Even when life hurts, we often find ourselves putting on our ‘public face’ so others see only the smile and the laugh as if we are strong. Those who have struggled severely with life, know only to well that just because someone is smiling and laughing in public, does not mean they are strong, it simply means they are good at putting on their ‘public face’.
The good news is that others can see through our ‘public face’. So I hope that if you’ve been in that position, someone has reached out to you, knowing you are struggling, despite your outward public appearance.
Be strong. Stay strong. Trust that God is with you always as he will help you and make you strong.
Is there room in your heart? Is there room in your heart? Is there room in your heart For God to write His story?
No matter how many Christmases you listen to carols, it’s all worthless if you don’t make room in your heart for God to write His story. This year, make sure there’s room for God.
Firstly today I want to ask you a couple of questions:
Do you go to church?
If you do, why do you go?
I’m sorry for all the questions, but I just wanted to get you thinking before you read my thoughts for today.
For those who do go to church or who used to go to church, I want to focus on why. There are lots of reasons why people attend church: faith, friendship, habit, your parent make you, or maybe you’re not entirely sure why you go.
While we may go to church for different reasons, if we become active members of that church, we must do that for the right reasons. i.e. we believe in God, we want to learn more about God, to be challenged to help/inspire others to follow God.
If you’re a member of your church – for example in the Salvation Army, we are called soldiers when we become members – when did you become a member, and why?
Sadly I’ve found over the years are many younger folk will become members of their church just because that’s what is expected of them by their family or friends. Rather than because they truly believe and understand the promises they are ‘signing-up’ to when they become members, and willingly want to take on those responsibilities. That’s why I believe many of these youngsters within 5/10 years of becoming members of their church, have stopped attending.
So today, take yourself back to the day you became a member of your church and committed your life to God – Did you do it for the right reason?
That’s quite a hard-hitting question isn’t? I suspect for some of you it will be a question may need to spend some time considering before you answer.
If you don’t feel inspired by the worship at your church, have you wondered why?
Do you go out of habit not expecting to be challenged or inspired?
Do you go feeling there’s no way anything anyone says or does can possibly challenge you?
Do you go ready to be challenged, but find nothing in the service relates to you?
Are others in at the service challenged and inspired by the worship?
Depending on your answers to those questions, it sounds like there may be two possible solutions to why you get nothing from attending church:
Maybe you need to be open and receptive to God’s message when you go to church.
Maybe you should try attending a different church to see if you are more receptive to their way of worship.
Suggest changes to the format of worship at your church, so that you and others can find the inspiration and challenge you are all looking for.
Pray for your church; Pray for your church leadership team; Pray!
However and wherever you worship, the main thing must always be that you focus on God and make Him the centre of worship. So do what you need to do to make sure He remains at the centre of your worship.
In Greatest Gifts yesterday I mentioned that I thought unanswered prayer is actually a gift from God.
Today, it’s about another gift from God to us, and that is simply the our lives.
If it wasn’t for God, we wouldn’t have life, so life is definitely a gift from God.
When we get a gift from anyone, a friend or family member, we always try to repay them for their kind gift to us. So isn’t it only natural that we should try to repay God for giving us the wonderful gift of life!
When we all get to heaven What a day of rejoicing that will be When we all see Jesus We’ll sing and shout the victory
One day we will see face to face, Jesus Is there a greater vision of grace And in a moment, we shall be changed On that day
One day we will all get to heaven. When that day will arrive for each of us, only God knows.
I don’t mean to be morbid but, are you ready for that day?
We should not be afraid of death, as when we die we’ll get to meet Jesus face to face – Won’t that be wonderful?
Our time on earth is short, so make the most of every day, but also make sure you’re ready to meet Jesus face to face.
We will weep no more No more tears, no more shame No more struggle, no more Walking through the valley of the shadow No cancer, no depression Just the brightness of Your glory Just the wonder of Your grace Everything as it was meant to be All of this will change When we see You face to face Jesus, face to face
It can be hard to believe in someone or something when they have done nothing to warrant your trust or your belief in them.
That’s why we have no reason not to believe in God, because He has shown us how must be love us and cares for us. Even today when we’re struggling and don’t know where to turn, He has promised to always be there for us
When the world is on our shoulders And we need a hand to hold us When no miracle is found still believe When the sea of night surrounds us And all questions try to drown us Just believe, Just believe in help from heaven Help from heaven
The Christmas lights burn brightly all around as we approach Christmas Day.
Lights on the Christmas trees, lights in the windows, lights in the garden lighting the way…but do they light the way to Bethlehem, and the stable where we find the baby Jesus, Saviour of the world?
All the lights, shining brightly As the choir of, angels sing Singing praise, now in the highest At the birth of, Christ the King
Yes all the lights, are shining brightly As the choir of, angels sing Singing praise, now in the highest At the birth of, Christ the King
Open my eyes; O heart believe The wonder of, that Christmas night Be born in me
Sing again, the sacred song of How that star lit, up the sky And how this world, lost in the darkness Felt the hope of, Heaven’s light
Open my eyes; O heart believe The wonder of, that Christmas night Be born in me
The sun comes up, it’s a new day dawning It’s time to sing Your song again Whatever may pass and whatever lies before me Let me be singing when the evening comes
Sometimes no matter how many reasons others give us, to encourage us to do something, it’s still not enough.
There are millions of reasons why we should trust God, but for me it come down to one, the fact that he sent His only son to earth to live as one of us. And then pay the ultimate price for that, by sacrificing himself for us.
We shut ourselves away from friends and neighbours because we too frightened to go outside;
We would rather cross the road and ignore someone in need, rather than reach out and them because we don’t want to get involved;
Men kill other men simply because of the colour of their skin, their nationality or their religion;
God has been forgotten, and only the minority still believe in Him.
Or do you want to live in a world where:
Where everyone automatically reaches out to help others in need, without a second thought for themselves;
Everyone lives in peace, tolerant of other’s beliefs – where we all get on with one another, regardless of the colour of their skin, their nationality or their religion;
We feel safe to be out of our homes, on our own, no matter the time of day or night;
War and conflict are words from a past life, and are no longer needed in the world we now live in;
Everyone believes in God’s existence and there is hope for the future of this world.
I’m sure the second scenario is much more appealing to us all than the first one, but what can we do to make the second scenario become reality?
In 1 Chronicles 1:18 we read
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done.
So it’s up to us folks, we need to proclaim His name so that we tell everyone we meet how great God is; how much He loves and cares for each of us; how we can always rely on God to be with us, even through very tough times.
