God's message to you today

"The LORD your God in your midst, the Mighty One will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."        

                                                                                          Zephaniah 3:17    NKJV 

Think prayerfully about this piece of scripture. Try and absorb it and personalise it as you pray. This is the way God feels about you. You may be having a difficult time at present; you may be discouraged, even depressed but don't lose sight of how God thinks about you.

He is in your midst, He is living with you on a daily basis, He is your Saviour. He has saved you from your old life and, even though it may not seem like you been given the victory, you really have. In Jesus, you have a friend. He rejoices over you with gladness, He takes delight in every part of you, in fact, He cannot stop thinking about you, He loves you so much. You are His masterpiece and you are precious in His sight. 

He will quiet you with His love. This means that He will give you total Shalom peace and as you give your burdens to Him, He will calm all of your fears. He will rejoice over you with singing, He will sing joyful songs to your spirit. How wonderful is that. We are used to singing praise and worship to Him, but here He says He will sing to us. Wow.

He has an awesome plan for you; you are not yet what He wants you to be, but you will be. At the moment, He is cheering you on to victory just as He did for Stephen Acts 7:55. When you fix your eyes on Jesus and not on your circumstances, you will see life differently. Instead of having negative thoughts you will have Holy Spirit ones. Think of it this way, when you were first saved, Jesus began painting a portrait of you. It is not finished yet. When it is, it will be perfect. At this moment, you are in development but He is with you, urging you on.

Why not pray this verse over yourself, personalising it and receiving it. Listen to God and you may just hear Him singing to you, as He has promised.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Do it today!

"Don't put it off, do it now! Don't rest until you do"    

                                                               Proverbs 6:4     New Living Translation 

How many sick beds are full of dying people who wish they had done a particular thing? Probably they wish that they had climbed that mountain, they always spoke about. Perhaps they had said for years that they are going to write a book, or fix a delicate family relationship, but they didn't, and now it is too late.

Many of us are familiar with the phrase 'Yes, I'll do that tomorrow,' but tomorrow comes and it is not done. 'I'll take you to that mountain or to that special place that you like,' but again. it just doesn't happen and people are let down - their feelings hurt. Husbands may say, 'I'll decorate that bedroom next week,' but then something crops up and it doesn't get done. 'We'll come and see you on Saturday, it's been ages,' but it will be ages more because it just doesn't happen.

Is this speaking to you? You may be a daydreamer and dream of something that you would really like to do. You may be a musician or have a talent for writing and you plan to put this into operation. However, somehow it just doesn't seem to happen and your dream goes unanswered, that is until you remember it with regret when you are laying in a hospital bed close to death. Many regrets and even guilt come to life at such times. Don't let that happen to you. Do it today.

When I say, do it today, I mean, do it today, don't just talk about it. There are the 'doers and the dreamers' in life. Make sure that you belong to the first one. Be a doer, James says, 'But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourself.' James 1:22. Hearers who don't put the word into action get nowhere, the same as dreamers who say they will but don't. Don't be like this. Do it!

What sort of a legacy are you going to leave your loved ones? Memories and evidence of a person who did what they said they would or, the person who daydreamed about it but never got any further? Think about it

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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You are able to do this!

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."    

                                                                                             Philippians 4:13    NKJV

Have you been feeling discontent just lately, so much that your joy bubble, seems to have popped? Don't let discontentment steal your joy. No matter what, you can do this. You can do it no matter what anyone says. So, do not lose your joy. Being discontent chokes every opportunity for joy to live.

When Paul could go no further, he drew his strength from Jesus, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect  in weakness'  2 Corinthians 12:9. Many is the time that it seems that God has not come through for you, but have you considered that He may be waiting for you to do something first? This may be repenting of something or putting things right with someone. It may also be that He is waiting for you to take the first step. We often say, 'Lord, I will do this if you bless me with the finance to live.' What about changing that and going by faith? That really is showing your faith and trust in Him. At times He wants this and as you go forward in faith, He blesses in return. Do you need to take the first step forward? When you do push the door open yourself, you may be surprised how much God responds to this type of faith. He provides and blesses, as he did with Paul.

Sometimes it can feel that you are all alone in your walk with Jesus. You pray but don't appear to get an answer. You faithfully work hard for Him and yet, others around you are getting blessed but, you appear to go without. The thing is, God has not forgotten you; in fact, He wants you to succeed and be blessed and while you are looking around at what other people are doing and witnessing their blessings, you are missing out on what he wants to do with you. He is getting you in place, When nothing appears to be happening in your spiritual life, remember like the buried seed, it is beginning to grow and will soon blossom. Be patient and just enjoy His presence because, pretty soon you may be transported into the fast lane of your ministry.

And then, you will be very busy!

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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I know I shouldn't do that but, do it anyway

"For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do." v15                                               Romans 7:1-25   NKJV

It is encouraging to know that Paul suffered from the same struggles we do. Do these thoughts sound familiar, 'I do not understand what I am doing, why did I do that?' Or 'What's wrong with me?' The reason is, there is a war on and we are right in the middle of it. If you have said 'yes' to Jesus, you're on Satan's hit list. We can echo Paul's statement, 'For what I will to do, I do not practice; but what I hate, I do' v15. Paul admits that what he is doing is wrong but, he can't break free from it.

Is there a Christian who does not feel this way? One who does not feel the pain and the shame of their sin. The heart of the problem is that we are still in the flesh. Our old self was crucified with Christ, the flesh was not. Our flesh remains active and will do until we are given a new body in heaven. 

We are totally brand new in Jesus but, we live in a contaminated body. Therefore, in v20 Paul says 'Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.' He is saying that it is not him that is doing it but the sin that lives within him, by the flesh. He does not excuse his sin however but just reminds us of where we are. We live in a body that is contaminated by sin in our flesh, but Jesus can help us as we call on Him and walk with Him. He dwells within us 'He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world' 1 John 4:4.

Be encouraged, you are not the only one who struggles with sin. If the apostle Paul struggled with it, you can bet that you will. Just stay in the Spirit of God. You're doing well.

Remember Paul's words and live by them, 'I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me'  Galatians 2:20.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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The Breath of life

"He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'"  

                                                                                                   John 20:22   NKJV

This is a verse that is not often quoted and consequently, it is missed. However, it is extremely important as we will see. The apostle John noted a deliberate connection between Jesus breathing on the disciples and God breathing on Adam when He created the earth and all that is in it. "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into His nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being' Genesis 2:7. Then, of course, there was the valley of the dry bones. God said, 'Thus says the Lord God to these bones; "Surely I will cause breath to enter into you and you shall live"' Ezekiel 37:5. When Jesus breathed on the disciples, they were raw, young people of God who were confused by it all at times. They performed great things, but, with Jesus' coming crucifixion, resurrection and then ascension, they needed more. He breathed on them and they received the Holy Spirit. Many believe that they were born again at this time and this thought, fits well. They received the Spirit as we all do at salvation but, there was more to come, they would be baptised with dynamite - dunamus, and they would be a force to be reckoned with. So are we when we are baptised in His Spirit as discussed in Acts 2.

God told Ezekiel to preach to dead bones. Now, Ezekiel may have felt rather silly doing this, as you can well imagine. Many ministers have preached in similar ways to empty churches, myself included. This is when we see the power of God at work. However, God was telling Ezekiel something very important that we need to understand. He was saying that the preaching of God's word carries power. William Barclay comments, 'The coming of the Holy Spirit is like the wakening of life from the dead.' When God breathed life into creation, it came alive; when God breathed life into His disciples, they came to life and were born again and when He breathed life into us, the same thing happened, we were initially born and then saved - born again.

Therefore, when He comes upon the church, we are re-created for the task He has for us. Without breath, we know that we are dead. We need breath to live and function as we were designed to do. God breathed on the human race, on us all and that was just the beginning of an exciting future. He now offers this life to all who will accept it.

If you have asked Jesus into your life, you are born again. The next thing to pursue, is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as mentioned yesterday. We need the fire of the Spirit to perform all He wants us to perform. It is available to all that ask but it is never forced upon anyone. But it makes sense to live with the fire of God in our bones.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Be filled with the Spirit

"And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit."    Luke 1:41     NKJV 

Mary, following her meeting with the angel Gabriel, went to visit her cousin, Elizabeth. As Mary greeted her, Elizabeth felt the babe, who was John the Baptist,  leap in her womb. Both her and the babe were filled with the Holy Spirit and with amazing joy. This gave Elizabeth supernatural knowledge about Mary and her babe and she spoke these words to Mary: 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb' v42 - 45.

The Holy Spirit had not only blessed Mary with the Son of God within her but, Elizabeth also was blessed and John the Baptist within her too. She was beside herself with joy fed from the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of God is the One that leads us into the right decisions, on the right road. He fills us with His power and when we are baptised in His Spirit, the power given us can be amazing. Just look in the book of Acts chapter two to get an idea of the fire that He sends upon us, so that we can achieve the work He has given us. Before Pentecost, the disciples needed guidance from Jesus. However, when Jesus ascended into heaven, He sent, as promised, the Holy Spirit and breathed power into them. They were ignited with fire in their bones and would never be the same.

John 16:13 tells us, 'However, when He, the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.' 

Don't be misled, some people will tell you that if you are not baptised in the Spirit, you are not saved. This is not true. You are saved the moment you ask Jesus into your life; the Holy Spirit also takes up residence within you. However, for a deeper, more powerful walk with the Lord, we need the fire of the Spirit and this come by the baptism of the Spirit, (this is not to be confused with baptism in water. This is an outward sign of obedience to the world that you belong to Jesus). The baptism of the Spirit comes by prayer, often the laying on of hands, but not always. You can ask for this yourself just like this:

Dear Heavenly Father,

I am a believer in Jesus Christ, and I ask you in His name for the baptism of the Holy Spirit, with the evidence of speaking in tongues. I believe and receive from You.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Now open up your mouth, start moving your tongue and give voice to what is starting to stir in your heart. It won't be anything you recognize. But do not be afraid; just cooperate with the Holy Spirit. In time, you will start to learn the importance and the power in this type of prayer.

This prayer is taken from DARE to Believe, Chapter 7, "Power From on High," page 147. 

It is an amazing experience, one in which you will be empowered. Don't be frightened of it. It is a blessing.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Who told you that?

"Who told you that you were naked"     Genesis 3:11     NKJV

Satan amongst a lot of things. is a schemer, a liar and a thief. He will lead you astray by convincing words and pleasurable temptations. He is out to stop the work of God and, he will do all in his power to discredit you, disable you, distract your attention and prevent you going any deeper into your relationship with Jesus. He will also discredit major ministries of God who you may follow or belong to. They are dangerous to his work so, he will find something to point at them, to bring their ministry down with false accusation. Check things out for yourself before he leads you away from where you should be.

Jesus is a leader, Satan is a misleader. He will make things appear real and genuine to you and others, 'You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." v4-5. In other words, he was saying to Eve, 'Who told you that story, God?' He can be very convincing but they are really lies, this is all he knows. Take a look how he tried to hoodwink Jesus in the wilderness. He is crafty, so we have to be be aware and alert to any attack that may come our way, and they are usually suddenly when we are unprepared. This is why we have to be full of God's word, so like Jesus, we can defend ourselves with the words, 'It is written'.

When we are tired or want a day to ourselves, we should be aware. Remember David? Scripture tells us (2 Samuel 11) that in the spring at a time when kings were at war, David was lounging on his rooftop and he noticed Bathsheba bathing. Unable to control his lust, he sent for her and fulfilled this and the rest is history. He was distracted. He should have been about his duties, we cannot take a day off Christianity and expect to survive. If we do, we have to count the cost. We must remain focused on God.

After Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, her and Adam were making coverings to cover their nakedness. They now had the knowledge to realise this. The Lord God was strolling through the garden and shouted, 'Where are you?' Adam replied that they had hidden themselves because they were naked. This time it was God's turn to say, 'Who told you that you were naked?' Who told you that? We know the answer, Satan.

The phrase, 'Where are you?' can be asked of any of us. Where are we in our walk with Jesus? Why aren't we flowing like we used to? It is good to check ourselves over with this, self analysis let's us know how we are doing or where we have gone off the rails. We need to be accountable this way. So may I ask you, 'Where are you in your walk with Jesus?' Are you flowing with Him or, have you been distracted, hurt and beaten up so that you are just managing to keep your head above water? Let us come to Jesus right now for a touch of His love:

Lord Jesus, we come before You now and ask You to reignite Your fire within us once again. We are sorry that we have let You down and ask forgiveness. Please let Your Holy Spirit reign in us powerfully and heal the hurts, the disappointments and the words and lies that have been spoken against us. We ask You now in Jesus’ name. Amen

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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'Whatever Lord, I will do it'

"Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to Your word."   

                                                                                                       Luke 1:38    NKJV 

Mary had just had an encounter with the Angel Gabriel, who told her that she was highly favoured of God and had been chosen to give birth to a child via the Holy Spirit, and she was to name Him Jesus.

Try and imagine what this may have felt like. Not just an angel but, the angel Gabriel coming to visit you and then to declare that you are highly favoured by God Himself and you were going to give birth to a child, called Jesus. It must have been mind-blowing. She was only young, was a virgin and unmarried, although she was betrothed to a man called Joseph.

Mary, after questioning Gabriel about how this could happen as she was a virgin, began to accept what she was being told, especially after Gabriel had told her that 'with God nothing will be impossible.' And this is the bottom line. Everything is possible when God has told you about a part of your life. He cannot lie and will bring it about at some stage.

Note what Mary said, 'Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to Your word.' This was a double-barrelled response. Firstly, she told the angel that she totally belonged to God. He was her Lord and she gave Him the first place in her life. Secondly, she said, 'Let it be to me according to Your word.' She was saying whatever Lord, whatever you ask, I will do it because I belong to You. You have the first place in my life. This very much reminds us of the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:10 'Your will be done.'

Whenever God calls us out for a special assignment, there is always a cost. We have to give up certain things; family may disagree with what you may be doing and it may drive a wedge between you. Finance may not come on a regular basis such as does with a weekly wage and you may not be very popular. Mary had to face all of this in a very short time. She was unwed, a virgin, now to be told that she would be pregnant would cause a great scandal and she may face death because of accusations of adultery. If not death, she could be an outcast. However, God had more plans. Mary would not suffer scandal as, God had prepared Joseph's heart while he slept, telling him that it was God's will and the baby was from the Holy Spirit and they were wed. God is a great planner.

Mary's words were basically, 'Whatever Lord, I don’t will do it.' That is called commitment. Can you honestly say the the same? Would you be able to say to God, 'Your will be done'. If God were to call you out to do something very important for Him, could He rely on you? Isn't that what giving our lives to Him means? When we ask Him into our hearts, are we not saying, 'Whatever Lord I will do it - Your will be done.' Think about that as you go through your day. If we asked Jesus to come into our life, then He has the first call on it.

Now that really is food for thought!

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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'I knew you"

"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations."                           Jeremiah 1:5    NKJV 

This is the word of Jeremiah's calling, although initially he was reluctant to hear and receive them. However, they are words to us as well. Let's investigate this.

God has a plan for our lives, we are not accidents no matter what people may have said to us in the past. We are God's own children. He formed us in the womb long before we took our first breath. 

The word 'formed' in this context, is a word used of a potter forming a vessel. We are a work art. Never let anybody tell you differently. Psalm 139:13 says, 'For you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother's womb.'  Jerry Vines comments on this verse:

 the meaning of 'formed' here literally means that 'You have knitted me.' It means to weave together and pictures DNA in the human embryo.'  The Vines Expository Bible.

This touches on the whole issue of abortion. The question for us is, when does life begin? According to the bible, life begins at conception. This is food for thought in today's controversial issues on abortion.

God tells us, 'I knew you'. He knew you in the womb and has been watching you all your life. He knows you through and through. He knows your strengths and He knows your weaknesses. He knows what you think before you think it and, what you are going to say before you even say it. It is therefore, so important to stay in close relationship with Him so that, you don't rush ahead with your mouth and mess things up.

He knows you and loves you even when you don't like yourself. He cares for you. He knows  all your warts and bad habits and He loves you. He knew you before birth and knows you now. And He wants you, to know Him better than you ever have done.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Honesty

"And Jesus answered and said to them, 'Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."                                                                     Mark 11:33    NKJV

The chief priests, scribes and elders, came to Jesus questioning Him. They wanted to know by whose authority He did such things. Jesus' answer was amazing; He asked them a question; was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? This caused them a great dilemma; for if they said from heaven, Jesus would say why didn't you believe him. If from man, it would stir the crowd because they sincerely believed in John Therefore they answered, 'We do not know.' Jesus therefore said, 'Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.' These so-called leaders of the temple, were really hypocrites and Jesus was not going to get entangled in lengthy arguments with untruthful people. It would pay no dividends.

Honesty is a top requirement in the kingdom of God. The apostle Paul said in Ephesians 4:25, 'Therefore, putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbour, for we are members of one another.' Honesty can be described as integrity, sincerity, uprightness and trust. It is a quality that we should seek and hold onto. People want to be around honest people, they feel secure this way.

We can be tempted every now and then, to be dishonest; we call it a 'white lie'. Do not be misled, a white lie is a lie, it is an untruth, a fib and we should avoid it at all costs. The white lie is described as:

 'a harmless or trivial lie, especially one told to avoid hurting someone's feelings'.

                                                                                                       The Open Dictionary

An example is when you told your mum, or partner, that her meal was really good when it actually tasted awful. We do this because we don't want to upset the person who has slaved to cook us a nice meal. Another example is when after being invited to a party, we fail to go because we don't really fancy it; yet, we tell the host that we are sorry but something important cropped up. It may save hurting their feelings but, it is lying. There is no such thing as a white lie. Using diplomacy yes, but this must be without lying.

As we can see, it can be so easy to slip into a lie, even when we do not intend to. It is far better to be honest, with tact, than to lie. This takes practice but is far better in the long run.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Ask and Receive

"Have faith in God, 23 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. 24 Therefore, I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."                                                       Mark 11:22-24     NKJV

Jesus encourages us to speak to the mountain - that obstacle that blocks the way forward and prevents blessing coming. However, the most important factor here, is that we have faith in God, not operate in God's faith. There is a big difference. Jesus was telling His disciples, and us too, that they should have faith in God to overcome any obstacle or need that they have. He didn't say to them to act in God's faith. He is God, so we must rely on Him to get a result.

What we are saying here is, to totally trust Jesus in every way, with everything that we have. When we are totally sold out to Him, we are then in tune with Him and therefore we are able to have faith in God to perform what we ask for. He is not though, a spiritual Santa Claus so praying to win the Lottery may not be an option. But, we can pray for all we need each day. In fact, if you look at this scripture, Jesus tells us to 'Say to this mountain, 'be removed and cast into the sea'. So He tells us to speak to the obstacle or need with the authority He has given us. This way we are having faith in God.

Examples throughout each day could be, 'Lord I really need this item to come this week, I need it. In Jesus' name I command it to be here by this Friday.' This is an example of a prayer I recently said. I urgently needed an item to arrive by Friday and, it did. God is faithful to His word. Another example would be when a family member is taken to hospital for urgent tests on the heart. Again, we had this and my wife and I prayed that all would be well in Jesus' name and spoke to the possible sickness to depart. Again, it did according to His word.

We need to take things such as this on board. Jesus has given us His authority and He wants us to take Him at His word and put it into action. A word of warning here though; everything must be right with God in your life. You can't pray and receive in faith if you have an issue with sin or another person Mark 11:25-26. Put things right and forgive and God will bless what you ask.

One things for sure, God wants us to have total trust in Him and act accordingly. 

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

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The Accuser

"Then the guiding angel showed me Joshua the high priest, [representing, disobedient, sinful Israel] standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at Joshua's right hand to be his adversary and to accuse him."   Zechariah 3:1     Amplified Study Bible 

The Hebrew meaning is literally 'the Satan' meaning the 'Accuser'. The picture here is similar to that of Job 1, where Satan stands before the LORD making accusations against the people who follow God. Satan is the accuser and he will accuse you when he can.

In John 8, we see the account of Jesus and the woman who was caught in adultery. The scribes and Pharisees openly accuse her of this act and demand that the Law be carried out; she should be stoned. They accused the woman and tried to accuse Jesus as well. The Law declared that anyone - male and/or female caught in adultery should be stoned. They therefore brought the woman, minus the man, notice, to test Jesus, the Law said stoning but Jesus preached love, which was a contradiction. They were out to discredit Him anyway they could and were looking for a way that they could accuse Him.

Satan is the accuser but, he is not the only one who accuses. We do, probably more times than we know. What about when you have put something down in the house, for instance a book. When you go to pick it up again, your partner, parent or flat mate, may have moved it. We can then so easily, ask, 'Where's my book, what have you done with it?' This may seem like splitting hairs but it is still accusation and it can lead to a bit of a fall out. 'If you hadn't have been late in getting ready, we could have avoided this traffic jam,' is another. 

There are many more times when we accuse or falsely accuse a person. Someone may have wronged us. Straightaway, we can think of a culprit and accuse them in our minds or to their face. They may be totally innocent, but because you don't particularly like the person, they are vulnerable for accusation.

We need to watch this type of behaviour because we are emulating the devil's behaviour. We have to beware of accusatory tactics; it is one of the devil's ploys to get us in contention with someone. Satan accuses but God takes no notice and He won't take any notice of you if you do the same.   

Get into the habit of refusing to accuse anyone; it only causes upset and trouble and people of God should never do this. If you have a charge against someone, then handle it the way Jesus would have you do. Refrain from attacking the throat. 

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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It's time to get some rest

"Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one."                            Ephesians 6:16     NKJV 

Tony Evans in his excellent bible commentary, writes: 'Faith is like activating a divine fire extinguisher'.    The Tony Evans Bible Commentary.

Think about that for a moment. Fire extinguishers put out fires in small areas. They prevent the fire from spreading further. Putting this into a biblical context is to quench the danger of a fiery arrow from Satan, preventing it from going any further. The contamination of his lies and accusations are quenched immediately.

However, to be able to do this and 'stand' v13, we have to be strong in our commitment to Jesus. The evil one knows when the time is right to attack and fires arrows at us. He plots and schemes, using all the things he needs to hurts us. This can include family and friends. He will use them to hurt us.

This is why God's armour is very important v10-18. We must ensure that we put this on before we start our day. This is done during our prayer time, every day. It helps to fill our hearts and our minds with the word.

Watch the tiredness. The devil knows the right time for an attack. An army plant guards in their area to keep watch and guard the situation. They are prepared for this task. It is an essential role. Likewise, we also need to be able to guard our most treasured possession - ourselves, so that we can function correctly. Working long hours, burning the midnight oil and generally not taking adequate care of ourselves is a recipe for disaster. We need to be on the ball and alert 1Peter 5:8: 'Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion seeking who he may devour.' 

Be honest with yourself, are you doing too much? Are you tired and worn out because of attacks you are receiving from the evil one. Stand up, you have the power to prevent this. You have to do it as well. You have to resist him 1 Peter 5:9. To be able to do this, you need to be alert, fit and watchful. Just the fact that you are feeling as you do, demonstrates how much you need to take some time out and rest: 'And He said to them,"Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while"'.  Mark 6:31. If Jesus said it, you need it.

Recharge your batteries, even your mobile only runs for a short time before requiring more energy. You're the same. You know it makes sense.

 

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Growth is coming

"Then He said to them, 'To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what parable shall we picture it? 31 It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; 32 but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade.'"                                        Mark 4:30-32    NKJV 

Jesus was saying that, the kingdom of God may be small at the start but, it will grow and will continue this way. It may be small at this time but it will have an outstanding growth, something that is still going on today. He likened it to a mustard seed. Now, this is very small and yet, once planted it will eventually grow into a very large treelike, shrub, perhaps between 10 - 12 feet high, with sturdy branches. On this, all types of birds will nest. This shows how sturdy the mustard tree would be because, some large birds have large nests and they are heavy.

Let's look at this from your standpoint. We all start off small. Whether it is a business, a marriage or a career, most of us have to start at the bottom until we have gained more experience. As a pastor in a church, starting off was quite difficult as there were only about twelve people in the congregation. It took a little time but, the church began to grow until eventually, we had a reasonable attendance of regular people. However, I would often get asked, 'Where are the people, pastor, the church is not very big,' My answer was always the same, 'That's right, but Jesus is here and that's all that matters.'

People tend to measure things by the size and not the quality. At that time, I would have sooner had twenty or so, spirit-filled, born again, going for it Christians than just pew fillers. Small can be good because it gives God the opportunity to be able to move and deal with things that need this. Zechariah 4:10 says, 'For who has despised the day of small things.' Your situation at this time may be small. It may be a business, a university or college space, a marriage or starting off in a new job. It may be small at this time. It may be hard work but, anything that is worth it, takes a little effort and time to develop. At this time for you, small is good.

You may run a home group with hardly anyone in it or you may attend a church that appears to have died. Don't give up, don't despise the day of small things. Acorns finally turn into great oak trees; flowers and vegetables are planted but can't be harvested straightaway. It takes time for growth, but it is worth it.

Jesus wants you to trust Him and walk with Him because, He thinks that you are so special. 

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

What you sow determines what you harvest

"Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. 25 For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."     

                                                                                                     Mark 4:24-25     NKJV

This teaching has been misinterpreted over the years with people saying that the Lord gives to us and takes away. There is a slight truth in this but, they make this sound as if God is a harsh God and will punish us unless we get in line with Him. Not so; God is a good God and will do all He can to bless and prosperous us. It's true that some people have more material goods than others do. Perhaps they have made better choices, inherited from rich family, are involved in crooked deals or are just successful because they were in the right place at the right time. This has always been and until Jesus' return, will remain.

However here, Jesus is talking about people applying His words to their lives. When they do, they are given even more spiritual truth, making their lives richer. Those who do nothing with His words, lose what little spiritual understanding they already possess. In other words, people who turn from God's truth may find that truth taken away from them.

David Guzik writes, 'When we hear the word, we become accountable so we must take care how we hear. People should be careful to put themselves under good teachers, who teach the whole counsel of God.'              Copyright David Guzik Enduring Word

Jesus appeals for spiritual perception. Those who receive the truth will have their capacity for understanding enlarged and their knowledge increased. Those who disbelieve or are indifferent  will lose whatever ability for understanding they had, and therefore, will continue in ignorance.

When we receive God's word with gladness, more will be given. We'll be given more love and peace. We'll receive more understanding and that wonderful feeling of living our lives 24/7 with Jesus. God wants to give each one of us more and more. Now this could be finance. The more we bless people with our finances, the more God will pour back to us. It is called tithing. We cannot out give God, because the finance that we have, came from Him in the first place. Many people tithe, many people don't. It is a personal thing with God. But we cannot get away from the fact that the more we give - money, love or just ourselves, to the less fortunate, the more God will pour out His blessing back to us.

The bottom line though is, the more we give to God, His word and His teaching, the more we will receive back from Him. If you want to be in a place of blessing, get into God's word whenever you can.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Change

"Behold, I will do a new thing. now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."     Isaiah 43:19     NKJV 

Just the mere mention of the word, 'Change', can stir up anxiety in some people. People feel threatened by this because we are settled and feel secure, why change things? Change brings loss; a loss of your surroundings, your job, house, where you live, your family etc. etc. Many things change very quickly. You may be working for a company and are happy and love the job and the people. All of a sudden, the company changes hands and the change begins. Your job may change, your area of work, your workmates, you may even be made redundant because of the change. All of this adds to the feeling of loss and it is hard to negotiate.

However, there is a need for change at times. There is a change when you are born again. Your old life has to go and you begin to walk in a new area of life. It's exciting and challenging but takes a little getting used to. The loss comes from giving up your old way of life and walking with Jesus. If there was no change here e.g being born again, then, there would be no relationship with Jesus and, at the end of your life, no heaven. Things need to change.

When you decided to walk with Jesus, God began doing a new thing in your life and, it's not over yet Philippians 1:6. When God began His work in you, you knew, without doubt, that you were different, the change had begun. Now He is making a way forward for you to serve Him in whatever capacity He leads you in. It may be preaching, pastoring or it may be in the music world. However, it may be in the environment where you were initially. There is no change to your workplace but, there is a new person in the job - you!

Note the sentence, 'I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.' It may be a dry old route that God leads you along. You may have to wait ages before you discover what He has in mind for you. You may be sitting on the 'sub's bench' for an age before He opens a door. It may feel a little dry, but keep going because God, is preparing you for the task He has in mind. As soon as you are ready, that door will open and before you know it, you will be on your way.

You my be struggling with change at the moment. Things have taken a turn in your life and you are beginning to count the loss of it all. Don't be negative, be optimistic. You may not fully realise what is happening at this time but, God does and if you allow Him, He will be very much in control of the situation. Just trust Him, praise Him and obey Him. Your time is coming - soon.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Practice what you preach!

"So practice and observe everything they tell you, but do not do as they do; for they preach [things], but do not practice them."      Matthew 23:3     Amplified Study Bible 

In Jesus' time, most synagogues had a stone seat at the front of the building where men of authority would preach and teach the Law. This was known as Moses' seat. Jesus, listening to the Pharisees teaching, later spoke with His disciples about the Pharisees explaining, that much of their teaching was sound but, they were hypocritical. He discussed the points in which their hypocrisy neutralised the validity of their instruction.

The Pharisees were good at telling people what to do but, not good at carrying out these instructions themselves. This is why He addressed their hypocrisy. Instead of helping to relieve the burden of others, the Pharisees weighed them down with burdens, putting great trips upon them.

Let us think about this for a moment, Can we be like this? Do we live up to what we preach - what we talk about, and then, have a meltdown when things begin to go wrong for us? Basically, are we in control of our situations, or do we forget about what we have read in the bible when something goes against our thinking? It can be anything; one moment we can be flowing in the Holy Spirit and then, crash, something takes our focus and we have a meltdown, say a few unkind words to someone and generally do not live up to what we are preaching.

We are all the same. Some are better at handling things than others but, we all trip up and lose our peace when we take our eyes off Jesus. It is mostly to do with our thought life. Something happens, possibly in a second and it completely takes over. Our thoughts process something and if we are not careful, words come out of our mouths that we didn't intend saying. It could be said that we need to check our hearts Matthew 15:16-20, and this is true. However, our hearts can be full of Jesus one moment and then cursing a situation or someone, the next. We need to get the balance right.

Thankfully, we have a great mentor in Jesus. He will forgive us when we let ourselves down. However, He wishes for us to get the balance right and practice what we preach, otherwise people see hypocrisy in action and it negates our testimony.

If this has spoken to you, believe me, you are not alone. We are all able to act in such a way but it is now, time to deal with this problem. Join me in this prayer:

'Lord Jesus, please help me to get my life right with You. I let myself down so much and therefore, You too. Please help me to be able to cleanse my heart so that, only You, Lord, are on display, not hypocrisy. Lord I ask in Your name. Amen.'

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

How do you react?

"And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."     Colossians 3:17      NKJV 

Note the words, 'Whatever you do'. This doesn't mean what you do at church or when you're feeling happy about something. No, it means, 'Whatever you do,' period.

Firstly, Paul mentions whatever you do in:

Word

 This will include what you say to others, or generally to yourself. It's what comes out of your mouth that He is discussing. How you speak to others; how you answer them and, how you respond to criticism? When you are under pressure, the kids are screaming, the car won't start and you are late for work. How do you speak? Do you honour Jesus or, do you let rip with a few choice words that seem to fit the occasion. How do you answer that person who always seems to catch you when you are dashing off somewhere or have a thousands things to do on you agenda. Do you answer with the grace of God or, are you abrupt with them. 

What about criticism. There are two types of criticism, firstly there is the type that rips a person apart, picking out all of the things you should have done or did wrong. This can be hard to handle. Secondly, there is constructive criticism. This type encourages and build a person up and shows how perhaps, something could have been presented better. This type is positive and should never be received as someone getting at you.

Deed

This one includes what you do at work, at play, the chores you have to carry out and requests from people. Things can come against our plans at times and when your diary is full and set in concrete, it can really cause you panic if you get anything extra. We should always be flexible. We have to prioritise - what is important and what can be moved to a later date, type of thing. This is an area where many people feel great pressure.

Then there are the times when you have done all you can to please someone and it is never satisfactory. You become unfairly treated and it is hard not to give that person a piece of your mind. But, think, how would Jesus handle it.

What about when you receive a parking ticket. This is never easy. Sometimes, we genuinely forget the time and go over the period only to receive a ticket. How do you handle this? I remember getting a ticket a few years ago. I had purchased a ticket but it must have blown off the dash when I got out of the car. I had the dog with me at the time and, he ate it, There was just a little piece left. I ran after the warden with the small piece of ticket and tried to explain. However, he wouldn't believe me. Would you? Anyway, I gave him a piece of my mind - both barrels. When I returned to the car God said to me, 'Do you feel better? Now go and apologise to the man.' I tried to argue with God but that was no use. Therefore, I chased after him, explained that I was a Christian and should never have spoken to him in this manner. I then asked him to forgive me. He looked at me as if I was loopy, grunted, 'Ok' and then walked off. He may have thought I was insane, but I felt so much better.

We should always do all things in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God. We need to know that God approves of our action - words and deeds. We really must do all things with His reputation in mind and, our testimony to whoever is listening or watching us.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

 

Set your mind on Jesus

"Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."     Colossians 3:2      NKJV 

Focus on your friend Jesus and on heaven, which is reward. Our mind is working all the time, constantly processing information. What we think about, affects us more than we realise.  Charles F Stanley writes, 'Who you are today is the result of what you have been thinking all these past years.'  The Charles F Stanley Life Principles Bible. 

When we allow our thoughts to run riot, our thinking becomes distorted. We start to play mind games within our head and it is not unusual to have a psychological conversation with someone who has offended us, even when they are nowhere near us. Have you never done this? The conversation can become so heated as we let rip with all of the pent up frustrations that we carry in our hearts.We let them have it with both barrels. This may feel quite satisfying at the time but, that person is not there with us. They know nothing about it at all and after you have said all you needed to say, the problem is still there.

We need to control our thoughts and take them captive. Capture these thoughts and as we have mentioned many times, make them obedient to Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:4-6. Forbid them to lead you astray; the root of them are from the evil one and contain lies and intimidations. The devil wants to torment you with these things. Don't let Him. 

We need to focus our thoughts on the things that honour the Lord. It's His goal to change us into the likeness of Jesus. This transformation begins in our minds:

'I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.'               Romans 12:1-2    NKJV

Jesus has given us all we need to be able to conquer our mind and make it obedient to Christ. He doesn't want you focusing on such rubbish, He wants each one of us to be transformed into warriors for Him.

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehowardHi.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE