When God says no. ( Numbers 14 v 39 ff)

When we pray we usually want God to say yes ,but here is something important to hear,He often says no,that's a fact. God said no to Moses because he failed to trust and honour Him as he should. ( Numbers 20 v12. Deut 3 v 25 -26 ).If we fail to trust and honour God,we should not be surprised if God says no us. David wanted to build a temple for God ,but God said no( 2 Samuel 7 v 13), a noble desire.Paul asked for healing but God said no (2 Corinthians 12 v 7 ff) There are many other times in the bible when God said no. We have to take this saying seriously ,as regards God saying no, and accept  when God says no. Two things we need to bear in mind ( 1) God's way is perfect (2 Samuel  22 v31), next God's will is perfect ( Romans 12 v 2 ) What do we really know?, we are limited, but God is not,we are told that God knows the way we take. He knows ,we don't,that is where faith come in , we are told  that Abraham when called by God obeyed ,and by faith, he went out not knowing where he was going. (Hebrews 11 v 8) .Next God's will,  God's will is perfect,even it means saying no, it may be to do with healing, promotion,whatever it may be.shut doors ,no doors,open doors.Let us not be rebellious,defiant,bitter, mutinous,  remember God's will is always best,painful though it may be.

                                                    ' Have Thine own way Lord!

                                                      Have Thine own way!

                                                      Thou art the Potter,I am the clay,

                                                       Mold me and make me,after Thy will,

                                                       While I am waiting ,yielded and still.'

                                                                  Words Jonny Cash.

I ( Luke 12 v 16 - 21.

Our Saviour told the story of a man who was rich, prospering, had the world at his feet,we read about it in Luke 12 v 16 - 21. The man in the story used the personal pronoun at least 6 times,king I reigned  supreme in this man's life, he mentioned no one else,it appears that he didn't care for anyone else,and he most definitely didn't think about God.He was full of plans,the good life beckoned,it appeared that nothing stood in his way.Today as I write this,many, they are like that man, they are full of their plans ,king I  reigns,they are not accountable to anyone ,least of all God.There is a saying all good things must come to an end, and it most surely did for him.Here is his last words, And I'll will say to myself,'' You have plenty of grain laid up for many years,take life easy; eat, drink and be merry''.And here is the last word said to him,''You fool ! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have preserved for yourself?''.And that was it, no more planning ,no more time to seek God, a Christless eternity beckons,I urge you don't be blinded by the things of this life,get your priorities right,give the boot to king I,and trust Jesus as your Saviour, now.

God is. ( Isaiah 40 )

 The beginning of a prayer in the book ,'The  Valley of Vision', starts like this,'Thou incomprehensible, but prayer - hearing God'. In Isaiah 40, God is speaking through the prophet Isaiah,and he asked the people of Israel,''With whom will you compare God?'',. The answer is ,no one can be compared to God, there is no other god, we are told in Isaiah 45 v 5 ,'I am the Lord, and there is no other,apart from me there is no  God', CP  44 v6/  45 v 22./ 46 v 9/ 47 v 8 . There is only one God, who has revealed Himself in His word. one is left trying to comprehend Him,it  is impossible,creation alone should leave us at a loss, He made everything. right down to one blade of grass,one little ant, right up to every star,every planet,everything. ''Yes everything'', A.W. Tozer writes of, 'the helplessness of the human mind before the great mystery which is God'.Richard Rolle also writes,'' Verily God is infinite greatness, more than we can think''.We should be in awe of such a great being,but mankind  on the whole have lost that awe, that mystery.Rather than submit to the mystery of an incomprehensible being, they bow before their god of science, leading then on,teasing them, telling them that they will soon have all the answers. J.I.Packer writes, 'True knowledge of God is through faith', we are told that faith cometh through hearing and hearing by the word of God .Romans 10 v17,that faith  brings us into a  relationship  with God, through Faith in the Son of God .

                                                             A prayer

                                             Open my eyes that I can see

                                                        in Jesus name,

                                                               Amen.

                                                   

.

There is none so blind . ( Romans 1 v 21 - 25 )

 I heard this recently ,'We are all instruments of 'Divine Providence', that does not mean God is controlling us.God does not cause anyone to sin. We are not robots ,do we have a free will,no we don't,our sinful nature has affected our ability in the exercising of our will,plus Satan who has a very strong influence over us.2  Tim 2v26. What we do have is the ability to make choices,and so God in his sovereignty has not forsaken this planet because it His planet. He is the one who holds all things together,if He withdrew ,the world and all who are in would cease to exist. He rules and overrules in all things,according to His will.He is working out everything,with an end in view.People may ask  why?, as regards so many things,but the fact is only God has all the answers.He is in control 24/7 ,His will , will prevail no one can stop it.A teacher wrote the following words on the blackboard,'God is nowhere', later a child went up and changed the words to,' God is now here'. When the  Russian astronaut Yuri Gagarin went into space he is reported to have said,''I went into space ,but I did not encounter God'',(Although a friend said he did not utter those words,it was possible the Soviet authorities who did).You only encounter the true and only God by faith in Jesus,until that happens you are like that teacher, and those Soviet authorities.

                                                    '' For in Him we live and move

                                                      and have our being.''

                                                             Acts 17 v 28.

Repent ( Matthew 7 v 13- 14 )

 When a Russian diplomat resigned his post in regard to the war in Ukraine ,he mentioned  about others in the foreign office,and said,''that he didn't see  that many would repent and change their views''.I  was surprised that he used the word repent, for I usually associate that word repent, with religion. It was John the Baptist who preached a baptism of repentance for forgiveness, what does the word repent mean?,it involves change in our thinking ,in our behaviour a turning round,going in the opposite way,in which we were going.It means choosing a different way a narrow way. (Mt 7 v 14),although it is a narrow way ,it is a way of freedom,a way of peace,it is a way that leads to life,eternal life,and it is following Jesus who is the way the truth, and the life. (John 14 v6 ).There is another road that is called the broad road,it is a very popular road.most people choose it , they are not for turning, their favorite song is,' I did it my way',not God's way,oh no they say ,'the majority cant be wrong', but alas they are.And were as the narrow way leads to life,the broad road leads to destruction, not annihilation,but an eternity in hell. 

                                               ' For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone,

                                                 declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!'

                                                                     Ezekiel 18 v 32 

Tired. ( Psalm 103 v 14 )

 Some days one feels tired ,not often, I suppose its my age,could be my visit to Belfast, for my sisters funeral, but it will pass. I think of our Saviour, who was so busy,so on demand, so available,we must remember that He was divine, but also truly human. There must have been times that He felt exhausted  and needed rest,as did His disciples.In that regards He was thoughtful for we read in Mark 6 how the disciples were so busy,He told them to go to a quite place and get some rest.In this busy world were demands on people are many, and indeed unrelenting. We need physical rest and spiritual , when we sleep we get physical rest so get some sleep,when we wait upon the Lord  ,the word of God tells us our strength will be renewed ( Isaiah 40 v 29 - 31)  . So what is God saying to you tired one,weary one?

The dark dark side. ( 1 John 1 v 7 )

 Someone said ,' Everyone is a moon.we all have a dark side',yes even me,and it's good to remember that,the question how do we overcome the dark side?. These words should not surprise us,someone I know  found out that a relative was looking at pornography.The dark side involves many things,the very name,'the dark side',says it all, whither its pornography, or whatever,it is something that is not helpful nor healthy.There is a point were we realise that we are addicted to it,we no longer control it, it controls us,we have made a prison of our own making, and who knows were it will take us, and make us do things we shouldn't. In John 5  we read of a man who had been an invalid for 38years, whom Jesus cured,Jesus said to him,'Sop sinning, or something worse may happen to you'. To me, and to some commentators it appears his affliction had come about as a direct consequences of some particular sin he was involved in. Our dark side may not cause us to become ill,but dark side behaviour ,will  affect us in so many different painful ways, that can cause us very serious harm, and the more we continue in them,as Jesus points out,' something worse will happen to us'. This man met the Lord Jesus and he was rescued from his awful sickness, but the question is ,would he blow it,and keep on walking in the dark side ?. Christ declared that he had come to set us free,we all have a choice ,what is yours going to be?