Christians

P 2892 God gives us opportunities.

/ DVH

Luke13:6-7. “Then He (Jesus) told them a story: “A man had an apple tree planted in his front yard. He came to it expecting to find apples, but there weren’t any. He said to his Gardener, ‘What’s going on here? For three years now I’ve come to this tree expecting apples and not one apple have I found. Chop it down! Why waste good ground with it any longer?’“ The Gardener said, ‘Let’s give it another year. I’ll dig around it and fertilise, and maybe it will produce next year; if it doesn’t, then chop it down.’”

Obviously Jesus is the Gardener in our lives, and as you can see in this passage – He’s always looking for fruit. In the case of this particular apple tree there was none. So, in theory, this tree needs to be cut down. But because the Lord is motivated by forgiveness and generosity … and — He is also the Gardener Who intercedes for fruitless trees! “ The bible says: “He ever lives to make intercession for US… ”That thought translates to this — Jesus is always praying for US! Thank you Lord!!That ought to give hope to anyone who thinks they’ve used up all their chances with Him! In this story, the apple tree gets another chance, purely because the Gardener intercedes for it.

The Lord has a reason for what we might call ‘slowness to act.’ In 2 Peter 3:9 it says: “The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” I can have a party over this verse …Boy am I incredibly grateful He is so generous! Meanwhile, if an answer to prayer is slow coming, my advice is to try asking Him if there is something you need to repent over! God’s book is not just an ordinary book, what is not said is often just as important as what is said.

Here’s another story, this one is quite startling! Matthew 8:21-23:“And another of His disciples said unto Him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. But Jesus said unto him, Follow Me; and let the dead bury their dead…” Boy this one takes some praying over. In our natural minds, what Jesus says here is almost an unnatural act. How could He say that? Why wouldn’t we owe the dead the dignity of attending their burial, especially a human parent! Meanwhile, did you pick up on the fact that this guy was a disciple?

He was already following the Lord. That shows us the depth of commitment He requires from us. This follower asked to simply go and bury his dead father and Jesus said ‘no!’  Smarter people than me have great lengthy explanations about this one, but I noticed one thing – “suffer me FIRST.” Unless I am very much mistaken this disciple’s problem is the same as the guy I mentioned yesterday – his priority was not his commitment to Christ.The real question is this: what comes first? God’s will or our human obligations?

Meanwhile I don’t like the man’s chances of witnessing to his family etc … they’d all get the stitch with him if he missed his father’s funeral. That would be another no-no in our world – it would probably make it into the news!  Christians would condemn this guy for being a bad witness and deserting his family like that. Actually, Jesus often deals with individuals and targets whatever is holding them back. Following Him is a serious commitment. It is not the “sometimes when it suits me thing” that we seem to favour today. 

You know that makes sense to me? An apple tree does not ask for a time-out for further fruit production. It’s either producing fruit or it ain’t! In my mind this helps me make a bit more sense about that darn fig-tree Jesus cursed. We like to debate and postulate about why, but the simple answer is that we are either fruitfully obeying Him, and following Him or we are not. Christianity doesn’t actually come with an optional opt out, or extra clauses. The wonderful news is that He will not give up on us. We can end up being pruned and uprooted a bit because we are disobedient and unfruitful – but these verses clearly show us why.

The things that Jesus said are not suggestions – which we sort-of kind-of obey if we think we can! They are written in His blood, right there in His book, for our sanctification, and edification. Cherry picking the verses we like is not part of discipleship, it’s called evasion. Now here is the scary bit, He knows exactly when to stop striving with mankind because they’ve gone beyond the point of no return. I’ve seen people just turn around and walk off, without a thought of what they are leaving behind. None of us should treat Almighty God that way – not after all He has done for us. That is holding the Grace of God in contempt – we will quickly grieve the very gentle Holy Spirit, if we live that way.

Obviously none of us should let any kind of ‘fear’ be the motivating force in our decision making either! That’s also not Who He is. “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance…” At the same time we must also never forget that verse 9 is followed by verse 10: “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night…”  2 Peter 3:9.

There is always tension in what we believe, simply because He is God and we are not! Almighty God gives us  opportunities to obey Him. His words are not just suggestions, they are in the book to guide us HOME. Bye. 👋

P 2889 People disagree …

/ DVH

… sometimes very loudly! When you read the gospels you will find different people from all walks of life that are outrageously unkind, plus people who cheat each other, or they hate each other for all kinds of reasons. The thing is, disagreements are not necessarily about who is right and who is wrong – that’s this world’s way of thinking. ‘I think I am much right-er than YOU are,’ is a really common theme. I hate disagreements … everybody loses!

To be perfectly honest with you, difficulties can have a positive side, they can usher in change in us – if we put down our sword of attack, and pick up His Grace, the people around us would feel much safer! God’s Grace needs to be the way we live now. What Jesus did at Calvary, released an incredible, overabundant Grace, and it is ours for the taking. We need to use our faith. Let me clarify that into English – let what you’ve been given by God be your new motivation – it makes it easier to apologise! Do it for the Lord!  He deserves to see the reward of His suffering in our lives.

This is our highest form of worship. This, in its very essence, is Romans 12:1 ”Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”When we choose His will, His Way, we are choosing to worship Him! Here’s another scripture nobody much likes, Jesus said it: “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13. We live this way for people who totally don’t deserve that kind of attitude or action from us! I’ve known people who said: “I would die for you” – but they haven’t considered that dying for the other person might include not liking or loving them very much at the time! 

Jesus chose to die for us, and He loved us while He did it! Good place to praise God for mercy!! Before you throw your hands up in the air in frustration, because we all have difficult people in our lives …think about it. Name somebody in the bible who had a happy, trouble-free, carefree life – you can’t do it can you? Our happiness, our purest joy comes from knowing Him – other people and relationships line up behind that. It often seems to me in those angry moments, that I’ve forgotten that love is a choice not a feeling!! 

Human beings stagger about doing the weirdest stuff, searching for that mythical land that is called “my happiness.” It won’t happen – it can’t happen. If we don’t find our happiness in serving Him, and learning His Ways – we are doomed to keep repeating the same rubbish mistakes over and over again. We will remain stuck in a mire of our own choosing. The answer to other people driving us crazy isn’t them changing – It’s our own personal transformation – we change the way we think and see everyone else, and they don’t bother us anymore!

There really is a place where other people don’t have to get on your nerves – Jesus Christ lived there and He was a man just like us. Every single one of those irritations are giving us an opportunity to die to self. Jesus didn’t have to wrangle His emotions, because He knew what was important – He knew the book from when He was 12! Everything He did He did to further His Father’s Kingdom. That’s now our job.

Christians admire other people’s testimonies. Things like: some dear missionary went to some lost tribe, and the tribe was saved but they chopped the poor missionary into little bits.’ Let’s pause a minute … the thing is, we don’t have rampant indigenous tribes waiting to kill us … instead we have Mrs Kerfoops who is always gossiping about everyone and she comes to church every Sunday … that dear lady needs to know His Grace. Obviously she has none, because she can’t keep her mouth shut. Somebody is going to have to be a source of God’s Grace toward her!

The bible works as a WHOLE. That missionary who died released Grace to the pagan tribe …  they left their comfortable homeland and went to a strange place for the sake of the gospel. That’s GRACE. Today’s Christians don’t value GRACE enough. We expect other people to understand US.. Instead we need to learn to turn the other cheek and walk the extra mile, right in the middle of the time when we feel so provoked we just want to thump the person who is provoking us. 

This means we will need to put His Grace into action to manage our painful circumstances. Think on this — the Grace that we cling to while the world around us continually shifts on its axis, is the same Grace we give away to other people when they don’t deserve it. In those moments I remind myself — “I don’t deserve His Grace either!” It really does help. Right along with my all time favourite prayer. “Help help!” Prayer is so much more than words, it is an attitude of our hearts!

Some of the time people disagree because they don’t know Him well enough yet. So there are no hard and fast rules as to who should be the one to give away Grace. I’ve found if I can actually see what is going on, then that means He will help me to get through it. I step out in faith, and I ask for His help to holster my own opinion. I’ve yet to start cheering when a disagreement comes up, but these things are opportunities for me to practise what I preach. Bye. 👋

P 2879 Avoidance is not enough …

/ DVH

... action is required! “So now we draw near freely and boldly to where grace is enthroned, to receive mercy’s kiss and discover the grace we urgently need to strengthen us in our time of weakness.”Hebrews 4:16 TPT

“And God has made all things new, and reconciled us to Himself, and given us the ministry of reconciling others to God.” 2 Corinthians 5:18 TPT

There is nothing like the bible for good advice. It is the best instruction manual ever, particularly if we refuse to explain away what it says. When we think we can’t do this or that, we need to draw near to Him, and let His mercy kiss us, all over again. Mercy received will change anyone’s mind.

We must always remember Jesus Christ died to give us the power to say ‘yes,’ to His will, His Way. Nothing can take that choice away from us. We have the precious Holy Spirit, Who is with us, in us, and He walks WITH us to guide us. Our faith cannot be in our ability — if we have a brain in our head, we already know we have limited ability! Our faith is in what Christ did. We stand firmly on the Rock Who is Christ Jesus. Because He rose from the dead- we can rise up from our beds of apathy, excuses and indifference into action.

We can spend our whole lives as Christians, avoiding sin, and … that’s not a bad thing, but…!  Yes, we can go through this life avoiding gossip, hatred, etc. etc .but at the same time, we actually have a job to do. The way to conquer those things that can so easily drag us down and under, is to aim at what Christ aimed at. “Loving God with all our heart, soul and mind, and our neighbours as ourselves.”  My advice is that we should be so busy doing stuff for His kingdom, that we don’t even sit down to think about the negatives. 

We know we fall over and fail! It’s because we are human, that we will fail, BUT! … …We have a Saviour Who is more faithful than any of us can ever imagine! We have been empowered by what He did, to choose differently. Just because living for His sake looks impossible, that does not mean we can quit and simply use avoidance to get through all the pitfalls of this life. What Christ did for us demands a positive response! And not just an Amen either.

Let’s just pause, and imagine this with me: one day you and I will stand in the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ’s Presence. Hallelujah! What a day that will be!! 🙌 When He asks us what we did with this new life He gave us, do we really want to say:“I know You died for me. So I avoided that sin, and this and that pitfall, and I didn’t join in with the evil things other men do.”  It’s not a bad testimony… However, daring to take action for the sake of Christ’s Name, is another thing altogether. Dare to believe He really is so powerful that He can empower YOU … 

So, what are we doing with the faith He died to give us? Christ’s faith released incredible forgiveness into this planet. It was so extraordinary, so above and beyond anything that would ever be needed by any one soul at any one time.  And we are here because Jesus has given us the benefits of all that forgiveness and faith! He stood in silence as wicked, jealous, fearful men accused Him of things He did not do. Then they punished Him mercilessly. His last action on this earth was to forgive US all, and He released His Spirit back to His Father. Now, the Spirit of the living God is here, He came here at Pentecost, He wants to walk with YOU and I.

In Ecclesiastes 3:7b it clearly says there is:”… a time to be silent and a time to speak …”  Brothers and sisters, I put it to you that we are living in the time to speak … There may be times when we will say nothing in the face of false accusations, like Jesus did. But where are our faith works? (James talked about them.) Where is “… the reward of His suffering?” Our lives need to be laid down willingly, through our participation in Christ’s mission. Lives laid down in faith, like His life was for us. Don’t be fooled by the devil, your contribution matters.

We have not been given a free ticket to do whatever we like! Almighty God is NOT an indulgent Father Who wants to give us everything we think we need in this life, and then we will go on to inherit the next! Father God wants a family, that means every tribe, every tongue. Are we serving our Father in a worthy way that glorifies everything Christ suffered and died to give us? Have we tried and sometimes failed, only to try again — to make sure that His family includes every single member, and that ALL have had an opportunity to belong? If not – WHY NOT? ‘I’m scared’ just doesn’t cut it. Neither will – “that was someone else’s job.”

We’ve learnt on previous occasions that fear must not be a deterrent – fear is to be conquered through our faith-filled actions. Today I have included a quote that I loved, it’s from a Malaysian church: “FAITH IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF FEAR, BUT KNOWING WHO YOUR GOD IS!” And knowing Who He is, needs to be accessible to everyone … that’s why avoiding sin is not enough – action is required. Bye. 👋

“I refuse to be ashamed of the wonderful message of God’s liberating power unleashed in us through Christ! For I am thrilled to preach that everyone who believes is saved—the Jew first, and then people everywhere!” Romans 1:16 TPT

P 2875 Take the time to clarify things.

/ DVH

Asking for clarification is one of the best ways I know to give us greater understanding of His ways. It helps us thwart satan’s campaign of mis-information against us. The bible itself builds clarification, layer upon layer. It peels back the half-truths we tell ourselves, as well as the ones we have heard all our lives, and it changes our minds and our expectations of what God will do. When we absorb His word, by doing what the bible says, then we can see through those lies when they occur. 

Reading the bible and acting on it, means we will need to clarify what’s there. We take what it says and walk on it, living it out. That transformation can come through any verse between Genesis and Revelation, because one portion of this book explains another. Yet because God is WISE … and we are … like … NOT!! … … Christians rarely see or completely comprehend what He is saying to US. We end up relying upon other people. Leaders, prophetic people or famous people who tell us what it is ‘safe’ to think. Big mistake, huge. Leaders lead. But as followers it is our birthright and responsibility to understand our own spiritual life and fight for it. We need to chase down every thought, everything that stands out to us while we are reading — never be too busy to learn.

There are times when I am praying over what I should say in the blog and the Holy Spirit interrupts my thinking and He says – “Didn’t I say it like this in Genesis?” Suddenly, I am plunged into a whole new way of thinking. In my mind I would never have put that one scripture with another. But relying upon Him is like a giant jigsaw – the pieces suddenly drop into the right place and I can see a tiny portion of His overall picture that I never saw before. Without His revelation it would just be another verse – but when HE kisses it, well, I gotta say, I’m a bit addicted to those moments! If you want to clarify something, you need to press in and go after it. 

I cannot stress how important it is to ask the Holy Spirit questions. HE DOESN’T MIND. He’s not thrilled if we just make assumptions or blaze away without Him – but He never minds helping us to understand Kingdom Ways. Remember, Jonah? He was petulant, disobedient and very grumpy – God Himself came and sat down with him, in his carefully cultivated grumpiness – and then the Lord explained His purposes and His sovereignty to this man. He even gave him a visual aid! Read the book. God loves to explain His ways.The book of Jonah is a terrific example of God and His purposes – it is not just a story about a man being swallowed by a whale! When Jesus Himself said:”Consider the lilies…” He wasn’t talking about gardening you know!

The very best thing about the Holy Spirit’s guidance is that He is always ON, and He is always UP and awake, no matter what time it is. Our own biggest danger, at the same time, is to fall back on, or settle for answers that seem right to us. That road leads into a ditch. “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”Proverbs 14:12. I’ve personally fallen into that aforementioned ditch many many times!! Praise God, Jesus is the good Shepherd that fishes His dumb sheep out of ditches! Amen.

At the same time, we need to be prayerfully aware and careful to avoid participating in works. It is called works when we feel we have to do it ourselves … it’s when we think we must push and shove and prod things to make them happen. Stepping out of Grace, even for a supposedly good reason, is a fatal flaw. Spiritually speaking that looks a bit like the old hokey pokey dance, one foot in God’s leading, the other in trying desperately to make it work. Living like that jerks and bumps us about all over the place. You cannot learn to stand like Ephesians says, if you are bumping about all over the place.

Our obedience to what He has said in the book, means we step into a continuous flow, because it is HIS GRACE holding us up. If we run out of Grace, and have to start pushing ourselves to do things – STOP!  Ask Him to help you get out of the hole you landed in, and claim His Grace over your life and thoughts …and, ps, don’t forget to repent. We can’t afford to run on what we think, the difference between what we think, and what He thinks – is the difference between looking at the stars — and knowing He has counted every single one and put them there in the first place!

Let’s look at this well-worn verse. We can, and we should …”ask and keep on asking” … we can … “seek and we will find’… we can “knock and keep on knocking” … be-ca-use …!!! Everyone who asks receives, and everyone who seeks will find, and if we knock that door will open. Unfortunately many Christians have relegated that whole precious scripture to asking for material things. Ask for spiritual graces instead. Meanwhile, you can also ask for a loaf of bread if you need one! We need to keep pressing in to get clarification, EG: “What does that verse mean to me, Lord, please?” What prayers do I need to keep persevering over, in my life?

We must remember that  Almighty God’s aim is to glorify Jesus, not give us a cushy care-free life. You know, if we ever even begin to personally comprehend and act on what Father God has said in the book, the Body of Christ will become unstoppable. So ask to the Holy Spirit to help you understand HOW what you are reading applies to you. Clarification from His heart to ours is essential, it builds our faith.  Bye 👋

“Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.”Luke 8:18.

P 2862 Are we an explosion, or a pop?!

/ DVH

You can put that title on the back-burner for a bit, and let’s look at Colossians 2:11b-14 …“Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through your faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, GOD MADE YOU ALIVE IN CHRIST. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; He has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.”

Our faith is in what Christ did, not in who or what we are! I think we need to stop seeing ourselves as ordinary people, who happen to have faith. The bible clearly tells us not to live ordinary lives anymore, instead we need to remind ourselves that we are dead to this world, and constantly alive to Him. When we live that way — every single day – every encounter with someone else becomes an opportunity to share His love. His love is not meant to live on that ‘back burner.’ It is the fire that sends us out every single morning!

The only thing dead people can successfully do, is to become worm food! Yeah. Right now I am hoping you aren’t  eating your breakfast and reading this … but I ain’t taking it back!! Our Heavenly Father God, did it all, He provided Jesus as the sacrifice for us – and then Jesus chose to die in our place. Now we continually make a choice to die to this life and live for Him. Our resurrection comes moment by moment as we live by faith in the brand new life He has already given us. That’s our bit ← and it’s past tense! Jesus Christ gave us a life do-over. We can still live our lives as worm food if we choose to, but the truth is — the sky is the limit!! It always was around Jesus! 

That’s why people followed Him around. It didn’t matter if He spoke for hours and hours, because His very words were filled with Holy Spirit life. Have you ever thought of asking yourself what are your words filled with? 😳People were enthralled by whatever Jesus said. So much so, they forgot about ordinary stuff like eating! Imagine that! God’s Words are filled to the top with His life, and it is satisfying. Plus what the Lord Jesus said was often explosive!

His preaching was like a geyser, it flowed out and up and over everyone who heard Him – every single time He did it! Thats why people got mad – they were convicted! Others kept talking about what He had said all the way home! God’s word, when it is preached in the flow of the Holy Spirit, fills us and satisfies us like ordinary food never will. Jesus said it much better than I can: “Man cannot live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”  Matthew 4:4.

I know many many Christians are incredibly sincere, they love the Lord and they want to serve Him … but maybe they are shy, and they don’t want to intrude on other people. So if someone else wants to know something – they will have to ask them. These people have forgotten they’ve been made brand new, we don’t live like other people anymore – the old has passed away – the new has come. They are living like they are the can of fizzy drink in the picture above, it bounces and fizzes when shaken, then… … it settles down again. All the fizz will eventually go out of it when it is opened. The “POP” becomes a trickle. Many of us live our lives in that place.

Others live their lives going from conference to conference to conference, hoping to regain their ‘fizz.’ I’ve personally been to a lot of conferences, but let me tell you a secret … the very best way to become a geyser, is to develop a relationship with Him. Then you become far more than you can personally contain! Instead of fizzing up and calming down, you become a part of the Giver of Life – you and He flow together. If He turns, you turn, and His happiness inside you explodes like a geyser! 

God’s Words have eternal life in them, but sadly most of the people in this world have never ever heard the real Gospel. They may have heard about this religion or that one – they may have even tasted a bit of the fizzy drink, but they haven’t heard the Good News that they can be reconciled instantly back to God FOREVER! That’s where the geyser comes from! Are you a can of pop or a force of His nature? Bye for today. 👋.

“They were amazed at His teaching, because His words had authority.” Luke 4:32.

P 2857 Fads, and fancies.

/ DVH

Some clever person has decided, for whatever reason … pick one … WHO knows? … that if the Lord wakes you up at 3.00am, He wants to talk to you. O-k-ay. Maybe the Lord wakes them up at 3.00am to talk to them – I can’t speak to their experience, nor yours for that matter. But trust me … when I wake up at 3.00am I am not thrilled. All I wanna do is go back to sleep! I love to talk to Jesus, but not-quite-so-much at 3.00am. 3.00am means I’ve probably had just enough sleep to stay awake until I have to get out of bed. When I wake up at that hour, I quite often can’t go back to sleep again.

Meanwhile, imagine what an idea like that does to a young working mother, or a mum who has her hands full? Maybe she just got her baby/toddler back to sleep? Many a night I’ve sat in a rocking chair, soothing a cranky child, rocking away, praying for people. That’s why I can see these women at 3.00am, with toothpicks holding their bloodshot, sleep-deprived eyes open, saying … “Who the what now?? This kid is going to wake up again in a few hours… Go away … tell your nice theory to someone who gets plenty of sleep!” Sometimes human beings say the dumbest most thoughtless things. Never let anyone but Jesus write on your relationship with Him. You are you, and those other people who do things differently are not-you.

Meanwhile at 3.00am I have noticed that every single idea that pops into my sleep-addled brain is fantastic! I immediately know how to change my life, or save the world. I think I have a reason for that phenomenon – I am sleep deprived! Sleep deprivation does weird things to the brain. We all think we are a genius at that hour. Actually I woke up at 3.00am this morning and I wrote this blog. Yes, I talked to the Lord, and prayed for everyone I could think of, and I ended up even more awake trying to solve problems that weren’t mine in the first place! 

That’s when I remembered Samuel was once awake in the middle of the night because the Lord wanted to talk to him. He was a kid at the time and he woke up confused too – he didn’t know it was God talking to him. (See 1 Samuel 3.)  Eli had to straighten him out. You know, that nice man didn’t even ask the wide-awake kid to go and fetch him a glass of water … you always need one when you wake up early … he just gave the boy wise advice, and then he rolled over and went back to sleep. Smart guy Eli, grossly underestimated in the realm of wisdom. 

Sometimes, Christians can have FADS. In my lifetime I have seen lots of them, they come, they go, because eventually somebody throws more light on this theory or that revelation. The bible says: ”I will arise right early, I will awaken the dawn…” Psalm 57:8. But I’m left wondering if that is the same thing as making yourself wake up at 3.00am! If the Lord wants you, He will call you. It is my hope that this fad is short-lived. And yes, I know that we all need a quiet time with Him, but that’s for you and Him to work out. Just talk to Him. He’s always there.

It’s like fasting: the bible says that the Lord chooses the fast we are to participate in. (Isaiah 58:6-11.) I can still remember when fasting was a fad, people fasted to make God do things. Fasting is a supernatural event, we are led into it by the Holy Spirit – it is not a dietary or problem solving aid! Our Father loves us so very much, and we don’t have to make Him do anything. Sometimes I think people fast because they don’t like NO!

Just recently a doctor discovered that my bones are showing the effects of age, which doesn’t surprise me because I have had them for a while. He had three wonderful remedies to cure this problem, and they all had ghastly side-effects. The first one caused oesophageal spasms, the second gave flu-like symptoms because it is used in chemo-therapy and the third one causes necrosis of your jaw bone. Strangely …I said no thank-you to His interesting options. He was a bit miffed, BUT … not every suggestion or revelation  you hear about or receive, no matter how insightful, is actually helpful to your life.

Now, if the Lord happens to wake you at 3.00am to pray … DO IT. Please!! Some saints gladly give up their sleep time to intercede for the rest of this planet – they pray for His kingdom to come, and I personally praise the Lord for their diligence. But please do not join in this jamboree just because someone said it and it sounds like a deeply spiritual thing to do. Something that just might get you what or where you want to be.. Use your faith to believe that He loves you and loves to talk to you …at any time, instead. 

I know, there are people who are in desperate situations and they need the Lord and His input — but we must remember that He actually wants to talk to us. He is not a sadist thinking up ways for us to torment ourselves just so we can hear from Him! He does not require us to jump through hoops to impress Him. We need to use our faith, not performance. Let’s not blithely subscribe to every fad and fancy that floats on by. 

BTW the book also says this: “In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for He grants sleep to those He loves.”Psalm 127:2. Amen. Bye. 👋

P 2853 Be real.

/ DVH

Hi! You know, there are times that we like to quote the verse “with God all things are possible …” especially when we need the Lord to do something impossible on our behalf! Being real means we see Him change impossible things in our lives, every single day. Yet, most of the time, we merrily roll along ignoring change, hoping the guy who annoys us will change instead! We only drag out our faith first thing in the morning and last thing at night, as well as on Sundays, and maybe for prayer meetings. OR we crank it up for those desperate times when the emergency bell is clanging away in our lives, and something has happened that we can’t fix!

Ticking off spiritual boxes is a way to appear to be spiritual. Many Christians seem to be totally unaware that we are knee-deep in practising living with the appearance of goodness – without embracing the substance of the kind of change that will transform us. And consequently, we affect the lives of every one else around us. Unfortunately living like that is like a great looking apple that’s been in the cool store too long. On the outside it looks fine but inside it is all brown and inedible. Real fruit is startling in its sweetness with every bite.

We can get by with hiding our faults from other people by going to church regularly, giving to the poor, never swearing, always being seen to do the right thing … but the truth is …if what we are doing is not coming from our hearts, then we actually need the kind of repentance that is followed up by change — not play-acting. Here’s an astonishing and amazing thought: GOD LOVED US WHEN WE WERE YET SINNERS! Pretending, or keeping up appearances, is a waste of whatever precious time we actually have on this earth. His love will never withdraw from us – actually most of the time, we withdraw from Him. Humbly admitting our faults to each other clears up the idea that we are somehow perfect. It is a much safer place to stand.

My point for today is that we always need to be real. Let’s not live our lives pretending to be something we aren’t just so we can fit in. Be yourself, warts and all. Let the One Who has changed men and women’s hearts since the dawn of time operate on your heart. One of the most valuable graces we can embrace – besides repentance, and obedience – is honesty with ourselves. The truth is, we don’t have to be afraid of sin anymore, because Jesus paid it all! So now there is no reason to hide. Hiding from His love is counterproductive – the power for us to change comes through receiving His unconditional love and forgiveness, and then giving it away to others. If we hide we short-circuit this process.

Today I want to briefly look at a woman who threw herself down on the floor at Jesus’ feet, at a dinner party. To start with – she wasn’t invited! And for her efforts the rest of the crowd judged her, plus they judged the Lord as well! But like I said before – HE looks at hearts! “She has been forgiven of all her many sins. This is why she has shown me such extravagant love. But those who assume they have very little to be forgiven will love me very little.”” Luke 7:47 TPT. The result of diminishing our sin is this: we miss out on understanding how much love HE gives us and how much worship He deserves!


Dismissing sin’s very real consequences produces ongoing bad results. To start with, we lose gratefulness. This dear woman did not care what others thought, she knew she needed to be right with God more than she needed their approval! She poured out all she had on His feet in repentance, and total adoration. And the Lord saw her and received her. Her honesty gained her an audience with the King and a chance to worship Him. Who doesn’t want that?

Here’s something I have learnt, over the years … Instead of spewing out my anger or withdrawing from people who hurt me …kindness, mercy and forgiveness opens amazing unseen new doors. Those doors lead to refreshing changes, and deeper relationships. Instead of minimising our faults, and accenting someone else’s sins against us – releasing loving forgiveness takes us out of any hot-headed drama and puts us squarely back into His kingdom.

It will cost us, of course. Worthwhile things are costly – just like that alabaster box. But our transformed attitudes in those moments become like that perfume that was released to the Lord. Jesus is not concerned with sin anymore – now He wants us all to move on into the freedom that flourishes in His Father’s kingdom. When I set you free, I get freedom too, whether you pick up your share or not! Learning to be real about who we are, plus who we are not —removes the weights and burdens we’ve tied on ourselves.

“Those whom the Son has set free, shall be free indeed.” These people will be free to enjoy who God made them to be. We can pick up a lot of dumb stuff in this life, and some of it comes from when we are too tiny to block it out. Let God Himself heal you and reveal how He sees you. Learn to be real. Nobody else can do YOU like YOU can! Bye. 👋

P 2850 Risky living applied.

/ DVH

“We have come into an intimate experience with God’s love, and we trust in the love He has for us. God is love! Those who are living in love are living in God, and GOD LIVES THROUGH THEM.”1 John 4:16 TPT. We can easily breeze through this life unaware of what God’s love looks like – perhaps because we unfortunately measure love by this world’s standards. This verse is a great measuring stick, one of many we have been given. The New Testament and the Gospels are filled with measuring sticks about what the Love of God actually looks like.

Are you living in love? Maybe your reply might be … “Well, of course… I love my kids and my spouse … most-of-the-time, and my church friends, my immediate family etc. YES! I am living in love!” So, Whose definition of Love are you using? There’s the rub. We tend to use our natural human feelings to tick that box. Here’s another box for you: be honest — who don’t you love? “Well, I love everybody, but there are some people I like more than others.” Right. 

So if you had a blind beggar who stole things, and he camped outside on your front lawn, would you take him in and feed him, and help him before you sent him on his way? Or maybe you would give him a couple of dollars to help him out? Hmmm? God utterly wrecked my life when He showed me my hidden hypocrisy. He did that by introducing me to HIS kind of people. People who utterly would, and DO, take blind beggar/thieves into their homes. You know, most homeless people do not do nice things, especially when they are starving and needy. And no, avoidance is not a good idea. Loving others this way, is not just someone else’s ministry. I took that excuse out for a walk and it crashed and burned. Because of what Jesus has given us, living like this is utterly possible.

One of these precious, always challenging Christians said to me: “What if the homeless poor came into your pretty house and, accidentally or not, smashed up all your lovely china, and pinched your special things?” Well, that whole thought was a big fat reality rush. I realised that I had a truck load of excuses for the way I was living, while so many other people in this world have to steal or scrounge in order to live. Feeling sorry for poor people doesn’t help them much, even if you do shed a tear. Love always looks like something. It looked like sacrificing His life to Jesus!

Our sensibilities fool us. They tell us that it will be OK to do this or that. So getting rid of thieving blind beggars is the responsible thing to do. Call the cops, let them sort those guys out! But, what have we done to our hearts when we act like that? Because it is our hearts that matter to the Lord — what are we doing with our hearts when we ignore the homeless poor at our doorstep, the needy in our own families – as we drive by in expensive cars that could feed them for years. Is that love? Is that the kind of love the Lord means? Is it even what love truly looks like? You know, we cannot stay comfortable and still follow Jesus …that’s not love, it’s fooling yourself.

The Lord Jesus didn’t live a comfortable life. He shared His life with the downtrodden, poor and hungry. He used His faith to feed people. He set the kind of example that we can easily attribute to others — the more spiritual-people-than-me Christians. He talked to and explained salvation to anyone, even the people He wasn’t sent to, and shared the gospel with them. Love does that! And He specifically taught us to love our enemies. Remember, to Jesus — loving means we will DIE – one way or another!! Our response to this kind of radical advice, is to mentally eliminate any potential enemies with a pretty feeble bunch of excuses that fall over instantly when the Lord turns His eyes on them.

I am not saying that we should sell our houses and live in a shack! But please never forget that other people are our responsibility. Jesus had no home of His own. No fancy place to lay His dear head from when He was born ’til He died. And even then, He had only the clothes on His back. When we care for others it is like we are doing it for Him. Think about the state of the world around us, there are the rich, and then there are the desperate. – is there no middle ground? Is there no way we can live more simply and help those who have no way to live at all? Or are we going to leave ‘that kind of stuff’ to the evangelists and missionaries, because we think it isn’t ‘our’ ministry. Ya might like to rethink that thought!

This world is not going to believe in a loving, kindly, merciful, gracious Saviour when His so-called family all live comparatively comfortable lives, and only give away what they think they can afford! That’s not Risky Living – it’s hypocrisy. No wonder people don’t want to join us, they are too busy scrambling for their next penny. There are times when we even fail to properly care for our church families. However you look at it, obedience to His Word means we open our doors to loving the kind of people we would normally walk around.

To live like Christ did we need to engage in Risky Living and start loving others … which, BTW, is called living by faith in the bible. We need to do the sort of stuff that is way outside of our comfort zone. Otherwise we will one day exit this world still protecting what is supposedly “mine.” Our personal thoughts about comfort and money shouldn’t ever stop us from caring for others. Changing our lives is not impossible – the bible shows us that. Bye. 👋

ps. Our precious family member has gone home – his race was run. Heaven is rejoicing.😢

P 2844 Into these times!

/ DVH

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. …”2 Timothy 3:1-17.

“If we are faithless, He remains faithful— for He cannot deny Himself.”2 Timothy 2:13. WE SERVE A FAITHFUL GOD. That fact never changes. He is looking for people who will believe in His faithfulness. Sadly, the verse above in Chapter 3, reads like today’s news! How scary is that? And then Paul says to Timothy “… avoid such people!” I mean really? HOW? Join a nunnery?? That’s the thing about the bible, it has contradictions in it, and we desperately need our Helper to sit with us and explain His book. He’s the Author and He knows what He wants to tell US as individuals. Don’t just read what others think … ask Him yourself … then insist.

Our bible is a unique book – it’s not just full of instructions, it is chock full of God’s words, there on the page for you and I, every single day. What I hear Paul saying is this: “don’t pick up this world’s ways of thinking, doing and being.” And my thought bubble goes like this: “I will definitely need to hang around with the Holy Spirit, more than I hang around with this world’s ideas of what life is meant to be like.” Speaking for myself, that’s a tall order! I am stuck inside all day – and I’ve exhausted all the Big Bird meets Bambi movies. Sigh. One thing is for sure, I can’t do anything He wants without His help.

I permanently need His assistance for my mind to dwell on things that are good right and profitable. However, at the same time I have also discovered that a lot of supposed ‘Christian stuff’ makes me cringe. It’s like eating a terribly sweet icy pole … total brain freeze! Sadly, I have come to the conclusion that Christians can’t make Spirit-friendly movies unless they are being led, step by step by Him. And I don’t just mean that He inspired the movie maker – I’m talking about Him inhabiting what is said and done right throughout the movie! Otherwise our clever ideas make the church look weird, and a le-etle bit soft, and wimpy …! We need His power present, everywhere. In every industry, place of employment, schools, hospitals, trains, planes and automobiles! And love is the vehicle we travel in. 

At the same time, when Jesus shows up people are instantly affected by His Presence. I’ve seen that happen with my own eyes. Our job is to invite Him to come with us. Then we listen, then we obey!  People start crying their eyes out. They say: “I don’t know why I am crying.” And we tell them: “That’s Jesus, He’s here, He wants to talk to you because He loves you.” Neither of us are clever, or insightful enough to touch and reach the lives of the people we meet everyday. That’s the very thing Paul is talking to Timothy about – we must see, for ourselves, that this world is in a desperate way, but not condemn it. We must reach out. We need His guidance, direction and help – because our God cares about everyone.

I think Jesus is saying to all of us today: “Don’t go anywhere without ME.” The Holy Spirit is our filtering system, so we need to learn to run everything by Him. I believe that through these verses the Lord has given us a glimpse into this world’s future, to help us understand the times we are in. These times have not taken Him by surprise, Paul wrote about them nearly 2000 years ago! Are we in the end times? I dunno! I’m not that smart. I just know that my life will end one day, and I want it to count for His kingdom. 

I may never meet some of you guys this side of heaven, but I write this stuff in the hope that you can hear His voice through mine, and that will make you thirsty and hungry for more of Him. Living this life from day to day, going nowhere – except for making money – is the total pits. I exhort everyone I meet to yield to Him because that’s the way forward. In my heart I know that the coming generations are going to go so much farther than my generation will ever go, and do things I have never even dreamed about. Remember, the darker the darkness, the more HIS light shines. 

Just don’t be afraid to share what you know about Him with someone else. Who knows what that person will remember if their ceiling falls in and this life betrays them? Our trembling little faith-steps give the Holy Spirit something to work with! Maybe they will remember someone telling them that God loves them so much, in moments of quiet desperation. We’ve been born here, into these times, to be blood-bought containers of His love, visible illustrations, of His love in action. We show other people, what Love looks like, what Love sounds like, what Love acts like.

These are the days we can give glory to Him… wherever we are, whatever we are doing. Christ was GRACE under pressure – He died for us so we can be grace to others, no matter what is going on around us.

Bye …👋

P 2842 Are people drawn to the light in us?

/ DVH

Mark 4:21-25: “He said to them, Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”

I think the reason we sometimes hide from the light, skip church, don’t read the bible, and we don’t pray – is simple. We don’t want to be convicted or convinced of our stinky attitudes. Maybe whatever we are doing, we don’t want to be found out, so we pronounce church things as ‘boring’… when the reality is – what is said comes way too close for comfort. Where is His light in your life currently at? Is it tucked away, under the bed? Many people build walls to keep them safe, a coffin has walls – a coffin is made for dead things.

As you can see from the above verse, hiding His light within us is a waste of time and energy. One day, everything we’ve said and done quietly, perhaps even sneakily – concerning Mrs Kerfoops across the road – will be shouted from the housetops.BUT!… “IF we confess our sins, He will forgive our sins. We can trust God. He does what is right. He will make us clean from all the wrongs we have done.”I LOVE 💕💕 THOSE LITTLE WORDS… BUT IF …!! This is a good time to praise God for His ongoing, always active, ever-forgiving love in our lives. 

The awful stuff we hide from others, and – even worse – from ourselves! … needs confession and healing. Why not wipe the slate clean, make reparation wherever necessary and move on …??  The point Jesus is making in these verses is that the light of God’s Word is meant to shine in us, and through us, not be hidden away … so we can save face. We are not undercover brothers – WE ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. That’s why He said don’t put that light in a place where it can’t shine — the light of God is meant to be seen.

At the same time, the light and power of God within us, changes our perspective. It doesn’t just illuminate sin – it makes our surroundings clear and visible. There is way too much darkness all over this earth, because Christians look like everybody else. Being hidden doesn’t mean we are safe – it actually means the people around us can’t see our faith in action. Sadly, who we really are, is who we are when we are squeezed tightly by our circumstances. And no! I don’t much like that sentence either!! 

You and I live wherever we live, because we are to be His light. So the people who live around us can clearly see the dirt and squalor they are choosing to live in. We don’t have to be pompous and look down our noses at others either. The plain truth is this world is currently living in a majority rules situation — they don’t have any light, because we are hiding who we are! God’s Love is His Light! Everyone will know we are Christians by our love, and because LOVE is a verb not a noun, this is something that others can see and experience for themselves. We are Christians – We choose to live and die, loving others. 

You and I are the front-line of what Jesus wants to do on the earth today. Forget people focussing on the pastor, they are looking at us to see if what we say we believe, is real. And if that sentence doesn’t give you and I something to reflect on, we’d all better think again. We aren’t just here to stand up for what we are against – we are here to shine His light and love around, everywhere we go.  His love, needs to be in every dark corner of this world. Loving Jesus means we are for the people He came to save. People were drawn to Him – are they drawn to us? On that happy little note, bye for now! 👋