Lord Jesus

P 2622 Though none go with me …

/ DVH

Here’s a fun(?) fact no-one will like. Even in good relationships or bad ones – eventually, we all die alone. That’s a spiritual truth, as well as a natural one. When someone else we dearly love is not interested in walking in the Way with us, it is very disappointing. We can start to feel like changing stuff is too difficult, because of those other people who are deeply involved in our lives. For example, living this new life of ours exhibiting a spirit of generosity, could threaten someone else’s security levels.

First of all, I want to say that God’s expectations of each one of us is always good. He has the last word, we don’t. We must remember at all times, that HE DELIGHTS IN DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE. He can change anyone’s focus in a split second. Hallelujah!! But what He seems to prefer is that we work together with the Holy Spirit in order to change. (Read the book!) We choose to change the way we live today, because we want to please the Lord Jesus, not necessarily anybody else. We want to live differently because of our own convictions, for His sake, not theirs.

This new way to live becomes firmly established outside of our own normal ‘personal comfort zone.’ That comfort zone is the place where we live every day, and react almost without thinking … because we are not used to being governed by holiness. In every day life we can have good or bad attitudes, so we either expect praise, or we expect to be excused, using our ‘humanity’ as an excuse. But in reality, that’s the way to become lukewarm, and spiritually ineffective. 

It is easy in this life with its many pressures to formulate an image of who we think we are, and think walking with the Holy Spirit is ‘not really for me.’  But as I tackle being changed by Grace, there needs to be a conscious turning away from my old way to live, together with active repentance. I will need to seek the Holy Spirit’s prompting to help me remember that now my priority is walking with Him … not just getting along with you. After all I can easily get along with you if I know you well, and I choose not to bother you! We can all grow very used to letting sleeping dogs lie.

For some people walking that extra mile with a headstrong loved one, can turn out to be a difficult thing, fraught with angst and missteps at ever single turn. However, this is a lifelong way to live and die daily, and we can’t do it hoping the people we care about will get His point quickly. The reality is in order to achieve our new aim of living for Jesus, no matter what happens, one of the biggest costs will definitely be our comfort. Read the book. Comfort was always the first thing to go!!

Sadly, some people we care about may never get the point of transformation because they aren’t even looking at these areas. Why not? I dunno. Not a clue. They just don’t seem to think they are doing anything wrong. Walking in the Spirit seems to be for other, more spiritual people, not them! I have noticed that by the time people reach some age, or milestone, or other life circumstance, they start to think that they cannot change – this is now who they really are. Their perceived personhood has become established. That’s not what the bible says, BTW! Moses started his new life at eighty!

In some other instances, I know that people pray sincerely and constantly about change, but then they just leave it at prayer — and when nothing happens, they assume that God does not have a problem with them about such things and so they just settle back into … being comfortable. We simply must move past agreeing with God’s Word into actively living it out! This is where choosing to deliberately live a life of love facilitates transformation. 

Actually I’d say changing our way of life, from trying harder, to following the Holy Spirit while living a life dedicated to loving others — no matter how they behave — go hand in hand! One thing does not work without the other. When His love starts to flow out through us it is attractive to other people. One of the best things we can do when we decide to live a love-filled transformed life is to ask for His help and fix every single bad relationship we can, and then leave our past behind. If stuff comes up, then we repent, repair and … move on. “If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”Romans 12:18.

Even if I were on a desert island, all by myself, my walk with Jesus would still be my own responsibility. I don’t have to be tripped up by what you do or don’t do, or what you say or don’t say. My aim is to please Him, and decide to live a life worthy of my own calling. That’s what following Him looks like. Bye. 👋

P 2616 AS …

/ DVH

The bible says in Matthew, we are to love one another AS we love ourselves. It’s part of a conversation Jesus had with a guy who seemed to be looking for boundaries, or, at the very least, guidelines in how to please God. Jesus said this to him in Matthew 22:37-39:  …“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour AS yourself.”

The Cambridge dictionary explains the word AS, like this —“used in comparisons to refer to the degree of something.”

It means this: to the same degree that I love me, I need to love you. Yeah, people have been stuck on that merry-go-round for years. I think we’ve all been sucked into trying to love ourselves first, SO we could love others. Rhubarb. That’s NOT what the bible says. As and so are not the same thing. So means I already need to be full, and then I can look at your need.

The reality is this: if I have an idea that maybe I don’t love myself enough, then it can’t be my fault if I can’t love you! And I will probably set out on an endless, fruitless, not-to-mention distracting quest, trying to love me! Well, there’s a waste of time. Think about it … how can I die to self if I am busy trying to love me – so I can eventually love you? The thing is, that verse has been used to make a nice little hidey-hole. If I get focussed on loving and being nice to me, then the real truth is I probably won’t have enough time for YOU!  

‘So I can love you’ means I will be way too busy trying to find and fill the hole in my heart for approval and love that this earthly life has left me with … to even look your way. Please understand, I do not mean to imply that the Lord was on a grammar kick – I’m sure He said what He meant. Human beings sadly … notsomuch! God could care less if you have some large amount of money in the bank or not — He cares how you use your money because it indicates where you are spiritually. Do you use what you have for the good of others, or do you give away whatever you can afford or whatever is spare? If so you are missing the blessing. AS means we do it the same way HE would do it.

Self-love is a new age concept and it has snuck into the church.

The key word in this scripture is the word AS. It is extremely simple to discern if we love ourselves, we simply need to ask ourselves: “do I feed me, do I have somewhere to sleep, do I have clothes to cover me….??”  The next question then, must be …in comparison to me, ‘what does my neighbour have? Somewhere to sleep? Something to eat? Clothes they can wear?’ If the answer is no, then I have missed the mark as well as the point. Jesus cleared up the whole “who is my neighbour” question when He told the story of the Good Samaritan!

Anyway …the point is not to increase my love for ME it is to increase my love for OTHERS. The right response to that question is this: am I loving others in the same way I love myself? Do I care enough about them to make sure they have what they need? I do hope you can see the difference, because it is a big one. I am not indulging in semantics with these two little words. Those two little words and their interpretations make a huge difference to my whole giving behaviour.

This is where the blessing lives:”And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” Hebrews 13:16. “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Luke 22:33. “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” I John 3:17. (Yeah I know! Bring that up!!)

Loving one another in God’s eyes means we look after one another. Why do you think Ananias and Sapphira dropped dead? Read the book. “With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.” Acts 4:33-35.

The Grace of God in our lives causes us to be generous in the same way God Himself is generous – He’s the same Holy Spirit. Here’s a further laugh-riot to contemplate. Those givers in Acts, had no choice on how the money they gave was to be used – the apostles distributed it! Ananias and Sapphire agreed to defraud God. They used the power of agreement to try to lie the Holy Spirit and the Body of Christ. Loving others the way we love ourselves is about living a Grace-filled shared life. The result is, we become givers in every area! Bye 👋

P 2610 Christ’s representatives.

/ DVH

“I have commissioned them to represent Me just as You commissioned Me to represent You. And now I dedicate myself to them as a holy sacrifice so that they will live as fully dedicated to God and be made holy by Your truth.” “And I ask not only for these disciples, but also for all those who will one day believe in Me through their message.” John 17:18-20 TPT.  

First of all, feel free to shout hallelujah, because Jesus just prayed for US … that’s you and me…  in this scripture … “And I ask not only for these disciples, but also for all those who will one day believe in Me through their message.”  Jesus Christ prayed for every single one of us. Chapter 17 of John makes great further reading. Meanwhile, I, sort of kind of think God is going to answer Jesus’ prayers … whaddaya reckon?? 😶 Years ago there was a saying: “Every promise in the book is mine …” Yeah. Well, every word in this book is mine, not just the promises … meanwhile, I don’t have to like those words to obey them!

The bible is not the kind of book we read skipping bits… blah, blah, blah – boring, boring, boring …! If you feel like that you are totally reading in the wrong place. However, if you feel convicted  … well, congratulations! You definitely found the right place for you to read! Well done! Reading the bible only looking for the blessings is a D.U.M.B./stupid thing to do. The bible is here to reveal God’s heart to us, just as surely as Jesus revealed Him to everyone around Him, when He walked the earth, all those years ago. PS you don’t have to understand everything you read, that’s why we have a HELPER.

Mo-ving on …Almighty God commissioned Jesus to come here to represent … oh … I l💕ve that word! You might see me write it like this … RE..PRESENT.   We re-present what we have heard and seen about Christ, that’s what a witness does. In the dictionary represent means this ; “be entitled or appointed to act or speak for (someone), especially in an official capacity.” How cool is that?! Jesus was appointed to speak for God and He appointed US to speak and act for Him! Almighty God sent Jesus Christ to make His Ways known clearly. In that scripture it says that in the same way the Father sent His Son to demonstrate His love, so the Lord Jesus has sent US to do that for others. If that little bit of info doesn’t make you sit down and feel solemn and full of responsibility then you didn’t hear what it said.

Jesus has a perfect right to ask us to do this awesome job for Him, because He dedicated Himself to, and for US, as a holy sacrifice. And when we exchanged our sin for His holiness and favour with God… we gave our lives away. As a man, Christ fulfilled every single aspect of the law, perfectly. Because He did that, there is a never-ending supply of Grace that we access when we act in faith. It’s our inheritance from our King! We tap into an already established spiritual well, full of everything we will ever need to please the Father. We simply use our faith to access what we’ve already been given. At the same time, it is like the Lord Himself is standing in front of us asking us to do whatever it is.

Jesus deliberately chose to make that holy sacrifice, so now we will always have the power to live the way He did. Our end game is not fame, or fortune;  our end game is to be exactly like Jesus was when He was here. And the Holy Spirit’s aim is to help us. We must be transformed. And, as you can see, as we go along this road, God’s revealed truth in His word will make us holy like Jesus is holy. You know, you and I are not all that! Jesus is, and always was, ALL THAT. We now live this life we have, to re-present Him to others. However, when I act like Jesus would – HE COMES IN THE ROOM. 

The only thing we need to remember is that He did not come into this world to condemn the world, He came to SAVE us all. So there is no room for condemnation when we speak to other people. We are here to speak, walk, think and act out God’s love toward others. Bye.👋

P 2557 Our thought life matters.

/ DVH

“Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude.Tell Him every detail of your life, then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding, will guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ. Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honourable and admirable, beautiful and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind. And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising Him always.”Philippians 4:6-8 TPT.

These verses are, without a doubt, a collection of the most amazing spiritual advice that I’ve heard in years. I think if we all took the time to apply what these 2 verses in Philippians say, there would be a world-wide transformation in the Body of Christ! What Paul is saying here is we need to let our minds, hearts and spirits be fixed on the Lord – no matter what is clamouring all around us for our attention. 

What does that mean? Whenever we find ourselves think-worrying etc. we give whatever it is to the Lord and leave it with Him, and we thank Him for His help. That’s the secret of living within the shelter of the most High God. It isn’t that we always have to have exactly the right attitude, now, living this new life He gave us is about knowing where our help comes from and turning to Him. Our God must never be an add-on, His Ways are our NEW life now. 

The problem we face is that it is way too easy to have a divided heart.  A divided heart sadly has a part- time God! People living like this consider what the Lord wants only when they have time, or when they need Him. Knowing our God and obeying Him is not a hobby, to be picked up and put down. I’m sure we can all see the hole in that kind of thinking. Here’s a good thing to pray:“Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on Your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your Name. I will praise You, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify Your Name forever.” (Psalm 86:11)

A lack of Godly fear and reverence can also produce a divided heart. Especially if we do not put the Lord in His proper place in our lives and hearts. He is to be enthroned in our lives, through our demonstrated obedience to Him. Other people must see HIM through us! Christ Himself is the perfect example of this in action, as we watch Him relate to Almighty God personally. And if we take the time we can also study just how He related to others. Christ’s life is our example. 

Think about Lazarus, Martha and Mary – the Lord Jesus was close friends with them. BUT! God’s WILL took precedence even over that special friendship – Jesus chose to do what He did, God’s way. Their close friendship did not drag Him to the women’s side when their brother died. He waited for His Father’s timing. This shows us how obedience works. Otherwise we might easily forget ourselves and start telling the Lord what we think He should do! Remember, we serve Him, God does not serve us!  At the same time we need to be prayerfully careful that any disappointment in our lives, does not turn into disappointment with Him and His choices for us. Or we can end up presumptuous, like satan did. 

We have been reborn for a reason. Now we are living and learning to continually draw upon that new life within us. It is impossible to live this new life in our own strength. That’s why our focus is so important! We are progressively learning to lean on Him. As we live this way we will acquire soft hearts that are tender-hearted towards the Lord, as well as others. There is a reason we are told to fix our mind on what is good, right, pure and honourable. This world around us will drag us under and extinguish all our God-given hope!

Obedience to what He has already told us in His book, plus  our chosen, personal God-given obedience, as well as our abiding love for Him, are essential. These things will help us keep our focus on what’s good right and just. Our first response in any given situation needs to be:  ‘What does the Lord want here?’ Lately every time I ask Him that question, the Holy Spirit says to me …”trust Him.” At this moment in my life learning to trust is my learning curve! 

Our obedience is motivated by faith, and that obedience is one of the greatest tools to help us increase our confidence in His Ways. We will see Him personally, at work on our behalf. Nobody has to preach at us, now we have our own testimonies! If our thought life is weaving about between the things of this world and what He says – we will lose our clarity. I am reminded of a grand old hymn: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and Grace.”Almighty God is revealed to us and through us, when we allow Who He is, to take over our focus. Bye. 👋

P 2548 Fight for your HOPE.

/ DVH

Psalm 42:1-11. “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”  Have you ever thought to yourself? … “If I can just get to Jesus, I know I will be alright.” It seems this Psalmist guy had a similar thought … or … maybe he is just a realist? A lot of our time can be wasted on trying to work out stuff we can’t possibly fix – and/or things that are way outside our control! When all it takes is “help help” Lord! We cannot manage our new life without Him.

“These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Saviour and my God.”

Remembering the good things of the past sets us up to have renewed hope for the future. This guy has enough sense to know that his soul, his feelings, his imagination and his circumstances are never good things to be allowed to lead us. He asks himself questions! We cannot afford to spend our time and focus lamenting about the things that come at us. We must remind ourselves God is still on His throne and He always wants to help us!  BTW, unless we are continually renewing our minds, our minds can go into terrible places too.

“My soul is downcast within me;  therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.  Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls;  all Your waves and breakers have swept over me. By day the Lord directs His love, at night His song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.“

This Psalmist has a great grasp on reality. He doesn’t deny what is going on, instead he uses his memory to remind himself of better times, wherever he goes. Without the Lord Jesus continually guiding us, our lives can be smashed against the rocks of this life and they can immediately seem purposeless.

In the Western world we’ve been led astray, because we’ve been living lives of comparative ease. We don’t face the terrible things daily other people in this world are facing, daily. It is too easy to think that having whatever we want;  a good life without hardship, is our right. And then we can get our crank on when this life becomes difficult. Easy lives raise shallow people, just like shallow soil raises plants with shallow roots. God wants to grow oak trees, not radishes. You can harvest radishes in a week, oak trees take a little longer! 

“I say to God my Rock, “Why have You forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God? Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Saviour and my God.”

You know, if we absolutely have to complain, then let’s go and talk things over with the Lord. But remember, if all we ever do is complain then — He will eventually leave us to work things out for ourselves. Complaints need to turn back toward faith in Him and asking for His help. We must push past our feelings into the reality of His Presence. Our God is always with us, He wants to help us. He will even save us from our own stupid selves. Trouble is the best time to ask yourself questions. Why am I feeling so overwhelmed? Why isn’t my faith handling this Lord? 

The way through trials and tribulations is to continually push back against everything around us that wants to soothe us off to sleep, into oblivion. This world will be happy to tell us how unfair our life is. We have to learn to resist whatever is going on around us, and go back to lifting our eyes and hearts, up to the Lord. That’s where our help always comes from – He is the centre of focus – not the things that pass away. Plus our feelings, will lie to us!  Let’s press on into hope and resist our circumstances, because they can change in a heartbeat. And then we ask ourselves, ‘Who is in charge of my life, my responses, my well-being … my circumstances, or God?’ I will always have a choice to make. I can choose to give in to how I feel etc. or remember where my hope comes from.

Just because things don’t get better that does not mean God has deserted you – He has a plan. No matter how dark it seems – He has a plan to ‘give us a hope and a future.” Hold on! Don’t let your feelings push your faith aside. The man who wrote this Psalm knew he was able to get through things, because he knew that in God, he was bigger inside than outside. Whenever we let go of our hope we are letting go of OUR anchor! Hebrews 6:19, 20.”We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, …”

If you end up bobbing about in rough seas wondering why you are being pushed around by huge waves, currents and undercurrents of this life – it is time to remind yourself that you’ve forgotten to let down the anchor. Grab hold of Jesus and tell Him, “I will not let You go!.” Because of what Christ did, we can go into the Holy of holies and seize our hope. Hope is our forever anchor, and our Hope is always in the Lord and what He did for us, not in our circumstances. Jesus is our everlasting hope that God has a purpose in the midst of the chaos. 🙌

P 2487 The power of God is for the persistent.

/ DVH

The Lord Jesus went out into the wilderness and He was led there by the Holy Spirit, but, when He comes out of that place — He comes outin the POWERof the Holy Spirit. So this is what I want to say for today … some times when I am tempted to fight I think to myself – just one more time! The power to overcome comes with perseverance. Therefore, I will say that soft word that turns away wrath, one more time, I will turn the other cheek, one more time – I will forgive… one more time. Our enemy defeats us by projection – he projects a future that is not there, and he uses our past to do it. he says: “It has always been this way, and so it will always be this way. You have to fight or you will lose something valuable.” 

If God has not spoken to you, it is not over!  STAND. Sometimes we give up and quit fighting our enemy too early – we give in to our baser nature. Christ fought His battle through until His enemy was defeated. (Read Matthew 4:1-11) He stayed the course until the end! The power of God came and empowered the Lord in the middle of His weakness as He stood firmly on what the Holy Spirit gave Him to say, in this incredible fight. In those moments, it could have become a battle of wills, but Jesus was too spiritually attuned to play satan’s little game, He used God’s wisdom to bring about God’s purposes.

We cannot fight our enemy by ourselves! We too, need to be too smart to be pulled into “if only” and “what if.” It is what it is. A battle. Quitting early means we are letting our flesh win. Keep fighting until you hit His peace. Without His peace we can easily be sidetracked into places we were not meant to go. Seek God for a word, (or three) … and then WAIT. Let the Holy Spirit pick your battle ground – sometimes the battle is not ours. Whatever the circumstances, let the Holy Spirit guide you through them.

It was the verses with the POWER of the Holy Spirit on them in this incredible battle that WON! After the Lord was tested 3 times, the enemy had to leave. Jesus did not buy into satan’s ?logic? Remember the introductory verse to Matthew 4 says,  it was God’s idea for Jesus to be tested. The Holy Spirit led Him into that battleground. My advice is this – don’t be led into a battle you cannot win. When it comes to someone else’s will, or mind attitude – you and I cannot change it. We need to step back and let the Holy Spirit have His way … by letting love for the other person reign, the Holy Spirit knows the way through. Sometimes we fight, sometimes we die to self, sometimes we stand. But we always aim at maintaining LOVE for the other person.

In the first two of the three temptations mentioned in this scripture, satan says “if.” What is he doing? he knows the weaknesses of human flesh and he plays upon those weaknesses – he’s trying to get Jesus to accomplish what He was sent to do, in the flesh. Christ’s flesh was weakened by that fast. But Jesus had the One Who wrote the bible, with Him. (He is with US too!) We cannot fight without the Holy Spirit’s help.

In the end satan drops his pretence of helping, and blatantly goes for what he really wants … Christ’s worship. he wants the throne … satan has always wanted the throne.  he is jealous and he wants power. But because of what Christ did, we can sit, stand and walk with Jesus Christ daily. Never forget, that in times of trouble WE can walk right up to the throne of Grace and GRACE WILL MEET US. 

The Holy Spirit knows the perfect word of God to make our enemy flee. You and I may end up using more than one verse, but as the Holy Spirit hands them to us, we fling them at the things that are assailing us. Blame is useless in this place of battle – we are fighting the devil, not a human being. Stop fighting the person – resist the devil. Don’t be tempted to think up some snappy reply … the other guy has heard them all!  Just like Christ’s ministry belonged to Him, whatever we are fighting for belongs to us. But the way to win, is to lay whatever it is down at His feet, keep walking in Love, and use the scriptures that the Holy Spirit gives us to defeat our enemy. 

Lastly, Jesus had to fight the enemy in His weakened flesh – He was hungry and thirsty he needed food. The enemy is a snake, he will come at you when you are already weak. Then in Christ’s mind – He was offered everything He came to earth to buy back, without the cross. He saw those cities. Just one word and they were His … because satan owns them. The cities of this earth are corrupted. The power of God is the only true, permanent vehicle for change. There are no short-cuts. The only way up is down, the only way to live is to die, and the only way to do what He sent you here to do, is to lay it all down. Let the dream die. Maybe God gave you that dream … now, lay it down at His feet. Remember, this is one of the purest forms of worship. 

“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for He gives to His beloved sleep.” Psalm 127:1&2. The power of God is for the persistent, those who will do whatever it takes, and give up everything, for His sake. Doing that will not be comfortable! “If we perish, we perish …” Esther 4:16. God’s will be done. His will, His way. Bye 👋🏻

P 2468 Let all your conversations be sweet.

/ DVH

“Let every activity of your lives and every word that comes from your lips be drenched with the beauty of our Lord Jesus, the Anointed One. And bring your constant praise to God the Father because of what Christ has done for you!” Colossians 3:17 TPT

Did you get that? Maybe you could do what I do, and read what it says again… And then take the time to think about every single word coming out of your mouth being sweetly drenched with the beauty of our Lord Jesus Christ! Before you hyperventilate over that sentence I have one thing to say … it seems to me most of us are aiming at nothing and that means we are sadly hitting nothing square in the middle. Verses like this one in Colossians are there to give us something worthwhile to aim at! For too long we’ve insulted the Holy Spirit and made out like He wasn’t doing His part … but the reality is … WE LIKE OUR OWN FLESH BETTER. 

Remember, this isn’t about getting things right, it’s about what we are aiming at. When is the last time you remembered that you carry the Presence of God? (We are His living breathing temple.) We don’t even have to be eloquent when the King is in residence because He knows exactly what to say to them! What matters to the Holy Spirit is whatever comes out of our mouths daily – are we building up and encouraging everyone around us? And BTW it doesn’t matter if someone else is rude to us, our response is our response – aim for sweet! It’s time to revise and repent and prioritise what He wants. 

We can all talk the talk, but can we live the life the way the bible portrays it?? 😶 There are days when I fall down so many times my old bones complain at me, but I press on for the prize. Looking and sounding like Jesus would everywhere I go – is the prize! Just because I don’t always hit that, that will not stop me pressing on. I dearly want to see the Sons and Daughters of God act like the Sons and Daughters of God – so I must start with myself.

The marvellous thing about being transformed by Him is that we will be wonderfully surprised by what the Holy Spirit will do in us, and through us— when we obey His Word, under His guidance. I stand around a lot of the time with my mouth hanging open because I can’t believe what He just told me to say … plus what happened to the person I said it to!  Every single time. People weep all over the place. And nobody is more surprised about that than me! I believe that this is because ordinary people have no idea how much God loves us all – they think He only loves the people who go to church!! The reason He told us to tell them is because they don’t know! Duh.

I dunno why we decided to keep this joyous info a secret? Or why we save it for the select few that manage to pluck up their courage and join us in our churches, but somewhere, back there, we did. Those buildings we worship in are not the church. WE are the church. Maybe we’ve reduced His good news to a slogan that simply says: “God loves you.” I’m not trying to be nasty but my local supermarket loves me when I shop there … they love my money very much!! They smile at me and say hello and everything. 😳 The people outside our churches need to know why He loves them.  

Maybe Christianity has become a secret club when we weren’t looking, and we now think that people have to want to join us. Based on the way we generally treat the rest of the world … like we are somehow more special than they are – it’s no wonder they opt out!! They don’t know the language, they don’t know what to do … but here’s something that anyone recognises… LOVE!!

You know, every Christmas we trot out a dilapidated manger with a baby in it … Hmmm when someone wants your picture do you give them a baby photo? Christmas is about a glorious risen Saviour Who died for their sakes. The real PRESENT at Christmas was God came to earth wrapped up in human flesh, not Christmas wrapping. Forget tinsel, jewellery or new cars or vacuum cleaners – Almighty God humbled Himself to be with us! That’s how much He loves us – He gave us Himself.

Ask yourself, where will the people around us learn this information, if we don’t tell them? We don’t have to bore them with three hours of theology, just tell them how much He loves them. Tell them how you found out that what the bible says about Who Jesus Christ is, is true. The power of our own personal witness has yet to be harnessed. Then show them His love in action, by forgiving them and saying so, without dredging up their sins. Ask them to forgive you, without hesitation. 

Christmas is the time when God Himself gave mankind a new beginning. It seems fitting to me that that is the kind of gift we need to give away to others around us. Regularly drenching ourselves in thoughts about how incredible He is to do what He did, helps us with the way we talk. This means we talk about living with a loving risen Saviour, day by day, and how He enriches our lives with His Presence. Let His love loose, they need it. 👋🏻

P 2433 Food for thought.

/ DVH

“Escort me into Your truth; take me by the hand and teach me. For You are the God of my salvation; I have wrapped my heart into Yours all day long!” Psalms 25:5 TPT. Today the above scripture made me think about wrapping up parcels… I guess it is the time of year when wrapping things becomes a priority. I never know why we do it – you only tear the paper off to get at what is inside!! Maybe it is the surprise element?  

However, I just l💕ve giving gifts, it’s my all time favourite thing to do. I watch for the person’s happy face with great anticipation. That happy face is my pay-off.  It makes all the effort of carefully wrapping things worth it. Meanwhile sticky tape and I have always been mortal enemies. That danged stuff always manages to stick to itself! Sigh. I never was one of those people who could take paper, ribbon and a bow and make a dazzling creation. 🎁 OK I got sidetracked… Back to today’s point …

Somebody told me this once;  it gave me food for thought. People who are wrapped up in themselves make a very small parcel. Sigh. I think I’ve met a few small parcels recently. Sadly, they can be very tiring people to know. Every single thing is about them and their troubles and woes. It’s like trying to get close to a vacuum cleaner – everything goes in but nothing comes out. Or if it does accidentally come out – it makes a huge mess!  I think that this Psalm is a prayer as well as a declaration. This Psalmist knows what it means to have personal involvement from the Lord and he is reminding himself of what God is like. He finds no loss in Almighty God.

The Lord’s personal teaching helps this man to be intimately engaged with God.That last line impacted me: “I have wrapped my heart into Yours all day long!”  What a promise … and a challenge! When I read something like that, it kind of just seems like beautiful poetry to me. However, I’m not actually sure what it actually means for me today, right here, right now. I’m big on stuff that has significance, stuff that gives me something to DO!  That’s when I remembered that Almighty God chose to wrap Himself in skin and enter my life —HE did something for me. He’s no vacuum cleaner, if He never did anything else, that was enough.

He came here to live amongst us. As a result, the Lord Jesus, Who only made the world (!) was cold, tired, thirsty, wet, fed-up … He was also ignored, maltreated, abused, criticised, and hungry (read the book!) … all that for our sake ….and .. He chose to die. Man you could just sit and meditate on those thoughts for a lifetime. It shows me and helps me comprehend what being wrapped up in something means! He is wrapped up in us.

There is so much beauty and personal engagement in what God did when He sent Jesus Christ here. Sometimes the overall concept of God saving the world, is too far away from where we live every single day to benefit us. To be wrapped up in Him, what what He did needs to impact me every day. Maybe a clearer picture might sound like this – God cared enough to come here to save me. Because He did that, He impacted my own little world – and that impact included everybody I know and care about. Nothing about my life is trivial to Him.

When I read the bible, sometimes one word or a phrase catches me in the heart. I like that little word “escort.”. To me that means SomeOne incredible is helping me to find my way in this life, and He is extremely dedicated and personal about it. This is not a formal escort – that person just gives you an arm to hold onto. No, the Holy Spirit takes me by the heart and hand and teaches me, personally. No wonder this Psalmist has wrapped his heart into God – He can see that God has wrapped His heart into us!

Our God is active in every intimate detail of our lives. Our loves, our losses, our sadnesses, our joy. That’s because as we wrap our heart into His, He continually wraps His heart into our lives, giving them meaning beyond the mundane. Here’s another Psalm, 138:8 AMPC “The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy and loving-kindness, O Lord, endure forever–forsake not the works of Your own hands.” He cares about the things I care about! And He cares enough to make sure nothing is left out. Nothing about me and my life, is insignificant to Him. 

Here’s my last food-for-thought verse from a Psalm:  ““He heals the wounds of every shattered heart.” Psalm 147:3 TPT.  Just in case you think you have not found that to be true – think on this …He doesn’t say WHEN our hearts will be healed … it just says He WILL do it.👋🏻 

P 2395 Talking to other people.

/ DVH

There was a time when I had to sort of prime myself into speaking to someone else about the Lord Jesus. Fear of rejection and disapproval from them… as well as thoroughly annoying someone else to the point where they might punch me on the nose …  held me back! However, the Lord has been teaching me that when my focus is on how I feel, or what is happening to me etc. I am not walking in, or focussed, on His Love. Actually I am probably more focussed on self-preservation! His Love is ‘other’ centred. My faith needs to be focussed on the other person – not how I feel. That’s what witnessing is about.

It is my opinion that many people do not witness because it IS scary and it seems intrusive. In today’s PC world, proselytising is a big fat no-no. Now that’s a word you don’t see very often any more – proselytising – it means: convert or attempt to convert (someone) from one religion, belief, or opinion to another. That is not our aim. Our aim is to release the love of God, Who we know personally, into someone else’s life. 

When I witness, I want to do so in a natural fashion, telling others about what Jesus means to me. That’s it. We are not trying to change someone’s mind, we are introducing them to a whole new world they don’t know about. That thought is this – people are precious to God, and He personally did something about the things that stop us from enjoying His love. ← And that would be a full stop right there!

We don’t have to give other people the 24 spiritual laws, or argue them into His kingdom. Most times if we argue with someone we are talking to their mind, or their emotions. What we want is to release the kindness, love, compassion and wisdom of the Holy Spirit INTO their lives – so He can do what He does far better than we can!  I’ve personally watched the Holy Spirit go right round someone’s brain and hit them in the heart. Countless times. How does that happen? I simply say or do, what He tells me to say! And, big clue here, what I say is hardly ever complicated. “He loves you” is not complicated! 

Our part in this kind of life is to stay close to the Holy Spirit! He’s the Wind! He knows when to blow on someone else’s life – or not. Sometimes we may not need to say anything. Just living an ordinary laid-down life of love says it all. What do I mean by that? It means that I live my life believing that He is exactly Who He says He is, and I put Him and His wishes first. He is in charge of everything about me, because I asked Him to save me. I gave up my right to run my own life my own way when I said: “Yes.”  Now my only aim when I talk to other people, is to let the Love of God shine through me, however HE wants to do it. That love comes from Him, through me, to them.

The second thing that always helps me to talk to others, is this – learn to listen. When you are talking to someone because the Lord set it up – our life experiences often don’t matter. Let them talk about theirs. Just listen and don’t sermonise or judge. Let Love rule! Learn to listen with your heart not your head. Talk about Jesus as you know Him, personally.   

I know this sounds a bit daft, but talk about the Lord like you and He just had a coffee, and you were chatting together. Hopefully you have actually been just chatting with Him, because you were praying and studying the bible today!  Be reverent and respectful, about Who He is and what He did, but let people see your own personal relationship with Him. He’ll tell you what to say and what not to say. If I were talking to someone else about any friend of mine I might say: “Oh my Friend Jesus said this to me the other day.” That’s what I mean by natural.

Most people in this world think Christians follow rules that other people can’t, or don’t want to follow. They have no idea that we have a relationship with the greatest Person in the Universe and beyond. They need to know that our relationship with Him is personal – He is the God Who is always there. Sometimes, when I am giving away my bookmarks, I say: “Jesus asked me to give you this. He picked this one for you.” Because He did! He told me give that particular person that bookmark. Time and time again I am amazed at the other person’s response.

When we sow an earthly seed, we poke it into the ground and walk away. The same thing is true spiritually. All over this world seeds need to be sown. The Lord told me once: “You can’t have a harvest if you don’t sow seeds!” Witnessing is simply sowing seeds. Most earthly seeds are pretty insignificant. They often bear very little resemblance to the final product. But that seed has potential. Talking to other people in a natural fashion about what you believe is planting a seed with potential. 👋🏻

Acts 1:8 (NIV) “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

P 2188 Living by faith, hope and love.

/ DVH

1 Thessalonians 1:3: “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” In many of our minds those things mentioned in this verse in 1 Thessalonians, are merely concepts. However they don’t easily translate into real life. These concepts need to be part of how we live otherwise we will nod our heads in agreement and then forget all about living from this new place.

This verse is an extremely valuable diagnostic tool, when we are doing whatever it is, without stretching and engaging our faith. If it doesn’t stretch us then it isn’t FAITH! Sometimes we do stuff out of obligation or pressure, or to give a good impression. Repent. Even making dinner, going to work, or making a cup of tea can be faith. We do whatever we do, for the Lord Jesus. If we aren’t living that way, then we need to go back and ask for His help and have another go! BTW, this verse is not some sort of escape clause or an excuse – we can’t just go to the pastor and tell him that the Lord didn’t tell us to do whatever it is – so we ain’t doing it!  We are now subject to His instructions, in the bible.

We need to be inspired by the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of God is gentle, lowly in heart, He is obedient and kind. He has a heart of service toward mankind. As we walk with Him that will be the way we think too. He inspires us into these greater works because He loves us all. Any reservations we have about these things provides personal insight into whatever is motivating us. They diagnose our inner human resistance. 

Faith has works, James made that clear.  But those works aren’t simply done to produce or facilitate some sort of end result. Rather, we use our faith to serve Him and others, and that faith is meant to promote His kingdom mentality in us. We use our faith to obey the bible, and Holy Spirit’s inspired leading. When we do things because we’ve been asked to do them by the Lord, the faith we use to carry out the task produces MORE faith. The difficulty is, most of the time, we can actually do whatever it is and not use any faith at all, and that kind of response is more out of convenience, appearances, or duty, or habit. But our faith will produce works that have been prompted by obedience to the word, or the Holy Spirit. 

Perhaps our pastor asks us to go and see and help Sister Mary who is ill. So we carry out this seemingly ordinary task using our faith that the pastor is the leader, and we are serving him, as well as serving our sister, by doing whatever it is. We do what we do as though we were doing it for the Lord Jesus. This is what using our faith to obey, prompted by love for the Lord and others, looks like.

What if we can’t stand Sister Mary and we don’t want to do what the pastor asked us to do? Now we have an opportunity to grow. That’s when we need to go to the Lord and tell Him that we have a wrong attitude, could He please help us? I can’t tell you the result of that scenario, because I don’t know – I just know if my aim is to grow my faith using love – I will have to choose to be transformed in this area. It is no sin to acknowledge that we lack the right motivation, we are all spiritually poor without Christ. We need His riches. It is not a sin to be poor, we just need to admit that we need help. Maybe the pastor can pray for us? 

In my personal experience if I refuse to do something or make excuses, I am probably going to bump into Sister Mary every single time I turn around. Why? God is giving me an opportunity to change my POV. However, please don’t tell Sister Mary you don’t like her … she’s got enough going on already! Go to the Lord and talk to Him about how you feel. Let Him minister His love to you … we can only give away what we have. Now go and do whatever it is anyway and put your feelings aside. This is what living by faith looks like. Avoidance simply postpones the lesson, and trust me, next time it will be harder – because we just hardened our heart!

In order to use our faith we need to line up with the bible – not our feelings. Feelings deceive us – they can be affected by the weather, pizza, or our own personal preferences. They tell us we can’t, when we clearly can, but we just don’t want to! Feelings come and go – the word of our God stands forever. We need to choose to participate in the eternal. Christians do whatever they do, using their faith and hope in His love and power to motivate us through the difficult bits. The Holy Spirit will always help us to persevere despite any personal difficulties. 👋🏻