Merry Christmas

From The Christian Life Blog, I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and an enjoyable day. Let this day be one where you remember the reason for the season, Jesus Christ and give Him the glory that is due. Let it be one with family and friends and with smiles and laughter. Remember born is the King.

Have A Merry Christmas!!

Trisha Carter

Reason For The Season

 Christmas is the happiest time of the year. It is the time where we show our love to friends and family through gifts, time and around a dinner table. It is the time where the atmosphere is so happy and jolly. But what is the reason for this season? What is the purpose for celebrating Christmas? What is your reason for this time of the year?

 

The ultimate reason for Christmas is that it is the celebration of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. It is the celebration of Him coming into the earth as a human being, becoming like you and I, that He may fulfill the plans of His Father and that we may have eternal life.

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14 (NKJV)

The birth of Jesus was prophesied ages before He was born. He was talked about by the prophets of old. Jesus was born of a virgin, Mary and because of this His birth was in itself supernatural. The impossible was done and that was a virgin conceiving. His birth showed how possible the impossible is with God (Matthew 19:26). His name was called Immanuel which means God with us (Matthew 1:23). Truly God was with Mary and Joseph at that time. Even with the disciples, God was with them in the person of Jesus Christ.

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this." Isaiah 9:6-7 (NKJV)

For unto us, a child was born. Why was this child born? He was born for the propitiation of our sins. He was the sacrifice for our sins that we may be forgiven (Hebrews 2:16-18). This child who was born for us has the name that is above every name. He is wonderful. He is great and mighty. Jesus is our counselor.  He is the one that we can cast our burdens on and He will give us direction and guidance through His Word, for His Word is a light unto our path (Psalm 119:105).

He is the mighty God, the all-powerful One. Even though He is powerful, He is also loving. He is the everlasting Father. He will always be our Father and we will always be His children. We have received the spirit of adoption whereby we are able to say Abba Father. Not only are we His children but we are also heirs and joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, the child who was born (Romans 8:15-17).

Jesus is the Prince of Peace. Where Jesus is, there is peace. This is a peace that does not depend on a situation but its source is from the Most High. God is the author of peace and not of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33). If we are His children, we should also have peace. We should not be in distress or in confusion. Peace should follow us wherever we go.

Jesus is no longer a child in a manger but He is sitting on the right hand of the Father interceding for us. He is no longer a child wrapped in swaddling clothes but One in garments of majesty and honour. In this Christmas season, remember the real reason. It is not about the food, the gifts or the music but it is about Jesus Christ.

1 John 5

If we believe in Jesus Christ and God (John 14:9-11), we would love with our entire beings. We would then desire to please Him in every way possible (Psalms 40:8). We would desire to do His commandments and His will (John 14:15).

We have the victory through Jesus Christ. If Jesus dwells in us, we have power over Satan and his hosts (Luke 9:1-2) Through every trial and tribulation, we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:36-37).

Truly the Word bears witness. For without the Word, we would not know God and the works of Jesus Christ. For the Word testifies of who Jesus is (John 5:39). The Spirit also bears witness of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit teaches us things that the world cannot show us (1 John 2:27). Even Jesus told His disciples that the Holy Spirit would bring everything back to their remembrance.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. John 14:26 (NKJV)

God has given us eternal life through His Son. Jesus is the way to the Father (John 14:6). Jesus came to give us life everlasting with Him in heaven so that we may have life and have it more abundantly (John 10:10).

And I give them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. John 10:28 (NKJV)

If we ask God for anything as we are God's children, He is faithful to give it to us once it is best for us (John 14:13-14). For God hears us even in our times of sorrow and distress. God searches our hearts and He knows our desires (Psalms 139:1). He even knows our words before we even say them. He knows us from the inside out.

For there is not a word on my tongue but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. Psalms 139:4 (NKJV)

I encourage you to continue to read the book of 1 John for yourselves that you may truly understand the love of God and His love for you.

1 John 4

In this day and age, there are many persons who want to lead but who are not called to lead. They tell people things they want to hear but they did not hear it from God, the Holy One. Even as John indicates how we will know the spirit of the antichrist, Jesus tells us that we will know them by their fruits (Matthew 7:15-20).

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. For they prophesy falsely to you in My name, I have not sent them, says the Lord. Jeremiah 29:8-9 (NKJV)

As God is not of this world, so are we not of this world. As Jesus says in John 18:36, 'My Kingdom is not of this world.' In the kingdom of God, there is love. God is love. Everything that God does for us, is because He loves us with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). God thinks about us all the time (Psalms 139:17-18) and He is gracious towards us, His people (Micah 7:18-19). This is why He sent His only Son to save us in order for us to have everlasting life with Him. We should be more loving like Him. We should desire to follow His commandments and hide them within our hearts.

Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 22:37-40 (NKJV)

If God dwells in us and we in Him, the Holy Spirit therefore dwells in us and we live by the Spirit and not by the flesh. As we live by the Spirit, we leave behind the things of this world and most of all the flesh (Galatians 5:24-25).

As we love God, we begin to trust Him and His power to take care of every situation and trial that we go through. As we cast our cares on Him (Matthew 11:28-30), we no longer fear what this world will bring or do to us because perfect love casts out fear. God has not given us a spirit of fear.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

Even though we cannot see God, we know Him through His Word and His Holy Spirit who dwells in us (John 14:17). Let us come to know the God who is love and who loves us unconditionally. Let us hide His Word in our hearts and become hungry for Him.

1 John 3

In verse 1, it talks about the love of God, the love that is everlasting and that is not partial. Jesus is the very image of love. God is love. God sent His only Son to save us, the people of the world which is filled with sin and mischief to give us everlasting life with Him in the end. That is love. Jesus was created for this very purpose, to save us from sin (John 12:47).

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)

Satan was here from the very beginning and we see that in the Garden of Eden. It is his plan to carry everyone to the flames of fire with him so that we would not have a chance to have eternal life with God. Satan is a thief and he is out to destroy us and to sift us as wheat (John 10:10, Luke 22:31). Whoever is born of God, does not commit sin seen in verse 9. Sin is of the devil (John 8:44).

The children of God are known through their fruits (Matthew 7:16-20), by the things that we do, say and think. We should have the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and be pure and holy as God is   ( 1 Peter 1:16). No greater love has been shown than when Jesus laid down His life for us, His friends ( John 15:15).

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. John 15:13 (NKJV)

Does this world really have significance to us at the end on judgement day? This world and its material stuff will fade away in comparison to the glory of God (Mark 8:36). We should focus on God and not fame and the praise of men (Matthew 6:19-21).

We should not only speak of love but we should put it into our daily lives and into our actions reflecting the character of Jesus Christ (James 2:26). We need to know who God is even as He knows us (Psalms 139:1). He knows us better than we know ourselves. God is omniscient, all knowing. He knows your needs and is more than able to provide them (Philippians 4:19). By following His commandments and His will, He will do it for you (John 15:7).

Father, I pray that we would know Your love, that You would show us how to love You and our neighbours as ourselves. That we would demonstrate Your love to others, we would not only speak of it because faith without works is dead. Let Your light be seen in and through us. In Jesus' name, Amen.

1 John 2

In verses 1-2, it talks about the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus was placed on this earth to save us from eternal death. God provided a way so that we may be able to dwell with Him at the end (John 3:16). Jesus is the way for us, the entire world (John 14:6). It says that He didn't come to save our sins only but the sins of the whole world. He is the passage to having a life of eternity with God ( 1 Timothy 2:5).

Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him since He always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25 (NKJV)

Jesus lives to make intercession for each and every one of us. When we are going through the difficult times and the good times, He is there praying for us. We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ.

We should follow God that is love Him with everything that we are and that we have and by doing this, we do His commandments. If we love Him, we would desire to please Him in anyway possible (John 14:15). Jesus said 'Love your neighbours as yourself" so we should love our brothers and sisters. Even if these are persons who bring you down at every chance possible and who are your enemies, we should still love them (Matthew 5:44). Even on the cross, Jesus was compassionate to the soldiers by telling God to forgive them even though they beat Him (Luke 23:34). We should be more like Jesus and have the mind of Christ.

³⁶ “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
³⁷ Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 
³⁸ This is the first and great commandment.  
³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”Matthew 22:36-40 (NKJV)

Love not the world in verse 15 is exactly what we should do. God is not of the world therefore if we follow God neither are we. We should focus our gaze on Jesus and place Him as our number one priority (Colossians 3:2). Do not be consumed by the things of this world but be consumed by God, the all consuming fire (Romans 12:2).

There are people in this world who pretend to be of God but actually are not. We should be awake and vigilant so that we are not deceived (Matthew 7:15). These persons would speak lies into our ears but be ready (2 Peter 2:1-2). We must read the Word so we would know what is of God and what isn't.

But as it is written, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.1Corinthians 2:9-10 (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit is our guide to the deeper things of God and is our teacher and our comforter (John 14:26).

Encounter the One who lives to make intercession for you!

1 John 1

For the month of September, I will be doing a series on the book of 1 John. 1 John has so much revelation for us which is relevant to our lives today. This book was written by the apostle John who was one of the Jesus' disciples. He was the disciple that Jesus loved ( John 21:20-23).

Chapter 1

Even though we are human beings, the created and the ones who could never be compared to God, God through His Holy Spirit still speaks to us everyday and is revealing things to us, we thought we could never know. We see this in verse 2 where it says ' was manifested to us'. The Holy Spirit is many things to us. He is our comforter, our guide and our teacher. We need the Holy Spirit. Without Him, we would not be able to discern what is of God and what isn't.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. John 14:26 (NKJV)

God reveals Himself and His heart to us through the Spirit (1Corinthians 2:9-16). Jesus gave us an anointing which is the Holy Spirit to teach and prepare us for His return and His second coming (1 John 2:27).

God is light seen in verse 5-7. He shows us every aspect of His character, He does not hold back His emotions about us. He is the truth and the light of the world. If we follow God, we would never go astray. Even in the natural, you would not follow the dark to get out of a tunnel but you would follow the light. We would have the light of life, a life of eternity and happiness with God (Revelations 21:23-26).  

Then Jesus spoke to them again saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” John 8:12 (NKJV)

None of us cannot say that we have not sinned any time in our lives. We have all sinned. All of us have sinned and thought to be unworthy of God's love ( Romans 3:23). But if we have sinned, it is not the end for us. All we have to do is confess and ask Jesus for forgiveness (Romans 10:9-11). God is faithful and just to forgive us of all our sins.

Let God's light shine through you.

Walking Upon Water

Can you imagine walking on water? Walking on a lake or a pond? To our minds and to nature, it is impossible. It is just so impossible to the mind of a scientist or anyone for that matter. Walking on water would blow our minds that we would be in complete shock. 

There were two men in the bible, Jesus and Peter that walked upon water. In Matthew 14: 22-33, it talks about Jesus walking on the sea towards the disciples in a ship and Peter coming out to join Him.

In verse 22-23, it says that Jesus told the disciples to go on the ship before Him while He sent the multitude away. After He went up into the mountain alone to pray. Jesus saw how important it was to spend time with His Father in prayer. After Jesus came out of the wilderness from fasting 40 days and 40 nights, the bible says He returned in the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:14). We too need to spend time with God and as we do we come to a place where we know God for who He is and through that we would begin to manifest the supernatural kingdom of God with signs, miracles and wonders.

"Most assuredly I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also and greater works than these he will do because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name that I will do that the Father may be glorified in the Son." John 14:12-13 (NKJV)

In verse 24-27, it says that the disciples became afraid when they saw Jesus walking on water. They thought it was a spirit or a ghost. Then Jesus said 'Be of good cheer, it is I, be not afraid'. We are sons of the Most High God, we have to know who we are. We have not been given a spirit of fear but a spirit of power, of love and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). We have power to do the works that Jesus did and even greater works. Be not afraid!

"And these signs will follow those who believe, In My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues. They will take up serpents and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them, they will lay hands on the sick and they will recover.” Mark 16:17-18 (NKJV)

In verse 28-31, Peter was very bold to ask Jesus to let him come unto the water. Peter began to walk on water towards Jesus, he began to do the impossible but then he began to look at the wind, the things around him, the difficult circumstances. He lost focus on Jesus and started to focus on the circumstance and then he began to sink. Our focus should be on Jesus, He should be our number 1 gaze and focus.

Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. Colossians 3:2 (NKJV)

We should also put our trust in God no matter what the situation is because God is for us and if He is then who can be against us. We have to trust that everything works for the good of those that love the Lord and that are called according to His purpose. Peter also doubted. Jesus says in verse 31, 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?'. Faith is very important and we need it to be able to come to God and do what He has called us to do.

God, I asked that we would put our trust in you. We would believe what you say and trust in your unlimited ability to do what is best for us. I pray that we would set our affections on things above, that You would be our one thing and our one gaze. In Jesus' name, Amen.

The Voice of the Lord

In Psalms 29, it talks about the voice of the Lord. It says that the voice of the Lord is powerful and it is full of majesty. It is the voice that sounds like many waters, it is the voice that wants to speak to each and every one of us today if we would only listen. I wrote a poem last year on the voice of the Lord so here goes.

His voice is like the rushing of the sea
Covering every part
Making Himself known
In the corners of the earth

Through prophets and apostles
He speaks
With fervour and authority
Dividing everything asunder

To ears, to eyes
To senses, He speaks
Never failing to be true
Always remaining forever

Be awake O ye people
For He has something to say
He wants to speak to you
At every time of the day

Look to see
Listen to hear
Sense to feel
His voice is here

© 2012 Trisha Carter

Radical Faith

What is faith?

In Hebrews 11:1, it says 'Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen'. Faith is believing in the impossible, it is believing in the things that we cannot see yet still we believe they are there. Faith is when we believe in the invisible God and His Word. Faith is very important in our journey of Christianity as it is needed in every aspect of our lives. It is needed when we have no more money left and we have to trust in God, our provider, it is needed when we are waiting to see if  we will get that job or that opportunity.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

Without faith, it is impossible to please God. If we don't have faith then how can we be saved if we don't believe in God. We have to believe that He is. When we come to God, we must believe that He is a rewarder. He rewards those who diligently seek Him, who search for Him with their whole hearts and seek to spend time with Him.

There are many people in the bible who exercised their faith which can be seen in Hebrews 11 but there was a woman who had radical faith that she would be healed.

⁴³ Now a woman having a flow of blood for twelve years who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any.

⁴⁴ Came from behind and touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped.

⁴⁵ And Jesus said, “Who touched Me?” When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, “Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?^'

⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me.” 

⁴⁷ Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.

⁴⁸ And He said to her, “Daughter, be of good cheer your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Luke 8:43-48 (NKJV)

This woman was suffering with an issue of blood for twelve years. She was tired of being sick and tired of going to the doctors. When she heard about Jesus, the man who heals, she decided maybe if I just touch the hem of His garment, I would be healed. Now that is radical faith, believing that if you just touch His garment that you would be healed without Him even first touching you. She had faith beyond her own imagination and beyond what seemed impossible to the human mind. She was radical.

   

Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”

Mark 9:23 (NKJV)

 

Because of her faith, she was made whole in verse 48. Her faith caused her to come to a place where she recognized that with God all things are possible. We just have to believe like this woman.

As the apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith in Luke 17:5, God I asked that You would increase our faith, that we would believe fully in You. I pray that we will have no doubt, no unbelief but we would have radical faith in You no matter the situation and that we would touch the hem of Your garment. In Jesus' name, Amen.

God The Potter, Me The Clay

God is our creator, we are the creation. He is the one who has created each and everyone of us for a particular purpose and time. We are a chosen generation who is special in the eyes of their creator. God is the potter and we are the clay.

But now O Lord, You are our Father, we are the clay and You are our potter and all we are the work of Your hand. Isaiah 64:8 (NKJV)

What does it mean to be a potter?

A potter is a person who makes something beautiful from a piece of dirt, clay. That is how God made us . We were made from the very dust of the earth (Genesis 2:7). This dust can also be considered as sin. In Romans 4:23, it says that all of us including both the rich and the poor have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Even though, we were scarred with sin, God still created us for a purpose even as a potter has a purpose or a plan for what he wants his creation to be or do.

As the potter gives life to this dirt, the clay so even God gave us life by sending Jesus Christ to die on the cross for us. Jesus is the life (John 14:6). The potter knows every inch of His creation. He knows the cracks and the smooth parts. God knows our faults yet still He forgives us (1 John 1:9) and He knows what we are good at. God knows everything about us even the things, we hide in the deepest parts of our hearts (Psalms 139).

We may think that we are ugly, that we are not worthy to be saved or forgiven but God says that we are fearfully and wonderfully made.

I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works and that my soul knows very well. Psalms 139:13 (NKJV) 

God is continually moulding and shaping us into what He wants us to be. He tells us what we shouldn't and should do through His Word so that we would become lights in the earth for Him who will go and minister to the nations of the earth. 

When God created us, He had and still has a plan and purpose for each of us (Jeremiah 29:11). God made us for a certain purpose but in order to know this purpose, you must know God, the creator and the potter. He says that if we seek Him that we will find Him.

And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13 (NKJV) 

So seek God and get to know your potter.

The Holy Spirit, My Comforter

The Holy Spirit is the one that lives in us and guides us in our daily lives. He is the one that speaks to us in the still small voice telling us what to do and what not to do. The Holy Spirit is the one who brings back to our remembrance scriptures in different situations to comfort and remind us.

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. John 14:26 (KJV)

The Holy Spirit teaches us all things (1 John 2:27). He helps us to understand what we read in the Bible. He gives us wisdom and revelation. He guides us into the truth of who God is and what His Word says. The Holy Spirit only speaks what He hears the Father say.

Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth. For He shall not speak of Himself  but whatsoever He shall hear that shall He speak and He will shew you things to come. John 16:13 (KJV)

When we let the Holy Spirit guide us and have His way in us, it produces fruit. The fruit of  the Spirit seen in Galatians 5:22-23 can be seen as the different aspects of the character of Jesus Christ. The fruit of the Spirit portrays who Jesus is and who we are called to be. We are called to be loving, joyful, to have self control, etc.  As we let God have His way in our lives, we become more like Jesus and we are conformed to the image of Christ.

Let the Holy Spirit speak to you and lead you into all truth.

The Secret Place

What is the secret place?

The secret place is where you spend time with God, just you and Him alone. It is the place where you talk with God and you begin to know Him through His Word and His Spirit. It is the place where you encounter God on an individual basis and as you encounter Him, you become more like Him.

As Christians, we need to know the one that we serve, the one that we worship and adore. The only way we can do this is if we spend time with God. Spend time in His Word and in prayer. As we begin to do this, we would know who God is and who He has called us to be.

But you, when you pray, go into your room and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Matthew 6:6 (NKJV)

The way that we get to know people is by talking with them, finding out who they are and what they like and what they don't like. It is same way that we get to know God. We talk to Him through prayer and we find out who He is through His Word.

In Luke 6:12, it says that Jesus went out into the mountain and prayed all night to God. Jesus the Son of God took time out of His day to go to a quiet place to pray to God. The one who knew no sin, saw that it was important to spend time with His Father. If Jesus can spend time with God in prayer, why can't we?

It says in Romans 8:29, "...He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son that He might be the firstborn among many brethren." This means that we should be Christlike and have the mind of Christ. We should take the example of Jesus to heart.

Spending time in the secret place should not come out of obligation but out of a desire to know God and to draw closer to Him. Set out a time that you can pray and read God's Word and become a dweller of the secret place.

O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the cliff,
Let me see your face, let me hear your voice. For your voice is sweet and your face is lovely. Song of Solomon 2:14 (NKJV)

Let the secret place become your home! 

Patience

Do you have those times when you are in the line at the cashier and the person in front of you has a lot of items and then they have a credit or debit card and that makes it even longer and you can't even go to another line or those times when you are waiting for the bus and it seems like you have been waiting forever?

 In these times, it may seem so hard to be patient and to just wait till the person is done or for the bus to come but we should be patient. We should strive to be patient in every situation. 

 

But you O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.1 Timothy 6:11 (NKJV)

In the scripture above, it says to pursue patience. Patience should be something that we long to have and that we strive to be. Not only should we be patient in the natural things but also as it relates to God. They are times when we have to wait on God and be patient because His ways are different from our ways. God knows what is the best for us.

Wait on the Lord, be of good courage and He shall strengthen your heart.Wait, I say, on the Lord! Psalms 27:14 (NKJV)

In Acts 1:4, Jesus told the disciples to wait for the promise of the Father. As the disciples waited for the promise in the upper room, they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. If the disciples had not waited for the promise, they probably would have never been filled with the Holy Spirit. It is very important to wait because if you don't, you may ended up doing the wrong thing.

I waited patiently for the Lord and He inclined to me and heard my cry. Psalms 40:1 (NKJV)

So in everything, be patient whether it is standing in a line or waiting on God. Be patient!

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

In our lives, we always have decisions to make. We will always have to make a choice whether it is to go to a certain place or not indulge in certain company. God has given us a free will but there are times when it seems that these decisions are hard to make and you just don't know which direction to go.

In Proverbs 1:7, it says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. If we fear God, we have knowledge and wisdom. In these decisions that we have to make, we should ask God for wisdom and direction. He will instruct us and guide us on the right path, the path that is best for us.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go

I will guide you with My eye. Psalms 32:8 (NKJV)

One of the ways that God guides us is through His Word. His Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path (Psalms 119:105).  His Word is true, just and it will remain. By reading His Word, we get an idea of what He desires us to be as His sons and what He desires us to do in the earth. Every decision that we make should bring glory and honour unto God.

The Holy Spirit also guides us into what we should do. He guides us into all truth (John 16:13). The Holy Spirit is our guide, our comforter and our teacher.

For this is God, Our God forever and ever
He will be our guide even to death. Psalms 48:14 (NKJV)

Heavenly Father, I ask that You would guide us into all truth. That You would give us wisdom and understanding in every decision that we would have to make. I ask that You would order our steps in Your Word. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Trusting in Difficult Situations

Have you ever been in a situation where you just had to trust God no matter the outcome?

Recently I was at a concert where the electricity went off for the majority of the event and only came back on when it was coming to the end. Through the concert, I was praying to God asking Him to bring back on the electricity for the sake of the artistes. The whole time I was focusing on the situation rather than on God.

I then realized that there was no point in focusing on the electricity but rather to focus on God, to set my affection on things above (Colossians 3:2). It came to me that I had to put my full trust in God even when the circumstances seemed like they weren't going to change. I had to set my gaze on God and stop worrying about what could happen or what should happen. I had to surrender my cares and my burden to Him even as it says in 1 Peter 5:7 (NKJV)

   casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

So we should cast all our cares and burdens upon Him because He cares for us, loves us and does not want us to worry about anything. He says in Matthew 11:28-30 that His yoke is easy and His burden is light and He says to take His yoke upon us.

It may be hard at first to put all of our trust in God but God knows what is best for each and every one of us. He knows the past, the present and the future. His ways are higher than our ways.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding 
In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)