Not what you see but what is unseen

"For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever."  

                                                              2 Corinthians 4:18   Good News Translation. 

What we see through natural eyes is temporary. What we can see is short-lived, it is over in a flash. But, what is not seen is eternal, it lasts forever. Think about that for a moment. We can't see Jesus or the inside of heaven but, we know it is there - by faith. Therefore, how can we look at things that seem invisible? It happens by faith, when we read the Word of God. We've never seen Jesus or heaven through our natural eyes but, we believe because the Word tells us so.

When we switch on an electric light, we know it will work, unless there is a fault. It works because we believe it; we probably can't explain why but, we were told about it years ago and we believe it. Guess what, this is through our faith. In the same way, we put the key in the ignition of our car and the engine fires up. It does this because we learnt this long ago and believed it. So, this is how we can believe about what the Word of God says in our text:' we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever.'

Hebrew 11:1 says:

'To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see' GNT. Faith in something gives us the certainty to accept what we believe. It may sound crazy initially and to others as well, but this is what faith is. It is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (NKJV). Some people exercise faith in something but give up  soon after. Look at the many women and men of God throughout the bible. They had faith and saw it through to the end. Take for instance Elijah and Elisha, they never had any doubt, their faith came naturally. 'Yes', you may say, 'that was back in bible times wasn't it?' Yes it was, but we are still in bible times, nothing has changed, God is the same and 'Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.' Hebrews 13:8.

Why would God change what was working all those years ago. He didn't and the faith we are discussing this day, is still relevant and we need to develop our faith more than we ever have.

'To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see' What is your faith like today? Do you believe what you have just read or do you think this was all in the past? It's your decision what you believe.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Be an imitator

"1Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma."                           Ephesians 5:1-2   NKJV

People all over the world, at some time in their life, imitate somebody. With children, it may be their parents; or it may be a pop star or a football hero. Adults, may model themselves on an upright person in the church or, possibly a movie or pop star. Kids may stand in the mirror with a hairbrush acting as a microphone singing the latest music and boys may attempt to score goals like their hero's do. For children, it is normal, they are growing up and finding their feet; but for adults, God may look at you and feel that He doesn't know you, you're not who He created you to be.

The word imitate in verse 1 is the same word as mimic. Paul was simply arguing that children are like their parents, a fact that can be encouraging or embarrassing to those who have children. Children mimic or follow what they see demonstrated by their fathers and mothers. God's children are to copy their Heavenly Father. The Son, Jesus, put His Father on display (John 1:18), So if you don't know how to pattern yourself after the Father, just take a closer look at Jesus.

I mentioned in the first paragraph, that some Christian adults model themselves on upright people in the church. We need to be careful here; what we see may not be a full picture. They may be struggling within their own life and equally, may be copying someone else. The only copy that the Father is interested in is the copy He created, and that is you, not the upright person in the church. He is the one we need to be modelling. You were born an original, don't die a copy unless it's a copy of Jesus. 

A copy is an imitation or reproduction of an original, a duplicate. By being an imitator of God means that you are an imitation, a reproduction of the original, which is God the Father and His Son Jesus. Now that sounds pretty good to me and perfectly acceptable to God. Therefore, model yourself on the only One who matters, Jesus Christ and you'll be on the road to success.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Watch what you hear

"So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear"     James 1:19   NKJV

Mark Twain said:

"If God intended us to talk more than listen, he would have given us two mouths and one ear."

It is possible to talk too much and fail to listen to what is being said. This is so important if you are counselling someone. The person who needs help, needs to do the talking but, if you're not careful, you can take over the session. This can be witnessed in prayer groups. One of the members may tend to take over with lengthy prayers that somehow lose the theme of what they are saying. In our own personal prayer time, it's so easy to do all the talking to God and not give Him the chance to get a word in at all. 

If you're like me, I tend to drift off in open prayer meetings and, many is the time when I have been asked what I feel about something and I haven't had the foggiest idea of what has been prayed. I am working on this but I am a great supporter of keeping prayers short, sharp and crisp. This way. I am ready if God speaks a word.

Do you think that there are times when God has spoken to you but, because you are going through your own prayer requests that you have missed what He has said? Yes, God can repeat Himself but, what if He doesn't we may miss the answer that we have been waiting for. It may be helpful to try not to cram everything in your own prayer time. Keep focused on what you want to say and give God the opportunity to speak to you about it. If after a short time, you haven't heard from God, then move on to your next request and so on. God hears what you say, don't doubt that, but, He will not be rushed. Things take time to fit into place if it's needed.

Make sure that you listen to God on a regular basis. Ensure that your ears are always open to Him (Notice I said ears and not ear). And let's not forget to keep our ears open to people who wish to speak to us. Proverbs 4:20-22 says 'My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. 21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; 22 For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh,'

You know, there is nothing more irritating than trying to speak with someone who is doing something while your are with them. They may answer the 'phone or shout over to someone else about something or other. As much as you possibly can, always try and give people the dignity to listen. They may interrupt your working day, but if it can't wait for a suitable time, then break off and try and help. It may be a matter of life or death. 

Just think, God always has a listening ear to us, let us endeavour to do the same for each other.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Watch what you say

"A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. 2The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness".

                                                                           Proverbs 15:1.   NKJV

One of the biggest problems human beings have is being able to control their feelings. 

Someone may say something that cuts like a dagger and our reactions can be likewise, an almighty mess caused by not being in control of the mouth. Likewise, you may be very busy and thus, stressed out by it all and suddenly someone may make a comment. You may then hear it wrong and go for the throat causing unnecessary hurt to the person. Let's be honest here, in both examples, you are to blame not the other person. It is you that lost control. No matter what the other person said or did, you had a choice to either to let it pass over your head or throw a wobbly. 

Solomon offers some good advice here but, as always we have to be willing to make a few changes within ourselves. A good way of looking back on a recent, negative experience, is to imagine that the whole thing was videoed, Then play the video back in your mind and let your thoughts be activated. Grab a notebook and pen and jot down the pros and cons of what you see. Doing this you should be able to observe what you may have done wrong and what you could have done to improve the situation instead. This does work; I know it sounds very much like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted but hey, if it helps you to handie yourself better on any future altercations, this has just got to be a positive move forward.

You can't change other people's behaviour but, you can your own. It is how you react that matters in God's eyes, not the other person. He'll take care of that. Probably the hardest thing is keeping your mouth shut. Refuse to retaliate. Sometimes it may be easier to climb the Eiffel Tower than to refuse to retaliate. But, it has to be part of the plan. Read James for further information on this.

Make it your aim to make some headway in this area. It will help you to be a better person and you will feel much better in yourself making the effort. You can do this, you know you can!

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Where do you place your trust? Part 2

"But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.
3He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper".

                                                                           Psalm 1:2-3   NKJV

In this part of this Psalm, notice the contrast. Yesterday we were looking at the perils of placing our trust in man - 'Cursed is the man who trusts in man.' Jeremiah 17:5. Today we look at the mid-section of Psalm I and read what is laid out in our text above. It tells us that to be involved with God is a delight. As we do this we are like a tree planted by a river, which continually nourishes us. Our fruit is worthy of our calling and we, like the tree that is frequently refreshed, will never wither. And whatever we do will prosper.

That last bit is mind-blowing when you consider it. Whatever we do shall prosper. This doesn't mean that we will be a millionaire overnight but it does mean what it says. The blessing of God is available to us constantly. Rather like the tree has a root system where it continually receives life-giving water so that it can be nourished and prepare good fruit to be available to whoever picks it. We, like the tree, also have a root system via the Holy Spirit. He continually pours life and nourishment into our spirit for as long as we are linked to Him. We abide in Jesus (John 15:1-9), through this spiritual root system but the moment we end this, we are not able to survive any longer (John 15:5). 

Just picture the scene of the one who delights in the law of the Lord. There just has to be pure joy here and laughter. This is the way God wants us to be. As we read our bibles and good, reliable Christian books, we become more fired up too. We may grow older but this doesn't prevent us from still staying in step with Jesus. We may become ill but again, this should not deter us in fact, we should live as if we will be healed.

And let us not forget that whatever we do, Jesus will prosper us. He will bless our work and He will bless whatever we do, in Him. He wants you to succeed and He will help us all to achieve this. This is what delights us about Jesus. He is our forever friend.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Where do you place your trust?

"Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord. 6For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited."                            Jeremiah 17:5-6.  NKJV

It is so easy to put your trust in a human being instead of, the Lord. For example, you may have a good friendship with your pastor and, because of what you see in him or her - their character, the way they are spirit-lead and full of faith - you are prone to trust them with all you have. If this is you, I'm afraid you have it wrong. They may be the greatest Christian that you have met but, at the end of the day, they do not have the power to accept you into heaven. They may help and point you in the right direction of course, but that, is as far as it can go. They can do no more.

To place your trust in the wrong area, you can end up like a desert shrub instead of a fruitful tree planted by the water (Psalm 1:3-4). This unbelief turns life into a parched  wasteland. In contrast, faith makes it a fruitful orchard. 

It is never wrong to have good friends; friends who you can trust. However, the balance has to be right. If that friend has a special anointing, such as a pastor or evangelist, it is so easy to discuss difficult things with them, trusting that they will be able to change things for us. They can pray and support you but that is as far as it can go. God has the power, after all it is He who gave this person the anointing in the first pace..

Friends give us that wonderful feeling that everything is going to be all right whenever we see them. It is like having to go somewhere you don't particularly  want to go. If this person goes with you, it feels much better. There is no problem with this. There are many times that we need support. The problem comes when we are tempted to go too far and place them on a pedestal. This is wrong and is putting this person in God's place. Remember, He will have no-one take His place.

So where do you place your trust? Do you place it in God or are you tempted to trust a friend. The decision you make will determine the outcome.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.

Stop being Anxious

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;  7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

                                                                                Philippians 4:6-7  NKJV

The Greek word for anxious means to be pulled in different directions. Our hope pulls us in one direction and our fear pulls us in the opposite and we are pulled apart not knowing what to do. The English root of the word means to strangle and it is not too hard to see why, as this strangle-hold can cause extreme worry.

Paul gives us some valuable pointers in these two verses. We are to pray and offer supplication, which means, we should ask humbly or earnestly in our prayers and we should be thankful for all He does, has done and will do in the future. We are then given peace, the peace that surpasses everything we could ever imagine and this will guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Don't forget that our hearts and minds can easily play tricks on us if we're not focusing on God. It can lead us to doubt and fear- all the things that anxiety is made up of. This is where the pulling in two different directions comes from followed by the stranglehold.

Mental Health units are full of people who are in some type of crisis and, the root is often anxiety.  Depression and anxiety are rife in our world today. People are full of darkness that comes from these conditions. Just think for a moment, where does darkness come from? That's right, the devil spreads it around like marmalade on toast. But, listen to me properly, this does not mean that the people who are suffering from these conditions have the label of being demon possessed. Not at all, but there is a link because worry and anxiety does not come from God does it? 

Being anxious and worried not only places you into a stranglehold, it causes you to hit rock-bottom. feeling that you are a failure; are of no use to anyone and all the other negatives you can think of. This is a lie and that is from the pit. Jesus Christ can help here by bringing freedom from this. He can allow the chains to fall off and give you a hope and a future. And all you need to do is use these two verses to ask Him for help.

Why not ask Him right now.

Copyright 2025 Grahame Howard. 

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

Lord Jesus, I have sinned. 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'

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 

Check it out. Just tap on Grahame Howard books.