Category Archives: Morning Musings

Morning Musings

Taking a Break!

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     We’ve just been away, and have come home ready to tackle all the things that have happened while we were away….namely in the garden! It is always good to get away and see new things, and have experiences that make one glad to be back home. For instance, the traffic in the big city is not so bad for a one off time, but imagine having to put up with that every day (as so many do!) So we came back ready to take up things again, and thankful for what we do have!

     It reminded me that even in the time of Christ, He said to His disciples, “Come aside and rest a while”…. they had been so busy dealing with the crowds that were following Him for what they could get out of Him, and He knew they needed to have a rest from it all. But alas, when they got to the other side of the lake, there were the crowds waiting for Him again! How their hearts must have sunk! They had only had a couple of hours of rest while the boat sailed across the lake!    But Jesus had compassion on the crowd and began talking and teaching them things about the Kingdom of Heaven. The day soon passed, and dusk began to fall. The disciples said to send the people away so they could buy some food. They couldn’t see how they could possibly feed this huge crowd, and Jesus asked how much food they had between them. They only found five buns and two fish, barely enough for one grown man.

    But Jesus took the food, and gave His Father thanks for it….He then broke it into pieces and gave it to the disciples to pass around to the crowd.  They all had enough to eat, and there was even food left over! What a miracle this was! If they had stayed on their own without this crowd, they would never have seen this happen.       So it with us when we put ourselves out for others, we will find the extra energy to meet this need. God never asks us to do anything for Him, even in the small things, without giving us the wherewithal to do it!

Morning Musings

What do You Remember?

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    It’s always good to remember the good times, but not so nice remembering the bad times! I’ve been reminded this past week about some of the boats we’ve owned down through the years, and thought of the first big launch we owned back in 1966-1972.          Then again there is the run-about that has been our last venture out on the water. She is being taken away today to her new home, and we are sad to see her go….it is the end of an era for us, as until now, we have always had a boat of some sort. But we still have the photos and memories of those good (and bad!) times out on the sea.

    It reminded me of how memory is a gift from God to remind us and teach us things that would otherwise be completely forgotten. That is why we are told in Bible to get together with other believers regularly and remember what He has done for us, especially in sending His Son into this world 2025 years ago.  God knows how weak our memories really are, and that is why He has seen to it that His Word is written down for us to read.

   Did you know that God has books in Heaven as well? In these books is a record of every single person who has ever lived, and the things they did and said while they were alive. The Bible tells us that one day, these books are going to be opened and we will have to give an account of ourselves before Him! Our memories at that time will be crystal clear…..no-one else is going to say what we did or said or accuse us in any way, it is each one of us who will give an account of ourselves then!     Then there is another book that will be opened then, and that is called the Book of Life.  In this book is written the names of all those who have come to know God in a personal way in this life. This is the guarantee that they will have a place in God’s home when they leave this world. But for anyone whose name is not in that book, they will be separated from God and all that is good and right and beautiful for ever. We read about that in Revelation chapter twenty, verses eleven to fifteen.

    But there is still time now, to get right with God and have your name written in that Book of Life!

Morning Musings

Lessons from my Garden!

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My roses take continual care to keep them looking how I want them to. I like to train them into standards, that are lifted up above the surrounding ground for other plants to grow beneath them.

    I can’t help thinking how like these rose plants each one of us are! This particular variety of rose is quite hardy, but nevertheless needs constant care to keep it how I want them to be. They need to be tied firmly to a strong stake to keep them from being moved by the wind. In the same way , we must be tied strongly to the stake of Jesus Christ, or else we will just blow from side to side and our spiritual life will maybe get damaged beyond repair. Nor will we be able to be a thing of beauty to those who see us.    I also have to take all the side shoots off the main stem constantly; they come with amazing regularity! How often we need to be trimmed in this way, otherwise the shoots take away from the growth of the main stem. If we allow other things to crowd into our lives, they will eventually take all the vitality out of what the Lord intends us to do for Him….after all, there are only so many hours in our day! We say we can’t do without this or that, but if we are involved with too many other activities, we won’t have the time we should be spending for the Lord.

    I find too, that there are many shoots that come up from the base of the plant as it tries to revert to its natural state of being a bush rather than a standard. If we don’t keep ourselves regularly in the Word of God (the Bible), we find ourselves reverting to our natural inclinations rather than following the Lord as He wants us to. We need to be vigilant in these things.     Another thing is, I look ahead to how I want the finished rose plant to look like. If one shoot looks strong and healthy and is growing out from the main stem in a suitable place, I will tie it upright to the existing main stem, thinking I will let it grow in its new position and then when it is strong enough I will cut off all the other heads when they have finished flowering. Yes, what we are doing now may be useful and being involved in the Lord’s work, but He can see ahead to a better task for us to do, one which will take the main head even higher. It may hurt the plant to have one stem fastened upright in such a fashion, and it may hurt us to be tied in some way that gives us pain and restricts us now, but the end result will enable our character to be a thing of beauty and us to be even more help to those around us.

It’s amazing how many lessons there are to be found in the garden, from weeding, to pruning, to spraying….all these things having to be attended to constantly.  No wonder our Lord said, ” I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that bears not fruit he takes away: and every branch that bears fruit, he purges it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing. If a man abides not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit; so shall you be my disciples.” (John 15:1-8)

Morning Musings

Robbery!

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    We always feel aggrieved and hurt, if not downright angry when something of ours has been stolen. I remember the feeling of disbelief when I looked at our yard one morning and thought it looked strangely empty. Then it dawned on me…our runabout boat wasn’t there! We had only owned it for ten days, and now it was gone!

   Then came all the fuss of notifying the police and insurance company, and the trauma of wondering where it might have been taken to. How dare someone come into our yard while we slept and take our boat!!

    But do we ever stop to think how much we take what is not ours without even giving it a thought? Being late for work is one example, and leaving early another….this is taking the boss’ time that we are being paid for. How many times a day do we look at our smart phones and check our emails while we are at work?

    I remember another time, when we owned a farm and needed to have a dragline to come in and clean the drains out. The driver was a chain smoker who rolled his own cigarettes. It really hurt to see that machine stop so many times a day while he was rolling the next smoke!! We were paying him by the hour for rolling his cigarettes!!

     But even worse is what we rob God of. Rob God? How can this be? What does it matter anyway, we might ask.

    Because when we disobey God, He is being robbed of our service, worship, obedience and glory. Taking what is not ours is not honouring to God! At the same time we are being robbed of a clear conscience, peace, inner joy and fellowship with God.

   But Jesus Christ paid the price of these things to God, and has restored what had been stolen. Now it is up to us to find out more about these things and to respond positively to Him!

Morning Musings

How I Should Be!

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Our preacher yesterday morning spoke on marriage, quoting the verses from 1 Peter 3: 1-7 about how the Lord expects a marriage to be. That is not an easy subject to speak on in this day and age. But it reminded me of a story I had read once….

      When I was a kid, my mum always did the cooking, and one evening, she dished up the evening meal saying, “I’m awfully sorry, but I didn’t watch the pot tonight, and your veges have all got burnt. But try to eat them anyway!”

   My Dad just said, “That’s fine Honey, I don’t mind burnt veges anyway, they have more flavour!”

The rest of us kids, just chomped our way through them making no comment, but drank a lot of juice to help them go down.

     Later that night as I kissed Dad goodnight, I asked him if he really didn’t mind his veges burnt like that. He just put his arms around me, and said,  “Your mummy put in a long hard day at work today and she’s real tired.  And besides… burned veges never hurt anyone!”
      Later on, as I thought of this story, it reminded me that life is full of imperfect things. And imperfect people. We have to make allowances for the imperfections of others, remembering our own imperfections. Not making excuses for ourselves when we can’t excuse others. I often forget things that I should have done, or put off doing other things when I know I should be doing them. I have to remember that if I make a mistake, to admit it, and not try to cover it up.

    How thankful we can be to remember that once we have confessed our sins (imperfections and shortcomings)   to God, He has forgiven us and cleansed us from all these mistakes!

So let’s enjoy life and keep short accounts with everyone….it is far more comfortable than trying to cover up, and pretend!


                              ENJOY LIFE NOW – IT HAS AN EXPIRATION DATE!

Morning Musings

Our Helmet of Hope.

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     David, the man who wrote the book of Psalms in the Bible, could say… “For You are my hope, O Lord GOD: You are my trust from my youth” (Psalm 71:5).

 I was listening to a preacher the other day who was talking about hope. Not hope with the thought of it may or may not happen, but hope as a confidence and certainty. Where God is concerned, His Word is Truth and it will stand firm. We can have every confidence that what He says will happen, WILL happen! He will do it, He always keeps His Word.

    There is another verse in the Bible where it says to put on the helmet of the hope of salvation (1 Thessalonians 5:8). Once we have this helmet firmly on our head, no matter how many darts of doubt and fear Satan fires at us, we can overcome them.

    The law in New Zealand says that it is compulsory for every cyclist to wear a helmet while riding their bike on the road. It is no use carrying it on the handlebars of the bike, because that won’t keep us safe if we have an accident. We have to have it on our head  to be safe  and protected. Every time we have an impact, we have to adjust it and wear it properly again.

   So it is when troubles hit us on our ride through life, we have to adjust our helmet of hope in God and His Word, and get on our bike and go on again. Every negative thought that Satan gives us, we have to counteract with our helmet of hope, and count our many blessings.

  It is no use counting our blessings on our fingers and our troubles on the calculator, we are to do it the other way around. Every new morning we are to put on our helmet of hope and count our blessings; then we are to firmly fasten it with thanksgiving to God, and to resist negative thoughts which come from the evil one. We will then be able to face the New Year next week with a positive and confident “hope” as we continue with our summer holidays or go to school or work which ever applies to us.

Morning Musings

Chip Gone Wrong!

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    Our motor home let us down badly last weekend. We were all set for a great weekend of fun and fellowship with like minded people, but it all ended up very differently to what we had planned. Just as the old saying goes, “Man proposes, but God disposes!”

    We were nearly at the village where the venue was, when our motorhome gave a few jerks and grunts and then refused to go any further! We finally managed to limp our way out of the surrounding traffic, and then try to figure out what to do next.  We had had this problem before, of the letter “F” coming up on our dashboard, and had found out then, that it stood for “Fault”. That time, it had needed the chip in the computer system replaced and all was well.                            So it could be a simple problem again this time, or it could be something more serious. Whichever way it was, the fault had to be found and fixed before we could move again under our own steam.

    This little incident reminded me of  our prayer life when our connection with our Heavenly Father seems to be broken. Or perhaps, we have never ever been connected to Him in a personal relationship at all. There are many times in our life, when we feel as though God is far away and not hearing our prayers. The trouble is a broken chip between us and God, and it is not until we get it seen to,  that the power of God flows back into our life, and our fellowship with Him is restored. Let’s look at some of these broken “chips” that can cut our fellowship with God…..

    One of these is having a right relationship with our spouse or other members of our families. This is one of the main causes of a broken “chip”, and we are told that husbands in particular, are to treat their wives right or their prayers will be hindered  (1 Peter 3:7 ).     Another one is having a bad attitude towards others, and unconfessed sin….King David said, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me!” (Psalm 66:18 ) Wrong attitude to our money….it is not our own, but only what God has given us, so it is only reasonable to give Him His share of it. Habitual and continuous disobedience will block our communion with God. Cherished continual sin in our hearts…..is there something that we know displeases the Lord but we don’t want to give it up? This is a broken “chip” cutting the communication between us and God. The prophet Isaiah said, “Your sins have come between you and God like a thick cloud!”   (Isaiah 52:1)

   So after thinking about these things, let’s fix these “broken chips” in our life, and have our communion with God restored again!

Morning Musings

Solution!

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      We read and hear about the war going on between Gaza and Israel at present, but this is nothing new. Conflicts like this have been going on for the last four thousand years!

    At one stage, the Philistines were in a real dilemma! They had taken this Ark (box) of the God of Israel out of its place, and tried to add it to their collection of idols. But it had miraculous powers, and disaster came on each place where it was taken to.  Plagues of mice over-ran the place and people became ill and died as a result. What to do?

    The people felt they had no option but to get it back to where it had come from, but the big question was, how? At last they had a bright idea….”We have to send a gift for this God of Israel, so let’s put it onto a new cart with golden models of mice and the sores that we have been plagued with, in another box,” they said, “the cart can be pulled by two cows that have just calved and if they go on their own along the road without their calves, we’ll know that there’s something in the God of Israel that goes against nature!”

   So this is what they did. They loaded the cart up, and followed along behind it to see what happened. To their utter amazement, the cows quietly went along towing the cart, and calling for their calves as they went. Not only that, but they took the right road to the land of Israel, and didn’t stop until they got there! The Philistines had to admit that the God of Israel was real after all!

   But the people of the place where it stopped looked on it merely as a curiosity and all those who tried to look into it were struck dead on the spot. In fact, the disease flew through the countryside, and over 50,000 people died. “Take it away!” the people cried, “Tell the people of  Kirjath-jearim where it came from, to come and get it and take it away!”

   This story shows us that we cannot play fast and loose with God, or treat His things lightly. We must treat His things with respect and reverence . For us today, this shows us how careful we must be in this matter….those who treat the things of God, or talk about Him in a disrespectful manner or use His Name as a swear word, will pay the price one day.

When God speaks, it pays to hear, To listen and  obey, If we do not have holy fear, Worse will come one day!

  You can read this story in the Bible in the  book of 1st Samuel chapter 6, verses 1-6