How Old is our Soul?

    The older we get, the more we tend to think about what lies ahead. We get to the stage of avoiding going to reunions where everyone looks SO old! Then we realise that they are probably thinking the same about us!

   It gets to the stage when invited to a grandchild’s engagement or birthday party, that we look around and see with horror that we are probably the oldest ones there!

   I stopped to think about this one day and remembered an incident when a young man said to his grandmother, “Granny, tell me, how old do you feel?” (She was in her early eighties by this time).

“Well,” she said, “It’s like this, I know my outside looks old and wrinkly and my bones ache when I get up, but inside I don’t feel any older than fifteen!”

“Really!” said the young man astonished, as he went on his way.

    The reason for this is that our soul is ageless. It never ages. It has been made to live for ever regardless of the age of the body it inhabits and when it dies. Every soul is precious in the sight of God, and His great desire is that each one will live with Him for ever.

    But along with God’s great love which people like to think about, goes God’s innate holiness and sense of justice. All wrongs must be righted and dealt with, and we would all agree with that. God knew that man could never pay the debt of all these injustices so He took on Himself to pay for these in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ, the only sinless Person who has ever lived on earth.

   We may choose to not believe this, and this is our right, but then we must bear the consequences. God has done His part, and now we must do our part which is humbling ourselves to accept this free gift  so that our soul will live for ever in God’s presence. Don’t let anyone put you off making the right decision because the alternative of living without God or anything good for ever and ever doesn’t bear thinking about!

God’s Mighty Creation

     When we were travelling around the South Island of New Zealand recently, there were so many things to see and marvel at. The mountains especially were magnificent, and then there were the places where the road went through very hilly country, where the hills just seemed to fold into each other. Still other places where the roads followed streams and rivers through endless hills and ranges, without ever going up a hill themselves. They just meandered through the hills, each time going around a corner, there were more hills and the endless stream the road was following.

   I couldn’t help thinking how much pleasure God gets out of everything that He has created, and how He is familiar with every hill and corner. We read of this pleasure in the book of Job, chapter 40:15 to the end of chapter 42.

   God is pointing out to Job how mighty these creatures are that He has made. Job was over-awed, and said that he felt vile and insignificant in the face of such creation. So it is that we must feel something of this awe when we see the beauty of the mountains and hills, and give God the credit for having created them. When He asks in a day to come why we didn’t take advantage of seeing them, and giving Him the glory for His mighty works, we will feel ashamed, just as Job did in his time.

    So let’s remember these things, even in the familiar everyday scenes around us, and give God the glory that He deserves!

Ruined!

                                    Ruined!

We have just recently come back from a tour of the deep south of New Zealand that is full of beautiful pictures of lakes and mountains. One day we were sitting by a peaceful lake just soaking up the view. All was calm, and the reflections were just perfect. Then several ducks came swimming by and started squabbling in front of us.

Suddenly the perfect picture was broken into a thousand pieces by the actions of these birds, and it wasn’t until they had passed by that the reflections came back. It reminded me of how this is in our lives. We are told to be reflections of Jesus Christ in all His perfection, and perhaps we manage this for a time, but then we get upset over some little thing, and the reflection is broken to smithereens, and we behave in a very un-Christ-like manner.

But just as the reflection can come back to the lake, so we can pick up from where we left off, by confession and repentance. We are not to be worried that this happens because we are all human and God has made a provision for us, But it is an on-going thing, and is up to each one of us to put it into practice and not be discouraged.

Preparing for a Trip.

       We are heading off this week for a trip of several weeks around this beautiful country of ours. At the moment Covid restrictions are lifted in our part of the world, so we are free to go where ever we want to in our country. How thankful we are that we took the opportunities to travel overseas while we were younger and we were free to do so!

      This time however, we aren’t dependent on public travel having our own motor-home, and a daughter and her husband who can travel with us in their vehicle. Whenever we make preparations for going away, it always reminds me how careful we are to make sure we have everything we need, and  we would be foolish indeed not to think of every eventuality. Yet how many people go blithely through life without giving a thought to what would happen if the worst came to pass and their life was cut short.

   It behooves each one of us to make preparation for the biggest trip of our lifetime, that of when we depart from this world for ever and have to face our Maker. There could be nothing sadder than to hear those words, ”Depart from Me, I never knew you!” Yet we are told in God’s Word, that this will be what we will hear if we go from this world unprepared and not knowing Him.

   We wouldn’t dream of walking into a house if we didn’t know the owner personally, yet that is what people seem to think they have the right to do with God. Besides, would they really want to spend endless time in an atmosphere of singing God’s praises eternally when they haven’t gone into His presence here on earth! But then the alternative doesn’t bear thinking about either! This is a choice that we each one of us have to make….don’t put it off, it’s the most important decision we can make in our entire life!

Bob’s “If Only…”

     As Bob came to in the darkness, he wondered where he was. There were unfamiliar sounds going on around him, and a distinct disinfectant smell. He  realised he was in a bed, but he was sure it wasn’t his own one. He tried to turn over and nothing seemed to be working. Whatever had happened to him?

   Ah, he remembered now. He had left the local pub at closing time and found his way to his car. He remembered driving towards home and over the bridge that spanned quite a sizeable river on the way, but nothing more after that.

    Bob had indeed driven over the bridge, but he had failed to see the corner immediately after it, and continued straight ahead up the bank where the car had flipped over. Bob had not been wearing his seat belt and he was thrown out. As a result his spinal cord was badly damaged leaving him a paraplegic. He was in hospital for a long time, and it took him several months before he admitted that his situation was actually his own fault.

   First of all he railed against the fact that his seat belt wasn’t on, but he was the one who hadn’t buckled up. It never occurred to him that if he hadn’t been drinking until closing time, he would have been capable of driving safely, so that was another nail in his coffin of blame, as it were.  

   No-one knew when it finally dawned on him that perhaps God was speaking to him through this accident. It wasn‘t that he was a stranger to the things of God. There had been a time when he had made his decision to follow the Lord, and was enthusiastic in his attendance at his small local church. But the older men tended to curb his youthful enthusiasm and he became discouraged. There came a day when he heard some more criticism, and that was it as far as he was concerned. He had had enough, he said. If that was how they felt, then he was finished.

    Bob never attended a church service on a regular basis again, and in time, no-one would have recognized him as being a Christian. Years passed by, and his family arrived and grew up. In his time of reflection now in his hospital bed, he remembered different times when he felt that God was perhaps speaking to him.

     There was that time that he had been feeding hay out to his cattle and carelessly thrown the loose bailing twine into the cab of his ute. As he drove onto the road, he got out to shut the gate behind him, and his feet became tangled in the twine he had thrown in. He fell onto the road and a car came around the corner, nearly catching him before he got up. Bob wondered at the time if the Lord was speaking to him, but he mentally shrugged it off as coincidence, and let the opportunity go by.

     Then there was another time not long before this, when a visiting evangelist had come to the district. Bob attended one of the meetings, and was strongly moved to respond to the appeal when it was given at the end, but he thought of his drinking mates and what they would say to him. Just the same, he had to hold tightly to his seat with both hands to keep from making the move along the aisle when others were going down to the front.

“There’s still plenty of time”, he told himself.

Now he wondered if things would have been different if he had made that move back then. It began to dawn on him that perhaps all this WAS  his own fault, and all because he kept shutting the thought of God out of his mind.

“Perhaps God IS speaking me” he said to himself, “If I had taken the step when that preacher was asking people to come forward, perhaps none of this would have happened!”

How right he was! He wouldn’t have been at the pub this particular night if he had done that!

   By the time Bob was discharged from the hospital and able to go home, he had confessed his willfulness  and disobedience to the Lord and received full forgiveness for it all. Bob was full of joy in his mind and heart now….not for the position he found himself in, but in the fact that now he had made his peace with God once more.  He was able to pray again, picking up where he had left off when a young man. But in spite of that, nothing could give back the years he had wasted, and this was a constant regret to him.

   He enjoyed the visits he had from other Christians who knew him, and to talk about the things of God was one of his greatest joys.

   He now spent his days in his wheelchair looking out of the large windows of his living room across the town to the harbour in the distance. He had once served on the local harbour board, and was particularly interested in watching the container ships and tankers moving in and out of the harbour.

   He lived for a few more years, and told one of his visitors not long before he passed into the Lord’s presence, “You know, I would sooner be like I am now, and able to enjoy these times with the Lord, than to be what I was once, able to walk but still running away from God. It doesn’t pay!”

          The Apostle Paul wrote….. In case I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.         And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” . Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.       (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)

Man Proposes….

            There’s an old saying that says…”Man proposes, but God disposes…”

There is more truth in this little ditty than first appears. We all like making plans, and sit down to get some idea of where we are going in the next few weeks. So it was with us. We had intended to visit the South Island once more, as it is some years since we last did this. With the restrictions put on us by Covid-19, we hadn’t got past just thinking about it. But now the pandemic had eased off in our country, and if we wanted to take advantage of what was left of the warmer weather, it was time to make some definite plans.

Finally, after tossing ideas around for a bit, we decided that halfway through March would be as good a time as any, and we would still be able to be back home for the next public holiday after Easter weekend.

    No sooner said than done. A few clicks on the computer and crossing Cook Strait on the ferry was all organised. Now we had something concrete to work towards. That was OUR proposal.

   But God had different ideas. Two things happened that we hadn’t reckoned on. First, the motorhome rolled into a bush and broke its grill….insurance job. But then the whole country was shut down again for a week, and we only had two weeks to go! Would the parts get through if the warehouse stayed closed? Not only that, how would we get through the affected area which was our only route to the ferry? So watch this space….it will be an on-going story. Now we have to put our money where our mouth is and put that verse into practice!! We have proposed, but God is the One who can dispose of them as quickly as they were made! We have to remember that God knows what is best for us, no matter how disappointed we may be!

There is another verse that says, “We know that ALL things work together for good for them who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28)

Goodbye!

    This last weekend, we went to the farewell of a dear friend who is leaving the district. She has faithfully served on committees and helped wherever she could, but now is moving to a retirement home right away from our area. Another family of three have left not only our district, but our country and gone back to Canada where they came from a little over twelve months ago. They too, will be missed although we didn’t know them as long as our other friend. It was also the anniversary of our beloved sister-in-law this last week who passed away with cancer two years ago.

    Over the years we have seen many people come and go, and this is how it is for each one of us. Some have stayed several years, while others have only been with us for a few months, but none the less dear. We are meant to interact with each other….this is a God given gift, one of the signs that we are made in His image. Has it ever occurred to you, that God wants to have fellowship with you, His creature? That is the reason that His Son, Jesus Christ came to earth, to show us what God is like and how much He wants us to talk with Him and to live His ways. He has told us that those who seek Him will find Him! What a wonderful thought.

   Of course, modern technology makes it possible to keep in touch so easily, and even see each other. Especially when there are small children involved….how else would they get to know their grand-parents in another country?  Another wonderful thought is that one day there will be no more partings. That we will be able to fellowship with our friends and with our Lord forever with nothing between. Let’s find out the truth of these matters and DO something about it. Don’t put it off as so many do, we have no guarantee of tomorrow, and one day it may be too late.

Tough Times Ahead.

Tough Times Ahead.

    There is no doubt about it, there are more tough times coming!  When we hear of the new regulations that the authorities are talking about bringing in, we realise that our opportunities to speak in public about the truths that the Bible teaches are going to be greatly curtailed. Pastors and ministers are going to be criminalized if they talk about controversial topics such as transgenderism and homosexuality. Christian teachers too, are going to have to be careful what they say…in fact they are going to be required to teach things to their classes that they know are contrary to the teachings of the Bible.

    We might wonder how we are going to be able to cope in a climate such as this, but we are not alone in this fight against evil. Our Lord said before He left His disciples, “In the world you will have tribulation, but don’t be afraid, I have overcome the world”, and “ I will pray the Father and He will give you another Comforter (Helper), that He may abide with you for ever, the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you….I will not leave you orphans, but will come to you…”   (John 14:16-18),

    It reminds me of a story told to me years ago by an older friend. She said that she had had to go into hospital to have an operation for cancer, and was very apprehensive about the whole thing. But as she remembered these verses and others that she knew, she felt the peace of God surround her mind and soul, and was able to relax knowing that He was in control. After a few days when it was all over, somehow this sense of peace left her, and this bothered her very much.

 “Where are you Lord?” she asked, “Why have You left me?”

Almost immediately the answer came into her mind…. “I haven’t left you, I will always be with you. But you don’t need Me the same now it’s all over, and  you have walk by faith again”.

    So it will be for us…when we need God’s strength in difficult situations, it will be there for us if we ask Him. Until that time comes, we need to live in faith, and learn to depend on Him more and more as we see the clouds darken around us.

See what God has to say to YOU.