Job ( James 5 v 11)

''The book of Job is about the unchanging human realities - war, destitution, sickness,humiliation,         bereavement,depression.Also the unchanging goodness of God , who transforms our human agony into justice, kindness,love and joy. It is about the 'terror of the Lord'( 2 Cor 5 v 11 ) and His great  tenderness  ( Jas  5 v 11). It is the story of one man who held on to his life in God with a faith that  survived the torments of utter loss and expanded into new wonders and delight.'' These are word by  Francis I . Anderson in the  preface of his book on Job,the book of Job is one of deep meaning and is helpful to all of us,it challenges all who look to God for a quick fix,and helps us to see that when we loose everything, God remains with us, our  Rock.

Living in sin ( 1 John 1 v 5 v 10 )

Michael Wilcock writes,  '' Never in Life can the Lord's servant claim immunity from Satan's attacks on a heart which is not yet sinless and a body which is still mortal''.I often pray and ask God why some unclean thought comes into my mind?,why are my thoughts not always pure, and I have to raise a prayer and ask God to create in me a clean heart.In Romans 7 we read of the godly apostle  Pauls concern for that law of sin which is within him and indeed in every believer.In Galatians 5 v 16 ff  he writes of the sinful nature which besets him, and every believer, he stresses the different aspects of that fallen nature,'' sexual immorality,impurity and debauchery, idolatry and witchcraft,hatred , discord,jealousy, fits of rage,selfish ambition,dissensions,factions,and envy,; drunkenness,orgies, and the like''Then he gives a solemn warning,''that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God''.Now he is not writing about the normal Christian life,where we may be tempted and even as David  did and fall into sin,I believe that one of  the evidence that we are a  Christian is we do not live in sin.As John writes in 1 John 5 v 18 ,''Anyone born of God does not continue in sin''John Stott  writes the following on these words, ''The new birth results in new behaviour. Sin and the child of God are incompatible. They may occasionally meet; they cannot live together in harmony''

Am I a Saint?. ( Romans 1 v 7 / 1 Timothy 2 v 5 )

I was watching an old movie,the main actor was William Powell,it  was a nice movie, and it touched on something that many dear Roman Catholics, would have appreciated, Sainthood.It involved the thief who was crucified with Jesus,and who confessed the wrongs he had done, and asked Christ to save him,which He did,and the moment he died he went to heaven.And that's it nothing more is said about Him. Now there is no record that He performed any miracle, he was just like the rest of us, a sinner saved by Gods grace,yet in the movie he is classed as a saint , one who we can pray to. Why  attribute to him things he cannot do? he does not hear our prayers and cries for help..If he or anyone else did , then they would be taking Jesus place,and He alone is able to take on board  all that we bring to Him. We cannot make Jesus redundant,oh no,He is our great high priest,the one who saves  us,when we call upon Him like that thief on the cross,and the who ever lives to make intercession for us. The one who is touched with all our weaknesses, the one who alone can help us.Dear  Catholic friend look to Jesus and Him alone,for salvation ,remembering that His saving work on Calvary alone saves us .And keep looking to Him every moment of every day, and here is something that may surprise you ,every true Christian is a saint, C P  Ephesians 1 v 1/ 2 Corinthians 1 v 2. Adrian Rogers said,there are two kinds of people on earth ,''There are saints, and there are ain'ts''

Can I come in? . ( Revelation 3 v 20)

A friend told me the following story, '' A good many years ago a young lad got saved, now he lived in a country where racism was rife,even in Christian churches. Well  the young lad decided he would attend a particular church,but was turned away. He sat outside the church building very sad,and a person came and sat, and it was Jesus. He spoke to the lad asking him why he was sad,the young lad said they would not let in .well said Jesus ,''don't worry, I have been trying to get into that church for years''. In Revelations 3 v  20, we read ,''Here I am, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come and eat with him, and he  with me.'' These words where written to a church.but they can apply to anybody, who keeps Jesus outside their lives.

The lottery ( Luke 12 v 16 - 21 )

I received an invitation to enter the post code lottery,years ago people did the football pools,lotteries have become big business all over the world. The question is this if  a person won a lottery prize,would  all their troubles fade away?,would life hold nothing  but unrefined joy,now don't get me wrong, there is nothing nice about being really poor,where children go hungry, and when illness comes ,and you no money to buy medicine..There are many in this world who suffer so much because of poverty.  But most people in this country, have homes,food education,doctors,colour TVs,cars ,holidays etc, and yet they think if they  had a lot of money their lives would be perfect. Not so because we live in a fallen world, money does not solve everything, it never will.The castles we build for ourselves can so easily fall down, our hoarded nest eggs can suddenly vanish.We think they will last for ever and a day,but they wont,for the grim reaper will break into all our lives,and then what.?.So many ,many people live as if they do not need God,the reality is,He above all else is what we need most.Jesus says to all us follow me just like He said to the the disciples of old.Not to a life without problems, but a life with the problem solver.Not to a life fashioned to our dreams and desires  ,but a life that sees beyond every sorrow ,pain ,and disappointment ,to a greater glory. The journey may be difficult, but  there will be one with all those who trust  Jesus ,every  step of the way.

Walking with sorrow. ( Luke 24 v 13- 32 )

Robert Browning wrote a poem , called,'Along the Road'.

                                             I walked a mile with pleasure,                                                                                                                   She chattered all the way,                                                                                                                           But left me none the wiser                                                                                                                         For all she had to say.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     I walked a mile with sorrow,                                                                                                                     And ne'er a word said she,                                                                                                                         But, oh,the things I learned from her                                                                                                         When sorrow walked with me.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           In the book of Ecclesiastes 7 v 2 - 3, we read                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           It is better to go to the house of mourning                                                                                                 Than to go to a house of feasting,                                                                                                             for death is the destiny of every man;                                                                                                       the living  should take  this to heart.                                                                                                         Sorrow is better than laughter,                                                                                                                   because a sad face is good for the heart.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Dear Lord,                                                                                                                                   Teach us to number our days aright that                                                                                                   that we may gain a heart of wisdom.                                                                                                                         Amen.                                                                                                                                                                 

I did it my way ( Exodus 20 v 1 - 17 )

Someone once said,''The first of all human instincts, is the instinct to do what we like'',Rudyard Kipling wrote,'' Ship me some wheres east of  Suez, where the best is like the worst, Where there aren't no Ten Commandments,an' a man can raise a thirst''. It has always been,its part of our fallen nature,when Satan tempted Eve, knowing what God said, and the consequences of disobeying,she went ahead. Genesis 2 v 15 - 17.  Every day millions of people break the laws of whatever country they live in,there is never a day that the speed limit  is not broken.We like doing our own thing,irrespective of the laws of our country. and as for God telling us what to do,or not do,we fudge the issue by saying God is a loving God, and those who raise concerns about sexual behaviour,are told they are being intolerant,and unloving, and only stirring up hate. Sin has become the unmentionable, in fact God has become the unmentionable,for  if you move God out of the picture,then we need not fear a holy God, what we do in the bedroom and who we do it with ,is nobodies business. The cry of modern man is the same cry that the ancient Pharaoh made to Moses,  ''Who is the Lord, that I should obey Him'' (Exodus 5 v 2 ), and we know what happened to him.