Found

P 3143 Value of being found!

/ DVH

That thought needs rereading – please don’t give up on God’s redemptive power! The Bible teaches us that ‘we ought always pray and not give up.’ This BTW, is my personal experience of the parable of the lost coin! Way back in June this year, I lost my wedding ring. Obviously it is very special to me, we’ve been married for 38 years. I cried and cried. Until that loss happened, I didn’t even know such a small thing could upset me like that. 

Afterwards, hubby and I could immediately relate to what happened in a story that Jesus’ once told. The lady who lost a coin and she tore her house apart trying to find it. The loss of my ring brought that story to life in a new way! Because of the story before that one, it also reminded me, yet again, of how passionate the Lord is about His sheep! Take some time to pause today, and think about how much He loves you! He’s the God of little seemingly insignificant things, that matter to us.

At the time we lost the ring, we tore our house apart and then dear hubby went outside and did the same thing to the car, and searched under every leaf in the garden. But there was absolutely no sign of that ring. Usually when something is not resolved, or it has gone missing, no matter what the outcome is – I have peace. But this time, I really struggled to find His peace. Finally, I managed to put it all down and leave it with Him. Boy was I reluctant to do that! Then if the lost ring came up again, I gave it back to Him, and told Him the results were His business.

I have mentioned before on this blog, that I make crystal, beaded bookmarks, to give away when we go on our trips. In the last couple of weeks I’ve made 52. This meant I needed to replenish my beads. I love making people feel special, so I want the very best crystals for my bookmarks. I use real crystal beads, especially the AB2 ones, but they are now hard to find, Swarovski stopped making them. As the supply dwindled worldwide, they have become very scarce, so I bought some more while I still can! The arrival of these crystals  makes my day. We don’t get out much! 🤣 It seems pretty easy to entertain us! 

Unfortunately, when the crystals arrived, the packaging was faulty and my precious expensive crystals, spilled out everywhere! Actually, they are now so expensive that I take the time to count them when they arrive! And I could see that I had several missing from one packet. I even watched one of them slide down the side of the chair I sit on. That was not good news for me. This particular chair doesn’t leave room for hands to wiggle in and retrieve things. The result was:  the chair ate my crystals and I was not amused.

I jammed my hand down the side of it, repeatedly wiggling this way and that, trying to get the precious crystals back … and bruising my hand in the process. The short story is I managed to retrieve 3 out of 4 of them. One of them is still lost somewhere in the basement of the chair! But it was painful, wood and delicate lady hands, don’t mix!  My hubby volunteered to join in my quest. In the end he went under the chair to dig around and see if it had fallen through. That’s when I discovered a previously unknown fact about my kind of chair.

MY recliner chair is like a block of apartments. It’s in layers. And even though something can fall from one layer to the next – that does not mean it will eventually fall out on the floor. Hubby wiggled his hand in, and felt his way underneath while I’m bruising my hand upstairs. Hubby even took the skin off his knuckles. And lo and behold, quite unexpectedly, his fingers closed around something quite unanticipated. It seems the chair had also eaten my wedding ring – apparently my chair’s basic food group is jewellery in one form or another!

I rejoiced so loudly — you may have heard me! Then I cried. Then I rejoiced some more because that which was lost had been found. And I now had a very personal example of the story with the lady with the coin. And a very small, real life experience of what the verse in Luke 15:10 means to Father God. “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” 

BTW, I don’t feel bad using my ring as an example, because once Jesus used a fig tree, wheat, sheep and a coin to make His point. FYI I lost this ring because I took it off to clean it and I’m not doing that any more – it can go green instead!! This whole situation made me think about all the prayers that we pray, that appear to be unanswered, and how we cope when an answer doesn’t come right away. So here’s my very own ‘lost sheep’ testimony on today’s subject that is about stuff ... but far more about people. 

I mentioned briefly at the time when my mother died a few months ago, that I have been a Christian for 50 years. My mum’s terminal illness was a scary time, because she objected to my faith. We could not engage her on the subject at all. Once a long time ago, she threatened to disinherit me because of my faith. Poor dear, she didn’t have 10c  to leave a flea, at the time, but the emotional ramifications were … rah rah rah. You get it! 

About a month before she died, she suddenly started to listen carefully to us. And I learnt something. Some people have to exhaust all their own resources, before they can even begin to hear you! My dear mother was stuck in an invalid’s chair unable to turn herself over, go to the loo etc. All she had left physically, was her speech, and even her mind had begun to wander. She knew it, so meaningful words became more precious to her. Seeing us was all she wanted.

I also realised that sometimes in our enthusiasm and compassion for a person who does not know the Lord – we will need to pray for deliverance, as well as for salvation! Nobody likes to watch anyone suffer, and it is even worse when the person suffering is a precious family member. But when they are racing down the hill into eternity, it is extremely scary. That’s when our faith in His faithfulness needs to prevail. He loves those people so much more than we do. 

I wanted to write on this subject today because I know many many people, reading here, have prayed and prayed and prayed, for far more important things than my ring. Like unsaved family members—parents, siblings, spouses, or desperately ill family members. Maybe also fervent prayer for health, or finding work or somewhere to sleep at night. My mother was 97 when she finally understood that Jesus loves her. She went home peacefully. I had been witnessing to her, loving on her, wrangling with her upside-down ideas about faith, for 50 years and before she died, she finally heard me. 

My message is about this –  no matter what it is you feel you have lost don’t give up! Almighty God doesn’t give up on LOST SHEEP. One of the best things we can learn to do is to trust Him when nothing makes any sense any more. Right now I want to add my faith to yours, and believe for that miracle you desperately need.. Big troubles or seemingly insignificant ones – He’s got you. Never forget the value of being found. Bye. 👋

P 2955 Don’t be lost – be found!

/ DVH

John 8:42-47: “Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father [but He is not], you would love and recognize Me, for I came from God [out of His very Presence] and have arrived here. For I have not even come on My own initiative [as self-appointed], but He [is the One who] sent Me. Why do you misunderstand what I am saying? It is because [your spiritual ears are deaf and] you are unable to hear [the truth of] My word. 

You are of your father the devil, and it is your will to practice the desires [which are characteristic] of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar and the father of lies and half-truths. 

But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me [and continue in your unbelief]. Which one of you [has proof and] convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? Whoever is of God and belongs to Him hears [the truth of] God’s words; for this reason you do not hear them: because you are not of God and you are not in fellowship with Him.”

Man, I love the book of John, I’ve been glued to it for weeks! Let’s just quickly revise what Jesus says in the 1st paragraph above. He came here to us, from the Presence of God. There are times, sadly, when we don’t live like we know this …we just think we do, because we’ve heard the words before. The power in those words comes from acting on them. If we really knew this, then whatever He says to us through His Word would not, and could not, come into question.  It is a waste of time to frame what the bible says by our own denominational bents. This book is God speaking to us, and we need to listen. We simply must stop rationalising the power of God to change lives out of His Word!

Coming from the very Presence of God means that Jesus has Almighty God’s authority to say what He says. And everything He says is covered in and by God’s Presence, and it will be interpreted to us by the Holy Spirit, Who was sent here to help us understand. There are no optional extras in the gospels – if ‘every promise in the book is mine’  — then every obedient response to those promises are mine as well! Ya might want to sit and think on that. Lastly, Jesus was sent here by God Himself– the Lord didn’t just decide to pop down here off His own bat!

Because of what Jesus says here, we know what the devil does;  how he sounds;  and what his aim is, so we don’t have to be ignorant of our enemy’s tricks. Did you get that it is natural for our enemy to lie? This means we need to desperately know the truth, because whatever he says will be really convincing! he’s despicably good at lying – it’s not a habit, it is part of his nature. He hates people. I also think that he loves to distract people with his lies … after all half the planet is chasing the good life, money, great circumstances and the dream of happiness, here and now! But that is not what the bible clearly says we should pursue.

The last paragraph tells us that human beings can’t hear the Lord Jesus because He speaks truth, and we like lies better than truth. Think about it – God says “Go and make disciples” and “Love one another” and we say: “That’s someone else’s job!” “That’s too hard!” Our preferences regarding what we choose to hear, can make us deafer than a post! However, listening to lies leaves us room to do whatever we like, whenever we want to, because we think: “God doesn’t mind” …! But God’s truth is destined to lead us into a totally different lifestyle. Sometimes we are happy enough to believe lies because believing lies leaves us undisturbed in our sin! But practising sin has a bad destination… Jesus came here to change our destination.

The questions every single human being has to answer are quite simple… is Jesus Christ Who He says He is?  Did He really come to do what He said He did?  Did He really rise from the dead? Today, I believe that His greatest plan is unfolding — He’s alive IN His people. You and I can easily make up a god in our own image and take a chance that what we think is right, IS actually right. But remember, our intellect and wisdom are limited, so we are making a limited choice. Sooner or later we will have to take someone else’s word. Why not take GOD’S own WORD? It’s been around for 2,000+ years or so. I know people who set out to disprove what God said and they ended up following Him because they found Him in the book!

Anybody can read the bible for themselves, starting with what Jesus said and did, and talk to God like this: “God if you are there, I am talking to you, if not, then I am talking to myself. Please help me to find You in Your book. ”Amen. All kinds of amazing things happen when you take the time to pray like that. Don’t be lost … be found! May God Himself lead you as you search to find Him. Jesus Christ IS truth. Bye 👋  

P 2412 People need help to understand.

/ DVH

I often really struggle with the concept that the people-who-don’t-know-Jesus-yet, are somehow our enemies or they are in the wrong team. The Bible describes these people as lost  …to me that means they can be found – at any minute, of any hour, of any day, any time at all! Even if people are supposedly our enemies, we are to love them! Now there’s a directive that changes stuff.  Christianity is not an exclusive club, with passwords and incomprehensible language – it’s a whosever-will-may-come-club!

Jesus told us parables about things that have been lost, and then they get found. However, we both know that He’s talking about people, not coins or sheep … ! It is a tragedy when we treat the people-who-don’t-know-Jesus yet like they are somehow inferior to us. No wonder they avoid us like the plague. We need to learn to love who HE loves, and He loves ALL OF THEM. Let’s stop trying to get them saved, so we will feel more comfortable, and share the love of God instead. There ain’t nothing more powerful than His love.

The difference between us and most non-Christians, or non-believers, is simply … His Grace. We know about what He did for all of us, and they don’t!  Grace can totally transform a human heart. “What do we have that we were not GIVEN?!’ (I Corinthians 4:7) In other words, somebody else told us there was another way to live. You or I could be the first person to ever tell another person the salvation story. What a privilege we have – we get to invite people into eternity with Jesus. His GRACE IS WHAT MATTERS – Grace works fine when you use your faith.

The dividing line between “them” and “us” is imaginary and quite useless. It puts a space where there is no need to put one! Personally, I was “them” not that many years ago. Then somebody took the time to tell me Jesus loves me. That sentence changed my life utterly. I don’t know your story, but I know I believed in a God Who was out there, somewhere, for many many years, before I met Jesus Christ personally. Up until that day I had no clue that He was available to be MET. I had never heard the gospel even once. The news that Jesus loved me, before I was even born, and He had a plan for my life, was astonishing. Before that point my own plans were kind of haphazard, and they were not working out all that well! 

I think somehow, we are afraid that if we tell people the cost of Christianity, they won’t ‘sign up!’ We’ve forgotten the whole point is for them to meet a Person, not join a church group. When they meet Him, He’s worth the cost! Prior to meeting the Lord myself, my life was a revolving door with people coming in and going out on their own whims. Then I met SomeOne Who came IN to stay. When you have suffered rejection all of your life God’s acceptance blows your mind.

As I speak to other people about the Lord, I often think of my previous life and I talk to other people with it in mind. Funnily enough, I witnessed to all my family and friends until I was no longer welcome with some of my rellies.. teehee..  Hah! Truth be told I still do that actually – giggle.😂 That’s because some of those people are now closer to the shoving-off point than they were back then, and I figure what the heck? They definitely need to know!! That’s called LOVE.

At this very moment hubby has gone off to share the gospel with a lady who knows nothing about Jesus, and she is part of a small group of people who meet to talk about the Gideon bible. Talk about dedicated! She barely speaks English!! She came here from mainland China. We have given her heaps of stuff to help her on her journey toward knowing Jesus. Her words to my hubby about the Gideon bible were: ‘This is a very hard book to understand.’ I’ll say! That’s why we give away modern versions of His book..

Finally, I want to leave everyone reading this today, with one last thought – “Where are the Phillips who will come alongside others to help them understand what they are reading?” …Just like Philip did with the Ethiopian eunuch. That godly man ran alongside this man’s carriage to help him understand the gospel. Hubby and I will, of course, pray for this lady… but we are not leaving her alone – now the Holy Spirit has her. The most important point hubby gave her today was JESUS LOVES YOU – He wants to be a part of your life. 👋🏻

PS It ain’t rocket science. A child can do it! And our children and grandchildren might have to if we keep dodging out of our own responsibility. It wouldn’t be the first time God has gone right ’round one generation to the next!