God says, I want you to realize that I never underestimated how thoroughly you’d mess up your life or how painfully you would struggle and suffer and I don’t want you to underestimate your failures or struggles either. They’re all part of the story I’m telling.
But neither have I underestimated My determination or ability to enter the mess you’ve made and the pain you feel and turn everything around.
I can, and I will, make everything good again. (More than just pass-ably good, but exceedingly great!) Never, never underestimate Me. I have a plan, a very good one, and it will move ahead to completion. Guaranteed! …. so continue to Trust Me!
Why? Because I love you even when you’re messing up badly. I love you in the middle of your pain even though I don’t relieve it as quickly as you wish. I am worthy of your trust, no matter what happens in your life. I have a good plan, and nothing will stop Me from carrying it to completion.
You must live now in the tension between anguish and hope. This is trust: this is Lent.
anguish, God, goodness, guaranteed, lent, love, trust, unfailing
God is not absent.
Not distracted.
He sees.
He knows.
He cares.
And He’s doing something about it.
active, believe, constant, faithful, God, present, remembers, trust
Today I had great fun, preaching from Nehemiah 2 v 1-10 and I didn’t even set the passage! Most of you know I’ve been brought back to this book, time-after-time….. I took a different tack to the passage, and resisted checking over previous preaches from this passage!
I contend that it’s often the hardest thing to turn intention into action! Yetwithal making it happen is vital! My original thought is this:- Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace!
1. Be patient; Passionately pray and responsibly serve. v.1b
2. Be bold; Let your fears feed your faith! v. 2-3
3. Be dependent. v. 4
4. Be prepared. v. 5-8a
5. Be expectant. v. 8b
“I would rather walk in the dark with God than go alone in the light. I would rather walk with Him by faith than walk alone by sight.” Mary Gardner Brainard
action, change, faith, God, intention, light, Nehemiah, preaching, quote, steps, trust
….what would you say is ‘wisdom for living’: within a maximum of three (short) sentences and 30-seconds notice??! Here was my quick offering….!
* stay alive; be and enjoy your healthy best,
* seek God always and speak out prayers throughout the day,
* trust God fully, give your best now and plan for tomorrow….
What would you say….?!
advice, alive, God, grow, now, seek, trust, wisdom
I trust you are knowing good-spirits, non-grumpiness and tasteful generousity this Christmas Day?! More than this do you know God’s joy this Christmas….?
I’ve had some special family and time with my beloved, past and very much anticipated!! Today I’m doing some great stuff with some great people….. And from the morning service:- what’s with singing the line “Christian children all must be mild obedient good as He”??!!…. And to overhear in the row behind me: “Santa’s no relation of Satan is he, Daddy?!!”
Made me smile!!
Merry Christmas to you and yours!
ps And a great line from TV’s Victoria Wood’s brilliant Midlife Christmas, ‘I know risk and challenge, but never the comfort-zone!’ Never seek or settle there!!
Christmas, delight, funny, giving, joy, serving, trust
and I liked it…..
I was challenged too and long to live it out…..
“Never let an impossible situation intimidate you. Let it motivate you – to pray more, trust more, be more creative.”
be, impossible, now, pray, quotation, trust
I love to travel. There’s so many places I’d love to see and enjoy in this lifetime. So much travel to enjoy and yet so little time, and the resources to do it!! Traveling is not something which is easily done lightly!
Although I don’t travel half as much as I wish, I still have a tendency to take too much luggage. Always extra tops, more socks, and spares, always far too many books for these days…. Invariably, I discover that I don’t need everything I’ve have carried along but still have to carry it. It becomes a burden throughout my trips. Its a harder job to travel light than just to throw all of your stuff in the bag!!
Isn’t life like that? We carry along excess baggage that we don’t need and it increases the difficulty of our journey. The baggage might be anger, bitterness, lack of forgiveness, or just plain negative thinking. We don’t need those attitudes to have a successful journey and they only add hugely to the burden. Maybe we ought to get rid of that excess baggage….
I can turn throughout the night and awake tired from lack of quality sleep because of excess baggage. You and I can go through the day out of balance and things don’t seem to go right because of a small problem that escalates. When you think about it the answer has always been right in front of us but we could not see it because we try to fix it ourselves instead of giving it to the one who has the answer and solution to all our problems.
I remember the wisdom that says the nearer the clearer. That is to say the nearer we are to God the clearer the solution to the problem becomes. If we pray and give the problem to God and leave it there with Him that weight of the excess baggage will be lifted. The key is to leave the problem with God and don’t reach back to pick it up again. It’s that simple yet can be so difficult if you allow it to be!
How is it with your baggage today?
Is it a case of the lighter, the brighter?
bags, excess, God, lightness, travel, trust
In Jesus, there is no such thing as bad luck. While there may be bad days….. Jesus is our brightness.
Today is Friday the 13th! Allegedly a bad luck day!! Superstition frightens or worse, controls……. so if you need too, take the sword of the Spirit to it and kill it. Here’s truth that if we fear God, then we’ll not be afraid of much else!
Here’s a few truth thrusts for your encouragement…..
Galatians 3v3 speaks this, ‘Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.’
So in Christ we cannot be cursed. There is no jinx, no curse, no hex or dread that can stick against those who are in Christ Jesus. Christ took on himself every curse that is against me. God is for me and no one can successfully overcome me.
1 John 4v4 – He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
best, jesus, lent, luck, trust
I appreciate reading from a breadth of traditions: Here are some words that have been helping me in these last few days…
‘Most loving Father, whose will it is for us to give thanks for all things, to fear nothing but the loss of you, and to cast all our care on you who cares for us: Preserve me from faithless fears and worldy anxieties, that no clouds of this mortal life may hide from me the light of that love which is immortal, and which you have manifested to us in your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.’
These words that are strong for me, are the truth for me: fear nothing but the loss of you … cast all our cares … Preserve me from faithless fears…What confidence!!
My Saviour walks with me and talks with me; He is nudging me along the path, coaxing me toward the light, toward Resurrection. There is a great distance to travel, but together we keep walking toward the light.
fear, lent, life, light, trust
