Saul and David.[ Psalm 51 ]

Saul and David were the first two kings of Israel,both chosen by God,both accomplished much, one is seen as a failure the other as a success. Saul the failure, David the successful one, and yet they both failed,Saul failed in his disobedience,[ cp 1 Samuel 13 and 15, he then went on to do other things, that were wrong. But David was far from being lily white, oh no ,he committed a terrible sin, adultery and murder, cp 2 Samuel 11. So here we have two men both chosen by God, both were the Lords annointed, both inperfect, yet it is David who is seen as Israels greatest king,why?. I think it was ,that David when he did wrong , repented of his sin, sincerely, read Psalm 51, Saul never did, he appeared to be more concerned with keeping his position as king, than dealing with those issues in his life , that needed dealing with,he trully failed to change, and so in the end he paid the price. Like Saul and David, we will fail, we will sin, the question is, are we willing to repent, that means acknowledging our sin to God, and turning away from it.[ Dear God help us to acknowledge our failures and our sins, grant us the grace, that we may trully repent, help us to see that all unrepented sin , will bring a terrble cost with it, in Jesus name we pray this Amen ]

We are meant to be different [Matthew 5v 13 -16 ]

We are meant to be different, if we are Christians, but in what way?, when I came back to the Lord, the difference included not smoking, not going to the cinema, avoiding things that were considered worldly. There was also the emphasis on attending church , and becoming involved in church activities, such as prayer meetings, Bible studies, outreach, ,much of this is positive, I dont long for those days, but in many ways I do thank God for them ,and I just wonder if we have lost something along the way?, it does seem these days we are less connected to the body, that is the church. Much has changed in church life, during my life time, a lot of churches are smaller,and appear very ineffective. I hold unto the truth of what Jesus said, He would build His church, and this He will do, so we need not fear as regards His church,, let us seek to be light, and salt, wherever our Lord has placed us,let us pray that our difference , will trully be a Christlike difference.

Speaking out the word of God [ Matthew 4 v 1 - 11 ]

It is Joyce Meyer who says that we should speak out the word of God to ourselves, this struck me this morning as I read in a devotional, Genesis 50 v 20,/ God meant it for good/. These words were spoken by Joseph, he spoke them to his brothers , who had treated him shamefully, Joseph could have said hurtful things, he could have passed the death sentence on them, but he didnt. I am sure those words were for his brothers benifite, for our benifite, and his own benifite. Today speak out the word of God for others benifite, and our own,let us use the sword of the Spirit to put to flight the enemy of our souls, and to strengthen us.If Joseph had not spoken out those words we would never have had the benifite of them, so today speak out the word for the sake of others and for your own sakes. [ Father we thank You for the living word of God, help us to speak it out to day, to ourselves , and to others, and as we do strengthen us, in Jesus name we ask this Amen.

Perfect, true, and certain.[ 2 Samuel 22 v 31 ]

In his song of praise in 2 Samuel 22, David declares in verse31,three things [1 ]Gods way is perfect. Consider that inspite of all that David had experienced, he still declares that Gods way is perfect,mybe you are going through difficulties, or have experienced difficulties that have left you feeling unsettled and unsure, it does not seem that Gods way is perfect.The hymn writer , wrote,/Blind unbelief is sure to err , and scan His works in vain/. By faith , and only by faith, can we say , Gods way is perfect. [ 2 ] All the Lords promises prove true, God always keeps His word, you can bet on it, so let us all rest on His promises today, they will prove true. [ 3 ] He is a shield for all who look to Him for protection,it is important to look to God, ask yourself, who am I looking too?look unto Jesus today, in Him , and in Him alone is protection,provision, and all we need. [ Dear Lord Jesus, we declare by faith that your way to be perfect, Your word to be true, and Your protection to be certain. Amen ]

A song of praise [ 2 Samuel 22 ]

In 2 Samuel 22 we have a song of praise written by David, and which he also song himself, David was a very gifted person, a very blessed person, but he was also a person who experienced a lot of trouble. God was very gracious unto David and rescued him , time after time from his enemies, and so he wrote a song of praise. Today, why not offer unto God a song of praise,for all His goodness, let us stop and remember, how the Lord has delivered us,provided for us, protected us, defended us, promoted us,kept us, helped us, upheld us, strengthened us, guided us. Praise is a giving of thanks, it is a song of thanksgiving, it should come from the heart,and let us remember God is worthy to be praised, many will be singing the praises of their football team , many will be praising others,and so many things ,today let us praise our God, for He is worthy of our praise. [ Father in Heaven we give You praise, You have done so much for us, saved us through Your dear Son, made us Your children, and blessed us continually,we offer our praise and thanksgiving to You, in Jesus name Amen ]

Frustrations [ Psalm 40 v 1 ]

Over my life I have had to contend with frustrations, times of unemployment, personal relationships , so the question is ,what does one do when faced with frustration?. It was Rudyard Kipling who wrote, / If you can keep your head when all about you ,Are losing theirs and blaming it on you/, now this is easier said than done. So what can we do ? a good question. First of all consider, that God is Sovereign , inspite of everything that may be going wrong, he is in control,He has not suddenly fallen asleep on the job. Secondly ,God is in the buisness of creating ,in us, Christian character, and one of most important characteristics is patience, consider how patient Christ was with the disciples, we all without exception have need of patience.Thirdly, Prayer,we all know the importance of prayer,but we all have still much to learn about it, so our great teacher brings us into situations to teach us. [Dear Father in Heaven, we bring all our frustrations to You,and we ask that You would minister peace into our hearts, and a trust in your Sovereign purposes, we ask this in our Saviours precious name , Amen ]

Can we be sure?[ John 11 v 25 ]

A friend mentioned about death, I dont know if he is a Christian, but I replied to what he said, well thats true ,but I am saved, and then He asked, are you sure?, I said I was, for Jesus said that he was the resurrection and the life that those who believe in Him even though they die , shall live. Yes here is the wonderful truth we can be absolutely certain that we are going to heaven, if we have trusted Jesus as our Saviour. Many live with an uncertainity as regards their eternal destiny, why is that?, because they have never trusted Jesus to save them. My certainty is based upon /a life I did not live, and upon a death I did not die /[these are not my words ], or in the words of the old hymn, / My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness, no merit of my own I claim, but wholly trust in Jesus name/. He is the reason I am absolutely certain I am going to heaven, are you certain ?. [ Father in this world full of uncertainties we thank You that we can know we are saved eternally, when we trust in Jesus Your dear Son, Amen ]