let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance
of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope
without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together,
as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
[Hebrews 10:22-25]
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of
joint but rather be healed.
[hebrews 12:13-14]
I want to talk today about straying and backsliding. If you are going through this right now I hope that what I say will encourage you.
We all know that as Christians it's important to stay as close to God as possible, to spend time with him every day praying and reading the bible, confessing sin as soon as we are aware of it so that those lines of communication between god and us are able to remain open. if we are not careful we will find ourselves straying. We are still Christians, we may still go to church sometimes but our relationship with god is suffering because we are no longer making time for God in our day. Our love for god grows cold and the enemy will take advantage of the situation and tempt us to sin. since we aren't close to god we find it much harder to resist that temptation and we may fall into sin, which widens the gap if it's not confessed and dealt with. If a person continues in this way there is a real danger of their heart becoming so cold and their love for god so dead that they will willingly give up their faith and stop being Christians anymore.
Picture this another way. In one of the houses I lived in we had a big electric heater in the loungeroom. Winters are always cold in our area so we would stay in the loungeroom where the heater was so we could keep warm. Sometimes i would stand right in front of the heater and let the warm air flow around me. if i stepped away I would still feel some warmth from the heater but I would also feel the cold air. The further i moved away the more cold air I would feel. If I went into another room and closed the door I wouldn't feel any warmth from the heter at all. In the same way, if we stay away from God we will find the fire in our heart going out.
I'm sure you can see that is something to be avoided. There are other reasons why people backslide, I turned away from my faith for a short time when my grandmother died; some people turn away because they have been hurt by people in the Church. some people even stray or backslide because they are so busy with job or family commitments. There are lots of reasons why a person might stray or backslide.
If you find yourself in this situation though, be encouraged. It is not too late to come back to God, he is waiting for you. In fact he will try to get your attention and do whatever he needs to do to bring you back. He gives us the choice of whether we will come back or not but he is not willing that any should perish but that all should receive eternal life.
So, how can you come back? here are a few guidelines that might help you.
1. Spend some time in prayer and confess your sins to god. Talk to him about the reasons why you strayed or backslid and tell him you want to come back and have a close relationship with God again. The bible says:
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
[James 4:8a]
2. recommit your life to God, give the controls of your life back to god and ask for his forgiveness and guidance.
3. make time for God every day, no matter how busy you are or what is happening. The length of time we spend with god each day doesn't matter, in this case quality is better than quantity. God knows we are busy but he wants to come first in our lives. Spending time with god every day helps us to stay close to him and helps us to grow in our faith.
4. Ask god to bring to your mind any sin that you haven't repented of yet. As soon as we know we have sinned we need to repent quickly so our hearts don't become hardened.
5. If you have a Christian friend that you trust, talk to them about your straying from God and your return to him. That person can pray for you and encourage you. We were never meant to walk through our Christian life on our own, god knows that we need each other and he will, if we ask him, bring Christian people into our lives to pray with us and encourage us, just as we can do for them. As the bible says:
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together,
as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
[hebrews 10:24-25]
One of the most popular parables of Jesus is the parable of the prodigal son
Let's read it together then i have one or two points to make about it.
And he said, "There was a man who had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.' And he divided his property between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took a journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in reckless living. And when he had spent everything, a severe famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs. And he was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything.
"But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants."' And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate.
"Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants and asked
what these things meant. And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe
and sound.' But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have
served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours
came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!' And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all
that is mine is yours. It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'"
"1. The son would not have decided at the drop of a hat to ask his father for his share of the inheritance. Even in these days it's not nice to ask our parents for our share of what they would leave us in their will before they are dead, in those days it was a much bigger thing, it just wasn't done. If he had enjoyed a close relationship with his father he wouldn't even have contemplated such a thing. In the same way a person doesn't just decide to stop being a Christian, it happens over time as they drift away from God and their hearts are hardened.
2. The father could have said no and refused to give the son what he wanted, but he gave him the choice to do what he wanted. god gives us freedom of choice too, but our choices have consequences like the son's choices did.
3. . The father ran to meet the son who returned. god won't physically run and embrace a returning child but he will certainly welcome them back into the family and it will be party time in heaven if one who has backslidden comes back, just as it is party time in heaven when anyone gives their life to him.
4. We must be careful not to treat a returning prodigal like the elder brother treated the son who returned. We must be careful not to judge the prodigal or condemn them, but welcome them back into the family.
I hope that i have said something to encourage you. Remember that God loves you and he wants you to draw near to him.
Questions to ponder:
These are just questions to ponder, you don't have to answer them but if you do it's just between you and god.
1. Has there been a time in your life that you strayed or backslid from God?
2. If yes, then what do you think was the reason why you strayed or backslid?
3. What do you think you could have done differently to prevent yourself from straying/backsliding?
4. ?Why do you think the elder brother in the parable was so angry?
5. how do you think god wants us to treat those who have come back to him after straying/backsliding?
Tuesday, 5 April 2011
Sunday, 3 April 2011
devotional on loneliness
Psalm 68:6
God places lonely people in families. He leads prisoners out of prison into productive lives,but rebellious people must live in an unproductive land.
[GWT]
\Are you a lonely person? Do you think that there aren't many people in your life who care about you? Do you feel alone in a crowd? There are many of us who can relate. i have already talked about the difficulties of my teenage years and thinking that noone loved me even though I was wrong to think that way. I was among family and among other good people but I felt isolated and yes, I felt very lonely.
If you are feeling lonely then i have three thoughts i want to share with you.
1. God is always with you he will never leave or forsake you.
God promised this in his word.:
for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
[Hebrews 13:5b]
and
And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
[Matthew 28:20 B]
If we feel lonely all we need to do is whisper a prayer to him. He is there with us; not physically but very present anyway. . the thing that first attracted me to Jesus was that I was told he would be my very best friend, and he has been. No matter what I've done or where I've been he has always been with me just as he promised. . if he did it for me he will do it for you too so take heart and whisper a prayer and you will see what a wonderful friend he can be.
2. God will, if you ask him, bring people around you; he will give you friends who will understand you and be able to help you.
The bible says that
God places lonely people in families.
[Psalm 68:6]
God brought some wonderful people into my life, especially my two best friends. We became a family and we picked up other family members over the years. God has also brought improvements in my relationship with what I call my natural family. We aren't as close as some families are but we are on the way. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if god did it for me he will do it for you, you just need to ask him.
3. if you are a Christian then you are part of the biggest family ever! The bible says:
Because of his love, God had already decided to make us his own children through Jesus Christ. That was what he wanted and what pleased him,
[Ephesians 1:5 NCV]
How can we be part of God's family? Well he adopted us. God and his son Jesus and the Holy Spirit were like a family but God decided to adopt us into his family through what Jesus did for us on the cross. That doesn't make us God, just like being adopted into a natural family doesn't give us the genetic make-up of the adoptive parents, but it does make us part of the biggest family ever. Every Christian in the world is our brother or sister. If you are feeling lonely ask God to bring some Christian brothers and sisters into your life.
I hope my words have given comfort and maybe some food for thought for anyone who is feeling lonely out there. if you have any questions or comments you can email me at
rishie@dodo.com.au
I don't know all the answers though, of course.
Prayer:
lord I thank you that you are always with me, you never leave me. I pray for anyone reading this who is dealig with loneliness or feeling unwanted. Pleas assure that person that you do love them and, if they are one of your children, that you will never leave or forsake them. Thank you lord for all you do for us every single day. I pray in jesus' name, amen.
may God bless you.
God places lonely people in families. He leads prisoners out of prison into productive lives,but rebellious people must live in an unproductive land.
[GWT]
\Are you a lonely person? Do you think that there aren't many people in your life who care about you? Do you feel alone in a crowd? There are many of us who can relate. i have already talked about the difficulties of my teenage years and thinking that noone loved me even though I was wrong to think that way. I was among family and among other good people but I felt isolated and yes, I felt very lonely.
If you are feeling lonely then i have three thoughts i want to share with you.
1. God is always with you he will never leave or forsake you.
God promised this in his word.:
for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
[Hebrews 13:5b]
and
And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
[Matthew 28:20 B]
If we feel lonely all we need to do is whisper a prayer to him. He is there with us; not physically but very present anyway. . the thing that first attracted me to Jesus was that I was told he would be my very best friend, and he has been. No matter what I've done or where I've been he has always been with me just as he promised. . if he did it for me he will do it for you too so take heart and whisper a prayer and you will see what a wonderful friend he can be.
2. God will, if you ask him, bring people around you; he will give you friends who will understand you and be able to help you.
The bible says that
God places lonely people in families.
[Psalm 68:6]
God brought some wonderful people into my life, especially my two best friends. We became a family and we picked up other family members over the years. God has also brought improvements in my relationship with what I call my natural family. We aren't as close as some families are but we are on the way. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if god did it for me he will do it for you, you just need to ask him.
3. if you are a Christian then you are part of the biggest family ever! The bible says:
Because of his love, God had already decided to make us his own children through Jesus Christ. That was what he wanted and what pleased him,
[Ephesians 1:5 NCV]
How can we be part of God's family? Well he adopted us. God and his son Jesus and the Holy Spirit were like a family but God decided to adopt us into his family through what Jesus did for us on the cross. That doesn't make us God, just like being adopted into a natural family doesn't give us the genetic make-up of the adoptive parents, but it does make us part of the biggest family ever. Every Christian in the world is our brother or sister. If you are feeling lonely ask God to bring some Christian brothers and sisters into your life.
I hope my words have given comfort and maybe some food for thought for anyone who is feeling lonely out there. if you have any questions or comments you can email me at
rishie@dodo.com.au
I don't know all the answers though, of course.
Prayer:
lord I thank you that you are always with me, you never leave me. I pray for anyone reading this who is dealig with loneliness or feeling unwanted. Pleas assure that person that you do love them and, if they are one of your children, that you will never leave or forsake them. Thank you lord for all you do for us every single day. I pray in jesus' name, amen.
may God bless you.
Thursday, 31 March 2011
Making Time To Spend With god In Prayer:
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
[1 Thessalonians 5:16-18]
I have a friend. We have been friends for more than 20 years now. we spent a lot of time together years ago, sometimes we would call each other on the phone and talk for hours. I still love talking to her but usually,unless I make the first move and call her she doesn't call me. I understand, after all I know she has a busy life, she has 2 daughters and a husband and she works a few days a week. It would be nice though if she would call me sometimes. don't you have people like that in your life that say they will call you or keep in touch and they don't?
I have two other friends that I share a house with. we have lived together for 16 years. They are a married couple and I have a room in their house. Even though they like to have times when they are alone, they always have time for me. If I go a day without talking to them I regret it. Sometimes we don't even talk but just sit silently together, only speaking when we have something to say.
So what does this have to do with prayer? i was thinking about this today. It seems like when bad things happen in our lives we are constantly calling out to God for help but when things are going ok we sometimes forget to pray. I have prayer times twice a day but sometimes I think "Well here i am, father, but I don't really know what to talk to you about." sometimes I have things on my mind and it's good to talk to god about them but other times I just rest in god's presence, speaking if I have something to say and listening in case he has something to say to me.
the point is, he is always available any time we want to talk to him. More than that, he wants us to come talk to him as often as we can, even if there's nothing specific we have to say to him. he knows that we are busy with different things but he wants as much of our time as we are prepared to give him. He wants to be involved in the things we do. The bible says:
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
[Proverbs 3:6]
He knows we can't always drop everything and get on our knees, sometimes all we can do is send up a prayer while we're working and he accepts that. He is glad when we spend time with him, no matter how long or short. That thought just makes me want to praise him. The God of the universe wants to have a relationship with me and wants me to talk to him at any time!
The bible tells us to:
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
[1 Thessalonians 5:16-18]
Does that mean we are supposed to spend all our lives on our knees praying? I think we would soon have very sore knees if we tried that. no, it means that we should learn to always be aware of our relationship with God and that we should keep those lines of communication open at all times so that we can talk to god and he can talk to us. Whether we send up what I've heard called "arrow prayers" [little prayers like "god help me" or "I love you Lord" or "What should i do about this lord?"] or whether we take some time out of our activities to sing and praise God or to talk to him about what is on our hearts, we need to keep open the lines of communication with our heavenly father.
The more effort we put into our relationship with God the more our love and faith in him is going to grow and the more we will know him. We can't get to know someone without talking to them and we get to know them as we spend time with them.
I hope this message has encouraged you to spend some time in prayer today. Remember that god loves you and he is waiting to hear from you.
Prayer:
Father i thank you that you love us and that because of your grace and mercy you have made us part of your family through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. help us to make more time for you even in the midst of our busyness. Thank you that you are always there for us whenever we reach out to you. I praise you God and thank you for your love and kindness in Jesus' name Amen.
[1 Thessalonians 5:16-18]
I have a friend. We have been friends for more than 20 years now. we spent a lot of time together years ago, sometimes we would call each other on the phone and talk for hours. I still love talking to her but usually,unless I make the first move and call her she doesn't call me. I understand, after all I know she has a busy life, she has 2 daughters and a husband and she works a few days a week. It would be nice though if she would call me sometimes. don't you have people like that in your life that say they will call you or keep in touch and they don't?
I have two other friends that I share a house with. we have lived together for 16 years. They are a married couple and I have a room in their house. Even though they like to have times when they are alone, they always have time for me. If I go a day without talking to them I regret it. Sometimes we don't even talk but just sit silently together, only speaking when we have something to say.
So what does this have to do with prayer? i was thinking about this today. It seems like when bad things happen in our lives we are constantly calling out to God for help but when things are going ok we sometimes forget to pray. I have prayer times twice a day but sometimes I think "Well here i am, father, but I don't really know what to talk to you about." sometimes I have things on my mind and it's good to talk to god about them but other times I just rest in god's presence, speaking if I have something to say and listening in case he has something to say to me.
the point is, he is always available any time we want to talk to him. More than that, he wants us to come talk to him as often as we can, even if there's nothing specific we have to say to him. he knows that we are busy with different things but he wants as much of our time as we are prepared to give him. He wants to be involved in the things we do. The bible says:
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
[Proverbs 3:6]
He knows we can't always drop everything and get on our knees, sometimes all we can do is send up a prayer while we're working and he accepts that. He is glad when we spend time with him, no matter how long or short. That thought just makes me want to praise him. The God of the universe wants to have a relationship with me and wants me to talk to him at any time!
The bible tells us to:
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
[1 Thessalonians 5:16-18]
Does that mean we are supposed to spend all our lives on our knees praying? I think we would soon have very sore knees if we tried that. no, it means that we should learn to always be aware of our relationship with God and that we should keep those lines of communication open at all times so that we can talk to god and he can talk to us. Whether we send up what I've heard called "arrow prayers" [little prayers like "god help me" or "I love you Lord" or "What should i do about this lord?"] or whether we take some time out of our activities to sing and praise God or to talk to him about what is on our hearts, we need to keep open the lines of communication with our heavenly father.
The more effort we put into our relationship with God the more our love and faith in him is going to grow and the more we will know him. We can't get to know someone without talking to them and we get to know them as we spend time with them.
I hope this message has encouraged you to spend some time in prayer today. Remember that god loves you and he is waiting to hear from you.
Prayer:
Father i thank you that you love us and that because of your grace and mercy you have made us part of your family through the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. help us to make more time for you even in the midst of our busyness. Thank you that you are always there for us whenever we reach out to you. I praise you God and thank you for your love and kindness in Jesus' name Amen.
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
Third message on love: love to others.
[All scriptures in this message are taken from:
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by
Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
We are in the third and last part of our study on love. That doesn't mean I won't have more to say on the subject but to date, this is the last teaching i have written on it. Thanks for taking the time to read what I have written and I hope it will bless you.
We have looked at god's love for us and our love to him. Now let us look at our love for others, since loving the brothers and sisters in Christ is a very important part of our christian life.
1 john 4:7
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
So love for others is not a suggestion, it's an imperative.
1 john 4:21
And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Jesus gave it as a new commandment:
john 13:34
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
Well how do we love each other? Jesus is our greatest example:
Ephesians 5:2
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
if the pure and righteous son of god can love us all to the extent that he would willingly die on a cross for us and pay the price for our sins, then surely we can learn to love each other, even when it's difficult or it demands a lot of us.
Here are a few points to ponder:
1. our faith in god grows when we love each other:
Galatians 5:6
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
2. Love comes from a pure heart:
1 Peter 1:22
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
you might think "But I'm far from being pure so how does that work for me?" I can relate. But God, if we will allow him to, will purify our hearts. We can't regain the innocence we have lost but we can grow in Godly purity and love from a pure heart.
Love Described:
Many of us will be familiar with 1 Corinthians 13, where love is beautifully described. Here are a few verses that might help us understand how to love each other as Christ loves us:
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres.
I read a book by the great writer max Lukado once, i don't remember which book it was, but he took us through 2 simple exercises. The first thing we did was replace the word "Love" in these verses with the name of Jesus, like this:
"Jesus is patient, Jesus is kind" etc. We can see from this that jesus fulfills all the requirements of love.
The other little exercise in the book I read was to replace the word "love" in these verses with our own names like this:
"Rishie is patient, rishie is kind" etc. Talk about a reality check! if we think we are doing ok in loving others then doing that will show us where we really are. It's not to condemn or pull us down but to show us where we are and where we need to improve. Be encouraged,though, the more we know Jesus and the more we are made like him the better we will do in that exercise. God, who is love in it's purest form, is willing to teach us how to love, so we are in good hands.
Loving Our Neighbour:
Of all the commands we have in god's word, the most important is love to god:
Matthew 22:37
Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'
and next to that in importance comes this:
Matthew 22:39
And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
Loving our neighbour as ourselves does not mean that we condone their sinful actions, or even that we have to like them all the time, but what it does mean is
that we should seek their good, or want what's best for them and do what we can to help them. A good rule to follow is the golden rule:
Matthew 7:12
"So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
we don't like to be gossiped about so we shouldn't gossip about our neighbours or friends. We don't like to have our heads snapped off so we shouldn't be snappy with others. We do like to know that our friends or neighbours are with us when we go through hard times, so we should be there for them when they are going through hard times.
Encouraging Each Other:
We must encourage each other to grow in love for others:
Hebrews 10:24
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
There is a lot more that could be said about loving each other, such as:
1. that our love must be sincere and fervent.
2. that it is active and involves us doing good deeds for others.
3. that we must put the needs of others above our own needs.
4. that we may be called on to give some of our possessions and some of our time in order to help those in need, like Jesus gave up heaven for a while and gave up his life to help us.
This is just a bit of an overview and I hope it's helpful to you. Let's just finish with this thought:
1 Corinthians 13:13
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
and this is my prayer for all of us:
Philippians 1:9-11
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God.
Questions:
These questions don't need to be answered except maybe just between you and god. I put these here as something to think about.
1. have there been times in your life where other Christians have loved you like Jesus loves you?
2. What did that person do to show Christlike love to you?
3. can you think of occasions when you have shown Christlike love to others?
4. Can you think of anyone in your life that you can show God's love to?
5. What do you think holds us back from showing Christlike love?
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by
Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
We are in the third and last part of our study on love. That doesn't mean I won't have more to say on the subject but to date, this is the last teaching i have written on it. Thanks for taking the time to read what I have written and I hope it will bless you.
We have looked at god's love for us and our love to him. Now let us look at our love for others, since loving the brothers and sisters in Christ is a very important part of our christian life.
1 john 4:7
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
So love for others is not a suggestion, it's an imperative.
1 john 4:21
And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Jesus gave it as a new commandment:
john 13:34
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
Well how do we love each other? Jesus is our greatest example:
Ephesians 5:2
and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
if the pure and righteous son of god can love us all to the extent that he would willingly die on a cross for us and pay the price for our sins, then surely we can learn to love each other, even when it's difficult or it demands a lot of us.
Here are a few points to ponder:
1. our faith in god grows when we love each other:
Galatians 5:6
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
2. Love comes from a pure heart:
1 Peter 1:22
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
you might think "But I'm far from being pure so how does that work for me?" I can relate. But God, if we will allow him to, will purify our hearts. We can't regain the innocence we have lost but we can grow in Godly purity and love from a pure heart.
Love Described:
Many of us will be familiar with 1 Corinthians 13, where love is beautifully described. Here are a few verses that might help us understand how to love each other as Christ loves us:
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres.
I read a book by the great writer max Lukado once, i don't remember which book it was, but he took us through 2 simple exercises. The first thing we did was replace the word "Love" in these verses with the name of Jesus, like this:
"Jesus is patient, Jesus is kind" etc. We can see from this that jesus fulfills all the requirements of love.
The other little exercise in the book I read was to replace the word "love" in these verses with our own names like this:
"Rishie is patient, rishie is kind" etc. Talk about a reality check! if we think we are doing ok in loving others then doing that will show us where we really are. It's not to condemn or pull us down but to show us where we are and where we need to improve. Be encouraged,though, the more we know Jesus and the more we are made like him the better we will do in that exercise. God, who is love in it's purest form, is willing to teach us how to love, so we are in good hands.
Loving Our Neighbour:
Of all the commands we have in god's word, the most important is love to god:
Matthew 22:37
Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'
and next to that in importance comes this:
Matthew 22:39
And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
Loving our neighbour as ourselves does not mean that we condone their sinful actions, or even that we have to like them all the time, but what it does mean is
that we should seek their good, or want what's best for them and do what we can to help them. A good rule to follow is the golden rule:
Matthew 7:12
"So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
we don't like to be gossiped about so we shouldn't gossip about our neighbours or friends. We don't like to have our heads snapped off so we shouldn't be snappy with others. We do like to know that our friends or neighbours are with us when we go through hard times, so we should be there for them when they are going through hard times.
Encouraging Each Other:
We must encourage each other to grow in love for others:
Hebrews 10:24
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
There is a lot more that could be said about loving each other, such as:
1. that our love must be sincere and fervent.
2. that it is active and involves us doing good deeds for others.
3. that we must put the needs of others above our own needs.
4. that we may be called on to give some of our possessions and some of our time in order to help those in need, like Jesus gave up heaven for a while and gave up his life to help us.
This is just a bit of an overview and I hope it's helpful to you. Let's just finish with this thought:
1 Corinthians 13:13
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
and this is my prayer for all of us:
Philippians 1:9-11
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God.
Questions:
These questions don't need to be answered except maybe just between you and god. I put these here as something to think about.
1. have there been times in your life where other Christians have loved you like Jesus loves you?
2. What did that person do to show Christlike love to you?
3. can you think of occasions when you have shown Christlike love to others?
4. Can you think of anyone in your life that you can show God's love to?
5. What do you think holds us back from showing Christlike love?
Thursday, 24 March 2011
poem - Our Great Shepherd:
[Note]: I usually write my poems in free verse since it seems to be easier for me that way, but sometimes I try to write something in rhyming verse to challenge myself a little. here is one such poem:
Our Great Shepherd
Life seems full of possibilities
When we walk with Jesus as our guide,
There's clear direction for our future
when he has control of our lives.
We spare ourselves some pain and problems
When we follow the way he will show,
On our own we stumble, fall and fail
As those who have been there do know!
There is joy and contentment in following the shepherd
though the way be narrow and stony,
he knows the way to the celestial city
that noone knows, except him only.
It's better to join the Great shepherd's flock
than straggle and struggle alone;
He watches over his flock with loving care
And will never leave us on our own!
So, come now and join God's family
[There's no reason to delay;]
Following Jesus our Great Shepherd
Who lovingly guides us on our way!
Our Great Shepherd
Life seems full of possibilities
When we walk with Jesus as our guide,
There's clear direction for our future
when he has control of our lives.
We spare ourselves some pain and problems
When we follow the way he will show,
On our own we stumble, fall and fail
As those who have been there do know!
There is joy and contentment in following the shepherd
though the way be narrow and stony,
he knows the way to the celestial city
that noone knows, except him only.
It's better to join the Great shepherd's flock
than straggle and struggle alone;
He watches over his flock with loving care
And will never leave us on our own!
So, come now and join God's family
[There's no reason to delay;]
Following Jesus our Great Shepherd
Who lovingly guides us on our way!
Praying for Persecuted Christians
Praying For Persecuted Christians:
This is something that is really on my heart. Christians in various parts of the world are experiencing different levels of persecution, from prison, torture and death, to being given menial jobs, being ostracised, even having family and friends turn them in to the authorities for converting to Christianity. Despite all this, these people are growing strong in their faith, not letting what they are going through turn them away from the Lord. Their courage and faithfulness is inspiring. they witness about the Lord to others even though they are aware that they may be putting themselves into danger for doing it.
The bible tells us to:
Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.
[hebrews 13:3]
So let's commit to spending time in prayer for these beloved brothers and sisters. Be guided by God as to how often you should spend time each week praying for them and commit to that. A very excellent resource for finding out what is happening and what we need to pray for is
www.persecution.com
they have a prayer watch bulletin that you can receive weekly and pray over the situations highlighted in that newsletter. they also have information about the different countries where Christians are persecuted and what level of persecution the Christians in these countries experience. Another way we can pray for these brothers and sisters is to pray Scripture over them and there is a prayer guide for doing that on the same website.
We can encourage other people to pray for the persecuted believers as well, maybe you can share the email prayer bulletin or other such resources with your friends and ask them to pray too. You can also make a donation to help these believers through the Voice of the Martyrs site or through other means.
I should point out that I am not affiliated in any way with Voice of the Martyrs but I encourage you to check out their website at
www.persecution.com
as I have found it an excellent resource. I hope I have been able to encourage at least one other person to pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in the faith.
Thanks for reading and may god bless you!
This is something that is really on my heart. Christians in various parts of the world are experiencing different levels of persecution, from prison, torture and death, to being given menial jobs, being ostracised, even having family and friends turn them in to the authorities for converting to Christianity. Despite all this, these people are growing strong in their faith, not letting what they are going through turn them away from the Lord. Their courage and faithfulness is inspiring. they witness about the Lord to others even though they are aware that they may be putting themselves into danger for doing it.
The bible tells us to:
Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.
[hebrews 13:3]
So let's commit to spending time in prayer for these beloved brothers and sisters. Be guided by God as to how often you should spend time each week praying for them and commit to that. A very excellent resource for finding out what is happening and what we need to pray for is
www.persecution.com
they have a prayer watch bulletin that you can receive weekly and pray over the situations highlighted in that newsletter. they also have information about the different countries where Christians are persecuted and what level of persecution the Christians in these countries experience. Another way we can pray for these brothers and sisters is to pray Scripture over them and there is a prayer guide for doing that on the same website.
We can encourage other people to pray for the persecuted believers as well, maybe you can share the email prayer bulletin or other such resources with your friends and ask them to pray too. You can also make a donation to help these believers through the Voice of the Martyrs site or through other means.
I should point out that I am not affiliated in any way with Voice of the Martyrs but I encourage you to check out their website at
www.persecution.com
as I have found it an excellent resource. I hope I have been able to encourage at least one other person to pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in the faith.
Thanks for reading and may god bless you!
Monday, 21 March 2011
a prayer for you
May the love of god watch over you
and his hand be upon you
to guide and to help you,
give you strength and give you peace.
May Jesus be the friend you lean on,
he is only a whisper away,
He has promised in his word
to never forsake those who trust him.
May God's wisdom guide you
May his love fill your heart
And we will rejoice together
When God brings victory in your life.
and his hand be upon you
to guide and to help you,
give you strength and give you peace.
May Jesus be the friend you lean on,
he is only a whisper away,
He has promised in his word
to never forsake those who trust him.
May God's wisdom guide you
May his love fill your heart
And we will rejoice together
When God brings victory in your life.
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