killing them,I dispose of them.
On a more serious note,have you read what Jesus said about those who are our enemies.''Love your enemies and pray for those persecute you''[Mt 5 v44]Every day I pray for people who are experiencing awful things,rape ,
false imprisonment,loved one murdered,and so the list goes on.Is it
possible to do what Jesus said?, I believe it is,and it is not only possible,it is vital to our spiritual well being that we do.Remember ,Jesus practised what He preached.when they were nailing Him to the cross ,He uttered the
words, ''Father forgive them''[Luke 23 v 34 ],the Christian life brings with it a challenge that is not for the faint hearted.It was not easy for Jesus to utter those words,but He did and He meant what He prayed.Yes it is not easy what Jesus said and did,there are things that we may say ,I just cannot do it
and of course its true,that is why we need God to help us,and He will.You may be saying I cannot forgive,yet Jesus says we should,but He is also
saying ,through Me you can do all things,yes even forgive.
                                         A  prayer.
                             
                           Our Father in heaven,hallowed be your name
                           your kingdom come,your will be done
                           on earth as in heaven,give us this day our daily bread.
                           FORGIVE US OUR SINS,AS WE FORGIVE THOSE
                           WHO SIN AGAINST US.
                            and lead us not into temptation.
                                      Amen.

Changed lives. [ Luke 8 v26-39 ]

I have a friend called Derry,who is lovely Christian,he told me how a number of years,a number of Christians went to the famous Speakers Corner ,at Hyde Park in London..He was ministering,and was hassled by
some atheists, so my friend give them a challenge,he said he would bring six people along next time.These people had been freed from all sorts of sinful condition,they had been transformed  by Jesus.He then said to them,
to bring six people who had been transformed by atheism,they went away in a huff.The wonderful reality millions and millions of people have had their lives dramatically and wonderfully changed when they trusted Jesus as their Saviour. As for atheism it is not in the business of changing people,one day Stalin received a phone call,the person wanted to talk about for the want of a better term,spiritual things.Stalin's response was to dismiss such talk and found it strange,even though he was familiar with such things.
                                      A prayer.
Dear God we praise you for the historical Christ,who has and is transforming the lives of million and millions of  people,open our eyes to see that what He has done for others He can do for us.Amen.

The news from . [ Psalm 46 ]

As I view life with all its uncertains,I need to fix my thoughts on God,this 
again is borne out,just as I write this,when on the news ,it is reported of a man who drove a lorry,through crowds of people,killing at least eighty people.This happened in France,but of course it could happen anywhere,so many things can happy,that we never expect,are you fearful?,I know I was upset,by the news from France,so I will leave the following scripture with you.
                                  God is our refuge and strength,
                                  an ever present help in trouble.
                                  Therefore we will not fear,though
                                               the earth give way
                                  and the mountains fall into the
                                               heart of the sea,
                                  though its water roar and foam
                                  and the mountains quake with
                                              their surging.

                                   The Lord Almighty is with us,
                                   the God of Jacob is our fortress.

                                   Be still, and know that I am God

                                   [Words from Psalm 46 ]

Change can happen. [ 2 Corinthians 3 v 18 ]

I love my garden,weather permitting I love to sit in it,and there I have a time with the Lord.I have been to many different places on holiday,but my garden is my favourite place.When God made man He placed him in a garden,it must have been beautiful,yet into that beautiful place sin entered in.We are told that sin entered the world through one man,and death through
sin,and in this way death came to all men,because all sinned[Romans 5 v12]
The place was not the cause but the people,I used to hear people speak of wanting to move,they felt the move would change everything.Of course the place was not the problem,they would take with them,the fears and personality disorders,and their inability to cope with life,nothing in fact would change.It was not a change of place they needed,no , they needed to change,here is the good news,Christ can help us change,He is in the business of bringing change into the lives of all who trust Him as Saviour.Perfection will only come when we go to heaven,but we can begin
to know a change in our lives,as we follow our Lord.The question we need to ask ourselves are we willing to change,are we prepared to face up to what
that means?.If we are,then with Gods help, change can take place,it will mean a daily desire,a daily seeking God for His all sufficient grace. The
result is,we will change,it will take time,we cannot expect habits of a life
time to go all at once,some may,but others will need continually brought to the Lord in prayer,are you willing to be willing?
                                        A  prayer.

                          Holy Spirit,we[I] welcome You,
                          Holy Spirit we[I ]welcome You.
                          Please accomplish in us[me] today
                          Some new work of loving grace,we [ I ] pray-
                          unreservedly -have Your way.
                          Holy Spirit,Holy Spirit,
                          Holy Spirit,we [ I ]welcome You.[ In Jesus name,Amen]
                              [Words by Chris Bowater]

      [I  will return to my blog Monday,  every blessing]