Category Archives: Life Lessons

Life Lessons

New Year of Hope!

Leave a comment

       We always hope that a new year will bring better things than the one that has just gone! But what about this coming year of 2024? In spite of all the predictions around the place, no-one knows for sure everything that will happen in this coming year! From a view of the nations around the world, life seems pretty uncertain for a lot of people, and yet this is exactly what the Bible predicts will happen. Nation will rise against nation, until the end of time. No matter how much the leaders think they have the answers, unless they take God and His laws into consideration, things will remain in uncertainty for this year as well.

    There is talk of AI and other new things that are being invented all the time, things that our grand-parents, and even our parents, never dreamed of! In the life time of older folk still alive today, just think of how things how evolved in that time!  From the days of horse and cart on the farm, then to tractors to move things, and then today the size and speed of farm machinery is mind boggling.

      Think of how in other spheres, technology has made such great strides, and even now it is not slowing down. Think for example, of how warfare is changing all the time, and when the idea of an underground network of tunnels contributes to modern warfare, it is mind boggling! Even the very idea of destroying a country only to take over the rubble that has been created doesn’t make sense.

   Without taking God into the equation, there is no hope of an everlasting peace left for this world. But those who have put their trust in Him have an everlasting hope, a certainty and knowledge, that all will come right in the end. While mankind refuses to acknowledge God, and just relies on their own  wisdom, things will never improve.

    So how can we have hope in this year of 2024?  Keep looking upwards, and not at what is going on around us. That is not to say to shut our eyes to the current events, but to realise that God has all things in His control. Yes, He could simply wipe out all these evil men who are doing these atrocities, but we must remember, that He has given each person a free will to choose to do right, or choose to do wrong. If we choose to do wrong, then we have to bear the consequences, but the trouble is, that it always affects other people.

So let us take heart, and look up to the One in Whom is all goodness and righteousness. Then for us, there will be a New Year of Hope!

Life Lessons

Lessons to Learn from Fishing…..

Leave a comment

    Summer is here!  It’s the time of the year again, when one’s thoughts turn towards fishing.  Over the years we have been able to do this, and as with so many of our activities, there are lessons we can learn from this pastime.  It’s wonderfully relaxing to be able to be on the water unless there are no fish around in which case one can feel rather frustrated. However, if it is a nice day, just being there is relaxation in itself, and if nothing else, we can enjoy God’s wonderful creation.

     When the fish are biting well, and one or two come into the boat, all the trouble seems worthwhile. That reminds us that nothing worthwhile in life just happens without some effort. Nothing tried is nothing gained, just as in other phases of life.     Sometimes only undersized fish get caught. This is when one has to just throw them back to grow some more We have to be honest in this and not keep them. If one is caught by the inspector, a  heavy fine and sometimes even the confiscation of the boat is likely to follow.     Other times, a big one might get on and be brought right up to the side of the boat, only to have it give a final flick of the head  and get away. At times like this it doesn’t seem fair…..after all that effort to have it get away! That reminds us that life isn’t always fair. At times it is grossly unfair. But this is how we learn to cope with disappointments…..things won’t always go our way!

    Another lesson to learn is to kill the fish immediately they are brought into the boat. It is not fair to let creatures suffer unnecessarily, and to die of  slow suffocation is anything but kind.     Learning to cast with the rod doesn’t just come naturally. As with most things, there is a certain knack to learn to get the line far enough out. The same principle applies here as with other things….practice makes perfect! If at first you don’t succeed, try again as the old saying goes.     Last but not least, is that time spent with family or friends is never time wasted. Let’s make sure we take the time to enjoy the things that God has given us to freely enjoy. It would be sad indeed to have to face Him one day and hear Him say, “ I  made all that beauty for you to experience, and you never took the time to enjoy it!”

Life Lessons

Be Careful!!!

Leave a comment

    The speaker at church this morning was a visitor, and he had three basic questions that his talk hung on….1. Where did I come from?   2. What is the point of me being here?  and 3. Where am I going?  Then he went on about evolution versus what the Bible teaches etc etc. and pointed out that evolution can’t answer any of those questions satisfactorily. We are fortunate at our church that there are people of all ages, from old ones, to middle aged ones, to young families, and lots of kids. So there was bound to be someone there who wanted to know these things.       There’s one little saying that a friend of ours used to have on the dashboard of his car, and it’s something I have never forgotten….God says it, I believe it and that settles it!!  Saves a lot of stewing about nothing! Sometimes people say, “But I can’t see how God can do this or that…..” I think they do a lot of worrying for nothing!

     A lot of times, people bring their troubles on their own heads . As long as we remember that whatever we do, there are consequences that will follow…for instance, if we stand in the middle of the road long enough, a car will knock us over. OR if we put our hand in the fire it will get burnt for sure!      I had an accident with our car once that illustrated this point. I was travelling down our hill where there is a sharp corner near the bottom, when I saw another car approaching. I was going far too fast, and on the wrong side of the road, so I jammed on the brakes while pulling away from the middle of the road. The car didn’t like that, and went into a violent spin, flew across a deep ditch and landed up against a tree by the famer’s fence, as well as facing back the way I had come from! So that was a lesson that I learned very quickly from…actions have consequences! Needless to say, I am still very cautious when going around that corner!!!

   

Life Lessons

How Are You Growing?

Leave a comment

           I have finally got on top of weeding my garden!  There are many lessons to be learned from our garden, especially if we go in for different things. Take the bearded iris flowers for instance…they die down in the winter and look miserable specimens, but there is untold beauty tied up in those half dead looking plants…we just can’t see it all the time. So it is with some people, they don’t present a very good appearance a lot of the time, but when trouble arises, they are the first there to offer help and comfort.

    I had one red carpet rose to start with….these are quite different to the ordinary roses, in that they have a compact type of growth, and are very hardy. They are also very easy to take cuttings from, so over the years I have planted a whole row of these roses down one border. If they are left to themselves, they grow into a very large bushy plant, almost rampant in habit. But I decided to make them into standards, and this is where I got my lessons from.

     I take a cutting in the autumn time when the rains of winter will come, and put the cutting in the ground. As it takes root, and begins to grow, then the training begins. This reminds me of how we are to train our children up, right from the time they are born, in the ways of the Lord. The Bible says to train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will come back to it. It doesn’t say anything about the middle years, and that is often when our families can cause us grief by wandering away from the things they were taught. But the trials of life will often bring them back to the Lord’s   ways that they learned when young.

     So my small rose cutting is planted out where it is meant to be.  The first strong looking shoot will be tied up to a strong stake, and all the other side shoots will be cut off. Now this isn’t pleasant for our little plant, and as we grow in the ways of the Lord, there will often be disappointments and trials that come our way, and none of these are pleasant, but as we lean on Him, He will support us in the ways we are to go. We have to be single minded in our aims, and learn to look upwards, in the same way that  the little plant grows straight against its stake.

     As it continues to grow, the side shoots are cut off (again not pleasant!) and then it will send out its buds and begin to flower. But it often sends out other large vigorous side shoots which will spoil its shape if left, and again, these are cut off. Sometimes in life, we get sidetracked by other activities that take our focus off the things of God, and take all our spare time. These things are not necessarily bad in themselves, but we have to be careful not  to let them take over  the time we should be giving to the things of God. So it is better to cut them off, rather than let them take over.

     So our rose begins to flower, and the flowers last a long time. The flowers are not big and showy like the other sorts of roses, but they don’t fade in a hurry, and I find that the flowering season lasts nearly nine months.

     But the rose never gives up, and it is a continual job to keep the shoots from the base from growing….this reminds me of how the fleshly side of our nature never gives up on us either. As long as we live, we will be plagued by things such as gossip, maybe bad temper, impatience, and lack of love for others, even laziness in the things of God such as our Bible reading and prayer times.  So whenever these things attack us, just remember the rose, and how when it is pruned, it will grow just how the Gardener envisaged, and will bear fruit, or in this case, flowers. It is a thing of joy to the Gardener, even though it has represented a lot of work. We are told in Isaiah 53 verse 11, that the Lord will see of the travail of His soul and will be satisfied. It boggles the mind to think that we can bring joy to the heart of our Great Creator by growing as He wants us to. So let’s get into gear, and  follow His ways, always remembering the little red standard rose!

Life Lessons

Not My Fault!

Leave a comment

      As far as God is concerned, no-one is rich, and no-one is poor as far as money is concerned….one is no more important than the other. In fact, the one who is poor in money, is often rich in other ways….in love and concern for others, a happy family life, rich friendships, and in depending on God. Those who are rich financially, are often poor in these things, relying on their money to buy everything they want…..

     They tend to leave God out of their lives and ride roughshod over the feelings of others in their desire for more and more. When they get to the end of their lives, they end up with no more land than the poor man…just a plot of ground in a cemetery! If they don’t know the Lord, they end up being the poor man in eternity while the other ends up being rich with the Lord like the story of the rich man and the beggar  which we read about in Luke chapter 16, verses 19-31.

     When we have more than we need, then the temptations creep into our lives to want more and more…..we have to resist these if we want to receive the commendation that the Lord gives those who stand firm for Him. People tend to always shift the blame for their own shortcomings onto others….it is always someone else’s fault. Right from a young age it is built into the human psyche to say “Not my fault, I didn’t do it!”

    We have to be very careful to not blame God for the circumstances of life that we don’t like….we often bring these on our own selves. Then again, God can use our adverse circumstances and our attitude to them, to speak to those who don’t know Him like He did with Job….what a great example and encouragement that man has been down through the ages!   

    God never brings bad things into our lives, but He allows them for our greater good….otherwise how could we see His great hand of provision for us? Something good can come out of every circumstance we endure, even when we have brought our trials on ourselves by our own self will and foolishness. When we feel that life is dealing us a hard hand, stop and take stock of everything that we have that is good, and give thanks to God for them, instead of moaning about what we don’t have !   

Life Lessons

Why do Bad things Happen to Good People? (Final Part)

Leave a comment

                                         Job’s Reaction.

     Job finally found his voice again… “O Lord, I know that You can do all things! I’ve listened to all these things that You can do, and I’m an utter fool! Please forgive me!” This is what the Lord delights to hear from each of His people, an utter dependence on Him….     It is only when we come to an end of ourselves that God can work for us! He will never despise or turn away from a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 34:18; 51:17). Now that Job had stopped justifying himself, he was in a position where God could work on, and for, him. But he first had to prove himself, that he had no more bitterness for his friends who at least had come to visit him in the time of trial!

    They were required to offer a sacrifice for their part in this whole affair, and Job had to pray for them when a natural reaction would be one of revenge. The whole matter was cleared up in the right way and with the right attitudes, and then God was able to bless Job to the fullest. All that he had lost was now restored to him…his health, his reputation and relationships, his wealth, and even another family that was as much joy to him as his first! His daughters were the most beautiful girls in the land!

   Before we leave the story of Job, let’s think for a moment about Mrs. Job. We tend to downgrade her for telling Job he might as well curse God and die. But she too had suffered loss in this ….she had lost her income, her wealth, her family….all were gone. Then there were those men that came and sat around saying nothing to comfort Job at all. No wonder she felt like she did!

    Would we be any different? Both she and Job must have been relatively young when all this happened, maybe in their mid thirties as they had another ten children. Before we condemn her for her hasty comment, let’s put ourselves in her shoes and imagine how we would have felt!

   It’s all in our attitude…towards God and those around us. We have to be right in both directions before God can fully bless us. We cannot be right towards God and be bitter against someone else at the same time. It doesn’t work! If we are bitter at all, we are NOT right before God. Bitterness is not becoming for a believer, no matter what the rights and wrongs are! That was the difference in the attitudes of Job and his wife. Job could say “though He slay me, yet will I praise Him!” while she said, “Curse Him and die!” What are our attitudes to our disappointments?

It wasn’t until Job was able to pray for his friends, that God was able to bless Him! This reminds us that we are told to pray for those who are mean to us, and for those who persecute us. We are not to hold any resentments or bad feelings toward ANYONE! If we do, we are to confess it as a sin, and then we know that God will forgive us, and cleanse us from this unrighteousness.    Then we are to act in a loving and friendly manner towards them, in obedience to God’s Word.                                                                                                      (Job 42:1-17)

Life Lessons, Uncategorized

Why Do Bad things Happen to Good People? (Part Nine)

Leave a comment

                                     Summing  It All Up.

  Elihu , the youngest of the group had kept silent during this second round of speeches. But now he spoke up and gave his opinion of Job’s situation, and what the others had said…    He was angry at all their speeches, even at Job for justifying himself rather than giving God the glory, and he was angry at the other three because they hadn’t been any help at all with their ideas. He said that he had waited in vain for them to say something constructive, and now that they had run out, he was going to give his opinion!

“I’m nearly ready to bust”, he exclaimed, “so you all listen to me now! Job, you’ve been telling us  about all the good you’ve done in your life, and how you feel God has now deserted you! God deals with everyone differently, and He has the final say in men’s affairs. So take notice of this Job, and if you’ve got anything more to say, say it now!”    Elihu then turned his attention to the others…”You guys think you’re the wise ones, now listen to me…Job thinks he has done nothing wrong. We know that God certainly does no wrong, and that He is over everything on earth…are you in God’s place to say these things against Job? Even if he has been talking rubbish, he is the one who is paying for it now! We’ve got to remember that God knows more than we do and that He knows what He is doing. Job’s words are just wasted in his situation!     “You all just listen to me! God is mighty in power, and what He does is right! He is great and we cannot know His wisdom, and how He orders the world, the rain, and the light that He gives! I tremble to speak on His behalf! Just take notice of the thunder, the whirlwinds that come, and the snow in its season. Just listen to me Job, there is no-one and nothing that can equal God’s might and majesty….this is why we are to fear Him!”

      Job’s trial was nearly at an end although he didn’t know it then, and God now spoke directly to him. Although Job had not let God down as Satan had hoped, yet there were still things for him to learn. This is how it is for each one of us, and there are many things for us to learn through the trials we suffer, and often through sickness and ill health… God now spoke directly to Job….  “Job, you wanted to talk to me, now I will ask you a few things! Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? How much do you know about its construction? “  and on He went asking Job  about the universe and the great seas that He had created and now controlled. He continued to point out to Job other things about the animals and nature that He had created.     Job listened to all this and became completely speechless. “Oh God, I am completely unworthy of your notice!” he cried, “I can say no more!” If we would only think of ourselves in relation to God, we too would be speechless!

    Our little concerns would seem so petty in the light of God’s glory and greatness. What seems so important to us now suddenly becomes worthless junk compared to the things of eternity! When we look around us, God’s glory is seen in every flower, bird and animal, from the largest to the smallest. No two are the same, every sheep has its own characteristics, and the tiny ants would have too! Every human being has their own distinctive face and DNA! We are all unique, we all have a soul given to us by God and a spirit that craves communication with Him whether we give in to it or not.    

      We are truly left speechless in the face of all this! This is how each one of us will be when we face Him in the day to come. Speechless, but for the praise that is due to Him (from His people) and the admission that Jesus Christ is Lord from every mouth, both saved and unsaved.

                                                                                             (Job Chapters 32-41)

Life Lessons

Why do Bad things Happen to Good People? (Part Eight)

Leave a comment

                    Summing it all Up!

          Elihu , the fourth friend, had kept silent all this time as he was the youngest. But now he spoke up and gave his opinion of Job’s situation, and of what the others had said…     He was angry at all their speeches, even at Job for justifying himself rather than giving God the glory, and he was angry at the other three because they hadn’t been any help at all with their ideas. He said that he had waited in vain for them to say something constructive, and now that they had run out, he was going to give his opinion! “I’m nearly ready to bust”, he exclaimed, “so you all listen to me now! Job, you’ve been telling us  about all the good you’ve done in your life, and how you feel God has now deserted you! God deals with everyone differently, and He has the final say in men’s affairs. So take notice of this Job, and if you’ve got anything more to say, say it now!”

   Elihu then turned his attention to the others…”You guys think you’re the wise ones, now listen to me…Job thinks he has done nothing wrong. We know that God certainly does no wrong, and that He is over everything on earth…are you in God’s place to say these things against Job? Even if he has been talking rubbish, he is the one who is paying for it now! We’ve got to remember that God knows more than we do and that He knows what He is doing. Job’s words are just wasted in his situation!     “You all just listen to me! God is mighty in power, and what He does is right! He is great and we cannot know His wisdom, and how He orders the world, the rain, and the light that He gives! I tremble to speak on His behalf! Just take notice of the thunder, the whirlwinds that come, and the snow in its season. Just listen to me Job, there is no-one and nothing that can equal God’s might and majesty….this is why we are to fear Him!”

    Although he didn’t know it, Job’s trial was nearly at an end by this time. God then spoke directly to him and we will do well to listen to the things that He had to say to Job, and see what we can learn from them. Nothing that happens to us in this life is wasted if we take stock of the situation and learn from it.