Shine the Light of Jesus

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

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

You are Able to do this

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

                                                                                                   Numbers 13:30     NKJV

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Under attack? Then rejoice!

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

                                                                                                Matthew 5:11-12    NKJV

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

What do you see and hear?

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

                                                                                                 Matthew 13:16     NKJV

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

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Hard-Heartedness

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

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

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

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

                                                                                         Copyright 2018 David Guzik

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

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

 

God's Mercies

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Made in God's Image

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

 Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE