STAND TALL AND BE COUNTED!

A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him since Jesus was coming that way. Luke 19:2-4

For a couple of months now, the story of Zacchaeus has been lingering on my mind. I had planned to write on it sometime in early October last year, but I kept pushing it aside. But the Holy Spirit kept at it and hence I had to surrender.

For the most part, his story might seem far removed from our own reality. But looking closer… you realize that in so many ways than one his story is mostly like your story! Lets face it, Zacchaeus had much going against him than for him. He was public enemy number one; a tax collector. He was short; everyone around him had a better view…meaning he had to do with the second-hand eyewitness account of what was happening around him. He was a curious man; he wanted to see who Jesus was…not so much as to know him as a friend but rather as the new kid on the block. And above all, he was a wealthy man.

Let’s face it. In life, you and I will encounter difficult situations. Like Zacchaeus, you may suffer from many shortcomings not of your own making…but others which are self-made. You may be limited by a physical, emotional or mental disability which continually hinder your progress. But God is saying to you and I today… GO THE EXTRA MILE and I will meet you along the way. Use what is at your disposal  to gain what you are missing. Like Zacchaeus… there is a sycamore tree for each and everyone of us. Climb yours… STAND TALL AND BE COUNTED. Jesus is coming your way!

NOEL TO YOU ALL!

Unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:6

THE DWELLING PLACE

If you make the Most High your dwelling- even the Lord, who is my refuge- then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near you. Psalm 91:9-10

The other day I got to read Psalm 91 but incredibly it was the two verses above that drew my attention. For most of us Psalms 91 speaks volumes. But for me… in a different way God made me see another point: THE DWELLING PLACE and my choice in it either as a permanent residence or an occasional visitor.

You see, when things are going our way, our plans are following into place, our enemies are at peace with us… we tend to stray away from our DWELLING PLACE. We find pleasure in other temporary places which seem to offer the best deals and service. There seems to be no danger around us.

Then trouble strikes! We are bruised and broken. Then we remember…yes, there was a place for hiding. There was a shelter in SOMEONE greater than our troubles. What the Lord wanted me to understand was; as His Child, my home was with and in Him. I am not a guest but a permanent residence in His DWELLING PLACE. But I have to make the choice to stay and enjoy all the benefits that comes with the place.

Maybe like me, you have strayed from THE DWELLING PLACE. COME BACK HOME… the FATHER IS WAITING!!!!

A SAVOURY FRIENDSHIP

When the men got up to leave, they looked down towards Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? Genesis 18:16-17

These words… “Shall I hide… seemed to have struck a deep cord when I read them once again this morning. I mean… this is God thinking and thinking aloud for that matter! What He was about to do to Sodom was already decided…but there was a moment of hesitation. God wasn’t about to surprise Abraham with the aftershocks of the destroyed Sodom. No…He hesitated. Why? Because what He had with Abraham was special. It was a SAVOURY FRIENDSHIP! A friendship which was pleasant and enjoyable. Yes…God enjoyed His friendship with Abraham more than Abraham could every know. His opinion on what God was about to do mattered. His suggestions or requests were not lightly taken into consideration.

Lets go down the ages…. its you and me. God is thinking…He is thinking aloud for that matter! But….have we heard what He is planning to do? Much of what I read in the Bible is God thinking aloud. He is still the same God who wants to enjoy A SAVOURY FRIENDSHIP with us His children. He is not will to do things before He passes the message to His children. He desires to hear our opinion in the matter. He is willing to stoop further than we can every imagine. What He was willing to do for Abraham inspite of Sodom’s great sin…He is willing to do for us…inspite of the fallen world we live in.

Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?” He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.” Genesis 18:32

God is willing. Are you?

PRAY FOR JERUSALEM!

I have posted watchmen on your wall, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth. Isaiah 62:6-7

There is one thing that Jerusalem is not … not yet – THE PRAISE OF THE EARTH. But it’s just a matter of time and what we only read in the Bible will one day become  a FACT. Yes…. JERUSALEM. Its now a little over a week when the Lord first impressed these words into my heart. Of course, I pray for Jerusalem. But it’s an off and on kind of praying. I pray when I remember or  when I see unrest in the Middle East.

The Lord began showing me His desire…. for a FULL HOUSE.

Salvation first belongs to the Jew, then to the Gentile. The bread is for the children and the breadcrumbs are for the others. The glory is theirs, the light of revelation is ours. You see, without a FULL HOUSE, we cannot quite grasps the fullness of GOD. Until JERUSALEM is established….we are not there yet. Pray for her…. PRAY FOR JERUSALEM.… the City of God .

 

 

 

THE GUILT OF INNOCENCE

“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. But the tax collect stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven but beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me, a sinner.’ Luke 18:10-13

We are all guilty of it. An assumed sense of INNOCENCE…even before God who in actual fact knows more than we are willing to give or acknowledge. It all started in the Garden of Eden. Adam was so over the moon when God brought him the most beautiful thing he had ever seen – Eve, his wife. For the first time in his existence, he had found someone who truly resembled and complimented him in many ways. His appreciation of her is fully seen in his words:

“This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman’ for she was taken out of man.” Genenis 2:23

But its not long after those words are declared do we see a sudden change of heart. Eve is not all she seems to be, Adam tries his best to convince God. Of course, she is quilty and he can only be GUILTY OF INNOCENCE …. “This woman you put here with me – she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Gen 3:12

Just like Adam, it is so easy to full into that trap of the guilt of innocence. We look at ourselves with a less critical eye but we are quick to judge others and pass on a deadly sentence. We are the first to pick the stone of condemnation … yet in reality we are guilt of a greater sin than the guilt one. As Jesus reminds us in the above parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, it is always safe to stand before God as the GUILTY ONE and find mercy than play safe with the GUILT OF INNOCENCE and find only condemnation.

The choice is always yours!

A HEART CENSOR

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 18:14

A censor according to Oxford dictionary is: person authorizedo to examine letters, books and films etc…, and remove or ban anything regarded as harmful.

We live in a fallen world. It doesn’t take you a day or two before you hear that someone somewhere has just put themselves in the spotlight because of the words of their mouth. Yes….the WORDS OF THEIR MOUTH. Most of what is publicized or receives much public attention is when words are overly used or abused.  One wrong sentence or phrase and one’s life is suddenly ruined or permanently damaged.

It is interesting to note that most of us are careless with our words from time to time. And hence,  our greatest efforts to be courteous and civil are always being put to the test. For example, after being married for a while, a couple suddenly begins to be careless with their words. Before long, words that were unthinkable get exchanged in the hit of the moment. Teen children begin talking back to their parents etc.

But the Psalmist did not trust in his own ability to always keep his cool. He needed a HEART CENSOR. He needed the Lord to examine his heart and his words. He allowed the Lord’s full access into his heart’s affairs because he understood that when  God had access then only good could come out from his mouth. If you and I could allow the HEART CENSOR into our hearts today, we will removed all those little and seemingly harmless ways that can still cause much pain and heartache when not dealt with sooner.

Its my prayer that you and I will allow our hearts to go through the test because at the end…there is always a reward for a censored heart!

The tongue has the power of lifeand death, and those who love it will eat of its fruit. Proverbs 18:21

 

THE ONLY GUARANTEE

No-one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU NOR FORSAKE YOU. Joshua 1:5

A Guarantee according to my Oxford dictionary is: formal promise to do something or that a thing is of specified quality and durability; thing offered as security.

It is just a little over 2 years when my family up stakes and moved from my husband’s home country, Poland and headed west to England in the UK. The excitement and hope we carried along with us was unprecedented. Of course, we had SOMEONE going before us to prepare the way.  Like Joshua’s time, we had done our homework. We had allowed ourselves to spy on the land we were going to settle in. And the report was all good.

But alas, as soon as we got off the bus…we were all on our own! There was no-one to meet us on the other side. We didn’t know where to start to begin us.  With limited resources in our pockets, we did eventually manage to get accomodation albeit with much difficulties attached to it. The challenge of looking for jobs and with money quickly running out made matters more complicated.

At the back of my mind….there was always the thoughts of GOD….yes, GOD. But…it wasn’t GOD as I had come to know Him. You see, faced with all these challenges, I couldn’t understand why God couldn’t come through when we need Him the most. My Father seemed as if He had failed to keep His word; I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU NOR FORSAKE YOU.

But… truth be told. He was there. He was there when I questioned; He was there when my husband got his first job…and 2 months later, I joined him. He was there when we moved into our first house on our own; He was there when dad fell ill and later went to be with the Lord a couple of months later. He was there when I doubted His ability to deliver and above all… He was there to meet me on the OTHER END.

As a child of God, I now realised that His GUARANTEE does not cover me  from pain, death, lack, destruction and all kinds of adversity. His ONLY GUARANTEE is a continual everlasting presence from the beginning, in-between and at the end of whatever life brings my way. Read Romans 8:35-39 and be encouraged.

He is a covenant keeping God!

THOSE ANXIOUS THOUGHTS

Psalms 139:23-24 Search me , O God and know my heart: test me and know MY ANXIOUS THOUGHTS. See if there is any offensive way in me; and lead me in the way everlasting.

We all experience ANXIOUS THOUGHTS from time to time…if not most of the time. In the world we live in, we have been so accustomed to hearing negative and most often the pessimistic point of view that we have come to accept this as the norm. It is normal to think about the future…and of course plan forward. But of late, the Lord has been reminding me of the simple principle…TODAY HAS ENOUGH TROUBLE OF ITS OWN. Yes…those ANXIOUS THOUGHTS, long hours of sleepless nights will not and cannot change a thing.

As a baby Christian, it was easier to let go of those anxious thought…and trust MY DADDY for today. But as time pass by, as a mature Christian… I take charge of many things and like the foolish Galatians…I start mixing my faith with works. I feel the need to help God with my tomorrow. And hence….THOSE ANXIOUS THOUGHTS. Maybe that’s you. Maybe….like me you need to have BABY THOUGHTS but A MATURE HEART.  God wants us to have peace. To rest assured that the sky will always be blue, the water will always be colourless and yes…GOD WILL ALWAYS BE FAITHFUL to meet us in our tomorrow.

Friend…let THOSE ANXIOUS THOUGHTS rest!

TOUCH MY SCARS

John 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hands and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

It is with no doubt the most overly used phrase when referring to a person who needs the convincing before they jump into the boat. Yes…doubting Thomas of course. But this last Easter, I was once again reminded that doubting Thomas needed not be the one who met Jesus in flesh and blood. Countless of times, I have needed the convincing and persuading that HIS SCARS are for real. Like Thomas, I realised that when Jesus had asked him to reach out and TOUCH HIS SCARS…it wasn’t to condemn him or call him unfaithful. But rather He was asking Thomas to believe inspite of…what He had witness a few days earlier.

Maybe thats you…Jesus is asking you to TOUCH HIS SCARS. Jesus is giving you the access to see the evidence of His pain, His passion, His love, His forgiveness and His lovingkindness which He gave willing at the Cross of Calvary. I needed to TOUCH HIS SCARS today. What about you?