Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard

Sunday, 4 January 2026

Living for Jesus

"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. 2And 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

Here, the apostle Paul writes about total commitment. It can also be expressed by total surrender. Jesus Christ must come first in our lives. He teaches about presenting our body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is our reasonable service.

Therefore, having the attitude that, if Jesus has died for me, then the least I can do is live for Him.

The great cricketer and later, missionary CT Studd declared: 'If Jesus Christ be God and died for me then, no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.' Likewise, Issac Watts wrote in his wonderful hymn 'When I survey the wondrous cross': 'Love so amazing, so divine, demands my heart, my life, my all'.

So in verse 2 of our text we read: 'And do not be conformed to this world'. I rather like Phillips paraphrase which says: 'Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould.' We need to abandon the thought patterns and lifestyles that we have been used to and 'not be conformed to this world.' The word 'world' here can be translated 'age'.

We live in an 'age' where people have created their own version of what we should do, so we need to think the way God thinks as detailed in the bible. We need to get ourselves into the position of having a (1) Yielded Body (2) A Separated Life and (3) A Transformed Mind. When we are this way, we show that we are fully committed to God; we have done our bit, so He will now do His and we will be renewed and fully transformed.

We can't do this alone. We have proved that. We need Jesus to help us over the hurdles of worldly life, into the realms of spiritual life, and this can begin today.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today. In Jesus' Name. Amen
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Copyright 2026 Grahame Howard.

Saturday, 3 January 2026

God has your back!

“Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. 19Behold, 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 43:18-19 NKJV

As we consider our new beginning that God has given us, let us begin by thinking about what had happened to these Israelites. They had spent 70 very hard years as slaves to the Babylonians. It is hard to describe what they went through but, with God's help many of them made it. There must have been times when they thought of how their ancestors managed to cope when they were imprisoned in Egypt. The Israelites were finally rescued with the help of Moses and Aaron and with Pharaoh and the Egyptian army in pursuit, they managed to cross the Red Sea to safety. Through Moses, God performed a miracle and the mighty waters of the sea was drawn back and they were able to cross over dry land. However, the Egyptians perished as they tried to do the same.

Egypt was a similar set up. But the exodus was forgettable compared with what was happening to them in Babylon. God was getting ready to perform a miracle for His people there. Cyrus the Great, the Persian conqueror of Babylon issued a decree in 538 BCE allowing the Jews to return to Judah to rebuild their temple. This ended the Babylonian exile.

God had given a Word through Isaiah letting the Jews know of this which is found in our text today. Note that God was telling the people to forget what had happened to them and focus on the now and the future He had planned for them. He had made a road and a river through the desert and the waste places would be habitable again and there would be an abundance of water. The old was gone and the new was coming.

If we look at this from our own point of view, you may be in a place of torment and feel that nothing is happening to bring you a future. Stop that negative thinking right now! It is doing you no good. God wants you to forget the past and accept that He is doing a new thing in your life. Don't forget that He destroyed the Egyptian army who were pursuing the Israelites who were escaping and, He raised up a new king in Babylon - Cyrus the Great and they were released from their captivity. He can do the same for your situation. He is the same God. He never changes.

God has your back. Others may have let you down. Close friends and family may have walked away from you thinking you were a hopeless case. However, not in God's eyes. And He is about to make you a somebody. Where people scoffed at you, they will be stunned at what He will perform in you and through you. Hang on to that. Your friend Jesus is at work on your behalf.

Think big, think success and think happiness and joy. Your time is at hand!

Receive it!

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Friday, 2 January 2026

A New Beginning

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new". 2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV

Well, here we are - 2026 a New Year to look forward to. In fact, we can view it as a new beginning. Last year has gone, the things that happened are still in our minds but, we can make a difference here. Isaiah 43:18-19 tells us: 'Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old.19Behold, 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'. We have a choice to stop remembering the former things. They are in the past. If the things hurt you, shrug them off and look to the future. Yes, it is difficult to shrug off things that have been like a dagger to your heart. But can you do anything about them? If not, consider leaving them where they belong - in the past. You now live in the future.

God is doing a new thing in your life; you have a new start to enjoy. You are a born again man or women. This verse reinforces this fact. It is a reminder of who you are in Christ. However, don't forget that even though you are a brand new person, you still have a lot of old baggage with you; evil thoughts still attack you and lustful looks still are attached to you, despite how many times you have been prayed for to be free. These are the things that we carry with us, but you don't have to be involved in what they might suggest to your thoughts. Cast them away in Jesus name at the time that that they appear and claim the victory.

Isaiah 43 tells us that God is about to do a new thing within us. Now match this up with

Ezekiel 36:25-27 'Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them". This is a verse full of life and it would be helpful if you prayed this - personally, and claimed it for your own life. This is your future, the future God longs to give to you.

If ever there was a verse for a new beginning, this is it. We all need this cleansing, we need to have our heart of stone taken away and have a heart of flesh to replace it and, we most definitely need the Holy Spirit to settle within us, giving us peace, favour and love.

Do you need this? I most certainly do, so, let us all make this New Beginning a done deal and get on with what God has for us to do and receive.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Wednesday, 31 December 2025

What have you learned this past year Part 2

"And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. 25But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality."

Colossians 3:23-25 NKJV

Paul is calling for us to honour our masters - the people we may work for or have to submit to, such as government etc. He encourages us to work for them as if we are serving Jesus Himself. When we do this, we should not do it reluctantly but, with Godly motivation. As we work this way, our earthly boss may notice this and may mention it, However, if he doesn't, Jesus has noticed and really, this is all that matters.

Nothing goes unnoticed with Jesus, people may just accept that we are doing the work that we are paid to do. However, Jesus will know that you are doing the work as if you are doing it for Him. You will then receive the reward of the inheritance from God.

Just think of it as working with a big notice on your back, 'DOING THE JOB FOR JESUS'. If you work for yourself and have a van, you could always put a quotation under for name and description, with this underneath in brackets. This would underpin your intention to serve your customer with excellent service and may be a good reference. I do remember seeing a firm's van once with AGAPE' CLEANING SERVICES written on the side. What a great witness. However, it will only be a great witness if you work as if serving Jesus.

Therefore, what have you learned this past year? Well for a start, we see the need to place Jesus in first place in everything. It is a recipe for success. So if you are at College or Uni, ask Jesus to help you with your studies and essay writing. From past experience, I can assure you that this works very well. If you work for someone then treat it as if you are serving Jesus as previously mentioned, the same as working for yourself. However, always be honourable to the name of Jesus. Course jokes and innuendoes let is down terribly.

Make this your New Years slogan:

"DOING THE JOB FOR JESUS"

I'll be back on Friday 2nd January 2026

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Tuesday, 30 December 2025

What have you learned this past year? Part 1

"But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. 11Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: 12I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". Philippians 4:10-13 NKJV

Paul here, is talking about being content in all he has, no matter what state he is in or wherever he may be at the time. He's just grateful for what God has blessed him with. The secret to contentment is knowing that Jesus Christ is your Saviour and, whatever state you may be in or, wherever you may be, He is right there with you. You may be flat broke, Jesus isn't, not at all, and if you trust in Him He will share some of His riches with you too. If you're hungry, He will also meet that need. It is the same for sickness and the feeling of hopelessness. He doesn't want you sick and He doesn't want you broke either. It all comes down to being content with what you have and where you are right now.

Paul, even though he had been hungry and without food at times, was able to say that he was content. He had been in prison with no hope at all, but his trust was in Jesus, no one else. This was his secret. It's easy to think that he was asking for money here when he wrote this; but that was not so. Of course, he wouldn't have turned down a gift if someone gave it to him. But, he was more interested in teaching to his followers the secret of being content.

This past year, you may have been in financial problems. You may have suffered a great loss and through all of this, you have made it through. Think back to how you felt at the time. It may have been scary because you had no idea of what to do or how to solve the impossible. But Jesus pulled you through. You may not have fully recovered your predicament yet, but you're on the way. As we saw in yesterday's teaching, the disciples were panicking because they thought the boat was going to sink. But remember, Jesus was there with them and He resolved the situation.

Jesus wants us all to be worry free. We accomplish this by being totally sold out to Jesus. This is the place He wants us to be - a place of peace and contentment and we receive this by putting Him in first place in our lives. You may have done this but, when a crisis has come your way, you may have been like the disciples that day in the boat - totally full of panic. What did Jesus say to them? 'Where is your faith?' And, this is what He is saying to you today.

No matter what the future is saying, think big and think Jesus and be content in the knowledge that, your friend Jesus, is right in there with you.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Monday, 29 December 2025

What can we learn from storms?

"Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.” And they launched out. 23But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy. 24And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”
Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. 25But He said to them, “Where is your faith?”
And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”

Let us look at this piece of scripture more closely. Jesus wanted to go to the other side of the lake and got into the disciples boat. Therefore, we know that Jesus was with them in the boat and wanted to make this trip. He was at peace and decided to have a rest and fell asleep. This showed His humanity. The disciples could have done the same, if they had trusted in Jesus totally. However, they didn't and were more focused on a storm that was brewing.

The windstorm came, bringing with it raging waves that threatened to sink the boat. The disciples became terrified and this is where they made there mistake. Jesus was in the boat with them; He wanted to go across the lake and was so assured this would happen that He went to sleep. Instead of addressing the wind and the waves themselves, they rushed to wake Jesus. He addressed the storm and there was quiet. He then addressed the disciples, 'Where is your faith?'

We need to remember that the disciples were in God's will. He had asked them to take Him across the lake. When we're in God's will, storms will still come on us. It doesn't mean that we've stepped out of His will. Sometime He wants to test us. This may be because He has something bigger for us and wants to see how we handle certain things. Instead of focusing on God's Word, they focused on their circumstances and began to panic.

There are lessons to learn here. When Jesus asks us to do something for Him, He is right there with us and provides all we need to carry out the task. He trusts us so much, that He decides to give us a trial. He does this because He has been teaching us and preparing us for a mission.

The thing is, would we be confidant enough to do what Jesus was hoping the disciples would do? This was what He meant when he asked them 'Where is your faith?' Some people would say, 'That was back in bible times; He would never expect us to do that now.' Really? I think He would. The same Spirit that dwelt in them is in us too, and it is the same Jesus. He doesn't change His mind.

What would you do? Would you focus on God's Word or on the circumstances?

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Sunday, 28 December 2025

Have you been sowing in tears?

"When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, We were like those who dream.

2Then our mouth was filled with laughter, And our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”3The Lord has done great things for us, And we are glad. 4Bring back our captivity, O Lord, As the streams in the South. 5Those who sow in tears Shall reap in joy. 6He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him" Psalm 126 NKJV.

When you have been waiting a long time for God to do something for you, you become overjoyed when He acts. This was how the Israelites felt when they eventually were freed from captivity in Babylon. He not only freed them but, He restored their fortunes. They were floating on air and must have felt they were dreaming. But it was true, they were free.

Just a glance at verse 2-3 says it all, 'The LORD has done great things for them, and we are glad. The LORD has done great things for us and we are glad' This was such a witness to the non-Jewish people; they too were going home. Yet none of them had anything of great worth to take with them except probably the clothes they stood up in and few bits and pieces. This is why they called out: 'Bring back our captivity O LORD, as the streams in the South' v4.

The South, was the desert. It was normally arid and barren. Now, after much heavy rain, the dry waterbeds had become like torrents of water that made the wilderness blossom, and the Psalmist longed for more of this so that their restoration would be good and their sorrow turned to joy. After-all, those who sow in tears, will reap in joy.

And this can be transferred over to you. You may have waited for all kinds of prosperity to come to you - spiritually and naturally. Probably this is the time when blessing and restoration will come your way. The Israelites had waited 70 years and many of them had given up hope. But God had a date on His calendar and He would fulfil this blessing. He will you too. I wish I could tell you when but I don't know. But your name is on His calendar too and it could be today that He acts or it may be further down the line. The thing is, we have a New Year approaching and I pray that this will be a prosperous one for you all.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Saturday, 27 December 2025

Leading up to the unpardonable sin

"As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed. 33And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke. And the multitudes marveled, saying, “It was never seen like this in Israel!”
34But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons.”

Matthew 9:32-34 NKJV

Whatever Jesus did, there was always someone who would speak against Him. Now, whereas, we would find this incredibly difficult to handle, Jesus took it all in His stride.

He didn't react to this one. However, a time was soon coming when He would and the seriousness of this would be life-changing. We'll come back to this point in a moment.

If you stand on a street corner and preach about Jesus, you will probably be arrested. Some preachers have been, but, it hasn't stopped them. Yet if you stand there and speak about another topic, you will probably be left alone. There appears to be a prejudice about Christian activities in the world today. I believe it comes in the form of spiritual attack. The devil doesn't want God's Word getting out to people because they might be saved. Therefore, he will try and block every entry route.

This was what he was doing here that day. Jesus had just healed a man who was mute. When the man opened his mouth, he was able to talk and the place erupted at such a miracle. However, the Pharisees, forever watching for things to blame Jesus with, had the audacity to say 'He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons'. As we've seen earlier, Jesus didn't respond but, on the next occasion He did:

“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come'. Matthew 12:31-32.

We have enemies just the same as Jesus had when He walked the streets. If they ridiculed Him and blasphemed Him they will do the same to us. And this may be our own family or perhaps our friends. Learn to cope with it and rise above the accusations. They are attacking God's Word not ours. We are just the messenger. Sometimes postman get bitten by a dog, it's a similar analogy.

The people that hit out at us are in fear. The devil has gripped them into seeking out God's truth and dampening it down. But we have a job to do, so let's do it with no fear just boldness. We are on a mission and soldiers get shot at so, watch out for the arrows!

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Wednesday, 24 December 2025

Mary - saved from disgrace

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit". Matthew 1:18-20. NKJV

Mary and Joseph, were engaged to be married. Now this engagement was more binding than an engagement that we are familiar with. This was was a legal contract that could only be broken by divorce and the reason would be by adultery. As we know, adultery was punishable by death. Joseph, being a just and righteous man didn't want to bring this disgrace on Mary - he loved her deeply. He therefore decided to divorce her quietly to save her the accusations that would follow if she was divorced.

While Joseph pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, encouraging him to take Mary as his wife, as the child was conceived by the Holy Spirit and he was to call Him Jesus, because He would save His people from their sins.. Joseph complied with this request and took Mary to be his wife.

Mary's life would have been ruined through no fault of her own. But God's always on time; He rescued Mary and the man called Joseph, became her husband. Now from a human point of view, the devil can place all kinds of lies and accusatory statements before us and, it is extremely difficult to ignore them. The spiritual side of us wants to cast the thoughts away because they trust God. However, the devil will do all he can to break through that defence, convincing us that what we have heard is totally true.

If we're not careful, that lie can take up residence in our life and we will keep focusing on it until we believe it. Then the torture begins. It can be anything. The devil is a liar and gossip. The fact that Joseph totally believed the angel of the Lord is stunning. He could have gone the route that anyone in that position goes. But he didn't. Why is that? It's because his faith in God had a strong foundation and he chose to believe what he trusted in, his Heavenly Father and because of this, God was able to bring forth the Saviour of the world - Jesus Christ.

On our lead up to the wonderful joy of Christmas, just focus on how good God is. We are able to trust Him with our lives and our future. Amen!

THANK YOU JESUS

AND A

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL

BACK ON SATURDAY 27TH DECEMBER

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now

Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard

Sunday, 4 January 2026

Living for Jesus

Saturday, 3 January 2026

God has your back!

Friday, 2 January 2026

A New Beginning

Wednesday, 31 December 2025

What have you learned this past year Part 2

Tuesday, 30 December 2025

What have you learned this past year? Part 1

Monday, 29 December 2025

What can we learn from storms?

Sunday, 28 December 2025

Have you been sowing in tears?

Saturday, 27 December 2025

Leading up to the unpardonable sin

Wednesday, 24 December 2025

Mary - saved from disgrace

Living for Jesus

Daily life with Jesus by Grahame Howard

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