You matter . ( John 3 v 16 )

 A humanitarian worker said, 'to him every human being matters',  surely that should be the attitude of every Christian, how do we look at refugees?, people of other nationalities?, of disabled people .It was sad  to read that 90 percent of  Down syndrome children are aborted, they see them only as a fetus. The practice of eugenics has not gone away, but has spiralled out of control.  Every human being matters ,our dear Saviour touched the untouchable, mixed with the undesirables, sought the unreachables, because to Him everyone mattered. It is sad that Islam teaches that, Christians, Jews, and others are wretched creatures, and that Hinduism  have a cast system, that condemns people to a life of poverty, and being despised, and being discriminated against. It is also sad, that so called Christian ,have treated people in ways that are contrary to how God views people, and how they should be treated. God is love, a love that declares that every human being matters, He is also a God of truth, He tells  us that while everyone matters to Him, we are all sinners, and that He sent  Jesus His Son ,to die on a cross that whosoever believed in Him would not perish but have everlasting life, that is how much you matter to Him.

The importance of waiting . ( Philippians 4 v 13 )

In Lewis Carroll's book, 'Alice in Wonderland,' one of the characters  Alice meets is a white rabbit, who is in such a hurry to keep an appointment ,here is what he say's  Alice,'' Oh my fair and whiskers ! I'm late, I'm  late, I'm late, for a very important date !. No time to say 'hello, goodbye',  I'm late, I'm late, I'm late''. It reminds me of the words of a hymn, which  goes, 'The world rushes on', so very ,very true, no time to say hello, or  goodbye, I want you to stop and think of these very important  words, 'They that wait upon the Lord  shall renew their strength; they shall mount up  with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk , and not faint'.( Isaiah 40 v31) Take time today to wait upon the Lord that you may receive the strength you need for this day ,otherwise you may faint.

Change for the better. ( 1 Timothy 1 v 15 )

 As I was out walking I sat down ,as I usually do, just to observe the people about me, but then about certain people, two in particular. One is a racist, the other could be described as a thug, he is up to all sorts of mischief, so I  started to pray ,I said I know  that what people need is their sins forgiven by trusting  in Jesus, unless that happens,  the result is catastrophic.  But unless there is true repentance there will be no change ,that is sincere regret ,remorse, for the sinful life one has led, it means a complete change of direction towards God. It means a sincere confession  of your sins, and following God's way ,in newness of life. Those two people I mentioned would be better people, any person who genuinely trusts Christ as Saviour, will be a better person, they will not  be perfect, but one day all who trust Jesus will be. That's the substance of my prayer for those two people. When you truly trust Jesus you will be a better person, old things will go, all things will become new.

                                       .                  Change is possible, if

Thy will be done. ( Matthew 26 v 36 - 46 )

 Someone was very ill, near deaths door, and someone prayed this prayer,' Lord if  it be  Thy will, let his life be spared'.  It reminds me of  the following verse, written by J. Hudson Taylor.

                                                I'll that God blesses is our good , 

                                                And    unblest good is ill,

                                                And all is right,

                                                That seems so wrong,

                                                 If it be His sweet  will.

When we pray, 'Thy will be done', I think we should also pray,' Lord grant us grace to do your will, and 

grace to accept your will.

                      

Mickey Mouse. ( Galatians 6 v 14 )

 When  Patricia  Gearing's daughter died of Batten's disease in 1998, her grave was marked by a simple cross. Before long Mrs  Gearing  was instructed by the local  authority to remove it. Their rules said,' Crosses are discouraged, as excessive use of  the supreme Christian symbol is undesirable,' The family was given permission to erect a headstone featuring  Mickey Mouse instead.   Thankfully this is a rare happening,  but it shows how the cross can be very offensive to some people, Islam rejects a crucified Jesus, likewise the Jews, and yet without Christ's death on the cross we do not have a Saviour. That death dealt with sin, the great philosophers like Confucius, and many others, said many helpful things, but none of them face up to the fact that mankind is  a sinner, and that we need a Saviour. We are only accepted by a holy God when our sins are forgiven, through trusting Christ as our Saviour. The cross on which Jesus died , for many may be an undesirable symbol, but  the word of God says,     ' For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.'  ( 1 Corinthians 1 v 18 )

Soulless Worship. Isaiah 29 v 13 .

In  Isaiah 29 v 13 , we have the Lord saying,'' These people come near to me with their mouth and honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship  of Me is based  on merely human rules they have been taught''. They were religious but it was not worship, it is Leupold  who calls this 'Soulless Worship', going through  the motions ,yes they went to the temple, they prayed, they sacrificed animals, but their hearts were not in it. When Jesus met up with Peter ,he asked him this  question three times, 'do you love Me?. One thing I ask the Lord when I pray is ,'Lord ,let it not be vain repetition', the following words sum it up,' I often say my prayers, but do I really pray'.  When we pray, give, attend  a church, sing a hymn, read the scriptures, or listen to a sermon, they should not be as Leupold comments, 'devoid of soul and sincerity', in other words ,'Soulless Worship'.

Love prompted Him. ( John 3 v 16 )

Two quotations by Leupold ,' Israel is not meant to be a mighty worldly power dominating other nations and exercising world power. She is to be witness to what God has done for her'.  'The nation had a  destiny , but she seemed so far removed from achieving it.'  The history of Israel is a sad history, a history of failing time after time, to be faithful to God, yes there were times, when they were faithful, but on the whole instead of being a holy nation, they walked in the ways of of their heathen neighbours. Time after time God had to deal with them severely. Yet God was faithful, and preserved a remnant, at one of the lowest points of their history ,God said ,''I have loved you with an everlasting love'', Jeremiah 31 v 3.   Someone wrote ,' For reasons that man will never be able to fathom, the Lord loved Israel'. he goes on to say ,'It is this love that prompts the Lords redeeming activity'.  The Bible tells us that God loves the world John 3 v16, why? , indeed why? it is a mystery, but He does. That love prompted Him do send a redeemer, Jesus, who came to save sinners , such as you and I. whoever we are. salvation is not restricted to any  particular people, it is for the whosoever.

                                                  Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,

                                                  Weak and wounded , sick and sore;

                                                  Jesus ready stands to save you,

                                                   Full of pity, love , and power ;

                                                   He is able,

                                                   He is willing, doubt no more.

                                                         ( Words. Joseph Hart )