Heaven? Who will go there?

 Heaven? That's a great thought - What is Heaven? Is it a place? Should I be hankering to get there?

Lots of questions and lots to think about!

Yesterday, I attended a funeral for a very good friend of ours whom we have known for such a long time. She was a really sweet and gentle lady, full of love and generosity. She gave her life to the Lord Jesus when she was quite young - she lived her life putting Christ first in all situations

So many people think of heaven as a nice and good place - and if we are really good, we will all end up there when we die- hmmm, I don't think so, but let's think about the alternative.

Most people don't even think about heaven very much while we are still here on Earth, swinging around doing our own thing over and over again - enjoying ourselves and our family, eating out, and building our lives. It is not until we get to the stage in our lives or when we end up at a funeral service, that we think about what is going to happen to us after we die.

It's amazing how people think of heaven as a place where "good" people go  - so if you are a 'good' person, then you will get to heaven - it's not as simple as that - the Bible has a lot to say about heaven and who is entitled to get there.

John 3:16 says - "For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life"- when you think about that verse and I mean REALLY think about it says a real lot. Then in verse 36 it says, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life. For God's wrath remains on them."

Now that is pretty straightforward. Whoever believes in the Lord Jesus Christ and accepts Him into their life as their Lord and Savior then they have eternal life; those who don't accept Him and believe in Him will not have eternal life. Pretty straight!

Romans 3:1 says no one is perfect, not even one - none of us are perfect, we have ALL sinned - every one of us. We are all doomed to pay the price of our sins, that is, if we don't accept what Jesus did on that cross all those years ago to pay the price for our sins and ask Him to come and take over our lives so that we can live for him.

As I mentioned, we had gone to a funeral yesterday of a dear friend who passed to be with our Lord. Years ago, she came to the point in her life where she really felt she had to turn her life over to God and to live her life putting God first in ALL situations, whatever those situations could be - when you think about it, there are many situations in which putting God first can be difficult.

No one is perfect, we all have sinned, every one of us - God does not have sin in heaven at all. We have no way of making our wrongs right except through Jesus. He took our punishment on himself at the cross, Father grabbing our sins and taking possession of them. He saved us through his death, and all we have to do is accept Him and ask Him to come and rule our lives. 

It's the only thing that Jesus did on that cross all those years ago that gave us the very right to ask God the Father to forgive our sins and to accept us into heaven when we die. The very sacrifice of Jesus on the cruel cross covers all of our sins, every single one of them, and all we have to do is to believe in Him, knowing He is alive in our hearts, and we turn our lives over to Him.

Kerri was a young lady who had decided very young in her life to do her own thing, and even though she loved her parents very much, doing what she was told gave her the irrits big time. Along came young Gibby,  the so-called gardener, a handsome young fella who really liked

 Kerri a lot.

Years before Kerri, through the influence of her mum, decided to follow Jesus, she just went through the motions, put her hand up when asked if she wanted to come to Christ, and even taught Sunday School, BUT did she mean it?

This is where a lot of people really don't understand about becoming a follower of Jesus - It is far more than making a declaration or trying to please someone. Following Jesus is a personal experience of believing in Christ and what he did for us all those years ago. He took our sins upon Himself and paid the high price of ridding the sins of everyone who decides to follow Him. It was a huge and amazing thing to do.

Gibby and Kerri decided to make a go of their relationship. Unbeknownst to Kerri, Gibby was also a drug dealer from years before; all she could see was lots of money and so-called fun. Kerri fell for Gibby and also fell into a lot of trouble.

You know - God has a real means of talking to people when they come to Him - He gives them a real awareness of their sins and also a real awareness of their personal needs of a savior humbly accepting God's amazing offer of forgiveness. They have repented of their old ways of doing their own thing and constantly sinning. Coming to Christ keeps us fully aware of when we do trip up, and the amazing thing is that when we do trip up, we can come back to Christ, constantly asking for his forgiveness.

Unfortunately for Kerri, because she didn't really believe in her heart that there was a God after all, and

truly gave her heart to Him, she really had no awareness of what she was doing until it was far too late. 

No matter what has happened in your life and no matter how far you feel you have sinned, God can speak to your heart, and you can come back, but please be fully aware that God won't keep on prompting you to come back to Him if you keep ignoring Him and doing your own thing over and over again.

If you feel God is talking to you right now, please ask His forgiveness. Ask Him to come into life and lead you in the way you should go.

God can change the most amazing sinners, believe me, I am one.

,

So Sorry to Wake You!!

"So sorry to wake you,". he yelled through the letterbox - just when I thought I was going to sleep in. WOW, what did he expect - me to jump out of bed and meet him out in the driveway?

You never can tell when someone comes in early some mornings and expects you to be wide awake and all ears to their needs and/or demands

It's really tiring, isn't it, when you may have had a very late night and finally climbed into bed, struggle to get to sleep because you have so much on your mind, finally fall into a deep sleep only to be woken by any number of things happening around you.

So when someone comes around like that and wakes you, you feel like throwing something at them and telling them to 'get lost'. 

You know, everyone worries about things that seem important to them. Lots of things like:- work (which can take so much of your time and energy), money troubles (oh dear - they are pretty horrible), health issues,  family, relationships, job security, weight and appearance, and so it goes on - somewhat endlessly.

All of these types of things can significantly influence how we worry and become consumed by everything that truly bothers us.

Í guess in lots of ways worries, whatever those worries are, can lead us to anxiety and often sadly enough can become a real problem and we can go downhill really, really fast.

Apparently, in today's world, there are numerous ways we can address our concerns and develop new and innovative techniques. We can:-  challenge any negative thoughts we have. Yes, I can see that would be a great way to start - maybe not really easy to do, but it can be very fulfilling. 

We can maybe say meditation could be the way to go: - My niece is a big fan of meditation - she goes off to the beach very early each Saturday morning and joins a meditation group on the sand, which she finds extremely helpful,  even on the coldest winter mornings and well before the sun finally breaks through.

Then there is Deep breathing:- Interesting thing to think about. Apparently, deep breathing can reduce physical tension and calm our nerves. Interesting!

If worries and concerns are really getting to you, then you should really consider seeking professional help from a counsellor or therapist, or actually go see your doctor and have a wise chat. 

What does God say about worries, anxiety, concerns, and depression? In 1 Peter chapter 5, Peter tells us to cast all of our concerns and anxieties onto God because He really does care for you.

What does that actually mean? Well, put it simply, if you come to God and really want Him to take control of your life and you ask Him to do just that, then He definitely will because He certainly does care that much about us.

God is really concerned about everything that goes on in our lives, and when we give our problems over to God, He does give us peace.

It doesn't mean that the problem miraculously disappears - of course not - BUT... it does mean that we can get on with our lives knowing that God truly does care enough about us.

When we are faced with life's biggest hurdles and when we are in times of great need, we often ask God for help, but then we feel we are not receiving the help that we want - it can be sad and extremely depressing.

This under no circumstances means that God isn't listening and that he doesn't care about us or our troubles. 

When you read the Bible and you see what Jesus went through in the Garden of Gethsemane, then even He cried out to God to let this pass from me - he knew he was going to be crucified horribly and with excruciating pain - yet God didn't answer his prayers in the way that He pleaded with Him.

Jesus was totally in God's will, not His own - it's a lot to take in, isn't it?

We so often can cry out to God, and when we do, God so often hears us, and he knows what we are going through.

Though Jesus asked God to please stop Him from going to Calvary, He asked with the condition "if it is possible". Jesus was in complete submission to God's will and not His own. If His suffering was a part of God's will, then He was willing to accept that.

When we cry out, "God, please help me," God hears us and always responds. He may not do so in the way we wish, but He responds nonetheless. Understandably, when we are in the middle of any suffering and grief, it is difficult to see the wider perspective of God's plan, especially when we receive an answer of "no" or "not now." But we can trust in God's sovereignty because we know He is good.

At the moment, in our family, we are going through a pretty tough time - our son is suffering horribly with cancer. When we pray and God doesn't answer in the way we would like then how do we react?

We personally have found ourselves pouring our hearts out to God, but we then feel that our prayers are falling on deaf ears, confusing, and greatly upsetting. We are truly not alone in this sort of situation when we feel that God remains silent when we pray.

The Bible reminds us in John Chapter 5 that God hears us and will respond - unfortunately, maybe not in the way we hope to expect. It can be frustrating to say the least, but do you know - you can be honest with God - pour out your feelings to Him - tell Him how you really are feeling.

God may have a hugely different plan for our lives that we may have planned, and His ways are much higher that ours, regardless of how we may be feeling. tell God how you are feeling, he isn't going to stop loving you or your family through hard times.

I know personally through the sufferings of our boy, just a fraction of what Jesus must have gone through, or the many thousands of people suffering horribly around the world.

This is something that we may never fully understand, but one thing I do understand through all of this is that God loves me regardless of how I feel and the many problems I personally face. We accept His love and His saving grace, and we venture on with Him, asking for His guidance and trusting Him regardless. 

God may have a hugely different plan for our lives that we may have planned for ourselves, and His ways are much higher than ours, regardless of how we may be feeling. Tell God how you are feeling. He isn't going to stop loving you or your family through hard times. 

God knows all about us, in fact, everything that's going on and taking place in our lives, including our deepest inner thoughts (which can be pretty scary) and our motives. In Hebrews 4:13, it says, "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight"- that alone can be pretty scary because it totally tells us that we can't possibly ever EVER hide anything, including ourselves, from God. 

In one way, it's scary, BUT in another way, it brings us HUGE hope because even though He does know everything about us, He still loves us with a never-ending love. He is amazing because, despite our personal sins, which are huge and seemingly never-ending, He (God) loves us so much that He sent His only Son here on earth to pay for all of our sins from the past to the present day.

You know, you can turn to Jesus Christ right now if you want to. It's as simple as turning away from all those things that hang around us constantly - those things that we know are wrong, and yet we do them anyway - those things that we keep to ourselves and hide away from everyone else.

So, how do we turn away from them? By asking God to take control, He will come into your life and convict you of your sins and keep bringing you back to Himself. He is amazing.

I personally love this verse in Psalm 139 and verses 23 to 24: "Search me, 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." May this amazing prayer become ours personally.

God bless you this week, and may you ask Jesus Christ to come into your life and be your rock and steadfast anchor.

Huge blessings

The King and the Donkey

Just been reading the Bible in Numbers 22 about a bloke called Balaam - quite THE guy!

Well worth the read if you can - really interesting.

Anyway, it turns out that the Israelites had traveled through the plains of Moab and camped across the Jordan River, across from Jericho, with full attention to taking over the land.

So the story of what happens next is amazing in itself  - it's about Balaam and a talking donkey. It's both jaw-dropping and a tad humorous and also heart-warming to a degree as well.

Here we have the King of Moab by the name of Balak, who was terrified of the army of Israel camped on his doorstep - don't blame him, really, I think I would be terrified as well.

So in his kingly wisdom, he thinks he would be able to summon a soothsayer or a person with so-called wisdom to come and put a curse on the people out there so that they will flee away and not come back, or they will all die a horrible and unseeming death.

You know - how many times have we wondered what we can do to make barriers between people who worry us? I guess in lots of ways we all have people who worry us. Some people and their actions can really get to us, and we find we need some sort of powerful way to regain our control over our anxiety by establishing healthy boundaries or space between ourselves and others.

Certain people, when mixed together, create a volatile match, so hopefully, this doesn't happen to us regularly, but sometimes we really do need to set boundaries and avoid physical contact.

And so this is exactly how the King of Moab felt when he saw the Israeli army camping outside his city - a bit of a shock!

Hence, the messengers sent to Balaam the soothsayer and mystic said, "Come and put a curse on the Israeli army out there." I can imagine what he was thinking- something along these lines - "I could do this and gain a lot of extra $$ if I do what the King commands - even if I don't do exactly what he says."

There were a few comings and goings, but finally, Balaam got on his donkey and off he went, with all these secret ideas swimming around in his head!

Sometimes we have to be very careful when we take off to say things and do things to or for others. We really do have to make sure that our intentions are good and honourable. Not like Balaam.

So Balaam hops on his beloved donkey, apparently, he's had for quite a while, and heads off to put some sort of curse or apparition on the enemy army. Looks good to Balaam - he has his special motive up his sleeve, all working out for him. Off he goes on his donkey with two servants with him.

Suddenly, the donkey turns off the road and ends up in a field all because being wiser than Balaam, the donkey can see an angel standing in front armed with a drawn sword ready to spiflicate good old Balaam if he proceeds any further.

Balaam is furious with the donkey and whacks it with a stick or some such instrument. Poor donkey!

Poor old donkey gets back on the road and makes its way to a narrow path through the vineyards with walls on each side. The angel then moves in front of the donkey, who obviously gets shocked and presses close to the wall and crushes Balaam's foot - you can imagine the "AAHH" coming from Balaam, who in turn beats the good old donkey again with the stick.

The angel moves again, to another narrow place - the donkey, this time, lies down, he's had enough - he doesn't want to die. Balaam is furious and beats the poor animal. Suddenly, the donkey speaks up (you can imagine Balaam's shock), "What have I done that has made you beat me these three times?"

Balaam answered the donkey (as you would, I guess), "You have made a fool of me - If I had a sword, I would kill you." The donkey replied (as they do), "I'm your donkey, I've never been in the habit of doing this." Suddenly, an angel appeared, and old Balaam suddenly realised what it was all about.

And so the story goes on - how Balaam meant to curse Israel but instead blessed them not once but twice.

It's worth the read - try it.

God can use amazing things to influence us in so many ways - even the other day, when Sue and I were walking along the beach together, we were gobsmacked by just how amazing God's creation is. It's astounding, isn't it?

Balaam must have been astounded when the donkey spoke - it didn't say anything about it in the passage, but I can imagine his surprise - Just like our surprise when things sometimes backfire on us or astound us in so many ways.

Before I personally became a Christian, I was so absorbed in my own welfare and how the world revolved around me and my desires. I am totally in awe of how God changed entirely after He came and took residence in my life.

God changed me so much - firstly, I could see others in so many different ways - I now can't help but put others first, which in itself is quite amazing, especially for a person like myself, someone who was always thinking of themselves. I changed so much that it was quite unbelievable.

Secondly, I had a huge desire to help and assist other people in even small ways - something that I never wanted to do at all. I was so self-centred, it is so embarrassing to look back.

God can change you - if He can change me, He can change anyone. 

How does He change us? By us coming to Him and asking Him to come into our lives and lead us.

Pray this prayer to ask Him into your life

Dear Lord, I confess that I am a sinner and need your absolute forgiveness. I truly believe that Jesus died for my sins and, amazingly, He rose again. Please come into my life and be my Lord. Amen

If you truly from your heart prayed this prayer Jesus will come into your life straight away. You will change- we all continue to make mistakes, but God will always, through His Holy Spirit, keep bringing us back to repentance.

God bless you this week. Keep your eyes on our Lord and keep looking to Him.

Love our sport

WOW! Our grandson never ceases to amaze us.

Here he is being No. 1 in the soccer football frenzy.

This is his third promotion in quite a number of years, and he is only 18 years old.

The first episode in his sparkling career so far was at home, and he was playing for the local team in first grade.

Then...got persuaded to play for a team in the same competition.  The thing was, this particular team was winning the comp at that stage. They were also a good 100 kilometers away, which meant lots of traveling for him, BUT he joined them anyway and has gone from strength to strength.

Now...He has been persuaded to join yet another winning team, a further 100 kilometers away, and has been put on contract for at least two years. I must say I am pretty amazed at his skills and perseverance.

He was ALWAYS so set on soccer when he was a little chap, it was constantly 'soccer in the backyard' at Pop and Gran's place, with the soccer ball always taking a trip down the road with good old Pop being Mr Fielder.

How important is being Number 1 in any sort of field? Looking at our boy, it makes me wonder.

Driving into the beach again today, I was overwhelmed by the many drivers I encountered (not saying I was any better than any of them) who were so keen to get in front of everybody they almost entirely ran up the back of any car that dared to get in front of them.

Just made me wonder how imperative it is for us to succeed in anything we do, and is getting in front of whoever is in the way, so important for us?

I couldn't help going back to one of the blogs I recently wrote called 'Bullfrogs and Butterflies,' which was about Keith Green. He wrote an amazing number of songs, one of which stands out to me, especially some of the lyrics.

In it, he talks about feelings and the amazing grace of God by which he is saved (when I say 'saved' I mean being committed to God and asking Him to take control of your life) He also mentions and I quote "You must remember that nothing lasts EXCEPT the Grace Of God by which I stand in Jesus" He then goes on the sing "I know that I would surely fall away EXCEPT for grace by which I'm saved". 

When I look at our young fellow above and how he is doing in his soccer world, I am very excited for him - he has tried and succeeded so well, and I can't help but feel so very happy for him. Honestly, I enjoy every moment of seeing him succeed in his beloved sport.

BUT..

Nothing will last forever - not our good feelings about things or the bad things that happen in our lives, yes, nothing, absolutely nothing will last forever EXCEPT the very grace of God, which has been mentioned in the lyrics of Keith's song.

So, what is Grace?

Grace means courtesy, politeness, manners, dignity, honour, etc. 

So, what is the Grace of God?

Grace is so essential to our great God  - it is actually pretty much hand in hand with His amazing love and mercy. We are pretty much undeserving of His grace and of God's gift to us. 

God is so willing to forgive us of all of our wrongdoings, and THAT to me is GRACE with a capital "G".

Grace is pretty much constantly mentioned all the way through the Bible, and it virtually means kindness or blessings. We can give and extend it to anyone we wish. In our Lord God's eyes, GRACE to Him means choosing to bless us even though we certainly don't deserve it, and only when we hand our lives entirely over to Him.

In the Bible, Ephesians 2 verse 8 says, "For by grace are you saved, through faith, and that not of yourselves," meaning that we are saved only through believing in the Lord our God - we don't save ourselves, only through God.

Sometimes we can get caught up in guilt, fear, and a sense of constantly sinning, which can lead us to a feeling of lack of confidence in Jesus and also joy in our salvation. 

When we decide to follow Jesus, and He comes into our lives, joy can come into our lives also, and can be the victory over our doubts and concerns. God shows us through His love when we do sin, and He makes us aware of the times we sin and how we can come to Him and ask for forgiveness.

So many times I have heard that people reckon once they have become "Christians" that they will never sin again, and when they do sin, they reckon "Well, that didn't work, did it? 

NO! Because we are so human, we will sin all the time - the thing is that God will keep bringing us back to Himself and keep on reminding us that what we have just done in the sinning business will need to be forgiven by Him, and all we have to do is ask His forgiveness.

The thing is that as we progress in our Christian lives and we start making God No. 1 all the time, then our blatant sinning will become less and less - praise the Lord for that, I say! 

God's amazing grace covers us, and He will save us. As we travel along with Him, He will change us more and more to be like Him in so many ways.

None of us is perfect, and we will never be until we meet God face to face. All changes are made through His great love and mercy.

God bless you this week. If you have any questions, please contact us.

Take Joy in the Lord.

Does God exist??

If God exists, why are kids starving in Africa?

If God exists, why haven't we had any rain?

If God exists, why did so many people die in World War I and World War II?

Just reading a book, and this was in it, and it made me really think about those questions.

These are amazing and very important questions - there are a lot of people who really stumble on this question and will not have anything to do with God at all - they ask the question IF GOD EXISTS, WHY, etc.....

Many people looking at these questions have so many arguments. There is so much evil in the world; how can God be so good as to let these things happen? They, in lots of ways, refuse to believe in God in the first place.

The Biblical God is all-loving, all good, all holy, all wise, all powerful, and yet God allows things to happen for a reason. Whether we understand that reason is a big question! 

In Psalm 135:3, we read that God is good, just, loving, and very merciful, saying that bad things happen to all of us - things we simply cannot understand.

Our son-in-law is terribly ill - He has a very rare form of cancer - a form that is unresponsive to treatment that could possibly cure and eliminate the effects of cancer, no matter where that cancer is. Unfortunately, his cancer cannot be treated.

Then there is our Daughter- his wife - going through a similar thing, but non-cancerous. She has had a huge operation at the same time as her husband. During her operation, one of the doctors slipped and cut a hole in a vein, which caused a blood clot - she almost died.

My little sister also died horribly when she was only just one year old.

Oh yes, bad things happen to us that we simply cannot understand. 

Instead of doubting God's goodness, our reaction should be to trust Him no matter what!  Proverbs chapter 3, verses 5&6 say, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding". It goes on to say, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight".  

You know:- we actually walk by faith in God and not by sight - in other words, we don't really understand all that happens in our lives, but having faith in God through all sorts of traumas thrown at us means choosing to trust His goodness, love and power, even when faced with horrible and lasting traumas. 

In 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 7, it says, "Walk by Faith and not by sight."  What does this verse actually mean?

Well, in my opinion, it means to live our entire life based on what the Bible says about eternal consequences - to have a deep and significant reverence and respect for God, regardless of what the world says and does about God.

It means to live our lives in parallel to His teachings, even when our own human desires want to hit us over the head and make us more and more in line with everyone else.

Does this make me buckle up in fear if I dare to follow Jesus?

Definitely not - in my own words, I personally have one huge desire to please my God and King above everything else that is presented to me.

Living in the crazy world of ours, sin comes so easily, and often we fall for it, especially if we don't have any understanding about God and His amazing forgiveness and love for us. 

If we decide to turn our lives over to God, then His love and wisdom for us will motivate us to race away from all the absolute actions that displease our Lord and to live in a way that reflects His character, not that any of us can do that on our own at all.

We all will fall for sin again and again, BUT the amazing part of that is that God will keep on convicting us of where we have fallen, and motivate us to come back and ask for forgiveness - how many times will that happen?? I personally have lost count!

BUT...

God is always willing to forgive us, no matter how many times we keep falling away. To me, that is probably one of THE most amazing things about being a Christian. I forget how many times I have kept coming back to God and asking for forgiveness, and the amazing part is that God keeps on bringing me back to him.

We are all human, and God, in His infinite mercy, will keep on bringing us back to Him. The beautiful part about all of this is that as we keep on the walk with Him, His amazing influence affects us more and more, and the more and more we keep aware of the sins we commit, the more we ask for His forgiveness.

You know, when we make God number one in our lives, then the huge desire to get the approval and 'likes' from people around us diminishes.  

The desire we have to please others and to somehow make them like us, no matter what, can often diminish the more we put God as number one in our lives. That certainly doesn't stop us from having friendships and making new friends, BUT it just means to give Him priority over everything - He is more important than anything else in our life.

 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and Mind (Matthew 22 verse 37) - says it all really - God really is Number one in your life once you hand your life over to Him, not that ever makes us turn away from our loved ones and friends - God has made us special and given us the ability to love others in very special ways.

The above can seem pretty impossible, but as Christians, that is, those of us who have accepted Jesus as number one in their life, have been washed clean and even though loving God with all of our hearts and minds seems impossible, it is only through His power and prayer to Him that we can seemingly do the impossible - amazing isn't it!

God's huge blessings this week go out to you from Sue and me - we trust you have a wonderful and fulfilling week - may God show us all the way forward in making Him number one in all of our lives, keeping Him in the forefront of all situations that come our way.

Blessings, and we hope to keep in touch.

I really need to be first!!

In the armed forces, the men and women involved are pretty amazing - they give it their all - they really do stick together, and many times of hardship, war, and turmoil, when everything must seem intolerably difficult, many would give their own life for others.

It is a truly remarkable way, and it always astounds me.

All the armed forces standards include a range of values, behaviours, and physical requirements. I personally can't imagine what lower standards would mean, especially under all operational activities and effectiveness.

Values in the ADF include Service, Courage, Respect, Excellence, Distinction, Quality, Integrity, and heaps more.

These amazing qualities in our armed forces guide behaviour and all decision-making, ensuring all members of the armed forces act with selflessness, strength, and respect. They also must meet the physical requirements, doing all sorts of amazing regimes to keep their fitness as their number one priority. 

Their regime includes emotional well-being. decision making and basic wisdom in all acute situations.

Unfortunately, in today's world, those feelings and attitudes hardly exist at all.

Way back at creation, God loved Adam and Eve and told them not to eat of this special tree in the garden, but you know the story well - Eve was tricked by the evil Satan, and she ate of the tree knowing it was THE tree God told her not to eat of. She gave good old Adam the same fruit, and well... you know the rest of the story.

God loved them, and I guess He didn't want robots - he wanted them to make their own way, their own minds, and their own hearts to love and worship Him. They sinned against God, and from then on, sin entered the world, and it was all downhill from there.

God originally gave us choices to make. I don't feel He wanted us to be like robots, just perfectly doing what we are told. 

It made me think of others and their constant need to excel in all sorts of situations. Putting themselves first, regardless of who gets in the way.

I worked in Human Resources for years, and during that time, I saw so many circumstances where excelling at some point was like running in a race and making yourself come first. Striving - constantly striving on and on.

You see it even when driving, for example, people need to be first - their need to excel is astounding.

We see it even in our own neighborhood, where parents both work and have to leave early in the morning, and often don't come home till fairly late - often children come home from school to an empty house (the latch-key kids). Many Mums and Dads are off to work constantly, working hard to keep up with today's standards. Constantly striving to outdo and excel.

I know it is hard, it can be very hard - I understand this. Balancing work and family life in today's society is hard!

In Proverbs 3:6, the Bible says, "In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct and crown your efforts with success."

Looking at that through the above perspective and what it teaches us about our occupations makes it pretty plain that our career, job, and status in life definitely come second to God Himself and family time. Working is really only a tool to make ends meet and to serve our God and our families, and in some ways, our extended families and their needs.

Work is really important, but it shouldn't be at the expense of God and family - we are told to love our families as Christ loved His church  (Ephesians 5:25) - our families are precious gifts from God, and they should come before work at all times - God and family definitely come before anything else.

Christianity encourages diligence and hard work, BUT it also warns us about overworking and neglecting family, and our Christian walk with the Lord. Work can become our main aim and can lead to all sorts of unhealthy focus.

When we look at the Ten Commandments way back in Exodus in the Bible, the very first one says: "I  am the LORD your God, you shall not have any gods before me". 

It also says in Matthew 22:37 to  "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." This commandment is THE very first and THE most important one - it's the very foundation of a relationship with God Himself and with us mere mortals - quite amazing really!

Putting God first means we keep THE GREATEST commandment - in blunt words, we MUST be totally committed to a relationship with God. Everything and I mean EVERYTHING we have (our home, our kids, our money, our job, everything) is and should be devoted to God - we can hold nothing back.

Putting God first means we don't stage or erect (even in our minds) idols of any sort or form - when you think about it, an idol is anything that replaces God in our lives. We must strive to follow Jesus in anything we do or say.

Now, on saying that, I personally sin all the time in this way - sometimes it is so easy to stick yourself first, no matter what - even when driving, there is something inside of you that doesn't want to be taken advantage of by other drivers. Does it really matter that some person speeds up behind you and forces their way ahead? Not really, BUT I know it can be hard. That's a good reason to pray as you drive.

So, where are we going with this? Putting God first in our lives means we totally try and strive to follow Jesus. Jesus Himself (while He was here on earth)  totally submitted to God's will - we certainly saw that through His crucifixion. It was while He was facing that cruel and ghastly cross that He prayed, "Not my will but yours be done."

Jesus accomplished everything God the Father willed Him to do!

When you think about it, every one of us has priorities, we arrange our relationships, budgets, and our daily schedules - His will in our lives really does have to come first. Jesus was amazing while he was here on earth - SO....we should strive to be like Him - now I know that is pretty impossible, but the very fact that we STRIVE to do it means he has taken number one spot in our lives - How about you?

In Matthew 6:33, the Bible tells us that we should (and I quote from the NKJV Bible) "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you", meaning that we should seek out God first rather than the things of our world. 

You know, once we are saved through our faith in God, it means more to us than all the cars, the promotions at work, the mansions on the hill, travel, fitness, wellness, boats, and so it goes on.  

Putting God first does set you apart from your neighbours, friends, and basically from the rest of the world as we know it, especially these days of turmoil, hurt, disease, and war. Following God means we trust God over and above all else. How about you?

You know you can pray a prayer of commitment to God, which is a personal prayer of dedication and surrender to God's will for you.

To come to Jesus, you can pray a very simple prayer like this:- Lord Jesus, I first ask for forgiveness for all these things I have done wrong in my life - please help and guide me as I commit my entire life to you, Amen.

God loves us all so much, including you, no matter what you have done.

God bless you this week.

Closer than a brother?? Hmmm

I've been thinking a lot about the idiom that circulates around the globe a lot, and I quote "Closer than a brother".

It got me thinking - in my family, we were different.

My mum adored us, and she was a powerful Christian lady (if you would like to read her testimony to us as a family, it's here on my blog, which I posted on May 23rd, 2013).

In Proverbs 18:24, it refers to "a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Now that makes me think - did I do something wrong because my siblings and I weren't close at all! In fact, I can't ever remember being close to them. 

Unfortunately, my siblings and I were all so different - we didn't seem to have the catch cry "closer than a brother" at all.

Once I remember my eldest brother Ivan (who was 10 years older than me) turning up at the school on Parents Day, and he made a special trip to see me in action - it was good - I enjoyed seeing him there. But the others - my other brother and my sister - were totally estranged.

Hmmm, reading the Bible and in Genesis chapter 44 is the amazing story of Joseph being sold into slavery by his ten brothers.

They really hated young Joseph - he was the eldest of two sons born to Jacob's 2nd wife, Rachael. 

Rachael had two sons, Joseph and Benjamin - she died having Benjamin, and Jacob loved and adored Rachael much more than Rachael's sister Leah, Jacob's first wife.

Leah had six sons and maybe just one daughter - Bilhah and Zilpah, two servant girls, also bore him four sons between them.

So they were quite the family.

Long story cut short, all his brothers, except Benjamin, I feel, hated Joseph so much because of his amazing dreams; they all ganged up on young Joseph and, unbeknownst to old dad Jacob, they sold him to slavery to a mob of Egyptians heading that way.

Can you imagine what the young fella was feeling seeing his older brothers gang up on him and selling him to these rough and intolerable slave traders? 

The writer in Proverbs seems to assume that brothers and sisters are naturally close and that only one-of-a-kind types of friends could ever be closer.

Reading about how his brothers sold him into slavery (and how they must have reacted when Jacob, their father, was absolutely devastated by the loss of Joseph), they must have been really and truly concerned because of the amazing lies they told their dad.

It all came back to bite them, and God had plans for Joseph anyway - well worth reading if you get the chance (from Genesis chapter 39 onwards).

Anyway, where does that leave us with our own siblings?

It's not that uncommon for siblings to have limited communication even when living in the same place. Maybe vastly different interests and activities. Friends or family members sometimes really seem to annoy others in the same family. And so it goes on and on - lots of different things happening in the family which can be very annoying.

In our family, even though there were hardly ever disputes, we just didn't seem to relate to each other at all, which is fine and gives me a clear conscience that there was never a dispute (that I was aware of) that I did not ask for forgiveness. 

Maybe as siblings grow and develop different interests, they can drift apart, and some prefer to spend time on their own.

The Bible teaches us that we should "love our neighbours as ourselves," and this extends to family members.

We are also told that as Christians, we are called to forgive in the same way that God has forgiven us.

Hmmm, now that can be quite hard to get over. It's pretty important to think about forgiveness.

Forgiving someone doesn't mean in any way that what they may have done to you doesn't make it right. You are basically never saying and will never say, "It's fine - go ahead and keep hurting me". Let's rather think that you personally choose to let the bitterness flow out of you. You don't ever have to 'fall all over them' in friendliness. 

Forgiveness is really a choice you make. I know that I have hurt someone many times, and I have also been hurt by others.

Forgiveness is crucial to having a relationship with God.

On that mount, when Jesus was talking to the huge mob before him, he said, and I quote, "If you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you."

Forgiveness and Jesus certainly go hand in hand, considering what he went through in his three years of ministry and his cruel death on Calvary. Forgiveness, as Jesus taught us, is not only 'nice' but ESSENTIAL in asking God's forgiveness and also for forgiving others.

I'm always amazed at what Jesus said and prayed while he was so cruelly dying on that cross on Calvary. He prayed that God would forgive those who were killing him. 

Good old Peter - Jesus' disciple once asked Jesus, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus responded and floored Peter by saying, "We are to forgive others seventy times seven". That's actually four hundred and ninety times - that's amazing, isn't it?

I wonder if Peter was a bit taken aback to think that forgiveness is something that was never really encouraged at all in those days, especially in the law, where it was said that three times was enough. Hmm, that made me think - just how many times have we forgiven others, and how many times have we been forgiven? I am probably one of THE worst!

Peter and the rest of the disciples must have been stunned because what Jesus said was far beyond them - they would have been thinking in the limited terms of the law rather than the unlimited terms of God's amazing grace and forgiveness. 

Jesus was driving home a pretty spectacular point that if we are forgiven an enormous amount of sin (like we all have been if we have given our lives over to Christ) against a holy God then how much more should we be really ready and so eager to forgive all those who we reckon have sinned against us? 

Paul emphasises Jesus's example in Ephesians 4:32 when he tells us to forgive one another "even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you". 

Forgiveness to someone who has hurt you isn't something you do when you are on your own - sure, that's fine as well, but it shouldn't be given out in a limited sort of way but is to be overflowing and available just like God's amazing forgiveness for us. 

So, how do we receive Forgiveness from God?

The word FORGIVE means to 'start again" or "wipe it all away". Really, we don't ever deserve to be forgiven  -  love, mercy, and grace are all in the word forgiveness. In 2nd Peter 3 verse 9, Peter declares and I quote "He (God) is patient with you, not wanting ANYONE to perish, but everyone to come to repentance". 

You know:- Jesus came to earth to pay the price for our sins - amazing really when you think about it. In 2 Corinthians 5:21, it says, and I quote, "God made Him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God"- to me, that is oh so powerful.

Jesus's death was terrible, gruesome, and truly horrible, and during that time He paid for all of our sins, and all we have to do is come to Him and ask Him to change our lives and accept His amazing offer of forgiveness. HE ROSE AGAIN, which to me says it all.

Jesus paid our debts for us so that we could be forgiven - all we have to do is ask our Father God to forgive us and accept that Jesus died and rose again to pay for our forgiveness 

Pray this prayer if you would love to accept Jesus as your Lord and saviour - and when the time comes for us to die, we will then know where we are going:-

Pray along with me now:-

Father God - I know that I have sinned against you and I really deserve to be punished, BUT I believe that Jesus came and died to take my punishment away from me and by my faith in Jesus, I could be forgiven. I now want to place my trust in you - thank you so much for your grace and amazing forgiveness.  Amen.

God's richest blessings on you all this week, and may God guide you.

"Who Am I?".....Taking care of business??

Who am I? - I've often wondered that - it's really a funny old business, isn't it, that is knowing when to step in and when to stay well out of the way.

That to me is one of my biggest hurdles - I've always been pretty well known for sticking my nose into other people's business, and it is especially hard for me to keep away from interfering when it comes to the people we love the most.

I really need to stay well out of the way. And sometimes we actually run away - I know I have,  maybe not physically, but I certainly have made myself scarce.

Lots of family and friends go through some pretty tough times with lots of challenges and hardships constantly banging on their personal doors. 

I remember when I was really involved with a special family who were going through a pretty horrendous time - my natural instinct was to jump in and help, help, help as much as I possibly could. Sometimes great! Othertimes not so great. 

So, where are we?  Having brekky the other morning, I found myself reading Exodus chapter 3 - I relate so well to Moses - He took off in a hurry, hid himself away, and found himself relaxing (but not for as long as he thought).

"Who am I?" must have seemed like a legitimate question to God when He grabbed Moses, who was minding sheep and minding his own business in the wilderness, and spoke to him through a burning bush (which in it iteslf is utterly amazing) and told him that he had to go back to Egypt and rescue the Israelites from Pharaoh. You can just imagine Moses's surprise! WHAT!!! NO!!!

Years before, Moses had escaped from Egypt after he had saved one of the Israelite slaves from being beaten up brutally by an Egyptian, and Moses jumped to the rescue and ended up murdering the Egyptian himself.

Moses took off like a rocket after he realised that what he had done was becoming known, and Pharaoh was out to kill him. He ended up in a place called Midian and stayed there for many years.

He married Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro, a high priest in Midian, and Zipporah and Moses had two sons. So Moses thought life was pretty good - he had left Egypt and settled in Midian, had a wife and two sons, and was happy being a shepherd and wandering around in the wilderness.

So... you can imagine his surprise when God pushed this enormous enterprise onto him, not only the surprise but the responsibility of rescuing His people from Egypt and out of the hands of Pharaoh.

After much tooing and froing, Moses and his brother Aaron took off for Egypt and a long story cut short. Moses and Aaron took the Israelites from Egypt, and finally they saw the promised land after many, many years wandering in the desert. So much suffering followed, and so much hurt.

Is there is purpose in our suffering? Why am I going through this suffering? Does God know, hear, and is with us during this time? 

The Bible suggests that suffering, whatever that suffering is, all started when the world fell apart with sin. All suffering is unavoidable. That's what being human is about - It's not all loveliness and light; unfortunately, there is sadness, bitterness, and resentment.

Moses must have felt like he was all stirred up with doubt, fear, and a huge inadequacy. He felt amazingly burdened by his stuttering, a speech impediment he was obviously born with, and he was terrified to face Pharaoh. (I really can't blame him for that!).

You know, when you think about it, if you meet your suffering, whatever that suffering is, with faith in Christ Jesus, then God can use your suffering to give you hope. 

In Romans 5, it states, "believers can rejoice in their suffering because it leads to endurance, which then produces character and ultimately hope". 

Endurance is an amazing skill. When we look at Christ's life, His love and His endurance in what he went through here on earth for us, it all points to God's love and His grace as the very source of strength, endurance, and hope, even in the middle of suffering, whatever that suffering may be.

When we are suffering, it can often be challenging. I know when I suffer all sorts of things, it can often lead me to a deeper relationship with God because I really feel I can't cope when things go zooming out of control. I need his strength and endurance more than anything in those tough times. 

When I think of what our family has been through this past 12 months, it has just made me realise that we really need to grow more and more into a deeper relationship with God. It is through these tough times that I personally have realised we have an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-great God.

Unfortunately, many people leave their faith when things get tough. The very presence of tough times can lead to people challenging their faith and questioning Christ's love for them.

To me personally, and knowing the way I am, Jesus' very death on that cruel cross saved me from my obvious desperation and depression. 

Jesus can do the same for you - If he can do it for me with my mixed-up life as it was, He certainly can do it for you.

All you need to do is to pray to Him and ask Him to lead your life and take control. He can uphold you in the tough times and rejoice with you in good times.

Have an amazing week, and please keep your eyes on Jesus Christ this week. He is our God and King.

Take Care.

24-7 access

It's amazing to have access to whatever and whenever we need it - access on a 24-hour basis is truly great.

I was listening to the radio, driving along yesterday, singing along to myself, which is normal, and as my wife tells me, just keep your singing voice to yourself and give the rest of the world a break! So when I'm driving alone, singing is good.

Anyway, the music stopped and along came the host of radio ads as normal and among them was the one from a solicitors of all peiople saying that they have 24 hour service and quote "no matter what you are going through at the moment we are available for you no matter the time or the hour." How exciting, and I hate to think just how much they would really charge.

But really listening to that, I realised that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has a 24-hour service to us. Had you realised that?

Do you know who or what a Christian is?

Years ago, the word CHRISTIAN originated in Antioch in the first century A.D. It was originally intended to be an insult, and it meant "little Christ". Now we truly believe we identify with Jesus Christ when we use the term Christian.

Philip Yancey is a Christian American author and has written many Christian books

In his book on prayer, he shares a story about an interview with a Chinese minister who has spent decades in prison due to his faith in God and also his ministry.

Mr Yancey asked, "What can Christians in the rest of the world do for you?" The pastor responded immediately, "You can pray."

Prayer is truly remarkable - I have experienced it firsthand many times. We are truly blessed to be able to come to our Lord and saviour in prayer, no matter the time of day or the hour - God is there for us no matter how we are feeling and what we are doing

If you are an insomniac, God is there for you - He never sleeps - Jesus our Lord is so ready to hear your prayers, no matter the time or the hour.

Prayer also allows us to worship and praise our Lord. I find it so important. To me, prayer is also confession time. Like me, many out there sin a lot - often when we don't realise we are sinning - prayer in this circumstance is really, really important. God is there for us 24/7

And then also....Prayer gives us opportunities to request things from God, our Saviour, Lord Jesus.

You know if we don't pray, we miss out on God's grace.

Sinning is so human, it is incredible. Just when you may think you have put sin behind you, here it comes again and smacks you in the face. 

So many people think that once they have become Christians, then sinning falls away from their lives, but you know it doesn't. That is why God is there for us constantly, and he reminds us of the sins we have committed.

The Bible tells us that having accepted Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives means that he has forgiven our long and sinful past and, amazingly, if we confess our sins to Him, He will continue to forgive us.

SO, what does this mean?

It means that when Christians sin (whatever that sin may be), they should confess those sins to God just as soon as they are reminded of them by the Holy Spirit, who is God.

1 John 1:9 says, "Ïf we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Life in general is a journey. Often, a journey we don't want to travel, but the Christian life is also a journey, a journey that can transform us to become more and more like Jesus Christ Himself.

So the question is often asked, "How can I become a Christian?" 

God has made it really simple for us to become Christians. All we have to do is receive Jesus as our savior, accepting His death as an atonement for our sins (John 3:16)  and trust Him as our Savior.

Being a Christian means having a personal relationship with Jesus through faith.

Are you ready to become a Christian?  We ALL have sinned, every one of us  - Jesus took our punishment and paid for our sins on that cross all those years ago, so all we have to do is to place our trust in Jesus as our saviour and Lord, pray and ask Him to come into our lives.

God bless you this week.

Bullfrogs and butterflies

I've been reading NO COMPROMISE: The Life Story of Keith Green

Keith was born on 21st October 1953 and died in a horrible plane crash on 28th July 1982,  at the age of 28.

Keith was born to loving parents, who were Jewish and became Christian Scientists who believe in Jesus's divinity but do not view Him as God.

Keith struggled with believing in God in the same way his parents did, but he always had that inquiring mind to ask, "Who is God? "and "Why on earth did He come here?"

He ran away from home at a very early age, seeking to truly understand what life was all about, but kept coming back home. 

During many of his "runaways," he met many people all with differing views on life eternal, and Keith had many, many questions - drug taking was imminent in his life, and he met many others affected similarly.

He kept coming back home, and his parents tried to help, hoping to assist him in many ways.

Keith had many questions involving Christianity, and he was truly seeking the truth about God and that Jesus was actually God Himself - Keith had heaps of questions, and, with his constant seeking, he tried many diferent versions of so-called Christianity and in the end, he virtually gave up trying to uncover the REAL truth.

Keith was a fantastic musician and composer of many songs - he played at a place called the Blah Blah so often his compositions led him in many directions, and he was able to record records in those days, his talents were extraordinary.

Through it all, looking back, God had a plan for Keith's life. Sometimes we find God's plans so extraordinary that we, as mere humans, truly can't understand them.

He then met the amazing Barry McGuire, a well-known singer-songwriter with numerous hit songs, including the 1965 hit "Eve of Destruction".

Barry was a Christian and wrote many Contemporary Christian songs. It was during Keith's seeking years, and because of his recording, he ended up meeting Barry, who changed his life.

To quote Barry McGuire, "What do bullfrogs and butterflies have in common? The frog comes from a tadpole, and the butterfly emerges from a cocoon - but they both get born again. And just like them, we need to experience a spiritual rebirth before we can really know God".

Keith gave his life to Christ at that time. He met Melody, who was also struggling with life in general, and she too became a born-again Christian.

They truly have an amazing story, and if you honestly get the chance, please read "The Life Story of Keith Green - NO COMPROMISE." 

I know this book really made me think of how my life was going and if I really was as committed to God as I should be - I have spent time in prayer asking God to make me aware of how much I need Christ to take full control of my life. 

Keith and Melody were married, and after an amazing story (which I have already suggested you should read), they were blessed to have three children, Rebekah, Josiah, and Bethany. Melody was also pregnant with her fourth child.

Quote: "On a blistering hot day on 28th July 1982, their friends John and DeDe Smalley were coming for a quick visit - they had six children."

Quote: "After dinner, Keith lost no time because it was getting late. Even though we were all tired, they wanted to see the rest of the ranch, including a quick sightseeing flight in our leased Cessna 414. Our pilot, Don Burmeister, who had flown in the military, would take them up. Apparently, John had promised one of the children a plane ride, and Keith was excited to give them a birds-eye view of the area."

Everyone boarded the plane except Melody and her youngest, Rebekah. Melody was so anxious - it was a spur-of-the-moment decision to take everyone.

The plane went down, killing everyone on board. Melody had another daughter, Rachel Hope. A daughter Keith never saw.

Such a tragedy.

You know - nobody knows how our life will be - it can all change in a matter of seconds.

Where are you in your thoughts of life and death?

I know this book really challenged me and how I really thought of life and death. 

God is truly amazing if you trust Him entirely - He is so ready to receive you as one of His own, but it really makes me think how ready are we to face the facts of death. Are you ready? Have you considered what it could mean?

I know this book really made me think and made me recognise that I am a sinner and need forgiveness, as we all do.

Jesus died for you and He died for me - He took our sins upon Himself, and all we have to do is to accept His amazing gift of eternal life. Acknowledge your sins and ask Jesus to forgive them, no matter what they are, and make Him number one in your life as your leader and guide.

God bless you abundantly this week, and please pray earnestly and really consider giving your life over to God and King Jesus.

Helter Skelter

Charles Milles Maddox was born to a young 16-year-old by the name of Ada Maddox on 12th November 1934.

Charles Milles Maddox turned himself into Charles Manson - one of THE most notorious killers in American history.

Little did anyone at that stage in Manson's life know just how infamous he would become.

Manson is pretty well-known for his brutal, hippie, and drug-fueled murderous escapades, which claimed the life of the famous and very pregnant Sharon Tate and her companions who were visiting her that night. Her companions that night were Jay Sebring, Abigail Folger, Wojciech Frykowski, and Steven Parent.

The following evening, while everyone was still recovering from shock and horror, the Manson family murdered supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his lovely wife Rosemary at their home in Los Angeles.

Who actually killed these seven people? Was it Manson himself?

No! Actually, he was the instigator and told his hippie followers, Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Patricia Krenwinkel to get themselves to the Tate home and totally destroy everyone inside and to quote Manson, "as brutally as you can". 

How horrible, how ghastly - the four women and Tex Watson went to Sharon Tate's home, knowing that Sharon's husband, Roman Polanski, was away filming. 

Sharon and Roman met while making a film, and they were married in London on 20th January 1968.

On the night of the 8th August 1969, Manson's followers, ie, the ones mentioned above, carried out the brutal killings.

Sharon Tate, who was 8 months pregnant, and the other occupants of her home were relaxing around midnight when the murderous four arrived at the property. Young 18-year-old Steven Parent was driving home after visiting the caretaker of the property. Watson shot and killed Parent, and then Atkins and Krewinkel smashed into the home, leaving Kasabian outside.

All of them inside were made to cluster in the living room and were linked by ropes around their necks. Atkins and Watson fatally stabbed Jay and Sharon even though she was pleading for her baby, asking them to take her with them so she could give birth. They laughed, tortured, and killed her, and wrote "PIG" on the front door in her blood.

Abigail and Wojciech freed themselves and dashed out of the door, only to be gunned down so horribly in the driveway of the home.

The next night, Leno and his wife Rosemary were tied up by Watson and Manson and robbed. Manson left, and Leno and Rosemary were stabbed to death by Watson, Van Houten, and Krewinkel. Once again, leaving words written in blood on the walls.

When you consider what those poor people must have suffered and how cruelly they died, it is very, very sad even thinking about it.

Manson and his crew were all arrested, tried, and all received the death penalty, which was changed to life when California abolished capital punishment.

Since then, Manson died on 19th November 2017 - he was 83 years old. Tex Watson is still in prison. Susan Atkins died in prison on 24th September 2009. Linda Kasabian died on 21st January 2023, aged 73. Patricia Krewinkel is still in prison after 56 years.

Manson had believed that the Beatles song "Helter Skelter" contained an apocalyptic vision - so sad really!

So, where does that leave us as Christians? Jesus gave His life so that we can be forgiven, which in reality is amazing. Jesus took our punishment for us - how extraordinary that would have been if Manson and his followers had had a glimpse of Jesus and what he did for us.

Jesus paid for our sins by his sacrifce on Calvary all those years ago, How amazing would it have been in Charles Manson had come to the realisation of his need for Jesus to take control of his life - I can just imagine what a great Christian Manson would have been considering he had such sway over his followers.

Through Jesus' death, and if you accept that He died for you, it means that your sins are washed clean, and Jesus has offered us all a real path to forgiveness and a miraculous reconciliation with God. 

We all need to recognise the very need of Jesus as our saviour and trust in His death on that horrible day on Calvary as His amazing way of opening the gates of Heaven for us.

Have a great week, and please let us know if we can help you in your walk with Christ.

God bless

GO!

Well - what a year it has been - here we are getting older all the time and as we progress through the years ahead I just praise God that He is with us regardless of what is happening in our world especially the world around us.

When we listen to the news and hear of the awful things that are happening in our broken world it is pretty staggering and then of course there are our personal lives - we all have our different problems in life and many need to make adjustments.

I had really no idea that I would have to go back to work - All was well and then suddenly all changed when a life-threatening illness bounded into our family and knocked us sideways.

There is always change!

Change for us can be an absolute shock in so many ways.

Have you found change in your life? Has it been good change or bad change?

You know change can be tough but it is healthy in a way and it becomes a necessary part of life.

Sometimes we have to move on even when we don't want to - it just means we have to use the word "GO".

We can't just stand around asking "what am I supposed to do?"  Let's not waste time looking for the right moment to act and really let's not wait for other people to open all the doors for us.

Let's not let our lack of motivation slow us down  - let's just GO!

You know the only person who can really stop you achieving what you need to achieve especially under unforeseen circumstances that affect your life in hundreds of ways is.......YOU

Acknowledging change and what is happening in your life - even when it can be extremely painful - is the very first step towards moving forward.

When bad things happen we can sit around wringing our hands and sighing - does it help? NO definitely not - believe me.

Sue and I have been in that situation quite a few times and even now we find ourselves once more facing such a hard time. We have to accept the things we can't change - jump out of our lethargy and build up resilience even when often our hearts can be breaking and we really do NOT want to embrace
change.

During really tough times of change, reaching out to trusted friends, even maybe family (if you have any) or professional people for support is a great way to help you cope - far far better than letting the emotional side of your trauma take control of your life.

Tough times in life can bring about potential anxiety especially when there is no way to avoid distress and huge sorrows or even misfortune and very unpleasant situations. Resilience and trusting in our living Lord is a huge ability to cope with life's traumas.

Maybe focusing on what we can control (as we know lots of things are out of our control) and also maybe not being so hard on ourselves in the process can help us to maintain a positive outlook on the problems we face in trials.

At problematic times it is so good to have strategies in place to help us cope. These strategies, including focusing on our Spiritual journey in life can make a huge difference in having to rise up to all sorts of problems and anxieties.

Asking our Lord to help us cope with hardship and turbulence gives us the strength to come bounding back from life's tragedies.

Life throws us all sorts of curved balls and we find it hard to dodge them but God is there for us. He calls you and me to trust His word and adjust our lives accordingly, and to maybe reform our ways.

Do you trust God? Do you believe in Him? He wants you to come to Him regardless of how you may feel or what you may be going through.

I personally am probably one of the worst people to slip up in my walk with God - but do you know - God loves me - truly He does and is always there for me even when I make huge mistakes. Every time we give into temptation whatever that temptation is - we do a 'slip' up in our walk with God. 

We all make mistakes no matter how we live or what we do which often seems to change our course in life.

That's why prayers and repentance should be part of our daily schedule. 

SO.....By repenting we can direct our course and come back to our God and Father.

We need desperately to come to our Lord Jesus - firstly we need to confess our sins (whatever they may be) no sin regardless of how big we feel they me be is too big for God to forgive.

That is remarkable. Many people feel they can't come to Jesus because of the many many times they have sinned against Him. God will forgive ALL sins - there is no grading of sins in God's eyes.

So whatever you have done, wherever you have been or whoever you have been with. God is ready to forgive you if you come to Him in repentance.

God is there to help us cope with all the tough things that are going on in our lives - I know I trust Him and rely on his love to get me through.

God go with you this week - God bless

DNA Genetic Codes

I've been reading Genesis - the first book in the Bible - and once again I have been overwhelmed by God's amazing creation.

The painted Desert. The Northern lights. The Milky Way. The blue whale. The Tiny little micro-organs.Genetic Codes DNA.  And so it goes on and on - it is truly amazing  - the extra-ordinary creations.

When you stop to consider just how sensitive is our world - The Sun. The Moon. The universe. The very atmosphere. The beaches and the surf.

Sue and I walk each Saturday morning at the beaches near our home - looking at the surf and the extra-ordinary beaches are astounding and never ceases to amaze us.

Dixon Park Beach looking to Bar beach

Each Saturday the beaches are unique and beautiful - sometimes so beautiful they catch your breath - the sand and the surf - the bright morning sun the glittering and reflections on the waves - the surfers and the swimmers all enjoying themselves.

Yet other times it can be quite quite different - the winter time - the darkness the coldness of the beach - hardly anyone around - often the waves are so big and it is so so cold - BUT...

It is extraordinary how different it all looks week after week - often after maybe a cyclone off the coast the waves are huge and extremely dangerous - the sand on the beaches washed away leaving exposed rocks and many trees and logs washed up on what remains of the beach and yet.....

The next week it's all so peaceful and beautiful - it never ever ceases to amaze us and it keeps resounding constantly of the huge reminders of just how amazing is our Creator God.

God brought all of these incredible creations into existence with just a word or a nod - Genesis is awesome - a must read!

How can you not respect a Creator with that kind of power - Do you take time to think about how incredible this world is  - and how about the fact that we are all so different and unique. God made us all so different - not one of us is exactly the same - even identical or fraternal twins are different. God indeed made us all unique.

The awe-inspiring beauty highlights God's original plan for the entire universe and reflects his nature of wisdom, intelligence and His absolute care of all things. All of us tend to take so much for granted...

We walk outside and see the world around us, often without any thought of its incredible majesty, it's wonder and total grandness! We take for granted the very sky - the sun - the mountains - the trees - the ocean any of which is enough to overwhelm us by it's very beauty, hostility and magnitude. We take it all for granted.

It's only I when stop. Look. Listen and contemplate just how magnificent is God's creation. The day - the night - the twilight - the sunrise and sunset - truly incredible.

This from Colossians 1: 15-17 "He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, For by Him all things were created; Things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. he is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."

When we read Genesis it captures the sweeping story of a world that swings from perfect to pathetic - from flawless to fallen - our world is still beautiful and fully awesome BUT think just how truly magnificent it would have continued to be if sin hadn't entered.

When sin entered our perfect world and when you read Genesis you'll find a world of lust, murder, incest, lying, cheating, stealing and power-grabbing. Pretty horrible really but one solid theme resonates through the Bible and that is when Jesus returns a perfect world will one day be restored.

The awesome God who created our world wants to know each of us personally and He has made a way that we do just that. We can believe and accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour  - Jesus needs to come into our lives. We need to confess our sins - and probably do this on a VERY regular basis - and invite Him into our lives and hearts.

We need to not hold grudges against anybody - harder sometimes than we may imagine, especially if people have really hurt us in some way. When you consider what Jesus went through in his life here on earth and what he went through on that extraordinarily cruel cross and how he forgave the very ones who did that to Him, then who am I to find it in my heart not to forgive?

Tomorrow Sue and I will get up pretty early and God willing we will make our way to Bar Beach in Newcastle and Sue will take her weekly pilgrimage along the esplanade covering Bar Beach, Dixon Park and Merewether Beaches and then make her way back from where we started and meet up with me I personally will do the same except I'll be on the beach taking a slow trot along the sand and back - that is if there is any sand left after the terrible weather we have had.  Then it's brekky time and great coffee from any number of Newcastle cafe's selling breakfast.

God bless - have an awesome week - and don't forget God wants you to give Him your heart and invite Him into your life.

See you next time