PRESENCE, PEACE AND PROVISION

Psalm 16:8 GNT I am always aware of the Lord's presence; he is near, and nothing can shake me.

I was praying for a friend to know God’s presence throughout their day, to know His peace in every situation, and to be aware of His provision for whatever they needed. Then I realised that actually we all need those things in our daily lives.😊

We know God is with us but He wants us to be aware of His presence, aware  of His love and care surrounding us, His joy bubbling up inside, the sense of great security and safety He brings because of who He is. He is El Shaddai, the One who is more than enough, our Healer, our Provider, our Righteousness, our Protector. We could go on and on, but God wants us to be aware of who He is to each one of us throughout our day.

He wants us to know His peace which is an awareness of being whole and complete in Jesus. It’s knowing His peace in the middle of the crisis, or the strife, that suddenly flares up without a moment’s notice. To know we can call on our Prince of Peace in those times and know He is right there in the middle of it all, actually inside us to call on. We can speak His peace and release it to diffuse the distress of the moment.

God wants us to know His provision for whatever it is we might be needing. The psalmist reminded himself that the Lord was His Shepherd and he would have no lack because he knew the nature and character of his Shepherd and so do we. 

In fact, God tells us His grace is more than enough to meet all our needs, spiritually, physically, socially, financially and mentally. What an amazing God who has thought of everything and provided it for us in advance so we can take it by faith when we need it. What a wonderful Father!😊

Lord help us to receive all You have for us, that we will indeed know Your presence, Your peace and Your provision as we go about our daily lives. In Jesus mighty name. Amen.

RECEIVING OVERFLOW

John 2:6-7 NLT Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water…”

Did you know 1 gallon of wine = approx. 6 bottles? When Jesus turned those six containers of water into wine it was the equivalent of  between 720 and 1,080 bottles of wine! Jesus could have changed only half of those containers and it would probably have been more than enough but He had overflow in mind!😊

Our God is never stingy, His heart is to bless us to the point of overflow but are we receiving it? We may have an ‘I don’t deserve it’ attitude, or a cultural mindset that blocks the flow because we don’t want to look greedy, but our thinking might need renewing or adjusting to receive what God is trying to give to us, so we can thrive not just survive.😊

Mary knew Jesus could do something extraordinary, and if we would just do whatever He tells us to do, we too would see the overflow that would astound us, as the master of ceremonies was astounded on that day!

God tells us in Malachi 3:10 NLT Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!

Throughout scripture God tells us to tithe and to give, and He says to test Him out on it! He is giving us the opportunity to experience His overflow but when we hold back we miss out! Some may say it’s old covenant but we read a similar thing about giving in 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 which is New Covenant.😊 

If we give cheerfully He says He will bless us. Our God is generous and we’re called to be imitators of our Father and I’m speaking to myself first, but God is speaking to all our hearts. He says give and it will be given to you, so let me encourage you to believe His promise, test it out and receive the overflow God has in mind for you too.😊 Amen.

STRONGHOLD OF HOPE

Zechariah 9:12 NKJV Return to the stronghold, You prisoners of hope. Even today I declare That I will restore double to you.

What a brilliant verse to encourage us today!😊 It’s easy to get bogged down when we look at the things we hear and see on the media, or the affairs of everyday life. We can fall into a surviving mentality without realising it - ‘if I can just get through this exam, this interview, this doctor’s appointment, just get through this week till next weekend!’ 

The trouble with that is we forget who we are - a child of God, that we have His grace available to us every single moment of our day, so we can have the strength to not just survive but to thrive, to be the Overcomers He says we can be.

It’s all to do with how we’re thinking, to do with our expectations and we can grow and thrive even if we feel like we’re stuck! You might say, “Well I expected something good and it didn’t happen, so I’m not expecting anything anymore!” When we feel like that we need to come back to the stronghold of the word of God which reminds us we all need to have hope or our faith will have nothing to latch on to! (Hebrews 11:1)😊

I’d rather be a prisoner of hope than a prisoner of hopelessness, wouldn’t you? Let’s listen to what God says and lift our eyes upwards and not keep looking at our circumstances. God hasn’t changed one bit, His word is still full of power and tells us to expect to thrive, to be blessed going out and coming in, to not just survive.

God sees you as a success going somewhere to succeed, because of Jesus, no matter what your past experience or what lies the enemy has been telling you. God says you are surrounded by His favour like a shield, now believe it and declare it to the principalities and powers. Resist the negative thoughts and embrace the hope and comfort God offers us as we go into our week, no matter what it looks or feels like! Remember God has promised you double blessing for your troubles.😊

Thank You Father, You want us to thrive, to go from strength to strength, faith to faith, glory to glory, to be above and not beneath, to be blessed and to be a blessing, because of Jesus, and with Your help we will, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Endri Killo on Unsplash

GOD’S MAJESTY SHINES DOWN

Psalm 68:33-35 NLT 

Sing to the one who rides across the ancient heavens,

his mighty voice thundering from the sky.

Tell everyone about God’s power.

His majesty shines down on Israel;

his strength is mighty in the heavens.

God is awesome in his sanctuary.

The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.

Praise be to God!

It’s good to stop and remember the awesomeness of our God and realise how immensely powerful He is. When we’re caught up in our daily lives it’s easy to lose sight of His majesty, and His great mercy He extends to each one of us when we’ve done nothing to deserve it. 

Jesus wears the victor’s crown now but He also wore the crown of thorns first for our sake.

How thankful we can be we live this side of the Cross and don’t have to offer sacrifices or perform perfectly to be acceptable to Him. We can wholeheartedly sing to our God with praises for His grace and know He has already forgiven us and accepted us in His greatly loved Son Jesus.😊 

Resurrection day may have come and gone, but in God’s heart it was just yesterday. Jesus’ victory is as fresh today as it was then and still as powerful, still as life changing, still extended to you and me every day for us to take a hold of and remind ourselves Jesus is forever mighty in the heavens.

As we think about our God who rides across the ancient heavens, let’s embrace the power and strength He now offers to each one of us, and realise we’re called to ‘live’ in it as we live and move and have our being in this great and mighty God. 

Acts 17:28 NKJV for in Him we live and move and have our being, … ‘For we are also His offspring.’ How mind stretching is that!😊

Father God, we give You all the honour and all our praise and thanks in Jesus mighty name. Amen.

Photo: Carlos N. Cuatzo Meza on Unsplash

SEEING JESUS

John 12:21 NIV They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.”

I woke up today with those words running through my mind, “Sir we want to see Jesus.” Those men were actually looking for Jesus to the point they were asking for an introduction. We have probably all been introduced to Jesus already but are we seeking to find Him in our every day lives, in the ordinary as well as the spectacular, because He is in it all, waiting to be found. Or do we only see Him in church and put Him in a Sunday box? - I hope not.😊

We know it’s easy to see Him in the glorious sunset or sunrise, or to see Him in the little bee that’s burrowing a hole at the minute in our grass, to lay its eggs - quite amazing! But do we see Him at the ironing table where we have the time to chat with Him over ironing the shirts? Do we see Him in the supermarket helping us to choose our shopping?

Can we find Him in those moments when we’re very tired and know He’s there to strengthen us, helping us to keep going or telling us it’s time to let it all go and have some rest? 

Do we invite Him in when we’re enjoying a funny moment with someone because we know anyone who created a kitten has a sense of humour too!😊

Can I invite us all today, to ‘see Jesus’ in everything we do, wherever we go, and enjoy His presence because in His presence there is fullness of joy and I think we could all do with some of that, all the time.(Psalm 16:11). Let Him bring a lightness to your spirit, even when things are tough.

Have a blessed weekend as you see Jesus in it all.x 

HALFWAY THERE!

Philippians 3:13-16 NLT …but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things… But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.

If you’ve ever been on a journey with children, at some point you’ll hear the words, “Are we nearly there yet?” Now that might be after five minutes or five hours depending on the restlessness of the children!😊

We’re all on a journey through life and the Lord is the One guiding us through each season, some of which take longer than others! No doubt, we’ve all had our moments of, “Are we nearly there yet?”😊 Or maybe we’ve arrived at a halfway point and become complacent, or a bit lazy and satisfied with where we’re at, but it’s not really where God intended us to stop. He has so much more for each one of us to learn and places to go.

It’s like when we’re dieting, we lose several pounds and feel delighted but then instead of pressing on to lose the full amount we decided on at the start, we think this will do, and have a chocolate to celebrate!😊Or maybe you’ve had a goal of becoming fitter, and you start out with good intentions of exercising every day but you become satisfied with doing it now and again! 

So often we start out well and it’s the same with our Christian walk. We’re all fired up and then we become satisfied with what we know about God, satisfied with our understanding, when instead He wants us to be constantly growing in our knowledge of Him and all He has given us in Jesus, going from faith to faith, not faith to stuck!

So my encouragement today is not to stop halfway! Don’t stop at the coffee shop half way through your walk of life and think it’s enough. You’re doing well to have come this far, so go the whole distance, reach towards your goal, forget what’s behind, hold on to what you’ve already got, and reach for the prize up in front - the high calling of the upward call of God. 

He wants us to keep growing in our faith, in fulfilling what God has called us to do, keep learning who we are and what we have in Jesus. Keep pressing on! Amen.😊

RESCUED FROM THE DOLDRUMS

Revelation 2:4 NLT But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! 

I wonder if you ever feel like you’re in the doldrums? Those days when you wake up and don’t feel very ‘fired up’! Perhaps the humdrumness of everyday life has pulled you down, or something may have happened that has thrown a bucket of water on your enthusiasm for the things of God and you could do with some new spiritual energy? 

In Revelation Jesus tells the Ephesian church they’d lost their first love for Him and each other, and their need to be fired up again. There may be times we feel like that too and we need rescuing from the doldrums, from the spirit of apathy! We need to put some new coals on the fire!😊 So how do we do that? 

Well I’m here to remind us we’re still in the palm of God’s loving hands, that He has not withdrawn from us in any way. His Spirit is still leading and guiding us when we acknowledge Him and ask for His help, so He is our first port of call.

He still loves us, we’re still the apple of His eye, His special treasure, and we belong to Him as part of His family. God has not taken away His anointing or His giftings from us, so we can rise up, dust ourselves off and praise Him for His faithfulness and goodness to us.

We know God never withholds His grace, but His word does tell us we have to come to Him to receive it in our time of need.😊

So, can I encourage us all to come again to His throne of grace with a thankful heart and ask the Lord to light a fresh fire inside of us if we need it, or rekindle the fire that has maybe gone quiet, to do whatever is necessary for us to remember He has already paid a great price to rescue us, and He wants to rescue so many more through us. 

And if you’re already on fire for Jesus, go and encourage someone else today who is having a fit of the doldrums and help relight their fire.😊 In Jesus’ name. Amen.

VICTORS IN CHRIST

Joshua 10:24 NLT When they brought them out, Joshua told the commanders of his army, “Come and put your feet on the kings’ necks.” And they did as they were told.

The Israelites had just had an astounding day. Joshua had called on God for the sun and the moon to stand still while they fought until God gave them a massive victory over five kings and their armies. Those five kings were then imprisoned in a cave awaiting judgement.

God gives us a vivid picture of Joshua telling his commanders and captains to put their feet on the necks of their enemies just before killing them with a sword, and impaling them on spikes! He wanted everybody to see what happens to the forces who fight against the living God, and what victories God has for those who fight with Him and for Him.😊

Jesus is our Commander in Chief, the Lord of Heaven’s armies and we are His soldiers. He won total victory for us over all our enemies, including every demonic force, principality or power, by His death and resurrection.

Colossians 2:15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. This tells us Jesus held a victory parade where He spoiled those powers which means He disarmed them, rendered them powerless to hurt us, shamed them and impaled them for all to see. Jesus stripped the principalities and powers of their armour to the point of nakedness!

Now Jesus says to us, see yourself putting your foot on the necks of all your enemies because they’re already defeated by My blood, My name, by My power within you. See yourself with your foot on whatever is threatening you, whatever is causing you grief, fear or distress. 

You are the victor because you are ‘in Christ’ and Christ and His victory are in you! Hallelujah!😊

TIME FOR A SOIL CHECK

1 Peter 1:23 NKJV having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,

I don’t know about you, but I love looking at all the apple and cherry blossom on the trees at the minute. We came across this blossom at the weekend in an old orchard and I could imagine all the lovely fruit it will produce in the autumn.

Somebody planted an apple pip many years ago and now this tree is big and flourishing but it all started with a little seed.😊

Peter talks about God’s word being incorruptible seed which doesn’t die, or decay with age, and when it’s planted deep into our hearts it can't be destroyed, it’s everlasting. It has transforming power that can regenerate the human spirit and we all need some of that every day to keep us alive spiritually or to be born again.

We can be encouraged today because, no matter how small the seed is that we’re planting in our own lives or in others’ lives, those good seeds will produce worthwhile fruit one day.😊

Jesus spoke about the word of God being a seed planted in different soils but the only one that produced any good fruit was the soil of a heart that was willing and prepared to receive it. 

It reminds me of a plum tree we had which originally produced some lovely plums, but we had to keep checking for bugs. Eventually those bugs did devour the tree and finally one year we had to dig it up as it stopped producing any fruit!

Now and again we may need to do a soil check in our own hearts and see if it’s become a bit hard, or a bit cluttered with the bugs of the cares and worries of life, or too busy with life to have time to absorb it. We need to see whether it’s soft enough to plant new seeds, to let God’s seeds, His words, sink deep down so they take root and produce some lovely everlasting fruit. 

So I’m just off to do a soil check. How about you?😊

THIS IS THE DAY FOR WHAT?

Psalm 118:24 NLT This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.

I wonder how you greet each day?  Is it…

This is the day the Lord has made, but I feel rough so I think I’ll just go back to bed… On no that’s not right! How about….

This is the day the Lord has made, but things are very difficult at the minute, so I’ll try to cheer up tomorrow instead. Oh no, that’s not right either! Let me try again! 

This is the day the Lord has made, but I feel grumpy so I’ll have a moan!….Hmmm! Maybe not!

Now we might not feel like any of those today but maybe we’ve all had days when it’s been like it! When it does happen we need to make a choice, to decide that no matter what our day looks or feels like, we’re going to do what the Psalmist said and rejoice and be glad in it anyway.😊 

We can choose to be grateful we’re still alive, be thankful God loves us so very much and cares about everything going on in our lives and has offered to help us deal with it.

How about (just because it defeats the enemy), let’s rejoice and choose to be glad in today, right here, right now, in the middle of whatever is going on and give God a sacrifice of praise and find things to be thankful for.

When the praises flow the moans will go! God is still on the throne, we’re still on our way to heaven, we’re still the righteousness of God in Christ and our God is still for us and not against us. He’s never going to leave us so He’s right here with us, to lift us up and enable us to overcome, because Jesus is our Deliverer, and always will be.

You know what? God is good, God is full of loving kindness, God loves you and me - so we can rejoice and be glad - all day, everyday. And if you were having a fit of the moody blues, I hope you’re feeling better already, and that you choose to make today a really good day. Amen.😊

Photo by Faruk Çevik 🇹🇷 on Unsplash

RESURRECTION - WHAT AN EXPERIENCE!

Matthew 28:2,5,6 NLT Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. 5 Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.

 

What an experience those ladies had! If you read all the verses about this account you wonder if they were afraid because they’d just experienced a great earthquake on the way to the tomb, or because they saw the soldiers all knocked out by the power of God, or because they were actually talking to an angel?  Probably all three, but it wasn’t what they’d expected at all, and they were feeling, seeing and hearing the supernatural power of God in bucketloads! 

Jesus didn’t need the stone to be rolled away for Him to come out of the tomb, because He proved He could move through stone walls when He visited the disciples behind locked doors. No, the stone had to be rolled away for others to look inside, to prove to everyone Jesus was alive and risen indeed and no longer inside that tomb!😊

The very stone they thought would be a problem to them a few minutes earlier, was turned into a pulpit as the angel sat on it to tell them the good news! We can be encouraged today to know that whatever ‘stones’ we have in our lives, that try to block our progress, can also be rolled away and become a witnessing point for us as well, because Jesus is risen and victorious over all our obstacles, all our enemies.

We can rejoice today because the Resurrection of Jesus changed everything, it proved God had accepted His Son’s great sacrifice, and death has been defeated. 

No wonder we celebrate the amazing victory Jesus won for us. It’s because of His love and shed blood we can approach God with boldness, knowing we are completely forgiven, fully accepted, and forever loved. Hallelujah! Jesus is Alive forevermore.🤗

PEACE IN THE PURPOSE

Philippians 4:6-7 NIV Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Part of the meaning of ‘peace’ is nothing missing, nothing broken, being whole in every area of life. 

I expect the disciples were all reeling from the death of Jesus and needed some of His peace that following day. We’ve probably all gone through some kind of painful experience but I heard someone say this, “We think we want peace, but what we really need is purpose through the painful experiences” and I had to stop and think that one through!😊

Sometimes we do lose our peace when we’re going through the pain of a difficult season or situation, and God wants us to know that while He didn’t cause the distresses, He will bring something meaningful out of them as we obey Him. They won’t be wasted because He’s promised to ultimately turn them around for our good.😊

He reminds us to be thankful as we bring our requests to Him, and peace will be a by product as we trust Him to answer our prayers. But at the same time, we need to know God’s purposes are being worked out in our lives because that brings peace in our souls as well. It’s when we exchange our ‘want-tos’ for God’s ‘want-tos’  that we’ll know lasting peace.

As we remember the Cross, we see Jesus fulfilled God’s ultimate purpose for His life to the letter, as He laid down His will for His Father’s will, and He truly is our ‘Prince of Peace’ because He brought us peace with God.

Father, thank you for Jesus. Help us to have the right attitude whatever we might be experiencing, to know You are turning it round and giving us the victory, and for us to have peace in it - Your peace, not ours. In Jesus name. Amen.

Photo by Sunguk Kim on Unsplash

TAKE A FEW STEPS MORE

1 Peter 2:24 NLT He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin
and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

Jesus must have walked miles throughout His life, taking steps eventually towards the Cross. He would  have seen many men suffer and die on crosses throughout those years but He was determined to do the will of God because of the joy that was to come.

I’d like to invite us all to walk a bit further today, to go from where we are, looking at the front of the Cross as we usually do, and  take a few steps more, to walk around to the back of the Cross, to the other side, and look up. What do we see? 

We see the stripes on Jesus’ back, where it was whipped so badly by the Roman soldier, there was no flesh remaining, with His bones showing through, covered in flowing blood. We begin to understand the enormity of the words Isaiah spoke in Isaiah 53:5 AMPC But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole. 

Jesus went to the Cross for our sake, to take all the wrath and punishment of God into Himself, for all the sin of the world, for you and me, past, present and future. Jesus’ ripped back paid the price for all our physical, mental and emotional healing and wholeness, of every sickness and disease, so we don’t have to bear it. It’s all part of our salvation as much as forgiveness is, praise God! 

Matthew 8:17 AMP And thus He fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, He Himself took [in order to carry away] our weaknesses and infirmities and bore away our diseases. 

As we remember Jesus’ taking all the curse, as He paid for our forgiveness and freedom, remember to go a few steps more to see His back, and see all your sicknesses, diseases or mental distress laid on Him and know He already bore them for you as well. We can exchange it all for His healing and wholeness, for His forgiveness and His righteousness, and know His peace today because of His precious blood poured out for us.

Words are not enough but thank You with all our hearts Lord Jesus. Amen.

And if you can spare three minutes, catch a glimpse of what Jesus did for us at the Cross:

https://youtu.be/BW39G0EsKfk?si=Lys3akvVoHcAX1CV

Photo: Alicia Quan at Unsplash

ASTOUNDING MESSAGE

John 17:23 NIV I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 

The supper table was laid, the lamb was ready for the Passover meal to be eaten. The disciples were reclining on cushions, all listening as Jesus began to explain the terrible things that were about to happen to Him, and the astounding message of the love God has for each and every one of us. 

We find it hard to imagine that a holy God could love us as much as He loves Jesus and yet Jesus says it is so!

In John 13:34 Jesus tells them of His love and in almost the next breath He tells Peter he will deny Him three times before the cock crowed, but then immediately goes on to say, John 14:1 NKJV “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.” I think our hearts would have been troubled! 

Even though He knew Peter would deny Him, it didn’t alter His love, and commands them, and us, to love each other the way He loves them.

For us, reading this account 2,000 years later, we can be so encouraged to know that even though we may have let the Lord down in some way, He still loves us, He still has a plan and purpose for our lives. God never writes us off as useless, or too far gone, because of what Jesus did at the Cross.

Jesus goes on and tells them He’s going to prepare a place for them, because He wanted them to be with Him, even though He knew they would all desert Him before morning. He says the same thing to us, even knowing the worst about us, He wants us to be with Him. Doesn’t that just make you love Him all the more?

As Jesus takes the bread and wine, even in the face of the crucifixion and all it would require of Him, His focus was not on Himself but on others, on those of us who would believe because of their witness.

What a Saviour and how great the Father’s love. May our hearts overflow in gratitude and thanksgiving today. Amen.😊

Photo: Rey Proenza at Unsplash

PASSION, POWER AND PEACE

Matthew 26:39 NIV Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

I wonder what you’re passionate about? You may be keen to save the world’s wildlife, or have a hobby which really grabs your interest whenever you have the time, or maybe it’s a worthy cause you raise money to support? 

When we look at the life of Jesus in the gospels, we see He was passionate about His Father’s kingdom, passionate about loving people and healing them wherever He went.  Although He had great power to work miracles He only used it for the work God gave Him to do. He was called the Prince of Peace for a reason, and He gave His gift of peace to us. He never seemed to be in a hurry, but spent hours in prayer so He was able to achieve everything that was set in front of Him.

Jesus’ whole life had purpose, and our purpose is the same as His, to bring glory to our Heavenly Father, to bear much fruit for Him and as we stay connected to Him and do what He says we’ll experience His peace as well.😊

But what if our passion for the Lord has become a bit weak and could do with a boost? If so, it’s a good time to connect again with the Easter story and imagine yourself in each of the scenes throughout the week. 

See yourself in the triumphal procession into Jerusalem with the cheering crowds, in the bustle of the city, in the debating in the synagogue as to who Jesus is. Is He the Messiah or not? Is He a fraud? See yourself sitting at the table with the disciples for their last meal with Jesus, then watching as the events around the Cross unfold and no one could do anything to stop what God had planned before the foundation of the world.

Look with fresh eyes and allow God to reignite the fire of your passion for Jesus this Easter week, to know with certainty that He is the Son of the Living God, that He is The Way, The Truth, and The Life and our personal Saviour for evermore.  

He is the One who still loves us with a passion and we can give Him all our love, our thanks, and our praise today. In Jesus name. Amen.

NEW LIFE, NEW STRENGTH

Isaiah 40:31 NLT 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.

A friend texted me yesterday and shared how she had asked the Lord to help her as she was really struggling to keep going, but then she said the Lord showed her she only needed to trust the Lord for the day she was in, for today, not to worry about the future because He promises grace that’s sufficient and strength that’s enough for this day, so she had peace and is resting in that.

Romans 12:2 talks about us being transformed by the renewing of our minds, and that word transformed is what happens when a caterpillar is transformed into a butterfly which is able to fly. It reminds us of Isaiah’s words about soaring high, like on eagle’s wings, when we need new strength, which we all need sometimes.😊

Although butterflies usually fly a few metres above the ground, some can rise to 1,000 feet, but an eagle has the ability to rise 10,000-20,000 feet and soar into the thermal currents way above the earth. It allows them to save energy by gliding and circling within the thermals instead of constantly flapping their wings. 

God wants to give us a picture today of how high He wants to lift us all up, to see ourselves seated at the right hand side of His throne in Jesus, where there is no struggle, just gliding in the thermals of His energy, His provision, His grace.😊

Why not close your eyes for a few minutes and ask Him to lift you up, to see your spirit joined with Him, soaking up His strength, and tap into His supernatural divine nature. (2 Peter 1:3-4) Let’s see ourselves connected to Jesus, the Vine, whenever we feel weariness or weakness or depression trying to bring us down, and allow His ‘life’ to flow into us again, knowing His grace will be more than enough for today. 

Lord, thank You for Your promise of lifting us up, of soaring high with You as we connect with You and allow You to transform us and take us from one degree of glory to another. In Jesus name. Amen. 

Photo: Mathew Schwartz on Unsplash

NEW SEASON NEW LIFE

Ecclesiastes 3:1 AMP There is a season (a time appointed) for everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven—

We were out for a walk at Codnor Reservoir a few days ago  and we saw a swan who had just stood up from her nest, and nestling in there were six great big eggs! It was amazing to catch sight of them as I’d never actually seen a swan’s egg in its nest before! I felt it was a special gift from God to be at exactly the right spot at exactly the right moment.😊 Later on we saw a little wren and her mate playing in amongst the new leaves on the trees and it made me so aware of the wonder of spring bursting out all over. I don’t know about you but it lifted my spirits after wintertime.😊

Can I encourage each one of us, if you’ve been going through a winter season in your life, to know that God has a new season opening up which will bear new fruit, new life. Those big eggs speak of new life and will soon be hatching into beautiful little cygnets and we’re reminded of all the stages of life we each go through.

God wants us to know He is in each stage with us, helping us through, lifting us up, flowing everything into us that we need if we stay connected to Him, to Jesus, the One who is the Way, The Truth and The Life, to the One who is our Healer. 

He is the eternal life giver, the One who enables us to go beyond the grave into the Life He has planned and ordained before the foundation of the world to be with Him forever. In fact, it reminds me of Easter and the New Resurrected Life that Jesus offers to us all.

But for now, as we continue into Easter week, let’s enjoy the  season we’re in, the life we have, the strength we have, the health we have to go for a walk, or to look out our window and see the birds in the garden. To be so very grateful for all His blessings, His peace, His joy, His patience with us, and His great love reaching out to each and every one of us every day, because of Jesus. 

Thank You Lord for all You give us to enjoy, for new life and all our other blessings.😊In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Photo by Paul Mackay on Unsplash

NO ONE LIKE OUR GOD

Isaiah 64:3-4 NLT 

When you came down long ago,

you did awesome deeds 

beyond our highest expectations.

And oh, how the mountains quaked!

4 For since the world began,

no ear has heard

and no eye has seen a God like you,

who works for those who wait for him!

The bible gives us a very rich history of God’s dealings with mankind and we read from page one of the awesome power of our God. He speaks, and light bursts forth, He speaks and the universe expands at the speed of 186,000 miles per second and it’s still doing it!

Isaiah had a revelation of the power of God and His awesome deeds and when the Israelites saw His power at work they literally quaked in their boots. 

Having said all of that, which hopefully gives us a tremendous reverence for our God, at the same time we know He is the God who is full of compassion and has such a deep and passionate love for us all that He was willing to sacrifice His Son on the Cross so we could be reconciled to Him. It seems beyond our finite minds to grasp it, and yet it’s the almost too good to be true, truth of the Gospel.😊

The last line says ‘who works for those who wait for him!” We don’t actually have to wait for God to do anything anymore because we’re in the New Covenant and He’s already done it all through Jesus at the Cross. Jesus finished the wonderful work of redeeming us from the curse of the Law, forgiveness of sins, made us righteous in God’s sight, healing of our bodies and gave us overflowing grace for every single day into eternity. 

Everything we need has already been given to us, all we have to do is take it by faith, because Jesus has already bought and paid for it for us. That’s good news!😊

We’re not waiting on God, God is actually waiting on us to believe and do what He says and take what He offers. 

Lord, thank You for Jesus and all He’s done for us. Amen.

IT MATTERS TO GOD

Isaiah 49;16 NLT See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.

I’ve been dealing with an ongoing situation with my optician where they have been struggling to get the right prescription for my eyes and it’s been going on for months. As I lay thinking about it in bed this morning, the Lord dropped this thought in my head, “If it matters to you, then it matters to Me!”

Listen, God knows everything that’s going on in your life and mine, and He cares about every detail of it.  He’s engraved your name on His hands, that’s how much He cares about you. So often we struggle with things because we forget we’re not to deal with them on our own. We have been given the Holy Spirit to be our Helper, our Counsellor for wisdom, our Advocate in tricky situations, our Intercessor in the courts of Heaven to commission angels to assist us. What a thought!😊

Romans 8:32 NLT Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Do we forget that scripture? Do we forget we’re surrounded by the favour of God wherever we go? You see, God expects us to believe what He says and act accordingly! Instead we might go out the house thinking, “Nothing good ever happens to me, I never get any good breaks, God’s not listening!” He not only listens, He hears your every thought!😊

Jesus told us we would receive what we believe for, so my job today is to encourage us to believe for far more than we are doing. To expect favour in every area of our lives, to expect people to be good to us, to expect our God to be involved in everything we do.

If you have something going on in your life and it matters to you - then it matters to God. He’s waiting on you to cast every care over on to Him, no matter how insignificant, so He can help you deal with it, but He won’t get involved unless you invite Him to. He won’t butt in and take over, He’s not like that! And if you’ve already cast it on to Him then stay in faith! Don’t listen to the enemy’s negative thoughts. God is always working in the background turning things round for your good. Why? Because if it matters to you - it matters to God!

Have a blessed weekend.😊x

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash

OUR CALLING

1 Peter 3:9 NLT 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

We read about people who receive a great inheritance from some long lost relative, and it probably crosses our minds how it must solve some of their problems!😊 But Apostle Peter is reminding us here that God has a blessing all prepared for us to inherit but it has a clause attached to it. 

He says to be careful not to retaliate when we’re treated badly, to not seek revenge on anybody or throw insults back when we’ve been insulted. How hard it is to button up our mouths in those times but that’s our calling and it may slip our minds in the heat of the moment!

He goes even further because He heard Jesus say the same thing, to bless those who curse us. Our ‘flesh’ wants to rise up and say something unhelpful but God has given us the ability to be longsuffering, and forgiving, if we’ll tap into our spiritual nature, to the Holy Spirit living inside us.

The Holy Spirit is our Counsellor and Helper who not only tells us to zip it up, but He helps us to do it, to rise to a higher level and act like Jesus would by blessing instead of cursing. He reminds us God has forgiven us of all our sins, so we can turn round and offer that same forgiveness to others. It helps to remember we’ve been shown great grace and mercy so we can give it away to others.

So be encouraged as you fulfil your calling to bless others, knowing you’re in the process of inheriting great blessings as you obey.😊

Lord we look to You to help us to fulfil our calling and to think and act like You want us to, even when sorely provoked. In Jesus name. Amen.

1 Peter 3:9 AMP and never return evil for evil or insult for insult [avoid scolding, berating, and any kind of abuse], but on the contrary, give a blessing [pray for one another’s well-being, contentment, and protection]; for you have been called for this very purpose, that you might inherit a blessing [from God that brings well-being, happiness, and protection].

EVERYDAY EXPERIENCE

Matthew 4:4 NLT But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

There are some things we do every day which we do just to keep the wheels turning, and then there are those we enjoy everyday - like looking forward to mealtimes, especially if it’s a favourite meal or treat.😊

When the Israelites came out of Egypt they were all moaning minnies, and complained about the food, and even despised the manna which they were given free every day. They didn’t have to go and buy it, hunt for it or even worry if it would be there, but they still complained!

We know the manna was a type and shadow of Jesus who is the Bread of Life and that He is the Word of God, but I wonder sometimes if we treat His Word with the respect and honour it deserves? We’re careful to eat regularly to sustain our bodies, but we actually need spiritual food every day to sustain us spiritually or we’ll become weak and puny in our spirit and fall for the enemy’s lies. 

It’s good to remember that God’s word is supernatural and Proverbs 4:22 says it is life and health to all our flesh. Another version says it is medicine to our flesh and we know it has no bad side effects which is wonderful. Do we turn to the Word as often as we turn to a packet of tablets?😊

It’s such an encouragement to know that when we read God’s word, and it’s an everyday experience, we’re building ourselves up on the inside, so we’re strong spiritually to meet whatever challenges come our way. Then when the storms of life come, if we do as Jesus says, we’ll be like the house built on a rock, but we have to read His word in order to find out what He has said to do.😊

Lord, we ask You to give us a fresh strong desire to feed ourselves on Your word more and more, so we know who we are in Christ and what we have in Him, and be strong spiritually. In Jesus name. Amen.

THE STAIRWAY

John 1:51 NLT Then he said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth.”

If ever you’ve visited one of the old stately homes, you’ll probably have noticed their beautiful stairways, but I don’t know whether any of them would have had angels ascending and descending on them!😊

When Philip told Nathanael that Jesus was the Messiah and He came from Nazareth, Nathanael was very sceptical and said, ‘Could anything good come out of Nazareth?’ But when he actually meets Jesus, the Lord confirms He is the Messiah, the stairway between heaven and earth. 

What He was doing was reminding Nathaniel of the covenant Almighty God had made with Jacob at Bethel when He revealed a stairway with angels ascending and descending on it as well.(Genesis 28:12) God promised Jacob that the earth would be blessed through his descendants, and Jesus was saying He was the fulfilment of that covenant. Just as Jacob saw a stairway, the gateway to heaven, Jesus later called Himself the gate, or the door, to heaven.

Jesus says there is only one way to heaven, one gateway and He is that gate, that door. God’s plans began a long time ago but they always come to pass in time and we can be so encouraged by that.😊

It’s always good to be reminded that God keeps His covenant with us and our covenant is written in Jesus’ blood for eternity. Neither time, circumstances, principalities nor powers can alter it. Nothing can alter it! 

There are still angels ascending and descending to assist us and we can go through the door into God’s throne room at any time because Jesus is The Way in, and we have access to all of God’s grace and mercy, His joy and peace. Whatever we need, Jesus has bought and paid for it so we can possess it.

I hope that encourages somebody to know God’s door is wide open to us anytime and His arms are always outstretched to welcome us in. Thank You Father for Jesus. Amen.😊

MIGHTY MIRACLES

Micah 7:15 NLT  “Yes,” says the Lord, “I will do mighty miracles for you, like those I did when I rescued you from slavery in Egypt.”

Faith for miracles! I think having a miracle would make us want to do hand stands or jump for joy and if I managed to do a handstand it would be a miracle!🤣

But seriously, what would be a miracle for you? Good health, reconciliation in the family, someone to share your life with, loved ones to be saved? God wants us to be having faith for all sorts, but also to be believing Him for outright miracles. 

So what is a miracle? It’s an extraordinary event taken as a sign of the supernatural power of God. Our God is a miracle working God and we’re His child so we can expect miracles.😊

When Jesus’ disciples asked Him to increase their faith, He didn’t wave a wand and say, “So be it!”. No, He reminded them that the way to increase it was to use the mustard seed size faith they already had! 

Faith is like a muscle and the more we use it the bigger it becomes, but the secret is in the using of it, because that is what increases it.😊 Faith also comes by hearing the word of God and engaging with it. (Romans 10:17)

We know our unused muscles grow weak, and an unused faith will also grow weak, but faith that is active becomes stronger. So what are we ‘faithing’ for at the minute? God says He will do mighty miracles for us, and the way to activate our faith for mighty miracles, or for anything, is to agree with God and say what He says - that it’s happening and believe it.

“Thank You Lord, You’ve said You will do mighty miracles for us, that what You have done for others You will do for us because of Jesus. Thank You miracles are actually on the way, and we give You all the glory for them. We receive them by faith. In Jesus name. Amen.”

SAY SOMETHING

Psalm 107:2 NKJV Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,

IF YOU SEE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL IN SOMEONE, SAY IT!

I read that the other day and thought how much better that would be instead of finding something to criticise in people. Let’s find the good  and the beautiful in them and tell them. That way we call out the goodness that’s inside, the greatness God has placed in each one of us.

God made mankind in His image and in His likeness and He has put tremendous potential in every one of us. It’s our job to encourage and draw it out of those we meet.😊

Our ‘Say Something’ sign also reminded me of lots of things scripture tells us to ‘say’ - 

Psalm 107:2 NKJV Let the redeemed of the Lord say so…

Hebrews 13:6 NKJV So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear…

Psalm 91:1-2 NIV ... I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Matthew 17:20 NIV … Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

There are loads more verses like that if you’d like to look them up, but we’re reminded it’s us who have to say them, not just read them or think them, but say them. Our words are so powerful and they release what we are saying into our lives. (Proverbs 18:21 NKJV Death and life are in the power of the tongue…)

So this week it’s our privilege and joy to say something - to say what God says, to say to someone they’re beautiful, they’re special, they’re God’s masterpiece, God loves them and is helping them, and build one another up, knowing those things are all true about ourselves as well.  

You are beautiful.😊 Amen.

Photo by David Lopez on Unsplash

OUR PLACE OF SAFETY

 Psalm 59:16-17 NLT

But as for me I will sing about your power.

Each morning I will sing for joy

About your unfailing love.

For you have been my refuge, 

a place of safety when I am in distress.

O my Strength, to you I sing praises,

For you, O God, are my refuge,

The God who shows me unfailing love.

This psalm was written and sung by David when King Saul had sent soldiers to watch his house in order to kill him. Not your average day by any means and yet he says he’ll keep on singing about God’s power and unfailing love! I wonder if we would have done the same, or would we have paced up and down the room, looking worriedly out the window, maybe phoning a friend, and wondering what was going to happen to us at any minute?😊

David knew his God though, he reminded himself how God had always been his refuge, his safe place, and we too have the same God who is still our ‘safe place’, even more so as God is our Father. We know any good father will go to any lengths to protect his children, how much more will our God, our Father protect us!

Our verses reveal the importance of praise and how it can focus us on God instead of impending problems, or any distress we might be experiencing. I hope they make us glad we can choose to remember how powerful God is and turn our full attention on His unfailing love for us, and sing for joy today.😊

Let’s lift our praises up together to our great God who is worthy of all our praise. In Jesus name. Amen.

Photo by Doretha Rost on Unsplash

FAITH FOR THE MIDDLE

Joshua 4:10 NLT The priests who were carrying the Ark stood in the middle of the river until all of the Lord’s commands that Moses had given to Joshua were carried out. Meanwhile, the people hurried across the riverbed.

The priests had been told to step into the River Jordan which was overflowing its banks and God would dry up the riverbed and the water would stand up like a wall (v.13)! Can you imagine the peoples’ thoughts when they had to step out and cross the riverbed as well, bearing in mind they’d just seen it in full flood?

“What if the water suddenly comes rushing back on top of us? What if we can’t cross over quick enough? What if we only get half way there and something happens in the middle? We’ll all drown like we saw happened to the Egyptians at the Red Sea!”                      

You see, past experiences can cause fear to rise up in our hearts. The future ‘what ifs’ of what ‘might’ happen can also cause fear to raise its ugly head. We may start off believing for our healing, for the finances to come through and we’re full of faith, confident the living God is among us and with us, but then we reach the middle and start to look around. 

Joshua 3:10 NLT Today you will know that the living God is among you.

When we’re in the middle - that’s when we need to keep standing strong in our faith because the living God is still among us. He hasn’t abandoned us or gone to some far off galaxy. What He told us to do, He will equip us to do if we keep our eyes on Him and not on our circumstances.

We read how they hurried across, they just got on with it! Their eyes were focused on the other bank, knowing God would see them through to the other side - He’d promised!

Are you in the ‘middle’ of believing for a promise of God to manifest? If so, let me encourage you to keep standing in your faith, keep going, keep your eyes focused on where you’re headed, not on what’s happening or not happening around you. God won’t let you drown or let you down! He’s our deliverer, our saviour, our provider, our healer - not our destroyer. You are going to reach the other side, so don’t give up! 

Keep believing, keep standing - the living God is with you! Amen.😊

AS SOON AS…

Joshua 3:13 NLT The priests will carry the Ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth. As soon as their feet touch the water, the flow of water will be cut off upstream, and the river will stand up like a wall.”

“As soon as..” We often read those words on a memo or letter. It usually means as soon as possible, as soon as you possibly can. In this case though ‘as soon as’ they stood in faith and stepped into the water God did what He said He would do immediately. As soon as! God didn’t delay one second - but they had to obey first. How often we want God to take the first step, then we’ll do what He commands, but that’s not God’s way. As soon as He sees our step of faith and our obedience He goes into action.😊

We read another ‘As soon as’ in Daniel’s story.

Daniel 9:23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed…. Did we get that? As soon as we begin to pray something happens in the heavenly realms. I don’t know about you but that encourages me no end. If we’ve prayed in faith, knowing our God keeps His word, God steps in immediately and starts the answering process. It may take a little while but it’s on its way.😊

Now if we prayed in doubt there won’t be any corresponding action on God’s part because He is a faith God who responds to faith. So I’m here today to build our faith up, to remember He’s for us and not against us, to know God is faithful to His word and if we’ll stand on it, we will see Him do what He’s promised to do. God does not, and cannot lie! I want to remind us that it’s the devil who is a liar, a thief and a destroyer so why would we want to listen to his lies, doubts, fears and what ifs anyway?!

Be encouraged next time you step out in faith, or you pray in faith in God’s word, just keep in your mind that He answered ‘as soon as’ you prayed and thank Him for it. Praise God that’s good news today. I love it, don’t you?😊

Photo by Humble Lamb on Unsplash

WHAT DO YOU WANT?

Mark 10:52 NKJV So Jesus answered and said to him, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.”

Can you imagine the scene? Crowds of people thronging around Jesus, and off at the side of the road is this blind beggar shouting at the top of his voice, calling out to Jesus, trying to get His attention. The more the crowd tell him to shut up the louder he gets. He doesn’t care what people think of him, he wants to talk to Jesus! 

It’s obvious he’s blind and he wants healing, and yet Jesus asks him what he wants! We may think our need is obvious to God and that He’ll just do something about it when He wants to, but Jesus is showing us a principle here. We have to say what it is we want God to do for us.

The man was very specific. He said, “I want to receive my sight.” He was taking ownership of his sight before he had it. “My sight”. Instead, most of us take ownership of whatever our ailment is. How often have we heard ourselves say, “My cough is getting worse, my condition is no better!” 

But that sickness is not ours, it’s something the devil is trying to put on us to try to make us take it, to own it, but it doesn’t belong to us! God never gave it to us. We know there is no sickness in God’s kingdom of light because if there was, it would be no different to the kingdom of darkness! We pray ‘Your will be done here on earth as it is in heaven.’ Is there any sickness in heaven? Thankfully, we know there isn’t, because it’s not God’s will for there to be sickness!😊

Rather we can be laying hold of our healing and saying, “Lord, by faith I receive my healing, my wholeness, my peace in this situation”. We can do that because Jesus paid for it all at the Cross and legally it all belongs to us already, because we are ‘In Christ’, who has no sickness, and it’s part of the blessings which we’ve already been given, part of our inheritance. That’s good news.😊

Glory to God! Thank You Jesus. Amen.