Stop worrying and be happy

 "A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones."    

                                                                                                     Proverbs 17:22     NKJV

When we are happy it shows in all we do. People notice and are infected by the smile that we give. It has a warming effect. Furthermore, a good belly laugh is so beneficial to our health; it brings us a healthy release. When did you last have one?

Alternatively, those who are defeated  and broken see the effect in their health and attitude. When a person has nothing to look forward to or be happy about, their life dries up.

Bob Marley wrote a brilliant song called called Three Little Birds and the words of the chorus were:

'Don't worry about a thing ' cause every little thing is gonna be all right'  

You are probably humming this catchy little song in your head right now. The song made people happy, that's what it was intended to do. God also has happy words for us which are life-giving.

'But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.'     Matthew 6:33-34.   NKJV

Worry is a tormentor, it rules our lives if we allow it to. But Jesus tells us not to worry, in fact, it is a command. He does not want us wasting one moment fretting about the things of the world. There is always a solution, and Jesus has it. 

Be honest, just lately, has your life been filled with so much worry that it is impossible to smile or even feel that there is a way through the mess. There is a way, God will show you if you ask Him. 

The song above says, 'Don't worry about a thing, 'cause every little thing is gonna be all right'. 

Don't you think it is time that you believe that if you belong to Jesus, it will be all right? Don't you think that it is about time that you spoke life to those dried up bones of yours and put a smile on your face? You belong to the King of kings. He will never let you down. Stand up and shout, 'AMEN'.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard.                                 

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com          

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

Why not order my Daily Commentary from Amazon - Paperback or Kindle 

Check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

Self - Examination

"Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life." v23 

                                                                                                  Proverbs 4:20-27   NKJV 

The Word of God is life and health to our flesh. Our heart is our source of life - without it life is over. So take care of it by exercising and eating sensibly and worry less. The heart is also our store. Good and evil are produced from what it contains (Luke 6:45). Again, extreme care should be taken. Keep it with all diligence otherwise, the store can control how we speak, what we look at and where we go v26-27.

There is a need for parents to advise and train up their children about issues such as this. Solomon was a good example of this and he didn't care if he was being repetitious. He felt it was of great importance. However, when we are teaching our children in this way, we have to live up to what we say. Children watch how we handle things. Therefore, if we want to show them the way to go, we must also be sure that we are going the same way too. Otherwise, it will all go wrong and they will rebel.

One of the big ways that we let ourselves down is with what we say - what comes out of our mouths. If we are not in control and something comes along that really winds us up, we can let rip with some colourful language. Once those words are out we can't erase them. They have been spoken and someone may have witnessed this, which can make us feel awful and condemned. We are only human, this is true, however we should really be in control of this area and if not, we need to work on it.

We need every now and then, to do a self examination of our inner self. Asking ourselves questions such as:

Have I a deceitful mouth?                                    

Do I use perverse language?

Do my eyes wander to the opposite sex?            

Do I go to places that are unwise areas?

Am I easily led?

These questions if answered honestly will give you a spiritual self assessment of the condition of your heart. You will then be able to offer these areas up to God, asking Him to help you work on them. It may take a while to tackle these but it will be well worth it.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard.                                 

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com          

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

Why not order my Daily Commentary from Amazon - Paperback or Kindle 

Check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

Giving to God

"Honour the LORD with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase; 10 so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine."       

                                                                                                      Proverbs 3:9-10    NKJV 

A most contentious subject, one that has caused many a heated conversation throughout the years of church life is the practice of giving our money to God and to His work. Some give much, others do not give at all and God does not hold a gun against a person's head to comply. He does though, promise blessings to those who do give.

Giving to God is a demonstration of how much we trust and value Him. He is the source of all that we have and He will continue to provide our needs. It really is an act of worship towards Him. We hold Him so dearly and are so grateful for all He does for us and it becomes a matter of gratitude and thankfulness. As we begin to feel this, we cannot fail to worship Him.

Here Solomon is saying we need to honour God with the first fruits of all our increase. Note the words, 'first fruits', this is our income before we have spent anything. It is the first thing we need to do, not giving whatever we have left. We expect God to give us the best, in return we should do the same. Also note, 'all of your increase'. This reinforces that we should give Him the best, not just what we can afford. Worship gives all.

The work of God covers a multitude of areas. Of course, there is the upkeep of the church and pastor and the many resources that are needed to provide the Word of God. But also, there is the mission field. In parts of our world, people are starving; others are terribly abused; others need schooling. This all costs money. There are many organisations who cater for these areas and need financial support to be able to provide this care. Did you know that you can provide a child with food and schooling and all the other things that they need, just by paying a certain sum to the organisation each month. Then of course there are people with disabilities, even our own soldiers who have been terribly injured in their work. Many of these need finance to provide their care.

This is all part of honouring God with our wealth. He gives to us, we give back to Him and He gives us more so this can continue. It is not a 'get rich quick' exercise, it is demonstration of honouring God, of worshiping Him with all He has given us.

Why not give this some thought and prayer.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

I have a Daily Commentary for sale on Amazon - Paperback or Kindle

Why not check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

 

 

The Blue Print of Life

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct your paths."     Proverbs 3:5-6    NKJV 

These two verses say it all. They are our blue print to live by and we need to study and expound every word in order to get the best out of them.

Trust  The Hebrew meaning of this word is to lie down - to put your entire weight on something. Think, when we lie down in bed, we trust that the bed will hold our weight so that we can enjoy a good rest. This is the same type of trust. As we trust in Him, he takes the weight of our problems.

All your heart  He tells us to trust Him completely; He can sustain us, our own understanding can't. He is our rock, our foundation and he has years of practice in guiding His people forward, safely.

Lean  We are to lean on Jesus, not on our own understanding. Lean means to incline towards. So therefore, we lean into Jesus so that we can concentrate on Him and fully grasp what he is saying without the outwards distractions of life. 

Acknowledge Him  We need to consult Him and acknowledge Him in all that we do and are planning to, in fact, everything. We should never turn to and rely on other sources for life's problems. It can be helpful to seek advice from people, but they may be wrong and coming from another direction. Jesus is our source and the first point of call in all we do.

He will direct you  Let us not lean on our own understanding. We are governed by emotions and many times we feel that what we are planning is the right thing to do. Then after a few more moments of thought, we may feel guilty about this decision and begin to change our thinking. Before too long we are so confused that we really do not know what to do. Seek Jesus, He is the only one that is committed and qualified to make the right decisions for us. 

You may be in the place where a decision needs to be made and you may be struggling with this. Others may have given you advice which they felt may be helpful. However some others may have offered conflicting advice, which is never helpful. Really, the best place to start is your blue print. This is a statement of truth, a divine guidance in life. Lay the decision before Jesus and allow Him to show you the way - because, He is the way.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

I have a Daily Commentary for sale on Amazon - Paperback or Kindle

Why not check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

 

 

Be careful of the company you keep!

"My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent."                   Proverbs 1:10     NKJV 

Tony Evans says, 'Bad company corrupts good morals.'   (Tony Evans Bible Commentary)

And this is very true. We have to be careful about the company we keep. When we associate with people of an impure character, they are going to rub off on us, because we often become like those we associate with on a regular basis.

The wrong type of person can persuade us to fall to the use of drugs, wild parties, alcohol abuse, adultery, perversion etc. Even gossip and criticism can fall into this category. We can be swayed by the wrong company that we keep. Be honest, have you not been in a fellowship circle where prayer all of a sudden can turn into a discussion including criticism, judging and gossip about someone? It is something that we need to be aware of. The wrong type of company can do us no harm unless, we join in with them. Not even the devil can lead a person into sin unless they consent. 

The dangerous area to be wary of is mentioned in Proverbs 1:11, 'Come with us'. This is where we need to have our wits about us because, if we agree to go with the wrong type of person, we are hooked. Solomon here, warns his son about the error of keeping the wrong type of company. Let's face it, a person with a history of alcohol abuse would be rather unwise to go on a pub crawl with a gang of other people. Or if a happily married person let their guard down, falling to the sweet tongue of another person, end up committing adultery. It happens all the time and the danger of these three words, 'Come with us', need to be taken on board, seriously.

'That'll never happen to me,' you may say and I hope it doesn't. However, many have said this and gone on to become enticed into any of the areas that we have discussed. We may think that adultery is far worse that gossiping about someone. However, it is still sin and how do we measure sin, it is impossible?

Let us be wise in the company that we keep and the places that we go; the things we watch on TV or the internet and the books and magazines that we read. Remember bad company corrupts good morals; and then we only have ourselves to blame.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

I have a Daily Commentary for sale on Amazon - Paperback or Kindle

Why not check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

 

 

'I will never abandon you, no, never'

"Because he set his love on Me, therefore I will save him; I will set him [securely] on high, because he knows My name [he confidently trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never abandon him, no, never]. 15 He will call upon Me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honour him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and I will let him see My salvation."                      Psalm 91:14-16   The Amplified Study Bible 

Sometimes we can wander around in a daze wondering if the troubles we may face will ever cease. Things seem to pile up and as soon as you address or resolve one, another comes your way. You may be feeling this way at the moment. Further to this, it doesn't matter what you do, how well you do it or how faithful you have been, you can end up feeling dishonoured and left out of things by certain people. This can leave you with the feeling, 'Why should I bother?'

Life can be this way at times. It doesn't matter what we do to resolve issues or even make amends with someone; we always appear to be cast aside. This can make us feel surplus to requirements - no longer needed. No longer classed as important.

There is a degree of truth in these feelings. Life is busy and people are intent on meeting targets and multi-tasking. There doesn't appear to be a place left to show someone dignity or respect. It is work, work, work. It can lead to people trying to outdo someone, so they get noticed and take all of the glory, or have better homes, cars and bank balance. There seems to be a lot of competition around, and you may not feel like competing; and you don't have to. 

Take a look at today's reading. The Amplified Bible, brings out the true meaning of the text. This is how God - your Father, feels about you. In His eyes you are special and very loved. He values all you do and knows that you always try to do it well. You may let Him down occasionally, but we all do, and He still adores you. He knows how you feel but, sometimes it helps to sit with Him and tell Him all about what bothers you. You will never find anyone more trustworthy and helpful. He is the one that truly listens, doesn't pick up the 'phone when it rings or keeps looking at His watch while you're speaking, which all shows you, He doesn't have the time. No, He is not like that. He has time for you and what's more, will help you through any crisis or problem that you are facing. 

This morning, Jesus wants to tell you that He loves you more than words could ever say. He is your forever-friend, your bestest buddy, your life. 

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

I have a Daily Commentary for sale on Amazon - Paperback or Kindle

Why not check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2

 

 

Risk-takers and careful types

 "And Peter answered Him and said, 'Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.' 29 So He said, 'Come'. v28-29                           Matthew 14:22-33    NKJV

Peter was a man who acted on impulse. Many times he acted without counting the cost and thinking things through throughly. Here we see him shouting to Jesus as He walked on the raging sea during a storm, 'Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.' This was a courageous thing to consider but one where he had no idea if it was the right thing to do or not. He just acted on impulse, and then sank under the water.

Peter often acted on impulse but his heart was in the right place. Don't forget that he affirmed unshakable loyalty to Jesus (Matthew 26:33-35) and then denied His name. Jesus however, knew Peter's heart was genuine. Peter fell many times but, he always got back up again. He never gave up. His failures brought him closer to Jesus. Do yours?

Many people act on the emotion of the moment and without counting the cost, rush into the unknown. It is always a risky thing to act on impulse. It can though be exciting as well. It all depends on the type of person you are. There are risk-takers and there are the more careful type. Which are you? The risk-taker will dash into an opportunity and may make a great success out of it all. However, it may also be a great disaster. The risk-taker however, shrugs it off and looks for further opportunities.

The careful types, are the thinkers. They want to count the cost of it firstly before they make a commitment. This is sensible but, they can also lose out, if they think about something too long. Their procrastinating may lead them to miss the opportunity all together. 

Peter was a risk-taker, where Thomas was the careful type. We are all different and there is no right or wrong way. Successful business people take risks, whereas many others only talk about it.

We do though, need to find a balance and counting the cost is a sensible place to start. When these times come upon us, it is always helpful to place Jesus right in the middle of the situation. He will guide us what to do. But the final decision is very much up to us and that can be a difficult one. We have to live with the decision we make.

Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com 

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

I have a Daily Commentary for sale on Amazon - Paperback or Kindle

Why not check it out

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084G9S4FD/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2