All posts by Gwenyth

I live on the outskirts of Whangarei, the northernmost city in New Zealand. I enjoy many things, ( writing amongst them), have been married to Keith for sixty-one years, have three married daughters, nine grandchildren and seventeen great- grandchildren who are scattered in various countries. No cats and no dogs as they would cramp our life-style.. We are obviously retired, but were farming further north before moving to the town over thirty-five years ago. We attend one of the local churches across the same side of town that we live.
Random Devotional Thoughts, Uncategorized

That Temptation in Your Pocket! (Part Two)

Phone 1      If you idolize popularity, if it is being admired and having lots  of followers that makes you feel good about yourself, then you  will be tempted to use your smart-phone to pursue that idol. You may use the camera to take inappropriate photographs of  yourself in Instagram, or you may use the Facebook app to say harsh words about other people. That phone that can be used  to do so much good and to bring so much encouragement will now be used to cause harm.

There are not many people who buy a phone intending to use it to harm others or to look at pornography. But where your heart is, there your technology will be also. The way you use your technology reveals your heart.  It shows whether your heart is oriented toward God and toward finding true joy and satisfaction in Him, or whether you are  attempting to find counterfeit joy and satisfaction in the things He forbids. At any moment, your heart has a purpose for your  phone. Yes, thank God for your smart-phone, but plead with Him for wisdom to use it well, and guard your heart.

Use It to the Glory of God!

And now it is time to take that phone out of the box and to turn it on for the first time. As you hold it in your hand, why don’t you take a moment to pray? Ask God to help you to use that phone well. Commit before Him right now that, to the best of your abilities, you will only ever use it to serve His purposes. Ask a believing friend or two to be your accountability and check in regularly. Then go and glorify Him with and through it.

Morning Musings

Birds Scrapping!

Bird FeederWe have put a bird feeder outside our dining-room window, and it gives us a lot of pleasure watching the little birds feeding there. But you know, even among the birds there is continual scrapping going on. The small silver-eyes stand on a branch nearest the feeder and fluff their little wings angrily at each other. The bold mynah struts around at the base of the tree and even jumps up on the branch to take a few pecks before he gets chased off. The sparrows take no notice of the others and greedily grab as many beakfuls as they can while the others are scrapping among themselves.

It reminded me of how we as people often scrap among ourselves, sometimes vying for the better places or positions. This is not how we are meant to behave, especially in church situations. The Lord Jesus told us to be prepared to take the humble place and wait for others to give us a higher position rather than angrily (or sneakily)  try to take it from others.

It is not smart to behave like this anywhere, and only causes hurtful situations that often can never be remedied. People can forgive, but they very seldom completely forget!

Morning Musings

What Are You Building With?

2015-06-08 18.21.20Richard, who was a wealthy man once put an order in for a new house. He told Bill the builder what he wanted and gave him the plans and necessary consents to get the job done.

“There’s just one snag though”, he said as he gave Bill the order, “I’ll have to be away for most of the time it will take to get this house built, so I won’t be able to keep a check on what is going on”.

“Oh that will be fine, we’ll manage OK”, said Bill as Richard left.

Richard left on his big trip away, and Bill made a start on the new house. He began to think about this building, and a mean thought came to him. Seeing Richard wouldn’t be around to keep a check on him, he wouldn’t know what went on inside this new house. If he made a few cuts here and there, Richard would never know and he (Bill) could pocket the extra money for himself!

So second grade timber was bought for the framing, and cheaper pipes put in. Other shortcuts went into the building of it as well, and Bill smiled as he put the savings into his own money account.

The day came for Richard to come home, and he couldn’t wait to see the job that Bill had made on this new house for him. It was very impressive and looked just as Richard imagined it would. He called in to see Bill in his office. “Well, Bill”, he said, “You’ve made a good job of that house, and I’ve got a proposition to make to you. You’ve always  worked well for me, and I’d like to make this house over to you for you to live in”.

Bill squirmed as he thought of all the shortcuts he’d made beneath the fancy exterior. He knew the inside of that house didn’t match up with the outside, and that it would be causing some trouble further in the future. But he couldn’t refuse Richard’s generous offer without owning up to what he had done.

This story reminds us that one day we are going to have to face the results of what we have built our lives with. Have we used the materials for God’s service that will survive the fire of His examination, or has it just been wood, hay and stubble of our own selfish pleasures that will burn up?

God doesn’t listen to our WORDS, He listens to what our hearts have to say to Him.

Morning Musings

What Are You Reflecting?

2015-06-01 09.38.09 The other morning while taking my early walk just as the sun was peeping over the hill, I could see a distant house that we never normally noticed. But just at that time of the day, the rising sun caught the windows facing it, and the reflected light was almost blinding. A bit further on, a closer house also caught the sun’s rays on its front windows. The thing that impressed me was the fact that there was no light in these windows of themselves at all, they were merely reflecting the sun at that time.

It brought to mind the story of Moses in the Bible how that after he had been in the mountain top with God receiving the ten commandments for the people, his face was lit up with the light of heaven  on it. It was too bright for the people to look at it and he had to wear a veil over it until the brightness had faded somewhat. Then there is the account of how a man called Stephen was arrested for preaching about Jesus. As he spoke in his defence, members of the council saw that his face was shining like that of an angel.

You might think that this was just in Bible times, but we heard of an elderly Christian gentleman who we knew, who was in hospital recovering from some heart trouble. One day, one of his friends went to visit him and asked the nurse where they could find him. She said, “Oh in the room just along there….look for the man with the face like an angel”.

I wonder if people could say that about us? Or do we have a hard expression on our face when in repose? I often find myself so busy thinking about my own affairs that I hardly see other people and just march past them! It takes effort to think of others and give a smile to lighten their day. If we practiced that more often then perhaps people would see Jesus in us too. This is how we should be….little reflectors of His great light.

 

Morning Musings

Technology, a Gift from God.

01God Has a Purpose for Your Phone…..
    Technology is a gift from God. When we read the Bible, we find that at the beginning of time, God created two people, naked and alone in a beautiful garden, and gave them a worldwide task: to spread out across this world and exercise dominion over it. In order to do that, they would need to invent technologies.
If they were going to plant and harvest crops to feed their family, they would first need to invent a plough. If they were going to spread out across the earth to settle countries and build cities, they would need to invent bridges and boats. In that way, technology is good. Technology is a means through which we can carry out the very purpose for which God created us.
Then, when Jesus was on this earth, he gave his people a new job description that is meant to go along with the first. He told us to take the gospel, the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ, into all the world. And again, one of the ways we do so is through inventing and using technologies. No wonder, then, that Christians are always paying attention when a new technology shakes the world. Every technology is an opportunity.
When you understand the orders God has given you, you see that God has great purposes in mind for your technologies, and even your smartphone. That phone can be used to organize your life better so you can accomplish more of the things that matter most; it can be used to communicate with others so you can speak good news into their lives; it can be used to read the Bible and list your prayers; it can be used in hundreds of ways that serve the purposes God has given you. Thank God for our smartphones!
Satan Has a Purpose for Your Phone….
Unfortunately, there is far more to the story. No sooner did God create man and give him this worldwide mission than man fell into sin. Adam and Eve determined they would disobey God, and when they did that, they brought sin into this world. Technology did not escape unscathed. It, too, exists in this fallen world. This reality means that every technology, including your new phone, can be used to do things that are evil. God has purposes for your phone, but so does Satan.
Because this is a world caught up in a great cosmic battle between good and evil, every new technology enters into the fight. Every technology brings some benefits and some risks. For every good thing your phone can do, there are other evil things it can do.
You will have the choice before you every day and every moment — will you use it for good or for evil? Will you use it to carry out the tasks God has given you, or will you use it to hinder those tasks? Will you use your phone to serve God or to serve Satan? Thank God for your smartphone, but plead with him for wisdom to use it well.
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Random Devotional Thoughts

The Storms of Life.

NSNWA015      We attended a Bible conference recently that was being held in the small chapel where we grew up as children and young people. We try to make a point of attending this conference each year, partly for old times’ sake, and partly for fellowship to catch up with old friends from years before.

There were two speakers this year, and the two talks during the afternoon sessions really made an impact as they seemed to dovetail together beautifully. The first speaker talked about the Storms of Life, and this was a topic he spoke of from the heart. It had only been four years since his wife died with cancer. He broke his talk into three parts, showing how the Lord speaks to us in these three aspects of the storms of life that we all experience at different times.

When the disciples experienced the worst storm of their life, they had been sent across the lake by Jesus Christ. The disciples were experienced fishermen who could read the weather signs and knew how to handle these sudden storms that whipped up the lake surface into a frenzy. Jesus knew all this, and He knew a storm was coming up that would test them to the maximum. They hadn’t made a mistake that brought this upon them, they were there for a purpose.

Remember this….Jesus Christ knows the storm we are in at any given time. He could have stopped the storm coming to the disciples, but He wanted to show them His power. He knows the storm that I may be in right now, but He wants me to go through it so He can show me His power and refine the dross out of my life and strengthen the faith I have in Him.

The Lord speaks to us in these three ways ….

In the storm….He comes to us through the storm, walking on the water…”I will never leave you”, He says.

Through the storm… He reminds us that He is there with us…”don’t be afraid”, He says, “trust Me”.

The storm within you….often when these storms come, they attack us from the inside. We are all in a turmoil because of circumstances beyond our control, and wonder where we are going to turn next.

Don’t be afraid of being afraid….storms always have an end. There will be a period of calm when it is over and then another one may come but because we have proved our Lord’s help with the first one, we have confidence within the next one.

These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

We cannot build our house during the storm, we must have it built before it comes!

Remember….He is the Lord of all our storms.

Transitions….

The next speaker spoke about transitions and how the peace after the storm usually precedes a transition….and transitions are never peaceful, they are a time of turmoil. Take the birth of a child….a time of labour for the mother and time of turmoil for the child leaving the womb to enter this world, and then turmoil for the rest of their lives! So many things in our lives are a transition….a new baby brings a whole new way of life to a couple; a move to a new area is a period of turmoil until settled in; children reaching the teenage years bring a transition for both themselves and their parents.

Then again there is the transition into the empty nest syndrome and finally into retirement. But that is not the end….what about the transition into the retirement village and then the rest home? What about the transition of the loss of a spouse? It seems that the whole of life is a series of transitions. We need the Lord’s help in each of these transitions in life. Nothing remains static…change is the essence of life. Let’s make sure that we approach each of these transitions with the peace of God in our heart and mind.

   Be anxious about nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

We had a lot to think about as we made our way back home.

Grandma's Stories, Uncategorized

“I Can’t See You; You Can’t See Me!”

IMG_0041Uncle Jeff laughed as he watched the little girl hiding her face against her father’s legs. “Haha”, he laughed, “she thinks we can’t see her if she can’t see us! That reminds me of something I saw the other day while taking the train down to the city”.

“Oh, do tell us, Uncle Jeff”, Bobby said.

“Yes, please”, said Betty as she climbed up beside him.

Sarah crept in behind him pretending she wasn’t really listening, but she like Uncle Jeff’s stories as much as the others did.

“Well”, said Uncle Jeff, “We often see this sheep and goat in a paddock near the train line as we go past. We call them Sheepley and Goatley. But last week, they were through the fence right beside the line. We could see them as we came round the corner, but there’s no way we can stop the train when it’s going full speed. So we blew the whistle as loudly as it would go. Both Sheepley and Goatley looked up and saw the train coming, so they ran to the fence where they had got through. But they couldn’t find the hole they had crawled through, so they each stuck their head through the fence and thought they were safe. They looked so funny!! Haha!” and Uncle Jeff started laughing again as he remembered it.

“What silly things!” Betty said, “I wouldn’t do that!”

“I’m not so sure about that”, Uncle Jeff said, “How many times do you pretend you haven’t done something wrong when you have? That is just as silly because God has seen what you did!”

Betty squirmed and said, “I s’pose so. But look at baby Lizzie over there. She thought we couldn’t see her because she couldn’t see us”.

“Shhh Betty!” Bobby said, “Did you see them any more Uncle Jeff?”

“When we came back later that day, there they were again feeding right beside the danger on the line once more”, he said, “And they did the same thing again….they ran to the fence and poked their heads through it thinking they were safe”.

“I guess that’s a bit like people who won’t face what God tells them in the Bible”, Sarah said thoughtfully from behind them.

“That’s quite right Sarah,” said Uncle Jeff, “We’ve got to remember that one day we are going face Him and tell Him why we didn’t listen and do something about it. Well, off you go outside, that’s all the stories for today”.

“Thanks, Uncle Jeff”, said Bobby, “Race you to the gate, Betty!”

Daily Devotionals

Thoughts from Proverbs Chapter Two…

PETEE022Verses:1-6

Solomon is begging his son here to listen and take notice. A person with a bit of age and experience behind him, can see the pitfalls that a headstrong youngster can never see.

“Listen to me”, Solomon says, “Seek and apply yourselves, ask and seek earnestly for wisdom!” Do we do this?

God has all these blessings in Christ Jesus waiting for us, but we must put effort into getting them (John 15:7). James tells us that we don’t have the enjoyment of them because we don’t ask for them and apply ourselves to getting them (James 4:2c). It is like a student once who needed finance to get through his course and asked the Lord to provide it. He did, but not in the way he expected it…. God provided a job for him to earn his own money!

Those who earnestly and prayerfully seek, WILL find …..this is one of the prayers that God has unconditionally promised He will grant! (Matthew 7:7)

Seek wisdom from the Lord above, Who gives all things richly in love;

But we must search and seek this for, It to be giv’n from God’s rich store.