A lament for grey-headed people

"Grey hair is a crown of glory, it is gained by living a Godly life."
                                                                                                          Proverbs 16:31.  NLT

Many older people today, are feeling the impact of reaching maturity. Society, in general, depending on age, requires that a person retire when they reach this qualifying period, although the age keeps changing. There are chances of extending this time or finding alternative employment, but usually, when you reach your sell by date, it's over.
Well, I've news for you. That is a lie. It isn't over until God says it's over There's no retirement in the Kingdom of God but sadly, there is ageism and this makes it difficult to function properly in your ministry. Younger people tend to take over. However, one needs to remember that, young people grow old themselves. It cannot be avoided.
Young and old can compliment each other if they're allowed to. The older person has a lot of experience to pass on. They've done it and know the mistakes that they've made - what works and what doesn't. So there is a mentoring facility just waiting to break out and be available to the younger people. 
Don't write yourself off or be written off. God is not into ageism. Just look around, many of the seasoned, well known and successful preachers and teachers, are of a mature age, yet they're still giving out. They have wisdom and experience. 

If you feel that you are past it, think again. God has a plan for you, even now. Seek and ask Him and He'll open the way for you. If you're still willing, He'll make it thrilling and it will be fulfilling and benefit all. All you need to say is, 'Yes Lord.'
Many older people carry the scars of battles fought in their work for the Kingdom of God. They know because they've been there and done it. Many times, people will say, 'I know just how you feel,' when they haven't a clue how you feel at all. The older generation know because they've lived it, they've run many races in life. This is why they're a valuable asset.

If you are reading this and feel that you're on the scrap heap, think again. You've only just begun. There's a generation who need guidance, direction and mentoring. They need to realise what lies ahead and what to do when they reach certain obstacles. You are important! You may think the church has forgotten you; but they can't do that because they'd never make it without you. You have the ability to make a difference. How? Well here's a few ideas:

WRITE A BOOK
You have a wealth of experience that you could mention. It is not as hard as you think.
WRITE A BLOG
Go on Facebook and create a site dedicated to Jesus. Find a blog site to include on this and be a regular feature in the world of social media.
OFFER YOUR SERVICES
Volunteer at your church to run a mentoring group, helping the younger people, who are the church of tomorrow.
PREACH THE WORD
If you feel the urge for preaching, tell God. He knows already of course but He likes it that we bring up the subject. He can open doors no matter how firmly closed they are.

Don't just sit and vegetate. Get the job done and make your years of experience count.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

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He will give you direction

"Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths. 5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all day."   Psalm 25:4-5   NKJV    

David was crying out to His God to show him direction, deliverance and forgiveness. We all need this on a daily basis and we will only receive it from the Lord. Note how David writes: 'Lead me in Your truth' v5:

The word truth here is translated from the Hebrew word Emet, and means certainty, stability, truth, rightness and trustworthiness. Emet, conveys a sense of dependability, firmness and reliability. It can be said that, this type of truth is something upon which a person may confidently stake their life. This is why David prayed that God's truth would continually preserve him (Psalm 40:11). This information is sourced from Word Wealth, The Spirit Filled Life Bible.

No wonder David put so much emphasis on the word 'Truth'. This type of truth can be relied on to lead us along a wise path; it instructs us and teaches us and, when we're lost, it can be relied on to show us the way. It's almost as if God is our own personal Sat Nav. However, we must cry out to God for Him to respond to us. We may have important decisions to make and it would be very unwise to make these decisions without consulting with Him. He knows the way; He knows what decision to make and what to discard.

We learn God's ways over a time, not, as some think, overnight. It's a process of building a lasting, intimate relationship. He gradually moulds us into the likeness of His Son. Therefore, we must seek Him everyday and walk with Him through the garden. When we do this, there is no need to talk, we just need to be aware of His presence - the aroma of life. 

I like the last part of verse 5: 'On You I wait all day.' Instead of the laborious task of waiting for God to act; for me it portrays the privilege of waiting on Him as if we are a waiter serving Him. After all, He is God, He deserves to be waited on. The Psalmist in Ps 84:10 had it right when he wrote, 'I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.' However, when we are willing to serve Him this way, He takes control and serves us instead. What a Saviour - serving us to the cross and beyond. 

Do you want God to be your guide, directing you in the way of success? Then spend some intimate time with Him.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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A Square peg in a round hole

"to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved."                 

                                 Ephesians 1:6     NKJV 

Have you ever felt like you're a square peg in a round hole? Everything you try to do either, doesn't work or, you just don't appear to fit in with other people or situations. If you feel like this, join the club. I think we all feel like this periodically. Sadly, there can many cliches in church circles and it can be difficult to be welcomed into such groups. Actually, you will find this everywhere - work places, sports clubs, pubs etc. etc. It is pretty common. You can try to force yourself to be accepted by these groups by perhaps, being a people-pleaser - trying to earn their respect. It can work but, then again it can be a no go exercise. When you come up against these groups, it can be rather like walking into a saloon in an old cowboy film. As you walk through the flapping doors everything goes quiet, the piano stops and everyone present stares at you. It's a strange feeling and, thankfully, it doesn't happen very often. 

We as people are strange anyway. We tend to be territorial in our habits; we like the same old seat in church and, woe betide anyone who sits there. We like to use the same old parking space and speak to the same old people. We can be like, creatures of habit. Most of us do not like change and if suddenly all the seats were taken away and we were expected to sit on the floor, this would upset quite a few people. It would make us feel like square pegs in a round hole.

It's the same with breaking into small groups. Many of us used to dislike this when I was at uni. We were safe in a normal class setting but, break into smaller groups was unthinkable and everyone would be so quiet at first. I still don't care for this type of thing and go into my type of square peg in a round hole.

I remember once when we, as a family had been camping for a week. It was horrid and rained all of the week and we were covered in mud because we were on a farm. On the Sunday, we went to this old church in the middle of nowhere. It had a congregation of no more than 10 people. The pianist, who looked about 120, started playing 'This is the day' and we being Pentecostals started clapping and singing out loud. The ten people, who were all in their 'Sunday best' turned round and saw us in jeans and wellies and covered in mud and must have thought we were aliens. No, we were square pegs in a round hole.

Do you get the point? You can't please everyone and as long as Jesus is pleased with you - and He is - that is all that matters! You are holy square pegs in a round hole.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

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Stop getting into a panic

"Suddenly a fierce storm struck the lake with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping."                 Matthew 8:24  NLT 

Why was Jesus sleeping? He would have known about the storm that was approaching and yet, He didn't warn the disciples about this but, went to sleep. I believe there was a couple of reasons for this. Let's not forget, Jesus, as we know, was in His humanity at the time. He would have become tired the same as any of us do. For one thing, being a leader, as Jesus was, is not easy at times. People can wear us down with their conflicts, arguments and demands. All this takes it's toll on our body.

However, I believe that the real reason Jesus went to sleep and didn't say anything about the pending storm, was because he wanted to see how they handled the situation; how they would manage when faced with a major trauma. He had taught them about faith and they had seen the results of faith-filled living. Now was the time to see if they were ready, which they wasn't as their panic demonstrated.

When we have someone in the driving seat of our lives, it takes the necessity away of having to think for ourselves. However, we can become institutionalised. Prisoners are very much like this as are people in the military. In situations such as these someone usually thinks for you, making the decisions of what to do, where to go and when to stop. When this ends, it is easy to panic, rather like the disciples did here. We have comfort zones and, they are difficult to come out of. We see this in nature, where young birds need to fledge and wobble precariously on the side of the nest flapping their wings like crazy. Sometimes they are reluctant to leave so, Momma gives them a push. Once out of the nest, they have to make decisions for themselves and, it's a strange world out there. Leaving home for the first time can be difficult. We suddenly realise that it is down to us now, and it's scary. Soldiers after a few years in the army may struggle too. All of a sudden, there is no one telling them what to do, where to go and all that malarky.

The disciples were in a similar situation. For a few years, they had been used to Jesus leading the way and getting them out of the scrapes that they found themselves in. Now, they had to remember what Jesus had actually said about faith and they were panicking. He will lead us so far, until we are strong enough to stand alone. However, He's never far away - right beside you in fact. But, He has taught us, the bible is our training manual, if we don't read it, we are in problems because, the answers to life are all in these pages of faith and truth.

The next time you realise that you are getting in a panic, remember what He taught you; if you can't remember or you are in fear, stop and call on Him. He will answer but, He may wait to see how you handle the situation. It's not that He won't do anything for you anymore - not at all. He wants you to do it and what's more, He has given you everything you need to carry this out. So no more flapping and getting into a panic; keep your cool and quickly analyse the situation and act accordingly. You can do this Philippians 4:13.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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The Soul

"Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name."  

                                 Psalm 103:1   NKJV 

Psychiatrists and Psychotherapists talk about a persons's Psyche. Just what are they saying? It is a part of psychology that looks at the human soul, mind or spirit. This can help them determine why a person acts in a particular way -  both in a conscious or unconscious way. Trauma can damage a person's psyche, which may include their emotions.

God had this already in process, without having to study for a degree, and an example is the Psalm above which refers to the soul. King David wrote, 'Bless the LORD, O my

soul.' Now the soul is made up of our mind, will and emotions. The Universal Dictionary puts it this way:

'The animating and vital principle in humankind credited with the faculties of thought, action and emotion.'

Therefore, we can determine where we are coming from at any given time. Take for instance, our:

MIND  Our thoughts can let us down many times and often it can be out of control. If we are not careful, the mind can distract us with thoughts that are not wholesome, or thoughts that are irrelevant to what we are concentrating on. In other words, we can drift off into our own little world totally oblivious to what is going on around us. We can also hold bad thoughts about someone, whether it be a grudge or jealousy, envy or even lust. The mind has to be controlled.

WILL  This brings us to the will. We have choices and the choices we make, we have to live by. Some choices are bad ones, probably not thought out properly. Our will can put into action what we have been thinking about. So if, our thoughts have been unwholesome, we need to be very careful that they don't come to fruition. We can't blame others for the choices we make; Adam and Eve did that and it cost them everything they had. The choices we make, we have to own, so be careful in this area.

EMOTIONS  We easily get hurt at times and some people are more fragile than others. When someone hurts us, we can so easily go down the road of revenge but all that does, is make matters worse. God has clearly told us not to do this; He will take care of it if we allow Him to Romans 12:17-21.

What David was suggesting in Psalm 103, was to place our soul - mind, will and emotion, before God and allow Him to bless them, to help us direct them and live our lives the way he intended for us. So, if you fall into any of these categories (which I am sure you do), then surrender your soul to God each morning. When you fall - because you will - consider what happened, rectify it and be careful you don't make that mistake again.

Doing this, you are well on the way to being more in control of your Psyche (Soul)

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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Watch your reactions

"A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."    

                                                                         Proverbs 15:1   NKJV 

Is your day ever like this? You wake up at 7am and think, 'I'll just have a few minutes more.' When you look at the clock again, what appeared to be two minutes is actually 40 minutes and you are late. You shoot out of bed and rush down the stairs, treading on a piece of Lego on the way. Even though you feel like your toes are broken, you grit your teeth and dash into the kitchen, where you are faced with two children who are demanding their breakfast. You have no cereals left; you know you should have gone to the supermarket yesterday but, you couldn't be bothered. It will have to be porridge - microwaves can be handy at times such as this, that is of course if they are working, which this one isn't. You suddenly realise the electricity is not on. Your trip switch box is in one of your cupboards, on the top shelf near the ceiling. You grab a chair but you can't see the box because there are tins and packets of this and that in front. You manage to manoeuvre your hand and flick the trip switch back on. On removing your hand, you knock the precariously placed items on the shelf which are then deposited on the floor. The kids are still shouting, 'We want our breakfast'.

Your whole peace of mind has disappeared and you have turned into a raging bull, snorting red hot steam all over the place. Play the video back of what has happened over the past hour. It was your fault that you decided to have a little extra time in bed, no one else is to blame. Take responsibility. Mayhem, happens, we all have days when things go wrong but, because you have made yourself late, you're under pressure and the devil is rubbing his hands enjoying every moment. He loves to wind us up and, if we give him any chance to enter our situation, he'll gladly take up the invitation. Just look at what has happened over the last hour. You've upset yourself; you've upset your children and you've upset your whole day. And now you feel guilty and have apologised to the children and God about twenty times but, still feel guilty.

Come on, you know the devil is not your friend; he will try to rob you of your joy whenever he can (John 10:10). Be alert and ready and in control. We make mistakes but we must accept the responsibility of these and learn by them. If the devil can get you reacting badly, he is happy. Why? Because you have taken your eyes off Jesus and on to him. You've responded the way he wanted you to. He will throw hindrances your way, things will break down and everything you touch will go wrong. Note that, God will sometimes allow things to happen this way to test how you react

Perhaps you're thinking at this time, 'Well I really blew it last night, I just wasn't in control.' It happens, we're not perfect just tell Jesus that you're sorry and ask for forgiveness. He's only too pleased to do this. And then ensure that you are not going to make this particular mistake again. There will be other testing times though, so be ready!

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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The Lord thinks about us

"For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."                      Jeremiah 29:11-13  NKJV 

God was speaking here about His people who were in exile. He was always thinking of them and He tells them that, they will find Him when they search for Him with all of their hearts. They had been in exile for many years and had often cried half-hearted prayers for Him to rescue them. However, the only way that He would hear them and liberate them was when they made Him the centre of their life. He must be number one; when He is, then He will hear and bring them to freedom.

It's interesting here that this verse is still relevant for each of us today. God demands first place in our lives; He will settle for no other way. If we totally surrender to Him - 100% - then, and only then, will He constantly hear us and bless us. He continually thinks about us. He thinks about us when we are walking in the Spirit and, He thinks about us when we are walking on the banks of lust, ready to fall in. At this crucial time, He longs for us to shout to Him to rescue us. However, this depends on the degree of commitment that we give Him. If we're walking flat out with Him, we're unlikely to fall into sin, we can but, it's unlikely. If our commitment is YoYo style - up one minute, down the other, then it is likely that we may consider temptation. I did say may consider, not will consider. Many of us can be tempted but immediately count the cost and walk away from the temptation. Others, may linger, considering for too long and, fall to it.

It all comes down to our commitment to Jesus. Many genuine Christians have fallen to the temptations of lust in various forms. They didn't go looking for it but, a seed may have been planted in their mind and, as they continued focusing on it, the seed has grown and given birth: 'But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.'  James 1:14-15.

Please pay attention to the latter part of our text today: 'And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." We have a decision to make, to have God in our life 24/7 or when you think about Him, which sometimes is often and, other times periodically.

God thinks about you all the time; why not try thinking about Him in the same manner.

Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, CLICK HERE

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

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