Growing seed

"(3) Behold a sower went out to sow. (4) And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside and the birds came and devoured them. (18) When anyone hears the Word of the Kingdom and does not understand, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside."
                                                                                Matthew 13:3-4 & 18-19.  NKJV

Satan will try to harm us because we are seeds capable of producing a harvest. The only way God's Kingdom can come and His will be done on earth, is through us. This is why we're a target!

Note the word, 'Snatches,' in V19. This is characteristic of the devil. We firstly see him as a serpent in Genesis 3, where he tricked Eve into eating the forbidden fruit. A serpent lies in wait for its prey and then strikes. In other words, he snatches away what God is giving us, because otherwise, we'll be a threat. He steals, he grabs, he seizes hastily and grasps. It's the only way he can work. He lies in wait until we're distracted and then snatches away what God wants us to have. He has to snatch it because he knows that if he doesn't, and we are in tune with the Holy Spirit, we'll snatch it back and straightaway send him away, very quickly.

V21 has some very important words to give us. 'Yet, he has no root in himself.' This means that our faith has no particular depth to it. There is little understanding and a lack of teaching. This doesn't mean we don't read and study our bibles; we may do this everyday. But do we contain it? Does it register within us? Or are we easily distracted; multi-tasking at times, reading the word but answering the telephone too or any other such thing. We need determination and dedication to get close to God and understand what He wants of us. Hence, we need to check our rooting. A good tree is soundly rooted and grounded like a building on a sold foundation. It will withstand most things. We need to be the same, so that we can avoid the enemy snatching everything from us - our joy, our strength and health and everything else that is precious to us.

Before we close today, I want to show you something else, very important in V4. 'And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside.' Many people have done this. One minute they're going through their day, happy and joyful with no particular worries, and then, WHAM! They fall by the wayside.
There can be many reasons for this. Life can be hurtful and very difficult at times and words that are spoken behind our back, can come to our attention. This hurts, makes us angry and can devastate us. There can be many other reasons why we fall by the wayside, but the solution is the same, GET BACK UP! Soldiers of the King of kings don't lie down unless it is permanent. Whatever it is, remember, we're working for God. we have a job to do. There's a harvest to bring in. This may mean you'll be shot at. You're a target and soldiers do get shot at. However, in the words of Sir Winston Churchill:

'Never, never, never, never, give up'

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

The Inner Battle

"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God."   Romans 8:14. 

There is a battle within us and it's a never-ending one. Daily, we have to be on guard and checkout our behaviour, our reactions and our thoughts. Our aim is to be Spirit led but at times, that is easier said than done.

Let's look at a couple of examples. In Matthew 5:21-22 Jesus says:-

"(21) You have heard that was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder and whoever murders, will be in danger of the judgement. (22) But, I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the judgement."

Let me ask you, have you ever struck anyone? Possibly you may have or possibly not. Yet you may well have felt so angry towards someone that you've wanted to. Basically, Jesus is saying that is the same thing. The same judgement may be handed out to you.

Matthew 5:27-28 says:-

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her, has already committed adultery with her in his heart."

Now, you may never have committed adultery but, ask yourself, 'have I ever looked at someone other than my partner with lust in my heart?' Whether it's murder or adultery, you may never have committed those in the flesh, but you may well have done in your thoughts. And, this is serious stuff! Thoughts can be dangerous when they lead to desires. The inner battle within us, shows us that we can be attracted to good and evil. Temptations come and if we are not careful, we can fall for them in our thought life.

It's easy to say, 'Yes, but I didn't actually do this. I was just tempted to.' That may be true, but if we allow the temptation to lead us to desire and then action, then we have stepped over the line. We need to nip it in the bud before it gets that far. This is why the Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5:-

"(4) For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, (5) casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."

Strong stuff isn't it? But to be led by the Spirit means to capture these thoughts before they develop into something we may regret. We'll always have this inner battle until we go home to Glory, so now is the time to wise up and take control. If you have been tempted to have such thoughts, come to God right now and confess this.

Father
I confess that I have had thoughts of deep anger towards another person and I've wanted to strike them, (or have done). Forgive me please in Jesus' name.
I have had thoughts of inappropriate lust towards another person, thus committing adultery in my mind or in my body. Please Lord, forgive me for this. In Jesus' name. Amen

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

You are chosen

"You did not choose Me, but I chose you."                       John 15:16.  NKJV

How are you feeling today? You may have woken up still tired and filled with the knowledge that you have so much to do today, it's unbelievable. (a) You may have to go to work (b) get the kids ready for school and then go to work (c) Clean the house and then do the gardening (d) Take the dog for a walk. The list of chores can be never ending and many times you may  struggle to do them because of the way you feel.

The mainstay of your problem, can be your thoughts. You can wake up with an agenda that seems impossible to meet and your thoughts can feed you with exaggerated lies and negativity. You need to take hold of your thought life and make them submissive (Read 2 Corinthians 10:4-5) because they lead you to worry and depression. You can become overwhelmed by your thoughts and this can ruin your day.

One thing I do know, is that we have a friend who wants to be involved in our lives every moment of every day. Just think, the nights when you just can't sleep - Jesus is there, right there with you. Those mornings when you wake up burdened by what your day includes - Jesus is there, saying, 'We'll do it together, there's not much to do anyway.' Those places that you have to go but you're dreading the thought of it - Jesus is there, saying, 'Don't fret, we'll have a good time together, no matter what.'

Our friend Jesus, is right beside us in every situation but we have to seek Him. What I mean is, if we don't recognise that he's with us; if we don't talk to Him and leave Him out of everything, He can't really be involved. We have to make a choice to involve Him in everything or leave Him out.

Don't forget that He made a choice about you. 'You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit.' (John 15:16). What an amazing verse! The King of kings, Jesus Christ, who was there at the beginning of time, chose you. You didn't choose Him. he considered you worthy to die for and be His friend. therefore He chose you.
It doesn't really matter what type of day you have before you. If you allow Him, He'll accompany you and help you through each and every step. 

What is bothering you at this time? What is robbing you of your peace and making you feel miserable or stressed out? Jesus knows, you don't really need to tell Him, He knows already and all you need to do is say, 'Lord, help me please.'

Now that's not too difficult is it? He's 100% interested. You're selected by God; hand-picked and part of His elect. I have no proof of this, but God probably talks about you all day. He loves you so much. You like to talk to others about your kids and family, don't you? So does God, He just can't help it.

Right now, give your day, filled with busy-ness or boredom and ask Him to share this day with you. He wants you to have a good day, whatever has happened. You are very special to Him, and He wants to build you back up again; take the pain and loneliness away and give you life in abundance. (John 10:10)

Feel good about yourself; you're one of the chosen one's.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Shalom Shalom

"(3) You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You. Because he trusts in You. (4) Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength."
                                                                                            Isaiah 26:3-4.  NKJV

In the Hebrew, repetition communicates intensity, therefore the term isn't just Shalom, but Shalom Shalom, which means perfect peace.

There is an important clause here in verse 3. It says, that the Lord shall keeps us in perfect peace - WHOSE MIND IS STAYED ON YOU! In the New Living Translation, it reads, 'whose thoughts are fixed on You.' It is God's intention that we remain not only in peace, but in perfect peace - nothing missing, nothing broken. He wants us to live and try to make our world a better place to live in. How? By blessing people, not by cursing them with criticisms and judging all that people do.

However, for us to live in perfect peace, we must keep our focus by keeping our minds stayed upon God. We must have our thoughts fixed on Him. If we say that we do this, or intend to do in the future and then begin to worry when something goes wrong, or when a large bill drops on the mat, then we are not keeping our thoughts fixed on Him; we're not living in perfect peace. In fact, we're fooling ourselves.

Jesus told us not to worry (Matthew 6:31) but to trust in God, who will supply our needs and take care of us. If we believe this and live this way, we're living in perfect peace. If not, then really we are disobeying Jesus because He told us not to worry.

Are you the type of person who tries to help God? You know, you pray to Him about something and instead of leaving it with Him, you try to manufacture things, to make it happen. God doesn't need your help. He's pretty good at sorting things out; far better than we could ever be.

All He wants you to do, is live in perfect peace - shalom shalom. Many Jewish people greet each other with this phrase. They bless who they greet by giving them health, happiness, well-being and peace. Why not try it yourself, the next time you have contact with a Christian brother or sister. Say to them shalom shalom and bless them with:

The Lord bless you and keep you,

The Lord make His face shine upon you,

And be gracious to you,

The Lord lift up His countenance

upon you, and give you peace. shalom shalom

                     Number 7:24-26

So keep your thoughts fixed on Him - all of them. Cast any problems or burden upon Him and trust Him. Then be filled with shalom shalom - perfect peace.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Re-focus before you're consumed

"(1) If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. (2) Set you mind on things above, not on things on the earth."                                                Colossians 3:1-2. NKJV  

'If you don't redirect your focus, the problem will consume your life. '  Kenneth Copeland 2005

This means either focus on the problem or be grateful that other things are going well in your life, for instance, having gratitude. Sometimes though, it is so easy to focus on the wrong things. It may be something like a disability and this may lead to a 'Woe is me,' type attitude. You can begin feeling sorry for yourself by allowing thoughts such as, 'It's just not fair'. As long as we focus on this, it will consume us and our faith will begin to dwindle. 

Think what is going well for you. "Not a lot,' you may say. Well you're alive for one thing. Many who have died would give anything to be in the place that you are at this time. You have life, they don't. 

We can remain where we are or re-focus - on Jesus and what He has done for us. The old chorus goes:

Happy day, happy day,

When Jesus washed my sins away,

He taught me how to watch and pray,

And live rejoicing every day,

Happy day, happy day,

When Jesus washed my sins away.                

                                                                                 
           P Doddridge

We also sing, 'Through the storm, He is Lord, Lord of all.' You know something, soldiers get shot at and blown up and many have horrific injuries and disabilities. Yes, they may have bad feelings about it all at first, but then, they fight back and get on with their life, no matter what their disability is, they fight on.

Do you know something? You're a soldier as well. Your Commanding Officer is Jesus Christ, you know, the one who died on the cross just for you. The one who had nails pierced into His hands and feet, was laughed at; spat on and whipped so badly that His back was ripped open. Did He moan about it. NO. He was heard to say, 'Father, forgive them because they do not know what they do.' Luke 23:34. ‘Yes, but He was the Son of God.’ True, but He was also human at that time. He hurt, He bled, He had feelings. Don’t let us forget that.

Millions of people have disabilities and it can be difficult to live with at times, believe me, I know. The thing is, if you keep focusing on this, you will miss out on the many blessings that God has in store for you. 

As the old chorus above says, you need to live your life in such a way that you live, 'rejoicing every day.' Hard to do? You bet it is. Beneficial, you bet it is. 

Start living your life with with these words on your breathe, 

'Happy day, happy day

When Jesus washed my sins away.'

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Don't lose your persistence

"(41) Then Elijah said to Ahab, 'go up, eat and drink for there is the sound of abundance of rain.' (42) So Ahab went to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground and put his face between his knees, (43) and said to his servant, 'Go up now, look towards the sea,' So he went up and looked and said, 'There is nothing.' And seven times he said, 'Go again.' (44) Then it came to pass the seventh time that he said, 'There is a cloud as small as a man's hand rising out of the sea.' So he said, 'Go up, say to Ahab, Prepare your chariot and go down before the rain stops you."                                                      1 Kings 18:41-44   NKJV

Before this time, Elijah had prayed that there would be no rain and therefore there had been none for 3 Years and 6 months, causing a drought on the land. This was because the pagan god, Baal, professed to be the Sky god or weather god, creating a large following of the people.

As time went on, God called Elijah to go to Ahab and tell him that rain would come once again on the land. There was a humiliating contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal where Elijah had challenged the prophets of Baal to see who could call down fire on a bull that had been prepared for sacrifice. No matter how much they tried, the prophets of Baal failed to call down the fire. Eventually, Elijah, on God's direction, prepared an altar and fire came down and consumed the burnt sacrifice. The people believed and the prophets of Baal were gathered together and executed.

Therefore, Elijah knew that it was time to pray for rain. He went up Carmel to pray, bowing down before God. Seven times he asked his servant to go and look out to sea and for six times the servant gave the answer, 'There is nothing.' Many people at this stage, would have given up believing that they had not heard God properly. Not Elijah, he had told Ahab that he had heard the sound of abundant rain - the sound of a large thunder storm. He was not going to give up at all. On the seventh time, the servant reported that he could see a cloud, the size of a man's hand. Elijah knew this was it and sent the servant to warn Ahab to get in his chariot and head off before the rain fell.

 If you don't have persistence, then not very much is going to happen, in fact, you may miss out on all that God has for you. We need to accept the small blessings to make way for the bigger ones. Don't forget, massive oak trees grow from small acorns. Some times, what we receive from God we may feel insignificant. Don't ever be tempted to feel this way. As Bob Gass used to say, 'Walt Disney began with a mouse.'

Following our prayers, we may have a promise from God to provide for us in some way. This doesn't mean that we stop praying for this. We should carry on until we see fulfilment of that promise. Even though his servant said those faithless words, 'There is nothing,' he still carried on. People who know that you're waiting for God on something, may come and say that perhaps you haven't heard God properly. If you believe God, don't give up. Hang on to your prayer - your dream and look for that small cloud.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

Receive things differently

"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 12:2.  NKJV

When things are coming at us right, left and centre; instead of giving into the injustice of it all, it's far better to turn the situation around. Instead of seeing them as negative, try to see them as positive. Instead of seeing chores and bad feelings, try to see them as blessings. In fact, be blessed instead of being robbed. Now this obviously is not easy to do. It takes practice, patience and perseverance.

It may help to look at a very basic form of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). Using this, one is helped to take control of their thoughts and look at the emotions it causes. They can then look for a better outcome to the situation.

In basic CBT, we have, a Situation, an Emotion, an Automatic thought, a Rational response and an Outcome.  Let us look at an example very briefly:

SITUATION
This may be the pain of seeing someone promoted into a job that you thought was yours.
EMOTION
You may be hurt, jealous and very angry because of this.
AUTOMATIC THOUGHT
'I hate that person, they always do better than me. I'm always left on the sidelines.'

From here, a person can throw a wobbly and cause a major scene, even putting their own job at risk. They may even walk out, telling everyone what they think of them
Therefore, we need to adjust our thinking somewhat:

RATIONAL RESPONSE
*  'I have a choice here. I can leave and find a better job.'
*  'Does the person realise the amount of responsibility that they're taking on? They won't cope'
*   Congratulate the person (I know it sucks) but do it anyway - genuinely, and offer to help 
     them in anyway you can.

OUTCOME
Relative peace and the knowledge you've done it God's way

We need to train ourselves to think differently. Doing things the way Jesus would do them, is not always easy. We want to rant and rave and moan and groan at some people - Jesus blesses them.
Hating a person because they have done better than us, is not the way forward and it shows the state of the heart. We need to rectify this - immediately!

What issues or problems are you facing at this time? Together with prayer, Romans 12:2 and this basic form of CBT, which is basically in tune with this scripture, try to forge a better way forward. The way Jesus would go. This CBT formula can be adapted to whatever you may be facing.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com