Archive for July, 2009

A Promise

Posted: July 21, 2009 in life, religion, Salvation Army
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During our lifetime, we make many promises. Here are just a few examples:

  • some we make when we’re very young just to appease our parents like “I promise I’ll tidy my room tomorrow”;
  • some to close friends when they confide in us and ask us not to divuldge the information to anyone else;
  • for those of us who are married we made promises when we said our wedding vows;
  • those of us who wear Salvation Army uniform, have made promises to God to serve Him all our days.

So, how many promises have people made to you that they have actually kept?
The chances are, many promises might have been made, but many will have been broken.

Following on from that, how many promises have you made in your life, and how many of them have you kept?
I’m guessing there will be many promised made but not so many kept…am I right?

What about God’s promise of eternal life -
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:16-18)

Do you believe God’s promise of eternal life? Are you doing all you can to live a holy life, directly by God?

If not, make today the day when you make a new commitment to God to give your life to Him and serve Him the rest of your days.

I came across the song “Promise of a Lifetime” by Kutless a while ago, but the words and music seems to fit perfectly with the message I’ve tried to pass on to you today. Please read the words below before watching the video – I hope you find blessing and encouragement from them.

Promise of a Lifetime by Kutless
I have fallen to my knees
As I sing a lullaby of pain
I’m feeling broken in my melody
As I sing to help the tears go away

Then I remember the pledge you made to me

I know you’re always there
To hear my every prayer inside
I’m clinging to the promise of a lifetime
I hear the words you say
To never walk away from me and leave behind
The promise of a lifetime

Will you help me, I’m falling apart
Pick me up, take me in your arms
Find my way back from the storm
And you show me how to grow
Through the change

I still remember the pledge you made to me

I am holding on to the hope I have inside
With you I will stay through every day
Putting my understanding aside

And I am comforted

Enjoy listening to this song by Kutless, and enjoy the pictures that have been used to enhance the words of the song…

Visit the Kutless website: http://www.kutless.com/

Thank You God

Posted: July 20, 2009 in life, religion
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Earlier today I noticed that my blog had reached 2000 hits – Wow! Believe it or not I was lost for words when I saw the number of hits had reached the 2000 mark.

I feel so humbled by the number of people who have read my blog. So I would like to take this opportunity to say a very big thank you to each and every one of you who have taken the time to read this blog.


To those of you who have left comments or contacted me via Twitter (follow me on Twitter) or email and given me words of encouragement and support, I’d like to thank you all – it has been great to know your thoughts about what I’ve had to say, and I’ve felt particularly honoured when you’ve told me my blog has been “just what you needed” at that time.

So, I’ve thanked you for read my blog, and now I want to thank God for giving me the direction and inspiration to write it. If you’d asked me this time last year if I’d be blogging about my faith and experiences of God, I’d have told you not to be so daft as I’d never be able to do something like that – It just shows what I know!

If God is speaking to you and asking you to do something you think you cannot do – Trust God, He will give you the tools you need to do His work.

Rest in God

Posted: July 19, 2009 in life, religion
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The stresses and pressures of life can often keep us awake at night and make us unable to sleep, they sometimes even make us unable to function during the day too.

So how do we rest when our lives are full of storms?

I’m sure you’ve probably heard the story of Jesus calming the storm while out at sea, in a boat with the disciples (Mark 4:35-41). But do you remember how despite the raging storm around them, Jesus slept at the back of the boat? How did he manage to do that? Well it’s simple, he knew he was safe in his Father’s arms, God’s arms.

In that situation, God didn’t remove Jesus’ storm, he just gave him the ability to be content with the pressure, as he had faith that his Father would keep him safe and get him through the storm.

This is no different from the “storms” we face in our life, as God will get us through those storms and give us rest.

So rest peacefully during your “storms” – our joy is to rest, God’s joy is to empower us to live our lives for Him and serve Him without fear, no matter how fierce the storms we face.

Rest My Soul by Michelle Tumes

Visit Michelle Tumes website: http://www.michelletumes.com/

God-Focused

Posted: July 17, 2009 in life, religion
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Even if we try not to overload ourselves, chances are we still end up carrying a heavy load. Troubles, burdens and stresses are after all, part of everyday life these days.

When you are feeling overloaded and struggling to cope with the pressures of life, how do you cope?

Well for many of us, we try to withdraw to a private place, a place of quietness, where we can be alone with our thoughts. But how would you feel if you tried to have some “alone” time, but someone interrupted your plans, seeking your help?

Well this is exactly what happened to Jesus after He received the news of John the Baptist’s murder (Matthew 14:1-12).

Matthew 14:13-14 – The Message
When Jesus got the news, he slipped away by boat to an out-of-the-way place by himself. But unsuccessfully—someone saw him and the word got around. Soon a lot of people from the nearby villages walked around the lake to where he was. When he saw them coming, he was overcome with pity and healed their sick.

Jesus was certainly God-focused during this time when He really wanted to have some time by himself. He could so easily have focused purely on himself, but He didn’t, He was selfless. That must have been so difficult for Jesus to find the strength and motivation to help others rather than focus on himself.

Jesus accomplished this simply by turning to God for His strength and motivation, as He knew God would give Him the power to do all He needed him to do.

Take heart from this, allow you daily stresses and strains to make you more like Jesus: God-focused. This is how Jesus coped, so if it worked for Him it will definitely work for you and me!

God will help you get through, even when things seem impossible!

God Help Me by Rebecca St James

Hold On

Posted: July 17, 2009 in life, religion
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No matter what comes your way, don’t give up…help is on the way!

People say that time will heal
But you know, they just don’t feel what you feel
Times are hard but God is so good
He’s never failed you, and He said He never would

He see’s your tears
He fights your fears

Hold on, help is on the way
He said he’d never leave you or forsake you
Stay strong
Help is on the way
He’d said he’d help you
Just reach out and take his hand

He knows your heart, He lifts your head
He’s always close enough to hear every word you said
When you’re weak, He said He’s so much more
His arm is long enough to reach you where you are

He see’s your tears
He fights your fears

Hold on, help is on the way
He said he’d never leave you or forsake you
Stay strong
Help is on the way
He’d said he’d help you
Just reach out and take his hand

Help is on the way

Amen!

Visit Michael W Smith’s website: http://www.michaelwsmith.com/

Holiday Time!

Posted: July 16, 2009 in life, pray, Scotland
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Here in Scotland we are now well into the school summer holidays. From a purely selfish perspective, it mean quieter roads going to and from work as many folk are either off or away on holiday – It is amazing how much quicker my journey times to/from work are when the schools are off!

I don’t know about you but in our office at the moment, that’s all we seem to hear about – this person going off on holiday an talking about where they’re going and what they’re going to do, while others are returning from holiday and telling us all the stories from their holiday.


But what about all those who are unable to go on holiday – those who are sick/ill, those caring from family/friends, those who can’t afford to go away anywhere, maybe because they don’t have a job or uncertainty about their job security or maybe just because of the current economic climate.

There are many people who would love to be able to be in a position where they could go on holiday, but circumstances prevent them from doing so. To them this time of year can be particularly difficult as they hear of so many others going on holiday which reminds them that they cannot go away. I’d ask you today to spare a thought for those who are unable to go away on holiday this summer due to their personal circumstances.

Please pray that their circumstances may change so that they get the opportunity for a break, as everyone needs time away from their standard routine, even if it’s just for a day or two, as it give us time to relax and get away from the stresses and strains of everyday life.

To those of you who have already been on holiday and to those of you who have still to go, I hope your holiday wasn’t/isn’t as eventful as those in the film clip above, from National Lampoon’s Vacation!

I hope you had/have an excellent time and return(ed) home refreshed ready to face whatever the days ahead may hold for you.

Happy holidays!

Comforter

Posted: July 15, 2009 in life, religion
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Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:
I saw the tears of the oppressed—
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
and they have no comforter.
Ecclesiastes 4:1-2 – New International Version

We live in a world full of sin where there is imbalance of power, oppression, tears, and for many, no comforter. We each have times in our lives when we are weighed down by the things we face in our every day life.

While those around us may see our tears, they are not always able or willing to comfort us, so where do we go from here? God sees everyone’s tears. We may not always see or be aware of God, so we fail to comprehend His power and His compassion.

Jesus is God’s response to our tears as He is our comforter, our Saviour. While Jesus was on earth, He too was oppressed, but remained a “comforter” to others. Therefore, while we suffer oppression and need Jesus as our comforter, we “see the tears” of others, so we must step in to comfort them, just as God has comforted us.

Reach out and comfort someone today!

Please checkout Michael W Smith’s website: http://www.michaelwsmith.com/

Cry Out

Posted: July 14, 2009 in religion
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We all have days everything seems to conspire against us. Unfortunately we can sometimes soon find that that day has turned to days, which soon turns to weeks and then months.

So how do we get ourselves out of that rut of deep despair?
We cry out to Jesus! Jesus will always hear you no matter how inaudible your cry may be. When you feel all your hope has gone and you can’t go on, cry out to Jesus.

I’ve been there and felt as though I couldn’t go on, but as you can tell, I did manage to carry on, and that is simply because I put my faith and trust in God to get me through those dark days when nothing was going right for me.

Cry out to Jesus, he will get you through!

Cry Out To Jesus (Third Day)

To everyone who’s lost someone they love
Long before it was their time
You feel like the days you had were not enough
when you said goodbye

And to all of the people with burdens and pains
Keeping you back from your life
You believe that there’s nothing and there is no one
Who can make it right

There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the weary
Love for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He’ll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus, Cry out to Jesus

For the marriage that’s struggling just to hang on
They lost all of their faith in love
They’ve done all they can to make it right again
Still it’s not enough

For the ones who can’t break the addictions and chains
You try to give up but you come back again
Just remember that you’re not alone in your shame
And your suffering

When your lonely
And it feels like the whole world is falling on you
You just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus
Cry to Jesus

To the widow who suffers from being alone
Wiping the tears from her eyes
For the children around the world without a home
Say a prayer tonight

Checkout the Third Day website: http://www.thirdday.com/

Tears

Posted: July 13, 2009 in life, religion
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Do you have times when you feel nothing is going right for you?
Do you have times when you feel so alone?
Do you have times when you no one cares about you?
Are there times when you wonder if you can carry on?

If you’ve answered Yes to any of the above questions, you’re not alone – I’m sure we’ve all had times when we’ve felt at least some of the above.

How did you cope when you felt like that? Or if you’ve never felt like that, how do you think you would cope?

The best way to cope in any situation is to give it to God and ask Him to give you the strength to get through.

Speaking from personal experience I can tell you that even when you might think no one is there for you and no one cares, you’ll find that someone somewhere is thinking about you and praying for you, so don’t despair. I have been there and know it can be very difficult but hang on to God, He will get you through your struggle often by sending you someone to help support you – that’s what he did for me.

Don’t ever be afraid to cry and show your feelings to others. I say this as one who finds it very difficult to show my emotions in front of others. But over the last while I’ve come to realise that sometimes you just have to let go completely and let others see you pain. You’ll probably be surprised how much of a relief that will be – it certainly was for me!

When the laughter
Fails to comfort
When my heart aches
Lord are you there
When confusion is all around me
And the darkness
Is my closest friend
Still I will praise You
Jesus praise you


So don’t ever lose sight of God. Don’t stop trusting in God, He will get you through, maybe not in the way you expected, but He will get you through.

Visit Tim Hughes website: http://www.timhughesmusic.com/

Past Times

Posted: July 12, 2009 in family, life, religion
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Yesterday, I met up with a good friend of mine that I went to university with, but who now lives in England. As usual we spent the afternoon shopping…mostly window shopping but we did make a few purchases! We then enjoyed a lovely meal together, during which we had a good old natter about the things that are currently going on in our lives, as well as reminiscing about our university days!


The scary thing about all this was that we realised that this time 20 years ago we were just graduating from university. Now that is scary! Where have these last 20 years gone? In some ways my uni days seem like yesterday and in others they seem a lifetime ago. We reminisced about some of the things that happened while we were at uni, as well as some of more forgettable things we did! But generally they were good days, when we had no great responsibilities and our whole life ahead of us.


So 20 years on, am I still the same person? Of course I am, but so much has happened over the last 20 years, some good, some not so good, but these are the life experiences that have moulded me into the person I am today.

As far as my Christian journey is concerned, I have to say I feel far more secure in my journey now that I did 20 years ago. So much of what’s happened over the years has made me a stronger person and reinforced my belief in Christ – Many of the difficult times in my life have shown me that without God by my side I would not have got through these difficult times.


How about you, how has your relationship with God developed over the past 20 years?

Has it developed, or is your relationship with God no different than it was 20 years ago?

I thank God for staying by my side over these last 20 years, through some very happy times as well as some very very dark times. My faith would not be what is is today without God putting me through all these life experiences, so I thank God for keeping me faithful to Him.

I pray that whether you are at the start of your Christian journey or have been on your journey for many years, that your relationship with God will continue to grow every day.

The following song from The Lion King is not the best recording, but please listen to words, as they remind us that God IS the Giver of Life!

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