Are you a Back Seat Driver?

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"Peter seeing him, said to Jesus, 'But Lord, what about this man?' Jesus said to him, 'If I will that he remain till I come , what is that to you? You follow me!' "  

                                                                                                             John 21:21-22

Peter had been talking with Jesus and wanted to know if John had to do what He was telling Peter to do. Straightaway, Jesus told him basically to get on and do what he had been told and not to worry about what John would be doing. In other words, He was telling Peter, 'Never mind, "What about him - what about you? You do what I've told you to do, I'll take care of the rest.'

It all boils down to as long as we are doing what God wants us to do, that's the way God wants it. The thing is, at times we find ourselves pointing the finger at other Christians. We feel that they shouldn't be doing what they are doing. They should be disciplined.  At times like this, it is more likely that we need disciplining for thinking such stuff about other people.

But we do this. At times, we are like back seat drivers. We even feel that we should be controlling what God should be controlling. 'I mean, for Heaven's sake, why does God allow this to happen? Doesn't He know about what they are doing and saying?' Yes, He does, but it is still no concern of ours. We should be doing what God has told us to do and stop trying to judge people. I always say, if we were meant to judge people, we would have been given a curly white wig and a long black cloak.

We becomes wrapped up in what other people are doing that, at times, that is all we can focus on. Bob Gass, writes, 'Learn to respect your fellow believers, not because of who they are, but whose they are' ( Bob Gass UCB). The very people we judge and point the finger at; the very people that we are tempted to talk about, or to put it correctly - gossip about, belong to God. They are created in God's image the same as we are. How would you feel if they were talking about you to people? It's not nice and I tell you, God is not pleased with such behaviour. 'Judge not, that you will not be judged. For with what judgement you judge, you will be judged and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.'  ( Matthew 7:1-2 ) 

Sitting in the back seat of a car telling the driver what he or she should be doing is akin to sitting in church or in a group talking about other people. Basically it is gossip and we will pay a high price if we continue with this. Yes at times, people do wind us up; there are times when they should be acting in a more appropriate way; but talking about them or judging them behind closed doors is not the way. If there is something you're not happy about, talk to God about it; get some direction and if it is needed, approach that person and gently speak to them about what offends you. If not, then, you do what God wants you to do and let God deal with them.

It is not worth losing your peace and that wonderful flowing in The Holy Spirit. And remember, if we allow the devil to get into the back seat of the car, pretty soon he's going to want to drive. Think about that.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Time-outs Part two

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Both you and these people who are with you will surely wear yourselves out. For this thing is too much for you ; you are not able to perform it by yourself." Exodus 18:18

Jethro, Moses' father in law had made a visit to see Moses and observed that what he was doing, was far too much for him or any man. He felt Moses could be heading for Burnout unless something was done - quickly. He suggested that Moses choose men he could trust and allot them a portion of people each that they could take responsibility for. Moses was humble enough to heed this advice and he set this into action.

At times, we tend to take too much on and fail to see that what we are doing is over the top. Many of us have a job to go to each day and oftentimes, that in itself is demanding. On top of this, we tend to take on things within the church and that makes us feel good, because we have a feeling that we are doing something for God. Again, this is good. However, have we ever stopped and thought, 'Am I doing too much?' 

Many of us need to balance out the work that we take on. Within the church, it makes us feel wanted that God has called us to do something for Him. If He has called us to do a particular thing, He will help us balance it out that we don't get worn out and will give us the necessary time-outs. However, if He hasn't called us to do this particular thing, we are heading towards wearing ourselves out.

We can't do it all. There are many people who want to help out within a church family but don't really get the opportunity. Perhaps it would help to point these people out to leadership and enquire if it would be favourable to let them help out, in order to share the workload.

Some people say 'Yes' whenever they are asked to do something, and that is great. The problem is, it can be the same people doing it all and that is where the tiredness and imbalance can take affect. Sometimes it is right to say, 'No, I can't take on anymore at the moment.' It may not go down too well and you may suffer guilt for saying this, but common sense has to prevail.

Finally, a word for Pastors. Do you delegate, or do you try to do everything yourself because that way, you can be sure that it is done correctly? Again there are people who want to help and are longing for you to recognise their callings and talents. Don't sit on their ministry, delegate and give them the chance they're longing for. Perhaps, at one time, you may have felt this way too.

The main point is, we need to watch the Burnout factor and ensure that we don't take on too much. Is the speaking to you? Do you need to slow dow down a little? Do you need to prioritise in particular areas? Are there time-outs required in your life?

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Time-outs

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"Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  Mark 6:31.  NKJV

A time-out can be classed as a break; a cessation from toil; a time for refreshment and an intermission. This time-out may be instituted by a sports official or someone who is in charge of a particular piece of work that we are doing. Basically, it is a short break from work or play. Children have these at school; workers have tea breaks and such. It is a time where for a few moments, we can re-group, re-focus, gather our thoughts and regain our energy. Time-outs are essential in one's very busy day.

Jesus recognised this when He called His disciples aside to have a short rest. They had not even had the time to eat, let alone think things through. Working at this pace can be a recipe for Burnout. According to the World Health Organisation, Burnout is now a  legitimate Medical Diagnosis, although it can be argued that it falls closely into the category of stress. Basically, Burnout is when a person is not coping well with their job or situation. Tiredness, irritability, depression and lack of concentration can be factors of this condition. However, my intention here is not to attempt to give out medical diagnosis where I'm not qualified to do so. My quest is to point a person in the right direction to attempt to avoid this condition.

Jesus recognised the dangers of taking too much on. This is why He advised His disciples against the perils of missing out on rest and not eating their meals properly. This is a big concern in our society today. Many families don't even sit at a table to eat together any more. Preference is given to having their meal on their knees while they watch TV. Some people grab a sandwich or something else that will satisfy the hunger pangs for a time. One only has to watch some of the police dramas on the TV to get an idea of how the stars demonstrate how busy they are and manage to eat at their desks while they write reports, talk on the telephone or dash in the car to some crime scene, burger in hand. It really does nothing to promote healthy eating and it certainly does nothing to recommend having a rest before they go any further.

Our health is most important. God wants us healthy. Many people are giving in to bad health because they just do not take care of themselves. Some people are overweight and yet do very little by way of exercise. Others burn the midnight oil watching endless movies and then struggle to get up and get through the next day. Diets are ignored. Illnesses such as Type 2 Diabetes are on the increase. Strokes, heart attacks and other life threatening illnesses are a risk because we are just not listening to what Jesus told us. We need to take time out. We need to rest; We need to eat properly and at regular times. We also need to get plenty of sleep.

God wants you well. He wants you fit and healthy. He wants to use you - yes you! But things in your life need to change. There needs to be a more stricter schedule in order to reach the place Jesus wants you to be. We only have one life. It is far better to live it to the full, don't you agree?

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Bury the past

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"Who will deliver me from this body of death?"  Romans 7:24. NKJV

Some ancient kings tormented their prisoners by shackling them to decomposing corpses. This was mostly the one's who had murdered people, but not always. Paul longed to be free from the wretched body of death clinging to him, not that he had directly murdered anyone himself. 

Spurgeon said:

"It was the custom of ancient tyrants, when they wished to put men to the most fearful punishments, to tie a dead body to them; placing the two back to back; and there was the living man, with a dead body closely strapped to him, rotting, putrid, corrupting, and this he must drag with him wherever he went."

As I've mentioned, this was usually the body of the murdered victim who was strapped to the murderer. Eventually, poisonous bacteria would penetrate the perpetrator's back as decomposition kicked in, leading him to an awfully, painful death. 

The Apostle Paul struggled with the fact that the law could not take away his sin. Daily, he felt frustrated that he was committing sin when he didn't wish to. Does this sound normal to you? Many times during the day, we are tempted to sin. Sometimes we don't really recognise that we're doing it; but then again, at other times we do. What about our thought life? What about the times when we allow lust to take over our thinking and for a time, we do nothing to stop this? Paul had similar struggles. We don't know what they were, but he was human just like we are so must have felt similar impulses.

Most of us struggle with things in our past. Some may have been abused by someone that they had felt safe with initially. Some may have become involved with gangs, drug addiction, alcoholism, theft just to name a few. We all have a past but the great thing about belonging to Jesus is that, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ( 1 John 1:9 ) The main scripture above is dealing with the past. The only way the perpetrator would be free from the dead body on his back, would have been to shrug it off and bury it. It is the same with us.

Many of us struggle with past issues when we really shouldn't if Jesus has set us free from them.  However, sometimes, we have to decide to cast the burden off us and bury it. So the past you're carrying around is weighing you down and preventing you from moving forward in victory. It is time that you cast it off, bury it and move to your new life. It really is the only way!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Don't be a copy - be the real thing

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"Don't copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."  Romans 12:2. New Living Translation

Human behaviour at times, tends to lean heavily on copying trends, dress styles and habits. To a degree, this is okay. It is good to be fashionable and up to date with what is going on in the world. As kids, we have our heroes, and these may follow us into adult life where we may find ourselves copying some of their characteristics. We all do this. Some of us are pop stars, singing into a hairbrush in front of the mirror. Some of us train and play sport like our hero. Others, copy the dress and hair style of the particular person who we are following. This is all normal. However, in all of this, eventually we need to find ourselves. We need to find our own  identity and do our own thing. If we don't, we stand the risk of being a person who is going nowhere. We need to be ourselves, and allow God to use us as He finds fit.

Jesus didn't copy. He had His mandate from the Father and He set out to fulfil this. He was not a follower. He was a leader! There are leaders and followers in life and that is okay. If we were all leaders, we would have no followers behind us, and if we were all followers, we would be like sheep without a shepherd. It would be total chaos.

Are you a leader or a follower? Deep down within the heart of a leader, is the burning desire that they have been placed here to make a difference. However, to most people it won't happen overnight. There needs to be a period of 'proving', where it becomes obvious to people that there is some potential in this person. In other words, if you have leadership gifting, it will be noticed by people. The book of Proverbs mentions this:

'A man's gift makes room for him , and brings him before great men.'  Proverbs 18:16

A person who is searching for leadership though, must be a person who has found themselves and know where they're going. One cannot copy someone else's leadership. A leader can have a mentor, that is fine. However, at the end of the day, they need to be their own person and not a carbon copy of someone else. God created just one of us, not several copies.

As I mentioned, are you feeling that you are a potential leader, whether it be in the Christian field or the secular? Don't rush things. Dependent on your age you can seek counsel about this with your pastor or work leader. Training will almost certainly be required plus a time of testing the waters. There may have to be a time where you sit on the subs bench for quite a while before you're set free to have a go. Be patient, because as the Proverbs scripture above says, eventually you will come to someone's attention. You will be noticed. Until then, spend time with Jesus and talk to Him about all of this. He's pretty good at offering expert advice about such things. He also has the key to open all doors.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Happiness

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'Happy are your men and happy are these your servants , who stand continually  before you and hear your wisdom. Blessed be the LORD your God who delighted in you, setting you on His throne to be king for the LORD your God!'     2 Chronicles 9:7. NKJV

The Queen of Sheba had heard of Solomon's great wisdom and wanted an audience with him, to test him. She travelled around 1500 miles to do this, from what is now known as Yemen. She wanted to know if what she was hearing, was true. When she did meet him, she was astounded at his great wisdom and the way happiness appeared to rule in his household. What a wonderful witness it is when people see God in us and how He has blessed us! It is something that must be uppermost in our lives.

David Guzik writes : 'It is a joyful thing to serve a great, wise and rich king. If it was a happy thing to serve Solomon, it is a much happier thing to serve Jesus.'

Blessed means happy and this was what Jesus was referring to when He quoted the beatitudes to the people in Matthew 5:1-12. Jesus wants His people happy in all they do. But are we? Be honest, are you really happy? If not, why not? What is blocking your happiness. As a Christian, Jesus has given all we need to live happy lives. Yes, we suffer persecution; we suffer problems within our families and business life. The same rain that falls on a non-believer falls on a believer too. We don't all of a sudden become excluded from what the world has to throw at us. We will suffer death and heartache; pain and suffering. We'll have good and bad days just the same. The difference is, we have Jesus to share our days with and I would sooner have Him on my side throughout the day than go it alone.

Being happy brings us joy and we know that joy is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). Furthermore, we're told in Proverbs 17:22 that, 'A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones.' Being happy - being joyful, is a recipe for being content and having a good attitude to life. What is your attitude like at times?

Being happy comes down to choice. Yes, at times of great pain and loss, it is incredibly hard to be anything but sad. But trying to find a way through this darkness - step by step, can lead us to freedom. It takes time, but a happy heart can heal a thousand woes in our life.

Saying this to people may bring the response, 'You don't know what I've been through.' That is so true, but neither do they know what you've been through either. We have choices in life and God wants us to choose the right ones. Being happy, with a right attitude and a determination that, 'Whatever, I may face, I'm going to do this,' can be such a winner to your soul. 

God wants to bless you - make you happy. Why not allow Him to make a start, today!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Favour

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"For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; With Favour, You will surround him as with a shield."    Psalm 5:12

God wants to bless you. Are you hearing me? God wants to bless you and He wants to use His favour to do this. Favour is grace. But it is also identified as pleasure, desire and delight. In fact, God wants us living favour-minded wherever we are and whatever we do. We are His children and it is understandable that He wants to give us that we need. Notice that I say, 'what we need - not what we want.' There's a big difference between these two words. 'Need' is simply what we need on a day to day basis and that includes protection and direction in whatever we do. 'Want', is the selfish part. What we want is not always what we get for the simple reason, if we received everything that we could possibly think of, eventually life would become boring. There would be no excitement in what God is doing. We would have it all and and have done it all. It would work rather like when a child is spoilt by its parents. They receive everything and after a while, they become disgruntled because they want more and more. God does not wish to spoil us. This is one of the reasons that some of our prayers go unanswered.

Being favour-minded is the way to live. It's a great idea to start the day with the prayer: 'Lord, I confess and believe that I'm walking in the favour of God today, and I receive all of Your benefit'. Psalm 103:2 says, 'Bless the LORD O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.'
Gods benefits are not means-tested. He doesn't give you something one way and take it off you another. No His benefits are the greatest and I would sooner have God's benefits than all of what the world can offer.

For a start, God loves you and He has your best interests at heart today. Is there something important that you need to do today. It may be to do with work or housing or even the medical world. Whatever, God wants to give you favour with this. That's right, just ask Him and believe that He will give you all the favour you need to go out and get the job done. I heard one Pastor say that he often asks God for favour dealing with parking his car. Where he is based, the car parking is crazy and one can spend hours trying to find a space. This guy claims that God has never let him down yet. Unbelievable? No, I believe this is true. God is interested in your life and that includes you having a stress free time away from finding a space in a car park. I've tried it myself and it worked but I have to admit, it took longer than the Pastor takes to get a space. 

God's Word says, 'But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these thing shall be added to you.'  (Matthew 6:33)

Put God first in your life and He'll take you up on the deal. He is totally for you and wants to soak you in His favour, each and every day. But don't take my word for it. Try it out yourself!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com 

The Word

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"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, 'Let there be light, and there was light.' " 
                                                                                                         Genesis 1:1-4. NKJV

Spurgeon commenting on this, is quoted as saying, 'God said, Light be - and Light was.'

To get a fuller picture of the beginning of time and who was there, let us look at the Gospel of John 1:1-2

"In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God."

The Word is Jesus Christ. He was there at the beginning - at the creation. The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Jesus and the Holy Spirit were with God at the beginning. This is why, God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.' (Genesis 1:26.) There was no one else He could have been speaking too.
Jesus Christ is the Word of God and He came to earth as a man and dwelt with us for a time ('And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His Glory'. (John 1:14)

So, the Word is Jesus. The Word is also called Logos, which is the Greek interpretation of The Word of God and The Written Word - the Bible or the written message. There is another Greek interpretation of the Word, which is called Rhema. This is the communication of the Word - the message or the utterance. This can be seen in Genesis 1, where God called the world into being. He said, 'Light be' and that Word became a Word of action. It was!

Rhema is a Word from the Bible that is put into action. If we take for example, Ephesians 6:17 which speaks of the Armour of God. The latter part of the verse reads 'take the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Rhema puts Logos into action. This is why, we should always speak the Word of God to people whenever we can, very much so when we are under Spiritual attack and we need to exercise our faith as we battle with whatever satan may throw at us.

We may have been reading a piece of scripture with a relevant meaning for us. As we study what God has for us, someone may ring us and say, what we have just read. Alternatively, we may just open a book and a verse can jump off the page at us, confirming what we had read, or felt God say to us earlier. 
This happened to me very recently. I felt God giving me a Word for someone, which I did. There was no reaction from the person afterwards. A short time later, this person showed me something that she had just seen on social media. The piece started, 'You are not reading this by accident. ---'. It then went on to repeat word for word what I had said to her earlier. Co-incidence? I don't think so. It was the Rhema Word of God - the Word in action; the Word that is mentioned in Hebrews 4:12, 'For the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword.' The Rhema Word.

When this happens to you, and it will, it is so exciting because there really is no explanation to it. God just wishes to speak with us and when we spend some quality time with Him, the Word of God will come alive. 

Get reading it now and take your spiritual life to another height. 

Bless you

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Waiting

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"Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!"   Psalm 27:14. NKJV

There's not many people who like waiting for things to happen, especially myself. I become bored quite quickly and want to get on with things. The problem is, that can be a recipe for disaster. If we rush in without giving things much thought, we can get it wrong. I have found this out on many occasions.

Here the Psalmist, David, encourages us to wait on the the Lord. because then, we will be strengthened. Rather like Isaiah tells us in Isaiah 40:31:

'But those who wait on the LORD, shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint.'

An eagle never flaps. It is often buzzed by other birds who are fearful that it is about to strike their young. However, all it does is rise above all the rest of the birds, very high where perhaps they are unlikely to follow. It doesn't really flap its wings; it soars at an incredible speed, its size giving the impression that it's a small aircraft. It offers a great analogy to humans that we should rise above the flak that comes our way, avoiding worry and anxiety - something we all need to take on board at times and soar to new heights instead of dropping into the doldrums.

Therefore, we need to encourage ourselves in the Lord. How do we do this, you may ask? Well, by remembering how God has acted for you in the past. How His timing was perfect and He intervened just at the right time. As RT Kendall often says, 'He is never early; never late, He's always on time.' And this is so true.
You may be a new Christian and may not remember so easily what God has done for you in such a short time. However, if you stop and think for a moment about that first time He came into your life; that wonderful feeling of freedom that you had; as if you were sailing on the breeze, that warm, internal glow. Well, that is what God did for you and he will do something similar in the future - if you ask Him. So encourage yourself in Him.

At times, waiting for God can be difficult. It isn't that He will deliberately keep you waiting to test your patience. He could do that and may have been doing it already. However, usually, He will wait until the time is right. We are His children and He wants what is best for us. He doesn't wish for us to dash into something like a bull in a china shop and then get it all wrong, where we require some bailing out. No, He wants us to be courageous and build our strength for what lies ahead. He only has our best interests at heart.

Therefore, if your are in the Waiting Room, you are not alone. Enjoy it and know that Your Father is preparing the ground well for your next move, whatever that may be. Don't confess things like, 'I'm at my wits end waiting.' Instead say, 'I am receiving power to overcome; the Lord is increasing my strength.'

That's a much better way of looking at things.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

A Thirst for God

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"As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, 'Where is your God?' "  
                                                                                                             Psalm 42:1-3. NKJV

The Psalmist uses the analogy of a deer thirsting for water after running all over the countryside. It needs the water to survive. One can go longer without food than without water. Thirst is something that is so hard to bear. Thirsts rage.

Here, the word, 'Soul', is made up of the Mind, Will and Emotions. With the Mind, our thoughts can play tricks with us when we're under pressure. In a stressful situation, and when we are low on spiritual energy, we can be tempted to believe that God can't help us in this situation. If He could, why has He allowed this to happen to me? Mind games can rule. We need to keep our minds on God because He won't let us down- ever. This is where the Will part comes into play. This is over-ruling any negative thought that tries to come in and making it subject to Jesus:

'For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself  against the knowledge of God bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of God.'
                                                                                            2 Corinthians 10:4-5

Emotions are very strong and if the evil one can get a thought into our head that God doesn't care about us, and we don't have the will power to block this attack, then negative emotions can begin to kick in and lead us to despair.

The Psalmist was struggling in this area and so will we at times of great sadness and chaotic thought. Tears had been flooding for him as he tried to make sense of it all. This was not helped by the fact that onlookers were saying to him, 'Where is your God?' A paraphrase of this would be, 'I thought that God loved you and yet, look at you, you're in a right state. I'm glad I'm not a Christian.' 

Hey come on. We all have days where everything goes wrong. We also have times where total despair tries to take over and make us question our faith. It's part of the course of being a Soldier of Jesus. The thing is, our Commanding Officer will not let us down and will give us the Living Water- water that will never run out. 

Don't despair; look up. Jesus is right beside you and wants to carry you through this trial. 
Allow Him to do this for you. Allow Him to quench your spiritual thirst. Hearts break but somehow He mends them. Don't ask me how. Only God knows this.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

A New Song

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"Sing to the Lord a new song, and His praise from the ends of the earth."  Isaiah 42:10

At times we need to be singing a new song; the old one is dull and boring, we've heard it so many times. Things can become staid and worn out and at times they need changing. Imagine wearing the same old coat day in and out for about a year. We would become so fed up with it that we would be climbing the wall to get it changed.

This is what it is like if we don't energise ourselves in God's Word. As a Christian we need a constant flow of the Word and the Power of the Holy Spirit to give us that lift to each day. If we don't eat the necessary requirement of food, eventually we will die. If we don't receive the necessary requirement of food from the Word of God - the bible, then the same thing will happen - spiritual death. We need to be continually filling our souls with our spiritual food. 

There may be times when we don't receive this at church for some reason. If this happens, fill your need by watching some Christian TV or perhaps reading a good Christian teaching book, or listening to a praise CD. There are lots of ways to begin to sing a new song and put a new skip in our walk. Praise is one thing that the devil does not like, one bit. Praise is powerful and it stops satan in his tracks. That's why when things begin to go pear-shaped in our lives, such as things getting us down and it becomes obvious that we're under spiritual attack, that is the time when we need to start praising God. Why? Because we will receive the victory. Things may be bad but Jesus is still on the throne; He's still the King of kings and He is still our friend. Therefore, sing a new song to Him. Praise your way through the bad time. Paul and Silas were in the deepest of smelly dungeons where it would have been wet and totally dark. Did they moan? No, they praised God while they sat in stocks and suddenly God sent an earthquake and the prison doors complete with chains, fell off them and they were set free. This is what praise can do.

This is why it is good to sing a new song to the Lord. Whatever, you may be going through at this time, God can help you with it, you just need to allow some praise to come out of your mouth and let God do the rest.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Today is the day

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"We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says, 'In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.' Behold, now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.:
                                                                                                       2 Corinthians 6:1-2

Just look at that statement above, 'workers together with Him.' What a privilege that is. Actually working with Jesus Himself. He considers you worthy to do that. Shall I say that again. HE CONSIDERS YOU WORTHY TO DO THAT. Wow, that just blows me away. The God of the universe; the God that created the world. The God who hung on a cross for you and me, considers us worthy to work alongside Him. Not for Him, but with Him. 

Where could you get this in the secular world. Nowhere! There are bosses and workers. Somebody has to rule us; tell us what to do; not that this is wrong. We all need to be accountable to someone, that is true. But the founder of the world - our friend Jesus, considers us worthy to work alongside Him.

We have been saved by grace (John 3:16). We belong to Him but let us be careful to never abuse this fact. Unbelievers look at us and they love to point the finger at times. Let us be careful to give them no ammunition - nothing they can judge us by. We are Christians, but we're only human and can easily blow it - big time. When we do, people seem to never forget it. It can ruin our witness; so let us be careful that the grace we have received is not in vain. If we do blow it, confess this to them, wherever possible; ask them to forgive you and move on. This is all you can do. If they don't forgive you, that is their problem, not yours.

At times it is so easy to take a day off from God. We all try it at times. It's a foolish move though because without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow. It is now; there may not be a tomorrow. This was said to a chap in Somerset by a preacher. He replied that he had a lot of living to do and then he would become a Christian. He wanted to live first. He was killed that evening in an RTA. For him, salvation had passed and he had missed it. If you're reading this and have not asked Jesus to be your saviour, don't delay. Today is the day of salvation, not tomorrow. Ask Him now.

Lord Jesus
I recognise that today is the day of salvation and I cannot afford to miss out on this. I give You my life now and ask You to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Rest

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Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.'   Mark 6:31.  NKJV

There were many people coming and going and the disciples were so hard pressed, they didn't have time to eat. Jesus advised them to take a short break, a short time out where they would be able to rest, eat and sleep. In other words, to regain their strength. Note that Jesus mentioned a deserted place - one where they would not be disturbed. We need this respite at times.

Just preaching the Gospel can be tiring. We should always do this in Jesus' strength, that is true. But a preacher is all fired up at this time, running on maximum power. At the end of it, the preacher can feel drained and this was partly what was going on here.

Burn out, is one of most biggest problems for preachers and pastors today. We find it difficult to say no - to turn people away or hand them over to someone else. It makes us feel guilty. But here the disciples didn't have the time to eat. This is so foolhardy and yet, we all do it. Therefore, going to a deserted place to rest guaranteed that people wouldn't be calling on them unannounced. This happens so much to us; especially via the telephone, which can be our biggest enemy. At times like this, it pays to turn it off.

Many people have working lunches. This may be a meeting or a one to one with someone. The thing is, no one should expect a person to work their lunch break. We need it. if at all possible, get out of the place and go for a walk, anywhere where there are no people demanding your time. If you don't, you'll pay the price and someone else may take over from you.

Don't allow people to do this to you. Tell the people straight. 'My yes is yes and my no is no. No one can stop you from making this decision, except yourself. If you want to continue to work your lunch, stay late after work, do more than really is requested of you. Then you really may have a problem in the not so distant future.

Is your body telling you to rest? Are you overdoing things? You have a decision that you need to make - sooner, rather than later!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Noisey, Empty Words

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"Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become a sounding brass or a clanging cymbal."  I Corinthians 13:1

Empty words create just an empty noise that serves no purpose whatsoever. The words are worthless, full of insincerity and lack the love of God, hence - a clanging cymbal.
I remember seeing a very funny sketch of a man sitting on the end of a small pier, fishing. All of a sudden, this chap tiptoes out behind him with a couple of large cymbals. Without hesitation, he crashed the cymbals together making the most awesome noise and the unfortunate fisherman, fell into the water. It was a hysterical sketch and people were laughing about it, but really, it just served no purpose whatsoever. It was funny, yes. But it could have caused the fisherman to have a heart attack. There was no point in it at all. It was just a clanging cymbal; and this is what the Apostle Paul is writing about here. Without love, without God in something, it is just a noise.

I often feel that there is nothing like a firm handshake. Oftentimes, we go to shake someone's hand and we receive what resembles, a limp fish in return. Their handshake may be sincere but to me, it convey's insincerity, that they don't wish to meet with us really. They have a lack of interest.
It is the same when we are speaking with someone. We need to give them eye contact. If we're staring out of the window or glancing at our watch, what does that convey? Lack of interest. How would you feel if you met with God and He began looking out of His window or was glancing at anything but yourself. It would give the impression that He is too busy or has too much on His mind to bother with us.

When we speak with someone, whether it be in a planned 'counselling' type of way or unplanned, we need to give them dignity. What I mean by this, is to show them that we are not in any rush and would really like to help, where possible. Let us beware of sounding like a clanging cymbal by saying, 'I know how you feel.' The chances are, you don't and it can put the other person off and may cause them to say, 'You don't know how I feel.' It is a closer to a conversation to act in such a way. 

When the person speaks to you, don't speak over them. Allow them the space to talk, gently feeding back part of what they're saying (reflecting back) to let them know you are with them. Try to listen with the third ear - 'What is this person really trying to say?' Try and get into their shoes by identifying with them and then they'll know that you know what they're going through. Counsellors call this, getting into their, 'Internal Frame of Reference.' You'll know if you've succeeded by their reaction towards you. Once you're in there, they'll open up more.

These are only basic counselling skills but you don't have to be qualified to use them. Listen more; speak less and promise nothing. A lot of time most people just want to off load and if they've chosen you for this purpose and you agree, stick to these guidelines - unless you are qualified and have a deeper understanding.

Clanging gongs and cymbals are for those in an orchestra. You may not fit the musical skills but you can avoid the clanging cymbals and the next time someone opens up to you, show them the love of God by being a listener.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard 

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com