God did it for you but there is more!

"Know that the LORD, He is God; it is He who made us and not we ourselves."  

                                                                                 Psalm 100:3  NKJV 

Many people are successful and reach great heights in their profession. One thing we hear quite often is, 'He's a self-made man', or 'Hard work always pays off, he worked hard for what he has now.' These statements may be true in one sense. Hard work and dedication can lead to a successful career and lifestyle. However, at the end of the day, it is God who made this happen.

Today's reading clearly informs us, that it is God who made (created) us, we didn't do it. God created the earth and us to, without this, we would never have existed. But there is more. It was God who helped you to study and cope with essays and exams and He was there for every word that you wrote. It was God who wiped away the tears when you couldn't cope with life and everything seemed to be against you. It was God who helped you through that broken marriage and healed the hurt that this caused. It is God who is helping you cope with the loss of a precious person, someone who has left a deep and painful void in your life. 

It is God who has and will get you through all of this, and when you stop and look around, it is God who has made you what you are today. You may not be wealthy or healthy; you may have to work hard to make ends meet but, stop for a moment, there are many more people worse off than you are at this moment. In war-torn places in the world today, some people have lost everything - everything that is, except their faith. They can and still do praise God and the God who made them, will turn their tears back into joy and this will be in the time we live in now.

It is the same for you too. God made you what you are today and He hasn't finished yet; there is much more - the best is yet to come. Just praise and thank Him for what He has given you today, He made you what you are and He is still moulding you until He is satisfied. Thank Him and be grateful for all that you have. He loves you!

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

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Your burdens are removed

"It shall come to pass in that day, that his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and the yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil."                                                                             Isaiah 10:27  NKJV

You may have read, prayed and shouted out the words of 1 Peter 5:7 'casting all your care upon Him, for he cares for you.' These cares have been anxieties, burdens and worries from life and in many cases, reinforced by our enemy, the devil. They may have caused you great pain. The thing is, no matter how many times you have done this, the problems have remained and begin to weigh you down.

Then, all of a sudden, without really noticing it, they have disappeared leaving you with a warm feeling of peace, excitement and anticipation. This is how God works, you can't really identify the exact time that God turned up and removed the burdens, He just did.

One thing that you can be sure of, is that God hears your prayers, no words are ever wasted. He hears you the first time you ask of Him and with the faith He has given you, that really should be enough, unless sin is blocking the prayer lines, in which case, it needs dealing with. The thing is, when there is no immediate result from your prayers, you may tend to keep asking Him. 

Cast your mind back when things changed for the better in your life. You may have been asking God for ages for something and then, POW, the situation changed. Remember one thing, you are anointed by the Anointed One - Jesus, so be encouraged. Whether things are good or difficult in your life at the moment, the fact remains, you are still anointed. Because of this, Jesus is committed to you by His Word, He is bound by it and therefore will fulfil what He has promised, in due time.

You may want this release now and, He knows this. But, be reassured, He has a plan for you and it includes destroying that yoke of burden around your neck. One minute it will be there, the next you will be free and you will know it too. When God turns up to help you, there is always a fragrance of His presence round. Be assured, your burdens will be removed

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

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Empty promises

"Lord', he told Him, 'I'm ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.' 'I tell you Peter, He said, 'the rooster will not crow today until you deny three times that you know Me."                                                                                   Luke 22:33  CSB

Jesus had been discussing His way forward, how he would suffer for the the sake of His Father's wishes. Peter, always the outspoken one, replied without giving his words any thought, saying that he was ready to go to prison and even die for Jesus. He was more or less saying, 'You can count on me Lord, I'll be there for You.'

We can also get into similar situations in our dealing with people, by making empty promises to show our support. How many times have you said something like this to someone who is going through a bad time. We can say things like this to, make them feel better and supported, and also to make us feel better too. However, we often regret what we have said because the situation may be an impossible one.

Peter's heart was right, this cannot be denied, our hearts can go out to him. He genuinely meant what he said, however, he missed what Jesus was really saying. Jesus told him that Satan had asked Jesus for permission to buffet Peter and sift him as wheat. But, Jesus had prayed for him. When Jesus' time was ready, all of the disciples would run away to save themselves. Peter, would deny Jesus and would be so broken by it all. Jesus foretold that, 'when' (note this is not and 'if') returned, Peter returned, he would bring them all back together again. 

Jesus often has an agenda totally different to ours and we need to be open to this. There was pride in Peter's confession to Jesus (Proverbs 16:18), and a learning curve was needed. When Peter had learned this, he would be a great leader, empowered by Jesus Himself John 21:15-19.

Be careful of making empty promises; Jesus must come first and, even though we want to please Him, we must do what he wants us to do, not what we think is best for Jesus. Do you get the point here? Peter in his faithfulness to Jesus, so wanted to please Him but, Jesus was more concerned about who would look after the other disciples when He had gone. Therefore, He began to prepare Peter for this task.

Peter had to learn the lesson of making empty promises and attempting to manipulate Jesus' plans. We must be open to what Jesus wants, not what we think is the best decision.! 

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

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Hang out with Jesus

"If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown aside like a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire and they are burned" v6   John 15:1-6  CSB

Verse 5 of our text, informs us that we can co nothing without Jesus and, it's true. We need Him. This is why He tells us to 'Remain' in Him. One of the best definitions of 'Remain' that I have found is. 'To be left as still to be dealt with'. This tells us that we are a work in progress - we haven't made it yet but we're getting close, with God's help.

When we remain in Jesus, or as our title today says, 'Hang out with Jesus', great things happen and we bear excellent fruit. Jesus - the head gardener, prunes us so that we bear much more fruit. When we don't remain in Him, we can do nothing and the fruit we bear is not fit for the Kingdom of God. We are then cut off as a branch that is of no use and thrown into the fire. What does this mean?

Some have said over the years, that a person loses their salvation because of this. This is not true. When we ask Jesus into our life, we receive salvation and this is eternal life. Eternal life is for eternity, What has happened is, we have become disconnected from Jesus and are not flowing in the Holy Spirit - the vine. Somehow we have stepped away. Jesus is still with us but, we are not hearing Him or we are out of alignment with Him at the moment. What can we do? 'Draw near to God and He will draw near to you' James 4:8.

The term, 'To be left as still to be dealt with' has two components:

(1)  Jesus still has some work to do on us

We have some rough edges that require smoothing down. We also have to learn the art of continuing whatever the cost.

(2)  Jesus still has work for us to do

Jesus has not given up on us; there is still work to be done. Make the most of each and every opportunity He gives. He is counting on you!

This is why it is so important to Hang out with Jesus

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

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You have been chosen

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

To be chosen for something is such an honour. It is a commendation for all of the hard work that a person has undergone in order to gain this accolade. Many want to take part in university courses, sporting events or applying for that special position in a company. And when news reaches them that they have been chosen, the feeling is amazing.

However, not all are chosen. Matthew 22:14 says, For many are invited but few are chosen.' Following Jesus' crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, Jewish rulers firmly rejected the witness of the Spirit and this brought final judgement - they had rejected the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Although God had performed great things all around them - healings, raising the dead and thousands of changed lives, they still refused to take up the invitation to accept Jesus.

It is the same today, people are invited to get to know Jesus - thriving churches, house groups, Christians speaking to them but, many just don't want to know, so they turn down the invitation and thus, refuse to be chosen by Jesus. Following this, there is little to do to help them see the truth.

None of us chose to have Jesus in our lives. The Holy Spirit led us to the point of invite and the opportunity to accept Jesus as Lord. In other words we were convinced by the work of the Spirit and realised that Jesus really is the only way into Heaven.

There are many people who, on the day they meet Jesus face to face, will fully realise their error in rejecting Him. Sadly, it will be too late then. This is the reason that we need to let people know about Jesus, but not only that, let them see that He lives in us. You may say, 'People will laugh at me, I was arguing and in a bad mood with them last week.' You may have been, but this shows them that you are real - normal and have bad days too. 

The bottom line though, is that you have been chosen by Jesus and that is all that matters. There are still many who have received an invitation but are ready to turn it down. Can you help them see the truth?

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

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If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Hedge of Protection

"Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers and under His wings you shall take refuge."    

                                                                                           Psalm 91:3-4  NKJV 

Picture a bird on a nest of newly born chicks. They're helpless and hungry and depend on their parents to feed them, protect them and give them warmth. Occasionally, they will stick their head out from underneath mum to check out their new environment. As they grow, mum leaves them to help dad bring in the food. This is a dangerous time! While parents are way from the nest, predators have the opportunity to attack and kill them. It's all part of the nature world, I'm afraid. After a time, the one's who have survived leave the nest (fledge), it is time to begin their new lives. Comfort zones have to come to an end and they have to learn to look after themselves from now on.

The human world has similarities as we begin to find our way in life. There is slight a difference here though, God is always on the nest (throne), and we can return to Him - our comfort zone - whenever we need to, and this can be very frequent. God never becomes tired of our calling on Him. He loves us and has ordained that we can call on Him any time of day or night. Obviously, we have grown spiritually, so we need to stand on our own two feet wherever possible, but remembering that, God is only a prayer away, His door is always open and He's always willing to listen. The Lord has placed a hedge of protection around us. The devil will try and chip away at it but, he can't get through, unless we let him in.

God will deliver us from the traps the devil sets but, the problem is if we become involved with the sins of the world, this hedge of protection will begin to fall apart and little by little, the enemy will gain access leading us astray.

There are trials and attacks. The attacks are the ongoing ones that drain us and bring upset and pain. They pile upon each other, intent on bringing us down. If this is happening to you, check the break in the hedge and repair it with prayer and repentance. Then receive, once again, God's wonderful embrace.

Copyright 2022 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com          

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

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