Reality ( 1 Peter 5 v7 )

Chuck Swindoll in his commentary on Mark says 3 things about ,'Reality', No 1, 'Reality can be so irritating at times..  No 2, 'Reality ,'That's where we live'.  As a young lad I loved going to the cinema ,I remember thinking how wonderful if I could live in the cinema,and see all those wonderful movies. There are many people who want to escape from reality ,people that are being persecuted,people who are living in poverty. Why do people take drugs?,often to escape reality, the list can on and on,often people  cannot escape from their reality,they have to face it,it is not only irritating its a big challenge.There are some things in our reality that wont go away,we must realise some things have to be borne, that is a reality.Our dear Saviour knew what He had to face when He came into this world,the cross was always there,yes He struggled with it in the garden ,but He faced it with bravery, and courage, he didn't run away from it. Just let me say this there are realities that we would be wise to get away from,bear that in mind. But as I said some things have to be borne,you wonder how you are going to cope, Well dear old Chucks answer  for this last reality,'On our knees', that 's when we receive mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. ( Hebrews 4 v 16 ) 

                                                         'You say I can't go on,God says,

                                                         yes you can,for I will be with 

                                                         you'.

Why He came.( 1 Thessalonians 1 v 10 )

 It is that time of the year when as Christians we celebrate the birth of  Christ, the most important event in world history. A child is born,we hear those words sung. Yes a child but what a child !,  and He will be called, 'Wonderful,   Counsellor, Mighty God  ,Everlasting Father,Prince of Peace'. My, think about who Jesus was and indeed is,it should take one's breath away.He's not just a man  He is the God  Man,truly God and truly man. Angels worship Him,He made the universe ,and by His power it is sustained.( Hebrews 1 v 2-3. Those who continue to deny these truths will one day knell in His presence and acknowledge Him as Lord,on that day they will realise to late how wrong they had been.Yes that is whom He is,but we must not  stop there  ,no, there is more,the purpose of His coming, yes He came for a purpose,John Stott wrote the following.'We cheapen the gospel if we represent it as a deliverance only from unhappiness , fear, guilt,and other felt needs,instead   of as a rescue from the coming wrath'.( 1 Thessalonians 1 v10).That's why He came,miss that and you miss ,the reason for the season.      

Never forget.( 2 Corinthians 13 v 14 )

 I often wondered why Christina Rossetti depicted the nativity as taking place in the bleak midwinter ,for a long time it didn't make sense. Well she was an English poet and she felt that our winter with all its bleakness,was very descriptive of what many people in this world are going through. The oppressed, those experiencing conflict,the lonely,homeless ,sorrowing,the hungry,the persecuted,exploited,the nativity as she saw it,is telling us of God who loves and cares  . I will share something I read recently,about two people in a conversation.The first one says,'I believe that God hears our prayers,and cherishes them.I believe He answers by sending His Spirit,and peace and insight.I don't think He responds by turning away bullets and curing cancer.Though sometimes that does happen. The second person says ,' In other words the answer is no?. The first person replies,no, sometimes the answer is,'' This is life,in all its variety. Make your way through it with grace, and never forget ,I  love you''

                                                    ' Love came down at Christmas'

I want.( Acts 26 v 19 )

The Rolling Stones sung a song with the following words,

                                                        'You can't always get what you want

                                                        You can't  always get what you want

                                                         You can't always get  what you want '

                                                         

If you think about it ,that's true,I read of a famous person who was in love with a certain girl,she appeared so lovely,and he wanted her,but it didn't happen.Years later he saw this lovely girl,and he was glad he didn't get her. A child going round the supermarket with his mother wants a lot of things but the mother says no. As a Christian of many years I have discovered that God does not always give me what  I want, and I'm thankful for that,He is all wise,and all loving,and He has to protect me from myself.I know a couple and they wanted to be missionaries,they did everything they could to achieve that goal,but it didn't happen, they didn't get what they wanted,it boils down to this, is it our will  ,or God's will that matters?, and of course it is God's will that matters, every time.If we step out of the will of God then we are in trouble,we are disobedient,the will of God must be the priority in all our lives.

                                           'May our prayer every day be',not my will but yours,Father'

Are you satisfied?. ( Ecclesiastes 2 v 1 -11 )

 We continue to consider Proverbs 27 v 20,and the last part of it,'So the eyes of man are never satisfied',  our Saviour said to a woman at a well,'Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again'.(John 4 v 13) Charles Bridges said,'Man is always seeking for what he can never find,satisfaction in earthly things. All the affections of  fallen man are filled with unquenched thirst.The soul was originally created  to find a suitable and infinite gratification in the love of its Creator.And now that it is turned aside by the fall, it has an immortal depth, that craves to be filled.' It was the Rolling Stones who sang a  song,with the words,' I can't get no satisfaction , cause I try,and I try,and I try.'Adam and Eve were told that they could eat from any tree in the garden of Eden ,except one,but they were not satisfied with that.(Genesis. 2) King David had many wives and concubines yet he stole  another mans wife (2 Samuel 11)God provided manna to feed Israel,but they where not satisfied,( Numbers 11)  So we could go on, look around you,look into your heart, the more man gets the more they want. Augustine said,'Thou has made us for thyself; and our heart can have no rest,till it rests in Thee'.Jesus promised to meet that women's deepest need,all she had to do was to ask and she would receive.

                                                 ' O Christ , in Thee my soul hath found,

                                                  And found in Thee alone,

                                                  The peace, the joy I sought so long,

                                                   The bliss till now unknown.

                                                    Now none but Christ can satisfy'

There is hope.( Luke 2 v 11)

Let us consider Proverbs 27 v 20 ,'Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied'. The first part,'Hell and destruction are never full',  are very challenging words,for it is not just about dying,but what awaits those who do not know Christ , we will all die and there will be no end .of it until Christ returns. But what should concern every human being on planet earth is,what will await then  when they die?,if one does not know Christ,'Hell and destruction', awaits them, CP , Psalm 9 v17 'The wicked shall be turned into hell,and all the nations that forget God'. It is Charles Bridges who writes ,'To great devourers- hell and destruction- never full'.But the good news is this for those who trust Jesus, that awful fate, does not await them,consider the Christ event and the wonderful hope it brings to all mankind,'For  God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life'. ( John 3 v16)

                                                       'How silently,how silently

                                                       The wondrous gift is given

                                                        So God imparts to human hearts

                                                        The blessings of His heaven.

                                                         No ear may hear Him coming;

                                                         But in this world of sin,

                                                         Where meek souls will receive Him still

                                                         The dear Christ enters in.'       (Words P. Brooks)

Trust (John 7 v 7 )

I wonder if there was a time when you had no food in the house, and you had no money to buy any,?.I think of George Muller who started a children's work,and there were times that there was no food in the orphanage,and God provided.When you walk in the will of God He will provide,but it is not just about George Muller,for the God of George  Muller is your God, and my God .George  Muller was a man of Faith, just like those we read about in the Bible,surely it takes special faith  to see God working miraculously,no it takes childlike faith.Why should He help you more than any others,because you are His child,you are the apple of His eye.Our Saviour said,'Do not worry',( Matthew 6 v25 ). He said that ,because He knows how inclined we are to worry,so he wants to reassure us that our Father in heaven will look after us..Remember God is still the living God,and the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.( Hebrews 11 v 7)

                                                     'Trust and rest when all around you

                                                      Puts your faith to stringent test;

                                                      Let no fear or foe confound you,

                                                      Wait for God and trust and rest.

                                                      Trust and rest with heart abiding,

                                                      Like a birdling in its nest,

                                                     Underneath His feathers hiding,

                                                     Fold your wings and trust and rest.'