Random Devotional Thoughts

Pride Comes Before a Fall…..or…. What are Your Desires?

Leave a comment

David LivingstoneDavid Livingstone had a burning desire all his life to preach the Gospel to people in a country which had never had the chance to hear it before. I read a bit about him recently and it reminded me of the time we had been taken to see the cottage in Scotland where he was born and grew up . David and his brother Charles were born in this cottage which had nothing at all to commend it except that it was the birthplace of David Livingstone the great explorer. When David was a young man, he told his brother Charles, that he planned to become a medical missionary. His brother scoffed, saying that he was going to stay in England and get famous and wealthy…this was his desire. He wanted recognition from the people around him, and that wasn’t possible, he said, for a missionary in Africa.

David went to Africa where he worked among the people as a doctor and preacher. The Lord gave him the desires of his heart, and many people came to know Jesus Christ through his humble ministry. His brother, who stayed in England, did indeed find fame and wealth, and became very well known.

But when David Livingstone died, his heart was buried in Africa… ..his African people said that his heart must stay there, for that was indeed where his heart was all his years there. His  body could be shipped home to England which it was, and was buried in Westminster Cathedral among other well known people. Later, his brother was buried next to him. It is very touching to see the  inscriptions on the brothers’ graves. Above David Livingstone’s burial vault was this poem:

DAVID LIVINGSTONE
He needs no epitaph to guard a name Which men shall prize while worthy work is known;
He lived and died for good-be that his fame:  Let marble crumble; this is Living-stone

.The inscription above David’s brother’s grave simply states: “Charles, the brother of David Livingstone.”

They both received their hearts’ desires in ways they could not have imagined… David whose desire was to preach the Gospel left  his heart in Africa and became well known for his great explorations in that continent, and Charles whose only claim to lasting fame was the fact that he was brother to David Livingstone!

This illustration, more than any I know, reflects the truth of 1 Peter 5:6-   “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due

 

 

 

 

 

Morning Musings

How Do You Handle Temptation?

Leave a comment

It is Written….

BIBLE2How do we handle temptation? Can we write it off as merely being something pertaining to a time past and in a different culture? Satan is a past master at suggesting that God maybe didn’t really mean what He said. Perhaps  these days are different! Perhaps we had misunderstood what God had said! Perhaps it is just our interpretation (or the other person’s)?

Satan can even quote the Scripture to reinforce his points of temptation….”look, here it says ‘It is written’ ”

We must be so careful to have the correct interpretation of Scripture firmly fixed in our minds, and not take any verses out of context. If Satan had gone a little further in quoting the verses, he would have been showing his own demise.

We must not be like Eve was. She listened to Satan’s suggestions that God didn’t want them to know the difference between being good and bad, and then she had a second look at the fruit. It DID look nice, perhaps God WAS being mean in saying they weren’t to touch it ! Instead of saying to Satan, “GOD says we aren’t to touch it”, she took that second look and was lost. She didn’t even put up any further argument. She saw it looked good and she took it. She could have thrown it away at that point, but she didn’t. She ate it and gave one to Adam as well. Do you notice that Satan didn’t bother to tempt Adam? He left Eve to do that, and Adam fell with her.

Of course the things that tempt us look good. But we must learn to shut our minds to  temptation when it comes, stand firm for what we know is right, and say “It is written…God said it, I believe it, and that settles it!”

Morning Musings

Do We Have a Plan?

Leave a comment

Do We Have a Plan?

SUMMER7   Warrick and Lisa had recently bought an older house. The kitchen began to get on Lisa’s nerves and they decided to get it done up. But once the units were pulled out, the mess was unbelievable. There was more dust than they thought, and the insulation in the roof began to fall down inside. Lisa began to wonder if it was worth the mess, but Warrick could see further ahead than that. In his mind, the job was already complete, and the kitchen finished.

As we look at the world around us, we wonder where it is all going to end. Things seem to be spiralling out of control. What was going to happen with all the refugees pouring out of their own countries into other ones. Where are they going to get work? How are they going to live? All these questions come pouring into our minds as we contemplate these things. We see more earthquakes causing havoc in third world countries, and droughts causing famines leaving thousands short of food.

We have to understand that these things have to come; they are just the beginning of sorrows…there are more labour pains to come that will get more frequent and intense as time goes by. God has a plan and can see the end from the beginning. It will all end when the time of the birth comes….Christ Jesus could say that He would be satisfied when He saw the result of His sufferings (Isaiah 53:11a). He is still suffering today when His people are being persecuted for His Name’s sake, but when the right time comes He will take His people out of this world to be with Himself for ever.

Meantime, He told His disciples how to have a plan to live through these trying times…

  1. Be watchful and discerning, being continually on guard.
  2. Be calm, and unalarmed….there is no need to be fearful.
  3. Be responsive….we must turn to God at all times and be prepared to be led by Him.
  4. Be firm in our convictions…there is no room for compromise
  5. Be always ready….to give reasons for our belief, and to keep living how we should.

 

 

Morning Musings

How Do I Think?

Leave a comment

     My emotions are not necessarily caused by what happens to me. My feelings are produced by my thoughts about what has been happening to me! What I believe and what I tell myself is what causes my feelings. Our feelings are produced by our thoughts, not by the actual happening. The Bible has this to say about these things….

Proverbs 4:23…..Attend to My sayings….let them not depart from your eyes; keep them in your mind….keep your heart with all diligence.

2 Corinthians. 4:16-18….though our outward man perish, yet our inward man is renewed day by day…

So the things I experience shouldn’t affect my thoughts.

     We must see things from God’s point of view, and bring our thoughts into captivity into line with what God thinks. Philippians 4:8 tells us to think of the things that are good, lovely and of good report, and not feed ourselves on the world’s rubbish.

     So we see that it’s not what is happening that is the problem, it is what I am thinking about it that brings out the latent feelings trapped deep within the human heart. We must practice training our minds to allow the Lord to free us of all negative feelings.

Daily Devotionals, Uncategorized

Is this Your Shepherd?

Leave a comment

Psalm Twenty-three….

The Shepherding One

The Lord is my Shepherd, I have all I need, I rest in green pastures, by still waters He’ll lead;

My soul He restores, His paths are all right As He leads each day, I walk in His light

In the shadow of death, I’ll not be afraid, For my Lord is with me , my debts He has paid,

His rod and staff, they comfort and keep, My cup runneth over, my joy is so deep;

Goodness and mercy always with me, For I’ll live in His presence eternally.

   This must be one of the best known and loved portion of Scripture there is! The picture of a Shepherd lovingly caring for His sheep is an idyllic one indeed! Yet it is true in the spiritual sense for those who know this wonderful Shepherd of the sheep. Our Lord says it of Himself…..”I am the Good Shepherd, I know My sheep and am known by Mine”  (John 10:14).

We can truly say, “Because the Lord is my shepherd, I have everything I need”. Not only does He provide our physical needs, but more importantly He gives us our daily spiritual needs as well! What a wonderful prospect we have as we look ahead! We need to hang onto this psalm firmly, especially in times when we are feeling down….it is the most uplifting  song we can sing, and will surely lift us out of our swamp of despondency!

Random Devotional Thoughts, Uncategorized

Lessons from a Donkey.

Leave a comment

st_pau_c - Copy    I recently read some thoughts about the donkey that carried Jesus on His last trip into the city of Jerusalem and thought they were worth passing on. We hear so many sermons preached about the last days of Jesus leading up to the crucifixion, but nothing much about the little donkey that He rode. After all, who takes notice of a donkey? The very name suggests someone not sensible enough to take notice of!

The little donkey was standing behind its mother quietly minding its own business with no-one taking any notice of it. How often we stand behind others, keeping out of the limelight! But Jesus knew the donkey was there and He wanted to use it. Jesus knows exactly where we are, at any given time, and often we are in a place where He can use us.

But we have to be available. The little donkey could have pulled back on the rope that was put around its neck, and said “Not me! Take my mother!”, but it didn’t. It had never had anyone sit on it before, yet it didn’t buck or pull away when the coat was thrown over its back. It just quietly stepped forward, and when the weight of the Person was on its back, it went along as though it was quite used to doing this.

We have to be like the donkey, and be submissive, doing what the Master requires. Just look at what the donkey would have missed out on if it hadn’t gone along with the people  leading it!. No matter how much trouble it is, we always gain more than we lose when we have people over for a meal, or go to visit someone who can’t get out, or even just make a friendly telephone call.

Thirdly, the donkey was unafraid and at peace. Just think, he was straight in from the paddock, and here he was being led along a path with Someone sitting on his back and people all jostling around him waving palm leaves and making a lot of noise shouting out. It would be enough to make an older trained animal be afraid and try to get away. But not this donkey. We can remember the verses where David said, “I will trust and not be afraid” when we find ourselves in difficult situations doing what we know God wants us to do. Taking a devotional talk or speaking to a Youth Group when we aren’t used to it can be rather daunting, but if we commit it all to the Lord before hand we will be at peace and feel Him with us as we speak out for Him.

So remember the little donkey that carried the Lord Jesus into Jerusalem the next time you are asked to help out publicly in some way….be available, submissive and unafraid!

Random Devotional Thoughts, Uncategorized

When Troubles Come….

Leave a comment

2016-03-06 16.37.30I was sent the address of a video clip to watch the other day; it was of two young children with superb singing voices and great confidence, performing before a crowd of people. Not only was the tune very catchy, but the harmony they sang was beautiful. But the words were what caught my attention most of all. What a great message they held, and I couldn’t help wondering how they would fit into a Christian context. They certainly brought a raft of thoughts to me…

“When I am down, and my soul is weary, When troubles come and my heart burdened be,” the young boy sang in a voice as clear as a bell. I thought of the verses from the book of Psalms…”I am weary with my groaning; all the night I make my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears” (Psalm 6:6) How many times we have been in this situation!! Unable to sleep, tossing and turning with one’s mind going round and round in circles over the problem.

The small girl picked up the thread of the song….“When I am still and wait in silence, Until you come and sit a while with me”…. Sometimes there is no person on earth who can give a solution, but if we turn the matter over to God, the Heavenly Father, and wait for Him, He will come and sit with us if we will only take the time to be quiet and listen for His voice….” Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

The boy picked up the melody, and his voice soared high and precise….

“You raise me up so I can stand on mountains,” and these words brought to mind the fact that those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:31)

 The girl chimed in, pure and clear… “You raise me up to walk on stormy seas”, and I remembered the story of Peter being able to walk on the sea while he kept his eyes on the Lord, but sinking as soon as he took them off Him.  “Oh you of little faith”, said Jesus, “Why did you doubt?” How often we doubt and sink back into the waves of fear and worry!

The song continued in perfect harmony with the two voices together, “I am strong when I am on Your shoulders”; God said to Israel, “I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself” (Exodus 19:4)

“You raise me up to more than I can be”. What more can we hope for than to be with God the Father, and His Son the Lord Jesus Christ,  for the ages of eternity!

Jesus prayed before His crucifixion, “Father, I will that they also whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world”. (John 17:24)

The verse of the song came to an end for a moment with the music continuing on, and then the two voices repeated the song in harmony, finishing off with a crescendo of sound to the prolonged applause of the audience.

“When I am down, and my soul is weary, When troubles come and my heart burdened be,”

….“When I am still and wait in silence, Until you come and sit a while with me”….

“You raise me up so I can stand on mountains, You raise me up to walk on stormy seas”,

“I am strong when I am on Your shoulders, You raise me up to more than I can be”.

These two young people have no idea of what lies ahead in life for them, but they can rest assured that there will be some of those stormy seas and times of trouble for them to go through. If they learn to trust the One Who promised to bear His people on eagles’ wings in times of stress and trials, then they will indeed find that they will be strong when upon His shoulders and will be raised up to more than they would otherwise be. As they learn to trust Him, they will find themselves stronger and more able to bear what life throws at them as they take the time to be still and see what God will do for them.

 

Random Devotional Thoughts

The Potter’s Hand….

Leave a comment

VASE“Take me, use me, Fill me, lead me, By the Potter’s hand”, the choir was singing lustily from the front of the church. These words made me think of the deeper meaning of them. Perhaps you have sung these words, and really meant what they say without knowing the full implications of them……

“Take me”…. have you stopped to think of all that this means? How much do we really want God to take us for His service? Remember, His service is in serving others around us. What about the times when all we feel like doing is just to kick our shoes off and relax in that lazy-boy chair! The times when we feel like having a day at home rather than go out yet again to help others,  to visit an old person in the rest home, or to encourage others in a Bible Study!

“Fill me”….we can only be filled by the Holy Spirit when we empty ourselves of our old nature. There is no room for both the old nature and the new nature to have control of our soul and spirit. It is only as we empty ourselves of our old desires, bitterness, and prejudices, that God will find room to come right into our being.

“Lead me”….once again, how much do we really want to be led by the Lord? He could say, “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head”. As He travelled the dusty roads of the land, He was reliant on the goodwill of others to give Him a bed for the night. Many times He spent the whole night in prayer to His Heavenly Father out on a mountain top, meditating and renewing His spirit to continue in His Father’s will.

“By the Potter’s hand”, the choir concluded with a flourish. I looked at those fresh young faces of the singers and wondered if they knew what they were singing, or if any of us know what that means!

We read of the potter seeing a bowl he has made and it is not to his liking so he breaks it and starts all over again. How many of us have gone through bitter experiences and shed tears of grief over broken relationships and disappointing things that have happened! It is often the only way the Lord can get rid of some of the things in our lives that are not pleasing to Him. We have to come to the end of ourselves in these broken times, so we can be re-moulded by the Master Potter to be of better use to Him.

See what God has to say to YOU.