When times are tough and God seems distant, don’t despair, because God is there with you. It may feel as though God’s doing nothing to help you, but He will be, you may just not be able to actually see what He’s doing for you yet.
What you can be assured of though, is that God is with you and He will answer your prayers, maybe not in the way you expected or wanted, but in His way.
Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NKJV) says:
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
God knows and loves each one of us, and promises to listen whenever we pray to Him. Prayer isn’t just about just talking to God, it’s about believing that God is there and is listening to our prayers.
God hears each prayer we utter, each request we make. We can talk to God about anything and everything, and he will listen. So don’t be afraid to talk to God about anything, because even if you never actually utter the words, He knows what’s in your heart.
Melbourne Staff Band of the Salvation Army play the beautiful piece of music The Prayer, enjoy!
We all live very busy lives these, running around from one task to another, without having any time to stop and consider how effectively we are at actually achieving anything. So here’s a lovely poem I came across which give us some guidance on how to live more effective lives:
To Be More Effective by M.S.Lowndes I know I need to concentrate Wholly Lord on you But why does that always seem So hard for me to do I get so easily distracted With so many worldly thoughts Unable to stay focused on you And on the things I ought Lord I long so much to know Your tender loving ways And to be much more effective When to you I humbly pray I need your Holy Spirit Filling me this hour So I will be fully equipped Inspired and empowered Then I can face the day ahead And be ready for what may come To continue to walk and to flourish In the things that you’ve begun To bring it into maturity A full completion in you So when others may behold your works They will long to know you tooWould you know why I love Jesus, why He is so dear to me?
This is why I love my Jesus, this is why I love Him so: He has pardoned my transgressions, He has washed me white as snow.
Yes, I love Jesus.
Yes, He loves me.
Yes, He gave His life for me, so my sins could be forgiven.
Jesus loves you, and will forgive your sins…you just need to ask Him to forgive you!
Have you ever wondered how your life would have turned out and how you would have coped with life , if you hadn’t accepted Christ as your saviour?
I have, particularly in these last few weeks as we’ve had to cope with the death of first my Dad and then my Aunt Mae.
Just after my Dad passed away, someone said to me that, “There are only two certainties on life, one that you have been born, and secondly, that you will die” – Despite this, we all find the death of a loved one very upsetting and difficult to cope with.
It’s therefore no surprise to me that during these difficult and stressful weeks, I’ve relied heavily on God to keep me strong for my Mum and focused enough make all the required arrangements etc. So much so, I actually feel as if I’ve been running on auto-pilot for weeks now, as every day seems to have been a bit of a blur and I’m not sure I can actually tell you what I did on any particular day since the middle of February!
That said, I’m not sure I would have been able to get through these weeks if God hadn’t been there with me, as there were times when I honestly felt I couldn’t cope with any more problems, but as you can tell, I got through those days, and that I simply put down to the fact that my faith reassured me that God is with me at all times, and is helping me when my own strength has gone.
Today I thank God for my faith. Without Him, these last few weeks would have been even harder to face than they were.
Power of the cross is what makes today a day to celebrate Christ, and God’s love for every one of us.
Christ is alive, He is risen from the dead and He is Lord!
Easter Sunday, today, is one of the happiest in the Christian calendar. Why? Because today we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. So let’s celebrate today by rejoicing in God’s love for each one of us.
God gave His son for us, so in return let’s celebrate this Easter by give our all to God.
Today is Good Friday. A day when Christians around the world remember the day when Christ was crucified on a cross, at Calvary.
Now doesn’t that sound a bit odd, people remembering, and celebrating the death of another? It would if it wasn’t for the significance of the person who was crucified. Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came to earth to live amongst us and teach us how to love one another, was that person. Because Christ died on a cross we have been forgiven of our sins. In other words,
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. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:15-17)
So today is all about the cross, the blood, forgiveness and The Christ!
One of my favourite Easter songs is Written in Red. Please listen to the following audio of Olwyn Mathie singing this beautiful song which has such power and emotional words:
Sometimes it can feel as though God is nowhere to be found when you need Him most. But don’t despair, because God is with you, and He will be there for you at just the right time with just what you need.
The Lord is never late, He always arrives at just the right time with just the right things in His hands
As you’ll know if you’re a regular reader of my blog, I’ve been writing a number of posts giving some thoughts on how to cope with the death of a loved one.
Today I want to focus on boundaries…your boundaries!
Protect your boundaries – You are the only one who truly knows and understands how you feel and how you are coping with your grief.
Some will avoid speaking to you as they will find it difficult to know what to say to you, others will offer words of comfort and extend their sympathies to you. Some will extend invitations to you, or ask you to take on tasks – Don’t pressurize yourself into saying, “Yes“. Instead, give yourself permission to say, “No thank you” or “I’ll pass on it for now”. Remember it’s about you, and how you are feeling, it’s not about any one else.
Another way of protecting your personal boundaries is to accept an invitation from someone, but put some limits on it. e.g. Tell them, “Yes, I will be happy to join you, but please know that I may have to excuse myself a little earlier than others”.
Finally, remember when you’ve suffered a bereavement it’s ok to protect your personal boundaries. However if you accept an invitation that’s been offered to you, don’t fret about it, because the anticipation of the occasions is always much worse than it actual turns out to be. Rest assured that, with God‘s grace, the occasion will not be nearly as difficult as you think it will.
“The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” ~ Psalm 34:18
What’s the best news you’ve ever been given? Maybe the news that you’ve passed your exams, or someone you care about telling you they love you?
Those things may be great news, but the best news that you will ever come to acknowledge, is that God loves you!
God’s love is unconditional unlike the love we experience from so many people during our lives. You don’t even need to do anything for God to love you, because before you were even born, God knew you and promised to love you always.
How Loved Am I by Lara Martin
O Lord, you are my keeper,
I will never be in want;
You hold me close, so tender,
And quiet me with love.
And I hear You singing over me,
I hear You singing over me.
Songs of countless promises,
Like kisses from heaven they fall.
‘How loved am I.’
Songs that take me to higher heights,
Such favour I know is divine.
‘How loved am I, how loved am I.’
O Lord, You are my keeper,
My heart is safe with You.
Though in life there will be valleys,
You take my hand and lead me through.
