Emmanuel [Matthew 1 v23 ]

Emmanuel, which means God with us,[Matthew 1v23] think what that means,we have such a companion with us ,who is human yet devine. One who is all powerful, one who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think, and yet one who is touched with the feelings of our infirmities. We have all we need and more in this person called Jesus,friendship,we all want friends, well we have one in Jesus, one who will never leave us or forsake us, one who will stand by us when all others have forsaken us. One who will guide us in the right way,one who will stand by and defend us, against all our foes, He is for us ,so who can be against us, He will be with us in our failures to encourage us to not give up.He will be with us to bless, He will open doors that no one can shut,He will give us strength in our weakness. He will cause everything to work together for our good, He is Emmanuel, God with us , He is Jesus our Saviour.[ Dear Lord Jesus we thank You, that You are with us, and all that this means, Amen] [ I will be on holiday for a week]

Happy ever after. [ Revelation 21 ]

I have just finished listening on audio, the book by Charles Dickens, Little Dorrit, Charles Dickens was a great writer, a superstar of his day. It was not the easiest book to follow but it was enjoyable,and for the main characters in the book it ended happily ever after. I like nice happy endings, I am sure most of us do,but life is not a book written by Charles Dickens,we cannnot guarantee a happy ending,and yet if we are Christians we know that there will be a happy ending. When will that be ?in eternity, when as a child of God we leave this earthly scene, an earthly scene that is damaged by sin, an earthly scene in which none of us are in control. The vision glorious for the child of God is for an eternal glory, a glory that is so wonderful, that even Charles Dickens could not describe it, an eternal glory in which all things will be made new and perfect, untouched by sin, or satan.[ Dear God help us to see beyond this fallen world, to that vision glorious, of an a new and glorious eternal future, when all things will be new , in Jesus name , Amen ]

Lost.[ Luke 19v10]

I have an increasing burden, for the lost, who are the lost?, they are those who have never trusted Jesus to save them. Most people do not know that they are lost, they are ignorant to the fact that,they are sinners, and need a Saviour, but they are still lost. Why did Jesus come?, to seek and to save that which is lost, [Luke 19 v10 ] who is lost?, everyone, Isaiah 53v6,tells us,/All of us , like sheep, have strayed away . We have left Gods paths to follow our own./ When a person is lost, it has very serious consequences,which the many ignor,Hell is not a made up scare story, it is a reality,a reality that people discover to late,there is no escape from Hell, no early release,no time off for good behaviour, it is a permanent state,with no get out clauses. The Bibles warns us to flee from the wrath to come, where do we flee to? to Jesus, the only one who can save us from a fate worst than death. [ Dear God we thank you ,that You so loved this world that You give Your only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Amen ]

To knell or not to knell that is the question. [1 Timothy 2 v8 ]

The very first time I came to Grays in Essex ,while standing waiting for the couple to come in whose house I would be staying , I noticed a lady on the other side of the road, walking on her knees. I never did find out why she walked on her knees. When it comes to prayer I dont knell, because it began to hurt when I did, although recently I finish by kneeling. It was said of one famous Christian,that he had camel knees,because he prayed so much on his knees. We dont have to kneel when we pray,what we do need is a proper attitude to the one we are praying, a God who is holy, and awesome. Mybe some of us need to be on our knees,in humility and repentance, while others of us need to consider our hearts rather than our posture. [ Dear God we ask that we may always treat You with reverance, when we pray in Jesus name Amen ]

Failure.[ Philippians 3 v 12-16 ]

We failed , declares David[1Chronicles 15v14] , we can all identify, with those words,as I look back on my life ,like David I have failed. Some of those failures still live with me, and I only wish that I could go back, and undo those failures, wish they had never happened, but I cant. Yet there are positives in failures,they should keep us humble,and should help us to have empathy with others in their failures. Although David failed and it was a serious failure, he did not stay in his failure, he moved on, so must we,we must not live in our failures, thats what the devil wants us to do. In Psalm 103v13-14, we read,The Lord is like a father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. For He knows how weak we are, He remembers we are only dust. Today let us bring all our failures to God, and ask for His grace, that will enable us to move on, inspite of how we feel.[ Loving Father we come to Your throne of grace, and in the name of Jesus we ask for the grace to move on inspite of our failures. Amen ]

Being wise before the event. [ Proverbs 3 v5-6 ]

Following on with David moving the Ark of the covenant,and the tragic results of David acting , contrary to Gods word.In 1Chronicles 15 v13, we read how David acknowledges that they had failed to ask God how to move the Ark properly. Consider the consequences of not asking, a dear man had died,this need not have happened ,if only they had asked God, if only, there are so many times we fail, because we fail to seek the Lords guidance. Seeking the Lords guidance is not a trival thing,so often, like David we seek Him after the event when things have gone wrong.Today let us determine to seek the Lords guidance in all we do, in the major and minor things, if we do ,He shall direct our paths. [Proverbs 3v6av] [ Dear God we ask that You will help us to seek You first in all things, in Jesus name. Amen ]

Stick to Gods plan.[ Exodus 27v8]

We continue to look at David bringing back the Ark of the covenant in 1 Chronicles 13, yesterday we saw that David was angry with God ,for striking Uzzah dead . Why did God act in this way,well the Ark was a symbol of Gods holy presence,to touch this holy symbol or to look into it was not permitted[ cp Numbers4v15/1 Samuel 7v19] Next the ark was to be transported in a the way God said [ Numbers 4v5-15], David realized this later [1 Chronicles 15v13], but then it was to late for Uzziah. Mankind is full of their own idea,s ,as regard God they think many things ,and they feel it is of little consequence ,how they regard God,or how they act,but it does . Even as believers we must act according to Gods word,we may be sincere , but if we are acting contrary to Gods word,then we are sincerely wrong, and God will deal with us, remember God is to be feared and obeyed. [Dear God forgive our foolish ways,when we act contrary to Your word and will,help us to take seriously what You teach us, in Jesus name Amen ]