Maintain your pace

When I was driving recently, I noticed I was the only one on the road – or at least that’s what it seemed like. By the time I stopped at traffic light, there were so many other cars around me - as usual, the Holy Spirit stepped in and converted this to a teachable moment - simply put, He said:

Face your race

Maintain your pace

I'm sure you have heard so many times that life is a race. Interestingly, it is as much a sprint as it is a marathon. We must all remain focussed on our individual races - what people around you are doing could impact you but must not distract you from your race. Despite the fact that there were more cars around me at the traffic light, it was no reason to change my destination and follow them to theirs when the light changed to green. Unfortunately, some people get distracted and derailed from their destination (& purpose in God) because of what is happening around them. Let's take this to another level...

Who are you related to?

Got this piece by email...

Curtis and Paul Jones wrote how, on a bitterly cold day in a western city, a small boy stood shivering on a steel grate in the sidewalk. He was very poorly dressed and obviously a child of the street.

A well-dressed woman passerby noticed the lad and began to talk to him. Sensing his need, she took him to a clothing store and had him completely outfitted suitable for the weather

—including cap, scarf, and gloves.

The lad was so grateful he couldn't thank her enough.

 As they parted he turned back to ask, "Are you God's mother?"

Surprised, the woman replied, "Oh, no! I'm just a child of God."

Whereupon the smiling lad remarked, "I knew you were related."

Think on this...

Faith is putting all your eggs in God's basket,

then counting your blessings before they hatch.

~Ramona C. Carroll

Definitely the right way to live in calm assurance*...that's the life!

*The author of Hebrews puts it this way: 

And my righteous ones will live by faith.

But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away. (Heb 10:38 - NLT)

Secret # 7: Calm assurance

Secret #7: Calm assurance in the face of injustice comes from knowing that God is in control of the future.*

If I could restate this quotation, I'd say Calm assurance in the face of any circumstance comes from knowing that God is in control of the future. Put even more succintly, "Calmness is the cradle of power."**

How do you describe Him?

He is (author unknown)

In Genesis, He is the Breath of life.

In Exodus, our Passover Lamb.

In Leviticus, our Great High Priest.

In Numbers, Fire by night.

In Deuteronomy He is Moses’ voice.

In Joshua, Salvation’s choice.

In Judges, He is the Law Giver.

In Ruth, our Kinsman Redeemer.

In 1 and 2 Samuel, He is the Trusted Prophet.

In 1 and 2 Kings and 1 and 2 Chronicles, the Sovereign One.

In Ezra, He is the True and Faithful Scribe.

In Nehemiah, the Rebuilder of broken walls and lives.

In Esther, He is Mordecai's (& Esther's) courage.

In Job, the Timeless Redeemer.

In Psalms, He is our Morning Song.

In Proverbs, Wisdom’s Cry.

In Ecclesiastes, He is the Times and Seasons.

In Song of Solomon, the Lover’s Dream.

In Isaiah, He is the Prince of Peace.

In Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet.

In Lamentations, He is the Cry for Israel.

In Ezekiel, the Call from sin.

In Daniel, He is the Stranger in the Fire.

In Hosea, He is Forever Faithful.

In Joel, He is the Spirit’s Power.

In Amos, He is the Arms that carry us.

In Obadiah, our Lord and Saviour.

In Jonah, He is the Great Missionary.

In Micah, the Promise of peace.

In Nahum, He is our Strength and Shield.

In Habbakuk and Zephaniah, He is pleading for revival.

In Haggai, He restores our lost heritage.

In Zechariah, He is the Fountain.

In Malachi, the Sun of Righteousness arising with healing in His wings.

In Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, He is God, Man and Messiah.

In Acts, He is the Fire from heaven.

In Romans, He is the Grace of God.

In Corinthians, the Power of Love.

In Galatians, He is Freedom from the curse of sin.

In Ephesians, He is our Glorious Treasure.

In Philippians, the Servant’s Heart.

In Colossians, He is the Godhead Trinity.

In 1 and 2 Thessalonians, He is the Coming King.

In Timothy, Titus and Philemon, He is our Mediator and Faithful Pastor.

In Hebrews, the Everlasting Covenant.

In James, He is the One who heals the sick.

In Peter, He is the Shepherd.

In John and Jude, He is the Lover coming for His Bride.

In Revelation, He is King of Kings and Lord of lords.

He is the Prince of Peace, the Son of Man.

The Lamb of God, the Great I Am.

The Alpha and Omega, our God and Saviour.

Jesus Christ the Lord.

And when time is no more. . .He still is!

* * * *

How would you describe Him?

Think on this...

Do you realize that:

Everyone has a right to their opinion about you (& me of course) but
the only one that matters is your opinion about yourself.

That opinion can make such a big difference in your aspirations and accomplishments in life once it aligns with God's opinion of you. So who's opinion are you living by? YOU decide...

A verse for you to think about: "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he" (Prov 23:7a - KJV)

Open My Eyes

A (long) while ago I contributed a piece on eye-guidance (remember?)… well that had to do with God’s eyes. This piece is about our own eyes. I found it on an Allworship.com email [italic red letters are my additions].

At some point, we all seem to question our purpose in life. We wonder what we are supposed to do to make the world better. These thoughts can fill us with doubt and sometimes get us down.

But there's good news. God has a purpose for you [so says Jer 29:11].

When He created you, He fashioned you [Psm 139:16] in such a way that you could accomplish things that build His kingdom [indeed God has given each of us different special abilities/gift/talents (Rom 12:6) all for the purpose of the kingdom].

But that's not all.

How do/would others describe you?

Several years ago, I read 2 books that gave me a fresh insight into the lives of the women in the Bible. I'm sure there are so many women - in the bible and outside the bible (e.g. some notable Christian women - your mum may one) - we aspire to be like. I recently got this email that summarizes a handful of such women. Personally, I want to be:

* Like Deborah, I will serve the Lord in power and speak His word without fear.

* Like Esther, I will intercede for God's people before the throne.

* Like Abigail, I will humble myself to wash the feet of the servants of the Lord.

* Like Hannah, I will dedicate my children to the Lord.

* Like Priscilla, I will explain the way of God more perfectly to those who are seeking.

* Like the Shunamite widow, I will trust God in the day of adversity.

* Like Lydia , I will be a worshipper of God and open my home to His ministers.

* Like Tabitha (Dorcas), I will always do well and help the poor.

* Like Joanna, I will use my wealth to support the ministry of Jesus.

* Like Mary, I will say be it unto me according to thy word.

I can't help but wonder how I am being described now and how I will be described if I leave before Jesus returns to take us home. My prayer is that we can all be described as...

 Women of Wonder who Walk on Water...at His command.  

Thorns in life

Sometime ago we talked about thorns...God even told the Israelites about thorns. He was clear in His instructions to the Israelites in Numbers 33: 50 - 55.

"While they were camped near the Jordan River on the plains of Moab opposite Jericho, the Lord said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: When you cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan, you must drive out all the people living there. You must destroy all their carved and molten images and demolish all their pagan shrines. Take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given it to you to occupy. You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes.  But if you fail to drive out the people who live in the land, those who remain will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will harass you in the land where you live." (NLT)

While I believe that thorns have some "protective" use - i.e. preserving us from predators, living a life of compromise is definitely a thorny life...and a hard way to live. God warned the Israelites that they will be harrassed if they live a life of compromise.

The Bible puts this differently in the New Testament, friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4b). Friendship with the world leads to compromise and of course a thorny life.

The other thing that can become thorns that choke the word of God in your life are worry* and the love of money which we well know is the root of all evil**.

Much as life is a bed of roses, there are some poisonous and avoidable thorns...identify them and avoid them. God help and bless us as we do...

References:
* Matthew 13:22 - The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. (NLT)
**1 Tim 6; 10 - For the love of money is a root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have been led astray and have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute [mental] pangs. (Amplified Bible)

9:11 Challenge

Today is 9.11 - this set of numbers brings different memories and emotions when mentioned. Some people remember with great sadness the number of people who lost their lives on the 11th of September 2001; some others are grateful to God for how He delivered them from that tragedy but still share the sadness of those who lost their family and friends - who wouldn't?

Just writing, I feel sadness well up in my heart. I pray God will continue to give those who lost their family members, friends, colleagues, neighbours &/or acquaintances the grace to go on with their lives and better yet, make postive impact in other people's lives; that was the challenge that hit me when I read Proverbs 9:11.

Having lost a very, very dear family member several years ago, I know first-hand how difficult it can be to "go on with life" - so I'd like to call this the:

 "9:11 Challenge."         

Let's talk about this some more and you'll see why...

Never give up

What matters is not how many times you fall
But rising up every time you fall and

Never ever give up!

You are not swallowed up yet
But it seems you will be,
If and only if you give up...

So go ahead...stretch your hands
Take strong hold of the neck...
That is waiting to swallow you up

And…………….SQUEEZE it until you are free
 
P.S. Got this by email (author unknown) - amazing how God brings things that tie in with our current topic.

Think on this...

“Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Prov 24:16 For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity. (NKJV)

We will all fail one time or another in our lives...

learning to fail forward is good way of life - this book is a good one.

God's purpose behind your problems

Got this in an email...and my comments are in green and as usual, pictures mine...

Life is a series of problem-solving opportunities. The problems you face will either defeat you or develop you - depending on how you respond to them. I like to see life as full of catalysts or challenges, stepping stones or stumbling blocks - it all depends on your perception and response. Unfortunately most people fail to see how God wants to use problems for good in their lives. They react foolishly and resent their problems rather than pausing to consider what benefit they might bring. Here are five ways God wants to use the problems in your life:

Think on this...

Does it ever feel like everything is happening at once - from all directions?

Good news for you:

"The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters,

than the mighty waves of the sea."* (Ps 93:4 NKJV)

 Just trust and obey Him and you will walk on water.