Waiting and hoping

"Wait on the LORD; be of good courage. And He shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the LORD."  Psalm 27:14   NKJV 

Waiting must be one of the hardest things to do, whether you are a believer or unbeliever. It can seem an eternity to wait for somethings. For the Christian, this is where, many people lose their faith and give up. It can be like climbing up a mountain pass wondering if you will ever make it. Inside, you want to call it a day and give up. However, deep down inside you, there is something that keeps you going, because just around the next corner, you may have achieved your goal.

This is where we have to rely on our faith. James Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China said of Matthew 6:33 :If we can only wait right up to the time, God cannot lie, God cannot forget. He is pledged to supply all our needs.' Hudson Taylor, was a great man of faith. When he went on a mission, he would take with him the small amounts of cash that had been gifted to him and, from thereon he would trust God entirely for all he needed - clothes, food, somewhere to stay etc. He sometimes had to wait a long time for God to give him what he needed but, he never gave up and even though God made him wait to the last moment, he always received from the Lord what he had asked. Was he ever tempted to doubt God's Word? Of course he was, after all, he was human just as we are. The difference was, he knew God would supply; he was convinced and nothing would persuade him differently.

We should never consider giving up when we are sure God has promised us something. The thing is, knowing that you are in God's will. If not, you may wait a long time. We need to always acknowledge God for directions for our life (Prov 3:5-6). He is the one who knows best and it can be foolhardy to just grab a verse out of the bible and claim it as yours. God's Word is true but is it for you? This is a little anecdote you can write in your bible - no expense charged. Yes all of God's Word contains the truth but, we need to be wise. Many have just taken a verse from the bible, sold up everything and gone out on a mission only to find they were wrong and it failed. So check these things out with God first of all. If He doesn't give you an answer, do nothing until He does.

If you know that you are in God's will, then you still need to be wise, taking each step little by little until you have the fuller picture. You may have to wait for this, you may not, it may be quickly delivered. 

What about you? Do you feel God stoking the fire within your belly? If so, take it easy and ask God for confirmation of this. He will show you. Don't ask too many people for their opinion, or you may get overwhelmed by all of the confused comments. Seek someone you trust and ask God to speak through them, to you. Believe me, you will know when it's God because the stoking of the fire will become hotter.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

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God will give you victory. Part 2

"Thus says the Lord to you: ‘Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.   2 Chronicles 20:15  NKJV

Now we begin to see the rewards of prayer. As you remember, Jehoshaphat and his people had committed themselves to prayer and fasting - something that we all find tedious at times. The rewards though, far outweigh the effort that you make. Here in the middle of their prayer, Jahaziel had a Word from God and spoke it out, and what a mighty Word it was too v15. 'Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s'. God is faithful and He can be relied on to bring help just when it is needed. God also gave them a strategy to gain the victory of the pending battle: 'Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. 17You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.” v16-17. 

We must remember that God's strategies are far more superior to ours. We can go running ahead thinking we have the answer and end up with egg on our face. Here Jehoshaphat could not stand under the power of God, and he bowed before Him and all of Judah did the same, all worshipping God. Thus is where our 3rd key enters the equation:

PRAISE  This stops Satan in his tracks. He can't stand this because he knows that when people fast, pray and then begin to praise, that he is defeated. Jehoshaphat had his anointed strategy and he put it into practice. The Levites stood up in praise and the next morning they prepared to march into battle. Jehoshaphat, totally fired up said, 'Believe in the LORD Your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets and you shall prosper. And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying "Praise the LORD, His mercy endures forever.' Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab and Mount Weir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.'V20-22.

The Valley of Battle became the valley of Blessing, and this is what God will do for you and I when we follow the correct procedures - Fast, Prayer and Praise. There is no need to fight when you put God in charge of your battles. All you need to do is position yourself, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord v17. Incidentally, if you remember the other day we were looking at the definition of the word 'Salvation, and saw that in the Greek it was known as Soteria, which offers us, among many things, rescue and deliverance. And this is the salvation that Jehoshaphat received that day. The spoils of this battle, took 3 days to clear up because there was so much v25. Thus, God took charge of their major problem; gave them the strategy, fought for them, rescued them and then gave them a mighty blessing of the dead people's belongings, which would have amounted to a great sum of money.

God is good, He will not leave you alone as long as you consult with Him, listen clearly to His strategy and then obediently follow His Word. He wants to give you the victory!

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

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God will give you victory. Part 1

"And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah".    2 Chronicles 20:3   NKJV

Jehoshaphat was taken by surprise when he heard that a great multitude were coming against them, to crush Jehoshaphat, his army and all of their land, and claim Judah for themselves. Jehoshaphat was understandably afraid but this was because the surprise had showed that he was unprepared and there was very little time to prepare themselves. He may have been fearful of what was about to happen but, the fear did not paralyse him. It was positive fear, yes he was afraid but more than that, he knew God would be able to help them - he feared the Lord. He knew what to do and that was to seek the Lord. Things take us by surprise at times, they come so quickly, without much warning and it is difficult, at the time, to know what to do. This is why we need to be alert for such times; remember the devil prowls around like a roaring lion 1 Peter 5:8. 

After seeking the Lord, Jehoshaphat put into operation, (1) Fasting, (2) Prayer and (3) Praise.

FASTING  He proclaimed a fast on the land of Judah. The people gathered together to ask help from the Lord. Fasting was one of the keys to releasing the deliverance in times of peril, and still is today. This was a proclaimed fast in which the whole nation participated. 

'We must understand, that fasting is not a tool by which we can manipulate God to accomplish something. Fasting is simply an outward indication of an inward sincerity - evidence of the urgency we feel when praying for special needs'. The Spirit Filled Life Bible 

PRAYER  It is important that you notice in verse 3 that, Jehoshaphat set himself to seek the Lord and then encouraged the people to do the same. Whenever we are in a problem, no matter how difficult it may be, we should always stop for a moment to call on God. Remember, without Him we are nothing but, with Him, we are victorious. So Jehoshaphat prayed:

'O LORD God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven, and do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no-one is able to withstand you?'  Try and read the rest of Jehoshaphat's prayer verse 7 - 11. In verse 12, we read: 'O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.' In other words, 'we are powerless Lord; we're scared of what may happen. We don't know what to do, but You do and, we are counting on You.' We must have prayed similar prayers when we are lying in bed unable to sleep because of worries.

Listen, we serve the one and only true God and He is able to solve any problem, rescue us from any calamity and change whatever situation we find ourselves in. Jehoshaphat had 3 keys to success, Fasting, Praying and Praise. We'll look at the last key tomorrow but, until then, concentrate on the first two keys, fasting and praying. What are you facing at this time? Are you able to say a verse 12 prayer and believe it? Admit it, you don't know what to do at the moment. You may have some ideas but, will they work? It is far better to surrender them to God because He does know what to do.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

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Predestination

"having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will"   Ephesians 1:5   NKJV

Predestination is fuelled with conflict to many people. There appears to be the attitude that God chose whom He wanted in His kingdom, before we were ever born. Therefore, if you wasn't chosen, it doesn't matter what you do, you will not get to heaven. When you think about it, that sounds rather selfish and makes people think, 'Well, if I'm not one of God's chosen, then I'm going to have a ball before I die.' There are people who believe this and could explain why there is so much much anger and hurt in our world today. There are the favourites and the rejects. This is so untrue.

'Predestination does not suggest a fatalism that excludes some while including others, but assures an appointed plan and guaranteed destiny for all the redeemed.' Spirit Filled.

Doctor David Jeremiah comments on this further:

'Predestination means to mark out the boundaries beforehand. In this context it simply means that God the Father chose His people for a purpose and determined that His purpose would be there adoption, as sons and daughters. In giving them all the corresponding rights and privileges - including free and unlimited access to the Father - He has assigned them the same status as Jesus Eph 4:6, Acts 13:48, Rom 8:29, Gal 3:26)'. 

                                                                             The Jeremiah Study Bible, David Jeremiah

Jesus is the one who brought us through those bad times and kept us from losing our mind or even our life. Whether we've got it together or not, we can still go to Him at any time because He chose us, rather like the the Prodigal Son. He has chosen us and called us holy. In other words, God saw our entire lives from beginning to end, and He was still convinced to adopt us into His own family by bringing us Himself, through Jesus Christ.

If you have been affected by someone explaining the wrong version of predestination, either get some prayer or go to Jesus and ask Him to set you free, knowing that He can and will. John 8:31-32. Initially, salvation was only for the Jews but, something wonderful happened when Jesus Came to earth. We are covered with His grace 'And the Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten' of the Father, full of grace and truth. Jn 1:14.

Be assured, if Jesus lives in your heart, then you are saved. There is nothing to worry about.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

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Fix you

"Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel.4Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.”   Zechariah 3:3-4  NKJV

This scene involves Joshua standing before God with Satan at his side throwing every accusation against him, he can find. God is having none of it and, rebukes the evil one and commands that Joshua be put back together again. In other words to fix him.

This part of Zechariah reminded me of a song that Coldplay had sang at Glastonbury 24. I wasn't there but we watched it live stream. I had never really listened to this band before but when Chris Martin sang Fix you, I was gripped by the song and the lyrics it contained. Just glance on the first two verses and chorus:

When you try your best, but you don't succeed

When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse

And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Songwriters: Christopher Anthony John Martin / Guy Rupert Berryman / William Champion / Jonathan Mark Buckland

Chris Martin sings, 'I will try to fix you.' The difference what I want to share with you is that Jesus can fix you, whatever you have been through or what is happening right now in your life. Joshua stood in filthy, dirty and smelly garments and Satan just kept pouring guilt and accusation upon him. God closed Satan's mouth with a rebuke and took control - He fixed him, Joshua. And He wants to fix you as well. Some of you have been so bitterly hurt and your heart still aches. Jesus can take care of that. Some of you are grieving for the loss of a loved one. Jesus can comfort you and help you through this loss, step by step. Some of you have been falsely accused, ripped off by a scam or some smooth talking person and it has wiped you out financially and mentally. Jesus wants to take you through every part of this hurt, fix you and put you back in position. He can do it if you ask Him to.

All you need to do is commit yourself to this prayer and leave the rest to Him:

Lord Jesus, I come to You today and ask for Your help. Lord I need fixing; I need You to mend and repair my broken heart and the way that I feel totally crushed. Fix me Lord. I trust You and I wait for You to make the next step clear for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen

Now just wait for Him to move on your behalf.

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

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What irritates you?

"Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice".                                         Ephesians 4:31   NKJV

What is the one thing that irritates you most? There may be many but, what is the main irritability?

It could be people but, you would have to go and live on the Moon if you wanted to avoid them. It may be bad timekeeping or unreliability that stokes your fire. I can easily fit into the bad timekeeping slot. Being ex-services I have a built in clock that is never early or late but bang on time and, I can easily become agitated when people turn up 15 minutes late for an appointment or whatever. The thing that irritates you the most may be something else but, the thing is we all need to learn to master these things because, they are a root towards anger or bad feeling.

Paul mentions six contenders for irritation in our text above. Let's have a brief look:

Bitterness  This can be marked by resentment towards another person or a bitter feeling or animosity resulting from being mistreated or walked all over. Watch your heart here.

Wrath  This relates to forceful, often vindictive anger. There can be an element of divine vengeance or retribution towards anyone who has hurt one of God's people. Therefore, there can be a human wrath and a spiritual one. They are very different in application.

Anger  A strong feeling of displeasure or hostility. This can be when we are provoked or when things are going wrong and getting on top of us.

Clamour  A loud persistent outcry, as from a large crowd of people. A feeling of outrage, possibly from people protesting about some issue or other.

Evil Speaking  This could be bad language, course jokes, detrimental comments and everything that goes along with this type of thing

Malice  A desire to harm others or see them suffer, especially if they have caused you problems. It's a form of getting your own back. This is not recommended as God fights our battles Romans 12;19

Ask yourself, does any of the above bless the Holy Spirit. I don't think so; in fact v30 says 'And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.' Instead of this, we are to: 'Be kind to one another, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.' v32. What if Jesus hadn't forgiven us when we asked Him? We would be nowhere without Him, that's for sure.

So what can we do to stop being irritated by things. It won't work if you say. 'That's it, I will not fall to irritability from this moment.' You're on a hiding to nothing if you think that will work. However, if you tweak it, incorporating Jesus in the comment, you will be a winner. It won't happen at once; usually it takes practice and a few tests on the subject. But if you are adamant that you will beat this with Jesus' help, you can confidently say: 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.' Philippians 4:13. Note the words 'I can' and 'do all things' 'through Christ who strengthens me. This is where you find the ability to overcome things that you no longer need or want in your life. They may keep trying to return but, as you keep on keeping on, you will eventually overcome this area.

A final word on the matter of irritability has to be, What about the people that I irritate? Because we do, probably on a daily basis. We need to look within ourselves and ask Jesus if there are things within that need changing. Why not try saying the following prayer:

'Search me O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxieties; 24 and see if

there is any wicked way in me. And lead me in the way everlasting'  Psalm 139:23-24

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

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The Forgotten; The Passed Over and the Rejects

"So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”  

                                                                    Matthew 20:16   NKJV

'God has a peculiar passion for the forgotten. Have you noticed? See His hand on the festered skin of the leper. See the face of the prostitute cupped in His hands. Notice how He responds to the touch of the woman with the haemorrhage. See Him with His arm around little Zacchaeus.'   And the angels were silent. Max Lucardo P16

Max Lucardo hits the nail on the head with his comment above. Jesus' passion knows no end. Nowhere will you find anyone more loving and friendly than Jesus. He always gives us the best. Jesus had just finished telling His disciples a parable about workers in a vineyard. (Matt 20:1-16) The Landowner had been out very early in the morning and chosen labourers for his vineyard. He offered them the rate for a day's work - a denarius. He went out several times during the day and offered the same to whoever was there. On the last job search, with only an hour to go before the end of the day, he noticed more workers looking for work. When asked why they had no work, they replied that no-one had hired them. He offered them a job for the last hour. When it came to the pay out, the Landowner gave everyone the same rate. Those that had been there all day, protested about this. But the Landowner told them, he gave them what they had agreed to and as the vineyard was his, he could pay whatever rate he wanted to for the last of the workers.  When He had finished the parable, Jesus turned to His disciples and said "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.” 

The main message of this parable is that all are received and rewarded by God based on His grace. He gives much to those He wishes to, based not on their worthiness but on His own generosity. Some of those who are last and least deserving of reward in the kingdom of heaven, may become first in receiving God's grace precisely because of their lack of apparent work or effort. Others who gave up much for Jesus and seemingly did great things for God may be last in terms of their reward. It is all for God to say.

Jesus showed compassion on the rejects of this working day; He saw their potential and their heart and, He will never allow people to be left waiting on the sidelines for very long. 

You may have been waiting for a long time for recognition - for someone to recognise the potential and qualities that you can offer. The workers that were not hired initially didn't walk away. Not at all, they waited and hoped and they were rewarded because Jesus recognises the heart and what people can bring to His work, if given the chance. Jesus wants to give you the chance - the opportunity but, you must wait for His timing. He's never too late. Even though there was only an hour of work left, the last of these workers were hired and received what everyone else had been given.

He is such a just and loving God. Don't give up hope or tire of waiting. He will come! 

If you don't know Jesus or, have fallen away, why not say this prayer right now:

'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 2024 Grahame Howard.                                

dailylifewithjesusbygrahamehoward.blogspot.com  

If you would like to contact me, grahame.howard@hotmail.co.uk

Member of the National Association of Christian Ministers

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

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