The Road to Emmaus

"Jesus Himself drew near and went with them."                 Luke 24:13-35      NKJV

On the build up surrounding Jesus' resurrection, let us look at a few things that happened. Many were astounded at the news that Jesus's body was no longer in the tomb where it had been placed and had been guarded by Roman soldiers. There had also been a very large stone placed in the doorway to prevent people going in there. But, the tomb was found to be empty. Many doubters, including the Romans and the local hierarchy felt that Jesus' body had been stolen in an effort to establish that Jesus' claim that he would rise again, was the truth. But how could this have happened when the tomb was guarded and the stone would have been much too heavy to move without great effort.

Therefore, people allover the area were debating this. Jesus noticed two chaps walking along the road to Emmaus and joined them.They were followers of Jesus but it was obvious from their conversation, that their faith was shallow. Whereas, people like Peter, John and Mary, were rejoicing that Jesus had actually risen as He said He would, these chaps were discussing what happened without any hope and as if, they felt let down by it all.

Jesus intervened and they were astounded that He led them to believe that He knew nothing about the situation, 'Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem, and have you not known the things which happened there in these days?' v18. And they went on to explain what they knew. Jesus rebuked them after a time, v25, telling them that their spiritual dullness, came from a failure to recognise what the scriptures foretold, that the Messiah must suffer in such a way. They had been blinded by their despair. 

There is something that we must see in this account. Jesus can turn up anywhere that He chooses. These guys had been so busy talking about it all, that they missed the real thing - Jesus Himself in their presence. Busy-ness is ok but not at the risk of leaving Jesus out of things. He drew near to Cleopas and this other chap, He can do the same thing to us as well. What would He find if He chose to do this. If He just turned up in your day witnessing what you were saying and doing. Like the chaps here, who were too busy to recognise Him, would you do the same?

It really is food for thought. We should always be ready for the unexpected. As I've mentioned, being busy is ok, as long as Jesus figures in this busy-ness. Going to this meeting and then another and never having time for yourself, your family or even God, is never a good idea. We can end up leaving out, who we are seeking to bring in - Jesus Himself.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

 

It was obvious that they had been with Jesus Part 2

"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marvelled. And they realised that they had been with Jesus."                                                                                         Acts 4:13     NKJV

Peter, John and the other apostles, were not always the type of people one would have thought they should be. They had many rough edges just as we do, especially before they were baptised in the Holy Spirit. Robert E Coleman comments:

'What is more revealing about these men is that, at first they do not impress us as being key men. None of them occupied prominent places in the synagogue, nor did any of them belong to the Levitical priesthood. For the most part they were common labouring men, probably having no professional training beyond the rudiments of knowledge necessary for their vocation. Perhaps a few of them came from families of some considerable means, such as the sons of Zebedee, but none of them could have been considered wealthy. They had no academic degrees in the arts and philosophies of their day. Like their master, their formal education likely consisted only of the synagogue schools. Most of them were raised in the poor section of the country around Galilee. Apparently, the only one of the twelve who came from the more refined region of Judea, was Judas Iscariot. By any standard of sophisticated culture then and now, they would surely be considered as a rather ragged aggregation of souls. One might wonder how Jesus could ever use them. They were impulsive, temperamental, easily offended and had all the prejudices of their environment. In short, these men selected by the Lord to be His assistants, represented an average cross section of the lot of society in their day. Not the kind of group one would expect to win the world for Christ'

                                                                        Copyright Robert E Coleman 1964

                                                                        The Master Plan of Evangelism

And there you have it. Not the greatest of references if they were applying for a job anywhere. The most amazing thing about all of this though, is the fact that even though such a testimony could be written about them, Jesus loved them and had faith in their ability. He knew their potential and by the time that they had been with Him, and been filled with the Spirit of God - that dunamis power, it could be said of them, they had been with Jesus.

This also confirms that there is hope for us. We may not feel like we are suitable for God's work; we may feel that we keep letting Him down with our attitude and behaviour but, in Jesus' eyes, we have a potential. He has started a work within us and will continue this until it is time to go home.

Now that is something to praise God for!

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

It was obvious that they had been with Jesus

"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marvelled. And they realised that they had been with Jesus."                                                                                         Acts 4:13     NKJV

Why would the members of the elite Sanhedrin, marvel at untrained and unlearned men? Because they were so impressed at their courage and the results they had received in healing the man at the gate Beautiful. They had nothing else to compare it with; the evidence was staring them in the face, the man had been made well. It could not be denied. Therefore, they were astounded and realised that these men had been with Jesus.

Now that is amazing in itself. They knew of Jesus, they had seen Him around preaching and teaching and had also seen Him in the synagogues around the area. He had such a mighty reputation. Now Peter and John were carrying out the same type of work and the results were evident, the man had been healed and they were echoing the work of Jesus and displaying the training He had given them.

The Sanhedrin would also have recognised that there was a dynamic power to all of this. It was the power of the Holy Spirit. The disciples were fulfilling the work Jesus had left them to carry out and were flowing in the power He said they would receive. It was a Heaven sent power.

All of this shines a light on the fact that there are many Christian leaders in the world today, who haven't received a formal training in theology and the hierarchy knock them for this. Let me just say, yes there is a place for formal training, very much so and it is good to attend these training places if one is to serve Jesus. However, Jesus can also anoint ordinary, Spirit-filled people to build amazing ministries, bringing many thousands of people to Jesus. We should never knock either direction a person takes. Jesus is the one who makes this choice. Therefore, sharing one's faith or testimony, should be guided by the Holy Spirit not just one's educational experience. 

God can use little old you to make a mighty difference where you live, work or go during any given day. He has commissioned you Matthew 28 & Mark 16 and you have been filled with the Holy Spirit from that day you came to Jesus. Perhaps you need a little extra power, so ask Him to baptise you in the Holy Spirit if you haven't been already. Get stuck into studying your bible until you're familiar with key verses. Once this has happened, you're good to go.

The most important characteristic you need to carry around, is allowing people to see, that you have been with Jesus. People cannot resist Him, whether they like Him or loathe Him.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

 

Believe in Yourself

"And has made us kings and priests to His God and Father"  

                                                                                                                 Revelation 1:6    NKJV

In God's eyes, this is who we are - kings and priests to God the Father. To hold the office of both king and priest, was forbidden in Old Testament times, as King Uzziah discovered. (Read 2 Chronicles 26:16-23.) Yet, through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, these titles of royalty, special servanthood and representatives of God, are bestowed upon us. We have specially privileged access, day or night, to the Throne of Grace, where we will find mercy (Hesed), to help us in our need. Hebrews 4:16.

We need to let this sink in, especially on the days when we feel so unworthy; the times when we have a low self-image, feeling useless to mankind. Jesus has taken each one of us and turned us into a somebody. We may not have a great fortune or any particular talent, but Jesus has faith in us and sees our potential.

We live in a competitive world where people are always trying to outshine the other. In every area of life, someone will always try to do better than us. That's just the way it is. We would probably have witnessed this at school when another pupil may have said, 'My dad is bigger than your dad', or 'We live in a much better house than you do'. Then on into your teens and adulthood, where there would always be a person who had the latest designer clothes; a better MacBook or even a bigger and more powerful car. It never really stops, we even find it in the Christian world. We just have to learn how to live with it.

This morning, just realise and accept that you are a special person within the Kingdom of God. Accept this and see yourself this way. You don't have to brag about it, people will do that for you. You just need to see yourself as a loved and blessed Child of God - a giant killer when needed, but a loving peaceful dove at other times. You have nothing to prove because God loves you just as you are. You couldn't do anything different to make Him love you more.

You need to allow this to sink in and begin to see yourself the way Jesus sees you. Believe me, He can't get enough of you and protects and stands up for you every corner of your life - as long as you walk with Him, daily.

So accept your royal titles and live the life for Jesus, believing in yourself.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Shine the Light of Jesus

"Do all things without complaining and disputing"                 Philippians 2:14      NKJV

If there is one thing that we humans are good at, it's complaining, moaning and grumbling. We can really become expert at it, it takes little practice. The blame is always on other people and we find it difficult to admit that we are in the wrong and apologise. However, we really need to change this, as soon as possible.

The Israelites were extremely good at complaining. Moses had done a good job by bringing them out of Egypt, risking his own life; yet it was not good enough in their eyes. Let us not forget that, initially, Moses had tried to wriggle out of taking on this commission from God. Now, when he has performed what God had ordained, the Israelites were moaning. 'This is wrong, that was wrong, we should have remained in Egypt, at least we had comfort and decent food there'. 

They had taken their eyes off God and wanted someone other than Mose and Aaron, to do the work. They had no faith in them and less in God, who was the cause of it all. They had even had the audacity to say, 'Is the Lord with us or not?' They were ungrateful people with very short memories.

When the chips are down and things are totally against you; do you complain? When someone, in your opinion, has let you down, do you moan and blame them? Paul tells us to, 'do all things without complaining and disputing'. Why is this? Because, 'God wants us to live upright lives, blameless and harmless, without fault'. My paraphrase Philippians 2:15-16. In fact, He would have us shining as Lights in a crooked generation. There is already lots of anger around from unbelievers who want to protest and take the law into their own hands. We should act differently by holding fast to the Word of Life.

Easy to write and read about I agree, but much more difficult to put into action. However, we do have a role model - Jesus Himself. It would help to read and pray through Philippians 2:5 - 11. This is the heart of Jesus and the mandate for how we should live. He suffered a terribly, cruel and painful death, a death that we were responsible for because of our sin. Therefore, is it really too much trouble to teach ourselves to live as He did; to love as He did and shine His love - the love of the Father, wherever we go?

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

You are Able to do this

"Let us go up at once and take possession for we are well able to overcome it." 

                                                                                                   Numbers 13:30     NKJV

Bob Gass once wrote, 'How many times does something look impossible, simply because you think it is.' Think about that for a moment. Opportunities come your way and at first it seems a great idea. However, as time goes on and you have thought about it some more, the opportunity can appear to be too risky to attempt. This may be a new job, a house move or going into your own business. The prospect may appear very exciting initially but negatives can quickly take over and settling for second best follows shortly afterwards.

Remember one thing, God is your source; if He has placed an opportunity at your feet, He will supply what you need to put it into practice. He does though, expect you to count the cost and have the faith to carry the opportunity through. If you do this, He will be right there with you.

Thomas Edison said, 'Opportunity is missed by most people because it comes dressed up in overalls and looks like work.' Don't have this attitude; God puts things your way but you need to work at it in order for it to be successful and, sometimes it can mean very hard work, with a few disappointments at first. However, achievers are not avoiders. Not only do they find solutions to the problems of life, but they discover a tremendous power within themselves - Jesus. 'He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.' 1 John 4:4. M People sang a song in the mid-90's that made this very clear. 'Search for the hero inside yourself,' and it is true. Jesus is your hero and you, are His. He makes heros and you are a winner in His eyes.

Our attitudes either lift us or they bury us and this is something that you need to watch out for. Some people talk about things but, they never do it. Don't be like them and miss the opportunity. Caleb said in our text today, 'Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.' Focus on the words, 'well able.' The word, 'able', in the Hebrew is Yakol and means to have power and the capacity to prevail and succeed. Paul said, 'you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you', Philippians 4:13. You are Well Able.

Don't reach the end of your life regretting you didn't do what you had the opportunity to do. It will be too late then. When the opportunity comes by, pray about it, check it out, count the cost and if it still sounds ok. go for it!

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Under attack? Then rejoice!

"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." 

                                                                                                Matthew 5:11-12    NKJV

Let's look at this statement from Jesus clearly. He is saying that, when we are suffering persecutions, false accusations and all the other stuff thrown at us, for His sake, then we should rejoice and be exceedingly glad. Now to the world, this would seem ridiculous and possibly cowardly. To be falsely accused, lied about and dragged through the gutter while someone stabs us in the back, is not one's idea of pleasure. Is it?

Jesus, says it is. He tells us here that, when we have got ourselves in position for Him and start moving forward in the Holy Spirit, then the devil becomes worried. In fact, we become a threat to him. It's hard to realise this but, it's true.

Jesus tells us to rejoice in the fact that the devil has to send in his heavier demons to counteract  us going any further. Let that settle in your mind for a moment. Those who suffer with Him, by way of persecution in this life, will be glorified with Him in the next. Surely, you didn't think the devil would leave you alone when you are in a position to take some of his ground. When you become active for God - watch out, because he will plot an attack of some sort.

Let us analyse this for a moment. When you are suffering an attack, you can be sure that you have begun to make some progress for God. The devil doesn't like this, so he will send all he can to make you stop. So that is something to rejoice about. You are in God's will. The devil doesn't waste his time with inactive people. They are no threat to him at all.

Just lately, you may have suffered false accusations. Someone has been led to make an issue about you and it may be quite devastating. Stand firm and keep your peace. This is the time that you need Jesus to step in and set you free from these lies; and He will. There may be hate towards you, back-biting, where people talk about you and make you feel uncomfortable in their presence. Hold your head up high. The battle is not yours, but God's. Let Him handle this.

Whatever is coming against you, don't let it prevent you from doing God's work. Keep your peace, if you give it all to Jesus, He will take care of it all. Don't go into your shell, stand up tall; this is part of the Armour of God - Ephesians 6, especially verse 13. Keep standing. 

All you need to do, is what Jesus said, 'Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven.'

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

What do you see and hear?

 "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear."

                                                                                                 Matthew 13:16     NKJV

As Christians, we are the blessed. God has given us the Holy Spirit in order for us to be enlightened and led to the truth about the things of God. (John 16:30). Many unbelievers do not understand us, they think that we are strange, to say the least, especially if they hear us speaking in tongues. But there is so much more that we need to operate in.

Take for example a newspaper advertisement.I used to work in newspaper advertising at one time, and I know how an advertisement is created in order to grab the attention of the reader. There is a kind of psychology to it, one which draws the reader in so much, that they just have to have what is on offer. Life cannot exist without this particular item, type of thing. So, ask yourself, if a person is prone to believe what the advertisement is saying about something, and believe it; why then don't they believe what the Word of God says about Jesus? In a similar manner, a Christian may believe  their doctor when he tells them that they have an incurable illness, so, why don't they believe what is written in their bible about healing?

There is so much that we have to learn about. Time is running out. Many people believe that we are living in the last days - the end times. There is some scope to believe this when you look around at all of the terror and pain that is going on in the world today. Then of course there is the pandemic that we are still trying to get through. Add to that the violence and uprises that are happening all over the place and it is easy to believe that Jesus' return is imminent.

Whether it is or it isn't, we need to train ourselves to walk with God 24/7. There is a need to read the bible much more and understand it. We need to learn that, through Jesus, we have a future in Heaven. We are eligible to have God speak to us personally and show us things that no one else can see. He does this, as we draw nearer to Him. He is also available for us to speak to Him as well, at any time of day or night. He is so interested in you - more than you could ever imagine.

God longs to show you things that you've never seen and tell you things that you long to hear. He is Your Father - the Daddy of them all - Abba Father. Tony Campolo used to say that God carried a photograph of you in His wallet and whenever He saw someone, say, 'Have you seen My son - My daughter. Obviously, there is no possible biblical evidence to this, but I could see Him doing this. He is so proud of us and so much in love with us. In fact, He wants to show each and everyone of us, things to come and give us blessing after blessing.

The thing is, we need to get into position for this. We need to allow Him to give us eyes to see and ears to hear about the Kingdom. If you want this, spend more time with Him.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Hard-Heartedness

"So the heart of Pharaoh was hard; neither would he let the children of Israel go, as the Lord had spoken by Moses."                                                    Exodus 9:35      NKJV

To the Hebrew, the heart was the centre of one's existence, including emotions, wisdom and skill. A person acts and speaks from the heart, so we should guard it carefully. (Matthew 15:18-19. So the heart of Pharaoh was hard, he wouldn't let the children of Israel go as the Lord had spoken through Moses.

Hard-Heartedness, is a symbolic expression for rebellion or a stubborn and unyielding spirit. David Guzik comments:

'Hardening the heart against God is sin; failing to repent when God graciously answers our plea, is to ignore His rich mercy. To ignore His rich mercy, is to sin yet more.'

                                                                                         Copyright 2018 David Guzik

Hardness of heart has its root in many areas. One of these is when a person has been hurt so deeply that they find it difficult to accept it - even to make sense of it. They may have trusted someone deeply and then, had the wind knocked out of their sails by being trodden all over by this particular person. Yes this hurts, but the hard-hearted one is the one who is suffering, not the person who supposedly caused it. Bitterness can begin to settle within the heart and it can cause arguments within families; bad feeling towards church members or whoever else.

One particular cause was addressed by Jesus. He taught about the parable of the Sower and said in Mark 4:16-17:

'These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness.; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulations or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.'

Basically, what Jesus was saying is that they have no depth. They have not placed the Word of God deep enough within their heart. Therefore, when trouble, designed to hurt and maim comes their way, instead of handling the situation God's way, they internalise it and become bitter and hard-hearted.

This may be where you are at this time. You may be like a bear with a sore head over things that have happened to you. This doesn't mean that you can lose your salvation - not at all. God is not like that. However, He does want it sorting out and the best way to do it, is to talk to Him and let Him do a little Spiritual surgery on you.

Just think, the only one who is hurting through this, is yourself and the people who are close to you. The one that hurt you, doesn't know about it, unless you have told them. For peace of mind and for your own self-preservation, don't you owe it to yourself to give it to God and be set free? You'll feel a lot better.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

 

God's Mercies

"This I recall to my mind, therefore, I have hope."         Lamentations 3:21-23    NKJV

Jeremiah was prone to suffer from depression and here he finds a way out. The prophet has suffered severe anguish  and he couldn't see a way through all the darkness he was undergoing. This is quite a common symptom that one can suffer when they are depressed. There doesn't appear to be a way of moving forward and everywhere is painted in darkness. They need something to bring them hope. 

This happened to Jeremiah. He turned around and made the decision to change the way he was thinking. He began to think hope  instead of despair. He said, 'This I recall to my mind, therefore, I have hope.'. He then went on to say:

'Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.'

It is useful to think back to the times that God has rescued us; that time when we were in total despair, and He came, wrapped His arm around us, or even carried us and set us down on firm ground once again. I have a feeling that some people need to hear this today. You may have blown it yesterday, or recently, but the Lord's compassions fail not because He is faithful.

Note the word 'Mercies'. This is that Hebrew word again hesed. God's hesed remains and thank goodness that it does. It can be translated as, 'Covenant love or Steadfast love', and it demonstrates His compassion, truth, faithfulness and goodness to us, His children, who He loves dearly.

You may have been feeling low just lately through one thing or another. You may have thrown a wobbly yesterday, one in which today, you feel ashamed or guilty. You may feel that God will never forgive you now; you are a condemned person. Forget that, because that is the devil. He is the great accuser of the Saints. He loves nothing better than to tell God all about what we have messed up. God's answer is, that is My child who I love dearly. They may make great mistakes but My faithfulness is greater and they are covered by the Blood of My Son, Jesus.

So Child of God, speak wholesome things to yourself and stand up tall and straight. You have Kingdom business to take care of.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Made in God's Image

"Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness' - So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."                                                                      Genesis 1:26-27    NKJV

We don't fully realise that we are made in the image of God. What does God look like? Look in the mirror, we look the same Because Jesus - Our Saviour dwells within us. We are one with Him.

Let us look a little deeper into the meaning of 'image':

An image is an exact likeness or representation of some object or person. Human beings were created to perfectly reflect God's image. Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). Man expresses God's image when he is in right relation with His creator and faithfully tends God's creation (Genesis 1:26-28). 

Therefore, we can see quite clearly that we were made in His image. God lives in us, Jesus lives in us and the Holy Spirit lives in us. We're all one together. Then, why do we do the things that we do; why do we let Him down so easily at times. One could say that it's because, we're not perfect and that is true. However, we come pretty close because the trinity is within us. No member of the trinity would do the things that we do. The 'we' I mention, includes myself too. We profess to follow Jesus and then say something bad about someone. Would Jesus do that? No He wouldn't. We can be involved in gossip - it may be true, but it is still gossip and it paints a bad image of someone. We may let our tongue run away from us, not choosing our words wisely; we may sit in judgement over someone. Does Jesus do that? No He doesn't- He uses love.

My Wife, Hazel, wrote an excellent prophetic word here the day before yesterday, 19th March entitled 'Be Ready'. This made me look at the scripture she used quite closely and I felt it would be appropriate to include it into this commentary. In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 we see Paul's excellent piece on Striving for a Crown. 'We are to run in such a way that we obtain the prize'. V24. This means that we must stick to the rules, we cannot cheat the system or we will be found out. Paul says in v27, ' I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.'

Athletes who break the rules become disqualified, they need to practice self-control. In the same manner, believers must practice self-control, see-denial and total discipline each and every day. Otherwise, we disqualify ourselves from everything that we stand for. We may profess to be a believer, but if our lives say differently, people will see this and they won't listen to us. We need to get it right, there is a lost world on our doorsteps; they don't know Jesus and we do. The thing is, are they noticing that we are different? Do we draw them towards Jesus by the way that we live our lives? Are we running the race to obtain that crown? 

We are made in God's image. Do people see this in us? If they don't, we need to correct this, time is running out for people. Jesus is coming sooner than we can imagine.

 Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

A Great Symphony

"Again, I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in My name, I am there in the midst of them."                         Matthew 18:19-20     NKJV  

The power of agreement is amazing and provides the results that both God and ourselves want. Pastor Keith Moore from Faith Life Church in Branson, Missouri, made a God empowered comment back in 2005. He said: 

'When you want what God wants, for the same reason He wants it, you become unstoppable'

                                                            

Read it over and over again until it begins to settle in your spirit. It is a statement of total agreement with God and when we can get into this place, there is nothing that can't be done in the Kingdom of God. 

In Greek, the word 'agreement,' is sumphoneo which is made up of two syllables SUM, which means 'together' and PHONEO, which means 'to sound i.e. to sound together, be in accord and be in harmony.' The word symphony comes from sumphoneo. Metaphorically speaking, the word means to agree together in prayer that is concordant. David Guzik comments on this by saying, 'They compliment each other like a great orchestra - a metaphor taken from a number of musical instruments, set to the same key and playing the same tune - a symphony.'

So, getting back to our main text for today, we recognise how powerful and essential being in agreement is. When this happens, Jesus is right in the midst of us and things begin to happen in amazing ways. Take for example Acts 2. The disciples and apostles were together in one accord. They were in agreement to Jesus' command. He had told them to wait for the promise of the Father. Therefore, as it was a dangerous place to be, following Jesus' death and resurrection, they had assembled in an upper room. This was true fellowship.

The word fellowship is koinonia in the Greek and this means sharing and partnering with each other and sharing communion. In common this was an intimate bond of fellowship with the rest of the Christian society, which demonstrated the full meaning of koinonia, which is cementing the believers to the Lord Jesus and to each other. Total agreement. When this happens, you get what happened next - God's power manifested.There was a mighty rushing wind and the power of the Holy Spirit, hit the place with so much force that they all began to speak in another tongue and through the chaos of all of this, over three thousand people were saved.

There we have it, this is why God wants us to live our lives in total agreement with Him and other Christian folk. This is what God wants and when we want it as well, for the same reason He wants us to have it, we will then become unstoppable. 

Is this what you want? Of course it us so get into agreement with God right now!

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

                                                                  

BE READY by Hazel Howard

6"and swore [an oath] by [the name of] Him who lives forever and ever, WHO CREATED HEAVEN AND THE THINGS IN IT, AND THE EARTH AND THE THINGS IN IT, AND THE SEA AND THE THINGS IN IT, that there will be delay no longer. 7 but when it is time for the trumpet call of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God [that is, His hidden purpose plan] is finished, as He announced the gospel to His servants the prophets."                    

                                                                   Revelation 10:6-7    Amplified Study Bible

For many months now, I have been held by the Holy Spirit in the book of Revelation, particularly in Chapter 10 where the Holy Spirit has delayed me for quite a while. I have recently been guided into a New Assignment - praying for the Land and Sea in the County and Region where I live.

This morning as I was praying over the maps of the Lands, I received a word which I believe I need to share, it began with my praise:

'I praise You O Lord that Your voice is hovering over the waters. (Psalm 29:3), and over the Land (Psalm 50:1) and that Your presence is here, O Lord,' and then I heard in my spirit:

"The time between Now and hearing The Trumpet Call, get yourselves ready so that you are not disqualified. 

Can you be disqualified? 

Yes, read what Paul says below:

'Do you not know that in a race all the runners run [their very best to win], but only one receives the prize? Run [your race] in such a way that you may seize the prize and make it yours. 

25 Now every athlete who [goes into training and ] competes in the games is disciplined and exercises self-control in all things. they do it to win a crown that withers, but we [do it to receive] an imperishable [crown that cannot wither]. 

26 Therefore, I do not run without a definite goal; I do not flail around like one beating the air [just shadow boxing]. 

27 But [like a boxer] I strictly discipline my body and make it my slave, so after I have preached [the gospel] to others, I myself will not somehow be disqualified [as unfit for service].'

                                                                                              1 Corinthians 9:24-27

And WHEN you hear that Trumpet Call - OBEY! 

Do whatever He tells you to do. 

Deal with whatever He tells you to deal with.  

BE READY!

In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Copyriight 2021 Hazel Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

All Scriptures are from the Amplified Study Bible 

Jesus our Security

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"                                                 Psalm 27:1     NKJV

Whenever King David was fearful or in the middle of trouble, the first thing he did was pray - 'But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.' 1 Samual 29:6. He may have killed bears and lions in the past while looking after his father's flock; he may also have slain Goliath, that very large awesome giant, but he knew that he could never make it through any day without his Heavenly Father. And this is exactly what we should do as well. We can never make it on our own.

When we put God in the centre of our troubles, He lifts our heads and our hearts. This is because He is our refuge  and our fortress. There's no need to be afraid of anything. He is our security and our protection. You may remember when you were young, that to go out in dark nights was the ultimate in scariness. I lived in quite a rural place with hardly any street lamps if there were any, they hardly lit anything up. They were more like candles. It was scary to walk about. There were noises of foxes, cows and of course, the eerie call of an owl. Yes it was scary to venture out. However, when we look at our text, God is our light. At the creation, He called out, 'Let there be light,' Genesis 1. He still creates light today, His name is Jesus. He says, 'I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.' John 8:12.  He lights up the way for us through all of the trouble that may come our way. Therefore, we have nothing to fear or be tormented about.

He is also our salvation. Now this is an interesting word. In the Greek, it means soteria and means, deliverance, preservation, soundness, prosperity, happiness, rescue and general well-being. This salvation is a present possession with a fuller realisation for the future. Jesus not only delivers us, He preserves us too. His desire is to ensure that we are happy and prosperous in all areas, not only finance but our well-being. However, soteria also offers us salvation in its fullest extent - eternal life. When we ask Jesus to be our Lord and Saviour, we qualify for all of these benefits, the greatest being, we will live forever with Jesus in heaven.

Jesus is our security. He offers us Himself and will escort us wherever we go. He will also escort us through death. He will be right beside us. Psalm 23:4. Jesus Christ offers the best insurance policy that could ever be obtained and, what's more, it is free with no hidden agendas.

What more could you ask for?

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Doubt asks questions - Faith makes declarations

"For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says."                                      Mark 11:23     NKJV

Our title for this study today, was from a word delivered by Pastor Keith Moore of Faith Life Church in Branson, Missouri, and highlights all we want to cover this morning. God doesn't respond to your need, He responds to your faith. This is why Jesus says, 'he will have whatever he says.'

Jesus says here, that whoever says to this mountain (this means an obstacle that is standing in the way of walking successfully in the Holy Spirit), be removed and doesn't doubt (that's the big one), but believes that what he has asked for will be done, he or she will have it.

Let's look at this more closely, say for example we asked for healing. God's Word has already said that we are healed by the stripes of Jesus; therefore, we believe it and receive it into our hearts. We don't  keep 

praying and asking God for it. Why keep asking God for what He has already given you? No, instead of keep asking, we thank Him for our healing and keep on praising Him until we receive the full manifestation of it. When we ask for healing, we are initially in the natural realm. As we wait on God for the healing to manifest, we are in the supernatural realm with our spiritual eyes focused on Him.

It's the same for anything that we ask God for. We may need a job or a new house; family to be saved or any other personal need. Therefore, we ask Him, believe Him and receive from Him. In other words, we begin to see what we have asked for in our spirits. Now, as we know, some prayers are answered instantly. Someone, somewhere can be prayed for and 'POW', they are made well. We see this time and time again in scripture. Others may not be. There may be a time-lapse before the answer comes. Of course, there may be something that God wants us to clear up and put right in our life before He acts. He may wants us to forgive someone; receive forgiveness ourselves or generally put something right. This is not always the case. Just because a person has to wait for the answer to come, doesn't mean that something is wrong. It's just the way it is. At times, some people do not appear to be healed - at all. We don't know the answer to this; it is one thing we'll have to ask Jesus about when we get to Heaven. However, this should never stop us from receiving in faith for healing, salvation for someone or whatever else. We need to keep thanking and waiting.

The big thing we need to deal with is doubt. It will always kick in with reasonable excuses why we should give up on the idea for healing, or receiving some other blessing. If we listen long enough to the doubt, it can convince us; don't forget, Satan has had some practice in the art of doubt. Resist doubt at once, take it captive and refuse to be steered off the right course. Then make your faith declaration. This way, you can be assured of your prayers being answered.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Do you waver?

6 "But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.'

                                                                                                           James 1:6-8    NKJV

When we ask God for wisdom on any given thing, He will give it to us. But at times, the answer we receive from God is different to the one that we were hoping for. We can then be out on a limb as we struggle with what to do. The thing is, if we have asked God by faith, to give us wisdom on something, He has done it and we need to accept it even though it may not be what we were expecting.

It can be the same when we ask God for direction on something. We may believe that God is calling us to do a particular thing. When we ask Him for clarification, and He confirms that we are taking the right road, we can become scared about it because deep down, we were hoping that he would tell us to be more cautious and leave it for a while. In both examples, we are doing what James described, being a double-minded man. 

Being double-minded is showing that we are in conflict with ourselves. One moment our minds are set on God, the next it is set on the world. We vacillate between belief and disbelief sometimes thinking God will help, the next giving up all hope of it happening. This is called wavering or staggering about, confused about the next step. We wonder if God has actually told us what to do or whether it was our minds playing tricks on us.

When we act this way, we're not really very effective at all. We are like a YoYo, one minute up, the next down. We need to work on our stability in God. Don't waver when you ask in faith. Consider only what God says, no matter how things may look and how much your flesh is screaming for you to do otherwise. Stay focused on the promise God has given you and don't stagger about.

I mentioned recently, 2 Corinthians 4:18, 'while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things that are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.' 

Basically this is encouraging people of God not to comment on the problem, just thank Him and declare the solution which you can only see with your spiritual eyes. This is faith, we may not be able to see that we have been healed in the natural realm, but we live and operate in the supernatural realm and our spiritual eyesight picks up on that fact. 

Hebrews 11:6 tells us that, 'without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.' We need faith and we need to live in this 24 hours of each day. We have the study guide book, the book of rules and the wealth of knowledge that the Bible gives us; we just need to put it into practice.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

The burden will be taken away - Final part

"He restores my soul"                                                                 Psalm 23:3    NKJV

Today we come to the end of our teaching concerning Yokes and Burdens as seen in Isaiah 10:27. We've looked at Bitterness, Rejection, Failure, Health and Jealousy. There are many more areas that we could discuss, and we will, at a later time. For now, realise that if you have studied these areas, taken them to your heart and prayed over each one of them, it is as if you have placed the burden of each one of them into the buckets on the Yoke frame you were carrying on your shoulders, and you are free of them. When we do this, God anoints us with fresh oil (Psalm 92:10) and He restores us as our text declares. 

God restores our soul, which is made up of our mind, will and emotions. The mind includes our thought life and what we take on board; the will is what we do about any given thing, how we react and finally, emotions is how it affects us, the damage, bad emotions can cause or the blessing of good thoughts. Daily restoration of the anxious, weary soul is a major human need. Jesus is our Bridegroom and He is preparing us - His Bride, for the Wedding Feast in Heaven. He is getting us ready. 

This is what looking within ourselves is all about. When the Bride is prepared, Jesus will return for us and the intimacy that was broken in the Garden of Eden, will be completely restored. We will once again become one with Christ and with God as Jesus prayed in John 17.

Have you ever thought what it must have felt like for God when, after creating the Garden and Adam and Eve, they broke that early covenant with Him by eating the forbidden fruit and allowed sin to enter this perfect world. He must have felt devastated by it all, even though He had a plan. Notice how He still had compassion for them by making clothes for them to wear prior to being banished from the Garden. Anyone who has ever had a child leave home, will know how it feels in the heart to watch them leave.

To be restored is to bring back into existence or use; to re-establish and put back into a former position or location. This is what Jesus does for each one of us that call on Him. If you have done this, you can be assured that He has heard your cry, and restored you. You are no longer the way your were, you have been transformed into His image. We all have hang-ups; we all carry burdens that become so heavy we stumble under them; but when we cast them over to God by putting them into the burden bucket fitted on the yoke frame, we become free, in fact restored.

Today, why not give Jesus a special thanks, an offering of gratefulness for all He has done for you. No one else could have helped you, only Jesus.

'Lord Jesus, we offer up our praise and thanksgiving to You, Our Mighty God and friend, who cared enough to come down to earth to set us free. We give You thanks.

Amen

 

The burden will be taken away. Part 6

"You are still worldly, (controlled by ordinary impulses, the sinful capacity). For as long as there is jealousy and strife and discord among you, are you not unspiritual and are you not walking like ordinary men, (unchanged by faith?)  

                                                                                1 Corinthian 3:3  Amplified Study Bible

Today we look at a very common area to us all - JEALOUSY. 

Jealousy can be described as resentment against a person enjoying success or advantage. The common symptoms of jealousy are:

ANGER towards a person or situation that is interfering with something you care about.

RESENTMENT of a friend or partner when they can't spend time with you for some reason.

DIFFICULTY feeling happy for a co-worker when they receive something you wanted.

We only have to look at Joseph in the book of Genesis to get the idea. He was favoured by Jacob, his father, and therefore, received all of his love and attention. His brothers began to resent this and it led to their jealousy towards him so much, that they plotted to kill him. They eventually sold him into slavery. Genesis ch 37 - 50.

The New Living Translation quotes our text as:

For you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn't that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren't you living like people of the world.'  1 Corinthians 3:3.

The word 'Worldly', in the biblical sense, is used for immature Christians that lack control in this area. They are on the milk of the word. No one should expect this condition to last though. Here, Paul was surprised that the Corinthians had not yet grown into spiritual maturity and become able to distinguish between good and evil. Their behaviour displayed envy, strife and was divisive.

If we are not careful, we can all become envious towards someone who always seems to receive accolades while we are forgotten. However, we need to guard our hearts and, at the first sign of jealousy, we should nip it in the bud before it becomes dangerous. We need to bring, 'every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.'  2 Corinthians 10:5.

Are you prone to jealousy? Many are but we need to accept that it is spiritually immature to do so and we need to rectify it before it gets out of hand. Commit yourself to read and study 2 Corinthians 10:1-6. It will enrich you, helping you to combat any wrong thinking in the future. You will feel better for doing so.

'Lord Jesus, I come before you this morning and ask you to search within my soul for any sign of jealousy. With Your help, I give it notice to quit - to leave my body in the Name of Jesus and to fill that space with Your Grace. I choose to live for You Lord.

In Jesus' Name. Amen

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE