Human love - super romantic and amazing!

Sometimes it is hard to give up on something you love - especially when that impinges on your family or your life in so many different ways - even though you may love what you do, it may be detrimental to everything else.

I was so affected by family commitments and illnesses that I had to seriously reconsider what I should do to improve what I had and assist those I love when necessary.

Even though, I seemingly, enjoyed what I did - I feel God had other plans for my life - these plans came hurtling out of the blue, bowling me over and changing the direction of my life entirely.

But when God is in charge of your life, His plans are best.

How about you?

How has your life been?

Has your life been changed in any way at all? 

I can't help thinking about the war in Ukraine or what is happening in Iraq and Iran. Things again came hurtling out of the blue for these people changing their lives in so many ways.

Another horrible thing that has happened here in Australia is the flooding - through the long wet Autumn, the weather has been so so wet and so many people have lost their belongings, homes, and even family members - it's been heart-rending - it really has.

It seems to me that disaster strikes throughout the world in so many different ways it's mind-blowing, to say the least. Not sure about you but it makes me wonder where it is all going and whatever will happen in the immediate future of this planet!

You know not one of us can or ever will be able to think and act like our Creator God - he is omnipresent, omnipotent, and perfect in every way - again I repeat that not one of us will ever be able to fathom His greatness or plans for this wayward planet of ours.

I reckon it all goes back to the very of creation when Adam and Eve, our forebears, decided to bring sin into the world - up till then the world was a perfect place - humming along in all of its beauty.

Many will say then why didn't Creator God keep it like that?

Well, in my humble opinion, God wanted humankind to come to him in all openness, love, and faith, so He gave us all a will to decide what we were going to do with our lives - otherwise, we would have been like robots, waddling along doing as we were told and having no mind of our own.

That wasn't what our Lord had in mind at all.

He wanted us to come to Him of our own accord, bringing with us love, patience with one another, kindness, humility, and a genuine love of our Father God above all else.

So how do we go about loving God? - Do we just say we love God and wham! there we go?

I feel that to be truly in love with our Lord then the first thing we should do is let's see what it says in the Bible.

Jesus himself said - "you must love God the Father with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength." (Mark 12:30) 

We should be loving God more than we do our parents, and children, in fact, everything - God's love is an all-embracing, amazing, and powerful love - something that is unheard of here on earth. 

Our mortal love is great and wonderful and can be super romantic and amazing - yet God's love and our love for Him even surpass this - so hard to even put into words. His love for us never ever falters or fails. So unlike our human kind of love.

God IS love! I know we would like to think that well "so are we" but you and I both know that there is no way we can show others continual and eternal love constantly because we are just that - we are human.

God Himself became flesh in Jesus and was crucified for our sins and in so doing paid the price for our sins. 

Our lives are unfortunately sin-based but Jesus came to earth as a human and paid the ultimate price - through a hideous and torturous death to pay for our sins so that all of us who come to God in repentance and faith can accept Him as our Lord and God.

That love that Jesus showed that day far outstrips any human-type love that we show to others - His love is unconditional and absolutely something that no person here on earth can or ever could possess.

So what do we do to become a follower of Jesus, leaving all the yahoo of this crazy world behind and seeing Jesus for who He REALLY is - The only one who can wash us clean from all the yuk and dirt and bring us to His Creator Father. 

So what does repentance mean? It means being sorry for all the stupid things we have done - those times when we hurt someone - became vengeful, set out to "get our own back",  maybe even hit out in all sorts of unique and different ways. Even being adamant about how you live and will not be open to others' suggestions and ideas - after all, you are in charge of your life and will live it according to your rules - everyone else should follow your example!

All sorts of ways we can separate ourselves from God and all of these myriad ways are called sin. God is love and His love and mercy want us all, regardless of what we have done or who we have hurt, or even who we have slept with, to come to Him in unity and humility and of course repentance.

Once we have come to God and asked his amazing forgiveness, does that mean we will never fall into the same old traps again? Of course not! We are human after all and we will continue to make mistakes time and time again.

But the beautiful thing about asking God to lead us is that He will convict us of what we have done wrong and immediately we will need to put it right. That may even involve asking forgiveness and even apologising to whoever we have hurt in the meantime (even if we may feel we are well and truly in the right here).

In saying all of that, getting right with God gives us a freedom we never knew existed - His love amazingly overrules everything that ever stands in our way - we are free to come to our Lord with anything and everything. Even through the night, He stands with us regardless of what we have gone through, even the worries of the day that used to keep us awake at night - we can hand them over to our Lord.

Come to Him right now - it really doesn't matter what your past has been - He will accept and love you no matter what.

Ask Him into your life and hand it over to Him.

God bless you this week.

Download the app

We live in a world of "apps".

Up until just a few years ago the word  APP was probably never used - it is amazing how it has taken over.

Today in the 2020s and beyond it has become the normality - it has taken over entirely.

All these fantastic search engines are available "Free Christian apps - Christian apps for Bible studies - Christian apps for adults - Best free Christian apps for adults" - and the list goes on Infinitum. Of course, all the thousands of others covering a myriad of subjects are mind-blowing. Who would ever have thought it?

There's an app pretty much for everything these days so it makes perfect sense that there would also be some very helpful apps for Christians.

Well, in Jesus's time here on earth there were no apps. He (Jesus) preached the word, and healed the sick and dying. He caused a lot of ruckuses but most people flocked to Him. he was the most amazing person to come out of the lowly town of Nazareth ever.

Our God is a mighty God - and He didn't even have a mobile phone - His attributes and His Word are still broadcast today in a million different ways across the globe. God does not change. Who He is never changes. His attributes are the same from before the beginning of time into eternity.

Before creation, God was already there - before even time God was already there. He is mighty, self-sufficient, independent, loving, righteous and the list goes on.

Phil Wickham sang this amazing song - his version of Amazing Grace. Love this verse:-

"Who breaks the power of sin and darkness?

Whose love is mighty and so much stronger?

The King of Glory, the king above all kings"

No matter what you have done or who you are or how guilty you feel, God isn't mad at you.

He is SO willing to forgive you, He died for you to pay the ultimate price for your sins and mine - all you have to do is hand your life over to Him,- the change in your life will be absolutely astronomical - I know - believe me! - I was so lost in sin - you just couldn't take it in! 

Forget what the world is saying about God and also forget what you are telling yourself about your failures and what a complete mess you have made of your life. Tune into His word and believe what He says.

It is so easy to listen to what others say about you and it is so easy to believe them. Your feelings can change from moment to moment - and the world out there will love to tell you you're just not good enough for God - you are way too "out there" for Him.

Well, believe me when I say that God has seen it all there is absolutely nothing he hasn't seen, heard, or dealt with. My personal life can jump up and scream how true that is - If He can forgive me then He can forgive anyone!

Well, saying all of that - Just how are we able to even come close to God?

In Romans 3:22 - "We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are."

That's pretty awesome if you ask me - NO MATTER WHO WE ARE OR EVEN WHAT WE HAVE DONE!!

And it all revolves around what Jesus did on that cross all those years ago. He took the scourging, the nails, the sword in the side, the crown of thorns, the mocking, the jeering, the spitting, the insults!

WHY? Because of His love for YOU! - Yes YOU!

God will forgive you completely and freely if you come to Him, confess your sin and accept His Son Jesus's amazing gift of freedom that He paid on that wicked cross all those years ago.

In Romans 8:38-39 "For I am sure that neither death, life, angels, rulers, things present, things to come, powers, height, depth or anything else in all of creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord"

How incredible is this verse? Read it again and again - take it into your very soul and let it take your life and mold it to our everlasting father.

Then how about this in Jeremiah 29: 11-13

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for good and not for evil. To give you hope and a future. CALL UPON ME AND COME AND PRAY TO ME AND I WILL HEAR YOU. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with ALL of your heart."

How about that for a promise! I will hear you says our Lord and God - seek Him with all of your heart.

If you accept Jesus into your life and heart everything you have ever done wrong will be forgiven at that time.

What a great honour it is to write this blog. Being a child of the Great King Jesus I have had this honour to share my faith here in my blog to you my readers.

If you are in pain, if you are suffering with huge regretfulness in your life (like I was) or maybe overloaded with guilt or shame can I in all sincerity point you to the one who can heal you of all of this - Jesus Christ!

When you read this blog may you get a huge taste of God's never dying never ending love for you. May you reach out to His love and take into your life His unflinching and undying grace that saves.

May God go with you this week and, personally, I look so forward to writing more and more blogs as I share with you just How God is working in my life.

If you can, please share with me your own thoughts and maybe too if you have any questions that I may be able to assist with, please contact me.

God's richest blessings be with you this coming week

I Can Only Imagine

 MERCY ME  - What a group - how amazing are they - love their songs and the group is so devoted to our God - How tremendous!

Love the lyrics of their original I CAN ONLY IMAGINE - makes me really wonder what it will be like when we come before the Lord or Glory - the very Majesty of God, I feel, will be enough for us to almost melt in His presence.

Just listening to this song by MERCY ME got me thinking about how really mesmerizing and majestic is our Lord God - and really what sort of reverence we pay Him while we are here on this very earth that He created. Bit mind-blowing isn't it.

Like in the second verse of their song, the guys from MERCY ME ask "what will it be like when we get to Heaven? - How will my heart feel? - Will I dance? Will I be still standing in Awe of God almighty or will I fall on my knees? Will I sing? Will I be able to talk at all?"

A thousand different questions but in my mind, the thing that stands out for me is that we will be in the presence of the Creator God and Jesus His son who died for us. The very thought makes me consider just how much reverence I am showing to God while I am here on earth?

So these things considered what does the Bible say about showing reverence to God and just how much will it affect our living?  And how about going about our daily activities? Does reverence for God have or should have some sort of impact on our lives?

The Bible uses the word FEAR a lot when talking about our relationship with God and many times over the years I have heard people say "Oh No! We shouldn't fear God - He is our friend and Buddy". 

To revere God (have reverence for Him) is in fact, in my opinion, fearing Him - having a horrible fear of displeasing Him. We should be standing in awe of God, of His sheer holiness, not wanting to disappoint Him in our lives. Honestly, I seem to do that enough, going through my personal life and never considering our God, the very Holiest of Holiest.

I/we need to get a grip here! God is the very essence of Holiness. So very holy in fact that we mere mortals can never get into the presence of God. His awesome holiness says that He cannot even look at sin. Not sure about you, but I seem to be the very essence of sin.

The only way we can come into the presence of God is by accepting the very gift of Jesus - who took our sins on Himself and dealt with them on that hill all those years ago.

This means that when we as Christians, who have accepted Jesus into our lives, finally come before the Lord God Almighty, His very holiness will look at us, and rather than seeing the horrible mess we have made throughout our lives, He will see Jesus. The one spotless and sinless only Son of God. Whose very sacrifice on Calvary covered our sin-drenched lives but, again, only if we decide in our waywardness to accept the perfect gift of salvation he offers.

So in lots of ways, how can we show any reverence for God while we are stuck here in this old bullet-flying, fire-starting, drought-stricken, flood-prone, crazy, mixed-up world when all around us everything seems to be going out of control?

I feel our very humility in the fact that we, while we are here on earth before that great day comes when we either pass from life to death or when Jesus comes again in all His amazing glory, is the time when we are so privileged to be able to be fully aware of being reverent to our God.

Psalm 89 verse 7 says (from the New Living Translation)

"The highest angelic powers stand in awe of God. he is far more awesome than all who surround his throne"

So if the very angelic powers in Heaven stand in amazing awe of God, surely we sin-bound mere mortals can do the same. Mind you, it will take some doing!

It won't come easy for us, because every single day we are confronted with this mixed-up world of ours - we constantly need to be putting bread on the table - constantly having to pay the bills - constantly hearing of the atrocities of so-called world powers fighting and bombing other countries - constantly being confronted with murder, rape, brutality, and thieving - constantly dealing with death, illness and family crisis.

That is why it is so essential to FIX our eyes on God at all times no matter what comes barging into our lives. Keeping our eyes on God gives us control over our reactions which in itself is pretty extraordinary.

God can give us a fantastic arm to lean on in THE most horrendous times we ever go through. In 2 Timothy 1 verse 7 it says:- "For God gave us a spirit NOT of fear but of power and love and self-control."

If God is prepared to do that for us, surely we can accept His amazing gifts with fortitude, gratitude, and utmost love and appreciation.

I truly believe that if for some reason I lose the very essence of reverence and in fact awe of God then I really do put in jeopardy my faith which would eventually dwindle away - God is far more to me than singing love songs and becoming besties.

My amazing Saviour, friend and awesome (in the true sense of the word AWESOME) King is continually there for me and is near me even when I am oppressed and weak. 

I doubt I would be able to stand up to the world today in all of its conflicts and strange happenings if not for the steadfast and continual support of my amazing King and Savior. He is with me constantly even on the nights when things often go pearshaped for me

If I am constantly not in awe of God and His amazing mercies towards me, probably one of THE more terrible sinners, I will not be able to proceed with the ongoing journey through this maze we call life.

Trusting in God for strength and relying constantly on his love brings me an appreciation and a real reverence for Him. All of this only adds to my constant awe of God.

I am so undeserving of His love - The fact that He died for me and sinners just like me is the very sole reason I stand in awe of His holy name.

Heaven, Jesus, Almighty God, and Hell are all real - please DO NOT realize this fact too late! The opportunity to hand our lives over to Jesus and trust Him is right here right now and is open to you. Accept and trust Him today.

Proverbs Chapter 3 verses 5 & 6:-

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight

God bless you and may you have a real encounter with our Lord and Saviour.

In The Eye of the Storm

Well, it's been quite a few years since updating my blog, and God has worked in my life in numerous ways since then.

I have surely missed my time here and I hope to be able to maybe spend more time getting back to drawing closer to God and maybe getting my experiences with Him down in my blog on a more regular basis than I have in these last few years (before going off to work that is).

My life changed quite a bit when my son-in-law was diagnosed with cancer and my daughter had to make a decision to become the wage earner of the family. 

It was very much like being in the Eye of the Storm - waiting for the inevitable - praying and hoping that things would work out for the good.

Through all of the unknown and in an amazing turnaround and through all of the turmoil, she went into her own business, and unbeknown to me I was suddenly caught up in the whirlpool of her business ventures hence the postponement of my blog each couple of weeks.

Isn't it amazing how God works! - who would have thought my 'very loved' son-in-law going through those horrendous times would have had such a marked effect on so many of our lives - his diagnosis was truly horrible and yet at the same time, such changes have marked such a turning point in so many of our lives.

When you consider what is happening in our topsy-turvy world, our problems sort of fade into insignificance yet God overall continues to work in countless people's lives - so praise to our wonderful King. Sometimes it takes a disaster on a scale we hadn't even thought possible to jolt us into a continuing walk with God - our Creator and wonderful Lord.

Continuing pain, ignorance, and obvious discomfort can really throw us off the mat so many times - we can be walking through life feeling so comfortable and everything seems so rosy in our gardens then WHAM! we are thrown into the deep end of life  - so you really never know when a curved ball is coming your way.

Talking personally, I can become so engrossed in my own life, my own self and unfortunately I can become quite selfish. Alarming really when it comes right down to it - isn't it?

So having a bit of a sit-down and taking life a tad more seriously, and really thinking about it, it is far more important, that no matter how difficult things in life can be, it is NEVER EVER an excuse for being disrespectful, or can I add presumptuous with God. 

I have probably been THE most presumptuous person that God has ever come into contact with - I have just presumed he will always forgive me whatever happens - so it is good to sit down just for a tad and rethink where I am and where we are with God right at this minute.

So where are you with God? Where am I?

Certainly, in my opinion, we can be frank with God and we can pour out our troubles our confusion, and our struggles in life to Him. 

But always keep in mind that God deserves our utmost reverence, always standing in awe of who He is and what He deserves of us.

In other words - quite frankly - with God, we need to remember our place!

God is our Father, our friend, and our Confidant, and our ever-companion, He is the source of all wisdom - so we need to get to know God for who He is, respect, and show our love to Him in many numerous ways.

The very highlight of God's wisdom was the very fact that He showed His great love to us in that He sent His only son Jesus into our mixed-up world. It is through Jesus that we can fully know God.

I reckon the way to negotiate our way through this funny old life is to get to know Jesus in a very personal and individual way.

When a disaster hits us, and it will, we can throw our hands up in the air and cry out "why is this happening to me?" Or we can take huge deep breaths, get a grip on life, start trusting God, and instead of blaming Him, realise that since this is happening, how can I use it to know Him better?

Through all of my own personal struggles, I have realised that life in general, no matter what it throws at you is all about staying close to God, and trusting Him even in the bad times and when disaster hits us.

I reckon that staying close to God is far more valuable than giving up or blaming Him.

With those thoughts firmly in our minds, it's with such sadness that I recall one of our clients who recently gave birth six weeks prematurely. The child has spent the last seven weeks in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, only being discharged just a few days ago.

Seriously cute, the baby seems to be thriving but Mum who has been through a horrible time is now suffering from Postnatal Depression - the whole situation is so sad.

All of us are so susceptible we are so open to the world's pressures, and we all can experience grief, intense sadness, and emptiness on more and more profound levels. We may begin to withdraw from any social activities and from the activities we normally participate in during our daily lives.

Sounds terrible, doesn't it. but in many ways being separate or on one's own for a while, in my opinion, can often help in times of intense stress.

Through all of this and I believe not just PND but all sorts of depressive illnesses God never ever lets you go if you have given your life to Him.

Getting professional help in times like this is very very necessary and certainly can bump us out of the deepest pit of depression and sadness. It may take quite some time but through sheer perseverance and hopefully, with the continued prayers, support, and love of family, friends, and other people, we can survive this. 

We don't need to suffer in silence, firstly we need to pray and keep on praying. Then we really do need help - talking to professional people or even our friends and relatives can often be of great assistance.

I guess the great news is that there are all sorts of medical and psychological help out there, It may not happen immediately but depression can be helped. Keep your eyes firmly on Jesus - he is the Author and finisher of our faith.

I am so reminded of this verse in Deuteronomy 31:8

"The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Keep looking to Jesus, friends - May God go with you this week, and may His richest blessings be with you and yours.

The Return of the king

Loved the Lord of the Rings - The Return of the KING!!

"The eye of the enemy is moving - the end has come - Frodo moves closer to Mordor - It is time - give him the sword of the king - claim who were born to be"

WOW!!! Gives me chills - the return of the king saw the gruesome end of Saruman the once great powerful wizard and finally corrupted by his desire to own THE ring.

The end of Sauron the amazing dark Lord and maker of the THE ring

The end of the trolls those horrible and nasty protectors all out to receive THE ring and so it goes on.

So what does a king do to those who rebel against him.

In days gone by and history records it vividly there was no going back once you were labelled a traitor to the King - there was no hope for you - none whatever.

Why on the 8th February 1587 Queen Elizabeth 1 executed her cousin Mary Queen of Scots and this year marks the 432nd anniversary of that dreaded time. Bad and cruel times indeed all in the name of power, intrigue, lies and mayhem. It took three whacks with the axe to finally decapitate the young Queen of Scots. I trust Elizabeth could rest easy after that.

If you were labelled a traitor as was the beleaguered Mary, you were imprisoned, tortured and finally executed in the most abhorrent ways ever thought of by a human mind.

Kings have been named and famed for years and years - cities and countries lost and gained throughout history by wayward kings and queens - overthrowing their enemies left and right to gain the power of the King/Queen.

But God has named His king: Jesus Christ Himself. Those who continue in rebellion against King Jesus have another fate in store which we will discuss a little later on.

Jesus as King gave His life so that we didn't have to - His love was far greater, more far reaching, more immense than anything that we have encountered. His love was SO great that he died to make us alive.

Jesus was labelled a traitor, a rebel, a blasphemer and a rabble rouser. He was tortured and nailed to a cross to die in abject horror and excruciating pain. He was mocked and scourged, flogged and ridiculed yet he did it for us anyway.

Today the majority of people choose not to accept Christ - they mock him and treat His saving power as a falsehood - a myth - a fantasy to be believed by the 'tooth fairy crowd' just like they did on that day at Calvary over 2000 years ago

Christians and believers are treated with a growing pessimism and yes even hatred - Christians have been hounded over the centuries and today it seems to be getting worse with more and more countries bowing to the lies of the enemy in the name of tolerance - all very sad because so many even in our own families giving into the watering down of the faith that saved them originally.

Many strange and wayward thinking contradicting the Bible has surfaced and re-surfaced again and again ad-nauseum. Many today don't believe that Jesus rose from the dead as foretold many times in the old testament - many years before Jesus came and died for us.

Many refuse to believe in hell! A place described again and again as the place where all non-believers and haters of God are going to end up for eternity. It's so easy to live life in your own little world if you believe you are just going to die and that's that. Jesus Himself talks about an eternity without Him.  Mark 9:43.

The latest I have personally heard is that many Christians believe that evangelising is wrong - so much for Jesus saying "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel"  Mark 16:15.

There are still many who believe in rituals to come to Jesus - eg You must do certain things you must go certain places, you must eat certain foods on certain days, you must bow down to statues and keep lots of rules and regulations and if you don't Jesus will turn His back on you

So you can see that there are many falsehood surrounding Christianity and many believe that the Bible is a myth and Jesus never came at all.

Whatever the reasons many reject Jesus, their rejection according to the Word of God will have disastrous effects and eternal consequences.

This in Acts 4:12 Jesus is the only name under heaven by which men and women can be saved ie Jesus is the ONLY way - there is no other.

Then again Matthew 25:30 which I will let you read for yourself describes utter anguish for those who reject Him and it's for eternity!

Honestly!! If you feel like you have blown it with Jesus - If you feel you are just TOO far gone and nothing you can do will make God love you and forgive you, then I have great news for you and there is still great hope for you right now even as you may be reading this blog.

No matter what you have done you can't erase His love and what Jesus did for you on Calvary all those years ago.

Right now there has never been a better time for you get honest with God and yourself  - there has never been a better time to ask forgiveness of God - run to the cross and claim His love and mercy for yourself.'

No matter what you have done - no matter who you have been with - who you may have cheated - who you may have hurt - what you have taken from someone - no matter what you have been through and the list goes on  - While you still have breath IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO COME TO CHRIST.

Ask His forgiveness today, repent of your past and be washed clean through the very sacrifice of Jesus who paid for your sins in the past, right now and in the future.

Yes! we all fail - we will never be perfect until Jesus comes again BUT he has left us an amazing legacy of continuing forgiveness and repentance.

AND YES!!! Jesus is COMING AGAIN - Yes! Our King is coming back.

Are you ready for Him or are you going to be left behind to face the consequences?

Come to Him right now - Our King is the King of the impossible - no matter that you have doubts or just how HUGE they are are, or just how little your faith is - He died for YOU and loves you and is waiting for you to come to Him right now.

God bless you this week as you consider just where you stand with Jesus.

When life takes a hideous detour

How  do we cope when things go radically wrong??

People, events, attitude and even the weather can change our lives in often dramatic ways - things we never even thought of before can come thumping into our lives in the most unexpected ways and times. Things that can floor you and change your life forever.

Thinking along these lines my hearts and thoughts go to the horrific murder of a young women and her 2 year daughter in 2008.

The murders ripped the very soul out of the small town where they lived and because it was murder and also of the sheer brutality of both I doubt the family will ever be the same again.

So how do you cope when life takes a hideous detour?
It is certainly way too hard to lose a  loved one anyway, but to add a brutal murder to the events of death the complexities become 100% deeper because of denial and shock.

Murder, and again I am thinking of this particular shocking one, is especially horrifying because another person, a third person, felt that your loved one's life was worth nothing and took innocence and through their own decision blotted it out.

The very shock of losing a dear one, a friend or acquaintance grabs hold of you immediately and leaves you totally devastated.

I guess after the shock comes anger -which up to now may be completely unknown to the Christian especially in regards to a family member if they are involved.

Many people feeling this way, beat themselves up because of guilt - it would not be uncommon to be so angry at people, jealous of other families.and even angry at God. In lots of cases I can imagine that this anger and heartbreak will never go completely away.

It is so natural to feel anger and the need for revenge that your minds and your lives can think of nothing else.

So understandably, the very thought of forgiveness is way out of your comfort zone if I can call it that! It doesn't even make a blip on your radar. Again please don't beat yourself up for this. It is understandable and completely natural.

Yet, forgiveness can be a soul/life restoring huge event that is really not about the perpetrator at all - it's about you! Letting go of your anger, your jealousy, your need for revenge and yes, even your guilt and anything else that is holding you back can point you in the direction of living a fulfilling life.

Can we do this on our own? This is a question I struggled with for years after an event in my own life that has affected me constantly. I have come to the conclusion that YES in a way we can but not fully!

Believe me I tried. But it was only after I decided to let God have 100% of my life was I finally was able to put a full stop to that period and let go of my guilt and anger and the ever-present need for revenge.

I realise now that no matter what we do or the legal system does to the perpetrator or even if he/she seemingly "gets away" with the crime, nothing will leave you with any feeling of completeness and finality as forgiveness does,

With time and when I say that, it took years and years in my case, (so please don't be hard on yourself) to feel any sort of forgiveness to the perpetrator. The sheer fact that you even commence to feel forgiveness or even to allow the thought to fly through your heart and brain is a HUGE step forward.

So in the case mentioned above, to begin to feel a sort of forgiveness towards the killer will be an amazing step - a huge leap actually!

Now, this is something that I learned and would dearly love to pass onto you.

I would suggest that we don't forgive him for his horrendous crime but for his erroneous, flawed and counterfactual humanity. It is so natural to feel hatred, when you face evil and honestly. With the case mentioned above that is what we are dealing with - pure evil.

But with forgiveness comes the miraculous feeling of self preservation and a release of guilt. It's not saying 'go ahead and let the perpetrator off the hook' far from it!  But it is a release to let compassion heal your own heart and soul.

God really is the only one who can forgive the perpetrator fully and properly. Let's face it we are all flawed we all have erroneous and counterfactual personalities and really we are the ones that need forgiveness too.

Should hatred, spite and the need of revenge rule our lives or are we ready to at least entertain forgiveness?

Below is a eye-popping website to visit - please take the time to do just that but I must warn you that it is very very heart rending.  It tells the story of Marietta Jaeger and her family who were out camping when her young daughter, Suzie aged 7, was seized and brutally murdered about a week later. It's a heart rending account and really quite horrific but also shows how Marietta coped and still coping.

https://jjie.org/2015/10/14/forgiving-someone-who-kills-your-loved-one-seems-impossible-until-it-isnt/

Forgiveness takes courage and a trust in God - it takes boldness to confront your own thoughts, angers and the
 need for revenge but with God we can be overcomers and we can grow in love, mercy and forgiveness.

Will we ever 'get over' such atrocities as this? I hardly think so. But God alone knows the outcome of EVERY situation in our lives and knows what is the best way for us to move or inch forward to grow us into Christ followers regardless of the atrociousness that has marred and scarred our lives.

God bless you all this week as we move on with God and we may even consider for a fleeting moment what it would be like to forgive.

With God's grace leading us, you never know we may find security in knowing we are in a healthy place again.

JESUS?? Really??

We have a son named Daniel and a daughter named Rachael. We have five amazing Grandblessings. Sue Ann my adored has one brother and two sisters. I Have two brothers and one sister and another sister who was a twin unfortunately died when she was just 12 months old.

It's amazing what you don't know about people even when you have known them for quite a while isn't it!  Some people feel they know our family well yet I can tell you what we are really like because I know them all so well.

Most people have at least heard about Jesus - they may have even formed a mental picture in their minds as to what he looked like, what he wore, where he went, where he was born even how he died and for the majority of people out there that's about it.

To get to know Jesus better check out the gospels - here we have the facts from the people who knew HIM better because they actually lived their human life here on this amazing spinning ball we called earth with Him during the three short years of His ministry.

Most people that I have talked to assume they know Jesus, yet I wonder at their complete lack of knowledge regarding Him. They readily tell me that he was a great teacher or that he came completely from left field, or even that he didn't exist. Some tell me he was the founder of Christianity some even tell me he was the son of God.

Knowing about Jesus intimately nearly always brings surprises - he is the SURPRISING JESUS.

I think the most surprising thing about Jesus is His complete trust in the Father - He knew he was born to die and die horribly for us - for example if Jesus had died peacefully in his sleep one night then I doubt the impact of the life changing and incredible sacrifice for our sins wouldn't have had the impact it had on that terrible but beautiful day on Calvary all those years ago.

Do you know the real meaning of the cross? many people wear crosses with no idea what they are adorning the necks with and how the REAL cross saves people even today.

The REAL Jesus can change your life!

John R W Stott asks in his book THE CROSS OF CHRIST why the cross emerged as the symbol of Christ? Why did the early Christians not choose a crib where he was born, or a boat where he preached, or towels with which he washed dirty feet, or the stone rolled away from the tomb where he rose?

Stott goes on to say that while Jesus' birth and life and preaching are all so vital - It's his crucifixion and resurrection that are absolutely central to really knowing him.

I truly believe at his death on Calvary and that last cry IT IS FINISHED was a shout of victory not a cry of resignation - Jesus had finished the work he was destined to fulfil.

The Father's will was completed - Jesus had paid the price for you and me to know Him fully. It is really really sad that many people don't grab hold of the incredible truth and apply it to their own lives - if they did they would notice a HUGE change

The resurrection of Jesus of course is the very climax of the life of Jesus and being raised he is again with the Father, It is really THE most important event in the history of world,

One amazing day the heavens will open wide like a huge scroll and then everyone who has gotten to know Him not just on paper but intimately known Jesus and invited Him into their hearts to rule their lives will be caught up to meet Him - an amazing event indeed.

Jesus came to earth to save sinners like you and me. If you are one of those people who couldn't care less about what happened 2019 years ago then I urge you to take a bigger and better look at who Jesus really is then sit down and really think about what you have learnt - it could have wonderful unimaginable or disastrous consequences of your life.

Once we are dead it is far too late to come back - there really are no second chances after that but let me tell you this one important fact about Jesus - he died for your sins. The sins you committed before you knew him, the sins you have committed since knowing him and even the sins you will commit in the future,

All you have to do is come before the Lord, confess your sins - ask Him to rule your life and to truly repent asking him to forgive you.

Once we have given our lives to Him - then His very spirit will come in and take up residence in your life, then when you do mess up His spirit will prompt you to come back ask forgiveness again - it really is that simple.

It is really simple but is THE biggest decision I made such a long time ago. Did I ever mess up since making that decision? Of course I did and still do BUT the most amazing part is that God in his mercy and because of what Jesus did on that cross is so willing to forgive me.

Of course it doesn't mean that I can live my life doing exactly what I want and when I want to do it - my whole demeanor changed that day and I really want to live for Jesus. He always ALWAYS prompts me and helps me to confess and restart when I mess up.

Come to Him today.

Do you know JESUS???   REALLY??

Preventing Bush Fires

WOW!!! the fires in California are so devastating - we live in and love Australia and have been watching the devastation from way over here.

We also live in this amazing country where it is summer at present and what happens?

Snow down on the alps - floods in NSW - unimaginative disaster, and to top it all off major bush fires in Queensland - So our hearts go out to the people in California for their huge losses - words can't describe how these people who have lost everything are feeling and coping.

Fire, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes and typhoons etc are really distressing and so painful. Personal belongings lost forever and worse still the loss of life..... Well words just cannot express how you feel.

Hurtful words can have the same effect and impact - I have been reading James lately and going on my life's past experience, I am left pondering this question WHY IS IT SO DIFFICULT TO CONTROL THE TONGUE?

In James 3 the brother of Jesus tells us that "NO ONE can tame the tongue".  Powerful words indeed. James has lot to say about the tongue - He may have had the same problem I have had - I have lost count of the time I have lost control of the tongue.

He goes on to say that the tongue is such a small part of our bodies yet it makes HUGE boasts - worse than that he says it can be like a fire a world of evil that defiles the whole body - set on fire from the very gates of hell itself YIKES!!!!

Hiding inside all of us I feel is the horrible ability to flare up all sorts of 'fires' including hatred, jealousy, envy, judging and the list goes on and on

Our tongues can destroy someones reputation by simply one or two words. We can be taken out of context and the rumours can  spread just like wildfires in the Aussie bush.

It doesn't seem that long ago that something I personally said in a concerning and absolutely innocent way was misinterpreted by another person and next thing I knew I had a young lady phoning me wondering why I had said such a thing which in her opinion was so so wrong.

So you see we have to be so careful with what we say and even how we say it. As I have shared before I have had to let a friend of long standing go because of what he called my 'banter'. We have to be so careful with how we present ourselves to others. Not everyone thinks or talks like we do.

Our tongues are capable to lying on one hand and being sarcastic and patronising on the other. It can flatter and malign even in one sentence.

Our tongues can criticise  in such a destructive way that it can cause suicides and the power to change minds, situations and ideals. WHOA!!

On saying all of that our tongues can be soothing in times of bereavement and crisis it can even encourage and bless - so how come James is insistent in saying that 'no one can control the tongue'?

James explains in chapter 3 verses 9 to 12.  'With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in the likeness of God, Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this SHOULD NOT BE. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.' (NIV)

So we see here that even though we love to flatter and 'be nice' we can also be completely the opposite and James reminds us so clearly that this is so wrong!

What is to be done then to tame this tongue of ours that James even likens to a rudder in a ship, controlling what we do and what we say and even where we go?

We always seem to bang on about being ' the master of our own fates - the captain of our own souls' how subtly we convince ourselves that we control our own lives.

It often takes a crisis or even death itself to convince us otherwise. James goes on to tell us ' you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes'.

Our lives are so transient. We really do not have full control of our lives at all. Our tongues can set us on paths of destruction that we just cannot change or undo.

There is only one who can control the tongue. It is only when God comes onto our lives that we have any hope in controlling our tongue. Even then we have to keep focusing on Him at all times.

When we have God's spirit living inside of us he convicts  us when we sin with our tongue. When we are focused on Him, we know immediately what we say is wrong and we repent and pray earnestly for a refreshment of God's spirit so that we can put things right and avoid getting further into the sin-hold that our tongues can bury us in.

The further we rely on God to captain our lives we will find that he will control our wayward tongues as well which has to be a good thing considering all the damage it has done and continues to do.

Let's ask God today to make our tongues a source of life rather that a source of destruction.

God bless you this week as you ask God to control your tongue and help you to be so aware of what you say.

Attitude Makes the Difference

Getting into shape is easy!!

YEAH RIGHT!!! - What planet was that bloke on when he said that?  How are you going at getting into shape? - Me? Failing miserably.

No Pain no gain. Or so the saying goes. Athletes remind themselves of this to get their best possible performance.

Sometimes they have to go through grueling training. Without it, there is no improvement.

Reading James in the New testament he suggests it's the same for Christians. I believe perseverance is essential in our Christian walk especially when we are facing trials and temptations.

In my opinion there are many and varied situations in which we as Christians need to persevere. James tells us in chapter 1 verses 2 and 3 that we should consider it PURE JOY that trials and temptations come our way because it's like a test of our faith and these trials and temptations help us to persevere.

Easy to rattle off here in a blog but often so very hard to do BUT when we do succeed in giving rotten old satan the "heave ho" during these trials and temptations then the victory of course goes to God and then to us!! YAY!

In verse 12 of  the same chapter - James tells us that we are blessed when we do persevere under all sorts of trials because we have won the test and end up with the crown of life God has promised to all His believers who love Him. - AWESOME EH!

So what are some these tests and trials and temptations we endure on a day to day basis?

Well, from my own experience some of the BIG ones are doubting, lust, envy, jealousy, pride etc etc - you name it - I have been there and done that! UNFORTUNATELY!

So  we can see that this first chapter of James is all about our attitude, our dependence on God (ie. We really can't do this on our own), help of other Christians, believing that God is always trustworthy etc etc.

Then we hit Verses 19 to the end of chapter 1

LISTENING AND DOING

This is the BIG one for me because it says be slow to speak and quick to listen - I am so much the other way round but I AM learning - Praise be to God!

My siblings and I are so quick to put our 2 cents worth in when someone is telling us something that is obviously on their heart. Must be a genetic thing. We listen then before they are finished out comes all of our experiences along the same line.

We all do it to an extent. It's as common as flies around a horse. While someone else is talking, we're thinking about what we're going to say next, so be it inadvertently or deliberately we bring the conversation around to us - after all aren't we the most important? (NOT).

BE SLOW TO SPEAK is a great learning tool for me and one where I am still coming to terms. Not only does James tells us to be slow to speak and quick to listen,  BUT not just listen - CONCENTRATE on what the person is saying. Keep your eyes on them, don't let them wander around the room.

A tip I am learning to conquer is, when a person asks you how you are, be honest and tell them - GOOD is not an appropriate answer! But then gently bring the conversation around to that person and off yourself as soon as possible. In lots of ways you will end up being the one blessed - it's really quite amazing.

Also be SLOW TO GET ANGRY - this can be so hard for a lot of us. Anger often dictates to us how we behave.

If we react when our feelings are hurt it can have devastating reactions to whoever is involved. Anger can be contagious so we have to keep a good reign on our tongues when dealing with people of all ages. Our words can cause a lifetime of hurt to so many people including us.

So you can see attitude and perseverance is what we need to pray for and words, words, words can give us a lifetime of heartaches - don't be fooled it's not all about us. We basically know others are worth more care and attention than them listening to us bang on, rather than us listening attentively to what is on their hearts.

God wants us to slow down and listen too. So what else can we get out of James?

FAVOURITISM FORBIDDEN

Labels are found in more places that on suitcases and soup cans. Not sure about you but I tend to put them on people all the time.

People are funny or odd, friendly or cold, smart or dumb, greedy or needy etc etc. and all these so-called LABELS can have a vast and profound influence on the way we treat people.

Not long ago a bloke came into our church, Now I haven't got anything against tattoos, but this guys was literally covered in them and I mean covered - everywhere - you could hardly see his face. He was obviously drunk and he had a distinct limp. He was smelly and dirty and swearing and really mad at the world - what do you do?

James tells us distinctly what we are to do. DON'T DISCRIMINATE!!! It's hard isn't it?

Chapter 2 and verse 5 of James tells us that God has actually chosen the poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith. I reckon they are a message to us in a BIG way that we can't judge at all - God loves us all!!! Who are we to judge - we should NEVER dishonour anyone not in any way under any circumstances.

God tells us we should love our neighbours (and that doesn't mean the guys next door but everyone)  as ourselves. James goes on to say that if we show favouritism in any way we sin!! How about that!!

We can be as righteous as we like BUT if we break the judging law then we also break God's heart and actually we will be judged by God in the same way that we have judged someone else,

Please don't feel I am preaching to you - this has been a HUGE lesson for me too.

I'm left with these questions as I close - maybe you have the same questions buzzing around in your head too?

Who are some people who you avoid or look down on?

In what special ways could you reach out to one such person?

What can you do specifically to show someone like this genuine kindness?

This blog has certainly been on my mind a lot lately - I pray and trust it can be just a little in yours this week.

God bless you as think along these lines:-

• Your own personal PERSEVERANCE AND ATTITUDE in your walk with God


• Where you are in the LISTENING - V- DOING stakes?

• How are you personally going in the area of JUDGING?

Facing your BIG Cats

Being a HUGE softie at heart, I will never forget having to walk my only daughter down the aisle of our local church.

As much as I thought I had prepared for that big day when we arrived at the door and I saw all those people I suddenly wanted to hold her close, slam the door and take off down the nearest street hauling her, the bouquet of flowers, veil and wedding dress flying in the breeze and me yelling at the top of my voice I'VE CHANGED MY MIND - I'VE CHANGED MY MIND!

I really didn't want to 'give her away' to some young lad with long hair and hardly able to even shave- she was mine and I didn't want to let her go.

Our son got married in the next few weeks after his sister, so we lost both of our kids in the same year. It's tough being a parent and having to say goodbye to your children and handing them over to someone else and then having to take a backseat, Parenthood isn't for sissies!

Daniel of the Old Testament was torn from his home never to return when he was only 12 or 13 years old - shuffled off to Babylon THE worst place in the whole ancient world. I can just imagine what his parents went through - must have been horrendous! No wonder Jonah chickened out!

The ancient History encyclopedia tells me that Babylon, whose ruins still lie in modern day Iraq  is 94k's southwest of of Baghdad.

Babylon is thought to mean GATE OF THE GODS and it was probably just that, worshiping anything and everything except the REAL God, the Babylonians believed in child sacrifice, prostitution of both male and female slaves and regular public executions of prisoners unable to work as slaves.

Babylon was also a huge place of learning and when Daniel was wrenched from his family on arriving in that despot of a city after 800 miles or 1300 km's, to whatever their fate was going to be, he was enrolled in an intensive three year training program designed to transform young men of his age into loyal Babylonians bureaucrats.

It worked to a degree I guess - Daniel and his mates received a remarkable education and looking back Daniel was used mightily by God.

Old King Nebuchadnezzar was an anxious type of person prone to sudden rages and spur of the moment decisions that had huge ramifications across the ancient world - he is renowned even today of making often frightening decisions that changed the face of the ancients and of history.

He was a cruel king and had a malicious and frightening persona that had the whole empire trembling so when he said it was law and recorded as such there was absolutely no turning back from that ruling and not even he could alter it - it was like it was written in stone - no erasing and no altering.

So into this incredible situation comes Daniel and his three friends Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Three young blokes from Israel - captured and marched off to be trained in the ways of Babylon and to become sort of Palace Dog bodies for all and sundry around the place.

Through all of his long time in Babylon, and I imagine it would have been his entire life, Daniel never once forsook his God - he knew that God had placed him in a special place for a special reason.

We all know the stories so well, the bow or burn incident, the writing on wall, the mocking then the SHOCKING. Then Daniel - on the menu of the lions club.  - it makes such interesting reading, but what blows me away was the sheer force of Daniel and his friends faith in God.

Daniel and his friends believed in five amazing words and they were EVEN IF GOD DOES NOT!!

These five words spoke to me so much because they represented a faith SO BIG and SO EXTREME with these four young blokes in Babylon all those years ago.

Obeying God because you know he's powerful enough to rescue you from any situation is one thing, but obeying Him when you know there is a real chance you will be horribly burned to death or torn apart by ferocious lions is quite another.

How EXTREME is your faithfulness? How EXTREME is mine? Just how much are we willing to sacrifice and be obedient to God?  Would we give up our job, money, security or even be prepared to lay down our lives if God asked? God is able to save us but even if He does not, does your faith, does my faith extend that far?

Daniel's scheming colleagues in that scary/terrifying palace so long ago kept a close lookout on his personal life and all they found was consistent faith. They were so determined to get rid of him so they used they only thing they could use to undermine him to the king and that was his faith.

We all know the story of Daniel chapters 3-6 so well - the scheming of the baddies - the buttering up of the priggish, vain and braggadocio King, the accusations leveled at Daniel and his three mates, The blazing furnace, the intimidating and petrifying den of lions, the facing of horrendous deaths and the sheer bravery of those four young men as they came face to face with their last mortal breaths on earth.

What a shock for those vain and egotistic palace floor scrapers to the king and his image and what a shock to the king himself -  the furnace heated up seven times hotter than usual, the very soldiers who threw the young guys in were themselves overpowered by the sheer force of the heat coming from furnace, then to top it all off four people in the blazing furnace instead of three and they weren't even singed or smelt of fire.

Then Daniel served up to the lions, poor bloke what an end awaited for him. He was chucked in, the roaring of the lions suddenly stopped, the beasts couldn't open their mouths, lockjaw was rampant in the den all through the night, Daniel saved and his accusers and their whole families thrown into the den in Daniel's place, Lockjaw suddenly cured and the lions feasted!

Grisly story indeed, but hey, how amazing is our God, How faithful to those of us who stand firm in our faith!

A few questions remain for me:-

What do people see in our lives that tells them we're serious about our walk with God?
Are we showing Christlike compassion and concern when we interact with others?
Can others spot in us our main priorities which are way out of step with the rest of society?
Can others see acts of service that come from our hearts and not necessarily from our pockets or from some desire to gain "brownie points".
Can others see in us people who do not flinch when names like "Jesus Freaks" and "Bible Bashers" are directed at us?

All these questions are just a smidgen of what Daniel and his three mates went through yet they didn't flinch or deny their faith - they went all the way with God regardless of what the outcome was going to be. Jesus of course did the same and we as His followers should have the same outlook and desire to be more and more like Him in every way possible.

Daniel and the lions is a story we never grow weary of hearing. I've always been impressed by it because Daniel was not thrown into that putrid cave/den for some wicked crime but for being Godly. We expect to be punished for our wrongdoings and when we do right we expect to be praised or promoted. That is certainly the ideal, but it doesn't always work out like that. Sometimes those who do wrong are rewarded and those who do right are persecuted.

Especially in today's world where it seems right is wrong and wrong is right in fact there seems no right or wrong instead I feel it's a pain and pleasure world.

After thinking about Daniel the main question remains for me and that is HOW AM I AT FACING MY BIG CATS?  Would I capitulate, give in to pressure and join the rest of those willing to throw the faithful into the blazing furnace or into a pride of lions?

Where does my hope lie? Where does yours? Something really serious to think about this week and may God bless you as you do.

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Honesty, uprightness and INTEGRITY

Not sure about you but I have this annoying habit of shooting off my mouth and in so doing putting a lot of people off-side.

I really don't mean to,  it just sort of slips out and once you have said it you can't take it back - I feel I should have a DELETE button inserted into my tongue which makes me backtrack and either say something nice and comforting or say nothing at all.

When I was thinking along these lines just after my latest outburst I thought of the word INTEGRITY and so I looked it up - so here it is:-
My dictionary tells me it is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles - it means honesty and uprightness - ethics and morals. Virtue and decency are in there somewhere as well.

Oh dear so that leaves me standing out in the field somewhere completely isolated.

God gave us the miraculous and incredible gift of speech - my heart aches for those who have no speech or who have lost their hearing and/or born without either speech or hearing.

Speech is miraculous in itself - James tells us that our speech can upset or encourage - it can drive others away from God or it can bring others into the marvelous saving grace and mercy of God.

Sitting in a group discussion I can so easily offend  and yet coming to know Christ as I have, God can also use my wayward tongue to help and encourage others,

I have been astounded lately apart from a few mess-ups just how God is changing my speech and bringing the "I" word into my very personality.

Integrity was  something I never thought of and in the rare occasions my mind may have wondered to the likeness of that word - I never stopped for even a second to consider the impact of what I was saying was having on the people around me.

Amazingly God is working a miracle in my life hence I want to share my miracle with you my readers.

I had never really developed  a listening manner - have you?

On the negative side I never considered asking people how they were or even offering encouragement in any way so when I finally brought my problem to God he opened miraculously a brand new ME whom I still having difficulty in believing I am the same person who has upset others.

God has changed me - I certainly couldn't have done it on my own - there is no way I could have changed so dramatically.

Gone (well almost) are the days when my conversation were centred on me - gone are those days when I was using my gift of speech in any way other than glorifying God.

So how are you shaping up on the INTEGRITY scale?

Are you withholding words that could encourage someone like I was?
Do you speak so often, so fast and so loudly that others do not have the opportunity to express themselves?
Have you perfected the art of verbal barbs or sarcasm that people could be injured by your words? (I'm a tiger for that one)

Maybe like me you should ask God to reveal to you your verbal strengths and weaknesses - believe me I have changed and as mentioned I couldn't do that on my own - not in a million years.

Our speech is very important to God - read James 3: 1-12 and you will see what I mean.

Anyway speech and guarding our tongues isn't the only personal reflection we have to take into consideration when we look at INTEGRITY

Integrity also means caring for your body! in 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Paul sets out very explicitly just how important it is to look after the body God gave you. I go jogging each morning and yes I have fallen over and realised just how much I have misused my body.

God has given us instructions that your body is actually His temple - so we should care for our bodies not misuse or neglect it.

Jogging and exercise is good and needful and keeps us in shape - Our bodies come in all shapes and sizes. Even so these 'shells' that house our inner being are a gift from God. We are to respect our bodies and use them for His glory.

Paul has a lot to say about sexual immorality as well. Immorality on that side of things can wreck your body and even your mind - Verse 19 says "that we are not our own" that simply means that Jesus' death on the cross bought us with a price unfathomable - His very life. We belong to Him and in that case we should honour Him with our bodies - not tear it apart  - for eg. overeating, lack of exercise and sexual immorality!

Integrity also means keeping our commitments - maybe commitments we have pledged to each other say in our wedding vows or commitments we made even before we came to Christ (as long as they didn't include immoral or illegal doings) and of course commitments to our work places etc. All of these commitments add up to INTEGRITY - a real gift from God. Believe me God can change you in ALL aspects of your life and that includes integrity.

Another aspect of INTEGRITY is self-control - let's not be like Samson in Judges 16 who let his self control fly out of Delilah's window. Self control is mentioned in the gifts of the spirit in Colossians as a real gift from God.

Self-control and Integrity go hand in hand as far as I can see - Self control is one of the main  pointers to INTEGRITY and one we should all aim for.

A great idea is keep a journal just for a short time to record just how many times your self-control has flown out of your window as it did for Samson out of Delilah's window. Note any lapses and any patterns that triggered them and also the victories, then prayerfully consider how you might reduce temptation and strengthen your inner resolve through the work of the Holy Spirit in your life.

Truth telling is another off-shoot of INTEGRITY - so often lying is far easier than telling the truth.
This is something that I have had to consider and where I don't like to admit that fact unfortunately it is true.

When situations tempt us to say what is less than true, before you open your mouth, grab hold of Jesus - speak to Him even if it has to be very quickly - ask HIm for courage and boldness to say the truth no matter what it may cost.  Jesus is our rock and fortress even if your world may turn upside down because of truth.

I could go on but I will finish with just one more important aspect of INTEGRITY and that is forgiveness.

Probably forgiveness is one the hardest parts of INTEGRITY. Especially in situations that are beyond your control. When you have been accused wrongly or abused either physically or sexually or both. Forgiveness in situations like that does not come easily.

BUT forgiveness can set you free. It's amazing that when you hold grudges, which is quite normal if you have been through extraordinary experiences, the longer we hold grudges the tighter the chains that bind us.

Forgiveness from the heart is often the key to loosen those chains that bind us and we end up being the very one set free and not so much the actual aggressor of the situation.

Not sure about you but forgiveness didn't come at all easily to me but when I finally gave it all over to God things in my life changed dramatically and He will definitely do the same for you. Forgiveness can take an age and it can be a long hard road until you finally are free but please persevere. I know I did and the release is amazing. It's like you become a different person.

Thinking of forgiveness I have included this song from Melissa Green called LONG ROAD TO FORGIVENESS.  It sort of sums up what I was saying about forgiveness and how often it takes courage and willingness on our part. It also may take a long and harrowing road to travel before you can honestly say in your heart of hearts I FORGIVE. The thing is God knows where we are and your willingness to forgive. Please keep working at it - don't give up because God is with you in this - He has been all along and He always will be.

Here is the link:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPmrFwZkTA0

As I said there are so many facets to true INTEGRITY and this blog only just scratches the surface. Please take the time to look into your own INTEGRITY and see where you may be failing. It won't be easy, but often the Christian walk isn't - it wasn't easy for Jesus and it won't be for you but the rewards are gargantuan not only at the promise of heaven but as you walk through the life God has gifted you here on earth.

God bless you this week as you walk in His footsteps, taking up you own personal cross whatever it may be and courageously take the steps to INTEGRITY and huge blessings as you do.