Walk in Peace

"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful."    Colossians 3:15   NKJV 

Notice the word 'Let' in this verse. Paul was encouraging all the Christians in Colosse to live and walk in peace, and the way to do this is, to allow or let this be a part of you. It is our choice whether we walk in peace or in agitation, jealousy, anger or whatever else. It takes a decision from ourselves to walk in peace. This little word 'Let' is a strong one, rather like, 'This is the day the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.' Psalm 118:24. Here , David used two other strong words, 'We Will'. They have the same type of determination. So therefore, we need to decide what we are going to do; either let God's peace dwell in us or not.

We need to remember that Jesus called us to peace. 'Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you'. John 14:27. And then Paul wrote: 'and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.' Phil 4:7  NKJV.

Just think, we have been chosen by God, set apart for Him and loved and forgiven. None of us deserved this but, because of His grace, we received it anyway. If we've accepted Jesus as our Lord, we really must obey His Word. We belong to Team Jesus, specially selected to go out and live as He wants us to. 

I coined the phrase 'Team Jesus.' Any athlete who wants to be successful must train to be the best. This is why, they eat well, sleep well and train well. They are part of the team and none of them wants to let the other one down. If there is one slacker, they will have problems. If we put this into the Christian mould, we too, need to do the same. We need to read our bibles, remembering key verses in case we need them. We need to pray and we need - most of all - to spend time with our trainer, Jesus Christ. When we do this, we have the honour of being part of Team Jesus - trained and ready for whatever may come our way. And it starts with allowing peace to rule within our hearts; to permeate every part of our heart, mind and spirit.

Don't be embarrassed to call yourself part of Team Jesus. You are a special person and Jesus is putting all His hope and faith in you. 

If you are not born again and want to be, here below is a prayer of salvation:

'Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen'

Copyright 2023 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  

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Holy Communion - The Lord's Supper

"But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner, eats and drinks judgement to himself, not discerning the Lord's body."   1 Corinthians 11:28-29   NKJV 

Taking Communion in church or in someone's home, is a special, yet sacred occasion. Jesus actually commanded that we, as believers, do this as often as we can. We eat the bread as the broken body of Jesus, remembering His sacrifice for us on the cross. Again, we drink the wine, as His blood that was shed on the cross. It is a serious thing and one that should not be taken lightly. We need to examine ourselves before we participate in Communion. In other words, we need to confess our sin beforehand and empty ourselves of any unwholesome thoughts. To fail to do this, can bring judgement upon ourselves because we have taken part in this meal in an unworthy manner.

Warren W Wiersbe comments: "The Corinthians neglected to examine themselves, but they were experts at examining everybody else. When the church gathers together, we must be careful not to become 'religious detectives' who watch others while failing to acknowledge our own sins. If we eat and drink in an unworthy manner, we eat and drink judgement to ourselves, and that is nothing to take lightly."

                                                             The Wiersbe Study Bible, Thomas Nelson Publishers

This is so important. At times, we all look around a church and wonder why 'him' or 'her' are in the church, especially taking communion. 'If the church knew what I've been told about them, they wouldn't be in here.' Just stop right there; if you are thinking this way, perhaps you shouldn't be in the church. Neither of us have the right to judge anyone else; and as for what you may have heard about someone, this is gossip and you should have nothing to do with this - at all.

There are times when a person should not take Communion. Again, Warren W Wiersbe comments: "No one ought to come to Communion who is not a true believer. Nor should a true believer come to Communion if his heart is not right with God or fellow Christians.This is why many churches have a time of spiritual preparation before they observe the Lord's Supper, lest any of the participants bring chastening on themselves."

I remember when I was a young Christian and I refused to take Communion because someone had wronged me within the church. I had a big problem against him. An elder kept trying to get me to take it and wouldn't listen to the way I felt. However, I stood my ground and didn't participate in this. I sorted this problem out later on. We have to be careful about taking Communion when we have a problem with another person. It only brings judgement on ourselves.

If you are not born again, here below is a prayer of salvation:

'Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen'

Copyright 2023 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

 

 

Are you filled with the Holy Spirit?

"When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord, in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting."  Acts 2:1-2   NKJV

Notice two things here, (1) Of 'One Accord', (2) ‘They were in one place.’ This is important to us flowing in the Holy Spirit. 

To be in 'One Accord' is to be together. This is the hallmark of fellowship (in the Greek this means Koinonia where each believer is cemented to each other and to the Lord Jesus). This type of fellowship changes lives and situations. Being baptised in the Holy Spirit is the same, one is joined or cemented together with the Holy Spirit. In other words, you are one. When the Holy Spirit speaks, you recognise this and are guided the right way. You abide in Him and He in you and if you stay this way, He will guide you. He will show you how to approach situations and will put the right words in your mouth when, you don't know what to say.

To be in 'One Place' means a togetherness and when believers are like this, they are a force to be reckoned with. This is how you are when the Holy Spirit dwells within you. When you were born again, you received forgiveness, Jesus came into your heart and you

received the Holy Spirit but not the fullness of His power. This comes when a person is baptised in the Spirit, not baptised in water, as some people think. Being baptised in water is the symbolic exercise of belonging to Jesus by dying to self and being raised into a new life in Jesus. Being baptised in the Spirit is being filled with the Holy Spirit's power so that, you can operate in this power. 

When you are baptised in the Holy Spirit, you will speak and perform things that God wants - a power the devil will hate. However, if you don't keep this relationship steady, you will lose hold of it. Put it like this, a car needs a service on a regular basis, if it doesn't have one, pretty soon it is going to stop working. Do you get the idea? Therefore, keep your relationship with the Holy Spirit razor sharp and you will see wonders ahead. With the Holy Spirit, you will have access to the gifts and fruit of the Spirit and the ability to speak in tongues, a heavenly language that the devil does not understand.

Be prepared though, if you leave out one chink in the hedge of protection around you and leave one piece of God's Armour off, watch out because the devil is going to have a heyday with a full-scale attack. Be careful here.

If you want the baptism of the Spirit, ask God to give you this. There is no set formula. Just ensure that you have no unconfessed sin, and by faith, receive this gift, the evidence being, you will probably speak in a very strange tongue. Don't be afraid of this - encourage it and then, allow the Holy Spirit to slowly fill you with His other gifts.

If you want to be baptised in the Holy Spirit, pray this prayer:

'Heavenly Father, I come to You in Jesus' name. Today, I ask You to fill me with Your Holy Spirit, to baptise me in His fire, and to clothe me in His Power. Amen'.

If you are not born again, here below is a prayer of salvation:

'Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen'

Copyright 2023 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

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Diligence

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart"           Galatians 6:9   NKJV 

In all that we do, God wants us to be diligent. The Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 3:23  'And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.' Take a look at the word 'Heartily'. It means 'With warmth, sincerity together with zest and enthusiasm. and respect).' This is the way Jesus served the people He met and still does with us today. He wants us to be the same too, whoever we may meet along the way. Diligence also means to be earnest and persistent in application to an undertaking with steady effort and attentive care.

This is not always easy with difficult people - the one's who may have become stubborn in their later life. Let us not forget that elderly people have lived a long life doing what they feel is right. Their values may be the same but, the way they interpret life in 2023 may be a lot different to yourself, especially if they have a sickness such as Alzheimer's or Dementia. So they need more time to process things and many times they may either get it wrong or forget they were going to do a particular thing. Love and patience is a must with people such as this.

You may be looking after an elderly person who has a sickness. It can be so painful to watch the person you love acting as if you are a stranger or being stubborn in whatever you say or ask them to do. Remember today's reading, 'And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap.' There is a promise there. God will honour you as you honour others and, you will reap blessing.

Diligence also affects the way we work for an employer or the voluntary work we may do, especially in church. We should always work as if Jesus is the boss; we are serving Him not your manager or whoever it may be. Would you leave early from work or cut corners, if you were working for Jesus? I wouldn't think so. However, time after time, some people leave their place of work before the clock says it's time to knock off. You may go in early to help out with the work, but, that is your choice, you should still ask your boss if you can finish earlier that day. This is being diligent

Putting the refuse bins out for an elderly neighbour is another diligent act and shows the love of Jesus. Helping others when you can and asking for nothing in return. This all shows people that you care and when they may ask you why do you do this, you can tell them.

I never like to end without giving someone the opportunity to ask Jesus into their life, or, re-dedicate their life. If that is you, pray this prayer and please let me know:

contact me, CLICK HERE

Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen

Copyright 2023 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

 

 

Harsh and Soft words

"A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."   Proverbs 15:1  NKJV

I make no apologies for using this verse on a fairly regular basis. It is something that is very much needed in our stress-filled world of today. How we respond can either bring a smile of approval or light a fire. We live in such a 'Fast-filled' life style - fast food, fast cars, fast check out operators and fast-minded supervisors demanding more and more from us. It is difficult to keep ahead of it all.

All of this can lead us to be stressful in how we handle people and situations. Mothers taking their children to school can be like a racing track drivers. The mothers have a schedule to meet and if you get in their way on the road, you're history. Supermarket checkouts can be a nightmare where people become impatient and start pushing the shopping trolley into your back. Then, when eventually, it is your turn, the checkout operator sends the goods down at rocket speed, sometimes before you have finished emptying the trolley. Stress and more stress. At this particular time, if someone said the wrong thing to you, it could cause a war.

Warren W Wiersbe comments on this: 'Our words can bring peace instead of war, calm rather than chaos. This verse isn't advising us to compromise the truth and say that what's wrong is really right just to avoid conflict or confrontation. Rather, it's counselling us to have a gentle spirit and a conciliatory attitude even when we disagree with others. This can diffuse the situation and make it easier for us to settle the matter peacefully.'

                                                                   The Wiersbe Study Bible/Warren W Wiersbe/ Holman

If you have a dispute with a person who speaks softly, without any animosity, it is very difficult to argue with them. A soft voice keeps the calm. On the other hand, if you go in with both guns on rapid fire, or like a Kung Fu fighter, with a rising voice of harsh words, you will only end up with a terrible outcome. The stress of life can cause frustration in itself without making it any more difficult.

If a person begins to speak harsh words with you, if you can keep calm, listen and then speak softly to them, you are in control. The other person is on the way to losing control. If you join in with harsh words, it will end with a bad outcome. This is why, Solomon rated this issue as important. Remember the devil is sitting there stirring you both up, happy to cause division. Don't let him. If you are both Christians, then your opposition will know this point. However, if it is an unbeliever that is speaking with you, it would be such a bad witness to speak harshly to them; after all, they probably know about your faith. This is why the devil wants to make it worse.

KEEP COOL

I never like to end without giving someone the opportunity to ask Jesus into their life, or, re-dedicate their life. If that is you, pray this prayer and please let me know:

contact me, CLICK HERE

Lord Jesus, I have sinned and I ask you to forgive me and be my Lord and Saviour. Please come into my heart, fill me with Your Spirit and give me a brand new start today.

In Jesus' Name. Amen

Copyright 2023 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