HIDDEN TREASURES

Isaiah 45:3 NLT And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness - secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.

We all have things that lift our spirits, that bring a smile to our faces. For me it’s when I look at this little bunny with three buds that broke off a posy of flowers and would have been thrown away, but here they sit making me smile every time I look at them.😊 For you it will be something entirely different because we’re all unique and that’s the way God intended it.

God is never boring and when He designed you and me He imagined good things for each one of us. He has placed hidden treasures in us we may not even know about yet! He gives one person an appreciation for the everyday things, and in another the ability to reach for the stars but they all can bring us joy and make us smile.😊

They might be treasures of being able to create lovely things, or to be known for your kindness. It might be how to clean a house so it shines for Jesus. It might be your smile is your greatest treasure because it lifts other people’s spirits. 

Maybe your treasure is to encourage others or to share a verse that may change the course of their day, to have a word of knowledge or wisdom, a prophetic word that speaks into someone’s life when they most need it. Maybe your treasure is to just love people, to see the best in them and draw it out. What a lovely treasure that is!😊

God wants us to be uplifted to know that the treasure He gives us or He has placed in us is for our enjoyment and to benefit others. Just appreciating going for a walk among the trees can be a memory to treasure. Going for a coffee with friends can give us the boost we need, but whatever it is, let’s enjoy each treasured moment and not miss it because we’re too busy thinking about the ‘next’ thing.

So today let’s live and enjoy our moments, whether it’s eating a hot sausage roll, a broken off flower in a vase or time with the family. Whatever it is for you, remember Jesus is present with you in that moment and share it with Him, like you would a friend, and fill up on His enjoyment with you. 

And those treasures we have inside us - let’s share them with others so they can be uplifted and bring a smile to them today too. Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

THE VICTORY OF OUR FAITH

1 John 5:4-5 NLT For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

Do you find there are some people you talk to, who only want to tell you how awful things are in the world? They’ve watched the media till all the bad reports pour out of their hearts, but all that does is give glory to the devil and undermine our faith. It encourages doubt and fears to enter in!

God told us that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, but if we’re listening to the world more than the Word it’s easy to fall into the trap of believing the wrong thing without realising it!😊

We all want victory in our lives, so something has to shift. Our focus has to be more on what God says than on what anyone else says. Some of the things we hear and see are undeniably facts, but the truth of God’s word can change the facts! Glory to God!

We are not helpless, or hopeless. We have all been given the measure of faith and the more we use it the stronger it will become. Even if we have faith as small as a mustard seed God says we can move mountains with it! 

Sometimes it’s good to stop and ask ourselves, “Who am I believing - my own reasoning, my own excuses, what the world says, or am I believing the Word of the Living God?” 

When we remember God has given us His name, His word, and the blood of Jesus to overcome the world, why do we listen to the lies of the enemy? It’s probably because we focus on the wrong thing, on what we see and feel, on past experience, instead of on what God has done through Jesus and what He has said in His Word.

Lack of faith is not our problem, but maybe unbelief is!😊

God says we can all have victory, so this is just to encourage us to use the faith He has given us, tell unbelief to shut up, and do some overcoming in the name of Jesus (and I’m speaking very much to myself first!) 😊 Amen.