Their eyes were opened

"Then there eyes were opened and they knew Him"                    Luke 24:31    NKJV 

People can be going through their everyday lives and not realise that they have been in the presence of Jesus in some way or other. This was what happened to two men who were walking towards Emmaus. Jesus turned up and walked with them and they told Him about the events of the past few days - the way Jesus had been crucified and supposedly resurrected. Jesus never told them who He was and went to their house for rest as it was night time. He broke bread and blessed it and suddenly they recognised who He was. Then He vanished from their sight Luke 24:13-31.

This has happened many times over the years and some have missed the truth. Thomas was told that Jesus had visited them - He was alive. But he refused to believe unless He saw Jesus Himself and touched Him. Jesus turned up later and Thomas was able to do this and Jesus told Him to believe from now on. He also said to Thomas, 'Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.' John 20:29. We fit into this category. As born again believers, not many have seen Jesus, but by faith they know He is there and believe. Therefore, in a way, we have also seen Him. Our eyes were opened. This is our faith.

Saul, following his encounter with Jesus on the Damascus Road, met with Ananias, a man of God, who God directed to lay hands on Saul that his sight may be regained. This happened and scales fell from Saul's eyes, his eyes were opened and He began His work for Jesus and never stopped until his death.

People who do not know Jesus, need to have their eyes opened. We can talk to them over and over, but like Thomas, unless they see Him for themselves, they will not believe. He came to His own and yet they did not receive Him John 1:11. They didn't receive Him because their eyes remained closed. 

Perhaps you may be like this - you've never accepted Jesus or, maybe you have but your eyes have not been opened wide. Why not say this prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you better; I ask You to be my friend. Please forgive all of my sin and come and live in my heart, bringing Your Holy Spirit to dwell there. I want to follow You for the rest of my life. In Jesus' Name. Amen

Email me to let me know that you have done this.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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When all else fails

"My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; He is mine forever."                                                                Psalm 73:26     NLT

Many times we feel that we have failed in some area or another. Our mind can pour depression and guilt upon us until we become a wreck. However, we will not always be in the winning blocks but, we are still winners because, Jesus is with us. He is with us forever.

Have you felt that tinge of failure just lately, that feeling that you could have succeeded if you had tried harder? Well, there may be a touch of truth to this, only you know that. However, usually it is a lie that the devil uses against us to make us feel awful and that we have let God and people down. If you genuinely know in your heart that you have done all that you could, then don't even entertain thoughts such as these. They are designed to disable you.

We only have a level of strength because we are human. Super strength belongs to Jesus, He can be likened to a more powerful Superman. This is why we cling to Him, need Him and walk with Him daily. When we get into difficulty, as we call on Him, He uses His staff to guide us and show us the way. If we fall into a ditch, He uses the staff to hook us out and put us on the road again. If anyone attacks us or tries to do us harm, as we call on Him, He uses His rod to protect us and beat off the enemies. 'Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me'  Psalm 23:4 NLT. 

Notice David's words, 'I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff they comfort me.' These are faith words and when we confess these, we receive. We must get into this habit of speaking faith-filled language, not words of doubt. 

Some of you reading this may have health issues and you may wonder why you have not been healed even though you have prayed. It's not over until it's over. Don't give up. There's no answer that anyone can give you for this, except to keep on believing. Don't listen to doubt; don't confess doubt. It is not a failure, just keep on trusting Jesus. He always wins in the end!

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Endure hardship

"You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ."  

                                                                                                           2 Timothy 2:8    NKJV

The Christian life is not always easy; we have mountains to climb, problems to negotiate and difficult decisions to make. On top of all of that, we have to deal with the persecution that we suffer from unbelievers. It is never easy. This is why Paul wrote the above statement. We need to be totally committed and disciplined in our relationship with Him, especially when we face trials of all kinds. We are soldiers, we enlisted into the army of the Living God and we serve our Commander - Jesus. Therefore, we must be focused on Him and obedient to His orders, despite the obstacles that we may face. 

Rather like an athlete, we need to press through the pain in order to reach the goal which is glorifying Him. Athletes do not receive a gold medal just for competing, they have to train and work hard so that they can claim this prize. We may feel like giving up at times but, this is never an option for the committed man or woman of God. We press on and get the job done and Jesus gives us the energy to be able to do this.

We should never be entangled with petty arguments and affairs of the world. Our job is too important. Rather, we need to allow people to see how we handle situations and also help them to overcome certain problems; but we should never become too involved that we lose our focus.

What are you struggling with at this time. You may be waiting for an answer from God about a certain thing. Or you may be asking God to bless a certain area of your life. Waiting is never easy and when we have been waiting a long time, this can be a trigger point to throw the towel in and give up. DON'T!. Keep going; keep believing that what you have asked for, God will give the answer. The life of a soldier is committed to fighting, overcoming and keeping the peace. This is the blue print that we need to follow. 

You can do this, you know you can. Remember all of the others who have been in your place and overcame. You will do the same, deep down you know you will; it's just that it is difficult at this time. But things will get better probably sooner than you think. Because, Jesus will never let you down.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Are you kicking against God's direction?

"It's hard for you to kick against the goads"                                         Acts 9:5     NKJV

Saul, before God changed him, was a terrible persecutor of the Christian church. He was responsible for the death of the first Christian martyr - Stephen and went around finding men, woman and children who were of 'The Way.' This was an early term referring to Christianity and promoted by Jesus, who was the way John 14:6. Saul was a bounty hunter and a very ruthless man to come against.

Saul obtained letters from the high priest to take to the synagogue at Damascus in order to root out believers and bring them bound to Jerusalem. While he was on the Damascus Road he encountered Jesus shining as a bright light that blinded Saul, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? Jesus then went on to say, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads,' Two points are raised here. Firstly, when people persecute us, they are also persecuting Jesus. He identifies with us. Anyone who attacks us is attacking Him also, because we are the body of Christ. Don't ever feel that you are on your own; Jesus knows what it feels like too.

Secondly, a goad or prick, was an ox stick with a sharp iron point on the tip. It was used to guide the oxen by pricking them. If the ox rebelled by kicking out, the tip was pushed in deeper until it complied. The more it rebelled, the more it suffered.

Think about this; Jesus guides and directs us. At times there is a need for Jesus to amplify this and we don't like it, in fact, we can rebel. The more we ignore His leading, the more we feel that we are not in step with Him, until we comply. Jesus is not a taskmaster, but He does wish for us to obey His word. We can go no further until we do.

Think about these two points, you are not alone during persecution. Jesus suffers with you and will, help sort it out, if you let Him. Secondly, are you kicking out against what God wants you to do. The more you kick the deeper the prick. It's much better to say yes to Jesus. Saul, who later became Paul, found this out and went on to write the biggest part of the New Testament and brought many to know Jesus. God knows best and wants the best for you.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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What is your weakness?

"He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength."     

                                                                                                               Isaiah 40:29   NKJV 

Unlike our own, God's power is unlimited. He is all powerful and nothing causes Him a problem or catches Him out. He is always ready and alert. The words 'weak' and 'have no might' in our text today, apply to us all. We all have our weaknesses; the things that let us down constantly. The things that we try to walk away from but, follow us around. Look at our text, 'He gives power to the weak'. That is us and it is a promise. This is why we need to know the Word of God throughly, otherwise we miss these gems. We are weak but God gives us the strength to overcome. When we have no might, He gives us the strength that we need.

'Yes but you don't know what I get up to, I keep on doing the things that I know I shouldn't.' Then join the club, we all do. If you can show me someone who is perfect in everything, then I will be very surprised. We can look at people in church and think, 'I wish I was like them, they never fall'. Then, go and live with them for a week and you'll soon see differently. We all have our weaknesses and, we all mess up. That person who you look up to and may put on a pedestal, has struggles too. There is only one who is perfect and His name is Jesus.

As you read this, you may be thinking that there is no hope for you. Well, there is and His name is Jesus. He is our only hope - the only hope that we need. Having lots of money will not bring hope, you can lose that in a day. Living in an idyllic place in the Caribbean may be very nice but, it will not give you hope and what's more, you will still have your weaknesses. There is only hope in Jesus.

Jesus can help you in your weakness. He can give you the strength you need and even though you may be feeling condemned because you have let Him down again, He never points the finger, and what's more, you are not condemned; only the devil does that Romans 8:1. This doesn't mean that we can continue to deliberately sin each day and expect Him to forgive us. However, it does mean that when we do make the same mistakes, as we confess our sin, He is there to forgive us 1 John 1:9. 

This is grace that He gives us. (see 2 Corinthians 12:9)

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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It's time to Praise the Lord

"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord"                          Psalm 150     NKJV

Work, play, family and friends; shopping, cleaning, football, the pub, overtime and the garden; whatever you are at, it is time to get out of the fast line and praise the Lord. We can never be too busy to do so but we come close. We have very little time to do this. Kids, breakfasts, the school run, this appointment and that interview. Slowdown, it is time to praise the Lord. If you have breath, which I hope you do, spend some time with Him. 'Yes but'. But nothing. We should never allow anything to get in the way of praising God. We owe this to Him for all He has done for each one of us.

If you can play an instrument then play it to God. If you can't, then sing to Him. You say that you can't sing in tune. That's ok, to God it sounds like a sweet melody. Alternatively, fill the house with praise by playing a CD or Christian music from the internet. Then start singing along with it. When we praise, Satan is unable to touch us; in fact, he runs away because it may be music to God's ears, but to him, it sounds like warfare. Praise stops Satan in his tracks. This is why it is so important.

When we praise and worship, like we saw yesterday in Isaiah 6, the foundations of heaven shake with passion, the Seraphim worship Him too and it is a sweet sound and fragrance to God. Praise also make us feel good too. When we are praising God, we are not thinking about the problems that are nagging away at us. There is no place for them when we approach the Throne of God. At the Throne, there is only grace and love. There is no fear at all. There can't be because we are totally in God's presence. The more time we spend in His presence, the fear and the problems of the world seem insignificant, they are redundant, not needed anymore.

Be honest, do you praise God enough, do you worship Him often? I think it is something that we all need to brush up on. The world we live in, is a busy place with stress and struggles around every corner. We can become overwhelmed with the pressures of life if we are not careful. We often say that we need time for ourselves. Why not turn this into a, 'I need to spend some time with Jesus.' It can only do you good.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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The call of Isaiah. Part 2 - A glimpse into heaven

"Here am i. Send me"  

                                                                                                       Isaiah 6:2-8    NKJV 

Isaiah was overcome with the glory of heaven. He observed Seraphim flying around the throne of God, praising and worshiping the Almighty God. Seraphim are described as having two or three pairs of wings who focus on praising and worshiping God V2&3. They are the closest angels of God, who serve Him night and day.

As Isaiah saw this, it was awesome for him and he witnessed the foundations shaking with the power of the Seraphim's voices. The temple was also filled with smoke which is a reference to the glory of God. It was an amazing but fearful sight to see.

Isaiah was so overwhelmed by it all that he cried out, 'Woe is me for I am undone (ruined)' He felt like he was falling apart before the Holy God. He spoke again saying, 'I am a man of unclean lips' v5. He was making the statement that he was inadequate in the presence of God and confessed to being unclean. This touched God's heart and a Seraphim came and touched Isaiah's mouth with a hot coal and told him, 'Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away and your sins purged' v7. Isaiah heard the LORD saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for us.' And he replied, 'Here am I! Send me'.

It would have been a painful experience for Isaiah to have the hot coal touch his lips. However, he needed to remember the pain of his old life and calling of his new life in order to carry out the work that God had planned for him.

God is amazing and He will show us things that we never thought was possible. When we open ourselves up to Him - totally, and elect to serve Him wholeheartedly, as Isaiah did here, He will make the way for us to do this. As Isaiah found, it may be painful to do so; nothing in God's Kingdom business is easy and it takes our total effort to fulfil our calling. However, it is worth it.

Has God called you to His work? Is He calling you? It is something that you should not rush into until you are confident that it is God calling you. When you are, it is a journey that has lots of bumps and hassles. However, the rewards that you feel in your heart, are well worth it. 

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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