Tuesday 12 October 2021

The Mary & Martha Syndrome

"But Martha was distracted with much serving."  v 40          Luke 10:38-42    NKJV


The sisters, Mary and Martha were very close friends of Jesus and here, Jesus has been invited by Martha to come for dinner. As Jesus settled into their house, Martha got on with the chores of the kitchen; Mary sat at Jesus' feet listening to Him speaking.

Mary was committed to Jesus so much that whenever she was in His presence, she wanted to know more. She therefore sat at His feet. This displayed that she was a learner in submission to the teacher. After a time, Martha became frustrated that Mary was doing this while she did all of the work. She therefore went and spoke quite harshly to Jesus about His not caring that she was doing all the work while He spoke with Mary. Note, she was so frustrated that she did not speak to Mary about this but to Jesus.

Martha had become so focused on what she was doing for Jesus. It mattered to her very much that things were all in place. When our service to Jesus affects our relationship with other believers and with God Himself, there is a problem and it is time to reassess.
Take for instance If Jesus was in front of you. Would your first thought be to make sure that everything was perfect in the house and you were dressed properly, or would you stop and spend time with Him straightaway. Mary had made her choice and, it was the right one. Martha could have done the same and then later, said to Mary, 'Come on, let's both get the dinner made.'

We can be so concerned in ministering for Jesus, going to this meeting and then another, reading every Christian book that we can find, that we miss the main item - Jesus Himself. He is the reason we are here. We chose to follow Him and so, we must allow Him the first place in our lives. Other things are secondary, they are not as important as meeting with Jesus. Mary got it right; Martha was distracted. Her heart was in the right place, Jesus knew that. But she had become so involved in doing things for Jesus that she had neglected to receive from Him.

Now this is food for thought. How many times do we do the same?
Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard




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Monday 11 October 2021

Do not cast away your confidence

"Therefore, do not cast away your confidence which has great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance."                                                            Hebrews 10:35-36    NKJV 

The Christian life is never easy. At times we receive flak from all directions as we try to do what God wants. Often, we fail miserably and this can deflate our confidence. However, do not give up; you'll make it, just keep going because you are doing ok, despite what anyone else may say, especially the devil.
He is a joy and confidence stealer and will tell you that you have really made a mess of things now. You'll never be forgiven for what you've done. You've lost your salvation and will go to hell. Trust me, these are lies because that is all he knows to speak about. He's the father of lies Jesus said John 8:44.
Can we lose our salvation? Yes and no. Hebrews 6 discusses this controversial  subject and over the years this has caused people much uncertainty. The text appears to say that we can but on a closer study of this, it is referring to the person who renounces Jesus, who totally denies Him and walks away refusing to have any further dealing with Him. They have a gifting but refuse to use it to His glory. In other words, they are referred to as Apostates. Don't confuse this with the backslider - the person who has fallen away for a time deciding to go their own way. Luke 15 is a good example of this Luke 15:11-32. Further to this, don't forget that Peter denied Jesus in His time of need. He flatly refused to admit that he had anything to do with Jesus and walked away John 18:15-27. But then we see the loving side of Jesus as He restores Peter in John 21. Therefore, can we lose our salvation? Yes we can, but only if we become an Apostate totally renouncing the one who saved our soul.
Hebrews 10:26ff, tells us in a similar way that we should not carry on sinning if we belong to Jesus. Our fruit should be a testimony of who we follow - Jesus. But,1 John 1:8-9 tells us we do have sin within us and if we confess this, Jesus will forgive us.

Therefore, unless you've renounced Jesus permanently, then you are ok so don't let the devil cause you any aggro over this. He is out to steal your confidence - to undermine you. Don't let him. You are the son or daughter of the King of kings. You are precious and loved by the creator of this world and one day He will give you the biggest hug that you have ever had. Be confident in this.
Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard
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Sunday 10 October 2021

Power shortage

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."
                                                                                                         2 Timothy 1:7    NKJV 

These past few weeks, the country has been undergoing petrol shortages and this has caused panic buying. This type of behaviour is born out of fear. No petrol - no power - not being able to travel anywhere. 
In addition to this, the media has been frightening people with reports of very high energy rises. Power shortages are forecast to force the prices to go sky-high, possibly adding around £400 extra per year. This has obviously caused more fear where people are worried that they will not be able to pay these fees. So if they can't pay, they will have no power. Many people are considering not having any heating at all which again, adds to the fear level where lives could be at risk through hypothermia. All of this causes many of us great concern.

However, as Spirit-filled, Born again Christians we have the Word of God. Take today's text for instance: 'For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." There are key words in this text: 
Fear - We have not been given a spirit of fear (False evidence appearing real -  copyright Bob Gass) He does not want His people to be moved by fear. All the way through the New Testament we hear Jesus asking, 'Why did you fear?' When we fall into fear we succumb to panic and torment and we live in an anxious state of mind.
Power - It is not the power of the world that we need. This is inferior when we compare it with the power that God has for us. The world may be short of power but, Jesus isn't and when we need it, the Holy Spirit will provide it. People may sneer at this but we believe in the Word of God.
Love - Do you really think that God would let us down when we need Him the most. Never! He loves us too much for that to happen. He wants us to trust in His love because He will not let us down.
Sound mind - When we allow our minds to get into fear and panic, we are not thinking straight. There is no need for this because, He has given us a sound mind. We always believe and think the best; we should never doubt.

The world may continue to try to cause panic because of such things, but, take note of what God says, He has not given us a spirit of fear. Own that and live by it each day. 

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

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Saturday 9 October 2021

Have you got the taste?

"Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good."                            Psalm 34:8     NKJV 


The media bring us awesome advertising of just how good certain food items are. We see delicious looking recipes that set our taste buds on fire. When this happens, the advertising team have done their job properly. However, until we actually taste the food it is just that, a good piece of advertising. We need to get the taste into our mouths to be able to decide if it really is as good as they say.

I have observed my grandson when he is faced with food that is alien to him. He is unsure and may sniff it, poke it and may have a lick before he decides if it is the type of food that he wants to put into his mouth. We are a little like this, we have a lick but when we do this, we don't get the full satisfaction that would be received if we actually tasted and savoured the food. 

Some people are like this with God. They will have a lick of the spiritual food that He is offering but that is all. They don't really go any further. To taste and see that the Lord is good, we have to go deeper and get the full benefit of who He is and what He has to offer us. He asks us to go deeper with Him. He wants us to taste fully all that He is offering us. He wants all of us, not just a slice. And, when He gets all, He gives all.

Picture a parent who is devoted to their child. As the child grows older, the world becomes a fascinating place with lots to explore. The parent may then tend to be neglected because the child is trying out new trends and finding their own way in life. Yet the parent still remains devoted and longs for the child's attention. This is how God feels towards each of us. He is our Father, He created us and gave us all we have and wants to give us much more, but many of us are too busy with the things of the world - business, college, entertaining etc. Many of us  only give Him a slice, when He wants all of us - to share in all that we do. 

If we align ourselves with God, we will be positioned to receive the goodness that He knows we need, regardless of the trials that come our way. God is calling us to dig deeper into Him - to taste and see just how good He is. He doesn't want a slice of us but all that we have. In return, He will bless everything that we have.

Have you got the taste for doing this?

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard






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Friday 8 October 2021

Why has this happened Lord?

"But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD, I say, 'You are my God.' 15 My times are in Your hands."                                                                                  Psalm 31:14-15    NKJV 


As Christians, we fully trust God yes? We trust Him with everything - our life, money, family and our job. So why do we ask "Why?' when things begin to go wrong? In fact, why do these  things go wrong? Why do tragic things happen to us and why do we lose our job when we have always been faithful in our work? Why do bad things happen to us when all around, unbelievers appear to be living so well? Why?

Well, in answer to these questions, we first of all need to ask, why did God allow Jesus to suffer so much? Why did He allow Him to be mentally and physically tortured and hung on a cross in agony? Why? God is majestic, He can do anything; why then, didn't He choose to handle things differently. Surely He could have worked it that Jesus didn't have to suffer so much. People say, it was for our sin. Then why? Why couldn't God have come up with another plan? Why?

The answer to all of this is, we just don't know why God  chose Jesus' fate and why people have to suffer so much. Personally, I was healthy until I became a Christian. I was miraculously healed overnight of illness, and this is my testimony. So why then, did I have more sickness, one major, and wasn’t healed. Why, I don’t know. However, what I do know, is that although there are questions that none of us can answer, easily, one thing I do know is that He is a most loving God and cares for each one of us more than we could ever imagine.

David had lots of similar questions to ask God, read Psalm 31 and you'll see. Yet, He was still able to praise God; He was still able to say that he trusted in Him and stated that his life was in God's hands, and he was grateful for this fact. He had no answers to his pleas of 'Why?' Yet, he was still able to praise God, 'Blessed be the LORD, for He has shown me His marvellous kindness in a strong city' Psalm 31:21. There is a lesson for us here. Things may become grim and we may feel that everything is against us and that God doesn't appear to be around. But He is and He has a plan. Stop trying to find out why things have happened to you and start to have David's attitude; praise and more praise and be grateful that what God had in mind when Jesus died on the cross for us, gave us life to live - eternally. One day, we will fully grasp this benefit.

Thank you Jesus!

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard







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Thursday 7 October 2021

Confess your sin

"When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long 4 for day and night Your hand was heavy upon me, my vitality was turned into the drought of summer"                                                                         Psalm 18:3-4   NKJV 


When David committed adultery with Bathsheba, made her pregnant and then had her husband, Uriah killed, he genuinely felt that it was ok and that he had got away with it. However, we can never hide our sin from God. He knows, even though no one else does and, He expects us to do something about it - confess and put it right.

This unaddressed sin drained David both physically and emotionally. His bones ached, his groaning filled the air and his strength was sapped. His problem was not medical but theological; God's hand was heavily upon him. There was a loss of fellowship with God and his wellbeing was very low. When we refuse to confess our sin we can end up feeling miserable, guilty, weak and discouraged; and we become isolated from God. He hasn't moved from us but the sin we carry, blocks our path to Him.

The Lord commands us to repent before it completely damages our relationship with Him - our intimacy. We have to be honest and tell Him what we have done, He knows already but it needs to be confessed. He will then forgive us and restore us back to Himself.

None of us are sin free, we all carry it around with us daily. However, the majority ask for God's forgiveness whenever they sin and let Him and themselves down. Sadly, there are those who don't do this and they are believers. Some people have become involved in something that they know that they shouldn't be involved in - adultery, homosexuality, theft, fraud etc etc. When they keep this to themselves they may feel that they have got away with it. However, one day when they stand before Jesus, it will all be revealed.

Don't leave it that long. If you are or have been involved in these types of sin, be honest and confess this to Jesus. He may also expect you to put it right with your spouse if it's adultery or ask someone else to forgive you for whatever it was. This may be daunting and risky too. However, it may be very daunting and risky if you leave it until you are standing before the Throne of God, don't you think?

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard
 

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Wednesday 6 October 2021

Our Eternal Rescuer

"In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God."    Psalm 18:6    NKJV


God is not only our bodyguard but He is our rescuer too. David had been suffering threats from his enemies, including King Saul and, even though he was a mighty warrior and well able to handle all of this, he did what we all should do, he called upon the Lord. He said, 'I will call upon the LORD who is worthy to be praised, so shall I be saved from my enemies.' v3. He then recalls what happened from thereon:

'In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God.' This is always the way to go when we face adversity in our lives. We may feel we can handle it on our own, but God prefers us to allow Him to fight our battles for us. He is the avenger Romans 12:19. He hears us when we call out to Him. We may feel that He doesn't at times and continue to call out to Him time and again. David says in v6 'He heard my voice from His temple, and my cry came before Him, even to His ears.' David then outlines what happened. The earth shook and trembled because God was angry that one of His sons was being treated badly and in v9, David writes, 'He bowed the heavens also, and came down with darkness under His feet,' Don't miss the latter part of this verse, God came down with darkness under His feet. This is how God deals with the devil and his demons; He puts them under His feet where they belong. And God wants us to do the same.

We have all the heavenly weapons that we need contained in the Armour of God. We have the power that exists in the Name of Jesus and when we pray in spiritual warfare, the devil runs. This is why James writes, 'Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you' James 4:7. Did you get that? It doesn't say resist the devil and he might think about leaving you alone. No, it says that as we resist him, he will flee. There is power in the Name of Jesus and we need to use this power more and more. As we call on Jesus and then, use His Name, resisting all the devil is throwing at us, we will have victory.

Remember yesterday, when we discussed the word salvation (Soteria), we saw how the meaning of this is more than just eternal life, and rescue is a part of it. Part of being saved is that Jesus will always be there to rescue us, as we call on Him. 
He is our Eternal Rescuer!

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard
 

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