LORD OF ALL?

Philippians 2:10-11 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Do you ever get caught up with your emotions and wish you could have more control over them especially on those days when we feel down in the dumps? Well a comment I heard someone make, may help. 

They said that yes, we may have asked the Lord to be the Lord of our lives many years ago or only last week, but have we ever stopped and asked Him to be the Lord of our emotions, Lord over our worries, and Lord over our fears because they are all part of what makes up our lives and maybe we’ve not consciously thought to surrender them to Him?

I hadn’t thought of it quite like that before and it made it more relevant when we apply it to specific areas in that way. It’s easy to say Jesus is the Lord of my life but I’m realising more and more that He wants us to yield every sphere of our lives, not just the ones we’re comfortable with. There just might be attitudes or thoughts or things that we don’t want Him meddling with or maybe thought He wasn’t even interested in, but He is! It helps to remember Jesus bought us with His life blood so why do we hesitate when we know He loves us that much? We belong to Him completely now.😊

I wonder if there are some days though when we invite Jesus in through the front door but we leave Him in the kitchen, and don’t ask Him to make Himself at home in any room He likes. We have an area which is too private or we’re thinking “No entry, it’s mine!” 

It’s like when a dog has a hold of a big stick in its mouth and you have to wait till he drops it so you can pick it up. Is it possible that the Lord is in our kitchen patiently waiting for us to drop whatever it is we’re holding so tightly to, so He can pick it up and deal with it?

Can I encourage us all to stop for a moment or two and have a think to see if there are some areas that we’re still holding on to as well.  For instance, we may have long buried hurts or fears that He wants to heal but we’ve not made Him Lord of those areas to allow Him in, to minister to us. 

All I know is, He wants to come and be invited into everything we think and do, not to hurt us in any way, but so He can bless us, heal us, make us whole, provide for and protect us, because of His great love for us.

Lord help us to recognise when we’re still trying to control our own lives, still holding on to things, and yield it all to You whether it’s our emotions, or worries or fears or anything else we need to make you Lord of. In Jesus name. Amen. 

Photo by Ann on Unsplash and Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

A SIMPLE THING!

2 Kings 3:17-18 You will see neither wind nor rain, says the Lord but this valley will be filled with water. You will have plenty for yourselves and your cattle and other animals. But this is only a simple thing for the Lord, for he will make you victorious .…”

Have you ever thought life is complicated? We have huge Why’s? How’s? And When’s? But for God it’s not complicated, it’s simple! He shows us in this story…

The Kings of Israel, Judah and Edom went out to attack the King of Moab but the route they took led them through a wilderness for seven days and there was no water for their huge armies of men and animals. King Jehoshaphat of Judah was wise enough to first ask Elisha to inquire of the Lord what to do as they were in an impossible situation. The verse above gave them the amazing answer! God would supernaturally provide and it would be simple for Him! He must have been so glad he asked God first!😊

There are times when we look at our circumstances and think “What are we going to do?”. Things look so difficult and impossible, as though they’ll never change but the only reason we think that, is because we’re doubting God can or will help us. We forget that for Him our problems are simple to solve.

God is looking for our faith today, not faith in organisations or other people but faith in Him and what only He can do for us. We’re not being a bother to Him when we ask for His help first, we’re pleasing His heart because we’re using the faith He gave us in the first place.

So let me encourage you to go to Him again today, with faith in His ability and willingness to provide whatever you need. Remind yourself He hasn’t changed and He’s for you not against you and He is far bigger than all our problems put together!😊

Last November I wrote about shouting ‘Grace, Grace!’ to our problems and the link is below if you’d like to read it again because it may be a moment to shout Grace! Grace! to your mountain, every day if necessary till it comes down, and trust God’s grace to rescue and deliver you from whatever situation you are in. Amen.

https://myberrythoughts.blogspot.com/2023/11/shout-grace-to-it.html

Photo by Massimiliano Morosinotto on Unsplash

A WIDOW’S MITE

Mark 12:41-42 Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins.

The other day I was chatting to a friend who is a real history buff, who also collects ancient coins. On Sunday I was so thrilled because he gave me a Widow’s Mite coin from the last century B.C.! I’d never even seen one before and he thought I would appreciate its significance, which I certainly do!😊

Just think it would still have been in circulation at the same time as that widow who put two of them into the collection box the day Jesus was sitting near by watching. My friend explained they were the smallest Roman coin you could have and they were called a Lepta but they were so disdained they were just a bit of metal that they cut very roughly and didn't even round them off properly. I photographed it next to our coins to give an idea of size.

They would have bought only a 20th of a loaf of the cheapest bread which only a very poor person would have eaten and yet she gave all she had. No wonder Jesus was so impressed by her gift and I know God would have honoured her faithfulness and looked after her. 

It reminded me of Elijah who asked a widow who was on the point of starving to death with her son, to use her last bit of flour and oil to make him a cake first. When she did as he said the Lord provided food for her and her son all through the remaining famine. God took care of her and blessed her obedience and faithfulness. She didn’t lose out, she gained!

God’s ways are not ours. He asks us to give to Him first, no matter how little we think we have, and to trust Him to multiply it so He can give us far more than we need for however long we shall need it. Jesus said, ‘Give and it will be given to you, good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.’(Luke 6:38)

Would you like some running over supply? Then give to the Lord and watch Him multiply it back to you in the days ahead.😊

A Widow’s Mite

CARRY ON ANYWAY

Philippians 1:6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

The other day I needed to change the needle in my sewing machine as I’d just broken one through trying to force it to do something it didn’t want to do! As I was placing the new needle in the slot it slipped from my fingers and it disappeared down the hole below into the inner workings of the machine never to be seen again! One of those ‘Oh dear’ moments! 

Sometimes we do things with the best of intentions but it goes wrong despite our best efforts. I decided to risk carrying on anyway and hoped it wouldn’t mess up the machine. It was either that, or let my failure to do it right, stop me from doing what I still had to do!

When we get it wrong sometimes it’s good to just admit it and then carry on.😊 One of the devil’s tactics is to make us think we have to perform perfectly every time, and he condemns us when we don’t, in order to try to stop us in our tracks. But God says there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). He’s taking us from glory to glory which lets us know we and everybody else haven’t arrived yet and there are learning curves on the way!

If we’ve had some broken needle moments, God is telling us not to be discouraged if we’ve been branching out in faith and we didn’t get it right the first or umpteenth time! I expect we’ve all discovered we need to humble ourselves sometimes, and allow the Lord to teach us some things so we grow into the maturity of our faith. Nobody goes from their first driving lesson on day one, to driving in the Grand Prix the next day, and even Formula One drivers have to keep practicing!😊 

So don’t give up if you’ve had a setback, or you’ve made a mistake somewhere, it happens to all of us. Get back up and with the help of the Holy Spirit let Him put you back on the road walking by faith, and not give up, but carry on anyway knowing He is still guiding you. You’re still a work in progress and He will continue His work in you, and me, until it is finally finished when Christ Jesus returns.😊

Thank You Lord You never give up on us and You still have good plans for us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Ilya lix on Unsplash,

GOD’S PINGS

Psalm 119:49-50 Remember your promise to me; it is my only hope. Your promise revives me; it comforts me in all my troubles.

A lot of phones these day have a ‘ping’ facility where it reminds you it’s someone’s birthday, or you have an appointment to keep. It’s a great help as long as you’ve remembered to set the ‘ping’ in the first place!😊

I think we could all do with a ‘ping’ facility in our brains that ping with the words and promises of God which revive and comfort us in all our troubles. For instance, when we start to have a negative thought like ‘You’ll struggle today because you’re so tired.’ Instead the ping reminds us that God promises  ‘The Lord is my strength and His loving arms are underneath me holding me up. His grace is more than enough to help me do whatever I have to do today’. 

When the thought comes that you have so many worries and cares that you don’t know what to do, the ping reminds you “My God is for me, I cast all my cares on Him because He cares for me and He’s turning it all round for our good. Nothing is to hard for Him to deal with.”

Maybe you’re bothered with thoughts of not being good enough. Then hear the ping reminding you ‘God loves me. I am God’s masterpiece, His special treasure, I am the apple of His eye, I belong to Him and He’s watching over me all the time.’

How about this one? ‘I never get any good breaks, nothing good ever happens to me.’ Hear the ping remind you ‘God’s favour surrounds me like a shield, His goodness and mercy are chasing me down every day, and I’m walking into His good plans He’s prepared for me.

As we go into another week with the Holy Spirit I hope your ‘ping’ facility is set to go off all the time.😊  It will remind you of God’s promises and what His Word says about you, so you can walk in His victory, trampling over anything that disagrees with what God says about you, and remember you are very precious to Him. Amen.😊

Have a great week.x

Photo by Daria Nepriakhina 🇺🇦 on Unsplash

WE’RE FAR ABOVE

Ephesians 1:19-21(NLT)

This is the same mighty power 

that raised Christ from the dead 

and seated him in the place of honor at

God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. 

Now he is far above any ruler or authority 

or power or leader or anything else—

not only in this world 

but also in the world to come. 

On the days when we could do with a lift, when we’re thinking we’re below and not above, and feel like we’re struggling, the best thing we can always do is turn to God’s Word, because it’s our manual for life and it tells us it is life and health to all our flesh and that includes our minds as well. God’s Word is God speaking to us and it’s the Truth.

When the enemy has been telling us something negative about ourselves we can read His Word and hear Him say that He loves us unconditionally, that He will bring us to a glorious finish, that He is upholding, providing, and protecting us and His joy is our strength.😊

Could you do with some more strength today? Then let’s go together and sit with Jesus and let Him pour His deep joy into us. You know why He is so joyful? It’s because He won the victory for us, because He totally defeated every foe and came out on top and because we’re now part of  Him, part of His family, and His Father is delighted. How lovely is that?

He is high and lifted up above all principalities and powers, above all the rulers of this dark age and He is seated at the right hand of His Father in Heaven. 

Then He reminds us that when He rose from the grave He raised us up at the same time and He seated us with Him on His throne, far above all that would come against us, far above every evil force of darkness.(Ephesians 2:6) He reminds us the devil is beneath our feet, that we can trample on serpents and scorpions which represent our enemy and He has given us His authority to use in our everyday experiences to defeat and resist the enemy.

Sometimes we need to read those things over and over until we have the picture of it in the forefront of our minds, until the truth get’s in our hearts, and the joy of it puts new strength into us.😊

Let’s give Him our praise today, because our whole lives are wrapped up in Him and what He has done for us, placing us in the far above position, not below after all. Help us Lord to understand it and act on it. Thank You Lord. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo: Juliane Liebermann on Unsplash

BE A STAR IN SOMEONE’S SKY

Mark 16:15 And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone….”

On May 22nd, in the blog “God Incidences”, I mentioned ‘if you’ve had a kindness shown pass it on’, and a friend of mine explained after reading it, that it was part of a poem. I didn’t know that, so it inspired me to look it up on the internet and it’s an old hymn called ‘Love is Kind’ by Henry Burton. I know the language is a bit old fashioned but I hope you’ll bear with me on this for a minute as I’m going somewhere with it.😊

Have you had a kindness shown?

Pass it on, pass it on!

‘Twas not giv’n for thee alone,

Pass it on, pass it on!

Let it travel down the years,

Let it wipe another’s tears;

Till in heav’n the deed appears,

Pass it on, pass it on!

It goes on in other verses, but in the last one there’s a line that struck a chord with me…

Have you found the heav’nly light?..…

Hold your lighted lamp on high, 

Be a star in someone’s sky,

He may live who else would die, 

Pass it on, pass it on.

I love the idea of being a star in someone’s sky, don’t you?😊 Not a film star, but the kind of star who can tell them Jesus is the Light of the world, that He can bring light into their deep darkness if they’ll allow Him to. We can shine with the love of God, with His joy and peace, because at some point someone was the star in our sky, and they were kind enough to tell us about Jesus and helped us to ask Him into our lives. They passed the ‘kindness’, the Good News on to us!😊

This weekend and in the days ahead, let’s pass on the kindness we’ve received, and be the star in someone’s sky that they so need, and let them know God loves them and there is certain hope and forgiveness in Jesus, not just for now, but for their eternity as well. Amen.

Have a blessed weekend.x😊

Link to hymn: https://hymnary.org/text/have_you_had_a_kindness_shown

Photo by Matt Seymour on Unsplash

TIME FOR SOME COMPOST?

Matthew 13:23 (NIV) But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

When I’m planting up flowerpots I try to make sure I put some good compost in so they grow well, but it’s the time of year when dandelions also grow well in their thousands, all along hedgerows, and in my garden! 

When they go to seed I have to snatch the heads off before they land and grow loads more, and it reminded me of the scripture where it says the word of God is planted in peoples’ hearts but the devil comes along and snatches it away. (Matthew 13:19)

If we’re not careful that can happen to us as well. We’ll have heard a word from the Lord, and it strikes home in our spirit, but then a distraction comes, the phone rings, or there is some crisis and the devil does all he can to make us worry, and forget God’s faithful promises are our armour and protection.(Psalm 91:4). It’s so easy for it to happen!

The parable of the sower reminds us that the soil of our heart really matters.😊 If we have hard, sceptical hearts then the seed of the word of God won’t even be able to get in. Or if our soil is so bogged down with the cares of this world, like the rain has bogged our gardens recently, then the good seed will get drowned out by the worry voices.

The devil uses lots of tricks to stop the word of God from producing a harvest like when we’ve worked too long so we’re too tired to spend time with the Lord, or we’ve allowed our emotions to go crazy and we can’t seem to think straight. 

The thing is, we have control over our own hearts, and the Holy Spirit has been given to us to be our Helper and Counsellor. He’s there to help us receive the good seed of the word of God, and help us mix it with faith so it takes deep root inside us to produce fruit. 

Apostle James reminds us that we can hear the word but it won’t produce a harvest until we start obeying it and doing it. I’m sure we’d all like a harvest of 30, 60 and 100 fold, so today is a nudge to have a look at our soil and see if God’s word is growing well, or have we let the enemy snatch it from us, and it might need some TLC and a bit of compost.😊

RIGHT NOW!

Psalm 46:1  God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.

“Now is a gift” and we’re all in the ‘right now’. It’s great to reminisce about lovely memories and it’s exciting looking forward to plans we may have for the future but the fact is, God has gifted us with this moment in time and we might be needing all sorts of things ‘right now!’

You might need a new job, or money to pay some bills. You may need healing from pain, or a broken heart or a sickness or disease, and you feel you need it all right now. 

God’s name is the great ‘I AM’. His name tells us He is ‘I AM’ right now in your right now moments! He is present to help us in our trouble. He’s not going to pop in and see us some time next week if He can fit us in! No, He has promised to be a very present help, a now help, that He is involved in everything in our lives.  Let’s pray believing He’s helping.😊

God reminds us in Philippians 4:6 …Pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. His Word also says His mercies were fresh this morning, that His grace is available 24/7, that nothing is too hard or too difficult for Him, and we may need to remember those things right now when we come in faith to ask for our ‘right now’ needs. Even if we have to wait for things to come together God wants us to be certain the answer is still definitely on its way.😊

The good news is there are some things we can enjoy right now. When we’ve asked Jesus to be our Saviour then God’s love is being poured out on us and His favour is surrounding us like a shield, right now. 

He says we are righteous in His eyes, that we are forgiven and on our way to heaven and we have already stepped into eternity right now. 

God is working behind the scenes to provide all our needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus, not according to our bank balance, or according to our strength or qualifications or lack of them, and it’s all happening right now. Even if we don’t see it or feel it He wants us to believe His word.

Aren’t you glad God is ‘I AM’ right now, in all our circumstances, and that He has already given us so much already? Let’s encourage one another to keep walking by faith thanking Him for His help and enjoy His Gift of Now.😊 Amen.

Photo: Zachary Keimig on Unsplash

GOD INCIDENCES

Psalm 145:9 The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.

Last Saturday I was digging out weeds from underneath our hedge in the front garden, and was crouching down leaning over on the pavement, but I had stopped to talk to a neighbour on a mobility scooter at the same time. Just then a car drove by and she stopped to wind down her window and asked if I was all right and did I need help? She thought I’d been knocked down by the mobility scooter and was offering to come to my aid!

How kind was that! I’d never met her before but she was being a caring neighbour from up round the corner somewhere. I thanked her and assured her I was fine but was just weeding, so she carried on her way. Sometimes all we hear are the bad stories on the media, but there are also lots of kind people and good things happening out there and it does your heart good to hear about them. The mobility lady had also just been telling me how her neighbours had been so kind and rallied round her when her husband passed away a few years ago.

Philippians 4:8 tells us to fix our thoughts on what is true and honourable, right and pure, lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. God doesn’t tell us to dwell on all the things that pull us down. I’m sure it would help us to hear some more of the many good things that happen and when I typed in “Good News” on the internet I discovered lots of websites recounting the good things going on around the world!

Let’s praise God for them because we know they’re not coincidence. They really are God incidences and all the goodness is God intervening on our behalf, but it’s easy to miss the significance of them and forget to thank Him.

Is there something you could share about that has blessed you, even if it seems insignificant? Maybe you could mention it to someone today and help them know good things do happen in our everyday lives and give God the glory. Or how about making someone else’s day and surprising them with a kindness. If we’ve received a kindness we can bless it forwards or as my grandma always used to say “If you’ve had a kindness shown, pass it on”.😊

Photo by Courtney Smith on Unsplash

THE RIGHT FRUIT!

John 15:8(NLT) When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

The other day the lid popped off my sweetener box when Chris took it out the cupboard and all the tiny tablets spilled all over the kitchen floor! It was one of those ‘Oops’ moments!😊Trying to pick them up again was a bit of a challenge as they’d rolled everywhere! 

Those sweetener boxes are small enough to take with us wherever we go, and as I thought about that I realised we all have ‘sweetness’ stored up in us to take with us wherever we go too. We are like the little boxes and we can choose to release the fruit of the Spirit of God at any time, wherever we are. We have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control stored up in us.(Galations 5:22-23) Wouldn’t it be great if when our lid popped off all our good fruit spilled out over everyone we meet!

Unfortunately, I confess, the other day when a lady’s muddy dog jumped up with muddy feet all over Chris’s brand new trousers, I was not all sweetness! My fruit wasn’t rude, but I’m sorry to say it wasn’t as patient and long-suffering as it should have been either and I felt bad afterwards that I’d allowed it to get to me the way it did!  

God is working in us all the time though, transforming us by the renewing of our minds and it’s partly so He can grow His good fruit in us. But good fruit isn’t much use if it’s left in the bag it’s brought home in. We have to share it and allow its goodness out to bless others.😊

So how about letting our good fruit spill out on somebody today? Share it with people when we see they’re all stressed out, or they’re feeling down. Give them some of our fruit of kindness and love, and lift them back up again. And if we do fail to produce the right fruit sometimes, don’t let’s give up, but know we can ask God to help us do better next time.

Lord thank You for forgiving us when we get it wrong, but help us be a blessing to somebody today and help us share the ‘sweetness’ of Your lovely fruit wherever we have to go. In Jesus Name Amen. 

ALL STORED UP

Psalm 31:19 (NLT)How great is the goodness you have stored up for those who fear you. You lavish it on those who come to you for protection, blessing them before the watching world. 

When my kids were small I would start buying little presents for them ready for birthdays well in advance and would store them hidden away in the cupboard. I expect you may have done the same thing. As the giver we had a lovely sense of expectation of seeing their little faces light up when they saw the surprises on birthday morning. They had had a sense of expectation believing there would be some surprises to open too!

God has made sure we know He has stored up great goodness for us. He wants us to not just know about it, but to have a sense of great expectation of the things He has prepared and to realise He will be lavish in His generosity. We don’t often think of it though, do we? He does say it’s for those who reverence Him and trust Him, and go to Him for protection, but I don’t think that would be difficult do you? He is the ultimate Protector, no one is stronger, more powerful or more tustworthy than our God.😊

Just think, the One who does things on the grand scale, who made the millions of stars, has also prepared some great goodness for you and me! So are you ready for His lavish blessings? Are you expecting them, or are you expecting something quite different? 

The amazing thing is that everyone will get to see what He does for us, it won’t be hidden away but the blessings will be so obvious that God will get all the glory.

What a lovely way to start the week, loving and trusting the Lord, asking Him for His protection and knowing He has great goodness stored up for us in His heavenly cupboard, not just a little bit. 

I can’t wait to see it, can you?😊

Have a great week.x

Photo: Clint McKoy on Unsplash

Someone mentioned the walnut tree I grew from a nut in the ‘Comments’ yesterday so thought I’d let you see it, although it’s a bit hard to see against the hedge background. Thanks for your interest though whoever it was.😊

 

FLOURISHING AND STRONG

Psalm 92:12-14 But the godly will flourish like palm trees 

and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. 

For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house. 

They flourish in the courts of our God. 

Even in old age they will still produce fruit; 

they will remain vital and green.

This photo is of a cedar of Lebanon and they certainly grow big and strong! What a lovely picture of what God is growing us into. I found a walnut in our garden that a squirrel had dropped, so I planted it and have been nurturing it for years. It is now about four feet high and flourishing, but it will be the next generation who benefit from the harvest of walnuts in years to come not me!😊

You may be new to the Christian faith, or been a Christian for a long time, but we are all in the process of growing strong in the Lord like the cedar tree. We’re not like my walnut tree which will take years to grow nuts but we can start producing fruit immediately and will continue to do so however old we become. What an encouraging thought.

And the even better news is, when we’re planted in the house of the Lord, we will not just flourish but we will remain vital and green. I think we all need to claim that promise don’t you? God never says we retire in His kingdom but quite the opposite! He says we will remain fresh and productive all the days of our lives with His own life flowing through us. That doesn’t speak of winding down and fading out! Thank You Lord!

God wants us to be part of His family of believers, young or old, knit together, helping and encouraging each other. Being there to stand in the gap for each other and lift one another up when we’re down. We all belong somewhere and when we’re missing one week for some reason we leave a big gap. Your being there encourages others, so you matter.😊

On the first Pentecost there were 120 believers in the room and they were so blessed when the Holy Spirit came down on them. Imagine if you’d missed it and not been there! We too can enjoy being in God’s house this Pentecost Sunday, so wherever we are, let’s come together with great expectation to worship our wonderful Saviour.😊Amen.

Photo: Tim B-road on Unsplash

TIME TO TAKE DELIVERY

Psalm 103:2-5(NKJV) Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagles.

Our doorbell rang the other day and there was a delivery man waiting to give us a parcel. But if he had found we were out, he would have had to find someone else to receive it, to take it from him!

God’s blessings are a bit like that. They’re all given to us but those blessings are only any good to us if we take delivery of them, if we receive them by faith. 

I could offer you a thousand pounds but you might say ‘I can’t believe you’d give me a thousand pounds, or I can’t possibly accept that, it’s too much, or I don’t deserve it.” It’s like salvation, unless you take it, unless you personally receive the thousand pounds, then it won’t be any good to you. You won’t be able to use it or spend it unless you take it, even though it’s yours and I’m giving it to you!😊

In the same way God has given us His amazing benefits and blessings, all stacked up waiting, but unless we take them by faith, we will be no better off.  Have you ever done something wrong and gone round for days feeling bad about it? Instead, we could have gone to God and received His forgiveness immediately because it’s one of His benefits.

The enemy tries to make us forget God says we qualify for His grace, for His blessings, because we are the undeserving, because of Jesus’ sacrifice. Or we hear God ringing our doorbell when we read today’s verses, but because we’re in the ‘too busy’ mode to stop and gratefully receive it all, we miss them, or we choose to just not believe some of them. How sad is that!

Do you ever look at people and think why are they so blessed? It’s because they’ve received by faith what God gives to us all. We are all that blessed if we’ll take what God gives us!😊

I like to take each one, unwrap it and say ‘Thank You Lord, I receive it by faith’.  I don’t know about you, but I want to be ‘in’ to receive the blessings, don’t you? Why would we not? 

Have a look again at the blessings listed above, and so many others written in the scriptures. God is standing at your door knocking, or maybe He’s ringing your doorbell, so take a fresh delivery of what is yours every day and receive by faith all God is giving to you because they all have your name on them.

Have a truly blessed weekend.x😊

Photo: Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

A GIFT FOR EACH OF US

1 Corinthians 4:7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.

I like to have a go at all sorts of things and I had a phase of trying to paint but I soon discovered I’ll need a lot more practice!!🫢 But we can discover what God has given us at any stage of life, so there’s hope for everyone. You may have an unwritten book in you!

Mohr Keet became the world’s oldest bungee jumper in 2010 at the age of 96 (he didn’t begin jumping until the age of 88!) So you see you don’t know what you have in you, till you try!😊

Much more importantly though it applies in the spiritual realm as well. God has given us the greatest treasure of all, the Holy Spirit Himself, and He has given us all spiritual gifts which often lie dormant in so many people just because they’re afraid to make a mistake or they don’t want to be embarrassed learning to use them. Paul says this: 1 Corinthians 12:7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. You have a spiritual gift.

In the rest of Chapter 12 he goes on to list the gifts given - the gift of wisdom, of knowledge, of special faith, of miracles, of prophecy, of discerning spirits, of speaking in tongues and interpreting tongues, or the gifts of healings. How wonderful to be able to help people in that way. He says we all have at least one of those gifts!

Every ministry starts with one small step of faith and God’s not phased when we don’t get it right straight away. We all make mistakes, but that mustn’t put us off. The Apostle Peter didn’t let his mistakes stop him! So can I encourage you today to branch out spiritually, obey the prompting of the Holy Spirit, and stop saying you can’t do things! You don’t know till you try, and see where the Lord leads you. 

Or maybe you’ve not used your spiritual gifts in a while. God wants you to use them again! And if whatever you do blesses even one person then it’s been worth while, whether you’re learning a new skill, praying out loud for the first time, pursuing the gifts of the Spirit, or endeavouring to write a Blog! Go for it! It’s all to the glory of God because none of us could do anything unless He gifted us and helped us to do it in the first place.😊 

Why not ask the Holy Spirit how to use your spiritual gifts? It would be sad to waste whatever He’s given to you and you might surprise yourself and be a blessing to others too.😊 Amen.

WHO OR WHAT IS IN THE CENTRE?

1 Corinthians 6:19 Don’t you realise that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price….

Who or what is in the centre? It’s ok, it’s not one of those trick questions where you have to decide whether you can see a cube or just spots!😊 It’s just a question we need to ask ourselves as often as we need to, to check and see what’s at the centre of our lives. 

It’s so easy to be focused on ourselves all the time because that’s where it’s all happening for us! We ask how do I look? How do I feel today? How am I going to manage? 

Matthew 6:33 Seek ye first the Kingdom of God… Jesus talked about our anxieties and concerns and told us not to worry about it all but to turn our attention instead to God’s kingdom and His way of doing and being right. Jesus said to give first place, first thoughts, first of our energies to seeking what God wants and then He added this wonderful promise - if you’ll do that then God will add everything else to you. Do we struggle sometimes because we have it back to front?

We wake up and think of all the things we’ve planned for the day and we might forget to ask ‘What does God want of me today?’ I know we all have responsibilities, we have to go to work, or run the home and family, or whatever, but if those things are taking first place, and we just try to fit God in somewhere as and where and when we can, then alarm bells should be ringing, because we’re maybe in danger of becoming ‘my kingdom’ centred and not God centred!

Our verse tells us we’re not our own anymore, that we actually belong to God because Jesus bought us with His own life blood. What a price to pay! This is just a gentle reminder, to myself as well, that maybe we do some things because we’ve  decided to do them, but is it possible God is tapping us on the shoulder saying - “Where am I in what you’re doing?” 

If that’s so, then will you join with me and ask the Lord to show us how to always give Him first place every day of the week, and put Him in the centre of everything we do, so we can honestly answer our question and say, “God is in the centre of my life and I’m giving Him first place”. Amen.😊

EARTHQUAKE!

Psalm 62:1(NLT) I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken. 

We were living in Lincolnshire in 2008 when our house, along with many others was hit by an earthquake which was 5.2 on the Richter scale, which the BBC called ‘rather large’!😊 We were woken in the middle of the night by a terrific noise and it felt like a freight train was driving through the whole house, everything shook for several seconds. Lights in the road all came on, everyone was up trying to find out what had happened, the old church steeple across the road was damaged, chimneys fell but praise God He protected us and we had no damage. It was a miracle and I hope I never go through another one like that!

Sometimes we go through things in life that can seem earth shaking and we may even feel like we can’t go on. But I’ve discovered in my own life, when I told the Lord I didn’t think I could go on, when I was so weak and had no strength left, and could barely stand, that when we call on the Lord, He steps in, and we can.

You may feel like you’re down to your knees. But God wants you to know you were built to outlast the storm, outlast the disease, the trauma, to outlast the shaking, because your life is built on Jesus. He is your foundation stone.

No matter how fierce the storm, you will still be standing because God is the One who is holding on to you and holding you up. It may feel like something is trying to wreck your life but you’re being strengthened on the inside because God has you in the palm of His hand.

Be encouraged today and know that God sees and God knows what’s happening with you and He is doing something behind the scenes you may not be able to see but He has angels on assignment at your house, in your life, and the enemy’s hold is broken off you. You belong to God, bought with the blood of Jesus, and He has won the victory over whatever is trying to mess with you, so hang in there. Don’t give up because the turn around is on its way. 

Believe God loves you, believe He is for you and not against you. Don’t believe all the enemy’s negative lies. Believe and receive the truth that sets you free, that Jesus loves you to the Cross and back and He will never ever leave you or forsake you. Breakthrough, healing and restoration are yours. In Jesus name. Amen.

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

SUPER SUPPLY

Philippians 4:19(NLT) And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.

I saw a chap walk past the house with a T-shirt on which said ‘SUPER SUPPLY’ and I thought that’s what we have if we’re born again. A supernatural supply of whatever we need from our supernatural God. 😊

2 Corinthians 9:6-8(NLT) Remember this - a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully. And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.

Paul encourages us to be givers and although we have never ending needs every single day we can always take those promises to the throne of grace and say “Father, Thank You for promising to provide all my needs from Your glorious riches You’ve given me in Jesus. I believe it and receive it. Thank You Lord.”

Our flesh wants to see the provision first then we’ll thank God, but we’re called to walk by faith, to be givers knowing God will provide all our needs so we can thank Him for it before we see it.

It has to do with every sphere of life whether it’s finances, physical health and healing, workplace needs, relationship needs, spiritual needs - whatever and wherever we have a need in our lives - we have a supernatural supply, and it’s accessed by God’s grace through faith, because of Jesus. Paul says in verse 10 that God will provide what we need and then increase what we give. That’s good news!😊

So let’s believe what God has said and be doers of the word, not hearers only. Let’s plant some seeds in faith and ask Him to multiply them with His supernatural supply through Christ Jesus. We don’t need to beg God, but just believe that what He has said He will do, He will do, and thank Him for it before we see it.😊 In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Anomaly on Unsplash

GOD IS IN THE DETAILS

Psalm 139:1-2 O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.

Back in the early 1990’s I had been decorating our bathroom using wallpaper with little flowers growing up it and when I stood back after a difficult day wallpapering, I had one of those “Oh no” moments! Ever had one of those?

I’d only hung one of the pieces upside down, in the most difficult piece of all round the window, where everyone would see it! So I had flowers growing upside down for the next several years because I just could not bring myself to tear it off and start again! I should have paid more attention to the detail!😊

Normally I am a ‘detail’ sort of person and God wants us to know that He is too, that He is actively involved in the details of our lives. Scripture says He’s watching over us and knows what’s happening in our homes and in our situations. He sees our daily struggles and our ups and down so don’t ever feel like God doesn’t see or care what’s happening in your life because He does.

Psalm 139 tells us He sees when we sit down, when we get up, He knows what we’re going to say before we say it and He still loves us no matter what. God specialises in sorting out what seems to be the unsortable. He can turn situations around for our good but He wants us to lean into Him and take our hands off what we’re stressing about.

A pastor tells of how God gave him a picture of when he was trusting God with things, there were like golden pipes above his head and there was a wonderful provision of God’s grace and help flowing in his life. But when he was worrying and fretting about everything, it was like he’d squeezed the pipes so tightly only a trickle of the flow could get through.

As we walk into another week, even if you feel all upside down like my wallpaper, let’s remember God cares about, and is involved in every detail of our lives. Let’s not squeeze shut those golden pipes, but give all the situations we can’t do anything about to our loving Father and in faith thank Him He’s going to turn it right side up for us in His way and in His time. 

He has blessings still to come with your name on them, so keep believing He is for you and not against you and that He’s working out the details even when you can’t see it. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Jelleke Vanooteghem on Unsplash

OUR SOURCE OF NEW STRENGTH

Isaiah 40:28-29

Have you never heard? Have you never understood? 

The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. 

He never grows weak or weary. 

No one can measure the depths of his understanding. 

He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless.

v. 31 But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. 

They will soar high on wings like eagles. 

They will run and not grow weary. 

They will walk and not faint.

God has a word for anyone who is feeling weak or weary or powerless today. It might be weariness of spirit or body, or both! Our God knows how we feel and where we’re at, and He’s not mad at us and He’s not condemning us. 

He knows we get tired out sometimes and it’s important to rest, but even more important He wants us all to lift our eyes today to the One who never grows weak or weary. He is the source of all the strength we’re ever going to need and He asks us to put our trust and confidence in Him and draw on His strength. 

He says “Let the weak say I am strong.” (Joel 3:10) It’s interesting He wants us to say I am strong, (present tense) not going to be strong, putting it off into the future. God’s ways are not ours, are they? I know when I’m tired I want to tell somebody and say I’m tired!😆 But God says differently!

He promises us new strength, not a rehashed strength. It’s a supernatural strength only He can give us and we can only access it by faith in His word. He’s promised we’ll run and walk where we couldn’t before and I can testify to that. When it was so painful to walk for many months I kept declaring this verse that I will walk and not faint, and praise God, in the last few weeks I can. No pain! When God renews our strength, you do just want to fly!😊

All God asks is that we agree with Him and believe what He says, and let Him do what He says He will do. He never said to reason it out! 

So let’s put our hand in His today and believe He’s pouring His supernatural strength into our bodies and do as He says and keep saying all through the day “I am strong’, I will walk and run and soar like an eagle. In Jesus name. Amen.😊

Photo : Dulcey Lima on Unsplash

HOW ARE YOUR FENCES?

Proverbs 4:23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

It’s been a week for fencing as one of our neighbour’s fence panels collapsed and his garden was all exposed, so he’s just replaced it. Another neighbour has had all new fencing put in, and it made me think about the fences we have around our own lives because fences are for guarding and controlling access.

God tells us to guard our hearts and our mouths. Psalm 141:3 Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips. In other words we need to put some fences up around them, to stop and think before we react, so the enemy can’t just walk right in and cause strife in our relationships or situations.

James 3:16 (KJV) For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. Scripture is very strong on keeping strife out at all cost and we can see why! When we see it raising its ugly head we need to nip it in the bud before it invites other nasties in with it! And if it has come in, be a peacemaker and pour oil on those troubled waters.😊

One of the things we need to be guarding our hearts against is offence. How easy it is to take offence at what someone did or said. We even justify ourselves by saying how wrong they were, and yes, they probably were, but it doesn’t give us any excuse for being in the wrong as well, by not forgiving them! But oh, it’s not easy is it? That’s when we so need the Holy Spirit and His grace to be at work in our hearts to let offences go before they take root and grow. 

We have two lovely trees in our front garden which shed loads of seeds which grow into masses of little trees and if we don’t pull them out immediately it’s really hard to get them out! Offence can be like that, so don’t let it grow into a great big tree! We need to swallow our pride and be reconciled, and just let it go before it messes us up. We hurt ourselves by holding on to it!

So how are your fences? Maybe it’s time to put some new ones up? Not fences of hurt to hide behind, but fences that resist the enemy, fences of love and kindness, fences of long suffering, fences of patience and understanding, then those nasties won’t be able to come in, in the first place. Amen.

Enjoy a sunny, blessed weekend.😊x

Photo: Merritt Thomas on Unsplash

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

Romans 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

River Manifold at Ilam Derbyshire

The weather here yesterday was just beautiful, warm and sunny, so we decided to make the most of it and had a picnic day out in Ilam in Derbyshire, enjoying the hills and rivers tumbling in little waterfalls along the way. 

Sometimes our souls just need to enjoy sitting under the whispering leaves of the trees, taking in the peace and quiet of a little village with a view to take your breath away. We even saw a mummy duck with eight little ducklings being whisked merrily down the river by the strong current, bobbing up and down like little corks as they floated away. It was so funny to watch.😊

It’s good to recognise that everything good comes from our generous God and it’s all the more precious when I think back to only last May when I couldn’t go out and enjoy anything at all as I was too poorly to do it. But praise God He healed me and I’m so incredibly grateful and thankful for all His mercies.

I had so many tests but they couldn’t find a cause. There were nearly 10 months when I could hardly function or go anywhere but we stood on the healing promises and then it suddenly changed and the Lord restored my health. 

I wouldn’t normally mention any of that it was just to remind us He is the God of the turn around and when He does it, it makes you doubly thankful for even the smallest things you take so for granted in the normal course of a day.

Can I encourage you today, if things are tough at the minute, and you maybe can’t do what you would like to be doing for some reason, maybe it’s health issues or other things have ganged up against you, keep believing God’s promises, remember that your circumstances are subject to change just like mine were last year. 

Our God wants us to  believe Him for the breakthrough to come at the right time, to know He still has good plans to bless your heart. So don’t despair, never lose heart. God is always working behind the scenes on your behalf just like He was for me. 😊

Our verse talks about abounding in hope, and another translation says be bubbling over with expectation. So don’t let the enemy steal your joy but always have great expectations of the good things the Lord still has to come. We thank You for them Lord. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

MOMENT BY MOMENT

Matthew 6:34 So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

I wonder if you woke up with a smile this morning or did you wake up looking a bit glum like this dog, possibly because you’re thinking about a negative report you’ve had, or of all the things you have to do at work, or cleaning the house or car, or even dreaded paperwork! When we look ahead, some things can seem daunting can’t they, but if we take them little by little, moment by moment, they’re much more doable.

We can apply that principle to everything in life. We are all given new mercies every single morning (Lamentations 3:23) and God’s overflowing grace to take one day at a time, just like the manna was given every morning to the Israelites in the desert. 

We tend to look ahead though and find ourselves worrying about things that may or may not happen. We’d quite like the grace for the whole month or the whole year but God only gives us the grace we need for the moment we’re in.😊 

He wants us to enjoy today without having to worry about tomorrow because He’s already there taking care of it, providing the grace for it when it comes!

Perhaps we forget we have the grace He gives us when we wake up each morning, or even forget to use it? Do we catch ourselves busy trying to do everything in our own strength, because we forgot to access God’s grace to do it?

God never designed us to handle more than one day at a time and it’s all He expects us to deal with. When we opened our eyes this morning we were given a clean slate, a day with God in it with us. He gave us His Holy Spirit to help us with each moment, but again, if we don’t recognise and ask for His help and wisdom, it’s like the difference between having a vacuum cleaner in the cupboard but insisting on using a dustpan and brush - much harder!

God has equipped us and anointed us with everything we need for each day so let’s live it with His Holy Spirit, and ask Him to help us always find the joy in it, moment by moment.😊 Amen.

Photo by Rakesh Shetty on Unsplash

A HUNGRY MONSTER

Psalm 34:4 I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears. v.6 In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles. 

When you were a small child do you remember being afraid there was a monster under the bed when the lights went out, or not letting your hand dangle outside the covers in case the monster came and grabbed it?🤣

We all have to deal with fear in our lives and God knows that. I read that the command to not be afraid is said more often than any other command in the bible! So God must have given us the answer or He’d be unfair telling us not to do it.

1 John 4:18 John tells us God’s perfect love drives out fear and the more we believe and declare God loves us and is looking after us, the more we’ll overcome our fears because our faith is in Him. 

When we’re afraid it’s also an opportunity for us to use our faith. Fear and faith are spiritual forces and though we can’t see either of them we know whatever we feed is going to grow and become stronger. Fear is like a hungry monster and it’s our responsibility to not feed it anything that will make it grow bigger!

Instead we can learn to go from fearing things to faithing them. Are we doing anything to feed our faith just now to counter the fears? When fear attacks, let’s fight back with the promises of God. My God is restoring health to me, my God is providing all I need, my God is holding me steady and protecting me wherever I go, God has good plans for my life. God loves me.😊

Even if things don’t go the way we wanted we know we have Almighty God on our side to bring us through and out the other side. We still have His promise He’ll turn things around for our good, we know God is on our side fighting our battles for us. Let’s declare those things and shout our fears down and out! Turn on the faith programme.😊

You may feel like nobody understands what it’s like to be so fearful, but Jesus knows exactly what it feels like. He faced the whipping post, crucifixion and Hell itself. He sweat blood over it, so He knows how you feel, but He overcame for you! He has won the victory over it all for us. He said to His disciples, Fear not, for I have overcome the world and all it can throw at you. 

God wants us to know we can run to Him any time because He does understand, give all our fears to Him, and allow His perfect love and peace to flood our soul in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Bernard Hermant on Unsplash